Topics

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General Software Discussion / ndxCards at half-price Friday, Ap 10, at Bits du Jour

« on: April 05, 2009, 09:35 AM »

ndxCards has been mentioned a few times on Donation Coder, but not recently.  I tried it our about 3 or 4 years ago, but abandoned it -- seemed woefully under=developed.  Nowadays, it looks much, much more powerful and much more pleasant to the eyes.  Has anyone else tried it recently?

The idea behind it is simple:  usies an index metaphor, with tagging and hierarchical tree organization.  Apparently will spit out an organizated outline from a stack of individual cards.

This coming Friday, it's available at Bits du Jour for $25.00, discounted from $49.00.

2

General Software Discussion / Strategies for international travellers regarding new US Customs seizure policy

« on: August 03, 2008, 01:03 AM »

I've just read the rather disturbing post and comments at LIFEHACKER about the US Customs new authority to inspect and seize for no reason whatever any device capable for storing digital data, as well as any print material.  You can imagine the storm of commentary blazing all day long.

Anyway, this new focus fuels my recent interest in "travelling light."  I've been studying all the things that can be done via USB memory stick [or other small digital devices].  I'm also looking into switching over to Linux and the new, inexpensive ASUS mini-laptop.  But mostly I'm interested right now in the role of the internet, specifically "online desktops," online data storage, online applications and even the new Lenovo SafeBook, an inexpensive laptop with no hard disk at all.

What strategies might you use to avoid seizure/loss of data and computer?.

3

General Software Discussion / MaxThink

« on: July 30, 2008, 10:00 PM »

Back in DOS days, I was devoted to MaxThink, at that a rather basic outliner.  When I switched over to Windows 95, I lost track of the program.

I've just come across it again, and it seems to have matured a great deal.  It seems now to be more than an outliner -- perhaps an "idea organizer" would best describe it.

I have not downloaded it yet, but have looked through all of the demo's.  Has anyone else worked with this software?

4

Found Deals and Discounts / Ashampoo Office 3 -- discounted to $29.95, if you know where to look

« on: May 09, 2008, 12:48 PM »

Subscribers to Ashampoo's email newsletter have received an announcement that Ashampoo Office 3 is available for a brief period for $29.95, rather than the usual $59.95.  However, anyone can available of the special.  Take a look at the "Service Letter" tab, where the announcement is also posted.

I tried downloading from the link on that notice.  One is taken to the CNET download center, but two tries both yielded corrupt, incomplete files.  Best to download direct from the software's product page at Ashampoo.

This company seems to be very aggressive at discounting its products.  With a little patience, one should be able to snap almost any of its products at a significant discount.

5

General Software Discussion / Word Press & Widgets

« on: October 23, 2007, 12:39 PM »

I would very much like to add to my blog sidebar a widget to present readers with my shared items in Google Reader.  It should be easy to do, but I'm having real difficulty and need some advice.  Have tried the Word Press forum but it has not been at all responsive to my query or other queries of similar nature.  So here I am at my favorite info source DonationCoder.

THE PROBLEM:  I'm running ?my blog on Word Press 2.0, which is installed on my webmaster's server.  I am able to drag available widgets onto the sidebar -- but when I click on the "configuration" icon, nothing happens -- I cannot configure.  I've tried several widget-ready themes and even gone to the wp-administration panel on two different computers.  No luck.

A FAILED ALTERNATIVE:  With no luck in 2. my webmaster has installed in a separate directory Word Press's new version 2.3.  The installation seems to be OK.  Several alternative themes work, and my database of posts is intact.  However, widget problems again.  This time I simply get a list of widgets -- they are not contained in draggable boxes.

Is there anyone here who might know what's wrong?  I've been trying to solve this for a full week now, and I'm getting frustrated.

Tom

6

Found Deals and Discounts / Achieve Planner Productivity Suite

« on: August 24, 2007, 12:51 AM »

Achieve Planner, full suite version, on sale week of Aug 27, with Monday offering best deal with bonuses.  I like this time and life manager -- reviewed it at my blog a couple months ago at:
 http://becoming-a-wr...-your-time/#more-106

For sale details, go to:  http://www.effexis.com/FireSale/

Tom

7

Word Processor Roundup / Writing Software

« on: July 02, 2007, 04:51 PM »

A couple months back, I ran into a brief review about Scribus, a word processor for the Mac, with powerful bibliographic and note-taking capabilities. Sounds too good to be true.  I've put a brief reference to it on my blog.  So far, though, I've found no one who uses it.

Tom

8

Word Processor Roundup / Excellent 3-page series -- but missing some word processors for creative writers

« on: July 02, 2007, 10:25 AM »

ZAINE:  I'm very impressed with your reviews -- clear, comprehensive, illuminating.  With most such reviews, I'm sure there will be some disagreement, and the discussion at this forum will be equally valuable I'm sure.

I've written a review of your review at my blog for writers:

     http://becoming-a-wr...-of-word-processors/


Interestingly, I've been exploring some of the same territory you've covered, but focussing on programs specially written for creative writers and journalists, rather than business and techical writers.  I've written extensive reviews of some of these, emphasizing screenshots illustrating the programs in action in the hands of a working writer.  Many more reviews to follow.

Tom