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776

General Software Discussion / Re: In search of ... universal download tracker

« Last post by barney on November 28, 2011, 07:05 PM »

It would definitely be relevant if I could just figure out where to find such a log  .  Nothing I see in the configs makes note of such a thing.  Actually, I'd be kinda surprised if it was a text file that I could read .  But if I do happen to find such, I'll give a yell -surely there are others who could make use of such a thing .

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General Software Discussion / Re: In search of ... universal download tracker

« Last post by barney on November 28, 2011, 06:56 PM »

Oh, yeah!

I munched on PCMag's monthly little dividend.  Funny thing is, a lot of those TSRs still worked up until Vista, even though they weren't NT technology  .

Prolly was a PCMag thing.  Might have been one (1) of Karen Kenworthy's VB apps - she did a bunch of 'em, and I still use some of 'em from time to time.  Just do not recall the name - too many years [and beers, likely] gone by  - only the functionality.  I winnowed through my archive of her apps, but nothing jumped out at me.  If it was one (1) of the assembly bits, I'd be hard-pressed to locate it, assuming I still have it.

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General Software Discussion / Re: In search of ... universal download tracker

« Last post by barney on November 28, 2011, 10:52 AM »

Heavy-duty info on what's already on your machine can be obtained by using Belarc Advisor. It's a PC auditing tool which is also free for personal use. It won't give you installation dates, but it will provide software version information in excruciating detail along with a very useful security vulnerability score.

-40hz (November 28, 2011, 07:09 AM)

Roger excruciating detail  !

Didn't think about PSI.  Run it as a matter of course, but forgot about the logging feature.  I'll set logging on, see what it gives me.  Thanks  .

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General Software Discussion / Re: Mike Halsey article on firmware upgrades/updates ...

« Last post by barney on November 28, 2011, 08:58 AM »

You need to clearly indicate what type of firmware you are speaking of.

-db90h (November 27, 2011, 11:31 PM)

I took the article to mean any [update capable] firmware.

I have on my desk a D-Link paperweight.  Long story short; tech support said I needed to flash new system firmware, system lockup during update, system no longer accessible, paperweight.

I had a Panasonic IP camera that [according to support] required a firmware update, applied the update, camera never worked again.

When I worked at MCI, a significant number of failures in the field were due to crashed/improper firmware updates.  (A few were tFTP failures, most were not.)  We had one (1) support group dedicated, in part, to that very problem.

BIOS updates are relatively simple, usually superfluous unless you've installed some physical element that requires such.

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Living Room / Re: In search of ... information/opinions on VHS to DVD converters

« Last post by barney on November 27, 2011, 08:55 PM »

Interesting.

I'm more and more getting a feeling that most of the hardware is adequate, but the accompanying software may leave a bit -  - to be desired.  Won't know, of course, until the hardware is delivered, but it's nice to have alternatives - assuming the stated hardware will allow it, of course  .

You're pretty much right about one-shot - well, 40-50 shots  - but I've found in the past that once something like this gets started, new opportunities, previously unforeseen, for utilization will arise.  This is not always advantageous  .

BTW, thanks for the thread - I managed to miss it (why am I not surprised  .).

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Living Room / Re: In search of ... information/opinions on VHS to DVD converters

« Last post by barney on November 27, 2011, 05:43 PM »

That's interesting to know  .  I can just imagine some of the movies with the sound track shifted a couple-two-t'ree frames.  Kinda like the Singing in the Rain scene, "Yes, yes, yes.  No, no no."  Some of the sci-fi stuff could get really interesting.  Something to watch for, thanks.

As this transpires, I'll post progress - or lack of it  - here.  Might be able to keep someone else from making my mistakes - and I know there will be mistakes  .

Side note:  I usually spell-check my posts here - don't wanna embarrass myself in such an august assemblage  .  It's amazing and frustrating that the spell checker doesn't recognize some very simple Web things - like Google, for instance  .

782

Living Room / Re: In search of ... information/opinions on VHS to DVD converters

« Last post by barney on November 27, 2011, 03:42 PM »

Well ...

We'll see when they arrive - just got an email that the order has shipped, so should see delivery in a few days, prolly Thursday or Friday.

Then the three (3) of us will test each one to see what might develop.  I'm likely to be the heaviest user, but both my compatriots will have use for at least one (1) of the units/software.  One of 'em has a bunch of personal recordings on VHS - birthdays, weddings, other such personal celebrations - pretty decent for home recording stuff.  The other has a bunch of sailing recordings, pretty low quality, but stuff he wants to keep.

