Messages

1151

General Software Discussion / How to [partially] blur screenshots?

« on: July 20, 2010, 06:00 PM »

Folk,

I've seen this many a time, but was never curious 'bout how 'twas done.  Now I need to do it  .

You've probably seen screenshots of some app with some or all of the text content blurred, illegible.  Sometimes all of the text, sometimes all but one or two particular lines.

Currently there is a need to do this w/o resorting to GIMP or Paint.Net or the like - I hope!.  Need to take some screenshots of an application that would display information that need not be seen by others, but could display clearly certain elements of the application.  In some cases, I'll need to obscure parts of the text, but leave other parts clear and readable.

There must be some tool to accomplish this, but I wouldn't begin to know how to search for it.  Ideally, this capability would be part of a screen capture application, but a third-party tool would be acceptable as long as it's reasonably fast and simple, i.e. faster than using GIMP .

Example:

• I want to show toolbar configuration for an email client.  So I want to be able to accentuate the toolbar, but obscure the emails listed in the client screen capture. 
• Or, I might want to display a page of code with all the code obscured except the code relevant to a discussion/tutorial.

The idea is that only the specific elements under discussion are clearly visible.
Can anyone point to such a tool?  (Recently downloaded Screen Captor:  have not seen that capability available, but have not fully explored its capabilities.)

1152

Living Room / Re: Lists of Forums with help on home contractor problems (roof, heating, etc.)

« on: July 18, 2010, 07:06 PM »

@mwb1100,

Some time back I got a one-year (trial) membership to Angie's list.  Didn't accomplish much - no significant activity in my area, therefore I didn't subscribe when the year was up - so I cannot speak to actual functionality, but the trial membership may still be available.  If you don't see it on the site, try a search:  if memory serves, I found the trial via Google.  The results probably would be better in an area with greater population density  .

[Edited for typo(s).]

1153

General Software Discussion / Re: In search of JavaScript book(s) for a kinda novice ...

« on: July 15, 2010, 05:24 PM »

Yeah, it's a great book ... been in my library since I started working with JavaScript, I think.  In fact, I just ordered a new copy, since the first one was pretty ragtag  .

Unfortunately, Dee didn't much care for it ... doesn't really have what you might call a logical approach (don't tell her I said that ).  So we've been trying some other tomes.  She's partial to the cookbook approach - it better fits her approach to scripting - and she likes Jim Keogh's JavaScript DeMYSTiFieD , as well as a few tutorials she's downloaded here.

'Preciate your contribution, though, and wholeheartedly concur ... that book has spent more time on my desk than in the bookshelf  .

1154

General Software Discussion / Re: In search of JavaScript book(s) for a kinda novice ...

« on: July 14, 2010, 01:29 PM »

  Bought the Ninja thingy many weeks ago.  Somehow, my crystal ball application failed to predict the giveaway  .

We've picked up several of the books that mouser mentioned, as well as a couple of others.
JavaScript:  A Beginner's Guide is kind of disappointing/dated, but guess it works as an introduction.
JavaScript & DHTML Cookbook (I'm a cookbook aficionado) looks to be informative, but she'll need a bit of intro, first.
JavaScript Demystified ... eee, think that's kinda like the Beginner's Guide, but a bit more recent.  Suspect both will be in a love/hate category - different learning paradigms on the part of the student.

Have some jQuery and Ajax books, but think she needs to get a fairly solid grounding before jumpin' into those  .

1155

General Software Discussion / Resolved (I think): Error: Firefox plugin manager not working ...

« on: July 08, 2010, 10:25 AM »

Firefox has been running w/o a whiteout for several hours now, so this probably can be called resolved.

The problem seems to have been a Bing toolbar that I did not [intentionally] install .  It just seemed to magically appear .  The installation date matched some Windows Live installs I did a day before the problem started, so either MS slipped one in on me, or I was careless about checking what would be installed - prolly the latter.

I found the Bing toolbar - inactive - as I was cataloging extensions preparatory to ditching them all and reloading one at a time.  Because of the time stamp and the unintentional install, it was the first thing killed ... the system has functioned flawlessly - well, as flawlessly as it ever does - for about six (6) hours, now, so it seems safe to call the issue resolved.

Note:  edited for typo.

1156

General Software Discussion / Re: Error: Firefox plugin manager not working ...

« on: July 07, 2010, 01:37 PM »

Basic scenario is as follows.

Firefox will white out (the title bar text ends with "Not Responding" and the application is overlaid with a white screen), and Win7 eventually (or if I try to terminate) presents its alert window offering to check online for a resolution and terminate, terminate, or (sometimes) wait for the application to respond.

