Overview

This whitepaper describes how to use InstallAware for deploying applications running on the Microsoft .NET Framework. Although the .NET Framework makes deploying applications easier thanks to features like the Global Assembly Cache, which eliminates shared resource conflicts often encountered by Win32 applications, there are still unique challenges to the deployment of .NET applications. One significant challenge is the download and installation of the .NET Framework, which requires considerable bandwidth and increases the setup package size dramatically. InstallAware addresses this challenge using a combination of unique deployment technologies, including WebAware Installations, superior compression, and MSIcode scripting.

InstallAware’s unique WebAware Installation technology is used to isolate application runtimes from the main setup program, while still providing a self contained installer that works without mandating an Internet connection. This technology works well with the .NET Framework runtime, greatly simplifying deployment by downloading and installing the runtime only when called by the setup.

Another key InstallAware technology is the superior LZMA/BCJ2 compression, which pre-processes data using call jump converters to increase compressibility, and then compresses the optimized data streams using a very large 32 MB data buffer. The LZMA/BCJ2 algorithm is so efficient that it reduces the size of the .NET Framework to literally half its already compressed size.

While offering new and unique technologies, InstallAware is completely standards based – every InstallAware setup is a pure Windows Installer (MSI) package that can execute directly, without requiring a third-party scripting runtime to be previously installed. Windows Installer is the only Microsoft approved installation technology and is a requirement of Microsoft logo certification programs. It offers several other advantages such as elevated-privilege installations in high-security contexts and automated corporate deployment using Active Directory Group Policy. These benefits make MSI packages the only accepted software distribution format for large enterprises.

Creating a .NET Project

To create a simple .NET Project using InstallAware, perform the following steps.

1. Click the InstallAware button on the top left corner of the IDE window, then choose New Project – .NET Setup on the application menu. The New Project window is displayed.

2. The .NET Setup project type is pre-selected. Additionally, the New Project window lists other types of templates, wizards, sample projects, and project converters.

3. Under the Project Name field, accept the default value of My dotNET Setup, or provide your own project name. Projects are normally created under your My Documents folder, and reside inside their own subfolders. If you would like to use a different folder, enter that folder name here, or use the suggested value. Click OK when you’re ready to create the project.

4. The IDE has now created a new setup project from the chosen template, and displays the Welcome Page in the MSIcode tab. Various other pages are available allowing you to view the complete source code of our setup project. You can take a look at these source codes later, once the basic setup has been built. To get started, choose the Design tab switch to the Design Views which you’ll be using to create your setup.

5. The Application Information designer appears, providing a summary of the various designers that have been categorized under this heading. In the InstallAware IDE, each designer is categorized under a particular heading for easy access. All available headings and designers are listed on the tree view at the left of the IDE, and also in the View group of the on the Design tab. Clicking a heading or a designer switches to that design view. Designers perform a variety of installation tasks – from basic steps like copying files and creating registry keys, to complex operations like installing application runtimes, hardware drivers, running SQL scripts, and more. As you work with the designers, they seamlessly add to and update the underlying MSIcode sources of your setup. Remember – the designers provide a rapid way to prototype the basic behavior of your setup, but you are not restricted to what they offer. The full power and richness of the MSIcode scripting language is always just one click away.

Take a moment to review the Application Information heading. It provides links to the designers it contains, along with their brief descriptions. The See Also section provides links to related designers under other headings.

When you’re ready, click the Project Properties link to access the first design view we’ll be working with.

6. The Project Properties designer allows you to make high level changes to the installation, such as choosing the default Target Folder, and the default Shortcut Folder. The $PROGRAMFILES$ variable is displayed in the Target Folder field. It represents the location of the Program Files directory on the destination computer. InstallAware denotes variables by enclosing them within dollar signs, in the form $VARIABLE$. Variables are defined and modified in the script that remains accessible from the MSIcode view.

In InstallAware 7, the Receive Application Updates check-box lets you serve unlimited application updates to your user base after you ship your product. If you are interested in this functionality, check this box and choose the Web Updates heading for more information.

Also remember that help in the InstallAware IDE is never more than one button away. At any time you are confused or need more information, just press F1. Context sensitive help guides you through the current design view, MSIcode command, or whatever else you may be doing at the moment.

7. The remainder of the design views may be accessed by clicking their names on the left of the main IDE window. You may skip the Summary Information designer for this project. The summary information is recorded directly into the MSI database (Windows Installer package) that will be created by InstallAware, and is visible in Windows Explorer when the MSI file is right-clicked. You may wish to update the default values provided by the .NET setup template to ensure that they accurately reflect your company and product information.

8. Now click Add-Remove Programs to switch to this designer which customizes how the application is shown in the Control Panel | Add-Remove Programs applet.

You may also customize the icon of the setup package here. Click the Load Icon button to load any icon that represents your application. You are free to use icons of any color and pixel depth that are supported by Windows. Edit the other fields as necessary to reflect your company and website information.

9. Click Application Requirements.

The Application Requirements designer helps you enforce any run-time hardware or software requirements that your application may have. Windows 98 has already been selected as the Minimum Operating System, since the .NET Framework is not supported on Windows 95. Internet Explorer 5.01 Service Pack 1 has been selected under Minimum Internet Explorer Version, which is another requirement of the .NET Framework. If your .NET application has other requirements – such as memory, resolution, color depth, or IIS version, set them here. You may also encrypt your entire setup payload with a global password on this screen. Simply provide a password for the Setup Password field, and InstallAware encrypts your application files and data using strong 256-bit AES encryption. In InstallAware 7, the Special Requirements section lets you configure additional options for your setup. You may force your application to install only on real hardware – disallowing instances on Virtual PC or VMware virtual machines. You may put setup in native 64 bit installation mode, requiring native 64 bit hardware. You may also check Administrator Privileges, if your application requires an administrator account to run successfully. However, InstallAware installations work without administrator privileges, even if they copy files to protected system folders.

10. Click Application Runtimes.

The Application Runtimes designer lets you add runtimes required by your product to your setup with the click of a single check-box. The .NET setup template has pre-selected .NET Framework

2.0 for you, together with Windows Installer 3.0 which is required by .NET Framework 2.0. If your .NET application requires the older .NET Framework 1.1, simply uncheck these runtimes, and then check the .NET Framework 1.1 runtime. Doing so will also automatically include the Windows Installer 2.0 runtime, which is required by .NET Framework 1.x. Any time you choose an item on this list, its dependencies will be selected as well, taking the guesswork out of complex runtime installations.

Notice the Options button on this screen that is currently disabled. This button will be automatically enabled when you highlight an application runtime with configurable options. For instance, this button lets you configure the instance name to test for (and install, when not found), when the Microsoft SQL Server Express 2005 with Service Pack 2 runtime is checked and highlighted.

