Quit Stealing my Browser Windows!
These days, a lot of applications open browser windows, for whatever reason. Maybe you clicked on "Help" or "FAQ", and the application politely started an instance of your default browser, displaying whatever it is you wanted to see. And that's great. There's no reason to reinvent the wheel. A web browser is really good at displaying help information, FAQs, and lots of other things.
However, have you ever noticed that if you already have one or more browser windows open, applications will often steal one of those preexisting browser windows? That is, the application has decided that it's time to navigate one of your preexisting browser windows to a different page, rather than opening a new browser window.
Dumb, dumb, dumb.
Happy New Year! :-)
Sunday, December 31, 2006
Thursday, December 21, 2006
About a month ago the company I work for changed their name (more like simplified their name) and introduced a new logo. At the big Town Hall meeting where they unveiled the new logo they gave all the attendees some branded merchandise. Cool, right?
The problem is that it was (and you can't make this up) old leftover merchandise with the old logos!
Here was a golden opportunity to give all their employees a bunch of t-shirts, sweatshirts, and hoodies with the new logo that they would wear out in public (i.e., free advertising) and promote the new corporate brand and image.
But they blew it. Utterly and completely blew it.
What's worse is the demoralization effect on the employees. I don't feel like a valued employee by receiving that stuff -- I feel like I'm one step above the garbage dumpster out back. I would have been much happier if the company would have donated that stuff to local charities and then given out nothing.
The problem is that it was (and you can't make this up) old leftover merchandise with the old logos!
Here was a golden opportunity to give all their employees a bunch of t-shirts, sweatshirts, and hoodies with the new logo that they would wear out in public (i.e., free advertising) and promote the new corporate brand and image.
But they blew it. Utterly and completely blew it.
What's worse is the demoralization effect on the employees. I don't feel like a valued employee by receiving that stuff -- I feel like I'm one step above the garbage dumpster out back. I would have been much happier if the company would have donated that stuff to local charities and then given out nothing.
Wednesday, December 20, 2006
My Love/Hate Relationship with Microsoft
It seems every time they do something really stupid (i.e., Vista) they do something really good for the community. One of those is their constant battles against spam and spyware. I applaud Microsoft for using some of their vast resources to combat these plagues. This is from the SANS NewsBites newsletter which you can sign up for here (it's well worth it).
It seems every time they do something really stupid (i.e., Vista) they do something really good for the community. One of those is their constant battles against spam and spyware. I applaud Microsoft for using some of their vast resources to combat these plagues. This is from the SANS NewsBites newsletter which you can sign up for here (it's well worth it).
--Microsoft Wins Summary Judgment Against Man for Selling Spam Lists
(15 December 2006)
A UK court granted a summary judgment against a man who was selling lists of email addresses for use in spamming schemes. A lawsuit filed by Microsoft alleged that Paul Martin McDonald's sale of the lists violated the Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations. A summary of the case indicates the judge found that "the evidence plainly established that the business of [McDonald's company] was supplying email lists of persons who had not consented to receive direct marketing mail and that it had encouraged purchasers of the lists to send emails to those people."
Saturday, December 16, 2006
The Cell Phone Charger Scam
Just a few days ago, I replaced my old cell phone with a new cell phone.
The good news: It was a free upgrade! (I'm saying that tongue-in-cheek, since cell phone upgrades are typically subsidized by outrageously high monthly service fees. I'm looking at you, Verizon Wireless!)
The bad news: I locked myself into two more years of slavery. Oops, I mean, I signed another two year contract.
Every time I've ever upgraded my cell phone, I get a new cell phone charger, and they're always different. Why don't cell phone manufacturers settle on a standard interface for cell phone chargers? Probably because they make more money when they're all incompatible. Why sell people just a cell phone when you can sell them a cell phone and a charger every single time they upgrade?
To be fair, you can buy universal cell phone chargers that claim to fit most cell phones. Be prepared to pay $20 to $30 for one, though. And remember, there's no guarantee your universal cell phone charger will fit your next cell phone.
