Apps from my Android phone

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This is a list of all apps (mostly freeware) from my Android phone, along with links for further information and a few notes. All the links are to Google Play (formerly Market). If your device doesn’t support Play, after reading about them you will need to find them elsewhere. See: 7 Alternative Appstores at The eBook Reader Blog.

7StormVision
Get the power of KPLC 7 At Your Service for Southwest Louisiana weather.

Advanced Task Killer Free
It is a tool to kill applications running.

AirDroid
AirDroid is a fast, free app that lets you wirelessly manage your Android from your favorite browser.

Alarm Clock Plus

App 2 SD Free

App Backup & Restore

App Cache Cleaner

(Amazon) Appstore

Barcode Scanner

Battery Indicator

BibleReader

Bookmarks to SD

Calc+ Free

Car Locator

Chase

ClockSync
ClockSync synchronizes device system clock with atomic time from Internet via NTP (Network Time Protocol). Useful if provider doesn’t support NITZ, sends incorrect time or if your device/ROM has heavy clock drift. I needed this because for some reason I could not set the time manually!

Cool Reader
I’ve tried ‘em all, and this ebook reader is the best, unless you need to sync between devices, and that feature only works for purchased books (Nook, Kindle, Kobo), NOT sideloaded books.
Supports epub (non-DRM), fb2, doc, txt, rtf, html, chm, tcr, pdb, prc, mobi (non-DRM), pml formats.

Daily Paper

Dolphin Browser HD

Dolphin Reader

EasyTipCalculator

English Dictionary and Thesaurus Package
This is for use in Fora Dictionary, which I use in Cool Reader.

ES File Explorer
ES File Explorer for Android is a free, full-featured all-in-one file manager & application manager & task killer & Dropbox client & FTP client which explores your phone and your computer.

Fora Dictionary
Multilingual offline dictionary application used in Cool Reader (and by itself) to look up definitions.

Geaux Vote
Find out if you are a Louisiana voter, where you vote, what’s on your ballot and other summarized voter registration and elections information.

Google Services
Quickly access over 20 Google services with just one click from Dolphin Browser Add-on Sidebar.

Grocery iQ
I tried several before settling on this one – a great shopping list app.

IMDb

KeePassDroid

KPLC 7NewsNow

LastPass for Dolphin Browser HD

(Yahoo) Mail
Yahoo webmail, also used for AT&T (Bellsouth) webmail.
(I wish I could find a decent app for Juno webmail!)

Mute
Just one touch to Mute! Touch icon and put the phone on silent mode, touch again and back to previous profile. Mute all (ringer, audio/video players, notifications …) except alarm. Put application shortcut on wallpaper to quick switch MUTE ON/OFF.

My Netflix Q

Notes Lite
I have tried a lot of excellent note and text apps, including Jota, Note Everything with NE GDocs, ColorNote, and more. This is currently my favorite. It is extremely simple to use, but has all sorts of hidden (but easily accessed) tools if you want them, and is the only note program I have found with a built-in spell-checker!

Office Calculator Free

OI File Manager
This allows you to browse your SD card, create directories, rename, copy, move, and delete files.  The stock Android OS does not allow any of this! It also acts as an extension to other applications to display “Open” and “Save” dialogs.

OliveOffice
This is the smaller of the 2 free office suites that I have found (the other being Kingsoft Office). It enables you to view and edit Microsoft Word (doc/docx), Excel (xls/xlsx) and PowerPoint (ppt/pptx) files, plus viewing portable document file (pdf) and compiled help manual (chm).

Power Search
Powerful Search provides deep searching for contact info such as organization title & company, Calendar, Apps, Dropbox, Google Docs, Email & SD card including Docx files. I got this when I found that I could not search my contacts by phone number. Some phones do allow this, but mine did not.

Romans
Romans is a simple calculator utility to help you convert a decimal number to Roman numerals. It features two keypads one for Roman numerals & one for digits. CR is the clear button. Its useful for writing outlines, converting dates, & any situation where you must learn to write roman numerals.

Root Check Basic
Small and simple app to ONLY verify root access is properly configured. I have not yet rooted my phone, but got this to verify the process if/when I root.

