Recent Posts

8101

N.A.N.Y. 2010 / Re: NANY 2010 Idea: A 'polite' reminder/diary system

« Last post by tomos on November 17, 2009, 05:00 AM »

Maybe it's to do with the 'update'
I'll try it with a fresh install so-to-speak -

Fresh 'install'.
Attempted 'Open in Notepad' (with single files only selected)
unfortunately doesnt work here with archived files *or* current.

The install that was updated - that now suddenly opens everything

Okay, I've figured it out - I presumed it opened the currently ticked file(s) but it opens currently selected files

PS: another 'icing' request - that single (left) mouse-click on systray icon would also popup the menu

8102

N.A.N.Y. 2010 / Re: NANY 2010 Idea: A 'polite' reminder/diary system

« Last post by tomos on November 17, 2009, 03:28 AM »

hi all
missed the last few updates so catching up today

I'm a bit confused about a couple of things:-

I updated, started app, opened AnuVu from the tray:
I was able to look at "current.anu" which, as it happens, was still the one from friday (I have it set to archive log every one day - I didnt have Anuran running over the weekend btw). I havent checked it properly - will check tomorrow to make sure it archives. It would be nice (for my use anyway) if it archived at the end of each calender day - I'm not sure with "archive logs every [1] day(s)" - does that mean calendar day or 24 hours after the option is first set?

Anyways, I manually archived via options - made a few test entries & opened viewer. Looks good, I tried to open the current file in Notepad (via menu) - got a message
---------------------------
Notepad
---------------------------
Cannot find the .txt file.

Do you want to create a new file?
---------------------------
Yes   No   Cancel   
---------------------------

Ahhh, okay - it only opens archived files - maybe that could somehow be made clear? Or could it be possible to open current.anu?

BTW
Thanks for all the great work Skwire credits heading your way

8103

Living Room / Re: Choosing a new PC package for a relative.. Post your recommendations

« Last post by tomos on November 16, 2009, 11:00 AM »

I think there's a lot to be said for buying locally from someone who actually builds the computers. Although, that's maybe not so common as it used to be due to internet prices. My experience that way was very good at least.
Pros -

• if there's a problem, bring machine into town (but not as good as a pickup-return guarantee).
• There's one person (or a couple) that you deal with.
• after the guarantee time you still have someone there to fix hardware problem

Cons

• they could always go out of business
• you'll probably pay more

There's a guy in town here selling refurbished pc's & laptops.
For basic use & maybe not so cheap (in comparision with new) but good quality machines & monitors etc. with one year warranty and the pros listed above.
Of course my relatives are all very very basic computer users

8104

Living Room / Re: Choosing a new PC package for a relative.. Post your recommendations

« Last post by tomos on November 16, 2009, 09:06 AM »

Related query (I think!):

when researching a readymade product, if you use one of the price comparision sites (not familiar with english language ones, e.g. http://Geizahls.at & http://www.schottenland.de) I often see a model that's a lot cheaper than other models that seem to be exactly the same e.g.
Samsung NC10@nyNet N270BBT  and  Samsung N130@nynet-N270BN
both described as

10.1 Zoll Netbook (Intel Atom N270 1.6GHz, 1GB RAM, 160GB HDD, Intel GMA 950 XP Home) schwarz

-
and 40 euros price difference from same supplier (Amazon.de) (after a bit of digging, I think the cheaper - the N130, has a less good display but also has WLAN which other doesnt)

So I guess my question is: if there's a good site that will compare models so that you can quickly see the difference between models. In general I find the producers sites are useless for this - e.g. Canon does compare but doesnt show any models that arent totally uptodate - which is typical, yet those models no longer shown on homepages are on sale for months afterwards...

8105

General Software Discussion / Re: New duplicate audio files finder... I am open to features suggestion

« Last post by tomos on November 16, 2009, 08:01 AM »

I've not used any file duplicate apps (-yet, I recently bought DupeTrasher but havent had a chance to install yet) so any suggestions may vary wildly

It seems to me that ít would be good to be able to easily differentiate between Exactly the Same & Similar - similar being where the percentages come in

Also, maybe an indication of what 90% similar could mean - could that be a different file (e.g. diff bitrate) but actually the same recording.
-
Another example - this may be unusual - I have a small collection but relatively a lot of live tracks - I often crop them at either end if there's too much waffling & naturally keep the original recordings. Would the app be able to tell me they exactly the same except one is cropped (this not really a feature request but you did ask for scenarios!)

8106

Living Room / Re: Portable computer

« Last post by tomos on November 16, 2009, 01:02 AM »

Be sure to get a nice warranty with Acer. From my experience they haven't been to reliable.  

