Wikipedia:Reference desk/Archives/Computing/2008 May 13

Computing desk
< May 12	<< Apr | May | Jun >>	May 14 >

Welcome to the Wikipedia Computing Reference Desk Archives
The page you are currently viewing is an archive page. While you can leave answers for any questions shown below, please ask new questions on one of the current reference desk pages.

May 13

cgi proxies

Does anyone know of alternatives to CGIProxy? I'm looking for SSL support. On Windows, setting up CGIProxy for SSL is a tall order for non-Perl geeks, requiring a classic "I can't get it to install" Perl module. –Outriggr § 00:49, 13 May 2008 (UTC)

Need a good PC emulator

Hi! I need a good emulator for a common PC system (i.e., I need a virtual PC). I have MS Virtual PC but the graphics card is very bad. Is there an emulator that allows me to use my real hardware with a virtual hard disk, or at least one that emulates a relatively fast graphics card? Thing is, I'd like to run some things under Windows 98 (second edition) since they don't work on Windows XP but I only have hard disks that are too big for Windows 98. --Con^structor 01:26, 13 May 2008 (UTC)

No. VMWare Fusion and Parallels Desktop for OS X will pass some instructions directly to the GPU, but everything else does 3d in software. If your HDD is too big, you can try resizing the existing partitions and creating a small one with a GParted LiveCD. As far as I know there's no way to run Windows 98 in a loop device (like Wubi (Ubuntu)) nor any way to run it in a live CD, so you're stuck unless you can properly install the OS. Have you tried compatibility mode in XP? 206.126.163.20 (talk) 03:37, 13 May 2008 (UTC)

Yes, I tried. Basically it's four games, two of which run and two won't because the graphics card is too bad: Exploration (video game) (aka Christoph Kolumbus (video game)) and Die Völker run while Hexplore and Industry Giant 2 won't run. Exploration needs an entry in the autoexec.bat file (however, this can be resolved by using DosBox, too), Die Völker has an issue with my graphics card (GeForce 7300 LE), same for Industry Giant 2. Hexplore crashes after a few seconds for no apparent reason. So it's not so important for me but these were fun back in the days when I used Windows 98. The thing is, it only supports HDs with up to 128 GB and then writes into the data that is not directly accessible normally (I don't know the name, it's where information about files are saved). I had an old HD which would have been useful (160 GB as partition of 127 GB and the rest not used anymore after Windows 98 managed to destroy many files by writing into that "forbidden" area) but sadly gave it away when I got a 500 GB HD. --Con^structor 13:17, 13 May 2008 (UTC)

Ok, for Industry Giant II there seems to be a mod that fixes the issue. So only Hexplore doesn't run now. --Con^structor 13:37, 13 May 2008 (UTC)

It is in fact possible to make a Windows 98 live CD. Take a look at BartPE or this site. -- BenRG (talk) 20:26, 14 May 2008 (UTC)

This is exactly what I want! Many thanks! I'll reply when I got around to do this (if - of course - the thread isn't moved until then). :-) --Con^structor 07:35, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

Coa2.exe is nowhere to be found. --Con^structor 07:58, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

Wait! What would that help me at all? My problem is that the HD is too big. So I just need a virtual HD that can't access the outside. This is what Virtual PC does, just it gives me a hardware instead of letting me use mine. --Con^structor 10:40, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

Right, because it's emulating the hardware. It's an emulator, that's what it does. An emulator that is able to pass all DirectX/OpenGL instructions from Windows 98 to your actual GPU does not exist, and likely will never exist. As far as I know, VMWare Fusion et al only work with XP and above, and since Windows 98 is old and rarely used it's unlikely they'll work in support for it. Because of the way Windows 98 works, and because it's closed-source software, it's pretty unlikely that anyone will come up with a way to run it off a loop device either. What you want does not and will not exist. 206.126.163.20 (talk) 23:06, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

