Excel started coming up with default headers, footers, and content. I didn’t like it. The solution is to delete book.xltx from C:\Program Files\Microsoft Office\Office12\XLSTART.

Outlook Calendar used to work correctly offline. I could create new appointments while offline, and they'd sync when I went back online. Then one day I started receiving this error message:

Microsoft Office Outlook
Could not save item.  The connection to Microsoft Exchange is unavailable.  Outlook must be online or connected to complete this action.

I don't know why, or how to really fix it, but here's a work-around.

In the lower-right corner of the Outlook window, where it says "Disconnected" -- change that drop-down to say "Work Offline".

 

I want to edit HTML code and see character-by-character live preview.

I want really good code completion.  When I "<tag>" I definitely want "</tag>"

I want to be able to WYSIWYG edit and see HTML code change.

I want to do this on the Mac.

I don't want to spend a fortune.

 

Espresso 2.0.1 does decent char-by-char live preview. I'm pleased with its code completion (use the TAB key).  I suspect that HTMLBundle.sugar might improve code completion (for HTML only).  It does live-preview, but not WYSIWYG editing.  I can't find any doc on how to use it. Launches in 1 second.

 

Coda 1.7.5 does decent auto-complete, but only click-another-tab preview.  It has no WYSIWYG editing. It looks like maybe the "Lively" plug-in gets you live-preview in another window. Starts in 3.5 seconds.

 

Flux 3 has nice WYSIWYG editing, tolerable live-preview, and worthless (not context-aware) auto-completion.  Best used for WYSIWYG editing with a few tweaks in HTML.

 

Chocolat 0.8 has good char-by-char live preview​, but you can't control the relative size of the code/preview.  It does Markdown live-preview too.  It reportedly can import TextMate bundles and themes.  It starts in 2 seconds.  No doc.

 

http://htmledit.squarefree.com/ does char-by-char live preview, but nothing else.

http://fundisom.com/live_preview.html does char-by-char live preview, but little else.

 

I like the code completion in Aptana (Eclipse), but you have to save the file to get the preview.  It takes 7 seconds to launch.  First launch of the day is 20 seconds.  Code auto-complete is inadequate.

 

http://livereload.com/ gets browser auto-reload on file saved for any editor for $10.  Sublime has a plug-in that mostly does the same thing for free; I could only get it working with Chrome and only with http:// URLs.

 

Ordinary text editors:

* SublimeText 2 launches in 3 seconds for the first launch after boot, and launches in 1 second otherwise. Choosing options is via editing text files.  :-(  Sublime's unofficial doc is at http://readthedocs.org/docs/sublime-text-unofficial-documentation .  "Snippets" are good. Sublime works on Mac, Windows, Ubuntu.

* TextMate launches in 1 second.

* Cocoa Emacs  (http://emacsformacosx.com/about) launches in 1 second.

* macvim (http://code.google.com/p/macvim/) launches in 1 second.

* Komodo Edit launches in 4 seconds.  Preview on file-save only. It runs on Linux, Mac, Windows.

 

Emacs and Vim are great editors, and if I coded all day, every day, I could stay proficient enough in one to make it worthwhile.  "Stale" in either one is frustrating.  Emacs pinky is a problem too.  For new languages/concepts, they always happen first in Emacs.

 

 

At this point it looks like the following contenders:

* An ordinary text editor (Sublime Text 2 or TextMate or BBEdit or Komodo Edit) $60/$55/$50/$0 and LiveReload @ $10.

   - Note: A single Sublime license can be used by one user in both Windows and OS X.

* Chocolat @ $35/50 (beta/final).  If it were finished, it *might* be really good.

* Espresso @ $80

* Emacs @ $0

* If I really want to do WYSIWYG editing, I could use Kompozer @ $0

 

For now, I think I'll use Sublime Text 2, and keep an eye on Chocolat and Expresso.

