Recent Posts

51

General Software Discussion / Re: alternative to filehamster?

« Last post by mwang on September 08, 2009, 08:52 PM »

mwang[/b]: there's rsync version(s?) for Windows, the one I bumped into was a cygwin build... and I try to stay away from cygwin as much as possible.

-f0dder (September 08, 2009, 07:49 PM)

That, and DeltaCopy were what I found the last time I looked around. From memory they all had problems dealing with unicode file/folder names, so I gave up.

rsync in and by itself isn't enough for backup though, imho - it should be combined with script/whatever to get the same kind of functionality as time machine has. I use rsnapshot on my linux box, works like a charm.

-f0dder (September 08, 2009, 07:49 PM)

My linux skill is basic, so I followed a tutorial to set up rsync, I believe. Don't really remember what, if any, other tools were employed. I'll keep your advice in mind when I maintain it next time. Thanks!

Well, for what I know, you need a filter driver (.sys) to detect "X bytes written too ffset Y in file Z" change notification (rather than just getting "file has changed") - unless you can ask Volume Shadow Copy Service or something.

-f0dder (September 08, 2009, 07:49 PM)

Thanks for the explanation. I'm not a programmer, so I can only observe. SpiderOak doesn't install a driver either (no .sys files). It does detect block level changes not only because they advertise the feature on their web site, but also the uploads (of changed large files) take so little time that I don't think it's possible otherwise.

It couldn't compare a file to its earlier versions since they sit remotely (well, I do have local backups, but SpiderOak wouldn't know where to look). I don't know if it asks Volume Shadow Copy Service or other system services for the necessary information. But as a cross-platform service with linux and mac os clients, it would have to ask different system functions on different systems if it doesn't do it by itself. That's still possible, of course.

52

General Software Discussion / Re: Export TheBat -> unix MBOX format

« Last post by mwang on September 08, 2009, 08:07 PM »

I remember setting up a keyboard macro to export one folder at a time, assigned it to a hotkey (say, F12), and sit there for a few minutes clicking F12. It's way back in 2002.

Does Mailstore Home support unicode now? Tried it a few times but it never indexed Chinese mail properly.

53

General Software Discussion / Re: alternative to filehamster?

« Last post by mwang on September 08, 2009, 07:42 PM »

I had a quick look at Timeline, and it doesn't seem like it's installing any drivers - I'm wondering how they're doing block-level backups in an efficient way if they don't have a filesystem filter driver to record the changes?

-f0dder (September 08, 2009, 07:23 PM)

No, it didn't install any driver (inside the Windows directory tree if that's what you mean) according to my log. It has a "BlockLevel.dll" and it puts a ton into the registry. Do you really need a "driver" to do block-level backups? It registered as a set of system services and does its work in the background. Can't it perform block-level backups that way? That seems to be how SpiderOak does it as well.

54

General Software Discussion / Re: alternative to filehamster?

« Last post by mwang on September 08, 2009, 07:28 PM »

It's not like what apple's doing with Time Machine is that new or unique, by the way - it's been possible to do with rsync + scripting for quite a while.

-f0dder (September 08, 2009, 05:52 PM)

rsync is great. It's what I use on my linux server, but I don't know how to do it with Windows boxes. DeltaCopy had no unicode support the last time I checked.

Apple just pretty-GUI'ed it . Afaik Time Machine does a full file backup whenever a file is changed, Timeline has an advantage there since it does block level backups and thus captures only the changed parts...

-f0dder (September 08, 2009, 05:52 PM)

Timeline does block level backup only for files larger than 40MB, according to its manual. That's not much use for me (I don't use Outlook). SpiderOak uses that technology to the extreme, on the other hand. (As an online backup provider, it stands to gain much more from it.)

And yet my current local backup solution doesn't do delta copy at all, so it's not a minus against Timeline for me. What really drove me away was the lack of customizability, in what files to back up, etc. It's a new product after all, so hopefully it'll be more flexible as it matures.

55

General Software Discussion / Re: alternative to filehamster?

« Last post by mwang on September 08, 2009, 12:19 PM »

FH does support a 'tiered' set of revisions (not sure if it's in the free version, though).

-mwb1100 (September 08, 2009, 12:04 PM)

Interesting. I'll have to take another look at FH, then. Thanks.

56

General Software Discussion / Re: alternative to filehamster?

