Recent Posts

151

General Software Discussion / Re: Freeware Image Organizer (Especially Tags/Keywords)?

« Last post by siouxdax on March 23, 2009, 09:58 AM »

Well, I tried out blueMarine. I knew that it was in beta testing, but I expected to at least be able to view pics. I 'imported' a folder... then nothing. Then I read through the support and FAQ. blueMarine actually copies your pics to build a contact sheet. In my opinion, not the best way to work with pics, especially when I've got over 12,000 pics (and yes, I did upload small folders in lieu of the whole 'My Pictures' folder).

So I'm still on the quest for a pic app. If only FastStone IV would support tags and search capabilities... I think I'm gonna email FastStone and suggest those features (but I'm sure I'm not the first to do so). Also, I think I've already tried Pictomio, but I may give it another shot.

152

General Software Discussion / Re: Freeware Image Organizer (Especially Tags/Keywords)?

« Last post by siouxdax on March 23, 2009, 02:19 AM »

How did it have anything to do with firefox? do you mean their website downloads malware or something?

-rgdot (March 23, 2009, 01:01 AM)

I don't think it had anything to do with Firefox, but it sure as hell took it over. Perhaps it's coincidence, but I seriously doubt it. It's just a gut feeling, ya know?

Kartal: Thanks for the links. I'll definitely be checking them out. I was pleased to see that one of them touts to be similar to Photoshop Lightroom.

153

General Software Discussion / Re: Freeware Image Organizer (Especially Tags/Keywords)?

« Last post by siouxdax on March 23, 2009, 12:20 AM »

Well MyPhotoIndex is just pure evil. Firstly it did not let me choose where to install (one of my pet peeves). Second, when importing my photos it stuck at 7859, screwing up the entire import. The features are quite sparse. Lastly it hijacked Firefox and produced a number or error pop-ups. All in all a total piece of junk

154

General Software Discussion / Re: Freeware Image Organizer (Especially Tags/Keywords)?

« Last post by siouxdax on March 21, 2009, 12:50 AM »

haven't tried it
but it says it can

http://lifehacker.co...with-itag-272019.php

check out the comments for more also

-cmpm (March 20, 2009, 11:25 PM)

I noticed in one of the comments:
"Yes, I have managed to keep my machine free of the ".net-based" apps so far. And I intend to keep it that way."

Why would a .net-based app be undesirable?

Also, rgdot:
Thanks for that link. It looks quite promising. I intend to check it out fully, after getting myself some much needed sleep. Thanks!

155

General Software Discussion / Freeware Image Organizer (Especially Tags/Keywords)?

« Last post by siouxdax on March 20, 2009, 10:53 PM »

Hello all:
Once again I have a question that will no doubt spark extensive convo (I seem to have that touch).

So I searched through the forum and found this thread. I'm looking for a freeware image organizer that features tags, keywords and a search function. Currently I use FastStone Image Viewer, which is fantastic, but doesn't have a search function, and its tagging/keyword feature is flimsy to say the least. I also use Picasa, but it doesn't seem to be 'slick' enough, if that makes any sense.

Really, I would like to find something akin to Adobe Lightroom, but a freeware version. That may be asking for too much. I have tried out IrfanView, and one or two other apps (I can't recall at this moment), but none seemed to hit the nail on the head.

So once again, I ask you, the all-knowing DC community, for your sage advice in this matter.

156

General Software Discussion / Re: Rambooster. Junk?

« Last post by siouxdax on March 20, 2009, 04:46 PM »

Off-topic:
Ack! Josh, I've been wanting to squish your avatar! Every time I see it I get fooled.

157

General Software Discussion / Re: Rambooster. Junk?

« Last post by siouxdax on March 20, 2009, 07:55 AM »

Wow. I've got a lot of reading material to go through.  You asked about RAM: I have 1GB on both machines. Unfortunately, I can't afford to upgrade right now; maybe later in the year.

f0dder: Yes, I do let Firefox shut down cleanly; I've watched it several times in Process Explorer. I'm guessing that after I see the process close I move on and don't check back to see if it freed up that RAM.

Steven: I'll have my more tech-savvy friend tweak my pagefile and/or Firefox, then work from there. I'm no PC moron, I just don't know much about tweaking stuff other than using TweakUI. Also, Steven, thank you for including such a well of information on the topic; it is much appreciated.

I'll try to remember to report back here with some results, in hopes of making this thread useful to others. Thanks again!

158

General Software Discussion / Rambooster. Junk?

