Source: (consider it)
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Thread: HEAVEN: Ancient Geek - the computer thread
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Hazey*Jane
Ship's Biscuit Crumbs
# 8754
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Posted
quote: Originally posted by Max.: Make sure however you have a decent firewall, anti spam and identity protection stuff on your computer as Norton Internet Security and Norton 360 are sooo much more than simply antivirus.
Yes. They make my 5 year old PC run so slowly that there is no risk of me downloading anything harmful, and any Trojan horses will have died of old age by the time they've got in!
Bought the netbook today ( ) and it has a 30 day free McAfee trial on it, so I'll make use of that while I ponder other options.
Posts: 4266 | From: UK | Registered: Nov 2004
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Foaming Draught
The Low in Low Church
# 9134
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Posted
As we Linux users never tire of telling you, if you had bought the Linux version of a netbook, you wouldn't need the bloat of an anti-virus.
-------------------- Australians all let us ring Joyce For she is young and free
Posts: 8661 | From: Et in Australia Ego | Registered: Feb 2005
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Max.
Shipmate
# 5846
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Posted
quote: Originally posted by Hazey*Jane: quote: Originally posted by Max.: Make sure however you have a decent firewall, anti spam and identity protection stuff on your computer as Norton Internet Security and Norton 360 are sooo much more than simply antivirus.
Yes. They make my 5 year old PC run so slowly that there is no risk of me downloading anything harmful, and any Trojan horses will have died of old age by the time they've got in!
Bought the netbook today ( ) and it has a 30 day free McAfee trial on it, so I'll make use of that while I ponder other options.
Norton 360 is a lot more lightweight than NIS
Max.
-------------------- For the sake of His sorrowful Passion, have mercy on us and on the whole world.
Posts: 9716 | From: North Yorkshire | Registered: May 2004
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Hazey*Jane
Ship's Biscuit Crumbs
# 8754
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Posted
What's McAfee like?
On a related issue, buying a netbook is my first ever foray into mobile computing. Sure I've had laptops for years, but I've only ever used them as desktop alternatives, with the occasional bit of carrying around to relocate. But not properly on the go.
Which leads me to the slightly embarassing admission (for someone who doesn't consider themselves to be totally inept with computers): I don't know how to use wi fi safely. I mean, I know if you've got your own wifi network you should password protect it. But what do you do about wifi in a public place? How do you tap into wifi in a cafe or on a train without enabling people to hack into your computer?
And don't tell me to buy Norton! I dunno if my Atom processor could cope with it.
Posts: 4266 | From: UK | Registered: Nov 2004
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BroJames
Shipmate
# 9636
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Posted
Googling 'public wifi security' brings up some useful looking links.
Posts: 3374 | From: UK | Registered: Jun 2005
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Max.
Shipmate
# 5846
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Posted
McAfee is evil and yes your Atom would be able to quite easily handle N360 (norton.com/netbook)
If you don't want Norton then I would suggest three other suitable products. NOD32, Kaspersky Internet Security and Avast with ZoneAlarm and AdAware
Max.
-------------------- For the sake of His sorrowful Passion, have mercy on us and on the whole world.
Posts: 9716 | From: North Yorkshire | Registered: May 2004
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Hazey*Jane
Ship's Biscuit Crumbs
# 8754
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Posted
quote: Originally posted by BroJames: Googling 'public wifi security' brings up some useful looking links.
Yes, ones that make me extremely apprehensive about using it at all!
Posts: 4266 | From: UK | Registered: Nov 2004
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Sparrow
Shipmate
# 2458
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Posted
Something rather odd happened last night when I was checking my email (Outlook Express). A box popped up that I have never seen before, saying “Enter Network Password” , below that “Please type your username and password”.
Below that there were three boxes with the server and my user name, and password with just a row of asterisks.
I’ve never encountered this before, I have broadband and as far as I am aware I am permanently logged in. I still seem to be able to receive email but sent items are not getting out.
Any ideas on what may be wrong – have I just clicked on something by mistake and altered a setting, in which case what do I need to do? Or is this a more serious problem?