11. Click Features. This designer takes us under the Setup Architecture heading.

The Features designer lets you define the logical components of your product, as will be seen by end-users when they are installing your product. For the hypothetical application here, two features have been defined: Visual Notepad, corresponding to the main application, and Shell Extension, an optional sub-feature of Visual Notepad.

Define the logical components of your .NET application here, along with their descriptions. You may also use the Up/Down arrow buttons to reorder the appearance of your setup features. If your application does not have any configurable features, simply skip this designer. In that case, you may want to remove the pre-defined feature (called My dotNET Setup in our template project), and uncheck the feature selection and setup type dialogs (called componentstree and setuptype) in the Dialogs designer, so they are not shown during the installation wizard sequence.

12. Click Files.

Files may be added to a particular feature of your setup, or unconditionally to the entire installation. Check the Filter Files by Feature check-box to activate the feature selection combo-box on this screen. Then choose Feature Independent to unconditionally install files, or select the particular feature you wish to add files into.

To add an entire folder to your setup, browse to that folder using the directory browser, and click Add Folder. To add files, first browse into the folder containing the files to add, and then highlight all the files to add, clicking Add Files when ready. In InstallAware 7, you may also drag-drop files directly from Windows Explorer into any folder to install them there.

Notice the list of variables that are displayed under the Target Folders list. $TARGETDIR$ is a special variable which indicates the destination directory chosen by the user at install time. You may also choose another pre-defined location, such as $WINSYSDIR$ for the system directory or $WINDIR$ for the Windows directory.

You may display more pre-defined folder locations on this list. Right-click the view and choose Add System Folder. Then, choose the special folder to add, such as the My Documents folder of the end-user. This way, you may directly install files to a variety of pre-defined system folders on the target machine.

Once you’ve added some items to the Target Files listing, it’s easy to make further changes. Just double-click the item to update, or highlight multiple items, right-click, and choose Edit Files.

The Install Files dialog box appears, allowing you to fine tune the settings of the items being installed.

This dialog box controls many advanced settings for installing files. You may edit the Source Files field and specify any wildcard pattern for installing files (for any folders you added above, this field contains the mask *.* which means “everything”). You may edit the Exclude Wildcards field and specify a mask of files to ignore when building your setups. You may edit the Target Folder field and change the destination directory of files being installed. For instance, to copy files to a subfolder of the user chosen directory, you would enter $TARGETDIR$subfolder in this field. You may self-register files at install time by checking the File is Self Registering DLL check-box. If the files you are installing are shared by more than one application, be sure to check the Shared DLL File field in this dialog box. Review the other available options and check the ones as required by your application.

When you’re done making your changes to your files, click OK to continue.

13. Next focus on the Registry designer to create the registry entries required by your application. Click Registry.

The hypothetical application has some registry entries defined under the Shell Extension feature. These were imported from a self registering COM server using the Import button. Use the Import button to import registry data from a .REG file or a self registering COM server (of course, you may also elect to check the File is Self-Registering DLL check-box in the Install Files dialog to register your servers).

The remainder of the Registry designer works much the same way as the Files designer. Expand keys under the Source Keys heading, click the Add Key button to add entire keys together with their subkeys, and click the Add Values button to add a selection of values. Customize keys and values by double-clicking the item to update, or highlight multiple items, right-click, and choose Edit Value. Adding registry elements to specific features of your application is again possible using the Filter Keys by Feature check-box.

14. Click Shortcuts.

The Shortcuts designer displayed here already contains one entry for uninstalling the example application. Existing entries are removed using the Delete button, and customized using the Edit button. To add a new shortcut, click the New button.

The New Shortcut dialog box allows to easily define shortcuts, and can place them in frequently used system locations such as the Quick Launch toolbar and the Desktop, at the click of a single check-box. You don’t need to memorize your application paths to populate the Shortcut Target field either – just click the Browse button to visually locate the file that the shortcut should point to.

You may type any value in the Shortcut Target field – you are not limited to the list of files you are installing with your application (as shown by the Browse button). You may type a path to a pre-existing file on the target system, or even enter a URL. To create a shortcut that launches a URL in the default system browser, simply type in the full URL path inside the Shortcut Target field, instead of a file path. For instance, if your website is , and you wish to create a shortcut to your site, enter in this field. Click OK to save your changes.

15. We’ll skip the remaining two designers under this heading. Choose the Dialogs designer, under the User Interface heading.

The Dialogs designer lists each wizard panel that will be displayed by your installer at run-time. Clicking the Edit button customizes a dialog in the dialog editor (every aspect of each dialog is fully customizable). The check box option next to each dialog name determines if the dialog is to be shown during the installation. The Change Theme button lets you instantly switch to a different set of dialogs – 15 unique themes are available, and you may build your own.

Feel free to explore the remaining designers on your own -our hypothetical application does not need them. We now skip ahead to the Deployment section.

16. Choose Build Settings under the Deployment heading.

InstallAware offers three build options, the last of which is especially useful for deploying .NET applications. The Uncompressed Directory Layout option builds your setup files without compressing them, and creates multiple directories in the build folder as part of the process. This option is ideal for CD/DVD distributions. The Compressed Single Self-Installing EXE option packages the application files inside a single downloadable EXE file, so you do not have to worry about distributing multiple folders. The Compressed Web-Based EXE option enables Web Media Blocks, which enable you to optimize your download package by taking out the optional components from the main setup file. Once you’ve chosen this option, switch over to the Web Media Blocks designer to explore this build option in detail.

17. Click Web Media Blocks.

The Web Media Blocks designer lets you define the different parts that your setup file can be split into. This is a unique and critical benefit of InstallAware, and makes Partial Web Deployment (also called WebAware Installation) possible. In the .NET template project, there are two predefined Web Media Blocks, in addition to the main setup file. The Microsoft Windows Installer 3.0 web media block seamlessly downloads and installs the Windows Installer runtime, if it is not found on the target system. Similarly, the Microsoft .NET Framework

2.0 web media block downloads and installs the .NET Framework. Files added to the setup using the Feature Independent are included with the main installer file – allowing the installer to always install those files, even if an Internet connection is unavailable. The remaining Web Media Blocks correspond to the features that you have created for your setup. When setup is running, it will attempt to download Web Media Blocks only if the corresponding runtimes are missing and/or the connected features have been chosen to be installed by the end-user.

18. On the Project tab, in the Build group, click Web Deploy and wait for the build process to complete. Then click Output Folder Folder in the same group. You should observe that the following three files have been created as the result of the build:

* My dotNET Setup.exe: This is the main setup executable, which contains the installer and the feature independent files for the setup project.

* Microsoft .NET Framework 2.0.7zip: This is the Web Media Block that contains the .NET Framework 2.0.

* Microsoft Windows Installer 3.0.7zip: This is the Web Media Block that contains Windows Installer 3.0.

