Archive | 2003

There’s an interesting topic on the FoxForum Wiki on a phenomenon that happens with large tables (close to two gigabytes when records are locked. “HighRangeLockingBug. There is apparently a problem with VFP’s locking scheme, at least on Windows XP. I’ve always thought that VFP locked at (2GB + record number), which was one of the reasons that tables are limited to 2GB. This is wrong. VFP doesn’t lock at… ” from FoxForum Wiki

Ernie’s falling in love with his new machine. No surprise there. Here’s hoping to a long honeymoon… “Switching to OS X – Preview 03. My new 12″ Powerbook has arrived and I’ll have more to say about the wonderful features it has later.  But on the topic of OS X as an operating system here’s the score so far.  I have attached many “windows only” devices to it and they have all been recognized quickly by the Powerbook…. One thing you hear a lot from people who switch to Apple is how “stuff just works.” I’ve got a pretty clear picture now of what they are talking about.

David Pogue reviews battery-powered printers in this review. I’d been considering a portable printer for booth duty at various conferences I attend, but these printers seem a bit expensive and slow for what you get. Since the booths will already have AC power for laptops and projectors, battery power is probably not reason enough to compromise on quality, performance and price. Guess I’ll look at buying an ordinary AC-powered printer… For Printing on the Run, Inkjets to Go. “Tiny new battery-operated printers from Canon and Hewlett-Packard may have you making hard copies on the road. How good are they?” By David Pogue. [New York Times: Technology]

News flash: People want stuff that “Just Works.” BBC: Hi-tech babble baffles many. Link from Scripting News

Man, is Virginia big! Especially on I-81. Lovely scenery, but so much of it! Left the hotel at 6 AM, made too many stops for coffee and breakfast, arrived 1:15 PM. 18 Hours driving, averaging 57 mph and 35 mpg. That’s including a one-hour, 15 mile bumper-to-bumper stretch on I-84 getting out of COnnecticut. All in all, it could have been a lot worse. Glad to be here in one piece.

Made it to Woodstock, Virginia, in one long drive, around eleven hours. New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Connecticut, New York, Pennsylvania, Maryland, and West Virginia along the way. Getting out of Connecticut was murder. And, ten miles short of my destination, another nasty accident in the dark, wet roads resulted in a one mile backup. But, other than that, pretty smooth sailing, especially considering I was keeping the company of many amateur long-distance drivers on this holiday weekend.

Counted plates from every state along the east coast from Maine to Florida, along with D.C., Wisconsin, Minnesota and Alabama. Hoping for another uneventful drive tomorrow.

David Pogue reviews the new Tungsten C in this New York Times story. Not yet available on the street, it just might tempt me back into the Palm world. I gave up on the PDAs when the rate of innovation exceeded my budget, and two Handspring Deluxes in a row turned out to be lemons.