Recent Posts

2376

Living Room / Re: USB Madness With Cooked-Off Ports

« Last post by app103 on January 21, 2011, 04:33 PM »

Stoic Joker, I fully sympathize with your situation. I have had this happen quite a few times on my last pc. Trying to remember what you can and can't plug in where required keeping a notebook written in pencil. I'd be interested in a solution just as much as you. I haven't had any problems with my current PC but I'd like to be prepared with an answer, just in case I do.

2377

Found Deals and Discounts / Re: $20 Amazon Gift Card for $10 (USA Only, Jan 19 only)

« Last post by app103 on January 20, 2011, 09:55 PM »

I don't know and I am going to have to wait a few days to find anything out. She is away in no-pc land.

2378

Found Deals and Discounts / Re: $20 Amazon Gift Card for $10 (USA Only, Jan 19 only)

« Last post by app103 on January 20, 2011, 04:37 PM »

OK, I told my daughter not to panic till she gets home from her boyfriend's house...in a few days.

She is used to at least getting a confirmation email to inform her the order went through successfully. She was beginning to wonder if something was wrong, thinking maybe she misspelled her email address and someone else might be ending up with a gift card at her expense.

2379

Found Deals and Discounts / Re: $20 Amazon Gift Card for $10 (USA Only, Jan 19 only)

« Last post by app103 on January 20, 2011, 10:29 AM »

Has anyone received their card code by email yet? Or at least a confirmation email of their order? My daughter has received nothing, not even a "thank you for your order" message.

2380

Found Deals and Discounts / Re: $20 Amazon Gift Card for $10 (USA Only, Jan 19 only)

« Last post by app103 on January 19, 2011, 09:44 PM »

My daughter just used your referral, too.

2381

Living Room / Re: AVG Infecting in the Wild!

« Last post by app103 on January 18, 2011, 07:57 PM »

2382

General Software Discussion / Re: The software awards scam

« Last post by app103 on January 18, 2011, 07:56 PM »

I don't take as critical a stance as many here towards download sites. They serve me well, so I have no problems with them. I make more money because of them. Not complaining. PAD -- love it. Great stuff. But, I know what they are and what their purpose is. I've no illusions about what they are or do.

-Renegade (January 18, 2011, 07:13 AM)

I am sure the applications you have PAD files for that are making you money as the result of being made available through the download sites is shareware and not freeware.

My software site is such low traffic, I can't even give away advertising slots for free, yet the download sites are getting a lot more traffic for my software than I do, when you count the total number of downloads they are getting from hotlinking my files. I am sure their ad slots don't have a "advertise here for $0" like mine do.

2383

Adventures of Baby Cody / Re: Baby Cody arrives in Berlin, Germany

« Last post by app103 on January 18, 2011, 07:38 PM »

I'll pack some typical German stuff with Baby Cody and maybe gjehle will do the same, so the next foreign recipient has some compensation for the long wait.

-housetier (January 18, 2011, 05:09 PM)

I had considered making BC his very own set of luggage but then changed my mind, thinking it might be a little too over the top. Seems maybe I should have, since he is collecting a lot of goodies as he travels along. I hope he doesn't end up collecting so much stuff that it costs a lot more for him to travel.

2384

Living Room / Re: What is a good desktop stapler?

« Last post by app103 on January 17, 2011, 10:25 PM »

Bow to the stapler. 

-mitzevo (January 07, 2011, 10:32 AM)

Behold one of the gods of "desktop" electric staplers:



http://www.staplex.c...traheavycapacity.htm

And if you need to hold more than 100 sheets together, they have some manual ones that support up to 200 pages. http://www.staplex.c...eavycapacityhand.htm

They make normal handheld electric ones too, but their cheapest stapler goes for about $80.

2385

Living Room / Re: DC Demographics

« Last post by app103 on January 17, 2011, 10:06 PM »

Hahahaha~! There's at least one in every crowd~!

-Renegade (January 09, 2011, 11:29 PM)

Was that Zaine? 

2386

Adventures of Baby Cody / Re: Baby Cody arrives in Berlin, Germany

« Last post by app103 on January 17, 2011, 09:22 PM »

Also, house, can you grab the serial number on the dollar bill and post it here?

http://www.ischool.u...ednumbers/money.html

It's the letters/numbers mentioned in the bottom right of this photo. The series, bank code, sequence number and sequence code.

-Josh (January 17, 2011, 09:16 AM)

He would have to disassemble my origami to do that, and it might not be that easy to put back together.

2387

DC Website Help and Extras / Re: Something screwy on the forum

« Last post by app103 on January 17, 2011, 09:00 PM »

i see you modified a post by joiwind and turned it into a reply to his post.

i've actually done this myself once or twice, thinking i was replying but i was really modifying.

some people just aren't ready for mod powers 

-mouser (January 17, 2011, 07:45 PM)

If you remember, the first time you made me a mod, I freaked out about the extra links added and thought I might accidentally mess things up...and asked you to remove my mod status. 

