Category Archives: Technology

Fixing Internet Explorer file downloads and flash playback

Posted by Dustin on May 14, 2010 None comments

Last week I helped someone rescue their computer. The striped disk set had gone wonky and would only occasionally boot properly. If it booted at all it would run fine, but getting it to boot was the tricky part. They wanted me to fix the issue and as long as I was doing so, upgrade the system to Windows 7.

After some effort, I got the computer to boot and promptly created an image of it using my favorite disk imaging software. I then broke the raid set and used the one drive that was still good to install Windows 7. Once installed I copied the appropriate data from the old Vista system on to the new Windows 7 system. All seemed well until I got an email claiming the computer wouldn’t download files or play flash videos.

While attempting to download a file they’d get the following error.

Internet Explorer cannot download from
Internet Explorer was not able to open the Internet site. The requested site
is either unavailable or cannot be found. Please try again later.

After much trial and error I found the solution. Rename the Temp directory located at %userprofile%\AppData\Local. Once this was done IE was able to download files and play flash videos once again. I’m not sure what the real issue was but this fixed it.

HP has canceled their Windows 7 based tablet

Posted by Dustin on May 2, 2010 None comments

The killer quote

HP is not satisfied with Windows 7 as a tablet operating system

I’ve said it before. You can’t use a full desktop OS on a tablet, it isn’t going to work.

Read more: Source

iPhone will be a niche product in five years, or how to write a sensational headline

Posted by Dustin on April 28, 2010 None comments

According to Kaspersky, the iPhone will be niche player in the smartphone market by 2015.

http://www.macworld.com/article/150904/2010/04/iphone_prediction.html

I don’t think even the biggest Apple haters of the world could agree with this guy.

Apple throws Adobe a bone — on the Mac

Posted by Dustin on April 22, 2010 None comments

Apple throws Adobe a bone — on the Mac: “

Filed under:

Adobe’s Flash Player has never performed as well in Mac OS X as it does on Windows-running PCs. The traditionally poor performance of Adobe’s plugin on the Mac has led many iPhone and iPad users to support Apple’s decision to keep Flash off of its mobile devices. While the upcoming Flash 10.1 does boast some significant performance improvements over its predecessors, the performance is still pretty terrible compared to h.264, which has access to hardware-accelerated video decoding via the GPUs in Macs.

Adobe’s stance has long been to blame Apple for the poor performance of Flash on the Mac, citing Apple’s unwillingness to allow third-party developers access to APIs necessary for hardware-accelerated video. Adobe no longer has that excuse to fall back upon: Apple posted a technical note back in late March that removes this restriction and allows third-party developers access to hardware-acceleration APIs for h.264 decoding in compatible GPUs. The technical note describes ‘a C programming interface providing low-level access to the H.264 decoding capabilities of compatible GPUs’ — meaning only the latest Mac GPUs, the NVIDIA GeForce 9400M, GeForce 320M and GeForce GT 330M. ‘It is intended for use by advanced developers who specifically need hardware accelerated decode of video frames,’ the note continues.

So there you have it, Adobe. The one thing that’s supposedly been holding you back from getting decent Flash performance on the Mac is now gone. Now that Apple has removed this ‘stumbling block’ and you’re unfettered by Apple’s restrictions, the onus is on you to prove that you can deliver a well-crafted Flash plugin for the Mac — preferably one that doesn’t crash constantly or send my fans into a cyclone any time I try to watch full-screen Flash videos.

It will be interesting to see how Adobe responds to this. If Adobe takes advantage of the hardware-acceleration APIs, how much improvement Flash’s performance sees as a result will settle the debate once and for all over who’s been at fault for Flash’s subpar performance on the Mac. Even if Flash sees substantial performance on the Mac as a result of this move, though, there’s probably no chance that Apple will relent on its stance regarding Flash on iPhone OS.

[Via MacRumors]

TUAWApple throws Adobe a bone — on the Mac originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Thu, 22 Apr 2010 19:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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(Via The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW).)

Why the iPad gets so much coverage, but the JooJoo doesn’t

Posted by Dustin on April 10, 2010 None comments

If you spend any time reading tech news at all then you’ve noticed that Apple’s iPad has dominated the news. This apparently upsets a great number of people and they just don’t understand why people are spending so much time talking about the iPad and really wish they would all stop.

