DirectX 10 will end backwards compatibility

Another move from MS to move forward leaving its own previous version behind.

Link:
http://news.softpedia.com/.../DirectX-10-and-so-it-ends-7762.shtml

"For Your Eyes Only": How to lock a file

Locking a file or folder is often overlooked by Windows XP users and can be very handy in households where many people share a single computer.

Link:
http://blogs.msdn.com/tiptalk/archive/2005/10/14/481265.aspx

Firefox 1.5 is now out!

Firefox v1.5:
http://www.mozilla.com/

Amazing what some people spend time on

Do this in Windows:

"Start Menu", "Run", CMD

Then Type:
telnet 193.202.115.241

Its safe and has been tested..

Email from FBI is a virus

Any emails from the FBI is nothing more than a virus.

I am only posting this to help propogate the information as I'm sure nobody that reads this blog would ever be fooled so easily.

The world's most advanced search engine?

Previewseek.com claims to be the world's most advanced search engine. Try and decide for yourself.

Paint.net v2.5 final released

I blogged somtime in September about a free alternative to the paint program that comes with Windows called Paint.NET.

v2.5 is out of beta and has been officially released at Paint.NET

"About
Paint.NET is image and photo manipulation software designed to be used on computers that run Windows 2000, XP, Vista, or Server 2003. It supports layers, unlimited undo, special effects, and a wide variety of useful and powerful tools.

It is meant to be a free replacement for the MS Paint software that comes with Windows."

Pandora's Box of CSS Hacks...

If you are a web developer and using CSS for your presentation layer than this article is a must. You are using CSS aren't you? If not you should be...

Article:
http://webstandards.org/buzz/archive/2005_11.html

Another DVD type format to challange Blu-Ray and HD DVD

Read all about a 300GB DVD type media that will go on sale in 2006. This format uses the same principles as Blu-Ray and HD DVD but uses a different technique to cram more information onto the disc.

The structural failures of Windows

"Because I have some knowledge of the history of operating systems, I'll now take on the duty of demonstrating the architectural flaws, and a bit about how they got there. Before starting, I'll also state that there isn't a flawless operating system out there, just some that have poor or weak architecture"

Link:
http://www.theinquirer.net/?article=15305

What does PC Magazine think of Firefox 1.5

Read the review of what PC Magazines thinks of the upcoming release of Firefox 1.5.

Google Video: Matrix Ping Pong

Too funny.

Link:
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-8079411349144989883

New version of MS Antisypware

Still in beta but the new release of MS Antispyware extends the expiration day until July 21st, 2006.

If you aren't using this then what are you waiting for? This is one of those must use tools.

Still my big three for cleaning a computer:

1. SpyBot Search and Destroy
2. Adaware
3. Microsoft Antispyware (beta)

Also, add CCleaner as honorable mention.

A history of Windows

20 years of Windows: Windows has seen many changes in its 20-year career. Here, we look at those versions which have evolved directly from the very first version, see how we got here from there - and what thrilled and chilled along the way

http://insight.zdnet.co.uk/software/0,39020463,39237496,00.htm

Add your folders to the Open / Save dialogbox

This is the Windows XP Pro way to customize the Places Bar (folders listed on the left of the dialogbox) in the standard Open / Save dialogbox.

1. Open the Group Policy Editor by opening the start menu -> run -> gpedit.msc
2. Drill down to Windows Explorer User Configuration -> Administrative Templates -> Windows Components -> Common Open File Dialog
3. Double-click the Items displayed in Places Bar setting
4. Make sure the setting is Enabled
5. Customize the Place to display with your folders*.

* - You can use Common Shell Folders by using any of the following folders: CommonDocuments, CommonMusic, CommonPictures, Desktop, MyComputer, MyDocuments, MyFavorites, MyMusic, MyNetworkPlaces, MyPictures, Printers, ProgramFiles, Recent

Now you're saying what if I don't run WinXP Pro? Well you need to either use TweakUI or edit the registry directly.

Registry location:
HKEY_CURRENT_USER -Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\comdlg32\PlacesBar

String value (name will be Place0 to Place4):
"Place0"="c:\\temp"

The above will only work for the Windows dialogbox and not the Microsoft Dialogbox. The following can be followed to modify these dialogboxes too: Office 2000 | Office XP | Office 2003

...some additional hacks can be found in Veign's Registry Hacks...

New version of AVG anti-virus released.

"The new version of AVG Free provides increased scanning speed as well as additional improvements which include a new event-history log and added options for filename extension definitions."

