So if you are anything like me you will be a little sick of seeing the same Microsoft blue everywhere you look. Don’t despair I just worked out how to change the appearance (i.e. Skin) of Outlook 2007. It is actually very easy but not obvious – probably why I only discovered it today.
Now you can choose a nice black theme to match your Vista Transformation Pack or Nasa Night Launch theme for Firefox. That rocks!
Outlook Skin Screenshot Black
This is a wonderful idea. Wooden pallets are available in every corner of the world and correspondingly inexpensive. Often they are scrapped. Sure the wood isn’t usually top quality but as internal structure for adobe it need only be srong, not pretty.
linkage: via green upgrader
linkage: via qbd
linkage: see more photos
Copy this:
javascript:R=0; x1=.1; y1=.05; x2=.25; y2=.24; x3=1.6; y3=.24; x4=300; y4=200; x5=300; y5=200; DI= document.images; DIL=DI.length; function A(){for(i=0; i<DIL; i++){DIS=DI[ i ].style; DIS.position=’absolute’; DIS.left=Math.sin(R*x1+i*x2+x3)*x4+x5; DIS.top=Math.cos(R*y1+i*y2+y3)*y4+y5}R++}setInterval(‘A()’,5 ); void(0)
Search on Google images for anything you want
Highlight the url in the address bar and paste over with the code snippet. Hit enter.
Update: This script doesn’t seem to work with WordPress formatting. Just click the watch video link below and copy the script from their website
linkage: watch a video
The media browsers and database collections of most digital DJ mixing systems can be a bit painful to use (e.g. Virtual DJ). I have found that accurately tagging my collection in another program like Media Monkey and then copying the collection over in bulk to the mixing laptop is the best method of managing my collection.
Every incoming file on my computer automatically ends up in a folder called _untested. The _untested folder is further divided into sub folders Completed Torrents, From People, GetRight, and Soul Seek . In each root folder there will be individual files like in the picture below
Whenever I have the time I troll through all the folders and clean them out. All the software gets deleted or moved to the Software Drive (S:), same for the Watching Pleasure (W:). All the music I extract and play next in Media Monkey. I quickly skip through a few tracks to get a feel for genre of the album. I’ll delete the whole album fairly ruthlessly if it sounds at all cheesy or not really my style.
In modern operating systems a whole new approach is opened once you start to script repetitive tasks so that you NEVER have to do them again. All you have to do is run the script – and that annoying task is completed. Computers are probably the easiest place in the world to automate a task, so why not start taking advantage of automation and script something today!
Having just reinstalled WinXP as my Vista RC2 is reaching the end of it’s [time limited, and performance restricted] lifespan, I took the time to tweak all the services that start up in a default install on WinXP. I disabled everything that I thought I safely could while still retaining a fully functioning system using guides I found online here. All seems to be running smoothly (and blindingly fast after Vista, even without the Omega video drivers). I did have to re-enable the HIDServ service (Human Interface Device service) which handles keyboards and the like . I found that the extra buttons on my keyboard (things like Play, and Track Advance, which I use so frequently) weren’t working with it disabled.
I’ve started a page with links to all the software that I tend to install once I’ve re-installed Windoze. It is the core list of essential applications that I need just to get through the week. The idea is to have a clean image of a Windoze installation with everything set up and ready to go that you can restore in just a few minutes.
linkage: software to install
So you’re a pretty savvy computer user. You know how to change your desktop wallpaper, you can remove spyware and keep your computer updated with Windoze update. You’ve mastered files and folders, and haven’t lost anything in age. You’ve got the hang of mp3’s, and have watched some video’s online with YouTube. You’ve heard that you can download anything from the Internet but you haven’t had much luck by googling for things to download.
Today I’m going to walk you through how to use Zuedo aka. Azureus, a BitTorrent client to download files from the Internet.
