Messages

251

Living Room / Re: Getting an HTC Desire HD -- Android Phone

« on: November 19, 2010, 03:45 PM »

Point taken.  The biggest part of multitasking that I tend to use is downloading apps/updates/web pages/etc. and running a few things in the background without interrupting what I am working on just to complete those tasks.  To that end, I think you are right in saying I am not a "heavy" multitasker.  Because of the suspend mode, neither machine truly does what I wanted in multitasking, but it is really a small gripe for me.  In reality, for day-to-day use, I don't really use it much if at all.

252

Living Room / Re: Getting an HTC Desire HD -- Android Phone

« on: November 19, 2010, 03:00 PM »

Actually, No, most of my complaints are not email related.  They were calendar and contact related, though email is another.  Remember, Outlook is MUCH more than email.  On the other hand, email IS very poorly managed on Android as you somewhat conceded compared to iOS.

As for multitasking, you may be right technically, but if the user can't discern the difference (and I certainly couldn't though I didn't delve into *how* it was accomplished), then is there really a difference?  It is the same argument we have at work.  The system is up, but no one can get to it.  So since it is designed to be used by end users who can't get to it, is it really up?  I say no, systems says yes.  (Just as a reference, I am a systems operations monitor so I see both sides and get caught in the middle.  I am not just a user.)

Lastly, Flash workarounds are NOT flash support.  iOS has some workarounds, but that does not mean it is supported.  For true flash support you need Android2.2

253

Living Room / Re: Desktop Linux: The dream is dead

« on: November 19, 2010, 02:51 PM »

Mono has an entire framework along with it. So you don't have to mess around with finding parts here and there. It's also a large project with a community to back it up, and a massive larger C# community. You don't get that with RealBasic, although RealBasic still offers a viable cross-platform solution.

Java, well, it's probably much better than before, but it ended up being write once, break everywhere. I don't know if it's viable on the desktop. Someone that knows more would do better to comment on it. Just from what I've seen though, I can't see opting for Java. It just seems like all the Java stuff out there is server and enterprise stuff. Cross-platform isn't really so much of an issue in server environments because you need to commit to the server in a very deep way, unlike the way in which you commit to a desktop, which is rather shallow by comparison.

C/C++... Sigh... Well, it's a toolkit issue there. Qt might be ok. The last time I tried to work with it I just got frustrated and gave up. I just kept running into issues again and again.

-Renegade (November 19, 2010, 12:30 AM)

The big difference I see with Mono vs C/C++ and even Java to a lesser extent is that you must compile the C/C++ code to specifically target each desired platform.  Java with the JVM is less true to that, but the differences between platforms means you still have to be careful and MAY have to target certain platforms.  The promise of Mono is that I write an app in a .Net language.  Then, as long as the Mono/.Net version minimum is met, I don't know and don't care what you are running or, indeed, what framework you are using.  You use my C# code on the framework of choice and it works.  I develop on Linux, market to Windows, and you use it on a Mac.  It just doesn't matter because the framework does the heavy lifting of determining what the code means.  It is that simple (well in theory).  And that is why Mono is a good thing.

Except when you go the Mono route, you start down the slippery slope of dipping a toe into Microsoft's patent bullshit, which as we know, any corporation is more than happy to spend a decade suing the living crap out of anyone that gets near their IP. For me, it's not worth the headache, even though Miguel de Icaza has done some wonderful things for us all.

-zridling (November 10, 2010, 07:31 AM)

 

The catch here is Novell (and hence MONO) have a written legal agreement that allows this.  Indeed, Microsoft is a Junior Partner in the project.  They will never sue over Mono because they will flat out loose due to their previous agreements.  Moreover, they will loose sales because apps they can sell (without costly rewriting of code) can't run on Linux without it.  Lastly if you have had your ear anywhere in this hemisphere of IT, you will know that Microsoft's new big push is Azure which is their cloud-based initiative.  If this can work out for them, they see much of the desktop as irrelevant from a user perspective.  I honestly believe they are hedging their bets with respect to the desktop.  If it survives, then Windows will stay one of their premiere products.  If the cloud based initiatives gain much more traction, they will start to evolve from a desktop product to a premiere cloud-based product where the desktop truly is irrelevant (and they will finally cede the OS to Linux or some stripped free version of windows).  