Scanner Radio

SeekDroid
SeekDroid allows you to locate your lost or stolen device anywhere in the world. See your device on a map, set off an audible alarm, wipe the device, and more.

ShareMyApps
Create a list of your apps with notes about them and send it to your friends! In addition to the ability to share a list of apps, you may also share the link to a single app by long clicking on it.  This was used to make this list… well, to start it, anyway.

StayAwake

StopWatch & Timer

TeamViewer

TM World Clock

Translate

TuneIn Radio

TV Listings

Unit Converter

Wi-Fi Finder

 

Some Great Free Programs From Microsoft

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This was originally published in October 2010, and some of the information may no longer be accurate. Microsoft often drops some products, and even more often moves things, breaking any bookmarks you may have saved. If you find any errors, please post corrections in the comments. Thanks

No, really! Microsoft! We all love to dog Microsoft for their exorbitant pricing on products like the Windows operating system, their Office suites, etc., but they also have some truly great freeware goodies if you know where to look. In this article, I will tell you about a few of the better or more interesting ones, but there are many, many more to discover. Because I am covering so many tools, this is just a quick introduction to some of these tools, and you will want to visit the relevant webpages for more details. Hopefully you will find something interesting in this list.

Enjoy

First I would like to recommend almost any of the tools from Technet Sysinternals. Sysinternals was created in 1996 by Mark Russinovich and Bryce Cogswell to host their advanced system utilities and technical information. Microsoft acquired Sysinternals in July, 2006, but has continued to host and even update the free tools. Sysinternals utilities can help you to manage, troubleshoot and diagnose your Windows systems and applications. Two of my favorite tools are AutoRuns and Process Explorer, but be sure to check out the others and you’ll find some amazing and free tools.

AutoRuns shows you detailed information about processes that are configured to run during system bootup or login, and allows you to disable or delete them. These programs include ones in your startup folder, Run, RunOnce, and other Registry keys. Autoruns can also show other info, including Explorer shell extensions, toolbars, browser helper objects, Winlogon notifications, auto-start services, and much more. Autoruns goes way beyond the MSConfig utility bundled with Windows Me and XP.

Process Explorer shows you information about which programs and services are running, which handles and DLLs processes have opened or loaded. Process Explorer has a search capability that will quickly show you which processes have particular handles opened or DLLs loaded, can kill (or restart) processes, can shutdown or reboot your computer, and even has an option to replace the wimpy Windows default Task Manager.

Next I recommend looking into the so-called “PowerToys“, which are various projects developed by Microsoft staff, and released as freeware, but which are “not fully supported by Microsoft”. One of the better ones is SyncToy, which can help to copy, move, and synchronize different directories, even across a home network. Tweak UI is another good one, and can give you access to system settings that are not exposed in the Windows XP default user interface, including mouse settings, Explorer settings, taskbar settings, and more. Although these PowerToys are officially only for XP (not Vista or Windows 7), many of them, such as SyncToy will still work fine.

Microsoft Research, aka “Microsoft Labs” is dedicated to conducting both basic and applied research in computer science and software engineering. MS Labs has numerous projects available for download. Most are prototypes of ideas that may or may not ever be released in a final form, and may or may not work as flawlessly as you might hope. There are, however some real gems. Click on “Projects” or “Downloads” and see what you can find. Note that some are NOT free, so be sure to read the descriptions.

Some examples:

AutoCollage is an application for automatically creating collages from your images. Pick a folder, press a button, and in mere moments AutoCollage presents you with a unique memento to print or to e-mail to your family and friends.

Songsmith (Free Trial) generates musical accompaniment to match a singer’s voice. Just choose a musical style, sing into your PC’s microphone, and Songsmith will create backing music for you. Then share your songs with your friends and family, post your songs online, or create your own music videos.

