Topics

51

Drag&Drop Robot / Readability Problem in Vista

« on: February 03, 2009, 10:02 PM »

I am running Vista in the default Windows Vista Basic theme and just installed Drag & Drop Robot and found the colors difficult to read.

52

General Software Discussion / Suggestions for a Quick & Easy ircd for my private LAN

« on: February 03, 2009, 12:53 PM »

I have a 4-node Windows LAN here at work and I want to run our own ircd so we can use irc internally for communications. Any hint or tips to quickly and easily setting up an irc daemon?

53

General Software Discussion / Anything you know of that is similary (in features and price) to Parse-O-Matic ?

« on: February 02, 2009, 12:10 PM »

I see that Iconico Daily Deals is going to have Parse-O-Matic Advanced Edition on sale for 80% off. I am wondering what other similar tools are out there that are in this category. I am very familiar with the multi-hundred to thousand dollar programs out there for enterprise-strength data migration between SAP, Oracle, etc. But I am curious as to what other lightweight tools there are out there.

The next question is, will Parse-O-Matic Advanced Edition be easier/quicker to use on projects than me writing some python scripts. My initial guess is that it will be quicker/easier for the simpler conversation tasks, but that if they get more complicated, I (personally, since I know python) will be better off doing it in python.

Anybody got any experience in this area and/or with similar products?

If I can find the time, I plan on trying out the demo before it goes on sale.

54

General Software Discussion / Windows Home Server or stick with Windows Server 2003?

« on: January 28, 2009, 07:44 PM »

I know there is Server 2005; which I believe is focused on the virtual server domain. There is Server 2008 which I think is even Enterprise-Grade in the Standard version. But I only have a license for Server 2003.

I have recently been thinking about purchasing Windows Home Server since it is now sub-$100. Mainly because it will just work "out of the box" with my computers and my girlfriends Vista computer. I can install the clients on her computer and it will be seamlessly integrated and easy (easier) for her to use then trying to teach her non-native applications to use.

My only question is, since Home Server is based off of Server 2003, can I "mod" Server 2003 to act like Home Server and work with the Home Server Add-ins?

I'm thinking the $100 might be worth the savings in aggravation. Then again maybe I just want to buy something new and shinny and I should just be happy with a CentOS server and try to get things working smoothly enough that she (and I) don't go crazy jumping through hoops.

Anybody feel like convincing me one way or the other? 

55

General Software Discussion / DVD to iPod Touch in 48 hours

« on: December 18, 2008, 07:36 AM »

I have borrowed an Apple iPod Touch 16GB for my overseas trip. With the permission of the owner, last night I did a factory restore of the unit and upgraded the OS from version 1.1.4 to 2.2. I now can put movies on it for the transatlantic flight. The problem is that I don't do iPods -- I've been a Creative Zen guy for the past few years.

I know how to take a DVD, strip off the Macrovision and get just the movie into a nice set of VOB files.

What I don't know how to do is to get it properly formated and loaded on the iPod touch for viewing. I might just spring for a set of SlySoft programs, but if there is some FOSS stuff out there, I would prefer that.

I am looking at Quick Media Converter, but there seems to be a billion tutorials on converting from SWF to everything under the sun, but didn't yet find a DVD to iPod Touch how-to yet.

Anybody got any guidance for me?

56

General Software Discussion / wanted: way to batch/script manipulate image (ICO) files

« on: December 05, 2008, 09:40 AM »

I have a bunch of icons (.ICO) files that I need to create various colored set of. For example, all the icons are black on cyan and I need to make a black on red set, a black on green set, etc.

I am looking into the following:

• python using Python Image Library (but it only handles ICO read-only)
• python controlling Paint Shop Pro (but I don't own a copy of PSP)
• using MS Paint, Ritalin, & caffeine

I was wondering if there is some magic tool I am overlooking.

[update]
It looks like GIMP is scriptable with python.

57

General Software Discussion / Want to add a subtle embossed watermark to a couple hudred photos

« on: November 18, 2008, 09:41 PM »

My girlfriend's online retail business has a couple hundred photos. Most of them she took herself. They are showing up in other online retail stores. I want to add a subtle watermark to all of the images on her site.

I am looking for a program that will allow me to easily add a subtle transparent embossed watermark. I want to be able to tinker with it until it looks the way I want it to, and then apply it proportionally to a bunch of images. I want to be able to use a GUI to tweak it and then a batch mode to apply it to all images.

A search of these forums doesn't provide any candidates. The only thing that came close was picture-shark, but it only works with a fixed-size watermark.

I will try to find some examples that look like what I want our images to look like and add them to this thread.

Thanks, as always, for your help.