Which do I think is most likely?  Well I think their best case scenario is some hybrid where the Cloud is the predominant app running on fat client OS's, such as Windows.  I give that a slightly better than 50/50 chance.  Otherwise my guess is they will transition to an appliance that boots to the cloud where they will try to establish a presence at least as predominate as they are on the desktop now.  My looking glass says one of these two are about 85% likely to occur with the other 15% being one of several other scenarios (such as ChromeOS becoming the defacto client for a cloud-based user-base).

Tell me where you think I am wrong.  This is fun looking into the future where we can come back in 5 years and see how close we were in guessing the tides.

254

Living Room / Re: Getting an HTC Desire HD -- Android Phone

« on: November 19, 2010, 02:05 PM »

Nice.  I happen to use Hotmail as well as Outlook (in fact I use the connector in Windows Live offerings to sync the two), but I would still have an issue with the lock-in just as I do with Google.  Why do I have to use YOUR email service just to use the phone I PAID YOU to have?  WTF.  That isn't right!  At least with iOS and all the issues I have around iTunes, at least they don't FORCE me into using any one service over any other (well except the marketplace, but I can jailbreak it to use Cydia - and frankly Google and Windows do the same for their marketplace anyway!).  It just irks me to no end.  Maybe I will go back to the dumb-phones after all...Grrr....

255

Living Room / Re: iPod - tell me why I should buy one

« on: November 19, 2010, 02:00 PM »

Hopefully, iTunes is more considerate these days?

-Darwin (November 19, 2010, 01:46 PM)

Maybe, but I wouldn't count on it.  I actually use that add-in, so it is actually a point of concern for me that it actually be in place.  But that is me....

256

Living Room / Re: Getting an HTC Desire HD -- Android Phone

« on: November 19, 2010, 12:33 PM »

Okay, I am back.  Daughter is at school now, so I can continue...

The Android platform IS better for 2 reasons (and only 2) that I can think of.

1)  They are more friendly to developers.  Anyone on any platform can program, test, and install programs.  That is a BIG plus.  Come on Apple.  You need an Apple computer to program for the iPhone?  Really?  Why?  What is so FABULOUS about Macs that no one else can even see the light of day let alone make an IDE for?  I mean it isn't as if Visual Studio is the single largest, most accepted, feature rich development platform in existence or anything....

2)  They do not limit competing programs on the marketplace.  Well this is not confirmed, but it isn't well known like Apple either.  You want to create a feature-rich email app on the iPhone?  Isn't going to make it to their marketplace if they have any say (and they generally do).  That is why Cydia is nearly as popular and as app plentiful as the Android Marketplace.

IF either of these are important to you AND you can live with the limitations mentioned in the earlier post, than the Android platform probably is for you.  Most of the rest of the differences are smoke and mirrors from what I have seen.  Flash?  Only if you have Android 2.2, which many phones still do not have yet (though this is as close to #3 as I can think of).  Once it is widespread on the Android and/or Windows 7 Phone platforms, expect it to miraculously come to the iOS too.  Multitasking?  iOS 4 supports it too, and (at least on the iPhone 4 hardware) it is implemented the same as the Android multitasking.  Like any high competition arenas, don't expect iOS to roll over and play dead, just because they don't have a feature someone else does.  Moreover, they are generally more easy to use for most people as Renegade has mentioned obliquely in his UX discussions, so I think these changes will be instituted in short order when it starts hitting them in sales.  Until then, I don't see a clear cut winner between any platform coming out soon.  Use what works for you, but do make sure it isn't just jumping on the bandwagon based on the common fallacies out there.   

