Computer Extraordinaire
The updates bug I described in Windows XP back in October is now also locking up server computers.
I’ve had it with this. Microsoft has clearly lost control of its security patches.
As of today, I am disabling Automatic Updates across the board; all devices and all versions. Up-time is more important to me than monthly patches.
Check out the comments on this website.
As reported at Neowin, your Windows XP computer may be locked up due to bad updates being sent by Microsoft. Two of mine were 🙁
The solution, which I found in the comments section of that article, tested, and confirmed on my own computers:
This is a truly shameful problem for Microsoft’s reputation.
The subsequent updates released by Microsoft have caused the same problem to occur again. I’ve updated the link above with the newer patches.
To find newer patches, you have to do a complicated search at the Microsoft Download Center.
Per my latest article about Windows servers, I am now recommending everyone disable the Automatic Updates service on all Windows-based computers.
Since August 12 (about two weeks now), I was getting this error from the MySQL program mysqldump:
Warning: Using unique option prefix pass instead of password is deprecated and will be removed in a future release. Please use the full name instead.
I’m not sure what changed or what got upgraded, but I was able to track down the problem. It has nothing to do with command syntax.
In the account directory, which is the one with the account name, one level above public_html, or just “~” on the command line, I found a file named “.my.cnf” with the “pass=” option in it.
To fix the problem, find that file and change “pass=” to “password=”.
I have also forwarded this information to the BlueHost help desk.
Print Back Sides
Among the many problems in Windows 8 is the poor driver support offered by Hewlett Packard. The drivers are hard to find, do not install correctly if at all, and lack many features compared to older drivers.
HP dropped manual duplex printing support for Windows 8, which means it’s now up to each application to add this functionality.
In Adobe Acrobat, this can be done with some care and attention to detail.
When duplex printing manually, some types of laser printers give different results depending which side you print first. If you print the “front” side first and then the “back” side, you might end up with curled paper. To avoid or prevent this, you will have to flip the blank paper over and print the “back” side first.
Due to the way paper is manufactured, it always has a grain direction, a concave side, and a convex side. Usually the grain is in the direction of the longest edge, and the concave side of the ream of paper faces the package seam. This can be determined by standing the paper on its short edge and watching which way it tends to curve, or by simply experimenting with which side gives the best results. If you normally print on the concave side of the paper, then that is what I mean by the “front” side. Printers are normally designed to use the concave side as this prevents the document from going limp in your hand when you hold it from the edge.
Client certificates are a cool technology that, once setup, eliminate the need to use your password on your own website from your own devices.
This article wont run through the entire procedure for setting up a web server, Windows domain, file permissions, server certificates, or a certificate authority. I just want to convey some of the configuration pitfalls that exist in IIS 6.
Start with these settings.
Check if these are disabled.
Network browsing in Windows has always been a fragile system plagued with bugs and configuration pitfalls. If you’ve arrived at this page to find a solution, rest assured you are not alone.
I recently encountered a Windows 8 problem where the “Network” folder only showed the local computer and file shares. When trying the “net view” command, the response was “A remote API error occurred.” Not at all helpful, is it? The Windows 2003 domain controller was not experiencing any problems, and the Windows 8 computer showed up normally on the server.
After struggling with this dysfunctional operating system for seven months without a solution, I found the pattern that would help identify the main problem.
With only Windows XP and Windows 2003 machines on the network, everything works fine. Computers can see and browse each other without any problems.
With only Windows 8 and Windows 2003 machines on the network, network browsing may or may not work, depending on the Windows 8 network client configuration.
In a mixed environment of Windows XP, Windows 8, and Windows 2003 machines, the Windows 8 machines are sometimes able to browse the network. However, once the Windows XP machines are shut down, the Windows 8 machines are never able to browse the network.
Once I had all these variables figured out, I came up with a list of settings that are compatible across all versions.
The Carmen Kass website archive was removed today as part of my ongoing plan to make my domains more professional and less cluttered. I originally coded this area more than 10 years ago and the last update was in 2006.
The more recent “Fashion World” archive was created by a friend and will still be available on her separate subdomain for now.
Personal Information Management (PIM) remains one of the most vital uses of personal computing in the 21st century. Gone are the days of using index cards for addresses and needing to handwrite recurring appointments on calendars.
I recently switched to Calendar.Live.com for appointment management, and I feel it is the best product currently available. It happens to be free, but I’ve also evaluated premium options.
I am now a former Google Calendar user. I was experiencing major synchronization errors in the Google product. Problems came to a head last month when Google announced the discontinuation of the feed aggregator Reader, throwing my calendar updates into chaos. (This might sound unusual, but some of my appointments are delivered to me by an RSS-only service, and I have to use it. I’ve switched to Tiny Tiny RSS to replace Google Reader.)
Here are the features I’m using from Live.com:
During the recent media frenzy surrounding Google’s announcement of discontinuing the Google Reader product, I was shocked by a few websites that shamelessly included video clips from the YouTube Hitler meme. I am referring here to:
TechCrunch.com
Telegraph.co.uk
TheInquirer.net
TheRegister.co.uk
These video clips are from a movie called Der Untergang, a disturbing dramatization of Hitler’s attempted mass suicide at the end of the Holocaust. Ironic subtitles about Google Reader are superimposed on the video to make it seem like a kind of twisted parody.
Are the subtitles amusing? Yes.
Is parody a form of free speech? Yes.
Do these videos belong in the news? No.
The Der Untergang parodies belong in the hands of juvenile morons who don’t understand the context of the film.
I don’t expect any kind of redaction or apology to be issued by those websites. I am simply blocking them from my own news feeds so that I will be reminded never to visit them again.
Bug Workaround
There’s a new bug (feature?) in Facebook that prevents using more than 12 friend lists in many areas of the website. It’s highly frustrating.
If you run into this situation where you want to filter your friends but can’t see the list you need, there is only one workaround:
You have to send your infrequently used friend lists to the bottom of the pile by renaming them. You can do this by going to the lists page, opening one of your lists, clicking “Manage List” in the upper-right corner, and then selecting Rename.