Search results for 'app:weblogs' matching tag 'Rants'

Now I REALLY HATE broadcom nics

bradley — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 05:00:00 GMT

Did you know that Dell doesn't recommend that you update the broadcom drivers from the inplace driver update (control panel, device manager)? If you do you run the risk of corrupting the driver?

"A quick recap:

Enable both nics (write down the IP addresses). Uninstall the previous ver. Of Bcom suite. Reboot install the new Bcom suite you downloaded. Reboot put in the static IP and disable 2nd nic. Reboot have a cleint reboot and log in.

Before the client system reboots make sure the server is up.

(if you have layer 3 or 4 switches or routers it takes 90 sec each for the arp cache to renew)"

And just a reminder if you go to remove a driver -- http://blogs.technet.com/sbs/archive/2009/09/01/device-manager-may-seem-to-hang-while-uninstalling-a-nic.aspx

Sage Line 50 2010 - "The Data Area Passed to a system call" part 2 - Amyuni Driver Update

NickWhittome — Tue, 20 Oct 2009 05:00:00 GMT

Remember this post?

Well, after working hard with the development team over at Sage, it seems that the issue is with the version of the Amyuni PDF driver that ships with Sage Line 50 2010.

It does not like Windows 7 at all.

The good news is that Sage now know about the problem, and the fix is to upgrade to the latest Amyuni 4.0.9 driver. But there is a problem……

The installer that Sage uses has a special “Sage only” key. That means that unless you are willing to go out and buy the Amyuni driver yourself, you are going to have to wait for Sage to release a PDF driver update patch for Sage 2010. They wont do that unless their support team gets calls about this issue, which of course will not happen until the release of Windows 7 tomorrow!

Keep the pressure on, this is one patch that will be needed! Sooner rather than later.

If you are REALLY stuck, post here, and I may be able to help.

Logmein Sneaky Moves (again)

NickWhittome — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 05:00:00 GMT

Well, I just blew a fuse. It seems to me that there is no route back with logmein, and they have no interest in listening to their users. The only answer I can see is to cancel any paid for services with them.

My post may be deleted on their forum, so here is what I wrote:

“I just lost it with my account manager. So much so that I started shouting. Unbelievable.

This company simply does not give a monkey about its clients, and looks to me like they are not going to change a thing.

I have asked for a credit on my LogMeIn ignition for PC and iPhone as it is now usless without the central product, and I am cancelling my logmein rescue accounts.

I am expecting a call back from a "boss" of somekind, but I suspect nothing will change.

A company like logmein are allowed to make mistakes, but what makes a good company is when the realise they have made a mistake and rectify it.

I would have paid 300 or even 500 a year for the old interface, with groups, secondary users. The crap logmein have offloaded here is just absolutely unbelievable.”

Tags: logmein, ripoff, central

"iTunes has stopped working"

bradley — Sun, 13 Sep 2009 05:00:00 GMT

Apple - Support - Discussions - "iTunes has stopped working" on ...:
http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?messageID=10194773
A Solution to the "iTunes has stopped working" Problem on Vista « Avoiding the Chasm:
http://vextasy.wordpress.com/2009/02/10/a-solution-to-the-itunes-has-stopped-working-problem-on-vista/

Neither of those worked btw.... fortunately my Zune player still works....

One disappointment in Snow Leopard

bradley — Sat, 05 Sep 2009 05:00:00 GMT

..that I hoped that Mac would finally showcase that they'd grown up was the image of what the Windows desktops and servers look like on the network:

(image from http://twitter.com/mikkohypponen/statuses/3783709301)

Yup as I can attest to myself.. they still have a bsod as an image.

I rarely, if ever these days, have a bsod and when I do I rejoice... because it means there's probably a .dmp file on the box that I can debug -- http://blogs.technet.com/petergal/archive/2006/03/23/422993.aspx

But Apple, come on. Next version, take that out.

The balance of security and usability

bradley — Thu, 13 Aug 2009 05:00:00 GMT

Microsoft makes progress with the security of their products but will not put security first - Security Park news:
http://www.securitypark.co.uk/security_article263444.html
The problem is that Microsoft are not providing management around the XP mode virtual machine (VM). This creates the potential for a security disaster. XP mode is an independent Windows instance, that shares the odd folder and device with the host Windows 7 installation. What it doesn't share is processes and memory. So it doesn't share security settings, security software, patches etc. It does not inherit any security from the host. When you use XP mode, you need to patch the copy of XP as well as the host Windows 7. You need to manage settings separately, configure two personal firewalls and install and manage two copies of anti-malware software.

