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LangaList 2003-01-23 Please visit our sponsors and help keep the LangaList S.E. free!
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1) Major Linux Vendor BankruptIt's hard to make money selling free and low-cost items, especially products that exist only (or mainly) as ones and zeros on a disk or in the online bitstream. MandrakeSoft, the French vendor of a respected distribution of Linux, recently filed a "declaration de cessation des paiements," which is the French equivalent of the US "Chapter 11" bankruptcy. They're not out of business, but are in deep financial trouble. LangaList reader Tim Butler, who is also Editor in Chief for the "Open for Business" web site and a founding member of the Linux Daily News, sent in the following analysis:
The second, longer article ("Desktop Dreams...") is especially good, and puts MandrakeSoft's troubles in perspective: a problem with one company, and not an indication that Linux--- or Open Source software in general--- is going away. Tim's writing is especially welcome because he talks about Linux in an entirely rational way, without the snooty arrogance or the froth-on-the-lips religious fervor that pervades so much of the writing from the Open Source community. Refreshing! Click to email this item to a
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--------------( the above is an advertisement )-------------- 2) Driver Problems In Win2KDwayne C. Smith found a cure to a common driver problem that affected his Windows 2000 system. It's worth mentioning for that alone, but also because XP shares many of the same components as Windows 2000, and could fall prey to similar issues; and because Dwayne's problem solving method was excellent--- worth emulating any time you have a similar problem in *any* version of Windows.
Thanks, Dwayne. "WinDriver" is a very commonly used tool for building Windows drivers for PCI cards, USB hardware, and many other devices. If you use Windows 2000, Dwayne's link could be very handy to have around.... Click to email this item to a
friend 3) XP Folder Views
Although you can get anywhere in Windows from any view of any folder (by drilling up, down, or sideways), the "My Documents" shortcut is really meant only as a way to get there--- to the My Documents folder. For other destinations on your hard drive, it's simpler to create a direct link to that location rather than to go through the mutli-click navigation needed to get there via other folders. In this case, it'd be much simpler to have a direct "My Computer" link available instead of having to go through "My Documents" to get to "My Computer" and the rest of your partitions and drives. You can easily create one-click links to any drive or folder--- or all of them--- by right clicking anywhere on the empty desktop, and selecting Properties/Desktop/Customize and then checking "My Computer" and "My Documents" (and anything else you want) in the "Desktop icons" dialog box area. Once the "My Computer" and "My Documents" icons are on your desktop, you can leave them there, drag them to a folder, or drag them to the QuickLaunch area of the taskbar (next to the Start button). When you want to go to My Documents, the shortest route is then to click the My Documents folder directly, but if your intended destination is someplace else, click the My Computer icon instead. Once the My Computer folder is open, it will show you all your drives/partitions at once. You can create additional shortcuts that point directly at any of these other drives or partitions--- or to any folder or even a specific file on any drive or partition--- simply by right clicking on the desired object and then selecting "Create Shortcut." You can put the shortcut anywhere, including on the QuickLaunch bar, and then access these destinations in literally one click. That's how I have my system set up--- all my most-used drives and folders have their own one-click shortcuts on my QuickLaunch bar, so I can get to them immediately, without having to navigate through intermediary folders. There are myriad other ways to customize the folder
views in XP. See, for example, Click to email this item to a
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--------------( the above is an advertisement )-------------- 4) AOL (Or Any ISP) Needs No Firewall?
