Finding a test bed

Microsoft finally released Windows Small Business Server 2008 last week and duly made available for download a trial version to try out. So I downloaded it onto my Windows Home Server where I keep all my large downloads (this was over 3Gb for the first DVD image), then burnt it to DVD and looked for a PC to try it on.

My first choice was a large trade-in PC that I'd just cleaned. reconditioned and reloaded Windows XP on. All I had to do was to replace the 160Gb hard disk with another and away we go. Not so. Apparently this system has one of the few Pentium 4 (Northwood) CPUs that aren't 64-bit. Even though it is 3GHz. Loading CPUID confirmed that this was a non-starter as SBS 2008 is only available in 64-bit version.

So I started looking around at my other systems for a suitable test bed:
a) another reconditioned AMD Athlon XP 2600 also not 64-bit.
b) my eMachine Windows test PC already has Windows XP and Windows Vista on it and is only a Pentium 4 2.8GHz.
c) my HP ProLiant server is 64-bit but is already setup as a games system with RAID 0 disk drives and I don't want to mess with it, just sell it.
d) my DELL Inspiron 530 demo and games system is a Core 2 Duo E6550 which would work but it has my new nVidia 9600GSO graphics card, the hard disk drive is fairly full and I don't want to add another. Anyway I'm enjoying Far Cry 2 on this.
e) my daughter's DELL Vostro 200 has a C2D E4500 processor and plenty of space, but she wouldn't appreciate me messing about with it.
f) my DELL PowerEdge SC440 server is running Windows Home Server on it and is the centre of my network so that's out.
g) my old DELL Dimension 4550 with 2.53GHz Pentium 4 is still doing a grand job as my administration computer and is strictly hands off for any new hardware or software.
h) my trusty DELL Inspiron 1300 laptop is also 32-bit and anyway it doesn't seem right to run SBS 2008 on a laptop.

So that's the story so far, I'm keen to try this out but no hardware platform is available at the moment. Maybe it is time I tried this virtualisation technology. If only I could find a system to put it on.

I've started Far Cry 2

One of my favorite FPS (First Person Shooter) in the last five years has been Far Cry, so I was eager to try the sequel. I enjoyed the original for the graphics, the atmosphere and the believability of the game.


The magazine and online reviews of the Far Cry 2 were positive, so I purchased the game online last week. I was amazed at the graphics, even from the opening sequence. The atmosphere and the action from the start seemed superb, as was the freeform nature of the game. However, it wasn't till a couple of hours later that I realised that I was just playing the training portion of the game. Having been let off the hook so to speak, it develops into a much deeper a certainly less scripted adventure. The time effects of night, dawn, day and dusk are new for me as is finding a safe house to sleep.

I'm addicted already and eagerly looking forward to many months of amazement and excitement.

AOL bad_pool_header

About last August, a customer of mine with a fairly new DELL Vostro PC started getting 'Blue Screen of Death' bad_pool_header crashes in Windows Vista when she attempted to start the AOL 9.0 VR software. It had been working fine for about six months before that. The usual advice from AOL was to uninstall the AOL software and reinstall. That didn't help.

The Thomson Speedtouch 330 USB modem was working fine and she could surf the Internet, download updates, etc. without any problems. The AOL crashes were starting to make Windows Vista unstable, so I recommended that she read her email through AOL's webmail facility for now. No solution could be found and though the customer was concerned that she could not use her favourite software on her new computer, at least she could work.

Then last week another customer with an almost identical configuration, started to get exactly the same problem. I suspected the unsupported networking access to AOL was causing the problem. I substituted the USB modem with a router and immediately AOL 9.0 VR was fine and working well. OK, as well as AOL software works which generally is not great!

Back to the first customer with my new solution and bursting with confidence that this will fix her problem. No it didn't. AOL 9.0 VR still crashed even after uninstalling, cleaning up, and reinstalling. Go figure? Suggestions welcome.

As an aside to this, I signed myself up for a free AOL screen name and email address. However this does not allow you to download and use their software. You have to be a member for that. So, I can't diagnose the problem at my workbench.

Xbox 360 replaced

I've replaced the Xbox 360 that I bought for under £100 earlier this month from Sainsburys. And what a difference. The original Xbox started crashing in the games, then finally wouldn't display a picture and showed the famous 'Red Ring of Death' on the console. Luckily Sainsburys offer a 28 day returns policy so I was able to exchange it. I even swapped the memory card so I could retain my Xbox Live profile and saved games.

