Recent Posts

551

DC Gamer Club / Re: No more pirated games in two years, cracking group warns

« Last post by Stoic Joker on January 08, 2016, 02:36 PM »

While Denuvo is no doubt proving a difficult nut to crack, two years is an awful long time in technology and things are always prone to change. Furthermore, Denuvo is only used on a limited number of gaming titles, reportedly due to its relative expense.

-The Article

Pyric victory much?

552

General Software Discussion / Re: Windows 10 Announced

« Last post by Stoic Joker on January 08, 2016, 02:33 PM »

The waiting frustrated me too much , I'd advice to use the MCT, get it from here

-Ath (January 08, 2016, 09:11 AM)

Me too TBH..

-Stoic Joker (January 08, 2016, 11:04 AM)

Can you use that on multiple machines?  I've downloaded it for one machine- but have others I'm looking at upgrading.

-wraith808 (January 08, 2016, 12:32 PM)

As long as each machine has a "qualifying product" OS and its accompanying product key, yes ... Many as you like.

553

Living Room / Re: silly humor - post 'em here! [warning some NSFW and adult content]

« Last post by Stoic Joker on January 08, 2016, 11:35 AM »

Research suggests there is hope for the human race:

554

General Software Discussion / Re: Windows 10 Announced

« Last post by Stoic Joker on January 08, 2016, 11:04 AM »

The waiting frustrated me too much , I'd advice to use the MCT, get it from here

-Ath (January 08, 2016, 09:11 AM)

Me too TBH..

555

General Software Discussion / Re: Windows 10 Announced

« Last post by Stoic Joker on January 08, 2016, 06:33 AM »

It may be trickling in using BITS, so look for a hidden folder named $Windows.~BT on the root of the C: drive. In there you should have a - (getting) rather large -  install.esd file in the (IIRC) sources folder.

556

General Software Discussion / Re: Windows 10 Announced

« Last post by Stoic Joker on January 07, 2016, 06:26 AM »

I'd recommend disconnecting your device from the internet once you've downloaded the update. In my experience, it takes forever "Checking for Updates" multiple times throughout the upgrade process when you're connected. I also had problems with failed upgrades which magically resolved themselves when I disconnected the internet connection during my upgrade attempt.

-Deozaan (January 07, 2016, 03:06 AM)

+10 - I've run into that one myself enough times to make it a policy.

557

Living Room / Re: silly humor - post 'em here! [warning some NSFW and adult content]

« Last post by Stoic Joker on January 06, 2016, 11:09 AM »

How's that for sticker shock?

-Arizona Hot (January 05, 2016, 12:12 PM)

Hmm, how do they get it to stay on the back window of the new car?

-MilesAhead (January 06, 2016, 08:38 AM)

Throw it real hard...

558

N.A.N.Y. 2016 / Re: NANY 2016: Iconus - a Handy Dandy Quickie Icon Viewer

« Last post by Stoic Joker on January 04, 2016, 06:36 AM »

This is really cool - I can never remember all the default Windows system icon files, so having them on a speed list is great!

559

N.A.N.Y. 2016 / Re: NANY 2016 Release: Skully the Training Virus ... /Prank

« Last post by Stoic Joker on January 03, 2016, 01:17 PM »

I actually considered trying to block shutdown/reboot commands ... But that was getting a little too invasive.

This is undoubtedly the most obscure niche item I've ever released for a NANY, and I do hope folks will use it - as intended - responsibly.


Remember, IT can be extremely stressful ... That's why I take Fukitol!
Stoic Joker's Fukitol ScreenSaver.zip (5.91 kB - downloaded 930 times.)

560

N.A.N.Y. 2016 / NANY 2016 Release: Skully the Training Virus ... /Prank

« Last post by Stoic Joker on December 31, 2015, 05:40 PM »

NANY 2016 Entry Information

Application Name	Skully the Training Virus
Version	1.0
Short Description	Friendly Virus for teaching purposes
Supported OSes	Tested on 7, 8.x, & 10 - May also run on XP & Vista
Web Page	You're on it
Download Link	The Skully Virus.exe (172.5 kB - downloaded 1275 times.)
System Requirements	.NET4.0 - Yeah, I hate that part too
Version History	v1.0.0.3 - Added a few new options and penalties v1.0.0.0 - Downloaded 8 times
Author	Stoic Joker

Description
This is completely benign "Training Virus" that was written to be used during a "Human Firewall" Security Training program. Its primary purpose is to scare the shit out on the user - after they have engaged in some foolish behavior - and then it displays a series of text segments that give a rough outline of what they just did wrong.

Only after all segments have been read does it display the exit Hotkey: Ctrl + Alt + M.