257

Living Room / Re: Getting an HTC Desire HD -- Android Phone

« on: November 19, 2010, 12:03 PM »

I guess I am in a minority here.  I had a Galaxy S for about a month before I gave in and got an iPhone 4.  It really isn't much better, but here is a quick and short list of shortcommings I had with the Android phone/platform I was stuck with before switching:

1)  Doesn't sync with Outlook.  (Dealbreaker!).  It will sync with Gmail (undesired) or Exchange, and that is it.  If you don't use Exchange, then you best set it up to forward to Gmail or you are done.
2)  In the same line, you can not consolidate multiple competing email systems.  Use Yahoo mail?  Must download the Yahoo app.  Use hotmail?  A different app.  What about your work email?  Exchange?  Okay, that does sync with the default email, but if you don't like that client, must download a different app (if it is even available).  What if you use Lotus Notes like my company?  Oops, now you must use the iNotes web client.  No support there.
3)  Lets speak of that infamous Apple lock-in that Android doesn't have.  Well, oh wait, don't have or want GMail?  Oops, sorry, absolutely needed before you can even use the phone.  In all fairness, though, that can't really be worked around.  All platforms have a certain amount of lock-in (Windows 7 requires Zune, iOS requires iTunes, and Android requires GMail).  Just because it isn't iTunes, though, doesn't mean it isn't locked in.  
4)  The Apps.  Granted, Android has a ton of apps, but it is still less than Apple (though that won't last much longer), and the quality, in general, is demonstrably lower.  This is no deal breaker, however, as quality will improved and good apps will rise over time.  I just am not patient enough to wait for that when I can have an iPhone now and choose a different platform in 2 years or less (which is about how long I think it will take for the apps to mature enough to be useable in many cases).

In a later post, I may explain why I think the Android platform is better (there are many reasons there as well), what my hopes for Windows 7 Phone are/were (hopefully Darwin can step in and say what is and isn't met), and what I see as the reasons to choose one platform over another.  After all, it really depends on how you are going to use it.  That said, Renegade, your reasons are solid and I hope you enjoy the phone.
 

258

Living Room / Re: iPod - tell me why I should buy one

« on: November 17, 2010, 09:17 PM »

Here is my take (for what it is worth) -

The reasons for Apple -

Easy availability
Lots of available accessories
Easy to use interface

Yeah, that is about it.

My priority on players tends toward portability more than sound, though sound is a big part too of course.  With that in mind, the things I would look for if you don't go for an Apple product is:

User replaceable battery!
Radio reception (if you listen to the radio - I do)
Expandability - Most players I looked into allowed you to use external as well as internal memory via SD cards or similar.
Lastly, I suggest you look for an armband or other way to carry the device without a clip - for when you use it working out for example.
Price, of course, is always another consideration as well, but these features make or break a device and ALL of them are missing on the iPod line.

259

General Software Discussion / Re: Printable weekly calendar app?

« on: November 08, 2010, 05:12 AM »

If you have full blown office, you can try Outlook.  I make similar ones in Outlook all the time, though I don't change the background colors, so I don't know if you can do the full color shading you show.

The bonus here is you can make the schedule in it and it will automatically make and format the schedule.

260

Living Room / Re: Talk Radio... good or bad?

« on: November 08, 2010, 02:36 AM »

Interesting theory.  I think it may be based on a false premise though.  (Not that my theory is any less false, but it is an opposing theory).  Your theory of the pressure cooker is based on (among other things) the fact that the voice and passion is given no out until radio came about.  However, town hall meetings have held the same effect for many generations long before radio.  Yet even with these outlets, there have been revolution.  You point to communication restraints, as being the "stuck closed relief valve", but I contend that these actually stopped revolution rather than released it.  By restraining communication, many revolutions were quashed before they started - they never got momentum because they were a bunch of isolated pockets easily divided and conquered.  Because of this, it truly had to be widespread dissatisfaction to reach critical mass, which I contend was not because of, but rather in spite of, the communication restriction.

