Started a new website

I started a new website. Got some info about some system errors, security, and some new software. New domain and everything. Check it out at TopTechGuide.com

I hate doing this but... swagbucks is awesome.

Basically swagbucks is a site that will pay you to search the web the way you normall do. I really mean it. You wont get prizes/money quick but since I search the web all the time, it is nice to get rewarded for it. Now I am not one for money scams and crap like that but it really is legit and honest about what they promise you.

Worth checking out. So far I have a couple dozen swag bucks that I could trade in for stuff but I am going to save and get some big stuff!

Check it out here:
http://bit.ly/6utsua

I hate lagging

Ok so I have neglected this blog and to those 10 people in the world who have actually spent the time to come here and look at this place, I am sorry.

However I promise to share more thoughts created by the elements that fit together ever so slightly to create a brain that can share it's decided conciousness with essentially everything.

Keep thinking.... I will be back.

Symantec making a good product?

Just got a promo version of Norton Internet Security 2009 through a reseller promo. I am always reluctant to test out any Norton products because they have all been piss poor excuses for a decent piece of software. However, their promo kit that they sent my store had a pure 100% speed sales pitch, so I had to try and see what they were hyping about.

Well, they have converted a lifelong Norton/Symantec hater to a Norton supporter.

Currently it occupies about 10MB of memory (nearly half of what the new Kaspersky IS 09 that they had us test as well) and I literally cannot even tell it is running. Including a Firewall, Spy/Mal/Virus protection, Anti-Phishing measures, Network map/controls, "pulse" updating keeping your product up to date to the minute, with other tools and features, all running under 12MB of ram, and minimal svchost usage. Crazy. Never would have thought these results would come from a Norton product.

Now of course I am running quad-core w/ 4GB DDR2, but the program still feels lighter than all other current full Internet Security suites.

They have a trial that you can try if you like, I hated Norton, I really did, but I can suggest it to customers now, that is how much of a convert this new 09' copy has made me.

iTunes Slow Backup and Sync?

So my family, my girlfriend, and I were heading out for dinner at a friends in San Diego. I had just gotten done adding some new tracks to my iPhone playlist because I wanted to jam the tunes on the way out there. Upon pressing the sync button I watched the phone sync some of my data (but not the music) and then the dreaded "Backing up iPhone" was displaying with an extremely slow progress bar.

As my family is yelling at me from downstairs to get going, I was not going to let this Apple shortcoming hinder my ability to listen to my new tunes on the trip. A bit of research led me to many different ways to patch your preferences .xml file etc to disable the backup "feature" (bleh) from Apple's notoriously buggy/bloated/poorly written music organizing tool that I am forced to use with my phone that I love. Soooo instead of Apple simply putting in a on/off toggle for the backup, I have to get a patch to fix the issue. Otherwise I would be waiting about an hour to sync 6 songs.

Sad and rediculous it may be, there is an easy fix. Great tool I found for Windows, and tested on Vista x64 is the "iPhone Backup Switch" by Microseconds. This free tool will automatically backup your preferences xml file before altering it, and it is a simple "on/off" toggle to turn the backup feature on and off. Yes, Apple should have included this ability in iTunes, but they did not so here is the app for you. It is literally self-explanatory on how to use it, but I will explain anyhow...
... Install, run, and press the big friggin button to disable the backup, press it again to enable. Press the restore button to restore your original xml file. Be sure iTunes is not running while you enable/disable the backup.

Download Here

Task Manager Issues

Task Manager missing it's border? Missing tabs?

If you have an issue with the task manager missing it's menu at the top, and is only displaying the main content window. Simply double-click the outside border of the task manager. The appropriate border should now be shown.

Be sure to perform full virus/malware scans afterward because the reason for the issue is most likely from malware.

-- Applies to Windows XP, never had the issue with Vista, but you could give it a try if it happens to you.

Java and WIndows Update

Hey all.

