Topics

26

General Software Discussion / Timeline Software

« on: August 09, 2009, 02:21 PM »

I'd like to make the timeline of my entire life which would show me all the important blocks of time that make up my life thus far... eg Primary School, University, each and every job I've held, rehearsal periods for the plays I've directed etc.

I had a quick Google for suitable applications, and came up with many - almost all of which were online apps. They all look pretty similar to be honest, and, in common with many web-apps, most seem to be beta products, with closed source, and inaccessible data locked in proprietary file formats. None of which appeals!

Can anyone recommend a product?

27

General Software Discussion / Lost Article: Using javascript to activate a mailto link after a delay

« on: August 05, 2009, 01:49 PM »

I read an article a couple of months ago about using JavaScript to activate a clickable mailto: link after a few seconds delay, as a possible method of avoiding spam.

There was a little more to it than that - I seem to remember the email address was encrypted somehow.

But my Google skills have let me down and I can't find the article again.

I think it was a blog post on someone's webdesign page, but who's I've no idea.

Anybody seen it? The internet is a big place!!

Ampa

28

General Software Discussion / MonsterCart

« on: August 05, 2009, 05:02 AM »

A potential client has asked me to look at their e-commerce site, which is powered by MonsterCart, an asp cart script.

I've been searching for some time now, and am not coming up with any good info about this particular script... no homepage ( www.monstercart.com is just a holding page ), no forum posts are talking about it, no entry on Wikipedia, no faq!

Anyone heard of this software before?
Is it still supported?
If not, would they be advised to transition to some other cart system?
If so, which do you recommend?

Thanks, Ampa

29

FARR Plugins and Aliases / KlipKeeper crashes FARR

« on: June 15, 2009, 11:36 AM »

Latest version of FARR (though this has been happening for some time).
Latest version of KK.

I type kk, and see the clipboard history, but as soon as I try to select an entry FARR crashes with the following error...

---
Find+Run Robot Encountered an exception error (EAccessViolation). Please report to [email protected].
---

Have tried deleting the KK directory and reinstalling, but problem persists.

Anyone else seen this? Anyone got a fix?

Ampa

30

General Software Discussion / What is better than Excel for costing a project?

« on: May 10, 2009, 07:36 AM »

I am trying to cost my board-game project...

• There are four items to be manufactured - a board, a box, some cards and the rule book.
• Each of these items can be made in a variety of ways - eg a rigid box or a carton box, a folding board or a flat board.
• Each method has fixed costs and variable costs, depending upon number of units manufactured
• Each of these items can be made by a number of companies.
• Each company has their own minimum order size, perhaps 500 or 1000 units.

I need to collate all this information, so that...

• It is clear which component(s) should be made by each company.
• What the unit cost will be.
• What the total project cost will be.

I am using Excel, since it is the only spreadsheet that I have any experience with, but I am startled at how convoluted it is to present this complex set of variables in a meaningful, and approachable way; and how difficult it is to swap the numerous different options in and out of the equation.

It may well be that I do not know the most effective ways to use Excel, or it may be that there is a better tool for the job; after all I can't possibly be the first person to be engaged with this type of costing operation!

Can any DCers suggest...

• A tutorial / example that shows how to use Excel to simplify my task.
• A better piece of software for solving this problem.

Thanks,

Ampa

31

Found Deals and Discounts / File Hamster - Birthday Discounts... 50% off everything

« on: November 14, 2008, 03:37 PM »

Just discovered that File Hamster is having a birthday sale, offering 50% of everything.

The Free version is still free!

The Plus version and Developers Pack are slashed to half thier usual price...

http://mogware.com/F...downloads/index.html

Ampa

32

Found Deals and Discounts / American McGee's Grimm: The boy who learned what fear is - FREE on GameTap

« on: July 31, 2008, 11:20 AM »

American McGee's Grimm: Episode 1 - The boy who learned what fear is



Is FREE on GameTap!

Looks fun and I love fairytales, however on my system it doesn't run! I launch the game, sit through the obligitory advert, am told "Please Wait" and after said wait, the screen flickers and I am back to the GameTap menu.

Very disappointed! Anyone else have better luck?