Radio (and other "new" media) on the other hand do not  restrict communications, or at least not as much.  Therefore dissatisfied constituencies can take a "running poll" on like-minded individuals.  I still believe revolution would occur if the critical mass were reached, but what radio and other media outlets provide is communication that leads to organization.  Because of this, any critical mass would occur MUCH quicker and hence would seem to arise overnight in comparison.  I think the "relief valve" in this theory is actually the opposition also seeing the results earlier and changing course before being overwhelmed.

Hope this all makes sense, it is a 5 minute work break at 3:30AM and I am really not very coherent at the moment. 

261

Living Room / Re: Where have all the trackballs gone!

« on: November 08, 2010, 12:32 AM »

We can call it Scroll Click and Pan Robot! SCPR

-Josh (November 03, 2010, 09:08 AM)

So would that get renamed (or nicknamed) SCiPeR and start sailing ships or something 

262

Living Room / Re: Avatar Ambiguity

« on: November 07, 2010, 02:51 PM »

Like everyone else, now that I look again, I concur.  However, my first thought and one I didn't look much further into was that it was a picture of a bullet going through a water tank like they use for identifying a bullet signature.  No, there is no particular reason for this, I am not a shooting nut or anything, just that is what it looked like to me.

263

Living Room / Re: I'm thinking about learning how to program.

« on: October 31, 2010, 07:53 PM »

Use the standard VS layout.  Get rid of most of the windows, other than the output window, error window, solution window, toolbox window, and properties window.  Dock them where ever you wish.  Profit. 

That's my point... there isn't much you *need* to use.  The basic layout has a couple more windows than I said (find and one more, I think), but they aren't necessary to program.  I came from Delphi 6/7 to VS 2005, and was up and running in no time... it's just a matter of focus, IMO.  You can get distracted by all the bells and whistles, but there's still stuff that I'm learning after being in it for 5 years or so.  I just pick it up as needed/wanted.

-wraith808 (October 31, 2010, 08:50 AM)

I guess 4AM is not the best time to try and explain yourself    I meant more of the difference between options, for example.  It isn't like a typical text editor w/ some IDE-like facilities (nor should it be).  You don't just start it and start typing.  You have to set up a project, you have to define what kind of project it is (windows service, MVC, MVC2, etc.), you need to choose the language you will program in (VB vs. C#, etc), all before you even begin to think about typing code.  Once that is all set (which I don't even know the difference between most of these option or when and why to choose one over another), you then have a huge structure of folders and files that, though empty, exist for who knows what purpose(s).  Once everything is set up, or when editing previous code where these options are already set, I find VS a dream to work with (mostly - still have trouble wrapping my head around the code-behind paradigm), especially for refactoring, intellisense, and code completion; but getting to that point for new projects always stumps me.  Moreover, I don't know what I don't know, so using a tool "when I need to learn it" means I need to know it exists in the first place, which just isn't true.  That said, I do a LOT of web page design and updates using Visual Studio at work, so I do know a little about the interface, just not how to use most of it, or - as I already said - many (read most) of the potential functionality.  In the end, I always feel I am just "doing it the hard way" because I don't know of anything else.

264

Living Room / Re: I'm thinking about learning how to program.

« on: October 31, 2010, 04:14 AM »

I have fought with this since VS 2005.  Basically my problem with it is that the IDE is almost more complicated than the code.  I know it is just because I don't know how to use it, but I really need a "how to use Visual Studio" course.  Unfortunately everything is how to program C# or VB.  I don't care about how to program yet another video player.  I need to know how to accomplish certain tasks within the IDE.  I used TextPad for Java and that was just about right as far as complexity, but as Renegade pointed out, it is horrendous if you have to program a UI.  We used NetBeans for that, but even that was clunky at best.  I have had a project in mind for probably 5 years or more now, and even have the "engine" written in Java (It would be a simple task to change it to C# instead).  It is the UI and display that I really need to work with, but just can't find the starting point.

265

General Software Discussion / Re: iPod Touch, PIM, and Outlook (WAS: Thunderbird as a PIM Hub)

« on: October 19, 2010, 04:11 PM »

Nice.  Thanks for the news.  Hope that works out well for you.  It has for me so far.

