Recent Posts

2051

General Software Discussion / Re: FinePrint vs. priPrinter

« Last post by Carol Haynes on January 21, 2010, 04:13 AM »

I think when Pro licenses become available there will be one installer which is the Pro version. The Pro features will be in trial mode with a standard license.

40 Euros does seem a bit steep for fairly limited extra functionality but I'd guess this is a fundraising exercise more than anything else. They haven't charged for upgrades for existing users and so I'd guess they are trying to encourage existing users to upgrade to the Pro version.

Having said that the PDF generation works well (actually quicker than Adobe Acrobat as a printer driver) but is hardly worth the price when you can get PDF writers for free and use them within priPrinter.

The other pro feature(s) amount to a single highlighter as far as I can tell. Redaction is just highlighting with black (so it is the same as highlighting with any other colour). Also in the standard version you can use cut to remove anything you want before printing so deleting text is not really necessary however the new select and delete text is much quicker and neater. Having said that it would be really nice if the deleted text didn't simply leave a blank space but rather edited the text to move up subsequent text to make it seamless.

2052

General Software Discussion / Re: Just discovered a HUGE annoyance in Windows 7

« Last post by Carol Haynes on January 21, 2010, 03:58 AM »

[/b] added the need to enter a username/password to connect, (even for an Everyone share)

-4wd (January 20, 2010, 07:00 PM)

That is probably a setting in the Network and Sharing Center in Windows 7 which is set by default- Just turn off password protected sharing.

2053

General Software Discussion / Re: AVAST! 5 released

« Last post by Carol Haynes on January 21, 2010, 03:57 AM »

AVAST doesn't auto update from version 4 to 5 (even in English). You need to download version 5 and run the installer. It automatically removes version 4 before installing.

Not sure on the new license details but version 4 clearly stated the free version was for home/non-commercial use only but the version 5 free version just says it is free and as far as I can find makes no mention of non-commercial restrictions.

Seems to install quickly and smoothly on Windows XP (haven't tried yet on Vista and 7) and runs unobtrusively.

The UI has been simplified and the silly 'VHS style' interface has finally disappeared. The tray icon(s) have been reduced to a single icon.

All the features of version 4.8 seem to be still there but they say it has been re-written.

Only time will tell if it is as successful as version 4 has been but my initial impressions are that it is worth a go.

It now has a silent gaming mode which allows you to use full screen applications without interruption by prompts or notifications and you can turn it to silent mode even for desktop apps for periods or time or permanently (though why you would want to beats me).

My only niggle (which is carried over from version 4) is that the 'exclusions' list doesn't seem to work properly - ie. if you add a folder to the exceptions list it should ignore the folder contents both in scan but also realtime monitoring. Unfortunately it still blocks applications in the excluded folders when you try to run them. (I have a couple of tools that are classified as 'Trojan/gen' despite reporting false positives and I can't use them even with the exceptions list without completely disabling the AV software!)

2054

General Software Discussion / Re: FinePrint vs. priPrinter

« Last post by Carol Haynes on January 20, 2010, 03:59 PM »

I've looked through the developer's website (priPrinter) and cannot find any mention anywhere of a Pro version.

-Darwin (January 20, 2010, 03:33 PM)

Version 3 is available in tow versions, including a Pro version.

Currently it is in beta and the version 3 download IS the Pro version but once it is released you will have to upgrade to keep the Pro features.

See http://www.priprinter.com/beta.htm

2055

General Software Discussion / AVAST! 5 released

« Last post by Carol Haynes on January 20, 2010, 11:18 AM »

AVAST! 5 has been released (though only English seems to be currently available).

There is no automatic update but it does seem to install over version 4 without problem. It extends existing free license during the upgrade.

The free version still needs to be registered but the registration process is now built into the software rather than having to go back to the website and wait for a license code.

See http://www.avast.com...e-antivirus-download for more details.

Installed it and it looks quite nice - big UI change though.

The Pro version has also been released and now includes a firewall (not sure version 4 did but I never tried it so maybe it did).

2056

General Software Discussion / Re: Just discovered a HUGE annoyance in Windows 7

« Last post by Carol Haynes on January 20, 2010, 02:26 AM »

No - MS seems to treat Workgroups as extremely simple domain type systems in practice (hence the reference to domain MSHOME in the last article which is actually the default workgroup name in XP).

Backup the settings and give that method a try and let us know if it makes any difference.

2057

General Software Discussion / Re: Collectorz.com... again!

« Last post by Carol Haynes on January 19, 2010, 04:33 PM »

Isn't IMDB an Amazon thing anyway?

2058

General Software Discussion / Re: Collectorz.com... again!

« Last post by Carol Haynes on January 19, 2010, 02:18 PM »

Today's email:

Alwin here, with some bad news.
It looks like we have a problem. And because it could affect almost all
Collectorz.com customers and their usage of our software,
I wanted to let you all know what is happening, immediately.