UPDATE: Downloaded Mr Robot (another freebie on the GameTap service) and that too fails to run. Not very impressed with GameTap so far!

Ampa

33

Developer's Corner / Javascript regular expression to grab filename from URI

« on: April 02, 2008, 12:43 PM »

I am very new to regular expressions and am struggling with something that I am sure is really pretty straight forward.

I have a string from which I need to return the just the filename, without the extension, or the path, or the serial number (xx = two digits at the start of the filename)

Code: Text [Select]

1. http://website/subdir/xx title of the image.jpg
2. http://aboutfaceuk.com/gallery/01%20a%20very%20big%20dog.jpg

The top example illustrates the general form of the input text, and the bottom is a real example from the site. The results should be...

Code: Text [Select]

1. title of the image
2. a very big dog

Other factors...

In theory there may or may not be a subdir.
The %20 should be replaced with spaces (not entirely sure why they are %20s in the first place, but they are!)
The regex flavour is Javascript.

Help appreciated!

Thanks Ampa

34

Post New Requests Here / IDEA: FillCD equivalent

« on: March 14, 2008, 01:45 PM »

I have a folder, containing many of subfolders, all of  which need burning to CDs. It is not important which folders end up on which CDs, so I would like some software to figure the best collection of folders for each CD to minimize the total number of CDs used.

There is an existing application FillCD which does exactly this!

BUT - the program is shareware, and appears to have been abandoned in late 2005. I have scoured the web for information...

• The original homepage fillcd.com is gone.
  
• The newer homepage fillcd.net has said "Sorry! The FillCD site is currently in transition. Please check back later." for months.
  
• Some of the subpages of fillcd.net work - but the downloads bring up errors.
  
• Registration is via email, but all contact email addresses are for the old domain, and bounce.
  
• Emails to the new domain disappear into the inner workings of the inter-web-mega-carriageway never to be seen again.
  
• Various posts in alt.windows.freeware over the last 12 months have not turned up any trace of the author.
  

I am aware of Burn to the Brim but this has more than its fair share of problems.

Perhaps someone can develop an alternative?

The requirements...

1) Accept a list of files and/or folders.
2) Mix and match these (keeping folders and subfolders together) to best fit the desired medium (eg 700MB CD).
3) Produce a list of files to burn to CD or possibly move the files/folders into a subfolder (eg BurnThis #1).
4) Repeat until all files/folders allocated.

Thoughts?

Ampa

35

Developer's Corner / Javascript remote rollover - works in IE7 but not IE6

« on: March 07, 2008, 06:40 PM »

Working on a new site (http://aboutfaceuk.com/test/ ).

The 'Get In Touch' button (bottom right) is actually a transparent anchor, over a <div> with a background image, containing both the normal and hilighted versions of the contact info.

A very simple piece of javascript changes the background-position to show the hilighted version.

Code: Javascript [Select]

1. function SecondWaveClass() {
2.   document.getElementById('SecondWave').style.backgroundPosition="0 -145px";
3. }

The code works in IE7, Opera, FF but not IE6 and I can't see why?

Any fellow designers / coders have any clues?

Thanks.

36

General Software Discussion / Monkey Dash: Play test my game!

« on: February 28, 2008, 04:23 PM »

OK now that I've lured you into the thread I'll come clean... it is a board game.

Games with Monkeys are fab!

STOP! Come back! Board games are great - honestly.

One year ago I was just like you and thought that board games were dull, old fashioned and generally uninteresting, but then I discovered Board Games With Scott, and the games he reviewed looked fun. From there I surfed to Board Game Geek where I discovered that there are more games in the world than Trivial Pursuit, Monopoly, Cluedo and Pictionary - really good games. Games that I love to play, games that make me proud to say "I am a board gamer".

Cut to the present day, and I've only gone and invented my own game: Monkey Dash - a two player strategy game, involving two fat monkeys, six 'every-good-game-has-them' regular wooden crates, a couple of competing warehouse supervisors and some quirky game mechanics.

After rigorous play testing with friends and family, Monkey Dash is now ready to stretch its legs, and seeks new fresh play-testing talent.

If you are interested then reply to this thread and I'll point you to a download so that you can print your own prototype, and test it to destruction.

