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Microsoft: IE8 to support standards from the start
2008-03-04 02:03:00
Microsoft has announced that its planned standards compatibility mode will the default. Earlier proposals required a special meta tag inserted into the Web page to force IE8 into the standards compatibility mode. Public out cry has apparently forced Microsoft to change its plans. More details can be found here. powered by Bloget™ - "One File, One Binary, One Blog"
More About: Browsers , Standards , Microsoft , Support , Start

Hartville Tool - Nice
2008-03-03 01:04:00
I recently ordered some woodworking items form Hartville Tool in Ohio. Hartville is a great source for all things woodworking. I ordered on Thursday afternoon and by Friday evening I had my stuff. Incredible! On occasion Hartville has extended special discounts to our local woodworking club (www.semiww.org). Great company. P.S. I don't get paid or otherwise compensated for these comments. I'm just a guy who likes to buy stuff on the Internet and report my experiences. powered by Bloget™ - "One File, One Binary, One Blog"
More About: Nice

msdnReader Rivals Printed Format
2008-02-27 01:47:00
msdnReader is a desktop application that is similar to the highly regarded New York Times Reader. The application provides caching and offline reading of MSDN Magazine articles through a highly intuitive and slick interface. In use it is much more comfortable to read than the MSDN Web site and even rivals the printed format in layout and ease of use. I found that the program works well in Vista and Windows XP. However, there appears to be no proxy support at the moment which is an unfortunate omission since it essentially eliminates using it in a corporate environment. The author promises to fix this issue soon. That would be great because I have a stack of MSDN magazines in my cube at work that I would like to dump. This reader essentially makes those hard copies obsolete. powered by Bloget™ - "One File, One Binary, One Blog"
More About: Freebies , Links , Format , Rivals

Copy Large Files in Windows
2008-02-22 20:33:00
Robocopy (means Robust Copy ) is a tool from Microsoft. It is distributed in the Windows 2003 Server Resource kit (along with many other cool tools). Robocopy is faster and much more reliable. It can restart failed transfers and has a rich set of options for mirroring directories, logging and more. But there's a problem. The traditional "copy and paste" functionality that is built into Microsoft® Windows® has limitations. It works well enough for simple tasks (moving a document from one directory to another, and so on), but it lacks the advanced functionality an IT professional needs in the workplace. For example, the copy and paste operation doesn't include any kind of advanced resiliency that would allow it to recover from a brief network disruption. It's also an all-or-nothing proposition, particularly when copying complete directories. Through the UI, you can't choose to copy only those files which are new or have been updated. You either copy individual files, entire direct...
More About: Files , Large

Installing VS 2005 Extensions after Installing .NET Framework 3.0 SP1 or La
2008-02-21 01:49:00
If you try to install the Visual Studio 2005 Extensions required for WPF development after installing the .Net Framework 3.0 SP1 or later, you will get an error saying that the .Net FW 3.0 is not installed. To get around this, either back down to the original .Net FW 3.0 via uninstall/reinstall, or add the following registry key: [HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINESOFTWAREMicrosoftWindo wsCurrentVersionUninstall{15095BF3-A3D7-4 DDF-B193-3A496881E003}] "DisplayName"="Microsoft .NET Framework 3.0" http://forums.microsoft.com/MSDN/ShowPost .aspx?PostID=2550726&SiteID=1 powered by Bloget™ - "One File, One Binary, One Blog"

Bloget Multiuser, Multiblog Support
2008-02-19 16:58:00
A user recently asked if Bloget supports multiple users and multiple blogs? The short answer is yes. Bloget uses ASP.NET's membership services and as such works with SQL, Active Directory and other providers. Bloget also has a builtin XML provider for those economy hosts that don't provide such services.Multiple blogs are also possible in Bloget. After all it's just a Web control. Having multiple instances in multiple pages is certainly one way to do this. Bloget has no builtin infrastructure to directly support multiple blogs similar to what Subtext and Community Server support. It would be possible to code up your own community environment using bloget for the blogging component.Perhaps the one thing that Bloget should supply is a blog aggregation control to summarize multiple blogs into a single feed/page. With that in mind, what features would you like to see an aggregation control? powered by Bloget™ - "One File, One Binary, One Blog"
More About: Support