-------------------- For I am persuaded that neither death, nor life,nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present nor things to come, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, will be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Posts: 3149 | From: Bottom right hand corner of the UK | Registered: Mar 2002
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Gracious rebel
Rainbow warrior
# 3523
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Posted
Sparrow, in my experience this is nothing to worry about. It happens to me from time to time. Clears itself another time. I've always assumed it was due to some configuration problem with the email server at their end.
-------------------- Fancy a break beside the sea in Suffolk? Visit my website
Posts: 4413 | From: Suffolk UK | Registered: Nov 2002
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Amanda B. Reckondwythe
Dressed for Church
# 5521
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Posted
I would agree. Usually outgoing mail is handled by one server (usually an SMTP server -- Simple Mail Transfer Protocol) and incoming mail by another (POP3 -- Post Office Protocol version 3). Often one or the other may be down temporarily.
-------------------- "I take prayer too seriously to use it as an excuse for avoiding work and responsibility." -- The Revd Martin Luther King Jr.
Posts: 10542 | From: The Great Southwest | Registered: Feb 2004
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Sparrow
Shipmate
# 2458
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Posted
Thanks for this. On reflection, I have been getting disconnected quite a bit more than usual over the last few days, usually temporarily, but that would indicate a problem at the server end rather than me.
-------------------- For I am persuaded that neither death, nor life,nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present nor things to come, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, will be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Posts: 3149 | From: Bottom right hand corner of the UK | Registered: Mar 2002
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Moo
Ship's tough old bird
# 107
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Posted
I have never posted on this thread before because I am computer illiterate. Now I have a question that I hope someone can answer.
We were watching a DVD on a laptop connected to a projector. We wanted to turn on the closed captioning, but when we clicked on it, we were told to use the controls on the TV. Since we weren't using a TV, we didn't know what to do.
We're going to be watching a DVD again next week. Does anyone have any suggestions? I realize I may not have given enough information.
Moo
-------------------- Kerygmania host --------------------- See you later, alligator.
Posts: 20365 | From: Alleghany Mountains of Virginia | Registered: May 2001
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Amanda B. Reckondwythe
Dressed for Church
# 5521
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Posted
quote: Originally posted by Sparrow: I have been getting disconnected quite a bit more than usual over the last few days, usually temporarily, but that would indicate a problem at the server end rather than me.
But don't overlook the possibility of a loose cable at your end. Be sure all your connections are tight and that the cables are in good condition -- not kinked, twisted, insulation damaged, etc.
-------------------- "I take prayer too seriously to use it as an excuse for avoiding work and responsibility." -- The Revd Martin Luther King Jr.
Posts: 10542 | From: The Great Southwest | Registered: Feb 2004
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Paul W.
Shipmate
# 1450
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Posted
I don't suppose any of you lovely people could recommend a good UK-based web hosting company could you?
I've got a couple of existing websites that I want to move to another host. Don't need to do anything too fancy, just simple html pages, ftp, and email forwarding. I'd rather not use my ISP's webspace, so I'm looking for something else.
Cheers Paul W
-------------------- "It's just a ride" - Bill Hicks
Blog Flickr
Posts: 2835 | From: Leeds, UK | Registered: Oct 2001
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BroJames
Shipmate
# 9636
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Posted
I've found uk2.net to be reliable and affordable (though for me they only do domain hosting, web diversion and email forwarding). I've only once had a problem when one of their smtp mail servers got blacklisted and they seemed to be pretty responsive in sorting out the problem. I can't do comparisons because I've not looked around.
Posts: 3374 | From: UK | Registered: Jun 2005
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Trudy Scrumptious
BBE Shieldmaiden
# 5647
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Posted
quote: Originally posted by Moo: I have never posted on this thread before because I am computer illiterate. Now I have a question that I hope someone can answer.
We were watching a DVD on a laptop connected to a projector. We wanted to turn on the closed captioning, but when we clicked on it, we were told to use the controls on the TV. Since we weren't using a TV, we didn't know what to do.
We're going to be watching a DVD again next week. Does anyone have any suggestions? I realize I may not have given enough information.
Moo
Usually the program you're using to watch the DVD on the laptop has a control on it that allows you to put on subtitles/captions. You can usually get back to the controls while watching the DVD by hitting the escape key, and look around the program a bit till you find the button that allows you to add subtitles/captions.
