tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-83869990951344825982024-03-13T22:33:10.691-04:00QA Tech-TipsTechnical information of interest to the Software QA community as well as others interested in the odd things that can happen with computersJim "JR"http://www.blogger.com/profile/01053267015652256718noreply@blogger.comBlogger76125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8386999095134482598.post-66741380920821050802222-08-27T16:07:00.000-04:002018-01-16T11:29:11.118-05:00How To Get Comments Approved On This BlogPLEASE Read This Article!One of the onerous jobs one has when running a blog like this is "moderating" comments. I <i><b>USED</b></i> to have an "open door" policy about comments - anyone, including "anonymous", could post anything they wanted.<br />
<br />
Unfortunately, some users abused this trust by planting "<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comment_spam"><u>comment spam</u></a>"on my site, so I had to take the unpleasant, (but necessary), step of forbidding <i><b>any</b></i> hyperlinks on my site(s). For a more detailed explanation of this, please see my earlier posting <a href="http://www.qatechtips.com/2014/04/we-interrupt-this-blog-for-important.html"><i><u>We Interrupt This Blog For An Important Announcement</u></i></a>.<br />
<br />
<hr />
<br />
I don't know why, maybe people don't read the BIG disclaimer prior to creating a post, or maybe it's a part of their signature, but I <i><b>still</b></i> get comments with embedded hyperlinks. To make matters worse, Blogger <i><b>will not let me edit comments</b></i>. Period. Even if it's only to X-out a few %$#@!'s here or there.<br />
<br />
This puts me in the unpleasant position of having to delete comments that might otherwise contain useful content, simply because they contain active hyperlinks.<br />
<br />
So, please hearken to my plea:<br />
<br />
<b>If you want to get comments approved, <i>don't include hyperlinks!</i></b><br />
<br />
What say ye?<br />
<br />
Jim (JR)Jim "JR"http://www.blogger.com/profile/01053267015652256718noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8386999095134482598.post-15735800058928279542017-02-19T09:41:00.000-05:002018-01-16T11:13:30.733-05:00HP OfficeJet Pro 6975How to clear a Printer Failure 0x6100004aGreetings!<br />
<br />
Today I had an interesting experience with a (relatively) new Hewlett-Packard OfficeJet Pro 6975 Multi-Function Printer. I encountered a strange "Printer Failure 0x6100004a" error. Since extensive research online didn't disclose a fix, I decided it was time for another QA Tech-Tip!<br />
<br />
<u><b>Issue</b></u><b>:</b><br />
When I attempted to print something today, I received a "Paper Jam" message instructing me to remove the back panel and/or the AutoDuplexer attachment and clear a paper jam. After verifying that there was no paper jam, and that paper was loaded, (as sometimes if the paper pick-up rollers miss a sheet, it reads as a paper jam), I dismissed the error.<br />
<br />
It is interesting to note at this point that the OfficeJet Pro 6975 doesn't have <i><b>either</b></i> a removable back panel <i><b>or</b></i> a removable "auto-duplexer". Maybe it's time for a firmware update to the on-screen error messages? <br />
<br />
The printer then threw a "Printer Failure 0x6100004a" message, instructing me to turn off the printer and then turn it back on again. Of course, "If this error persists, please contact HP".<br />
<br />
The characteristics of this issue are as follows:<br />
<ul>
<li>The printer throws a "paper jam" error even though there is no paper jam present.</li>
<li>Clearing the error by pressing "OK" on the front panel display ultimately ends up with a "Printer Failure 0x6100004a" message, at which point the printer will not do anything else.</li>
<li>Attempting to shut-down the printer may cause it to hang at the "shutting down" screen. </li>
<li>"Resetting" the printer by the usual "user-mode" methods such as turning it off-and-on, disconnecting power, applying power with the "Power" button pressed, etc. does no good.</li>
</ul>
It turns out that there <i><b>IS</b></i> a solution and it's (relatively) easy to do. It's just hidden within the printer's hidden System Support menu.<br />
<br />
<hr />
<br />
What appears to be happening, (at least this is what the chat representative at HP told me), is that - for whatever reason - the printer gets "stuck" in a "paper-jam" mode and can't get out. This makes the printer think that it has encountered a hard failure. It stamps its feet, has a tantrum, and refuses to play.<br />
<br />
<hr />
<br />
Here's the fix:<br />
<ul>
<li>With the printer on, and stuck in this error, return to the "Home" screen somehow. You will probably have to "OK", "Hide", or whatever your way back to the "Home" screen.</li>
<li>Find the "Back" button. It's in the lower-left corner, just outside the visible area of the front panel's screen. If you can't find it, just touch something, (like "Copy Document"), on the home screen and it will light up. Once you find it, press it to go back to the home screen.</li>
<li><i><b>Even though it is not lit</b></i>, press it four times in succession. You should be rewarded with a blank screen with "Support Menu" at the top. Getting it to happen can be a bit tricky as the taps have to be right on the button, even though dark, and there's a certain technique to it. If you don't get the support menu right away, take a deep breath and keep trying.</li>
<li>Once you get to the "Support Menu", tap on the words "Support Menu" at the top of the front panel display to enter the Support menu. Once you do this, you should see something like "Support MCP2C11234ABC" on two lines.</li>
<li>At the bottom of the screen you will see a big "X" in the lower left, a left bracket "<" a right bracket ">", and the word "OK" on a blue background.</li>
<li>Press the right bracket ">" twice until you see "Resets Menu". If you accidentally hit the left bracket, or hit the right bracket too many times, keep pressing it, it will eventually wrap-around and bring you to the "Resets Menu".</li>
<li>Select "OK, and you will see "Country/Language reset". Press the right bracket and you will see "Partial Reset". Pressing it again will bring you to the "Semi-Full reset" prompt.</li>
</ul>
<br />
<hr />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #990000; font-size: x-large;"><b>ATTENTION!</b></span></div>
<br />
At this point, you are just about to do what HP calls a "Semi-Full" reset. When you press the "OK" button, <span style="color: #990000;"><i><b>you will reset any customizations you have made to the printer</b></i></span> - in essence nuking it back to the Stone Age - and once you press it, <span style="color: #990000;"><i><b>it takes effect immediately!</b></i></span><br />
<br />
Go ahead and ask me how I know. I was repeating these steps for the sake of this article, I got to the final "OK", and pressed it to see what the confirmation prompt would be. Guess what? There wasn't one! All the printer's setup that I had laboriously restored prior to writing this article, gone!<br />
<br />
When you perform the Semi-Full reset you:<br />
<ul>
<li>Reset most, if not all, of the internal states and registers of the printer.<br />(<i><b>This</b></i> is the step you want, as it clears the paper-jam state.)</li>
<li>It will also reset the printer's</li>
<ul>
<li>Language</li>
<li>Region</li>
<li>Paper size/type</li>
<li>Network settings (both wired and WiFi)</li>
<li>Fax settings, including auto-answer, fax ID and number, possibly including the phone book, junk fax blocking, etc. I don't use the phone book or junk fax settings, so I don't know if they get nuked. I would expect them to be nuked though.</li>
<li>HP Web Connect and any other on-line services like "instant ink"</li>
<li>Internal printer settings like print-head alignment. </li>
<li>And maybe a few others I don't remember.</li>
</ul>
</ul>
In essence, you will be doing the equivalent of an Out-Of-Box setup when you are done, or as the HP chat representative told me: "this will reset all the printer settings to factory defaults".<br />
<br />
(I sure hope you have your settings written down!) <br />
<br />
<hr />
<br />
Are you ready?<br />
<br />
Go ahead and press "OK". . . . . .<br />
<br />
The printer may make a noise, (or it might not), it will appear to "hang" for about thirty seconds or so, and then it will turn off.<br />
<br />
When you turn it back on, you will be confronted with the HP logo for a moment or two, and then you will be brought to the language setup screen, where you will begin configuring the printer as if it were brand-new, right out of the box, all over again.<br />
<br />
You might be tempted to "restore" a saved settings file you might have for this printer. I'd recommend against it - you're trying to <i><b>clear out the cruft</b></i>, remember? Who knows what odd-ball cruft might be hiding in that file?<br />
<br />
Once this is done, the printer should be printing again, and you should be a Happy Camper!<br />
<br />
<hr />
<br />
Update: 01/15/2018<br />
<br />
This error appears to be caused when
the printer cannot pick up a sheet of paper, throws a paper-jam error,
and the error is not resolved after several retries.<br />
<br />
The <i><b>USUAL</b></i>
culprit is a legitimate misfeed - the paper wasn't picked up by the
paper pickup roller. And what usually happens is that you go thorough
the whole "paper-jam" drill, open up everything, re-seat the paper, etc.
etc. etc. - and you end up with a working printer.<br />
<br />
You can try the following to convince your printer to play nice:<br />
<ul>
<li>Remove the paper and make sure it's not unusually slick or slippery.</li>
<li>Look
for anything that might cause sheets of paper to "hang" or stick to
each other, like humidity, dampness, something sticky on it, a dented edge, etc.</li>
<li>"Fan"
the stack of paper by holding it up on it's edge and running your thumb
through it causing all the pages to flippppppp like a fan.</li>
<li>Try turning the stack over. </li>
<li>Change the paper, or - if the printer's getting low - add more.</li>
</ul>
If that doesn't fix it, the printer throws <i><b>another</b></i> paper-jam error, and hopes this will resolve it. If the paper <i><b>still</b></i> doesn't feed, you get the, now famous, "Printer Failure 0x6100004a" message.<br />
<br />
In many cases the paper misfeed is a temporary occurrence, and a reset usually clears up the problem.<br />
If it still isn't behaving itself after a few resets, then maybe you need to call HP.<br />
<br />
<hr />
<br />
Observations? Comments? Post 'em below!<br />
<br />
Thanks for watching.<br />
<br />
Jim (JR)<br />
<br />Jim "JR"http://www.blogger.com/profile/01053267015652256718noreply@blogger.com14tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8386999095134482598.post-87021413125478883492015-11-11T12:40:00.000-05:002015-11-11T12:40:34.878-05:00How to remove "For Other Computer" from your rulesSurprisingly, it's easier than you think!Outlook is a great little e-mail client with a rich feature-set, and I have been using it for many, many, <i><b>many</b></i>, years.<br />
<br />
Like any piece of software, it does have its little quirks and the occasional speed-bump that you have to deal with. For example, <a href="http://www.qatechtips.com/2013/09/migrating-outlooks-user-settings-how-to.html" target="_blank"><u>migrating your user settings</u></a> isn't as straightforward as you might expect.<br />
<br />
Another little quirk comes when you migrate your rules: It's not uncommon to migrate rules from one machine to another and then discover that - at least some - rules have "For Other Computer" appended to the rule name.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-7hi9rfkc_1Y/VkNr2Ga-HFI/AAAAAAAAAJU/s0qOooUvZ_c/s1600/Outlook%2BRule%2BDialog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-7hi9rfkc_1Y/VkNr2Ga-HFI/AAAAAAAAAJU/s0qOooUvZ_c/s320/Outlook%2BRule%2BDialog.jpg" width="75%" /></a>
</div>
<br />
<br />
What's even <i><b>more</b></i> annoying is that there appears to be no way to remove it.<br />
<br />
Since this has been annoying me for a while now, I decided to search The Usual Fountains Of Wisdom on the internet. Surprisingly, no one seems to have addressed this specific issue. Since there are any number of postings on various fora asking this question, and since it is so easy to fix, I decided "It's Article Time!"<br />
<br />
Part of the problem is that the vast majority of the Fountains Of Wisdom assume (!!) that if you're using Outlook, you are using it with an Exchange Server. And yes, Outlook is uniquely qualified to work with Microsoft's Exchange Server hosted e-mail. However that's not the only way it can be used, as it works equally well with Pop/SMTP or IMAP mail servers, and it appears that a great many people use it that way. Including your Fearless Article Author; as I have been using it as a Pop/SMTP mail client for years and years, and years.<br />
<br />
<hr />
<br />
Why does this happen?<br />
<br />
One of Windows' many features is that it can be set up in such a way that users can log in from different machines and still see the same basic configuration. This is done by use of what is called a "Roaming" profile. These are settings that are linked to the <i><b>user</b></i>, instead of the <i><b>machine</b></i>, and are commonly used in a remote access / Terminal Server type environment. By using the Windows Roaming Profile, a particular user can use any number of different workstations connected to the same server and see the same configuration each time.<br />
<br />
A great example of this is a doctor's office, where there are computer terminals in each treatment room, and another computer in the doctor's actual office itself. In this case, using roaming profiles, the doctor can go from treatment room to treatment room, always seeing the configuration that he's most comfortable with.<br />
<br />
What about e-mail? In this case, there may be a difference. While the doctor may wish to <i><b>view</b></i>, and perhaps even <i><b>answer</b></i> e-mails from any terminal in any one of the treatment rooms, he may want to segregate certain - possibly confidential - e-mail messages so that they download and are stored <i><b>only on his office computer</b></i>, instead of any open terminal he may be at.<br />
<br />
This is done by setting a special attribute - "On This Computer Only" - when creating a rule. With this attribute, a particular rule will <i><b>only be run</b></i> when the doctor is at the specially designated computer located behind locked doors in his office. A rule like this can take potentially sensitive e-mails and store them off-line on a local system instead of allowing them to be spread all over the network<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-1sOrAEw1ndE/VkN7S4o9dpI/AAAAAAAAAKI/1AFj-8b__Iw/s1600/Rule%2BSettings.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-1sOrAEw1ndE/VkN7S4o9dpI/AAAAAAAAAKI/1AFj-8b__Iw/s320/Rule%2BSettings.jpg" width="75%" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
One of Outlook's quirks is that if Outlook is <i><b>not being used with an Exchange Server</b></i>, it "automagically" assumes that any rule created should be valid <i><b>only on the computer that created it</b></i>. To accomplish this, <span style="color: #660000;"><i><b>Outlook automatically sets this attribute for any rule created on a computer that uses Outlook as a stand-alone e-mail client</b></i></span>.<br />
<br />
Sounds reasonable, right? Exactly right - until you decide to migrate Outloo<span id="goog_397203127"></span><span id="goog_397203128"></span>k, or your rules, to another computer! At this point, Outlook assumes that any imported rule is not valid on the machine it was moved to, <i><b>causing rules to silently "break"</b></i> because they're not being executed on the new machine. Not only do they not execute, they don't tell you they're not being executed - because Outlook "assumes" (!!) that they <i><b>will</b></i> be executed on the machine that originally created them. If you're migrating Outlook to a new/different system, you're probably taking Outlook off-line on the old one, so that assumption may not be valid.<br />
<br />
Once you do this, you find rules labled "For Other Computer", indicating Outlook believes that <i><b>they are not valid on the machine you're using them on</b></i>!<br />
<br />
<hr />
<br />
So, how do we fix this?<br />
<br />
There is, probably, a Registry Setting somewhere that turns off this "feature", though I have not found it yet.<br />
<br />
The other way is to open the Rules Manager, go to each affected rule, and un-select "On This Computer Only".<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-HfXc1sGERGs/VkNr5fzEQzI/AAAAAAAAAJo/vR5s19gssSU/s1600/cleared%2Bsetting.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-HfXc1sGERGs/VkNr5fzEQzI/AAAAAAAAAJo/vR5s19gssSU/s320/cleared%2Bsetting.jpg" width="75%" /></a></div>
<br />
Once you do this, and save the edited rule, you will notice that the "For Other Computer" designation has been removed.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-60RV4cTu-f8/VkNr5W_3AGI/AAAAAAAAAJs/e-9MLv6RZA8/s1600/For%2BThis%2BComputer%2BOnly%2Bcleared.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-60RV4cTu-f8/VkNr5W_3AGI/AAAAAAAAAJs/e-9MLv6RZA8/s320/For%2BThis%2BComputer%2BOnly%2Bcleared.jpg" width="75%" /></a></div>
<br />
<hr />
<br />
You repeat this for every rule you have with "For Other Computer" next to it. If you have a <i><b>lot</b></i> of rules, I can't tell you how to do this in bulk, but - at the very least - it can be done.<br />
<br />
And, since it is such a simple fix, I am surprised that no one else has mentioned it!<br />
<br />
Well, it's been mentioned now - and I hope you find it useful.<br />
<br />
What say ye?<br />
<br />
Jim (JR)<br />
<br />Jim "JR"http://www.blogger.com/profile/01053267015652256718noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8386999095134482598.post-67134767483089018332015-09-17T19:28:00.000-04:002017-03-15T13:34:09.023-04:00OOPS! - When disaster strikesSafely removing large USB Flash Drives (Part 5 of a Series)Hello again!<br />
<br />
Everyone has, and loves, the USB flash drives, (also known as "thumb-drives" or "keychain drives"), because they are both small in size, and (relatively), massive in capacity.<br />
<br />
Right now, 128 gigabyte flash drives are common, and I wold not be surprised if 256 gig flash drives are available when I make my next visit to Micro Center.<br />
<br />
And this is good. I can pick up an entire copy of either my, or my wife's e-mail store and move it from one machine to another - <i>sans</i> network. Likewise, I can go visit a client and carry what used to be a whole briefcase of CD's and DVD's in my pocket. I can even place <i><b>entire operating systems</b></i> on relatively small flash media - I have a 16 gig thumb-drive that can cold-boot any one of <i><b>eight</b></i> different Linux images, (four different versions, in both 32 and 64 bit), of Mint 17.1.<br />
<br />
And so on. . . . .<br />
<br />
We all know to "safely remove", (unmount / eject), the flash-drive before we just yank it out, to prevent the data from being scrambled. We do the "<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nM4okRvCg2g" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"><u>safety dance</u></a>" routine, and remove our media, confident that by the time the little task-bar pop-up comes along, we're golden. Right?<br />
<br />
Ahhh. . . Not really. . . .<br />
<br />
You see, it's not that simple anymore. <i><b>Especially</b></i> with flash drives.<br />
<br />
<hr />
<br />
Long ago the computer's "silicon" - processing chips - became faster than the hard drives. To reduce hard drive latency and I/O bottlenecks, operating systems implemented a policy of <a href="https://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/windows/desktop/aa364218%28v=vs.85%29.aspx" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"><u>"Lazy" writes, and cached data</u></a>.<br />
<br />
What this means is that the operating system would allocate a fairly large chunk of memory as a very fast buffer for frequently used data. Windows would read and write to the memory buffer and then - later on when things weren't so crazy - it would write any changes made back to the hard drive. So when the computer was "busy" - refreshing the screen, or doing something complicated - it would postpone refreshing the disk until it was finished and waiting for you to do something like typing or moving the mouse.<br />
<br />
However. . . .<br />
<br />
As I mentioned in a previous article - <a href="http://www.qatechtips.com/2011/03/2000-gigabyte-gorilla.html" target="_blank"><i><u>The 2000 Gigabyte Gorilla</u></i></a> - hard drives themselves began implementing a "<a href="http://smarthdd.com/write_back.htm" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"><u>lazy write</u></a>" technology to help ease the I/O burden. Fast cache memory on the drive makes the drive <i><b>look</b></i> faster than it <b><i>really is</i></b>. The result is that the <i><b>hard drive</b></i> would report success before the data was <i><b>actually and truly written</b></i>.<br />
<br />
Oops!<br />
<br />
So. . . . The operating system people and the hard drive people got together and implemented a new hard drive command - flush data - which is supposed to absolutely, <i><b>positively</b></i>, guarantee that any changed data was written before the "success" signal was received.<br />
<br />
The whole idea behind "safely remove", (or "shutdown"), is that the user's command to remove the media, (or shutdown the computer), would force a data cache flush <i><b>to the physical drive platters</b></i>, updating everything before the drive was removed, guaranteeing consistent data on the drive.<br />
<br />
However, as the author of the article, <a href="http://web.archive.org/web/20150405020637/http://forums.storagereview.com/index.php/topic/3200-how-important-is-the-hard-drive-cache/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"><i><u>How important is the hard drive cache?</u></i></a> mentions, the things that make this true for actual, physical, hard drives <i><b>are no longer true for NAND / NOR flash memory drives.</b></i><br />
<br />
Double oops!<br />
<br />
<hr />
<br />
The wherefore behind the "why" in all of this is due to <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flash_memory" target="_blank"><u>the way flash memory works</u></a>.<br />
<ul>
<li>Flash memory is organized into "read blocks", larger "write blocks" which are groups of many read blocks, and huge "erase blocks" which contain a very large number of write blocks.</li>
<li>"Read blocks" are tiny blocks of data that you can read whatever and whenever you want.</li>
<li>"Write blocks" are <i><b>large</b></i> groups of "read blocks". To write even the smallest amount of data, you have to read and modify <i><b>the entire write block</b></i>, copy it to an unused space within its local erase block, and mark the old write block as "dirty" (unusable until erased). Once a write block has been written to, it cannot be reclaimed and re-written until <i><b>the entire erase block is purged</b></i>. The only thing you can do is mark it "dirty" and try to find another unused write block. If you have a lot of data to copy, you do this write block by write block, over and over again.</li>
<li>"Erase blocks" are <i><b>gigantic</b></i> groups of write blocks. If there are no free write blocks within the existing erase block, you have to <i><b>copy the entire erase block to a free area</b></i>, (an entirely empty erase block), with the new data included - and then erase the entire old area, since you can't erase anything smaller than an entire "erase block".</li>
</ul>
So, for any kind of serious data access where there is both reading and writing going on, this can become a non-trivial, time consuming process. And flash drives hide this process from the O/S.<br />
<br />
When the flash drives were small - measured in megabytes, or even small numbers of gigabytes - this time lag was not really a problem because the actual size of the memory array was small enough so that this overhead was not noticeable. Now that flash drives have become hundreds and hundreds of gigabytes in size, the overhead for writing - and the associated time lag - can become huge, even when measured by human time standards.<br />
<br />
What this all adds up to is that the operating system - and this includes Windows, OS/X, and Linux - can no longer reliably predict when the flash media has been fully updated, and the "safe to remove" prompt may not be true anymore.<br />
<br />
So far, (as far as I can tell), the ONLY way you can tell if the flash drive is <i><b>really</b></i> ready to be removed is to watch the activity LED and wait for it - eventually - to stop. And that might not even be long enough, as I have seen the LED on a flash drive flash and stop on a "remove" command, and then suddenly re-start just as I was about to remove it.<br />
<br />
The result of all of this, is that unless you are very, <i><b>very</b></i> careful when removing flash media, you can inadvertently end up with a corrupted flash drive.<br />
<br />
What say ye?<br />
<br />
Jim (JR)Jim "JR"http://www.blogger.com/profile/01053267015652256718noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8386999095134482598.post-49564834516963624942015-02-12T21:03:00.000-05:002015-02-12T21:03:28.356-05:00OOPS! - When disaster strikesDo-It-Yourself Anti Static Spray (Part 4 of a series)Hello again!<br />
<br />
As I am sure you all know, this is the time of year for snowy evenings, hot-chocolate by the fireplace, warm cookies, soft music, and <b>Static Electricity</b>!<br />
<br />
I am also sure that anyone who has been within 500 feet of anything electronic knows that Static Electricity is a <b>Bad Thing</b>, for more reasons than three.<br />
<br />
Likewise, there are a number of companies who make special "Anti-Static Sprays", all neatly bottled in colorful packaging, ready for your use. No to mention that they use about five cents worth of materials and charge you Serious Bucks per bottle/can/whatever.<br />
<br />
So, what's a poor sod supposed to do? <b>Make your own!</b><br />
<br />
It's almost as easy as falling out of bed, and costs just slightly more than that - not counting the hospital bills. . .<br />
<br />
<b><u>You will need</u>:</b><br />
<ol>
<li>A spray bottle of some kind. An old Window Cleaner bottle, a small trigger-pump bottle, or whatever you have laying around.<br />I bought a small, 12 oz plant spray bottle awhile back for a couple of bucks, and have been using it over and over and over again for years and years and years. If you notice your bottle begins to collapse inward on itself as you use it, adding a couple of small pin-holes at the top will help prevent that.</li>
<li>A jug of the <i><b>absolutely cheapest</b></i> fabric softener you can buy.<br />The no-name, lemon scented, bargain brand is more than sufficient, so don't waste your money on the stuff with the fancy packaging, fluffy towels, and baby-bottoms on it. You will probably end up with a gallon jug of the stuff, and depending on how much spray you make, it will likely last for a loooong long time. If your "better half" already uses fabric softener for the laundry, mooch some of that.</li>
<li>Some clean, (demineralized), water.<br />If you have nice soft water where you are, tap water is just fine. If your water has a lot of minerals in it, use cheap drinking water, or get distilled water. You just don't want a lot of minerals/lime/rust/etc. in the water.</li>
</ol>
<b><u>How to make it</u>:</b><br />
<ol>
<li>Fill the bottle that you're using about 1/4 full of fabric softener.</li>
<li>Add clean water to fill the rest of the bottle. Don't forget to leave some "head space" at the top.</li>
<li>Shake gently until well mixed.</li>
<li>Set the bottle to a fine mist and spray to your heart's content!</li>
</ol>
<b><u>Two additional things</u>:</b><br />
<ul>
<li>You will want to cover surfaces, (rugs, plastic chair mats, your chair cushions, etc.) with a fine mist until the surface is slightly damp. You may have to repeat every few days at the beginning until a sufficient amount of anti-static formula has built up.</li>
<li>You will also want to be <i><b>very careful</b></i> if you use it on smooth surfaces, like chair mats, as <i><b>this liquid can be slippery</b></i> if you apply too much.</li>
</ul>
<br />
There you are! You are now equipped to handle the Static Electric Demon, and do it on the cheap!<br />
<br />
What say ye?<br />
<br />
Jim (JR)<br />
<br />
p.s. No animals were used during the testing of this Tech Tip, and it is safe for the Ozone Layer too.<br />
<br />Jim "JR"http://www.blogger.com/profile/01053267015652256718noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8386999095134482598.post-68768701547298671362014-11-17T22:43:00.000-05:002014-11-18T10:14:44.515-05:00 "Acceptable" Defects The Fast Lane to DisasterMany years ago, I was invited to an interview in Boston by a company who wanted to bring on additional QA staff. After the usual back-and-forth banter of the interview, the interviewer paused and asked me this question:<br />
<br />
<b><u>What is an acceptable defect</u>?</b><br />
<br />
I immediately replied "There's no such thing. It's an oxymoron, something that is inherently self-contradictory."<br />
<br />
The interviewer persisted, wanting to know what an "acceptable defect" was. I replied that there is no such thing as an "acceptable defect" as once the defect becomes "acceptable", <i><b>it ceases to be a defect</b></i>. Or, as one of my favorite snarky QA quotes says: "It's not a bug, it's a feature!"<br />
<br />
The interviewer continued to press the point; and yes, I understood that what he was asking was not about defects being "acceptable", but rather he wanted to know at what point does a QA effort say it's time to stop? When have you reached the level of "diminishing returns" and decide to release anyway, even though there may still be some bugs left to be resolved?<br />
<br />
I mentioned this understanding to the interviewer, said that this was an entirely different question; whereupon I proceeded to answer it. However I persisted in my original position that <i><b>there is not, and there should never be, such a thing as an "acceptable" defect</b></i>.<br />
<br />
Needless to say, I didn't get the job. And quite frankly, I wasn't too upset about it either. As far as I was, (and still am), concerned, the idea of an "acceptable" defect presents a warped and possibly disastrous mind-set on the part of any QA team.<br />
<br />
<hr />
<br />
<b><span style="font-size: large;">Why is this a problem?</span></b> <br />
<br />
Now I can hear everyone saying that I'm being too picky and pedantic; that I'm splitting hairs. And maybe that's true, but I don't think so.<br />
<br />
And why not?<br />
<br />
It has always been my opinion, and my position within the greater QA community - not just "software" QA, but <i><b>any</b></i> kind of QA effort - that "defects" must never become "acceptable". Because once a defect is categorized as "acceptable", it ceases to be an annoyance or an irritation in the back of our minds. That nagging irritation goes away and we don't give it a second thought.<br />
<br />
I have seen this time and time again, in hardware QA, software QA, process or manufacturing QA, or any other QA efforts I have been involved in. And it has always, invariably, been the fast lane to disaster.<br />
<br />
I go into the consequences of this kind of complacent, devil-may-care attitude in another article I wrote called <a href="http://www.qatechtips.com/2011/09/cost-of-complacency.html"><b><u>The Cost of Complacency</u></b></a>. Go read it.<br />
<br />
<hr />
<br />
Again and again I return to the idea of defects <i><b>never</b></i> becoming "acceptable". It is the responsibility of the QA community to ensure that defects, even seemingly small defects, never get "lost in the sauce", so to speak.<br />
<br />
Even if we need to push on toward an ultimate release date, these defects should <i><b>always</b></i> "get in our craw", or be that annoying little pebble in our shoe. They should <i><b>always remind us that they are there</b></i>, and we should <i><b>continue be on the lookout</b></i> for ways to mitigate them now, or if that's not possible, ways to avoid these issues in the future.<br />
<br />
It's only by letting the seemingly "little things" get to us that we remain vigilant. It is only by this continuing attitude of eternal vigilance that we in the QA community earn the respect of those around us.<br />
<br />
By doing this, by always letting the "little things" bother us, we ensure that the people we work with, and those that depend on us, never sink into that abyss of complacency that has been the graveyard of those who have not heeded this call.<br />
<br />
What say ye?<br />
<br />
Jim (JR)<br />
<br />Jim "JR"http://www.blogger.com/profile/01053267015652256718noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8386999095134482598.post-45149559072430989872014-04-23T01:42:00.000-04:002014-04-23T01:42:41.130-04:00We Interrupt This BlogFor An Important Announcement!Well, hello again!<br />
<br />
If you have been following this blog, you know that <a href="http://www.qatechtips.com/2014/04/where-do-we-go-from-here.html"><u>I have some pretty big plans</u></a> for this blog's future!<br />
<br />
Part of those plans have been for me to build a WordPress "sandbox" server here in The Dungeon, try to migrate my blog to it, and try to do it in some semblance of order. The idea being that if I'm going to make a complete balls-up of everything, (and I will, trust me!), I'd rather do it down in my basement where I can control the damage, instead of on a live production blog.<br />
<br />
Of course, these things are much easier to say than do, and I am sure that the Wright Brothers had the same sense of angst: "Hey! If it's so easy for birds to fly, it should be a real snap for us too, right?"<br />
<br />
Nope.<br />
<br />
It's taken days, and days, and days, and days, and. . . . Oh futz! It didn't crash, <i><b>again</b></i>?!!<br />
<br />
Needless to say, it's been a real learning experience, in more ways than one.<br />
<br />
<hr />
<br />
One of the resources I have been using is <i>WordPress for Dummies</i> (3rd edition) by Lisa Sabin-Wilson, and if you're even <i><b>thinking</b></i> about messing with WordPress, you can do far worse than to read her book.<br />
<br />
One of the things I learned about was something called "comment spam".<br />
<br />
<i><b>Comment</b></i> spam?! Of all the. . . . ! ! !<br />
<br />
And yes, it had me scratching my head too.<br />
<br />
Here's the deal:<br />
We all know about e-mail spam. That endless stream of scams, frauds, and phishing attacks; not to mention the never-ending advertisements for "Penile Enhancement", Viagra, Cialis, and God Only Knows what else.<br />
<br />
This is the "plain 'ole every-day" mail-type spam that we all know and love. It's designed to get <i><b>us</b></i> to do something that will compromise <i><b>us</b></i>, so that we give away important personal information about ourselves, send money to someone via Western Union or MoneyGram, or open up our systems to being attacked, root-kitted, and perhaps used as a zombie to hack the Pentagon.<br />
<br />
<i><b>Comment</b></i> spam is a horse of an entirely different hue. And it's even nastier.<br />
<br />
Comment spam is a way of getting <i><b>MY BLOG</b></i> to help the baddies clobber <i><b>someone else</b></i>. The way they do this is by hiding vicious hyperlinks inside innocuous messages, masked in such a way that you don't really know <i><b>what</b></i> you're clicking on until <i><b>after</b></i> you've done the dirty deed.<br />
<br />
An even more vicious form of comment spam is a comment that has, (what appears to be), a perfectly innocent hyperlink that leads you to a seemingly innocent site that will re-direct you to somewhere evil.<br />
<br />
<u><b>Translation</b></u><b>:</b><br />
You like my blog.<br />
You read my postings.<br />
You read the comments.<br />
You click on what appears to be an innocent hyperlink in a comment.<br />
<i><b>YOU</b></i> get hammered, and <i><b>MY BLOG</b></i> set you up for the kill.<br />
<br />
The real epiphany was when I did a trial-import of all this blog's content and comments into my sandbox server. Unlike Blogger, WordPress lets me see, (and do), anything I want with a message or its comments. Nothing is hidden. Nothing gets squirreled away.<br />
<br />
Within WordPress, I could actually <i><b>see</b></i> the vicious bulldogs hiding behind the pretty flowers within some of the comments left on my site. And it was scary! Needless to say I was <i><b>PISSED</b></i>.<br />
<br />
<hr />
<br />
As a result I have had to do two things that I really did not want to have to do:<br />
<ol>
<li>I no longer allow "anonymous" comments on either of my blogs, since virtually <i><b>all</b></i> the nasties were hidden in anonymous comments.</li>
<li>All comments, <i><b>without exception</b></i>, are now moderated.<br />As unpleasant a task as it may be, I have no choice but to require every stinkin' comment to be quarantined until personally vetted by me. And because I can't create a "white-list" of trusted posters, it's an all-or-nothing deal.</li>
</ol>
Additionally, I have to be <i><b>really strict</b></i> about embedded hyperlinks in comments.<br />
<br />
<u><b>Translation</b></u><b>:</b><br />
If the comment has an embedded hyperlink, it get's trashed. Period.<br />
<br />
Why?<br />
Because I just spent the last half-day-or-so going through <i><b>every single message</b></i> on this blog, comparing every single comment <i><b>here</b></i>
with the nasties I found when looking at the comments on WordPress <i><b>there</b></i>, and removing, one-at-an-effing-time, any suspicious comments that I found;
sanitizing the comment stream so that no one who comes to <i><b>my</b></i> blog gets
hammered.<br />
<br />
And why is that necessary?<br />
Because Blogger <b><i>won't</i></b> let me edit comments or view hidden content. And because I can't view hidden content, I can't see what might be hiding behind an embedded hyperlink without clicking on it, and I won't risk what loyalty my blog may have for the sake of a few hyperlinks.<br />
<br />
One potential exception is the plain-text in-line hyperlink that is visible to everyone. I might be convinced to allow in-line hyperlinks that are plain-text, after I have <i><b>personally</b></i> tested them and verified that they are not harmful - <i><b>if</b></i> they are germane to the topic of the post.<br />
<br />
<hr />
<br />
It's a sad day when I have to spend more time babysitting the few baddies out there, then I spend actually creating useful content. However, I'd rather do that than see those of you who read my blog get hammered because I'm asleep at the wheel.<br />
<br />
What say ye?<br />
<br />
Jim (J.R.)Jim "JR"http://www.blogger.com/profile/01053267015652256718noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8386999095134482598.post-72617848598101094032014-04-11T23:09:00.002-04:002014-04-13T20:05:38.689-04:00Refilling Ink-Jet CartridgesIs It Really Worth It?So. . . . You're thinking about refilling your ink-jet cartridges? <br />
<br />
In concept, the idea has merit. Since you often have a perfectly good cartridge, all it's missing is the ink that used to be in it. And it makes sense to replace the ink instead of the cartridge. Or, as one refilling site put it, you wouldn't replace your car just because you ran out of gas. Right?<br />
<br />
One of the points that the cartridge refill sites love to make is that most, (if not all!), ink-jet manufacturers sell cartridges that are woefully short of ink. To illustrate this point the folks at <a href="http://www.printerfillingstation.com/"><u>Printer Filling Station</u></a> showed the result of a cartridge tear-down. What these folks did was to take an OEM cartridge that was brand new, right out of the box in its sealed foil packaging, and open it up. What they discovered was that it was actually less than half-full.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-8Wv6rjFIk3M/U0WX8QB3uwI/AAAAAAAAAIY/ok_9lj38x_Y/s1600/Half+Full+Ink+Cartridge.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-8Wv6rjFIk3M/U0WX8QB3uwI/AAAAAAAAAIY/ok_9lj38x_Y/s1600/Half+Full+Ink+Cartridge.jpg" height="280" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.printerfillingstation.com/" target="_blank">Photos courtesy of http://www.printerfillingstation.com</a></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
And that's <i><b>exactly</b></i> where the printer manufacturers want it, because when you think about it, the printer manufacturers <i><b>aren't selling the printer</b></i>, they're selling the supplies because that's where the huge profits are. And it's a virtual lead-pipe-cinch that if you have two printers manufactured by the same company, purchased at the same time in the same store<i><b>.</b></i> they <i><b>will not use the same cartridge</b></i>, unless they're the same model, or you're extremely lucky. So, you need to stockpile multiple cartridge types if you have multiple printers.<br />
<br />
Another kicker is that ink-jet cartridges have a very limited shelf-life, (like six months or so), even if the sealed package is not opened. If you are smart enough to have spares on hand, and if you bought them more than six months ago, there's a good chance they won't work, or won't work properly. And that's that.<br />
<br />
That being said, this leaves you with the following choices:<br />
<ul>
<li><b>Punt and Go Retro:</b><br />Pen-and-ink, as well as pencil and paper still work, and it's a lot less
expensive than any of the other choices. Not to mention that
typewriters can be had for a song at garage sales and flea-markets.</li>
<br />
<li><b>Abandon ink-jet technology:</b><br />Laser printers are often more cost-effective on a per-page basis, and the supplies don't usually have the shelf-life problems of ink-jet cartridges. Unfortunately a <i><b>good</b></i> laser printer is not cheap, and a cheap laser printer is often <i><b>not very good</b></i>.</li>
<br />
<li><b>Cave in and take your lumps:</b><br />You buy the "Genuine" manufacturers cartridges, (that might be <i><b>significantly</b></i> under-filled), at hugely inflated prices.</li>
<br />
<li><b>Aftermarket Supplies:</b><br />You can buy a "refurbished" cartridge for about half the price of buying one brand-new. This is an attractive option for those who don't want to mess with refilling cartridges themselves, but don't like the idea of being taken to the cleaners by the ink-jet manufacturers.</li>
<br />
<li><b>Refill the cartridge yourself:</b><br />You can refill the cartridges on your own and save <i><b>huge</b></i> amounts of money.</li>
</ul>
<br />
The last bullet-point brings us to the topic of this post: Is it <i><b>really</b></i> worth it to do manual refills yourself?<br />
<br />
<hr />
<br />
Like everything else in life, there are two sides to this question, and depending on what your priorities are, refilling cartridges yourself may, or may not, be your cup of tea. So, let's take a look at the pro's and con's of refilling.<br />
<br />
<b><u>The Good</u>:</b><br />
<ul>
<li><b><u>Cost</u>:</b><br />Refilling a cartridge can be <i><b>significantly</b></i> less expensive than buying a new one.</li>
<ul>
<li>The folks at <a href="http://www.printerfillingstation.com/Ink_Refills/HP/05H.htm" target="_blank"><u>Printer Filling Station</u></a>, sell a refill kit with a full set of inks, (three colors and black), for my HP OfficeJet 6500, right at $40 if you use the pigmented black ink, (which, IMHO, is the best choice), or $35 if you get the "regular" black ink. Having bought the kit, you can get four, five, or maybe even six refills depending on the cartridge, and the size of the ink bottles you bought. </li>
<li>Here's a comparison of "Club" prices for "OEM" 920XL ink for my HP6500 printer:</li>
<ul>
<li>Sam's Club:<br />920XL Black two-pack: $61.98<br />920XL Color three-pack, (one each of C, Y and M) $51.48<br />Total: $113.46<br />($82.47 based on 1/2 the double cartridge price for the black ink)<br /><a href="http://www.samsclub.com/sams/search/searchResults.jsp?searchCategoryId=all&searchTerm=hp+920xl" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"><u>See Search Results Here</u></a></li>
<li>BJ's:<br /> 920XL Black two-pack: $57.99<br />920XL Color three-pack, (one each of C, Y and M) $42.99<br />Total: $100.98<br />($71.99 based on 1/2 the double cartridge price for the black ink)<br /><a href="http://www.bjs.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/Search?catalogId=10201&storeId=10201&langId=-1&pageSize=40&currentPage=1&searchKeywords=920XL+HP&tASearch=&originalSearchKeywords=hp+920xl" rel="nofollow"><u>See Search Results Here</u></a></li>
<li>Costco:<br />920XL Black two-pack: $61.89<br />920XL Color three-pack, (one each of C, Y and M) $41.89<br />Total: $103.87<br />($72.84 based on 1/2 the double cartridge price for the black ink)<br /><a href="http://www.costco.com/CatalogSearch?storeId=10301&catalogId=10701&langId=-1&keyword=hp+920xl" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"><u>See Search Results Here</u></a></li>
</ul>
<br />
<li>A comparison of non-club retailers for the same supplies: </li>
<ul>
<li>Wall-Mart:<br />920XL Black single cartridge pack: $34.48<br />920XL Color cartridge single-packs, one each of Cyan, Magenta, and Yellow at $15.98 each: $47.94<br />Total: $82.42<br /><a href="http://www.walmart.com/search/search-ng.do?ic=16_0&Find=Find&search_query=hp+920xl" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"><u>See Search Results Here</u></a></li>
<li>Best Buy:<br />920XL Black single cartridge pack: $34.99<br />920XL Color cartridge single-packs, one each of Cyan, Magenta, and Yellow at $15.99 each: $47.97<br />Total: $82.95<br /><a href="http://www.bestbuy.com/site/searchpage.jsp?_dyncharset=UTF-8&_dynSessConf=&id=pcat17071&type=page&sc=Global&cp=1&nrp=15&sp=&qp=&list=n&iht=y&usc=All+Categories&ks=960&fs=saas&saas=saas&keys=keys&st=hp+920xl+ink" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"><u>See Search Results Here</u></a></li>
<li>Staples:<br />(They also have a combo pack, one 920XL black, and three standard 920 cartridges for the three colors for $58.89)<br />920XL Black single cartridge pack: $34.99<br />920XL Color cartridge single-packs, one each of Cyan, Magenta, and Yellow at $15.99 each: $47.97<br />Total: $82.96<br /><a href="http://www.staples.com/hp+6500+ink/directory_hp+6500+ink" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"><u>See Search Results Here</u></a></li>
<br />
<li>Newegg, Tiger Direct, and OfficeMax had identical pricing to Staples when I checked.</li>
<br />
<li>Micro Center did not stock the "genuine" HP 920xl inks when I checked them. They did sell refilled cartridges for about half everyone else's OEM cartridge price.</li>
<br />
<li>Some suppliers also sell aftermarket cartridges, but I did not include that information here since I wanted to show the pricing for OEM cartridges.</li>
</ul>
<br />
<li>Good sites also give you everything you need to refill your cartridges, as well as four bottles of ink - the three colored inks and a bottle of black. They also give you the support you need to get you "over the hump" of refilling.</li>
</ul>
<br />
<li><b><u>Ecological</u>:</b><br />I like the idea of replacing the ink, not the cartridge, since the cartridges themselves can often be re-used over and over and over again. By simply replacing the ink, you keep a whole lot of cartridges out of the landfill.</li>
</ul>
<br />
<b><u>The Bad</u>:</b><br />
<ul>
<li>It's time consuming. Refilling a cartridge is not something you do in five minutes, or even fifteen minutes. Especially if you're not experienced or, like me, you don't have the world's steadiest hands.</li>
<br />
<li>It's <i><b>messy</b></i>. Some refill sites will tell you how clean, and easy, refilling is. Don't you believe it! When <u><b><i>I</i></b></u> refill cartridges, I have a big, thick towel to put on the desk, I wear a smock to protect my clothing, and I wear the crappiest, grungiest shirt and pair of pants I own. And I don't wear good shoes.</li>
<br />
<li>It requires a bit of skill and patience. Like I said before, this isn't a quick job. If you want just "plug-and-play" you should go with refilled cartridges, or brand new.</li>
<br />
<li>Your printer might not want to use refilled cartridges. Most printer manufacturers do <i><b>NOT</b></i> want to give up their ink-sale profits, so <i><b>they program the printer's firmware</b></i> to be really pissy and anal about cartridges and their replacements. </li>
<ul>
<li>It is not uncommon for your printer to receive an "update" and afterward you discover that the refilled cartridges you have been using for years, stop working.</li>
<li>If the printer is <i><b>totally anal</b></i> about this, (there are some Epson and Canon models that do this), you can purchase a small electronic tool that resets the cartridges chip to read "full" again.</li>
<li>Other cartridges cannot be reset by reasonable means, but you can buy replacement "chips" that you use to replace the existing chip, allowing you to use the cartridge again. </li>
</ul>
</ul>
<br />
<b><u>The Ugly</u>:</b><br />
<ul>
<li>Printer manufacturers <i><b>do not want you to refill your cartridges</b></i>! Why? Consumables are a <i><b>HUGE</b></i> source of profits for the printer manufacturers.<sup>[1]</sup></li>
<ul>
<li>John Shane, a director at InfoTrends/CAP Ventures and an industry expert on the ink and toner market, <a href="http://news.cnet.com/HP-cracks-down-on-cartridge-refill-industry/2100-1047_3-5905212.html" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"><u>had this to say about it</u></a> on news.cnet.com<br /><blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="color: #660000;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">The estimated retail value for cartridges used in HP inkjet machines in
the United States in 2004 was about $6.3 billion, according to Shane.
That's just more than half the $12 billion Shane estimates as the amount
for all cartridges for all machines used for desktops last year.</span></span></blockquote>
</li>
<li>
This same blog posting has a number of user comments, most of which go something like this:<br /><blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="color: #660000;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">I am convinced that HP is deliberately doing something to prevent the
use of replacement cartridges. My HP Photosmart C4680 rejects
replacement cartridges, even ones that go under their specs. I don't
know if they're somehow installing something on my machine (especially
during any updates) or software installations.</span></span></blockquote>
</li>
</ul>
</ul>
Assuming you have the patience to deal with all of this, then it is possible that refilling cartridges is right for you.<br />
<br />
<hr />
<br />
So, you want to take a try at refilling? What's next?<br />
<br />
Again, just like everything else, there are things you have to know before you just dive in.<br />
<ul>
<li>Get <i><b>GOOD</b></i> supplies:<br />There are a lot of refill sites, and there are a lot of refill kits available in stores, and most of them are pure junk. The inks are total crap, the tools stink, and it's just a bad deal all around.</li>
<ul>
<li>The solution is to do your homework, and find a refill site that sells <i><b>good</b></i> supplies, and <i><b>gives you the information you need to make an informed choice</b></i>. One of the best I've seen, (and the one I use), is <a href="http://www.printerfillingstation.com/" target="_blank"><u>Printer Filling Station</u></a>. They're located within the US, (Georgia to be exact), so you don't have to wait for your stuff to come by Hong Kong Post.</li>
<li>These guys have the best ink I've seen - and I've seen a bunch. (And I have the totally ruined shirts and pants to prove it!)</li>
<li>Their support is nothing less than amazing. I had some troubles with some HP 920XL cartridges and Gordon, the "haid-man-boss" down there, was with me the whole way. Making suggestions, shipping out replacement components; it was like I was dealing with a member of the family, not a merchant in a state hundreds of miles away.</li>
<br />
</ul>
<li> Make sure you have a clear and uncluttered work area that can get messy.</li>
<ul>
<li>Despite your best efforts, you will have to deal with some ink going where it does not belong.</li>
<ul>
<li>As a side note, Windex is an <i><b>excellent</b></i> solvent/cleaner for ink that goes awry.</li>
</ul>
<li>Wear old clothes, or a smock/apron of some kind and - if you can deal with them - latex/nitrile gloves.</li>
<li>Keep rags or paper towels around for general cleanup.</li>
<br />
</ul>
<li>It is extremely important that you <i><b>avoid cross-contamination of colors at all costs</b></i>, since contaminated colors, even slightly contaminated colors, are essentially useless.</li>
<ul>
<li>This is usually accomplished by the use of separate, clearly labeled syringes and needles for each color as well as black, and making sure that the syringes are thoroughly cleaned after use.</li>
<li>It is important to make sure that you do <i><b>not press the syringe plunger all the way down</b></i> into the barrel of the syringe after cleaning. Since the plunger <i><b>will</b></i> stick, pulling it back about a half inch or so while it is still slightly damp gives you room to push back in the next time you want to use it, freeing the plunger up. If it is pressed all the way in, it is often impossible to remove the plunger without the rubber tip coming completely off.</li>
<br />
</ul>
<li>If you are going to be refilling your own cartridges - or buying "reconditioned" cartridges - it is absolutely essential that <i><b><span style="color: #660000;">you do not allow any firmware or software update downloads to your printer</span>.</b></i> Despite what the manufacturers say, these updates often have little to do with the "performance" or "quality" of your printer. Rather they are periodic updates to the firmware so that it will recognize, and reject, refilled cartridges.<sup>[1]</sup> <a href="http://www.hp.com/global/us/en/counterfeit-toner"><u>HP's own web site</u></a> says it succinctly:<br /><blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="color: #660000;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">The HP Cartridge Authentication feature for HP printers helps protect
you <span style="color: black;">["You"? They mean their <b><i>6.3 billion dollar</i></b> annual profits!!]</span> by checking and verifying the authenticity of each cartridge
installed in your printer. HP Cartridge Authentication comes standard
with all HP inkjet printers and All-in-Ones.<br /></span></span></blockquote>
</li>
<li>It is also important to carefully read, and follow, the instructions provided by whomever supplies the refilling supplies.</li>
</ul>
Done carefully, with a certain amount of forethought, ink cartridge refilling can be a very economical way to stretch your printing supplies dollar.<br />
<br />
What say ye?<br />
<br />
Jim (J.R.)<br />
<br />
[1] There are a number of web-sites out there that discuss the practice of printer manufacturers deliberately "killing" replacement cartridges to force you to buy only the higher priced OEM consumables.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.action-intell.com/2011/01/19/rumors-circulate-that-lexmark-firmware-update-locks-out-non-oem-supplies/" rel="bookmark" title="Permalink to Rumors Circulate That Lexmark Firmware Update Locks Out Non-OEM Supplies"><u>Rumors Circulate That Lexmark Firmware Update Locks Out Non-OEM Supplies</u></a><br />
<br />
<a href="http://inkandtonerexperts.com/support/troubleshooting.php"><u>http://inkandtonerexperts.com/support/troubleshooting.php</u></a> where they say:<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
Turn off auto updates - If you have your printer set up to do
automatic updates from the printer manufacturer, you need to turn that
function "off" or to "manual" instead of automatic. The reason this is important is because some manufacturers have
been known to use this software upgrade as a tool to identify refilled
cartridges in your printer and "kill" the cartridge(s).