So surely the new security conscious Microsoft must have provided tools to help us manage all of this? Wrong! Microsoft's view is that this is your problem, unless you're prepared to invest in a full Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI) system. You already know how to manage VMs on all your desktops, don't you? So you can manage this one too.

.......

5. Demand that Microsoft do better - We understand that they're not a security company, but XP mode, as it stands doesn't meet the bar. It is a barrier to Windows 7 migration, because it increases costs and complexity.

No doubt there are people at Microsoft who are passionate about security and extremely competent, but they can't slow the Windows 7 juggernaut. Sophos can't do that either, but maybe you can. XP mode is not a bad idea, but without built-in management, it's a security disaster. We all need to tell Microsoft that the current choices of no management, or major investment in VDI are not acceptable. Then we need to remember that, however well intentioned, Microsoft will not put security first.Opinion piece submitted by Richard Jacobs, Chief Technology Officer Sophos .

------

Dear Mr. Jacobs, before I do a show and tell as to why there is a XP Mode, a little bit of background you might want to read:

XP Mode vs. Med-V - Springboard Series Blog - The Windows Blog:
http://windowsteamblog.com/blogs/springboard/archive/2009/08/08/xp-mode-vs-med-v.aspx

You see Microsoft has provided a management for virtualization. Yes you have to pay for it (hey, this is Microsoft we're talking here), but if you want to ensure that you can drag your line of business application vendors into at least the NT era, XP Mode isn't for the firm that needs a "managed" system. It's for me to ensure that the bosses have a nice Windows 7 experience and still be to use their ancient software so we can stop buying XP operating systems.

It's for me to prove a point by installing a 1980s era 16 bit accounting application on a 64bit platform and not have the application refuse to run on our lovely brand new 64bit hardware that has the DEP in the browser and the IE8 sandbox isolation and the jump lists and all the other stuff. XP is indeed a 9 year old platform built for when botnets were a gleam in someone's eye and antivirus truly worked and we weren't fighting Fake Antivirus as much as we are fighting the viruses.

Due to XP mode we can now take that vintage "Duran Duran era" accounting application and have it run on a modern system.

That's a 16bit application of One Write plus running in XPMode on top of a 64bit Windows 7.

(For the record we really don't run One Write Plus I just went to our closet of old accounting software and tried to find the oldest thing we had. Believe or not, I did have to install it the other day on a XP to open up a file we needed to investigate... so there are clients out there that still run old applications. And the boss is running Vista and liking it)

Microsoft is doing better. "I" need to do better by deploying my older applications more securely. And I will be managing that XP Mode. I can be joined to the domain, patched with WSUS, monitored with a Kasaya agent (for those in the MSP crowd) just like a real OS.

But it's not a security boundary. It's a wake up call that for every application that I MUST use that mode for, that it's a drag on our systems. It's an answer to compatibility, and it should be a reminder to me, to us, of what vendors we need to ensure are coding more securely.

Start selling Home and Student Edition

bradley — Fri, 07 Aug 2009 05:00:00 GMT

Next time you sell a software license, just sign them up for Action pack. Seriously. This whole bit doing the right thing and buying proper licenses is just ridiculous. In fact, just grab all the software you want from Bittorrent. If you are getting your client to pay for software, and you aren't using Home and Student edition on multiple machines, if you are making them pay full price you really should have your head examined for being an ethical business person.

Truly. You are doing your client a disservice by making them do the right thing as far as buying the proper licenses. You really should tell them how to beat the system.

Think I've lost my mind? Read this article:

Microsoft apps--only suckers pay retail | Rafe's Radar - CNET News:
http://news.cnet.com/8301-19882_3-10302186-250.html

The integrity of journalism lately has me flabberghasted. And this is no exception.

This "journalist" is advocating unethical business behavior. And his justification is that everyone does it, so why shouldn't you? Meanwhile what he doesn't go into, is the fact that if you do these things you are putting that firm at risk for fines and penalties from the Business Software Association.

Furthermore his lack of reporting skills leaves something to be desired. He states that

You'll pay. I asked the Microsoft Volume Licensing Web page to give me a quote on 10 licenses of Microsoft Office Standard, and it quoted me $588 per user. I got the same price for 100 licenses. If you ever wondered why Microsoft is such a rich company, this explains it. So the smaller company might want to skip the official business versions of the apps and go with standard retail products. There is also, obviously, a big temptation for very small companies to push things a bit and try to qualify for Microsoft's special or home programs that yield huge discounts on the company's software.

