Contents tagged with Technology
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I love ClearContext!!
After several months of using the Free version of the ClearContext addon for Microsoft Outlook, I just cant imagine what I would do without it. It has reduced my email time, kept me more organized, and uncluttered my Inbox better & faster than any ad-hoc system I have devised in the past.
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Virtual Disk Conversions
I recently wanted to retry the idea of using virtual development environments instead of developing locally on my PC so that I can have several pre-built development and test environments that are tailored to each deployment target. Having dabbled at this a couple times before, I already had some images available to use.
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Recruiting professionally in the small world of IT.
Face it, the IT world is a tiny tight-knit community where everyone knows everyone either directly or indirectly through our own private game of 6-degrees of separation. So, why do most employers treat potential recruits more like pesky cold-calling-vendors than like valued potential future clients?
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Fix for iPod Nano that resets over and over...
Yesterday, my iPod Nano began to auto reset over and over.
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FWD: First Notebook With NAND Solid State Disk Announced
First Notebook With NAND Solid State Disk Announced:
The days of notebooks with spinning hard disk drives are going to come an end. Samsung hopes to start the demise of hard disk drives this June when they launch the first solid state disk in their Q30 notebook this June.
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High capacity MicroSD (TransFlash) upgrade for your cellphone
Like many of the newer cell phones, my new Samsung A950 doubles as a mp3 player (well really just WMA) via MicroSD (aka TransFlash) memory. However most of the compatible memory on the market right now is only available in 1gb or less. This product from US Modular looks like just the ticket to work around this limitation!
US Modular - Product Page:US Modular’s Stik&StorTM cell phone memory upgrades come in densities up to 4GB--which means you can store up to eight times the data, music, photos and video currently possible with any TransFlashTM or MicroSDTM upgrades. Fits Motorola, Samsung, Kyocera, and any other phone with a TransFlashTM or microSDTM slot. It all means more freedom, more fun and less hassle for the millions who know cell phones aren’t just for talkin’. Rock on!
Basically it is an extender & adapter for the MicroSD format that puts your memory on the outside of your device in order to allow for greater capacity.
Nifty idea!
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USB Flash Drives & Portable Apps
As many of my friends know, I have become a complete nut about collecting USB Flash Drives and Portable Applications. Initially I was using them primarily for transporting code and other files between work and home, but eventually I began placing all my key tools (mostly SysInternals) and utility applications on the drive so I don't have to install them on all my PC's.
My addiction was further fueled by the recent launch of the Portable Apps website and subsequent support for many apps targeting the usb flash drive platform.
The Apps
The best portable apps are those that are specifically designed to launch and store state solely on a portable drive whose drive letter may change each time it is connected. Here are the main ones that I have installed and use on a regular basis:- Portable FireFox - browser
- Portable Thunderbird - view RSS feeds, news, and mail
- Portable OpenOffice
- Portable Gaim - jabber IM client
- Portable FileZilla - ftp etc
- uTorrent - bitTorrent client
- VNC "Free Edition" - simple client & server for sharing desktop
- Most SysInternals tools, but especially these:
- ProcessExplorer
- DebugView
- Filemon
- Regmon
- PSTools (suite)
- CoolPlayer - audio player
- WinDirStat - disk space usage statistics
- Some apps from NirSoft:
- CPorts - see current ports open on your pc
- WhoIsThisDomain - lookup WhoIs info for a list of domains
The Drives
Thus far I have sampled several brands of USB Flash Drives but keep coming back to Lexar for both form-factor and speed.
The model I have bought the most is the JumpDrive Secure II (mostly due to price and ubiquitousnous), but I recently bought their JumpDrive Lightning 2gb due to its impressive size, appearance, and speed.
The Lightning is my 10th USB drive and definitely my favorite. The shiny steel package and small formfactor are sweet, but the big selling point was its speed at 24MB per second Read (160x), 18MB per second Write (120x). This drive is a bit more pricey than most other drives, but it is perfectly suited for running Portable Apps.
Anything over 100x is great for running portable apps, but you can get by with 40x if you are patient. Just make sure to check the specs before buying. If the package for a usb flash drive omits this info they are usually slower than 20x and often as slow as 1x (esp for off-brands). Just stick to the name brands for companies who already sell memory, flash cards, and other similar media and you will typically get a descent drive.
Happy Portable App'ing!
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"Windows Internals and Advanced Troubleshooting" training
Later this year, SysInternals/WinInternals founder Mark Russinovich and David Solomon are offering a top-notch class on troubleshooting that covers current OS versions as well as upcoming changes to the OS in Vista (next Windows version)
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iPod Nano Accessory Reviews
After receiving my new iPod Nano (4gb/white) for xmas, I rapidly felt a need to accessorize. First, I wanted to be able to wear the iPod during exercise or while on-the-go. My preference has always been some sort of lanyard neck-band because I really didnt feel comfortable with something worn on the wrist or arm - plus I already had a pager and phone on my belt, so I couldnt fathom adding yet another belt clip. My preference was Apple's Lanyard Headphones, but for $39 they were overpriced, and the sound quality of the headphones wasnt acceptable.
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Maxthon & Microsoft IE Team at CES2006?
I am a long-time user of the Maxthon tabbed-browser, which is mostly just a shell that hosts IE. Today, when loading up my browser, it included the following interesting announcement: