T-Mobile Sidekick Vs. Handspring/PalmOne Treo 600

T-Mobile Sidekick Vs. Handspring/PalmOne Treo 600 (Twelve Black Code Monkeys)

I already committed to the Samsung SCH-i600 running SmartPhone 2003 and I really like the phone.

The Treo and Kyocera were contenders, but the Treo 600 has a camera (a no-no in many client sites and data centers in general) and the Kyocera was end-of-life.

The review basically reinforces my perceptions of the Treo - the keyboard would be difficult to use and call me old fashioned, but I just don't see anyone over 30 using the SideKick.

Office 2003 SP1 admin installer

Bink.nu | Office 2003 SP1 availalable (UPDATED)

I can never seem to find the admin installer.

Why is this important? Because it doesn't require the FREAKINGdistribution CD you used to install Office 2003. If your like me, you have dozens of Office CD's lying around and most of them are slightly different from the other (and can't be used to apply the standard service pack).

Microsoft Operations Manager 2005 Preview

Microsoft Operations Manager 2005 Preview

Pretty comprehensive set of labs for MOM 2005

O'Reilly Network:

O'Reilly Network:

A mook = Magazine/Book.

I like the do-it-yourself mindset, so this is something I will keep an eye on and (at least) subscribe to the mailing list.

Sysinternals - Miscellaneous Tools for Windows

Sysinternals Freeware - Utilities for Windows NT and Windows 2000 - Miscellaneous Tools for Windows

Pendmoves

There are several applications, such as service packs and hotfixes, that must replace a file that's in use and is unable to. Windows therefore provides the MoveFileEx API to rename or delete a file and allows the caller to specify that they want the operation to take place the next time the system boots, before the files are referenced. Session Manager performs this task by reading the registered rename and delete commands from the HKLM\System\CurrentControlSet\Control\Session Manager\PendingFileRenameOperations value.

This applet dumps the contents of the pending rename/delete value and also reports an error when the source file is not accessible.

IronPython - A fast Python implementation for .NET and Mono

IronPython - A fast Python implementation for .NET and Mono

Jim Hugunin, IronPython developer, just joined Microsoft.

Install on laptop and test. This is a direct replacement for Python 2.3, which I use for SpamBayes and other tools.

Linksys: WRT54G Firmware Upgrades

Linksys: Firmware Upgrades

Firmware Version : 2.04.3

I'm using Sevasoft's firmware image right now, but I'm having DHCP issues and might switch back to the Linksys firmware this weekend. It seems like Sveasoft is also generating a lot of controversy over GPL compliance issues.

I think its a lot to do over nothing, my self.

OneNote 2003 Service Pack 1

Download details: OneNote 2003 Service Pack 1

This is an update to the beta SP1 release earlier this year.

Lookout for Outlook Download

Lookout for Outlook Download

Microsoft bought Lookout Software and the download for Lookout 1.2 'disappeared'.

Its back....

This is a great search add-in for Outlook 2000 or later. I have tested with Outlook 2002 and 2003 and can't live without it now.

The 1.2 release added indexing for attachments and content of files. You need to configure it to index TXT and DOC files. Select Options - Advanced and enter 'txt doc' under File types to index. I have not tried any other file types.

ss64.com - A guide to Oracle, Windows, Linux and OS X commands

SS64.com

Very slick site. I checked out the Windows NT portion and its pretty accurate. I would like to see some additional resource kit utils and maybe a section for IIS and Exchange, but I'm greedy.

Samsung i600 Review

PDA Buyer's Guide Reviews: Samsung i600 Microsoft Smartphone for Verizon

Add comment to review based on my experience after 15 day trial period. Overall, fair review of features and function of phone.

Exchange Server 2003 Disaster Recovery Operations Guide

Download details: Exchange Server 2003 Disaster Recovery Operations Guide

Just what it says. Released 13 July 2004, so this is an update.

NTsyslog

NTsyslog

FSF syslog daemon for Windows. Test on Window Servers using a UNIX syslog server (FreeBSD).

Epson Perfection 1670 Reference Guide

Reference Guide

For my reference. For $80, this is a very nice USB 2.0 flat bed scanner. My daughters like the Epson Scan software, I like the integration with PaperPort 9.0 (which includes built-in PDF support and indexing of scanned documents).

How To Guide for Word

techLEARNING.com | Technology & Learning - The Resource for Education Technology Leaders

Word Commenting, insert objects (sound), use of hyperlinks.

RAM Review

TrustedReviews.

Looks like a very comprehensive review of DDR RAM performance. This is a UK test, so its not clear what RAM is available in the US, but its more info than I had before reading the review.

Astronomical Formulae For Calculators

Astronomical Formulae For Calculators

Looks like an interesting book that describes calculations for observations everyone knows about (Date of Easter, Julian Calendar), but few understand.

