Darrell Icenogle's blog

I'm back from summer vacation and trying to focus on getting some work done, in spite of the nasty case of poison ivy I picked up while I was camping on Cape Cod. This plant is just plain mean, for no good reason that I can think of...

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Although it's sometimes annoying, I get some warm fuzzies from Windows Update, because I like the idea that I have the most recent bug fixes for the software I'm using. What Windows Update does for the operating system, Secunia PSI does for applications, but only to the extent of finding software updates that plug security holes. If a piece of software I'm using has a new version available that fixes other kinds of bugs, or adds new capabilities, I would also like to know about that.

Featured Software:
FileHippo Update Checker

When I learned about Secunia Personal Software Inspector, I had to admit that this was an area of computer vulnerability I hadn't thought much about: application security.

I usually think of computer security as akin to the border crossing stations that I used to have to go through on a day excursion from San Diego to Ensenada. You watch what goes into your computer, and you watch what goes out. But what if something was installed on your computer from a reliable vendor, but later determined to have security risks?

Featured Software:
   Secunia Personal Software Inspector

I'm one of those friends/sons/fathers/uncles/brothers-in-law whom many come to for information and advice on how to accomplish something on the computer, and that was certainly a factor in deciding to do this website. As a Windows user, I'm of course aware that there are lots of people who use other operating systems, but also that the vast majority of home computer users use Windows.

So, from time to time, I'm going to make a 'quick tip' kind of Guide to respond to the kinds of things I'm asked about. Sometimes it will just be some very cool thing I've run across that I think some of my friends and family -- and you, if you haven't yet qualified -- would want to know.

I couldn't drop the archive/backup topic until I found a reasonable candidate application to solve the archive problem.

Quick review: The archive problem arises when you want to put some files in safe storage, and then delete them from your local disk. A backup service like Mozy only promises to save files that you keep on your hard disk. In the case of Mozy, they guarantee that a file will hang around for 30 days after you delete it locally.

Featured Software:

IDrive-E: Backup/Archive

I'm feverishly working on, and trying to finish, a Guide to a program called IDrive-E which is yet another backup program, and if the gods are willing, I'll finish it in the next day or two.

Meanwhile, I can't resist telling you about something a little different. Something called Jing.

I have to admit that this isn't a mainstream application, but I will contend that something like this will become mainstream, so you might as well find out about it now.

Featured software:

Jing: Share screen recordings

Suppose you could capture anything you are doing on your computer, make a video of it much like Mainstream Guides does, and share it with whomever you want. Suppose it was really, really easy to do so. Would you be interested?

Lately I've been worrying about losing my files. Pictures, for example. I don't think we have taken more than a couple of rolls of film in the last five or six years, but my family has gazillions of pictures scattered about on hard drives on several different computers.

I'm thinking about how sad I would be to lose my pictures. I would also be very unhappy about losing my videos, email files, accounting data files, spreadsheets, CAD drawings, music files, and any number of other kinds of files that I have invested money or time in.

So, what's to do?