When I unpacked the replacement it was a completely different console and then I realised that the original Arcade had been swapped for an old Xbox 360 Core. The new one had a dedicated HDMI connection below the standard Xbox video socket. And when I turned it on another suprise it was so much quieter. The setup was easier, presumably because it was initiated properly. I've also connected it now to a standard 19" TFT computer monitor with the sound via a mini HiFi system. A lot better for both the picture and audio quality.

When I purchased the orginal Xbox 360 Arcade console the box was not sealed, so somebody had replaced the Arcade with an older Core console and Sainsburys had sold it as new. Thanks to their returns policy I'm a happy customer. This new model is a much better version and it shows how Microsoft's hardware product development and manufacturing has improved over the years.

The return of Norton

Like many others in the industry, I've given Norton Antivirus and Internet Security products a hard time over the last few years. The market leader had definitely 'lost the plot' becoming bloatware, slow, riddled with bugs and difficult to understand and use. I've removed countless copies from my customer's computers. Replacing Norton with AVG Free in most cases and Kaspersky Internet Security for businesses and individuals who wanted enhanced security and features such as AntiSPAM.

I read a review in this month's PCpro magazine which claimed that the latest version Norton Internet Security 2009 was a different beast, faster using less memory and easier to install. Review is here. Intrigued I downloaded the 15-day trial copy on a test PC and tried it out. It works, is quicker and makes the computer respond as if it wasn't there. Boot time is good, unlike the previous versions that took a few minutes to return control back to the user. I've yet to install it on a system that is badly infected by viruses, but going on what the review says it does the clean up job well too.

Previously, I used to be frequently called to attend to PCs that had had Norton loaded on them because the owner had gone to the local PCworld shop and been sold the package as a cure for all their problems. Even though their system specification was below the system requirements for the software. So I got to remove Norton and upgrade the memory as well. We shall see.

I've got an Xbox 360!

A spur of the moment purchase. I've been helping Dads connect Xbox 360s to wireless and wired networks for their children for a while now. Usually the boy (so far) is there to actually steer the user interface with the controller, but yesterday I was on my own. Wow, did I find it difficult! Still I finally succeeded. I discovered that the new Xbox 360 Arcade version (without the hard disk) had been bought the day before at Sainsbury's supermarket for under £100. So I bought one as well.

Initial impressions were not good. I connected it to an old TV with the supplied cable and SCART adapter. The picture wasn't great. Should be better with a LCD HD flat panel TV though. It has an HDMI socket but no cable. The next thing to notice was the noise. The fan makes it difficult to hear the sound through the TV at normal levels, hopefully it will be drowned out when you start gaming or use a surround sound system. Then I couldn't get the wireless controller to connect at all. I just kept pressing the synchronise buttons on the console and the controller until finally they found each other.

Going through the Xbox user menu or Dashboard did not make it easy and obvious to set up. I attached an Ethernet cable into the loose (!) socket at the back and then repeatedly testing the Xbox Live connection until it finally passed all the stages, then eventually adding my details to register my name, gametag, etc. I downloaded a game (DOOM) onto the supplied 256Mb memory stick and was able to play it!

Then I tried the game I really wanted to play, Halo 3. I bought it pre-owned for £13from Blockbusters. Hey, I wasn't going to pay £50 for a game to play on a £100 console. An impressive start but wow, is the control system difficult to use. I spent most of my time looking at the floor to see where I was going or at the sky trying to see who was shooting at me. And having seen 'checkpoint reached' frequently, I was amazed to find that the game hadn't been saved at all.

More things to learn I guess in this console business. I'm also going to look at the Media Extender possibilities and integrating the Xbox 360 into Windows Home Server.

High speed broadband

Just a quick note to say thank you Virgin Media. As my ISP (previously NTL cable), you've just upgraded my broadband bandwidth from 3.8Mbps (nominal 4Mbps) to 8.4Mbps (nominal 10Mbps) on my cable connection without any extra charge.

I've been paying £25 per month for broadband for a few years now and it has been upgraded at least twice before. But this latest upgrade has really improved the connection speed to what a lot of my customers could only pray for. Especially, as I can offset this cost to my company and claim back the VAT.

It is amazing how quickly you can become accustomed to these speeds. So now when I visit a typical customer here in Basingstoke that has a connection speed of just 512Kbps to 1Mbps it seems really slow to download files, web pages, emails, etc. Almost like a telephone dial-up connection was when broadband first came along. Why wait when much better speeds are available? Mind you I still have customers on that dial-up connection but at least I can take along mobile broadband without having to wait as much any more.

Thanks again NTL, sorry Virgin Media! And I'm really enjoying it.