Poll: What email provider do you use?

Posted on January 31, 2010 by Jesse Zylstra

What email provider do you use?

Aside from just voting, please tell us about your email client in a comment using the form below.

[poll id=”5″]

It is hard to tell what email provider is “the best” anymore. They all change so quickly, and have so many features… Many of us stay with our current provider because of the difficulty associated with making a “switchover”.

I am a Gmail user, and former Hotmail user. I had an error in my Hotmail account (having to do with a contract with my ISP) that I could not get fixed, so I dumped Hotmail and made the switch to Gmail. At first, I was a little at loss… Gmail (a year ago) was not as dynamic and seemed completely different. I used a vacation reply to make sure that everyone knew my new address, and even set Gmail up to receive email from my old Hotmail account, via pop3. Since, I have consolidated two Hotmail accounts, and one professional hosting account into my Gmail account. I absolutely love it. What’s your story? Tell us in your comment!

Posted in Computer Stuff, Web Services, Application, and Design | Tagged , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Windows 7 Starter Edition

Posted on January 29, 2010 by Jesse Zylstra

What are the disadvantages, or advantages of Windows 7 Starter Edition?

Windows 7 Starter Edition is supposedly focused at Netbooks. Wikipedia words this a little differently: “Out of all the different editions (Starter, Home Basic, Home Premium, Professional, Enterprise, and Ultimate), the Starter edition has been designed for netbooks, Home Basic for the developing world”. I doubt the accuracy of this statement. It seems foolish to make Starter more limited than Basic if it is targeted for Netbooks — especially in replacement of Windows XP.

There is no 64-bit version of Windows 7 Starter, and the maximum amount of running programs is limited to three — my personal biggest concern with Starter, but more about that later.

The following features have been disabled. These are the features that differ from the Home version.

  • Multiple monitor support is disabled
  • No fast user switching is available
  • The desktop wallpaper can not be changed
  • The Mobility Centre (useful for PDA’s) is non-existant
  • Windows Aero is disabled (eye candy)
  • There are no games included with Starter
  • Windows Media Center is not included
  • DVD Playback is not supported

I received the information of disabled features from this comparison chart on Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

About program limitations:

A maximum of three open programs is allowed in Starter. This excluded services, actual processes, Windows Explorer windows, system-tray programs, multiple browser tabs, and antivirus. For the basic user, these limitations will not cause many problems.

I could have Word, FireFox, and Windows Media Player open all at the same time. If I open another program, Windows will tell me that I need to close one of my other programs before I can open another one. Personally, this would drive me up the wall. Right now, I have three programs open — FireFox, Email, and my media player. If I wanted to open Open Office Writer (a program similar to Word), I would have to close one of my open programs. It just seems like you end up juggling programs — not fun.

Grandma won’t have a major problem with these limitation (unless your grandma was one of those mega-programmer/hardware/software architecture designers from the 60’s…) A multi-tasker (like myself) will have problems.

Posted in Computer Stuff, Hardware and All That, Programs and Software | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Windows 7 Starter Edition

Watches: Can't Get the Back Back On?

Posted on January 22, 2010 by Jesse Zylstra

Can’t get the back plat of your watch or pocket watch back on?

If you are having a lot of trouble getting the back of your watch or pocket watch back on, this advice may be able to help you:
My guess is that: You took your watch apart, and it almost seems that the plate of the watch is bigger than the rim it needs to fit on.

Disclaimer: I am not a watch expert. I have had this problem with my watch several times, and this is what I came up with.

First, line up the plate. Go ahead and push the top part of the watch into place leaving the bottom part still off center from the rim.
Second, take a thinner cloth (or a folded over paper towel) and place it over the watch. You are going to use this cloth to protect the watch from scratching, as you are about to take a pair of pliers to the watch.
Third, The Pliers: Grab yourself either a pair of Combination Pliers or Flat Jaw Pliers. You are going to use the pliers to snap the plate into place.
STOP! Keep reading before you go about trying to do this!

Warning 1: The plate will try and go on unevenly.
Warning 2: If your watch frame is primarily made of aluminum or a weaker metal, it may bend. Don’t force it too hard! Go slow.
Warning 3: The crystal (plastic or glass) will be right next to the pliers. Do NOT apply the pliers to the crystal.
Warning 4: Don’t use Needle Nose pliers. Too much pressure in one small area will bend things.

Now that you know all of that: From the bottom of the watch, try and snap on the plate with the pliers.

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off on Watches: Can't Get the Back Back On?

This American Life: A Radio Show

Posted on January 22, 2010 by Jesse Zylstra

Another Radio Show: This American Life
Also See: Radio Shows

This American Life has become one of my favourite radio shows, almost more than NPR’s “Wait Wait, Don’t Tell Me”.
This American Life is about, well, the American Life. The show themes vary, but all seem very family appropriate and are very eye-opening (or in this case, “ear-opening” — pun intended)

This radio show is usually divided into three to four acts all focuses around one theme. It is a story mode show, and easy to listen to. Personally, I listen to my radio shows on the bus: I want something to think about and consider. You might as well learn while waiting — as well as be entertained. I hope you enjoy this show just as much as I do.

Posted in Uncategorized | Comments Off on This American Life: A Radio Show

What is fhefeefeffe.com ?

Posted on January 20, 2010 by Jesse Zylstra

Keep getting fhefeefeffe.com posted in spam on your website?