« Last post by siouxdax on March 20, 2009, 03:29 AM »

Hello all:
I've noticed recently that my laptop (and my desktop) will often slow down and not release RAM after closing RAM-hogging programs. Firefox will hog a lot of RAM if it's been open all day, but when I close it, it doesn't give back the RAM it was hogging. So I was reminded of an app that I used a few years ago, RAMbooster.net, that freed up RAM.

So I was told by a tech-savvy friend that programs such as this are junk and don't do what they claim to. Is this true? The only method I have been using is restarting my laptop/desktop, which is a method that I don't revel in at all. So I'd like your opinion about this. I still have the license key for RAMbooster.net, so I could reinstall. Good idea? Bad idea? Again, your opinion is greatly appreciated.

159

General Software Discussion / Re: External Drive Content Lister?

« Last post by siouxdax on March 19, 2009, 09:00 PM »

do you think would that be suitable for keeping a record of backups on DVD as well?

I think Index Your Files would be suitable for that, yes. But then, I'm not the expert here.

160

General Software Discussion / Re: wanted: alternative to FastStone Image Viewer

« Last post by siouxdax on March 17, 2009, 07:48 PM »

I've never tried out XnView; I'll give it a good look-over. I use FastStone IV for organizing my pics, but I must say I'm frustrated that it doesn't have a search function. Irfan doesn't do much for me; it seems a bit flimsy.

161

General Software Discussion / Re: Bookmarks, I am frustrated

« Last post by siouxdax on March 17, 2009, 07:45 PM »

Oops, wrong thread. I don't know how to delete my post!

162

General Software Discussion / Re: External Drive Content Lister?

« Last post by siouxdax on March 17, 2009, 05:27 PM »

I've found that "Index Your Files" has all the features I want without unnecessary bells and whistles. But of course that's just one of the many programs listed in the above link. I may try a few more to see if there's something even better...

163

General Software Discussion / Re: External Drive Content Lister?

« Last post by siouxdax on March 17, 2009, 12:13 PM »

Well, I downloaded Cathy plus a couple of other free ones on that enormous list (thank you, BTW). I'll report back and see it goes. Thanks a million!

164

General Software Discussion / External Drive Content Lister?

« Last post by siouxdax on March 17, 2009, 05:19 AM »

Hello all:
A couple/few years ago I used a program that would take a "snapshot" of my external hard drives, so that I could quickly view a list of its contents. I couldn't open the actual files; I could only see a list or a "table of contents", if you will.

My issue is that I can't remember the name of the software. Does anyone know about this? Or any software that would do this? As always, any help is very much appreciated.

165

General Software Discussion / Re: Which flavor?

« Last post by siouxdax on March 14, 2009, 01:01 AM »

My hard drive is NTFS. So far, Ava Find is doing a fantastic job. I think tomorrow I'll give Everything another shot. BTW, I didn't know that Copernic was in a different genre, so thanks for the tip on that one. I don't really the functionality of Copernic. Ava Find seems to fit my needs, but as I said, I'll give Everything another try; surely I did something wrong....

166

General Software Discussion / Re: Which flavor?

« Last post by siouxdax on March 13, 2009, 11:51 PM »

Yep. Nothing in the window. I wound up uninstalling it and I'm now trying Ava Find.

167

General Software Discussion / Re: Which flavor?

« Last post by siouxdax on March 13, 2009, 09:59 PM »

What should I be doing?

-siouxdax (March 13, 2009, 09:29 PM)

Read the faq http://www.voidtools.com/faq.php

-PhilB66 (March 13, 2009, 09:52 PM)

I have read over the FAQ and I'm still having problems. The status bar doesn't show that any files have been indexed, and searching has produced no results. I'm still lost. (Not trying to sound whiny, I'm just perplexed.)

168

General Software Discussion / Re: Which flavor?

« Last post by siouxdax on March 13, 2009, 09:29 PM »

Okay, I've installed Everything and I'm lost already. I have no idea what the ETP/FTP Server and HTML Server options are for. I used Copernic before, and it was pretty straightforward to me. What should I be doing?

169

General Software Discussion / Re: Which flavor?

« Last post by siouxdax on March 13, 2009, 09:15 PM »

Ive been using Everything for a couple of months now, and I love it. I can type in "ph sh cs3." (without the quotes) and it finds photoshop cs3. I can find almost anything on my computer really fast.

-nite_monkey (March 13, 2009, 09:08 PM)

Wow. Sounds like a winner. I'll give it a test drive. Thanks!

170

General Software Discussion / Re: Should I Upgrade? (Regarding Non-DC Software)

« Last post by siouxdax on March 13, 2009, 09:14 PM »

Thanks for the heads up, but the question is still pertinent, IMHO.