« Last post by mwang on September 08, 2009, 11:39 AM »

I tried everything mentioned above, but didn't keep any of them. FWIW, here are some terse comments from my notebook:

AJC Active Backup 1.5.10 (decent, with two tiers, but I want more tiers and better looking interface)
CascadePoint 2.10 Build 29 (need to set up file types)
DocShield v.2.0.2 (no wildcard support for folder exclusion)
MirrorFolder 4.1.192 (can't preview what's included and what's not. not flexible in file/folder exclusion)

57

General Software Discussion / Re: alternative to filehamster?

« Last post by mwang on September 08, 2009, 11:31 AM »

Genie-Soft (the company behind Genie-Soft Backup Manager) has a new product called Genie Timeline.

The most interesting part is its tiered backup scheme. It makes a backup every half hour, then it "saves the hourly backups for the past 24 hours, daily backups for the past month, and weekly backups for everything older than a month." (quoted directly from its user manual.)

It's something I've always wanted, and has been available to Mac users for a long time with the famed Time Machine. In fact, I believe Genie-Soft got its idea from Apple, with the similarity in names and the feature comparison table between the two products on their web site.

I downloaded the trial version yesterday and tried it briefly. It worked as promised, and wasn't taxing the system too much (didn't slow down my computer during the few hours of trial). It's designed to be easy to set up at the expense of flexibility, however, which bothered me a lot, so I uninstalled it after a few hours. They have a page comparing Genie Timeline to Backup Manager Pro, which should give you an idea of its strength and weakness. The user manual (pdf) can also be downloaded.

I now have my own tiered backup scheme, using SFFS, DOpus, Powerpro and batch files. If you don't need a "tiered" system (I believe FH doesn't have one), just need something that sits in the background and back up frequently and quietly, then SFFS, SyncbackPro, MirrorFolder and some others should do it, though each with its own strength and weakness. But I think you know them all, since they've been mentioned many times here.

58

General Software Discussion / Re: Firefox --3.5-- Extensions: Your favorite or most useful

« Last post by mwang on September 02, 2009, 12:59 PM »

Do any of you know how to make Firefox stop assuming I'm too lazy to type the domain and immediately search using my default search engine?

-Hirudin (August 16, 2009, 12:39 AM)

If you haven't tried it yet, there's a new addon does this: Advanced Address Bar.

59

General Software Discussion / Re: Firefox Extensions: Your favorite or most useful

« Last post by mwang on July 23, 2009, 07:55 AM »

No, you can install just the firefox extension of lastpass if you like. The full installation package is for those who want to use it with IE and as a stand-alone application, IIRC.

60

General Software Discussion / Re: Firefox Extensions: Your favorite or most useful

« Last post by mwang on July 03, 2009, 03:20 AM »

That last bullet point makes the extension worth installing all by itself. Why the Mozilla team didn't make Ctrl-F a toggle is a mystery to me.

-Innuendo (June 30, 2009, 11:00 AM)

I actually prefer the way it is. When I hit Ctrl-F, I want to search, period. I certainly understand your preference, though. To me that's the beauty of Firefox: letting you change the way it works through extensions. In fact, I use an extension called XUL/Migemo that let me switch among 3 different search modes (normal - regexp - migemo) by hitting Ctrl-F.

61

General Software Discussion / Re: ms word question - how to align already type decimal numbers

« Last post by mwang on July 03, 2009, 03:05 AM »

also, in the line tab stop, how can I adjust the distance between the line and the text? and how can I remove that line? it is still there even if I choose to remove all tab stops

-kalos (July 01, 2009, 04:01 AM)

If you mean the "bar" tab stop (as it's called in Word), then no, you can't adjust the distance between the line and the text. The "bar tab stop" is an old way to draw a vertical line in text, and is kept only for backward compatibility. If you want more control (incl. adjusting  the distance between the line and the text), use the line tool (Insert - Shapes - Line in Word 2007).

Removing all tab stops does remove the bar tab stop here (or just removing it from the ruler).

I apologize if you are talking able another kind of tab stop, but I can't see any "line" tab stop here.

62

General Software Discussion / Re: Firefox Extensions: Your favorite or most useful

« Last post by mwang on June 28, 2009, 12:09 PM »

Auto Context may be nice if you copy-paste infrequently, AutoCopy saves you the extra click when you have to do it often.

I wouldn't call it the "best" extension, but it's indeed among the first I grab when reinstalling Firefox.

63

General Software Discussion / Re: The Best Of: text editors

« Last post by mwang on May 02, 2009, 08:02 PM »

- No search and replace in all open documents. Why?

