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After reading Kevin Purdy’s nice little post on Lifehacker about copying one file to avoid the hassle of reactivating your Windows install, I thought I’d offer my pro tip on the subject.

How to answer the voice prompts or operator to get them to authorize your install if you have to phone.

Once you’ve picked your country, called in, and punched in all the digits from your screen, you’ll either be given an acitvation code or told “I’m sorry,” by Inoffensive Robot Operator Woman. One of two things will happen: you’ll be transferred to a live operator or the Robotess will begin probing you. Either way, your answers will be the same.

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One of my biggest annoyances with installing a new app is getting all the way to the end and seeing this: “Your system must be restarted to complete installation.”

Oh hell no. This is my computer, and I reboot it when I want to reboot it. I don’t care if your fancy installer doesn’t have a restart later button. I don’t care that you’ve booby trapped it so that if I click ok, finish, or the corner X that I’m screwed. I’ve got you figured out.

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Everybody knows about using VMware to test out operating systems - it’s a great way to sample thirteen or forty Linux distributions so you can find one you really like without reformatting your hard drive to death. But why not try out some of these interesting gems while you’re at it - VMware appliances are good for more than just testing, after all! Read On »

It seems like everyone and their mother wants to find out what “this Linux thing” is all about. Well, it’s time they found out. There are so many ways to try it out (are you listening Windows and OSX?) that there’s no reason not to have a go at it. I’ll be your tour guide on this journey, as we descend from the heights of user friendliness and comfort into the depths of the unfamiliar OS.

Here we go! Read On »

Granted my in-house network is pretty small compared to what some of you are looking after, but we’re all faced with the same kinds of problems. We need to be able to maximize uptime and keep producitivity at the highest level possible. That, and we need to minimize the number of annoying tech support calls to our desks.

Here’s part one of my arsenal of apps - they keep things running smoothly, cost nothing, and make sure I’ve got plenty of time to relax and write blog posts. Read On »

So many of the posts I read on the ‘net about removing a forgotten Windows password recommend using a Linux boot disc called “l0pht crack.” It’s a brute force cracking application, so it basically just searches millions of alphanumeric combinations until it finds the one that works. Personally, I’ve never understood why. There are two perfectly good ways to do it that are much faster and much easier. Read On »