I downloaded and installed Sun's VirtualBox virtual machine software in my bid to test alternative virtualization software besides VMware. (Has anyone looked at Hyper-V?)
I was a little surprised during the installation when it warned me VirtualBox was going to re-configure my network connection and that I would loose internet access while this occurred. Neither VMware nor Virtual PC had to do that. I proceeded with the installation and I haven't begun using it yet but I noticed I couldn't connect to a local server for a game of Battlefield 1942. (I know battlefield is old but it's a great game!) My firewall has an open connection for the game and yet I was only able to connect to a local server by disabling the "VirtualBox Host-Only Network" adapter in Network Connections.
Has anyone else run into network problems with VirtualBox?
Sun's Virtual Machine VirtualBox
The World's Wildest Wearable Gadgets
This was a cool article from Technologizer about the wildest wearable gadgets. I've seen a few of these items around before, a few of them were very cool including the Disposable Nail Watch by Timex and most of them were completely weird. Anyways take a look.
Print Windows system information on your Desktop
For a while now I've been using a program that prints my Windows system information on my desktop. I use it on all my servers so I can quickly see what user I'm logged in as, my IP addresses, IE Version number, computer name, etc. It's very handy when you're bouncing around from system to system or have multiple RDP sessions open.
Someone just asked me today what program I use; it's called BgInfo from Sysinternals. Just download the program here, extract it, put the file somewhere permanent (I put it in C:\), then create a shortcut of BgInfo.exe and place it in your Startup folder. Now edit the shortcut and add '/timer:0' after the path in the 'Target' field so the Bginfo program doesn't popup each time you start the computer. Bginfo will now execute when your computer boots and the system information is always there!
Thursday, July 23, 2009
MSDN Operating System Subscription vs. TechNET Plus
As a software tester I need to have access to a wide range of Operating Systems, web browsers, application software, etc. so I'm not caught off guard when someone comes at me with an issue. I configure virtual machines with different flavors of Windows like Vista, XP, 2003 Server, 2008 server and many of them have different configuration types so that I can easily start a session, test and then be done.
If there comes a time when I don't have access to these software applications at work or my job demands that I work from home, I found there were a few options. One I could purchase an MSDN Operating System subscription at $699 for the first year and $499 each additional year. Two I could purchase an TechNET Plus subscription at $349 for the first year and $249 each additional year.
The MSDN Operating System subscription basically gives me access to some 231 products that revolve around "Operating System, SDK, DDKs and tools". Products that I would use revolve around Windows XP, Vista, SharePoint, Home Server, Virtual PC, Storage Server (?), 7, 8 Beta (when it comes out), Internet Explorer, etc. I get fully licensed versions that can be used for testing purposes.
Then theres the TechNET Plus subscription which gives me a broader range of products including Windows 2008, 2003, Vista, XP but it also includes SQL Server, Office, and application servers like BizTalk, Groove, SharePoint server, etc. The catch with TechNET is you only get Beta and Full-version evaluation products. However these full-version evaluation products don't have time limits.
So what would be better for a software tester? I'm kind of leaning to the Operating System subscription because it would provide me with a set of core tools for testing. On the other hand it would be nice to have broad access to Microsoft software. Perhaps I should just get both? Anyone have any thoughts?
Monday, July 20, 2009
Add / Remove Windows Components error 0x7e wbemupgd.dll
I was trying to install an ADAM instance by going to Add / Remove Windows Components in a Windows Server 2003 deployment when I came across a "Setup library wbemupgd.dll could not be loaded, or function OcEntry could not be found. Contact your system administrator. The specific error code is 0x7e." Here is a picture of the error: 
I found the following Microsoft Help and Support page and followed Method 2. Then I restarted Windows and everything worked correctly. Thanks Microsoft!
Installing Synergy on Mac Mini OS X
I've set this up twice: once for my Mac Mini at home: hooked up to my LCD TV so I can play DVDs and watch movies; once at work so I can test on Macintosh OS X Operating System. I did this because it's so difficult to find and run OS X on a Virtual Machine and I had the hardware. (Pretty soon I'll need something that can run Google's new Operating System!)
By installing Synergy on my Desktop PC (Windows XP Professional at work and Windows Vista Ultimate at home) and on my Mac Mini (OS X), I can share my mouse and keyboard between the two. My monitors easily accept two monitor connections so no need for a KVM switch. This setup will work with any PC and Mac as long as you're using OS X.
Note: I leave a mouse plugged into each machine so I can start Synergy after the computer goes to sleep, gets turned off, needs to be woken from sleep, etc. A wireless mouse works well.
Requirements:
1. You should already have Synergy downloaded and installed on your PC.
2. It should be configured for all existing machines.
- If you want to know how to install Synergy on your PC then let me know and I will blog about it.
Preparation Steps:
1. Download the Synergy Client for OS X here (this will start the download for the binaries).
2. Download the Synergy GUI for OS X here (this will start the download for the program).
3. Extract each of the downloaded files.
Installation Steps:
4. Run the OsXSnyergyGui application.
5. It should ask for the location of the synergy client application. Browse to the path of your recently extract synergy folder (mine is called synergy-1.3.1) and select syngeryc.
6. The OS X Synergy GUI application should now appear. It displays the path to synergyc and asks for a Server IP Address if you are on the Client tab (you should be).
PC Configuration Steps:
7. Start Synergy on your Desktop PC using the "Share this computer's keyboard and mouse (server)" option.
8. Click Configure
9. Under the Screens area, click the '+' button and add the name of the Mac Mini to the list. (This has to be the exact name of the computer or it won't connect.)
10. Under the Links area, add the position of your Mac Mini.
11. Click OK.
12. Start Synergy on your PC.
Mac OS X Configuration Steps:
13. In OS X Synergy GUI, enter the IP Address for the computer you just started Synergy on.
14. Click Start
15. If everything is setup correctly the GUI will say something like "NOTE: started client" and "NOTE: connected to server".
You should be all setup. If you're like me and don't want the distraction, hide the OS X Synergy GUI window and go about your work.
If anyone has problems or feedback, please let me know and I will try to incorporate the changes.
Wednesday, July 8, 2009
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