Don't really foresee any real conflicts amongst us, particularly since we're physically so close that swapping out/loaning shouldn't be any problem.

Ah, well, time will tell.

783

General Software Discussion / Re: Mike Halsey article on firmware upgrades/updates ...

« Last post by barney on November 27, 2011, 02:40 PM »

He, he, he ... kinda thought it'd go this way.  Don't think I've ever met a coder that was not, at heart, a conservative.  And there's a lot to be said for that  .  I won't  .

784

General Software Discussion / Re: Mike Halsey article on firmware upgrades/updates ...

« Last post by barney on November 27, 2011, 01:17 PM »

OK, maybe it's different now ... one would hope so ... but when I was involved, a lie wouldn't always help.

I know, we tried  . 

Well, sometimes ... but sometimes the firmware update to the framifram really was dependent upon an otherwise unnecessary update to the gigawhat.  'Course, the vendors had/have the advantage of accesses that we didn't/don't, and they also had/have recovery resources that we didn't/don't  .

Funny you should mention HP ... one of the biggest problems we had  .  I've been out for a decade, so 20-10 years past.  Guess some things never change  .

(I'll respond to the LG on the other thread ... some new developments  .)

785

General Software Discussion / Re: Mike Halsey article on firmware upgrades/updates ...

« Last post by barney on November 27, 2011, 12:28 PM »

Ooh, another thought, anent Deozaan's post.  Just got an LG TV, 55" (different thread), and whilst playing around with it, trying to figure out which tab A goes into which slot B, I received notice onscreen that there was new software - and it was being installed!  No option, no reversion, just a bald, "You're getting an upgrade."  I can't help but wonder what happens if such an upgrade/update fails  .  They're certainly not going to reimburse me for inability to use the set.  And what happens if the update craters and the set can no longer communicate?  They gonna send a tech out to do it manually?  I don't think so.  Can't help but wonder what procedure would be in that instance.

786

General Software Discussion / Re: Mike Halsey article on firmware upgrades/updates ...

« Last post by barney on November 27, 2011, 12:19 PM »

J-Mac brings up an interesting point:  some necessary firmware updates cannot be performed unless some other component has been updated first.  Yeah, I know, that's not what he said, but that does resemble the situation presented.  That's a conundrum we encountered back in the VAX days when I was IT-involved:  risk bricking some bit of hardware because another bit needed updates that could not be performed unless the first bit was up-to-date.  Hopefully firmware updates in the IT arena are a lot less dangerous now - but I'd be surprised  .

787

Living Room / Re: In search of ... information/opinions on VHS to DVD converters

« Last post by barney on November 27, 2011, 11:00 AM »

On order:

• VHS to DVD 4.0 (with Capture Device)
• Honestech VHS to DVD 5.0 Deluxe
• Diamond VC500 One Touch Video Capture Device

As well as here, I've been discussing this with some more-geographically-available folk.  We all [three (3) of us] have [differing] need of such a device/software, so we're gonna see how these work, then redistribute them according to specific requirements.  That way, we get to try all three (3), then decide what's suitable - providing, of course, that we don't come to blows  over one (1) of 'em and that we lucked into grabbing the right ones in the first place  .

788

Living Room / Re: In search of ... information/opinions on VHS to DVD converters

« Last post by barney on November 27, 2011, 10:44 AM »

It's not unlike a '60s era amp/tuner, say an old Panasonic  .  Actually, I've had reel-to-reel tape decks that were smaller (7", not 12") .

789

General Software Discussion / In search of ... universal download tracker

« Last post by barney on November 27, 2011, 10:27 AM »

Folk,

Way back in the Win98/Win98SE days, we had a TSR that did naught but record every bit of software, specified in a list, that was downloaded to a particular machine.  Basically, I could go to any given machine in my group and see just what had been downloaded in a given time period.  (The track record was stored on a network drive, so I didn't have to physically visit the machine in question.)

I would like to set something like that working on my home system.  I'd like to be able to pull up a [specified] catalog of everything that was downloaded, organizable by date/time or alphabetically.  This would pretty much be driven by a list of file extensions to record, e.g., .swf, .exe, .jpg, .dll, and the like.  Then the software would record date, time, file name, file extension, size, download origin, perhaps what triggered the download.

