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Man blows up apartment spraying for bugs
I always wondered when something like this would happen. Those fumes are flammable.
A New Jersey man trying to exterminate insects in his apartment blew it up instead, the New York Daily News reported on Monday.
Isias Vidal Maceda was unhurt in the incident, but 80 percent of his apartment was destroyed, Eatontown, New Jersey police told the newspaper.
The accident occurred as Maceda was spraying for pests in his kitchen. Somehow the bug spray ignited a blast that blew out the apartment's front windows and triggered a fire that quickly spread, the newspaper said. I always wondered when something like this would happen. Those fumes are flammable. ... more -
Microsoft’s Windows 95 Architect Is a Happy Mac Convert
Software engineer Satoshi Nakajima, the lead architect of Microsoft’s Windows 95, picked up a Mac for the first time two years ago.
He was so impressed, he says he’ll never touch a PC again.
Satoshi loves Apple products so much, he started a company in April, Big Canvas, to develop for Apple’s iPhone platform full-time.
“We have chosen iPhone as the platform to release our first product (for) several reasons,” explains his company’s website. “We love Apple products… You need love to be creative.” Software engineer Satoshi Nakajima, the lead architect of Microsoft’s Windows 95, picked up a Mac for the first time two years ago. ... more -
Create your very own Mini Me character with Minimise Me
Microsoft has teamed up with MRM Worldwide UK to launch a new user-generated content campaign called “Minimise Me”.
The campaign gives Windows Live users control over creating their own personalised characters and emoticons for their profile pictures on Messenger, Windows Live Spaces, Facebook and other social networking sites.
Additionally, a series of British celebrity Minimise Me characters and “emoticons” have been designed, giving users the option to turn celebrity and adopt a famous face online. Microsoft has teamed up with MRM Worldwide UK to launch a new user-generated content campaign called “Minimise Me”. ... more -
MIT spinoff dyes glass to make solar 'windows'
Researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology detailed a technique that can boost solar cell output and turn colored windows into solar panels.
Published in Science magazine on Friday, the researchers have developed a way to use dyes painted on glass to redirect light.
By pushing light to the edges and filtering it, they can concentrate the light and squeeze more electricity from photovoltaic solar cells.
The cells are placed on the edges of the glass, rather than across the flat surface of glass, which would allow panel manufacturers to use less costly solar cell material.
It's a technique that was pursued in the 1970s but abandoned because not enough redirected light made it to the cells on plate edges.
By borrowing laser technology, the MIT researchers said they adequately direct and concentrate light to the point where they can boost solar cell output ten-fold.
The technology, which uses off-the-shelf dyes used in car paints, promises to be cheaper than traditional solar concentrators because it eliminates the need for mirrors, lenses, and trackers, said Marc Baldo, an MIT professor of electrical engineering who led the work.
Participants in the research are starting a company, Covalent Solar, to commercialize and improve the technology. MIT said that they expect to have a product available in about three years.
Researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology detailed a technique that can boost solar cell output and turn colored window... more -
How to make laptops travel-friendly
Carrying a notebook PC is not always as simple as it seems especially while travelling long distances with it.
Many a time business user’s end up cursing it for not having enough battery power just when the presentation was about to begin. Also, security problem, spare cables and network issues haunt many on their business trips
Here are few pointers to keep you ready while travelling.
Charge your battery
Remember to charge your battery before leaving. Chances are you won’t be near a plug point. Investing in a higher capacity battery may sound expensive but is always good.
The newer nine cell batteries give up to six hours of power when used with proper power saving measures. Carrying a notebook PC is not always as simple as it seems especially while travelling long distances with it. ... more -
10 Tools to Overhaul Your Windows Interface
Windows interfaces have evolved steadily with time. Windows XP was a step forward in interfaces over previous versions and so is Windows Vista over Windows XP.
The thing with the Windows interface is that it looks pretty for some time then we get tired of it. This is not the case with Compiz Desktop Effects and the themes in Linux. There are so many options that one can always find something new and worth changing to for some time.
The following apps lets you overhaul your Windows interface and add some eye candy and usability enhancements at the same time. You wont need pliers and screwdrivers - promise!
