Wikipedia:Reference desk/Archives/Computing/2008 March 18

= March 18 =

.odt viewer for Windows
Hi, I got this email that has an attachment that's .odt file from a mac. Unfortunately, I have Windows. Can someone point me to a place I can download an .odt reader or something? It's kinda important. PPLEASE? Thanks... --Jeevies (talk) 04:28, 18 March 2008 (UTC)
 * Pick from OpenDocument software --Spoon! (talk) 05:41, 18 March 2008 (UTC)


 * OpenDocument is an ISO standard, it's not some weird 'mac thing'. OpenOffice.org is probably the most used ODF app, and there are plugins to allow Microsoft Office to read OpenDocument as well . -- Consumed Crustacean (talk) 06:11, 18 March 2008 (UTC)


 * AbiWord is also an option. Kushal 12:59, 22 March 2008 (UTC)

problems with filenames using ext2 in windows
I have a USB removable hard disk that I is formatted for linux (ext3) and I'm using Ext2Fsd (I think) to read/write to it in vista (which I think makes it act as if it's ext2) and everything works perfectly fine.

Everything except for a couple of file names that contain colons, which I guess is a character that vista doesn't like (I seem to remember testing the colons in linux, and there were no problems). The files display and the information (file sizes etc.) are all correct, but I can't move, copy, or access the files. I don't have a linux system on me right now (I bought a new computer and I'm sticking with vista for a short while at least), but I really want to open these files. Is there anything I can do to force vista to let me access them? I can't rename the files or anything either.

Thanks in advance! freshofftheufo ΓΛĿЌ  07:34, 18 March 2008 (UTC)


 * Windows kernel doesn't allow these characters in file names:

/ \ ? * : < > | "
 * -- grawity talk / PGP 08:10, 18 March 2008 (UTC)
 * Yes, I know that now, but that wasn't really what I was asking. Is there anything I can do to get around that? vista knows it's there, it knows how big the file is and what kind of file it is. Is there any way I can rename it, or link to it, or something? freshofftheufo  ΓΛĿЌ  08:13, 18 March 2008 (UTC)
 * Two ways:
 * a) from Linux, hardlink the file to a "valid" filename
 * b) hex-edit the file system
 * -- grawity talk / PGP 09:51, 18 March 2008 (UTC)


 * Just curious... why would you use a colon in a file name anyway? Just because you can use a colon doesn't make it a good idea.  For compatibility reasons, like you have found out, it is probably best to stick to only using numbers, letters and underscores in file names.  Astronaut (talk) 16:52, 18 March 2008 (UTC)
 * Maildir mailbox format uses colons as separators. 78.56.68.25 (talk) 19:56, 18 March 2008 (UTC)
 * I used to be an underscore fan; now I love hyphens D\=&lt; (talk) 21:48, 18 March 2008 (UTC)

functions of the major internal components of a computer
functions of the major internal components of a computer —Preceding unsigned comment added by 196.202.199.1 (talk) 11:45, 18 March 2008 (UTC)
 * We won't do your homework. -- grawity talk / PGP 12:52, 18 March 2008 (UTC)

The basic answers can be found at computer, if you have more specific questions, then ask again.87.102.47.176 (talk) 18:31, 18 March 2008 (UTC)

How to activate Acrobat 7
Hello, I've got a serial number (perfectly legit) for Acrobat 7 Professional. However when I download the software from Adobe, it appears to be a trial-only version with no way of activating it. Anyone come across this? Does anyone know where I can get a copy of a version which will accept a serial number? I don't want to resort to torrenting the damn thing seeing as it's on the level. Thanks 195.60.20.81 (talk) 13:26, 18 March 2008 (UTC)
 * Often when you click the Help Menu there is an option to "register" your software. Click that and it should bring up a screen to enter your serial number. Think outside the box 14:02, 18 March 2008 (UTC)


 * In any case, you can be sure that once the trial runs out, it'll give you that option. --Captain Ref Desk (talk) 15:49, 18 March 2008 (UTC)


 * If it's on the level and legit, why not ask Adobe tech support for assistance? They would probably verify the serial number is in fact legit, and send you a link to download it from.  Astronaut (talk) 16:44, 18 March 2008 (UTC)


 * Thanks. I too would expect an 'activate' option in the help menu but with this trial, nothing. I will get in touch with Adobe. 195.60.20.81 (talk) 09:58, 19 March 2008 (UTC)