-------------------- Books and things.
I lied. There are no things. Just books.
Posts: 7428 | From: Closer to Paris than I am to Vancouver | Registered: Mar 2004
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Jengie jon
Semper Reformanda
# 273
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Posted
I think I am getting a bore but after a couple of duds (first my ISP deleted one, second I lost contact with the company so that also got deleted), I have found Zen good. They do all you require and probably a bit more for £3.99 a month.
Jengie
-------------------- "To violate a persons ability to distinguish fact from fantasy is the epistemological equivalent of rape." Noretta Koertge
Back to my blog
Posts: 20894 | From: city of steel, butterflies and rainbows | Registered: May 2001
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Moo
Ship's tough old bird
# 107
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Posted
Thanks, Trudy.
I'll see if that works.
Moo
-------------------- Kerygmania host --------------------- See you later, alligator.
Posts: 20365 | From: Alleghany Mountains of Virginia | Registered: May 2001
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Custard
Shipmate
# 5402
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Posted
quote: Originally posted by Trudy Scrumptious: Usually the program you're using to watch the DVD on the laptop has a control on it that allows you to put on subtitles/captions. You can usually get back to the controls while watching the DVD by hitting the escape key, and look around the program a bit till you find the button that allows you to add subtitles/captions.
Or indeed clicking with the right mouse button, which often brings up a menu including options for subtitles...
-------------------- blog Adam's likeness, Lord, efface; Stamp thine image in its place.
Posts: 4523 | From: Snot's Place | Registered: Jan 2004
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Zoey
Broken idealist
# 11152
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Posted
Ag.
I use Firefox on my personal computer (which nobody else has access to - unless the uni cleaner and maintenance guys are logging on while I'm out). I generally stay permanently signed in to the Ship, my yahoo email, etc. As of yesterday evening, I'm finding myself logged out of these sites every time I've closed my browser and then later opened a new browser session. This problem persists despite me clicking, for example, the 'Keep me signed in (for 2 weeks unless I sign out)' option on the yahoo sign-in page. Problem started when I turned on my computer after being out all day yesterday. Can't think of anything I've done to cause it.
Any ideas, anybody?
-------------------- Pay no mind, I'm doing fine, I'm breathing on my own.
Posts: 3095 | From: the penultimate stop? | Registered: Mar 2006
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Paul.
Shipmate
# 37
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Posted
Websites can track information about you by getting your browser to save it to a file called a 'cookie' which they can then read the next time you visit that site.
One of the more harmless ways cookies are used is to remember your login details. If there's a "remember me" or "always log me in" tick box next to where you give your username and password that's a sign it's using a cookie to remember who you are and log you in automatically.
Anyhow browsers usually have the option to control what happens with cookies. In Firefox if you go to Edit -> Preferences -> Privacy you'll see a section on Cookies. Looks like you've got "Keep until I close Firefox" rather than "Keep until they expire". Change it to the later and it won't prompt you again. Assuming that's what you want.
Posts: 3689 | From: UK | Registered: Jun 2004
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Jengie jon
Semper Reformanda
# 273
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Posted
Actually the other thing that can do this is your security software. If that has been updated recently that might cause this effect. Fixing it will depend on what type you are using.
Jengie
-------------------- "To violate a persons ability to distinguish fact from fantasy is the epistemological equivalent of rape." Noretta Koertge
Back to my blog
Posts: 20894 | From: city of steel, butterflies and rainbows | Registered: May 2001
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Wesley J
Silly Shipmate
# 6075
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Posted
Anyone on board got any experience with Moodle?
Might be looking into using that in my job.
Thank you for your comments.
-------------------- Be it as it may: Wesley J will stay. --- Euthanasia, that sounds good. An alpine neutral neighbourhood. Then back to Britain, all dressed in wood. Things were gonna get worse. (John Cooper Clarke)
Posts: 7354 | From: The Isles of Silly | Registered: May 2004
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ecumaniac
Ship's whipping girl
# 376
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Posted
We have Moodle. But it seems to be used mostly as a file exchange method, where staff put up files and the students can access them. It's probably way more powerful, but at the moment that's "where we're at".