Other Web Media Block files may also exist; based on the features you defined for your setup, and whether or not they contained any files.

To tell the installer where to find the Web Media Blocks at runtime, double-click a Web Media Block in the Web Media Blocks designer. The Define Web Media Block dialog box appears.

Populate the Download URLs list to point the installer to one or more actual download locations at run-time. Web Media Block files do not have any special server requirements. Simply make them available for download as ordinary files at the indicated URLs, and the installer will obtain them on-the-fly. Using more than one URL increases scalability and reliability. If your web server does not serve 7zip files due to security restrictions, you may rename the extensions of the created Web Media Block files to an approved extension, and upload them accordingly. Just make sure the Download URLs list points to the exact locations of the files on the server, including the file extensions – the initial file name of the Web Media Block as created by the build process is not important. You may also specify FTP sites, network locations, or other file sources (not necessarily Internet locations) among the URLs to be used. Your InstallAware installation will obtain the Web Media Blocks successfully if the target machine can “download” them from one of the specified URLs. Using Internet Explorer (or your favorite browser) on the specified URLs is a great way to test that Web Media Blocks are uploaded correctly and being served.

If you would like to save time during builds, you may also check the Skip on Build check-box. This is a very convenient option, especially for application runtimes that do not change in between different builds of your own application. When Skip on Build is checked, InstallAware will not copy any files belonging to that Web Media Block, nor will it compress any data in that Web Media Block, effectively eliminating that part of the setup from the build process, and therefore improving build speed. As long as you have a pre-built copy of that web media block, you may skip it during builds and save time.

InstallAware 7 also offers the option to individually encrypt each Web Media Block using 256 bit strong AES encryption. Just populate the Password field to turn on encryption. Individually encrypting each Web Media Block makes it harder for your setups to be compromised with the loss of a single global password, as each Web Media Block can potentially be using a unique password.

Coupled with the superior compression provided by the InstallAware engine, Compressed Web-Based EXE builds provide the industry’s leading solution for online software distribution. With the new individual encryption options and URL lists in InstallAware 7, online software distribution becomes even more reliable, scalable, and secure.

You may notice that when you perform a CD or Single File build, Web Media Blocks are not created, even though they have been defined; this makes it easier to build for multiple media types when generating your setups. In fact, you can click Batch Build in the Compile group on the MSIcode tab to build for multiple media types in one pass. Just select each desired build type.

19. Finally take a peek at the setup script, which has been automatically generated and maintained for you so far by the visual designers. Choose the MSICode tab, and then choose the My dotNET Setup page next to the Welcome Page.

On the top left combo box, choose Apply Changes. On the top right combo box, choose Install Product. This takes you right to the place in your script where most of the install actions take place.

Look around the script. This script is a genuine programming language, called MSIcode. MSIcode provides complete branching code execution for Windows Installer, another unique benefit of InstallAware, also called Genuine Scripting for Windows Installer. Not only does this feature make developing setups easier – it also eliminates the design overhead by providing a simpler development model than is ordinarily possible with Windows Installer. You simply author your human readable MSIcode script, using either the Design Views or the MSIcode view, and InstallAware produces a logo compliant MSI for you automatically at build-time. MSIcode is the easiest way to describe the content and logic of an MSI database, significantly simplifying the setup development process, and reducing development, maintenance, and support costs for your setups.

Also notice the Install Files, Create Shortcut, and Write Registry commands in the script. You will recall them from the edits we made in the Files, Registry and Shortcuts designers. The InstallAware IDE features two-way integrated code editing, so that when you make changes in any of the Design Views, the changes are always reflected in the MSIcode view, and vice versa. This allows you to rapidly prototype your setup in the Design Views, and then switch to the MSIcode view to fine-tune your installation. When you build your setup, the resulting installer will always be a logo certifiable MSI installer database – InstallAware takes care of the necessary MSI table insertions and MSI sequences for you. Absolutely no custom action authoring is required with InstallAware!

There are many more MSIcode commands to try – just scroll the list on the right of the script editor. Each command executes a specific installation task, saving you countless hours of custom development effort. You may drag-and-drop commands from there into the setup script, or select a line in the script editor and simply type the first few letters of a command – this activates smart code completion. The script editor features all modern conveniences such as copy/paste, find/replace, and more. You may even use code folding and define your custom code folding regions to organize your setup script.

20. This concludes the creation of your .NET application installation. Make ample use of the available Design Views and MSIcode to refine your setup, and ship when ready!

Deployment Scenarios

Independent Software Vendors (ISVs)

Isolate Application Runtimes

Most ISVs distribute their setups on the Internet. This means downloads have to be as small as possible – smaller files mean more downloads and less bandwidth consumption. Especially for .NET applications, the standard 23 megabyte size of the .NET Framework can be a huge problem. InstallAware works around this problem by both stripping runtimes from the main product download, and also by using superior compression to reduce the .NET Framework size to only 12 megabytes.

Secure Installers with Authenticode Code Signing

Especially with the release of Windows XP Service Pack 2, and the upcoming Windows Vista, users are cautioned strongly against installing packages that aren’t digitally signed. InstallAware supports Authenticode code signing technologies to verify the integrity of downloaded content.

Protect Application Features

ISVs can use Web Media Blocks to strip crucial application components from their public downloads. Using scripting, the installer can query user and system information to verify that the end-user is eligible to install protected features. Only if the user is authenticated (by, for example, querying a web page with user credentials), will the installer proceed to download the protected Web Media Blocks.

Deploy Unlimited Web Updates

In InstallAware 7 is the ability to deliver unlimited updates to your users over the web. The update experience closely resembles that of Windows Update – displaying standard message balloons in the system tray (even on old Windows versions that do not support tray balloons), and customizable dialogs that configure the update schedule, list available updates, and install them.

Improve the End-User Experience

InstallAware present a single, unified user interface during the entire setup process. Separate install wizards or progress windows are never shown when launching custom third party installers and/or configuring application runtimes. InstallAware even natively captures and displays the progress of lengthy runtime installs like .NET Framework 2.0 in your InstallAware setup wizard, improving the user experience.

Leverage One-Click Incremental Patching

InstallAware provides a one-click patching mechanism that works by building a patch against older versions of the installer. This is done by simply showing the setup project where the older installer files of the product are found. When a patch is built, it contains only the minimum incremental data required to bring a product up-to-date with the latest installation files. Incremental patching saves developers and end-users time and effort in updating their current installers.

Build Logo Certifiable Installers

Microsoft’s Designed for Windows logo program provides ISVs with a way to certify the stability, reliability, and quality of their solutions. Most enterprises today will not even consider software titles that do not have a logo certified MSI installer, for reasons of automating and securing their corporate deployment. For any product to pass testing for the Designed for Windows logo programs, an MSI installer for that product, with the following features, is required:

* No ICE (MSI database internal consistency evaluator) errors must be found

* MSI databases should support advertising InstallAware setups are automatically logo compliant. No matter how complex or simple the setup script, the output MSI files always pass ICE tests, and support advertised installations.