1. Get the Cube Rolling - YodM3D
Let’s start with the much talked about 3D Cube effect. To get the 3D cube effect on Windows try “YODM3D”. The site was down when I wrote this (you can download it from here), but I wonder if it’s in development anymore. Nevertheless, it surely does what it promises to do and that is to give you a nice 3D Cube effect with virtual desktops. You can customize the transparency, zoom levels, hotkeys and the image that will appear as the background when the cube rotates. Just run the application, choose the language, set up the options and hit the hot key and there you go - “A nifty 3D cube effect”. Windows interfaces have evolved steadily with time. Windows XP was a step forward in interfaces over previous versions and so is Windo... more -
Kid-proof your PC with SteadyState
When you’ve got your Windows XP or Vista setup running perfectly, you don’t want to lose all your painstaking customizations to a reckless tot, an experiment-minded friend or spouse, or a rogue system-lousing program. Windows SteadyState, as we mentioned earlier this week, helps you to create a kind of virtual rubber room those types can play around in and not really harm anything. SteadyState can also restrict web site access for innocent eyes, set timer limits on user access, and get better control of those other folks who use your computer—in other words, SteadyState makes you the Grand Master Sysadmin of your single-unit empire. Let’s take a look at setting up SteadyState and get familiar with a few of its key features.
Take Microsoft’s advice and do a little groundwork before installing and setting up SteadyState. Download the latest updates for your system from Windows Update, set a password for the main user, or “Administrator,” account if there isn’t one already, and make sure that other users only have access to the programs you want them to. To see if that’s the case, create a new user account (Control Panel->User Accounts->Create a new account) or log into an account other than your own if you’re already sharing a system. Peek into the Start menu, look around on the desktop, and if they’ve got access to stuff you don’t want them playing around with, regardless of any protections, head back to your account and uninstall the program. Some programs give you an option to install them for “Just this user,” so try re-installing the app with that option if possible.
Getting started
If you haven’t already done so, download your copy of SteadyState. You’ll likely be prompted to install or run a Windows Genuine Advantage tool or plug-in before downloading; go ahead and do so, install the program, then launch it from the Start menu. Close down the help window that pops up, and you’re at SteadyState’s main launcher:
From here you decide how you want to protect your system. Are you creating a long-term, super-locked-down account for adventurous young minds or accident-prone users? Are you trying out an app or system change that might throw everything into calamity? Let’s look at your options.
If your potential system-messers are going to be around for awhile, you’ll want to hit “Add New Account” in the lower right-hand corner, or choose one already there. Give them a name (or just “Shared” if you want everyone to use the same locked-down, guest-type account), password, and icon. If you’ve set up separate hard drives or partitions on your system, you could also have that user’s profile placed on one of them for easier portability (and fixing), but you’ll likely just be hitting “Next.” You’ll arrive at the main account dashboard. Here’s a few items you’ll want to look into:
* general.png“General” tab: The use timers are pretty helpful for parents who want to limit their young ones’ monitor-zoning, but the real power-tweak here is the “Lock profile” button, which makes the account something like a public terminal—nothing a user changes in their user profile is saved once they log off.
* windows_restrictions.pngWindows restrictions: Now we’re getting to the serious stuff. There’s a lot of buttons to toggle and explore, but the general High->Medium->Low category selectors are pretty good guidelines for getting started. In most cases, you’ll want to block off access to the Registry editor, Task Manager, Control Panel, and (these are important) prevent them from locking the computer or changing their passwords. You can also block off access to specific drives from this screen. When you’ve got your Windows XP or Vista setup running perfectly, you don’t want to lose all your painstaking customizations to a reck... more -
Microsoft Crashes Xp so you'll upgrade!
I can't find much information on this topic perhaps current can fix that.
Microsoft announces that it will discontinue support for Windows Xp. Up until now Windows Xp has been one of the most stable operating systems Microsoft has ever put out.
Soon after the announcement they release Windows Xp service pack 3. Xp operating systems all over the world suddenly collapse and cause massive IT headaches. The solution? Remove the new Service pack.
Next problem windows releases critical MS update KB951748. Suddenly Xp operating systems all over the world experience crashes, some cannot access the internet with their web browsers and more.
It may be just another conspiracy theory but I find it hard to believe that the software giant can release these code packages and have such wide spread mayhem just happen out of the blue. I'm sure they run tests on the code before they release it to the public at large. They have to know what's going to happen when users install it on their systems.
I have a large family with 10 computers in the house. We experienced identical problems on all systems running XP. 6 computers experience the same problem in one house. Multiply that nationally, then internationally.