-tranglos (April 27, 2009, 03:46 PM)

Great reviews. Thanks. Just a small correction, EmEditor does search and replace in open files.

- Relatively weak incremental search (via plugin only, you type in an edit box, Enter focuses the document). My main issue is you need to click the edit control on the toolbar; i.e. cannot initialize incremental search from the keyboard.

-tranglos (April 27, 2009, 03:46 PM)

You can assign a shortcut for it, can't you?

64

General Software Discussion / Re: A bit of Microsoft loving

« Last post by mwang on May 02, 2009, 12:42 PM »

In the example I just gave, there was no configuration necessary, it all fitted together and was configured through usable GUIs.

-mnemonic (May 02, 2009, 11:43 AM)

Not that I disagree, but if this is the only standard of "heading in the right direction", Apple would probably take the crown.

My main beef with Microsoft, though, isn't the GUI, but those proprietary, mysterious and under-documented configuration files. A plain-text file is much easier to customize, script, and search, and I'll take plain text logs over the Event Viewer any day.

In terms of the Ubuntu server issues, it all seemed to be down to Samba.  In a world without Google, the whole Samba setup would be nigh on impossible for a novice user.

-mnemonic (May 02, 2009, 11:43 AM)

Samba indeed isn't easy to configure for a novice, but it owes a significant part of its complexity to Windows networking. If it doesn't have to serve in such heterogeneous environments, it won't be this difficult. Does WHS serve Linux clients?

In terms of stability, I can't remember having a BSOD since Windows 98.  XP, Vista and now Windows 7 have been rock-solid.

-mnemonic (May 02, 2009, 11:43 AM)

BSOD is indeed rare (though not extinct) since XP on my desktop, but performance is another matter. Even with Vista (Win 7 is still in beta, so it's unfair to compare it here), I have to reboot at least every couple of weeks, otherwise it begins to slow down and act funny.

 

And, I agree with you that Ubuntu is coming-on leaps-and-bounds, but its software installation still has a long way to come.  Synaptic works well, but there are still too many programs that need to be manually installed (I know that ./configure, make and make install isn't difficult, but a modest user would baulk at needing to do this).

-mnemonic (May 02, 2009, 11:43 AM)

I'm afraid I lost you here. Isn't it true that more Windows applications have to be installed manually? Many Linux applications not in the repo provide pre-built packages for major distros that are just as easy to install as Windows applications. I'm not that Linux savvy; I hesitate to compile my own software as well.

I see the competition among Windows, Linux and Mac OS a healthy thing, and I look forward to the day that I can choose on merits, without feeling trapped by any of them.

65

General Software Discussion / Re: A bit of Microsoft loving

« Last post by mwang on May 02, 2009, 11:18 AM »

Getting what right, may I ask?

Making it easy to sync on a home LAN?

Well, I don't know how you set up the Ubuntu server and what problems it gave you, but my Fedora Core box served me well before I switched to Ubuntu server last month. It ran Fedora Core 6 for more than two years on very modest hardware (a 5-year old box that felt slow as a Windows desktop), and for 2+ years didn't require a single reboot except when required by software updates. It's not just my file server, but also my mail server and web server. Haven't had that kind of stability on any of my Windows boxes yet.

Or perhaps you're suggesting Microsoft gets it right that proprietary software developments beats open source ones?

In that case, I would think the evidence is inconclusive, yet.

I'm also using Windows 7 RC1 (x64), and I think it's the best OS Microsoft has produced so far. But I like Ubuntu 9.04 a lot, too.

66

Mini-Reviews by Members / Re: Super Flexible File Synchronizer Mini-Review

« Last post by mwang on April 26, 2009, 12:20 AM »

V4.xx is now not only very capable (which it was from the start), but also very stable. Sync profiles are also easier to manage.

Due to some stability issues and Unicode compatibility issues with SFFS, I went back to hand-made BC (Beyond Compare) scripts and batch files for scheduled sync'ing when BC3 was released. Relying on a 3rd-party scheduler (BC3 doesn't have one) and various scripts and batches (for BC3 scripting isn't capable enough) nevertheless made maintaining several sync/backup jobs difficult. So I tried SFFS again recently (about two weeks ago), and haven't had any issues so far. Its rock solid now, running non-stop on my system.

I still prefer BC3 for manual operation, and its Linux ver. is just as useful. The interface is perfect for me, and the ability to align differently-named folders/files is a godsend. For scheduled sync/backups, however, SFFS is the better choice.