Rapidly Customize Installers for Product Editions

ISVs typically produce several editions of their products, tailored for different market and user segments. Because these products rely on the same core, their installers are often very similar. Typically the highest edition features the most complex install, with files and logic being stripped away progressively as the product editions are traversed. Instead of building and maintaining multiple installs for each edition, InstallAware lets developers define compiler variables, which work much like IFDEF statements found in programming languages. Based on the values of these compiler variables, parts of the setup script can be excluded from the build process, thereby emitting customized installers with absolutely no manual effort.

Communicate with End-Users

InstallAware makes it very easy to build custom dialogs that capture any kind of information from the end-user at install time. Simply use the dialog editor and customize an existing dialog, or build your own from scratch. Use edit boxes, drop-down combo boxes, radio buttons and check-boxes to interact with end-users and survey them as an integral part of your installation – not on a web form where they can walk away from your download. Seamlessly submit captured information to a web server. Ask end-users where they found about your product, why they are uninstalling, and more!

Enterprise Information Technology Scenarios

Allow Partners to Customize Their Own Installers

InstallAware features a COM automation library, along with an ASP scripting object that enables access to that library from ASP web pages. Using COM automation, enterprises could programmatically emit complete setup projects and scripts, and then build them on-the-fly in response to partner requests. For instance, consider an enterprise product that is made available to a large number of resellers, each with its own language and branding requirements. A web site could be built where resellers could upload their custom text and branding images. Then, when the Build Installer button is clicked, InstallAware automation could be invoked to dynamically build a customized installer, which would make the custom setup available for download as soon as the build process finished. This would reduce the burden on an enterprise when supporting its resellers.

Lock Down Installers to Only Run Inside a Network

InstallAware’s Web Media Blocks are able to download files not only from the Internet, but also UNC paths. Where sensitive application and data are involved, an installer could be built that placed all its contents inside Web Media Blocks, and those Web Media Blocks placed on locations accessible only inside the corporate network. Even if these installers were to be “stolen”, they would not actually work, since they would attempt to download Web Media Blocks from a location that would not exist on an outside site.

Use Silent Installs for Automated Software Distribution

Installing and maintaining applications deployed onto thousands of computers on a corporate network can rapidly escalate into a maintenance nightmare. Because InstallAware installations are Windows Installer based, they conform and interoperate well with large scale corporate deployment scenarios. Applications can be silently installed, removed, and monitored – all without user intervention or knowledge. Log files can be created from installations to provide additional debugging data in case deployment problems arise.

Group Policy Deployment

InstallAware setups are fully compatible with Active Directory deployment using Group Policy, as well as other automated deployment technologies. Push installers onto thousands of desktops with a single click.

Shell to and Repackage Installs

Typically, when deploying older software, corporate administrators are required to convert old and nonstandard package formats into the MSI package format. Even when working with MSI based installers, packages may need to be installed with a precisely defined set of configuration settings, to ensure proper operation. InstallAware addresses both these needs. InstallAware’s Shell to MSI technology enables the execution of any MSI package, with a specified set of configuration settings, as an integral part of a larger software installation process. In fact the Shell to MSI process is so efficient that it even captures the progress of the spawned installation. With non-MSI packages, the PackageAware tool that ships with InstallAware provides a migration path: PackageAware takes before and after snapshots of the state of the system as a legacy package is installed. It then encapsulates the delta of the system snapshots in a ready-to-build, customizable InstallAware setup project. Both these technologies enable seamless and painless installations of large numbers of interdependent packages across the entire corporate network.

Allow Non-Administrative Installs

Since InstallAware setups are Windows Installer based, they automatically leverage the ability of Windows Installer to perform low level changes to the system even when administrator rights are not present. As long as the Always Install Elevated group policy has been defined by the corporate administrator for user accounts, all InstallAware installations will successfully install inside locked-down user environments, making it unnecessary for a system administrator to manually log on and install the desired product on the system.

Use Advertising for Install-On-Demand and Self-Healing

Advertising is a Windows Installer term for two similar concepts:

1. An installation that runs in advertised mode creates shortcuts, registers file types, and creates registry entries required by the product – overall creating the impression that the application has been installed. However, it does not actually copy any files, until the application has been invoked for the first time, from either the Start Menu, or by double-clicking its associated file in Explorer.

2. Advertised shortcuts and file types both enable the above behavior, and also repair a damaged application by copying missing files whenever they are invoked. They do this by checking that all required files are present when they are being invoked.

InstallAware setups fully support both of these advertising technologies. Plus, InstallAware adds the capability of storing each feature of an advertised installation as a Web Media Block to seamlessly download it on-demand from any desired URL.

Additional Resources

Please visit the InstallAware website publications section at the following URL for more information on InstallAware technologies:

Whitepapers providing an in-depth analysis of InstallAware’s scripting and web deployment technologies, as well as a Reviewer’s Guide, are available at the above URL.

About The Author:

Candice Jones is employed at InstallAware Software Corporation.

You cannot stand it. The same old dreary windows that do little to add life to your home. It is time for a change. But, where do you start? How do you keep from making an expensive or embarrassing mistake? In fact, how can you know what you really want? Here are some tips to help you begin your window coverings makeover.

1.Start with one room at a time. There may be the temptation, especially when moving into a new home, to decorate all of the rooms at once. This takes far too much energy and can sap your creative juices, leaving the decorating flat and less interesting. It can also make decorating your home an overwhelming task. Go slow. Do one room at a time and then move on to the next one.

2.Assess, review your needs. With pen and paper in hand, jot down some notes about all of the windows in the room. Measure them and note their size and shape. Rough sketches will help. Are the windows too large? Too small? Odd sizes? Mismatched sizes? Is there too much light in the room? Not enough light? Do you want to block an unattractive view? Do you want to enjoy the beautiful view? Do you need privacy? Daytime privacy? Nighttime privacy? Or both? Do you want to liven up a dreary room? How do other family members feel about these needs? What is your budget for the windows?

3.Look for help, tips and ideas. Seek inspiration. One thing is for certain, no matter what the challenge or situation that you are facing with your windows, someone else has already dealt with the same situation. There is a way, or many ways, to attractively treat the windows in your room. You can find examples of how others have decorated their windows in magazines, window decorating books, window decorating websites and by talking with friends and relatives.

4.Make a plan. Using your list of needs, rank the needs in order of importance and then make a plan that addresses your needs in that order. There is a way to treat issue.

5.Address your window coverings in stages. This is especially if you are uncertain about your preferences or if you are working on a budget. Begin with the shades, silhouette blinds or shutters. Once these are selected and installed, move to swags or kitchen curtains, including the traverse or wrought iron curtain rods. Finally, add the finishing touches such as cornices, decorative tie backs and finishing drapery hardware.