I still hesitate when hitting that quote link, making sure I am clicking "quote" and not "modify". 

2388

General Software Discussion / Re: The software awards scam

« Last post by app103 on January 17, 2011, 08:22 PM »

3. Softpedia.com

- definitely worth it being listed on this website. they review very useful software free of cost but I'm not sure how big is their queue of software to be reviewed and I also don't know how big is their team to handle them. You don't want your version 1.01 to be reviewed when you're ready to launch version 6.0
- they award many software with these awards : http://www.softpedia.com/awards/ (they also used to have 100% Safe and Secure Award by Softpedia which is not listed on this page)
- developers can also advertise their product(s) : http://www.softpedia.com/advertise/

-adi_barb (January 17, 2011, 01:13 AM)

Softpedia engages in content and bandwidth theft and will list your software with botched descriptions, without your knowledge or consent. This is especially true with applications in which the developer has not made or submitted a PAD file. I have had to contact them numerous times to have stuff of mine removed from their site (stuff I would never submit to any download site). They do remove it, but a few months later they put it right back with an equally bad description.

While they usually make their own screenshots, there are occasions where they will steal images right off the developer's site, mostly with non-gui apps they are not sure how to make screenshots of. Sometimes the images they steal are not the best representation of the application and make no sense when taken out of context. (they stole a screenshot off my site of the Windows shortcut properties box from instructions for how to set command line parameters for a shortcut and set that as my application's screenshot.)

Unless you have shareware or some way to force users to visit your site after they download an application, there is no benefit to having your freeware/donationware listed on any of the download sites.

In fact, it can backfire on you and cause trust issues with your users when they google your app's name and get hit with a million sites to download your app from, and most of them getting bad ratings from security software because they are also hosting listings of spyware and malware. Less savvy users are inclined to believe all the software on the site is bad and that your app is also bad.

They also steal your traffic, making money off your users with the ads on their site. If you have ads on your site and this is the only money you are making from your software, you won't be making the money...the download site will.  They never send visitors to your site...they hotlink your downloads instead. You work hard, you pay for the hosting and bandwidth of your site and its files, and they reap the benefits of it, not you.

I don't have PAD files for my software any more, and this is precisely the reasons why. I have also contemplated aggressively going after download sites that hotlink my files without my consent.

I don't mind bloggers writing real reviews of my software and linking to my site's pages. I mind leeches that steal from me and think I exist solely to line their pockets with cash.

2389

General Software Discussion / Re: Dropquest

« Last post by app103 on January 15, 2011, 06:12 PM »

Every time it "gave me more space", it told me I now have 5G...which is what I had before I started. 

2390

Living Room / Re: What Do You Think About ANONYMOUS?

« Last post by app103 on January 15, 2011, 03:01 PM »

I think these 2 videos best explain it.

Who is Anonymous?

Who is Anonymous - The abridged version [NSFW]

http://www.youtube.c.../watch?v=K-wlYUOgX-4

2391

Living Room / Re: What Do You Think About ANONYMOUS?

« Last post by app103 on January 15, 2011, 02:25 PM »

Ah they are a bit more coherent than that though. They organise themselves through the internet, mostly through imageboards like 4chan. Sure lots of activists can call themselves Anonymous, but it's only when large group of a popular imageboards deziens gets behind a cause, can those supporting the cause honestly say they are acting as part of Anonymous.

-Eóin (January 15, 2011, 12:27 PM)

That's not entirely true. That may have been where it started, but the idea was intended to spread beyond that and involve the general population. Anyone can call themselves Anonymous and honestly say they are acting as part of it. That's the point.

2392

Living Room / Re: Forum / Thread Etiquette

« Last post by app103 on January 15, 2011, 12:21 PM »

mouser always seems to be able to keep his cool - maybe I should try persuade him to do some coaching sessions

-tomos (January 15, 2011, 11:55 AM)

2393

Living Room / Re: What Do You Think About ANONYMOUS?

« Last post by app103 on January 15, 2011, 11:59 AM »

Funny thing about Anonymous...it's not an organization, it has no leaders, and there are no rules. Anyone can be Anonymous. All you have to do is stand up for whatever it is that you believe in, in any way you choose, anonymously...and call yourself Anonymous.

Is it a hacker group? No, but there are hackers that call themselves Anonymous.
Is it a terrorist group? No, but there are terrorists that call themselves Anonymous.
Is it just a bunch of kids? No, there are also adults that call themselves Anonymous.

It's just a concept.

I wouldn't trust them to change the world for the better.

-Eóin (January 15, 2011, 10:46 AM)

It's not a "them"...it's a "we" whenever you act as Anonymous. Therefore, they can change the world if YOU decide to change the world, anonymously. If you can't trust them then you can't trust anyone...and maybe you are right...but maybe you are also wrong.

It's just a concept.

I'm curious to see what form their "series of global protests" will take.

-40hz (January 15, 2011, 08:37 AM)

You can decide what form it takes. You don't have to wait and see.

