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801
General Software Discussion / Re: Virtual cd/dvd drive software (2011)
« Last post by mwb1100 on July 15, 2011, 06:02 PM »
No one has mentioned ImDisk I've used it for a couple of years now and I have had no problems with it.

Thanks for the pointer!

I've never heard of ImDisk before - donationware with source available.  And there are a bunch of other little utilities on the page that I'll have to check out to see if there's anything interesting.
802
General Software Discussion / Re: Virtual cd/dvd drive software (2011)
« Last post by mwb1100 on July 14, 2011, 01:21 AM »
I know Daemon is very reliable and all, but it has one of those installations that are very complicated and makes you wonder why such a little program has such an involved install/uninstall process.

Daemon Tools specializes in being able to emulate copy-protected discs.  So they have all sorts of voodoo going on to deal with copy protect schemes. Daemon Tools also implements its own copy protection/hardware activation scheme (which some people find ... ironic) that has been known to be touchy.  At least it was - it's been a long while since I followed Daemon Tools' progress so it's possible that's all in the past.

I used to use Daemon Tools, but I don't play PC games much at all, so I have no need for the copy protection support.  I've moved to the free Virtual CloneDrive which works great for the unprotected, plain old ISO images I do use.  I'd suggest that you consider Daemon Tools only if you want to be able to mount images for copy protected discs.
803
General Software Discussion / Re: Virtual cd/dvd drive software (2011)
« Last post by mwb1100 on July 13, 2011, 05:47 PM »
I think the $30 version of MagicISO is the same one that now is freeware. The program is still updated, occasionally, but one could certainly wish for the shop and the rest of the homepage to also be updated - though free, you can still pay $30 for a license!

My understanding is that MagicDisc is freeware from the makers of MagicISO.

MagicDisc only provides read access (mounting the image to a drive letter);  MagicISO, which is $30, provides also the ability to create and update images.

I have not used the program in a long, long time, so it's certainly possible that this situation is different today.
804
Living Room / Re: quick opinions: do i return this annoying machine
« Last post by mwb1100 on July 07, 2011, 03:15 PM »
Why pay to be aggravated when I'll do that for you free?
-cranioscopical (July 07, 2011, 01:42 PM)

That's awfully nice of you - would you mind being aggravated for me too?
805
If you're considering an XY license, this is probably the time to pull the trigger:

So there are no plans at all to drop the XYplorer lifetime license. It works great! But it will get more expensive (because currently it is just too cheap for the value).
806
Found Deals and Discounts / Re: WaggleImage on Bits du Jour (Nov 18 2008)
« Last post by mwb1100 on July 04, 2011, 04:05 AM »
New product sales include a year worth of software assurance that entitles the user to all new versions (major and minor) released over the next 12 months.

I see that the Software Assurance is also on sale - would it be pointless to purchase it for a new license or would it extend the software assurance to 2 years?

By the way - thanks for letting us know about this special.
807
Found Deals and Discounts / Re: BitsDuJour - Collection thread 2011
« Last post by mwb1100 on June 29, 2011, 10:19 AM »
Also be aware that IDM has started to use an online, machine-tied activation scheme for UltraEdit for Windows (and some of their other products) starting with this release.  I'm not sure if that applies to their Mac or Linux products.  It's also unclear to me if or exactly how they might have changed the  policy of allowing a user to install on an arbitrary number of machines for the user's exclusive use (ie., they used to have user-based licensing).
808
Living Room / Re: Drive Dock: Turn bare drives into floppies
« Last post by mwb1100 on June 28, 2011, 10:51 PM »
I have an old Samsung SpinPoint 80Gb IDE drive that would do just fine for backing up my most important files

I'd just get an inexpensive SATA drive to replace the the 80GB drive and be done with it...
809
My understanding is that the various grades of gasoline (the different octane ratings) have nothing to do with fuel economy or how much 'power' or 'juice' the fuel has.  The octane rating is a measurement that indicates how resistant the fuel is to detonation from compression.  If the fuel detonates to early when the the fuel-air mixture is compressed, you get 'pinging' or 'knocking' and that will hurt fuel economy (and can cause further problems).

Basically a higher octane fuel can handle a higher compression - that's why high performance engines will require a high octane fuel; they're designed to use higher compression (as that can give's more power).  But just using a higher octane fuel without changing the compression in the combustion chamber will not provide any more power - you're just wasting money.

If your engine exhibits knocking, then using a higher octane fuel might help with that problem, but aside from that, probably no benefit.

