The Danish philosopher, mathematician and scientist Piet Hein reckoned that if you were faced with a difficult decision, you should toss a coin, but not necessarily be guided by the way the coin falls. His premise was that in the tossing, you would suddenly realise what you really wanted.
Or you can use the Universal Decision Maker. As it takes longer than a coin toss, you have more time to reflect, and come to the right decision, perhaps.
Thursday, February 5, 2009
Look ma, no software!
One of the inherent problems of the Windows operating systems (and here Mac users can justifiably feel smug) is what is called the Registry. All software installed on the computer is controlled through the Registry, which is rather flaky and subject to things going wrong. If you are having persistent software problems, there's a strong chance the Registry is involved. When you uninstall software, often artifacts are left behind in the Registry which can't easily be removed, etc, etc. It is a no-go area for anyone except experts, because if you make the wrong changes, your whole system can crash.
So here comes the revelation: it is possible to run your computer with NO SOFTWARE installed except the operating system and whatever else Microsoft has loaded on, and do everything you would normally use a computer for. There are at least three ways you can do this.
1) Many open-source projects have been developing what they call Portable Applications. You can load them onto a memory stick/flash drive, and they will work without being installed on the computer. There's quite a list available now - here's one sample which includes such functions as web browser, email program, word processor, media player, spreadsheets.
2) Use web-based applications. These provide all the functionality of installed software, but you load nothing onto your computer. Probably the best-known is Google Docs, a package including a word processor and spreadsheet. But there are thousands of others which can perform just about every function you could wish for. The website Simple Spark has a very comprehensive list, and there are others.
3) Use a Linux disk. Many computer magazines include a disk loaded with one of the many variants of the Linux operating system. You don't actually load Linux on to your computer - simply pop the disk in the DVD drive and away you go. At the end of the session, you eject the disk and nothing is left on the computer except any documents you have saved (and which you can access again the same way at any future time). Most Linux distributions contain a big number of applications, covering all the things you would probably want to do.
So here comes the revelation: it is possible to run your computer with NO SOFTWARE installed except the operating system and whatever else Microsoft has loaded on, and do everything you would normally use a computer for. There are at least three ways you can do this.
1) Many open-source projects have been developing what they call Portable Applications. You can load them onto a memory stick/flash drive, and they will work without being installed on the computer. There's quite a list available now - here's one sample which includes such functions as web browser, email program, word processor, media player, spreadsheets.
2) Use web-based applications. These provide all the functionality of installed software, but you load nothing onto your computer. Probably the best-known is Google Docs, a package including a word processor and spreadsheet. But there are thousands of others which can perform just about every function you could wish for. The website Simple Spark has a very comprehensive list, and there are others.
3) Use a Linux disk. Many computer magazines include a disk loaded with one of the many variants of the Linux operating system. You don't actually load Linux on to your computer - simply pop the disk in the DVD drive and away you go. At the end of the session, you eject the disk and nothing is left on the computer except any documents you have saved (and which you can access again the same way at any future time). Most Linux distributions contain a big number of applications, covering all the things you would probably want to do.
Wednesday, February 4, 2009
Windows log on password
A friend returned from holiday and complained she could not log on to her computer after allowing someone else to use it during her absence. All was solved when we realised that Windows passwords are case sensitive, and she had not noticed the caps lock key was down.
Tuesday, February 3, 2009
Why I dislike Microsoft
Q: How many Microsoft technicians does it take to change a lightbulb?
A: None. They simply redefine darkness as the industry standard.
That sums up perfectly why I don't like Microsoft. They don't adhere to industry standards, and they try to enforce their own on everybody else. Here are some examples:
I worked in the prepress department of a major printing company for five years. We used to shudder when a client brought in a Word or Publisher document for printing, the reason being that Microsoft formats ALL documents (Word, Publisher, Powerpoint, etc) using the default printer driver of the computer on which they are composed. Take the document to another computer, and the composition, pagination, etc, goes to pieces. You have to try and copy drivers from one computer to the other to reconstitute the pagination, and even then it doesn't always work. (And it's impossible if you are moving from PC to Mac.)