No. BartPE only works with XP or Server 2003, because Microsoft actually designed them that way. See Windows Preinstallation Environment. 206.126.163.20 (talk) 23:06, 15 May 2008 (UTC)

What's the big problem here? I have Windows 98, I have the hardware, now why can't I make a virtual HD and prevent Windows 98 from accessing the real HD? --Con^structor 10:00, 16 May 2008 (UTC)

Oops, sorry about BartPE, I wasn't thinking. The other site does do Windows 98, but it's a complicated process that requires installing on a hard drive as an intermediate step, so there's a chicken-and-egg problem. Maybe you could install to a USB key, since they mimic hard drives a lot more closely than CDROMs do. The difficulty with running Windows off a virtual drive is the bootstrap process. It's another chicken and egg problem. A virtual hard disk driver for Windows 98 is not good enough because you need to load Windows 98 itself off of the virtual hard drive in order to have support for Windows 98 drivers like the virtual hard disk driver. -- BenRG (talk) 15:42, 16 May 2008 (UTC)

Exactly. Again, have you tried to simply create a smaller partition with something like GParted? I'm not sure, but I would think that would work (unless the reason your HDDs don't work is because they're SATA and don't have Windows 98 drivers, in which case it would not). Edit: wow, the preamble on that livecd page is... unique. :D 24.76.169.85 (talk) 19:02, 16 May 2008 (UTC)

They're S-ATA. I think, easiest way is to get another hard disk somewhere... --Con^structor 16:16, 17 May 2008 (UTC)

Electronic dictionaries' added contents

OK so I have one of those heavy duty electronic dictionaries with a load of software/dictionaries pre-installed. It's a Seiko SII SR-MV4800 if it matters. This model has an SD card slot (actually, it's a "SILUCA Red" slot, but phyically it's an SD card slot). Seiko and other brands obviously want people to spend a lot of money on flash upgrades; a single dictionary usually goes for almost $100 US. Rediculous really, when you consider that they are available for free on the internet.

As you may have guessed, I'm wondering if there isn't a way to make my electronic dictionary think that my SD card is the kind of card it needs, and thus install software onto the machine. I'm guessing the card would have to be formatted in a special way, and there are probably some specific instructions for each brand. Does anybody have any information on this? Thanks. 222.159.203.140 (talk) 04:12, 13 May 2008 (UTC)

If you already have one of the disks, try plugging it into the computer (preferably in read-only mode). You will be able to learn more about the file system and the hierarchy then. Please let us know what you find. Kushal (talk) 11:44, 13 May 2008 (UTC)

Good idea. Maybe I can find someone who has one. They're damn expensive though. 222.158.163.117 (talk) 03:10, 14 May 2008 (UTC)

memory card

i saw in a website that continued overwriting of a file (or the whole memory card) will make the memory card unable to save, is this true--119.95.131.139 (talk) 05:34, 13 May 2008 (UTC)?

See Flash memory#Memory wear --tcsetattr (talk / contribs) 06:02, 13 May 2008 (UTC)

What about flash storage being the next generation replacement for hard disks? Kushal (talk) 11:42, 13 May 2008 (UTC)

If the filesystem uses a proper wear levelling algorithm, it will take ten to twenty years of continuous writing to the memory to cause problems. --Carnildo (talk) 22:52, 13 May 2008 (UTC)

software for keeping track of articles, ebooks, notes

I am overflowed with information and would like to organize my private files better. What software could I use for it? (I prefer open-source). --GoingOnTracks (talk) 10:09, 13 May 2008 (UTC)

The thing is called Document management system. X1 Desktop Search could be perhaps very useful to you. This program will index your files and make your life easier (if you want to find something that you know more or less what it is). Some features expire after 30 days, but many interesting features remain active. 217.168.1.200 (talk) 17:50, 13 May 2008 (UTC)