</blockquote>
<a href="http://h30434.www3.hp.com/t5/Other-Printing-Questions/HP-says-I-can-t-use-refilled-ink/td-p/227083" target="_blank"><u>HP says I can't use refilled ink</u></a><br />
<br />
<a href="http://news.cnet.com/HP-cracks-down-on-cartridge-refill-industry/2100-1047_3-5905212.html" target="_blank"><u>HP cracks down on cartridge refill industry</u></a><br />
<br />
<a href="http://blog.atlanticinkjet.com/choose-by-cartridge/firmware-updates-prevent-you-from-using-refilled-cartridges.html" target="_blank"><u>Firmware Updates Prevent You from Using Refilled Cartridges</u></a>Jim "JR"http://www.blogger.com/profile/01053267015652256718noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8386999095134482598.post-58233730518197452052014-04-01T01:14:00.001-04:002014-04-01T01:14:39.666-04:00QA Tech-TipsWhere Do We Go From Here?Well Hello Again, Everybody!<br />
<br />
This blog has come a long, <i><b>long</b></i> way since I initially started it here at <a href="http://www.blogger.com/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"><u>Blogger.com</u></a> back in December of 2009, The 28th of December, 2009, if my dates are correct. And even further back if you consider the original e-mail based version of <i>QA Tech-Tips</i> that was circulating well before that time.<br />
<br />
Since then this blog has begun to attract attention, though the folks at Google have nothing to fear from me. At least not <i><b>yet</b></i>.<br />
<br />
<i>QA Tech-Tips</i> is even beginning to get quoted as a source. Though I am tickled pink when <i>Microsoft TechNet</i> quotes my blog, (or links to one of my articles!); what <i><b>really makes me happy</b></i> is when I hear from someone in the QA or technical community telling me that they referenced one of my articles in a bug report! <a href="http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=booyah" target="_blank"><i><u>Booyah</u>!!</i></a> <br />
<br />
While this is gratifying, it is also tremendously humbling to know that readers <i><b>actually listen, and are interested in what I have to say</b></i>. As Voltaire once said, "With Great Power Comes Great Responsibility".<br />
<br />
Though there may have been changes, (not the least of which is the improvement in my own writing skills!), I have tried to keep true to my original idea for the <i>QA Tech-Tips</i> blog; that is, present useful information about computers and software, as well as the Wild and Wooly things that can happen when you toss a computer and some code into the mix. Not only present it, but present it in a way that is pertinent and useful down where "The Rubber Meets The Road", instead of some strange hair-ball theories masquerading as facts.<br />
<br />
<hr />
<br />
All that being said; both I, and this blog, have begun to outgrow Blogger.<br />
<br />
<b>First</b>, there is the <i><b>BIG</b></i> issue of editorial control; especially over posted comments since Blogger won't let me edit a comment.<br />
<br />
I am often torn between the <span style="color: #990000;"><i><b>Devil</b></i></span> of throwing out a perfectly good comment because of something I consider inappropriate, or the <span style="color: blue;"><i><b>Deep Blue Sea</b></i></span> of allowing inappropriate content in blog replies. I would <i><b>greatly prefer</b></i> to allow replies to stand, (though I might want to snip out the occasional self-serving hyperlink advertising something), instead of having to chuck the whole thing because I cannot edit out a #&%$#*&@!! or two.<br />
<br />
<b>Second</b>, is my own desire to grow and improve the <i>QA Tech-Tips</i> experience.<br />
<br />
There are things I would like to be able to do that Blogger does not support. One of the most important improvements that I would like to make is the ability to break up longer posts into multiple pages. Unfortunately, Blogger does not support multi-page articles in the way that other blogging environments do.<br />
<br />
Not to mention a whole host of things that, though not fatal, are intensely annoying. For example, I have to <i><b>manually</b></i> edit the article's underlying HTML code to force an underline on each and every hyperlink. Doh! <br />
<br />
I could go on and on with the things I'd like to see <i>QA Tech-Tips</i> do, that just can't be done here.<br />
<br />
<hr />
<br />
Now I want to make <i><b>perfectly clear</b></i> that I am eternally indebted to the folks here at <a href="http://www.blogger.com/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"><u>Blogger.com</u></a>, (and Google their parent), for allowing me to have a wonderful - and free! - blog here for years and years. Were it not for them, it is very likely that the <i>QA Tech-Tips</i> blog would not be here at all today, let alone where it is after all this time.<br />
<br />
Likewise, I have absolutely <i><b>no hesitation whatsoever</b></i> recommending them to anyone who might want to "get their feet wet" in the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blogosphere" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"><u>Blogosphere</u></a> without dropping a lot of coin, (or time for that matter), into getting a blog up and running. They implement a lot of nice features as pre-built widgets - things like user registration, RSS feeds, or Captcha checking - for everyone to use without the pain and grief of having to code it all.<br />
<br />
They also take care of the noisy and messy "System Administration" kind of things - like security-hardening my blog - so that I can spend time on my blog's <i><b>content</b></i> instead of laying awake nights worrying about getting hacked.<br />
<br />
<hr />
<br />
Nonetheless, I am beginning to think that it's high-time to loose the training-wheels and move <i>QA Tech-Tips</i> to the next level.<br />
<br />
And to do that I have begun thinking about things like getting my own web host, deciding on what blogging software / platform I should use, along with all the hairy "SysAdmin" kind of things that go Bump In The Night when you strike out on your own.<br />
<br />
'Guess I'm gonna be eatin' some Prime Filet of Fingernail while I figure this all out!<br />
<br />
What say ye?<br />
<br />
Jim (J.R.)<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />Jim "JR"http://www.blogger.com/profile/01053267015652256718noreply@blogger.com0Worcester, MA 01605, USA42.279853 -71.7919026999999842.232867000000006 -71.872583699999979 42.326839 -71.711221699999982tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8386999095134482598.post-71039188108336759272014-02-03T13:24:00.000-05:002014-04-01T01:28:05.181-04:00OOPS! - When disaster strikesRecovering Lost Files (Part 3 of a series)This article discusses a particularly painful issue: You've deleted something you <i><b>really</b></i> didn't want to, and you need to recover it, come hell or high-water. So what's a poor fool to do?<br />
<br />
Hopefully, if you paid <i><b>any attention at all</b></i> to <a href="http://www.qatechtips.com/2013/02/oops-when-disaster-strikes-system.html"><u>the second article of this series</u></a>, you'll have a good backup of what you wanted. If that's the case, you're golden. All you need to do is go to your backup, grab the missing file(s), and you're back in business - no muss, no fuss, as the laundry detergent commercials used to say.<br />
<br />
If the missing file is something you retrieved or downloaded from somewhere - perhaps from the Internet - you're still golden as you can simply go back and grab it again. Again the famous jingle of those old laundry commercials wafts its golden strains through the air. (And perhaps you will save that file off-line somewhere in case the site goes down or <i><b>they</b></i> loose the file.)<br />
<br />
However, if you find yourself in the incredibly unlucky position of having just deleted an absolutely irreplaceable file, have no backups, and "failure is not an option". . . .<br />
<br />
Though you may feel thoroughly screwed to the wall, it is possible that all is not lost.<br />
<br />
<hr />
<br />
The descriptions and comments in this article are aimed primarily at the <i><b>Windows</b></i> user, because files lost in a Windows-type filesystem are fairly easy to retrieve. If you're not a Windows user, read on anyway. Though it may be <i><b><u>much</u> more difficult</b></i> for you to recover a lost file, the hints and tips in this article apply to you as much as they do anyone else. <br />
<br />
<hr />
<br />
There are a number of file recovery methods. Here's a list starting from the easiest to the most difficult:<br />
<br />
<u><b>The Recycle Bin</b></u><br />
A feature that has become popular in most every modern operating system is the "Recycle Bin", "Trash", or whatever your particular flavor of operating system calls it. This is a special, hidden, area within the filesystem where deleted files are stored, just in case you decide you want them back. So long as you didn't do a "permanent delete" or a delete that "bypasses the Recycle Bin", you can restore the lost file by simply going to the Recycle Bin / Trash, and restoring the file.<br />
<br />
<u><b>Auto-Save files</b></u><br />
Assuming that you are working within some kind of formal environment - a word processor, a spreadsheet, a programming development environment, a database, etc. - these programs can, and often do, create timed automatic backups while you work.<br />
<br />
The advantage of this feature is that the program itself periodically takes a snapshot of what you are doing, and saves it in a special file, located somewhere on your hard drive.<br />
<br />
In other cases, some programs keep a "one revision back" backup. When you finally save your work, the original file is renamed with a ".BAK" extension and the modified file is written out as a new file with the original file name.<br />
<br />
<u><b>Automatic file backup software</b></u><br />
Many backup utilities, Acronis True Image among them, have a feature where earlier versions of files can be automatically preserved. In the case of Acronis, you can allow the software to maintain a special hidden partition at the end of the drive where various important things - like file versions - can be stored away.<br />
<br />
<u><b>Shadow Copies</b></u><br />
Windows Vista, Windows 7, (and maybe Windows 8?), have a feature called "Shadow Copies" where the operating system itself maintains a series of older versions of certain files. Mac users will recognize the same idea in their "Time Machine" feature.<br />
<br />
It is important to note that the "shadow copy" feature of Windows is usually <i><b>NOT</b></i> enabled by default, and depending on your system's configuration, you may have to modify your computer's partition structure to enable it. (Ouch!) <br />
<br />
<u><b>Scattered "temp" files</b></u> <br />
Occasionally programs like Word, or Word Perfect, don't clean up behind themselves very well and, (sometimes), they leave scattered "temporary" snapshot files laying around; usually beginning with a tilde. (~) It's a bit dicey, but if you're lucky you can recover enough of a file to recreate what was lost.<br />
<br />
<u><b>Undelete Utilities</b></u><br />
If all else fails, there are special software utilities that can scan your drive for deleted files and attempt to recover them.<br />
<br />
<hr />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><u><b>Undeleting a file</b></u></span><br />
<br />
All "undelete" utilities depend on one simple fact: Files that have been really and truly deleted are - in fact - not really and truly deleted. The directory entry for that file is marked as "deleted" and all the logical blocks allocated to the file are reset to the "available for use" status in the file system's volume bitmap. However, the actual data that has been written to the disk is <i><b>NOT</b></i> deleted - a fact that has lead to many a criminal's downfall. Not to mention things like divorces, getting fired, or even identity theft.<br />
<br />
<b>So, what <i>REALLY</i> happens when Windows deletes a file?</b><br />
When Windows deletes a file, what happens is something like this:<br />
<ul>
<li>First, Windows finds all the pieces of the file. That includes the file's directory entry, along with each and every part of the file itself.</li>
<li>Then Windows places a special "mark" on the directory entry that says this file has been deleted. Because of this, the "deleted" file disappears from the folder it was in.</li>
<li>Finally, Windows goes to the system's volume bitmap and - for each and every part of the file - turns the corresponding bits OFF, indicating that these parts are "empty", and are available to be re-used.</li>
</ul>
It's just like an apartment when someone moves out. The apartment itself doesn't disappear, it's just that the "landlord", (Windows), puts a big "FOR RENT" sign on the apartment's door.<br />
<br />
If you can get back to the file quickly enough - before someone else moves in! - you can take down the big "FOR RENT" sign, set all the volume bitmap bits for that file back ON again, and Voilà! Your file is back.<br />
<br />
The problem is this: Windows is <i><b>constantly</b></i> doing things with the hard drive; moving things around, updating important information, figuring out what goes where, and deciding where it wants to put the next piece of whatever it's doing. Because of this, "empty apartments" don't stay empty for long, and some of the individual locations and pieces that belonged to <i><b>your</b></i> file can get recycled and re-used by <i><b>other</b></i> files. If that happens before you get back to the "apartment" you just left, you're out of luck. It's already taken and it just stinks being you.<br />
<br />
<b>If that's true, how do undelete utilities work?</b><br />
Undelete utilities can use different methods to do their job, and one possible way is like this: <br />
<ul>
<li>The undelete utility scans the disk until it finds a directory entry that has been marked as "deleted".</li>
<li>If the directory entry itself isn't corrupted, it attempts to traverse the entire file, end-to-end, using the file's metadata within the directory entry, as well as the "next" and "previous" links in each of the file's individual parts, to verify the integrity of the prospective file.</li>
<ul>
<li>If the program <i><b>can</b></i> traverse the entire file end-to-end, and <i><b>the resulting file data matches</b></i> all the file metadata in the deleted directory entry, (size, etc.), then classify this file as "excellent". At this point you have a pretty good chance of getting the entire file back.</li>
<li>If the program can <i><b>apparently</b></i> traverse the entire file end-to-end and it <i><b>appears to be complete</b></i>, but there are <i><b>discrepancies between the resulting file and the file's metadata</b></i>, then classify the file as "good". At this point you have a pretty good chance of getting, (at least), part of the file back. Maybe it's OK, maybe not, but it's at least an even-money bet.</li>
<li>If the program can <i><b>only traverse <u>part</u> of the file</b></i> because the file appears to have been overwritten at some point, (<i>i.e.</i> segment "x" points to segment "y", but segment "y" does <i><b>not</b></i> point back to "x"), then classify the file as "poor". At this point <i><b>you know for certain that the file has been damaged</b></i>, but depending on what kind of file it is, and how much of the file the undelete utility can find, it might still be usable - at least in part.</li>
<li>If the program <i><b>cannot traverse <u>any</u> portion of the file</b></i> because the <i><b>very first segment of the file</b></i> has been overwritten, then classify the file as "unrecoverable". At this point you can pretty much throw in the towel unless you want to use the more advanced, (and chancy), features of the program. Your ability to recover even part of the file is now in the hands of God, and the cleverness of the utility's programmer.</li>
</ul>
<li>Then, go to the next directory entry marked as "deleted" and repeat all of the above; continuing until all "deleted" directory entries have been examined and classified.</li>
<li>Once everything it can find has been found and classified, you get the opportunity to select what you want to try and recover. </li>
</ul>
<br />
Even if the file is classified as "excellent", there is still a very real possibility that the file will be borked when you try to recover it. Why? Because <i><b>Windows</b></i> is still working with the disk even while <i><b>YOU</b></i> are trying to undelete something. Not only is this possible, it's not all that uncommon either. Like I said before, "undeleting" a file is a dicey proposition at best.<br />
<br />
<b>But what if all that effort <u><i>doesn't</i></u> work, and my file is <u><i>still</i></u> missing?</b><br />
Many undelete utilities also include a special "advanced", "deep", "full", or "exhaustive" scan mode for finding files that the easier methods miss. This is based, (at least in part), on the fact that files of a particular type have distinctive characteristics unique to that type of file. For example, JPEG picture files begin and end with sequences of bytes that are specific and unique to JPEGs.<br />
<br />
The advanced scan mode, (using the JPEG file type we mentioned above as an example), scans the entire drive, <i><b>one tiny piece at a time</b></i>, looking for the distinctive characteristics of a JPEG file. If it finds the specific characteristic that indicates what might be the <i><b>beginning</b></i> of a JPEG file, it tries to follow the trail all the way to the end of that file. Likewise, if it finds the other unique characteristic first, (indicating the possible <i><b>end</b></i> of a JPEG file), it tries to follow that trail back to its beginning. And it's very likely to be a false scent. If it is, you start all over again, continuing your search, one tiny piece at a time. Again, and again, and again.<br />
<br />
When you're doing this kind of microscopically detailed search, you've entered the wild, woolly, and wonderful world of "forensic analysis", and it is not unusual for some random sector to contain what appears to be the "magic bytes" for a particular file type. Or, maybe you <i><b>have</b></i> found a JPEG file, but it's one that hasn't been deleted! Because of all the random factors that can be encountered, searches of this kind can be <i><b>very</b></i> time consuming. As in days, (or even longer!), depending on how much experience you have doing this kind of stuff, and the size of the hard drive you're searching.<br />
<br />
If we assume that you're lucky enough to find what you believe are all the pieces of a particular file, the undelete utility assumes that you've found a complete file of that type and classifies the file as potentially recoverable.<br />
<br />
If the file is not complete, but at least some of it is present, it classifies the found file as either "good" or "poor" depending on what, and how much, of the file has been found.<br />
<br />
And, in some cases, the file is just <i><u><b>gone</b></u></i>; never to be seen again. And that's that.<br />
<br />
Once all that is done, if you decide to recover the file(s) that <i><b>were</b></i> found, the utility recovers, (or creates if necessary), the file's directory entry and marks all the file's pieces as "occupied" in the system's volume bitmap. <br />
<br />
<hr />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><b><u>How to improve your chances for recovering a file or files</u></b></span><br />
<br />
If you've gotten this far, and are seriously contemplating going the "undelete" path, there are things you can do that will dramatically improve your chances of getting your data back. <br />
<ul>
<li><u><b>Preparation</b></u><b>:</b><br />
<u><i><b>Prior to needing them</b></i></u>, get one or more undelete utilities that <i><b>do not require installation</b></i>, (this is important!), and save them somewhere you can get your greasy mitts on them in a hurry. (A thumb-drive, an external hard drive, a CD or whatever are all good choices.)</li>
<ul>
<li>If you have the skill, time, and want to <i><b>really</b></i> cover your butt, you might want to consider creating a Bart PE rescue disk, (or something similar), with the undelete software included. If you don't have the requisite skill, you might want to beg a more technical friend or colleague, pretty, pretty, <i><b><u>pretty</u>-please</b></i>, to make one for you. It's a really great idea.</li>
</ul>
<li><u><b>Have more than one "gun" and <i>plenty</i> of ammo</b></u><b>:</b> <br />Different undelete programs work in different ways, so just because program "A" doesn't find your file, does not mean that program "B" can't.</li>
<ul>
<li>When you collect your undelete utility(s), <i><b>get more than one</b></i>. Professional forensic analysts often use <i><b>many different programs</b></i> to examine a disk to increase their chances of getting what they want.</li>
<li>Consider investing in a combination of freeware, shareware, and possibly even payware programs.</li>
<li>If you're smart/lucky enough to have something like a Bart PE disk, put all the utilities you've collected on it so that they are <i><b>all</b></i> available when you need them.</li>
</ul>
<li><u><b>Protection</b></u><b>:</b> <br />If you accidentally delete something important, <i><b>it is <u>absolutely crucial</u> that the disk be taken off-line quickly!</b></i><b></b> You'll want to do this as rapidly as possible to prevent the sectors used by your deleted file from being overwritten.</li>
<ul>
<li>If possible, shut-down the system, (if it's the system drive), or un-mount it quickly, (if it's a external or data-drive), to reduce the possibility of it being corrupted.</li>
</ul>
<li><u><b>Investigation</b></u><b>:</b> <i><b><br />If at all possible</b></i>, you'll want to take the drive and mount it externally on another system, or load an external operating system. (like a Bart PE disk for Windows.)</li>
<ul>
<li>Mount the drive <i><b>read only</b></i> if possible to prevent data corruption.</li>
<li>Use the external system or CD's software, (if you prepared a Bart PE disk), to search for the files.</li>
<li>If you are using an advanced recovery method, and you know what kind of file you're looking for, (a JPEG for example), have the recovery utility search for <i><b>only that type of file</b></i>, (assuming that this type of file is defined in the utility's dictionary). This will speed up the search process considerably, and will result in a much better chance of getting complete files. </li>
</ul>
<li><u><b>Execution</b></u><b>:</b> <br />If you find your missing files, try to restore them <u><i><b>to another disk drive</b></i></u>, (like a thumb-drive), if your undelete utility supports that option.</li>
<li><u><b>Prayer</b></u><b>:</b> <br />I'm not including this just to be funny or sarcastic. As you can see, undeleting something is a very iffy proposition at it's best, and a successful undelete depends just as much on luck as it does on skill.</li>
<li><u><b>Appreciation</b></u><b>:</b> <br />Everyone likes appreciation, and the poor sod of a software writer likes it even more. Especially since the only communication he's likely to get from his users are complaints!</li>
<ul>
<li>In all seriousness, if the utility is shareware and it just saved your butt bigtime, dig out the Benjamins and buy the license. It's the least you can do.</li>
<li>If it's freeware - and there's a "donate" option, cough up the dough. At the very least buy him a six-pack of his favorite brew. Or, absent that feature, send him an e-mail telling him how much you appreciate his skill and thoughtfulness.</li>
</ul>
</ul>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><u><b>Linux/Mac Users</b></u>:</span><br />
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If you're dealing with a Linux/Unix/Mac type operating system, there's a <i><b>really good possibility</b></i> that you may just be plain-ole' hozed if you don't have something like "Time Machine" turned on.<br />
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Unix type systems have unique kinds of file systems, file deletion methods, and aggressive i-node recovery paradigms that they often use. (i-nodes contain the file descriptors, and <i><b>all</b></i> the pointers and metadata for a particular file or files.) Because of their design, it may be <i><b>almost completely impossible</b></i> to recover files deleted on a 'nix system without resorting to <i><b>extremely</b></i> advanced techniques that are, (usually), beyond the ability and experience of even the most advanced system administrators.<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><u><b>Conclusion</b></u>:</span><br />
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With any luck I have, (hopefully), scared you s**tless about the prospect of loosing important files or data. And if I have done so, please, please, pretty-please consider using backups as a recovery strategy instead of "a wing and a prayer". OK?<br />
<br />
What say ye?<br />
<br />
Jim (JR)<br />
<br />Jim "JR"http://www.blogger.com/profile/01053267015652256718noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8386999095134482598.post-77068081785881476442013-10-07T01:09:00.000-04:002014-04-01T01:29:09.648-04:00Hot Smokin' Weapon! Award for October 2013The Raspberry Pi<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Yep. It's time for yet another Hot Smokin' Weapon award - and this month's winner is the <a href="http://www.raspberrypi.org/"><u>Raspberry Foundation's pocket-sized computer</u></a>, the Raspberry Pi. <br />
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Recently I was able to get my hot little hands on a Raspberry Pi board. Built and designed in the land of British pubs <strike>and lousy beer</strike>, they're available here in the U.S. for about $35 each. For another five or ten dollars, you can get it complete with an SD card pre-programmed with a boot loader and five or six Linux distributions to play with.<br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-uWTNlNxq4ZU/UlITsRtVACI/AAAAAAAAAGw/bmyYHtwIVws/s1600/DSC02784.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-uWTNlNxq4ZU/UlITsRtVACI/AAAAAAAAAGw/bmyYHtwIVws/s640/DSC02784.JPG" height="426" width="640" /></a></div>
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Here's what a Raspberry Pi, Model B, looks like in real-life. Notice its size relative to the full-size SD card next to it. The Raspberry Pi people refer to it as a "credit card" sized computer. The red board on the right is the PI's GPIO breakout board that you can use to control external circuitry.<br />
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The layout illustration was taken from the Raspberry Pi web-site located at <a href="http://www.raspberrypi.org/faqs">http://www.raspberrypi.org/faqs</a></div>
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And here's the layout, (minus the two flex connectors). The difference between the Model A, and B, is that the A version does not have the LAN port, has only half the onboard memory, and has only one USB slot instead of the two on the model B. Since, IMHO, the extra USB port and the LAN capabilities are important to me, I purchased the model B, and I am basing my review on that particular version.<br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-2gy2YSpY9Hg/UlITl29UxHI/AAAAAAAAAGc/n30EQ1v0kQE/s1600/DSC02777.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-2gy2YSpY9Hg/UlITl29UxHI/AAAAAAAAAGc/n30EQ1v0kQE/s640/DSC02777.JPG" height="426" width="640" /></a></div>
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This is the Ethernet / USB end of the board. You can see the full-sized HDMI connector on the left just above the Ethernet jack, (with the brown tape on it), as well as the yellow RCA composite video connector and a blue "headphone" jack for analog audio if you are not using the HDMI connector. Or, if you have connected it like me using a HDMI - DVI adapter plug, you need the aux audio connector for audio. <br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Ct7xj__-Cd4/UlIdSJ2oy8I/AAAAAAAAAH4/4g8WiGdK-xE/s1600/DSC02781.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Ct7xj__-Cd4/UlIdSJ2oy8I/AAAAAAAAAH4/4g8WiGdK-xE/s640/DSC02781.JPG" height="426" width="640" /></a></div>
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Here's a view from the other end. In this view you can see the two flex-cable connectors, (marked with red arrows), and the GPIO header on the left, marked with the green arrow. The bottom flex connector is for use with the Pi's camera module and the flex connector on the upper right is rumored to be for an LCD display module. The GPIO connector attaches to the GPIO breakout board using a standard 26 conductor ribbon cable and connectors.<br />
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The big square chip just above the lower red arrow is the brains of the beast. It is a Broadcom "System on a chip" that contains everything on the board, except the connectors, voltage regulator, decoupling capacitors, isolation resistors, and the status LEDs. The rest is in the chip - the ARM processor, the GPU, the Ethernet and USB controllers, and God only knows what else.<br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-6hcJ8Sm7Vic/UlITsboqdnI/AAAAAAAAAG4/ZK9JtEKMIzM/s1600/DSC02785.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-6hcJ8Sm7Vic/UlITsboqdnI/AAAAAAAAAG4/ZK9JtEKMIzM/s640/DSC02785.JPG" height="426" width="640" /></a></div>
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Here's a full-size SD card, the Raspberry Pi, and the GPIO breakout board shown next to a 12" ruler to give you a sense of scale.<br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-IgUURtr3g1M/UlITxruJV9I/AAAAAAAAAHI/u7NrJ2cJW6k/s1600/DSC02787.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-IgUURtr3g1M/UlITxruJV9I/AAAAAAAAAHI/u7NrJ2cJW6k/s640/DSC02787.JPG" height="426" width="640" /></a></div>
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This picture has the Raspberry Pi next to a plastic case you can buy for it. It has cutouts for all the connectors, the GPIO breakout board's ribbon cable, and a slot to put a SD card, (face down) at the back. Since, (obviously!), the Pi is a live circuit board, putting it in some kind of a case is a smart move to prevent accidental short-circuits from ruining it.<br />
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Now, let's insert a pre-loaded SD card, and fire the beastie up!<br />
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Note that the Raspberry Pi <i><b>has no onboard BIOS of any kind</b></i>, so there must be a SD card, with software loaded, before the thing will do anything at all. Especially since the SD card is the system's "hard drive" so to speak.<br />
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You can load software on the Pi in one of several ways:<br />
<ul>
<li>If you are a total masochist, (or need special capabilities not available any other way), you can dig up the specs, an ARM assembler/compiler, and write "bare metal" code for the thing. There's a whole forum at the Raspberry Pi site devoted to just that kind of insanity. Since I've done that kind of thing before, (and no, I've never claimed to be sane), it sounds rather interesting. I'm planning to go wander around there, just as soon as I work up the nerve and get a couple of minutes to spare.