Personally, I stand up for what I believe in with my name, face, and reputation. I choose not to act anonymously. But the idea that one could just do nothing, out of fear of personal repercussions for upsetting the status quo, but they could also act anonymously if it gave them the courage they needed to stand up a lot more safely, does appeal to me. The idea is to stand up and do something, anonymously if you have to, but do something.

2394

Activation/License/Language Help / Re: A piece of Sh**

« Last post by app103 on January 14, 2011, 02:09 PM »

doing this to people

Hehehe -- "to", not "for".

-Renegade (January 14, 2011, 09:54 AM)

Precisely!

2395

Activation/License/Language Help / Re: A piece of Sh**

« Last post by app103 on January 14, 2011, 09:33 AM »

Wow, took you 43 minutes to write this crap...  just kidding.

If you need more of that 'business', I can refer some of my family members and their notebooks.

-PhilB66 (January 14, 2011, 05:15 AM)

Oh! That's because I wrote it, then got occupied for a bit with the (fixed now) laptop, and forgot to send it. 

Note: about a third of the total time (~5 hrs) was spent making backups, pulling a disk image, reboots, browsing the DoCo forums, getting coffee, and other non-interactive stuff. And the desktop that "hours and hours" were supposedly spent on? It's just a theme you can download from the Deviant Art website. What must have taken her "hours and hours" was finding it. There are something like fifty available 3rd-party themes sitting on this PC!
 

-----
re: "Mo' biz"

If you got any more like that, let me give you the number of my most disliked competitor.

I'm a firm believer in sharing the wealth.

-40hz (January 14, 2011, 06:10 AM)

I have to give you praise for your patience, because if it were me I'd just reinstall from scratch and set it up the way I like, big ol' scary taskbar on the right and all, and stick one of my wallpapers on her desktop. (I've had no complaints doing this to people yet  )

2396

General Software Discussion / Re: A niche script need

« Last post by app103 on January 14, 2011, 09:08 AM »

You could make an exception for google links if it does and resort to using this bookmarklet to remove the tracking stuff from google links: https://www.donation...ex.php?topic=12969.0

If that breaks at any point, I am sure Krishean will fix it (it's his bookmarklet)

2397

General Software Discussion / Re: Skwire's DC member site marked as suspicious

« Last post by app103 on January 13, 2011, 06:18 PM »

Could it have something to do with this? If something is still flagging that as malware, it might explain the problem you are now having with the blocking.

2398

General Software Discussion / Re: Let's try to create our own suite for internet security.

« Last post by app103 on January 13, 2011, 06:13 PM »

Ha, of course!  I never do that stuff at work, I ain't crazy!  That comment wasn't really aimed at you or to chastise anyone, sorry if it came off that way.  it just reminded me of something I wanted to clarify for the purposes of the list in the first post.

Yes, when at work, you just don't even try to go to shady sites.  That's where abstinence comes into play.  But when I'm at home, I'd like my security software setup in such a way where if I intentionally choose to explore a shady site, it will catch the harmful things happening.  That's the hard part.  We want protection during those times where we decide to cross the line.  It's like the military:  you have your defensive tactics, and your offensive tactics.  They are two different animals.

And I would never say anything negative towards you app.  Too much respect.

-superboyac (January 13, 2011, 05:23 PM)

That can be a little hard to do when you are staring at a page full of search results and you don't know which are the shady sites. The reputation rings then come in handy. If you want to be extra cautious, stick to results that show green rings and don't take a chance of the yellow, red, or sites with unknown reputation.

In addition to security, those reputation rings also help you find the sites more likely to have the info you are looking for, steering you away from the useless (and sometimes harmful) crap. It can really save you a lot of time in more ways than one.

2399

General Software Discussion / Re: Let's try to create our own suite for internet security.

« Last post by app103 on January 13, 2011, 04:52 PM »

I only mentioned adult content and child safety because they are features of the software. You can configure it to your needs and if you choose not to block sites with adult content you won't get the big warning banner on those sites.

Consider any adult content warnings as NSFW warnings and you might see the value in them a little more and understand that it's not just about protecting precious little eyes from stuff you think they are too young to see. It's about saving your own butt and job too....you wouldn't want to accidentally stumble on a site that could get you fired, would you?

2400

Living Room / Re: R.I.P. MySpace

« Last post by app103 on January 13, 2011, 04:37 PM »

Can't wait to see where some of the idiots who were still hanging in there end up roosting once they shut it down completely...

-40hz (January 12, 2011, 09:29 AM)

Regular users will probably move to Facebook, and bands will probably move to Last.fm and those with CC licensed works to Jamendo, unless something even better comes along.

-app103 (January 12, 2011, 09:47 AM)

That's fine.

But I was really more wondering where the idiots would end up.

I want to make it a point never to go there.

-40hz (January 13, 2011, 03:18 PM)

ok...allow me to clarify:

Regular users idiots will go to facebook.....etc.