The exit Hotkey - Ctrl + Alt + M - can be used at anytime to exit the program if need be.

Features
Skully has 2 different modes of operation:
   Normal Mode: Name the program anything you want and it will start the training about a minute after launch.
   Prank Mode: Give the program any name that starts with prnk (case is irrelevant) and it will launch with the
                      training segment disabled to just torment the user.

Note: Exit Code Ctrl + Alt + M is the same in both modes.

Planned Features
I may add some new penalties to keep things interesting.
I'd like to make the text segments user customizable.

Screenshots
Screenshots of the Application.


Usage
Installation
Pick a mode, pick a name, pick a target, drop it off and wait...

Using the Application
Please use responsibly.

Did I mention the Exit Hotkey was: Ctrl + Alt + M?

Uninstallation
Highlight, delete, done.

Tips
Any tips for using it?

Be nice.

Known Issues
Are there any issues that users should know about?

God I hope not this thing has beat me to death trying to make sure it was stable.

This does capture and control the entire desktop -(Ctrl + Alt + M to exit)- So I spent an extensive amount of time testing to be sure it could be unloaded cleanly without taking the shell/current user session with it.

Greetings
  And thanks for downloading Stoic Joker's Skully "Virus" Desktop Prank.
  It doesn't actually destroy, harm, or change anything... But it should
  scare the shit out of a few people in the process of not actually
  destroying, harming, or changeing anything..

HOW THE HELL DO I STOP THIS ^*&%$ THING?!?!?!
  Press: Ctrl + Alt + M

Are there any other hotkeys?
  Ctrl + Alt + L   Initiates Harvest System Info Function
  Ctrl + Alt + N   Initiates "Tatical Mode", and pretends to delete all your stuff
  Ctrl + Alt + K   Initiates a "Derp Storm" of MessageBox's that jump around like fleas
  Ctrl + Alt + Space   Will end the Derp Storm immediately ... Or it will run forever.
               If user sucessfully manages to manually closes all 100 Derps, it
      (Not Yet Implimented)   will then offer to Delete Windows for them (and all answers are yes)
  Ctry + Alt + F   Run the Complete 1,000 Character Barf Cycle 9,000 Times Instead of Just the Normal 5
  Ctry + Alt + D   Hide Skully and ALL Output Panels - Will Now Display ALL Keystrokes More Randomly..
  Ctry + Alt + S   Show Skully and Basic Output Panels - Also Stops Character Barf Timer
  Ctry + Alt + A   Triggers Character Barf (includes D) - Kinda fun really, I'm thinking of making a Screensaver out of it.


Keystroke Penalties Are as Follows:
  10 - 14 = Identity Theft Spook Panel
  15 - 19 = Derp Storm of 210 little Windows
  20 & up = Random Character Screen Barf

-Read Me File

561

Living Room / Re: silly humor - post 'em here! [warning some NSFW and adult content]

« Last post by Stoic Joker on December 29, 2015, 01:19 PM »

Flip Wilson - George Carlin Funny News 1 of 3

Flip Wilson - George Carlin Funny News 2 of 3

Flip Wilson - George Carlin Funny News 3 of 3

562

Living Room / Re: Words fail me - you'll have to read this yourself

« Last post by Stoic Joker on December 27, 2015, 08:09 AM »

Here's a question: Let's say there was a priceless artifact that was to be run through a cutting edge cleaning/preservation/analysis process. That for some human/technical/unforeseen error reason was then sliced to bits. In that situation ...(before word of the disaster got out)... What would be the easiest way recoup one's losses and save face at the same time??

563

Living Room / Re: help with data matching

« Last post by Stoic Joker on December 18, 2015, 06:21 AM »

If it's something you'll need to do frequently, or just multiple times...automate.

If it's something you need to do once, it's probably safer and easier to just suffer through it.

When we switch business applications a few years ago, it was my lot in life to sort out the mess that was our data for export/import. We had a list of 5,000 clients that was in in much the same state as you describe. Some people used address field 1, some people used address field 2, some people abbreviated, some did not ... It was a complete GD train wreck.

But in retrospect, it wasn't that hard to sort out in Excel once I started playing with the sort order and using replace X in column only. Because if you sort by the column you're working on all of the errors of a given type tend to get grouped by the sorting process, so they're easier to address it one shot.

Just a thought.

564

Living Room / Re: silly humor - post 'em here! [warning some NSFW and adult content]

« Last post by Stoic Joker on December 16, 2015, 06:30 AM »

The "Funny" part is ^that's pretty much what I've always thought really happens.

565

General Software Discussion / Re: Windows 10 Announced

« Last post by Stoic Joker on December 13, 2015, 10:42 PM »

If you want lots of controls and options, PotPlayer and VideoLAN are good players as well.