WorldWide Telescope is another Microsoft Research project. It essentially provides you with a virtual telescope, bringing together amazing imagery from the Hubble Space Telescope and approximately 10 earthbound telescopes. The images are stitched together seamlessly, allowing you to pan around outer space and zoom as far into any one area as the data will allow. The user interface makes galactic exploration easy, right from your computer. There is both a download client and a web-based client. The web client will require the installation of Microsoft SilverLight. The download requires Microsoft DirectX version 9.0c, .NET Framework 2.0, and a PC with an Intel Core 2 Duo 2 gigahertz processor or faster (recommended); 1 gigabyte (GB) of RAM (min); 2 GB RAM (recommended); a 3D accelerated graphics card with 128 megabytes (MB) RAM (min); discrete graphics card with dedicated 256-MB VRAM (recommended for higher performance); 1 GB of available hard disk space (min); 10 GB (recommended for off-line features and higher performance browsing).

Windows Live Essentials includes free programs from Microsoft for photos, instant messaging, email, blogging, family safety, and more. Get them all in one download and get more done with Windows. With Essentials, you get Messenger, Photo Gallery, Mail, Writer, Family Safety, and Toolbar, plus Microsoft Office Outlook Connector, Office Live Add-in, and Microsoft Silverlight.

Microsoft Security Essentials provides real-time protection for your home PC that guards against viruses, spyware, and other malicious software. Microsoft Security Essentials is a free download from Microsoft that is simple to install, easy to use, and always kept up to date.

Paint.NET – My friend Tiny talks about this one all the time, but I don’t think either of us realized that this was in any way associated with Microsoft! Paint.NET started as a computer science project at Washington State University. It was, however, such a good image and photo editing product (as well as an exceptional example of the .NET Framework technology in action), that Microsoft hired the two developers, Rick Brewster and Tom Jackson, and has allowed them to continue improving the application and offering it as a free download. Paint.NET has a great user interface and is easy to use. It provides all the essential image editing features you need, plus layers, special effects, and support for a wide range of image formats. Paint.NET also has quite a following on the Internet, and you can find lots of help, tutorials, and plugins — and it supports Windows 7!

Photo Story – Putting digital “slides” to music with simple pan and zoom — It just works!

There are conflicting reports on Windows 7 compatibility, but my advice is to download the latest version and try it. If it does not install, then “extract it” with Universal Extractor. Inside the extracted folder you will find another PStory.msi file. Try installing from that. If that still does not work, then read the Microsoft Forums post above for other ideas, including using Windows Live Essentials, which includes at least some of the functionality of Photo Story.

“Microsoft Fix it” provides automated solutions to common software problems in an easy, intuitive way that is available when and where you need it. Fix it provides a way to apply automated fixes, workarounds, or configuration changes so you don’t have to perform a long list of manual steps yourself.

If you have Vista or Windows 7, you can try the Vista Sidebar gadget, although when I installed it, it showed “Service not available”! The Fix It gadget lists the most popular Fix It routines that have been published on the Microsoft Support web site. Fix It routines are pieces of executable code that you can run from the Support web site that automatically repair or configure your computer simply by downloading them. There are more than 260 Fix It routines published so far.

Here’s a quick listing of some of the more useful Fix It routines:

Show Internet Explorer desktop icon (if it’s missing or deleted)
Error when you download updates using Windows Update or Microsoft Update: 8000FFFF
The menu bar and the toolbar are missing in Internet Explorer on Windows Vista
How do I reset Windows Update components?

(The Windows Update components Fix It, in particular, is really nasty and requires a lot of work. If not for Fix It, the execution of this modifications would take a fair amount of effort.)

Note: Several Fixes are not available for XP.

Links for more info:

http://blogs.technet.com/b/fixit4me/
http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=31851234220
http://twitter.com/fixit4me
http://www.onten.net/blogs/laura/Fix-it/
http://fixitcenter.support.microsoft.com/Portal
http://www.sevenforums.com/software/7410-microsoft-fix-gadget.html

SharePoint Designer 2007 and SharePoint Designer 2010, formerly known as FrontPage, became a free download as of April 2, 2009. SharePoint Designer is a great tool for website development. It is a WYSIWYG HTML editor and Website administrator tool from Microsoft. It is a Web and application design program used to design, build, and customize Web sites running on SharePoint Foundation 2010 and Microsoft SharePoint Server 2010. With SharePoint Designer 2010, you can create data-rich Web pages, build powerful workflow-enabled solutions, and design the look and feel of your site.

