Quick Tip: Change the Launchy Hotkey

One more thing on the previously-mentioned Launchy application launcher:

I noticed that when playing Battlefield 2, some of my key configurations were messed up, such as the Space bar. I then realized that the Space bar was one of the keys used to call up Launchy. So, I opened Launchy, right-clicked, chose “Hotkey” and changed it to something not involving the Space bar. Now Battlefield 2 works fine. So, if you’re having trouble with any key commands, your solution may be as simple as changing Launchy’s hotkey.

FireFTP: An Alternative for those who Live Within Firefox

About two weeks ago, I started having trouble with my previously-recommended FTP client SmartFTP. Since I spend so much time within Firefox, I went on the search for an extension to allow me to transfer files right from the browser. The highest-rated and most popular extension that I came across was FireFTP. The interface is clean and simpler than SmartFTP. Set your login information, click connect and you can immediately start moving files back and forth. I like the arrow buttons that tell me which way I am transferring (local storage or FTP); I’m a visual person. So, if you like Firefox as much as I do, give FireFTP a try. I think it may be more to your liking than a regular FTP application.

FireFTP – The Free FTP Client for Mozilla Firefox

(Note: As you can see, I’m going to start putting prominent links below the post body to make things easier to find.)

Launch Applications, Bookmarks and more with Launchy

I cycle through favorite applications, and for a few weeks now the top runner has been Launchy. Whether you need to launch applications, Firefox bookmarks, music, video, photos or anything else, Launchy can do it. All you need to do is specify which directories it should index and the file types it should look for. Then, press Alt+Space (or whatever key combination you define) and up comes a dialog box for you to type what you are looking for. Launchy will try to give you suggestions to save you keystrokes. Launchy is also skinnable, so you can customize it to look however you please. And if you are into portable apps, you can even put it onto a USB drive. But my most favorite feature of Launchy is its ability to handle Firefox quick searches. I’m a fan of political cartoons, so if I want to find one about Iran, I just key in Alt+Space, polcartsearch Iran, Enter. It is amazing. Once you check out Launchy for yourself, you won’t turn back to the Start Menu.

For Updating Pro Websites, SmartFTP Can’t be Beat

The professional website that I work on (yes, I do have a day job) just underwent a major upgrade. New hosting, new domain name, the whole nine yards. This new site comes with FTP support. At first, I didn’t see the problem with a built-in HTML editor. But now, with this much larger site, I needed the powerful capabilities of a standalone FTP client. The first one I came across was SmartFTP. Once installed, I was logged in to the website and transferring files in minutes. I mainly use it for simple purposes, but I hear that you can make it as advanced as you want. If you are just starting out with FTP but still want room to expand, I definitely recommend SmartFTP.

A Simpler Twist on Todo.txt

I was perusing Slacker Manager the other day when I came across their “Best Of” section. There are many interesting posts featured there, but one caught my eye. It is called “Append to text file v.4” Using the free program AutoHotkey as a base, this post gives you a script that allows you to append text to a text file with a timestamp. This could have many uses: research, a worklog, etc., but I chose to use it for a to-do list. Keyboard shortcuts allow you to easily append text, dump the clipboard into the file or call up the file itself. With some simple editing of the script file, you can set the path of the text file to be anywhere on your computer. I will try this out for a few weeks , but at the moment it seems like a much simpler alternative to the previously-discussed Cygwin method of Todo.txt.

VCD = Video-Caused Destruction

Sometimes, free software just isn’t right for the job. Take VCDs, for example. They are supposed to be called Video Compact Discs. but I have come up with a new acronym: Video-Caused Destruction. Let me explain.

I was awake until 2:30am on Christmas morning. Never again will I attempt to compile a video project without a DVD burner. I was forced to use a VCD: the low-quality alternatives to DVDs burned onto CD-Rs or -RWs. I was creating a video compilation as a present to a family member. I ripped some (non-copy-protected) DVDs to my computer and added pictures, music, narration and interviews. I used Windows Movie Maker for the editing. When it came time to burn, I converted the existing file to an AVI file and tried to use a free program called Avi2Dvd to create a burnable disk image. After selecting the AVI, I found that I could not select an audio stream. So, the program allowed me to use the original WMV file. I encoded it and used ImgBurn (also free) to burn a BIN file. When I originally played it, it was fine at the beginning but the audio cut out after about two minutes. After careful inspection of the encoded audio stream, I discovered that it was, in fact, a problem with the encoding process. I tried encoding using different settings, but the audio stream only fluctuated in length and was never complete. Finally, I used Audacity to record the audio manually using a double-ended cable hooked to my Line-in/out jacks. I created an ISO of the encoded MPG file, but it did not burn as a VCD. It only burnt as a single file. But, alas, it played with full audio on the home DVD player after hours of work.

The moral of this story? I want a DVD burner.

Dark Room: Focus on Writing

Dark Room is an extremely simple text editor: a black background and green text. The basic Save and Print features are present, but not much else. The point of Dark Room is that there are no distractions (it launches by default into full-screen mode). Also, the color scheme is easier on the eyes than black-on-white. Very good app if you are easily distracted.

they.misled.us » Dark Room