-------------------- it's a secret club for people with a knitting addiction, hiding under the cloak of BDSM - Catrine
Posts: 2901 | From: Cambridge | Registered: Jun 2001
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Mamacita
Lakefront liberal
# 3659
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Posted
My brief experience with Moodle is similar to ecumaniac's. At the seminary where I took a few continuing ed courses, the staff used Moodle to communicate with students, post articles to read, powerpoint slides from presentations, that sort of thing. Students could post their papers on Moodle and the class could then post comments and start discussion threads. Both my kids used Moodle for some of their high school classes (this would be 6-7 years ago), in the way ecumaniac described. My son tells me there are more current versions of this type of software, but I have no idea of what that would be.
-------------------- Do not be daunted by the enormity of the world’s grief. Do justly, now. Love mercy, now. Walk humbly, now. You are not obligated to complete the work, but neither are you free to abandon it.
Posts: 20761 | From: where the purple line ends | Registered: Dec 2002
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Wesley J
Silly Shipmate
# 6075
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Posted
Yes, I imagine there's much more you can do with Moodle, but your comments provide a fairly solid base there. - Thank you very much!
-------------------- Be it as it may: Wesley J will stay. --- Euthanasia, that sounds good. An alpine neutral neighbourhood. Then back to Britain, all dressed in wood. Things were gonna get worse. (John Cooper Clarke)
Posts: 7354 | From: The Isles of Silly | Registered: May 2004
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LeRoc
Famous Dutch pirate
# 3216
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Posted
I have a strange problem. My microphone only works with Skype.
I'm on Windows XP. In Skype my audio configurations are: Input Realtec AC97 Audio, Output USB Audio. It works perfectly.
While I am happy that I can use Skype, I would also like to record sound with Audacity. In this program I tried every combination of input and output device, but nothing.
After that, I did some looking around in my computer. The Windows Sound Recording program doesn't record either. I then tried the "Test Hardware" wizard in the Sounds section of my Control Panel. It records nothing.
Yet it still keeps working with Skype. Any thoughts?
-------------------- I know why God made the rhinoceros, it's because He couldn't see the rhinoceros, so He made the rhinoceros to be able to see it. (Clarice Lispector)
Posts: 9474 | From: Brazil / Africa | Registered: Aug 2002
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R.A.M.
Shipmate
# 7390
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Posted
Not familiar with Moodle, but I have used another VLE (Virtual Learning Environment), as a student, and spoken to people who had similar experiences.
I have some pretty negative feelings about them, I had endless problems trying to use it.
The system was supposed to be used in all courses. There was a screen which was supposed to display your courses so you could access the right material. At the beginning of every course which used this there was always a long list of people who couldn't see those courses, and needed to be given everything as a print out anyway. It would sporadically crash, and was always very slow.
Furthermore it was used erratically, with some courses putting everything on it, and some tutors using it for about half a term (for posting notes or whatever) and then get bored.
In only one course did we use any significant portion of the potential of the system. In this course we were required to take part in message board discussions on sources posted, and a small portion of our grade came from these discussions. Everyone else just used it as a dump for notes, sources etc.
I would suggest that those who were using it as a dump for sources could just have used a normal website, rather than an unwieldy VLE. So my advice to anyone considering using one, is to ask just how much extra functionality it would actually provide.
-------------------- Formerly Real Ale Methodist Back after prolonged absence...
Posts: 1584 | From: (Sunshine on) Leith | Registered: Jun 2004
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Emma Louise
Storm in a teapot
# 3571
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Posted
I used to have a programme on my computer that I'd downloaded (free) that let me click on an icon and a "sticky" would appear on the screen, just like post-it notes. The sticky could then be written on and the writing made bold etc...
However when my computer was last in hospital everything was wiped and on googling there are tons of these programmes. I'm nervous about downloading a free application from a site I don't know and I can't remember which particular one it was I had before - can anyone recommend one to me?!
I miss my stickies! (Fab for shopping and to-do lists!)
Posts: 12719 | From: Enid Blyton territory. | Registered: Nov 2002
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Figbash
The Doubtful Guest
# 9048
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Posted
If you've got MS Outlook, you can do it with that.