Sharepoint is a Microsoft technology that allows a company to host intranet based webpages. It also enables the sharing of MS Office documents between users on the intranet. The Sharepoint resides on a server running the Sharepoint software.

FrontPage is no longer available from Microsoft, because they have moved on to Sharepoint Designer and Expression Web, but neither FrontPage nor Expression Web are free. Of course you may want to try another free editor, such as KompoZer or Namu6. Both are much easier for beginners, yet very powerful.

PowerPoint Viewer – Not everyone has MS Office with PowerPoint, so this makes it easy for those folks to view PowerPoint presentations.

Also see:

Word Viewer
Excel Viewer
Visio 2010 Viewer
Journal Viewer

You can find more viewers, or versions, at:

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/en/results.aspx?freetext=viewer&displaylang=en&stype=s_basic

Calendar Printing Assistant for Outlook 2007 and 2010 lets you print all your custom Outlook calendars and task lists superimposed. NOTE: The Calendar Printing Assistant for Outlook is NOT supported on Outlook 2010 (64-bit)

RoboCopy and RichCopy – powerful file copy/move tools:

Robocopy has been part of the Windows Resource Kit since Windows NT 4.0 days. However, Microsoft updated Robocopy with some extra features designed for Vista and decided to make it a regular part of the Windows Vista operating system. While this is a good thing in that it is readily accessible to all, there is a catch – Robocopy is a command-line tool, and its power is tucked away in more than 80 switches.

This means that in order to harness the power of Robocopy, you have to spend a lot of time investigating and deciphering all the switches and then figuring out which ones you need to use. While this may not be a difficult procedure for us high-powered techies, it can be a daunting task to many casual users who would like to have an additional backup tool. Of course, there are GUI interfaces for Robocopy, which may make it easier to use.

RichCopy is one of the most powerful copy/transfer tools available for the Windows operating system, and unlike Robocopy, is not a command-line tool. Of course, RichCopy is not for the average user. Anyone who thinks Ctrl-C / Ctrl-V is good enough can skip RichCopy. This tool is for power users. If you copy large amounts of files or have a need to copy from one machine to another – RichCopy is the tool for you.

More information, download links, and more can be found at:

Create a custom backup tool with Vista’s Robocopy – TechRepublic
Utility Spotlight Robocopy GUI
Free Utility RichCopy, an Advanced Alternative to RoboCopy
How do I use RichCopy for high-powered file copy and transfers – TechRepublic

Virtual PC – Some versions of Windows 7 support Windows Virtual PC and Windows XP Mode. However, if you are running Windows Vista, Windows XP, or a version of Windows 7 that does not support Windows Virtual PC, you can still download and use the free Microsoft Virtual PC 2007 package, which will allow you to run multiple operating systems at the same time on the same physical computer. Virtual PC 2007 is easy to install and easy to use. The How-To Geek has a good article, “Create an XP Mode for Windows 7 Home Versions & Vista” on using the free VMware Player, but the idea and steps should be similar. Or read the How-To Geek’s article on installing Virtual PC on an XP computer: Part 1 and Part 2.

Windows SteadyState – If you support shared-access computers in a public venue, such as classroom/lab, a library, or an Internet cafe, you’re definitely a prime candidate for Windows SteadyState. With this package, you can configure and lock down a Windows system to be just the way you want for your public setup. Users can do whatever they need to do, change whatever they want, or even inadvertently crash the system with malware while they’re using it. When they are done, you can reset the entire system to be exactly the way that it was the first day you configured it. just as if no one had used it. You can find several demos as well as an FAQ that will help you quickly determine if Windows SteadyState is the tool for your environment. Windows SteadyState is available on Windows XP and Windows Vista,and will only be available for download until the end of 2010, so if you want it – get it now.

Office Accounting Express 2009 is an easy-to-use accounting package that has the familiar Microsoft Office interface and is designed to integrate seamlessly with other Office applications. Providing most accounting features a small business might need, such as managing credit cards, bank accounts, payroll, vendors, invoices, quotes, cash sales, and even built-in PayPal functionality, Office Accounting Express is a great piece of software for business managers. Formerly available free from Microsoft at http://www.ideawins.com/, it is, unfortunately no longer available from MS. It can, however, still be found at other sites, including Softpedia, so get it while you can.