266

Living Room / Re: build/upgrade or buy/build a new one?

« on: October 19, 2010, 04:04 PM »

Well that helped a lot to narrow it down to the hardware  

As RAM goes, there is no difference performance-wise between the configurations mentioned, but I can say that it is always better to get the larger sizes in fewer sticks strictly for expansion.  If you later move to the 64bit version of Windows 7, for example, it will leave slots open for you to expand beyond 4GB without having to chuck out the old RAM.

And yes, the 1TB drive could be the cause of the slowdown, especially if it has your Windows boot partition on it and is one of the slower drives.  Moving the boot partition to an SSD as 4WD & Mouser (et. al.) are big advocates of will help a LOT if this is the source of the issue.

267

Living Room / Re: Hidden Taxes... ever considered these?

« on: October 19, 2010, 03:51 PM »

The fact of the world we live in.  Technology moves us forward and with that comes changes to the way things are done.  It's not always a 'gotcha' or 'gonna screw you over' thing.  Its things moving forward.

-Veign (October 19, 2010, 01:56 PM)

I generally agree, but when the methods change due to technology, but the processes do not (such as the requirement to submit a paper form), then I disagree - that is when you are just cost shifting and screwing the end user/customer.

(fyi: I create web-based applications for companies, including insurance companies, to reduce internal costs and overhead.  My direction is to remove paper forms and processing.)

-Veign (October 19, 2010, 01:56 PM)

Question for you though - in your applications, do you FORCE the end user to print it out and submit it, or do you also provide a way to submit online as well.  The former is where I have problems, the later is completely desirable (in my opinion).

268

Living Room / Re: Hidden Taxes... ever considered these?

« on: October 19, 2010, 03:50 PM »

Actually I have been far too aware of these types of issues.  They have been doing things like this to the military for some time.  I can't get my leave and earnings statement from the military anymore, now I have to download and print it out.  This doesn't do anything but shift the costs to the individual instead of the organization.  Sure you could say they save on postage, except they still employ the same postal workers and they don't pay for stamps or anything, so there is no savings of cost there.  Maybe there is a savings in envelopes, but I doubt it given the bulk of envelopes they buy.  I know for my company, the cost of envelopes, stuffing, paper AND postage all costs less that the retail cost of postage - and most of that cost is the bulk rate we receive on postage.  The military is a MUCH larger organization, so the cost benefits would not be less and probably would be more.  In the end, since this is a required piece of paper for each individual to have printed out and available at all times (more or less), I get around it by just printing it on the unit's printers.  However, I am not in the majority at my unit, and I think if that is the case around the country, then the military is using this huge cost savings by passing it on to the individual.  To me, this is not right any more that what the OP stated.  IF it is REQUIRED, then it should be PROVIDED.  If it is optional, well then all bets are off.

269

Living Room / Re: Desktop Linux: The dream is dead

« on: October 18, 2010, 05:09 PM »

I would say yes, you definitely should try again.  5 years ago it wasn't THAT bad, but it has come a long way since.  My version of the failure of Linux is on multiple fronts, but it basically boils down to applications.  While there are tons of them out there, and most are free, few are truly easy to use and even fewer are user friendly.  Couple that with the lack of real support when there are issues and you get people just completely turned off the idea before they see the value.  I do think it will eventually come to parity with Windows, but not in the near future.

Actually that is not true.  What I see is standardization taking place to the point that you will not really see a significant difference between OS's.  In the mean time, applications will become increasingly web based to the point that the OS doesn't matter much and by then all systems will boil down to whatever is installed - if anything.  I could even see it where the browser is part of the BIOS and automatically connects when started.  If the connection fails, it is just an unusable piece of hardware sitting there until there is a connection again.  Just like when the TV signal goes out...

270

General Software Discussion / Re: What do you use to warn you of disk limits being reached?