Posts: 1209 | From: Gashlycrumb | Registered: Feb 2005
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El Greco
Shipmate
# 9313
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Posted
My iMac's hard drive doesn't work properly. I want to copy some files and then make a fresh install of the OS, but I don't know how to do that, since it doesn't even allow me to log in.
Is there any way to access my iMac's hard drive from my brother's Windows laptop? The Install DVD does work, so I have access to things like the Terminal or Disk Util, but that's about all.
-------------------- Ξέρω εγώ κάτι που μπορούσε, Καίσαρ, να σας σώσει.
Posts: 11285 | Registered: Apr 2005
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Lord Pontivillian
Shipmate
# 14308
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Posted
Is there anyone here who uses Kubuntu and can give me advice on whether to upgrade to KDE 4 or not?
-------------------- The Church in Wales is Ancient, Catholic and Deformed - Typo found in old catechism.
Posts: 665 | From: Horsham | Registered: Nov 2008
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The Revolutionist
Shipmate
# 4578
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Posted
I'm using Fedora 10 with KDE 4.2 on my Acer Aspire One netbook, having previously used Acer's Linpus Lite with KDE 3.5.
KDE4 takes a bit of getting used to, and I've not worked out how to do everything I could do in 3.5. The main benefits seem to be eye-candy - a slicker desktop interface and stuff - rather than actually any new features that are useful to me.
Linpus was a bit rubbish (apart from the quick boot time), so I'm not going to switch back myself, but if I had a decent working distro with KDE3.5, I'd stick with it for the moment. YMMV.
Posts: 1296 | From: London | Registered: May 2003
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Sparrow
Shipmate
# 2458
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Posted
quote: Originally posted by Emma Louise: I used to have a programme on my computer that I'd downloaded (free) that let me click on an icon and a "sticky" would appear on the screen, just like post-it notes. The sticky could then be written on and the writing made bold etc...
However when my computer was last in hospital everything was wiped and on googling there are tons of these programmes. I'm nervous about downloading a free application from a site I don't know and I can't remember which particular one it was I had before - can anyone recommend one to me?!
I miss my stickies! (Fab for shopping and to-do lists!)
I've been using this one for ages, it's freeware and very good.
http://www.zhornsoftware.co.uk/stickies/
Click on "download" in the menu bar on the left to take you to the download page.
-------------------- For I am persuaded that neither death, nor life,nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present nor things to come, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, will be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Posts: 3149 | From: Bottom right hand corner of the UK | Registered: Mar 2002
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leonato
Shipmate
# 5124
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Posted
quote: Originally posted by booktonmacarthur: Is there anyone here who uses Kubuntu and can give me advice on whether to upgrade to KDE 4 or not?
You can have both. KDE4 doesn't replace KDE3 so much as sit alongside it. (this depends I think on which version of Kubuntu you are using, I have Hardy Heron). If you have the disk space you could install it and try it out.
Like The Revolutionist I find KDE4 to be mostly a graphics change, and there are some things I liked in KDE3 which KDE4 lacks.
-------------------- leonato... Much Ado
Posts: 892 | From: Stage left | Registered: Oct 2003
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Lord Pontivillian
Shipmate
# 14308
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Posted
Thanks for that. My regular advice person wasn't available so I thought use the computer thread! I'll stick with 3.5 for now!
-------------------- The Church in Wales is Ancient, Catholic and Deformed - Typo found in old catechism.
Posts: 665 | From: Horsham | Registered: Nov 2008
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Emma Louise
Storm in a teapot
# 3571
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Posted
Fantastic Sparrow - all downloaded and a stickie on my page already
fab
Posts: 12719 | From: Enid Blyton territory. | Registered: Nov 2002
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basso
Ship’s Crypt Keeper
# 4228
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Posted
quote: Originally posted by §Andrew: My iMac's hard drive doesn't work properly. I want to copy some files and then make a fresh install of the OS, but I don't know how to do that, since it doesn't even allow me to log in.
Is there any way to access my iMac's hard drive from my brother's Windows laptop? The Install DVD does work, so I have access to things like the Terminal or Disk Util, but that's about all.
Start by booting from the install disk and running Repair Permissions. Do it twice - the second time is often a charm.