Visual Web Developer 2008 Express Edition is worth investigating if you’re Web site developer at any level. This easy-to-learn, and easy-to-use development environment makes it a snap for anyone to create Web sites or small applications. Aimed mainly at amateur or intermediate-level developers, Visual Web Developer 2008 Express Edition provides professional-level features that will allow you to create a wide variety of Web sites, from the most basic HTML to more advanced ASP.NET pages or SQL Server databases. You can get started by viewing an introductory video that covers the main features of this package and walks you through some of the most common tasks.

Server Quest II – Remember the vintage computer games “King’s Quest” and “Leisure Suit Larry”? If you liked those, you will probably like ServerQuest II. It has the same type of pixilated graphics and cheesy humor as those classics, but it’s aimed at IT professionals and computer specialists. In the game, which is created with Silverlight and runs in your browser, you play an IT pro (either Matt or Alicia) whose objective is to keep the network running smoothly while encountering a host of technical problems that are presented as games and puzzles, ranging from the absurd to things you might encounter in the real life of an IT pro. As you work through the tasks, you’ll learn about and use Microsoft technologies to solve problems, encounter hidden Easter Eggs, earn geek points, and get to post your high scores for others to compete against. The game is really very humorous — and you might even learn some interesting troubleshooting techniques as you play. Note: You will need to install Microsoft Silverlight to play this game, and it is only playable online. There are several other Silverlight-based games available at http://www.serverquestcontest.com/.

Free computer newsletters

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This was originally published in February 2008, and some of the information may no longer be accurate. If you find any errors, please post in the comments. Thanks

There are a number of free computer information newsletters to which you can subscribe, to stay informed about the latest computer developments, learn troubleshooting tips and techniques, find software recommendations, including excellent freeware, and much more. These are a few of the newsletters that are available. Most are also excellent sites for information beyond that published in the newsletter. Here are a few, in no particular order. Maybe you’ll find one (or more) that is just right for you.

