Month: August 2007

Elonex eXentia & Vista Hotfixes

by ucinfo, posted in Flaphead, MediaCentre, Vista, Windows

So Microsoft release two Vista hotfixes last week.

An update is available that improves the performance and reliability of Windows Vista http://support.microsoft.com/?kbid=938979

An update is available that improves the compatibility and reliability of Windows Vista http://support.microsoft.com/?kbid=938194

Well 938979 caused vista to restart as expected but no desktop or taskbar appeared!  All I saw was an explorer windows.

So I remove it and still no change.  I installed 938194 and no change.

So that is it .. had enough of vista on my eXentia … XP is reinstatlling as we speak!

Portégé M400-3G145

by , posted in Flaphead, TabletPC

When I worked for bills crowd I had a couple of TabletPCs and since I have left I have been getting withdrawal symptoms.

A while back the nice people a Insight shipped my new M400 (not for free I might add).  So why an M400 instead of the R400 I spoke about before.  Well one thing really POWER.

The R400 is a core solo, whereas my M400 is a core2 duo.

So like all M400 the spec is the same .. Intel Centrino® Duo Mobile Technology featuring Intel® Core™2 Duo Processor T7200, running at 2.0 GHz.  It comes with 1gb of ram and a 100gb hard disk.

image image image

I just love the 12.1 ” SXGA+ TFT which can be set to 1,400 x 1,050

BUT it has one difference that made me want this particular model, and the clue is in the model number 3G145.  Yup it has a sim card slot on the bottom.  You undo a screw and pop your sim card in and that’s it .. you have WiFi, Bluetooth and 3G .. how cool is that.

Its funny, over at jkontherun, the conducted a pole and people preferred WiFi over WWAN (3G). I must disagree with this.  In London WiFi is in pockets and you have to pay for your usage, and sometimes the signal is not great.  With my 3G sim, I have unlimited downloads for the month and the speeds are quite good.  Also I can use my 3G on the train, when WiFi is just non existent!

3G is a funny thing.  The SIM socket is on the bottom of the tablet and you need to unscrew a plate to get to it.  It would have been nicer is if it was similar to the SD slot and easy to access.  So now I have to carry a screw driver around me, as I use the SIM in my Ameo too

image

All in all, I do like my M400 and 3G does make is more useful. Speed wise I’m not sure, I was expecting it to be faster than is, especially as it now has 4gb of ram.

I also have the “slice” extra battery that makes it a bit heavier but I get between 4 and 5 hours out of a full charge which can’t be bad.  One kinda cool accessory I have is the docking station.  You connect it via a single USB and I get something like 6 USB in the dock, network and get this external monitor.  I don’t know how the hell they can push all that down one USB cable but they do and it works like a dream.

I am waiting for an disk caddy to turn up from insight so I can dual boot WinXP and Vista.  If Vista is okay I will make the jump.

Portégé M400-3G145

by ucinfo, posted in Flaphead, TabletPC

When I worked for bills crowd I had a couple of TabletPCs and since I have left I have been getting withdrawal symptoms.

A while back the nice people a Insight shipped my new M400 (not for free I might add).  So why an M400 instead of the R400 I spoke about before.  Well one thing really POWER.

The R400 is a core solo, whereas my M400 is a core2 duo.

So like all M400 the spec is the same .. Intel Centrino® Duo Mobile Technology featuring Intel® Core™2 Duo Processor T7200, running at 2.0 GHz.  It comes with 1gb of ram and a 100gb hard disk.

image image image

I just love the 12.1 ” SXGA+ TFT which can be set to 1,400 x 1,050

BUT it has one difference that made me want this particular model, and the clue is in the model number 3G145.  Yup it has a sim card slot on the bottom.  You undo a screw and pop your sim card in and that’s it .. you have WiFi, Bluetooth and 3G .. how cool is that.

Its funny, over at jkontherun, the conducted a pole and people preferred WiFi over WWAN (3G). I must disagree with this.  In London WiFi is in pockets and you have to pay for your usage, and sometimes the signal is not great.  With my 3G sim, I have unlimited downloads for the month and the speeds are quite good.  Also I can use my 3G on the train, when WiFi is just non existent!

