Recent Posts

5576

Found Deals and Discounts / Re: AccelMan - windows explorer replacement for free by GAOTD

« Last post by Darwin on May 25, 2007, 12:43 PM »

OK update and closure to this: the discount is available via a link that the author e-mailed to me along with a note from him that he's hard at work updating AccelMan and improving/fixing the Help file and other documentation. He noted that he hasn't released 3.6 yet so there's no point paying for the upgrade until then! I thought that kind of decent of him.

Closure comes from the fact that I've uninstalled AccelMan (and 48 other apps) from my machine. I'm in purge mode at the moment. I'm down to 277 apps (vs. my wife's notebook with around 150) and would like to reduce that further still. At any rate, I quite like where I *think* the developer is going with AccelMan and will keep my eyes on it, but with DOpus 9 installed, I simply don't need it!

5577

General Software Discussion / Re: PIM's

« Last post by Darwin on May 25, 2007, 12:08 PM »

crono - thanks for your comments and the table. However, your table doesn't list your top two choices in the PIM arena: EssentialPIM and Agenda at Once. What is it about these two that place them at the top of  your rankings? I actually have a licence for both Essential PIM Pro and Portable but never use either - use Outlook 2003 as it does all that I need it too - so I am curious...

5578

Announce Your Software/Service/Product / Re: Free computer help online (tune-ups, customization, etc)

« Last post by Darwin on May 25, 2007, 11:22 AM »

Hi Curt - glad that worked out for you. It is frustrating, isn't it? I mean, OE is M$'s freebie e-mail client and Outlook is their full-blown and pricey version; why isn't it easier/more intuitive, to migrate from one to the other? Actually, it isn't really that hard, just not intuitive!

5579

General Software Discussion / Re: musicIP (as a player): wow

« Last post by Darwin on May 25, 2007, 09:17 AM »

OK - an update to the above post: this only happens when I play a particular playlist!? The playlist contains nonDRM'd m4u files (rather than mp3) so I guess this is an issue related to format... Right, off to post about this in the musicIP Mixer forum!

5580

Living Room / Re: poll: how old are you?

« Last post by Darwin on May 25, 2007, 08:51 AM »

:wallbash:This is what it feels like trying to get on this forum


                   PattyB

-PattyB (May 25, 2007, 07:22 AM)

?! What problems have you experienced trying to get on this forum, PattyB?

5581

General Software Discussion / Re: musicIP (as a player): wow

« Last post by Darwin on May 25, 2007, 08:49 AM »

I'm noticing some particularly high RAM usage playing a playlist at the moment. If I minimize musicIP to the taskbar RAM falls right off to below 2MB but then climbs inexorably until I minimize it again. I let it go to 66000K, minimized it, and after about 3 minutes it had climbed to 29MB. I maximized it again and it's still climbing past 60MB. It stops dead on 66028K and sticks there. I minimize it again and the process starts again. Seems a bit excessive (FWIW, VM/Private Bytes are at 73140K. Just minimzed it again and RAM went to 1600K and as I have written this sentence has crept up to 9000K. Anyone else seeing anything like this? Guess I'd better start posting in their users' forum!

5582

General Software Discussion / Re: Directory Opus 9

« Last post by Darwin on May 25, 2007, 07:46 AM »

The donationcoder discount cannot be applied to the price of an upgrade, as far as I or anyone else in this thread could tell. There was some talk of an approach to GPSoft about the possibility of a Donationcoder discount to the upgrade but I don't think anything came of it.

FWIW patteo, I had initially decided against upgrading myself but did the day it came out and am glad I did. It's got a ton of great new features, is more responsive than 8, and overall it's just been "tweaked". Don't get me wrong, I'm not sure that this version is a MUST have upgrade over 8 but I suspect that 9.1 or 9.2 will as some features slated for 9 didn't make it in but have been promised for later builds. Note that the $10 AUS for a portable licence is worth it, in my opinion. It's awesome to be able to troubleshoot someone else's computer without having to fuss around with Windows Explorer.

5583

General Software Discussion / Re: musicIP (as a player): wow

« Last post by Darwin on May 25, 2007, 07:44 AM »

The beauty is, though, that by default the second and third passes occur at low priority and I saw virtually no hit to my system responsivenes while they were done. The effect on RAM was minimal but I did see occasional, and brief, spikes in CPU utilisation that DID have an effect. The procees took about eight hours - if I was going to do it over again, I'd have it run overnight. My music library is 8.3 GB and contains about 1800 tracks).

