Topics

226

Unfinished Requests / IDEA: time calculator

« on: May 06, 2005, 04:21 AM »

this is perhaps more of a plea for someone to kindly tell me of a program that already does this...

quite simply: a calculator with the usual basic functions but it works upon TIME format input, i.e. you can add 01h 33m 11s to 00h 56m 28s and obtain the result in a similar time output display.

i've had a look around and found 'time calculator pro' but it's not freeware - okay it's cheap - but i would have thought this kind of program would be a freeware thing somewhere.

of course, anyone willing to code it up from scratch would be my hero.

227

Unfinished Requests / IDEA: forced coffee/tea/cigarette break reminder

« on: May 01, 2005, 02:45 PM »

i once had a program that would remind you at set intervals to take a break from the computer - you know, for health reasons.

of course - i uninstalled it and continued to spend hours sat staring at my monitor all day instead. yep, i'm probably going to get deep vain thrombosis as a result of using my computer - great.

how about a little program that you set to blank the screen every couple of hours or less - maybe it bring ups a message (visual and audio) telling you in a polite way that it's time to go and make a drink or whatever, thereby forcing you to take a break.

yeah, i know you'd ignore it and just carry on working - the crucial part is the screen would remain blank for 5 minutes (with more messages or whatever displayed) and you would have no way of overriding it - any attempt to do so would hibernate the computer.

(i know, i know, i'd uninstall it and never use it - let me just dream for a while that i would do the right thing and obey it.)

228

Finished Programs / DONE - IDEA: change wallpaper at specific time - not timed intervals.

« on: May 01, 2005, 03:47 AM »

i've checked out quite a few wallpaper managers - most have the ability to change the wallpaper at timed intervals, say, once every hour or so.

how about having a wallpaper manager that changed what was on display at a specific time set by the user?

this way you could set up your morning desktop wallpaper that you like to be greeted with, this could then change at midday (or whatever time you specified) and it could then change again in the evening (and again after that towards dusk).

obviously i'm trying to describe something that mimics the changing pattern of daylight outside your window - you would just have something similar presented to you on your monitor. you know, sunrise, sunset, starry night, etc.

taking things further you could have wallpaper set with different times displayed on it - the wallpaper then changes on the hour every hour (or whatever interval you have set that corresponds to the time prints on you wallpaper set).

if this has already been done elsewhere, please let me know, i've hunted around and can't find this specific feature.

i'm no programmer but i would think this a simple thing to code 

229

Official DonationCoder.com Reviews / 30 day trial for VMware Workstation 5

« on: April 10, 2005, 04:40 AM »

forgive me if it's been said elsewhere already but there is a 30 day trial version of VMware Workstation 5 available for download http://www.vmware.co...top/ws_features.html

you have to agree to receive email from other companies so be warned.

the product itself looks fantastic though.

230

General Software Discussion / the definitive minimal amount of programs for the greatest security?

« on: April 06, 2005, 05:14 PM »

just thought i would start a new thread as i'm sure everyone will have their own list of programs that they deem essential for a 'secure' system.

from my experience there appears to be a lot of overlap when installing the typical list of anti-virus, trojan guards, firewalls and spyware detectors, etc. which, to me, feels a little excessive.

how about trying to define the minimum number of programs that are required for a thoroughly secure system; trying to avoid features that overlap or are possibly redundant.

hopefully a small list of 3 to 5 programs could be discovered that provide the greatest protection. providing a true sense of security to even the most novice of users and all without the worry that there are unnecessary programs running in the background that are duplicating the tasks of other software.

mob's post on 'processguard' and 'regdefend' got me thinking as these are two things i've never used, so, i'm wondering, can i get by without them or not?

currently i use avg free edition and agnitum outpost and that's about it. i'm not fully convinced i need anything more but if there is a program (maybe processguard) that will 100% protect my system with the least amount of fuss then i guess it makes sense to use it for that rare occasion when things could go wrong.