Bloget Beta 1 Released!
2008-02-17 17:37:00
It's been like forever since the last release of Bloget back in July of 2007. Don't know what Bloget is? Check out this link for details. It's been 6 months since the last alpha release of Bloget. In that time I've been working steadily to improve Bloget. Perhaps the biggest improvement is that the source code is now included. I recently starting using parts of the CruiseControl.NET source code for monitoring other build tasks at work. Something that would not have been possible without the source. And so with that lesson learned I'm extending the same policy to others. In fact, over the coming months, I'll be releasing source for all my creations (insert evil laugh) plus a couple of yet to be announced projects I've been working on (insert second evil laugh). But enough of that stuff, what's new in Bloget? Besides the aforementioned source code, I've added support for ASP.Net's membership providers. This allows Bloget to participate in a Web site's existing membership...
More About: Freebies , Beta , Released

How to Read .DOCX Files
2008-02-16 21:45:00
As much as I like Vista, I dislike Microsoft Office in all it's incarnations. I don't have Microsoft Office on my computer and I suspect it's one of the reasons why my system is so stable. Office is just way to invasive and complex for my liking. Alas, there are those out there that insist on sending me documents in .DOC format or more lately .DOCX formats. .DOCX is the newer Office 2007 format. There are various online and desktop converters that will convert these new .DOCX formats into .DOC formats (Yuck!). Some of the online converters like Zamzar will convert to other more portable formats like PDF. But there's an easier way. Microsoft makes free "Viewers" for all their Office programs. The Word Viewer 2007 appears to be some kind of a hybrid. When I downloaded and ran the installer, it said it was installing Word Viewer 2003. At first I thought I downloaded the wrong program. After double-checking, I carried on. When I tried to open the .DOCX files the Word Viewer open...
More About: Freebies , Read , Files

An Easy Speed Fix up for Internet Explorer
2008-02-11 23:27:00
My wife uses Internet Explorer 7. I prefer FireFox or more recently Safari for Windows. For the most part it's a trouble free existence. However, the other day she started having issues with Web sites she regularly visits not displaying. I was able to visit the same sites using the same Internet connection. After a few minutes of sleuthing I found that IE's phishing filter was taking a long time to respond causing the site to time out.It occurred to me that the browser's phishing filter is unnecessary since we use OpenDNS. I've blogged about this wonderful service before and recommend it to anyone who will listen. One of the (many) great features of OpenDNS is built in phishing protection. Since we already have great phishing protection from our DNS service, the browser's filter is not necessary. After turning off the phishing protection in IE (it's in the Internet Options Dialog) not only was she able to open the troublesome sites, but pages rendered noticeably faster. ...
More About: Browsers , Internet Explorer , Speed

Testing with w.bloggar
2008-02-10 04:54:00
Testing Bloget with w.bloggar. Not a new blog editor but one I have not tested before with Bloget. Looks like another sucessful test! powered by Bloget™ - "One File, One Binary, One Blog"
More About: Freebies , Testing

Testing with Qumana Blog Manager
2008-02-10 04:38:00
Testing with Qumana Blog Manager . Qumana is a free offline blog editor. I'm always testing Bloget with new blog editors as I encounter them to verify that Bloget's MetaWeblog API is up to speed. Another sucessful test! Powered by Qumana powered by Bloget™ - "One File, One Binary, One Blog"
More About: Freebies , Testing

Gmail has Daily Limit on Sending Email
2008-02-01 14:18:00
I'm an avid Gmail user. I've never come anywhere near these limits but still it's good to know where the boundaries are: Gmail imposes a limit on the attachment size (20 MB) and the overall storage space (6 GB and growing) but there?s also a daily quote on sending email.  Break the rules and Google will disable you Gmail account temporarily without any warnings. So while sending an email message to a large group of friends using Gmail, read the following rules to avoid temporary shut-down of Gmail: Rule 1. If you access Gmail via POP or IMAP clients (like Microsoft Outlook), you can send an email message to a maximum of 100 people at a time. Cross the limit and your account will be disabled for a day with the error "550 5.4.5 Daily sending quota exceeded." Rule 2. If you access Gmail from the browser, you may not address an email message to more than 500 people at a time. Try adding any more recipients in the To, CC or BCC field and your Gmail account will get probab...
More About: Email , Sending