Give me some feedback on the experience and I'll send you the two add-ons which extend the base game.

Ampa.

37

General Software Discussion / Can't open old CorelDraw (v4?) file - help please!

« on: February 18, 2008, 12:27 PM »

I was searching through some old backup CDs today, and found the original file for a short illustrated book that I wrote many years ago.

It is called "Shaun the Sheep" and is a tongue-in-cheek children's book, for adults (due to the drug taking scene).

From memory it was put together in CorelDraw v4, but I no longer have CorelDraw or anything else that will open the file, so I am posting it here in the hope that someone will be able to open it and export it in a more accessible format.

Thanks for your time

38

General Software Discussion / ImgBurn v2.4.0.0 released 10th Feb - and it supports audio CDs

« on: February 10, 2008, 05:01 PM »

Um... title says it all really. Here's a link to the changelog.

Ampa

39

General Software Discussion / FTP - How do I duplicate / copy remote folder?

« on: February 08, 2008, 07:54 AM »

I am working on a website MyDomain.net and have created a subdomain Preview.MyDomain.net where I make all changes.

Once the client has OKed the update I need to copy the Preview site over the Live site, but Filezilla doesn't have the ability to copy - indeed a search of their FAQ reveals that "there is no copy command in the FTP Protocol".

OK so what is the solution?

Sure, I could reupload the site from my local drive to the remote server, but surely copying on the remote server would be far quicker?

Ampa

40

General Software Discussion / FOUND: Need a font: Belgian Army (.ttf or .otf)

« on: February 06, 2008, 09:41 AM »

I have reopened a design from a few years back that is due for an update and completion, but I have lost one of the fonts used!

The font is called Belgian Army and has two weights (regular and bold). I have searched my HDs and my backups but it is nowhere to be found. So I turned to Google and the only references that I can find say "no longer available".

Does anyone have a copy knocking around?

Note: I am not sure why this font has vanished from the web, perhaps there was a copyright issue or something. My request is for a non-commercial, personal project, but it would really help me to match my old work.

UPDATE: Finally found a copy online . Phew! Panic over

41

Developer's Corner / PHP5 driving me insane! removeChild() bug?

« on: January 14, 2008, 08:29 PM »

1st: I am NOT a PHP expert. I struggle. I read a lot of help and tutorials. I understand some of them!

2nd: I found a PHP driven menu system called EasyNav - that was the easy bit.. things go downhill from this point!

I like the way that PHP is used to rewrite the site navigation, specifically removing nested menu items, and applying ID and CLASS tags to the menu to facilitate easy styling.

BUT the original script is written for PHP4 and my host uses PHP5. No problem, I thought, I'll rewrite the bits of the script that I need, and learn a lot about PHP along the way.

Generally I have got things working, but there is a bug in the code somewhere...

In one section I loop through all the UL elements in the DOM, checking to see whether their parent nodes are LI elements. If they are then the UL is a nested list, and so, unless it is the one containing the current page, should be removed from the menu.

Code: PHP [Select]

1. $HTMLDOM = new DOMDocument();                           //Create a new DOMDocument.
2. $HTMLDOM->loadHTML($NavHTML);                           //Convert $NavHTML to a tree of DOM objects.
3. $ULs = $HTMLDOM->getElementsByTagname("ul");            //Get a NodeList of the <ul> elements in the document.
4. foreach($ULs as $CurrentUL)                                     //For each <ul>...
5. {
6.         $ULParent=$CurrentUL->parentNode;                       //Get its parent.
7.         if ($ULParent->nodeName=='li')                          //If parent is an <li>, then this is a nested list...
8.         {
9.                 if($ULParent->getElementsByTagName('strong')->item(0)==NULL)    //If the nested list does NOT contain current page.
10.                 {
11.                         $ULParent->removeChild($CurrentUL);     //Remove the child node. (ie the nested list).
12.                 }
13.         }
14. }

To test it I run the loop on the following navigation structure...

