Chris Hubbard

I recently changed PCs at work. I am now running Windows 7 x64 on a Quad Core with 4GB of memory.  Sweet! 

I was running bulk call simulations that would generate 20-30 calls/sec and our logging would generate gigabytes of logs.  So I got another 1TB disk to store all of this data and any other logs that I would look at for different support scenarios.

I brought the disk over to the new machine and forgot about it since I wasn’t running those simulations anymore.  I realized today that the drive was not showing up.  The IT guy was in the office looking at another problem (actually my previous PC failed to boot after I rebooted the day I switched machines!).

We looked at the disk management node under computer management.  I saw a disk, but it had a yellow exclamation next to it.  That can’t be good!

I heard him exclaim, “who setup the disk as a Dynamic Partition?!?!”  I sheepishly ask why that mattered.  It turns out that “Dynamic” means that it can only be used on the original PC that it was created on (which will no longer boot).  Maybe a name other than “Dynamic” should have been used to describe this type of partition.  Heavy Sigh…

Note to self: Don’t use dynamic partitions (if I want the data to be portable).

There is a very convenient button on my keyboard for launching my email client.  However, if I have a remote desktop session running at the same time, the key sequence will get sent to the remote machine which would never have an email client configured and I have to cancel through several dialogs while Outlook Express is insisting that you create an account so that it can get started.  This has annoyed me for years.

I finally spent the time to figure out how to stop this behavior.  Windows will use the email client setup in Internet Explorer’s programs configuration, which defaults to Outlook Express.

I used Process Monitor to watch for registry access.  First I selected only to monitor registry changes.  Then I included iexplore.exe and then excluded all the registry operations that I was not interested in.  When I launched the options dialog in IE, I saw that it was enumerating the [HKLM\SOFTWARE\Clients\Mail] registry path.  I went to that path and saw that the default value was “Outlook Express” just like it is displayed in the options dialog.

I cleared the default value and went back to IE and verified that the “E-Mail” program entry was cleared.  I hit the email button and…nothing!  Just what I wanted!  Now I have to remember this so that I can clear this setting when I connect to a new server (hence the reason for this post)!

I was watching the MIX09 Day One Keynote by Bill Buxton and Scott Guthrie.  There was a demonstration of Expression Web SuperPreview which was very interesting.  This is a product that embeds multiple browsers (either ones that are installed or even externally hosted browsers like Safari on the Mac through web services) simultaneously and lets you compare the output in realtime.  You can highlight an element in one browser and see the difference in another.  It requires IE 8 and it currently in beta and will continue to be free when GA.

By Charles Thomas Studd, Missionary to China, India, and Africa

Two little lines I heard one day, Traveling along life’s busy way;
Bringing conviction to my heart, And from my mind would not depart;
Only one life, ’twill soon be past, Only what’s done for Christ will last.

Only one life, yes only one, Soon will its fleeting hours be done;
Then, in ‘that day’ my Lord to meet, And stand before His Judgment seat;
Only one life,’ twill soon be past, Only what’s done for Christ will last.

Only one life, the still small voice, Gently pleads for a better choice
Bidding me selfish aims to leave, And to God’s holy will to cleave;
Only one life, ’twill soon be past, Only what’s done for Christ will last.

Only one life, a few brief years, Each with its burdens, hopes, and fears;
Each with its clays I must fulfill, living for self or in His will;
Only one life, ’twill soon be past, Only what’s done for Christ will last.

When this bright world would tempt me sore, When Satan would a victory score;
When self would seek to have its way, Then help me Lord with joy to say;
Only one life, ’twill soon be past, Only what’s done for Christ will last.

Give me Father, a purpose deep, In joy or sorrow Thy word to keep;
Faithful and true what e’er the strife, Pleasing Thee in my daily life;
Only one life, ’twill soon be past, Only what’s done for Christ will last.

Oh let my love with fervor burn, And from the world now let me turn;
Living for Thee, and Thee alone, Bringing Thee pleasure on Thy throne;
Only one life, “twill soon be past, Only what’s done for Christ will last.

Only one life, yes only one, Now let me say, “Thy will be done”;
And when at last I’ll hear the call, I know I’ll say ’twas worth it all”;
Only one life,’ twill soon be past, Only what’s done for Christ will last.

Our one year old has really taken to eating table food, much quicker than our other three did.  Often we can barely get it on her tray before she is already going to town on dinner. 

Being a one year old, she doesn’t get everything to her mouth and we have some really nice pocket bibs that catch the food.  When we take the tray off, she squeals a little as she finds the remains that didn’t make it to her mouth and gets another portion.  My wife has coined this as ‘Happiness in a Bib.’

Tonight we had pizza casserole and she really liked it.  My wife couldn’t get a bite before her tray was empty and was signing for more.  When we took the tray off this time, the pocket was pretty full and her big brother said, “That’s Happiness!”