Vista "freeze"
Hi, I have a new laptop with Windows Vista. I plug in my Compaq iPaq PDA. Then I click "Connect without setting up device" in the Windows Mobile Device Center. Then, every time, the WMDC freezes up for about a minute. I can still do other things on the computer, but I have to wait for the WMDC (or Windows Explorer - sometimes I can click into Explorer and double-click on the PDA icon before it freezes) to unfreeze before I can use the device. Is this something that I can fix, or do I have to wait for SP1, or is it related to my using "Connect without setting up device"? This behavior didn't occur with Windows 98 and Activesync. I have the latest patches applied (but not SP1 'cuz it's still in beta and I'm not a tester). Thank you. 4.242.108.89 (talk) 15:39, 18 March 2008 (UTC)
 * Well, about the beta thing, and you not being a tester; unless it says that the beta may have kinks that destroy your hard drive, I would take it. Example, Mozilla Firefox 3 pre-beta 5: use that, then compare to Firefox 2. Big difference. flaminglawyerc 16:59, 18 March 2008 (UTC)
 * I am using Firefox 3 beta 4 to write this, actually. I agree, it is great. (I didn't know that pre-beta 5 was usable yet.) Maybe I'll try the beta of SP1. Thanks for the response. If anyone has any other suggestions, please write. I tried it now with the other option (set up device to sync) and it still has the same problem. It seems to be taking all that time to install a device driver (!). I noticed that Vista takes a long time to install drivers, so I either need to speed that up some way (if it's even possible) or get it to keep the driver loaded all the time somehow. WMDC doesn't remember my password, either, so it's kind of "special" in a way. 4.242.147.174 (talk) 17:54, 18 March 2008 (UTC)
 * Actually, I see that Microsoft appears to have just released SP1 out of beta. Interesting. I guess I'll try it now and see if it works. 4.242.147.174 (talk) 18:02, 18 March 2008 (UTC)
 * Bad idea, wait a few weeks D\=&lt; (talk) 22:08, 18 March 2008 (UTC)
 * Too late. Actually, I didn't see your message until I had SP1 50% downloaded, so I proceeded on to download it. Why did you suggest to wait a few weeks? Anyway, I'm using SP1 now. It seems to work OK, only one glitch so far - the audio didn't work until I reinstalled the driver. But the PDA behavior is exactly the same! So this is still an open issue. Maybe I'll pester some Microsoft support forums about this. Unless someone here has another idea... 4.242.147.153 (talk) 05:00, 19 March 2008 (UTC)


 * See my note a few questions down about being an early adopter. Can be precarious. --Captain Ref Desk (talk) 16:46, 19 March 2008 (UTC)


 * OK, thanks for the warning. I think I found the answer to my question: according to the Windows Mobile Device Center article here on WP, PocketPC 2002 device (mine) support is "effectively phased out". No wonder it doesn't work quite right. Bummer. At least it works partially. 4.242.147.209 (talk) 19:21, 19 March 2008 (UTC)

website, anyone?
Can someone send me a link to a page with instructions on creating a website? Preferably not something like this, but something that would require a fancy server or something. Thanks. flaminglawyerc 16:56, 18 March 2008 (UTC)


 * Could you be more specific - do you want to learn how to write the code, or find something that automates its contruction.
 * Also can you be more specific about the server side of things - do you want to know about website hosting perhaps.87.102.47.176 (talk) 18:33, 18 March 2008 (UTC)


 * Instructions:
 * Figure out what website is supposed to do
 * Implement using a series of client-side and server-side tagging, coding, and so forth, as needed
 * Put website onto server space (acquired previously)
 * Profit
 * But really. Your question is a little indistinct. If you want to know about websites in general, and how they are created, you might try perusing the "Computing" section of your local book store, there are bound to be dozens of volumes. To create one from scratch requires first knowing what, specifically, the site is meant to do, and then learning a number of component skills/technologies to bring it into existence. It isn't ALL that hard—in the sense that lots of people can do it, and you need not be a computer engineer to do it well—but it's not the sort of thing that has simple instructions. --Captain Ref Desk (talk) 22:09, 18 March 2008 (UTC)
 * Slashdot username please. Or has it leaked? D\=&lt; (talk) 04:05, 19 March 2008 (UTC)
 * Slashdot username please. Or has it leaked? D\=&lt; (talk) 04:05, 19 March 2008 (UTC)


 * If you mean the "... profit" line, that comes from, I believe, South Park. I don't have the slightest idea where I first heard it, probably on the Something Awful forum boards ca. 2002-2003. --Captain Ref Desk (talk) 14:22, 19 March 2008 (UTC)
 * Yeah it came from south park, but slashdot made it popular. Never mind D\=&lt; (talk) 17:55, 19 March 2008 (UTC)
 * --Captain Ref Desk (talk) 19:21, 19 March 2008 (UTC)
 * Uhhh I'm not.. lying.. D\=&lt; (talk) 03:39, 20 March 2008 (UTC)

Can anyone tell me if there is something better than GagaLive for an embedded, minimal Flash chat client? Without ads, cost free and supporting IRC.
(moved from Reference desk/Miscellaneous)

Can anyone tell me if there is something better than GagaLive for an embedded, minimal Flash chat client? Without ads, cost free and supporting IRC. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 85.225.48.193 (talk) 14:44, 18 March 2008 (UTC)


 * What about java applets? Neal (talk) 14:50, 18 March 2008 (UTC).


 * Theoretically you could do the whole thing with Javascript and AJAX (and some sort of server-side backend, like PHP). I'm sure someone has implemented this... --Captain Ref Desk (talk) 15:54, 18 March 2008 (UTC)

What does this exe do?
Hello all, it's me again...

what exactly does the file here do? I guess it moves some files around, yet I am not geekish enough to speak assembler. Can someone please tell me the basic structure of the program or how I could find out how to correctly invoke it?