It's possible that the oil companies might claim that the higher grade of fuel also has other additives that might provide some benefit, but I doubt that's anything more than marketing.
810
General Software Discussion / Re: DOS Batch Functions Tutorial
« Last post by mwb1100 on June 17, 2011, 02:15 AM »
One big advantage of batch files is you don't have to install anything, so you can use them in restricted environments (i.e., work).

That's the only advantage.  But it's a compelling one.

The book "Windows NT Shell Scripting" by Timothy Hill has about the best coverage of how to do complex processing with batch files that I've come across (get a used/remaindered one for the cost of shipping).

But I'd avoid doing anything too complex with batch files unless you really, really have to.  There are so many far better tools available (and most of them free).  But you do usually have to make sure they're installed (or that a runtime is) if the script you're coming up with has to be able to run on machines you don't control.

AutoHotKey (and friends) is one of the exceptions as I understand it - build the script to an exe and nothing else is needed on the end-user's machine (I imagine that's one of the reasons it's quite popular on DC's coding snacks).
811
Found Deals and Discounts / Re: Vipre Antivirus to offer lifetime licenses
« Last post by mwb1100 on June 16, 2011, 02:36 PM »
It definitely makes it less attractive.  However, I'm still considering the 'Lifetime' Home license, but it'll take some ciphering on my part before I decide.  I'm hoping I can find a better discount than the 20% one.

Wilders had a 50% discount offer, but it expired at the end of May :(

The lure of Microsoft Security Essentials is pretty strong, and it's running on my wife's and daughter's systems...  But, for some reason I still get the feeling that 3rd parties might do a better job of detecting malware.  Not that I have any actual data to back that up.  If nothing else, 3rd parties seem more focused on the problem (as they should be).

I know next to nothing about dealing with malware - and I want to keep it that way.  I just want something that I can install and trust to keep my system(s) reasonably safe and that doesn't cause as many problems as the malware might. That's why I don't even consider McAfee or Norton anymore - in the past they seemed to be the source of nothing but headaches for me.
812
Found Deals and Discounts / Re: Vipre Antivirus to offer lifetime licenses
« Last post by mwb1100 on June 16, 2011, 02:27 AM »
I just noticed this detail in the Vipre lifetime offer:

The PC Lifetime Licenses are good for the life of your PC; you can also get an unlimited home license that will cover up to 10 PC’s in your home for the lifetime of your PC’s.

So the license is tied to the PC. According to a post on Wilders (http://www.wildersse...147&postcount=17), one transfer is permitted.
813
HippoEdit is back on BDJ for $15 - Friday, 10 June 2011.

http://www.bitsdujou...m/software/hippoedit
814
Found Deals and Discounts / Vipre Antivirus to offer lifetime licenses
« Last post by mwb1100 on June 10, 2011, 04:24 AM »
From an email/newsletter I got today:

we are launching the PC lifetime license through June 30. We are doing a pilot/test to see if this is something you would be interested in purchasing. If the PC lifetime licenses does well, we will continue to offer them on our website. There will be an upgrade path for our current customers in the coming weeks, which we will make available via future editions of SSN and personal emails. If you are up for renewal of your current subscriptions you will see the option in our cart for the PC lifetime licenses.

http://vipreantivirus.com/

It looks like the pricing for one PC is $90 for Antivirus (AV + Antispyware) and $110 for Premium (AV + Antispyware + Firewall).
This compares to $30/$40 for a one year subscription.

The pricing for 'household' (3+ PCs) is $130 for Antivirus and $160 for Premium.
This compares to $50/$70 for a one year subscription.

So somewhere in the range of 150% - 200% additional cost going from 1 year to lifetime.

The pricing for renewals apparently isn't ready yet (there's no option for lifetime on my renewal page).

Use discount code "MICROSOFT" for a 20% discount (there are several code on the web if that one doesn't work).  Discount codes also seem to work for renewals.
815
General Software Discussion / Re: MS Word Spell Checker - Selective Failure
« Last post by mwb1100 on May 24, 2011, 03:55 PM »
The language (which is where spell checking can be disabled) for the the paragraph can also be specified in a style - I'm not sure if setting the language for the whole document will override a setting that's in a style applied to a paragraph or selection.  So check the style applied to the paragraph/selection of text as well.


Edit: I just checked - setting the language (and clearing the "do not spell check box") when the whole document is selected will override the style.  So my suggestion provides no value over tranglos'.


language.disable.spellcheck.JPG
816
It looks like using a general purpose photo editor for this special purpose just isn't going to produce the results I could get with PhotoNote (at least not without more work than I want to do and/or more knowledge than I have).  I did find these notes from WikiHow describing how one might do this with PhotoShop:

  - http://www.wikihow.c...mera-or-Camera-Phone

And I got 'good-enough' results with Sagelight by using the 'Automatic Levels" option in the "Levels Adjustment" tool, followed by playing around with the "Smart Fill Light" gadget. 