-alivingspirit (November 15, 2009, 10:00 PM)

Acer have a very bad rep (here in Germany anyway) - I've seen [many] stories online of people sending off their laptop & getting them back not properly fixed but with additional problems
Something else to consider...

-tomos (November 05, 2009, 07:47 AM)

I'm looking at the Samsung NC10 netbook (sub-notebook) supposed to have a very good screen (but only 10.2 inch) and good keyboard. There's an older version - called 'BBT' here (NP-NC10-KB03DE), which is almost 100 euro cheaper than other models - I think the reason is that it doesnt do wireless (which suits me fine)

8107

Living Room / Re: Tech News Weekly: Edition 46-09

« Last post by tomos on November 15, 2009, 04:44 PM »

"You just gotta love Christopher Walken."
yes yes that was a great mashup too

I remember seeing Christopher Walken on Johnathon Ross years ago (same show) reading some fairytale (cant remember which). I just remember him being so totally deadpan but at the same time giving it such character - he's just great!

8108

N.A.N.Y. 2010 / Re: NANY 2010 Idea: A 'polite' reminder/diary system

« Last post by tomos on November 13, 2009, 07:32 AM »

Yeah - the maximise window would normally not be a problem & not a problem to me as I just used gridmove to resize it

Attached test file from a fresh 'install' - the only thing I changed was the timing of the popup. Still same problem with double dates showing in viewer - I had to change the extension to upload

8109

N.A.N.Y. 2010 / Re: NANY 2010 Idea: A 'polite' reminder/diary system

« Last post by tomos on November 13, 2009, 06:32 AM »

1) I think any feature requests I make at this stage are icing
so...
 ~ Option in AnuVu to launch file in default (or custom) text editor ?

2) Also: Confirm Dr.Frog's report above - viewer showing double date/times

3) I'm wondering out loud here - if there's any way of stripping out the dates in a text editor - may seem like an odd idea - but I'm still unsure how I might use the programme in the future - & for some possible uses the times might just get in the way.
I'm not that familiar with find and replace - maybe if some editor can use wildcard (*) and removes from the § to the carriage return (I think Textmaker can do that actually)

8110

N.A.N.Y. 2010 / Re: NANY 2010 Idea: A 'polite' reminder/diary system

« Last post by tomos on November 13, 2009, 05:48 AM »

minor window bug (I think)

• Launch AnuVu
• Maximise window
• Close
• Relaunch - it's full screen
• Click the middle button for 'Normal' window - window stays full screen size

so I guess it's not remembering previous normal window size (or do apps usually have a default normal window size?)

8111

Coding Snacks / Re: CHKDSK Assist - Schedule CHKDSK Operations

« Last post by tomos on November 12, 2009, 04:04 PM »

hi darklight
I had a go at this today (been getting some blue screens lately..)

First:
I used the portable version
OS xp sp2 home

So I scheduled it for a restart,
I rebooted & went for a cup of tea
when I came back, it was finished - I checked the log & it said

The type of the file system is NTFS.

Chkdsk cannot run because the volume is in use by another
process.  Would you like to schedule this volume to be
checked the next time the system restarts? (Y/N) y

This volume will be checked the next time the system restarts.

so I restarted & went off again but came back again to the same message

Third time, I got a beer & manually entered chkdsk c: /f /r & sat in front of the computer - it checked everything, showed the results for about 1/100th of a second.So I went back to your app & checked the log again to see the same message again.

So now I googled & discovered I could look in the event viewer under applications (eventvwr.msc) (I'm learning a lot today)
The log of the chckdsk was there

Spoiler

Event Type: Information
Event Source: Winlogon
Event Category: None
Event ID: 1001
Date: 2009-11-12
Time: 22:03:20
User: N/A
Computer: _____
Description:
Checking file system on C:
The type of the file system is NTFS.
Volume label is Boot.

A disk check has been scheduled.
Windows will now check the disk.                         
Cleaning up minor inconsistencies on the drive.
CHKDSK is verifying file data (stage 4 of 5)...
File data verification completed.
CHKDSK is verifying free space (stage 5 of 5)...
Free space verification is complete.

 30716248 KB total disk space.
 12933644 KB in 59166 files.
    36840 KB in 7361 indexes.
        0 KB in bad sectors.
   137260 KB in use by the system.
    65536 KB occupied by the log file.
 17608504 KB available on disk.

     4096 bytes in each allocation unit.
  7679062 total allocation units on disk.
  4402126 allocation units available on disk.

Internal Info:
70 0e 01 00 e9 03 01 00 ec 62 01 00 00 00 00 00  p........b......
92 9a 00 00 02 00 00 00 6a 04 00 00 00 00 00 00  ........j.......
4e 26 18 05 00 00 00 00 9c b4 b9 13 00 00 00 00  N&..............
0a 9a 4c 05 00 00 00 00 aa 28 ae d3 00 00 00 00  ..L......(......
14 d6 f5 88 00 00 00 00 2c ec e5 7d 01 00 00 00  ........,..}....
b0 45 dd 77 00 00 00 00 d8 3d 07 00 1e e7 00 00  .E.w.....=......
00 00 00 00 00 30 68 15 03 00 00 00 c1 1c 00 00  .....0h.........

