TechLifeWeb

Sites that I found interesting for October 23rd 2009 through October 25th 2009:

• Upgrading from Windows XP to Windows 7 – Help & How-to – Upgrading from Windows XP to Windows 7? Use this guide from Microsoft.
• How to automatically skip commercials in Windows 7 Media Center – Ben Drawbaugh has a great guide on commercials skipping in Windows Media Center and as we all hate commercials its well worth looking at. via @isdixon on Twitter.
• Clean Install Windows 7 with Upgrade Media – While you can't simply use Upgrade media to do a clean install of Windows 7 on an unused PC with a blank hard drive, the workaround this time is easier than ever. Assuming you know the trick.

Sites that I found interesting for September 17th 2009 through September 21st 2009:

• AT&T to Let You Patch the Dead Zone in Your House for $20 per Month – The telco has started offering the 3G MicroCell, a wireless network extender the company claims acts like a mini cellular tower in your home. With it, users can expect enhanced coverage for both voice and data for up to 5,000 square feet, with support for up to four users at any given time
• Batch Converting a Directory Tree of Videos Recursively with Handbrake for Streaming to an Xbox360 – This script takes every *.avi file in the current (.) folder, and all folders underneath it (-R), and for each of this files, creates a new filename with the word "-convert" inside. It then calls the HandBrake command line (yours may be in "C:\Program Files" so you might need to change that. It uses the Xbox360 preset.
• Media Center Studio – Media Center Studio is a free application for Windows Vista and Windows 7 that enables you to customise Windows Media Center. It is the successor of MC Menu Mender, bringing it up to date for Windows 7 and adding support for theme application and editing.

Sites that I found interesting for July 29th 2009 through August 1st 2009:

• No more Windows 7 Europe Edition – Microsoft: "In the wake of last week’s developments, as well as continuing feedback on Windows 7 E that we have received from computer manufacturers and other business partners, I’m pleased to report that we will ship the same version of Windows 7 in Europe in October that we will ship in the rest of the world." via @windows7center on Twitter.
• Taming Twitter For Business – Taming Twitter For Business via @juliewright on Twitter.
• Intel releases official Windows 7 graphics, chipset and AHCI/SATA drivers – Intel has quietly pushed out official drivers for graphics, chipset, and ACHI/SATA. Keep in mind these are beta driver so they are provided AS IS.

Sites that I found interesting for June 30th 2009 through July 2nd 2009:

• Leaping from Windows XP to 7? Some important stuff to consider – There are a number of important issues to consider before making the jump to Windows 7 on an existing Windows XP machine. via @edbott on Twitter.
• Benchmarking Firefox 3.5 – Firefox 3.5 is fast, all right, but not fast enough to beat Google's Chrome and Apple's Safari.
• BackTweets – track your urls on twitter – This is a brilliant way to see who is linking to your site from Twitter. This is now part of my Information Monitor because it outputs in RSS. Via @steverubel on Twitter.

Sites that I found interesting for May 1st 2009 through May 6th 2009:

• tubeCentric.tv – tubeCore makes video from DLNA Media Servers such as Tversity, PlayOn, and TwonkyMedia available from within your Windows Media Center. via @isdixon on Twitter.
• What to look for in Windows 7 – Screenshot tour of Windows 7
• Upgrading a pre RC windows 7 beta to the RC – I RECOMMEND doing fresh installs between OS versions. There is just too much cruft that builds up over time. Also, you are replacing beta code with beta code so even more reason to get fresh. However, here’s what you can do to bypass the check for pre-release upgrade IF YOU REALLY REALLY NEED TO. Thanks to @simonster on Twitter.

Sites that I found interesting for April 30th 2009

• Toolkit to Disable Automatic Delivery of Internet Explorer 8 – The Internet Explorer 8 Blocker Toolkit enables IT Administrators to disable automatic delivery of Internet Explorer 8 as a high-priority update via Automatic Updates and the Windows Update and Microsoft Update sites.
• Streaming Media in Windows 7 – PlayTo –
• Disney to join NBC Universal, News Corporation and Providence Equity Partners as an equity owner of Hulu – From the press release: Full Episodes of Hit Current and Library Programs Like Lost, Desperate Housewives, Grey's Anatomy, Dancing with the Stars, Ugly Betty, Private Practice, Scrubs, Wizards of Waverly Place, Who Wants To Be A Millionaire, General Hospital, The View, Greek, The Secret Life of the American Teenager And Other Hit Series From ABC, ABC Family, Disney Channel and SOAPnet To Come To Hulu.com and Its Distribution Sites.

Sites that I found interesting for March 6th 2009

• dow-inflation-adjusted-chart.jpg –
• Media Center Health Monitor Beta – Ian Dixon has updated his Media Center Health Monitor software. Works on Vista and Windows 7. Also 64-bit.
• Uh Oh, White House Seeks Economic Advice From Twitter –
• Graphic tracking this Bear market against others – four-bears-large.gif (GIF Image, 912×662 pixels)

Sites that I found interesting for February 11th 2009 through February 17th 2009:

• 421 Analog TV Stations Go Dark Tonight – The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) released a list of 421 television stations that said they will terminate their analog broadcasts at midnight tonight.
• Microsoft Recommends Free "Search Connectors" for Windows 7 – Connectors are a combination of the OpenSearch Description File generator (aka the “Search Connector” in Windows 7) and federated search web services.
• Crashing SQL Server 2005 Upgrade Advisor error – Thankful for the Internets! SQL Server 2005 upgrade adviser is too stupid to figure out that you have other versions of .NET installed. Once I uninstalled all but .NET 2.0 from my Windows 2003 R2 server I was able to get it to run.

Sites that I found interesting for February 5th 2009 through February 7th 2009:

• Brand Source Redeeming Circuit City Credit Cards – Brand Source and its member dealers will begin offering holders of Circuit City credit cards a $25 gift certificate and 12-month, no-interest financing on purchases in exchange for the private label plastic.
• Users prevail: Microsoft changes Windows 7 UAC control panel behavior to address security flaw – The result is actually even slightly better than what I (Long Zhang) had hoped for. I originally proposed a secure confirmation to be displayed when the UAC level is changed, but Microsoft one-upped that proposal to also run the UAC control panel in high-integrity which means malicious applications cannot manipulate the user-interface of that window without first elevating itself.
• Watch a live video, share your PC with CNN – Many people who watched live streaming video of the inauguration of U.S. President Barack Obama on Jan. 20 may not realize that their PC was used to send the video to other PCs, too.

Sites that I found interesting for January 11th 2009 through January 13th 2009:

• The Bumper List of Windows 7 Secrets – 30 tips to show off the new stuff in Windows 7. Must read if you are a beta tester.
• How make Windows 7 task bar to look like Vista – A 6 set how-to.
• GTDInbox – GTD, Task Management and a Better Inbox for Gmail – GTDInbox is an addon for Firefox that transforms Gmail into a powerhouse of productivity and manageability. GTDInbox gives you a better inbox.