Updates, indeed
Bunch of little things happened today; I'll roll 'em up into this one post.
I found and downloaded the Microsoft Office 2007 Trial; thanks to folks on the GottaBeMobile forum for pointing out the Canadian download site for me. It took a while to get it installed on my UMPC due to wacky router issues, so I haven't tried it out much, but what I have seen looks very good. The new suite does handle small displays a lot better with the "ribbon" collapsing out of the way, and it's surprisingly spritely on the low-horsepower system.
Big disappointment, though, in that Outlook didn't come with the trial package. Dang. Outlook is the biggest use I have for Office, and I can't see what it's going to look like or how it's going to interact with my network. Hopefully they'll roll it out before the end of my 60 days. In the mean time, I'm limping along with my old copy... which doesn't talk too well with Word'07. *sigh*
I also loaded up the OneNote trial, as those with TabletPCs seem to swear by it for note taking and sorting. Apparently it has integral OCR, so I can (for instance) take a picture of a business card and then import the text right into my Contacts. Looking forward to giving it a good try.
Tried out a new, simple dish for dinner when I found out the steak I had in the freezer was sirloin tip and not sirloin; put it in a sauce pan with a half-bottle of beer and some steak spice, then braise it for fifteen minutes over medium heat turning only once and leaving covered the rest of the time. A half-tablespoon of flour into the remaining beer-juices mix to thicken it into a gravy, and yummy-tender-meaty goodness ensues. (Served with peas and some leftover tortellini. Oh, and the other half-bottle of beer. And a full bottle of beer. Mmm...)
I updated to Windows Media 11 on my Q1 too, in the spirit of ramming new things into it. I have to say I'm a touch disappointed with the audio quality now; things seem fuzzy, and lack the earlier "airy" feel they had in WM10. A quick poke around didn't show any new audio drivers or anything... maybe there's some new codecs out there. I'll look tomorrow.
However, the video is noticeably smoother for the higher definition sources. I haven't tried out the marketplace for it yet.
Still no Christmas shopping done... I'm a baaaad boy. Tomorrow is a wash, as I'm having some friends over, but I do have Monday off. Hopefully I can get a chunk of it done then.
Would my upstairs neighbours please shut the hell up? If you want to destroy your relationship, fine; just do it quietly, please, or during daylight for a change.
B.net forums went all bonobo this weekend, with mass bannage of poo-flinging idjits. I wonder, is beer or Tylenol is the better remedy for katana elbow?
Installed the new iTunes on my desktop to see if I can pick up a few episodes of Battlestar Galactica. Too tired to go hunting for them right now after wrestling with the installer... maybe I need that terabit connection after all.
Looks like we have a new leader for the Liberal Party, someone I didn't really expect to make it. Stephane Dion was once a member of the separatist Bloc Quebecois but renounced his connections several years ago, and ran on a platform that emphasised the youth wing and environmental policy. Should be interesting; more interesting than having Ignatieff (who only returned to Canada two years ago after consulting with several right-wing think tanks in Washington) or Rae (whose tenure in power as premier of Ontario was well-nigh disastrous, though not entirely his fault) would be.
-- Steve'll wrap things up before he dozes off at the keyboard.
I found and downloaded the Microsoft Office 2007 Trial; thanks to folks on the GottaBeMobile forum for pointing out the Canadian download site for me. It took a while to get it installed on my UMPC due to wacky router issues, so I haven't tried it out much, but what I have seen looks very good. The new suite does handle small displays a lot better with the "ribbon" collapsing out of the way, and it's surprisingly spritely on the low-horsepower system.
Big disappointment, though, in that Outlook didn't come with the trial package. Dang. Outlook is the biggest use I have for Office, and I can't see what it's going to look like or how it's going to interact with my network. Hopefully they'll roll it out before the end of my 60 days. In the mean time, I'm limping along with my old copy... which doesn't talk too well with Word'07. *sigh*
I also loaded up the OneNote trial, as those with TabletPCs seem to swear by it for note taking and sorting. Apparently it has integral OCR, so I can (for instance) take a picture of a business card and then import the text right into my Contacts. Looking forward to giving it a good try.
Tried out a new, simple dish for dinner when I found out the steak I had in the freezer was sirloin tip and not sirloin; put it in a sauce pan with a half-bottle of beer and some steak spice, then braise it for fifteen minutes over medium heat turning only once and leaving covered the rest of the time. A half-tablespoon of flour into the remaining beer-juices mix to thicken it into a gravy, and yummy-tender-meaty goodness ensues. (Served with peas and some leftover tortellini. Oh, and the other half-bottle of beer. And a full bottle of beer. Mmm...)
I updated to Windows Media 11 on my Q1 too, in the spirit of ramming new things into it. I have to say I'm a touch disappointed with the audio quality now; things seem fuzzy, and lack the earlier "airy" feel they had in WM10. A quick poke around didn't show any new audio drivers or anything... maybe there's some new codecs out there. I'll look tomorrow.
However, the video is noticeably smoother for the higher definition sources. I haven't tried out the marketplace for it yet.
Still no Christmas shopping done... I'm a baaaad boy. Tomorrow is a wash, as I'm having some friends over, but I do have Monday off. Hopefully I can get a chunk of it done then.
Would my upstairs neighbours please shut the hell up? If you want to destroy your relationship, fine; just do it quietly, please, or during daylight for a change.
B.net forums went all bonobo this weekend, with mass bannage of poo-flinging idjits. I wonder, is beer or Tylenol is the better remedy for katana elbow?
Installed the new iTunes on my desktop to see if I can pick up a few episodes of Battlestar Galactica. Too tired to go hunting for them right now after wrestling with the installer... maybe I need that terabit connection after all.
Looks like we have a new leader for the Liberal Party, someone I didn't really expect to make it. Stephane Dion was once a member of the separatist Bloc Quebecois but renounced his connections several years ago, and ran on a platform that emphasised the youth wing and environmental policy. Should be interesting; more interesting than having Ignatieff (who only returned to Canada two years ago after consulting with several right-wing think tanks in Washington) or Rae (whose tenure in power as premier of Ontario was well-nigh disastrous, though not entirely his fault) would be.
-- Steve'll wrap things up before he dozes off at the keyboard.