« on: October 18, 2010, 04:33 PM »

Powershell

Get-WMIObject Win32_LogicalDisk | ForEach-Object {$_.freespace}

-Josh (August 19, 2010, 07:18 PM)

+1

271

Living Room / Re: build/upgrade or buy/build a new one?

« on: October 18, 2010, 04:25 PM »

One silly question that has to be asked though is what kind of system maintenance do you do?  I have found doing regular system maintenance makes a HUGE difference in performance.  For example, do you defrag your hard drive?  What about clearing your temp folders and system cache (though I think by default the cache goes each time it is shut down). Have you ever run CCleaner or a similar product?  (I just use the built in Windows cleanup at work, and even that makes a huge difference sometimes).

Another question is how do you work?  Has it changed?  Do you now have a lot more open at the same time?  Most people do.  What about software?  Do you frequently install and reinstall software?  If so, you may need to consider some registry cleanup.  For safety sake, I do my cleanups manually.  I probably miss a lot, but it is a lot safer than using most registry cleaners.  You mentioned CS4.  Have you upgraded to that or was that an original install?  What about other software?  Are there a lot of upgrades?  A lot of this may seem irrelevant, but often these are things that Windows keeps around just in case, and it seems to me that after enough "just in case" accumulation occurs, a system just feels slower.

272

Living Room / Re: I am looking for a Vocational Test... any suggestions?

« on: October 18, 2010, 04:09 PM »

There are definitely several out there, unfortunately I don't know of any specific ones.  I had taken a few of these in the past, but they were pen & paper type.  Since that was in the 90's it makes a little more sense.  I wouldn't be surprised if they were still around, but in an online form now.  Ask the colleges and high schools in the local area.  They often use these to help undecided students try to find a career path they may wish to follow.

273

Developer's Corner / Re: Web Debate: Give Us Simplicity So We Can Ignore You

« on: October 18, 2010, 03:32 PM »

I am of the opinion that there is no need for it to be complex, but something like a CMS (from the OP) is relatively complex by nature if it is going to be useful.  At least it appears that way to my non-programmer mind.  The big problem I think many see is how can something so simple be so powerful?  Since I am in IT, I see it everyday, but not so much the average person.  They gripe and groan and bemoan every intrusive popup; but if they aren't there, they think it isn't working.  This lends itself to problem number 2, and that is valuing the software.  If they don't think it is working, they have a tough time justifying the price of the software.  Indeed, many people can't even place a value on their data in the first place, making many pieces of software "not worth it" to them even though it may well be.  Your backup software is a particularly good example of a type of software few people appreciate the value of.  Well, they do after a catastrophic failure, but until then...

Armando hit on another point.  Far too often, society deems more is better.  Therefore, more features at the same price automatically make a product better in many people's minds (I fight myself on this point far more than I like to admit).  Really it should be based on functionality, speed, flexibility, and/or elegance (for lack of a better term), but these are rarely tested, let alone judged.  I suppose part of the problem here is the marketing always shows a partial judgement in favor of the marketed product - there really is no consistent, reliable source for data.  Moreover, there is no separation of when one product shines over another in the same space.  These are pretty much left to the consumer.  Since that is the case, the bigger advertising budget and the better word of mouth marketers get the lion's share of the market regardless of quality of product (Symantec comes to mind here for me...).  My point is, it isn't necessarily the simplicity or the speed or whatever that makes it difficult - it is the marketing.  Most companies market on features and tweakability.   You just need to market on simplicity, speed, flexibility, and UI elegance - just like Apple does for the Mac.  (Since you mentioned it, I thought I would show you them as an example  )

274

Announce Your Software/Service/Product / Re: crack tracker

« on: October 17, 2010, 03:56 AM »

True.  I just was curious with what you have seen in the last 6 months or so since you implemented the first betas, etc.

275

General Software Discussion / Re: create frames

« on: October 17, 2010, 03:01 AM »

Not sure I fully understand what you are trying to do here, but that is the whole point of using vector graphics in my mind.  Perhaps using some vector graphic editor (such as inkscape) would help?