I spent yesterday listening to music through musicIP Mixer and am very impressed.

5584

Mini-Reviews by Members / Re: List of disc catalogers

« Last post by Darwin on May 25, 2007, 07:30 AM »

Welcome ngoddard, and thank you for clarifying your company's policy WRT Axiope Catalyser's licencing. I'll have to take a look now!

5585

Mini-Reviews by Members / Re: PhotoFiltre - excellent raster graphics editing tool

« Last post by Darwin on May 24, 2007, 08:55 AM »

PS just tried Stardownloader - it won't work via Context Menu in FF 2 BUT if you install it and run the leecher as a standablone, you can enter the url and it works. I've just noticed that there is a filter that will allow you to define what you want and ignore other things like urls and site graphics. This may be a feature of the Pro version only though (a quick look at the website if uninformative)...

Anyway, I just successfully used Stardownloader Pro download them all (and filter out the graphcis, etc.).

Hope this helps...

5586

Mini-Reviews by Members / Re: PhotoFiltre - excellent raster graphics editing tool

« Last post by Darwin on May 24, 2007, 08:47 AM »

Hi Tom

Stardownloader's leech feature will work (though AFAICT you'll get everything - jpgs, gifs, zips, the lot). The latest free version works with FF 1.5 - not sure about 2.0. Neodownloader and Aarons' WebVacuum will also do the trick, although they are both shareware but come with trials (Neodownloader is fully functional for 30 days while Web Vacuum inserts a 5 second pause betweeen files after the first 30 files have been downloaded).

5587

Mini-Reviews by Members / Re: List of disc catalogers

« Last post by Darwin on May 24, 2007, 08:30 AM »

Hi again Lanux - I can't find anyting in either app that will enable the saving of url's in indexes... I'd e-mail the author of WhereIsIt? but he's not available. Let's see what the dev of AFO has to say though...

Quick Update: I e-mailed both devs. Can't tell from the response I received from WhereIsIt?'s dev whether he'll respond after the 27th or not (ie the autoresponse merely states that it's an autoresponse but doesn't say whether or not I should expect a real response in the future!). We'll see what happens.

5588

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

« Last post by Darwin on May 24, 2007, 01:57 AM »

I just checked Armando and Archivarius has indexed the comments in a word document on my harddrive. It's not very pretty in terms of formatting but it's there!

Here's the comment I searched for in word:



And here is the result in Archivarisu:

5589

Mini-Reviews by Members / Re: List of disc catalogers

« Last post by Darwin on May 24, 2007, 01:51 AM »

Hmm. That's an interesting point - a feature I had not considered but now that you've brought it to my attention, compelling! As it happens I have my favourites backed up onto a thumbdrive that has been indexed by both WhereIsIt? and AFO. I can confirm that neither of them stored the actual url in the index. I'll play around with the settings in both and see if I can modify this... As you've likely already done this, I'm not hopeful! I'll get back to you, likely tomorrow.

5590

General Software Discussion / Re: Web Mail Recommendation?

« Last post by Darwin on May 23, 2007, 10:08 PM »

hi cmpm,

I have a paid account (I like being able to access my mail from within Outlook and, when I initially purcahsed the upgrade, I got 1 GB versus 25 MB so it was worth it. I'm not so sure it's that worth is anymore...). Anyway, the limitless mailbox applies to both free and paid accounts, so fill your boots!

I like the Yahoo Mail Beta more than GMail - I use it more, anyway. The only thing I like better about GMail is the tagging vs. Yahoo where you still need to use a traditional folder system to organise your mail. Having said that, it's fully searchable, so you probably don't really even need to do that...

5591

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

« Last post by Darwin on May 23, 2007, 10:04 PM »

Hi Armando - archivarius indexes all office docs (with the exception of Access files). Just tried it out...