Recommendations to Improve Software Builds
2008-01-30 03:35:00
I recently took over management of our build process for our development team mostly because no one else wanted to touch it. Once I started looking at the build scripts and the issues surrounding them I understood why no one volunteered. It was simply a mess. Sadly, this is not an uncommon occurrence if my experience of the last 20 years is any indication. To be clear, I?m a developer and so my concerns and suggestions here are slanted towards making it easier for developers to write and build software. I?m not concerned with the formality of the build process or that it follows some industry guideline. As a developer I want it fast, I want it repeatable and I want it to tell me what I did wrong. Over the course of 3 months I converted our clunky build system into something that both developers and management admire. We easily hit our build delivery targets, the software works better and morale is improved. Here?s what I did. 1. Make it fast More than anything else, you have to ...
More About: Software , Programming , Improve , Builds

Second life for used batteries
2008-01-26 20:06:00
I've have a small container in the garage with used/spent alkaline batteries destined for the recycle center. One day I picked one out of the container and put it on a Volt-ohm tester. To my surprise, it still had about a volt of charge. Fully charged the battery only has 1.5 volts. Since it was a AA battery I put it in my Bluetooth mouse and darn if it didn't work. I've since then found I can use these "spent" batteries in my Bluetooth mouse for up to 1.5 months before sending them to the recycle center. I've had similar results with TV remotes. I now have a stash of "used" batteries I collect from various devices around the house like electronic games and clocks. I then use them in my remotes and wireless mice until they expire. You paid for the battery so why not get every last millivolt from it before recycling. powered by Bloget™ - "One File, One Binary, One Blog"
More About: Technology , Life , Second Life , Batteries

Did you know... use Ctrl+Tab to bring up the IDE Navigator to get a bird's
2008-01-04 14:31:00
Sara Ford's blog always has great tips about using the Visual Studio IDE but this particular tip just rocks ! And as well as this works in VS 2005, VS 2008 does it one better with a preview window.Way to go Sara! powered by Bloget™ - "One File, One Binary, One Blog"
More About: Navigator , Ctrl , Gato

How to disable the UAC prompt for a specific application
2008-01-01 16:39:00
Sometimes, you want to disable UAC prompt for certain applications on a Windows Vista computer without disabling UAC for the whole computer. From http://support.microsoft.com/kb/946932 Using the tool and steps below, you may disable UAC prompt for the specific application. This does not disable the User Acount Control feature for the whole computer. Download and install the Application Compatibility Toolkit from this link: Microsoft Application Compatibility Toolkit 5.0 http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/detail s.aspx?FamilyId=24DA89E9-B581-47B0-B45E-4 92DD6DA2971&displaylang=en In the Start menu, locate the new folder. Find the shortcut icon for Compatibility Administrator. Right click it and clik Run as administrator. In the left hand pane, right-click on the database under Custom Databases and select Create New, and select Application Fix. Enter the name and other details of the application you want to alter behavior on and then browse to it to select i...
More About: Specific , Prompt

Google Mobilizer
2007-12-30 22:37:00
Here's a another cool tool from Google I just discovered. Google Mobilizer makes any web page mobile friendly. Simply go to the page, enter the URL and you're surfing mobile style. Handy indeed! powered by Bloget™ - "One File, One Binary, One Blog"
More About: Links

Who Killed the Electric Car?
2007-12-29 18:36:00
If you haven't seen the movie "Who Killed the Electric Car", then rent it, buy it, steal it or borrow it and watch it. I own a GM vehicle. My Dad worked for GM for 30 years. After watching this I will never own a GM vehicle again. I get a sizable discount on GM vehicles because of my Dad's employment. Doesn't matter any more. After watching this movie, I'm mad as hornet at how GM (and others) killed a great alternative to gasoline vehicles. Shame on the automotive industry, shame on the government and shame on us as consumers for not demanding better. powered by Bloget™ - "One File, One Binary, One Blog"
More About: Technology , Electric Car

