Recent Posts

1951

Living Room / Re: Steve Jobs tells us how he really feels about Flash...

« Last post by Carol Haynes on May 01, 2010, 06:15 AM »

Adobe’s Flash products are 100% proprietary. They are only available from Adobe, and Adobe has sole authority as to their future enhancement, pricing, etc. While Adobe’s Flash products are widely available, this does not mean they are open, since they are controlled entirely by Adobe and available only from Adobe. By almost any definition, Flash is a closed system.

Actually that is blatantly untrue - I have Flash CS3 on my computer BUT I also have applications from at least 3 other, independent software houses that also write Flash authoring software (XARA and AutoFX to name two).

Whilst Adobe is a closed proprietary company (as are most commercial software companies) that doesn't mean Flash is a closed system - there are lots of other comapnies producing Flash compatible authoring software.

I also think the mouse versus finger interface of PCs and touch sensitive screens is a bit disingenuous - Flash works fine on other finger pointing devices. If Jobs wants to build in artificial restraints into his operating systems he should admit it rather than blaming it as a limitation on Flash.

As for video decoding - why should the entire world recode videos just so Jobs customers can see them on an iPad? If he prefers hardware decsing to software why not add a hardware decoding system to his devices?

Whilst HTML5, CSS and JavaScript are open and standardised (although that is debateable when you look at how Javascript is implemented in different browsers) Jobs conveniently ignores the fact that HTML includes embedding commands etc. precisely to add content such as Flash.

Steve Jobs should be honest  - it is purely being done to lock out the competition - which is why they change developers licenses without warning and why they won't open iTunes to comptetion etc..

1952

Living Room / Re: Apple instigates Police Raid over lost/stolen iPhone 4G

« Last post by Carol Haynes on May 01, 2010, 04:35 AM »

Personally I don't think anyone did anything illegal (irrespective of stupid repressive Californian laws designed to keep people in their place).

If there was any 'offence' it was industrial espionage which should (at least in an sane world) be a civil matter.

The tactics of all major companies include (but are not limited to) private revese engineering of hardware and code, plagiarism with minor changes to avoid patent infindgement, extorting money from companies and individuals for patent infringements of patents they never developed themselves, patenting of biological entities (including genes of individual species and even individual humans), deliberate industrial espionage, poaching employees for their skills and knowledge, the use of gag orders on practically anybody they feel like, using wealth to deliberately destroy competitiors (and even potential competitiors), using pure threats and bullying tactics.

It is probably fair to say that most large corporations also exploit people in developing countries openly and also cause death and deprivation in one form or another if it is to their financial and competitve advantage.

If you think I am eggagerating get a copy of the film "The Corporation" for examples of all this behaviour which is required behaviour in law under most capitalist systems. In US law corporations have the status of 'person' (itslef a corruption of laws intended to protect freed slaves after the civil war) and "The Corporation" admirably illstrates that if corporations were real people they would be locked up in a psychiatric hospital as dangerous psychopaths!

1953

General Software Discussion / Re: Powerpoint sucks - what to use instead?

« Last post by Carol Haynes on April 29, 2010, 07:14 PM »

@tsaint- You have my sympathies.

I've felt in the same boat at times.

There's a big difference between an FYI and a personal recommendation. Why do people tend to believe that whatever gets offered for consideration is automatically being recommended?

Such is life I suppose...

-40hz (April 29, 2010, 09:12 AM)

I wasn't quite suggesting that it was being offered as a full solution (just commenting on the fact it dated back half a decade).

My comment was more that having read the rest of this thread I couldn't really see any way that the app mentioned approached any sort of solution (in fact I couldn't really see what problem it was 'designed' to solve - even in the 'demonstrations' suggested as an illustration).

1954

General Software Discussion / Re: Powerpoint sucks - what to use instead?

« Last post by Carol Haynes on April 29, 2010, 07:43 AM »

?? I looked at the 4 examples listed on the QuickShow website - am I mssing something?

I can't really see what it does apart from produce pretty ugly web pages (the 4th example didn't seem to work at all)

It also looks old and not updated often - the latest supported version of Windows listed is XP, only supports 32-bit and was released in 2004.

1955

Living Room / Re: Apple instigates Police Raid over lost/stolen iPhone 4G

« Last post by Carol Haynes on April 28, 2010, 06:46 AM »

Preferably in a plain white box

1956

Site/Forum Features / Re: Friendly 404

« Last post by Carol Haynes on April 28, 2010, 03:17 AM »

How about a large dazed looking Cody wondering where the heck he is with just the usual site header and footer?

1957

General Software Discussion / Re: Powerpoint sucks - what to use instead?

« Last post by Carol Haynes on April 26, 2010, 07:58 AM »

it was my impression that you'll lose even the value of the desktop version, if you stop paying:

4) Prezi is sold as a service, which means you pay an annual fee. ... If in the future you decide to cancel your payments, you will not be able to create new or edit existing prezis, but ...