Here's a list from the website:

Support for popular documents
Archivarius 3000 understands the following document formats:


1C:Enterprise, External Reports (.ert)
1C:Enterprise, Moxcel Spreadsheets (.mxl)
Adobe Acrobat Reader (.pdf)
Adobe PageMaker 4.0, 5.0, 6.0, 6.5 (.pm4, .pm5, pm6, .p65, .pmd)
ChiWriter (.chi)
Comma Separated Values (.csv)
Compressed HTML (.chm)
Corel Word Perfect (.wpd)
DjVu book with text layer (.djv, .djvu)
Embiid Reader book (.ubk, .ebk)
Hangul Word Processor (.hwp)
Help files (.hlp)
HieBook book (.kml)
Hyper Text Markup Language (.htm, .html)
IBM Final Form Text (.fft)
IBM Lotus 1-2-3 Spreadsheets (.wk1, .wk2, .wk3, .wk4, .wks)
IBM Lotus Ami Pro (.sam)
IBM Revisable Form Text (.rft)
InfoSelect data file (.wd)
Internet Location (.url)
Microsoft Excel 2/3/4/5/95/97/2000/XP/2003 (.xls, .xlw)
Microsoft InkWriter (.pwi)
Microsoft Power Point (.ppt)
Microsoft Word (.doc)
Microsoft Word for Macintosh (.mcw)
Microsoft Word templates (.dot)
Microsoft Works databases (.wdb)
Microsoft Works documents (.wps)
Microsoft Works spreadsheets (.wks, .xlr)
Microsoft Write (.wri)
MIME HTML (.mht)
MIME mail (.eml)
Mirabilis ICQ Chat (.cht)
Norton Guide database (.ng)
Outlook message (.msg)
Palm Database (.pdb)
Plain Text (.txt, .asc, .lex)
PROMPT translator (.std)
Psion TCR book (.tcr)
Psion ZVR book (.zvr)
Rich Text Format (.rtf)
Squish message base (.sqd)
StarWriter documents (3.0/4.0/5.0) (.sdw)
The Bat! mail archive (.tbk)
TRichView documents (.rvf)
WinOrganizer databases (.gso)
Wizissoft CyberArticle book (.book)
Wjjsoft Mybase database (.nyf)
Word and Deed (.w&d)
XML Extensible Markup Language (.xml)
Zinio Reader magazine (.zno)

Support for popular e-mail formats
Archivarius 3000 understands the following e-mail messages:


IBM Lotus Notes/Domino (.nsf)
Microsoft Exchange 95/97/98/2000/2001/2002/2003 (.ost)
Microsoft Outlook 97/98/2000/2002(XP)/2003 (.pst)
Microsoft Outlook Express (.dbx)
The Bat! (.msb, .tbb, .tbk)
Opera 5/6/7/8 (.mbs)
Netscape mailbox
Mozilla mailbox
Firebird mailbox
Firefox mailbox
Thunderbird mailbox
PocoMail mailbox
Unix mailbox (.mbx, .mbs)
E-mail message (.eml, .msg)

Searching in e-mail messages attachments is also supported.

Support for popular Internet messenger formats

Mirabilis ICQ
Miranda IM
Odigo IM

Search in popular archives
Archivarius 3000 supports searches in the following type of archives:


ACE (.ace)
ALZ ALZip by ESTsoft (.alz)
ARC PKARC by PKWARE (.arc)
ARJ by ARJ Software (.arj)
BH (.bh)
CAB Cabinet by Microsoft (.cab)
CPIO package (.cpio)
DEB Debian Software Package (.deb)
GZIP (.gz)
HA by Harri Hirvola (.ha)
IMA floppy disk image (.ima, .img, .vfd, .dsk)
IMP by Technelysium Pty (.imp)
ISO 9660 disk image (.iso, .img, .nrg, .bin, .cue)
JAR by ARJ Software (.jar)
LHA by H. Yoshizaki (.lha)
LZH by H. Yoshizaki (.lzh)
RAR by E. Roshal (.rar)
RPM package (.rpm)
TAR Tape ARchive (.tar)
ZIP PKZIP by PKWARE (.zip)
ZOO (.zoo)

Thus Archivarius 3000 contains own module for unpacking all archives. This means that presence of external archivers is not required.

5592

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

« Last post by Darwin on May 23, 2007, 04:18 PM »

Ha ha, just noticed that the link in the "X1 is already dead" posting points to a thread started by our very own Zaine Ridling! He called it two years ago...