-Shades (December 13, 2015, 12:48 PM)

Honestly, I don't. All I want is quick, fast simple done - done is a beautiful thing...I love being done. Especially in an industry where everything invariably turns into an epic saga of some - generally horrific - kind.

When I feel like -(vegetating)- watching a video, I don't want to be faced with the dashboard of the space shuttle. I just want play, volume, and pause incase I need to take a leak if the vid goes for awhile. Now granted I'm not really into media stuff, but WMP augmented with the Shark007 codec pack (worked for XP/Vista/7/8.x - Haven't tried it on 10) plays damn near anything I've ever come across. So that's what I use.

Come to think of it...I did have BS Player installed on the old machine for some reason that I don't recall. It was actually rather nice IIRC.

566

General Software Discussion / Re: Email Remover - An Auto-Responder Loop Solution

« Last post by Stoic Joker on December 13, 2015, 11:08 AM »

Both participants have their auto-responder on and for some unknown reason, one of them sends the other an email and leaves for the weekend or something only to find thousands of emails on the server when they get back.

-Asudem (December 12, 2015, 10:27 AM)

Oh Damn, now that's funny! I may have to give it a shot sometime.

But seriously, I've been running an Exchange server for a dozen or so years, and am quite happy with it. However I've no idea how ours would respond to this - rather unique - situation. I am definitely going to have to try it sometime -(most likely I'll pit my home lab against the office)- to see what will happen.

567

General Software Discussion / Re: Opt-in before January 31, 2016 to keep your current OneDrive storage size

« Last post by Stoic Joker on December 13, 2015, 10:52 AM »

If I agree to allow OneDrive Preview to access my address book, profile info, and let it add/remove storage as it wishes? Um... no. They can keep the extra storage...I don't need it that badly.

568

General Software Discussion / Re: Windows 10 Announced

« Last post by Stoic Joker on December 13, 2015, 09:02 AM »

Windows Media Player is Back!

I really don't play with media stuff much, but had noticed - and missed - WMP when I first loaded my then new Win10 machine. I looked at the new Metro Groove Player, thought it deplorable, resigned myself to picking a 3rd party player - which I never got around to - , and moved on to other thing. Then while futzing around with the sound settings because of a thread else ware on the board, I clicked on an audio file and the old configure WMP wizard popped up ... So I don't know when it got re-included with Windows, but it's definitely back to being included with Windows.

569

Developer's Corner / Re: Developer PSA: Support Ending for the .NET Framework 4, 4.5 and 4.5.1

« Last post by Stoic Joker on December 12, 2015, 10:30 PM »

hehe Okay, so this isn't so much a directly technical issue as it is a tingling sensation ... I'm good with that. Experience has taught me to always abide by funny feelings, as they're frequently linked to subconscious reasons that haven't quite surfaced yet..

Because Murphy's Law dictates that you'll have an 85% chance of screwing up a 50/50.

570

Developer's Corner / Re: Developer PSA: Support Ending for the .NET Framework 4, 4.5 and 4.5.1

« Last post by Stoic Joker on December 12, 2015, 03:26 PM »

You can implement side by side compatibility- and we've had to do that.  But it's something you have to do.  And it doesn't work for C++ libraries that you might be linking to that do not link to the correct .NET framework version.

-wraith808 (December 12, 2015, 01:55 PM)

Understood, it's just something I threw in as a curiosity since I just ran across it and was toying on using it for a -(fake virus)- project I'm working on.

And there are changes between .NET versions.  I know because I've had to go through this before, and the behavior of initialization of certain complex types changed between major versions.  And then there's the idea of third-party libraries you can't just recompile.  I've had that problem too.

-wraith808 (December 12, 2015, 01:55 PM)

Right... Wasn't really eyeing that can of worms...as it's part of why I clung to pure Win32 API programming for so long. I'd seen way to many issues with the VB runtimes 3, 4, 5 to even consider trying to code anything that was going to be dependent on a runtime package...or anything that looked like one.

And you can tell what .net framework things are compiled for, so even if you were to have your theoretical call, and they started to help you... once you got down to it and they say what it was compiled for, you'd be out of luck.

-wraith808 (December 12, 2015, 01:55 PM)

Now it's possible that you've had a bad experience in the past that I don't have available to pull from. But I just don't read it that way. To me it seems that all they are saying is that if you have an issue with a currently installed copy of the .NET framework 4.0...they won't support it. Okay, but if you have an issue with a currently installed copy of the .NET framework 4.5.2 they will support it.

...Work with me here - I'm trying to understand something...