If you create a style sheet in Word, the moment you make a slight change to a font (eg, bold, italic) etc, Word automatically creates a new style sheet. By the time you have finished formatting a whole document, you have dozens of totally unnecessary style sheets, which you dare not delete. NO-ONE ELSE's word processing or page layout software does this, for the good reason that it's not necessary and it just makes life difficult.
If you make a PowerPoint presentation containing an audio file, and you time slide transitions to the audio, the timing goes all out if you play the presentation on another computer. I don't understand the full technicalities, but it's something to do with PowerPoint using the computer system's clock speed for timing, and of course, each computer is slightly different.
Internet Explorer does not conform to the World Wide Web consortium's standards for internet browsers. So unless web pages are composed to meet their standards, they do not show properly on screen, which creates problems for designers who have to also meet the requirements of other browsers, such as Firefox and Opera (which, to be fair, are not perfect in implementation either, but are a lot closer to the internationally accepted standards).
Sun Systems came out with a very useful programming language called Java, which helps web pages perform a lot of the amazing feats you take for granted. So Microsoft hijacked the code, implemented their own version, and are now trying to enforce it on the rest of the world and kill off Sun's Java. They probably won't succeed, but it's typical of the way they operate.
So while I am forced to use a lot of Microsoft software, you can see why I find alternatives wherever possible. It's not just bloody-mindedness - it's essential to keeping sanity in my work day.
A: None. They simply redefine darkness as the industry standard.
That sums up perfectly why I don't like Microsoft. They don't adhere to industry standards, and they try to enforce their own on everybody else. Here are some examples:
I worked in the prepress department of a major printing company for five years. We used to shudder when a client brought in a Word or Publisher document for printing, the reason being that Microsoft formats ALL documents (Word, Publisher, Powerpoint, etc) using the default printer driver of the computer on which they are composed. Take the document to another computer, and the composition, pagination, etc, goes to pieces. You have to try and copy drivers from one computer to the other to reconstitute the pagination, and even then it doesn't always work. (And it's impossible if you are moving from PC to Mac.)
If you create a style sheet in Word, the moment you make a slight change to a font (eg, bold, italic) etc, Word automatically creates a new style sheet. By the time you have finished formatting a whole document, you have dozens of totally unnecessary style sheets, which you dare not delete. NO-ONE ELSE's word processing or page layout software does this, for the good reason that it's not necessary and it just makes life difficult.
If you make a PowerPoint presentation containing an audio file, and you time slide transitions to the audio, the timing goes all out if you play the presentation on another computer. I don't understand the full technicalities, but it's something to do with PowerPoint using the computer system's clock speed for timing, and of course, each computer is slightly different.
Internet Explorer does not conform to the World Wide Web consortium's standards for internet browsers. So unless web pages are composed to meet their standards, they do not show properly on screen, which creates problems for designers who have to also meet the requirements of other browsers, such as Firefox and Opera (which, to be fair, are not perfect in implementation either, but are a lot closer to the internationally accepted standards).
Sun Systems came out with a very useful programming language called Java, which helps web pages perform a lot of the amazing feats you take for granted. So Microsoft hijacked the code, implemented their own version, and are now trying to enforce it on the rest of the world and kill off Sun's Java. They probably won't succeed, but it's typical of the way they operate.
So while I am forced to use a lot of Microsoft software, you can see why I find alternatives wherever possible. It's not just bloody-mindedness - it's essential to keeping sanity in my work day.
More of the best freeware
Everywhere I look at the moment, I see magazines and bloggers listing the best of this or that. I have previously listed some of the must-have's that reside on my computer, but to go with the flow, here is an additional list (again, all free).
Anti-virus - although it is not the perfect anti-virus tool, it's hard to go past AVG. If you don't have it, install it today.