Occasionally, a second alert will appear stating, "Plugin Container for Firefox has stopped working," with the first two (2) of the three previous options.

There is no clear indication whether this second alert is a Firefox message or a Win7 message, but I'm inclined to believe it a Win7 alert.

There is, neither, a clear indication whether the Plugin Container is just a plugin manager, or if it includes all extensions, plugins, and themes.

Online search (Google) returns a plethora of results, but almost all are extension/plugin/theme specific, and none have yielded any hard results.

As to cache cleaners, I don't use 'em.  Became allergic from the first one I used in Win95.  I've tried several since then, in all iterations of Windows save for WinME, and found them to create more problems than they resolved.  Some people swear by them, but in my experience, all it takes is one mis-perceived memory address cleared and a system crash is imminent.

Just as a sidebar, the problem under discussion has occurred three (3) times during the creation of this post, pretty much obviating idle time or lack of activity as a probable cause.

1157

General Software Discussion / Error: Firefox plugin manager not working ...

« on: July 06, 2010, 09:12 PM »

Searches, here & Google, have done nothing.

Firefox v3.6.6 will run for 10-20 minutes, then it'll white out (Win7, 64-bit).

I've neither loaded nor updated anything in the last 2-3 days, just started today.  I kill the process, restart, and it's good for another 10-20 minutes, maybe half an hour at times.

Yeah, I could switch browsers, but some things I do require Firefox & some plugins.

I can probably live with it, but the constant restarting is really getting on my nerves  .

Anyone have ideas for circumvention?

1158

General Software Discussion / Re: In search of JavaScript book(s) for a kinda novice ...

« on: June 30, 2010, 01:34 AM »

@MilesAhead
'Fraid most any online stuff is out.  Diana has dial-up, somewhere 'twixt 24K & 36K, not enough for any practical online lessonry.  We set her laptop up with Apache/PHP/MySQL so she could do her Web stuff, then she comes here - with insanely jealous husband - to do uploads & such.  If 'twere something I could download, burn to a CD, it'd prolly help, but not quite the same thing as having a book where you can make notes in the margin, highlight significant passages, and the like.  It's kinda hard to bookmark the pages on a CD so you can take up where last you stopped <chortle />.
Agree about the books ... that's why this topic  .

@Deozaan
Problem with Crockford is his decisions as to what is good and what is bad .  Yes he does seem to approach the subject from a programmer's point of view - not necessarily the best approach for teaching someone w/o that training.  His good seems more along the line(s) of of a C/C++ programmer's thinking, not necessarily the same as a Web designer's thinking.

He definitely makes for an interesting read, but don't think I'd wish him on a relative novice in the field .
(Once I saw part of the first video, I recalled him/his thinking.)



As mentioned, Diana is a fairly sharp cookie, not too many crumbles, but a programming maven she ain't, ya know?

Perhaps more to the point, while she seems to like video training, I've seen some of her HTML and PHP books:  kinda hard to read a page w/o being distracted by the margin notes and multi-color highlighting.

She learned PHP/MySQL from PHP: Developer's Cookbook and Web Database Applications with PHP & MySQL , as well as the PHP docs she downloaded while here, so I'm looking for something on an equivalent level for JavaScript for her.

1159

General Software Discussion / Re: In search of JavaScript book(s) for a kinda novice ...

« on: June 29, 2010, 11:31 PM »

Personal distaste for videos aside, that'll be forwarded to her - if memory serves, she's partial to multimedia training, although I cannot see the why of it.

I'm kinda in the same boat.  JS requires more functions to function than my brain can seem to hold  .

Mentioned O'Reilly - that includes Fatbrain (didn't realize they were now Barnes & Noble), B&N, Amazon.  Problem with the reviews:  no way to assess validity, veracity, or reviewer's knowledge level.  In light of that, I currently have two (2) Linux networking volumes and one (1) Linux cookbook on my desktop, purchased upon the strength of [Amazon] reviews.  One of the networking books is simplistic, the other is over my head - no formal IT training - and the cookbook ... isn't.  However, each of the three (3) had glowing reviews.  (They're going to a local computer club in the morning - tonight if the guy I called shows up.)

That's why I queried here:  if a particular tome is esoteric, it will be so noted; if it is too simplistic, same thing; mostly, however, I'll be getting reviews and suggestions from known entities whose opinions can be respected, folk I trust not to lead me astray in an area where my own knowledge is dismal.

After all, that's a significant part of DC .

1160

General Software Discussion / Re: Help Request: Php files on Apache server not loading right

« on: June 29, 2010, 10:01 PM »

Understood  .  However, your point still stands.  If there's a possibility that rewording the topic could save someone else some of the grief, it's a thing worth doing.