The first thing you will need to do is download the latest version of Azureus (4MB). Install i. If you see this message
then you don’t have the Java Runtime Environment installed – and you’ll need to click the Download (10MB) button to get it. It will install automatically then the Azureus installer will carry on. On all the screens just click next, accepting the agreement when prompted. The install will take a couple of minutes. Click finish and Azureus will start.
Well life is hectic. Well work life is hectic – and the rest of the time is spent recovering. The AD migration project I am working on went in deploy phase last week so I’ve been busy. More work than I would really like to be doing, but at least I am motivated work-wise. Corporate life is still shitty, but the learning is making up for it.
Our Carrom challenge is well under way. The inaugural ‘Best of 100′ challenge series has begun. You really should find yourself a board…
Check out these amazing Burning Man pics. Some serious deco artists creating large scale installations.
Have you seen the screensavers in Vista? Here is a shot of the bubbles. Not very secretive but nice eye candy. I like the recursive feel of the shot too.
I have been playing about with Hamachi and UltraVNC. Hamachi is a VPN over Internet app that is pretty useful alongside some remote control software like VNC. You create or join a virtual network, and then use VNC to remote control the pc sitting on the other side of the world. Handy stuff. Especially if your mum also describes you as ‘works with computers’ and you have friends or family who sometimes need a little tech support.
To this end I have started creating a scripted install for each app that I plan on mashing into an auto-install package that I can send someone and have their pc remote controllable in a a matter of minutes. I have been using a Windoze scripting tool called AutoIT. It took a little playing about [rather than reading all the documentation], some head scratching, and scanning of some examples to come up with a script for Hamach. UltraVNC’s next.
After nearly toasting my registry [i don't think I've ever backed it up before hacking it] trying to ‘reset’ Vista to run the Hamachi install script for the n’th time I decided it was well time I started getting into the world of virtual computing. VMWare have their VMWare server software available for free download. An offer that actually isn’t too good to be true. I created a virtual machine using the same TinyXP customised boot disc that I blew my drive away with last year. This time in the virtual world – no hard disks to wipe. And presto a test XP installation. Just take a snapshot, run the script to test the Hamachi install, restore the snapshot and reset the test pc to default state. Ahh it’s great stuff. No. Seriously. Techos are so misunderstood.
Today I also downloaded PortableApps Suite. All your open source apps, on one USB drive. Carry it with you anywhere, ‘borrow’ a usb slot and fire up the start menu to access all your favorite apps, set up exactly the way you like! So far it looks excellent. More on that later
All is well. Vancouver is cool. Damp but. The Gal is awesome. And generally life is good.
Miss you all.
This is just a test post trying to show the people who are having difficulties with getting their YouTube embedded videos to show up, that their code is ok.
Here are some instructions to show you how to create an RSS news feed on any search string. It is pretty simple to do and great if you have special interests, but no good portal site to do the combining for you.
Simply copy this string:
http://news.google.com/news?q=global%20peace&output=rss
and replace the global%20peace with the search stirng of your choice. For every space add %20
You can see mine in the menu to the right (well you could in October 2006)
Thats it. You can go home now.
If you wanted it on your site in WordPress your theme would have to be able to display Sidebar Widgets so that you can add an RSS box.
click here to see how to put that into your WordPress Sidebar Widgets
I am spending enough time in front of a computer these days that it seems to make sense to learn how to do things a little better. There is always room for improvement, I figured, so I have started setting up simple hotkeys for everyday tasks in Windoze. I had thought about using a clever shortcut program but decided to see if there wasn’t a way using built in Windoze software.Lets face it, part of making our life simpler, is using less of technology not more. Every piece of software you don’t need to use is better as far as I am concerned.
I have been using iTunes for the last year or so as my primary music catalog. I has a nice clean interface and is relatively painless to drive. My only gripe was that I could find no way to permanently delete a song from the library while browsing the playlist.
This seems a massive oversite to me, leaving the cumbersome method of searching for the track in the library and deleting it from there. There had to be an easier way to delete directly from the playlist. Learn how after the jump!
lifehacker