Well good news! The JooJoo was also recently released into the wild and if you find yourself hating the iPad because it lacks flash or you can’t stand Apple’s App Store then point your browser right over here and order one.

But before you do, should probably ask, “is the JooJoo any good?” Well apparently, despite being what so many seem to want, a 16:9 format display, a USB port and a camera, it doesn’t quite make it. It turns out the JooJoo is actually quite a turd. The Engadget video review is particularly interesting because it shows exactly what the device is going to be like for an average user.

So what happened? Well it turns out that throwing features into a device just so they can show up on a spec sheet doesn’t make for a good product. It’s the software and how it works with the hardware. It’s the total package. What’s the point of having flash support if the system can’t actually handle it? Or using a 16:9 format display on a device meant to be held in both orientations?

iPad naysayers are quick to point out the shortcomings of the device without thinking about everything it does right. Unlike other companies, Apple isn’t attempting to out do anyone based on specifications. Instead, Apple is attempting to provide the end user with an excellent end-to-end experience. Apple spent time making sure the device did exactly what it is capable of. Meaning, if flash doesn’t work perfectly then it is better not to include it than give the end-user some half-assed experience.

A lot of people give Macs grief because they included mouse doesn’t include a right mouse button. Apple mice have supported right click in some form since OS X was introduced, it’s just designed differently. In fact, cI often find that people who don’t like an Apple product simply don’t know anything about the product they’re so fervently against or have been misinformed. Maybe they heard from some source that the device lacked some arbitrary item on a spec sheet or maybe they just don’t see past the marketing hyperbole and have since written Apple off completely. If you fall into this category, I invite you to head on over to Apple’s site and read through the features while keeping in mind that every feature listed works and works well. Anything you think is missing from the device was more than likely left off because they couldn’t perfect the experience.

To be fair, the JooJoo is but one competing tablet on the market and there are many more on their way. Android devices have the best chance at competing and competing well with Apple. However, the key with Android devices is if to get rid of the fragmentation in the market and make sure that the majority of Android devices are running a compatible feature set and OS. 2010 will be the year of the iPad, but 2011 will be the year of the tablet.

Marketplace will be the only way to get apps on Windows Phone 7 Series

Posted by Dustin on March 15, 2010 None comments

Unlike John Gruber I am a bit surprised by this announcement. It seems like there are a large number of PC guys who complain about how closed Apple’s system is. I’m curious how people will react…oh wait they don’t like.

Linux based tablets are also on their way

Posted by Dustin on March 12, 2010 None comments

As pointed out by this article on Slashdot.org a good number of Linux based tablets are also on their way and set to compete with Apple’s iPad. Of the mentioned tablets I think Android based ones hold the most potential simply because Android was designed from the ground up around the idea of touch input.

The other interesting thing, as always, are the comments on the Slashdot post. I just can’t help but feel the majority of tech savvy people simply don’t understand what the iPad is and why it will be a success. According to a large number of the tech savvy, people want a device they can tinker with, install whatever they choose on and is open. Anything else is evil and you’re dumb if you don’t agree. What they tend to forget is there is a large market of people who just don’t care about openness. They just want a device that works without the need to tinker.

My wife isn’t someone who wants to tinker. She wants results. As a tech savvy person myself, it took me a number of years before I fully understood why turning on the TV, stereo, selecting the right input, turning on the DVD player and selecting the right remote for each device in order to watch a movie simply wasn’t acceptable to her. It had to be simpler. The entire setup was so simple in my mind and I had complete control over the system, it all seemed perfect to me. Getting everything turned on so we could watch a movie together seemed like a small accomplishment each and every time. To her it was a complete chore. The answer, in the end, was a Logitech Harmony remote. One button turns on the needed equipment, automatically selects the correct input and the one remote then correctly controls each device without further work. Turning it all off is equally easy. Today I’d never give up that remote because of how it simplified the entire process.

My point is that eventually, getting things done becomes more important than openness or the ability to tinker. I’m more than willing to give some of that up for a more pleasurable experience. I think Android based devices, including phones and tablets, will be successful, but in the area of tablets the iPad will lead because it provides solutions with the least amount of resistance.

iPad available for pre-order today

Posted by Dustin on March 12, 2010 None comments

Early this morning Apple’s iPad became available for pre-order and it sounds like it sold rather well. Apple reportedly sold around 50,000 iPad’s in the first two hours and some stores are telling customers that the overwhelming demand could affect in-store pickup.

