Note Taking Software – First, solve the problem. Then write the code.

15 simple, secret Windows tips and tricks designed to save you time

17. December 2015 · Comments Off · Categories: software · Tags: Jump Lists, OK, PC, Windows Explorer

Hidden powers and secret timesavers

Time is money, or so the saying goes. And even if you’re plunked down in front of your PC for fun or a hobby project, every unnecessary click and hassle you bump into burns away precious seconds of your life.

Nobody wants to waste time endlessly navigating menus. Fear not! Dr. PCWorld has the cure. Take these 15 secret Windows tricks to streamline your computing experience and eradicate little irritations that trip you up throughout the day. You won’t need to call me in the morning.

Launch taskbar programs with your keyboard

Many of us—especially users of the Start Menu-less Windows 8—use the Windows taskbar as a quick launch bar, populating it with our day-to-day programs. Opening those programs is as simple as clicking them, but there’s actually a faster way to launch software on your taskbar: Simple keyboard combinations.

Every program to the right of the Start button is assigned its own numerical shortcut, with the first program being “1,” the second being “2,” and so on, all the way to the 10th taskbar shortcut, which gets “0.” Pressing the Windows key, plus the number of

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Recover Windows Password With Free Password Recovery Tools

08. November 2015 · Comments Off · Categories: software · Tags: Cain Abel, ISO, USB, Windows Vista

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There are times when you forget your Windows password or someone changes it without your knowledge. In such situations, you will be locked out of Windows. To regain access, you can use some password recovery software to recover your Windows password. This article contains a list of some such password recovery software.

Note: Most of these software are available as Live CD’s. (For non technical readers, a Live CD is a compact disk that contains a bootable operating system that you can use from the CD itself, without having the need to install it.)

Ophcrack
Ophcrack offers one of the best free password recovery solutions in the market. Ophcrack comes in two versions: a stand alone installer and a Live CD. The stand alone installer requires you to additionally download separate rainbow tables whereas the Live CD already has them. As the stand alone installer uses about 1.5GB of rainbow tables, it offers much better recovery. However, the download size is certainly an issue. Also, the Live CD version is a bit easier to use for cracking passwords.

So, I will discuss only the Live CD version. You must choose the right version of Ophcrack Live

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Recover Deleted files in Windows with Free Tools

05. October 2015 · Comments Off · Categories: software · Tags: EFS, FAT, NTFS, Pandora Recovery

Have you ever deleted a file that you did not wish to and wanted to recover it but did not find it in the recycle bin? You probably deleted it permanently with Shift+Delete or emptied the Recycle Bin. Now what? Don’t worry, you may still have a chance to get it back. This article lists some free software that can recover deleted files from your hard drive or any other storage device instantly.

But how do the software mentioned below undelete deleted files?

When files are deleted, Windows does not delete them from your hard disk. It marks the storage space as empty for new data to be written and deletes the index entry that tells the location of those files. Unless, new files are written on that space, the deleted files are still recoverable. That’s what allows these software to recover deleted files.

There are many free software that allow users to do this. Some of them are given below:-

1) Pandora Recovery

Pandora Recovery is a free software that offers a wizard based interface for recovering files. It allows you to browse a drive’s individual folders to look for deleted files. It also allows you

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Recipe Software Tips

01. April 2016 · Comments Off · Categories: software

It has happened to everyone it seems. You get home from work and can not figure out what in the world is for dinner. Then when you scramble around and figure out something only to find out that you are out of one of the recipes ingredients. So that means either figure something else out to eat or make a run to the grocery store to pick up the needed items. It is a pain to have this happen to you, and worst yet to have it happen several times a week. There is a solution to the problem, and you can free up so much time by using it.

I’m talking about using recipe software. Recipe organizing software is one of the greatest ways to organize your dinners and recipes. With built in meal planning software, you can plan all your meals out in advance. This also helps when it comes to buying groceries. By knowing what you are going to cook, you can shop for all the items at once. Which means those mid week trips to the grocery store where you stand in line for long periods of time will be much less. This is really good feature

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Trading Software Tips For Your Success

22. March 2016 · Comments Off · Categories: software

Trading software tips for your success. The three top tips to big profits on the stock market.

The economy is in such bad shape and everyone is feeling the effects. The job market is cutting jobs at all levels from completely shutting down companies. The other side is positions being cut back or hours reduced.

Everyone is being effected one way or another. It is so important to do everything that you can to secure your retirement and monthly pay to be able to survive in today’s economy.

