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VNC – Free Open-source Alternative to the Remote Desktop Protocol

Published on April 19th, 2007
Category: Cool Stuff, Internet, User Interface
10 Comments

Imagine this: You are at a friend’s house cracking the wireless network of his neighbor. You suddenly remember that you need the dictionary file that was pre-hashed on your home computer. Or picture this: You’re on a business trip and you realize that you forgot to generate the current quarter’s expense report. You need to access the business software on your office computer! Wouldn’t it be cool if you could connect to your computer remotely and view the desktop from your laptop just as you were right in from the of screen?

Remote computer access is possible these days. In these two scenarios, you have three options. For one, you can purchase a subscription to services like pcAnywhere or GoToMyPC. Another thing you can use is the built-in, proprietary Windows Remote Desktop Protocol. Your last option is Virtual Network Computing.
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Music Brainz – Automatic Mass MP3 ID3 Tagging

Published on April 12th, 2007
Category: Audio and Video, Cool Stuff, Entertainment, Utilities
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The landscape of the music entertainment industry has never been the same since the late 1990s. A new form of audiophile music distribution using MP3s, Napster, Winamp, CD Ripping, and CD Burning contributed to this change. Unfortunately, with this new music revolution, we also had to deal with the byproducts of unlabeled files. One of my pet peeves is when I see an audio file mislabeled -or worse – not labeled at all. I can’t stand it when some of my MP3s are generically tagged as “Track 4” by “Unknown Artist.” I even have to make sure that the album graphics cover, in addition to the track information, shows while it is playing on my computer and portable multimedia player.

Whether or not your music was legally or illegally obtained by file sharing, CD ripping, or iTunes purchasing, it is still vulnerable to the danger of not having a label. Usually, the number of unlabeled files slowly accumulates. Then, it becomes a pain to actually hand edit each and every unlabeled file.
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VMWare Player and Virtual PC – An OS in an OS

Published on February 9th, 2007
Category: Cool Stuff, Utilities
3 Comments

After a decade of plain-jane, boring, error-prone Windows machines, alternatives began to rise in popularity. This is the time when many of today’s die-hard Apple and Linux users were born. I knew an Apple-only friend who would debate with me the pros and cons of owning an Apple or a PC. One of my main arguments was compatibility. Most programs are originally for Intel-architecture Windows PCs. His comeback, OS X can run Virtual PC, which can run windows, which can run any program you want. At the time Virtual PC cost several hundred dollars. Plus, another Windows operating system purchase would be necessary for legal purposes … and that’s not much fun is it?
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