• Automatic update functionality
• The AVG Resident Shield, which provides real-time protection as files are opened and programs are run
• The AVG E-mail Scanner, which protects your e-mail
• The AVG On-Demand Scanner, which allows the user to perform scheduled and manual tests
• Free Virus Database Updates for the lifetime of the product
• AVG Virus Vault for safe handling of infected files

Link:
http://free.grisoft.com/doc/2/lng/us/tpl/v5

Detailed information about the $400 laptops

The sub-$400 laptop:
http://www.laptoplogic.com/.../detail.php?id=25&page=2

99 Useful Run Commands

99 Useful Run Commands offers another way to access some common Windows components.

Pandora

"Tell us one of your favorites songs or artists and we'll create a station that explores that part of the music universe."

Link:
http://www.pandora.com/

Between that and Woxy.com (alittle out there at times but some good songs come by) seems that all bases are covered.

New screenshots of Windows Vista

New screenshots of Windows Vista November CTP release - Build 5259:
http://www.activewin.com/screenshots/vista/nov05ctp/

What is:

• System Rating
• Program Defaults
• MigWiz (Migration Wizards I guess)

I know alot of people don't like the interface but I think its very attractive and easy to look at. What are your thoughts on the new look to Windows?

Google's Click to Call

"We're testing a new product that gives you a free and fast way to speak directly to the advertiser you found on a Google search results page – over the phone"
http://www.google.com/help/faq_clicktocall.html

Now that is a great idea...

Reason to read your registered URL in all lower case.

List of some URL's where the webmaster failed to read the URL in lower case. People don't always read something the same way as you intended..

Should we be worried about Google?

Disturbing facts about Google:
http://www.rinf.com/news/nov05/googlefacts.html

"Google are clearly gathering information about us but refuse to tell us why. It's nothing new to us, but while they cannot control normal SERPs, they do however control the information given via the news service. There's something fishy going on over at Google."

Color scheme chooser - HTML color codes

"This HTML color code tool is based on classic color theory pioneered by Johannes Itten in the mid 1900s. Johannes Itten developed a new kind of color wheel that changed the way color was seen. This wheel is still in use today. The Johannes Itten wheel uses yellow, red and blue as its primary colors."

Link:
http://www.siteprocentral.com/html_color_code.html

Ten to Avoid--the Worst Products of 2005

Ten to Avoid--the Worst Products of 2005:
http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,,1891472,00.asp

WordPress out of Beta and doors are opened wide

WordPress.com is an easy and powerful way to start blogging:
http://wordpress.com/

You think its annoying, I think its cool

Best Xmas Lights Display Ever:
http://www.mypartypost.com/.../Best_Christmas_Lights_Display_Ever

Direct Link to the video:
http://media.mypartypost.com/.../christmaslights.wmv

Very interesting read about Google

"Google hired a pair of very bright industrial designers to figure out how to cram the greatest number of CPUs, the most storage, memory and power support into a 20- or 40-foot box. We're talking about 5000 Opteron processors and 3.5 petabytes of disk storage that can be dropped-off overnight by a tractor-trailer rig."

...Read More

Windows XP in 3D?

Sphere 3D:
http://www.hamar.sk/sphere/

Not sure this has any use and looks kinda like something you would see in Windows Vista instead. Anyway, download and judge for yourself.

Google makes things faster too

Google's web accelerator works with your browser to help web pages show up in a snap.

One thing I question is in their statement on how it works they state "Prefetching certain pages onto your computer in advance.". What pages are they prefetching? Is this some sort of 'deal' they setup with some companies?

Also, it seems they will store information about you and your browsing habits. This could be used to send target ads to you at sometime in the future. From their FAQ: Google will receive your requests for unencrypted pages (those with "HTTP:", not "HTTPS:", at the beginning of the URL), along with information such as the date and time of the request, your IP address, and computer and connection information.

I was going to install this but not sure at this point. Anyone try it?

Its just a joke, a break from the tech stuff

A woman gets onto a bus with her baby.

The bus driver says, "That's the ugliest baby that I've ever seen. Ugh!"

The woman goes to the rear of the bus and sits down, fuming. She says to a man next to her, "The driver just insulted me!"

The man says, "You go right up there and tell him off. Go ahead, I'll hold your monkey for you."

ActiveSync 4.1 released from Microsoft

Microsoft releases ActiveSync 4.1:
http://www.microsoft.com/.../activesync41.mspx

Ping+

Windows (all):
Ping (more info): Verifies IP-level connectivity to another TCP/IP computer by sending Internet Control Message Protocol (ICMP) Echo Request messages.

Works from a command prompt

Windows XP:
PathPing (more info): Works like Ping above but adds the Tracert functionality.

Works from a command prompt

(addition command line tools for WinXP)

PingPlotter:
"PingPlotter is a network troubleshooting and diagnostic tool. It uses a combination of traceroute, ping, and whois to collect data quickly, and then allows you to continue to collect data over time to give you the information you really need to identify problems (both short-term and long-term trends)."

