Blackberry Messenger

‎​There should be a law against idiots using BlackBerry phones. Sadly, as the BB community grows, the old grizzled veterans like me start realising more and more how people are grabbing BB handsets for toys and they're totally oblivious to the BB's actual power. I beseech thee, if you aren't running the latest BBM, upgrade NOW! http://www.blackberry.com/messenger

Quick! While stocks last!

TILE SENSATIONS stock a wide range of imported "mosiacs"!

It's X days until ...

If you need to know how many days it is until ... whenever, then you can count the days yourself with a calendar, try to work it out yourself, or cheat and use this handy little tool grabbed from http://www.jarusa.com/daysuntil.htm.

How Many Days Until How many days until an event?            Day 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 Month January February March April May June July August September October November December Year 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025 2026 2027 2028 2029 2030 2031 2032 2033 2034 2035 2036 2037 2038 2039 2040 2041 2042 2043 2044 2045 2046 2047 2048 2049 2050

There are some other handy calculators there too, one of which I've just used work out that I'm 11,555 days old and my 12,000th birth-DAY will be 9 January 2012!

Days Old Calculator How many days old are you?            Day 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 Month January February March April May June July August September October November December Year 1940 1941 1942 1943 1944 1945 1946 1947 1948 1949 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010

It's all in the Genes this Friday

Wednesday 20 October was National Down Syndrome Day, and the theme this year was "It's all in the Genes".

Down Syndrome is the largest single cause of intellectual disabilities affecting one in every 650 children born each year, and it is vital to raise awareness and make a difference to change society's preconceived ideas and prejudices on Down Syndrome.

Support the Down Syndrome Association of South Africa this Friday 22 October by wearing jeans and paying a 'fine' of R5 to DSA KZN for doing so. There are also skin mark tattoos available at R5 each. Let's help and raise awareness and assist in this important initiative. 

You can call the DSA on 031-464-2055 to get involved.

For those that know Kat and I personally, you know that our whole perspective on Down Syndrome has recently been shifted quite dramatically, so we are passionate about this sort of awareness drive, and also speak from experience when we say that it's as far from your mind as everything else until it's thrust into your lives. Regardless of other factors, I can confidently say that my understanding and appreciation for how Down Syndrome affects lives has changed completely recently - and I am pleased to say that my change has been for the better! Please, consider the simple action of wearing jeans this Friday and show your support for raising awareness. It's very unlikely that you will choose to think about this genetic disorder unless / until it becomes a very real aspect of your lives, but I encourage you to not wait for something to happen before your prejudices and ideas are transformed! There's so much that can be improved in society if ordinary people just take the time to sincerely think about others and work at understanding the mysterious, usually unthinkable, sides of human life.

Below is a photo of the article in this week's Highway Mail.

Tonight, at 8:10pm, brace yourselves!

At 8:10pm tonight, 20 October 2010, it will be:

2010 20/10 20:10.

Remember to record WHAT YOU ARE DOING at this momentus moment (because it will last only one minute of your life, ever, finished and klaar - never ever to be repeated on the Roman calendar, ever).

Software: FBACKUP 4.4

In May I mentioned a software solution for easy backup-and-restore operations, entitled FBACKUP.

Well, I've decided to flesh it out a bit and offer a little bit more of a detailed review about it:

Welcome to a detailed view into an entry on my essential and useful software list, FBackup v4.4!

You can go to the homepage here. It is relatively basic but it does the job it sets out to do and is a great tool for people that aren't that comfortable with computers. 

What I like about this software:

• User-friendly (big buttons to click)
• Can create a shortcut to the desktop to automate a backup (ideal for novice users once you've set them up with the software)
• Supports all sorts of locations (you can hard-code in a network backup point)
• Supports encryption and also basic mirror transfers (so you don't copy the same data over and over again)
• Schedule integrates into MS Windows SCHEDULED TASKS
• Supports plug-ins for the typical MS Windows packages that require frequent backups
• It's FREE
• SIMPLE and QUICK to set up a job
• I can't get over how straightforward it is to use!

Get ready for Sunday!

Don't forget to set your alarms for 10:10:10am and 10:10:10pm on Sunday the 10th of the 10th month in 2010 (i.e. 10:10:10 on 10/10/10). Two moments in time that will never be repeated, and they last for a second each!

Sweet tasting Saturdays!

I have to confess, Saturdays in Westville shopping centres are a boon for the financially astute - so many food chains offer free tasters of a marvellous variety, and despite the financial outlay, their strategy works - I'm a fan!

A few months ago I enjoyed free samples of "My Diner"'s curries which has led me to eat there and enjoy their hottest Pakistani curry: and I'd do it again!

This afternoon Megan and I sampled Woolworths steaks with sweet sticky sauce and as an added extra I got two hefty chunks because they hadn't sliced them properly. Next stop was a delightful Zanzibar taste tester (see picture). Really delicious - and expect a blogpost from bratandkat about our Zanzibar dinner experience.

I don't want to let the secret out, but Westwood is a great mellow shopping experience with many of the desired mainstream stores. Customer shopping experiences are much better too. They're not too busy to brush you aside and very conveniently located next to my current employer.

Software: VNC Thumbnail Viewer

Chances are if you're using VNC on a Windows platform in a fairly large-scale environment, on occasion you've needed to view multiple VNC connections at once.