Added:
Just after I posted this, I remembered GiveAwayOfTheDay having something like this and did a search. I found Watermark Factory 2. I looks good, but it priced a bit steep for our needs at $150 (business license). I'm hoping there is something free or low(er) cost.

Added:
As I suspected, Googling for "Watermark Factory" would cause ad-words to pony up some competitors. :-) I found a business license of WinWatermark is only $50. I'm getting closer. ;-)

FOUND!!!
Bytescout Watermarking

58

Developer's Corner / Looking for a "Cover Flow" component/widget

« on: November 13, 2008, 11:24 AM »

There are several available for web/javascript apps, but I can't find one (yet) for compiled applications.

I am looking for a FOSS component that does the same as the album viewer in iTunes.

There is an opensourced javascript version at

http://www.se51.net/devnull/cover-flow/



For the projects I have in mind, a .NET component version would be good. Ultimately a wxWidger version would be best.

59

Older DC Contests and Challenges / Is it too early for NANY?

« on: November 11, 2008, 10:07 AM »

Mouser,

I have an idea for what I would like to code for the upcoming NANY. When will the festivities officially commence?

60

General Software Discussion / What application is stealing my keystrokes?

« on: November 04, 2008, 01:23 PM »

I'm not sure there is a program to do this, but if it exists, you folks will know about it.

I am running eclipse and some of the shortcut keys aren't working. I think it is because some other program I am running is intercepting the keystrokes for itself and not passing them on.

I am 99.99% certain that you cannot determine what application has a hold on a particular shortcut, but it should be able to determine what applications got their hooks into the OS to intercept keystrokes and it should be able to determine in what order they are processing them.

Does anybody know of an application that lists the applications, hopefully in order, that are grabbing keystrokes.

For example, I am running Direct Access and FARR. Both are interecepting keystrokes before they go to eclipse. That is why I can hit Pause/Break while in eclipse and have FARR come up or ``email and have Direct Access replace ``email with my email address.

If such a utility exists, it would be the Bee's knees. If not, then I will head over to our very own developer forum and start hacking away at the Win32API. :-(

61

SMF Forum Mods / Scanning attachments on SMF with ClamAV

« on: October 21, 2008, 07:56 PM »

I am helping out an NGO. They have SMF setup and are concerned about attachments having viruses. They are running on Win 2003. I have been looking for, but cannot find a mod to run ClamAV on each file that is uploaded. Is anybody aware of such a mod or a way to do what I am looking to do?

62

Find And Run Robot / [bug report] FARR is putting two entries in Startup folder

« on: October 19, 2008, 11:28 AM »

version 2.30.01

When I check the box in General Options to "Start automatically when Windows starts" I get two entries in the same Startup folder. I can consistently reproduce.

63

Living Room / Selectively Print Only What You Want From Webpages

« on: October 03, 2008, 08:47 AM »

I'm @ work and too busy to write more, but I'm sure you folks can fill in the details in the replies to this post.

http://www.printwhatyoulike.com/

It is a very cool free web service that allows you to print only what you want from a web page along with several excellent options. Think of it as FinePrint for the web.

64

Living Room / Complaint: Why are 99.999% of all companys' customer service departments broken?

« on: September 30, 2008, 12:43 PM »

I cringe every time I have to deal with any form of customer service. They almost always *appear* or *act* like total idiots. I'm sure this ain't true, but experience seems to show they are.

Today's latest...

MySpace

1. Yesterday I delete/close my account.
2. Today I get the MySpace Newsletter.
3. I send them an email complaining that I don't want the newsletter.

Yesterday I closed my account and today I am getting the news letter. I don't want to get the newsletter because I no longer have an account. However the fine print at the bottom of the newsletter says that I need to login and change my preferences to stop getting the newsletter. How am I supposed to log in to change my preferences when I just closed my account. Please remove my email address from any newsletters or other promotional email from your company.

thank you,
chaim

4. They reply...

Hello,

Thank you for contacting MySpace Support.  Located below is information on how to upload, remove and subscribe/unsubscribe to videos.
 
Uploading Videos
 
To upload a video follow the instructions below:
 
1. Log in to your MySpace profile.
2. From your MySpace homepage, click on the Upload link next to the Videos located under your profile default picture.
3.  Select a title, tag, description and category for your selected video.
4.  Please ensure that the video is the proper format and is under 100 MB.  The acceptable formats available include the following:
.avi, .asf, .dv, .wmv, .mov, .qt, .3g2, .3gp, .3gp2, .3gpp, .gsm, .mpg, .mpeg,
.mp4, .m4v, .mp4v, .cmp, .divx, .xvid, .264, .rm, .rmvb, .flv, .mkv, .ogm
 
5. Accept our Terms and Conditions by checking the box I agree to the MySpace Terms of Service. Please note, if the uploaded video violates the MySpace Terms of Service, the profile/account will be deleted. Click here to view the Terms.
6. The next screen will prompt you to locate your video.  Click on the Browse button to locate and choose the video file that you would like to add. Once the video has been located, click on the Upload button.
7. The system will now upload your video. Please be patient as the size of the video will determine how long it will take to upload to your profile.
 
