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4301

The Getting Organized Experiment of 2007 / Re: Here is my problem

« Last post by app103 on November 05, 2007, 04:20 AM »

The problem is I have done that, even set alarms to go off that say "work on this project now" and at first I just pushed it to ring again later, and then dismissing it till next time it's scheduled to ring, and then eventually just removed the alarms totally from most of them.

If I just don't feel like it I just can't bring myself to do it.

I can't even schedule a tiny part of a project to get it done.

My ebook site is a perfect example...tried to make myself add 5 posts a day...worked for first day...didn't do anything more for weeks.

Tried changing that to one post a day...it has taken at least a month to get 3 posts done.

In 3 months I have managed to make 18 posts. At this rate it will take me about 5.5 years to catch up with the content that belongs on the site...and then there is the new content too.

When I think about it I want to cry, but I just can't seem to make myself want to do it.

The rest of my personal projects are in the same sad state or worse, in terms of desire to work on them.

And things have been like this for over a year.

I seemed to have lost touch with my purpose. And that doesn't leave me with a very good feeling inside.

4302

The Getting Organized Experiment of 2007 / Re: Here is my problem

« Last post by app103 on November 03, 2007, 05:20 PM »

After making this post, I went & checked my email. I found a google alert for another blog mentioning one of my applications and decided to check it out.

It was serendipity.

All the thoughts & feelings I am having that are holding me back are all over his blog...over & over...and some possible answers as to why I am feeling like this and what to do about it.

My suggestion is that if my original post sounds at all familiar to you in any way shape or form, start with this guy's first post and take it slow and really try to absorb what he is saying, as you move forward to his more recent posts.

http://odinkirk.com/...system-requirements/

Last year's GOE may have been a complete failure for me for a lot of reasons, among them being my inner self didn't meet the 'minimum system requirements'. 

4303

The Getting Organized Experiment of 2007 / Here is my problem

« Last post by app103 on November 03, 2007, 01:48 PM »

I had thought that I would pass on the whole GOE idea this year, after the disaster it was for me last year.

Getting organized isn't my problem. I am quite organized naturally. Other people's cookie cutter systems aren't going to help with the problem I have. It's possible other people's cookie cutter systems contributed to the problem I have and made it much worse than it was before.

For most people, the things they need to get done have deadlines, consequences if they don't get done. Their real procrastination is putting everything off till the last moment and then going nuts and stressing themselves out trying to make the deadline. Then they need to have it all organized in order to not forget what it is they have to do because of all the stress they have caused themselves.

My problem is that all the things on my todo list that aren't getting done are personal projects that are a labor of love and I have to love it while I am doing it or I just can't.

There is no real deadlines....no real consequences if it never gets done. At the worst, I just disappoint people or let them down. And I don't really care what people think. Other people's opinions about me don't hold any water. I am used to letting people down and disappointing them my whole life. I don't live to live up to other people's expectations of me. I never did. My father even called me the biggest waste of potential he ever met...and he doesn't understand why I never did all the things with my life that I could have, the things he thought that should have mattered.

My personal projects...I really do want to work on them, but at the same time I really don't. And I care, but I don't care.

It's like going out and buying all the ingredients to make a dinner, in cans, and putting everything away all organized in the cabinet and closing it. Then never making the dinner because there is no real need to hurry up and cook it before the ingredients spoil, and you really don't feel like cooking today, and even if you did you don't feel like having that for dinner.

I have tried setting artificial deadlines, but they don't work because I know they are artificial and I just keep pushing it to tomorrow. I can't fool myself. Same thing with setting a personal project with an artificially higher priority, pretending it is more important than it really is. I know it isn't so it won't work.

I have to love it while I am doing it or I just can't do it and I don't know how to do that any more. There is no real reward if I do it, at least none that really matters enough to me to be a motivating incentive to get me moving. And nothing bad will happen if I don't, so it all just sits and collects dust.

I have a lot of creative energy. I always did. I used to have a need to take what was in my head and make it real. This is where the art came from, the applications, the websites, the jewelery, clothing designs, everything & anything that popped into my mind's eye that I could find a way to make it.

The energy is still there, I am still creating things in my head, but I seem to be content to let it all stay as a vision in my head now. I don't feel the need to make it all real, that I once had.

I am lacking a reason that matters. Where or how do I get one?