Windows not recognising partitioned flash drive

I have a 4gb flash drive which has a 750MB ext2 partition, 1.5GB ext3 partition (for Ubuntu on a stick) and a 2GB FAT32 partition, in that order. It all works in Ubuntu but in Windows only the first partition shows up, and Windows complains about it not being formatted. In diskmgmt.msc I can see other partitions but when I tried mounting them it requires Admin privileges, which I don't have. Is there something I can do in Ubuntu that can make it recognised in Windows? How do the S3 drives and the like do it? --antilived^{T | C | G} 10:36, 13 May 2008 (UTC)

Well I wasn't aware you could partition flash drives. Perhaps Windows isn't aware of that fact either so it only sees the first partition? Try reordering the partitions so he FAT32 one appears first (probably easier from your Ubuntu install). Astronaut (talk) 12:46, 13 May 2008 (UTC)

Linux: multiple shells in text mode

In Konsole, I can open multiple instances of the shell concurrently, have a program running in each, and switch between them with tabs. Can I do this in text mode as well? If so, what keys must I press to open a new shell, close a shell, or switch the keyboard and screen between shells? Does Linux offer a menu of the open shells analogous to Alt-Tab? Under what circumstances, if any, can a shell that doesn't have the keyboard and screen alert me that it needs my attention? NeonMerlin 12:56, 13 May 2008 (UTC)

GNU Screen supports this. It has also a very nice manual. 89.76.165.87 (talk) 13:22, 13 May 2008 (UTC)

At the computer itself, try Ctrl-Alt-F1 through Ctrl-Alt-F8 for multiple login screens. Through SSH, just open a new SSH terminal. If you want sessions to be open and stay open (even when you are disconnected), use Gnu screen. -- kainaw™ 15:49, 13 May 2008 (UTC)

I fixed your hotkeys. --Tardis (talk) 15:48, 14 May 2008 (UTC)

I also heartily endorse GNU screen. But also I've noticed that newbies ask about methods of managing multiple shells because they haven't learned that they can multitask with a single shell. It's called job control. Hit Ctrl-Z to suspend the current task and get a shell prompt. Run some other stuff, then type "fg" to bring the suspended task back into the foreground. You can even have multiple suspended tasks - type "jobs" to get a list of them, "fg %1", "fg %2", "fg %3", and so on to bring the one you want into the foreground. Learn to use this feature and you'll need fewer active shells. --tcsetattr (talk / contribs) 22:19, 13 May 2008 (UTC)

More on bash's job control: [1] --h2g2bob (talk) 22:45, 13 May 2008 (UTC)

As far as getting attention, the commands switchto or chvt (which uses /dev/tty instead of /dev/console and seems to work more often) might be useful, along with anything that generates sound (you could try echo $'\a' in bash). --Tardis (talk) 15:48, 14 May 2008 (UTC)

indexing software?

Hey, I have Mac OS X Leopard, and am wondering if anyone knows of a good offline file management program? False Prophet (talk) 15:45, 13 May 2008 (UTC)

Depends on what kind of management you need, but you might try the demo for Leap, which is sort of like iTunes/iPhoto but for all other file formats. I have used Yep, a version specifically for PDFs, and found it very useful for finding PDFs on my machine (better than Spotlight), somewhat useful for organizing them. --98.217.8.46 (talk) 16:07, 13 May 2008 (UTC)

I know of a free program . X1 Desktop Search could be perhaps very useful to you. This program will index your files and make your life easier (if you want to find something that you know more or less what it is). Some features expire after 30 days, but many interesting features remain active.217.168.1.200 (talk) 17:59, 13 May 2008 (UTC)

That only works for Windows, though. --98.217.8.46 (talk) 18:02, 13 May 2008 (UTC)

Spotlight (software) and Google Desktop do some form of indexing themselves. However, they are not offline. Maybe you need to look at something like Google Mini? --Kushal (talk) 00:48, 14 May 2008 (UTC)

GTK+: locales, download

1. Where can I find the installer of GTK+ runtime for Windows? 2. How can I force GTK to use the default (en-US) locale instead of system (lt-LT), without deleting {gtk}/share/locale? Again, Windows XP. --grawity 17:57, 13 May 2008 (UTC)

ENTIRE PARTITION GONE!!!