My searches have turned up a number of scripts to record downloads from a Website or vendor, as well as a few that were ISP specific for monitoring overall bandwidth usage - basically from recorders.  However, I cannot seem to find anything that will record downloads to a machine other than a few download managers.  (Thought of using a sniffer, something like Snort, but don't think that would work - too much irrelevant traffic.)

Example:  Adobe, in particular, likes to pull stuff down, then tell me it's available.  'Nother example:  Win pulls down updates, then tells me they're available.

There are a few other applications that do much the same thing.  I want to be able to go to the historical record to see when these downloads were accomplished.  It would help immensely with some troubleshooting.

Anyone have any references for something of this nature?

790

General Software Discussion / Mike Halsey article on firmware upgrades/updates ...

« Last post by barney on November 27, 2011, 09:27 AM »

Firmware... If it Isn't Broken, Should You Fix it?

Wondering how the DC community feels on this matter, whether there is an sort of consensus?  As Mike remarks in the article, this tends to be a polarizing issue, with very few middle-of-the-roaders.

What's your take on firmware updates?  I can see regular driver updates, but firmware updates can be kinda chancy, at least in my direct experiences.  I've had more than one piece of hardware converted to paperweight status because of a failed or interrupted firmware changes, but that could be just me   .  I have been able to revert an update on a couple of occasions, but for the most part that was not a viable, or even an available, option.

791

Living Room / Re: In search of ... information/opinions on VHS to DVD converters

« Last post by barney on November 27, 2011, 08:47 AM »

Oh, yeah, I forgot to 'splain 'bout the VHS player:

• physically, it simply cannot be used where the LG is to be located
• decoratively, it definitely cannot be used where the LG is to be located (Baby Daughter (BD) has a whim of iron  )
• a 1TB NAS unit is under consideration for storage (see follow up)
• a DVD/Blue Ray player is a must (see follow up)

OK, the physical thing should be pretty well self-explanatory. 

While I do not have a decorator's eye, BD does:  I can appreciate what she's done after the fact, but cannot plan things out the way she does, and she's adamant that player not be in the living room  .

I'm still undecided about the NAS drive, but it could be viable for immediate storage - however, HD only storage is out.  I've had three (3) lightning strikes here that were close enough to screw things up - one (1) of 'em was on the back of the house next door, and it blew a TV, killed two (2) external drives, and zapped one (1) laptop.  Note that none of these were power-line casualties - the EMP (electromagnetic pulse) from the lightning strike was the culprit.  I have five (5) UPSes around the house, but none of them can prevent EMP damage.  Yeah, statistically I should be safe.  Should be!  (And statistically I should never have seen that last strike, should I  ?)  But I'm a belt-and-suspenders kinda guy in certain arenas, and this is one of 'em.  (Oh, yeah, I had at least one (1) VHS tape scrambled, presumably from the same event.)  So transfer to digital, non-magnetic media is requisite.

And a player will be requisite as well, unless I plan to break into every future disk and transfer it to NAS - I don't  !

About the software aspect, these are the concerns - if ya can call 'em that.  I'm not looking to convert 4:3 to 16:9 - the LG screen works just fine for either.  However, much of the software associated with the planned conversion offers enhancements that tend to go unnamed.  Some have to do with sound, some have to do with image/colour/formatting, some have to do with i wot not what.  So I was curious whether anyone had used such software, and what the outcome might have been.  Basically trying to copper my bets before $pending $hekel$  .

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Living Room / Re: In search of ... information/opinions on VHS to DVD converters

« Last post by barney on November 25, 2011, 05:41 PM »

@NigelH
@Armando

Thx for the references - I'll check 'em out.

793

Living Room / Re: In search of ... information/opinions on VHS to DVD converters

« Last post by barney on November 25, 2011, 05:30 PM »

All is well and good, but the content from VHS tapes has usually a resolution formatted as 4:3.
...
This sounds more complicated, but in practice it isn't.

-Shades (November 25, 2011, 02:30 PM)

That's part of the reason for the question.  The LG seems to handle 4:3 well enough, just a lot of black space on either side.  However, some of the hardware/software I've seen in times past purports to perform some degree of conversion during the transfer.  This is needs must be essentially an automatic thing - no way I'll be able to find time to store/edit/convert 40-50 VHS tapes manually.  I need to be able to load a tape, start the process, let it run to completion, repeat as needed.  Serif currently has a $30 VHS-to-DVD software, v4.0, that might let me automate that - the editing, I mean - to some extent, but if it's a case of reconfig for every tape, they'll never get transferred - apart from the time element, I'm just too damned lazy  .  The Serif software, as near as I can tell, would make it a two (2) step process, but I can dedicate a laptop to that for whatever time it takes.