4304

General Software Discussion / Re: online tutorials - screencasts rule over static pages?

« Last post by app103 on November 02, 2007, 01:21 PM »

From a perspective that maybe hasn't been mentioned...

I know a number of private mailing lists that deal in the trading of static html tutorials, mostly art related. Often times they steal the images off some poor guy's site, copy & paste the text, and pass it off as their own work or never give any credit to the original author of the tutorial and graphics.

It is much too easy to do that with static html ones, and if your tutorial is any good at all, it will eventually be snatched by these guys. I have had a few original ones of my own 'snatched', that were originally created specifically for email distribution, that had been edited to remove any credit to me as the original creator and someone else's name attached instead.

With video, if you mark it properly, it is much more difficult to remove the credit, and people will know where it came from and where to go looking for more if they like it.

You might consider uploading to 5min Life Videopedia if the video is 5 minutes or less. The site is strictly how-to videos and their player is unique in the way it presents them, specifically with how-to videos in mind. They will host it and give you an embedding code so you won't have to worry about bandwidth issues. You might consider breaking it up into segments if your videos are longer than 5 minutes each.

I posted about this site not that long ago, here: https://www.donation...ex.php?topic=10415.0

Now if you wanted to distribute high quality DivX videos, you could go with Stage6. They have a 2GB file size limit, and people have uploaded entire full length movies there. (great place to go for really old movies or indy stuff)

They also supply embedding codes, so you won't have to worry about using your own bandwidth to put it on your site. You can even start your own channel there for your content and customize the page for it.

I happen to like the quality of the videos on their site, and the fact that they let you download them, as well as watch online.

4305

Post New Requests Here / Re: IDEA: File lister

« Last post by app103 on November 02, 2007, 01:05 AM »

If you are looking to find & remove a rootkit, there are at least 3 free tools to find & remove them:

• Sophos Anti-Rootkit
  
• AVG Anti-Rootkit Free
  
• McAfee Rootkit Detective

Read all instructions & documentation very carefully before use.

4306

Developer's Corner / Re: Was My Posting To The Adobe Forum Stupid?

« Last post by app103 on November 01, 2007, 02:38 PM »

I think there is 4 problems with your post:

Problem 1: Whatever it is that you want is buried in a lot of text. Keep it short & simple and to the point.

Problem 2: It isn't clear exactly what you are asking for. Technically there isn't a question in that entire post...at least not one that ends in a question mark.

I am not trying to be a nitpicker here, but when scanning it twice to try to figure out what you were asking I couldn't find a '?' that would signify an actual question was in all that text.

Problem 3: The only thing that popped out at me from that entire post was this:

So, where can I find the big red button to push and get everything I want handed to me on a silver-platter.

You should know better than to ask that, whether you mean it that way or not. You will never get an answer to a post containing anything like that. At least not a useful answer. People run away from demands like that. And it doesn't matter what other words you surround that with, that still won't fly very well.

Problem 4: (most likely the biggest problem of all) You posted that to the wrong forum.

You would probably do a lot better if you go here and click 'community' and select a link from there. There is loads of stuff there that lead offsite. Browse around till you find something with a forum of people that seem to know what they are doing, answers questions, and are populated with more of the type of Flash user you would like to become.

You could also consider Yahoo's Flash Developer Network. There is a Yahoo Group there that might give you a lot better response to your questions.

If you are going to rely on a user to user support forum on Adobe's site, you aren't going to get anywhere. Nobody that works for Adobe officially spends any of their time there.

Your questions aren't of a specific software related technical problem. If any questions get answered on that forum they would be of that type, and only if some user that can answer it happens to drop by & see it and bother to reply.

You would be better off asking here for links to resources and recommendations for good flash game developer communities that welcome all levels of experience.

I am sure Deozaan could probably tell you a few.

4307

Official Announcements / Re: Draw Cody competition - win incredible prizes!

« Last post by app103 on October 31, 2007, 07:55 PM »

Fortunately, thanks to Aesop, Cody found another distant relative
who seems to have laid this golden egg. (see attachment in previous post)It seems to be cracked, hmmm
Could be some potential here...

-cranioscopical (October 24, 2007, 08:54 PM)

Reminds me of a fortune cookie. 