NonContiguousMemoryStream in .NET
2007-12-28 00:19:00
System.IO.MemoryStream is one handy little class. One of my favorite uses for memory streams is serialization. I typically serialize to a memory stream first and then copy the stream to a file or other backing store. Why I do this is simple. If the serialization faults, I don't corrupt the backing store image. You can of course accomplish a similar thing using temporary files but I find the speed and convenience of memory streams to be better. However, like all things programming, there is a price to be paid. The System.IO.MemoryStream uses a single buffer as a backing store. For small items, this is just fine. But if the stream is large, it's possible to not have enough contiguous memory due to fragmentation. This problem is compounded by the large heap compaction strategy in .NET. I've seen situations where memory is exhausted long before the actual physical memory limit is reached. One way avoid both the contiguous memory limitation as well the the large heap problem in .NET...

Repairing IE7 in Vista
2007-12-24 17:30:00
I've been using Vista on my new laptop for 3 months now and still like it. I'm puzzled why there is such hatred leveled at this operating system. CNet in fact called it one of the 5 worst technologies of 2007. I guess I've just been lucky. Yesterday, I hit my first real issue and I'm not even sure it's a Vista issue so much as an IE7 issue. Anyway, I couldn't open web pages in IE7 without getting JavaScript errors.  Even Google's home page caused issues. I usually use Safari or Firefox for browsing so it wasn't a big deal. Still, the one thing I find IE7 better for is developing ASP.NET applications in Visual Studio 2008. The integration is just better with IE7 in this one instance (no surprise here I suppose). Well, after spending hours searching forums and trying everything from resetting IE to sacrificing a small goat, I found a message board entry that suggested re-registering the JavaScript engine (Jscript.dll). In hindsight it should have been the first thing I tr...
More About: Browsers

Safari Web Inspector
2007-12-14 02:37:00
I seem to be using the Windows beta of Safari more and more. I can't say exactly why. Some how it just feels right to me. One thing I do miss is the excellent Firebug plug-in for Firefox. But fret no more! There is something similar in Safari called Web Inspector . It requires that you add a line to the preferences file to enable. Instructions can be found here. The Web Inspector can be opened by right clicking anywhere on a web page and choosing Inspect Element. Once open, it highlights the node on the page as it is selected in the hierarchy. You can also search for nodes by node name, id and CSS class name. powered by Bloget™ - "One File, One Binary, One Blog"
More About: Browsers

My Christmas Gadget Wish List
2007-12-11 01:53:00
Everyone has a list of gadgets they want. I'm not what you would call a "gadget boy" and yet here I am with a list of gadgets as long as my sleeve. Guess my inner geek is expressing itself more than usual. Apple AirPort Express I can't count the number of times I've been in meetings where there are not enough network connections. iLuv i903 Bluetooth Headphones Because wires suck...   HP MedaSmart Home Server Must have more power...   Pin Clock - Thousands of perfectly aligned movable pins raise and lower to display the time in a 3D display. The pins magically reshuffle every minute by lifting and retracting to form the display of hours and minutes. Need I say more? Davis Weather Station These are the best home weather stations and have been for years.     Apple iPod touch Just too cool not to have powered by Bloget™ - "One File, One Binary, One Blog"
More About: Christmas , Links , Gadget , List

Colorful error messages may not be the best choice
2007-12-09 22:51:00
The error message below appeared on our corporate intranet site the other day. While I can empathize with the programmer's frustration here it was not a good choice. Especially since it is likely offensive to some. Still, I did get a chuckle. Word to the wise, always remember that your work is public whether source code, log messages or UI. I would not want to be this programmer or his supervisor for that matter when management comes calling. powered by Bloget™ - "One File, One Binary, One Blog"
More About: Programming , Colorful , Messages , Choice , Error

PDC 2008!
2007-12-07 02:54:00
http://msdn.microsoft.com/pdc Announcing PDC08 October 27?30, 2008 Pre-conference October 26, 2008 Los Angeles, California PDC is the definitive Microsoft event for software developers and architects focused on the future of the Microsoft platform. Beg, steal or borrow your way to this event. It always delivers with fun, jam back information and industry buzz. Mark your calendars and save the date. powered by Bloget™ - "One File, One Binary, One Blog"

