Recent Posts

2101

General Software Discussion / Re: SubmitToTab - a Firefox add-on

« Last post by Tuxman on May 01, 2010, 12:40 PM »

Morning Coffee seems to have some bugs, the "only on certain weekdays" functionality does not actually work for me.

2102

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

« Last post by Tuxman on April 30, 2010, 05:26 PM »

The funny thing in his letter to Adobe is that you can replace Adobe with Apple and it still works.

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

Well... 

2103

General Software Discussion / Re: SubmitToTab - a Firefox add-on

« Last post by Tuxman on April 29, 2010, 06:04 PM »

Thank you. Now that was what I was looking for three days ago. Damn. 

2104

General Software Discussion / Re: RSS feed editor

« Last post by Tuxman on April 29, 2010, 05:59 PM »

There's also RssTools.

2105

Mini-Reviews by Members / Re: Proto, another approach to file managing

« Last post by Tuxman on April 25, 2010, 11:47 AM »

Btw. I've created a wiki for Proto (it's coming slowly...)

-miechu (April 25, 2010, 11:45 AM)

... with a shortcut guide. I love you.  (Not literally, but... alright.)

2106

General Software Discussion / Re: Advice on keyboard shortcuts.

« Last post by Tuxman on April 25, 2010, 09:27 AM »

ac'tivAid has a built-in, system-wide hotkey manager, too. 

2107

Mini-Reviews by Members / Re: Proto, another approach to file managing

« Last post by Tuxman on April 20, 2010, 03:16 PM »

Hi, Miechu.  Fine to see you here.
I'm glad that you, at least, think about a written documentation.

 

And thanks for your explanation of the actual approach. It might be easier to understand now. 

2108

Living Room / Re: "The More You Use Google, the More Google Knows about you"

« Last post by Tuxman on April 16, 2010, 12:21 PM »

privacy is illusion

-paarkhi (April 16, 2010, 12:13 PM)

Only if you let it happen.

I still feel I've nothing to hide.

-paarkhi (April 16, 2010, 12:13 PM)

Do you leave your doors open at night?

2109

General Software Discussion / Re: Need help regarding DOS and BAT files.

« Last post by Tuxman on April 15, 2010, 06:23 PM »

I never had to.

C++ might have some difficulties Java does not have; but it all depends on how you are going to work later. Most Java "programmers" don't actually program, they only complete already existing code bases. See, it is also a question of idealism. To me, people who let their IDE generate the boilerplates are, maybe, "developers", but programming is something quite different.

Sure, getting into the finesses is harder in C++. But once you understood why something does what, you are able to work with it. That's what it is all about, right?

If hulkbuster wants to learn how to be a programmer, IDE-driven languages like Java are not the way to go IMO.
(Yep, sure, all Java programmers on DC code with pure Notepad and cmd. Well then. ;-))

2110

General Software Discussion / Re: Need help regarding DOS and BAT files.

« Last post by Tuxman on April 15, 2010, 05:58 PM »

it's easy to get lost in language technicalities instead of actually learning programming

-f0dder (April 14, 2010, 05:44 PM)

Yep, with Java it is easier to "learn programming". There is a library for everything, so basically it is just C&P.
Sooo much better than C++ where you actually have to understand how to code.

(Sarcasm, anyone?)

2111

Living Room / Re: Yea, I won't be getting an iPad anytime soon

« Last post by Tuxman on April 15, 2010, 02:37 PM »

iPad's printing functionality:



SCNR

2112

General Software Discussion / Re: updating Firefox plugins sucks!

« Last post by Tuxman on April 14, 2010, 07:20 PM »

speed is no luxury  .

-Lutz_ (April 14, 2010, 07:07 PM)

Indeed.

2113

Announce Your Software/Service/Product / Re: crack tracker

« Last post by Tuxman on April 14, 2010, 12:44 PM »

Hehe, yep. I was on the page multiple times when I already had a license, just to check something there.

Concerning the crack tracker:
For pirates this software is not of any interest. I tried to find some software with it, and I noticed that, while it kept reloading, I would already have had the software for a while if I had used eMule instead.

 

2114

General Software Discussion / Re: Windows 7 - Hidden Tool

« Last post by Tuxman on April 13, 2010, 09:39 AM »

Hmm, Windows is great, so much undocumented stuff left to discover. 

2115

General Software Discussion / Re: How to watch folders and perform certain actions automatically?

« Last post by Tuxman on April 12, 2010, 10:46 AM »

If you are willing to add features and stuff to it, I think it could do everything we're asking for here.

-superboyac (April 12, 2010, 08:50 AM)

Yep! 

2116

Living Room / Re: "The More You Use Google, the More Google Knows about you"

« Last post by Tuxman on April 11, 2010, 05:41 PM »

The topic's quote is the reason why all of my browsers are filtering any Google content...

2117

Circle Dock / Re: To help us plan for the future, we want to know which Operating System you use.

