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SuperWasp

Productivity tips, reviews, tools, software and gadgets.

 
Easily timing your website speed

There are many ways to time the speed of your website, using php, asp, asp.net or simple javascript. They all have the disadvantage that you need to include your scripts on every page you want to time, and once your site is published live on the webserver, you don’t want every visitor to see these timing results.

Here’s a simple and elegant solution, and it’s free! The Numion Stopwatch website has a simple textbox to enter the url you want to time.

Note: once your site or page is loaded and timed, you can push the result button to test again. A separate button would be much clearer.

Link: http://www.numion.com/Stopwatch/

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  Posted by oVan on Friday, January 30, 2009 | PermaLink | 0 comments
Big List of Windows 7 Secrets
Keyboard junkies and power users rejoice! Here's a great list of Windows 7 secrets, some of which also work in Vista SP2, published by Tim Sneath.

The keyboard combinations Win+Up, Win+Down, Win+Shift+Up, Win+Shift+Down, Win+Left, Win+Right to maximize/minimize/move windows are real life savers. So is Win+T to access the taskbar, Win+Space to enable Aero Peek, and Control+click on a taskbar icon to switch between multiple windows of the same program.

Read all these powerful tips here: Bumper List of Windows 7 Secrets

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  Posted by oVan on Tuesday, January 13, 2009 | PermaLink | 0 comments
Broken apps in Windows 7

Although almost anything that works on Windows Vista also works on Windows 7, there are certainly exceptions. Here's a list of apps not working in Windows 7 beta:

  • FinePrint 6: this excellent print preview driver saves huge amounts of paper and ink. Unfortunately, kernel-mode printer drivers are not allowed anymore, and the famous KMPrintersAreBlocked registry hack does not work.
    In a reply from the tech department, FinePrint Software says a fix is underway, perhaps as soon as this week! Update: as FinePrint tech support promised, the latest FinePrint 6.05 installs perfectly on Windows 7.
  • ISO mounting tools: although Windows 7 now has native support for ISO disc images, it is only possible to burn them to disk. You can't mount them as a virtual drive. None of the software I tried worked on Windows 7: MagicDisc installs but doesn't work, same story for VirtualCloneDrive, and Windows 7 is so kind to let us know upon installation that it doesn't support Daemon Tools currently. Alternatives anyone?
  • Defrag software: Raxco PerfectDisk 2008 doesn't want to install on this version of Windows. I could try modifying the installer, but disk software is not the kind of app you want to mess with. Since Raxco has announced PerfectDisk 10 to be available on January 27, 2009, I'm sure Windows 7 support won't be far off.
    Update: Raxco confirmed in the comments below that PerfectDisk 10 supports Windows 7.

Do you know other programs or drivers that don't work on Windows 7? Do you know a workaround? Let us know!


Reported by Daniel:
Hamachi vpn client (www.hamachi.cc) (works when installed as Administrator)

The Nvidia control panel on a Dell D830 won't let me set an external ViewSonic display to 1680x1050, and it would be much happier at that resolution.

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  Posted by oVan on Monday, January 12, 2009 | PermaLink | 7 comments
Microsoft releases .NET Framework 3.5 Service Pack 1

Microsoft .NET Framework 3.5 Service Pack 1 is a cumulative update with service updates to the .NET 2.0 and 3.0 subcomponents, and contains many new features for the .NET Framework 2.0, 3.0, 3.5.

Quick overview of what’s new:

  • ASP.NET Dynamic Data is now included, providing rich scaffolding framework for rapid data driven development without writing code. See What's new in ASP.NET and Web Development for more info.
  • Addition to ASP.NET AJAX for managing browser history (back button support).
  • Core improvements to the CLR (Common Language Runtime)
  • Performance improvements to WPF (Windows Presentation Foundation)
  • Additional functionality in WPF: better support for line of business apps, native splash screen support, DirectX pixel shader support, and a new WebBrowser control.
  • ClickOnce application publishers can opt out of signing and hashing.
  • Entity Framework (an evolution of the well known ADO.NET) is included and has new features like support for SQL Server 2008. See Getting Started with the Entity Framework for more info.
  • LINQ to SQL and SqlClient (.NET Framework Data Profider for SQL) now support the date and file stream capabilities in SQL Server 2008.
  • ADO.NET Data Services Framework is included, and enables data to be exposed as flexible REST (Representational State Transfer) data services.
  • Windows Communication Foundation (WCF) has improvements to the DataContract Serializer.

Downloads & links:

After installation, immediately install the update KB959209 to address a set of known application compatibility issues!

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  Posted by oVan on Wednesday, January 07, 2009 | PermaLink | 0 comments
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