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What is ITtoolbox?
A community where peers share knowledge about information technology.
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With some LinkedIn type features.
Hum?
As exclusive as rain, if they’ll have me as a member.
Sigh!
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TECH SERVICE: What is ITtoolbox?
Thursday, July 19, 2007
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Posted by reinkefj
TECHNOLOGY: “Microsoft Copy Protection Cracked Again” and who’s surprised?
Tuesday, July 17, 2007http://www.breitbart.com/article.php?id=2007-07-17_D8QEFI3O1&show_article=1&cat=breaking
Microsoft Copy Protection Cracked Again
Jul 17 01:13 PM US/Eastern
By JESSICA MINTZ
AP Business Writer
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SEATTLE (AP) – Microsoft Corp. is once again on the defensive against hackers after the launch of a new program that gives average PC users tools to unlock copy-protected digital music and movies.
The latest version of the FairUse4M program, which can crack Microsoft’s digital rights management system for Windows Media audio and video files, was published online late Friday. In the past year, Microsoft plugged holes exploited by two earlier versions of the program and filed a federal lawsuit against its anonymous authors. Microsoft dropped the lawsuit after failing to identify them.
The third version of FairUse4M has a simple drag-and-drop interface. PC users can turn the protected music files they bought online—either a la carte or as part of a subscription service like Napster—and turn them into DRM-free tunes that can be copied and shared at will, or turned into MP3 files that can play on any type of digital music player.
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Like an arms race, the DRM folks are spending a lot of cycles on a failing paradigm.
Like putting lipstick on the proverbial pig, it annoys their paying customers and is pretty ugly! Some of my biggest irritations, in my computing career, have been at the hands of “copy protection”. Couple that with bad, or non-existent, support and you have the seeds of a revolt.
I now don’t buy content online — music or other kinds — if it has copy protection. I have a lot of expensive 8 tracks, cassettes, and cds of “content” that are unusable. Add to that “software”, which has stopped working, stopped being supported, or otherwise orphaned.
My most recent experience was with MusicMatch JukeBox being acquired by Yahoo and forced to “upgrade”. This was one of my last purchases, excuse me “licensing” — what “barbara streisand”!! — before my new policy of “no more”.
“No more” locked content. “No more” buying software, excuse me licensing it, from vendors who are one step below used car salesmen. “No more” operating systems that require “activation” and have “self-help” provisions.
I look to the open source software makers and happily “donate” to their projects.
I’m calling out the content makers, “software” licensors, and the entire Microsoft empire as the hucksters they are. At least the snake oil sales men of yesteryear didn’t try and make you “license” the bottle! A plague on all their houses.
Imagine how I’ll be when I get old and crotchety!
fjohn
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Posted by reinkefj
TECH SERVICE: Yahoo! Music about Musicmatch Migration
Tuesday, July 17, 2007Promptly a week after I had the problem and they changed the webpage causing the problem. They may be “happy” but it’s not timely.
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—–Original Message—–
From: Yahoo! Music Jukebox [mailto:yahoomusicengine-feedback@cc.yahoo-inc.com]
Sent: Tuesday, July 17, 2007 4:35 PM
To: Reinke’s Catch All Email
Subject: Re: Yahoo! Music Jukebox non-tech issue (KMM100278139V4440L0KM)
Hello Reinke’s,
Thank you for writing Yahoo! Music about Musicmatch Migration. We’re happy to help you with this question.
A tool to automatically convert your Musicmatch subscription to Yahoo!
is now available. The Migration Assistant is built into the latest release of the Yahoo! Music Jukebox. Please follow the directions below to download the Jukebox, and the Migration Assistant will walk you through this process step-by-step.
Download and install the new Yahoo! Music Jukebox here:
http://music.yahoo.com/jukebox/mm/ymj/?OEM=29
Important: Even if you already have Yahoo! Music Jukebox, you must install this special version in order to see the Migration Assistant.
When you start the Jukebox, the Migration Assistant should appear.
Follow the instructions on each page (a link to the FAQ is available from most pages).
If you have a Musicmatch On Demand subscription, you will be able to migrate it to a Yahoo! Music Unlimited subscription
If you have unspent Musicmatch Music Store Gift Certificates or Allowances, you’ll be able to convert them to Yahoo! Music Unlimited Gift Certificates
If you wish to transfer your music library, you will be offered this option.
Please refer to the Frequently Asked Questions for more information:
http://help.yahoo.com/l/us/yahoo/music/jukebox/update/update02.html
*if your problem persists please follow the steps below.
We are having difficulty pinpointing the cause of your problem based on the information you’ve provided. If you could provide answers to the questions below in your response, that will help us provide you with more assistance:
1. Can you describe the problem in more detail?
2. What error message(s) are you receiving, if any? Please send us the exact wording of the error message if you see one.
3. Please describe what happened leading up to this problem, and provide as much detail as possible.
For complete Yahoo! Music Jukebox online help, visit:
http://help.yahoo.com/l/us/yahoo/music/jukebox/index.html
Once again, we regret the problem you’re having with Yahoo! Music services. If the solution provided here does not resolve your concern, please reply to this email so we may further assist you. Thank you again for writing Yahoo! Music.
Regards,
Bob
Yahoo! Music Customer Care
For assistance with all Yahoo! services, please visit:
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Posted by reinkefj
LINKEDIN: FACEBOOK elbows in?
Monday, July 16, 2007http://segala.com/blog/please-no-more-linkedin-invites/
Please, no more LinkedIn invites
on July 16, 2007 at 10:47 am | By Paul Walsh
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LinkedIn Out and Facebook In logo
Ok, for the last time and to put an end to some speculation, I’m no longer updating my LinkedIn profile (full stop).