6.Combine and contrast colors. Using color in your window treatment is an excellent way to put life and energy as well as set the tone and mood of a room. Experiment with mixing colors from opposite ends of the color spectrum.

7.Mix fabrics for texture. Fabric is composed of either natural or synthetic fibers and how they are woven, knitted or felted together. The type fiber and the weave or knitting will determine the texture of the material or fabric. Mixing fabrics and textures can be an excellent way to create interest and set the tone of your window treatments. For example, you may consider using velvet over organdy or silk over linen. Common fabrics for window treatments include brocade, cambric, canvas, chintz, cotton duck, crewel, damask, gingham, lace, linen, muslin, organdy, satin, silk, taffeta and velvet.

8.Mix patterns. Mixing patterns can also liven up and set the mood for a room. Here are some tips for mixing patterns. a.Match the scale, of the pattern to the area where it is going to be used. For example, use larger patterns on the drapes or shower curtains, medium patterns on valances or cornices and small patterns on accent pieces. b.Use geometric patterns with one another. For example, you can use stripes with checks, plaids or dots. c.Common colors in mixed patterns tie the two together. For example, blue stripes mixed with matching blue dots will tie the two patterns together.

9.Make small windows big. Make big windows smaller. One of your goals should be to make the room harmonious. Mismatched windows or windows of dissimilar size and shape can disrupt this harmony. You can make small windows appear larger by placing a heading such as a valance or cornice on the wall above the window and using curtains or drapes of similar length. Large windows can be treated with a series of blinds or drapes breaking up the expanse. Large cathedral windows can be treated by installing a traverse or curtain rods on the lower part of the window and leaving the upper portion untreated.

10.Let your window coverings evolve. Like a garden, the interior decoration of your home, including window treatments will be subject to change. Let your windows evolve as the interior of your home changes to reflect changes in your lifestyle or tastes. The first order for your windows is to provide privacy and light control. This will be accomplished with shades, blinds, miniblinds or shutters. Then you can begin creating mood with decorative treatments of color, design and texture. As you gain confidence and experience with decorating, you can change and expand your window treatments. If you are tired of the same old boring drapery and country curtains, now is the time to make a change. Follow these steps. Look for tips and ideas in books, magazines and websites. You are on your way to a complete window make over.

Robert Carlton is a contributing designer for . Robert is helping people finding the best solutions for window coverings , curtains and swags.

Tweaking your registry cleaning, particularly if you do not know what you are doing or if using registry cleaner first time.

In windows operation system, has file that called registry. If you using Mac or and Linux system you can find out that you not have one like windows. There were windows 7, coming in October 2009, this windows system would not have a registry. Microsoft, however, has debunked that October 2009. Fervent wish, so and this nightmare of a file will continue to haunt us, for the time being.

The registry is a veritable smorgasbord of lines of code called keys. These keys are put there by not only operation system but also if you install any new programs or drivers for your computer. These lines of code typically help windows to know how to load certain files and for whom they are.

Prior to any registry fixing, the very first thing to do is you have to backup your registry. You can use the windows backup program or any backup tool that coming with most of registry cleaner’s software’s.

Another action to take prior to before running registry cleaner, is to stop most of the programs that running. Close them and that includes the opened programs in your lower right task bar. The reason being that, any open programs will continue to write to the windows registry as they are open running, and that can which may create issues during cleaning or later on.

There are large numbers of registry cleaners. Cleaners nothing more for cleaning, fixing, optimizes, and backup your windows registry. A sound advice would be to download different versions and test-drive them yourself. There also some free versions that are very good, but not very good as buying registry cleaner. Most people using two or three brands of registry cleaners, as some are better than others and with 2 or more, you are sure to clean some entries in your registry that one of them may have missed.

These programs have built-in backup utility as well, you can use them! Some of them make backup automatically. Most of them, including algorithm system, that you can identify, errors, crashes, and junk in your windows registry.

One other issue to look out for with registry cleaners, are is the auto clean option. After running a thorough scan, they all offer you to auto clean, so you don’t have to, that is, you need not review all the ticked boxes besides the invalid entries. That may be a bad decision.

If you are running a cleaner for the first time, at least spend some time to review what it has flagged for deletion. If all is OK, then click clean. Otherwise, remove the tick and then click clean. Run the cleaner about once a week until you are satisfied that all is well.

After words, proceed to doing a thorough cleaning about once a month.

Windows seven Review – It’s Time To Get Familiar – Will You skip Vista SP2?

I’ve got 2 PCs running Windows seven. They are absolutely different computers in that one is kind of five years old and one is positively cutting edge with all the most recent graphics cards, etc. Both run Windows seven very well and without any errors.

An example mouse gesture that I use is to wiggle the mouse back and backwards like you are scratching something off a list. This immediately clears the desktop by hiding all the open windows. The new interface also enables you push the thumbnails of the programs that are running. It’s a little Apple OSX like, except not so animated and annoying in my humble opinion.

I am still worried about compatibility issues, but even the few games I’ve run have been no problem for Windows 7. Even the most recent Fallout three ran flawlessly.

In addition to frame rate hikes in games, the Net connection scores virtually 10% higher throughput. On our 1GB connections, the difference is even more conspicuous. Even if you do not have machine to test drive Microsoft Microsoft Windows seven on, you may use Vmware’s free desktop virtualization software to line up and start exploring.

It’s coming fairly soon.

Installation is a breeze. It essentially looks like the Windows Vista installer with upgraded graphics. Like all new Windows releases, Microsoft has tried to appeal to users on the present platform. The result’s lot going on under the hood that has changed but that you won’t see until you’re in a support situation and relealize that some of your tried and true debugging rituals no longer work.

Conclusion:I think it’s wise to start preparing to support this operating system now, particularly if you have been holding off corporate users waiting for a better version of Vista. When Windows Vista SP2 Beta is stable and out the door, you will be on the heels of Microsoft’s Windows 7 release date.

If you have applications that have to be tested on Windows 7, the time to start that is at the moment. Developers should have their beta copy very shortly.

To find out more or see my video reviews of Windows 7 please visit my Windows 7 Review Blog.
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The Encyclopedia Britannica 2009 (established in 1768), both in its Ultimate (now also called “Student and Home”) and Deluxe versions, builds on the success of its completely revamped previous editions in 2006-8. The rate of innovation in the last three versions was impressive and welcome. It continues apace in this rendition with Britannica Biographies (Great Minds and Leaders), Classical Music (500 audio files arranged by composer), and a great Workspace for Project Management (a kind of friendly digital den). Generous 6-12 months of free access to the myriad riches of the Britannica Online complete the package.