3G is a funny thing.  The SIM socket is on the bottom of the tablet and you need to unscrew a plate to get to it.  It would have been nicer is if it was similar to the SD slot and easy to access.  So now I have to carry a screw driver around me, as I use the SIM in my Ameo too

image

All in all, I do like my M400 and 3G does make is more useful. Speed wise I’m not sure, I was expecting it to be faster than is, especially as it now has 4gb of ram.

I also have the “slice” extra battery that makes it a bit heavier but I get between 4 and 5 hours out of a full charge which can’t be bad.  One kinda cool accessory I have is the docking station.  You connect it via a single USB and I get something like 6 USB in the dock, network and get this external monitor.  I don’t know how the hell they can push all that down one USB cable but they do and it works like a dream.

I am waiting for an disk caddy to turn up from insight so I can dual boot WinXP and Vista.  If Vista is okay I will make the jump.

Windows Live Writer

by ucinfo, posted in Flaphead

I managed to get on the beta for a load of Windows Live stuff.  I use Windows Live Write a lot to blog and the current version is a nice refresh.

It shows as this.

image

The main differences I can see at first glance is the moving of categories to the bottom of the window.

image

Also you can paste images direct into the GUI and they get uploaded and linked automatically.  Once I have had a good rummage, I will update you with anything else I have discovered

7 Tips to Get the Most Out of MS Word

by ucinfo, posted in Flaphead, MsOffice

Well every day is a school day .. Found this and am amazed at a couple of the tips!

Source: http://webworkerdaily.com/2007/08/04/getting-the-most-out-of-ms-word/

Many of us writerly types spend a lot of time in Microsoft Word, and I even know a few Web designers who like to use it and Microsoft Excel for doing simple site prototyping work. Whether you’re sentenced to use Word all day by a dictatorial IT department, or it’s simply your word processor of choice, you can save time and have more options by mastering a few easy shortcuts.

You gave gotta check this KB out .. http://support.microsoft.com/kb/290938 it rocks! 

The World’s Biggest Pub

by , posted in Flaphead

 

I spent a few hours at the world’s biggest pub last night.  Well it’s only around for a few days this week (7th to 11th August 2007), and is at Earls Court, London,

Yup it’s The Great British Beer Festival and it’s celebrating 30 years of being Britain’s biggest and best beer festival.

For the second year running it is being held at London’s Earls Court. The event is getting bigger every year, with even more choice than ever before.

 

 
It’s amazing the variety of beer.  To my surprise I don’t feel like death today which is an added bonus  

Check out the website and get on down to Earls Court.  The Beer prices are similar to pub prices ranging for £2 to £4 a pint.

Opening times are:
Tuesday 7th August 17.00-22.30:
Wednesday 8th August Noon-22.30:
Thursday 9th August Noon-22.30:
Friday 10th August Noon-22.30:
Saturday 11th August 11.00-19.00:

and it’s gonna cost ya:
£6.00 for CAMRA members Tue-Fri, £8.00 non-members Tue-Fri
£4.00 for CAMRA members and £6.00 non-members Saturday. 

These made me laugh.  Spitfire Ale had a few posters and here are a selection!

The World's Biggest Pub

by ucinfo, posted in Flaphead

 

I spent a few hours at the world’s biggest pub last night.  Well it’s only around for a few days this week (7th to 11th August 2007), and is at Earls Court, London,

Yup it’s The Great British Beer Festival and it’s celebrating 30 years of being Britain’s biggest and best beer festival.

For the second year running it is being held at London’s Earls Court. The event is getting bigger every year, with even more choice than ever before.

 

 
It’s amazing the variety of beer.  To my surprise I don’t feel like death today which is an added bonus  

Check out the website and get on down to Earls Court.  The Beer prices are similar to pub prices ranging for £2 to £4 a pint.

Opening times are:
Tuesday 7th August 17.00-22.30:
Wednesday 8th August Noon-22.30:
Thursday 9th August Noon-22.30:
Friday 10th August Noon-22.30:
Saturday 11th August 11.00-19.00:

and it’s gonna cost ya:
£6.00 for CAMRA members Tue-Fri, £8.00 non-members Tue-Fri
£4.00 for CAMRA members and £6.00 non-members Saturday. 

These made me laugh.  Spitfire Ale had a few posters and here are a selection!