That's probably not too much work, but I still feel like I'm just randomly monkeying around and not getting results that are quite as good as I'd really like. I'll probably cough up for PhotoNote next time  I need this.
817
Thanks for the suggestions. 

I might not have a chance to try these out until I get to work on Monday. I'll let you know if they work out for me.
818
General Software Discussion / Looking for whiteboard photo cleanup software
« Last post by mwb1100 on May 20, 2011, 06:39 PM »
I'm looking for software that will take my pictures of whiteboards and perform as close to a one-click clean up that makes the photos usable as images.

The software that searches usually point to is "Whiteboard Photo", which seem to have been acquired by an outfit that makes 'smart whiteboards', so the software has gotten expensive and seems to be neglected in the support department. I think they'd rather you buy an expensive whiteboard system rather than use some cheap software to cleanup any old picture.

I've also come across PhotoNote by South Wedge Software (http://www.southwedgesw.com/photonote/), which seems to be pretty much what I want.  But still, it costs $50, and I'd rather pay less or nothing if I could.  

One option I thought I'd try is to use something like Sagelight (or Gimp or Photoshop Elements), which I'm certain can be made to do what I'd like, but I'm not certain that *I* could get it to happen.  We have licenses for each of the above, but I can't get good results.  This is because I know absolutely nothing about image enhancement.  I can barely work the red eye removal tools in these things, so my attempts at getting whiteboard photos to look decent amount to randomly moving sliders and pressing buttons (I'm not joking about this!).  A four year old could work more intelligently.  If anyone can give me directions that will get decent results that involve no more than 2 or 3 steps and doesn't use meaningless (to me) jargon such as "gaussian blur" or "histogram", I'd be very, very happy.

If that isn't possible, I'll be happy to pay the $50 to South Wedge.  Well, maybe not happy, but satisfied enough.

As an example, here's a whiteboard photo:

whiteboard.photo.small.jpg

And here's what PhotoNote's trial did with essentially one click (I did have to drag around some cropping guides):

whiteboard.photo.small.photonote.jpg

That result is fine and was easy to get.  But if something I already have can do similar without too much trouble, I'd rather go that route.



819
Living Room / Re: Worlds leading experts...How is this status given?
« Last post by mwb1100 on May 18, 2011, 12:27 PM »
Clearly, 40hz is one of the world's leading experts on World Leading Experts.

That's gotta be worth something.

820
Living Room / Re: Now you're REALLY screwed...
« Last post by mwb1100 on May 17, 2011, 02:49 PM »
I think this thread is at an end.
-cranioscopical (May 17, 2011, 09:25 AM)

He called it dead!

Screw that! I'm dying for more.
821
General Software Discussion / Re: EditPad Pro 7 - released
« Last post by mwb1100 on May 16, 2011, 11:04 PM »
It seems like the new version only has gotten better.

In a perfect world you'd be able to say this about any new software release.  Too bad that's not so.
822
Living Room / Re: Now you're REALLY screwed...
« Last post by mwb1100 on May 16, 2011, 10:59 PM »
From my exposure to Kung Fu movies, I believe that the Chinese (or at least parts of Chinese culture) bury their dead standing on end.  I guess the "screw 'em in" approach is novel.  

But, I think any cemetery that wanted a standing-room-only set of plots would just put the big fencepost rig on their back hoe.  I can only imagine hand cranking a coffin sized plug into the ground would get pretty painfully difficult after about two feet.
823
Living Room / Re: Batteries charged?...Away we go!!!
« Last post by mwb1100 on May 14, 2011, 08:54 PM »
That looks pretty neat (not that I'd ever be able to ride it).  I'm actually more impressed with that clever looking 3-stage hinge they have connecting the front part of the frame to the rear wheel.
824
Living Room / Re: Show us a photo of your mutt or other creatures..
« Last post by mwb1100 on May 06, 2011, 02:34 PM »
He also understands Basic German Commands:

that must be why they're called German Sheperd in 'European English' - they're also called Alsatian

It wasn't a frightfully popular name in some parts of the world following WWI, hence "Alsatian".
-cranioscopical (May 06, 2011, 01:43 PM)

Until today, I had never heard them called anything but "German Shepherd" ('merican here).  Always picture them roaming the perimeter of WWII POW camps from movies and TV shows of my youth.
825
General Software Discussion / Re: Directory Opus 10
« Last post by mwb1100 on May 03, 2011, 06:23 PM »
Pity the extra money doesn't reach GP Software.
-michaelkenward (May 03, 2011, 04:31 PM)

Where does it go?
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