Give the Gift of Safe
2007-12-07 02:41:00
  I know, I'm an OpenDNS fanboy. It really is a great service. First, you get to enjoy the brief, funny video Chris put together explaining the benefits of OpenDNS to his skeptical father. If you've ever done family tech support, you're going to recognize every step of the way.  ;-) Second, you can share the extra protection of OpenDNS with your friends and family, all via a simple email Watch the video and share the gift: http://www.giftofsafe.com/ powered by Bloget™ - "One File, One Binary, One Blog"
More About: Freebies , Links , Gift , Give , Safe

Logmein release remote control for Macs
2007-12-05 01:15:00
One of my favorite all time web applications, Logmein.com allows you to remote into your desktop using only your browser. I've blogged about this tool in the past. It's absolutely fantastic. Mac users can now take advantage of this free service as well with Logmein Free for Mac. This just totally rocks. powered by Bloget™ - "One File, One Binary, One Blog"
More About: Freebies , Remote Control , Release , Macs , Control

Add CopyTo and MoveTo to context menus in Vista
2007-12-05 01:04:00
Here's a fun little productivity tip. Add CopyTo and MoveTo to your right-click context menu in windows explorer. Saves you having to open a second explorer window or navigate away from your current location. Simply open notepad and copy the following lines into it. Watch out for the word wrap. It should total three lines. Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00 [HKEY_CLASSES_ROOTAllFilesystemObjectsshe llexContext MenuHandlers{C2FBB630-2971-11D 1-A18C-00C04FD75D13}] [HKEY_CLASSES_ROOTAllFilesystemObjectsshe llexContextMenuHandlers{C2FBB631-2971-11D 1-A18C-00C04FD75D13}] Name it copyto.reg (or download this file). Double click copyto.reg to add the registry settings. powered by Bloget™ - "One File, One Binary, One Blog"
More About: Vista

iPod Battery Depot - Nice
2007-12-02 21:46:00
Recently I had to replace the battery on my aging iPod. iPod Battery Depot sells replacement batteries for a variety of electronic devices. In the case of the iPod, they sell batteries that are larger than the originals. They also have videos on how to replace the batteries. I ordered my battery and it arrived promptly along with some tools to help pry open the iPod case. Try as a might however, I couldn't get the darn thing to budge. Going back to the web site, I bought the "Pro" installation service. Normally, it's $35 but because I bought the battery, they knocked $5 off the price to cover the shipping I paid on the first order. Nice ! They sent a postage paid box to ship my iPod in. A week later it returned ship shape and ready for use. What I liked about iPod Battery Depot is they didn't let me fail. By giving me options and not penalizing me for trying it myself, they made me one happy customer. P.S. I don't get paid or otherwise compensated for these comments. I'm just...
More About: Ipod

Tracking Santa, then and now
2007-11-30 22:17:00
Here's a great story about how NORAD got started helping kids track Santa on Christmas Eve. Don't know what I'm talking about? Head over to NORAD's website for more information. Good reading! powered by Bloget™ - "One File, One Binary, One Blog"
More About: Life , Links , Tracking , Then

How to Check C# Parameters
2007-11-28 01:56:00
I just downloaded a sample from The Code Project and as usual spent 20 minutes cleaning up the code. Don't get me wrong, I'm grateful for the contributions and use them often. What bothers me is that many of what the industry considers "best practices" are simply ignored in these contributions. One of the most fundamental "best practices" is to check the validity of parameters. What's even more annoying is that it can be done in one line of code if you don't mind a little unusual line formatting. if (item == null) throw new ArgumentNullException("item"); Now that wasn't so hard? ----------------------------------------- --------------------------------------- Side note: Sure would be nice if C# allowed something like this: item ?? throw new ArgumentNullException("item"); // Not valid! ----------------------------------------- --------------------------------------- Strings are a bit more work. if (string.IsNullOrEmpty(item)) { throw (item == null) ? new Argumen...
More About: Programming , Check