So do I. And I don’t have the slightest idea why — moreover, after Googling “fhefeefeffe.com”, I only come up with two websites (as of 01/20/2010)… this tells me that my site is being targeted by a spam bot for some odd reason and not many other websites…

As a collaborative effort, if you are getting spam that includes this website, please reply in the comment field with any information you know.

What I know:

The IP range is:
83.6.xxx.xxx —

IP Range  83.0.0.0 – 83.255.255.255 belongs to Amsterdam

None of the spam has ads, or links. They look like valid comments…

Posted in Computer Stuff, Web Services, Application, and Design, Website Updates | Tagged , , , , | 2 Comments

Old Nintendo Game Maps

Posted on January 16, 2010 by Jesse Zylstra

Where can I find Nintendo game maps?
Or Super Mario Brothers game maps?

A few weeks ago, my brother and sister came for a visit and we were all playing Mario… and trying to beat Mario Brothers 2. Of course, to save time, we wanted to find a good map. Unfortunately, we could not find our game guide!

I ended up finding this website, which is absolutely wonderful: www.GameFaqs.com
The Mario games can be found on this website as well.

I was shocked that the game maps for older Nintendo Entertainment System games were there — and complete with walk-throughs, cheats, and more.

Posted in Computer Stuff, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Old Nintendo Game Maps

Best Web Traffic Analyzer

Posted on January 13, 2010 by Jesse Zylstra

What is the best, free website traffic analyzer?

By far, I would have to say: Google Analytics. Much as it does seem that Google is slowly taking over the world (probably true), they offer some of the best web-based tools for free which splash mud in the competitors faces. Many webmasters use Anaytics, including ZylstraBlog.

Analytics uses javascript. Simply include the javascript code in each page that you want tracked; the best way is to just put the code into your template. If you host a forum or a blog, your web application is almost guaranteed to have a plugin available for including Anaytics.

The biggest features in Analytics for the average webmaster:

Benchmarking: showing your visits on an easy-to-use graph making your peak days stand out. You can see what parts of the month or week have the most visitors. (See Item 1, screenshot below)

Average user information: The usage information is broken down into the visits, pageviews, how many pages are accessed per visit, the bounce rate (the amount of visitors who view just one page, and then leave the site), the average time on the site, and the percentage of new visits.

Traffic sources: Broken down to the amount of traffic you get directly (people typing in your address), the amount of sites referring to your website (links going to you), the amount of search engines visiting your website

Location information: Where are your visitors coming from? What pages are visitors from those regions viewing?
System Information: What browser are your users using? What operating system? Can they use Flash Player? Java? You’ll know when using Analytics.

Network information: The service providers and the connection speeds that your visitors have is more important than you think — knowing how fast the average user’s connection is lets you know what kind of content you can or can’t put on your website.

Campaigns: Google Anaytics will allow you to set up campaigns to see what really “sells” your website. Create a new section of your website and test it to see how well it ends up working out. (See Item 2, below)

Analytics can help any webmaster know what content is popular on their website, and what isn’t. For example: We know that tips for Linux are our top subject, most of our frequently viewed pages have to do with PlayOnLinux and The Sims 3, Ubuntu Linux, or issues with certain hardware in Linux.

Analytics isn’t just for basic websites, it’s great for professional websites as well.

Item 1

Item 2

Posted in Computer Stuff, Web Services, Application, and Design | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Best Web Traffic Analyzer

Wubi for Installing Linux

Posted on January 8, 2010 by Jesse Zylstra

How well does Wubi work for installing Linux?
Wubi is increasingly becoming the most popular way of installing Linux under Windows due to its’ simplicity. With a few clicks, a fully functional Linux installation can be installed to your hard drive.
The great thing? No manual editing of your partitions, boot records — anything. You don’t even need a CD to install Linux using Wubi. The safety and comfort that Wubi provides during its’ installation is winning thousands over from traditional methods of Linux operating system installations.

What are the disadvantages?
From the Wubi FAQ Pages, the following specifically stand out:
Wubi does not support Hibernation. There is a good reason for this:

Hard drive access may be slowed down due to fragmentation. Wubi is actually installing Linux to a Windows filesystem in a manner that isn’t exactly standard. Also, Wubi installs are more susceptible to damage upon incorrect shutting down of a computer (hard reboot) or power losses.

Posted in Computer Stuff, Programs and Software | Tagged , , , , , , | Comments Off on Wubi for Installing Linux

Boot Description

Posted on January 8, 2010 by Jesse Zylstra

How can I change my boot description of my Windows installation?
Simply boot into the Windows OS that you want to change the name of, and open Command Prompt as an Administrator.
Type:
bcdedit /set {current} description “Your Description Goes Here“

Posted in Computer Stuff, Programs and Software | Tagged , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Boot Description

Mega Downtime

Posted on January 6, 2010 by Jesse Zylstra

zylblog.com was down for a total of four days. Snow hit the cable again, displacing the connector in the fiber box.

Getting someone here took quite a while since the entire town of Waterville had an Internet outage after this local issue occurred, preventing any diagnostics from being able to be completed.

The whole issue started on-and-off on Friday, fully out by Saturday. I have determined that nothing could have been done to avoid this problem, except that I have moved more excess cable into the box to give it more lag in the event that this happens again.

Google: Be graceful, don’t displace our results for this!

Posted in Computer Stuff, Website Updates | Comments Off on Mega Downtime