</li>
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<li>You can spool a byte-for-byte image of various distro's directly onto the SD card. Note that these images are bit-images, just like an ISO file for a CD, so they have to be written as a bit-image using special raw byte transfer software like "dd" in Linux. There are several software image writers for Windows, and you can use them as well.
</li>
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<li>Even though spooling a bit-image onto your SD card isn't really that difficult, it <i><b>is</b></i> a bit tricky, so the developers of the Raspberry Pi created a special boot-loader called NOOBS. (New Out Of Box Software) And yes, the pun is deliberate, since it is primarily intended for those of us who are not Certified Raspberry Engineers; to help us get up, running and productive with a minimum of grief.</li>
</ul>
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Here's an image of the initial screen you see when NOOBS version 1.3.0 boots for the first time.<br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-QQ6c4E_jTlQ/UlIT4w1Z_tI/AAAAAAAAAHo/ovQ4LzPgMgM/s1600/DSC02791.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-QQ6c4E_jTlQ/UlIT4w1Z_tI/AAAAAAAAAHo/ovQ4LzPgMgM/s640/DSC02791.JPG" height="426" width="640" /></a></div>
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The first thing you notice is the list of distributions you can load, ranging from the very capable Raspbian re-spin of Debian Linux, all the way to the more esoteric RISC OS, while not for beginners, it's a full-blown re-spin of IBM's RISC operating system. It's funky, but <i><b>fast</b></i>. Unlike a Linux distribution, this thing boots all the way to it's GUI in less time than it takes your hand to move away from the power connector you just plugged in. Like I said, it's a bit wonky if you're not familiar with RISC systems, but its <i><b>scary fast</b></i>!<br />
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If you're looking carefully, you will notice a number of selection icons across the top of the dialog window. And yes, Virginia, that round thing that looks like a globe is the icon that launches the loaders built-in web browser.<br />
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Yep, you heard me right, the OS loader selection screen has <i><b>a built-in web browser</b></i> that can be used to surf the web in case you need any supporting information to get you started. And to make things better, the browser's home page is set to link directly to the Raspberry Pi help forum. And it's not just a crufty text-based browser either. It's the Real Deal. So far, the only things it doesn't do is allow you to download something, (though I might be wrong here), and play Flash video. Oh, in case you wondered, it <i><b>does</b></i> fully support PDF files, and they can be viewed directly within the browser itself.<br />
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In case you <i><b>really</b></i> need to get down-and-dirty, ALT-F2 brings you to a text based login screen - the user is "root" and the password is "raspberry" - where you can do pretty much everything you could do in a "normal" text based startup - or a terminal window - in Linux.<br />
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Here's a closer look at the distro selection screen showing the various distributions you can install. Oh, and by the way, the check-boxes are there for a reason. A new feature in NOOBS 1.3.0 is the ability to install more than one distribution at a time - limited only by the space on your SD card. And just to make sure you don't goof up, the area down at the bottom, labeled "Disk space" shows you both how much space you have to play with, and the total space needed for the selections you've made. If you select more than can fit - the total space number becomes a bold-faced red to warn you. I don't know if it prevents you from trying - I did not try it - but it <i><b>is</b></i> a thoughtful touch.<br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-dz7wBf3Gyxo/UlITyqMlYAI/AAAAAAAAAHU/Zx9WkSHDlKo/s1600/DSC02788.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-dz7wBf3Gyxo/UlITyqMlYAI/AAAAAAAAAHU/Zx9WkSHDlKo/s640/DSC02788.JPG" height="426" width="640" /></a></div>
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If you install Raspian, you see this configuration screen at first-boot where you can set a whole bunch of useful and important parameters - like your localization settings since everything defaults to settings appropriate for Great Britain. Unless you live there, you will have to set the system locale to one appropriate for you, your time zone, and your region's particular keyboard-map. Note that the locale settings also set the default language for the system, as run. And yes, they have support for just about every weird character set and language out there. I didn't try Arabic or Hindi, but they do a darn good job with Russian.<br />
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Once you're done, the system reboots and - if you have selected the option to boot directly to the GUI - you are presented with the Raspian desktop.<br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-nSgIUcgk84g/UlITxk-SvQI/AAAAAAAAAHQ/6BNdqYQUpNg/s1600/DSC02789.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-nSgIUcgk84g/UlITxk-SvQI/AAAAAAAAAHQ/6BNdqYQUpNg/s640/DSC02789.JPG" height="426" width="640" /></a></div>
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Of course, the background image is the Raspberry Pi logo, in living color, larger than life. Once you get tired of looking at that - which doesn't take long - you can substitute any image your little heart desires.<br />
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The desktop manager is LXDE, one of the "lightweight" desktop managers. Though it might be "lightweight" desktop in size, it's a fooler since it's most definitely <i><b>not</b></i> lightweight in capabilities. If you can do it in Gnome or KDE, chances are you can do it here too. Though you won't see all the "eye candy" that's in the larger desktops, (Face it, do you REALLY need bouncing desktop icons that spin and change colors?), it does a very competent job of doing what it does, being a desktop that lets you get work done.<br />
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Since the original design philosophy of the Pi was to use it as a teaching tool, it comes pre-loaded with a couple of programming environments: Scratch for the rank beginner who has never even thought of programming in his life, as well as Python, the "official" programming language of the Raspberry Pi in Raspian.<br />
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In case you're curious, Scratch is a very elementary programming language - not unlike the "turtle graphic" languages that were in vogue during the '90's, and it works a lot like a Lego building set. Each kind of statement, conditional, expression, or whatever has a particular shape. Syntax is taken care of by how the shapes fit. If they fit, it will work.<br />
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Another part of the language is a large catalog of "sprites" - graphical images that can be placed in the primary display area known as the "stage". Depending on the steps you put together, you can make the sprite do any number of things on the stage. You can put more than one sprite on the stage, change their position or direction of travel, and detect if they touch each other, or touch one of the stage's side walls.<br />
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I played with it for about 30 minutes or so, and I was able to get the main sprite - a cat - to walk around the stage, changing color as he walked.<br />
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Oh! I almost forgot to mention; what happens if you get heartily tired of the distro(s) you originally picked and want to do something different?<br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-iI3v0DdCCXY/UlIT4SoVlQI/AAAAAAAAAHg/sCqPk_UpMK0/s1600/DSC02790.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-iI3v0DdCCXY/UlIT4SoVlQI/AAAAAAAAAHg/sCqPk_UpMK0/s640/DSC02790.JPG" height="426" width="640" /></a></div>
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Every time the system boots, you get about five seconds of this - a way to abort the boot and return to the original NOOBS loader screen.<br />
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The good news: If you've gotten so tired of Raspian that you are about to scream, you can swap it out for any of the other distributions.<br />
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The bad news: Making new distribution selection(s) on the NOOBS loader screen is a destructive process. Any settings, files, and God Knows What Else you may have created are lost and gone forever, oh my darling Clementine. That is, unless you had the foresight to plug in a thumb-drive and copy your settings and files off the system before selecting a new distribution set.<br />
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The bottom line:<br />
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Though originally conceived as a teaching tool, the Raspberry Pi is a competent system in it's own right.<br />
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You can use it as a self-contained media center connected to your huge screen HDMI TV / Display - a job that it totally <b><i>KICKS ASS</i></b> at, making my larger computers with wicked nasty video cards look like pikers by comparison.<br />
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You can use it as a miniature, (in size only, not in capabilities), RISC "mainframe" system with multiple users logged in at the same time.<br />
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With a suitable distro installed - like Raspian - you can use it as a full-fledged workstation. So much so that there are a multitude of forum threads devoted to people who have decided to toss their big, noisy, power-hungry beasts and just use the Raspberry as their main computer system. And if you're like me, and won't miss the dancing bears, roving eyeballs, and bouncing icons, you will feel right at home sitting in front of your cigarette-case sized computer, kicking ass and taking names, right up there with the Big Dogs.<br />
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Don't take my word for it. Go out and get one - they're dirt-cheap by comparison - and give the beast a spin. Just be careful. It might be love at first sight!<br />
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Read all about it at <a href="http://www.raspberrypi.org/"><u>http://www.raspberrypi.org</u></a><br />
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What say ye?<br />
<br />
Jim (JR)<br />
<br />Jim "JR"http://www.blogger.com/profile/01053267015652256718noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8386999095134482598.post-35843033968063820572013-09-06T03:06:00.000-04:002016-01-05T13:07:22.006-05:00Migrating Outlook's User SettingsHow to move your settings from one computer to anotherIn <a href="http://www.qatechtips.com/2010/01/how-to-migrate-outlook-mail-from-xp-to.html"><u>a previous article</u></a>, I wrote about how to migrate Outlook's mail files from Windows XP to Windows 7, and it has been one of the most popular articles I've written based on web traffic. The most common question that this article spawned was, (something like), "OK, Einstein, I've moved all my files; now how do I go about moving my <i><b>settings</b></i> as well?!"<br />
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This is a perfectly legitimate question since, if you've had Outlook set up for longer than fifteen minutes, it's a lead-pipe cinch that you've developed a rather complicated set of settings, rules, accounts, and such-like over the years. And one of the biggest hurdles to migrating your e-mail from one system to another is not so much migrating the <i><b>e-mail</b></i>, (that is, your mail files and such), but recreating all the customizations, tweaks, changes, and such that make your installation of Outlook uniquely yours. Not to mention having to remember all the settings, passwords, security configurations, (etc. . .), for each and every e-mail account that you've associated with Outlook.<br />
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This article seeks to address that issue by showing you how to move not only your mail files, but all your customizations, rules, and settings as well.<br />
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Unfortunately, this article is <b>Looooong</b>. . . .<br />
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It's not that difficult to do, and it <i><b>really</b></i> doesn't take as long as you might think from reading this article. It's just not something that can be told in three or four steps.<br />
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Be patient, read through it two or three times, grit your teeth, and push onward! <br />
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<hr />
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<b><u>Caveats</u>:</b><br />
<ul>
<li>This article assumes that you are using Outlook for <i><b>local</b></i> e-mail storage. (<i>i.e.</i> your mail files are stored <i><b>locally</b></i> on your system, you connect to your ISP's mail server using POP-SMTP, (or maybe even IMAP, though I have not tried it), and <u><i><b>not as part of an Exchange Server system on a domain</b></i></u>, etc. If your mail is stored on an external/corporate mail system this may not work. You can try it, and if it <i><b>does</b></i> work, please let us know! </li>
<li>My system is a <b>Windows 7 - 64 bit</b> system; though this should work on the 32 bit version of Windows 7, as well as both 32 and 64 bit versions of Vista. If anyone tries this on Windows 8 - 32 or 64 bit, please post a comment and let me know if it works there too.</li>
<li>I have not tried this <i><b>migrating between 32 and 64 bit versions of Windows</b></i> - in <u><b>either</b></u> direction. Because certain important metadata information about your e-mail setup is located in the Registry, and because I do not know if there are any differences between them on 64 or 32 bit systems, Your Mileage will most certainly Vary. </li>
<li>My system is a <b>Win-7 / Vista</b> generation system. Since I do not currently have a working installation of Outlook on anything older than that - like XP - I cannot say if this will work or not. However, knowing how Microsoft does things, and how their Registry is organized, I wold not be surprised if this works there too. Again, if you try this on XP, please post and let me know if it works there or not.</li>
<ul>
<li>Also note that the locations of the various mail-files and such <i><b>are different</b></i> when migrating from XP to Vista/Win7/Win8. Pleas see <a href="http://www.qatechtips.com/2010/01/how-to-migrate-outlook-mail-from-xp-to.html"><u>my previous article</u></a> for information on where the files are located on XP, and how to migrate these files from XP to something later. You should also be aware that these differences in file locations will, very likely, affect the Registry settings for Outlook too. Beware.</li>
</ul>
<li>My version of Outlook is the Outlook 2010 version, however this should work on versions from 2007 onward. It <i><b>might</b></i> work with Outlook 2003, and <i><b>I have not tested it with Outlook 2012</b></i>, though it would not surprise me if it works there too.</li>
<li>My version of Outlook is the <i><b>32 bit version</b></i> of Outlook 2010, since at the time I installed it Microsoft was recommending everyone install the 32 bit version unless you had a very specific need for the 64 bit variety of Outlook. </li>
<li>I am also assuming that your mail files are located <i><b>in the standard locations where Outlook normally installs them</b></i>. If you've moved your mail-files around, you'll have to substitute your unique paths and places when I tell you to either copy or paste the various folders. </li>
<li><i><b>You will be "mucking around" with your Registry</b></i>, and if you're not careful, you can mangle a system in short-order. However, most of the things here are relatively benign, and if you follow the steps carefully, you should have no problems. Of course, Your Mileage May Vary, and if you bork your system. . . . Well you should have made backups first!</li>
</ul>
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<hr />
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Here's how to do it.<br />
<br />
<b><u>Setup, prior to migration between the two systems</u>:</b> <br />
<ul>
<li>First things first: Perform a <i><b>full system backup</b></i>, preferably a "bare metal" backup if at all possible, before doing anything else. These steps are fairly easy and the majority of Windows users should have no problems. However, good 'ole Mr. Murphy likes nothing better than to catch someone - no matter how experienced - with his pants down. Mistakes happen, so don't forget the backup!</li>
<li>Make sure that the <i><b>account username is identical</b></i> on both the original system and the target system. Likewise, make sure that <i><b>both of the accounts are elevated to "Administrator" access</b></i>. If you want to down-grade the account(s) to "Standard User" access, that can be done once everything is proven and working.</li>
<ul>
<li>You <i><b>can</b></i> move between systems where the username is <i><b>not</b></i> the same, but you will loose a lot of the metadata and rule relationships simply because the paths to the various files are different.<br /><br />In one case, I tried moving from a system where the username was "Jim" to one where the username was "Jim Harris", and because the user path isn't the same, things get interesting. In my case I ended up having to re-sync a number of my rules because the target folder of the rule changed due to the path change. Likewise, although all the account information came over, the passwords for the accounts were lost and I needed to re-enter them again.</li>
</ul>
<li>Prepare the target system by installing <i><b>the same version of Outlook as is on the original system</b></i> before you migrate. Microsoft likes to make, (ahem!), "little tweaks here and there" between the differing versions of Outlook. If you don't believe me, <a href="http://www.qatechtips.com/2010/05/more-merrier-outlook-2010-as-e-mail.html"><u>go look at another article I've written</u></a> on just that very subject. Verify that Outlook on the target system is fully installed and ready to have e-mail accounts set up. Don't set the accounts up just yet, just make sure that Outlook is at the point where accounts can be set up.</li>
<li>Make sure Outlook is not running on either of the two systems - both source and target.. In fact, while you're doing this, you'll probably want to either unplug the network cable, or turn Wireless networking off, (or both.), on both systems. The reason for this is that:</li>
<ul>
<li>If the first system downloads e-mails while you're migrating to the second system, your two systems are now "out of sync", and you'll have to repeat much of this to re-sync them.</li>
<li>If Outlook is running on either system, you may not be able to copy, or instal, the necessary files and settings. And even if you do, you can't guarantee that they'll work right.</li>
</ul>
<li>With networking / Wireless turned off on both systems, do what I call a "Frosty Cold Reboot". That is, do a full shutdown to the power-off state on both systems, count to five <i><b>slowly</b></i>, and then restart both systems, making sure that networking is still disabled and Outlook is not running.</li>
</ul>
Most of the things you'll be doing require full administrative rights on the system. If the account you're migrating from/to is just a "standard" account, you should, (temporarily), elevate it to an "Administrator" account while the migration is in progress.<br />
<br />
<b><u>Saving your mail-files</u>:</b><br />
<br />
This is where you'll backup all your important e-mail files.<br />
<ul>
<li>Prepare a thumb-drive, (USB stick, flash drive, or whatever you want to call it), that is big enough to hold all your mail-files with about a gig or two left over.</li>
<li>Place the thumb-drive in your original system, and create three folders:</li>
<ul>
<li>In the root of the thumb-drive, create a folder called "Outlook"</li>
<li>Inside the Outlook folder you just created, create two new folders called "Local" and "Roaming".</li>
</ul>
<li>Make sure that Outlook is not running, (or shut it down if it is), then make the following file copies between your original system and the thumb-drive:</li>
<li>Go to the "C:\Users\[your user name]\AppData\<i><b>Local</b></i>\Microsoft" folder.</li>
<ul>
<li>If you cannot see the hidden "AppData" folder from within your home directory, you'll have to open the "folder options" dialog and - under "Hidden Files and Folders", select the radio-button next to "Show hidden files, folders, and drives".</li>
<li>Likewise - from inside the same dialog - you'll have to un-check "Hide protected operating system files (Recommended)" Windows will complain bitterly about this, but go ahead and do it anyway. (You may want to go and set these two settings back to the way they were when you're finished migrating.)</li>
</ul>
<li>Within the Microsoft folder, pick up and copy the entire "Outlook" folder to the \Outlook\<i><b>Local</b></i> folder on your thumb drive. Since this contains your mail files, as well as certain special indexing and metadata files, this might take a while. Note that the Outlook directory on my own system weighs in at just under two gigs. It's been around a while, but I've also done the periodic garbage collection - throwing out ancient and useless e-mails - as well as compacting folders to keep the amount of cruft and junk to a minimum.</li>
<li>Next, go to your "C:\Users\[your user name]\AppData\<i><b>Roaming</b></i>\Microsoft" folder and copy the following folders to the \Outlook\<i><b>Roaming</b></i> folder on your thumb-drive:</li>
<ul>
<li>The "Outlook" folder</li>
<li>Both the "Proof" and "UProof" folders.</li>
<li>Both the "Signatures" and "Stationary" folders.</li>
</ul>
</ul>
<br />
<b><u>Saving your e-mail settings</u>:</b><br />
<br />
This is where you backup all the "hidden" settings and passwords from the Registry.<br />
<ul>
<li>First: Open an <i><b>elevated</b></i> (Administrator), command prompt. This is important since Windows versions starting with Vista onward, "virtualize" important parts of the system. You need to be working with the <i><b>real</b></i> Registry, not some "virtual" copy of it.<br />If you've never done this before, here's how:</li>
<ul>
<li>Click on the "Start" button and go to "All Programs" and then "Accessories".</li>
<li>Within the "Accessories" section, you'll see a black box icon named "Command Prompt" about three or four icons down from the top.</li>
<li><i><b>Right Click</b></i> on the "Command Prompt" icon, and select "Run as Administrator" from the pop-up sub-menu that appears.</li>
<li>Click on "Yes" if a UAC prompt asks you for permission.</li>
<li>You should now see a "DOS" type command prompt window that has as it's title "Administrator: Command Prompt". <i><b>This is very important! Verify that you have the correct command prompt window open before you proceed!</b></i></li>
</ul>
<li>Within the elevated command prompt window, type "regedit". Once you do this, you'll see the standard Windows Registry Editor window appear.</li>
<ul>
</ul>
<li>Navigate to the following location within the registry:<br /><span style="color: #990000;">HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Windows Messaging Subsystem\Profiles</span>.<br />(Whew! What a mouthful <b>that</b> was!!) Let's try that again, easier this time.</li>
<ul>
<li>HKEY_CURRENT_USER</li>
<li>Software</li>
<li>Microsoft</li>
<li>Windows NT</li>
<li>CurrentVersion</li>
<li>Windows Messaging Subsystem</li>
<li>Profiles</li>
</ul>
<li>When you expand the "Profiles" key, (by clicking on the small triangle), one of the sub-keys you should see is one named "Outlook". (On my system, "Outlook" is the only sub-key there. Your system may have others too.) This is the Registry key you're interested in, and this is the Registry key where all the magic is located. In the next few steps, you're going to make a copy of all the data in this key and save it on your thumb-drive so that you can move it to your new system.</li>
<li>Click on the "Outlook" sub-key so that it is highlighted, <i><b>right click</b></i> on it to expand the pop-up sub-menu, and then select "Export"</li>
<li>When you do that, you'll see a dialog box titled "Export Registry File"</li>
<ul>
<li>Select the \Outlook folder on your thumb-drive as the location for the exported file.</li>
<li>Give the export file a useful name. Something like "Outlook Settings Export 06-21-2013.reg" is a good choice.</li>
<li>Make sure the "Save as type" is set to "Registration Files (*.reg)" - which is the default setting.</li>
<li>Make sure that the "Export range" is set to "Selected branch".</li>
<li>Click on "Save", wait a nanosecond or so, and the magic is done! You now have a perfectly preserved copy of all those mysterious settings in Outlook.</li>
</ul>
</ul>
<br />
<hr />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #990000; font-size: x-large;"><b>Danger, Will Robinson! Danger! Danger!</b></span></div>
<br />
All of the previous steps assume that <i><b>you have not opened Outlook since you started this process</b></i>. Opening Outlook, (especially if you've received any e-mails between the time you copied the mail-files from ...\AppData\Local and now), will write various changes into many files on the system - especially within the "Outlook" sub-key in the Registry.<br />
<br />
This actually surprised me as I had previously "assumed" ( ! ! ! ) that the Registry settings only contained account, setup, password, (and possibly), path information about your e-mail. When I re-exported my Outlook registry key today, (just to make sure I was using the correct sequence of steps in this article), I tried comparing it to another Outlook registry key export I did a week ago, "just for grins and giggles" - and damn if they weren't different!<br />
<br />
Admittedly, the differences were (usually) relatively small in nature with only a few bytes different here and there; but <i><b>any</b></i> differences make me nervous. Especially since I don't know what those "few bytes here and there" might represent. And, AFAIK, the only differences between <i><b>then</b></i> and <i><b>now</b></i> is that I have received a fair amount of e-mail since I did the original Registry settings export.<br />
<br />
If you <i><b>have</b></i> opened Outlook, it is very likely that your mail-files, metadata, and Registry have become unsynchronized. If you try to restore the files you copied earlier, along with the Registry settings that you've just now exported, the results may be, (ahem!), "interesting". To avoid this, you'll have to make sure Outlook is <i><b>not</b></i> running, then go back to the beginning and start re-copying all the files and settings all over again. Bummer. . . .<br />
<br />
<hr />
<br />
The last step in exporting everything from your "old" version of Outlook is to export all your rules.<br />
<br />
I know that I have been screaming up-and-down about not opening Outlook, but this time you gotta do it, since (again, AFAIK), the only way to access these rules is via Outlook itself.<br />
<br />
Now hold on! Before you get all eager and go starting up Outlook, you still have to make sure your e-mail sessions don't get outta whack. To do that, you need to make sure that Outlook can't get to the Internet, and the best way to do that is to disconnect from any and all network sources; either hard-wired Ethernet, or via WiFi.<br />
<br />
Once you're absolutely and totally disconnected from <i><b>ANY</b></i> network source whatsoever, you can go ahead, start up Outlook, and export all your finely crafted rules.<br />
<br />
Here's how to do it:<br />
<ul>
<li>Start Outlook and go to your usual mail-view page where you read and send e-mails.</li>
<li>Once you've gotten your e-mail open, up on the "ribbon" near the right side, is an icon that looks like a folder, labeled "Rules".</li>
<li>Click on the little triangle under it to expose the drop-down menu, and select "Manage Rules & Alerts".</li>
<li>You should now see the "Rules & Alerts" dialog with the "E-mail Rules" tab selected, showing (the top of) all the rules you've defined.</li>
<li>On the top right-hand side, select "Options", it will open another dialog titled "Options", and within the top half of the dialog you'll see two buttons labeled "Export Rules" and "Import Rules". Obviously, what you want to select is "Export Rules".</li>
<li>When you click on the "Export Rules" button, you get the usual Windows "Save" dialog which defaults to the "C:\Users\[your user name]\AppData\Local\Microsoft\Outlook" folder. You don't want to save it there, you want to place it on your thumb-drive with everything else, so go find the thumb-drive on the left hand, ("places"), pane, and select the Outlook folder you created there earlier.</li>
<li>Give the exported rule file, (*.rwz), a useful name like "08_20_2013_rules_export.rwz", and save it to the thumb-drive.</li>