Update: 2013.06.28
My life has sub-projects. Nirvana and Things don’t. It has become a problem. I’m not interested in simulating sub-projects with tags. (It gets awkward fast.)
OmniFocus has sub-projects, but it doesn’t have tags. That’s a problem because I want to tag some of my tasks with my boss’s name or his boss’s name or HIS boss’s name. I need to be able to find all the thing’s that an executive has put on my plate, for when I talk with him. This is not a single-context solution, because I’m not going to work on the item in the exec context – I’m going to work on it in some other context and I have to report on it in the exec context.
 
I have to be able to have either tags or multiple contexts. OmniFocus can’t do that (but I have a hack for that below). I have to be able to have sub-projects. Things and Nirvana can’t do that. MyLifeOrganized does multiple contexts (which works like tags) and subprojects.
 
To hack OmniFocus to simulate tags, enter a unique string, either in the task text or in the task note. In my case, I could use “[tom]” or “[richard]” or “[bill]” (or I could use “[executive]”). I can use OmniFocus search to search for these, and I can create OmniFocus perspectives to display all exec tasks.
 
Or I could use MyLifeOrganized (but it doesn’t do AppleScript). And it is ugly (IMHO). And it doesn’t work real elegantly with a Mac keyboard because it likes Insert.

---

I’ve been using Nirvana (2 - beta). It works well for me with some exceptions:

• I'd like to see Areas in the sidebar, similar to Things.
• I'd like to have Folders, similar to OmniFocus. (This would make Areas irrelevant.)
• I'd like to have an AppleScript API. (I've cobbled together a quick-add AppleScript for Nirvana.)
• Uh... When are they going to start charging for it. Free isn't a long term business model. </ul> Turning things around, Cultured Code's Things looks good except:
  • I'd like to see tag clouds or to make the tags window capable of filtering based on selected tags similar to Nirvana. (Global search-by-tag, by picking the tag, not entering it in the search window.)
  • I'd like to have Folders, similar to OmniFocus.
  • The length of time they took to release cloud sync leaves me concerned for their long-term viability. </ul> OmniFocus has these shortcomings:
    • For Mac+iPhone+iPad it is mighty expensive.
    • Some people say it is too complex. I need to evaluate that for myself. </ul> Some givens:
      • I'm going to use a GUI (i.e. not todo.txt)
      • I'm going to use it on my Mac and my iPhone
      • I have to be able to get my data out of it and into another tool at some point in the future. </ul>

This has been removed because I decided it revealed too broad an attack vector.

(Keyword fodder: Applications I Use - What Goes Where)

There are two things you have to install – the mod, and the code to change Minecraft to use the mod. We’ll start with the code to load the mod.

In the instructions that follow, substitute your Windows user name for ‘Stanley’. e.g. If you login with the user name ‘bob’, put ‘bob’ everywhere I put ‘Stanley’.

Installing the Code to Load the Mod (The "mod-loader.")

• Download http://dl.dropbox.com/u/20629262/Latest/ModLoader.zip
  • Note that this download could vanish without warning. If it does, Google for "ModLoader Risugami". If you find it, great. Be aware that what you find MIGHT contain code that will erase all your files. There's no way to tell in advance. Good luck! When they come out with a new version of minecraft, you'll need a new version of ModLoader.zip. There's no telling where you'll find that. I expect that it will NOT be the same web address as this version (but it COULD be).
  • Save ModLoader.zip to your desktop. </ul>
  • While holding the Windows key down, press and release the E key. This will open Windows Explorer. (Not Internet Explorer -- Windows Explorer.)
  • If your Windows Explerer does NOT have an Address box (a field near the top of the window labeled 'Address'), right-click on the menu or the toolbar, and click on 'Address Bar'. This will cause an Address box to appear.
  • Enter the following in the address bar:
    • D:\Documents and Settings\Stanley\Application Data\.minecraft\bin
      • Pay attention -- There is a period in front of "minecraft" (and it is after the "\".) </ul> </ul>
      • Make a copy of the file named minecraft.jar. Put this copy someplace safe. If you mess everything up, replace your messed up minecraft.jar with this copy and you'll un-do everything you've done. I won't talk about this backup file any more.
      • A jar file is just a zip file with a funny name. A zip file is just one big file that contains many little files. Windows doesn't know how to work with jar files, but it knows how to work with zip files, so rename minecraft.jar to minecraft.zip. Windows gets nervous when you rename the part of a file name that follows the period, so when it asks if you are sure, tell it that you are.
      • Open minecraft.zip. (Click on it. If it doesn't open, press Enter.) You'll see all of the little files inside it.
      • Open modloader.zip. (Reminder: You downloaded this to your desktop.)
      • Create a temporary folder on your disk. (Open D:\ and create a folder there.)
      • Copy the contents of modloader.zip (select them all and press control-C) and paste them into the temporary folder (click white space inside the temporary folder and press control-V ).
      • Copy the contents of the temporary folder to minecraft.zip
      • Delete the temporary folder..
      • Inside minecraft.zip, there MIGHT be a folder named "META-INF". If there is, delete it.
      • Close minecraft.zip. (Just like you would close any other Windows Explorer window.)
      • Rename minecraft.zip to minecraft.jar. </ul>