Man, I love AOL--- "Trust us, we're safe." Suuuure they are. 8-) Although current versions of AOL software have gotten better, previous versions of AOL have screwed up more PC networking setups than any other single source I know of. But that's another rant... In this case, my guess is that the tech had an incomplete understanding of what can be good advice: If you try to build a new network with a firewall already in place, the firewall may actually prevent the network from getting established, or allow it only to partially establish. So, when you're setting up or rebuilding ANY network (not just AOL stuff), you'll often get better results by TEMPORARILY disabling, and perhaps uninstalling, any firewalls. Once you have your new network connection established, then you can go about the process of closing ports and/or re-raising firewalls. Of course, it's unnerving to run without shields, even for a little while. You can reduce the risk of anything bad happening during the brief time you'll be without a firewall by UNsharing any files or folders on your networked PCs before you bring down the firewall. Once the firewall is down, don't run any software other than what's absolutely necessary to get the new connection going. (You can leave your antivirus software running all along; it usually has no ill effect on setting up network software.) Once the firewall is back up and before you do anything else, test the security of your new connection by using the tools and sites discussed here: http://www.informationweek.com/841/langa.htm . (It's also a good idea to test your online security on a regular basis anyway, just to be sure.) Once you're sure your new network connection is working and is safe, you then can run a full anti-virus/anti-scumware/anti-trojan scan on all PCs affected by the network change (see http://www.langa.com/newsletters/2003/2003-01-13.htm#3 ) to ensure that nothing sneaked in the door while your firewall was down. Then (whew!) you can use your new connection with reasonable confidence that you're about as safe as can be, and without having to trust that Big Broth--- I mean AOL (or any other ISP) is watching out for you. Click to email this item to a
friend 5) Interesting Site For Old Programs
Thanks Bob. It's a very simple page (and I like the "wounded moon" image of Europa); but it leads to about 50 separate (and mostly excellent!) downloads. Click to email this item to a
friend 6) Don't Make Me Beg! 8-)If you think the LangaList is a worthwhile read,
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friend 7) "PatchMeister"
Thanks, Denver! The names recently changed a bit: The free version is now called "PatchLite" ( http://www.ecora.com/ecora/products/patchlite/default.asp ) and the more powerful full version is "Patch Manager" ( http://www.ecora.com/ecora/products/patchmanager/default.asp ). Worth a look! Click to email this item to a
friend 8) They Loaded The CodeDo you have a home page or website? (It doesn't matter what size.) Please click over to http://www.langa.com/code.htm , and maybe you can join the hundreds and hundreds of LangaList readers who have "Loaded the Code!" (If you've already "Loaded The Code" and are wondering if your site will appear here or on the Langa.Com web site, please see http://www.langa.com/link.txt ) Speaking of which: Here's another eclectic sample of reader sites--- some professional, some very personal: View A Randomly-Chosen Reader Site Manually Browse All Posted-to-Date Sites
Starting At Disciples of tech Twin Bells Greg and Cathy Tips to reduce spam or junk mail Advantage Printing Computer Hardware And Solutions William's Web Site SeresSign Savvy scents Computer Tips, Tweaks & Toys Click to email this item to a
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--------------( the above is an advertisement )-------------- 9) Popup Blocker BlockerNo, I'm not stuttering or having a fit of echolalia. <g> This is about a tool that some websites employ to block users who access the site with "popup blocker" software running:
Ahem. Langa.Com has never used any popups. 8-) I agree: They're annoying. But running a high-volume web site is expensive, and no webmaster is *obligated* to give anything away for free: (Despite the odd views held by some netizens, there is no "right" to free information.) If a web owner decides that you *have* to view his or her ads to access the info they offer, that's their prerogative, just as it's yours to take your clicks elsewhere. Actually, free web sites and services rely on a level of cooperation between the site owner and the site visitors: The owner offers info for free, and asks in return that you allow their ads to display. (You don't necessarily have to buy anything; but at least just look at the ads.) When users employ popup blockers, cookie blockers, "web bug" blockers (one of the silliest tools ever invented), or similar software that defeats ads or that prevents ads from being counted, they're helping to ensure that the web sites they visit can't stay in business. It's a self-defeating strategy! See http://www.langa.com/newsletters/2002/2002-04-18.htm#2 for the full scoop. (BTW, this is one of the reasons why I offer the Plus! version of this newsletter: The Plus newsletter and Plus sites are reader-supported, and have no ads at all--- no popups, no banners--- nothing but content. <g>) Click to email this item to a
friend 10) Just For GrinsCall me a curmudgeon, but those silly animated "Help" characters that Microsoft builds into its software drive me nuts. I always deactivate them right away so that I get normal Help window dialogs. I just don't see why it's easier to get help from a dancing paper clip (for example) than from plain text So, I turn off the cartoons. But because I turned off the little "search dog" animation in XP, I missed something that this alert reader saw:
It was enough to make me go back and temporarily reactive the silly thing. Sure enough: The dog pages through its book backwards! Click to email this item to a
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--------------( the above is an advertisement )-------------- 11) Plus! Edition Highlights:
Today's LangaList Plus! Edition contains all ten items above, plus about 30% more content including: an amazingly information-rich reader letter that discusses controlling and personalizing Windows Update (so you don't see patches you don't want) and lots more; an incredibly powerful automation tool that can replace Task Scheduler (and several other types of software); and an excellent, free, 100% legal clone of Microsoft Word. Come on! It's only pennies per issue: What are you waiting for? Full Plus! Edition info: http://www.langa.com/plus.htm Click to email this item to a
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