People are turning to the stock market now more than ever as a way to make money to live on and to secure their future. They no longer trust investors or brokers to handle their accounts. They are taking matters into their own hands to give themselves peace of mind that they will not be ripped off.

Some key tips is to get yourself some trading software to help you. If you try to do the trading on your own with out knowledge you could make some very big costly mistakes that could really put you into financial hardship.

The software is programmed to see trends and let you know when to buy and sell your stock

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14 Tips for Selling Software and Services Online

14. March 2016 · Comments Off · Categories: software · Tags: Alex Capehart, CEO, Media Temple, Michelle Nerlinger

1. Use a reliable cloud hosting service instead of managing everything in-house. Why spend the time and money on building and maintaining your infrastructure when you can host in the cloud? “In just a few hours, a hosting provider can provision dedicated servers and cloud servers for you, and your business will be up and running with limited cost and risk,” explains Emil Sayegh, the CEO and president of Codero Hosting, a provider of dedicated, managed and cloud hosting services.

Other benefits of hosting your software in the cloud: “You can do all your testing and development in their data center and then deploy into production,” he says. “Once in production, if the load increases or decreases you can scale your infrastructure on demand without owning a single piece of equipment, or worrying about server maintenance and upkeep.”

2. Beta test. “To sell software online it’s important to get feedback before investing too many resources into the development of your site or product,” says Phil Sharp, senior marketing manager, UserTesting.com. “Mock up the simplest version of what you’re offering, get it in front of people and get their brutally honest feedback. This will help you improve your product early and save you

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4 Tips for Surviving Software Audits

10. March 2016 · Comments Off · Categories: software · Tags: Keith Rupnik, SAM, Seek Legal Support, Victoria Barber

1. Start a Software Asset Management Program

Whether the audit is conducted by a software publisher, a third-party agency or an association such as BSA | The Software Alliance or the Software & Information Industry Association (SIIA), most auditors seek the same information. They’ll ask where the software is deployed, how it’s configured, who’s using it and if they can see proof of purchase.

Establish a software asset management program and begin tracking this essential information now. Victoria Barber, a research director for Gartner’s IT Sourcing, Procurement and Asset Management Group, describes SAM in a 2015 report as “a framework and set of processes that allow organizations to strategically track and manage the financial, physical, licensing and contractual aspects of software assets throughout their lifecycle.”

Having detailed SAM information can stop an audit in its tracks, providing organizations with leverage for negotiating with an auditor and making them aware of licensing issues well before they’re subjected to an audit.

Keith Rupnik, director of education and IT for the International Association of Information Technology Asset Managers, points out that for smaller organizations, establishing a SAM program doesn’t have to be complex.

“It’s just record keeping — make certain that you have the appropriate documentation in the

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5 Tips for Comparing Quality Software Vendors

01. March 2016 · Comments Off · Categories: software · Tags: ERP, IT, QMS, Six Sigma

1. User Support Matters

The best quality management software goes beyond mere technical support. To meet the demands of today’s fast-paced global manufacturing industry, your integrated quality management software must include a strong user support base. The benefits of broad user support all relate to making the most out of your company’s investment in integrated quality management. Certainly, if you have managed to unclog delays in getting your QMS project approved, choosing a particular quality management software is the final step.

To make the best choice, you want to choose a company with a proven, documented experience in the quality management software space. A professional implementation staff can mean the difference between an on-budget project and a costly endeavor. This facet relates very closely to technical support since the minute details of such a large system as an enterprise quality management system require that implementation staff have the expertise necessary to troubleshoot quickly. At the very least, the quality management software you choose should include a wide breadth of online tools to support its user base.

2. Depth of the Solution
A sound quality management system allows you to leverage a single repository of quality-related data into a broader enterprise solution. The best

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5 Tip for Choosing the Right eCommerce Software

22. February 2016 · Comments Off · Categories: software · Tags: UNIX

Tip #1: Ensure That The E-Commerce Solution Is Compatible With Your Existing Resources

Getting a website set up for e-commerce is a large enough job all on its own, without needing to make big changes to your existing systems. Make sure the product you select is completely compatible with the operating system, web server software and existing hardware that you already have. Several operating systems are supported by most commerce servers. The most common ones are Windows NT and UNIX. However, some older products are only available for UNIX.

Tip #2: Make Sure the Product Will Allow You To Import Your Existing Data

You will need to be able to transfer any existing product databases you may have into the Web store’s database quickly and easily. Several different methods for importing data usually come with high end packages. However, entry-level packages are frequently lacking this feature, which means all data must be entered manually.

