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4476

General Software Discussion / Re: Stupid Copying and Pasting in XP?

« Last post by Carol Haynes on August 04, 2007, 01:04 PM »

I think it is historical stupidity - they seem to have had the same 'issue' in previous versions of Windows too.

4477

General Software Discussion / Re: Photo panorama creation

« Last post by Carol Haynes on August 04, 2007, 10:44 AM »

To quote my favourite author (and character):

"Life, don't talk to me about life"
Marvin, H2G2, DNA

Thanks for the comments Curt - unfortunately the RDF approach is what I have adopted to religious belief precisely because I have been there, done that and worn the Christian T-Shirt and found it really doesn't fit with me. I have no particular problems with the Bertrand Russell assertion "When I die I rot" its my relationship with myself that is probably the biggest issue

Anyway enough of my problems - this thread is supposed to be about panoramas!

Whether it will lead anywhere or not I am not sure but I have reinstalled all the pano apps I can find (except Hugin for the moment - it is a goodie but it appears to have been updated but the the download page is still not up to date). All the other apps I had seem to install OK - and some have been updated to latest versions with the serial numbers I was given.

I lately found this project hugin at http://hugin.sourceforge.net/, an open source project.

-demonstrate (August 03, 2007, 11:20 PM)

I think Hugin was mentioned earlier in the thread. I have had v. 0.5 for some time but the website now says that version 0.7 is available. However the download page still talks about 0.5. When you downloaded it what version did you get? Could you list the version numbers of the extras too.

This is the list of stuff I downloaded ages ago:

[attachimg #1][/attachimg]

and is one of the reasons I don't really like Hugin - you have to go searching for all the other bits.

4478

General Software Discussion / Re: Photo panorama creation

« Last post by Carol Haynes on August 04, 2007, 08:39 AM »

Thanks Curt +  Mouser - actually I got therapy-type help from my local doctor (I don't like pills) with the sleep problems and that has (at least partially) sorted out the depression stuff. Also in the last month or so I have started getting out and about again getting some exercise (sailing, hillwalking and horse riding) and it really does make a difference. The quality of sleep when you are physically tired is completely different to 'couch potato' tired.

I think the biggest problem I have is that I really don't meet that many people these days - and so when I do go out I am feel bit isolated and unable to join in like I used to. I am sure this is just a mind set or learned behaviour but it is really hard to break. I am beginning to feel sympathy for agoraphobics! Trouble is without social contacts I find it hard to get motivated to do anything - I procrastinate too much whereas in the past I was always one of those people that was endlessly busy and willing to take on more.

Maybe it has something to do with the bigh 5 birthday coming up next year!

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General Software Discussion / Re: Photo panorama creation

« Last post by Carol Haynes on August 04, 2007, 04:59 AM »

Sorry, I have been meaning to get back to this for sometime - unfortunately the versions of software I was supplied with are quite old now and I can't quite face going back to the companies. Manybe what I need to do is to write up something for each product and then send the companies a copy and if they want me to update the comments in light of the latest builds they can send me a copy.

It all went a bit pear shaped when my previous system bombed and I had to build a new system. A combination of duff graphic cards and a duff new mobo prolonged the agony and I had a long period of illness, really debilitating depression and insomnia, to cope with (which now seems to be a lot better).

Maybe it is time to have another go!

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General Software Discussion / Re: Can I uninstall .NET Framework 1.1 and 2.0 ??

« Last post by Carol Haynes on August 03, 2007, 06:35 PM »

The question I wonder is how many of these massive downloads are going to be needed in the long term? We already have 3 versions of .Net installed - in 5 years time will we have 8 versions installed?

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Living Room / Re: new PC options:-

« Last post by Carol Haynes on August 03, 2007, 04:45 AM »

Personally I would go for 450W minimum these days and if you might want to use more than one graphics card go higher (500W+). If you potentially want to build a system in the future this is one item (and possibly the case too) you might want to overspecify now so that it can still be used in your next system - you'll save money in the long term.