The Britannica comes bundled with an atlas (close to 1800 maps linked to articles and 287 World Data Profiles of individual countries and territories); the Merriam-Webster Dictionary and Thesaurus, augmented by a Spanish-English translation dictionary; classic articles from previous editions; eleven yearbooks; an Interactive Timeline with 4000+ indexed timeline entries; a Research Organizer; and a Knowledge Navigator (called The Brain or BrainStormer). All told, it offers a directory of more than 166,000 reviewed and vetted links to online content.

In its new form, the Britannica is as user-friendly as the Encarta. With a new A to Z Quick Search feature, monthly updates and the aforementioned 6-12 months of free access to its impressive powerhouse online Web site, it is bound to give the former tough competition.

The Britannica’s newest interface is even more intuitive and uncluttered than previously and is great fun to use. It offers morsels of knowledge, some of it date-specific, appetizingly presented through a ticker tape of visuals that leisurely scrolls across the bottom of the screen plus highly edifying interactive tours of articles and attendant media.

When you enter even the first few letters of a term in the search box, it offers various options and is persistent: no need to click on the toolbar’s “search” button every time you want to find something in this vast storehouse of knowledge. Moreover, the user can save search results onto handy “Virtual Notecards”. Whole articles can be copied onto the seemingly inexhaustible Workspace.

The new Britannica’s display is tab-based, avoiding the erstwhile confusing proliferation of windows with every move. Most importantly, articles appear in full, not in sections. This major improvement facilitates the finding of relevant keywords in and the printing of entire texts. These are only a few of the numerous alterations and enhancements.

Perhaps the most refreshing change is the Britannica’s Update Center. Dozens of monthly updates and new, timely articles are made available online (subject to free registration). A special button alerts the user when an entry in the base product has been updated.

Regrettably, unlike in the Encarta, the updates cannot be downloaded to the user’s computer or otherwise incorporated into the vast encyclopedia. Moreover, the product does not alert its user to the existence of completely new articles, only to updated ones. It takes a manual scan of the monthly lists to reveal newly added content.

Speaking of updates, one must not forget to dwell on the Britannica’s unequalled yearbooks. Each annual volume contains the year in events, scientific developments, and everything you wanted to know about the latest in any and every conceivable field of human endeavor or nature. About 10,500 articles culled from the last 11 editions buttress and update the Encyclopedia’s anyhow impressive offerings.

The Britannica provides considerably more text than any other extant encyclopedia, print or digital. But it has noticeably enhanced its non-textual content over the years (the 1994-7 editions had nothing or very little but words, words, and more words): it now boasts in excess of 22-30,000 images and illustrations (depending on the version) and 900 video and audio clips. This is not to mention the Britannica Classics: articles from Britannica’s most famous contributors-from Sigmund Freud to Harry Houdini, Marie Curie to Orville Wright.

The Britannica fully supports serious research. It is a sober assemblage of first-rate essays, up to date bibliographies, and relevant multimedia. It is a desktop university library: thorough, well-researched, comprehensive, trustworthy.

The Britannica’s 84-103,000 articles (depending on the version) are long and thorough, supported by impressive bibliographies, and written by the best scholars in their respective fields. The company’s Editorial Board of Advisors reads like the who’s who of the global intellectual and scientific community.

The Britannica is an embarrassment of riches. Users often find the wealth and breadth of information daunting and data mining is fast becoming an art form. This is why the Britannica incorporated the BrainStormer to cope with this predicament. But an informal poll I conducted online shows that few know how to deploy it effectively.

The Britannica also sports Student and Elementary versions of its venerable flagship product, replete with a Homework Helpdesk and interactive tutorials, but it is far better geared to tackle the information needs of adults and, even more so, professionals. It provides unequalled coverage of its topics. Ironically, this is precisely why the market positioning of the Britannica’s Elementary and Student Encyclopedias is problematic: with Wikipedia and even the Encarta around, the Britannica’s brand is distinctly adult and scholarly.

Still, the 2009 editions of both the Student and Elementary encyclopedias improve on the past in terms of both coverage and facilities: the Homework Helpdesk is a collection of useful homework resources including a video subject browse, online learning games and activities, online subject spotlights, and how-to documents on topics such as writing a book review. There are also Learning Games and Activities: hundreds of fun and interactive games and activities to help students with subjects like Math, Science, and Social Studies.

The current edition is fully integrated with the Internet. Apart from the updates, it offers additional and timely content and revisions on a dedicated Web site. The digital product includes a staggering number of links (165,808!) to third party content and articles on the Web. The GeoAnalyzer, which compares national statistical data and generates charts and graphs, is now Web-based and greatly enhanced.

The Britannica would do well to offer a browser add-on search bar and to integrate with desktop search tools from Google, Microsoft, Yahoo, and others. Currently it offers search results through Google but this requires the user to install add-ons or plug-ins and to go through a convoluted rite of passage. A seamless experience is in the cards. Users must and will be able to ferret content from all over – their desktop, their encyclopedias, and the Web – using a single, intuitive interface.

Some minor gripes:

The atlas, dictionary, and thesaurus incorporated in the Britannica are still surprisingly outdated. Why not use a more current – and dynamically updated – offering? What about dictionaries for specialty terms (medical or computer glossaries, for instance)?

Despite considerable improvement over the previous edition, the Britannica still consumes (not to say hogs) computer resource far in excess of the official specifications. This makes it less suitable for installation on older PCs and on many laptops. If you own a machine with anything earlier than Pentium 3 and less than 4 Gb of really free space – forget it!

The Britannica uses a new graphic and text renderer. On some systems, the user needs to modify his or her desktop settings to get rid of jagged fonts and blurry photos. The software also seriously conflicts with security applications (especially anti-virus and firewall products). This edition, though, is finally compatible with the latest QuickTime.

But that’s it. Don’t think twice. Run to the closest retail outlet (or surf to the Britannica’s Web site) and purchase the 2009 edition now. It offers excellent value for money (less than $40, with a rebate) and significantly enhances you access to knowledge and wisdom accumulated over centuries all over the world.

TrendSiters – Digital Content and Web Technologies
Essays dedicated to the new media, doing business on the web, digital content, its creation and distribution, e-publishing, e-books, digital reference, DRM technology, and other related issues.

Data recovery and PC protection go hand in hand. Data recovery is a challenge faced by everyone using a computer. If you are reading this article I am sure you too like me have faced it sometime or the other. Now data loss can be due to a system crash that is the software crash or due to the hardware crash. Around 66% of the data loss is caused by software and user oriented problems. So this article will be deal with only the software side of problems and their probable solutions.

Let us briefly review the different types of problems and then list out the different solutions available in the market.

Now when it comes to data loss the user is the culprit to a large extent. We surf the web download lot of files and the install the shareware trial versions available freely on the net. We keep on trying new stuff on the internet to know what suits us best for a particular task. This sometimes can lead us to unintentionally install spywares malwares and other harmful files resulting in slower computer over a period of time. Most viruses now start acting only after a few days after they have got downloaded on to the system. You can say they act as a time bomb waiting to explode. Some of us do know that it might crash our system and lead to data loss still we cant resist the temptation.