Tip #3: Ensure The Web Store Will Be Able To Accept A Wide Range of Different Payment Methods

Most payments made at Web stores are credit card transactions. However, you need to be able to accept as many different payment methods as possible to maximize sales. Make sure the solution you

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5 Tips to Find the Right Accounting Software For Your Business

15. February 2016 · Comments Off · Categories: software · Tags: Sage Accounting Solutions

Small business owners can profit from using business accounting software to help manage finances and increase profitability, though the software varies based on the size and type of your business. Accounting software packages and applications create reports, track money paid and money owed, allow you to see purchase histories, and help you identify financial trends and growth opportunities within your market.

Here are some tips to help you get started before you buy software.

1. Find software that’s specific to your industry.

Some business accounting packages are designed to accommodate specific industries, such as construction, manufacturing, wholesale distributors, or retail businesses. While generic software is usually more affordable, software that is specific to your business’s industry makes accounting tasks easier. For example, if you own a small clothing boutique, retail-specific accounting software will help you better manage your inventory. It has features designed to keep track of items by size, color, or type and may have an integrated point-of-sale (POS) system. However, software specific to the construction industry is designed to perform equipment tracking and performance evaluation.

2. Decide what features you want included.

Make a list of the tasks you want your accounting software to perform based on your business structure and needs. You

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10 Tips for Purchasing Software

08. February 2016 · Comments Off · Categories: software · Tags: CPA

Purchasing your first construction accounting software program is a lot like buying your first car. It’s a practical purchase, for sure. You need it. You know it will make your life—or in this case, business—run more smoothly. Just because it’s a practical purchase does not mean it’s a simple decision, though. The list of extra features can be huge and overwhelming. If you’re not careful, it’s easy to overspend on something your company may not need.

Below are several tips to help you transition into your first accounting software system so smoothly that you will feel like you’re cruising at full speed.

1. Do the research
Purchasing an accounting system is a major investment, so don’t speed through this first step. Search for quality vendors. Gather information. Interview personnel in your company that will directly use or require reports from the system. Start with everyone in your company who enters, processes or analyzes accounting data. What do they need? Why do they need it? What parts of your current system work? What doesn’t? Be sure to talk to employees both in the office and in the field. Their needs may be totally different, but you’ll need buy-in from both groups once you

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15 tips for success as an independent software developer

01. February 2016 · Comments Off · Categories: software · Tags: Mountain Dew

1. Know why you’re doing this
Before you write that letter of resignation, think about why you want to become an independent software developer. Do you want to work from home? Do you want to travel? Do you want more money, fewer hours, or both? What are your main motivations for making this change? Write them down somewhere because chances are all of your goals will not be met immediately. When things get tough, that list will remind you of why you are doing this, and that can make the difference between giving up and success.

Above all, understand and accept that “going independent” means “starting a business,” and a business is very different from a job.

2. Plan before you quit
Going independent can give you greater say in the kind of work you do. And in the world of software, there are many possibilities; you don’t have to do exactly what you do at your current job. Consulting, development, products, training, and other services are all viable paths to independence. Make a list of everything you can do, everything you’d like to do, and everything you might be interested in learning how to do. Having that list will help prepare

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The Human Impact of Software

24. January 2016 · Comments Off · Categories: software · Tags: BASIC, Peter Norton

My very first job in the computer software business was as an entry level help desk technician. I had been a computer user for many years (since Dad brought home the family’s first Tandy Color Computer), but truly I knew very little about how computers worked. Sure, in high school and college I had written a few BASIC and Pascal programs, but none of that knowledge had stuck with me. At that moment, I was vastly under qualified to support my new employer’s vertical market accounting software.

I joined this tiny software firm on the cusp of the 1.0 release of their first application. If I remember correctly, when I came on board they were in the process of running the floppy disk duplicator day and night, printing out address labels, and packaging up the user documentation. As I pitched in to help get this release out the door, little did I know that I was about to learn a lesson about software development that I will never forget.

The shipments all went out (about a thousand of them I think, all advance orders), and we braced ourselves for the phone to start ringing. In the meantime, I was poring over

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Integrity Testing for Software Professionals

17. January 2016 · Comments Off · Categories: software · Tags: Big Brother, CIO, DVD, TV

Software developers play professional Hacky Sack with terms like “standards” and “best practices,” batting them around with effortless familiarity. But under the microscope of personal scrutiny, the game might very well change to dodge ball.