-Curt (April 26, 2010, 07:39 AM)

Also best to be aware of:

By submitting User Content ... you hereby do and shall grant to Prezi (and its successors, assigns, and third party service providers) a worldwide, non-exclusive, perpetual, irrevocable, royalty-free, fully paid, sublicensable, and transferable license to use, reproduce, modify, create derivative works from, distribute, publicly display, publicly perform, and otherwise exploit the content on and in connection with the manufacture, sale, promotion, marketing and distribution of products sold on, or in association with, the Service, or for purposes of providing you with the Service and promoting the same, in any medium and by any means currently existing or yet to be devised.

1958

General Software Discussion / Re: Video Editing software - Any recommendations?

« Last post by Carol Haynes on April 26, 2010, 07:21 AM »

Another tick for Sony Vegas here - been using it since version 3 when it was a Sonic Foundry product and it seems to do anything I need.

I also have Adobe Master Suite CS3 but rarely use Premier as I find Vegas much more intuitive and quicker to use.

One thing to be aware of is with plugins for Sony - they keep changing something with each new version and I am now stuck at version 8 because some of the plugins I use aren't available for Vegas 9 or 10. If you aren't planning to use 3rd party plugins you should be fine.

The Home version is the same software with a few limitations to put of pro users (I can't remember what the limitations are but I think one is the number of tracks you can use in a project).

1959

General Software Discussion / Re: Powerpoint sucks - what to use instead?

« Last post by Carol Haynes on April 26, 2010, 06:32 AM »

You could take a look at Prezi. I don't have any real experience of it; it is just sitting on my "Cool looking things to take a proper look at" list

-markan (April 26, 2010, 04:07 AM)

I haven't tried creating a Prezi yet but it looks fantastic.

The best thing is that it is non-linear and also you can embed SWF, PDF  etc.

My first reaction was that an online tool is not ideal but you can download the prezi when finished and use a standalone player so you don't need to have an internet connection.

It isn't clear whether the desktop software is limited to the license period or whether that is just the length of hosting. It would be nioce to think if you sign up for the Pro version you get to keep the desktop app in perpetuity without the hosting package.

1960

General Software Discussion / Re: Powerpoint sucks - what to use instead?

« Last post by Carol Haynes on April 24, 2010, 03:57 PM »

I have Photodex presenter but I wouldn't see it as an easy replacement for Powerpoint.

PDF is an interesting idea - but it still doesn't really solve the issues of the original post.

1961

General Software Discussion / Re: Powerpoint sucks - what to use instead?

« Last post by Carol Haynes on April 24, 2010, 05:38 AM »

Photodex is great for producing slideshows and video output (inc. DVD) but can you use it interactively or non-linearly?

1962

General Software Discussion / Re: Services

« Last post by Carol Haynes on April 22, 2010, 07:09 PM »

If you want to do it allfrom the command line:

SC STOP <service name>
SC DELETE <service name>

Full description of SC is at http://www.microsoft...-us/sc.mspx?mfr=true

or use SC HELP command

You can also stop services with NET STOP <service name>

see NET HELP command for details or see http://technet.micro...ibrary/bb490949.aspx

1963

General Software Discussion / Re: Powerpoint sucks - what to use instead?

« Last post by Carol Haynes on April 22, 2010, 05:18 PM »

To be fair Powerpoint can output to a web site too (its crap but you can do it) and there is an addon that will allow you to generate DVD Video.

1964

Developer's Corner / Re: phpform.org - free online html form builder

« Last post by Carol Haynes on April 22, 2010, 02:25 PM »

Are you related to the form builder website? If you are you should say so.

1965

Developer's Corner / Re: phpform.org - free online html form builder

« Last post by Carol Haynes on April 22, 2010, 10:42 AM »

Don't forget that the writers of PHPFORM do a full MySQL/PHP form-building and archiving package for $39 (per site) at www.appnitro.com They also do a reasonable deal on 10 sites and unlimited sites too. This is a really useful tool for quickly building forms and have them submitted for you. You can integrate the forms directly into websites (and customise the CSS so they look as though they fit) or have standalone pages that look a bit like phpform generated forms (but are full active). They even have a free installation service.

I don't use the package any more but I have in the past and found them very helpful and responsive to feedback.

1966

General Software Discussion / Re: Powerpoint sucks - what to use instead?

« Last post by Carol Haynes on April 21, 2010, 04:56 AM »

Misunderstanding - the word school doesn't translate well into different countries (in the UK it means for children - adults go to colleges or universities)

If people are having problems using and being consistent in Powerpoint I somehow doubt that moving to PhotoShop (or PSP) will make that any easier!

Why not simply issue a style guide for PowerPoint (if you want people to use master slides try the help option in Powerpoint and lookup Master Slide - it gives a very good overview of what they are and how to create/use them - you can cut and paste from the help section to create a quick style guide with instructions). You could even give them a couple of powerpoint presentations to illustrate how much better a well styled presentation looks (even better run it in a staff meeting and grab their attention).

Give them a handful of master slides to base presentations on - they will probably appreciate that even more!

1967

General Software Discussion / Re: Powerpoint sucks - what to use instead?

« Last post by Carol Haynes on April 21, 2010, 03:14 AM »

I can't think of anything easier to learn for school kids (but then I haven't really looked).