Short info today. Had an issue with Windows Update on an XP machine. I followed the steps involved in fixing related dll's with no success (http://support.microsoft.com/kb/943144)

So as a last ditch effort before sfc /scannow, I decided to uninstall and re-install Java runtime. Viola, fixed!

Java Runtime: Download Here
(Scroll down and find Java Runtime Environment (JRE))

Take care all.

Network Backup Issues With Vista - fix

Decided to start using my Buffalo Linkstation (Network Hard Drive) with the built in Vista backup application only to find that when trying to set the backup location onto the drive, Vista would ask for a password.

Does not matter if there is truly a password or not, or if the password is identical to your account in Windows. Through some internets action I found that I was not the only person with this problem. It seems that most all Network Storage Device users were experiencing this issue. No fixes were posted so I decided to check on Buffalo's official site and behold! A specific Vista "patch" that promised to fix Vista compatibility issues. This "patch" is really just a registry mod that truly did fix the problem for me.

So anyone else out there that is experiencing the same issues, just check the manufacturers site for any updates. You will probably find your fix there.

Found the update for my Buffalo product here.

Toolbars and Quick Launch

Do not get me wrong. I love Vista, I have been very happy with it.

However there are a few things that still irk me. Now I wanted to move my quicklaunch toolbar from the bottom toolbar to another one on the side/top of my screen. So I did the usual "unlock" and drag to get the toolbar out of the taskbar and onto the desktop so I could move it around. No success!!

I guess Vista does not allow the quick launch toolbar to be dragged around so the first thing I did was create a new toolbar the ole' fashioned way by dragging a new folder to the side of the screen thus turning it into a toolbar.

Once you do have a working toolbar, you can then right click it, select toolbars, and add the quick launch. Now the quick launch icons are located on that new toolbar, but so is the original folder that you made the toolbar from. To fix this right click the toolbar, select toolbars, and de-select the folder that you originally used to make the toolbar, and bam, you have a quicklaunch toolbar.

It would have been easier to just let us drag it, Microsoft.



-- Not much else to talk about today, another virus removal, this time for a really sweet lady so I am gonna hook her up with some services that I normally charge for. See it pays to be polite.

Short one because it is late and someone was talking about it today:

DVD's do not magically play just because you have a DVD-ROM, a codec is always needed.

Now time for bed.

Tool Tip

Okay the first tool tip!!

Need to get into the recovery console for XP but do not have an XP disk?

Here...

Download rc.iso

Strange Things

Craziest thing.

Had an SLI Geforce 7800 Dell machine come in.
Mad fuzz during boot, but when in the O.S. it looked fine, until I installed the drivers, then more fuzz.
Sooooo only fuzz when in the bios, and when in XP but only when drivers were installed.
Took out the bad card and now he is not using SLI but its working.
That was a strange one...

-- Got my replacement iPhone today. Already have 3 pages of apps, I am sad, I know --

User Error?

Customer called up... said:
"My internet doesn't work all of a sudden. What is wrong?"

(some of you are chuckling right now, I know)

So I gave him the overused statement of:
"Well, it could be many things, but lets start with step 1"

Proceeded to check hardware, tcp/ip/dns/dhcp settings, ping the gateway, ping addresses, and cycle power. At this point I told him politely that I could not effectively diagnose the issue over the phone, and if he would kindly come in for a $59 diagnostic, I would be able to address the issue with greater detail. So he got all mad. Ungrateful to the fact that I spent over 10 mins sharing my knowledge and troubleshooting skills with him, he was upset that he needed to pay for a service that I was providing. Does that make sense?

Nothing Special

Have a virus removal, and a modem replacement in the shop at the moment. OEM pci modem came in from my companie's supplier, not direct from HP so of course the original OEM drivers did not work so it took some scouring for new drivers. Nothing out of the ordinary but if anything special comes about that I find may be useful to some, I will post up.

If anyone knows a good, dedicated, and free database of drivers please let me know. Even if it is centralized to one type of hardware (i.e. modems, nics, or wlan)