        Installing the Mod

        • Download http://www.mediafire.com/download.php?3lnbnb1hu8tcl7t to your desktop and name the file ClaySoldiersMod.zip .
          • Note that this download could vanish without warning. If it does, go to the Minecraft forums and ask them where it went. If you find it, great. Be aware that what you find MIGHT contain code that will erase all your files. There's no way to tell in advance. Good luck! When they come out with a new version of minecraft, you'll need a new version of ClaySoldiersMod_v_41.zip. There's no telling where you'll find that. I expect that it will NOT be the same web address as this version (but it COULD be). </ul>
          • While holding the Windows key down, press and release the E key. This will open Windows Explorer. (Not Internet Explorer -- Windows Explorer.)
          • If your Windows Explerer does NOT have an Address box (a field near the top of the window labeled 'Address'), right-click on the menu or the toolbar, and click on 'Address Bar'. This will cause an Address box to appear.
          • Enter the following in the address bar:
            • D:\Documents and Settings\Stanley\Application Data\.minecraft\bin
              • Pay attention -- There is a period in front of "minecraft" (and it is after the "\".) </ul> </ul>
              • Make a copy of the file named minecraft.jar. Put this copy someplace safe. If you mess everything up, replace your messed up minecraft.jar with this copy and you'll un-do everything you've done. I won't talk about this backup file any more.
              • A jar file is just a zip file with a funny name. A zip file is just one big file that contains many little files. Windows doesn't know how to work with jar files, but it knows how to work with zip files, so rename minecraft.jar to minecraft.zip. Windows gets nervous when you rename the part of a file name that follows the period, so when it asks if you are sure, tell it that you are.
              • Open minecraft.zip. (Click on it. If it doesn't open, press Enter.) You'll see all of the little files inside it.
              • Open ClaySoldiersMod.zip. (Reminder: You downloaded this to your desktop.)
              • Create a temporary folder on your disk. (Open D:\ and create a folder there.)
              • Copy the contents of ClaySoldiersMod.zip (select them all and press control-C) and paste them into the temporary folder (click white space inside the temporary folder and press control-V ).
              • Copy the contents of the temporary folder to minecraft.zip
              • Delete the temporary folder..
              • Copy the contents of ClaySoldiersMod.zip (select them all and press control-C) and paste them into minecraft.zip (click white space inside minecraft.zip, and then press control-V).
              • Inside minecraft.zip, there MIGHT be a folder named "META-INF". If there is, delete it.
              • Close minecraft.zip. (Just like you would close any other Windows Explorer window.)
              • Rename minecraft.zip to minecraft.jar.
              • Check to make sure you can still run Minecraft. If you can't, replace minecraft.jar with the backup you made, and try again. </ul> If this doesn't work, ask for help in the Minecraft forums. Good luck!