Windows has finished checking your disk.
Please wait while your computer restarts.

so, I'm wondering:
a) have I done something silly (well possible)
b) is my computer wonky (well possible)
c) is your app not able to find the logfile (see next)

Just in case it's related:

unfortunately in my case I had an error report for the Dr.Watson debugger last year - MS's 'solution' was to disable it - http://support.microsoft.com/kb/949820 (I remember at the time it was seizing up and created a multi GB log file).

-me (in another thread here somewhere)

8112

Living Room / Re: How would you improve a standard PC keyboard?

« Last post by tomos on November 12, 2009, 02:21 PM »

Put the App/Context/RightClick (whatever you call it) back next to the Right-Control key.

-AndyM (November 09, 2009, 01:01 PM)

Nobody else misses the APP key?

-AndyM (November 12, 2009, 01:25 PM)

it's still here lol -
Logitech media keyboard - german layout though

Advantage of the Shift+F10 is it toggles the context menu. dont know why the apps key doesnt do that
But true it is a lot more awkward

8113

Living Room / Re: When you make your 100'th Post

« Last post by tomos on November 12, 2009, 02:17 PM »

Quiver in fear

-4wd (November 12, 2009, 01:47 PM)

8114

General Software Discussion / Re: Linux Desktop Turns 10: World Yawns?

« Last post by tomos on November 12, 2009, 09:48 AM »

It's very interesting to learn the history about Corel trying to make a go of it as a desktop OS -
pity they didnt make it...

8115

N.A.N.Y. 2010 / Re: NANY 2010 Idea: A 'polite' reminder/diary system

« Last post by tomos on November 11, 2009, 06:22 PM »

frog_1.wav rocks.  =]

-skwire (November 11, 2009, 03:45 PM)

lol - have to agree there

thanks for new version Skwire, will check it out tomorrow

[edit] like pong & droplet sounds too [/edit]

8116

General Software Discussion / Re: Looking for freeware ghost clone with boot manager

« Last post by tomos on November 11, 2009, 06:04 PM »

GRUB4DOS and Partition Saving sound good. But I need a "fully legit" solution instead of WinImage. I have UltraISO myself, but that is a personal license and not one I can let the folks at work use. And I don't have floppy drives on these machine, so I want a virtual floppy solution.

-tinjaw (November 11, 2009, 12:21 PM)

so you're looking for free for commercial use -
have you checked out Steven Avery's thread here listing software free for commercial use?
Here's the post about backup etc:
https://www.donation....msg169835#msg169835

8117

N.A.N.Y. 2010 / Re: NANY 2010 Idea: A 'polite' reminder/diary system

« Last post by tomos on November 11, 2009, 02:04 PM »

just passing through here so have only glanced at previous posts
Personally I wouuld have kept all time stamps (or at least the logfile name/timestamp) as
2009-11-11 21:00
or something comparable e.g.
2009_11_11-2100
to avoid the : & spaces in the filename
-
I know Skwire you say some people have a problem with 24hr clock but I think everyone understands it & it sorts logically

8118

N.A.N.Y. 2010 / Re: NANY 2010 Idea: A 'polite' reminder/diary system

« Last post by tomos on November 11, 2009, 12:57 PM »

overlapping post:-

Notes:
1. When multiple logifles are checked, how will they be displayed in the main viewer? In a chrono-order? Will there be any visual grouping, such that entries from different logfiles are separated somehow?
2. Minor suggestion: to keep with the current trend of searchboxes in apps and online sites, move searchbox to upper right corner, in line with the toolbar.
3. Consider changing the style of timestamps, such that they are visually separated from entries. My preference: slight reduction in font size, and bolded.
4. With search filters in place, my next want will be to "export the current view" to another text or .csv file.  At the very least, I should be able to select text in the viewer pane and copy it elsewhere, but more advanced users might want to keep the logfile markup intact for their purposes.
5. Quibble: I prefer a white background for the log viewer pane rather than gray. It's consistent with the look and feel of most other apps.
6. I already see 'select all' and 'select none' functions are planned. CTRL-CLICK on a checkbox should also toggle the behavior.
7. Does the search also respond to dates/times? Obviously, if the user changes his timestamps midstream, he's up his own creek with how consistently this would work.
8. Earlier request, repeated: When AnuVu is started by opening a .anu file, it should display the logfile, plus any other logfiles in the same directory. This is for users who end up moving their logfiles around.
9. What if a user has logfiles in multiple folders but wants to display them together with AnuVu? This strikes me as a fairly rare use case, so I don't think it's necessary to address it, but I feel it should be mentioned.