171

General Software Discussion / Which flavor?

« Last post by siouxdax on March 13, 2009, 06:06 PM »

So I just saw this post and have looked at the websites for Everything, Locate32 and Ava Find. Which one really delivers? It was hard to discern by the thread's replies. I used to have Copernic, but it was klunky and inefficient. So any suggestions for an already organized PC user?

172

General Software Discussion / Should I Upgrade? (Regarding Non-DC Software)

« Last post by siouxdax on March 13, 2009, 04:37 PM »

Hello geniuses:
So I'm an avid collector of eBooks, mainly in PDF format, and I'm running them on Adobe Acrobat 8 Professional. I'm wondering if it's worth the trouble to upgrade to version 9. Here's a list of "new" features I've found listed online:

# Easy fillable-form creation, form fill-in, and form tracking
# Software launches in half the time of Acrobat 8 (a much-needed improvement in my view)
# Include Adobe Flash-based audio and video inside PDF documents (can we expect more exciting e-Books now? I hope so!)
# Better OCR and scanner support to make it easier to turn paper into editable text
# Convert web pages, including pages with rich and interactive media, into PDF files
# Search multiple PDF files in the same folder
# Works with Acrobat.com website
# Support for PDF Portfolios, which can contain drawings, documents, emails and spreadsheets that can be configured with a template for easy "touring" of the contents
# Synchronized document views and document comparison
# PDF Standards pane helps assure that your document meets the requirements for new PDF/A (archiving), PDF/X (professional printing), or PDF/E (engineering documents; link opens PDF file) standards
# Improved print workflows and previews for document designers and prepress specialists
# Add 3D and maps to a PDF Portfolio
# Convert popular video formats to Flash for use in a PDF file
# Includes Adobe Presenter software for interactive presentations
# Includes Adobe 3D Reviewer to combine multiple CAD drawings
# Supports interactive, geospatially enabled PDF maps

What I was most initially happy about was the faster startup time, better OCR support, converting web pages into PDF format, and searching multiple PDF files in the same folder. Now, mind you, I primarily use Acrobat for reading, but I do often wind up having to correct pagination (I'm nuts about correct pagination). The ability to convert a web page into PDF is rather alluring.

So has anyone out there upgraded? Or at least know about the differences between 8 and 9? Any suggestions are much appreciated!

173

General Software Discussion / Re: Force Firefox?

« Last post by siouxdax on March 13, 2009, 06:12 AM »

Does this work for you?

"1. Click the Start menu
2. Click Default Programs
3. Click “Set program access and computer defaults” (or go to Control Panel and select Add/Remove Programs, then click on "Set Program Access and Defaults")
4. Select Custom then click on the drop arrow
5. Look for “Choose a default web browser” and select Mozilla Firefox
6. Click OK "

It worked for me (problems with Yahoo Messenger). I took it from: http://support.mozil...102005&forumId=1

-bgd77 (March 13, 2009, 05:42 AM)

Yeah, that was one of the first things I double-checked, but still some programs wind up opening IE anyhow. I would use BrowserTraySwitch, but I already have more than enough apps running in the background. I must say that this only happens on occasion, not frequent enough to merit a background task. But boy, oh boy do I get ticked off when IE opens. But as f0dder suggested, finding an app that would open Firefox in place of iexplore.exe would be great. I wonder if I replaced iexplore.exe with a text file with the same name, might possibly work?

174

General Software Discussion / Re: Force Firefox?

« Last post by siouxdax on March 13, 2009, 01:31 AM »

As far as I recall, the help file viewer in Windows is using the IE engine, so Windows assumes that you are clicking a link in IE.  That means you're stuck there.

-cthorpe (March 13, 2009, 12:12 AM)

I should clarify, this happens not only in help files, but in links in emails also, though not always in emails. It seems to be random. I do have a Firefox add-on that opens IE in a Firefox tab. I hope this helps. Please forgive me for 'correcting' you in this matter.

175

General Software Discussion / Force Firefox?

« Last post by siouxdax on March 12, 2009, 11:30 PM »

Hello, Gods of DC:
Every so often, but more and more lately, I click on a link in an email or in the 'help' section of an application that opens up in Internet Explorer. This drives me mad! Is there a way to force any/all of these links to open in Firefox? In my default settings (in Windows XP) I have Firefox selected as the default web browser, but sometimes it just won't behave as such. So is there a way to really ensure these things open in Firefox? What I have been doing is copying the URL when it pops up in IE, immediately close IE, and paste the URL into Firefox.

So any thoughts/help/suggestions? As always, input from you all is very much appreciated.