4308

Living Room / Re: Leech Attacks

« Last post by app103 on October 27, 2007, 03:54 PM »

Oh you think you can handle them? Ok i'll add the address of your chatroom on the site so i can redirect them to u.You can help them but most of the users ask for C++ so if u are comfortable let me know.abt that.

-mahesh2k (October 27, 2007, 04:49 AM)

We have been handling their kind for years.

Some go away without what they came for, but they leave with a better understanding of why they aren't getting what they want and why nobody can or will just hand them instant knowledge.

Some understand and will work for their knowledge...and keep coming back for more help. Once they learn how to learn, they usually do ok for themselves.

Some go on to become helping hands in the channel, providing info & help to others, sharing what they have learned.

We can provide help for a lot of programming languages in English, and in both Italian & English for C/C++ & Linux help. We also help with just about anything computer related...and things not computer related.

And anybody in my channel that does (or offers to do) someone else's work for them will receive a stern warning from me along with an explanation of why they shouldn't. Doing things for them instead of helping them do it themselves violates the help rules.

app, POST the logs after the bloodfest

-Lashiec (October 27, 2007, 09:15 AM)

There has never been a bloodfest, but there has been an immense amount of comedy over the years. 

Example:
<¨°ºO Blutig O> who knows perl?
<¨°ºO Blutig O> I mean who knows Kernel
<¨°ºO Blutig O> I mean who knows Pascal?
<app> what do you need to know?
<¨°ºO Blutig O> can you advise me a good pascal tutorial
<¨°ºO Blutig O> I wanna learn it
<¨°ºO Blutig O> ru still alive?
<app> http://delphi.about.com
<¨°ºO Blutig O> it's not ok
<¨°ºO Blutig O> I wanna know it without learning

4309

Living Room / Re: USB Doomsday Device Hub - Fun for the Office

« Last post by app103 on October 24, 2007, 02:18 PM »

I think I found the code that makes it work:

http://worsethanfail...t-Doing-Nothing.aspx

But seriously...that would make a cool reset button or something.

4310

Living Room / Re: COLOURlovers

« Last post by app103 on October 23, 2007, 12:38 PM »

I love this one...it's called Arranged Marriage



It is made up of colors chosen not for their looks, but for their names:

• Failing Marriage
  
• kill the groom!
  
• marriage piece
  
• monster bride
  
• Ending Marriage 

 

4311

Living Room / Re: ¿A kid genius or an ambitious father?

« Last post by app103 on October 23, 2007, 12:10 PM »

By the way, have you ever heard of those experiments where they do something like put ordinary preschool fingerpaint prints up in a fancy museum and all the critics think they are genius works of art? That cracks me up.

-edbro (October 08, 2007, 02:44 PM)

I heard about one done with art made by chimpanzees. 

4312

General Software Discussion / Re: What's the point of FlashGot (Firfox extension)?

« Last post by app103 on October 23, 2007, 12:06 PM »

I had a download manager installed (older version of Flashget) that didn't seem to work with Firefox, even after following the instructions from the developer's site.

The trick to getting it to work was Flashgot.

4313

Living Room / Re: Leech Attacks

« Last post by app103 on October 23, 2007, 12:00 PM »

oh u got me on that renegade.Actually i made mistake on website by helping some of the readers in their programs.That was the mistake all these comments are result of that help i did few months ago.the guys i helped spread some word about the site and somehow misunderstood that i help others this way.

Hmm i dont know the solution to this problem.

-mahesh2k (October 20, 2007, 03:22 AM)

Would you like to send them to my chatroom?

if your answer is yes...

irc.rizon.net  #coderzinc

4314

General Software Discussion / Re: Looking for Freeware Screensaver with Space Theme

« Last post by app103 on October 23, 2007, 01:17 AM »

Best space themed screensaver ever, isn't really a screensaver at all.

The free open source Stellarium can be launched as a 'screensaver' with the small IdleStart utility I made.

Just set IdleStart to load at startup with a shortcut in the Startup folder. In that shortcut, set the parameters for length of idle time and path to Stellarium.

Now you have the space screensaver to beat all. 

4315

Living Room / Re: Clever Programmerisms

« Last post by app103 on October 23, 2007, 12:51 AM »

Dev-C++ users will appreciate this one...

Don't forget to strip after compiling.



I once gave someone a file to a small program I wrote. When he asked me why the file size was so large, my reply was that I forgot to strip after compiling. He thought the statement was funny enough to add to our chatroom's quote collection.