  • Windows Secrets Newsletter merged on Nov. 16, 2006 with the award-winning LangaList by Fred Langa. Langalist was my favorite newsletter, and I am happy to say that Fred Langa is editor-at-large of the Windows Secrets Newsletter. The Windows Secrets Newsletter brings you essential tricks of running Microsoft Windows XP, Vista, Internet Explorer, Firefox, Windows Update, and more — weekly, free.
  • HelpOnTheNet: Tech Support Guy – free help for Microsoft Windows. The free way to find the answer to your question or answer those of others.
  • The WinRag Computer Newsletter is free, and full of hints and tips, on everything to do with the internet and your computer, with many subjects covered including, Windows XP, Windows 98, Internet Explorer, Reinstalls, Online Gaming, plus much much more. Signup, its FREE, you can cancel at anytime. Other Help covers everything including Boot Disks, Building a Computer, CD-Rom Support, Drivers, Forums, Free Software, How to Backup, MSDOS Commands, Preinstall Checklist, Save Settings, Tips & Tricks, and Troubleshooting (member only).
  • Computer Knowledge newsletter – although the newsletter is no longer being published you might find the Computer Knowledge Archived Newsletters (1997 – 2002) and other articles and news on the home page useful.
  • Edupage Newsletter is a digest of abstracts and links to news of interest to the higher education IT community, was started by Educom in 1993 and continued by EDUCAUSE after it formed in 1998. A publishing hiatus began in December 2006 in order to assess options for better service to subscribers. As RSS technology and other news-aggregator services outpaced the weekly distillation of IT news, the association decided to explore new content delivery options that better match audience needs with available resources. Also see other newsletters from EDUCAUSE.
  • Free Computer Education and Training Newsletters – Our monthly newsletter features and describes the best new Free IT and Computer Education and Training sites which we have discovered and researched during the previous month. Every month we also find many good free training sites that cannot be included in the newsletter due to size limits – these are posted in our Newly Found Free Training section available to newsletter subscribers and web site members.
  • ComputerHope.com – Computer Hope is a collection of free services that allows any user to access its database of extensive free computer related information. With these resources available Computer Hope has become a popular destination for end-users as well as computer support facilities for answering computer related questions.
    Some of the services that Computer Hope is able to offer include free technical support, computer product information, computer product buying tips, third party computer company information, computer dictionary, weekly computer newsletter, daily computer news, and much more. Each of these services help make Computer Hope the number one free computer services on the Internet.
    The Computer Hope Newsletter, issued weekly, includes the following: a new computer term; computer-related news items; virus alerts; “What’s New at Computer Hope;” “hot” computer issues, and an All Talk section. We hope you will find the Newsletter informative, useful, and perhaps even, at times, entertaining.
  • MalekTips – The MalekTips mailing list offers you free notices of new computer help and tips that you can get before the general public! MalekTips is a diverse site, and tips may include the following: Adobe Reader, Electronic Mail, Scanners, Anti-Spyware and Anti-Adware, HTML, WinAmp, AntiVirus Software, Microsoft Internet Explorer, Windows Media Player, Digital Audio Players, Microsoft Word, Windows XP and 2000, DOS and Batch Files, Printers, and more.
  • Computer Tips & Techniques Newsletter – Are you looking for a better, smarter way to run your Windows PC? Don’t you hate it when it takes forever to do something that you know should be easier? Well, this is the newsletter for you.
    Computer Tips & Techniques will give you practical advice, great tips, a few tricks, and a cool web site every weekday. Computer Tips & Techniques will give you practical advice, great tips, a few tricks, and a cool web site every weekday. This newsletter is sent out every Monday through Friday and is designed for those who love “eye candy.” You’ll get screenshots, easy to read content, humor, and so much more!
    In addition to the “regular” advice and tips, each issue has a Computers 101 section that helps folks who are new to computing to understand and learn the basics. This newsletter is designed so that no matter what your current skill level, beginner or advanced, you’ll get something useful out of every issue.
  • The Dux Computer Newsletter was written for information technology and business professionals, computer resellers and technicians, computer hobbyists, and anyone else who has an interest in computers and networking. The news letter ceased publication in 2001 due to a lack of advertising revenue to support it. Back issues are maintained for reference purposes. Even though the newsletter has died, the main site http://www.duxcw.com has lots of good information and forums, so check it out.
  • TNPC (The Naked PC) Newsletter – The world’s BEST computer newsletter… FREE!