Pretend we have two different installer files:
  1. Is a Windows 8 era copy of the .NET4.0 framework ... that I believe we can safely assume is not going to be currently "supported".
  2. Is a copy of the latest issue copy of the .NET4.5.2 framework ... That also happens to include 4.0..

So, are you telling me that the - as request-able by/for the application - 4.0 that is included in 4.5.2 is quite likely to behave differently - at runtime - than the Win8 era .NET40 framework installer version of -(what appear to be allegedly)- the same 4.0 framework?

But what I'm really talking about is security problems that they will now not release patches for.

-wraith808 (December 12, 2015, 01:55 PM)

If 4.5.2 is getting security updates, then since 4.0 "support" is included with it...I'd have to think it would also get updated in the process. Okay sure, Microsoft can tend to be a big bag of dicks...but do you really think they'd push it to only updating half of an existing package?

571

Developer's Corner / Re: Developer PSA: Support Ending for the .NET Framework 4, 4.5 and 4.5.1

« Last post by Stoic Joker on December 12, 2015, 12:23 PM »

Um... Okay, but just because they're dropping support for a specific install version of a framework doesn't (appear to) mean it's no longer usable. It just means - or at least appears to mean - that you need to be running a supported version that includes it.

You may have one or more applications that are currently targeting a .NET Framework version that will no longer be supported. You can run those applications on a later .NET Framework version without targeting a new version

-the article you linked to

I would read that as meaning if you call MS for support on an issue with - an as installed version of - .NET4.0 they'll tell you that you will have to update it to v4.5.2 - which includes 4.0 - before they will help with anything. So if you're compiled to run 4.0, and have 4.5.2 installed (which includes 4.0) there shouldn't be any issues.



(Only tangentially related)
Now granted I just started playing with C#/.NET stuff in the last few years...so it's really not my thing. But it appears that you can target a project to multiple .NET versions:

By default, an app runs on the version of the .NET Framework that it was built for. If that version is not present and the app configuration file does not define supported versions, a .NET Framework initialization error may occur. In this case, the attempt to run the app will fail.

To define the specific versions on which your app runs, add one or more <supportedRuntime> elements to your app's configuration file. Each <supportedRuntime> element lists a supported version of the runtime, with the first specifying the most preferred version and the last specifying the least preferred version.

^From here: Version Compatibility in the .NET Framework

572

Developer's Corner / Re: Developer PSA: Support Ending for the .NET Framework 4, 4.5 and 4.5.1

« Last post by Stoic Joker on December 12, 2015, 07:53 AM »

Why would they need to support 4.0 directly? 4.5.1 gets upgraded to 4.5.2, and 4.5.2 includes 4.0 just like 3.5 includes 3.0 and 2.0. So they're not really orphaning it, their just bundling it in with the latest version to limit the number of updates that need to be futzed with.

573

Site/Forum Features / Re: Feature Request - Keep download count, remove file

« Last post by Stoic Joker on December 12, 2015, 06:53 AM »

I always think it's nice to see an accumulative view of how many people are actually using your program, and if I delete every older version I lose those statistics. Perhaps a feature to delete the file from the server and just strikeout the text which use to be the url to download it, and remove the hyperlink of course.

-Asudem (December 12, 2015, 05:31 AM)

If you want to remove the download, but keep the number if times it was downloaded. Why not just turn the link into a string of plain text. The DL number wouldn't need to be held/tracked by the system as it would just be a static number so you could do something like this:

Live Link v1.30 downloaded xxx times
Text Old v1.20 downloaded xxx times
Text Old v1.10 downloaded xxx times
Text Old v1.00 downloaded xxx times

Then you have a version popularity history at a glance that doesn't require any moving parts.

-----------------------------------------------------------------

Yes I'm a bit of a hypocrite, I work in technology yet really like low tech solutions.

574

General Software Discussion / Re: Windows 10 Announced

« Last post by Stoic Joker on December 09, 2015, 06:46 AM »

[ Invalid Attachment ]

Is this the latest update of Windows 10?

-Arizona Hot (December 09, 2015, 03:27 AM)

And hot off the presses it appears to be too. My last check for updates - sporting build number 10586.17 - which was late yesterday came up zero. I just checked this morning and there was 4 updates that after a reboot gave me the same .29 build number.

So "Patch Tuesday" is still on perhaps?

575

Living Room / Re: Does anyone here use Bitcoins?

« Last post by Stoic Joker on December 09, 2015, 06:22 AM »

Bitcoin is back up to it's old tricks again... i.e. being UP~!  

-Renegade (December 09, 2015, 01:40 AM)

Yes but it's been crawling up so slowly over the last week or so, that I can't decide if it's reassuring or annoying as hell.