There was a script that would spit back a random quote from the list when triggered. One day, that quote of mine popped up and Martin thought it was hilarious.

This is the brief convo that took place immediately following his laughter...

<app> you mean you don't strip after compiling?
</\/\artin> I do the full monty just for 0 warnings!
</\/\artin> if I stripped for no C/C++ errors, then I'd put my coat on for no VB errors

Needless to say, we ended up with another quote in the collection that day.

4316

Living Room / Re: FOUND: Free Internet Dial-Up Access

« Last post by app103 on October 18, 2007, 03:59 AM »

NetZero/Juno still offer nationwide free dialup (ad supported, 10 hours per month, must use their software to connect).

Now this one was very interesting:

FreeDialup.org provides access without the need to create an account...just use their numbers to connect and make up any name/pass you want when you do.

They offer free support through a forum only, which if their dialup is the only thing you have, it will be useless if you can't connect because you won't be able to access it for help.

They block the sending of mail with email clients, so you will need to use webmail for that. (you can still receive all the mail you want though), and they block newsgroup access. This is to keep their service from being abused by spammers.

This seems to be their only restrictions. No mention of ads, time limits or any other undesirable garbage, and they don't require you you to install any kind of special software.

Coverage area is pretty limited though. They only have 7 access numbers, all located in New England.

4317

Post New Requests Here / Re: REQUEST: Picture Codyfier

« Last post by app103 on October 16, 2007, 07:33 PM »

Will Cody take the place of that fat, white bearded guy?

-Lashiec (October 16, 2007, 07:29 PM)

I think Cody would be more likely to follow the tooth fairy around...you know, the coins under the pillow thing she has going on...he would want those for his collection.

4318

Living Room / 5min Life Videopedia

« Last post by app103 on October 16, 2007, 06:10 PM »

This is like a Youtube of how-to videos, with a special flash player that can display full screen with some unique features, such as zooming in, slow motion, frame-by-frame, storyboard, etc

5min is a place to find short video solutions for practical questions and a place for people to share their knowledge.

The idea behind 5min is very simple: any solution can be visually explained in no more than 5 minutes. Our goal is to create the first communal Life Videopedia allowing users from all over the globe to contribute their knowledge by sharing visual guides in areas such as arts, business, fashion, sports, health, tech, food, and much more.

5min's basic philosophy is that everybody is an expert in something and has something to teach others, so why not share that knowledge for the better of the whole? That's why we created a place to gather that collective knowledge onto one platform.

http://www.5min.com/

4319

Living Room / Re: More uses for old stuff

« Last post by app103 on October 16, 2007, 05:23 PM »

I really like this one:



and it has given me some ideas. 

4320

General Software Discussion / Re: Have any web-based applications replaced desktop apps for you?

« Last post by app103 on October 11, 2007, 11:11 PM »

I don't see the advantages in a business or the average home environment, but for someone that is on the go that wouldn't have access to their own pc while traveling, web-based applications make a lot of sense.

Everything is online...accessable anywhere you have access to a browser and an internet connection. There is no need to worry about the ability/inability to install software on the machine you will be using.

Just drop into a public library in whatever city you are in and use one of their pc's to get some work done. If you don't finish, it will be ready & waiting for you at the library of the next city you happen to find yourself in.

And on that note, I think it opens up a lot of possibilities for people that don't even own a computer. Much less stuff you would have to stick on your thumbdrive if the applications are online, and even less if they store your data, too.

4321

Living Room / Re: Which one do you prefer ?

« Last post by app103 on October 11, 2007, 10:10 PM »

"Beauty is only a pixel deep"?

-Darwin (October 09, 2007, 07:37 PM)

Can I sell you a jar of this anti-alias cream?

-cranioscopical (October 09, 2007, 08:47 PM)

 

Or a flask of smudge ? (odd...)

-Armando (October 09, 2007, 11:57 PM)

or hair brushes that cure baldness?

4322

General Software Discussion / Re: Tranparency in IE 6

« Last post by app103 on October 11, 2007, 10:02 PM »

You could give K-Meleon a try.

It uses the same engine as Firefox but it is much lighter on resources. When used with the symbiotic loader, it opens faster than IE. I wrote a review about it on my Snailware blog.