It gets even worse when you're talking about car cell phone chargers, the kind that plug into the cigarette lighter jack in your car. New cell phones almost always come with a regular charger (which plug into standard house power receptacles), but they never seem to come with a car cell phone charger. Open your wallet and prepare to pay another $20 to $30 for the privilege of being able to charge your cell phone in your car.
Enough is enough! This time, I'm saying "NO!" to the man! I'm not going to pay $20 to $30 for a car cell phone charger that required maybe $4 to $5 worth of parts! Power to the people! Ahem...excuse me.
This time, I've decided to buy an inverter. For those of you that don't know what an inverter is: It's a circuit for converting direct current (which is the kind of current the cigarette lighter jack in your car provides) to alternating current (which is the kind of current the power receptacles in your house provide). That way, I won't need a car cell phone charger: I can plug my regular cell phone charger into the inverter.
Inverters run about $30 to $50, which is certainly more than a $20 to $30 car cell phone charger, but they also give you a lot more utility, since they can power lots of different devices depending on your need at the time. For example, they can power:
Of course, the list goes on.
Inverters are also bulkier, but if you're careful to buy an inverter with a long enough cord, you can easily stash it under your car seat and mostly forget about it. Also, most inverters can power more than one device at a time.
If you upgrade your cell phone regularly, and each time, buy another car cell phone charger, you should consider an inverter. Do a bit of research and get a quality inverter, and it should be a long, long time before you ever need to worry about buying a car cell phone charger again. And, as I've already mentioned, the extra utility provided by an inverter can be quite valuable.
Just a few days ago, I replaced my old cell phone with a new cell phone.
The good news: It was a free upgrade! (I'm saying that tongue-in-cheek, since cell phone upgrades are typically subsidized by outrageously high monthly service fees. I'm looking at you, Verizon Wireless!)
The bad news: I locked myself into two more years of slavery. Oops, I mean, I signed another two year contract.
Every time I've ever upgraded my cell phone, I get a new cell phone charger, and they're always different. Why don't cell phone manufacturers settle on a standard interface for cell phone chargers? Probably because they make more money when they're all incompatible. Why sell people just a cell phone when you can sell them a cell phone and a charger every single time they upgrade?
To be fair, you can buy universal cell phone chargers that claim to fit most cell phones. Be prepared to pay $20 to $30 for one, though. And remember, there's no guarantee your universal cell phone charger will fit your next cell phone.
It gets even worse when you're talking about car cell phone chargers, the kind that plug into the cigarette lighter jack in your car. New cell phones almost always come with a regular charger (which plug into standard house power receptacles), but they never seem to come with a car cell phone charger. Open your wallet and prepare to pay another $20 to $30 for the privilege of being able to charge your cell phone in your car.
Enough is enough! This time, I'm saying "NO!" to the man! I'm not going to pay $20 to $30 for a car cell phone charger that required maybe $4 to $5 worth of parts! Power to the people! Ahem...excuse me.
This time, I've decided to buy an inverter. For those of you that don't know what an inverter is: It's a circuit for converting direct current (which is the kind of current the cigarette lighter jack in your car provides) to alternating current (which is the kind of current the power receptacles in your house provide). That way, I won't need a car cell phone charger: I can plug my regular cell phone charger into the inverter.
Inverters run about $30 to $50, which is certainly more than a $20 to $30 car cell phone charger, but they also give you a lot more utility, since they can power lots of different devices depending on your need at the time. For example, they can power:
- Cell phone charger
- Laptop computer
- An extra light
- Video camera
- Portable DVD player
- Television set
- Hand-held games
- Rechargeable battery chargers
Of course, the list goes on.
Inverters are also bulkier, but if you're careful to buy an inverter with a long enough cord, you can easily stash it under your car seat and mostly forget about it. Also, most inverters can power more than one device at a time.
If you upgrade your cell phone regularly, and each time, buy another car cell phone charger, you should consider an inverter. Do a bit of research and get a quality inverter, and it should be a long, long time before you ever need to worry about buying a car cell phone charger again. And, as I've already mentioned, the extra utility provided by an inverter can be quite valuable.