 
Deleting/Removing Videos
 
To delete/remove a video follow the instructions below:
 
1. Log in to your MySpace profile.
2. From your MySpace homepage, click on the Edit link next to the Videos located under your profile default picture.
2. A list of videos that you have uploaded will be displayed. Click on the Delete Video link for the video you would like to remove.
3. A pop-up window will appear asking you to confirm your deletion request. Click the OK button to delete the video.
 
It is also recommended that you check to see if you have any HTML codes for a video embedded in your About Me section of your profile.
 
 
Removing a Video added from MySpaceTV
 
1. After logging in, go to your MySpace home page then click the Edit Profile link located at the top of the page.
2. After you hit the Edit Profile link click on the Song & Video link.
3. After clicking on that link you will see the video you want removed displayed along with a button giving you the option to remove it.
 
Due to some recent changes with the site, you may have noticed the Remove from Profile button is no longer available on your profile?s video player. To remove the video you must:
?        First Login to your Account and go to the MySpaceTV link located on the top of you home page
?        Choose any video or a video that you would like to replace the original one on your profile.
?        Select the link under the video that says Add to Profile.
?        Check your profile to see if the new video is being displayed; you should now see the Remove from Profile button.

 
Subscribe to a Video
 
In order to subscribe to a video simply go to a favorite video and click on Subscribe.  Please note, if you are subscribed to a user's videos and do not wish to receive profile update you can turn this feature on/off.
 
 
Unsubscribe from a Video
 
In order to unsubscribe to a video you must first be logged in to your MySpace account. After logging in click on the MySpace TV which can be found in the navigation tabs. Once on the MySpace TV site click on the link titled My Subscriptions. This will bring you to a page which displays videos from all the users you are subscribed to with a list of these user located on the left hand side of the page. To unsubscribe from a users videos click on the name of the MySpace user you wish to unsubscribe from and then click the Unsubscribe link near the user's profile picture.
 
We hope you found this information helpful. If this does not address your issue completely, please reply to this email, keeping the subject line intact. Be sure to provide any additional information you feel is relevant.   

4. WTF!!!

65

Living Room / Should I Stay Or Should I Go -- A Social Networking Dilemma

« on: September 24, 2008, 03:19 PM »

Yesterday I started trying to update all of my social networking sites. It is proving to be quite a horrendous challenge. I have come to the conclusion that it isn't worth all the effort to do it.

But then a second dilemma occurs. Do I outright delete me accounts (on Facebook, MySpace, etc.) or do I let the rot away without the necessary gardening required to keep them current?

I doubt I will outright cancel my accounts because they might prove usefull some point in the future, but I can't see going to each one and delete my current information down the the bare minimum acceptable to each individual site.

I am sure that, for specific purposes, these sites have been extremely useful to many people. However, I don't see these things as very usefull to me in general.

What are your thoughts on this issue? Do you have anything that might convince me to spend the effort gardening for potentially hours each week? The obvious answer is for me to decide to only maintain the ones that I feel provide me value for my time spent with them. What should I do with the rest?

I'm curious to hear the discussion that could follow.

66

General Software Discussion / Web Developer Tools Needed: Website Downloader and Broken Image/Link Checker

« on: September 20, 2008, 04:12 PM »

I am going to be spending the next few hours working on a project. I will be searching the Internet for some tools to do some things I need, but I figured it wouldn't hurt to throw up a post here in case somebody happens to stop by the forums today and knows of some good tools.

I am moving an existing website to a "better" setup. I am creating a test server, production server, putting client-side files under FileHamster and server-side files under Subversion. Local web page editing will be via KompoZer and file transfer will be via WinSCP.

The existing website files include a bunch of junk. I want to point a program at the home page and have it download all of the files necessary for the site. I will then use only those files to start with. The rest of the files will be archived to CD and removed. I will then host only the downloaded files on the test server and I want to then run a broken image/link checker on the site to find and problems.

I then will set up Google Analytics for the site.

Additionally I want to find a web site/service that will email me if the site goes down and another to check all of the links/embeds and email me if any go bad.