If it's a coincidence then someone at Microsoft should be fired. If it's intentional then some one at Microsoft should be prosecuted. It's strange that suddenly when a new OS is on the way, that the most stable OS the giant has produced in years suddenly suffers critical failures and massive melt downs, only after having installed new code packages from the company.
Just a p.s. follow up note. 4 of our computers run Vista. Vista is virtually identical to Xp except for one critical feature..... It won't run on older hardware.....and you have to purchase it for up to $300 US.... Coincidence? I can't find much information on this topic perhaps current can fix that. ... more -
Walking Down the Street: Great Windows on July 4th
Just taking a walk down the streets of New York City and Wow!! So many of the stores have decorated their windows with absolutely amazing decorations for the Fourth of July weekend holiday!!
Great photographs, as well as a wonderful video that shows photographs of many of these remarkable window decorations are included.
Have a look and enjoy yourself!! Just taking a walk down the streets of New York City and Wow!! So many of the stores have decorated their windows with absolutely ama... more -
Linux and Mac OS X Eat Away at Windows, Even with XP SP3 and Vista SP1
Even with the latest service pack releases for the two supported Windows clients, rival operating systems Linux and Mac OS X are still eating away at the install base of Microsoft's proprietary operating system.
Concomitantly with the retirement of Bill Gates from his day to day role with the Redmond company, Windows has passes the 1 billion milestone in terms of its global audience. And while Microsoft is indeed gunning for the next five billion users, the fact of the matter is that the share of its client is going down month after month for the benefit of Mac OS X and Linux.
Statistics published by Net Applications reveal that Windows was down to 90.89% at the end of the past month from 91.13% in May 2008. This, while Mac OS X is close to reaching no less than 8% of the operating system market, having jumped to 7.94% in June, up from 7.83% in May. In the past couple of months, Linux accounted for an impressive growth going up from 0.68% all the way to 0.80%. Net Applications continue to place Linux under the 1% market share mark, but the open source operating system is approaching the milestone at a rate that translates into a steady growth tendency.
Responsible for the erosion of Windows' market share is not so much XP, even though it has been dropping like a rock ever since Vista hit, but older Windows operating systems on which Microsoft has already pulled the plug in terms of support. Windows 2000, Windows NT, Windows 98 still hold together over 3% of the operating system market, but are seeing their users switch to alternative solutions from month to month.
Service Pack 3 for XP did nothing to impact the descendant trajectory of the operating system which dropped from 72.12% to 71.20% in the past two months. At the same time, even with Service Pack 1, Vista's growth is still limited under 1% per month and has just hit a share of 16.14% at the end of June, representing approximately 160 million licenses of the operating system sold worldwide. Even with the latest service pack releases for the two supported Windows clients, rival operating systems Linux and Mac OS X are still... more -
Last OS Standing: Make the Most of Windows Vista
Now that Windows XP is no longer being sold by Microsoft, PC users will be stuck with Windows Vista. Here's a roundup of PC World's best tips for making Vista easier to use.
It's official: On June 30, Windows XP enjoyed its last day as a readily available consumer operating system. Henceforth, it will be available only under a few marginal circumstances. People who already own XP-powered PCs will continue to receive official Microsoft support until 2014 (if their computers last that long), but the rest of us have seen our Windows options reduced to one: Vista.
Hobbled by slow performance, annoying security features, and wonky support for many existing devices, Vista has earned its bad reputation. But now that it's the only game in town for mainstream PC users, you might as well make the best of it.
PC World's writers and editors have spent countless hours digging through all of Vista's menus and options, tweaking and optimizing its performance. And we've found tons of ways to tame the quirks and foibles of this somewhat-maligned, somewhat-malignant OS. Here's a judicious sampling of what we've found.
Speed Up Windows Vista
Service Pack 1 for Windows Vista may not give your system much extra oomph--but as Contributing Editor Scott Dunn details, there are other ways to increase Vista's speed. Spending a few minutes (or a few dollars) optimizing your Vista PC can pep it up noticeably. Now that Windows XP is no longer being sold by Microsoft, PC users will be stuck with Windows Vista. Here's a roundup of PC World's be... more -
Il Disinformatico: Bill Gates punito dal proprio software
Mail autentica di Bill Gates, datata 2003.
Cliccando sul link troverete la fonta da cui arriva e una sintesi tradotta.