Code: HTML [Select]

1. <ul id="NavRoot">
2.   <li><a href="index.php">A no_kids</a></li>
3.   <li><a href="B.php">B 2_kids</a>
4.     <ul id="Bsub">
5.       <li><a href="B1.php">B.1</a></li>    
6.       <li><a href="B2.php">B.2</a></li>    
7.     </ul>
8.   </li>
9.   <li><a href="C.php">C 2_kids</a>
10.     <ul id="Csub">
11.       <li><a href="C1.php">C.1</a></li>    
12.       <li><a href="C2.php">C.2</a></li>    
13.     </ul>
14.   </li>
15.   <li><a href="D.php">D 2_kids</a>
16.     <ul id="Dsub">
17.       <li><a href="D1.php">D.1</a></li>    
18.       <li><a href="D2.php">D.2</a></li>    
19.     </ul>
20.   </li>
21.   <li><a href="E.php">E no_kids</a></li>
22. </ul>

The current page is index.php, so ALL the sub-menus should be removed; but the actual output is...

A no_kids
B 2_kids
C 2_kids
C.1
C.2
D 2_kids
E no_kids

ie. sub-menus B and D are removed but C is not!

If I watch what is happening in the code, the foreach loop skips the iteration for C. If I comment out the removeNode() command, then the loop works correctly.

Does anyone have any idea why the removeNode() command is causing my loop to jump?

42

Living Room / What should I do with my audio CDs?

« on: January 10, 2008, 05:41 PM »

In the corner of my lounge sits my hifi, and next to that an unstable tower of CDs (about 250 in total).

This evening when I realised that I can't remember the last time I played a CD. I don't mean the last time I listened to music (I have music playing in the house everyday), but the last time that I had played music from an audio CD, taken from my shelf. Why?

Because for several years now, all my new music has been digital, in the form of MP3s.

I listen to MP3s on my computer, in the car, on a portable player, and on my hifi. So why do I keep my original CDs?

Well...

• At one time they were my prized possessions (though now they have little or no monetary value whatsoever)
  
• Because they are physical objects it feels wrong to get rid of them (a stupid hording / saving-the-planet mentality?)
  
• What would / could I do with them... Car-boot sale? eBay? Charity shop?

Of course I am assuming that I would rip anything that I still enjoyed to MP3 (I realise that we are entering the murky underworld of keeping the music having scrapped the CD )

What have other DCers done with their music collections? Do you still cherish your CDs or did you sling them years ago?

Help me decide what to do with mine.

Ampa

43

Developer's Corner / AHK: ClickControl with a spinner / updown buttons

« on: January 07, 2008, 06:30 AM »

I found an AHK script HERE which toggles the active screen when using a Wacom tablet in a dual screen setup.

I am new to AHK but the script looks very basic, and I would like to improve and extend it to better serve my needs. In the first instance I am trying to replace the MouseClick commands with ControlClick which seems to respond quicker(?)

One of the controls that I need to 'click' is an updown toggle.



I have tried the following...

[Select]

ControlClick, msctls_updown321

and...

[Select]

ControlSend, msctls_updown321, Up

but neither work (change the value in the edit box).

What am I doing wrong?

Thanks for any help / advice, Ampa.

[Select]

;Wacom Helper
;by Ampa, from an original script by finchie.
!^Left::
Run C:\WINDOWS\system32\pentablet.cpl
blockinput mouse
WinWait, Pen Tablet,
IfWinNotActive, Pen Tablet, , WinActivate, Pen Tablet,
ControlClick, Button12
KeyWait Space, D
WinWait, Pen Mode Details,
ControlSend, msctls_updown321, Up
KeyWait Space, D
ControlClick, Button14
IfWinNotActive, Pen Tablet, , WinActivate, Pen Tablet,
WinClose, Pen Tablet
blockinput off
return

44

Living Room / Website colour: crisp and bright OR dull and sludgy

« on: January 01, 2008, 10:29 AM »

Over Christmas I whipped up a small website for a local community hall. On my twin LCD displays the colours look crisp and bright, but on my mum's old CRT they look dull and sludgy (particularly in the top right hand corner).

Click to visit site

Now I am worried that the majority of people may be seeing the ugly version!

Please take a quick look for me and then vote above!

Thanks.

PS: anybody know the 'right' way to avoid colour discrepancies between systems. I have always assumed that my screen is giving me an accurate representation of what I have designed.

