Recent Posts

8226

Living Room / Re: CPU Question: More Mhz per core or more cores?

« Last post by 40hz on February 10, 2011, 04:19 PM »

Sadly at this point I've mostly lost interest in trying to build her a system, because she doesn't know the difference between the components but I keep hearing (second-hand or perhaps third-hand) from her brother-in-law that the machine I'm trying to build her is inferior to the machine he would get her, yet I've not seen any specs of what he's offering to get her. Meanwhile I keep revising my build and submitting the list of specs for review. Without anything to go on besides general information (Intel 4 Core, 8 GiB RAM) I don't have a reference point to compare prices and specs so I think I'll bow this one out.

Again, thanks for your feedback. It's been useful either way.

-Deozaan (February 10, 2011, 01:54 PM)

Oh man, have I ever been there with you on one of those!

Smart move on your part. When in doubt - punt!

Especially when in-law macho starts cropping up. 

8227

General Software Discussion / Re: Why is my computer hiccuping every few seconds?

« Last post by 40hz on February 10, 2011, 01:59 PM »

^Perhaps I should have phrased my comment better. By better choices I meant no database at all rather than a different one. I'll agree that, within its intended scope of use, SQLite is probably as good as it gets right now.

But what exactly is it they're storing that actually needs a database? Favorites? Cookies? Browsing history? How big a performance gain would that provide no matter how big a list you had?

Dunno. Seems like they're swatting a fly with a sledgehammer. Unless they wanted to hold user data in a place that would be relatively easy for something on the server-side to query. Hence my original question: What's it really there for?

 

8228

General Software Discussion / Re: Why is my computer hiccuping every few seconds?

« Last post by 40hz on February 10, 2011, 09:15 AM »

On a related note, could somebody please explain to me what Mozilla was trying to accomplish with Firefox that they needed to drag SQLite into their equation? I don't see anything in a browser's function that necessitates incorporating a whole database engine. Especially an SQL/relational data engine.

And if they really did need a lightweight database, there are far better choices out there than SQLite - and better data models than a relational one.

So what were they trying to do/prove/sell that they took this direction? Because most of their published "reasons" amount to little more than an assertion it was "necessary "coupled with some farfetched scenarios to "prove" it was a smart decision.

I'm more than a little familiar with databases and their underlying technologies. I was heavily involved in database design and programming at one point in my career. But even so, the direction Firefox took still doesn't make much sense to me.

What am I missing here?

8229

Living Room / Re: Divided Attention Disorder? Log off and read a book

« Last post by 40hz on February 09, 2011, 05:41 PM »

At the end of the day, I know that I'm all done when my taskbar is empty again.

-timns (February 09, 2011, 04:26 PM)

That's a pretty cool way to look at it actually...

Like it!

8230

Living Room / Re: CPU Question: More Mhz per core or more cores?

« Last post by 40hz on February 09, 2011, 04:20 PM »

A general rule of thumb is that most software is at least a year behind in using the capabilities of the silicone it runs on.

-40hz (February 09, 2011, 01:40 PM)

If it's running on silicone, I sure as hell hope it's dual-core and nothing else - neither single nor quad

-f0dder (February 09, 2011, 02:49 PM)

Apparently that one "slipped" by me and the spellcheck - since it was the wrong word - but not misspelled.

Good catch!

(Only you f-man...only you.  )

8231

Living Room / Re: Divided Attention Disorder? Log off and read a book

« Last post by 40hz on February 09, 2011, 04:13 PM »

I have six tabs open on my browser right now - and I'm also reading a (paper) book.

Does that mean there's no longer any hope for me Doc? 

8232

Living Room / Re: Too much free time apparently :)

« Last post by 40hz on February 09, 2011, 04:09 PM »

2000 posts? Ask mouser for an achievement mug

-f0dder (February 09, 2011, 02:52 PM)

If you get an achievement mug for 2,000 posts then I am way overdue for mine!

-Deozaan (February 09, 2011, 02:54 PM)

Don't be in too big a rush. I understand once you hit 5000 they kick you out.

8233

Living Room / Re: Too much free time apparently :)

« Last post by 40hz on February 09, 2011, 04:06 PM »

Nah, I prefer your rapier wit.

-MilesAhead (February 09, 2011, 01:46 AM)

Damn, foiled again!

-cranioscopical (February 09, 2011, 02:28 PM)

An épée-cure of wordplay such as yourself? Say it isn't so Chris! 

8234

Living Room / Re: Sony Marketting man tweets PS3 Master Key

« Last post by 40hz on February 09, 2011, 03:45 PM »

Seems to be the case no matter which way this story goes, huh?

8235

Living Room / Re: Any suggestion for 3G Phone

« Last post by 40hz on February 09, 2011, 03:38 PM »

If you need a penis-enlargement/boob-job*: Get an iPhone.