What he totally FAILED to understand (granted trying to understand licensing is trying to understand the Win7 upgrade chart) is that $588 per person not only gets you Office 2007, but it will buy you Office 2010 as well as home use right.

A license for Office 2007 plus software assurance is in no way shape or form comparable to what you get as rights and benefits of a purchase of retail Office. Do all small businesses see the need for this? No. But is it in anyway comparable to what you get for retail Office? Heck no dude, and you totally MISSED the boat in reporting the FACTS of the matter.

I asked the Microsoft licensing chart and understood that I get different features and options from volume licensing versus retail.

Only suckers get sucked into reading that post and getting riled up enough to post a response back. I guess I'm a sucker for that.

I need your help

bradley — Thu, 06 Aug 2009 05:00:00 GMT

www.banthecheck.com

I need your help. If you see a workstation that gets an update to Sun Java and gets the offer to install Carbonate backup software, can you grab a screenshot in MSPaint, save it as a bitmap file and email it to me at susan-at-msmvps.com?

http://www.bleepingcomputer.com/blogs/mowgreen/index.php?s=5a29454c27afe407bdeab2dcfd546091&showentry=1569

Carbonate backup is the latest vendor to now be included in a security update. But I have yet to grab an image of it being offered on a machine, so if you spot one, grab a shot of the desktop and send it to me. I'll use it in an upcoming WindowsSecrets article and give you credit.

Like Steve says, enough is enough!

Windows 7 and Line of Business

bradley — Thu, 06 Aug 2009 05:00:00 GMT

Windows 7 Compatibility with Lacerte products:
http://ptknova.intuit.com/selfservice/viewContent.do?externalId=kb1057761&sliceId=1

Windows 7 Compatibility with Lacerte products

Situation

As of July 28th, 2009 Windows 7's release date as stipulated on Microsoft's website is October 22nd, 2009.

Currently we are aware of some incompatibilities between the Lacerte program and Windows 7's Beta release.

Solution

However, similar incompatibilities have manifest themselves between Lacerte products and other Microsoft Beta releases and have not manifest themselves in the actual program release.

Additionally, we have work currently underway to support Windows Vista 64, that may resolve some of the outstanding concerns with the Windows 7 platform.

As our product launch date for Lacerte 2009 Tax is November 4th, 2009 there will not be adequate time to test the Windows 7 release in order for us to endorse it as a operating platform for the Lacerte suite of programs.

Be sure to check back for updates. As more information becomes available the information on this site will be updated.

Lacerte is a US based tax software vendor as a FYI. What concerns me more ... is not that they are saying that they only have from October 22 to November to test (I kinda suspect SOMEONE at Intuit has a MSDN subscription) but that they still do not fully support 64bit.

Windows 7 upgrades is the time to see if you can make the jump from 32 to 64 bit.

And regardless of what headlines that the latest pundits want to splash on the web -- http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2351198,00.asp -- the reality is that most businesses will not be hitting refresh on the Technet plus download site tonight waiting for the bits to be there. Rather they will be upgrading with the hardware which is as it should be.

The fact that 40% of businesses are considering an upgrade is a big thing. The fact that the preorders were a top selling item on Amazon is a big thing. The reality of the business world is that the XPMode virtualization platform will be a bit compatibility help is a big thing. And the reality that until we are all based on cloud apps, much of our lob stuff is still Windows based.

How about we all stop the hype and just see what pans out, eh?

Beta testers prayer

bradley — Mon, 03 Aug 2009 05:00:00 GMT

Bill (or Steve or Ray), grant me the serentity to accept the things that cannot change due to change in technology; the courage to bug the things I can get changed; and the wisdom to know the difference.... oh and some patience to deal with Connect.

Mind you I'm probably in a mood tonight because the blog server is getting nailed with spam and short of sitting here deleting spam posts which makes me feel like picking out an infestation of ticks with tweezers, but I wish that the beta process could scale better sometimes. Sometimes you need a conversation, not a bug database, but conversely there needs to be accountability, thusly the need for bug database.

It's hard writing up bugs sometimes.. you know what you are talking about, but you can't explain it well. Pictures help. But if you know what you want better than what you can explain, you fail in communication.

Conversely (and what happened a lot in Windows 7) is that the bug would be closed as fixed as it was fixed in a later build, but not in the build that the buggee was looking at. And given the lack of releases, with no way for the buggee to ensure that what they bugged really and truly got fixed.

Even cloud has issues with feedback and beta testing. Intuit had to roll back some of the online bank reconcilations back to the way it was done in the 2008 era because it made more sense.

But for all those who complain "why wasnt' this caught in testing"... try being a beta tester sometimes... it's not easy.