5593

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

« Last post by Darwin on May 23, 2007, 04:17 PM »

That's too bad. If it's any consolation, even one of the most prolific and helpful of the posters on their forums (and a longtime paid up user to boot) is miffed at this latest change in direction (though not specifically about the archived pst indexing issue). I've never seen him say anything so forceful or negative about X1 (not that he hasn't criticised in the past...).

I'm still delighted with Archivarius - the longer I use it/get accustomed to the way things are done in it the more I appreciate how quick and light on its feet it is and the less I miss X1. If the author can make the switch from using OLE to COM to access the pst files this will be an unbeatable app. Actually, now that my Outlook files are indexed and set to update once a day while I eat dinner, as far as I'm concerned, it is!

5594

Living Room / Re: Define passive-aggressive

« Last post by Darwin on May 23, 2007, 04:04 PM »

I was quite taken by Acts One and Two of the Mad Bomber trilogy (Act three to come, apparently). I rather think that the erstwhile custodial engineer is rather missing the point of the "act". I truly believe that in this case the medium IS the message...

5595

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

« Last post by Darwin on May 23, 2007, 03:48 PM »

One of the reps from X1 posted this in response to a query about archived Outlook pst files in the latest build of X1 Enterprise Client (or whatever they're calling it today):

Re: v5.6.4 X1 Professional Client - Free Version

Any PST file that has been added directly to your default Outlook profile will continue to be indexed and searchable via X1.

However, the free client will not index any PST files that have been added using the X1 [Tools > Options > Emails > Outlook > Select Folders To Scan > Add PST Files(s)] dialog.

So... this will still work for my wife (and for me, if they ever fix the hibernate/standby problem) - hope it will work for others here.

5596

General Software Discussion / Re: Software for planning wood bookcases/cabinets/tables etc?

« Last post by Darwin on May 23, 2007, 03:12 PM »

Beautiful - I love the contrast with the parquet flooring. I can see the crown molding - looks nice. It's discreet, which is good.

While it's still empty, why not cut out some pass-throughs (I *think* that's the right term) for a couple of extension cords? That way you can get power to either end and still have it hidden. You can also use one of those "thingies" (that IS a technical term) that converts your two outlet wall socket into six so that you still have power in the middle of the shelf.

Just a thought...

5597

General Software Discussion / Re: musicIP (as a player): wow

« Last post by Darwin on May 23, 2007, 01:40 PM »

Cool! Thanks Justice and Whicken (welcome to the site!). I'll play around with this and report back.

UPDATE: OK this works and is too cool. My credit card is starting to warm up... it's calling me: "Go on. You know you want to. Who's the boss? You? Or your wife? Go on, it's so easy. It's not even that much money and it supports development! Stop blubbering, be a man! Do it! Do it!" I'm telling you, the damned thing is evil. So far the physical embodiment of my conscience - my boss, er wife - is winning, but it's a pitched battle...

5598

General Software Discussion / Re: Software for planning wood bookcases/cabinets/tables etc?

« Last post by Darwin on May 23, 2007, 12:44 PM »

better buy some nair handcream to use after to by the look of that 

-Grorgy (May 23, 2007, 09:16 AM)

Yeah mouser - go as bare as you dare! 

5599

Mini-Reviews by Members / Re: List of disc catalogers

« Last post by Darwin on May 23, 2007, 12:36 PM »

This is a real bargain for only  9000$/8000€  commercial licence (ok for 5 installations).
The cheaper version for non-profit-usage costs only the half of it 

Truly a bargain at twice the price! I bet the non-profit organisations are fighting with each other to get in the queue to buy a copy. I mean, who could resist at these prices? It's more expensive than AFO or WhereIsIt?, etc. so it must be better, right?

5600

General Software Discussion / Re: musicIP (as a player): wow

« Last post by Darwin on May 23, 2007, 12:31 PM »

Am I the only one too dense to figure out how to play an actual album or complete .m3u playlist in musicIP? I select an album and play the first track and that's all that plays. Context Menu, File Menu, Preferences, etc. don't seem to have anything to help me out here! The help documentation seems geared toward the idea of generating mixes based on genre/artist/song/mood, etc. and I can't find an answer.

This is a major issue for me!

EDIT: Two more things: many of the files that are catalogued show up with the wrong album art (rather than the no image indicator) and, following from my original request, the previous and next track controls don't do anything either EVEN if I have selected an album or a playlist. This is quite frustrating!