« Last post by Tuxman on April 01, 2010, 09:02 PM »

Vista 32-bit on this machine, Debian Linux in a VBox (which would never have a Circle Dock anyway because I don't want my Linux to be a Windows clone), XP 32-bit on the family PC.

2118

Mini-Reviews by Members / Re: Proto, another approach to file managing

« Last post by Tuxman on March 28, 2010, 02:59 PM »

Tell us about your experiences then.

2119

General Software Discussion / Re: updating Firefox plugins sucks!

« Last post by Tuxman on March 28, 2010, 02:20 PM »

Ah, now I got it. Works.

2120

General Software Discussion / Re: updating Firefox plugins sucks!

« Last post by Tuxman on March 28, 2010, 02:06 PM »

I read that there is no GUI, but my Firefox did not decrease in any way, so I was just wondering... 

2121

General Software Discussion / Re: updating Firefox plugins sucks!

« Last post by Tuxman on March 28, 2010, 02:01 PM »

For me it does nothing. 

2122

General Software Discussion / Re: gleeBox - Web browsing just got better.

« Last post by Tuxman on March 28, 2010, 09:32 AM »

As far as I can tell it is nowhere near close to Vimperator in my view.

-kartal (March 28, 2010, 01:22 AM)

Full ACK. However, its UI is more like Ubiquity (which is not as mighty anyway).

2123

Mini-Reviews by Members / Proto, another approach to file managing

« Last post by Tuxman on March 28, 2010, 12:06 AM »

Basic Info

App Name	Proto
App URL	http://miechu.pl/proto/
App Version Reviewed	0.6.9 RC1
Test System Specs	Windows Vista on a laptop, 3 GB RAM, no Aero bloat
Supported OSes	.NET 3.5 SP1 (thus: recent Windows versions)
Support Methods	Twitter or e-mail
Upgrade Policy	Free upgrades for a lifetime. (That's what he says now.)
Pricing Scheme	"Proto is priceless (for any use)", the website claims.
Author Donation Link	Donations are welcome via PayPal
Screencast Video URL	http://miechu.pl/proto/protoCinema.aspx

Intro:

Proto is a new kind of file manager, following design ideas by Jef Raskin. It is based on type-and-find technologies. While it is surely not the mightiest file manager available, it might still be the most intuitive one.

Who is this app designed for:

The author says, programmers and computer geeks will love it. Myself I guess actual "computer geeks" already have their FM of choice. However, keyboard fanatics like me will love the minimalistic approach once they understood how it all works. Of course, it still takes some time to get to know every single feature, but it is worth the effort IMO.

The Good

Unlike Directory Opus or similar products, Proto has a very lightweight attitude. You won't even notice that it is developed using the .NET bloatframework; running in the background, it takes only ~ 27K of RAM. Proto is ready right after the start, there are no config dialogs or similar things that might pop up first. It's just you and the cursor.

Unless you want to do something exotic, you don't even have to know any special keystrokes besides the usual Ctrl-C and so on. Enter a path (with a closing \), and Proto will open it; type characters, and Proto will hide everything that does not contain them. Simple as that.

Proto also contains things like bookmarks, 7-zip support, a registry browser and a Scintilla-based text editor, so, while it can not "replace" usual file managers completely, it still contains the basics (and some more things). Under the hood, it is a very mighty application, it even has regex support for renaming files. A complete list of features is available on the website.



However, you'll still have to know about these abilities; so we are at:

The needs improvement section

There is no actual documentation. To be actually able to use Proto, you'll have to watch the author's screencasts. I hope there will be a better documentation with a later version, so Proto becomes more attractive for rather lazy users who want to RTFM, not WTFV (watch that fine video).
To me, as a non-native speaker, the author's pronounciation is quite difficult, too. (But hey, it is fun to find out myself how everything works.)

Why I think you should use this product

I don't actually recommend this software to everyone; you'll need to spend some time to figure out how it all works, and you'll need to teach your fingers to press the correct keys at a time, but once you managed to do that, Proto can help you in your daily work because navigating through your folders does not need any special key strokes or even mouse clicks. Effectively you will save some time with it; or maybe even more.

How does it compare to similar apps

There are no actual "similar apps" I would know of; but, given that Proto is just another file manager, working with it is most likely the fastest way of managing your files and folders. Unlike all the other file managers reviewed here, Proto is a file manager, no handyman, and it does its job very well.

Conclusions

Proto is not just another NC clone, Proto is something very special. It might be tricky in a way, but it is, at least, worth a try.

2124

General Software Discussion / Re: How to watch folders and perform certain actions automatically?

« Last post by Tuxman on March 27, 2010, 11:03 AM »

Ahh, looks like it. (Hmm, VBScript.) 

2125

General Software Discussion / Re: How to watch folders and perform certain actions automatically?

« Last post by Tuxman on March 27, 2010, 10:34 AM »

Hmm, Belvedere does not have an "execute command" action (yet?), so there is no uncompression. 

I can't download Log Monitor for unknown reasons.