TechLifeWeb

Sites that I found interesting for November 11th 2009 through November 12th 2009:

• Microsoft probing Windows 7 zero-day hole – Microsoft said on Wednesday it is looking into a report of a vulnerability in Windows 7 and Server 2008 Release 2 that could be used by an attacker to remotely crash the computer.
• Hands-on: Netflix streaming on the PS3 – While Netflix streaming is nearly identical on most devices that support it, there are some significant differences with the PS3 that make it worth testing.
• Programmer 101: Teach Yourself How to Code – You've always wanted to learn how to build software yourself—or just whip up an occasional script—but never knew where to start. Luckily, the web is full of free resources that can turn you into a programmer in no time.

Sites that I found interesting for November 3rd 2009 through November 10th 2009:

• Computer Security Company Takes Out Enormous Botnet – Security firm FireEye has reportedly struck a massive blow against spam. The so called “Mega-D” or “Ozdok” spam botnet was effectively dismantled by these intrepid security researchers. After studying the beast, FireEye launched an attack by notifying ISPs, having command and control (CnC) domains removed, and then registering unused CnC domains.
• Kindle Gets Windows App – Mac Version Coming Soon – Amazon released it’s Kindle for PC app this morning. It’s available for download at Amazon.com now and allows you to read Kindle eBooks on your computer
• Ninite Easy PC Setup and Multiple App Installer – Great For Win7 Upgrades – 1. Pick the apps you want. 2. Start your customized installer. 3. You're done! Heard about this on Windows Weekly last week.
• Study Says Pirates Buy Plenty of Legitimate Digital Music – A United Kingdom research group, Demos, discovered that those people who confessed to pirating music were also those who spent the most on music. Pirates spend, on average, $126 per year on CDs, MP3s, and vinyl. Non-pirates (landlubbers?), on the other hand, only spend, on average, $72 per year.

Sites that I found interesting for October 29th 2009 through November 2nd 2009:

• Recovering from Twitter Phishing – Nice little how-to. via @chelpixie on Twitter.
• Enough, Microsoft. No One Is Endorsing Piracy. Obviously. – Hey, Microsoft. Duh.
• DIY Windows Home Server Build – JukeBox MkII – Nice article from Automated Home. via @isdixon on Twitter

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 October 20th 2009 through October 22nd 2009:

• How to Use Digital Cable Tuners with CableCARD in Windows 7 Media Center – Last month at the CEDIA EXPO trade show in Atlanta, Microsoft made a major announcement regarding CableCARDs: the company announced that consumers would now be able to install digital cable tuners with CableCARD into their Windows 7 PCs…all by themselves.
• Thymer – Super easy Planning, Task and Project Management – Project management and task planning for people who hate project management and task planning.
• For the Sysadmins: Software Compliance Tool – Software Compliance Tool is a small application designed to reduce the overhead in managing unwanted applications in a business environment. via @sintaxasn on Twitter.

Sites that I found interesting for October 10th 2009 through October 14th 2009:

• Running WHS on Server 2008 Hyper-V Part 1 – Microsoft MVP Philip Churchill discusses running MS Windows Home Server on Hyper-V.
• Windows 7 demo: Search tools – ZDNet's Ed Bott takes a closer look at the search tools in Windows 7 and shows you how you can use them to make your digital life a little more organized.
• RAW Image Support – W7/Media Center 32/64 bit – Barb Bowman explains how to get support for RAW in 7MC
• Use iPodifier to add Windows Media Center TV Recordings to Your iPod – The free app automates transcoding DVR-MS files (and other formats) to MPEG-4 or H264 and then adds them to iTunes and syncs to the device

Sites that I found interesting for October 9th 2009

• Microsoft adds free root certificate authority to Windows – Out-of-the-box in Windows 7 free digital certificates issued by StartCom will be inherently trusted by the operating system and its applications.
• Windows Home Server Add-ins: Lights-Out, WebGuide, and Whiist – Handy add-ins for Windows Home Server.
• How To Backup Your WordPress Blog In Three Easy Steps – Helpful article for all WordPressers out there. Via @davedelaney on Twitter.

Sites that I found interesting for September 29th 2009 through October 2nd 2009:

• App for the milk – Desktop client for Remember the Milk – Adobe Air client program for syncing with Remember the Milk web service.
• Add a Google Reader sidebar – How to use a minimalist Google Reader in the browser sidebar.
• Can you upgrade an old XP PC to Windows 7? Should you? – Ed Bott ponders whether he should upgrade a 4 year old XP computer to Windows 7. Gives guidance to those considering a similar upgrade.

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 August 18th 2009

• Windows 7 includes support for Dolby Digital Plus – Microsoft has added support for Dolby Digital Plus in most versions of Windows 7. The Plus version of Dolby Digital not only supports higher bit rates than the classic Dolby Digital, but it also offers better sound quality at the same bit rate — it is not lossless like Dolby TrueHD though
• Google Chrome 4 launches with bookmark synchronization – Google has just announced a brand new version of Chrome in the Dev channel that includes Bookmark synchronization.
• Mozilla Rids of .Net-hatin' Firefox 3.5, Replaces it with a Friendlier Version – As long as you're running the most recent version of Firefox, this looks to be a moot issue. Released earlier this month, Firefox 3.5.2 appears to play nice with .Net,