JDPFu.com 2010

Each of us use a computer for various reasons. Some just want a system that works, without any hassle. Most of us want to run specific software, work with specific file types, connect with everyone else, and possibly just do what the people around us are doing to be the same.

I’ll be as honest as I can and put the reasons in order.

Adobe has been plagued with security issues in their most popular tool, like Acrobat and Reader. These issues seem to be on all platforms, but are mostly targeted by hackers on MS-Windows. For years, we’ve known that Acrobat allowed PDF documents more access than most people need by default – JavaScript and the ability to start other programs running on the system. 99% of Acrobat Reader users do not need or want either of those features, yet, they are enabled by default.

Adobe has been slow to correct issues and claimed to be on a quarterly patch cycle. This is for Flash, Shockwave, Reader and all products including PhotoShop. For almost all of these tools, there are alternatives that are not the main targets of hackers.

So, I gotta ask …

Why are you still using Adobe Tools?

How to ask for help for Linux issues.

All of us need a little help now and again. Linux users aren’t any different than MS-Windows or Mac users in that regard. The difference is that to get help for Linux, you need to do a little more research first.

We’ll assume you don’t have a nearby Linux knowledgeable friend that knows everything. You’ll need to ask people you do not know for help. Or, perhaps you are the Linux guru in your circle of friends and your questions are more complex than most.

Below, I’ll suggest a few methods to use to get help and outline the data you should include in your requests to optimize the ability of others to actually be helpful to you.

In a prior article here, I outlined some important things to ensure when you’re looking for a new laptop. With the release of Windows7, some of those things aren’t necessarily as important as they were under Vista and I’ve learned some new things in my shopping for a new laptop myself.

I use virtualization … a lot. I started writing an article entitled Converting WinXP from VirtualBox to KVM today, but couldn’t due to issues.

The latest thing I’m trying to accomplish is to migrate to KVM for all the current VM needs that I have. This may not be a good idea since we’re running Xen, VirtualBox and ESXi VM hosts. Today I attempted to convert a WindowsXP Professional install running under VirtualBox 3.x to KVM. I’ve attempted this conversion before, but it failed, badly. This time, I’m using VMware Converter and it failed before it even got started.

Here’s a little program that automates Video Redo Plus Quick Stream Fix, QSF, processing.

I use comskip to locate commercials in mpeg2 TV recordings. It is a fairly heavy CPU user, enough that I can feel the system slow down when it is used. Of the multiple systems I’ve run it on (the exact same binary), they each show different frame rates that I thought to share today.

I don’t know how to say this any clearer. MCE Buddy Rocks!. It is free, but they request a donation. I haven’t seen any nag-ware.

If you run Windows Media Center 7 and want to do anything with the TV tuner recorded files, check out MCEBuddy. It does the simple stuff by default. I suppose it will work with older versions of media center too, but cannot confirm that. What is the simple stuff?

Over the years, I’ve been using this blog to help myself remember how to do things and to share some great tools and techniques with you. I figure it is time to recap some of those articles whether they are computer, financial/retirement, or just interesting things.

Last evening, I noticed that my Dell 1535 Laptop wasn’t responsive. It was recording a TV show with the Hauppauge 950Q USB QAM tuner at the time, among other things that it always does.

Below I’ll discuss symptoms, trouble shooting methods and my resolution