Anent the search function, guess Google has spoiled me:  I had, until now, assumed that the search engine scanned posts, not just topics.  Makes me curious what I might have missed in past searches  .

1161

General Software Discussion / Re: A [probable] RTFM conundrum ...

« on: June 29, 2010, 08:26 PM »

OK, that works.  How do we go about changing the thread title?  You?  Me?

1162

General Software Discussion / In search of JavaScript book(s) for a kinda novice ...

« on: June 29, 2010, 07:57 PM »

Folk,

Seeking recommendations for one or more books on JavaScript.  Searches here have turned up a plethora of items, but none that I've perused seem to fit requirements.

A friend of mine, reasonably conversant with HTML/PHP/MySQL has decided she just has to learn JS.  She's asked me for book recommendations, but I simply don't have any.  She's not a hardcore web developer, but does well with most of what she attempts to do.

Looking, prolly, for two (2) types of books:  one would be a reasonable tutorial/instruction manual, the other would be a cookbook kind of manual.  I simply do not know enough about JS to make recommendations.  (Maybe I should get copies of whatever might be recommended?)

She's competent with HTML, perhaps a bit less so with PHP (but progressing rapidly).  Probably a mid-level (?) book on JavaScript - methodology, syntax, and the like - would be appropriate.  She also wants something similar to PHP:  Developer's Cookbook , of which she is very fond (as was meself, several years agone).

Any suggestions?

Addendum:  I've looked at O'Reilly, but simply cannot judge from the titles/descriptions.

1163

General Software Discussion / Re: A [probable] RTFM conundrum ...

« on: June 29, 2010, 06:46 PM »

Mouser,

I'd love to have done so ... but what title would have been appropriate?  I really was at a loss as to what the title should be.  If you have a better one, by all means, change it  .

[Side note](I've seen a number of threads here that ended up far afield of the original topic.  Nature of the beast, methinks  .)

1164

General Software Discussion / Re: A [probable] RTFM conundrum ...

« on: June 29, 2010, 06:11 PM »

That's something to consider if a similar file is encountered in the future.  Uncertain, though.  *nix uses LF for EOL, Mac uses CR, and Win uses both - so if one or the other were missing, the line would not display properly in the editor (I use PSPad for .htaccess/.conf/.ini files, with CR+LF as default line ending, when working in Windows).  Unless Win looks at the order, i.e., LF+CR as opposed to CR+LF?  I'm really not certain there, but I don't think that matters.  If I get time, I'll put a text file in PSPad in hex, then change the order, see what transpires.

Since I frequently hit CTRL while typing, I'm inclined to think that may have been the cause.  I usually can tell that's happened because some hot-keyed app will pop up, stealing the focus while I'm typing merrily away.  It's possible, I'd guess, that some CTRL-key combos could put a non-visible character in a text string when it doesn't activate an application.  Another area of ignorance, but I seem to remember having that problem with VB apps back in the corporate days.

1165

General Software Discussion / Resolved? Re: A [probable] RTFM conundrum ...

« on: June 26, 2010, 11:23 PM »

OK, this seems to have been resolved ... at least, PHP is showing properly now, although the index order is not being followed.

I loaded the httdp.conf file in WinMerge, along with a known good file from another machine.  After poring over it for what seemed hours, I kept finding some lines that were indicated as being different even though they were, visually, identical.  I deleted those lines, then retyped them.  Suddenly, stuff works.

Barring any other evidence, I'm constrained to assume that there were non-visible characters in the replaced lines that Apache could recognize even though I couldn't see them.  I suppose I should have loaded both files into a hex editor (PSPad has that capability, though it's seldom used on my part.) to see what the difference was, but by the time I thought of that, I'd already implemented the changes.

At any rate, although I don't fully understand the whys & wherefores, so far things seem to be fixed.  Sorry to have troubled you with such a simplistic issue.

1166

General Software Discussion / Re: A [probable] RTFM conundrum ...

« on: June 24, 2010, 08:24 PM »

Unfortunately, other than trying to run phpinfo(), I don't know a way to verify mod_php except by checking the .conf/.ini files.  However, most everything I've found does not include mod_php save for Apache 1.x.  Seems it's being ... deprecated? ... or just replaced by FastCGI <shudder />.

HTML pages work just fine, although I've very few w/o some PHP content  . 

I guess the .htaccess is short enough to post.  It's one I've used for quite a while now, although I don't understand everything I know about it  .

