The future of Linux

Over the years I've dabbled in and out of Linux and whilst I think that its a great OS, (especially for servers - I use it myself on my servers) I still personally prefer Windows on the desktop. Why? Well partly because its better the devil you know (and lets be honest all operating systems can be little devils at times) but also because up until recently Linux was lacking a bit of polish. Its starting to come on in leaps and bounds though so does it have a future?

Posted by Daniel: 17:53, Fri 3rd Sep 2010

How to grant "log on as batch job" in Windows 7 Home Premium

I just spent an hour trying to figure out this one so I thought I'd share the wisdom...

If you have been trying to schedule a task and run it as a regular user in Windows 7 you will probably have come across this...

This is due to a basic security measure implemented in all recent versions of Windows which requires users that run scheduled tasks to have a special security right. (A similar security measure is also used in the services system but when you change the user in  the services manager it automatically grants the user the right and tells you its done so.)

(Updated: 9:13, Fri 9th Jul 2010)
Posted by Daniel: 11:14, Mon 1st Mar 2010

Ubuntu 8 - Is the penguin finally coming of age?

OK I admit it, I'm a Windows boy. I've been using Windows now from 95 through to Vista, working on networks from small businesses to large corporations. As much as I hate to admit it I even know a few registry keys off by heart... but that doesn't make me blind to what else is going on in the operating system world. Closing your eyes to other systems in the fast moving field of IT can often leave you stranded but can also mean you miss out on something which could improve your life dramatically. After all I might have more windows experience than a Canary Wharf glass cleaner but I still run my web servers on Linux and Apache because its the most sensible choice.

Posted by Daniel: 11:44, Thu 1st May 2008

SIP - Getting the most out of VOIP

What is VOIP?

Many people either have no idea what VOIP is, think its unreliable, or can't see the point in it. To be fair for people who have mobile phones with hundreds of free minutes and land-line telephones with free weekend and evening calls it can appear on the surface to be pretty pointless. However there are some advantages which may affect you:

More than one telephone line for free...

If you live in a household with three or more people in it you have undoubtedly encountered the situation where you either wanted to use the phone when it was already in use, or got annoyed by someone else constantly picking up your private calls. With VOIP this problem is solved...

Posted by Daniel: 12:09, Sun 16th Mar 2008

To bundle or not to bundle?

Whilst touring the Internet recently I came across this (or more importantly this). Unlike some of the other crazy plans in the past the EU have come up with to try and balance out Microsoft's monopoly this one caught my attention. Forcing PC's to be sold without Microsoft Windows, surely thats an idea that could be beneficial?

Posted by Daniel: 10:14, Mon 24th Sep 2007

Go away Google!

Now don't get me wrong I'm not a Google hater; after all back in the days when we all happily trawled through Altavista (the supreme search engine at the time) Google was like a free gift to spods everywhere. A fresh new look and a fresh new indexing technique all at the power of our fingertips. We could now quickly and easily find what we wanted in the rapidly growing collection of unsorted paperwork which was the Internet.

Posted by Daniel: 21:28, Wed 12th Sep 2007