<li>Click "OK" on each of the dialog boxes to get back to Outlook's e-mail page, and then close Outlook.</li>
</ul>
At this point, you can do a complete shut-down on your system and remove the thumb-drive. <br />
<ul>
</ul>
<br />
<hr />
<hr />
<br />
Now that you have all the data and metadata from the old system saved all snug and warm on your trusty thumb drive, you can set the old system aside, and bring the new system to center-stage.<br />
<br />
At this point, you're going to move all of the carefully preserved data from the old Outlook installation into the new Outlook installation; making it, (hopefully!), an exact clone of the original Outlook install.<br />
<br />
<hr />
<br />
How to do it:<br />
<br />
<b><u>Setup prior to restoring the Outlook data</u>:</b> <br />
<ul>
<li>First, <i><b>make sure the new system has no active network connections whatsoever</b></i>. Unplug the network cable and/or turn off wireless networking on the new system. This will prevent Outlook from trying to do things to you behind your back.</li>
<li>Make sure that the user on the new machine has <i><b>the exact same name</b></i> as the user on the old machine.</li>
<li>Launch Outlook, and verify that there are no accounts set up, but that it is ready to create new accounts. Then close Outlook.</li>
</ul>
<br />
<b><u>Restore the saved Outlook mail-files and metadata</u>:</b><br />
<ul>
<li>Attach the thumb-drive (where you saved the data) to the new system, and navigate to the Outlook folder you created earlier.</li>
<li>Navigate to the \Outlook\<i><b>Local</b></i> folder on the thumb drive, and copy the "Outlook" folder you saved there to the "C:\Users\[your user name]\AppData\<i><b>Local</b></i>\Microsoft" folder on the new machine.</li>
<ul>
<li>Windows may complain that there is already a folder with that name, and it may also complain that there are files there with the same names.</li>
<li>Allow Windows to "merge" the folders, and if there are any complaints about files being the same name, select the top option - copy the new file and replace the old one with it - since you want to totally erase whatever is there and replace it with what was brought over from the old system.</li>
</ul>
<li>Next, navigate to the \Outlook\<i><b>Roaming</b></i> folder on the thumb-drive, and copy everything there into the "C:\Users\[your user name]\AppData\<i><b>Roaming</b></i>\Microsoft" folder on the new system. This should include:</li>
<ul>
<li>The "Outlook" folder</li>
<li>The "Proof" and UProof" folders</li>
<li>And the "Signatures" and "Stationary" folders</li>
<li>If Windows complains about files or folders being the same, let Windows copy and/or merge as you did before. </li>
</ul>
<li>On the thumb-drive, move up to the "Outlook" folder and find the saved registry file, (it will have an icon that looks like a Rubik's Cube with pieces missing), and double-click it.</li>
<ul>
<li>You will (probably) get a UAC asking you for permission to update the system. Answer "Yes".</li>
<li>You will then see a "Registry Editor" dialog warning you that adding or modifying values in the Registry can do serious damage to your system. It will also ask you if you trust the source of the file <i><b>you</b></i> created just a few minutes ago, (of course you do!), so go ahead and let it install.</li>
</ul>
</ul>
<br />
<hr />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: #990000;"><b><u>Sanity Check</u>:</b></span></span><br />
<br />
Before you do <i><b>anything</b></i> else, you should stop and make sure that things are going OK so far. To accomplish this, launch Outlook. What you should see when Outlook finishes launching itself, is that Outlook on the new machine looks <i><b>exactly</b></i> like the way Outlook looked on the old machine.<br />
<ul>
<li>All your mail folders should be there and they should contain <i><b>exactly what was in them</b></i> before you began the migration.</li>
<li>The e-mail messages that were on the old system should be on the new system.</li>
<li>"Unread" messages on the old system should exist, and be "Unread" on the new one.</li>
<li>Likewise any garbage that was left in the "Junk" and "Deleted Items" folders on the old system should still be there on the new one.</li>
</ul>
In other words, what you see <i><b>now</b></i>, on the new system, should be <i><b>exactly the same</b></i> as what you saw on the old system before you shut Outlook down for the last time.<br />
<br />
If they don't - <span style="color: #990000;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><u>STOP</u>!</b></span><span style="color: black;"> - go back and verify that you've done things properly.</span></span><br />
<ul>
<li>Verify that you copied the folders from the thumb-drive into the <i><b>correct</b></i> folders on the new machine.</li>
<ul>
<li>Did you place the "Outlook" folder that was <i><b>inside</b></i> the \Outlook\<i><b>Local</b></i>\ folder on the thumb-drive inside the ...\AppData\<i><b>Local</b></i>\Microsoft\ folder on the new machine?</li>
<li>Did you place the five folders that you copied to the \Outlook\<i><b>Roaming</b></i>\ folder on the thumb-drive inside the ...\AppData\<i><b>Roaming</b></i>\Microsoft\ folder on the new machine?</li>
</ul>
<li>Were you able to successfully import the Registry file you saved before?</li>
<li>Did you restore your Outlook settings to <i><b>the exact same username</b></i> on both systems?</li>
<li>Have you tried a system reboot?</li>
</ul>
It is important that you go back and resolve any issues now, before you continue.<br />
<br />
<hr />
<br />
Now that you're golden so far, let's do the last few tweaks to get Outlook running on the new machine.<br />
<br />
<b><u>Restore the saved rule file</u>:</b><br />
<ul>
<li>With Outlook still running and open to your e-mail, go back to the "Rules" icon on the ribbon.</li>
<li>Click on the small triangle under the "Rules" icon and select "Manage Rules & Alerts", "Options", and then "<b>Import</b> Rules".</li>
<li>Find the exported rule file, (*.rwz), that you saved in the Outlook folder on your thumb drive, select it and click "Open"</li>
<li>If all goes well, nothing will appear to happen when you import the rules file. Select "OK" on all the dialogs to bring yourself back to Outlook's e-mail page. You can verify that all is well by re-opening the "Manage Rules & Alerts" dialog to verify that all your rules were successfully imported.</li>
</ul>
<br />
<b><u>Verify and Test the account settings</u>:</b><br />
Before you just "let Outlook go", you need to verify that the accounts, passwords, (etc.), are set up correctly.<br />
Likewise, you should make a small settings change that will allow you to go back to your old system if something goes wrong.<br />
<ul>
<li>With Outlook still running, and open to your e-mail, select the "File" tab on the far left side of the ribbon.</li>
<li>Within the "File" tab, select "Account Settings". This brings up a, (in my opinion), <i><b>totally stupid and useless</b></i> button that is - in essence - identical to the one you just selected. Go ahead and select that one too. (What <i><b>where</b></i> they thinking?)</li>
<li>You should, (finally!), be at the "Account Settings" dialog. Verify that each account that existed on your original machine is here on the new one.</li>
<ul>
<li>If you do <i><b>NOT</b></i> see all your accounts, <b><span style="color: #990000;"><u>STOP</u>!</span></b> Close Outlook and repeat the steps for restoring the Outlook registry file.</li>
<li>If that does not fix the problem, go to your thumb-drive and open the Registry file with Notepad. You should see a lot of strange looking stuff that looks something like this:<br /><br /><span style="color: #990000;"><span style="font-family: "Courier New",Courier,monospace;">Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00<br /><br />[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Windows Messaging Subsystem\Profiles\Outlook]<br /><br />[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Windows Messaging Subsystem\Profiles\Outlook\05035e0babc255def9547eba6a273a93d]<br />
"001f3006"=hex:4d,00,ff,00,ff,00,69,00,6c,00,65,00,21,00,41,00,64,00,64,00,72,\<br />
00,65,00,73,00,73,00,20,00,42,00,6f,00,6f,00,6b,00,22,00,50,00,72,00,6f,00,\<br />
76,00,69,00,64,00,65,00,72,00,90,00<br />
"001f300a"=hex:6f,00,dd,00,77,00,88,00,70,00,2b,00,64,00,61,00,6c,00,00,00</span></span> <b>(etc. . .)</b><br /><br />and a lot more just like it. The file should be fairly big, mine is just a tad over 350k in size; but then again I have two different e-mail accounts, and some weird security settings for parts of them too. Depending on how many e-mail accounts you have, and their settings, your file may be a bit larger, or smaller, than mine. However it shouldn't be tiny, and it shouldn't be filled with unprintable garbage that looks like cartoon curse-words.</li>
<li>If you <i><b>don't</b></i> see text like I have shown above, or if it starts with something other than <br /><br /><span style="color: #990000;"><span style="font-family: "Courier New",Courier,monospace;">[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Windows Messaging Subsystem\Profiles]</span></span><br />
or<br />
<span style="color: #990000;"><span style="font-family: "Courier New",Courier,monospace;">[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Windows Messaging Subsystem\Profiles\Outlook]</span></span><br /><br />you should close Outlook, shut down the new machine, go back to the old machine, and re-do the steps for exporting Outlook's Registry profile.</li>
</ul>
<li>Highlight your account, (or each account in turn if you have more than one), and then click on the "Change. . . ." item just above the account list.</li>
<li>Look at the first settings page, and verify that it looks like it should. Then clear the "Test account settings by clicking the 'Next' button" check-box. (You do this so Outlook doesn't try something stupid when you move from screen to screen. Ask me how I know. Go ahead, I dare you!)</li>
<li>Click on the "More Settings" button and click on each tab in turn, from "General" to "Advanced", and verify that the information on each tab is correct.</li>
<li>Once you get to the "Advanced" tab, look about 2/3 of the way down and <i><b>select the "Leave Messages on Server" check-box</b></i>. This is the important "small settings change" I mentioned before. By setting this, Outlook won't delete messages from your mail server when it reads them. This is important because if things don't go right, you can always go back to your old machine and all your messages will be there. (However, any replies you may have sent while on the new machine, won't be.)</li>
<li>Repeat these steps for each additional account you have, verify that all the information is correct, and make sure to select "Leave Messages on Server" for each account in turn.</li>
</ul>
Now, let's fire that puppy up and see if it <i><b>really</b></i> works!<br />
<br />
<hr />
<hr />
<br />
At this point you've checked just about everything that can be checked without "going live" with Outlook.<br />
<ul>
<li>Shut down Outlook.</li>
<li>Re-attach the Ethernet cable, or turn Wireless Networking back on, and wait for the connection to happen.</li>
<li>Verify a good network connection by launching your web browser and verify that you can go to various web pages.</li>
<li>Restart Outlook.</li>
<li>When Outlook restarts, (God willin' an' the Creek Don't Rise), you should receive any outstanding e-mails that have been queued on your various mail servers.</li>
<ul>
<li>If you get errors, resolve them the way you normally would, though I'd be really surprised if you get anything significant at this point. Maybe a rule error or two, but nothing serious.</li>
</ul>
<li>You should go to each of your accounts, in turn, and send a test message back to that account, along with one to every other account you have.</li>
<ul>
<li>You should receive all the test messages from each and every account.</li>
<li>If you don't, go visit that account via it's web portal, (if it has one), and use normal troubleshooting techniques to discover what's happening. In my case, my Yahoo! account periodically goes brain-dead for no apparent reason when I try to download e-mail from it. No real reason that I can see, it just doesn't like POP mail sometimes.</li>
</ul>
<li>If you can, call a friend or two and ask them to send you a test-e-mail. Or, be bold and send <i><b>them</b></i> a test e-mail asking them to reply!</li>
</ul>
<br />
By now, you should know if your e-mail migration has succeeded or not, and if you've gotten this far, it's a pretty fair bet that you're doing just swimmingly. Give it a few days, maybe a week or so, and if all goes well you can go back to each account's "Advanced" settings tab and un-check the "Leave Messages on Server" check-box to clear the cruft off of your mail server(s).<br />
<br />
Drop me a line and let me know how things went!<br />
<br />
Jim (JR)<br />
<br />Jim "JR"http://www.blogger.com/profile/01053267015652256718noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8386999095134482598.post-3331412043707994392013-07-31T16:14:00.000-04:002013-07-31T16:16:09.023-04:00A Cute GadgetThe iGo "Green" Computer Power AdapterIn <a href="http://www.qatechtips.com/2013/07/the-uncertainty-principle-as-it-applies.html">a previous blog article</a> I mentioned that, when thinking about this article, the thought path took me to thinking about garage sales, (also known as "yard sales"), which lead me to thinking about Heisenberg's Uncertainty Principle, a weird association if I ever saw one.<br />
<br />
As I promised, I began writing how I made that association. At second glance I noticed that I was taking up too much space in the article discussing something totally irrelevant - so I deleted it.<br />
<br />
However, the bottom line is that it is possible to score very interesting and useful stuff at garage sales for practically nothing.<br />
<br />
And so it is here. I found the <a href="http://www.igo.com/laptop-wall-charger-igo-greenr/invt/ps001322007" rel="nofollow">iGo "Green" AC power adapter</a> at a garage sale, being sold by someone who had no idea what it was. Ergo, I was able to buy it for one dollar. (MSRP is $80.) Of course, it was missing a power cord and had no instructions, but I have plenty of power cords and a computer power adapter isn't that hard to figure out. (And I can get the instructions on-line <a href="http://www.igo.com/laptop-wall-charger-igo-greenr/invt/ps001322007" rel="nofollow">at iGo's web site</a>, if I really want them.) And, more luck, it had the right adapter plug to fit my laptop!<br />
<br />
<hr />
<br />
So, what makes the iGo"Green" adapter such a cute gadget? It's a whole new take on the standard laptop AC adapter, designed to save power.<br />
<br />
A "normal" (as supplied by the manufacturer), laptop AC adapter is usually a standard <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Switched-mode_power_supply" rel="nofollow">switching power supply</a> converting the normal AC "mains" voltage, (either 110 or 220 volts, depending on locality), to the DC charging voltage required by the laptop, and includes a plug guaranteed to fit.<br />
<br />
"Da' Bitch Part", so to speak, is that these switching supplies can <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Standby_power" rel="nofollow">consume non-trivial amounts of power</a> from the wall mains even when the laptop is fully charged. (A good test of this is to touch the adapter and note how warm it is when your laptop has been turned off for a while.) Likewise, the ever-fussy folks in California, as well as in the European Union, consider this "wasted" power a Scourge to Mankind.<br />
<br />
The iGo "Green" adapter claims to eliminate much, if not all, of this wasted residual power by detecting the power consumed by the device it is supplying power to. Theoretically, laptop power draw through it's charging port drops dramatically once the batteries are charged. So, by detecting the amount of power the laptop wants to consume - and by allowing the laptop to spend at least some of it's time on battery power - it claims to reduce wasteful standby power by up to 80%.<br />
<br />
<hr />
<br />
Well, I don't happen to have a laboratory-grade micro-wattmeter in my back-pocket, so I cannot give you my own measurements on the actual, real-world, "where the rubber meets the road" consumption, (or lack thereof), of this device when connected to my laptop. What I can tell you is what I have observed while using the device.<br />
<br />
The Good:<br />
<ul>
<li>It is a "universal power" device and can be used on both 110 and 220 volt mains. However since this is, essentially, universally true for device supplies in general, and computer power adapters in particular, this is not exactly the strongest selling point the device has to offer.</li>
<li>It checks the power demand of your device every fifteen minutes, and if it's not demanding power, the charger switches to its "Green mode", and stops supplying power to the device.</li>
<li>Once the charger notices that your device has an increased power demand, it switches back to full-power mode.</li>
<li>Theoretically, this will save bucket-loads of energy by reducing residual power waste.</li>
</ul>
The Bad:<br />
<ul>
<li>The device will - if it decides that you don't need it running - <i><b>turn itself completely off</b></i>. This can happen, (and has happened to me), when you turn your laptop off for the night. Translation: When you power up the laptop in the morning, you're running <i>sans</i> adapter, even though it is plugged in.</li>
<li>I have noticed that it, sometimes, does not exit its "Green mode" when it is supposed to, leaving the laptop running on its batteries. This is especially obvious if the laptop is turned off, the adapter switches to "Green" mode, and then the laptop is turned back on again. You can mitigate this by pressing the green "power" button on the device, but that assumes you're checking the device to see if it's running in full-power mode.</li>
<li>Likewise, the device does not return to it's last running state if power is interrupted and then restored. If I turn off a power strip briefly to reset a network device connected to it, the iGo adapter remains off. A standard adapter continues to supply power when mains power is restored.</li>
<li>On all of the more modern, (say within the last five to ten years), laptops I have purchased, the power adapter is as cool as a cucumber when the laptop is off. Which, IMHO, takes much of the wind out of the iGo adapter's sails since that implies that the amount of wasted residual power is minimal.</li>
</ul>
The Ugly:<br />
<ul>
<li>Depending on your laptop's power settings, suddenly entering "battery powered" mode may cause a significant drop in performance. (Not to mention that your laptop screen may suddenly become unreadable when it switches to it's low-brightness mode.) Note that this effect can be eliminated by changing your device's power-profile to a more piggy, (power-hungry), setting. Which, IMHO, is counter-productive if you are trying to save power.</li>
<li>By making the power profile changes noted above, your laptop's battery life will likely go right into the toilet when not connected to the adapter. That is unless you are thoughtful enough to re-switch your power profile back to a more power-friendly setting.</li>
<li>If unused for a period of time, it shuts itself entirely off. Ergo, when you fire up that trusty 'ole laptop in the morning, you may suddenly discover your machine is <i><b>NOT</b></i> running on adapter power at all. I have discovered this by turning on the laptop, expecting it to be on adapter power because the adapter is both plugged in - and plugged into the laptop - walk away from it for a bit, and come back to a hibernating computer. That, in and of itself, is not entirely bad. However, some software, (including some of Windows' own stuff), does not recover from hibernation gracefully. (Translation: Your machine may begin doing strange things, depending on what you're doing with it.) I have learned not to trust hibernation - or standby - completely and it annoys me no end when a computer goes into hibernation when I don't expect it to.</li>
<li>This means you have to be much more vigilent about what power mode the adapter is in. Am I in "Green" mode? Am I in the normal full-power mode? Has it shut itself off completely?</li>
<li>You also have to be much more aware of your computer's power profile settings and adjust them as necessary to avoid undesired behavior when in battery power.</li>
</ul>
<br />
<hr />
<br />
The bottom line:<br />
<br />
If you are willing to make the effort to be aware of, and regulate, both the adapter's and the computer's power settings, this can be a useful tool.<br />
<br />
If you want to impress your friends with your "Ecological Awareness" with the newest Eco-Gadget, this is it.<br />
<br />
If you want to keep your laptop set to sane and useful power settings, you can do a great job of eliminating wasted standby power just by turning off the power-strip the laptop is plugged into. And you can do that for free.<br />
<br />
What say ye?<br />
<br />
Jim (J.R.)Jim "JR"http://www.blogger.com/profile/01053267015652256718noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8386999095134482598.post-2453405473054630622013-07-28T13:57:00.000-04:002013-07-28T13:57:09.196-04:00The Uncertainty Principle(as it applies to QA)In 1927 Dr. Werner Heisenberg first wrote of what has become known as his "<a href="http://www.aip.org/history/heisenberg/p08.htm">Uncertainty Principle</a>". Though a thorough understanding of this principle involves <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uncertainty_principle">boatloads of mathematics and quantum physics</a>, it can be expressed, (in a very simplified form), like this:<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">It is not possible to know both <i><b>where</b></i> a particle <i><b>is</b></i>, and <i><b>what</b></i> the particle is <i><b>doing</b></i> at the same time.</span><br />
<br />
This had profound implications for particle physics back in the 1920's when it was first stated, and it is still very much a part of atomic physics today. In fact, there are certain properties of very interesting things - superconductors, for example - that <i><b>cannot</b></i> be expressed or discovered without using the Uncertainty Principle.<br />
<br />
<hr />
<br />
The idea for this article came while I was thinking about writing another article. The thought path for that article lead me to "garage sales", and from there to Heisenberg's Uncertainty Principle. How thinking about garage sales lead me to quantum physics is a whole 'nother story, but when I got thinking about it, it struck me as something very interesting to write about.<br />
<br />
<hr />
<br />
Now what the heck does Heisenberg and his Uncertainty Principle have to do with QA? Plenty.<br />
<br />
In QA, especially software QA, we often forget that the observer and the observed interact, and that interaction can lead to results that may not be true in real life. A classic example of this is the "I haven't found any bugs, (yet), so it must be ready for release" concept found so often as a project deadline approaches. In this case, the seeming lack of defects has given the "observer", (the software tester), a potentially unreasonable confidence in the "observed", (the software product), setting the stage for a possible disaster come release time.<br />
<br />
What <i><b>should</b></i> be happening is for the tester to seriously examine how applicable the test methodology might be to the object being tested. Are assumptions being made that may not really be valid in the real world? Are we testing deeply enough? Have we tested enough program paths to really have that level of confidence?<br />
<br />
In a manual test scenario, there are a whole host of ways the observer and observed can interact, and I am sure you can think of ten or twenty yourself.<br />
<br />
What about automated testing?<br />
<br />
Automated testing is probably the best example of observer and observed interacting to their detriment that can be found in so-called "black box" testing. And it's not just the automated test software interacting that's the problem.<br />
<br />
Of course, when you introduce an automated test tool into the program's logic flow, you have altered that flow - even if only infinitesimally. When you add up enough "infinitesimally's", you have a serious impact.<br />
<br />
What about the speed of the test, or of the test's input? Automated tests can insert themselves into the program's messaging queue, and supply user input via trapping that queue and inserting messages into it. The result is that input is provided virtually instantly, something a normal user cannot do. In the real world, you have a user supplying a phone number for example. Instead of xxx-xxx-xxxx appearing instantly, maybe the user types in the area-code, (xxx), and then stops. Oh! I forgot! Let me go look it up. . . There may be a five or ten minute delay - or longer if he gets distracted by his wife wanting something done. What happens then? Is the test trapping output the same way? Natch'. Video? Video <i><b>always</b></i> works, right? Via automated testing we have no way to tell if the program's output visuals are corrupted, off-center, or unreadable.<br />
<br />
In this case the interaction between the observer and the observed is woefully incomplete, yet the fact that "Automated Testing" passed with a clear bill of health may also lend itself to a false sense of confidence.<br />
<br />
The canonical example of the Uncertainty Principle is White Box testing - or even "Grey Box" testing, where the "observer" has to deliberately insert instrumentation code into the product, or a similar kind of invasive testing. Oh, but valid QA requires a good "black-box" test after the white box testing is complete, right? And if I had a nickle for every software product that was released based on the results of the White Box test. . . Um, we probably shouldn't go there.<br />
<br />
The bottom line is this: Any QA test plan should account for the interaction between the observer and the object being observed.<br />
<br />
What say ye?<br />
<br />
Jim (J.R.)<br />
<br />Jim "JR"http://www.blogger.com/profile/01053267015652256718noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8386999095134482598.post-78786285205369064102013-04-23T22:00:00.000-04:002013-09-25T00:04:40.248-04:00Hot Smokin' Weapon! Award for April, 2013GIGANEWS!Greetings! <br />
<br />
Today, I proudly announce yet another of my - somewhat - famous and world renowned Hot Smokin' Weapon! awards - and this award goes to my Usenet provider, <a href="http://www.giganews.com/">Giganews</a>.<br />
<br />
The various criteria for my Hot Smokin' Weapon! award are somewhat subjective. However, since it's <i><b>MY</b></i> award, obviously <u><i><b>I</b></i></u> get to choose the criteria, right? (Laughing!)<br />
<br />
Seriously, an award like this has to have rather flexible criteria, since it can encompass a wide variety of people, places, and things, depending on what strikes my fancy at a particular point in time.<br />
<br />
However, the basics are something like this: <br />
<ul>
<li>Do they deliver, as promised, <u><b>100% NO BULLSHIT</b></u>?</li>
<li>In the extremely unlikely event that "Shit <i><b>DOES</b></i> Happen," do they promptly step up, take ownership, and make it right, <u><i><b>right away</b></i></u>?</li>
<li>Do they make product quality and customer satisfaction their <u><i><b>highest</b></i></u> priority?</li>
<li>Is this something I can unashamedly recommend to whomever might be interested?</li>
<li>Do they make "uncommon valor a common virtue" by going above and beyond the call of duty to meet the customer's needs?</li>
<li>Do they do this at a price that mere mortals like you and I can afford? And despite that, do they make us feel like we're big-shots like Warren Buffet or Bill Gates?</li>
</ul>
In this particular case, <a href="http://www.giganews.com/">Giganews</a> meets, and exceeds, these exacting criteria, and I can honor them with my (semi) Coveted Hot Smokin' Weapon! Award with absolutely no reservation whatsoever.<br />
<br />
<hr />
<br />
So, who is Giganews anyway?<br />
<br />
In short, Giganews is my Usenet provider. And they have been my Usenet provider for a number of years.<br />
<br />
Of course, calling Giganews "my Usenet provider" is like saying that <u>The United States of America</u> is "my nationality." It may not seem like much on the surface, but there's a lot more under the hood than meets the eye.<br />
<br />
Giganews <i><b>IS</b></i> my Usenet provider, and at that task they do an excellent job. With article and download retention periods exceeding <u><i><b>a thousand days</b></i></u>, (right now, <a href="http://www.giganews.com/">their web-site</a> says the retention is at 1700+ days and climbing), and network speeds that make National Internet Backbones jealous, they are THE Usenet provider <i>par excellence</i>.<br />
<br />
Now don't quote me on this, and I <i><b>don't</b></i> know this for a fact, but I would <i><b>NOT</b></i> be surprised to discover that <u><i><b>Giganews</b></i></u> provides the "National Internet Backbone" for the places they serve, their speeds are that awesome.<br />