Fantastica, ne cito solo il finale...
"Così dopo più di un'ora di delirio e di trasformazione in spazzatura del mio elenco di programmi e dopo essere stato spaventato e aver visto che Microsoft.com è un sito terribile, non sono riuscito a far andare Moviemaker e non ho ottenuto il pacchetto plus.
La mancanza d'attenzione per l'usabilità rappresentata da queste esperienze rasenta l'inimmaginabile. Pensavo avessimo raggiunto un nuovo minimo storico con i luoghi di Windows Network o con i messaggi che ottengo quando cerco di usare l'802.11. (non è adorabile quel messaggio riguardante il root certificate?)
Quando riesco finalmente a usare questa roba, sono sicuro che avrò ulteriore feedback."
Mail autentica di Bill Gates, datata 2003. Cliccando sul link troverete la fonta da cui arriva e una sintesi tradotta. ... more -
Bill Gates Says His Goodbyes And Bids Microsoft Adieu To Become A Philanthropist
On his final full day at Microsoft Corp., Bill Gates went on stage to reminisce with his longtime friend Steve Ballmer, and neither man could hold back tears as Ballmer handed Gates a large scrapbook as a farewell present.
Gates, who is stepping back to focus on his philanthropy, sat with Chief Executive Officer Ballmer in a Microsoft conference room and meandered through moments in Microsoft's history. They stopped to get in a few good digs at IBM Corp., whose first personal computers were loaded with Microsoft's DOS operating system before IBM adopted its own operating software and their relations strained.
"They went off with OS 2, we were left with good old Windows, and sure enough the David versus Goliath story came out with the right ending," said Gates, eliciting laughter from the crowd of 830 Microsoft employees. On his final full day at Microsoft Corp., Bill Gates went on stage to reminisce with his longtime friend Steve Ballmer, and neither ma... more -
Intel non installa Windows Vista sui Pc aziendali - Zeus News
Intel non installa Windows Vista sui Pc aziendali
Secondo Otellini, l'aggiornamento dei Pc dei dipendenti con Windows Vista non apporterebbe benefici sufficienti. Meglio aspettare Windows 7.
[ZEUS News - www.zeusnews.it - 27-06-2008]
Saltare Vista e aspettare Windows 7, come dicevamo qualche tempo fa, non è per niente una brutta idea: anche Intel sembra essere dello stesso parere.
Già quando l'ultima versione di Windows venne rilasciata, Paul Otellini, amministratore delegato di Intel, spiegò che avrebbe atteso l'uscita del Service Pack 1 prima di dare un eventuale via libera alla transizione per l'intera compagnia: "Non conosco nessuna organizzazione che faccia un aggiornamento prima del Service Pack 1".
Ora il New York Times rivela che l'idea di migrare a Windows Vista gli 80.000 computer dei dipendenti è stata definitivamente abbandonata, secondo una fonte definita interna all'azienda: "Non è una questione di insoddisfazione verso Microsoft, ma lo staff IT di Intel non trova necessario adottare Vista".
Per la precisione, occorre dire che alcuni dipartimenti stanno già usando Vista a scopo di test ma l'intera azienda non lo farà, come ha spiegato un portavoce di Intel. La compagnia ha analizzato costi e benefici di un upgrade - ha detto ancora la fonte del New York Times - e ha concluso che i vantaggi non sono sufficienti a giustificarlo.
Comunque si veda la cosa, questo sembra essere un brutto colpo per Microsoft che tradizionalmente è sempre stata vicina alla società di Santa Clara (da cui il soprannome Wintel usato per indicare le due aziende insieme e l'accoppiata Windows/processori Intel). Ora bisognerà vedere quali forze di marketing Redmond deciderà di mettere in campo per far tornare Otellini (che incontra Steve Ballmer regolarmente) sulla propria decisione.