Most PCIe motherboards support more than one graphics card - haven't checked the spec on yours ... if it has an ATI chipset it will probably support Crossfire / nVidia boards support SLI mode. These allow two cards to drive a single monitor - or you can run two monitors side by side.

Does the mobo above have built in graphics? If not have you thought about a graphics card?

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Living Room / Re: New iPod ad says it all ...

« Last post by Carol Haynes on August 03, 2007, 04:26 AM »

Don't know how I missed the iRack video - brilliant (if somewhat sick) and don't forget iPhone (sound crap on this one but it is short) --- also don't miss Bill Gates vs Steve Jobs

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Living Room / Re: Article: A Woman's Primer for Building Her Own Computer

« Last post by Carol Haynes on August 02, 2007, 05:58 PM »

I'd get much better value for money building one.

just a warning: my experience has been that this is *not* the case.  i would highly recommend you try to build a pc for one and only one reason: because you enjoy the process.  My belief is that currently building your own will cost you more in parts, is MUCH more risky in terms of something going wrong, and puts you in a much more precarious situation should your computer need repair.

in summary: building a pc on your own can be fun -- but that's the only reason you should try it.

-mouser (August 01, 2007, 12:41 PM)

Just to add my 2p - I agree with Mouser ... building a computer is fun and you get what you want. What you don't get is a cheap computer.

The reason Dell and Co. can produce rock bottom prices is because they have a large sales capacity and small profit margin. Plus because they buy components and software in bulk they get huge discounts, add to that they install extra crap (eg. Symantex stuff) which brings in advertising/promotional revenue from the crap producers.

Just one example - if you buy Windows Vista OEM version for own build (perfectly legal) it will cost ~ £50-100 (in the UK) depending on the edition you choose. If you buy from a system builder they are probably bulk buying those licenses for a few pounds each (plus they always install the cheapest version and charge a premium for any upgrade to a more reasonable version). MS are keen for them to do this - it makes the Vista sales figures look good and encourages customers to future upgrades to Windows (at a price) - and so they give large OEMs huge discounts to promote their operating systems. If MS charged the going OEM rate Dell would simply install Linux on all their machines which is not in MS's interests (and they know Dell have the dominance to cause them damage). There are loads of such OEMs out there (Gateway etc.) so MS knows what it is doing.

The same is true for all the graphics cards and hard discs that are installed on OEM builds.

4484

General Software Discussion / Re: ArtRage 2.5 released - Major update free for registered users of 2.2

« Last post by Carol Haynes on August 02, 2007, 02:52 PM »

Filehippo Update Checker doesn't appear to deal with ArtRage (just installed FhUC - looks very useful) - when I run it and click on show all programs on the right in the browser results window it doesn't list ArtRage as installed.

4485

Site/Forum Features / Re: compose hotkeys

« Last post by Carol Haynes on August 02, 2007, 11:09 AM »

Yep - I know you can make it compatible but it seems to have ceased development and the default action of FF upgrader is to disable it. Actually you don't need anything to make things carry on working after upgrade - you just need to change one setting in the config file to stop version checking on extensions.

Just type about:config in the address bar and scroll down to extensions.checkCompatibility and change its value to false
Note this stops ALL version checking on extensions so if something really is incompatible you might get some odd issues.

Personally I find MR Tech's Local Install addon really helpful for this sort of thing (and lots besides)

There is also BBCodeXtra which adds context menus for BBCode, HTML and XHTML

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Site/Forum Features / Re: compose hotkeys

« Last post by Carol Haynes on August 02, 2007, 06:18 AM »

Isn't it strange that I was just about to post about BBComposer !!

Now that BBCode extension seems to have died (it isn't compatible, at least by default, with recent FF updates and the website has disappeared) I was looking for an alternative.

I just discovered BBComposer and it seems quite neat to me, espeically for people who can't be bothered to remember all those BB codes.

As well as the links AbteriX provided it has its own website

You still can't easily add square brackets inline without having to use a code block though.

I'm pretty sure there is a BB code for cancelling formatting temporarily - but I can't remember what it is!