<br />
One thing you CAN quote me on is something a Giganews support person told me years ago: If you're having speed problems with downloads; something you can 100% take to the bank, and get <i><b>CASH MONEY</b></i> for, is that the problem is <i><b>NOT</b></i> at their end.<br />
<br />
Another thing you can quote me on is the fact that I have seen, with my own eyes, the servers at Giganews totally saturate a 100 Mbit premium cable internet connection without seeming to break a sweat.<br />
<br />
I have watched them go from a standing start to 100 Mbit in less time than it has taken me to write this sentence - and I am <i><b>not</b></i> the world's slowest typist. Depending on network congestion, I've seen them go from zero to network maximum in less than five seconds - often in one or two.<br />
<br />
I have also seen, again with my own eyes, the network folks at Charter Internet throttle my internet speed rather dramatically! (You know, I don't think Charter likes these guys. . . . .)<br />
<br />
As far as downloads are concerned, the only thing that would make my joy complete would be for them to start mirroring some of the more important Linux distributions, important Open Source projects, and back issues of <i>Linux Format</i> magazine!<br />
<br />
<hr />
<br />
Another thing they do, and do <i><b>damned well</b></i>, is provide highly secure VPN portals to various places all around the world.<br />
<br />
Why is this important? Well. . . . .<br />
<br />
First of all, at least in my case, I tend to be rather mobile. And I really don't know where I might be the next time I go on-line. And many of the places I connect at are, ah, (shall we say), somewhat less than pristine security-wise. (Can you say "Public Hot-Spot"? Ahhh! I <u><b>KNEW</b></u> you could!)<br />
<br />
Being able to connect to a secure VPN connection that punches you through the wilds of that hot-spot to get you to the Internet is a Godsend.<br />
<br />
Now, don't get me wrong. Simply punching through a hot-spot isn't the last word in Internet Security, and if that's all you've got going for you, than you're in <i><b>huge trouble</b></i>. However. . . It <i><b>does</b></i> protect you from others on that hot-spot who want to launch a sneak-attack on your system, or prevents you from falling prey to an "evil-twin" exploit. Etc. And that can be critically important, everything else being equal.<br />
<br />
Another useful thing is that not only do they have a whole host of convenient VPN endpoints, these endpoints are located all over the world. Literally. Asia, Europe, the Americas. Even Russia! You name it, they got it. (Or will have it in two shakes of a tiger's tail.)<br />
<br />
Why is this important? Simple. It allows you to appear to be somewhere else than where you physically are. And that can be damn handy.<br />
<br />
Here are a couple of very simple examples:<br />
<br />
First example:<br />
My wife, (who came from Russia), loves to watch Russian TV and Russian movies, so she subscribes to a Russian entertainment web-site: <a href="http://etvnet.com/">etvnet.com</a>. It's a subscription site, as in "for-pay", though they do have a whole host of free, (бесплатно), content as well. (Hint! Hint! If you're studying Russian. . . .)<br />
<br />
There's only one kicker.<br />
<br />
If you're not physically located in North America, (the United States or Canada), then No Enchilada Señor! Subscription or no, you cannot connect to their site. So, if we're traveling abroad, and she wants to catch the latest episode of an interesting mystery series, she's outta luck.<br />
<br />
The solution? I punch through to a VPN endpoint physically located in the U.S., and I can connect to etvnet.com all day long if I want. And she can watch her Russian TV regardless of where we may be in the world.<br />
<br />
Another example, just like the first, only going the other way:<br />
There is a "coupon" site in Russia, Vigoda.ru, (I think), and they have periodic deals from various businesses, like resorts, who have excess product or capacity they want to fill. And the discounts can be rather dramatic. In the past we've scored all inclusive vacations at <i><b>excellent</b></i> lake-side resorts just north of Moscow for pennies on the dollar. Or maybe I should say kopeks on the Ruble? (grin!)<br />
<br />
Since we periodically travel there to spoil our two delightful
granddaughters absolutely rotten, and we like to take them to interesting
places when we're there, if we can get massive discounts by booking before we go, so much the
better.<br />
<br />
Again, there's a location kicker. If you're not physically located there, then No Vodka and Caviar for You, Comrade! And, just like before, the solution is to punch through to the Shiny New VPN endpoint they just opened in Moscow Russia.<br />
<br />
Which, I might add, is the particular inspiration for this Hot Smokin' Weapon! Award.<br />
<br />
<hr />
<br />
Back on the 14th of this month, (April, 2013), they announced a Shiny New VPN endpoint in Zurich Switzerland. And that's nice. I can think of all kinds of things to do with an endpoint in Zurich.<br />
(Visiting CERN's lab comes to mind. . . . . .)<br />
<br />
Coincidentally, (<i>i.e.</i> at the exact same time), we were having no end of troubles trying to book something nice for our granddaughters on said sooper-dooper deal site and I had narrowed the problem down to the fact that we were not physically there. So I sent a reply back to Giganews suggesting that, at some point in the future, if possible, they might, maybe, sorta' want to consider a VPN endpoint somewhere in Russia. If it could be located in Moscow Russia, that would be even better.<br />
<br />
In a matter of an hour or two, my suggestion of a Russian endpoint, at some future point-in-time, if possible, maybe, had been responded to, <u><i><b>and assigned a trouble ticket number</b></i></u>. The very next day, I received <u><i><b>a personal reply</b></i></u> from a gentleman within the support team at Giganews telling me that they were always on the lookout for new VPN endpoints, and they appreciated suggestions like mine to improve their ideas.<br />
<br />
The crowning point:<br />
<u><i><b>Six days later</b></i></u>, Giganews announces a new VPN endpoint in <u><i><b>Moscow Russia</b></i></u>! I have the e-mail in my hot little hands, fresh in my inbox today. Not just <u>somewhere</u> in Russia, which would have sufficed, but <u><i><b>exactly where I had requested</b></i></u>! Now <i><b>that's</b></i> customer service with a vengeance!<br />
<br />
I am still looking for more bandages to cover the scrapes on my jaw where it hit the concrete floor in my basement.<br />
<br />
<hr />
<br />
What else do they do?<br />
<br />
They have a cloud storage product called, oddly enough, "Dump Truck", and <u><i><b>everyone</b></i></u>, even the lowest tier subscribers, get to use it - free of charge.<br />
<br />
They have a sweetheart deal with NewsLeecher to provide you with free access to what is probably the best news-crawler software out there.<br />
<br />
Not only do they provide all these VPN access points, they provide a cute little utility that automates the connection process for you. You click on the icon, select the endpoint you want, and away you go! <br />
<br />
In other words, not only do they have one heck of a service, they go outta their way to make it work for you, instead of you working for it.<br />
<br />
Since they know that not everyone needs the same things from a Usenet provider - some people read the occasional message or two on .alt.birdwatching.european.crows, while others, (like myself), use it as a major research tool - they have a variety of subscription plans.<br />
<br />
These plans range from their more limited "Perl" level plan starting at $5/month, (for the bird-watchers), all the way to their power-user "Diamond" plan for $35/month, though they usually have a nice sign-up incentive for the Diamond plan that gives you a sweet discount for the first few months.<br />
<br />
Of course, depending on the plan you choose, there is a greater or lesser amount of freebies included with it, though they go outta their way to make things as nice as possible for everyone - so even the bird-watchers feel right at home.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.giganews.com/">Go pay 'em a visit</a>! (<== cleverly hidden hyperlink) And tell 'em that Jim over at QA TechTips sent 'ya!<br />
<br />Jim "JR"http://www.blogger.com/profile/01053267015652256718noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8386999095134482598.post-30568200639359815862013-03-26T22:58:00.000-04:002013-03-26T23:48:39.360-04:00All Hail Mighty Mint!The new King of the Linux Distro'sBack in November of 2012, <u><a href="http://www.qatechtips.com/2012/11/a-linux-after-dinner-mint-first-look-at.html">I did a review of Linux Mint 13</a></u> after it had destroyed all contenders in Linux Format's Annual "War of the Distributions" - beating some of the real heavyweights like Fedora and Ubuntu.<br />
<br />
Prior to this I really hadn't paid that much attention to Mint as it appeared to be just another Ubuntu clone among many Ubuntu clones. Of course, it was getting some good press - especially the Cinnamon desktop - but that didn't faze me since just about every distro out there has its own legions of fan-boys.<br />
<br />
However. . . . .<br />
<br />
After Linux Format ran just about every major distribution through the mill, compared them feature-for-feature, and crowned Mint the winner, I started to think again about playing with Mint. So I downloaded Mint 13, (the latest at that point), with the Cinnamon desktop and gave it a spin. I ran the live CD, did a couple of test installations - both on real hardware and within VMware - and I was impressed out of my socks.<br />
<br />
It wasn't full of Canonical's posturing, arm waving, and experimenting with bizarre new layouts and desktop paradigms every release. It wasn't trying to monetize the distribution with hard-coded advertisements or forced use of Canonical's newest features. It wasn't trying to out-Mac the Mac. It just <i><b>worked</b></i>, and it worked <i><b>very well</b></i>. The interface was familiar, uncluttered, and easy to work with, and it was filled with a lot of nice little touches here and there, which indicated to me that someone at Mint was <i><b>actually trying to give the user what they needed</b></i>.<br />
<br />
Now I don't want to completely re-write what I wrote before, <u><a href="http://www.qatechtips.com/2012/11/a-linux-after-dinner-mint-first-look-at.html">you can go read all about it here</a></u>.<br />
<br />
<hr />
<br />
Just this last week I picked up another copy of Linux Format, (Issue 167, February 2013), and splashed all over the front cover was a HUGE copy of Mint's logo, and the headline said "All Hail the new number one distro. . . <b>MIGHTY MINT</b>"<br />
<br />
My interest piqued, I read the article - and it really reminded me of my own review of Mint 13. They fell all over themselves marveling at its clean interface, stability, and how it was conducive to getting real work done.<br />
<br />
Of course, what <i><b>really</b></i> piqued my interest was the article titled <i><b>Mint - The new Ubuntu?</b></i><br />
<br />
And then I thought about it. . . .<br />
<br />
Why had I jumped on the Ubuntu bandwagon in the first place? Because I was getting tired of other distributions - Fedora among them - telling me what I could and could-not do with my own system.<br />
<br />
Ubuntu's motto (was) being "all about choices" - and that's what I wanted. If I wanted to make a system install jump and wave it's arms like a maniac, I could do it. If I wanted an install that would sit and play quietly, I could do that too.<br />
<br />
Then Canonical and Ubuntu started getting snotty. There was a lot of moaning and griping on Ubuntu's fora about not wanting to "Dumb Down Ubuntu" - as if that was, somehow, beneath their dignity. They started making unilateral decisions - absent user feedback - that did <i><b>NOT</b></i> give us the choice of using it or not. Grub2, the Unity desktop, the sudden shift to a very Macintosh-like layout with stuff organized in a very Mac-centric way, and the way the decision makers at Canonical and Ubuntu were turning a deaf ear to the user's requests. It was almost as if the folks at Ubuntu had developed a "F**k 'em all!" attitude - and if you don't like it, go somewhere else.<br />
<br />
Apparently, Ubuntu got its wish. People have been abandoning Ubuntu in droves, wanting an Ubuntu-like distribution that was willing to listen and let them get work done.<br />
<br />
Enter Mint, stage left.<br />
<br />
<hr />
<br />
Mint's philosophy, since day one, was to provide a simple, working, usable Linux distribution that avoided all the fancy eye-candy, the bells-and-whistles that eventually destabilize a system. Most of all, Linux Mint did not have any corporate identity pulling them this way and that. Mint's loyalty, and the primary focus of the Mint leadership and developers has been the user and the user experience.<br />
<br />
Back when I first fired-up Mint 13, it was an Epiphany, almost bordering on a religious experience. Wow! A Linux distro that did everything I wanted a distribution to do, and none of the things I didn't want it to do. Ergo: My glowing article about Linux Mint 13.<br />
<br />
Not long after that, Mint released version 14, based on Ubuntu 12.04 LTE and I decided to give it a spin. It didn't spin very fast though being a bit wonky and weird in ways that I wasn't sure I liked. So I tossed the Mint 14 disk in the trash and went back to 13.<br />
<br />
Apparently I wasn't the only person who tossed that distribution. Though I was not on the Mint fora and didn't hear any of the discussions, it was remarkable how quickly Mint 14.1 came out.<br />
<br />
With 14.1, they got it right. It's just like 13, only more so. Clean, uncluttered, and easy to work with. In fact, if it weren't for the changed desktop background saying "14" instead of "Maya", you'd be hard pressed to tell the distributions apart just by looking at them. And frankly, I like that. I don't want to re-learn a distribution's interface every time they cut a release. I want everything that worked in the one distribution to work in the next, and work the same way if not better.<br />
<br />
Like I used to say about Ubuntu way, way back: This is a distribution that I would feel comfortable loading up on my wife's computer, or even my sainted mother's.<br />
<br />
<hr />
<br />
<b><u>Bottom line</u>:</b><br />
<br />
Mint is a distribution that "just works", and it has leadership and maintainers who actually want to listen to the users suggestions. With that kind of an attitude toward the distribution and their user-base, it's easy to see why people say:<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: large;">All Hail the new number one distro. . . .</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: lime;"><b><span style="font-size: x-large;">MIGHTY MINT!</span></b></span> </span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: normal;"> </span></div>
What say ye?<br />
<br />
Jim (JR)Jim "JR"http://www.blogger.com/profile/01053267015652256718noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8386999095134482598.post-79496091872606305792013-03-24T23:15:00.000-04:002013-03-25T11:05:10.324-04:00Review: Samsung's ATIV Smart PC 500TIs it worth the money?Recently I had an opportunity to take a peek at one of Samsung's newest tablets, the ATIV Smart PC, and frankly, I thought it was an interesting piece. Looking at it, you are immediately aware of how this can function as both a tablet PC and a fairly good sized netbook.<br />
<br />
The version I messed with was the XE500T1C-HA1US model with a "64 gig" internal SSD hard drive, 2 gigs of internal system memory, 802.11 a/b/g/n Wireless connectivity. mini-HDMI, microSD, and a standard-sized headphone jack.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="177" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-KbQteemjUAA/UU-SSlbgCHI/AAAAAAAAAFQ/V0YB27g59qY/s320/Samsung+ATIV+Smart+PC+XE500T1C-A01US.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="320" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.samsung.com/us/computer/tablet-pcs/XE500T1C-HA1US"><u>The Samsung XE500T1C-HA1US</u></a></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<br />
The nice thing about this particular tablet is that it comes with the keyboard/docking station right out of the box - whereas with many tablets, the keyboard and/or dock is an extra-cost accessory.<br />
<br />
As tablets go, it's rather big - 11.6" x 7.2", and maybe just a tad more than a half-inch thick when it's closed on the keyboard.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-yiq2vQ3spxI/UU-UdBy21dI/AAAAAAAAAFY/iLL2UXkTpvo/s1600/Samsung+ATIV+Smart+PC+size.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-yiq2vQ3spxI/UU-UdBy21dI/AAAAAAAAAFY/iLL2UXkTpvo/s1600/Samsung+ATIV+Smart+PC+size.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: blue;"><span style="background-color: white;"><a href="http://www.samsung.com/us/computer/tablet-pcs/XE500T1C-HA1US-specs"><u>Here are the full spec's for this system at Samsung's site</u></a></span></span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
I have read other reviews who complain that the 12 x 7 form-factor is too big and clumsy. Of course, that all depends on what you're looking for in a tablet. If you want something that will run Android or iOS apps, surf the web, play tunes and videos, then maybe they're right.<br />
<br />
However, if you are looking for something a little more substantial - something with a big enough screen to let you actually <i><b>see</b></i> what you're doing, and actually do something <i><b>useful</b></i>, like word processing, e-mail, and other office-type apps, then this tablet might just be your man.<br />
<br />
One place where I can see something like this being really handy is in the "mobile office" scenario. Say you're a Real Estate agent, or someone who takes notes or fills out forms "on the road" - a tablet like this that's almost the size of a full sheet of paper could be really handy.<br />
<br />
The included accessories comprise the keyboard / dock, as well as a charging adapter which works with both American and European voltages. The power module has the (somewhat) standard triangular three-pin plug that allows you to find cords that will fit whatever sockets you may have to use.<br />
<br />
(Reviewer's note: Having been overseas on a number of occasions, I find the ability to use an actual power cord designed for the sockets you are going to be using a far better choice than trying to futz around with a bunch of stupid little plug-adapters.)<br />
<br />
They are also thoughtful enough to include several, (five!), extra pen
tips for their S-Pen, and a small metal removal tool that makes changing
the plastic tips reasonably simple. Even though they supply five extra tips, each of which is reversible, the tips themselves look to be quite rugged. With five extras, you will outgrow the tablet long before you use up the pen's tips. That is unless you chew them, or drag them on concrete.<br />
<br />
<hr />
<br />
Before I go on to tell you what I think about this beast, I want to make a <i><b>very substantial caveat</b></i>: This tablet shipped with Windows 8 installed, which, as I have already said, <a href="http://www.qatechtips.com/2013/03/windows-8-behind-8-ball.html"><u>is an absolute <i><b>PIG</b></i></u></a> of an operating system.<br />
<br />
There were performance issues that may not have had anything at all to do with the underlying hardware, such as sluggish response at times, or choppy video. I could not compare this system with Windows 8 installed to anything else as Microsoft's SecureBoot mandate makes it literally impossible to use this hardware with any other operating system, even if it's on a bootable CD.<br />
<br />
I want to place this right out on the table, up front, since I have had similar issues with installations of Windows Vista - another ill-conceived operating system - even on hardware that was known to be rock-solid with performance to burn. I would like to suggest that you <i><b>take the performance issues raised in this review with a pretty large chunk of salt</b></i>. That is, until it is possible to review this with some other operating system.<br />
<br />
<hr />
<br />
<u><b>The Good News</b></u>:<br />
<br />
<ul>
<li>It runs the Windows operating system, which means that the majority of the apps that you will need to use, will slide right in with 'nary a squeak.</li>
<li>It's <i><b>big</b></i>. The screen is big, bright, and easy to work with. Just as important in my opinion, the <i><b>screen is large enough</b></i> so that you can see what you're doing. Even if your eyes aren't exactly twenty years old anymore.</li>
<li>The touch features are clever and interesting. Though you can use your fingers for many tasks, you will probably want to keep the included "S-Pen" in your pocket as well. One nice feature is that when you get the pen close to the screen, a small target-like cursor pops up showing you where the screen thinks you're pointing - damn handy if you ask me. Likewise, on the side of the pen is a small plastic hinged button of sorts that - when pressed - displays a circle around the target that's easy to see, indicating that you are about to right-click instead of left-click. Also pretty darn handy.</li>
<li>The included keyboard, though a bit small by laptop standards, is still a comfortable size and even <i><b>my</b></i> fat fingers had no trouble using it.</li>
<li>Attaching the tablet screen to the keyboard is accomplished by two hook-clips in the keyboard's track where the tablet docks. When they snap in, it's a nice solid attachment.</li>
<li>Likewise, once docked, the "dock" part of the keyboard is hinged so you can close it like a laptop.</li>
<li>It has one USB slot on the "top" of the tablet, along with a micro-SD card slot and - depending on model - there is also a place where you can slip in a GSM SIM card for broadband internet access.</li>
<li>On the left side, there's a small (ahem!) HDMI port, though I am not sure that this little beast would be my choice as a source of HDMI video.</li>
<li>There is a charging port on both the keyboard and the tablet itself, so you can either charge it as a tablet, or have it recharge when docked. (You only get <i><b>one</b></i> charger though, to effectively use both, you will probably want to get a second one.)</li>
<li>The keyboard also adds two extra USB ports, so if you want an external hard drive, or a mouse, attached to the keyboard dock, you can set it up and just leave it that way.</li>
</ul>
<br />
<b><u>The Bad News</u>:</b><br />
<ul>
<li>It comes with <i><b>Windows 8</b></i> - which as I discussed in a <a href="http://www.qatechtips.com/2013/03/windows-8-behind-8-ball.html"><u>previous article</u></a> - isn't exactly the operating system I'd want to see on a PC - though to be honest, I have no idea how you'd use Win-7 on a tablet either.</li>
<li>It's <i><b>big</b></i>. It won't fit into a pocketbook or pocket - if you want to tote it around you will probably want some kind of a cover or netbook bag for it. </li>
<li>Though the keyboard latches tightly to the tablet when docked - you have to be really careful about how well it has snapped into place. On a few occasions, after I thought I had a good solid attachment, I discovered that only one of the two hook-latches had engaged.</li>
<li>There is a little button just below the center of the tablet's screen on the keyboard's dock that releases the tablet. I found it a bit clumsy to use, often struggling to get the tablet undocked, worrying if I was grabbing the tablet hard enough to damage the screen when trying to separate the two pieces.</li>
<li>Though the keyboard dock is clever and useful, the combination touch-pad and button is absolutely <i><b>awful</b></i> - there is only <i><b>one</b></i> button, which you press by pushing down on the touch-pad itself. Trying to right-click with the touch-pad involves a somewhat complicated two-finger move while pressing the touch pad to engage the button.</li>
<ul>
<li>Recommendation: Get yourself a wireless mouse that has the teeny-tiny dongle that barely pokes out the side and use that. Also, unless you are a <i><b>lot</b></i> more coordinated than I am, you will probably want to turn off tapping as well. I found it way too easy to inadvertently move the mouse cursor and select things just by typing if my palm brushed the touch-pad.</li>
</ul>
<li>The dual-core 32 bit Atom processor is powerful enough for most every-day tasks, but I'd save the heavy lifting for something more substantial.</li>
<li>In my case, I had some trouble using the pen and touch features. This may not be the fault of the tablet, as anyone that has enough of a tremor that they can rent themselves out as a paint-shaker, isn't the best candidate for something that requires a modicum of eye-hand coordination. However I <i><b>was</b></i> a bit disappointed; after all Microsoft's posturing about "accessibility" they didn't include some kind of anti-tremor feature. Of course, even Ubuntu Linux doesn't have that, and I'm pretty darn sure that Apple isn't paying too much attention to those of us with unsteady hands either.</li>
<li>It comes with Microsoft's newest abomination - SecureBoot - which makes any kind of modification or update to the system pretty much impossible. Though I will admit that <i><b>this isn't Samsung's fault</b></i>, as Microsoft has <i><b>mandated certain very specific requirements</b></i> to tablet manufacturers before they can ship Windows 8. The Microsoft mandated features of the EFI bios makes it virtually impossible to boot using external media. I tried booting with a bootable USB thumb-drive as well as an external CD drive, and though both were detected during boot-up, (I could tell by the way the lights flashed that it obviously had mounted the device and read from it), the EFI bios refused to list them as potential boot sources and would not touch them. Maybe it only works if they are properly SecureBoot blessed? I don't know, but I do know that I could not boot anything I had externally, even with SecureBoot marked as "disabled" in the bios itself. Ergo, if you decide you want to transform this into a hot-smokin' Linux tablet - fuggeddaboutit.</li>
</ul>
<br />
<hr />
<br />
The bottom line:<br />
<br />
It's a nice piece and I can see how it could be pretty darn useful, especially in a student or mobile-office scenario, but it's no laptop. The fact that it comes with a docking keyboard that - in essence - turns it into a "convertible" tablet / netbook system, is one of it's strongest points.<br />
<br />
It has plenty of USB ports, and if you need more than the 32 gigs of drive space left over after Windows 8 claims the first half, you can use either external USB drives, or slip a microSD card into it to add an additional on-board drive to store stuff in. I should also note that they have other versions of this tablet that include larger amounts of SSD storage, and perhaps other interesting features built in.<br />
<br />
Since the model I reviewed only came with wireless internet capability, it wasn't the best choice for watching streaming video, as on my local wireless network the video I streamed to it was a bit choppy at times.<br />
<br />
Though I will qualify that statement by saying that <i><b>I had similar problems with Windows Vista</b></i> - even on a hard-wired network connection - so it may not be the tablet's fault. Again, there are other models that include hard-wired Gigabit LAN connectivity if that's something you want.<br />
<br />
The fact that it has an Atom processor - even though it's dual core - it still seems a bit under-powered at times. Though - another caveat is that this will be strongly influenced by what you want to do with it, and again <i><b>this may be due to Windows 8</b></i> instead of the hardware.<br />
<br />
The list price of $750 may not endear it to many people either - especially since a bit of judicious web-sniffing brings up alternatives for much less money. Prior to writing this review, I made a quick web-search looking for other Windows 8 tablets, and it wasn't long before I found a strong contender from Acer - another brand I like - in their <a href="http://store.acer.com/store/acerna/en_US/pd/productID.259931300">W510-1422 Tablet</a> - that has virtually identical specs to the Samsung, including screen size and keyboard, for $600. And this is from Acer's own on-line store. You might be able to find it cheaper at other reputable on-line retailers like <a href="http://www.amazon.com/">Amazon</a> or <a href="http://www.bhphotovideo.com/">B&H</a>.<br />
<br />
What say ye?<br />
<br />
Jim (JR)<br />
<br />
<br />Jim "JR"http://www.blogger.com/profile/01053267015652256718noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8386999095134482598.post-570477208596144362013-03-23T00:11:00.000-04:002013-03-26T21:27:56.975-04:00Windows 8 - Behind the "8" Ball?Today I got the chance to play with a Samsung tablet with Windows 8 on it, and though the tablet itself was nice, Windows 8 failed to impress me at all.<br />
<br />
My first impression with Windows 8 aligns it more with Vista or Windows ME, than XP or 7, as it is a flaky, wonky beast at best.<br />