Thursday, December 14, 2006
Friday, December 08, 2006
Windows XP Professional vs. Ubuntu GNU/Linux
In the not-too-distant past, my hard drive crashed, and that made me sad. It also made me happy, because it gave me an excuse to purchase a larger hard drive. I ended up buying a hard drive with enough space to install both Windows XP Professional and Ubuntu GNU/Linux (which I'll just call Ubuntu going forward).
All of this happened on my rather crappy Dell Inspiron 1150 laptop computer. (Dude, I'm never getting another Dell! Ya, like they care...)
Like most people, I expected the Windows install to be easy, and the Ubuntu install to be hard. To my surprise, the exact opposite happened:
Windows did not recognize my video.
Windows did not recognize my audio.
Windows did not recognize my touch pad (it worked, but none of the advanced features worked).
Windows did not recognize my internal modem.
Windows did not recognize my Ethernet port.
About the only thing that worked out-of-the-box was Windows making damn sure I had a valid serial number.
The last two problems could have been a big issue. Fortunately, I had a USB Flash Drive and another computer, so I could download all the appropriate drivers.
And that I did. Search for driver, download. Search for driver, download. Search for driver, download. Etc.
And then the really fun part. Install driver, reboot. Install driver, reboot. Install driver, reboot. Ah, Windows, how I hate thee sometimes.
After downloading a bunch of Windows patches and rebooting a few more times, I had a fully functional Windows install. A fresh Windows install is a wonderful thing. It boots fast, it uses less than 128 MB of RAM to boot to your desktop, and it runs fast. Too bad it never lasts more than a few weeks, or a few months at most. Why is it that every piece of software on the planet thinks it's so important that it has to install and start parts of itself during system start-up? Sigh.
After a few hours of installing Windows (and a few gray hairs), I installed Ubuntu. It went something like this:
Ubuntu automatically recognized and configured my video.
Ubuntu automatically recognized and configured my audio.
Ubuntu automatically recognized and configured my touch pad (including the advanced features).
Ubuntu automatically recognized and configured my internal modem.
Ubuntu automatically recognized and configured my Ethernet port.
Um...wow?
Not only that, but Ubuntu gives you a real system. That is, it installs a decent (but not overwhelming) array of productivity applications for you automatically. Right after an Ubuntu install, you hit the ground running. And installing more applications is just a few clicks away. It's fantastic.
People sometimes ask me, "Is Linux ready for the desktop yet?" From now on, I think I'll have to respond, "Yes, it is. Is Windows ready for the desktop yet?"
In the not-too-distant past, my hard drive crashed, and that made me sad. It also made me happy, because it gave me an excuse to purchase a larger hard drive. I ended up buying a hard drive with enough space to install both Windows XP Professional and Ubuntu GNU/Linux (which I'll just call Ubuntu going forward).
All of this happened on my rather crappy Dell Inspiron 1150 laptop computer. (Dude, I'm never getting another Dell! Ya, like they care...)
Like most people, I expected the Windows install to be easy, and the Ubuntu install to be hard. To my surprise, the exact opposite happened:
Windows did not recognize my video.
Windows did not recognize my audio.
Windows did not recognize my touch pad (it worked, but none of the advanced features worked).
Windows did not recognize my internal modem.
Windows did not recognize my Ethernet port.
About the only thing that worked out-of-the-box was Windows making damn sure I had a valid serial number.
The last two problems could have been a big issue. Fortunately, I had a USB Flash Drive and another computer, so I could download all the appropriate drivers.
And that I did. Search for driver, download. Search for driver, download. Search for driver, download. Etc.
And then the really fun part. Install driver, reboot. Install driver, reboot. Install driver, reboot. Ah, Windows, how I hate thee sometimes.
After downloading a bunch of Windows patches and rebooting a few more times, I had a fully functional Windows install. A fresh Windows install is a wonderful thing. It boots fast, it uses less than 128 MB of RAM to boot to your desktop, and it runs fast. Too bad it never lasts more than a few weeks, or a few months at most. Why is it that every piece of software on the planet thinks it's so important that it has to install and start parts of itself during system start-up? Sigh.
After a few hours of installing Windows (and a few gray hairs), I installed Ubuntu. It went something like this:
Ubuntu automatically recognized and configured my video.