Posts: 4358 | From: Bay Area, Calif | Registered: Mar 2003
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AdamPater
Sacristan of the LavaLamp
# 4431
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Posted
I'm standing between my wallet and a Dell Mini 10 netbook, and weighing up bringing them together.
If I do, I'll likely install the Ubuntu Netbook Remix.
Do people truly fall in love with netbooks? With netbooks and Linux? The reliance on usb ports and wifi only for connectivity make me cautious.
Hazey*Jane? The Revolutionist?
-------------------- Put not your trust in princes.
Posts: 4894 | From: On the left of the big pink bit. | Registered: Apr 2003
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El Greco
Shipmate
# 9313
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Posted
quote: Originally posted by basso: Start by booting from the install disk and running Repair Permissions. Do it twice - the second time is often a charm.
Thanks for the suggestion, but the option to Repair Permissions wasn't available, and the Repair option that was clickable didn't work no matter how many times I run it.
I resolved the problem though. Bought an external hard drive (I needed one anyways) and I installed OS X on it. Then booted from the external drive, accessed the broken hard drive, copied my files into the external drive, and when I was done, I just did a restore on the broken hard drive with the external drive as a source.
Now I'm typing from my iMac again. Hopefully the drive will stay problem free. We'll see.
Posts: 11285 | Registered: Apr 2005
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The Revolutionist
Shipmate
# 4578
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Posted
quote: Originally posted by AdamPater: I'm standing between my wallet and a Dell Mini 10 netbook, and weighing up bringing them together.
If I do, I'll likely install the Ubuntu Netbook Remix.
Do people truly fall in love with netbooks? With netbooks and Linux? The reliance on usb ports and wifi only for connectivity make me cautious.
Hazey*Jane? The Revolutionist?
I'm really attached to my netbook - the ease of being able to carry it around is great. It's no bigger or heavier than a hardback book, and can do most things I want to do on a computer.
My brother-in-law asked me my thoughts on getting an Acer Aspire One, and here's what I told him: quote: Here are my thoughts on choosing and buying a netbook...
Screen, keyboard and mouse My Acer Aspire One (AA1) has an 8.9" screen, and I find it fine, but Beverley [my fiancee] complains that it's sometimes hard to read. I find the size of my AA1 a good balance between being small and light yet usable. The mousepad is a bit fiddly, especially having the buttons at the side, but I often use a USB mouse. The keyboard is compact but usable - I probably make a few more mistakes than on a full-sized keyboard, but I can happily type on it.
SSD or traditional hard drive Many netbooks offer a choice of SSD hard drive (typically 8-16gb) or a traditional hard drive (80gb or more, mine has 120gb). A solid state drive (SSD) is the same kind of thing that you get in an mp3 player or Flash drive. A SSD drive doesn't have any moving parts and so is sturdier - if you drop your netbook it's much less likely to damage the hard-drive. The SSD models are cheaper but you get less disk space and it can be slower. Since you want to store music and photos, you'd probably be better off getting a traditional hard-drive. But most netbooks have a couple of card-reader slots, so you can expand the disk space by adding a flash memory card.
It's also worth going for 1GB of RAM if possible, rather than the 512MB on some models.
Windows or Linux The advantages of Windows are familiarity and compatibility, just because the vast majority of people use Windows. The advantages of Linux are that it's cheaper - you'll probably save £40-50 or so when buying a netbook to get the same spec with Linux rather than Windows, and most software for Linux is free and open source. It can also be customised massively if you want to fiddle around with it. You also get the warm glow of knowing you're not following the crowd and lining Bill Gates' pockets!
Operating System Acer have their own customised version of Linux on the Acer Aspire One, which is very easy to use - you can be powered up and surfing the net in 5 minutes of opening the box, literally. By default, it doesn't let you change the settings much, or install new software. But it can fairly easily be "unlocked" to allow you to get at the settings and install new software. You can change it to a more Windows-like interface - my favourite is KDE 3.5. Other netbooks have other versions of Linux - you'd have to read reviews to find out what theirs are like.