  • Kim Komando’s 100% FREE Weekly Newsletter, Tip of the Day or Daily Cool Site! The Kim Komando Show Electronic Newsletter is your best source of news about the Internet, your computer, new software and new Web sites. Plus, you’ll find computer tips that will make using your machine and the Internet easier and more fun! Best of all, it’s FREE!
    Every weekend, your FREE electronic newsletter from “America’s Digital Goddess” is delivered directly to your e-mail Inbox. Over 500,000 subscribers are already receiving The Kim Komando Show Electronic Newsletter! You should be, too!
  • Scot Finnie’s excellent Scot’s Newsletter Blog covers Windows, broadband, do-it-yourself networking, Microsoft, and the Internet. You’ll get insights, analysis, hardware and software reviews, explanations, tips, and straight-shooting advice about desktop computing issues today, and tomorrow. It’s information about Windows and broadband you can really use.
  • Karen Kenworthy’s web site – Karen is the author of the popular Power Tools, free programs that make life with Windows a lot easier. Karen also writes a free e-mail newsletter, Karen’s Power Tools newsletter. In it she discusses her new programs, answers reader questions, and explains technical details in a way that anyone can understand.
  • ABC ~ All ‘Bout Computers – The Online Web-azine for Computer Enthusiasts -You will only get ONE short email per month which simply tells you that the next issue is available online here. No SPAM and no obligation. ABC is currently on hiatus, for an undetermined amount of time. Feel free to use the links on the website to read the archives or search for what you need. There’s a lot here!
  • TechTrax Ezine – TechTrax Ezine is a free, online technical support magazine, brought to you by MouseTrax.com and our highly skilled, volunteer tech authors—many are Microsoft MVPs and certified users. Let these experts teach you how to get technology under control…for FREE!
  • Lockergnome – Discover new information, read the latest news, and get it delivered it directly to you every day of the week for FREE. Subscribe today, and you’ll start saving time and money with our help!
  • Neat Net Tricks – Since early in 1996, Neat Net Tricks has provided a few chuckles along with some down-to-earth ways to enhance everyone’s computer and Internet experience. This feature is a light-hearted approach, believing that computers and the Net need not be a terrifying and intimidating experience. You should find something here for you, whether you are a novice or first-class computer guru.
  • MikesWhatsNews – MikesWhatsNews E-zine will try to include the latest updates, patches, and drivers from the various manufacturers. I will also be posting Antivirus info, provided by HackFix, and the recommended updates. There will be links to software which I discover, or subscribers send to me, which I will try to provide some variety. I will also seek out the unusual sites, and programs that will appeal to all interest groups, but not necessarily at the same time. I’m in hopes that the list will evolve with your input. This E-zine will be a family newsletter.
  • Registry Answers – Free registry tips. Registry Secrets Revealed, Windows 95 to XP. Each issue consists of a select registry tip or trick, in question and answer format. Sent out every few weeks.
  • Wintips&Tricks – Everyone welcome from beginners to advanced. Covering Windows 95 to XP, Internet Explorer, Outlook Express, Ms-Dos, and more. Each issue will focus on one select tip or subject. Many of the tips will be cleaned up tips from the archives of our support group (see Notes below) starting from November 2000.
  • AnyFrontPage (formerly AnyBackPage Bytes) is your FrontPage Community Interactive Ezine: bringing you Expert FrontPage Articles, breaking FrontPage News, FrontPage Tips & FrontPage Tutorials that you can’t find elsewhere. AnyBackPage strives to bring you the best, the newest, the most interesting FrontPage experience you have ever imagined for any version of Microsoft FrontPage. Have fun learning from the FrontPage Community – we will enjoy learning from you.
  • The Editorium publishes a free weekly email newsletter, Editorium Update, which provides tips about editing, writing, and typesetting in Microsoft Word.
  • Indezine – Indezine is a platform for PowerPoint presentations, presentation software, image editing, Photoshop info, and clip media. There’s so much happening in the world of PowerPoint and you’ll stay informed about everything because you read this ezine.
  • Woody’s Watch – Advice, tips and news from author, guru, curmudgeon, and Microsoft software victim Woody Leonhard, and friends. SIX GREAT PUBLICATIONS – FREE. It’s about time somebody told the truth about Microsoft Windows, Office, Access, Project and Office 2003 doncha think? If you want the latest up-to-the-nanosecond news — or if you’re going crazy trying to figure out how to use Office or Windows — you’re in the right place. Join our 510,000 subscribers for a FREE, unbiased, jolt of cold, hard reality, tailor-made to help you get the most out of Microsoft’s products, delivered straight to your email inbox. If you want old, warmed-over tips, or the Microsoft Party Line, look somewhere else. My newsletters feature original articles from internationally known, award-winning experts who have descended into the belly of the beast, and survived to tell the tale. No Microsoft marketing drivel. No bull.
  • Focus on PC Support at About – FREE Newsletter, info and more.
  • Developer.com – Info on programming, security, certification and more, including several free tech newsletters.