You should backup your data, right now

Posted by Dustin on March 1, 2010 None comments

No seriously, Wal-Mart is still open so go buy an external drive and start backing up your data if you aren’t already. Once that backup is done, verify that it worked.

I dunno about you but I value a good portion of the data I keep tucked away on my computers. I have documents, old college work, contacts, music and most importantly, pictures and videos of my kids. To lose any of it because I didn’t take the time to make copies of it would be devastating. Especially when you consider just how many options are available today and how easy they are to use. There really is no excuse not to be backing up your important data.

Before I get into just how you backup your data, lets take a look at a few of the reasons why you should:

  • Hard drives fail. They all will eventually. This cannot be stressed enough. You should always consider your hard drive to be on the verge of failure and be delighted that it hasn’t yet.
  • Mistakes happen. Ever deleted something you didn’t mean to delete?
  • Corruption happens. Maybe you’re a huge iTunes fan but somehow you’ve lost all of your ratings
  • Acts of God like fire, flood and lightening are always well tolerated by computers
  • Theft. Laptops especially are a target for theft. Unlike your data, the laptop can be replaced readily

The latest versions of the two major operating systems*, Mac OS X 10.5+ and Windows 7, include backup tools right out of the box are simple to setup and require nothing more than an external hard drive be attached to the computer. If you want to get more advanced or want a second method of backup rest assured there is no shortage of available backup solutions available on the market. Many of them will cost some amount of money but there are a good number of free ones as well. I’m only going to touch on what Mac OS X and Windows 7 provides as well as one other alternative.

Mac OS X since 10.5 (Leopard) includes Apple’s approach to backup called Time Machine. There simply is not a product out there on any other platform that is as integrated and easy to use as Time Machine. To use Time Machine you attach an new external hard drive and when prompted by OS X if you’d like to use the drive as a Time Machine drive, click yes. OS X will then format the drive, if needed, and begin the initial backup. From there OS X will perform a backup every hour that your computer is on. If you ever need to restore a file you can do so using the Time Machine interface available right off the menu bar. If you ever need to restore your entire system you boot off your install CD and use the “Restore from Time Machine” function. Done deal.

Windows has long included a backup tool but it was never as well thought out as the one in Windows 7. If your computer is running Windows Vista it is well worth your money to upgrade to Windows 7. To enable backups on Windows 7 click the start menu and search for backup. You will see an entry for Backup and Restore. Click it and follow the resulting Wizard. Windows 7 will create a system restore image that you burn to disc and then creates backups from that point on. Windows 7 isn’t my primary operating system and I really can’t comment on how or how well the restore system works.

If you don’t like the baked in solutions in either operating system, don’t have a newer version of Mac OS X or Windows, run Linux or simply want a different solution than what is provided, have a serious look at CrashPlan. I’m in no way affiliated with the folks at CrashPlan but I can confirm with first hand experience that CrashPlan just works. CrashPlan allows you to backup certain portions of your computer running any version of Windows since XP, Linux and Mac to multiple different locations. These locations include another computer, a friends computer using a special code, a folder on an external drive and if you want to keep your data at an off-site location on the internet, you can do so for a small fee. All other destinations are completely free.

For my Mac systems I use Time Machine and on top of that CrashPlan for the pictures and videos of my children. At any given moment there are four copies of the pictures and videos, one copy on my MacBook, one in the Time Machine backup, one on my work computer and one more copy on my home Linux server. My work computer acts as my off-site backup in the event some disaster strikes our home.

I hope this post strikes a cord with at least a few people who might read it. I’ve helped a number of people repair their computer after an OS or hard drive crash where something important was lost. I hate seeing the look on the person’s face when I tell them their data is simply gone, or possibly recoverable at a hefty price.

Questions? Leave a comment.

Netaman 0.1 released

Posted by Dustin on February 27, 2010 None comments

I’ve just released the first version of netaman. A very simplistic script that automatically configures a Ubuntu Server 9.10 system as a Mac OS X 10.4+ compatible AFP server. Read more about it at http://blog.dustinrue.com/netaman.