A while ago I did find and make use of a handy freeware program that could filter through a range of supplied IP addresses and establish multiple VNC connections at the same time for your viewing pleasure: I just wish I knew what it was called or where I could find it now (note to self: find this software).

No matter, for the time being I have found another handy (in some ways HANDIER) multiple VNC viewer solution - its name is VNC Thumbnail Viewer.

Simply download the software and run it to get access to multiple VNC connections from one client. The added benefit of this software is that it's totally PORTABLE, and supports command line interactions.

Below is a little example of a 4-PC connection script so you can quickly and easily view 4 VNC PCs from a simple command line instruction:


VncThumbnailViewer_Win_1.4.2.exe HOST 192.168.%2 PORT 5900 PASSWORD %1 HOST 192.168.%3 PORT 5900 PASSWORD %1 HOST 192.168.%4 PORT 5900 PASSWORD %1 HOST 192.168.%5 PORT 5900 PASSWORD %1 


And an example of using it would be:
VncThumbnailViewer_Win_1.4.2.exe vncpassword 0.1 1.12 1.255

Quickly bringing up VNC connections with "vncpassword" on 192.168.0.1; 192.168.1.12; 192.168.1.255.
I really like this lightweight and efficient solution for VNC controls - it even supports RECORDING, although I haven't dabbled with that just yet.

For more information go to the homepage of VNC Thumbnail Viewer, and download it at:
http://thetechnologyteacher.wordpress.com/vncthumbnailviewer/

South Africa: Democracy at risk

Hello,


I've just signed an urgent petition calling on the ANC to protect our democracy and basic freedoms by reversing an unconstitutional secrecy Bill and a new proposal to gag the media. I thought you would want to join me. If enough of us come together now and oppose these initiatives, our outcry will be too loud to ignore at the ANC Council this week.

You can read more below and sign the petition here:

http://www.avaaz.org/en/protect_south_africas_democracy/98.php?CLICKTF

Thanks!

The truth about how the Titanic sank

Probably most people don't care for this bit of information, but read ahead if you care for conspiracy and history :)

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/books/booknews/8016751/The-truth-about-the-sinking-of-the-Titanic.html

AutoExNT: Running a batch file before logging into WINDOWS

If you ever need to run a batch file on a SYSTEM level before logging into WINDOWS (e.g. to set static ARP entries), then AutoExNT is the right tool for you!

 

Check out http://support.microsoft.com/kb/243486 for help on how to do the AUTOEXNT stuff.

Basically you'll need to create a batch file and then do these two simple steps:

1. Copy the Autoexnt.bat file you just created, in addition to the Autoexnt.exe, Servmess.dll, and Instexnt.exe files located in the Resource Kit CD-ROM to the %SystemRoot%\System32 folder on your computer.
2. At a command prompt, type instexnt install, and then press ENTER. 

Then, if you want to only run the service ONCE add in the line "sc config autoexnt start= disabled" to the end of your batch file (or before you run the command, just in case you only want to run the file once, regardless of success: you don't want to be stuck in an infinite loop if your program / command is faulty and it never disables the service).

DOWNLOAD? Go to http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?familyid=9d467a69-57ff-4ae7-96ee-b18c4790cffd&displaylang=en and grab all the Windows Server 2003 Resource Tool Kits! Have fun!

WINDOWS Force Automatic Updates on WSUS

Forcing an immediate update detection via your local WSUS is a very handy thing to know how to do, and even more handy is the website that provides you with the cut-and-paste goodness to create your own update script in no time!

Visit http://msmvps.com/blogs/athif/pages/66375.aspx for all the low-down, but for quick reference, copy everything below the line into a TXT file and rename to .BAT or .CMD:

Command-line SMTP e-mailer

Want to send an email through a simple command-line batch file? Then check this out!

Combining the latest cellphones supporting e-mail and an SMTP server with BMAIL will turn your scheduled tasks into SUPER SCHEDULED TASKS (I know, lame, but it was worth a shot).

Basically, you deploy the BMAIL.EXE file somewhere, and then you just run your tasks as usual, and at the end of your batch file, chuck in a line like 

"c:\tools\bmail.exe -s mysmtp.server.com -t myemail@address.com -f this@is.from.me -h -a "Default Subject" -b "with this Body"

and then you'll get an email to your myemail@address.com address with an email entitled "Default Subject" - how handy is that? AND BEST OF ALL - IT'S LIGHTWEIGHT AND FREE!!

Go to http://www.beyondlogic.org/solutions/cmdlinemail/cmdlinemail.htm to download!

4 Player Co-Op Game for FREE

There are several universal truths: 

1. Multiplayer games are awesome
2. Co-op multiplayer games are even better
3. FOUR player co-op makes it even better still
4. Everyone loves freebies

Thanks to my buddy, Oltman (you cracked a mention! Woohoo!), many of us are now made aware of a new 4-player co-op game available for FREE on STEAM, entitled Alien Swarm, which for some may sound familiar! 

If you want to grab it for FREE (even if you won't ever play it, grab it anyway, since it locks into your STEAM account for, like, FOREVER)... then head over to here: http://store.steampowered.com/app/630/

Enjoy!