The reason is simple. I use Facebook as my shop window, into which you can see who I am, who I know, what I stand for, what I’m working on, where I am and anything else I’d like you to know. If I write a blog post, send a twitter or have pictures taken of me talking at an event, you’ll see them via my RSS feeds which are pulled in from various Web sites.
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Is the bloom off the rose with LinkedIn? I’m not so sure one way or the other, I continue to use both, fwiw.
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Posted by reinkefj
TECHNOLOGY: FCC wants unhackable software
Sunday, July 15, 2007http://www.networkworld.com/columnists/2007/071007-backspin.html
Technology for the People by the Money
Backspin By Mark Gibbs, Network World, 07/10/07
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A new federal rule is now in effect that means SDR/CR systems that use “open source elements” will find it hard to get FCC approval or perhaps be excluded altogether.
The FCC’s reasoning – inexplicably prompted by Cisco, of all companies – is that manufacturers should not use open source software “if doing so would increase the risk that … security measures could be defeated or otherwise circumvented to allow operation … of the radio in a manner that violates the Commission’s rules.”
This means that what the FCC and Cisco apparently want are unhackable software products! As Homer Simpson would say, “Du-oh!” Gentlemen, you must know that there is no such thing and anyone with the slightest clue will tell you that security through obscurity has never and will never work.
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Gooferment “protecting” you from those evil companies!?!
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Posted by reinkefj
Ron Paul @ Google
Sunday, July 15, 2007He knocks the ball out oft he park. He took every liberal topic and precisely defined what he’d do. No ifs, ands, or maybes. And, he appeared to be well received. The new citizen who flew down from Seattle with a check was the most eloquent witness.
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Posted by reinkefj
TECH SOFTWARE: Wikis don’t do the work I list do they?
Saturday, July 14, 2007http://webworkerdaily.com/2007/07/13/15-productive-uses-for-a-wiki/
15 Productive Uses for a Wiki
WEBWORKERDAILY
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A few of the things that are emerging about web workers is that 1) we do just about everything online; 2) we want to be able to access it from any computer, anywhere; and 3) it’s hard to organize all the stuff we use and do, in our work and personal lives.
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1) To-do list. Once you’ve learned the simple wiki markup language, creating a list is easy. And the most productive list, of course, is the to-do list. In fact, if you’re into GTD, you can set up multiple context lists for a simple GTD system — try GTD Tiddlywiki, dcubed, or MonkeyGTD for more integrated wiki solutions.
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Sigh, maybe I’ll try again. It’s the doing that is hard.
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Posted by reinkefj
TECH SERVICE: Blog notes on a topic
Friday, July 13, 2007A blog is an excellent tool for keeping notes about a specific topic. The free, and unequaled, wordpressdotcom gives you a free blog that youcan configure for your own use alone. If allows you to have a rolling log of notes on a topic that is search able, and categorize able. Wish I had been doing it two years ago.
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Posted by reinkefj
TECH SERVICE: wordpressdotcom could use an inbox
Friday, July 13, 2007FEEDBACK submitted
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This may sound dumb, if it was available I’d use it.
I think that blogs with “fresh content” are more interesting that those with “stale”. As a hobby blogger, I’ve realized that my site postings get “clustered” around when I can produce them. Some of my posts get “pushed” out of the lime light too quickly.
I’ve been struggling with this by adjusting the time stamps. But, it’s hard and cumbersome.
So like drafts, and the roles of author and editor, I’d like to propose an “inbasket”. The user would specify say minimum interval say in hours. The free, and unequaled, wordpressdotcom would then “post” from the inbasket when the time expires. If you wanted to get fancy, it could sense how “full” the inbasket was, and adjust the time based on a minimum / maximum exposure time (i.e., based on % full basket set minimum 2 hours; maximum 6 hours).
This would ensure that the blog might have fresh content around the clock with minimum angst by the creator.
Just in case you were sitting around with nothing to do! ;-)
fjohn
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Posted by reinkefj
TECHNOLOGY: THINKFREE blurs the lines
Wednesday, July 11, 2007http://product.thinkfree.com/products/
ThinkFree Online
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ImageManage, access, and edit documents over the internet. Get the best Microsoft Office compatibility available. Share and get everyone’s input on your story, schedule, or marketing materials.
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THINKFREE is messing with my neatly laid out paradigm (i.e., consultant speak for how one looks at the world).
In the beginning, there was the (big mainframe) computer and it had input devices (i.e., punched cards) and output devices (i.e. printers). And after that everything got complicated. IBM’s SNA allowed intelligence and processing power to escape from the mainframe datacenter and go “native”. Then came IP and someone eventually hung one of them new fangled personal computers and there was a paradigm shift.
So we now have a zero footprint web browser, a thin client (i.e., gotomypc and it’s ilk), a fat client like some of the universal instant messengers or Microsoft Outlook, and (obese) clients that are servers like SBS that can do everything with or without the network.
THINKFREE has ONLINE (zero), DESKTOP (fat), SERVER (obese), and (now) PORTABLE (that acts like my uninstalled life).
You have to dig for pricing, but it looks like $50 except for server where they don’t tell you the price. (Always a bad sign.)
The free online will have premium options as yet unpriced. (Always a bad sign).
And, it still doesn’t integrate email.
I’d classify it as Zoho’s stupid brother!
Except for the blurring of the lines between online and offline. In that sense, it’s innovating. (IMHO)
You really want to be able to work without having to think about your connectivity status or what hardware you have available.
Looking at the DESKTOP minimum requirements, it’s very hefty.
In summary, it’s an interesting dead end that could be expensive.
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