Edit: OK I found it .. the code required for no formatting of any kind (and without putting stuff in boxes etc) is NOBBC

eg. [B]test[/B] is generated by the fragment

[NOBBC][B]test[/B][/NOBBC]

Mouser - how about a NOBBC button in the editor near the Code button ?

A useful source of further BBCode tags is at SMF's website

4487

General Software Discussion / Re: XP or Vista user — take the poll!

« Last post by Carol Haynes on August 01, 2007, 05:33 AM »

Yes but if we are talking about Windows list price is $500 - so ROM costs are pretty insignificant.

Regarding updates - ROM based would mean that there would be more incentive to get it right in the first place! Also there would be less need for security updates (which are the majority).

The other big advantage is an almost instantaneous boot process!

4488

General Software Discussion / Re: XP or Vista user — take the poll!

« Last post by Carol Haynes on August 01, 2007, 04:39 AM »

[previous post edited]

Flash ROM, baby

True - but it isn't really as secure as true ROM based systems. Actually it could be a very simple user upgrade - all you need is the new OS supplied on a set of ROMs mounted on an insertable card - a bit like a PCMIA socket on laptops. Then to upgrade all you do is pop out the old card and pop in a new one and reboot. No hours of reinstalling everything, no need for activation, piracy becomes a lot more difficult because you would need large fabrication plants .... what are the disadvantages?

4489

General Software Discussion / Re: XP or Vista user — take the poll!

« Last post by Carol Haynes on August 01, 2007, 04:31 AM »

Fewer now believe it's more secure than XP, says new survey.

-zridling (August 01, 2007, 01:13 AM)

What a surprise ... has no one in the real world realised that the only truly secure version of any operating system is one that doesn't connect to the outside world (even via removable discs). Of course you can't install anything but what the heck it makes a nice paperweight.

The main thrust of MS these days seems to be to make money and to placate the music and video industries (ie. make it harder to actually use products you have purchased). The rest of Windows development seems more aimed at eyecandy and anti piracy - non of which really helps or encourage the legitimate user.

Actually that isn't really true - a pretty secure operating system is possible if it boots from ROM rather than the disc and doesn't all items to automatically startup with the OS. If you do get attacked all you need to do is reboot and the problem is pretty much dealt with. Trouble is most end users can't easily upgrade ROM sets. Acorn Computers took this route with the RiscOS system but they went the way of most non-MS vendors - had their ideas nicked and went out of business (except for their ARM subsidiary which has done remarkably well in the consumer device chip business).

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General Software Discussion / Re: What is the currently best Desktop Search software?

« Last post by Carol Haynes on August 01, 2007, 04:25 AM »

You download the full version - when the demo period runs out it reverts to its 'limited' functionality which is probably fine unless you have a lot of archived outlook mailboxes. For individual use the main restrictions on the free version seem to be related to Outlook and a discrete link that asks you to buy at the top right of the main window.

4491

Living Room / Re: Build a $250 PC That Doesn’t Suck

« Last post by Carol Haynes on July 31, 2007, 11:42 AM »

I just looked up the reference for the last system I built ...

I built a 'cheap' sysem based on DFI LANParty RDX200 mobo (very pretty 939 board that cost me about the equivalent of $40). On the quick installation guide was a sticker recommending the following PSU ratings:

Athlon64 3400+ >450W
Athlon64 4000+ >500W
Athlon64 FX-57 >600W

granted this was on a full size ATX board with 6 USB sockets and 2 PCIe graphics slots - but nevertheless I really think 300W is on the light side for a 64 bit system.

My old 32 bit AthlonXP 1600+, 512Mb memory and an AGP card required 300W !!

A larger modern PSU will be an investment for this and subsequent builds (once you have built your own system you have the bug!). Buying a cheap low capacity PSU now is a poor investment for the future and could lead to potential instability problems that are hard to deal with without spending even more money.

Personally even if you are going for a MicroATX form factor I would use a full ATX box - it will be usable again in the future and it will have better ventilation. Just make sure the box you choose has the flexibility to accommodate different form factors.