I recently installed a zip drive in my computer. When i installed the drivers, i noticed that my restore partition disappeared! i uninstalled the zip drive and drivers and cleared the drive letter (D:\) but the partition stayed gone. I need some help as now all my device drivers and programs are gone! My computer is an eMachines T5010 tower. Thank you for your help. 31306D696E6E69636B6D (talk) 18:02, 13 May 2008 (UTC)

Maybe it's just hidden? Anyway, try this (sorry if my translation isn't correct): Start -> Settings -> System options -> Administration -> Computer administration -> Hard disk administration. If the partiton still shows up here, it's just hidden. What to do then, I don't know. I remember, there was an option (maybe manually in the registry) to hide partitions. One of mine is hidden because it is in a format windows doesn't recognize (used by a Linux system). However, that's not what we're looking for. We look for a registry key that hides it. --Con^structor 18:48, 13 May 2008 (UTC)

Here's another way, much easier. I found it by googling. --Con^structor 18:50, 13 May 2008 (UTC)

PS: You may have to use assign letter instead assign drive, somebody says in the comments. So if it doesn't work, it may be this. --Con^structor 18:56, 13 May 2008 (UTC)

If all else fails, you can try TestDisk as a last resort. It worked for me when Partition Tragic crashed in the middle of resizing. Sandman30s (talk) 09:23, 14 May 2008 (UTC)

Nope. Nothing is working. I hate technology. Thanks anyhow. 31306D696E6E69636B6D (talk) 13:06, 18 May 2008 (UTC)

Printer Ink Cartridges for Dell Printers

Dell has developed a neat "all-in-One" Printer with a device built into their cartrdges without which the user cannot keep current with the volume of ink left in the cartridge, so when in need of replacement, the user can no longer "watch" the gauge and the message immediately tells him he is out of ink even when he has just installed a fresh refill but not one supplied by Dell. Having decided, for reasons of economy, to take advantage of the Office Depot offering, I have been rebuffed twice by color cartridges that seem to be able to produce only green products, albeit the test printing looks ok with black, yellow, pink and blue swaths.

Is my all-green printing because of my equipment, a flaw in my knowledge, or is it likely that there is a toner or other glitch in the Office Depot "compatible" quality? The Office Depot Technical Assistant could only suggest that I go back to the OD store and exchange the cartridge (for the third time)? —Preceding unsigned comment added by Wtab1921 (talk • contribs) 19:11, 13 May 2008 (UTC)

Are you sure there's not a "reset ink counter" function available from the printer driver setup? If you provide the specific Dell model number, we might be able to find some more details. --LarryMac | Talk 19:52, 13 May 2008 (UTC)

Windows Movie Maker

Is there any way of adjusting the dimensions of snapshots taken with movie maker from, for example, 320x240 to 640x480? Digger3000 (talk) 19:57, 13 May 2008 (UTC)

I suspect you can adjust them down but not up. Some other user with more knowledge than I might clarify this. Stifle (talk) 09:45, 14 May 2008 (UTC)

Snapshots, as in still images? You can absolutely adjust them up or down with just about any piece of graphics editing software, such as Adobe Photoshop. Of course, if you take a 320x240 pixel image and bump it up to 640x480, it'll look pretty ugly and fuzzy blocky (think one thing, type the other, that's my motto), because even though the dimensions of the picture increase, its image resolution does not -- that is to say, it gets bigger, but its level of detail doesn't increase accordingly. So it's probably not a great idea, although in some instances it can be useful -- for example, if you want to make something bigger for ease of inspection and don't mind that the picture quality isn't that high. (It's no worse than it was before, it just looks blockier and uglier.) And yes, the same applies to moving video, of course. -- Captain Disdain (talk) 12:04, 14 May 2008 (UTC)