Wikipedia:Reference desk/Archives/Computing/2013 August 15

= August 15 =

Smarter page breaks in Word
I'm using Microsoft Word to write a report. One section of the report includes a number of tables, each with a heading (using the heading format, outside the table itself). Is it possible to configure these in such a way that the heading and the table will always be on the same page, regardless of how much I add earlier in the section (each table is about half a page long, so page breaks would only work nicely if I added them as the last thing on the document).

Essentially what I have now is:

-- introduction title table title -- table title table --

And what I want is:

-- introduction title table -- title table title table --

in such a way that if I add notes in, it will automatically change to:

-- introduction title table -- title table note -- title table -- without me having to fix the page breaks manually, and preferably not changing how page breaks work through the rest of the document.

MChesterMC (talk) 09:47, 15 August 2013 (UTC)


 * I don't know how do to that in Word, but it's very easy to do in LaTeX, which is actually designed to give publication-quality output. I understand this may not be helpful to you, but I like to spread LaTeX awareness :) SemanticMantis (talk) 13:08, 15 August 2013 (UTC)
 * I'm entirely aware of LaTeX, but it's massive overkill for 99% of the stuff I do, and trying to get it set up in a corporate environment (where I need to be able to send editable versions of the documents to people who aren't used to LaTeX) is likely to be impossible! MChesterMC (talk) 13:34, 15 August 2013 (UTC)

In LibreOffice, you can do Format -> Paragraph... -> Keep with next paragraph (check box) to make this work. Usually Microsoft Word is pretty similar, I think. Wnt (talk) 15:56, 15 August 2013 (UTC)
 * Thanks, a combination of that and "keep lines together" seems to do the job (though it looks like there may be some edge cases where the table is more than half a page long... Luckily, resizing a picure fixed that!) — Preceding unsigned comment added by MChesterMC (talk • contribs) 08:51, 16 August 2013 (UTC)

2-left hashing references
I decided I wanted to help out at WikiProject_Computer_science, and started at the top of Missing science topics/NIST Dictionary of Algorithms and Data Structures. I've barely got a stub so far, just using the NIST page as a reference: User:JessRyanA/2-left hashing‎

The problem that I'm running into is lack of sources, so I'm beginning to worry it isn't very notable. The reference it gives and the references cited by the few other places I can find it mentioned all use a balls-and-bins problem to discuss the problem - they expect that the reader will understand how to apply it to their own problems, such as hashing.

Can anyone help me track down other acceptable sources on the algorithm that discuss it directly as hashing? I'm worried using the balls-and-bins papers is synthesis. Here's the bit of discussion I've had on it already before deciding to look here for references: Wikipedia_talk:WikiProject_Computer_science Jessica Ryan (talk) 11:39, 15 August 2013 (UTC)
 * By the way, the NIST database also lists it as "always-go-left hashing" and "2-left scheme". I don't know if it goes by a more common name in other places. Jessica Ryan (talk) 12:00, 15 August 2013 (UTC)

Looking for a blu ray player for Vista laptop
Hi all, I've just bought an external (usb attached) blu-ray/dvd player (manufactured by Buffalo Inc.) for my Vaio laptop with Vista. I can play dvds, but somehow not blu-ray discs. Does anyone know a good free blu ray player for Windows? Also, if I want to attach it to my obsolete (2007) dvd player, what would that usually entail? The dvd player has hdmi slots among other things (but I think it's hdmi output only), and the digital tv (2011 or 2012) has all the usual stuff, but nothing onboard (ie. all sorts of attachments but no hard disk of its own etc). I can't find a usb slot on either the dvd or the tv. The blu ray player has only the usb connector. I've tried VLC, but it didn't play the blu ray, and kept giving me cryptic error messages. IBE (talk) 15:13, 15 August 2013 (UTC)
 * Even if they have USB ports, your TV and DVD player aren't going to be able to use the drive to play a blu-ray disc, because they won't have the software needed to actually interpret blu-ray data. Comparison of video player software may be able to help you find PC software to play a blu-ray. I don't have experience with blu-rays on computers. Jessica Ryan (talk) 15:40, 15 August 2013 (UTC)


 * Thanks - because I'd found that article you linked, but couldn't find the bit on what plays blu-rays (it's abbreviated to "BD", hence the oversight, because control-f doesn't get you out of that one ;). No wonder my AVC etc doesn't work, because they don't do blu-ray. I'll try some other ones there - didn't know blu-ray was so finnicky. IBE (talk) 16:10, 15 August 2013 (UTC)

More on batteries...
Here's the next in my series of battery-related questions. Now that it's been firmly established that I cannot leave my electronic devices without a charge for too long, the next question is: how long is too long? For this thread I'd just like to focus on my Sony PSP; as it is important to me for its multimedia capabilities, but I can go months without using it (also it's easy to get at the battery! ;) So, on the battery it says: 3.6v and 1200mAh. I am wondering how long this battery can be left without a recharge? Not what its capacity is; I want to know how long I can not use it (have it in storage) without bringing it out for a recharge. I know that there is a variable as to how much charge it has when I stop using it, so I'd just like a rough estimate (or maybe one for full, half, and empty?) I don't know a lot about batteries so if I haven't given enough information, or I'm not making sense, then I'll provide more. Any information at all is greatly appreciated. Thanks! --.Yellow1996.(ЬMИED¡) 16:37, 15 August 2013 (UTC)


 * Months should be no problem if you leave it with 40% to 60% charge. If you are leaving it for a year or more, then you might wish to try putting the battery in the fridge to reduce self-discharge.  The age of the battery, and how many times it has previously been charged, are additional factors that will affect how long you can leave it without using it.  I'd go for recharging every six months, but that's only an opinion.  Perhaps someone else can point to some references?    D b f i r s   07:41, 16 August 2013 (UTC)


 * I know I've had some devices with lithium-ion batteries come with charging and storage advice. Have you checked the manual for your PSP? Jessica Ryan (talk) 15:13, 16 August 2013 (UTC)


 * Thanks for the replies. Okay, Dbfirs, that's pretty much how it usually goes. I'd guess my PSP is usually around 40-60% charge (maybe sometimes even higher) when I store it. And - coincidentally - it always seems to be around 5 or 6 months when I take a break from it; and I very rarely go longer. To answer Jessica's question - unfortunately, I got my PSP second-hand several years ago, so without the box or manual. I didn't know that those manuals sometimes have that information in them; I'll try looking online to see if I can find a copy of the manual. Thanks, you two! :) --.Yellow1996.(ЬMИED¡) 16:23, 16 August 2013 (UTC)