67

General Software Discussion / Re: Ubuntu 9.04: Thoughts and experiences

« Last post by mwang on April 18, 2009, 11:31 AM »

I upgraded from 8.10 to 9.04 betas on my notebook (not brave enough to try it on my server yet), and have been taking all updates since. Boot time has gone down from 1 min. to 45 sec., so it's been good for me.

68

Living Room / Re: Can you live with *just* opera?

« Last post by mwang on April 10, 2009, 03:21 AM »

Does the "thumbwheel zoom" enlarge all items (text, pictures, graphics, video windows, etc) or just text? 

-CodeTRUCKER (April 10, 2009, 03:00 AM)

Everything. Not just text.

p.s.: Regarding your "clarification": do you really mean "CTRL+Thumbwheel", not "CTRL+Mousewheel"?

Very few mouses have a thumbwheel. I'm using Logitech MX Revolution, which allows me to use the thumbwheel to zoom-in/out on most applications (not just FF), with the help of 3rd-party software. No need to the "CTRL" modifier. When CTRL is involved, then it's Mousewheel that does the zooming.

69

Living Room / Re: Can you live with *just* opera?

« Last post by mwang on April 10, 2009, 02:30 AM »

I'm not sure I understand. CTRL+Roll-the-Mousewheel-Forward/Backward does indeed zoom-in/out in FF3 here, though I admit I have no idea which provides it: FF3 itself or an extension.

Better yet, I use the thumb wheel to zoom in and out, without having to reach for the keyboard (for CTRL).

I also paid for Opera years ago, but it's no longer on my system. I check it out from time to time (with just about every major release), but FF3 is the one for me right now.

70

General Software Discussion / Re: TreeSheets - an interesting and innovative note taker (freeware)

« Last post by mwang on March 27, 2009, 03:24 PM »

You can try Keynote if you have not. I think it is good with unicode. Someone is maintaining the project.

-kartal (March 26, 2009, 10:59 PM)

Unfortunately it doesn't handle unicode well, either. Thanks, though.

I think that main the issue with Treesheets is that it is not freeform, maybe little bit as long as you have everything planned out before taking notes. When you are trying to take speedy notes you do not want to think about where and how you want to put the note.

-kartal (March 26, 2009, 10:59 PM)

Not really a problem here. Alongside cells for structured stuff, I set up a unstructured notepad cell, where in my cursor mostly resides. I summon Treesheets from the system tray with a hotkey, then type away. Organization can wait.

71

General Software Discussion / Re: TreeSheets - an interesting and innovative note taker (freeware)

« Last post by mwang on March 26, 2009, 10:04 PM »

My main argument against indenting or line breaking via grids is readability. The information that is organized under such organization looks more structured less informative. It might work for some people but not for me I guess.

-kartal (March 26, 2009, 12:22 PM)

To each his own, indeed. It struck me as odd at first, too, but somehow grew on me quickly. I don't know why. I guess it's because it's similar to map tools (Google Maps, etc.), and I've always like maps (including paper-based maps).

I personally have an issue with applications that do not have support for drag and drop, image copy pasting.

-kartal (March 26, 2009, 12:22 PM)

There are a number of improvements needed for TreeSheet to be a regular on my system, and image copy-pasting is one of them as well. I guess/hope this could be implemented quickly since its data structure supports images already.

I personally don't use drap-n-drop much, though. My main working window (Word, Powerpoint, Freemind, or Firefox) is almost always maximized, so it's hard to drag-n-drop things between applications.

After evaluating 100s of note taking applications(you name it) in last 4 years, I have decided upon

-Wikidpad for bulk note taking (plain text based, freeform tagging, easy and non limiting topic connecting)
-Onenote for specialized-sharable (drawing, freeform layout, peer to peer notebook syncing, easy notebooksharing)
-Freemind for organized note taking (freefom, easy branching, image support, drag and drop support, html support)

-kartal (March 26, 2009, 12:22 PM)

I've also tried a lot (less than 100, but not too far behind), especially since I joined DC and read the several threads on note-taking, and SuperboyAC's review. Still can't find the one.

My main gripe is (the lack of) unicode support. Many otherwise powerful note-takers don't support unicode (Asian text especially) fully, making them useless to me. Big names in this category include MyInfo, Surfulator, ActionOutline, TreeDBNotes Pro, Zoot, and Treepad, just to name a few.