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Living Room / Re: Build a $250 PC That Doesn’t Suck

« Last post by Carol Haynes on July 31, 2007, 04:10 AM »

Just a suggestion ... have a look at these combo deals (all the same AM2 board with different CPUs - and everything is retail so you get all the extras including the official AMD CPU heatsink). You'd still need memory and other bits (try Crucial Technology for memory - they are cheap, easy to pick the right memory using their online ID system and it comes with a lifetime guarantee).

http://www.newegg.co...geSize=10&page=1

See http://www.crucial.c...del=K8M800+Micro+AM2 for memory kits.

So you could get:

AM2 Mobo + Athlon 64 3500 AM2 CPU + 1 Gb memory for $171

OK you still need a CPU / Case / HD (and don't forget graphics - just because a system has an onboard graphics chipset doesn't mean you don't need an adapter!)

Personally I would go for a better mobo (try this Gigabyte board for size which is only about $5 more) to get more CPU options and it also includes PCIex16 graphics slot (AGP are effectively defunct these days).

How about:

Gigabyte board $50.99
AMD Athlon 64 X2 3600 retail (includes cooler) $60.99
Crucial Memory 1Gb $79.99

total $192

That compares pretty well to your original $170 bundle given that you get a dual AM2 processor and a PCIe based motherboard.

You can get a low end (NVidia 7300 ?) PCIex16 graphics card for about $30-40 (less than half the price of a defunct AGP equivalent and much faster in your system as there are less overheads).

By the way don't forget to get a PSU that is ATX2.0 compatible (ie. with a 24 pin mobo connector - preferably a 20+4 pin connector that way you can use it on any mobo).

4493

Living Room / Re: Build a $250 PC That Doesn’t Suck

« Last post by Carol Haynes on July 31, 2007, 03:59 AM »

Also note that you need to go back and check your cpu, I just clicked the link, and they no longer have the cpu you have listed.

-nite_monkey (July 31, 2007, 01:35 AM)

How about an AMD Athlon 64 X2 3800+ Toledo 2.0GHz 2 x 512KB L2 Cache Socket 939 Processor - OEM at Newegg. You'd need to add a heatsink but it would be much better CPU.

If it isn't a daft question why are you choosing a 939 board now? Even if you want to build a budget machine why not look at an AM2 based board - then you can use DDR2 memory and have a much better choice of CPUs.

I built 3 x 939 systems a few months back and am pleased with them but should really have gone down the AM2 route for future flexibility. Given that CPU availability is now dropping off drastically you are really just buying left over stock and if you ever decide to upgrade to a faster CPU or a dual CPU you may find it difficult to find one (and a heatsink to fit it). If you do decide to go with a 939 board get the best CPU you can find - unfortunately prices are going up on them as they become scarcer. My 3 systems have: Athlon64 3400, Athlon64 3800 and Athlon64 X2 4600. You really notice the difference with the X2.

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Living Room / Re: Build a $250 PC That Doesn’t Suck

« Last post by Carol Haynes on July 31, 2007, 03:45 AM »

One thought - you might want to get a more powerful PSU - 300W is a bit borderline ... I would have thought over 400W (probably 450W) would be a useful minimum to aim at.

-Carol Haynes (July 30, 2007, 06:45 PM)

Thank you!

I'll modify my list to include a 400+ unit

-jammo (July 31, 2007, 12:44 AM)

Personally I always use the rule of thumb that you buy the best PSU you can afford - in two years time hardware will need more power and if you invest a little extra now you can allow your next build to inherit a powerful PSU. If you are on the borderline now the PSU will be useless in the future if you want to build again.

Don't forget cooling too - some of these new beasts get really quite hot (despite the hype on the manufacturers website about 'cool' technology). Make sure your case has adequate space to allow tinkering and sufficient cooling options (ie. places to put fans). Also decent fans are cheap so don't skimp on buying good quality - your ears will thank you for it when your system doesn't sound like an aircraft on the approach path!

I have built numerous systems over the years and good PSUs and cases live through multiple systems for me which makes subsequent builds much cheaper and easier.