DragonFly - new BSD release

DragonFly - Big-Picture Status

Interesting new BSD release. Test on spare server or workstation.

Ars Technica System guide -- March 2004 edition

Ars Technica: Our rockin' system guide -- March 2004 edition

I don't always agree with the Ars Technica recommendations, but they are a great place to start.

I find that the Budget Box is the best bang for the buck for 99% of the people I know. Its also a good idea to budget extra money to buy the best power supply (quiet and cool) and supplemental cooling fans for your case and CPU.

If you have the time for hard core gaming (and the money), the Hot Rod would be a lot of fun to build and use.

Bart's Preinstalled Environment (BartPE)

Bart's Preinstalled Environment (BartPE) bootable live windows CD/DVD

I used an earlier release of this for 'slipstreamed' Windows 2000 installs and it works like a charm. You avoid the post-install service pack download/install/restart overhead.

Messaging Backup and Restore at Microsoft

Messaging Backup and Restore at Microsoft

Great overview of Exchange management at Microsoft from the OTG.

Ultimate Boot CD

Ultimate Boot CD

Very slick utility for troubleshooting a workstation or server.

Why Mac OS X is Better

Why Mac OS X is Better

I think this says it all:

Unix. Did I mention this already? Let me make this clear. I'm a developer. I'm a hacker. Unix is a developer's and a hacker's wet dream. It doesn't get any better than this. Because it's Unix I have access to the largest collection of tools to get my job done ever assembled.

Software Update. Point blank: I don't ever want to recompile my kernel again. Been there. Done that. Got the t-shirt. It was fun while it lasted, and I don't regret it at all. But I've got better things to do with my time now.

Microsoft Product Support's Reporting Tools

Download details: Microsoft Product Support's Reporting Tools

Test these out. They could be useful for on site Discovery and for client documentation needs.


MPSRPT_Alliance.EXE
494 KB

MPSRPT_Alliance_Readme.txt
15 KB

MPSRPT_CLUSTER.EXE
372 KB

MPSRPT_Cluster_Readme.txt
11 KB

MPSRPT_DirSvc.EXE
702 KB

MPSRPT_DirSvc_Readme.txt
9 KB

MPSRPT_Exchange.EXE
1095 KB

MPSRPT_Exchange_Readme.txt
14 KB

MPSRPT_MDAC.EXE
431 KB

MPSRPT_MDAC_Readme.txt
10 KB

MPSRPT_NETWORK.EXE
775 KB

MPSRPT_Network_Readme.txt
10 KB

MPSRPT_SETUPPerf.EXE
693 KB

MPSRPT_SetupPerf_Readme.txt
15 KB

MPSRPT_SQL.exe
1400 KB

MPSRPT_SQL_Readme.txt
27 KB

MPSRPT_SUS.EXE
410 KB

MPSRPT_SUS_Readme.txt
12 KB

Office 2003/XP Add-in: Remove Hidden Data

Download details: Office 2003/XP Add-in: Remove Hidden Data

This is a HUGE issue. Some law firms and HR groups have issued Word documents with hidden information that they didn't want to be exposed.

Download details: Performance Monitor Wizard

Download details: Performance Monitor Wizard

Also check out Server Performance Advisor link on same page.

Do-It-Yourself InkJet and Laser Printer Repair

Do-It-Yourself InkJet and Laser Printer Repair (HP, Apple, Epson, and More) - fixyourownprinter.com

Looks like an interesting and Generally Useful site. Will check it out to fix my brother's HP1100 (love that printer...).

How to download Microsoft Webcasts

How to download Microsoft Webcasts (long Post)

Great article and very timely since Microsoft posted TechEd 2004 and a series of Exchange Webcasts in the past month.

OpenBSD - For Your Eyes Only

DistroWatch.com: Put the fun back into computing. Use Linux.

Very good overview of OpenBSD.

TechEd 2004 Webcasts

Webcasts

Hours of viewing pleasure...

ISO Recorder Power Toy

ISO Recorder Power Toy

Very cool Windows XP extension. The link is sort of obscure, about half way down the page. The author has a command line tool for burning data CD's that appears to be much faster than the XP GUI applet (no temp files, copy direct to CD).

Developer - Rendezvous

Developer - Rendezvous

downloaded and testing on laptop

Paint Like a Pro

Paint Like a Pro

Good tips. I need to write this down for August/Sept projects.

HardwareComparison - SeattleWireless

HardwareComparison - SeattleWireless

Very cool comparison of wireless hardware with specifications, cross references (Dell cards are rebranded Orinoco) and technical links.

LinksysWrt54g

LinksysWrt54g - SeattleWireless

Everything you wanted to know about the Linksys WRT54G and more. This is all open source options for installation, configuration and operation of optional firmware.