Seven years ago our CIO sponsored a departmental logo contest. I won—though lack of interest and entries probably explains it. The winning entry wasn’t great: I simply dotted the “i” of MIS with the county seal. Underneath, in small, italicized letters, I added three words that came to mind: “Integrity, Innovation, Initiative.” I’ve always been a sucker for alliteration. The phrase sounded like something you’d hear in a deep, TV announcer voice.

Clearly we had innovation covered—as an information technology organization we kept in tune with the latest microprocessors and software. We upgraded, enhanced, re-engineered, developed, and replaced like our futures depended on it. (They did.)

The other two words—integrity and initiative—seemed appropriate for a service organization, especially one in government. After all, we’re paid with the people’s tax dollars…and we’re some of the same folk who want to see that hard-earned levy well spent.

Even if lethargy and procrastination would rob us of initiative, between the CIO’s published departmental goals, performance plans, and our clients’ never-ending service requests, we managed to get

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Career Paths for Programmers

10. January 2016 · Comments Off · Categories: software · Tags: CIO, Economic Policy Institute, MBA, Systems Analysts

I recently interviewed for a Business Analyst position with the CIO of a large multi-national software development firm. This man was in charge of the company’s worldwide IT operations, including offshore development projects, for which he was searching for qualified Business Analysts. The interview quickly became a casual conversation about current trends within the IT service sector, how the company was planning to take advantage of those trends, and, most importantly, how I could fit into those plans. It was during his evaluation of my skills that I asked how I fit and whether it was technical or business skills that were most valuable to his projects. The CIO summed up his advice about my career path with one small sentence: “Stay on the business side.”

Business skills, in this CIO’s view, were most important to his future projects and the industry as a whole. His reasoning was that he could train anyone in the technical skills he needed for a project, but finding those people with the necessary business skills to guide an IT project to success was something that could not easily be obtained. He went on to say that he found it difficult to find people who could

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Professional Programmer

03. January 2016 · Comments Off · Categories: software · Tags: API, Leadership Showing, SQL, XML

How do people become professional programmers? Many people go the “traditional” path through a computer science or software engineering education and from there into professional programming work.

Others become professional programmers by accident. A person writes a small program to help at work, and their workmates say, “Oh great, you can write programs! You’re our programmer now!”

Other people start out as hobbyists and follow a less traditional path, not always getting a degree, but clearly wanting to be programmers from the start and working actively towards that goal.

I’ve been a hobbyist programmer since I was 6. I wasn’t writing anything amazing back then but I had started writing and soon found it was

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Speed Up a Slow Windows 10, 8, 8.1, 7 or XP Computer

30. December 2015 · Comments Off · Categories: software · Tags: Command Prompt, CPU, PC, Windows Disk Defragmenter

Having a slow computer is not something most users fancy, but that is what most of us end up with after prolonged usage despite having the latest hardware. Understandably, there are also a few of us who are trapped with a low-end PC and are forced to get as much out of it as possible. This article caters to both these type of users as it not only explains how to make your computer as fast as it was when new but also how to reduce the footprint of your system to utilize your PC’s current system resources in the best possible way.

First thing first. Make sure your PC isn’t infected by a virus, worm or other malware

Anyone who has used an infected computer will verify how painfully slow a computer becomes when infected by a virus. More tech savvy users will counter that an infected computer’s speed depends upon the type of malware. To be honest, it does. However, based on my personal experience, I can say that while some malware are designed specifically for making computers slow and unresponsive, most malwares tend to decrease a computer’s performance.

If your computer is infected, the first thing you need to do

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How to Fix a Slow Windows 7 Computer

21. December 2015 · Comments Off · Categories: software · Tags: PC, Problem Steps Recorder, PSR, Resource Monitor

Most people love using Windows 7. That’s because it’s by far the nicest and the most productive Microsoft operating system to date. But there can still be glitches, errors, and lags. The good thing about Windows 7 is that it has lots of tools to troubleshoot and repair a slow computer. Here is a guide to where to find them and how to use them.

1. Problem Steps Recorder

Problem Steps Recorder is a great solution to get a detailed description of the problem, so that you can either review the report yourself or send it to a tech support team. Basically, this tool records everything happening on the computer that needs troubleshooting. It records all mouse clicks and everything that is pressed on the keyboard, takes screenshots, and then saves the report as a zipped MHTML file. This file can be easily emailed and analyzed. To enable Problem Steps Recorder, click on Start, type PSR and hit Enter. Then click on Start Record. To save a report, just stop recording your computer activity.