Anti-spyware - the same goes for Spybot. It's essential.
Recover lost files - should the unthinkable happen, and you accidentally permanently erase an essential file, don't panic. Glary undelete will come running to the rescue, restoring files that have even vanished from the recycle bin/trash can.
Page layout - I know many Microsoft bundles include Publisher, but take my advice, DO NOT USE IT. It's a dog! Anyone who works in the real printing business will tell you it creates massive problems in their prepress departments. An alternative is Serif PagePlus, which behaves much more like the old PageMaker.
Web design - There are several good open-source tools, but the best are probably NVU and KompoZer.
Video editing - If you are fortunate enough to own a Macintosh, then iMovie is a good basic editor. The PC equivalent is MovieMaker, which comes built in with the system. If you need something a bit more sophisticated, Jahshaka is getting good reviews in the open-source world.
Calculator - the Windows calculator is pathetic. Moffsoft FreeCalc doesn't have any more maths functions, but because I keep losing my place when I'm totting up a column of figures, I love the way it gives me a sidebar read-out of the steps I have entered.
Font viewer - One of the frustrations of the PC system is that it's hard to see what fonts actually look like - mostly the names give you no clue. Fontviewer does exactly what it says, and nothing else. But it does it very simply and well.
Anti-virus - although it is not the perfect anti-virus tool, it's hard to go past AVG. If you don't have it, install it today.
Anti-spyware - the same goes for Spybot. It's essential.
Recover lost files - should the unthinkable happen, and you accidentally permanently erase an essential file, don't panic. Glary undelete will come running to the rescue, restoring files that have even vanished from the recycle bin/trash can.
Page layout - I know many Microsoft bundles include Publisher, but take my advice, DO NOT USE IT. It's a dog! Anyone who works in the real printing business will tell you it creates massive problems in their prepress departments. An alternative is Serif PagePlus, which behaves much more like the old PageMaker.
Web design - There are several good open-source tools, but the best are probably NVU and KompoZer.
Video editing - If you are fortunate enough to own a Macintosh, then iMovie is a good basic editor. The PC equivalent is MovieMaker, which comes built in with the system. If you need something a bit more sophisticated, Jahshaka is getting good reviews in the open-source world.
Calculator - the Windows calculator is pathetic. Moffsoft FreeCalc doesn't have any more maths functions, but because I keep losing my place when I'm totting up a column of figures, I love the way it gives me a sidebar read-out of the steps I have entered.
Font viewer - One of the frustrations of the PC system is that it's hard to see what fonts actually look like - mostly the names give you no clue. Fontviewer does exactly what it says, and nothing else. But it does it very simply and well.
Monday, February 2, 2009
Smash that hard drive!
If you're planning on getting rid of an old computer, the only way to make sure the data doesn't fall into the wrong hands is to remove the hard drive and smash it up with a hammer, a British consumer group has advised. Which? Computing magazine said the only way to make sure fraudsters could not steal personal details from an old computer's hard drive was to utterly destroy it, as simply deleting files or wiping the drive was not sufficient.
Which? said it had bought eight second-hand drives from internet auction site eBay and recovered 22,000 "deleted" files, including some information that could be confidential. Criminals, who it said trawled council waste sites and internet sites like eBay, would be able use specialist software to retrieve the information which could then be used to commit identity theft.
"Even if you delete your files, you'd be surprised how easy it is to recover your personal data. It sounds extreme, but the only way to be 100 per cent safe is to smash your hard drive into smithereens," said editor Sarah Kidner.
Which? said it had bought eight second-hand drives from internet auction site eBay and recovered 22,000 "deleted" files, including some information that could be confidential. Criminals, who it said trawled council waste sites and internet sites like eBay, would be able use specialist software to retrieve the information which could then be used to commit identity theft.
"Even if you delete your files, you'd be surprised how easy it is to recover your personal data. It sounds extreme, but the only way to be 100 per cent safe is to smash your hard drive into smithereens," said editor Sarah Kidner.
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