Me too! ...Must be an epidemic. I don't get mine delivered till tomorrow  ; how you liking the "Magic Motion" (Harry Potter) remote??

-Stoic Joker (November 25, 2011, 02:45 PM)

Mine's sitting on a coffee table right now, but it's destined for the fireplace above the mantle - I can even see that from the patio whilst grilling  .  The wand is a bit difficult for me to control - arthritis and not-quite-Parkinson's contribute to a very wayward aim  .  I went ahead and tried Netflix - Baby Daughter and I watched Limitless last night - no perceptible lag, so I guess that concern is eliminated, at least for the while.  Now I have to check Hulu & Vudu, both of which have pre-loaded apps, kinda, sorta.

Warning about the LG:  Internet access is extremely slow, at least on mine.  Not the access part so much as the amount of time it takes to load a browser, load an app, and the like.  Seems like I'm back on an old 88 processor  .  Haven't done a great deal with the browser, as yet, but it seems to work OK.  And I'll rue the day I have to type in a URL    .

Back on the VHS/DVD converter, seems as though I remember seeing a standalone system for that - maybe some of Kim Komando's ads? - and that seems to be a viable approach.  I just don't have any gauge as to how well it performs.

Only other need I can see at the moment is to get a wireless speaker bar for the living room and a wireless remote speaker, somewhat weatherproof, for the patio.  Thought about getting one of the home theater speaker systems, but that's no good.  I found out, when stereo was just getting started, that I'm simply unable to hear the difference between Bose or Harman-Kardon and a RadioShack cheapie in a home-built enclosure  .  I appreciate my guests, but not enough to spend mucho dinero on something only they might be able to hear .

794

Living Room / In search of ... information/opinions on VHS to DVD converters

« Last post by barney on November 24, 2011, 04:59 PM »

Folk,

I just picked up a 55" LG.  It has 3D capability, wireless Internet access, Web apps ... you know, all those little goodies that I prolly didn't need in the first place.  Been planning and saving for this for a while.  Didn't really want 55", but everything that was available to me went from 47" to 55", no in between <sigh />  .

OK, so I got the box.  As it happens, I have a number of VHS movies that I'd really like to be able to see on this screen  .  Haven't been in a rush to do anything about conversion, since I still have a VHS/DVD box, which is connected to a smaller screen.  Unfortunately, there's not a really convenient way to plug that box into the new screen  .  So now I have a valid reason - and a certain impetus <chortle /> - to start converting those VHS tapes to some sort of DVD medium.  (Baby Daughter would like to see them on the new screen, and I like to keep Baby Daughter happy  .)

There are a number of converters available, but I'd like to hear from folk that have actually used one (1) or more of 'em.  Somehow, I have little trust for so-called review sites, as I seldom know which [reviews] are honest and which are house shills  .  (Hey, it could be worse - I could have all Beta-Max <snicker />  .)

So, once again, I'm falling back to the folk I can reasonably trust for opinions and, hopefully, some first hand experience  .  Anybody with any experience in this arena  ?

Oh, yeah ... as a side issue, but less important at the moment, any thoughts on Netflix vs. Hulu vs. Vudu vs. whatever?  (I was a Netflix CD subscriber about a decade ago, but have no experience with the streaming products.)  I currently have a stated 8Mb pipe, but could upgrade to a [max] 12Mb pipe if need be for this purpose  .

795

Found Deals and Discounts / Re: Ashampoo Office 2010 $11.11

« Last post by barney on November 19, 2011, 09:54 PM »

OK, that's enough for me  .  I bought it.  Prolly won't use it more than three (3), four (4) times a year, but it'll be worthwhile when I need it.  I've already found Open Office/Libre Office somewhat lacking in a couple of instances, so this'll be just that much insurance  .

796

Found Deals and Discounts / Re: Ashampoo Office 2010 $11.11

« Last post by barney on November 17, 2011, 10:04 PM »

Never talked with anyone who's used it .  Is it any good  ?  Or just another MS knockoff  ?

797

Living Room / Re: multiple monitors vs large monitor?