Software Most Linux netbooks will come preinstalled with software like OpenOffice, Firefox, and so on, covering all the basics. Most Windows software has compatible Linux equivalents - OpenOffice can open and save Microsoft Office files pretty accurately, for example. Most software for Linux is free and open source. There are good programmes for managing photos (such as F-Spot Manager, and Digikam) and for music (Songbird and Amarok, for example).
A lot of Windows software can be run under Linux using a programme called "Wine", which is handy for Windows-only software that has features you can't get elsewhere. e-Sword runs in Wine pretty well, and iTunes just about works, but is a bit sluggish.
Customising and support Sometimes the easiest way to do things in Linux is by the command line (like the MS-DOS style "Command Prompt" in Windows). If you'd be happy following a set of instructions like those to install Firefox 3 then you'd be fine. It's fairly easy to learn the basics. Each version of Linux usually has active online communities - see the Aspire One user forum (http://www.aspireoneuser.com/forum/), for example - so you can usually get help if you run into difficulties.
Communication You can transfer files by USB stick or email, no problem. It's possible to network your netbook with a Windows computer (shared documents over wifi) in Linux, but can be fiddly. I could see shared folders in Windows over the wifi network without any problem in KDE, and could transfer files on and off from my Dad's desktop that way, for example, but haven't yet got it working the other way round (though I haven't really tried). You can get netbooks that have 3G and Bluetooth capabilities, which usually adds to the price.
Linux is very useable and is cheaper, but you need to weigh that against the time needed to learn a new operating system. I'm a computer geek, so I enjoy playing around with my netbook and getting to know a new system, but many people will prefer to avoid the additional effort needed, and stick with what they know. But though Linux doesn't quite match Windows for user-friendliness, it's really caught up a lot.
Where to buy Play.com's prices are pretty good for new netbooks, but shop around. Keep an eye out for refurbished netbooks: I got my new netbook from Acer Direct's refurb stock and got it £50 cheaper for only a tatty box - the computer itself was fine.
I'd also add that not having a CD/DVD drive can be a bit of a nuisance, since it means you have to use another computer to copy stuff from CD to USB if you need it on your netbook. I might get an external DVD drive at some point. But I install most software from the Internet, so it's not often an issue for me.
If you've got a HD TV, it's worth getting cables to connect your netbook to it - great for watching stuff from iPlayer, or showing digital photos.
I'm now running Fedora 10 with KDE 4 rather than Acer's default Linux installation. Fedora 10 was easy to install and most things worked straight away from installation - I had to fiddle to get the sound working properly though.
Posts: 1296 | From: London | Registered: May 2003
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Paul.
Shipmate
# 37
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Posted
A friend of mine just bought a Dell Mini 10 as her main machine and it is a nice piece of kit. In part her decision was based on it being a way to buy a new machine with XP rather than Vista.
Personally I bought a Samsung NC10 about 6 weeks ago and have been very happy with it. I dual boot between XP and Linux Mint (aka Ubuntu with a few tweaks). Linux installed with no problems and pretty much everything worked out of the box.
Have I fallen in love with it? Not sure. I do really like it and it is useful. It's my only genuinely portable computer as my laptop is too bulky in practice, and the battery life too short (needs replacing), for me to want to lug it around. That said there are only a few occasions on which I really need/want portability. I quite like being able to browse the web whilst still in bed on a saturday morning, and I have used it in front of the TV (though I prefer to either do one thing or the other).
Linux is a good choice for me but I still think it's quite easy to get to a point where you run into difficulties/limitations. XP is familiar - with all the usual downsides.
Connectivity - if the netbook is your only machine then you may want to buy a USB DVD drive. If you have access to another then you probably won't want to bother. Simply copying files can be done via USB/Wifi. You might also want to look at this guide to virtual drives i.e. making a file that's a copy of a CD/DVD and using it as if it were a 'real' CD/DVD but without the drive.
Overall netbooks are nice but the more pricey ones like the Dell Mini 10, are harder to justify if you don't really need portability. Unless of course you just think they look cute!
Posts: 3689 | From: UK | Registered: Jun 2004
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AdamPater
Sacristan of the LavaLamp
# 4431
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Posted
Thanks for the detailed feedback, much appreciated.