I would go to the extent of saying in the present scenario we don’t even have the freedom to do what we want on the computer obviously fearing eventual system failures.
Some basic tips to protect your computer and keeping it running at optimum condition:
• Prevention is better than cure- sure you know where I am getting at. Identifying corrupt and harmful files at an early stage is a must for every computer user. You should have a good antivirus solution running on your computer. Few good options are Norton antivirus, Mcafee and there are lots of other antivirus solutions available on the net. I personally have used both Norton and Mcafee and found both to be reliable and efficient. If you are looking for a free alternative try AVG free edition. It is an excellent solution for personal computers. Regularly scan your computer. This can be automated by scheduling the scan at a particular time everyday or when you shutdown the computer. Always keep your antivirus updated.
• Also over a period of time lot of unwanted files get collected in your system. Cleaning these files will free up a lot of your memory. You can use the system defrag option of Windows operating system to optimize your hard disk. Also you will face lot of registry errors as not all programs get uninstalled completely and this can slow up your computer. There are lot of software’s which can optimize memory, remove unwanted files and fix registry errors automatically for you.
• Keep away from sharewares and free software’s as these are beta versions most of the time and are given free to find bugs and can be dangerous for your data.
• Keep away from adult websites and other sites which have popups and other activex controls running when you load the site. A pop up blocker can be good to handle this problem. I personally use the free google toolbar. Yahoo toolbar is equally good.
• Limit the use of internet though I know it is hard to do that and it does hamper our freedom.

Having talked about the basic problems and the easiest solutions let’s now get to the core of the problem
• What if my system has already crashed?
• What if my system does not boot?
• What if I am not allowed to login?
• What if my computer has already been infected with a virus?
• What if I accidentally deleted an important file?
• What if someone deleted my files on a shared computer?

The answer to the above questions is to have a PC protection and Data recovery solution on your computer. I have emphasized the use of “Prevention is better than cure” and will stick to the same here.
Over the years, a variety of products have been developed and marketed to address PC problems. Some are partial solutions. Some are slow solutions. Some are more problems than solutions. Here, I have listed almost all major products in the market in four categories, each representing a scope of solutions in fixing or trying to fix PC problems.

PARTIAL SOLUTIONS (PS)
At the lowest end of the PC maintenance software spectrum are Partial Solutions. Due to the low technology requirements and the nature of its purpose, there are many products in this category. Products assigned to this category are designed to address a specific computer problem such as tools like ‘UNDELETE’. It allows users to recover deleted or lost files in Windows. However, in a case of a Windows crash, these programs become helpless and useless. That is why they are considered partial solutions to common and/or simple problems.

STATIC COMPLETE SYSTEM SOLUTIONS (SCSS)
SCSS is a big step forward from Partial Solutions. There are significantly less products in the category available on the market. First of all, they are complete system solutions. Software products in this category allow users to backup the entire system into an image file and later restore the system to the image in a disaster recovery. However, due to the tremendous disk space and time required to create a system image file, the image cannot be created frequently. Users can only statically create images once in a while. In a case of recovery, the system will be set back to months or even years ago. All the applications and data created since the image are lost. SCSS generally requires much higher technology than Partial Solutions.

DYNAMIC COMPLETE SYSTEM SOLUTIONS (DCSS)
DCSS is a break through from traditional PS and SCSS. Due to the very high technology requirements, there are only very few products in this category. This group of software generally employs a patented technology, such as Roxio Goback®. It allows users to create a system recovery point in seconds, and it helps users to restore system to that recovery point in minutes. DCSS sounds almost like prefect solutions if the users are just easily satisfied. Even though DCSS allows users to dynamically and easily create new system restore points, there is still a fundamental problem in the differences in time. Once you restore a system to an earlier restore point, all the data created after that point is lost or inaccessible. Such a condition is a big problem for users who put emphasis on data.

DYNAMIC COMPLETE SYSTEM AND DATA SOLUTIONS (DCSDS)
Can we really redefine the law of physics? Allowing users to restore the system back to the past and still have access to the data from the future in a Hollywood’s ‘Back to Future’ type of fiction. The fiction is now reality and is found in EAZ-FIX™. Based on a patent pending approach, EAZ-FIX™ allows users to restore the complete system back to a healthy condition and retain all the data created beyond that point. EAZ-FIX™ is the most advance PC maintenance software to have ever been developed. It is the pinnacle of PC system and data recovery and there is no other competitor that can match what EAZ-FIX™ brings to the table. And because of its extremely intricate and state of the art technology, we don’t expect any competitor emerging in this category any time soon.

SYMANTEC GHOST®
Formally known as Norton Ghost, Symantec Ghost® is the most popular computer system backup and imaging software. It allows users to make a copy of the entire system to an image file. The file can then be stored on CDs or network servers. In a case of disaster recovery, users can restore the image back onto the computer. The solution offered by Symantec Ghost is a slow solution, it takes several minutes or longer in most cases to create or restore the image file. The Ghost solution is a costly solution, the image file might be as large as the system itself or half of the system size in compressed format; however, compression takes a big toll on restore time. The Ghost solution is also a partial solution. Due to the amount of time and space required to create image files, it is impossible for users to create frequent backup image files. Therefore, in a case of disaster recovery, users are most likely to restore back to the date of initial P.C. setup condition. All the programs, files and data created afterwards are permanently lost.

IBM RAPID RESTORE®
Rapid Restore is the latest system recovery solution provided by IBM with their new PCs in attempt to replace the OEM recovery CDs. The software reserves a portion of the hard disk space to store a complete factory release image of the system. The reserved disk space is programmed as a hidden partition, inaccessible to most common users; however, an experienced user can remove the hidden partition easily. And thereby, leave the system unrecoverable. As a system imaging software, Rapid Restore shares the same deadly weakness with Symantec Ghost; it is only a partial solution. In a case of disaster recovery, users are set back to the initial factory release condition. All the programs, files and data created afterwards are permanently lost. Rapid Restore is also not rapid; it takes many minutes to restore a system.

HYPERTEC DEEP FREEZE®
Deep Freeze® is quick and easy baseline software. Once it is installed, it prevents any “save” operation to the hard disk. All the programs, files and data users created are kept in a temporary buffer. Once the system is restarted, all that information is thrown away, and the system is reset back to when the software was installed. When compared to the aforementioned imaging solutions, Ghost and Rapid Restore, Deep Freeze is a quantum leap in term of space and time. It does not require creating and restoring a system image. Therefore, it doesn’t need extra disk space to store the system image and it only takes a restart to reset the system. This makes Deep Freeze a good option for some school or publicly shared PCs. However, Deep Freeze is not a viable solution outside classrooms because, it does not allow any changes to the system, it literally makes a PC “read only”. Such limitations offer very little to professional PC users.

