Microsoft

[Griffin NoName]

I just discovered what the nice looking Tune-Up feature does in windows XP.

It takes over your machine for ever.

Insanity again, putting defrag and scan in a tune-up, with no option to deselect them and the tune-up preset to run by default. Although I note that it is auto-set to run at night. So I assume that most people either never get it run as their machine is off or never notice it running as they are asleep.

Once again, I am snarking at a side effect of being in a minority.

And remembering the advice to turn off everything that isn't absolutely necessary.

Goodness, if my kettle had all these built-in processes I'd use a saucepan.

[Sibling Lambicus the Toluous]

I'm trying to decide which is more troubling:

- the fact that a worksheet in Excel is limited to ~65,000 x 256 cells, or
- the fact that I find this limiting.


I'm also wondering how stable Excel is with spreadsheet files in the >100 MB range... I'm starting to get that "skirting the edge of disaster" feeling like when the fuel gauge needle is resting on the pin below the "E", but you keep driving anyway.   

[Griffin NoName]

The Inbox in Outlook Express dies at around 2,000 messages. Excel sounds much superior

[Sibling Lambicus the Toluous]

The Inbox in Outlook Express dies at around 2,000 messages. Excel sounds much superior

Don't count your chickens:

Excel cannot complete this task with available resources.  Choose less data or close other applications.

Looks like I'm going to have to go for a long walk with a jerry can...

[Sibling Lambicus the Toluous]

Yargh.  Did it.  Excel does not like having half a gig of files open at once (the experience is a lot like pushing on a rope), but I did what I had to do.

I am now looking forward to a relaxing weekend with no numbers at all.  I just hope I don't have to phone anyone or tell time.   

[Sibling Zono (anon1mat0)]

I'm trying to decide which is more troubling:

- the fact that a worksheet in Excel is limited to ~65,000 x 256 cells, or
- the fact that I find this limiting.

The second one. If you have 65k rows you shouldn't be working on a spreadsheet but on a database even if it is a toy one like MS Access. Not only is going to be quicker but the limitations will come far later.

Export & forget.

[Kiyoodle the Gambrinous]

I just hope I don't have to phone anyone or tell time.

So, what time is it?


_{(you saw that one coming, didn't you?)}

[Sibling Lambicus the Toluous]

The second one. If you have 65k rows you shouldn't be working on a spreadsheet but on a database even if it is a toy one like MS Access. Not only is going to be quicker but the limitations will come far later.

Hmm.

I hadn't thought of Access, mainly because once all the data is in, I had to do a fair bit of calculation and number-wrangling with it.

But that is an idea.  Maybe I should give Access a closer look next time.


The data wasn't really 65,000 rows long.  It was a ~2000 x 2000 matrix, but the file that's output from the software that generates it only gives four or five cells per row of text.  I could get around the column limitation with a bit of chicanery, but it involved spreading the matrix over 3 worksheets at ~40,000 lines per sheet.

I just hope I don't have to phone anyone or tell time.

So, what time is it?


_{(you saw that one coming, didn't you?)}

I have no idea!!!   

Seriously, if you really need to know, I can call you in a bit.

... wait ...   

[Griffin NoName]

Microsoft have a new method of torture.

Onecare message: trojan/{name}: unable to quarantine.

Searching their support site informs one that this means :  we have blocked the trojan but we haven't written the software modules to tell you what file is infected or where it is.

Seems Onecare is a bit like a weather report. It can (hmm may?) tell you the cyclone is on the way but not how to avoid it.

[Sibling Zono (anon1mat0)]

Aren't Spybot S&D and AdAware working for you?
---
I trust Microsoft security measures/tools as I trust (and like) Vista.

[Griffin NoName]

Onecare was a line of least resistance when I upgraded to XP - let MS run the whole bl**dy show. It's the occasional use machine not the one I use all the time, so I was prepared to prove to myself it was a mistake

I think Onecare is like using selophane to mop up blood spills. ie. only suitable for the Pirate Insult thread. Compared to Norton, it does run without me noticing it, but I think that's mainly because it's not yet bloated with code that actually attempts to do the job one wants done - like telling you which file is infected

[Sibling Zono (anon1mat0)]

There should be a balance between:

MS (useless) <-------|-------> Norton (partly useless, bloated & buggy)

I use the typical free tools: Firefox (with the AdBlock plugin), AVG, Spybot S&D, AdAware, and sometimes ZoneAlarm, but I am aware that certain infections are the end of the system (ie: delete system folder and re-install).

If you don't want all that hassle try ubuntu. Seriously, it does most of the things you may need and it is usually a painless install that can be done as dual boot (win & lin).

[The Meromorph]

I endorse Adaware, Spybot S&D, and would add Spyware Blaster.
For Virus Protection and Firewall, I have been trying Kaspersky (on the recommendation of those I trust). It immediately detected 3 intrusions that both Symantec Corporate and PC-cillin had failed to stop, and is much faster and less of a hog than either (much less of a hog than PC-Cillin). It is also more configurable than anything else I've used.
I'm about to pay for it, I can get either of the others for free, so that might tell you something...

www.kaspersky.com

[Griffin NoName]

Mero,

Is that the Home and Home Office version that's configurable? Or just the server versions?

How configurable is it - like ports<->IP<-> etc all definable?

And how about the logs - extensive info ?

[Scriblerus the Philosophe]

I tend to like Lavasoft. CCleaner is lavasoft, I think and does an amazing job of cleaning cookies up.
Symantec is also awesome.