Rather than bemoaning the lack of control surely this is golden opportunity to teach about the need for consistency and design methods (such as master slides) as well as the need to involve an audience.

Second, assuming that visual learning materials that structure an instructor-led class are a requirement, does anyone have any recommended alternatives to a Powerpoint or other slide-based presentation? Particularly something that will enhance engagement and retention for the audience, provide structure and ensure consistency in presentation across multiple sessions of the same class topic, and be easily re-used in other formats (e.g. handouts or workbooks, etc.).

-JavaJones (April 20, 2010, 07:45 PM)

The big problem is that most of these slide presentations are tediously dull and getting duller by the day. The only thing that will make this sort of thing exciting it a good speaker presenting them and getting the kids involved.

I think schools and teachers have a huge problem: as more and more technology is integrated into the teaching process (and in the UK forced upon teachers) it will get harder and harder to be distinctive in classroom presentation.

There are only so many power point shows anyone can watch in a day and I predict that within the next five to ten years either a lot of computer based presentation will go from the classroom or kids will be supplied with a cheap laptop and told to stay at home and be taught remotely - the you could have virtual classes of thousands with automated marking systems

Either welcome back proper teaching (giving teachers real flexibility to be creative) or brave new world here we come.

1968

Living Room / Re: Bit.ly is Harmful to Your Reputation

« Last post by Carol Haynes on April 19, 2010, 07:42 AM »

Why can't bit.ly have a list of shortening services and simply stop bit.ly from reshortening them?

Failing that why not warn someone during the process that they cannot posted shortened links and refuse to accept them - at least then the correct link will be posted?

-Carol Haynes (April 19, 2010, 05:39 AM)

sounds like a very reasonable thing to expect.

could we set up a service that did that - the others might follow afterwards...

-nudone (April 19, 2010, 07:17 AM)

Not a bad idea - I don't really like shortened links 'cos you never know where they will actually lead.

Another option for bit.ly (and other URL shortening services) is to build in a 'resolving' algorithm so that whatever the shortened form used the new shortened form automatically detects where it is heading and uses the full URL - that way you would never get contractions of contracted URLs.

By far the simplest solution though is to refuse to accept any submissions that use shortened links - then it is up to the poster to post the correct link.

1969

Living Room / Re: Bit.ly is Harmful to Your Reputation

« Last post by Carol Haynes on April 19, 2010, 05:39 AM »

Why can't bit.ly have a list of shortening services and simply stop bit.ly from reshortening them?

Failing that why not warn someone during the process that they cannot posted shortened links and refuse to accept them - at least then the correct link will be posted?

1970

Living Room / Re: Should I swtich from w7 32 bit to w7 64 bit?

« Last post by Carol Haynes on April 09, 2010, 05:06 PM »

Ralink and Edimax seem to be the same company - I have bought a number of Edimax wireless products (cheap and cheerful and seem to work well) and they all appear as Ralink devices.

1971

Living Room / Re: File Size vs. Size on Disk: Why such a difference?

« Last post by Carol Haynes on April 07, 2010, 04:18 PM »

For example, I have several PortableApps on a 2GiB USB drive and I wanted to see how much space they took up.

-Deozaan (April 07, 2010, 01:26 PM)

What format is the USB drive in? FAT/FAT32 etc. If it isn't in one of the FAT formats try copying the files to a hard disk and reformatting the USB drive in FAT32 format and see if the file size is different when you copy it back.

It does seem like a very large discrepancy even given the way block sizes are used.

1972

Found Deals and Discounts / Re: O&O DiskStat 2 Pro (Easter promo)

« Last post by Carol Haynes on April 07, 2010, 07:49 AM »

The question arising is why is Microsoft taking this approach. In ten years time legacy support is going to become a nightmare by the time .Net 93 is installed.

They created enough hell with DLLs now they seem not to have learned any lessons at all!

1973

Found Deals and Discounts / Re: O&O DiskStat 2 Pro (Easter promo)

« Last post by Carol Haynes on April 06, 2010, 02:15 PM »

Probably a Freudian slip that has avalanched

1974

Found Deals and Discounts / Re: O&O DiskStat 2 Pro (Easter promo)

« Last post by Carol Haynes on April 06, 2010, 01:50 PM »

Not true of Java any more - the last few updates have started to remove previous updates (not all the way back but recently installed previous versions) so if you do one Java cleanup you should not get Java bloat in future.

Personally I don't feel exorcised about .Net any more - chances are you are going to end up with it on your system one way or another so it doesn't make much difference to me if an app uses it.

The one thing I do hate about .Net is the way MS keep installing Firefox addons without permission and half the time you can't remove them with registry editing.

1975

Living Room / Re: Should I swtich from w7 32 bit to w7 64 bit?

« Last post by Carol Haynes on April 05, 2010, 01:31 PM »

They also seem to make memory modules in other places. For example:

http://www.micron.co...s/europe/uk/kilbride
http://www.micron.com/locations/china

Looking at the China info I'd guess more manufacturing will be moving there soon!

Having saic that Crucial modules are pretty good but Corsair make faster modules and OCZ is also a good manufacturer.