[Select]

# Enable Server-Side Includes
AddType text/html .shtml
AddHandler server-parsed .shtml
AddHandler server-parsed .html
Options FollowSymLinks Includes

# Define default pages
DirectoryIndex index.html index.php

# Linking Control - allow only blank or listed referers
RewriteEngine on
RewriteCond %{HTTP_REFERER} !^$
RewriteCond %{HTTP_REFERER} !^http://(www\.)?win7rc3ggw/.*$ [NC]
RewriteRule \.(bmp|gif|jpg|png)$ - [F]

# Prevent viewing of htaccess
<Files ~ "^\.ht">
order allow,deny
deny from all
satisfy all
</Files>

# Disable directory listing from this point
Options +Indexes

# Omit certain file types from the directory listing
IndexIgnore *.bmp *.gif *.jpg *.png

#Handle HTML as PHP
AddHandler application/x-httpd-php .html

1167

General Software Discussion / Re: A [probable] RTFM conundrum ...

« on: June 24, 2010, 07:00 PM »

All good points.

Access is via http://win74ggw/[php page or index.php] - localhost won't work, but that's due to entries in the httpd.conf file.

Only one copy of httpd.conf in existence - it's not correct, but it's the only one  .  And, to verify the correct one is being edited, l'll usually make some innocuous but obvious change to be certain, then revert the change & try to do what I need to do  .  (This is usually to change the index order from index.php to index.html, then back.)

Haven't used the short tag <? for years ... belt and suspenders attitude on most things  .

There is one point you've inadvertently brought, though.  When system is booted, it may take several minutes before the Apache Monitor shows Apache as active.  It's also slow to restart via the Monitor.  My first thought was UAC issues, but that doesn't seem to be the case.  However, no discernible pattern, at times the restart will bring up the UAC permission window.

One other thing I should maybe mention is that I've seen complaints on restarting Apache that RewriteEngine is invalid in the .htaccess file in DocRoot.

1168

General Software Discussion / Help Request: Php files on Apache server not loading right

« on: June 24, 2010, 05:40 PM »

Folk,

I give up.  I've been fighting this problem for a couple of weeks, now, and cannot deduce or find a resolution.

I've installed Apache 2.2, PHP 5.x, & MySQL on a 64-bit Win7 box.  However, PHP files merely display the page as PHP code, at best.  Both Apache and PHP are 32-bit, MySQL is 64-bit.  The box in question is an Intel i3 4-core, 4 GB RAM.
I had the same problem with Win XP, and I think I had it with Win 2K.  However, I do not recall what resolved it.

All the Apache and PHP forum efforts have been treated as RTFM, with an automatic assumption that the manual has not been read  .  Google [many] searches have revealed a significant number of resolutions - none of which have worked for me.  Some of those resolutions involved WAMP/XAMPP, but that hasn't worked, either.  I dislike using WAMP/XAMPP for several reasons, but I tried both, anyway.  The results were significantly less than optimal  .

Bottom line - one of 'em, at least - is that I cannot test a couple of gigs of Web code on the laptop.  While I can run against the server just fine, I'm not always connected to the server.  Since I'm likely to experience vascular surgery in the near future, I really need to get the laptop up to speed in this respect, as there is no reason carving my drumstick(s) should keep me non-productive (if ever I was that  ).

As I recall previous corrections for the older OSes, it was httpd.conf & php.ini corrections, but I cannot remember those for the life of me.  If needful to see those files, I can put 'em up on a site - they're too long to post here, methinks.

1169

General Software Discussion / Re: Should we merge the complaints and compliments section into other section?

« on: June 20, 2010, 05:58 PM »

Not certain I contribute enough to qualify for an opinion, but I concur.  As has been mentioned, having a locale for such exposition is likely to promote exposition that otherwise would either not be made, or be made in a thread-specific locale, rendering - to my mind - the exposition more cogent and potent.

Just a thought.

1170

Living Room / Re: Suggestions for a docking station?

« on: May 15, 2010, 01:01 AM »

I tend to agree, but have two (2) disparate laptops, one of which doesn't have a docking station as an option.  That would tend to lead to a third-party option, no?  This is not a case where I can follow preferences  .  So, since I'm not much of a trailblazer, I seek advice as to what might be a best second option.  (I really hate blazing trails - it sucks - 'cause it is seldom very rewarding.)

1171

General Software Discussion / Re: Pros & Cons of a headless server?

« on: May 14, 2010, 11:09 PM »

DC RULZ!!!

Can't argue with that one!

Very possible. If your question is answered in one of the FAQs, or it's an easily accessible manual lookup issue, that will happen. Something I don't necessarily approve of - but I can understand why it happens.