Linux and I have been friends for 16 years or so, and it's almost always first choice of OS. I can likely get a corporate discount from Dell, which together with a salary-sacrifice purchase (ie, using pre-tax dollars) makes a big difference in the $$.
(I have a Dell laptop already, similar purchase, and was amazed to discover last year that their warranty was actually worth something, when they gave me a new motherboard. So I'll happily go with them again.)
-------------------- Put not your trust in princes.
Posts: 4894 | From: On the left of the big pink bit. | Registered: Apr 2003
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Paul.
Shipmate
# 37
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Posted
quote: Originally posted by The Revolutionist: A lot of Windows software can be run under Linux using a programme called "Wine", which is handy for Windows-only software that has features you can't get elsewhere. e-Sword runs in Wine pretty well, and iTunes just about works, but is a bit sluggish.
Have you actually installed iTunes using wine or was this based on what you've read? If you have can I ask a couple of follow-up questions:
How easy was it to install? Last time I looked at it it involved first installing IE and some jiggery-pokery to get it all working. It looked tricky. But that was a while ago and it may be a lot easier now.
Was this a recent version?
Were there any features that didn't work?
I ask because I've had some trouble finding a media player that I'm happy with. Songbird is good but it has a couple of annoying bugs (I had to install a nightly build to get it to save podcasts properly) and it seemed to be a resource hog. I used Rhythmbox for a while but there was no sync for my iPod - it was a case of manually adding and deleting tracks. I'm using Amarok 1.4 right now and it almost does everything I need but I've just discovered it doesn't always keep track of sync'd playlists properly.
TBH I'd rather use a native program but if iTunes with wine is easy to set up I might try it.
Posts: 3689 | From: UK | Registered: Jun 2004
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The Revolutionist
Shipmate
# 4578
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Posted
I don't really use iTunes much myself. I did get it working on my previous netbook (same model, it got stolen in a break-in) via Wine following some instructions on the web without too much fiddling, and downloaded some stuff from iTunes U, but I don't know whether other stuff (iPod sync, logging in to the iTunes store, etc.) works or not.
I don't have iTunes on my current netbook (same model, different Linux distro). I tried installing it the other day, and just running the installer didn't work, so it looks like it'll take some adjusting of settings and stuff to make it work, but I don't know how much effort that will be this time.
Posts: 1296 | From: London | Registered: May 2003
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Paul.
Shipmate
# 37
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Posted
Thanks for the reply. I might have a play when I get the time.
Posts: 3689 | From: UK | Registered: Jun 2004
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AdamPater
Sacristan of the LavaLamp
# 4431
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Posted
(For the record) I put through the paperwork for an Asus EeePC 1000. For about the price I was prepared to pay for the Dell, I get 2GB RAM (rather than 1) and a six (rather than 3) cell battery, which claims "up to" 9 hours operation. And Ubuntu NBR apparently works "very well" with it.
My decision informed by your information, so thanks again.
-------------------- Put not your trust in princes.
Posts: 4894 | From: On the left of the big pink bit. | Registered: Apr 2003
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Amanda B. Reckondwythe
Dressed for Church
# 5521
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Posted
A question re IE8 was raised in another thread.
Anyone tempted to install IE8 would be well advised to wait. Several issues have been reported, ranging from losing the contents of one's desktop to losing one's home page.
There also appear to be compatibility issues with certain websites. Microsoft has apparently dropped support for certain HTML commands on the grounds that only sloppy, careless programmers would use such commands anyway. Fine, but what about all the websites that I love to browse to that were (at least in Microsoft's mind) put together by sloppy, careless programmers?
Bottom line -- wait at least six months until all the kinks have been exposed and hopefully resolved.
-------------------- "I take prayer too seriously to use it as an excuse for avoiding work and responsibility." -- The Revd Martin Luther King Jr.
Posts: 10542 | From: The Great Southwest | Registered: Feb 2004
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Foaming Draught
The Low in Low Church
# 9134
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Posted
quote: Originally posted by Amanda B. Reckondwythe: A question re IE8 was raised in another thread.
Anyone tempted to install IE8 would be well advised to wait.
Anyone tempted to install IE8 would be better advised to install Firefox.
FD
Posts: 8661 | From: Et in Australia Ego | Registered: Feb 2005
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