I'm going to start working on this now. Any help with finding these things would be appreciated.

thanx,
tinjaw

67

General Software Discussion / Please Help Me "Transition" to Internet Exploder...err Explorer

« on: September 18, 2008, 11:00 AM »

Due to work being work and government work on top of that, ignorance and bureaucracy have prevailed and I must (temporarily, I hope) use IE exclusively at work.

I live inside Firefox at home, and up until now, also at work.

I have memorized a bunch of hotkeys and run dozens of extensions that I pretty much rely upon on an hourly basis.

My question to the forum is...

What are the "must-have" addons/hacks/extensions/workarounds for IE that will make my IE experience much more productive?

I would like some serious answers, please, as this is work-related and I am not just doing this for the fun of the experience. Thank you for your kind assistance in this manner. 

I guess I should add that I only have standard user privileges on a Win XP Pro box on a Windows Domain, so I cannot install any EXEs. It is my understanding that IE7 has something similar to Firefox Extensions that can be added by regular (non-privledged) users.

68

General Software Discussion / Is there a desire to open a Pocket PC/Windows Mobile forum here on DC?

« on: August 09, 2008, 01:54 PM »

I have recently purchased a PDA that runs Windows Mobile 6 and I would love to have the kind of information available about software to run on it that I have here with DonationCoder and my desktop computer.

Are you folks interested in getting a dedicated Pocket PC/Windows Mobile forum going here?

Or maybe you know of an existing forum elsewhere that is already established and that I should join.

69

Living Room / WARNING: Bigger Time Sink Than Tower Defense Games !!!!!

« on: July 29, 2008, 07:45 AM »

Most of you have probably found Indexed funny. I have wasted many units of the 4th dimension there. Now I have succumbed to the hilarity of GraphJam.

Indexed


GraphJam

70

General Software Discussion / Anybody Used PHProxy?

« on: July 23, 2008, 08:36 PM »

I just learned about PHProxy, but see that it is no longer under development. Has anybody used PHProxy? What has replaced it?

[update] It looks like I am looking for CGIProxy.

71

General Software Discussion / Wanted: Seamless forum <==> mailing list integration

« on: June 30, 2008, 10:38 AM »

I had planned on using Google Groups, but just discovered that if you wish to use the web-based frontend to a Google Group, you need a gmail email account. This is not acceptable for the usage I have in mind.

FUDForum seems to have been abandoned about a year ago. Too bad as that was my second choice to Google Groups.

The best candidate I can find so far is mail2forum with phpBB.

My challenge: I have to provide an online discussion capability that allows for people that can only use a mailing list to collaborate with people who choose to use a web-based forum. They need to be able to use their existing email accounts (i.e. not forced to use a gmail or yahoo account). It needs to be 100% restricted to only those user hand-picked to be allowed to join.

The most common thing I find on the internet about this topic is several variations on, "I can't believe this hasn't been created yet!". And those comments go back to about 2001.

72

General Software Discussion / The Ultimate Music File Organizer

« on: June 29, 2008, 01:51 PM »

I started a few months ago to organize my music files. I made much progress but didn't complete the project. I want to get that project finished.

I am wondering if there is currently a way to automate much of this process. Ultimately I would just like to move all of my music files to a directory and have a program that takes the files (irregardless of the directory structure or naming convention) and processes them by a combination of technologies like MusicBrainz and MusicIP to identify songs, and other utilities to grab cover art, lyrics, etc. as well as fill out mp3 tags.

Has somebody glued all this together yet?

73

General Software Discussion / Looking for web service that checks URLs and emails if URL breaks

« on: June 25, 2008, 08:55 AM »

Here's my use case. URLs are used in course materials as external reference sources. Those links often stop working and we want to be notified so we can update the course materials that use those broken URLs. I want to be able to maintain a list of the URLs, annotated or tagged or grouped by course name, and have the service email when the URLs no longer point to what they used to.

Anybody know of such a service that focuses on this?

I am going to look into using something like delicious for this, but that will be overkill and might be too complicated for the intended end user.

74

Developer's Corner / Better Printing of Web Pages

« on: June 19, 2008, 07:45 AM »

Spotted this today and bookmarked to look at later. I am impressed with what I have seen of it so far.

tabblo.developer.site
http://developer.tabblo.com/

75

Developer's Corner / Wanted: Version Control Propaganda Video

« on: June 10, 2008, 03:31 PM »

I have a friend who is not using version control and suffering from all that entails. I am looking for a video, or a document/web page, but preferably a video, that you believe would convert a non-believer into a version control user. It is not that they are educated about version control and denounce it as paganism, but they never were shown how it can save their sole and make them rich, and all that before breakfast. I am looking for something that is generic (i.e. software agnostic), educates, and proselytizes version control to the unexposed oblivious coders out there.

Anybody aware of such a useful piece of propaganda?