MP3 music source too good to be true?

AllofMp3.com provides a very cheap service to download mp3's. You decide for yourself if this service is too good to be true and if by downloading the MP3's you are violating copyright laws..

How to reset your Windows XP Admin password

I Forgot My Administrator Password!

"If that’s your only problem, then you probably have nothing to worry about. As long as you have your Windows XP CD, you can get back into your system using a simple but effective method made possible by a little known access hole in Windows XP."

Read on:
http://pubs.logicalexpressions.com/Pub0009/LPMArticle.asp?ID=305

Machines and objects to overtake humans on the Internet

Machines and objects to overtake humans on the Internet:
http://www.breitbart.com/.../051117122039.bk8qci9l.html

Firefox 1.5 RC3 released - for real!

The possible last release candidate version of the next release of Firefox (v1.5) is now out. It is not on the homepage yet but can be found on the ftp site.

$100 laptop in the future?

$100 laptop expected in late 2006:
http://news.com.com/.../2100-1028_3-5956402.html?tag=nefd.top

Jumped the gun with Firefox

The announcement yesterday that the new version of Firefox (1.5) was ready for release was just not true.

You can see here the entire list of Firefox releases and its still at RC2..

Google Base

Google Base is a place where you can add all types of information that we'll host and make searchable online.

Free alternatives to Macromedia and Adobe software

Free alternatives to Macromedia and Adobe:
http://.../free-alternatives-to-macromedia-and-adobe-software

Manage profiles in Firefox and Netscape

You may already know that in Firefox and Netscape you can have multiple profiles which allows users (profiles) to share the same application but customize the interface, load your own bookmarks, load and install different extensions, blah blah blah. What you might not know how to do is create and manage these profiles as its not that clear - which I found out when trying to create a new profile in Netscape to do some testing for the upcoming release of Link200.

The way I found to do this is start either application with a -profilemanager startup argument. So that means typing in the Run window:

firefox.exe -profilemanager

or

netscape.exe -profilemanager

Will start either of the applications with the profile manager. You can also change the target of the shortcut to either of the above for the same result.

Firefox 1.5 going live today!

Rumor is that Firefox 1.5 will be released sometime today.

"Here's just a few of many things you can expect to see in Firefox 1.5:

• Support for SVG, Canvas, CSS3 Columns, Javascript 1.6
  
• Revised Option Window icluding a new "Clear Private Data" option
  
• Binary patching with an enhanced automatic update system, eliminating the need to reinstall Firefox for an update or subsequent release
  
• Significant decrease in page rendering time
  
• Instant "Back/Foward" browser cache along with tab "Drag and Drop" functionality
  
• Hundreds of program/stability related bugfixes"

Although the features are real I have a feeling that the news story was a hoax as the related link has gone missing (I had to remove from this post)

Another Root Kit tool

I posted a link to the Root Kit Revealer on the Sysinternals website and stumbled across another Root Kit tool. I came across a link to Root Kit Analyzer on DonationCoder.com's forums.

This tool seems to work nicely in conjunction from the tool from Sysinternals. Seems that one doesn't replace the other but work side by side.

Quick Link:
Root Kit Analyzer

Microsoft Windows for free?

Microsoft eyes making desktop apps free:
http://news.com.com/Microsoft+eyes+making+desktop+apps+free/...

"Even as Microsoft readies a host of new ad-supported online services to battle rivals, the software maker has been mulling a plan to offer free, ad-supported versions of some of its desktop products, CNET News.com has learned.

Although no specific plans have been made, executives within Microsoft are examining whether it makes sense to release ad-supported versions of products such as Works, Money, or even the Windows operating system itself, according to internal documents seen by CNET News.com."

Google changes its algorithm

"There has been a major update of Google’s ranking algorithm, changing the way the search engine orders search results. Atul Gupta of RedAlkemi discusses the consequences for webmasters."

Some of the changes so far:
1. Value of incoming links
2. Value of anchor text in incoming links
3. Content on page of incoming links
4. Keyword repetitions in anchor text
5. Age of the incoming links
6. Nature of sites linking to you
7. Directory links
8. Speed and volume of incoming links created
9. Value of reciprocal links
10. Impact of outbound links / links page on your website
11. Sandbox effect / age of your site, domain registration date
12. Size of your site’s content
13. Addition and frequency of fresh content update
14. Canonical / sub domains, sub-sub domains
15. Multiple domains on same IP numbers
16. Duplicate content on same site or on multiple domains
17. Over-optimization, excessive text markup
18. Irrational use of CSS

Jagger Algo Update:
http://www.pandia.com/...jagger-algo-update-part-1.html