Thanks! 84.56.22.36 (talk) 22:12, 18 March 2008 (UTC)

PS: I already know that this file selects and install the localizations for EarthSiege, yet the interesting thing is how it achieves this... —Preceding unsigned comment added by 84.56.22.36 (talk) 22:15, 18 March 2008 (UTC)


 * It was written in C++, built with a Borland compiler, and dynamically linked with the Microsoft Foundation Classes. To figure out how to correctly invoke it, you'll probably need to learn a bit about assembly language, Windows and C standard library functions, and play around with the code in a debugger. For starters, it looks like you need to pass at least four arguments on the command line.&mdash;eric 00:31, 19 March 2008 (UTC)
 * OK, thanks for that...as it was linked with debug info: Can I decompile it? 88.64.71.72 (talk) 13:21, 19 March 2008 (UTC)


 * If it is in assembly language, it is already decompiled. --Captain Ref Desk (talk) 14:18, 19 March 2008 (UTC)


 * What. Decompilation aims to convert object code to a higher level language. Disassembly only takes it up to the ASM level D\=&lt; (talk) 15:03, 19 March 2008 (UTC)


 * Oh, I got confused in my terminology, didn't realize there was a separate term for disassembler. Ma bad. --Captain Ref Desk (talk) 19:17, 19 March 2008 (UTC)

Digital photo frame
Anyone ever used a digital photo frame as an ebook reader or a device to display several frequently used data sheets, cheat sheets? -- Toytoy (talk) 22:18, 18 March 2008 (UTC)

Not me. If I were you, I would look for one that supports PNG images, though. Kushal 15:37, 19 March 2008 (UTC)

Slow PC (unusually slow video)
Hi there,

My PC has been running very slow for ages and I've been trying to figure out the problem to no avail, even reinstalling Windows has not fixed it. I have downloaded and ran some perfornace testing software and also tried an online testing facility which both suggested the problem is with 2D graphics. Certainly it often seems that the PC is unable to keep up with what I am trying to do, ie if I minimise a window, it flashes a couple of times and takes a few seconds for the desktop icons to appear. I also use the BBC IPlayer and Channel 4 On Demand online TV services which let you dowload TV programmes and play them, when I try and watch these, the video stops and starts and freezes all the time while the audio is fine.

Can anyone please suggest how to fix this? My graphics card is an NVidia FX5500 which is getting a bit old but not too old unless I want to play the latest games (which I am not trying to do) and used to work fine. You can see the full spec and performance test results here:

PC Pitstop Test Results

PS: I know it mentioned a defrag which I will leave to run overnight but I'm not in the slightest bit convinced this will fix it as it has never made any difference to me before. —Preceding unsigned comment added by GaryReggae (talk • contribs) 23:37, 18 March 2008 (UTC)


 * It seems you graphics card is unable to reproduce the video. I presume you have been updating your software and as it improves, it pushes the limits of your graphics card. If the problems mostly arise or enlarge when you have multiple windows open, I'd suggest getting a better graphics card, as this one is slowing down your system. Admiral Norton (talk) 23:44, 18 March 2008 (UTC)


 * I'm not sure the GFX card itself is the issue as it worked fine when I got it and I'm not using any different software. Granted, some games run slow but that's not the issue.  It's just generally using Windows, particularly playing back videos and I'm still using the same version of XP.  Looking at an online computer parts store, the graphics card I've got is still available and the most of the new ones for general use are hardly more expensive or higher spec.  I don't see why I should have to upgrade to an expensive card dedicated high-end gaming just for general use.GaryReggae (talk) 11:55, 19 March 2008 (UTC)


 * If you want to make sure it is the graphics card, then which to the motherboard's video memory if there is any. I see this problem on computers that either have low RAM or are overheating (much like my own). 206.252.74.48 (talk) 15:30, 19 March 2008 (UTC)


 * Thanks for the suggestion, good idea. I am now running off the motherboard's on board 'Intel Extreme Graphics 2' and I have installed the latest drivers although to be honest it doesn't make much difference, I'm still getting a lot of go-slow.  I have re-ran the same diagnostic test and interestingly, the video performance is better than it was yesterday but it has now flagged up a 'major' problem with 'unusually low memory performance' (I presume the on board graphics uses general RAM rather than having its own dedicated RAM?), my memory is performing 86% slower than the best comparable system.  The way the graphics problems occur, ie all is fine at first and it gets worse and worse after a few minutes would suggest memory problems to me.  Any ideas for conducting further tests or other things I can try to eliminate this problem?


 * BTW, when you mentioned overheating, I thought I'd better check the GFX card in case the fan on it wasn't working or something, the fan outlet was partially obscured by a PCI modem (this motherboard is rediculously crowded but I have now removed this and blown a load of dust out of the fan again with no success. The fan appears to be working fine.GaryReggae (talk) 22:51, 19 March 2008 (UTC)