Blog
General articles and random thoughts that don’t fit into the knowledgebase.
Latest Blog Posts
Quick test of new comments system (using DISQUS)
Just testing a new commenting system – Disqus. Looks like it works OK so I’ll keep it online for now. Currently, you no longer need to be logged in (previously you needed to present either a Blogger, Google or OpenID credential to comment because of spam) since Disqus is supposed to handle this better. However, if the spam starts to reappear, I’ll have to restrict it again. For blog authors, check out [Psolonoid][1] as well.
Changing system environment variables from the Windows command line
There are several ways to change global or user environment variables manually in Windows. Most are well known so I wont repeat them here (e.g. in Vista or Windows 7, Control Panel/User Accounts, Change my environment variables). However, sometimes you want to do this from a command (aka script or batch) file. This is not as straightforwards as it might seem. That’s because if you simply set the variable – e.
Windows 7 (Build 7000) still my main desktop OS
A quick update on Windows 7. I’m still using the version from MSDN, Build 7000. Unfortunately, it will not let me report bugs for some reason, the “Send Feedback” link always fails to authenticate my Windows Live login. However, I do have a few issues and a few likes. Issues with Windows 7 Possibly Windows 7 Beta Issues Power options only shows 2 out of 3 std options Creating new folder in all users (in explorer), creates new folder but doesn’t allow rename (says folder already in use) yet allows delete Screen resolution seems to randomly reset to something lower (NVIDIA WDM driver).
How to get and use your local IP address in a Windows 7 (and Vista) batch command file
If, like me, you spend a lot of time on a variety of customer sites, you will probably be familiar with the issues around swapping networks. I’ve already blogged about the problems with Windows 7, Vista and Firefox proxy settings and I will do some more articles on getting on with problematic proxies later. However, I wanted to let people know how to get hold of your IP address from within a batch (command) file.
Critical Bug in Outlook 2007
I’ve recently stumbled on a bug in Outlook 2007. Apparently it is quite well known and the only reason that I hadn’t found it was that I don’t use Outlook as my main email client. In fact I only use email on it to handle meeting requests. The bug is that Outlook 2007 ignores the setting regarding sending reply requests for IMAP accounts. If this seems rather irrellivant to you, you might want to think again.
Sun’s VirtualBox gets on with it!
Yep, I keep being amazed by the quality of VirtualBox which is now owned by Sun. I need to set up a virtual machine to test and demo Sun’s Identity Management (IdM) suite and it needs to be usable with VMware too. So I headed over to the VMware Appliances web site and downloaded a pre-canned Debian 5 server. This is recognised fine by VirtualBox! I gave the VM a Host Networked connection to the network and with no further configuration, fired up the VM.
Easier posting to Blogger Blogs (Zoundry Raven)
Just a quick note to recommend some software that makes writing blog entries very much easier. The software is called [Zoundry Raven][1] and I’m using the latest beta (under Windows 7 beta). The editor is WYSIWYG and has a much more sensible set of standards than the built-in Blogger editor (including the beta version). It also allows you to publish the same entry to multiple blogs if needed. It has image, link and tag handling too and it makes blogging rather more pleasurable.
proxy.pac files, Mozilla (Firefox & Thunderbird) and Vista or Windows 7
I’ve found a problem with Mozilla based products and proxy settings. To automatically configure a proxy for use by Internet browsers, you can use a file called “proxy.pac“. This is a JavaScript function that is loaded into the browser when it starts and redirects requests via a proxy where required. All of the descriptions for this file you will find on the Internet will provide the following example of checking your current IP address.
Windows 7 Beta – Now my main OS
I’m now using Windows 7 Beta (Build 7000) as my day-to-day operating system. It is generally very well behaved I have to say and appears to be what Vista should have been from the start. Vista reminds me a lot of Windows/ME, anyone remember that? Another failed Windows build. In reality, Vista was the Windows 7 beta. Of course, there are a few rough edges and I’ll do a post about them shortly.
What goes here?
I’ve already got a few things to blog about so expect some articles shortly covering the following: Tablet PC’s I’ve just brought an IBM X61 (on eBay) after much deliberation (we’re talking several years here!). I’ve wanted a Slate (e.g. no keyboard) for ages but they go for silly prices generally. So now I have an X61 to go with the monster 17″ Dell M1710. Microsoft InfoPath An XML-based form designer and filler with rich interface options (including Tablet ink support).
Welcome
Hi, here is my new blog. I’ve been meaning to set up a general IT blog for some time and this is it. This will be a collection of thoughts, ideas I’ve had and research I’ve done. You can also look at my [blog about Linux][1] and my [personal homepage][2]. [1]: http://linux.knightnet.org.uk/ [2]: http://www.knightnet.org.uk/
VirtualBox Host Interface Networking Update
Great news! The latest versions of VirtualBox have sorted out the issues of host networking. So all of the [messing around that you used to have to do][1], especially under Linux, is now over. So ignore the previous post, it is no longer required. [1]: http://linux.knightnet.org.uk/2008/07/bridged-networking-in-opensuse-103-for.html
Update
Hi, thought I’d better put an update on here as to why I haven’t done any posts here recently. Well, I’ve not done much with Linux recently. My OpenSUSE 11.0 desktop machine works and does pretty much everything I ask of it. At the moment, that is largely managing my photographs and not much else. This is because I’m out and about on a big project and so I’m using my monster laptop (Dell M1710) and that is running Vista as I have to be able to run Outlook, OneNote and other MS Office applications at full speed.
Bridged networking in OpenSUSE 10.3 & 11.0 (For VirtualBox)
I prefer to use VirtualBox rather than VMware as it seems to be rather faster and less resource hungry than VMware Server (the only free version of VMware with a GUI). Also VirtualBox seems to have better Linux host support (sound, etc.). However, there is one thing that VMware is better at – setting up the guest network on the same network as the host. Under VirtualBox this is called “Host Interface Networking” and, with a Linux host anyway, is a right royal pain to set up.
Shell script to Back up critical files (using RSYNC)
Following up from my article on backing up USB drives, this recipe backs up the critical files on my desktop to remote storage (a NAS device on my network). Note that PC2 is the desktop to be backed up, SLUG1 (192.168.1.2) is the NAS device and USER1 is the user id doing the backup. I have a similar script that runs on the NAS device which backs key files on that to a remote hosting service on a different continent!