<br />
It reminds me of Vista, since it appears to be a half-baked,
cobbled-together O/S that shouldn’t have made it past beta. Or, to be more accurate, it appears that Windows 8 <i><b>IS</b></i>
the beta. They just decided to release it before it was finished, the
same way they released Windows ME and Vista earlier than they should
have.<br />
<br />
It seems that Windows 8 doesn’t know if it wants to be a Windows box or an iPad, and as a result it doesn’t do that good a job as either one.<br />
<br />
It’s almost like Microsoft decided to create a touch enabled tablet
O/S by cobbling up a tablet/touch-screen type interface, then they went and slapped it on whatever they had laying around. The result is an operating system that doesn't
really know which way it wants to go, and does a poor job of guiding you to whatever tool you may need to accomplish a particular task.<br />
<br />
One thing you notice right away is that you cannot force the system to boot to the desktop. You always get a home screen which is filled with more useless applet icons than you can possibly believe. This is particularly unfortunate since if you want to do anything useful or important, (like setting up a wireless connection, changing your display preferences, or finding something in your home folder), you are forced to go to the desktop as there is no “tablet” way to do it.<br />
<br />
When you finally get to the desktop you're in deep sneakers, unless you have a keyboard and mouse installed, because the underlying desktop applications have <i><b>not</b></i> been updated to meet the requirements of a touch-screen environment. So, trying to use the desktop on an un-docked tablet is a challenge to say the least.<br />
<br />
Microsoft also had the bright idea of actually and physically removing from Windows 8 a lot of what made Windows 7 useful.<br />
<br />
For example the start menu, and it's associated button, has been completely ripped out of the O/S to prevent any “back-rev” wannabes from using it like 7. (Though there are some 3rd party payware apps that restore it.)<br />
<br />
Removing the "Start" button functionality is an absolute disaster because there are a number of applications that have separate configuration or installation update features that are <i><b>only</b></i> found in that application's start menu folder. You need to update or configure something? Hey! It just stinks being you.<br />
<br />
Following that lead, Microsoft decided to modify the Windows 8 "First Boot" experience in ways that all but force you to do things "The Microsoft Way", or not at all. A classic example is the initial setup for Windows Update.<br />
<br />
In previous Windows installations you were given the choice of automagic installation of updates, or electing to set these options later.<br />
<br />
The Windows 8 startup experience gives you two choices: Do it the Microsoft way, or don't do it at all. Period. Oh, you <i><b>can</b></i> set Windows Update to notify you prior to downloading and installing, but you have to dig into the control panel to use the Windows Update tool located there to set it that way. And even <i><b>getting</b></i> to the Control Panel is not made all that obvious.<br />
<br />
To make a bad situation even worse, Windows 8 does not ship with sensible choices enabled by default. An example I ran into really early on is that the out-of-the-box default media player is <i><b>not</b></i> Windows Media Player; instead it is some wonky "media center/player" type app.<br />
<br />
To make the poor choice of defaults even <i><b>MORE</b></i> obvious, when you start a media file a little tool-tip like box pops up to tell you that "There is other software installed that might do a better job of. . . ." If you click on the box, it gives you a list of things that really should have been default choices from the start, and lets you choose one.<br />
<br />
Likewise, the application icons offered on the default home screen look like the kind of apps you'd expect to see on some smartphone, not on a tablet that wants to do something useful.<br />
<br />
Many of the apps are scrolling boxes that display various things. The weather app keeps scrolling various weather reports from all over Hell and Half of Texas; and quite frankly, I really am not all that interested in what the current weather is in Istanbul, Zaire, Uzbekistan, or Sydney. There is a stock-ticker app, a news feed app, along with enough cruft to make actually finding something <i><b>useful</b></i> a challenge in itself.<br />
<br />
The way I would describe most of these apps is that Microsoft appeared to take everything that I absolutely <i><b>HATE</b></i> about the MSN web-site, chopped the noisy little Java applet pieces up, and placed them on the primary startup screen. Since they decided that the background color of the home screen should be a dark blue instead of some pleasant neutral color, it just makes the applet icons appear even more garish.<br />
<br />
Like they tried to do with Vista, they are trying to impress everyone with lots of eye-candy. As a result the default startup screen is ugly, it's way, <b><i>way</i></b> too visually noisy, and it's about as useful as Teats on a Boar Hog. The few applets that are actually useful are buried in such a mountain of Gagh!, that it's almost impossible to find them.<br />
<br />
What they should have done is to follow the example of Windows 7 by placing a few essential applets on a more cheerfully colored background, allowing the user to choose - like Windows 7's gadgets - what other applets they might want to have on their home screen.<br />
<br />
<b><u>Summary of Windows 8</u>:</b><br />
<br />
As a tablet based operating system, Windows 8 leaves a lot to be desired.<br />
<br />
On a desktop system Windows 8 is absolute <i><b>insanity</b></i> as you end up with the worst of both worlds: A touch-enabled operating system that functions more like a smartphone than a desktop, with a lot of the useful desktop functionality ripped out of it, installed on inexpensive desktop systems <i><b>without</b></i> touch-screens and tossed to an unsuspecting public.<br />
<br />
If Microsoft is “betting the farm” on Windows 8 as some have said, then they’re <b><i>doomed.</i></b><br />
<br />
I did learn one important lesson about tablets and touch-screens though:<br />
<br />
If you have any kind of tremor or palsy, (as I do), using a stylus on a touch-enabled device gets “interesting” to say the least. I’m surprised that they didn’t include some kind of “jitter” compensation in their<br />
“accessibility options”. On the other hand, maybe I am not so surprised.<br />
<br />
What say ye?<br />
<br />
Jim (JR)Jim "JR"http://www.blogger.com/profile/01053267015652256718noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8386999095134482598.post-1085919472654063092013-03-21T16:24:00.000-04:002013-03-21T22:23:01.515-04:00Really HUGE "Thumb Drives"?We've all had the problem: You haul out your trusty USB thumb-drive to put something on it. . . And there's no more space. So, you look to see what you can delete, and - damn it all! - there's nothing you can toss.<br />
<br />
Or, you want to transfer a LARGE file or data object from point "A" to point "B" and it's just too big to put in your pocket. Uploading to an on-line file repository is an option, but that will take forever.<br />
<br />
How would you like to have thumb-drives in the multi-terabyte size range?<br />
<br />
The answer is "Hard Drive Docking Stations"<br />
<br />
<hr />
<br />
For those of you who are going "Wazzit?", a hard drive docking station is a (relatively) small plug-in device that you can put on your desk that has a slot in the top for a hard drive to fit. Though usually for SATA drives, there are IDE (PATA) options as well.<br />
<br />
Here are a couple of examples:<br />
<br />
This one is a NexStar caddy that fits two laptop size or two desktop size SATA drives. On the back, (not shown), are ports for both eSATA and USB. If you have an eSATA port on your computer that supports "Port Multiplier" functionality, you can put two drives in it, and access both of them at the same time.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-pu6AsGy15PY/UUtj8ssKKXI/AAAAAAAAAEw/mracg78700o/s1600/NexStarWeb.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-pu6AsGy15PY/UUtj8ssKKXI/AAAAAAAAAEw/mracg78700o/s320/NexStarWeb.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
And <i><b>this</b></i> little beastie is my Thermaltake BlacX caddy that fits one 2.5 / 3.5 SATA drive. It also has back panel connections for both eSATA and USB. In fact, I'm using this with a 1T drive in it - right now - to back up a customer's laptop before I rebuild it.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-JMPJRoULK0A/UUtj_igAFOI/AAAAAAAAAE4/l0vqJJwx4v0/s1600/BlacXweb.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-JMPJRoULK0A/UUtj_igAFOI/AAAAAAAAAE4/l0vqJJwx4v0/s320/BlacXweb.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
Now, granted, these little monsters are <i><b>not</b></i> cheap. But they're not all that expensive either, especially if you can get them on sale.<br />
<br />
And!<br />
<br />
They're damned handy. I've had situations where I had to work with a hard drive in a computer that would not boot, (the MoBo was fried, etc.), and with these things I can mount the hard drive under Windows or Linux, verify drive integrity, and suck the customers data off of it.<br />
<br />
Likewise, if you remember the article I wrote about <a href="http://www.qatechtips.com/2012/11/never-buy-another-hard-drive-how-to-get.html">getting hard drives exchanged for (nearly) free</a>, something like this is a great way to take a drive, test it, and get it ready for that all so important warranty return. Or to test the NEW drive they sent you, to verify they didn't send you someone else's crappy drive. (And yes, that does happen.)<br />
<br />
If you want to take a lot of data somewhere, all you have to do is load the beastie up, slip it in an anti-static bag, tape it shut, and be on your way. (Don't forget to bring your caddy if the guy at the other end doesn't have one.)<br />
<br />
A couple of important points:<br />
<br />
First of all, eSATA is way, WAY faster than USB. However, if you are going to use an eSATA card and cable to hook the monster up to your computer, you may not be given the option to "disconnect" the drive in the same way you get that option to disconnect a USB device. The solution? Go to the Device Manager, find the external drive, "uninstall" it, and then you're set to go.<br />
<br />
Second, if you are REALLY interested in using in the same way you'd use a USB thumb-drive, you should use a <i><b>real</b></i> eSATA port that supports AHCI. This allows you to remove the drive you uninstalled thirty seconds ago, slap another drive in the caddy, and have it come on-line automagically, without a reboot.<br />
<br />
If you are desperate, you can use either the USB connection - which does allow disconnect - or one of the SATA ports on your system's motherboard. Unfortunately, most of the motherboards <i><b>*I*</b></i> have messed with get <i><b>real annoyed </b></i>if you unplug hard drives on 'em. As in frozen solid, or doing bizarre things. So, if you don't have an eSATA port, either bite the bullet and get one, or use USB.<br />
<br />
Now you may say that an external USB/eSATA hard drive, or hard drive enclosure, will do the same thing.<br />
<br />
I disagree. There is a qualitative difference between using a hot-swap dock and an external hard drive.<br />
<br />
With the drive dock, you are not limited to the size of the one drive - or if you want to swap drives - you don't have to disassemble the little bastid. <br />
<br />
<hr />
<br />
Of course, there are a few caveats:<br />
<br />
<b><u>One</u>:</b> You don't have the shock-resistance of an enclosed drive, so don't go playing deck hockey with 'em. <br />
<b><u>Two</u>:</b> You probably want to invest in at least one or two anti-static wrist straps. That's assuming you really don't want to be zapping hundred-dollar-plus hard drives with the static electricity you built up walking across the carpet.<br />
<b><u>Three</u>:</b> Save the anti-static bags the drives come in. You'll use them to store and/or transport the drive.<br />
<br />
<hr />
<br />
The conclusion?<br />
<br />
If you are a little bit careful, and a little bit inventive, you can use normal, plain-vanilla hard drives as <i><b>REALLY HUGE</b></i> thumb drives.<br />
<br />
What say ye?<br />
<br />
Jim (JR)<br />
<br />Jim "JR"http://www.blogger.com/profile/01053267015652256718noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8386999095134482598.post-81369376002962904762013-03-13T14:35:00.000-04:002013-03-13T15:21:00.219-04:00Internet Explorer 10Prevent Automatic InstallSheesh!<br />
<br />
Hey! Microsoft! Yes, <b><i>YOU</i></b> over there!!! What's with this IE-10 as an Important Update stuff!!<br />
<br />
Sigh. . . .<br />
<br />
Yep, it's that time again. IE-10, (the Windows 8 version of IE), has now been released for Windows 7 <i>et.al.</i>, and, as usual, we need to patch the registry to prevent it from being automagically installed.<br />
<br />
Here's the patch. Copy this to notepad, and save it as Do Not Allow IE-10.reg<br />
<br />
Double click the newly created file, dismiss the UAC by selecting "yes", let it do it's nefarious task, and reboot.<br />
<br />
<code>Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00<br /><br />[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Setup\10.0]<br />"DoNotAllowIE10"=dword:00000001</code>And that's it.<br />
<br />
<hr />
<br />
Update:<br />
This file should update the registry properly - however it didn't work at first on my Win7 Home Premium and Professional boxes. I installed the key manually, and then exported it. Even though there was no visible difference, the newly exported file would properly install the key. Your Mileage May Vary. <br />
<br />
<hr />
<br />
If you want to read more about it, <a href="http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/ie/jj898509.aspx" rel="nofollow">here is the TechNet article</a> that explains it.<br />
<br />
Note that they're offering a "toolkit" executable that (supposedly) does this for you, though I'd rather do the registry hack myself if you don't mind!<br />
<br />
What I'd <i><b>really</b></i> like to see, is for Microsoft to stop releasing IE updates as "Important" updates. . . <br />
<br />
What say ye?<br />
<br />
Jim (JR)Jim "JR"http://www.blogger.com/profile/01053267015652256718noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8386999095134482598.post-5695298442090175232013-03-09T18:39:00.000-05:002013-03-21T22:26:01.869-04:00The New "NAS" Rated Hard DrivesWhat's The Difference?Western Digital has announced a "new" series of hard drives specifically rated for NAS, (Network Attached Storage), devices called "Red" drives. (<a href="http://www.wdc.com/en/products/products.aspx?id=810">See the WD product page here</a>.) Micro Center has begun selling them, <a href="http://www.microcenter.com/product/397398/Red_2TB_SATA_60Gb-s_35_Internal_Hard_Drive_WD20EFRX_-_Bare_Drive">and you can see the web-site ad for them here</a>. At $114 for a 2 Tb, 7200 rpm, 64 meg cache, 6 Gb/second drive, the price is also reasonable compared to other "advanced" drives - and should come down.<br />
<br />
As these gain traction, you can expect other manufacturers to follow suit with their own "NAS" rated drives.<br />
<br />
The addition of a new "color" to the current hard drive rainbow is not surprising. However, the current cacophony of hard drive types, names, colors, and designations can be confusing - so this article hopes to sort some of this confusion into a reasonable order.<br />
<br />
<hr />
<br />
Seagate has their Barracuda, Momentus, (etc.), and just plain-vanilla branded hard drives.<br />
Western Digital also has their "vanilla" branded drive, as well as the Green, Black, Blue, "Caviar," "Scorpio," and now their new "Red" drives.<br />
<br />
Up until now, the differentiating factor among all these consumer level drives has been power consumption, speed, (including cache size and rpm rating), and retail price-point.<br />
<br />
All of these drives, (except for the Red drive), have one thing in common: They are designed for use in <i><b>personal computer applications</b></i>; either desktop, laptop, tablet, netbook, or some other consumer computer product.<br />
<br />
In contrast, the new Western Digital "Red" drives are designed to compete with higher-priced Enterprise class drives - at least the Enterprise class SATA drives - in <i><b>array or RAID configurations</b></i>, at a much lower price-per-unit.<br />
<br />
<hr />
<br />
Hard drives come in two basic flavors: Consumer drives, intended for the personal computer application, and Enterprise drives that are intended for heavy-duty array based usage.<br />
<br />
So, what's the difference? (Besides the fact that "Enterprise" class drive can be <i><b>hugely</b></i> expensive!)<br />
<br />
Basically, it's the firmware loaded into the drive. (At least in the SATA based drives. Fiber-channel, and other advanced interface technologies are a Horse of a Different Hue altogether.)<br />
<br />
Consumer level drives have firmware that assumes that the drive is in an application with <i><b>little to zero redundancy</b></i>.<br />
<br />
As a consequence, if the drive has trouble reading a sector/cluster on the platter it vigorously attempts to read - and recover - the data, which can take extended amounts of time. And this is reasonable. With one, (or at most a few), drives in the system, each one being <i><b>independent of the others</b></i>, reading the data - come hell or high water - is of paramount importance.<br />
<br />
Enterprise level drive firmware takes an entirely different approach.<br />
<br />
Enterprise drive firmware assumes that the drive is <i><b>in an array or other type of RAID arrangement</b></i> where <i><b>data integrity is handled externally to each individual drive</b></i> - via hardware error recovery, parity, or whatever. And as a consequence, the firmware on an Enterprise level drive is designed to be less anal about digging for the data.<br />
<br />
In other words, it gives up and returns a "data fail" message sooner, (in some cases <i><b>much</b></i> sooner), the emphasis being on data throughput speed. Since there are other drives, or hardware, to handle the, (hopefully!), occasional data error issue, the drive isn't so eager to dig for data.<br />
<br />
Additionally - at least in some cases - the drive's reliability and warranty is more highly rated. (Though there is <a href="http://static.googleusercontent.com/external_content/untrusted_dlcp/research.google.com/en/us/archive/disk_failures.pdf" rel="nofollow">a white-paper released by Google</a> that claims that the MTBF and speed of the Enterprise level SATA drive is often no better than that of their consumer level counterparts. Despite their greatly advanced prices.)<br />
<br />
<hr />
<br />
So, what does this mean to you?<br />
<br />
If you are using the drive in a NAS device, where there is some kind of data-recovery mechanism involved, the new NAS rated drives <i><b>might</b></i> be the best choice.<br />
<br />
Though be careful. If you have a multiple-drive NAS device <i><b>where the drives are arranged in a RAID-1, </b></i><i><b>RAID-0 or Linear arrangement,</b></i> (where there is simple mirroring, or all the drives are combined together as one huge drive),"red" drives are not for you, as you still need the built-in aggressive error recovery of the normal consumer rated drive.<br />
<br />
Likewise, in a single, (or group of <i><b>independent</b></i> drives), arrangement - the NAS rated devices are not the best choice. If it's performance you want in an independent drive scenario, it's better to spend your money on the performance rated drives.<br />
<br />
The big telling point is this:<br />
<br />
How important is the ability to recover data on an individual drive? If there is <i><b>no external redundancy</b></i>, then it's absolutely critical. Otherwise the NAS rated drives might be a better choice.<br />
<br />
<b><u>Note</u>:</b> No matter how aggressive the error recovery may be, or how advanced the RAID technology, there is <a href="http://www.qatechtips.com/2013/02/oops-when-disaster-strikes-system.html"><i><b>no substitute for regular backups</b></i></a>. <br />
<br />
What say ye?<br />
<br />
Jim (JR)<br />
<br />
(Stupid Disclaimer: The names and other descriptive attributes of the drives and manufacturers mentioned above may well be trademarks belonging to their respective manufacturers.)Jim "JR"http://www.blogger.com/profile/01053267015652256718noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8386999095134482598.post-64817469663829938002013-02-24T17:19:00.000-05:002015-08-25T13:29:11.945-04:00OOPS! - When disaster strikesSystem Backups (Part 2 of a series)In my previous article in this series - <b><a href="http://www.qatechtips.com/2011/04/oops-when-disaster-strikes-system.html">OOPS! - When disaster strikes (System Restore)</a></b> - I discussed the importance of the System Restore functionality that has been included in Windows since Windows XP, and how it can save your butt big-time. This particular "safety net" is easy to implement, and easier to use, since it is essentially automatic once enabled.<br />
<br />
System Restore, as good as it is, can't save you if the problem is more drastic. For example, a hard drive crash; or when malware, (or a poorly written piece of software), wanders willy-nilly over your hard drive leaving a trail of dead or wounded disk clusters in it's wake. In the case where the physical or logical integrity of your storage media has been damaged or destroyed, System Restore cannot help you.<br />
<br />
In the same vein, System Restore cannot help you if you're brain-dead at the wheel and "accidentally" permanently delete your one-and-only draft of your Doctoral Thesis, some other document, file, or whatever that is similarly valuable and irreplaceable.<br />
<br />
In this kind of situation, what you need is a backup.<br />
<br />
<hr />
<br />
Backups come in <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Backup">a whole host of shapes, sizes, colors and flavors</a>, depending on what you need; ranging from something as simple as copying cherished family photos to a CD, to something as difficult as managing the backup methodology for <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia">Wikipedia's</a> online databases and file servers to ensure <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Data_consistency">data consistency</a>.<br />
<br />
If a particular file, or files, are important, you should invest time into making periodic copies of the data while it's evolving. In the case of program source files, or important document files that are subject to continuing edits, some kind of version control system could be vitally important as well.<br />
<br />
However, in many cases what we want to preserve, and possibly restore, is <i><b>the entire state of a particular computer system at a given point in time</b></i>.<br />
<br />
There are two basic methods for making these kinds of system backups:<br />
<ul>
<li>"Bare-Metal"backups</li>
<li>Snapshots</li>
</ul>
<br />
<hr />
<br />
<u><b>Bare-metal Backups</b></u><b>:</b><br />
<b> </b> <br />
The easiest way to backup a system is via a complete system image, otherwise known as a "bare-metal" backup.<br />
<br />
A <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bare-metal_restore">bare-metal</a> backup is one that takes an existing, known working, system and makes a literal, (clone), image of it, byte-for-byte, that can be used to re-create the exact same system on different hardware at some future time if need be. In other words, you can recreate the imaged system on "bare-metal" - that is a system that does not have a working operating system installed yet.<br />
<br />
Example:<br />
You have a computer that has Windows 7 on it, and it's working wonderfully. At some point in time, you decide you want to upgrade the system to Windows 8 by doing an in-place upgrade rather than re-installing the entire O/S from scratch. And. . . Though you are confident that the engineers and programmers at Microsoft have done a wonderfully thorough job of making sure the upgrade is painless, you want to be able to restore the original system if your upgrade experience is somewhat less than stellar.<br />
<br />
In situations like this, bare-metal backups are the best way to preserve the system as it was prior to the upgrade.<br />
<br />
Obviously, a <i><b>literal</b></i> byte-for-byte image of a three terabyte hard drive would be huge<br />
<br />
Fortunately, modern system imaging software handles this problem using a two-pronged approach.<br />
<ul>
<li>It creates a <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sparse_file">sparse file</a>, copying only the parts of the disk that are actually being used.</li>
<li>It attempts to compress the data that is there, if safely possible.</li>
</ul>
The advantages are obvious: If you are only using a small part of the three terabyte hard drive, and a lot of your data is safely compressible, your 3T drive may result in an image that is only a few gigs in size.<br />
<br />
The disadvantages are more subtle: Unless your filesystem is absolutely pristine - totally consistent <sup><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Data_consistency">[1]</a> <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File_system#Maintaining_integrity">[2]</a></sup> with no errors whatsoever - the image created may look more like <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Frankenstein%27s_monster_%28Boris_Karloff%29.jpg">Frankenstein's Monster</a>, than a usable filesystem. Fortunately, most disk cloning software is particularly paranoid when it comes to file system integrity, and will stubbornly refuse to go any further if it sees <i><b>anything</b></i> out of the ordinary.<br />
<br />
Theoretically, (and that <i><b>really</b></i> should be in quotation marks!), all cloning software should support most, if not all, modern filesystems. Despite the claims of some disk imaging software, I prefer to use the Windows based software for imaging Windows drives and Linux based software for imaging Linux drives.<br />
<br />
My two favorites are:<br />
<ul>
<li><b><a href="http://www.acronis.com/homecomputing/products/trueimage/#overview">Acronis True Image</a></b> (payware), for Windows based filesystems.</li>
<ul>
<li>I have used, and can endorse, the <b>2012 version</b> of Acronis True Image, though there is a newly released 2013 version that I have not yet tried. </li>
</ul>
<li><b><a href="http://clonezilla.org/">Clonezilla</a></b> (GPL freeware) for Linux based filesystems.</li>
<ul>
<li>I have also used Clonezilla for backing up my Linux servers, especially prior to in-place upgrades, and it has worked well for me. </li>
<li>Note that Clonezilla claims to support non-'nix based filesystems, like NTFS or HPFS. However I have not tried it using these filesystems and cannot vouch for it. Your Mileage May, (and probably will), Vary.</li>
</ul>
</ul>
<br />
Both Acronis True Image and Clonezilla can be used as "live CD's", meaning that you can boot the system from the CD and take an image of the entire filesystem while it is at rest. (IMHO, the best way to obtain a completely consistent system image.)<br />
<br />
The advantage of taking an image while the system is not running is obvious: The filesystem is static so there is no chance of any changes taking place while the backup is being taken. Because the filesystem is static, the image created is an <i><b>exact copy</b></i> of the system state at that point in time. This can be useful when disinfecting a drive, or doing data recovery.<br />
<br />
The disadvantage of a system like this is the same as its advantage: The filesystem must not be running.<br />
<br />
In other words, the system must be stopped, the backup taken, (which can take non-trivial amounts of time depending on the size of the disks and the amount of the disk that is being used), and then the system must be re-started. Obviously, while the backup is being performed, the system is not available for use. Equally obvious is that systems which must be on-line 24/7 cannot tolerate this kind of "cold system" backup and it's associated downtime.<br />
<br />
Likewise, most bare-metal backup software will not restore an image to a hard drive smaller than the original, even if most of the space on the drive is unused. Depending on the software being used, this can be mitigated by shrinking the partitions to the smallest size possible prior to making the backup, and then re-expanding them to the size of the hard drive they're installed on after the restore is finished. <br />
<br />
Another potential disadvantage is that - in some cases - the image is atomic in and of itself, so that it is not possible to extract parts of the image, (particular files, for example), without restoring the entire image.<br />
<br />
Luckily this is not universally true, and some of the better backup software allow the created images to be explored, and portions extracted, as if they were just one big zip file.<br />
<ul>