Do not get an iPhone.

Iphone is touch screen only phone so it's out.

-mahesh2k (February 09, 2011, 03:01 PM)

I'm aware of that. But there's always a chance you might be tempted. So stay strong. 

(There. I've done as much as I can to save the world.  )

8236

General Software Discussion / Re: Link Checker with built-in HTML editor freeware?

« Last post by 40hz on February 09, 2011, 03:00 PM »

Likely the free HTML-kit software has either this option already included or a plugin that does just that.

-Shades (February 08, 2011, 04:47 AM)

Not yet. But it's on the wish list.

8237

Living Room / Re: Any suggestion for 3G Phone

« Last post by 40hz on February 09, 2011, 02:20 PM »

Do not get an iPhone.

I have one.

It's very slick.

It's very reliable.

I hate mine.

   

In case you're wondering

Once you get past the first blush of seduction, you rapidly become aware of all the things you want and should be able to do with it (but aren't allowed to) because of arbitrary marketing and lock-in policies on the part of Apple. Sad really. This is the device that could have significantly changed almost everything for everybody. But Apple (being Apple) once again decided to do their usual "dog in the hayloft" elitist-hipster schtick with it.

But that should come as no surprise. The word everybody hasn't been a part of Apple's vocabulary since they BSed everybody with their famous 1984 Super Bowl ad way back in the 80s.

8238

Living Room / Re: MPAA threatens to disconnect Google from the internet

« Last post by 40hz on February 09, 2011, 02:15 PM »

If it's meant to be anything other than a shot across the bow, the MPAA is even more insane than I thought.

Sounds like a Captain Pugwash moment if there ever was one.

The motion picture industry needs Google far more than Google needs them. Taking down the top search engine would likely create so much public backlash that all the lobbying and campaign contributions in the world couldn't buy them enough votes in Congress to continue to advance their agenda.

8239

Living Room / Re: CPU Question: More Mhz per core or more cores?

« Last post by 40hz on February 09, 2011, 01:40 PM »

Hard to come up with a hard and fast answer to this type of question. As f0dder pointed out, a lot depends on which software you're going to use, how often you're going to use it, and how well it takes advantage of the hardware it's running on. A general rule of thumb is that most software is at least a year behind in using the capabilities of the silicone it runs on.

As of right now, it's my understanding that Sandy Bridge beats out all comers for general PC computing use as far as "bang for the buck" is concerned. The i7-2600 models ($299-$329 street) stomp everything out there, and are more than adequate for handling anything you'll want to do on a desktop. The lower cost i5-2500 (<$275) edged out the AMD Phenom X6 in both CPU mark and value scores according to Pass Mark's metrics. Details on that  here.

Couple of good articles can be found here and especially here. From the look of things, the i5 and i7 both hit the sweet spot for a new 'power user' build. Normally I'd opt for the i5. That's because I always follow the old  "two or three chips down from the top-of-line" method for getting the best specs for the money when buying an Intel. But for something as central as a CPU, the $50 to $80 difference to go up to the i7 isn't enough to make me automatically rule out going for the higher priced chip. (Which is probably exactly what Intel was hoping most people would think when buying. ) I keep my desktops for an average of 4-5 years. So a little future-proofing isn't a bad idea when it comes to people like me.

The only problem is the 6-Series chipset issue which is being resolved as we speak. Intel has targeted the beginning of March as when the re-engineered chipsets will become available. They also announced a replacement program. Anybody that got a mobo with the problem part is eligible for a no-charge replacement despite the fact the problem (supposedly) will only effect about 5-15% of the chipsets out there. Nice to see a company is doing right by its customers for a change.

8240

General Software Discussion / Re: Why is my computer hiccuping every few seconds?

« Last post by 40hz on February 09, 2011, 11:30 AM »

Edit: Looks like 4wd got it in ahead of me. And with a link too, the Wanker!

-40hz (February 09, 2011, 11:09 AM)

That's Mr. Wanker! to you!

-4wd (February 09, 2011, 11:17 AM)

Apologies, High Chancellor. 

8241

General Software Discussion / Re: Why is my computer hiccuping every few seconds?

« Last post by 40hz on February 09, 2011, 11:21 AM »

@f0dder - Would be sweet indeed, except  I'd say 12Gb of RAM  and a UPS.

Actually, I shouldn't be so flip about RAMdisks. They do have their uses  We set them up on most servers we do for exactly that reason - to handle scratchpad files, non-critical logs, and temporary file caches.

Makes a big difference on a heavily loaded application  server

8242

General Software Discussion / Re: Why is my computer hiccuping every few seconds?

« Last post by 40hz on February 09, 2011, 11:09 AM »

Ramdisk?