-doctorfrog (November 11, 2009, 12:27 PM)

2) I prefer search box where it is - one would probably often open this from systray - mouse moves up naturally to search box - also not taking from actual viewer pane

4) csv would be nice [answered above]

6) +1 (would be nice anyway) [Ctrl+Click in one box would select/deselect all]

8] could be very helpful if working from usb stick (dont know if that possible?)

8119

N.A.N.Y. 2010 / Re: NANY 2010 Idea: A 'polite' reminder/diary system

« Last post by tomos on November 11, 2009, 11:50 AM »

'edit field' sounds great (does that mean I can actually 'edit' - presumably copy text at least?)

-tomos (November 11, 2009, 11:46 AM)

I think I'm getting carried away again !!
But copyable text would be great

8120

N.A.N.Y. 2010 / Re: NANY 2010 Idea: A 'polite' reminder/diary system

« Last post by tomos on November 11, 2009, 11:46 AM »

sounds very good to me just refreshed & got your last post:
LOOKs very good to me

'edit field' sounds great (does that mean I can actually 'edit' - presumably copy text at least?)

8121

N.A.N.Y. 2010 / Re: NANY 2010 Idea: A 'polite' reminder/diary system

« Last post by tomos on November 11, 2009, 08:36 AM »

will one be able to search all log files via the viewer ?
or would you recommend using another app?

-tomos (November 11, 2009, 07:40 AM)

A simple text search would be easy to implement since each entry is properly delimited with a "§`r`n" sequence.

-skwire (November 11, 2009, 08:23 AM)

that would be nice (= one vote)

Right...this is where it gets fuzzier since custom timestamps are allowed.  Furthermore, I haven't designed Anuran with this in mind.  It's not really a time-tracker.  It's more of a "what were you doing/thinking/feeling at said time" application.  This behaviour is more in line with doctorfrog's original request.

I'm a fan of the "one tool for one job" way of coding.  With that in mind, I think there are plenty of time/project trackers out there that do a much better job than anything I could code.  Please don't take this as me discounting your suggestions, tomos.  I really appreciate the feedback.   

-skwire (November 11, 2009, 08:23 AM)

no worries Skwire - just an idea, I was unsure of it myself & realised it might not be suitable
(BTW I like TaskLog a lot but never really used it due to aforementioned problem - so I've bumped that thread)

8122

Skrommel's Software / Re: TaskLog v1.1 - Small bug and an improvement or 2...

« Last post by tomos on November 11, 2009, 08:11 AM »

is there any way you can get TaskLog to recognise when the computer goes into hibernation mode -
I tend to use this when i leave computer for any length of time & of course I forget to tell TaskLog and
& come back to

still at task XYZ running for 168mins?

-tomos (May 10, 2007, 01:42 PM)

I'll give this a friendly bump -
standby doesnt work properly on my machine so I use hibernation fairly often...

8123

N.A.N.Y. 2010 / Re: NANY 2010 Idea: A 'polite' reminder/diary system

« Last post by tomos on November 11, 2009, 08:06 AM »

we might be reinventing the wheel with the time-tracker idea
I was just having another look at Skrommel's TaskLog - mind you after doing a search I see I had a problem with hibernation which I use relatively often (my computer has problems with standby)

TaskLog You define your tasks - it logs amount of time spent on each (asks at user selected intervals) Saves in a csv file, which it can also sort before opening (in Notepad)

8124

N.A.N.Y. 2010 / Re: NANY 2010 Idea: A 'polite' reminder/diary system

« Last post by tomos on November 11, 2009, 07:40 AM »

will one be able to search all log files via the viewer ?
or would you recommend using another app?

Re: the timetracker idea -
one would really have to indicate when you're starting on a project & when ending - otherwise:
if all other entries are filtered out you wouldnt know at which times you began / ended

8125

General Software Discussion / Re: fully free software utilities for biz use - discussion

« Last post by tomos on November 11, 2009, 04:28 AM »

Thanks to tinjaw's recent post, someone on friendfeed told me about this one:

Anti-virus/anti-spyware/anti-rootkit/firewall (and more) intended for commercial use.

Standard version of FortiClient Endpoint Security Suite is freeware.

http://www.forticlient.com/standard.html

-app103 (October 26, 2009, 07:44 PM)

found this (unfortunately) not very promising review (you could call it a mini-review/test).

According to one comment (from Prosa)

The databases are not equal, free editon is a subset of premium edition

From releases notes:

Antivirus updates / Database

Free Edition – Daily (using core signature database)
Premium Edition – Hourly (using extended signature database)