<li>Acronis True Image allows its images to be explored and individual parts of an image can be retrieved if the True Image Windows software application is installed.</li>
<li>Clonezilla <i><b>does not</b></i> directly support file extraction from within an image, though <a href="http://drbl.org/faq/fine-print.php?path=./2_System/43_read_ntfsimg_content.faq#43_read_ntfsimg_content.faq">there is a workaround</a> described on the Clonezilla site. (<b><u>Note</u>:</b> It appears to be a <i><b>butt ugly</b></i> hack that involves jumping through flaming hoops and (IMHO), I would steer clear of it unless absolutely necessary.)</li>
<li>Surprisingly enough, some of the expensive high-end backup solutions do not support file extraction from within an image either. (Ref: IBM Tivoli Support Technical Exchange Web Seminar: <a href="http://publib.boulder.ibm.com/infocenter/ieduasst/tivv1r0/index.jsp?topic=/com.ibm.iea.tsm/tsm/5.4/server_admin/diff_snap_image_back/player.html">Differences between image and snapshot backups</a>)</li>
</ul>
<br />
<hr />
<br />
<b><u>Snapshot Backups</u>:</b><br />
<br />
Snapshot backups are a little bit different than a bare-metal backup.<br />
<ul>
<li>Snapshot backups can be taken while the system is running. In other words, they do not need a "cold" or static filesystem prior to taking the snapshot.</li>
<li>Snapshot backups are <i><b>not</b></i> "bare-metal" backups, despite what some people may think.</li>
</ul>
<br />
<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Snapshot_%28computer_storage%29">Snapshot backups</a> are frozen-in-time copies of the state of a machine, taken while the machine is running.<br />
<br />
There are various ways of taking snapshots<sup><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Snapshot_%28computer_storage%29#Implementations">[1]</a> <a href="http://www.ibm.com/developerworks/tivoli/library/t-snaptsm1/index.html">[2]</a></sup>, however <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Snapshot_%28computer_storage%29#In_virtualization">the method used by VMware</a> is illustrative.<br />
<ul>
<li>You begin with a running virtual machine, configured and running the way you like it.</li>
<li>The very first snapshot pauses the machine briefly while a complete copy of the machine state at that instant in time is created. This becomes the snapshot baseline.</li>
<li>The filesystem is marked as a "copy on write" filesystem, where any writes to the disk made after the initial snapshot are created, are stored in a special file.</li>
<li>The second snapshot is virtually instantaneous, as the currently running "copy on write" file is closed, marked as the second snapshot file, and a new copy-on-write file is created starting at that instant in time.</li>
<li>Subsequent snapshots perform the same action as the second snapshot.</li>
</ul>
<br />
Restoring to a particular snapshot point-in-time is essentially the reverse of the above procedure.<br />
<br />
Snapshot backups have some interesting advantages:<br />
<ul>
<li>Snapshots can be taken while the machine is running. (<i>i.e.</i> It does not require a "cold" system.)</li>
<li>Individual snapshots, after the first one, are virtually instantaneous.</li>
<li>Snapshots can be taken as often as desired, within the storage limits of the machine.</li>
</ul>
<br />
Snapshot backups have their disadvantages too:<br />
<ul>
<li>You cannot bare-metal restore from snapshots. However, if you stop to take a bare-metal baseline prior to creating your first snapshot, you have a convenient point of reference if everything goes to Hell in a Hand-Basket.</li>
<li>Snapshots consist of <i><b>an ordered sequence of files</b></i> that contain the differences between each file and the file immediately proceeding it. Because of this, if any one of the snapshot files is destroyed or corrupted, any subsequent snapshot files are useless.</li>
<li>Depending on the software being used, the effect of a snapshot on open files may not be well defined. </li>
</ul>
<br />
<hr />
<br />
The subject of backups <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Backup">is a complex one</a>, as even a cursory on-line reading of the subject will show. The various backup methods have their individual supporters, and discussions about which backup method is best is akin to the religious wars during the Middle Ages.<br />
<br />
Unfortunately, there is really no "one-size-fits-all" solution for backups, as it depends on what your individual requirements are, how much storage you can afford, and how much risk you are willing to take.<br />
<br />
<hr />
<br />
<u><b>Update</b></u>:<br />
<br />
Bennette, in his comment below, pointed out that I had actually left out a good chunk of the "backup" process, and that is <i><b>actually verifying that the backups are worth a damn</b></i>. I have seen large and tech-savvy companies get their lunch eaten because they grew complacent about their backups.<br />
<br />
An ISP provider that I used to use got trapped this way. They had a really fancy striped RAID-5+1 setup on their servers. . . And with all that redundancy, backups aren't really that important, right?<br />
<br />
Good 'Ole Mr. Murphy steps in one night when everyone else is asleep at the wheel and introduces just a teeny, tiny bit of corruption. And, not unlike the Fabergé shampoo commercial, it corrupted two things, and <i>they</i> corrupted two more things, and. . . Well you get the picture. Many weeks, <i><b>huge</b></i> gobs of money, and a tremendous hit to their customer good-will later - they finally got everything back up and running.<br />
<br />
I have had this happen to me as well. I learned my lesson awhile ago when I had a nice RAID-1 array go south on me - and there I am thinking about how clever I am with my (ahem!) "bulletproof" RAID with it's "built-in backup". Right?<br />
<br />
<u><b>WRONG</b></u>!!!<br />
<br />
I spent more than two weeks, not to mention hundreds of dollars that I really didn't have to spare, picking up the pieces after one side of the RAID got corrupted somehow, and dutifully copied the corruption to its mirror.<br />
<br />
I guess the best advice I can give you is to quote part of what he said:<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<b><span style="color: #660000;">A serious backup policy, especially one for systems that contain
mission-critical data, should include regular "fire drills" where the
steps for recovering a system are rehearsed.</span></b></blockquote>
Truer words have never been spoken! <br />
<br />
<hr />
<br />
I hope that I have given you enough information so that you can begin to research the subject for yourself, and - ultimately - decide what kind of backup strategy works best for you.<br />
<br />
What say ye?<br />
<br />
Jim (JR)Jim "JR"http://www.blogger.com/profile/01053267015652256718noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8386999095134482598.post-1978466911441059472012-11-11T17:38:00.001-05:002012-11-11T18:15:36.170-05:00Never Buy Another Hard Drive!How to Get Replacement Hard Drives for Free Hard drives are <u><b>expensive</b></u>.<br />
<br />
Large hard drives are <u><b>very</b></u> expensive.<br />
<br />
Replacing a failed hard drive is not only expensive, but it's also a <u><b>pain in the tush</b></u>.<br />
<br />
How would you like to be able to replace a failed hard drive virtually instantly, and <u><b>not</b></u> have to pay for future replacements?<br />
<br />
Did I just hear everyone scream "YESSSSS!!!!"?<br />
<br />
<hr />
<br />
Believe it or not, it's not that difficult. The magic word here is "warranty". As in "hard drive warranty".
<br />
<br />
One of the little known facts about hard drives is that they usually come with rather nice warranty periods - especially if it's a newer drive, or something they're trying to push. More importantly, typical hard drive warranty periods run from three to five years, depending on the drive.<br />
<br />
Unfortunately, most people do not realize that their hard
drive might still be under warranty, or they don't even think about hard
drive warranties, so they end up needlessly spending a lot of hard-earned cash paying for drive replacements they shouldn't have to pay for.
<br />
<br />
Since <u><b>YOU</b></u> just happen to be one of those clever folks who don't like to pay extra, and are willing to make the hard drive manufacturers stand behind their products, this is how you do it.<br />
<br />
Of course, being the clever person you are, <u><b>YOU</b></u> already know all about this, right? Now you can send this to all your friends so they become even MORE impressed with your God-like expertise! <br />
<br />
<ul>
<li>First, you should decide on what hard drive size is most commonly used by you. In my case, I use a lot of two terabyte drives.</li>
<li>Go buy one on sale somewhere. Look in the internet, price match if you can. This one purchased drive is your "in stock" spare. Of course you want to do this <u>before</u> a drive fails, but even if you didn't - go get a new version of the drive you need.<br /><br />With a little bit of luck, (or forethought), you already have a backup of what you had on the failed, (or failing), drive, so that you can restore to the new, "spare", drive you just purchased or had "in stock".<br /><br /></li>
<li>Go to the manufacturers web site and download their disk diagnostic tools disk, which is usually an .ISO image of a CD. Burn it to CD, pop it in your system, boot it, and then run the diagnostics on your failed drive. There's a good chance you won't have to run anything more than the "quick test" to uncover the problem.</li>
<li>The disk test will give you an error code - write it down somewhere - this is important!<br /> </li>
<li>Remove the drive from your computer, and either install the new drive that you've cloned from the old one, or go to another computer. (Or, boot a live Linux disk, and use the web-browser there. :-) )</li>
<li>With the drive out of the machine, go to the manufacturers web site and find the "return" or "warranty" link - it's usually under "Support".</li>
<li>Enter the drive's model number and serial number and it should give you the warranty status of your drive. If it's not older that three or four years - and many aren't - it will tell you that the drive is "in warranty"</li>
<li>The site should then give you the option to process a warranty return. Here is where you will need the error code(s) you copied down before. You might have to enter the model and serial numbers again.</li>
<li>Once it accepts the return, it will ask for your name and postal address to ship the new drive to - and it will probably ask for a credit card. They do this just in case you don't return the old one. Normally this is free of charge, or they might ask a nominal fee for shipping an advance-replacement to you.</li>
<li>In about a week or so, you get your new drive in the mail, and it usually includes a pre-paid return label for UPS or FedEx.</li>
<li>If you've already replaced the failed drive, open the box, remove the new drive, (keep it in the static bag!), and set it aside as a spare. Otherwise, swap drives.</li>
<li>Put the old drive in the static bag, put it back in the box the same way the new one was packaged, seal it up, stick on the label, and send it on it's way. Make sure you get a receipt for the shipment, just in case it gets lost.</li>
</ul>
<br />
Voilà! A shiny new hard drive - with a full manufacturer's warranty - free! (Or almost nearly so.)<br />
<br />
What say ye?<br />
<br />
Jim (JR)<br />
<br />Jim "JR"http://www.blogger.com/profile/01053267015652256718noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8386999095134482598.post-61731085612207943362012-11-07T00:30:00.000-05:002012-11-07T21:02:12.526-05:00A Linux After Dinner "Mint"A First Look at Linux Mint 13<br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-mZPAicJ6Q70/UJnuJsM9VhI/AAAAAAAAAEc/wHb4cXX4wqA/s1600/Linux+Mint.png" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="298" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-mZPAicJ6Q70/UJnuJsM9VhI/AAAAAAAAAEc/wHb4cXX4wqA/s320/Linux+Mint.png" width="640" /></a></div>
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A couple of weeks ago I had a chance to visit the local Micro Center in Cambridge, and while I was there I was able to pick up one of the latest issues of<a href="http://www.linuxformat.com/"> <i>Linux Format</i></a> magazine. Issue #162 of <i>Linux Format</i> was their annual "Distribution Grudge Match" issue where they tossed a dozen or so Linux distro's into one of the WWF's "cage match" wrestling cages, sat back, popped a cold brew, and watched the fireworks!<br />
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When the dust cleared, (and the bodies were removed), the distribution left standing at the end of it all was Linux Mint. This was a bit of a shock to me since Mint went head-to-head with some of the heaviest of the heavyweight distributions; defeating distro's like Ubuntu and Fedora who normally send opponents scrambling for cover. Mint went head-to-head with the best distributions out there, they were all compared based on a whole host of differing criteria, and at the end of it all Mint had really made a name for itself.<br />
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As to the "why" of it's victory, I can't do much better than refer you to the statement made by the folks at <i>Linux Format</i>, when they said, (something like), "Linux Mint isn't about new or flashy features, it's about stability and usability." They went on to say that Linux Mint would often avoid the whizz-bang features of other distributions, concentrating on what they know works and works well.<br />
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What really differentiates Mint is the fact that they base their distributions on Ubuntu's "LTS" (Long Term Support), releases instead of whatever flashy new release was just tossed at an unsuspecting public. Even with that, they carefully pick-and-choose what pieces of the latest LTS release they want to include, skipping anything that they don't believe offers real value to their users.<br />
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Another differentiating feature of Mint is their new desktop manager, Cinnamon. They saw that many Ubuntu users, (including Yours Truly!), were getting heartily tired of the Gnome vs KDE desktop wars, their dissatisfaction with the bizarre desktop that Ubuntu calls "Unity," and Canonical's seeming deaf ear to user suggestions or complaints.<br />
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Seeing their disgust, the folks at Mint developed an in-house desktop called Cinnamon. Cinnamon is a light-weight desktop following the basic Mint premise of eschewing flash and glamor in favor of a stable, <u>working</u>, desktop manager that does everything you need, and nothing you don't.
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The distinguishing feature of Mint's implementation of Cinnamon is the <u>absence</u> of "features." They don't throw IM clients, e-mail clients, and other assorted horse-hooey at you. They don't clutter your desktop with various kinds of "super-bars", or other unessential cruft and bloat. It's remarkable in its muted color-scheme as opposed to the garish colors of Ubuntu's Unity desktop.
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In fact, the "it just works" design philosophy of the Cinnamon desktop has become so popular that other Linux distributions have begun using, or offering, the Cinnamon desktop with their own releases.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-PC2pbtKmRvw/UJnRIN78MdI/AAAAAAAAADk/nlJP2u8A6DA/s1600/Linux+Mint+Desktop.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="358" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-PC2pbtKmRvw/UJnRIN78MdI/AAAAAAAAADk/nlJP2u8A6DA/s320/Linux+Mint+Desktop.png" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;">The Linux Mint "Cinnamon" desktop,<br />notable for it's clean, open appearance and muted color scheme.</span></td></tr>
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Aside from the lack of clutter on the desktop, (the only two icons that appear by default are the "Computer" and "Home" folders), the task bar / system tray at the bottom is the only real tool-bar on Mint's Cinnamon desktop. This provides a big working surface that is easily configured to your own personal tastes.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-kv__nrmDmbM/UJnaP7flo1I/AAAAAAAAAD0/HaFHBCMdl78/s1600/Mint+Task+Bar.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="137" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-kv__nrmDmbM/UJnaP7flo1I/AAAAAAAAAD0/HaFHBCMdl78/s640/Mint+Task+Bar.png" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;">The Mint "task bar" has icons for the "Start" menu, (the gear <span style="font-size: medium;">and "menu"</span>), </span><br />
<span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-size: medium;">R</span>e<span style="font-size: medium;">veal</span></span> <span style="font-size: medium;">D</span>esktop, (the green box), Mozilla Firebird, </span><br />
<span style="font-size: medium;">a <span style="font-size: medium;">T</span>erminal window, and the Nautilus file manager</span></td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-r0gAykCjweo/UJnaS0Y2CRI/AAAAAAAAAD8/qvsIxAJQP68/s1600/Mint+System+Tray.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="80" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-r0gAykCjweo/UJnaS0Y2CRI/AAAAAAAAAD8/qvsIxAJQP68/s640/Mint+System+Tray.png" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-size: medium;">T</span>he Mint "System Tray" has only th<span style="font-size: medium;">e</span> few icons needed </span><br />
<span style="font-size: medium;">to give you a quick "heads up" on the status of your system.</span></td></tr>
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My only real beef with Mint's task bar is that it's a bit too thin for my taste. Since I have just started messing with this myself, I may well find a setting that allows me to change it's size.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-tlDutBKSH5o/UJnaYuoX_tI/AAAAAAAAAEE/OfAWY_5S5t0/s1600/Welcome+desktop.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="358" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-tlDutBKSH5o/UJnaYuoX_tI/AAAAAAAAAEE/OfAWY_5S5t0/s320/Welcome+desktop.png" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;">The initial view of Mint's Cinnamon desktop at first login, </span><br />
<span style="font-size: medium;">showing the "Welcome" window and selections.</span></td></tr>
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Normally, I really <u><b>hate</b></u> having a pop-up screen shoved into my face, be it at first boot or otherwise. Strangely enough, Mint's initial dialog isn't really "in-your-face" as it blends in nicely to the rest of the desktop. Its message is polite and respectful, and the various options offered are actually useful.<br />
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Though you have the option to avoid seeing this dialog at start-up, I have found it sufficiently useful that, at least for now, I keep it there for my own reference.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-GFRqnyQ8Deo/UJnaZBq0mUI/AAAAAAAAAEI/nzGv768u3wM/s1600/Welcome+to+Linux+Mint.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="404" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-GFRqnyQ8Deo/UJnaZBq0mUI/AAAAAAAAAEI/nzGv768u3wM/s640/Welcome+to+Linux+Mint.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;">An enlarged view of Mint's "Welcome" window, </span><br />
<span style="font-size: medium;">showing a number of useful and interesting links.</span></td></tr>
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I really like both the design and layout of Mint's default Cinnamon desktop. Most other desktops, (at least in my opinion), look like something designed for hawk-eyed 20 year old eyes. Either the color choices are too bizarre, or the control elements are way too small for my own eyesight.<br />
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Likewise, Cinnamon's organization of both the desktop and the various window controls is strikingly similar to the Windows desktop, which makes the transition from one to the other a much less painful process.<br />
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Mint is one of the easier distributions to install and use. This makes
sense as it is one of the many Ubuntu re-spins out there and the
whole Ubuntu heritage was built on usability.<br />
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Linux Mint, in the true spirit of Ubuntu's tradition of offering
choices, creates several different spins of each distribution, with the
Gnome, KDE, or Cinnamon desktops preinstalled. You want Gnome? No
prob! You download the "Gnome" version and away you go. Likewise with
KDE or Cinnamon.<br />
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Mint 13 includes the usual plethora of applications and other "stuff" that seems to be expected in a desktop system, including things like the Gimp image editor, and Libre Office.<br />
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Additionally, their standard distribution comes with all the codecs and viewers that you normally have to go hunting for, and it also includes, pre-installed, Adobe Reader and Flash. The result of all this effort is a distribution that is ready for prime-time, right out of the box.<br />
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Of course, if you are a distribution purist, they also create
distribution spins without all the limited rights stuff installed. It's
your choice.<br />
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In the same vein, unlike Ubuntu and other clones, <b>all</b> of the useful repositories are pre-selected by default. This means that you don't have to re-configure the update manager to include the repositories you need.<br />
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The other side of all that effort in your behalf is that after you finish the installation, you should go check for updates. When I checked for updates after my own install, there were something like 450 updates listed. However the total size for all the updates was less than 500 megs, and they were all done - soup to nuts - in less than a half-hour.<br />
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Oh, and while we're on the subject of updates and download speeds. . . . . .<br />
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One of the nicest touches I found was an option within the update manager's configuration settings that would test each of the Linux Mint mirror sites, and then offer you the best and fastest mirror site based on where you are.<br />
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The bottom line is that Linux Mint 13 is an eminently usable distribution. If you are used to the way other distributions organize things, there might be just a bit of a learning curve here. However I don't think this will be much of a problem since things are conveniently placed where you would reasonably expect to find them.<br />
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Likewise the open and uncluttered desktop allows you to organize your workspace in whatever way you are most comfortable with.<br />
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I think it's worth your time to <a href="http://www.linuxmint.com/">go take a look</a>. If you've become annoyed with all the flash-bang cruft in other distributions, I think you will be pleasantly surprised with Linux Mint. You can go <a href="http://www.linuxmint.com/">find it here</a>. (Though be patient, sometimes the site's a bit slow to load. . .)<br />
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What say ye?<br />
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Jim (JR)<br />
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Jim "JR"http://www.blogger.com/profile/01053267015652256718noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8386999095134482598.post-37998946430488615762012-09-10T18:12:00.000-04:002013-02-07T00:50:31.365-05:00Google Android - Robotics Gone WrongToday I am seriously, and officially, PISSED at Google / Adobe and the so-called "Android" operating system.<br />
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I have a client, (a Chiropractor), who wants to use a tablet computer to record patient notes as he goes from treatment room to treatment room. Great idea, right? What's even better is that his medical app is Web-based - all you need is a browser and an internet connection, and you're in!<br />
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I go to Micro Center and shell out Huge Bucks for an Acer IconiaTab tablet for him. Hi def, the latest and greatest Android O/S. great big screen, etc. etc. etc. I do the initial setups and then deliver it to the client.<br />
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So, after getting his internet connection working - we go to the web service that provides his record keeping. And wadda ya know, it wants Adobe Flash installed to work with the site. OK, no biggie. Many sites want you to install Flash. So, I go to do it and that's when the fun begins.<br />
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First: Setting up an Android system is a pain. It is so fubar'd up that it makes Microsoft's nonsense seem like child's play.<br />
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<li>You cannot even THINK about downloading apps until you sign up for a Google mail account.</li>
<li>Then. . . . You have to sign up for a Google Play account - and by doing so you give Google the right to wander all over your device and collect whatever data they damn well please, personal or otherwise..</li>
<li>It is also noteworthy that - as far as I know - there are no third-party sources for Android apps. Just like Apple, it's so tightly bound to Google that they are the only source of anything for your system.</li>
<li>Since you can only get apps from Google Play - and most are payware - you are stuck if you want anything for your system. </li>
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The real plum? Google no longer supports, nor offers, <u><b>any</b></u> version of Adobe's Flash player. Period. If it weren't for the fact that many content rich sites use Flash, it would not be such a big deal.<br />
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It turns out that my client's medical records service requires Flash. Ergo, the tablet is as useful as Teats on a Boar Hog and he, rightfully so, refused to accept it. Which leaves me out mucho hundreds of dollars unless I can convince Micro Center to let me return the little beggar.<br />
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But it gets even better. Suppose you want to go to The Weather Channel, or even the National Weather Service's web site to get the weather. Fuggeddaboutit! Many of their pages use Flash.<br />
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You want to go to You Tube or a whole host of other video sites? No dice there either.<br />
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If you want to do just about anything more complicated than lurk Facebook, take pictures with the built-in camera, play silly Android payware app-games, or doodle - you are totally out of luck. I would not be surprised if much of Facebook's content requires Flash as well.<br />
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To make things even more interesting, the Android system - at least on this tablet - makes using the tablet an exercise in frustration. The Google / Android people have decided on exactly how they want you to use their system - and if you want something, even slightly, different, you're out of luck.<br />
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<li>If you have a WiFi network setup using WPA2-PSK, and your passphrase is "kitty", it won't let you connect as it does not approve of your passphrase.</li>
<li>You are expected to have multiple Google accounts, like them or not.</li>
<li>The available configuration settings are either useless, or nearly impossible to find.<br />Go on, try to change the browser's home page. Go on, I dare you! Oh, it can be done, but it requires a level of patience that most of us do not have.</li>
<li>It is so tightly bound to Google, and things are so proprietary, it's a real pain trying to get anything done.</li>
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I have been seriously thinking about getting a tablet for my wife's Real Estate business - but after this, it's not gonna happen.<br />
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As you might expect, there has been a mighty wailing and gnashing of teeth all over the Internet about this.<br />
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Summary: If you decide to go out and purchase <u><b>any</b></u> Android device, you can count on being out tons of money for something that is a very expensive paper weight / digital picture frame.<br />
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And, it's a real pity.<br />
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What say ye?<br />
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Jim (JR)<br />
<br />Jim "JR"http://www.blogger.com/profile/01053267015652256718noreply@blogger.com3