Yeah, but whaddayado when the FAQ  or manual instructions aren't working?  I understand it, but it smacks more of elitism than of being busy.  As you note, it's a pretty big forum - with that many folk involved, ya'd think maybe one would take the time to think a question could be valid, even though simple.

That's one of the great things 'bout DC - folk seem to answer the question(s) asked w/o making a prior judgment.

About WAMP, last time I tried it, it had doc root buried something like four (4) or five (5) directories deep.  Don't recall if I did anything special during the install(s).

Now, as to Amahi, it won't fly.  Well, technically, I can't say that, 'cause Fedora never installed.  Three tries, and it would never boot - don't think it put Grub(2?) in the right place.  I was installing on a 2nd drive, e.g., sdb, and Fedora just didn't wanna go there (in fact, last install attempt hosed the system, had to restore it from backup).  Since that'll be a similar config on his box, that pretty well kills that idea, methinks.

So I've installed Ubuntu 10.04 server, working with that (or trying, anyway).  This business of working a couple of hours at a time kinda drags things out.

1172

Living Room / Suggestions for a docking station?

« on: May 14, 2010, 09:29 PM »

This laptop configuration thing is growing <sigh />.  Now my navy buddy & his SO are talking about a docking station.  I've checked several online, and am leaning toward a Kensington K33926US, but thought I'd check with you folk, first.  I like this one because it has a 10/100 RJ-45 port, but that's just my belt-'n-'spenders attitude - it's not really necessary.  Anybody have any other recommendations?  The reviews I've found online have been pretty bad.

1173

General Software Discussion / Re: Pros & Cons of a headless server?

« on: May 11, 2010, 10:40 AM »

Hm-m-m ... still waiting on Fedora to finish downloading - 'twould seem I chose the wrong [slow] mirror .  Not looking forward to the install, but I'll weather through, I'm certain.

I've installed WAMP several times over the years, XAMP once, I think.  Invariably, I've wiped it and manually installed the component pieces.  Matter of preference, but I just do not care for the directory structure(s) it creates, particularly how deep it buries the doc root.  I'm also not fond of black - white? - box solutions.  At least, when I install the components, I know where to look when things [inevitably] go sour.  'Course the down side to that is getting help.  (I've posted probs on the Apache forum several times & never gotten a response - think they thought it an RTFM issue .  Either that or the post(s) just not interesting enough .)

Oh, well ... Fedora download finished, time to start burning.

1174

General Software Discussion / Re: Pros & Cons of a headless server?

« on: May 10, 2010, 11:27 PM »

Whoosh!

I like FreeNAS, may install it on one of my boxes that I'm using for that purpose now.  eBox looks good, too, although as you say, it's kinda overkill (and I'm a bit leery of what normally comes in five (5) pound bags  ).  Started to look at Amahi, but first thing I notice on the download is that it requires a bootable Fedora 12 install CD?  Starting to get scared already  .

I have one box w/Ubuntu desktop that I use as a sometime server - never got around to doing the actual Ubuntu server, although that was always planned.  (Seems as though time always gets in the way.)  Point is, I can, with reasonable reliability, advise in such a situation.  Think the Amahi thing would be OK, but the Fedora install kinda throws me.  FreeNAS, from what I read, won't do - they both want a web server to test stuff out before uploading to their relative Web sites.

I'll install Amahi/Fedora locally as soon as the downloads are done, see if that seems more intuitive than Ubuntu, but any solution is likely to require a GUI for him (not so certain about her, though - she could end up local server admin, be SA as well as SO  ).

1175

General Software Discussion / Pros & Cons of a headless server?

« on: May 10, 2010, 08:59 PM »

My naval buddy called this weekend, checking to see how the laptop(s) config process is going.

He's all gung-ho over something a shipmate fed him about a headless [Ubuntu] server.  Now he wants to do that with his home desktop system.  Granted, it would allow him a bit more room, i.e., no monitor or keyboard space, but I'm kinda dubious 'bout the concept.  He's wild about the idea, wants to admin with Webmin from his laptop.

I can perceive the advantages, but not familiar enough to identify the downside(s). 

The box he's discussing currently runs WinXP and is used as a kinda,sorta file server as well as a desktop machine.  Now that he has the laptop(s) he wants to convert it.

My preference would be that he install Ubuntu desktop, then add server components as needed.  That doesn't seem to be, in a home environment, overly insecure, and he was born, in the PC sense, A.D. (After DOS), so I've got a life-sized picture of trying to help him with command-line over the phone.  He's accustomed to a GUI, and I'm not certain Webmin would be sufficient.

Haven't found anything definitive, one way or the other, via Google.  Thus, I've returned to the wealth of knowledge that is DC for information.