45

Developer's Corner / [Wanted] Flash boardgame engine / framework

« on: November 23, 2007, 02:50 PM »

I have designed a 2 player board game (working title "Monkey Dash"). Early play-testing, with a paper and glue prototype, has gone well, with the game getting a great reaction.

I would like to proceed to the next stage... a test on a larger scale. I need to get the prototype out to a wider audience, and would also like to gather statistics about how the game plays.

The best solution seems to be software!

The ideal: A Flash based framework specifically designed for boardgames.

Why Flash? I have done some Flash work before so the learning curve would be smaller.

Why a framework? I'd rather not reinvent the wheel!  Surely I don't need to code the board layout code, or simple rules for orthogonal movement of the player's pawn.

Any one know of such a thing? I have searched, but not come up with anything that looks very promising.

Ampa

46

Find And Run Robot / FARR Speed Dial

« on: August 16, 2007, 03:53 PM »

_{Disclaimer: This may already be possible, but I have searched the forum and options and didn't find the option.}

Is it possible to get FARR to display like the Speed Dial screen in Opera?

I have discovered that I work best with relatively few history items displayed in FARR (9 seems a good number), so it would be ideal to display them as a 3x3 grid.

47

Post New Requests Here / IDEA: Add 'retry' option to various Windows error messages

« on: July 28, 2007, 07:26 PM »

My hunch is that this idea is impossible, or at very least difficult, to implement.

I have always been frustrated when I try to move / rename  a file / folder and get a Windows error message…

Can't [do the operation] because another application is using the file / folder.

At this point the only option is to click OK, which cancels the request. Instead, I'd like to be able to close the offending application, and then hit 'retry' so that Windows can complete the operation.

This is a function that seems to have half made it into the operating system, but why isn't retry available on all dialogues?

Anyone even know where to begin with adding the 'missing button'!

Ampa

48

Living Room / Human Computing - Video Lecture by Luis von Ahm

« on: July 24, 2007, 05:15 PM »

Watched this long (51min) video today about harnessing 'human computing' power for the greater good - it is very interesting.

Human Computing - Video Lecture

This is by the same group who developed the reCaptcha previously mentioned on DC in this post

You can play the games mentioned in the talk online… (they require Java RE)

The ESP Game

PeekaBoom

And read more about Luis at his site here…

Luis von Ahm Homepage

49

General Software Discussion / Wrong mouse pointer on second screen - WinXP SP2, nVidia, dual screen

« on: May 19, 2007, 09:32 AM »

A curious little issue has arisen on my machine since my most recent reinstall of WinXP.

If I change screen resolution, the mouse pointer starts using the wrong cursor graphic on my second screen. So where it should be the standard arrow, I see vertical re-size. The busy cursor shows as the little hand etc etc.

There seems no logic as to which image is used in each case - it is different each time that the issue occurs.

The problem happens only after a resolution change - most often when I run a game full-screen and then return to the desktop.

System...
WinXP SP2, nVidia GeForce 8600 using Forceware 158.22

Any thoughts?

50

General Software Discussion / Backup my Dial Up Network Setting (DUN) in WinXP

« on: May 09, 2007, 05:31 AM »

My HomeCall (now Pipex) broadband install CD takes for ever to run, due to its fancy Shockwave animated menus. It is a pain to have to wait for it whenever I need to reinstall.

I can skip the process by installing the modem drivers manually, but then I also have to configure the DUN settings by hand.

None of this is rocket science, but takes at least as long as running the crappy install disk! So...

Is there a nice piece of freeware that will backup and restore my DUN settings with minimal fuss? Ideally with no install or even better using standard WinXP functionality

So far I found...

DUNDUP - which is in English, is free, and will sync DUN settings across a network, or import / export to a file. The negative is that it needs installing (though could possible just grab the exe for future use) and exports to a .pbk file (Windows Phonebook). I am unclear whether I need the DUNDUP software to restore these settings, or whether XP will handle a .pbk file on its own.

DUN-Backup - which is in German, is free and certainly backs up the DUN settings, possibly other things too. (My German is rudimentary, and tops out at 'please can I have directions to the train station'). The DUN settings are written to a .dat file, which would require DUN-Backup to import the settings.

Any other recommendations?