1. It's what you say to a balky computer. Usually prefixed by "I'm gonna" and followed by "up your {select orifice}!!!!"

2. Digital scribble pad for an Ovis aries.

3. That which makes a ram a ram.

 

------

On a more serious note (Thank you Wikipedia!)

A RAM disk or RAM drive is a block of RAM (primary storage or volatile memory) that a computer's software is treating as if the memory were a disk drive (secondary storage). It is sometimes referred to as a "virtual RAM drive" or "software RAM drive" to distinguish it from a "hardware RAM drive" that uses separate hardware containing RAM, which is a type of solid-state drive.

FWIW, they don't get used that much any more. Advances in storage technology removed much of the need to employ something that's a hack at best. About the only time you'll find somebody using one is if they're a real techno wizard type that got annoyed with some dumbass app and decided to kludge around it for performance reasons. (see: f0dder   )

---

Edit: Looks like 4wd got it in ahead of me. And with a link too, the Wanker!

8243

Finished Programs / Re: IDEA: Drop target to move files to predefined folders

« Last post by 40hz on February 09, 2011, 10:28 AM »

^Probably something better saved for the next NANY if it's hassely to code.

8244

Finished Programs / Re: IDEA: Drop target to move files to predefined folders

« Last post by 40hz on February 09, 2011, 09:43 AM »

Me neither!

But I couldn't code my way out of a ticket line, so that should be no surprise. 

8245

Finished Programs / Re: IDEA: Drop target to move files to predefined folders

« Last post by 40hz on February 09, 2011, 09:34 AM »

Very nice utility!  

Does one thing extremely well. Runs out of its own folder. Doesn't take a huge amount of RAM.

Wish they were all like that.

Does it have the capability of assigning to directories on flash drives where the drive letter may change? Be a terrific app for portable use if it did that.

8246

General Software Discussion / Re: Why is my computer hiccuping every few seconds?

« Last post by 40hz on February 09, 2011, 09:04 AM »

but I'm too lazy to start disabling extensions to try find the problem...

-tomos (February 09, 2011, 02:47 AM)

@tomos - the SimiliarWeb add-on can cause all of those problems. If you have it, get rid of it.  

8247

Living Room / Re: USB 3.0 stick - anyone taken the plunge?

« Last post by 40hz on February 08, 2011, 06:49 PM »

I'm a big advocate & user of portable apps and task oriented USB collections.

But I'm still waiting untill it hits a $2/Gb "everyday price" point.

Once it does, however, I'm all over it! 

8248

General Software Discussion / Re: Local History Tape Archive - need help

« Last post by 40hz on February 08, 2011, 02:02 PM »

There's several things I could suggest, but a better answer might come by talking to your town librarians. Info mapping, cataloging, data classification, storage and retrieval are their specialty. And they're also probably the most underutilized talent pool in the country.

-40hz (February 08, 2011, 07:58 AM)

They're an endangered species in Britain.  Brutal "cuts" to balance the UK budget means county councils are seeing libraries as a soft target.  Library users are protesting, as well we should.

-rjbull (February 08, 2011, 01:54 PM)

Gracious! Cutting back on libraries? Well...England Prevails! as the saying goes.

8249

General Software Discussion / Re: Should MS open up Windows Update to 3rd parties?

« Last post by 40hz on February 08, 2011, 12:43 PM »

It works out great...and takes up no space at all!

-Stoic Joker (February 08, 2011, 11:26 AM)

You are right of course - I just object to wasting my bandwidth on downloading DVD images when I have better things to do. Its fine when you super fast internet access but when it takes half a day per file ...

-Carol Haynes (February 08, 2011, 11:37 AM)

+1! 

It's not quite that slow for me. But I still batch them a few at a time for overnight when I don't need something 'immediately.'

What I do miss, however, are some of those self-running sales demo/presentation disks and client assessment tools. You used to get those back when they still shipped MAPS in those nice plastic project binders along with hardcopy sales and tech info.

If less is more, we're definitely getting 'more' these days.

-----
Addendum: check out their new cloud services initiative when you get a chance. They're about to change the whole ballgame for the Partner Network with that move.

Like today's I Ching says:

Wèi jí Before Completion



Fire above the waters.
It is not yet over.
The Superior Man is careful to discriminate the nature of things
And put each in its proper place.

8250

General Software Discussion / Re: Should MS open up Windows Update to 3rd parties?

« Last post by 40hz on February 08, 2011, 10:44 AM »

@Carol - thanks for that bit of news on the MAPS w/DVD option. I just renewed and opted for the cheaper "no media" subscription. I had a niggling concern I might have been too thrifty for my own good in doing so. But seeing your comment made me feel much better about my decision to do without those (apparently nonexistent) DVD sets.