This would solve the problem of .png's with transparencies being displayed properly, without adding the problems you mentioned about using Firefox.

4323

Developer's Corner / Re: Best way to start learning C++?

« Last post by app103 on October 11, 2007, 08:16 PM »

Practice exercises aren't always interesting. If you have a pet project you will want to work on it and the learning will come naturally.

-tinjaw (October 11, 2007, 07:17 PM)

That is why I made this page: Stupid C Stuff

4324

Living Room / Re: Do you archive/store your downloads (mainly install files)?

« Last post by app103 on October 11, 2007, 03:27 PM »

If you lose one of your versions, you can see if its archived at OldVersion.com:

http://www.oldversion.com/

-laughinglizard (October 07, 2007, 05:49 PM)

Similar site:  http://oldapps.com/

I save everything...I am a packrat.

Keep in mind 4 of the primary reasons for saving older setup files:

1. Newer doesn't mean better.
2. Sometimes freeware goes payware.
3. System requirements may increase in newer versions while the hardware on your PC may not.
4. A lot of great little known freeware has a tendency to disappear from the web and become lost forever.

I have setup files for applications, or versions of applications, that I will probably never use again, but that doesn't mean I will get rid of them.

I have recently found myself contributing to the oldapps.com collection, filling requests on their forum for stuff that is near impossible to find, and in some cases supplying English versions to applications where the older version that is most commonly found, is in a different language.

I also inherited a lot of setup files from my father. I think it could possibly be the entire Tucows Windows collection of 1999. I don't even know what half of it is. 

My dad has this habit of hitting a download site and getting everything he can and including it on a special partition with any pc he gives as a gift. The collection grows larger with every pc. My first PC from him came with a collection of about 100 setup files. My second came with over 300! It is up to the receiver of the pc to find out what it all is. It's actually kind of fun.

One of the greatest discoveries I have come across in the collection is an ancient, free, mildly crippled, non-expiring demo of an application for ripping CD's (CD Stripper). As it turned out, it is the ONLY thing I can use on my old P1 that will work and not crash. I did buy the most recent version of it, but alas, just like the rest of the CD ripping software I tried, it crashes on the old PC. I would have loved to have been able to purchase & receive a full version setup of the ancient one instead. I only bought the newer one because I felt they deserved my cash...it was more or less a donation, since I will never use the newer one on any pc I own. (I already have much better tools that can do same job on newer pc's)

CD Stripper..

Then:

Now:

Also, as a favor for friends that own older 9x pc's, I give their old snails new life by reinstalling their OS for them, properly configuring it, and supplying older freeware that will run better on it than the newer versions they would probably end up with if I didn't supply the older ones. So there is actually a need for me to keep all that old junk, the way I see it. It saves me a lot of time & trouble hunting down those files online while I am at their house, not to mention the extra time needed to download it all over dialup (most of them are still dialup users).

As far as archiving them, I do this as I download them, kind of. Everything gets it's own folder...I will make a note of the version number either in the name of the subfolder in which I store it and all related documentation, or in the file name itself.

It initially goes into an 'Untried' folder if it is something I have never used. Once installed, the application's setup folder is moved to the 'Installed' folder. Once uninstalled, it gets moved to a 'Not Installed' folder. If I had a good reason for uninstalling it, there will be a text file added with the reason, to remind me just in case I should get the crazy notion to try it again. Call it a personal mini review, if you like.

4325

General Software Discussion / Re: Have any web-based applications replaced desktop apps for you?

« Last post by app103 on October 10, 2007, 11:11 PM »

I have actually found myself replacing web-based stuff with some sort of desktop application when I can.

I have switched from using the web-based blogger.com & wordpress editors to Windows Live Writer. (I absolutely LOVE it!)

Sometimes things are a bit of a combo of both, like using yahoo's notepad & calendar with the desktop widget notepad & todo list. I never really had a use for either till I got the widgets. It was too much bother to open the web pages and use it that way, but on my desktop I like it.

Same goes with Pandora.com. I love it, but having the browser window open bugs me, so I use it with OpenPandora.

About the only thing I really have switched to a web-based app is gmail. But just like Josh, I wish there was a way to download it easily to keep a local copy, just as I have it, with all the labels intact for each email. I don't want to have a folder based system for my email any more. It would be great to be able to have some sort of desktop email client specifically made for archiving gmail locally.