4495

General Software Discussion / Re: A Warning about Thinkall.com

« Last post by Carol Haynes on July 31, 2007, 03:39 AM »

It's worked for me in the past. They aren't supposed to charge your card until the end of the trial. If my card details get rejected before the trial I would be worried.

I have also used this trick where there doesn't seem to be a way to cancel a subscription - just update your card details to invalid values and wait for them to contact you!

4496

General Software Discussion / Re: I have Admin privileges,But Opera's classic installer says nope.

« Last post by Carol Haynes on July 30, 2007, 07:17 PM »

Yep - happened to me on a few things (not Opera as i don't use it).

I think it often comes down to crafty techniques that try to stop you changing file associations. You can set permissions on registry keys and values as well as on files and I have had installers fail because they couldn't write particular registry values.

There isn't a simple solution to this but what you can try is inspecting/editing the permissions on registry keys using regedit (take care) and ensure your user id (not just the admin group) has full access. Just go into Start > Run > Regedit and select the suspect part of the registry (can be a whole collection of keys under one branch or a single key or a single value) and then you can inspect what is going on by Edit > Permissions ...

If you want to ensure you have access you can eidt the permissions for your user name - and apply them to the currently slected item and (optionally) to all sub items.

Take care though - and get a backup before messing about too much.

Don't be tempted to set a default value for the whole registry - you may well screw up everything if you get it wrong and if you get it right you may introduce security issues!!!

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Living Room / Re: Build a $250 PC That Doesn’t Suck

« Last post by Carol Haynes on July 30, 2007, 06:45 PM »

One thought - you might want to get a more powerful PSU - 300W is a bit borderline for the CPU you are using and all the other internal peripherals and USB devices.

Check the spec for the mobo and the CPU at least for power required. I haven't done it but I would have thought over 400W (probably 450W) would be a useful minimum to aim at.

If you build a system and you find it unstable one of the first things you need to check is that you have sufficient power - it is a false economy if you then have to buy a second PSU (been there, done that, got the T-shirt !!)

4498

General Software Discussion / Re: Anyone actually use windows system restore if so,does it work.

« Last post by Carol Haynes on July 29, 2007, 03:04 PM »

If you have been messing with the registry System Restore may well work as it takes a snapshot of the registry as a restore point. I'm not sure though if it snapshots the whole registry as it seems a bit quick for that.

For future reference:

* Don't bother with registry cleaners (esp. in automatic mode) they always cause more problems than they solve. Automatic registry cleaning absolutely WILL hose your system - even on a clean install of windows it will find hundreds of registry errors to correct simply because MS does things in non standard ways in Windows - and if you install MS Office you get hundreds of errors more. Correct any of those MS errors and problems will come back to haunt you in the future - long after you forgot you did a registry cleanup ... by that time the only solution is a complete fresh install.

* If you must clean up the registry take a backup of the registry before you do it and manually work though all the errors found to find the right correction! You can do that easily using the built in backup utility unser Start > Accessories > System Tools or use a better reg backup application.

The only thing I do these days to the registry (apart from the odd manual edit) is to occasionally compress/defrag it using Resplendent Registry Manager. I'm not sure it does a huge amount of good but it does seem to make startup a bit quicker (briefly).

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General Software Discussion / Re: Serif DrawPlus 50% Off

« Last post by Carol Haynes on July 27, 2007, 06:34 PM »

I used it (and PagePlus) many years ago in an earlier version and it was good solid stuff.

The main reasons I ditched it in the end was the awkward activation system and the total barrage of spam they churn out (both via email and snail mail). Once you are on their mailing list it can be very difficult to get off again and they don't just send stuff about related matters - my letterbox was really hammered and my postman treated for a hernia!

Maybe things are better these days - but I won't be buying anything again from them.

4500

General Software Discussion / Re: ArtRage 2.5 released - Major update free for registered users of 2.2

« Last post by Carol Haynes on July 26, 2007, 05:01 PM »

It is a painting program - not a photo editing program. Really aimed at Art and creativity - hence the title. It has more in common with Corel Paint than anything else.

Try the trial version (you soon find out what is missing - the whole interface is there but when ever you try to use a tool that is in the paid for version it tells you!).