Ubuntu automatically recognized and configured my audio.
Ubuntu automatically recognized and configured my touch pad (including the advanced features).
Ubuntu automatically recognized and configured my internal modem.
Ubuntu automatically recognized and configured my Ethernet port.
Um...wow?
Not only that, but Ubuntu gives you a real system. That is, it installs a decent (but not overwhelming) array of productivity applications for you automatically. Right after an Ubuntu install, you hit the ground running. And installing more applications is just a few clicks away. It's fantastic.
People sometimes ask me, "Is Linux ready for the desktop yet?" From now on, I think I'll have to respond, "Yes, it is. Is Windows ready for the desktop yet?"
Monday, December 04, 2006
I would like to welcome Ed to my blog. I've known him forever and he's a great friend. He'll be writing occasionally here on many of the same topics that I cover -- though I suspect most of them will be more technical than mine. See his first blog entry below.
I'll try to write some techie stuff soon. Really. I actually do work as a programmer as I have for the last 15 years and I do have some things to offer in the programming world. I hope.
I'll also try to update the look and feel of the site. Right now it looks like a complete n00b put it together. Which is...well...actually true. I'm really not much of a css guy but I'm going to have to learn because I want to change a few things.
I'll try to write some techie stuff soon. Really. I actually do work as a programmer as I have for the last 15 years and I do have some things to offer in the programming world. I hope.
I'll also try to update the look and feel of the site. Right now it looks like a complete n00b put it together. Which is...well...actually true. I'm really not much of a css guy but I'm going to have to learn because I want to change a few things.
Friday, December 01, 2006
Why my next computer won't be a MacBook
Lately I've been wanting my next computer to be a Macintosh. Beautiful GUI, Unix under the hood, Apple hardware. Yummy goodness!
One of my co-workers was kind enough to give me a demonstration of his white MacBook. I was very impressed, but there are a number of things that I didn't like:
Despite all these things, MacOS X is so damn good, it almost (almost!) overrides the things I don't like about the MacBook. But that's a subject for a different time. :-)
Lately I've been wanting my next computer to be a Macintosh. Beautiful GUI, Unix under the hood, Apple hardware. Yummy goodness!
One of my co-workers was kind enough to give me a demonstration of his white MacBook. I was very impressed, but there are a number of things that I didn't like:
- The pixels are too small for the screen size.
Here's the standard response I typically get: Change your font size! Icons in MacOS X are scalable! Etc.
I know, I know. Believe me, I know. But I still spend a lot of time doing things like browsing the world wide web, and there's a lot of content on the world wide web which (a) doesn't render correctly if you increase the font size in your browser, and (b) has graphics (such as navigation icons) that are fixed size (and often very tiny).
For most people this probably isn't an issue, but my vision isn't that great. - I don't like glossy screens.
I'm sensitive to glare. I prefer matte screens. Enough said. - The MacBook only has one mouse button.
I'm not sure why Apple has been pig-headed about this issue for so long. The utility of a second mouse button is huge. I know there are ways to work around the lack of a second mouse button, but they're simply not ideal. - I'm not happy with the keyboard.
Some highlights: There are no stand-alone Page Up, Page Down, Home, and End keys. I use those keys frequently. The Eject button is too prominent. Reaching for Backspace results in hitting the CD/DVD Eject button too often. - Smooth laptop surface picks up too many fingerprints.
Perhaps it's just my Obsessive Compulsive Disorder talking, but I don't want a laptop full of ugly fingerprints. - Lack of built-in analog modem.
Part of the allure of laptops is their mobility, right? We might want to use them for traveling, right? And the MacBook doesn't have a built-in analog modem?! It just seems like a strange oversight to me. - Strange power adapter.
The MacBook power adapter sticks out from the wall even farther than typical wall warts. Bad design. - Video adapter needed for external displays (at extra cost, of course).
Forgive me for having old fashioned monitors and LCD panels. I don't want to pay extra for the adapter. A standard (translation: old fashioned) video port should be built-in.
Despite all these things, MacOS X is so damn good, it almost (almost!) overrides the things I don't like about the MacBook. But that's a subject for a different time. :-)
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