Anyway, here it is. This morning, I received the following email from Amazon:

========================================================
Subject: Your Amazon Associates Acount

It has come to our attention that you have created applications for use with
mobile devices which use Amazon.com content.  The use of a mobile application
in conjunction with the Product Advertising API or the Associates Program
without our express prior written approval is not permitted.

As a result, we must insist that you cease this use of our services immediately.
Moreover, because of this violation of both the Product Advertising API License
Agreement and the Associates Operating Agreement, your Associates accounts have
been closed and your access key turned off.

We thank you for your understanding and wish you the best of luck in the future.

Is it me being cynical when I think Alwin will be say 'yippee' at this amongst crocodile tears?

It puts another nail in the coffin of early versions and means anyone still using Collectorz will  be 'encouraged' to move to the new version.

At the moment Amazon still works and the email goes on to say that all iPhone apps have been withdrawn so that the Amazon account might be preserved.

Maybe I am being unduly cynical but I can't help feeling the death of the Amazon account would be more in line with Collectorz forward view so the comment that iPhone apps may never reappear sounds a bit iffy to me.

2059

General Software Discussion / Re: Just discovered a HUGE annoyance in Windows 7

« Last post by Carol Haynes on January 19, 2010, 10:13 AM »

Haven't had a problem with 7 and Vista.

-Darwin (January 19, 2010, 09:09 AM)

To clarify - I haven't had any issues running a mixture of XP, Vista and 7 on the same network and if anything I find Win 7 accesses network shares rather faster than my XP boxes. I have certainly had fewer headaches with a mixed network than I ever had with XP only and simple sharing.

If you want to share with everybody on a network you don't need to use password protected account access in Windows 7 (or Vista) instead of specifying individual users just specify "Everybody" as the user and then is gives open access to all computers on the LAN to that folder.

2060

General Software Discussion / Re: Just discovered a HUGE annoyance in Windows 7

« Last post by Carol Haynes on January 19, 2010, 02:53 AM »

eg. sharing folders for access by anyone is a lot easier under XP.

-4wd (January 18, 2010, 10:07 PM)

??? Really ??? Is it so hard to type Everyone and click three boxes ???

Actually I found the simple sharing feature in XP a PITA - half the time it didn't work at all and had to be turned off to set up sharing manually.

If you have multiple computers with Windows 7 use Homegroup which makes it very easy.

2061

General Software Discussion / Re: Win 7 XP Mode is Hardware-Dependent

« Last post by Carol Haynes on January 18, 2010, 07:34 PM »

I'm a victim of this with my laptop

-f0dder (January 18, 2010, 02:01 PM)

Have you checked the mobo manufacturer for a generic BIOS (rather than the laptop specific BIOS) - you may find you can enable virtualization.

Check out how/if you can restore the original BIOS if things don't work though before you try it.

Usual disclaimer - if your computer bursts into flames please don't slash my tyres!

2062

General Software Discussion / Re: Just discovered a HUGE annoyance in Windows 7

« Last post by Carol Haynes on January 18, 2010, 10:31 AM »

- so what may be the reason cmpm and tranglos are having a quite different experience?

Oh, yes, that really IS the question, isn't it

-Curt (January 18, 2010, 09:00 AM)

Like Carol, I upgraded from Vista (Ultimate) to Windows 7 (Ultimate). I did this on October 12 and have had no problems whatsoever. I *think* the answer to Curt's question probably lies in the fact that we both upgraded from clean Vista installs (I believe Carol did a clean Vista install, as I did) whereas cmpm and tranglos upgraded from XP, no?

-Darwin (January 18, 2010, 09:10 AM)

Yep - I did a clean install of Vista Home Premium (which was supplied with my system) and then upgraded it first to Win 7 HP (without serial code - I modified the Win 7 Pro DVD to allow all versions to be installed which gave access to the HP version) and then used "anytime upgrade" to move to Win 7 Pro (with key and activation).

The reason I did it that way was to preserve Vista drivers in Windows 7 that clean setup couldn't find (which included special function key settings etc.).

It has all worked fine ever since.

2063

General Software Discussion / Re: Win 7 XP Mode is Hardware-Dependent

« Last post by Carol Haynes on January 18, 2010, 08:39 AM »

Some CPUs have virtualization but it is disabled when they sell them as OEM CPUs to give retail CPUs (at a higher price) a marketing edge. This seems to have been common in the early days of hardware VM technology.

2064

Living Room / Re: Snow Leopard - Slow Network Printing

« Last post by Carol Haynes on January 18, 2010, 08:19 AM »

You have my sympathy - printing is pretty much my main reason for avoiding Linux and Macs.