Wikidpad, unfortunately, is one of them, and it doesn't draw tables, which is quite important (though not essential) to me. RightNote, which I learned of only recently (from you, right?), also has some issues, though still tolerable.

OneNote is not considered because it belongs to the Office family, from which I'm trying to move away. I tried it briefly, and while it's powerful, it's too bulky for my system to stay on all the time.

Freemind is a newcomer on my system, but I like it a lot and it's one of my main working tools now. I've found it a surprisingly effective tool for presentation, replacing Powerpoint on many occasions. Especially since it's cross-platform, I could use it on my notebook (mainly on Linux). (Now all I need is something to really replace Word then I'm MS Office-free.) When I'm attending conferences or meetings, I use Freemind to take notes, since only it and Firefox need to be open at the time. On my main desktop, however, I would prefer something lighter, if I can find one.

Thanks for sharing, though. I appreciate it.

72

General Software Discussion / Re: Firefox Extensions: Your favorite or most useful

« Last post by mwang on March 26, 2009, 08:55 PM »

MilesAhead, have you tried Foxmarks? It also sync your bookmarks, and does it reliably. If you don't like to sync to their server, you can use your own server. And the "merge" function is its default, though you can also overwrite one with the other.

73

General Software Discussion / Re: Firefox Extensions: Your favorite or most useful

« Last post by mwang on March 26, 2009, 11:04 AM »

I was assuming you had one clicked as disabled in the Firefox Add-ons menu.

-Paul Keith (March 25, 2009, 05:32 PM)

Yes, that's exactly what I do.

Well I haven't installed it so I wouldn't know. I just thought it seems to have a handy searchable highlight function that Scrapbook's highlight doesn't have.

-Paul Keith (March 25, 2009, 05:32 PM)

Then yes, Wired-Marker can do that, though I've never used it that way.

74

General Software Discussion / Re: TreeSheets - an interesting and innovative note taker (freeware)

« Last post by mwang on March 26, 2009, 10:21 AM »

kartal, you're impatient, aren't you?

-No image support

-kartal (March 25, 2009, 09:30 PM)

In fact there is, just not by copy-pasting yet. Inserting image file does work, though.

-It looks like "enter" does not make linebreak

-kartal (March 25, 2009, 09:30 PM)

In fact it does. Every cell is a line, and hitting [Enter] does end it. Try hitting [Enter], then start typing again, and you'll see.

-No way to use tab for indenting

-kartal (March 25, 2009, 09:30 PM)

Try [Ins] (to add a sub-grid), for in TreeSheet, an indented paragraph is like a sub-grid.

I did say its approach is unorthodox, didn't I? You really have to follow through the sample file (tutorial.cts) to know what it's doing, which took me 10-20 min., top. I've never seen an application with so unfamiliar an UI that I could learn in such short time, and got me hooked so quickly.

I have my editor (EmEditor) in the system tray all the time, so I could quickly open it and dump any random bits in it. Now, while EmEditor is still faithfully there, I find myself reaching for TreeSheet more and more often.

Now things would probably be different if I have a favorite power note taker. I'm still evaluating Rightnote, InfoQube, myBase, and MyInfo, but can't decide on one yet, since each has obvious flaws for my purpose.

75

General Software Discussion / Re: Firefox Extensions: Your favorite or most useful

« Last post by mwang on March 25, 2009, 03:40 PM »

By chance, do you have an idea what would happen if both were installed at the same time? (Assuming you don't activate either one.)

-Paul Keith (March 25, 2009, 05:41 AM)

Not sure I understand you here. Didn't I say you can have them both installed? I do, as a matter of fact. While I use only Scrapbook+ now, I keep Scrapbook on board so it'll be auto-updated, prompting me to check out what's happening to Scrapbook. So far there have been only fixes to bugs I haven't seen in SB+ (lucky or SB+ fixed them already). But if they diverge someday, I'll reevaluate.

By chance is there a tweak that allows it to be only used for Scrapbook captured pages?

-Paul Keith (March 25, 2009, 05:41 AM)

Again I'm not sure I understand. If you don't want to use Wired-Marker for "live" pages, then don't. You don't need a tweak to achieve that. And yet I don't see the point of using Wired-Marker to highlight things in pages captured by Scrapbook, which has its own handy highlight tools. But, if you insist, then of course you can do that. Wired-Marker can be used on anything you load into Firefox (e.g., your own html pages), as long as the URL (path for local file) stays the same.