« Last post by barney on November 16, 2011, 06:32 PM »

Late to the fray again  .

I have two (2) laptops set up, each having a 2nd, 24" monitor.  One machine, a 17", is the work machine.  The other, a 15.6", is a documentation, reference, email, research machine.  For instance, when I'm working on Web stuff, I'll have PHP documentation up on the 15" screen, JS (or other) references up on its 24" screen, as well as a browser for researching issues those docs do not reference or resolve.  The 17" laptop screen will have some IDE up, often two (2) or three (3), while the 24" screen for this box will have, usually, several browsers up to check output, as well as other reference material - myBase, WikeNotes, Ultra Recall, gbCodeLib, Source Code Library, and the like, to let me reference various snippets I may have acquired.

When I have occasion to travel - the 17" machine is the traveler, in spite of its weight - I tend to feel very cramped and shut in with just the one (1) screen  .

Methinks there's no possible single monitor/screen configuration that could do what I'm accustomed to doing.  Even the old four (4) quadrant plasma screens I used at some previous jobs don't hold a candle to what's here right now.

Sidebar:  When I get my new external video card unit, I'll have up to four (4) monitors hooked to one machine.  Downside to that will be, of course, RAM and CPU limitations on that machine - a significant consideration when thinking of multiple monitors with multiple applications running from one (1) box.  

All things considered I'd say multiple monitors, no matter how small, will outperform a single giant one (1) every time.

798

Living Room / Re: Good book to learn PHP?

« Last post by barney on October 27, 2011, 01:08 AM »

There's a perceived dearth of titles here, methinks.

I was using VB/Access/SQL Server/ASP pages for years before I found PHP/MySQL.  I found three (3) books to be invaluable:  PHP Developer's Cookbook, PHP and MySQL Web Development, and PHP/MySQL Database Applications.  (Yell if you want the ISBNs.)  OK, I had a lot of experience with databases - PCFile+, dBase III+, Borland Paradox, Oracle, DB2 as well as appropriate scripting languages for each so I couldn't be considered a novice.

However.

I recommended those same three (3) books to a friend of mine who had no more experience than using MS Excel at his former position.  He was trying to build a Web presence and order system for a niche jewelry business he had established locally.  With those three (3) books and an occasional teleconference, he did so.  He's since built two (2) other business Web sites and is currently close to completing a third.  Whatever might be said, he learned from those three (3) manuals.  They are extremely old, maybe even out of print, but what they taught him was, for all practical purposes, timeless.  I still crack 'em open from time to time when looking for a simpler way to do something that I've made overly complicated.

799

Living Room / Re: Any PHP/CSS Editing Software?

« Last post by barney on October 24, 2011, 01:46 PM »

+1 for TopStyle ... been using it since it came out ... it's now a full-fledged editor for CSS/HTML (waiting for the HTML5/CSS3 version to be published).

For PHP, I've tried a plethora of editors both paid and free, but keep coming back to Komodo Edit.  It's free, has most everything you could want (no debug, but the inline PHP error indicators work nicely).  There's a paid version, but that seems primarily aimed at team development.

800

Living Room / Windows on 2nd screen won't stay at top of screen ...

« Last post by barney on October 22, 2011, 01:56 PM »

Folk,

This is a new one on me.  Running a laptop with a 2nd monitor attached.  Laptop set to 1600x900, 2nd screen set to 1920x1200.  This has been working for at least a year with no problems.  Suddenly, today, every window on the 2nd screen gets pushed down about one (1) quarter of the screen.  It's not resized, just pushed down.

I had installed two (2) programs today, Zentimo and Chameleon Startup Manager, no other changes.  Also, this started after I'd visited a site, http://agatasoft.com.  Although I don't think that had anything to do with the situation, sometimes a site will resize/reposition the browser - drives me crazy  - so I'm adding that to the mix.

I've de-installed Zentimo and Chameleon - Zentimo won't be back, but I'd like to keep Chameleon - and rebooted, but the problem with the 2nd screen remains. 

Neither the Windows Control Panel nor the nVidia control panel (card is a 330M, I thimk) have provided any help.  System is Win7 Ultimate 64-bit, machine is a Dell Vostro 1700 with Intel i7 CPU, 400 GB RAM.

I can't find anything with search, but then I'm not really certain what search terms to use  .

Anyone have any idea(s) on this at all?  (Oh, yeah, system restore accomplished nothing except I'll prolly have to reinstall some stuff.)