2065

Living Room / Re: Snow Leopard - Slow Network Printing

« Last post by Carol Haynes on January 18, 2010, 07:09 AM »

I have read of quite a few situations where Apple WiFi network speeds have been really bad (and not just for printers) so it could be the WiFi connection itself. What happens if you use an ethernet cable to connect to the router where the printer is connected?

Failing that it could be the HP driver - I have a love/hate relationship with HP software (mostly I love to hate it) which is flaky and annoying at the best of times!

Try downloading and installing a different version (try the latest build if you haven't already, if you already have the latest build try reverting to an earlier build).

2066

General Software Discussion / Re: Win 7 XP Mode is Hardware-Dependent

« Last post by Carol Haynes on January 18, 2010, 06:11 AM »

That#s a handy little tool. Thanks.

2067

General Software Discussion / Re: Just discovered a HUGE annoyance in Windows 7

« Last post by Carol Haynes on January 18, 2010, 04:49 AM »

I have to say I upgraded from a clean install of Windows Vista HP to Windows 7 Pro and I have had absolutely no issues at all.

I guess the best way to upgrade is to do a clean install and also make use of the files and settings wizard to move data to the new system or else make sure that your network settings are identical to your earlier installation to avoid broken permissions and shared folders.

2068

General Software Discussion / Re: Just discovered a HUGE annoyance in Windows 7

« Last post by Carol Haynes on January 18, 2010, 03:36 AM »

I used the same username/pass as I had on XP. Kept LAN settings at whatever the installer made them. I had connectivity from the get-go, and everything else had to wait.

-tranglos (January 17, 2010, 10:08 PM)

That's probably why you have permission issues - the computer name will not be the same as the old XP set up and the Workgroup won't be the same either (XP defaults to MSHOME and Windows 7 defaults to WORKGROUP workgroups) so if you have other connections with shared folders you probably won't see them.

Permissions are set by user name and computer name so that could account for the saving files and keeping settings issues - though why this is happening without an error message popping up I don't know.

2069

General Software Discussion / Re: Just discovered a HUGE annoyance in Windows 7

« Last post by Carol Haynes on January 17, 2010, 07:36 PM »

Yes I am running W7 firewall.

Strangely even wireless connections connect fast under Windows 7 for me (faster than wired on my XP based computer - which is weird).

2070

General Software Discussion / Re: Just discovered a HUGE annoyance in Windows 7

« Last post by Carol Haynes on January 17, 2010, 07:13 PM »

4wd - not my experience. Restarting and network connections seem to be fast on my system than XP or Vista

2071

General Software Discussion / Re: Just discovered a HUGE annoyance in Windows 7

« Last post by Carol Haynes on January 17, 2010, 06:35 PM »

Is this a clean install of Windows 7 or an upgrade from Vista? I must say I have not noticed any of these remembering settings problems or file writing problem in Win 7 Pro on my laptop and I use it all the time.

-Carol Haynes (January 17, 2010, 05:15 PM)

Clean install, yes. There is no upgrade path from XP anyway. The system C drive was wiped clean by the installer. The only "holdover" is my secondary drive where data lives (the drive where Windows thinks the files are not "mine").

-tranglos (January 17, 2010, 05:38 PM)

That's your problem then because permissions aren't consistently copied from one installation to another.

Have you got the same network name for your PC and the same user name and password? If not the permissions on files on your secondary drive will be wrong.

This happens a lot when you try to transfer data from one computer to another and is especially tricky when you are changing OS version too.

2072

General Software Discussion / Re: Just discovered a HUGE annoyance in Windows 7

« Last post by Carol Haynes on January 17, 2010, 05:15 PM »

Is this a clean install of Windows 7 or an upgrade from Vista? I must say I have not noticed any of these remembering settings problems or file writing problem in Win 7 Pro on my laptop and I use it all the time.

2073

General Software Discussion / Re: Just discovered a HUGE annoyance in Windows 7

« Last post by Carol Haynes on January 17, 2010, 03:33 PM »

Don't you just love window's awesome dual monitor capabilities? (end sarcasm)
I ended up disabling the UAC all together on my desktop and laptop, because the popup gets annoying, and it freezes up windows media center for about a second after I hit the allow button. so while I am watching tv on my computer, I get interrupted. Haven't missed the UAC one bit since disabling it.

-nite_monkey (January 17, 2010, 03:00 PM)

Surely the issue is a BIOS issue - how can windows enable dual monitor access before it even starts up?

2074

Living Room / Re: Great Britain is frozen!

« Last post by Carol Haynes on January 15, 2010, 03:50 AM »

Oh God, you need cutting off at the knees .... where's my axe?

 

2075

Found Deals and Discounts / Re: EASEUS Data Recovery Wizard - Free for a limited time only (Jan 13, 2010)

« Last post by Carol Haynes on January 14, 2010, 06:25 PM »

Thanks - useful for a try out. Any idea how long the voucher is valid for?