2. Troubleshoot problems

If something in Windows 7 starts behaving in a weird way and you have no idea why, go to the Control Panel, locate the “Find and fix

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5 Essential free Software for Windows PC

07. December 2015 · Comments Off · Categories: software · Tags: AVG, PC, Windows Image Viewer, Windows Media Player

Imagine, you have a new high end PC with Windows installed. You switch on the PC in excitement only to ask yourself the question, what should I do now? Even the most high end hardware is useless without the right software. This article deals with such five essential software for your PC that do not put any dent on your pocket. For convenience purposes, each software is provided according to the category of its usage. So lets begin.

All the freeware mentioned support all versions of Windows including Windows XP, Windows Vista, Windows 7 and Windows 8.
1. Browsers: It is fair to say that for majority of PC users, surfing the internet is the only major use for their PC. So, it would have been unfair to begin this list with any other category. Although, Windows comes withInternet Explorer, it would not be totally wrong to say that IE is no more than an average web browser. So an alternative web browser is an absolute necessity. Coming to the point, there are two major contenders for inclusion in this category. So, I was unsure which one to choose. So I decided to include them both. (I have intentionally not numbered

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Watch ASCII Star Wars in Windows XP, Vista, 7, 8 & 10

30. November 2015 · Comments Off · Categories: software · Tags: ASCII, OS, Star Wars, Windows Vista

Every one of us has watched Star Wars on television, computer or in a theater. It is the same movie with aliens fighting each other for galaxies and such stuff. There is nothing new in it. But wait, have you watched an ASCII (American Standard Code for Information Interchange) version of Star Wars and that too in Windows usingtelnet? A network protocol known only to computer wizards. Well if you have not, then you must do it now!

There is a complete copy of Star Wars done entirely in ASCII characters that you can watch in the Windowsoperating system (or any OS that supports telnet). The only thing required to watch it is an internet connection; speed does not matter.
To watch it on Windows XP, Mac OS X and Linux

Go to Start, Run. (Only for Windows users)
Now type “telnet towel.blinkenlights.nl” without the quotes and press Enter. Users of Mac OS X and Linux can directly execute this code in the terminal window.

On Windows 10, Windows 8, Windows 8.1, Windows 7 and Windows Vista

Telnet is turned off by default in the latest versions of Windows. So, in order to watch star wars, you must first enable telnet by going to Control

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Windows 7 Tips, Tricks and Shortcuts to Increase Productivity

24. November 2015 · Comments Off · Categories: software · Tags: OS, Windows Down

Windows 7 is not a new operating system, but it is new to many users. Windows 7 has several interesting new features that make this OS better than previous Windows versions. These tips for Windows 7 may not make you an expert, but they should make your experience with Windows 7 much more fun and productive.

Shake it up

Windows 7’s “shake” feature allows you to minimize all the windows on your desktop in only one step, leaving only the window you are working in. This is great if you often run multiple programs at once.
To use this feature, click and hold the title bar of the window you want to keep maximized. At the same time, use your mouse to shake it back and forth quickly. All the other windows will then minimize to the taskbar. If you want to get those windows back, just click on the tile bar and shake it again.

You don’t have to “shake” to do this. If you want to make this feature less fun, you can press the Windows Key and Home Key simultaneously.

Customize your taskbar

You can rearrange your taskbar buttons quite easily. You just drag an icon to where you want it

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Install, Boot Windows from USB Pen, Thumb or Flash Drive

16. November 2015 · Comments Off · Categories: software · Tags: Click Next, DVD, Flash Drive, USB

Normally, Windows is installed using optical media like DVDs and CDs but there are times when it is not possible to boot into the windows setup using disks probably because your DVD drive is not working or, if you are using one of those ultra-portable laptops, it is not there at all.

To overcome this problem, one can either use an external DVD drive and install Windows normally or create a bootable pen drive to install Windows whenever needed. In this tutorial, we will discuss about the latter and learn how can we create a bootable USB drive for installing Windows XP, Windows Vista, Windows 7,Windows 8 or Windows 8.1. As installing Windows from a flash drive is much faster than from a CD/ DVD, such an installation will also save time.

This article assumes that your computer has a mother board which supports booting from USB drives. Most modern laptops and desktops support it. If you have bought your computer in the last 5 years, you do not need to worry about this.

Installation Requirements

An empty flash drive with a storage capacity of 1GB for Windows XP and 3GB for Windows 8.1, Windows 8, Windows 7, Windows Vista and Windows Server 2008.
Windows installation disk

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