One of the things that Windows has never done particularly well is manage the process of getting rid of software. Sometime an application shows up in the “install/uninstall software” dialog, sometimes the software has its own uninstaller, and sometimes neither is true. Sometimes the supplied process gets rid of every trace of the unwanted software, and sometimes stray bits and pieces are left scattered across your system. Now, there’s a bit of freeware that helps get rid of software you don’t want: Revo Uninstaller. It’s a great little piece of software that gives you several options for zapping unwanted applications. There are also features for managing the software that automatically starts when you boot your system.

I tried Revo Uninstaller on a USB camera application that, it turned out, was incompatible with Vista. The app didn’t show up in the Windows dialog, and didn’t include its own uninstaller. Revo Uninstaller found it, got rid of it, and even asked about some stray registry keys when it was finished. I end up loading and unloading a lot of software on my systems, and I can see this being the beginning of a beautiful relationship.

Thanks to the always-useful LifeHacker for the pointer.

Technorati Tags: consumer, enterprise, software, utility

Categories: Consumer, Enterprise, Software
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If you’re into graphics (and if you’re working on the web, you need to be into graphics) then the list of resources Snap2Object has put together in this post will be useful. You’ll find everything from libraries of company logos to tutorials, and most will be helpful, especially if you’re not a professional art director. Highly recommended reading.

Technorati Tags: graphics, resource, art, web

Categories: Media, Software
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One of the things that blogging does well is put together lists of resources. Snap2Objects has done a great job of building a list free design programs and posting it here. Highly recommended reading.

Technorati Tags: design, software, free

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So MSNBC has an article telling us that some folks are still complaining about Vista. They’re right about the major problems–driver incompatibilities and the utterly ridiculous way in which User Account Control was implemented–but they haven’t really touched on the basis of the bad feelings some of us have toward this product.
I sat down over a year ago with Jim Allchin and other members of the Vista team, and they told me two things: First, Vista was going to be on time; and second, Vista was going to be fabulous. At that point, they had already been tossing features overboard to make the ship date, but by now it’s obvious that either the final feature set or the ship date should have been revised in a big way before the end of last year. Microsoft had become so heavily invested in their self-imposed deadline, and so wrapped up in the hype machine surrounding Vista, that it was beyond their corporate ability to give full value to both. I say this because most of the “Vista will be fabulous” talk we got that day on the Microsoft campus revolved around Vista’s 64-bit capabilities. Guess what? Installations of 64-bit Vista are still rare as hen’s teeth because Microsoft is working very hard not to sell the licenses. They work so hard because the still-growing number of 32-bit drivers dwarfs the number of 64-bit drivers available.
I’m still using Vista on one machine, and the experience has spanned the distance from acceptable to intensely frustrating. Will I go back to XP on the one machine? No. I need to keep Vista for part of my work, and I’ve gotten it to a state in which it doesn’t interfere with most of my projects. Will I recommend anyone else move to Vista? Not right now…at least not if the anyone else is someone I like. If XP no longer meets your needs, look at Linux, try Mac OS, but don’t plan on shifting to Vista unless you feel you just have way too much productive time on your hands. I’m sure that Microsoft will eventually get it right, but I have absolutely no way to predict when that will happen.
It’s a shame, because Vista does show promise. The slow-motion, dribbling release of Vista might go unnoticed at a lot of firms, but Microsoft isn’t a lot of firms. Microsoft will use bluff and bravado to try to convince the world that the Vista roll-out has gone precisely as planned, but if this is how things are supposed to work, God help us if Microsoft ever has a broken release.

Thanks to Instapundit for pointing out the MSNBC article. It’s worth reading.

Technorati Tags: Vista, software, operating, system, Microsoft

Categories: Consumer, Enterprise, General computing, Software
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One of the tools I’m having fun with right now is ScribeFire, a Firefox add-in that makes blogging much easier. I wasn’t initially convinced about the need for a tool beyond the WordPress editor, but I find that ScribeFire makes this sort of quick post much faster and easier. I’m sold.

Technorati Tags: software, mozilla, blog, tool

Categories: Media, Software
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Following up a link to blogging resources, here’s list of more than 70 podcasting tools and resources. Looking through the list, there are a variety of different ways of podcasting represented, so if you’re not ready to take the plunge with a home studio you’ll still find tools to help.

Get out there, and get podcasting! The world is always looking for great stories…

Categories: Consumer, Media
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So I decided that one way to help the blog here is to get into Technorati. In order to do that, I have to write a post that includes a link that their spider can find. Here’s the post. Now, I just get to wait for the spider.

Here, spider. Nice spider.

Heavens, I think I should get some sleep, now.

Categories: Housekeeping
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I know that one of my big needs is more frequency–I’m working on it, really I am. I’m also going to be reading the posts that Matt Huggins has collected in this post on better blogging. Everyone needs coaching now and again–there are 55 coaching sessions listed in Matt’s post. Enjoy.

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I also had a chance to do a couple of interviews for the Enterprise 2.0 conference in June. All the conference podcasts are here. I interviewed Bob McCandless and Irwin Lazar on the characteristics of Enterprise 2.0–and why an organization would want to embrace the new model. Thanks, on all these podcasts, to Carol. She’s the producer who makes the recordings sound far better than they would without her touch.

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Categories: General computing, Housekeeping, Media
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I haven’t recorded podcasts for this site–sorry about that. I have been podcasting, though, just for the Interop conference. If you’d like to hear interviews with a bunch of interesting folks, head over the the Interop Podcast Archives to catch up.

I am planning to start podcasting here–I’m just trying to figure out how it’s going to work with a bunch of other things that are happening in my life right now. Lots of work, school starting…it’s a good set of decisions to have to make.

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Categories: General computing, Housekeeping, Publications
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The second article for PCMag.com is on Voice over IP (VoIP) security. Like most technologies, there are risks that go along with the benefits. Head over to the article to check out what some of the experts are saying about what you should do to protect your network if you’re deploying VoIP.

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Categories: Security, Software, Threats
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I’ve had a chance to write a couple of articles for PCMag.com recently. The first was looking at the reports of hacking into computers at the publisher of the Harry Potter books. Many thanks to Jordan Wiens for helping me understand some of the details of what purportedly took place. Let me urge you to run over to the article to take a look–and let me know what you think about the piece.

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