Intel non installa Windows Vista sui Pc aziendali ... more -
70+ Tools For Job Hunting
Job search has evolved over recent years, with hundreds of companies piling in to the space. We’ve picked out ore than 70 that should help job seekers get ahead. Job search has evolved over recent years, with hundreds of companies piling in to the space. We’ve picked out ore than 70 that should ... more
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Collection of Rapidshare Tools and Tricks
apidshare is world’s biggest file storage/sharing network and one of the most trafficked websites on the web. With it’s enormous file database (ebooks, software, audio,video, etc…) it became highly popular download destination. In this article you’ll find bunch of handy tips and tools(download managers and accelerators,search engines,how to get premium account, etc) designed for rapidshare users. apidshare is world’s biggest file storage/sharing network and one of the most trafficked websites on the web. With it’s enormous file ... more
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Take Advantage Of The New Windows Live Writer
If I could name one Microsoft application which has met with the near unanimous approval of the tech crowd then it’s Windows Live Writer. I can only speak for myself, but I know a lot of bloggers who wouldn’t be able to live without this handy piece of software… and now it has just got even better.
Live Dev stated that “this release is largely about updates to the Writer SDK” but once you load it up and have a bit of a poke around you’ll find quite a number of subtle new features and UI changes. Here is a rundown and a guide to making the best use of them as you can:
Word Count
Yep. This is a bonza one.
In the previous Live Writer getting a word count required a plugin. That was still pretty simple, but more involved then it had to be (such as, select all text> insert> word count).
Now its been added into Writer itself and you can simply go to Tools > Options and select “Show real-time word count in status bar” to get it displayed just like this: If I could name one Microsoft application which has met with the near unanimous approval of the tech crowd then it’s Windows Live Writ... more -
"Dear Windows 7 programmers, I have a few ideas..."
While it's still at least two years away, Microsoft is already starting to talk up its Windows 7. Last week, Bill Gates and Steve Ballmer showed off some eye candy that might end up a part of the new operating system.
If only because it had such a rough time with Vista, it's a safe bet that Microsoft could use some ideas about Vista's successor. Always eager to help, I came up with a few things I'd like to see included. Readers are invited to email me with their own, and the good ones will be forwarded along via a future column.
Here are mine:
1. One SKU, please.
SKU stands for "stock keeping unit," and one of Microsoft's most baleful decisions for Vista was to wring from it as many SKUs as possible. Thus was born Vista Home, Vista Professional, Vegetarian Vista, etc. Each successive version had more features and, naturally, a bigger price tag.
Whatever incremental revenue Microsoft raised with this ploy couldn't possibly have been worth the confusion and ill-will it engendered. A certain technology columnist who will here go unnamed because I don't want to embarrass myself, once spent a lengthy session with Microsoft tech support trying to get my Vista to see a disk drive. Only well into the process was it discovered that the requisite "dynamic disk" feature wasn't in that particular SKU.
If society is going to be inflicted with an operating-system monopoly, society might at least get the benefits -- especially the one where everyone shares a common base of the same software. The Vista SKU epidemic gives us the worst of both worlds: software silos combined with a single big supplier.
2. Smart, scalable graphics.
This was supposed to have been in Vista, but was dropped at the last minute. Here is the problem: Increase the resolution on your monitor and icons respond by getting smaller. That occurs because Windows is continuing to draw them at the same size, perhaps 256 by 256 pixels. But now, because there are more pixels on the higher-resolution screen, the icons take up less space. For most people, that just means they are harder to read.
When presented with a higher-resolution screen, a smarter graphics system would draw the icon the same physical size, but take advantage of the extra pixels to create a crisper, more detailed image. Thus equipped, Windows users would be able to make full use of the ultrahigh-resolution LCD displays coming into the market. You'll have screen text that is small, but still as easy to read as what you get with print.
3. OS snapshots and an undo feature.
Apple, VMWare and Sun Micrososytems all have elegant and useful file-system features that Microsoft should steal, and then indignantly deny doing so. Apple's Time Machine lets you undo changes to your entire computer just like you do with a document in Word. VMWare does them one better by allowing you to take "snapshots" of the condition of your operating system, and then have them branch off into different directions, like the lineage charts in a family tree. Sun does a little of both.
Those features could make user life easier. Picked up a piece of spyware online this morning? That's OK; restore the machine to how it was last night, something the current System Restore seems to be able to do only sporadically.
You need copious disk space to do all this. But with terabyte drives tumbling toward $100, it will hardly be a problem.
While it's still at least two years away, Microsoft is already starting to talk up its Windows 7. Last week, Bill Gates and Steve Ball... more -
"Mac or PC" rap music video
If you are a computer geek, you'll love this video.
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Bill Gates killed the computer mouse
Microsoft is developing a new touch screen operating system that could mean the end of the computer mouse, Bill Gates has announced.
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