Be sure to check back for updates to this list, and articles on some good computer Information sites, and online computer radio shows.

I Need Opinions

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I’m pretty sure I’m going to keep my existing lineup of sidebar widgets, but would like opinions about the order you would prefer to see them.

Presently, this is the lineup, top to bottom:
1. Local Time
2. Local Weather
3. Meta (login, etc.)
4. Recent Posts
5. Categories
6. Archives
7. Users on Page

I think # 5-7 should probably stay as they are, and probably # 1, but # 2, 3, and 4 (actually any of them) could be rearranged as needed to make access easier for my readers… if I actually have any.

Please give me some opinions, even if it is to say you like them the way they are.

Mardi Gras dates 2013 – 2050

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2013 – 12 February
2014 – 4 March
2015 – 17 February
2016 – 9 February
2017 – 28 February
2018 – 13 February
2019 – 5 March
2020 – 25 February
2021 – 16 February
2022 – 1 March
2023 – 21 February
2024 – 13 February
2025 – 4 March
2026 – 17 February
2027 – 9 February
2028 – 29 February
2029 – 13 February
2030 – 5 March
2031 – 25 February
2032 – 10 February
2033 – 1 March
2034 – 21 February
2035 – 6 February
2036 – 26 February
2037 – 17 February
2038 – 9 March
2039 – 22 February
2040 – 14 February
2041 – 5 March
2042 – 18 February
2043 – 10 February
2044 – 1 March
2045 – 21 February
2046 – 6 February
2047 – 26 February
2048 – 18 February
2049 – 2 March
2050 – 22 February

Who says everything has to be computer-related?  :)

How many bookmarks do you have in Firefox?

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Do you ever wonder how many bookmarks you have collected? Do you use XMarks to sync your bookmarks, and sometimes wonder if it may be deleting bookmarks?

XMarks does allow you to restore from older backup copies that it keeps on it’s website, but this has 2 downsides. First, when choosing a backup to restore, there is no way to show the number of bookmarks in each backup, so you do not know if the backup may also be missing bookmarks. Second, restoring a backup may (and probably will) wipe out any new or changed bookmarks created since the backup was created.

So, is there any built-in function or extension in Firefox that will tell how many bookmarks you have?

There is no extension that I know of, but there is a built-in way to count your bookmarks in the Bookmark Organizer. “Ctrl+Shift+B” will start Bookmark Organizer, or you can start it from the Bookmarks menu. If you have converted from older bookmarks the “Ctrl+Shift+B” keyboard shortcut may not work, but “Ctrl+Shift+H” will start History, then you can select All Bookmarks in the left column.

Count of all Bookmarks:
- Start Bookmark Organizer.
- Select “All Bookmarks” in the left column.
- Type : (colon) (or :// or http) in the search bar at top right.
- Click within an empty area of the scroll bar on the right.
- The total number of bookmarks will be displayed in the bottom pane.

Count of Bookmarks with keywords:
- Search Bookmarks Library List with : (colon) to find all bookmarks.
- Click on keyword column header.
- Select only bookmarks with keywords.
- The count of bookmarks with keywords will be visible after slight movement of scrollbar.

Count of Bookmarks with tags:
- Search Bookmarks Library List with : (colon) to find all bookmarks.
- Click on tag column header.
- Select only bookmarks with tags.
- The count of bookmarks with tags will be visible after slight movement of scrollbar.

Count of Bookmarks with descriptions:
- Search Bookmarks Library List with : (colon) to find all bookmarks.
- Click on Description column header.
- Select only bookmarks with descriptions.
- The count of bookmarks with descriptions will be visible after slight
movement of scrollbar.

Notes:

Searches are not case-sensitive.

By searching for “javascript:” you can limit any of the above to bookmarklets (which all contain JavaScript).

By searching for “%S” you can limit any of the above to those that that have keyworded Firefox substitution.

To get a better overview of the displayed results install the “Show Parent Folder” and “Go Parent Folder” add-ons. Include the “Parent folder” column in the library listing through the View menu (or the context menu of the column headers). You can’t sort entries using that column, though.

More info:

Counts – Counting bookmarks history links and other data – Firefox – MozillaZine Knowledge Base

The switch to WordPress

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I finally made the switch to WordPress for my site, and I don’t know why I waited so long! It’s only been a few days, but the experience and ease of use have been fantastic. Of course, this site, as always, is a work in progress. It will take quite a while to import my old articles (and they won’t all be resurrected). As I add back some old articles, I will try to intermingle some new ones, so keep an eye out for updates. An easy way to do that is to subscribe to the Entries RSS feed found at the bottom of the right column.

Other than adding articles, the only other major item that I will eventually add is enabling comments. I choose to have that disabled at this point as a precaution against spammers, but as soon as I decide how I want to deal with the problem (and it is apparently not too difficult) I will add that to the mix.

It’s been fun setting this up, and I hope you will find some useful and interesting information here.