Here’s how to find the optimum MTU from a Windows PC to a server. Note that you can’t really have an optimum MTU that works to ALL servers, because some of them will be on networks with unusual MTUs, so pick a server and tune to it. In the discussion which follows, I’ve assumed your server is at 10.11.12.13. Substitute the address of YOUR server.

• ping 139.76.90.5 -f -l 1500
  • Note that is a lower case F and a lower case L.
  • This will almost certainly produce a fragmentation error message.</ul>
  • Reduce the ping length ( the “1500” in the step above) by 25 and repeat the ping. If you get a fragmentation error, repeat this step, reducing by 25 each time, until you get a successful ping.
  • Increase the ping length by 4, and repeat the ping. If you DON’T get a fragmentation error, repeat this step, increasing by 4 each time until you get a failed ping.
  • Reduce the ping length by 1, until you do NOT get a fragmentation error. </ul> That last number is your MTU. If you want to change your PC's MTU, update HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\Tcpip\Parameters\Interfaces\\MTU in your registry.

Suppose you have two computers – we’ll call one ‘Client’ and the other ‘Server’ – and you’re experiencing dropped frames somewhere between them. You’d like to know exactly which hop is dropping them, so you know who to call to fix the problem. Here’s a step-by-step guide to identify which link is dropping your data.

Some assumptions:

• We'll assume that Client is client.example.com and Server is server.example.com.
• I'll assume that Client is a Windows PC. If you're using a Unix based system, substitute "traceroute" where I've said "tracert".
• When I say "ping the router", I want you to use your operating system's ping command, with the necessary options to cause ping to continuously ping that router's IP address until you press Control-C. On Windows this might look like, "ping -t 127.0.0.1" </ul> The steps:
  1. From Client, run this command: tracert server.example.com
  2. You'll get a long list of times and IP addresses. Make a list of those IP addresses (on paper, in Notepad, with vi, etc.).
     • Make sure you keep those addresses in the same sequence that tracert provided them.
     • For any rows where tracert does not print an address, just ignore that row.
     • Number your list from 1 to n, where n is the number of addresses.
     • For the rest of these instructions, I'll assume that n is 20. </ul>
     • ping the last router (e.g. The 20th address.)
       • Depending on how bad your packet loss is, you may immediately see errors about timeouts, or you may have to let it run for a few minutes. If you don't see any errors, you're not CURRENTLY experiencing packet loss, so try again later.
       • Notice how long it takes you to get your first error. Take that time and multiply it by 4. For subsequent steps in this guide, the x4 time is how long you have to wait before you decide that your link is clean if you don't get an error. (e.g. If you get an error after 10 seconds, you'll use 40 seconds in the remaining steps.) We'll call this WAIT_TIME. </ul>
       • Now ping your middle router. (e.g. The 10th address). Wait up to WAIT_TIME seconds or until you get an error, whichever comes first.
       • If you got an error, delete all routers in your list which you've numbered higher than this router. (e.g. 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20). If you did NOT get an error, delete all the routers numbered lower than this router, and also delete this router. (e.g. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10)
       • Re-number your list of routers. </ol> Repeat the last 3 steps in the list above, until you can identify the router closest to Client where errors happen. Your packets are getting dropped between that router, and the router which is one hop nearer to Client. Call the owner of that link (or call the owners for EACH of these 2 routers).

My garage door opener stopped working. After experimenting a bit, I discovered that it worked only when a remote was VERY near (e.g. within 6 inches of the antenna).
I replaced the battery, tried a different remote, power-cycled the opener. No joy.
But then one day, I happened to press a button on the remote when it was inside my house, at the other end from the garage, and the door opened. Very strange.
I checked Google, and there are plenty of people with the problem, and they tend to blame RF (radio) interference or a disconnected antenna wire.
I got up on a ladder, to inspect the antenna connection to the logic board. To open the cover, I had to remove the light bulb. The LED bulb. The RF noisy LED bulb.
The new LED bulb was the source of the problem. I didn’t notice it right away because the opener worked so long as the light was off.

 

Before you replace your Craftsman/Chaimberlain garage door opener because the remotes stopped working, try unscrewing the LED light bulbs.