GOLDENSOFT RECOVERY GENIUS®
Recovery Genius® takes Deep Freeze’s concept one step further. Based on a hard disk sector filtering technique, Recovery Genius reserves a portion of the hard disk space for redirecting the disk I/O commands. It allows users to keep the information in the protected space during restarts. It takes significantly less amount of space than the conventional imaging approach. Therefore, the time to restore is much less than Ghost or Rapid Restore. Everything seems ideal so far, until you run the Recovery Genius for the first time! It does not allow you to restore individual files from the backup storage, so it is all or nothing. Unfortunately, you can only get data you HAD and loose data you HAVE when you select a restore. This significant weakness is driving Recovery Genius away from common and corporate users. At this time, Recovery Genius is mainly valued as an improved Deep Freeze in publicly shared PC markets.

SYMANTEC GOBACK®
Formerly known as Roxio Goback, Adaptec Goback as well as other names, Goback has been sold and transferred frequently from one company to another. We can only assume it has not been pleasing its vendors. Based on a file level monitoring and logging technique, the idea has merit, but the reality does not. It needs to consume a big chunk of the hard disk space to create a change history file. The monitoring system is picking up every little bit of file changes regardless of whether or not, it is worth to know or see. A simple system restart will generate 100s of file changes to log. It really makes one wonder if more truly is better; in Goback’s case, more is definitely not better. The details file change history logging consumes the hard disk space quickly and easily, not to mention, the tremendous pressure it puts on system resources.

EAZ-FIX™
EAZ-FIX™ is an industry leading PC protection software. It represents an advancement in technology that has never before been available in protecting computers from virus, user or system problems. It allows computer users regardless their skill levels to easily and quickly address their computer problems in seconds. It enables both users and enterprise IT support groups to save tremendous amount of time and money on maintaining their computers.

EAZ-FIX provides the protection without the need for backups or carrying duplicate images of hard drives. EAZ-FIX allows users to create a “snapshot” of the entire system and data at a specific time. Technically speaking, a snapshot is a map of the hard disk sectors and the map’s indexing system. Practically speaking, a snapshot is a “picture” of the system and data at a specific time. Users can select a specific snapshot to recover files from or restore the entire system to.

Based on a patent pending technology, EAZ-FIX™ only takes 0.07% total hard disk space to create up to 60,000 snapshots. That is the least amount of disk space required to protect the entire system compared to any other software available.

FEW HIGHLIGHT OF EAZ-FIX™
1. Supports up to 60,000 snapshots.
2. Recovers corrupted or deleted files from any of the 60,000 snapshots easily and quickly.
3. Restores a completely crashed system with data up to the second of crash.
4. Restores the entire system to any of the 60,000 snapshots with data synchronization from the current system.
5. Includes dynamic disk space management. Releases the unused disk space upon the deletion of snapshots
6. Supports all industry standard deployment options.
7. Provides completely hands-free, silent background installations.
8. Includes configuration during installation. Customizes the program upon installation

CONCLUSION
From the above set of options, all of the software’s are good. I am personally using EAZ-FIX™. It is definitely the most advanced computer system and data maintenance software that is available in the market today. It has the most features and also can be used with virtual OS software’s like VMware. It is the best software in its class, not to forget it’s cheaper than the competitors. The best part is it uses only 0.07% disk space and can recover data in about 15 seconds in case of any problems.
Coming to the problems we discussed above:
• What if my system has already crashed?
• What if my system does not boot?
• What if I am not allowed to login?
• What if my computer has already been infected with a virus?
• What if I accidentally deleted an important file?
• What if someone deleted my files on a shared computer?

EAZ-FIX™ does solve all the above mentioned problems and more with in seconds. It gives you the freedom to do anything and everything without any fear and as they say it literally bullet-proof’s your computer from all problems.
You can visit to know more about EAZ-FIX™. The site is very informative and you can download a free 15day trial and evaluate it.
I hope this has been an informative and useful article for you and you do take preventive measures to safeguard your computer data.

To choose which platform that you want to take advantage of, you first need to understand what is the difference among each platform. And from there, you will know which platform is more fitting for your small business.

Windows Operating system

Microsoft windows based web hosting are generally more pricey solution if compared with it’s Linux counterpart because host company have to buy ms windows license to utilize it on their servers and this will additionally add to their total charge. However with utilizing Ms windows as their server operating system, they are capable to present support that Linux Operating System not capable to give, such as support for ASP, ASP.NET programming language and support for Microsoft SQL Server.

Even though Linux operating system these days are capable to offer support for ASP.NET through a project called MonoProject which provides ASP.NET support for Apache Web Server and therefore allow Linux to serve sites using ASP.NET as the programming language, but this is all still in development stage and there possibly will be various compatibility problem, so it it does take sometime before Linux can operate ASP.NET websites flawlessly.

Corporation are more likely to choose commercial solution because they could benefit from its vendor support rather than Linux that mostly give no support at all. Windows servers can also operate most software that also run on Linux like PHP, PostgreSQL another database application that equivalent to MYSQL and Microsoft SQL Server, Python programming language, and Perl.

So what Microsoft windows servers could offer more than Linux operating system is that Microsoft windows Operating Systems is a commercial product, because of that they also provide support if their consumers bump into any dificulties and Ms windows also provide support for services that only Microsoft windows can present.

Unix Platform

Most hosting corporation servers are using Linux/BSD, Linux itself is Unix like operating system and have many flavour present through many Linux distribution, a number of distro are more designed to be more of a desktop operating system and some are designed more as a server. Some Linux operating system distribution that generally used by hosting corporation are Debian, Ubuntu, Red Hat Linux operating system Enterprise, and CentOS.

Debian, is a very popular Linux distro known for its solidity, while their stable application is not always the newest version, but every program integrated are thoroughly tested so it should not crash your system. Debian is more geared to be operated as a server because applications that are included are more outdated but more stable than Linux operating system distributions designed to be desktop platform.

Ubuntu, is an example distro that comes from Debian. Ubuntu is more geared to be used as a desktop operating system, although Ubuntu also have the server variant of itself, but Ubuntu is more broadly used as a desktop more than a server. Ubuntu not like Debian, are providing a more recent application than Debian that is why it is more suitable than Debian to be used as a desktop because desktop user commonly need a more recent application.

Red Hat Linux Enterprise,  it’s a more commercial Linux  distro, but for paying it you will benefit from Red Hat support and if you get their advanced product you will get 24/7 phone support. Firm that choose to use Linux operating system and additionally wants support will commonly choose Red Hat Enterprise Linux operating system that brings Linux well-known stability with corporate level support.

CentOS, is 100% compatible build of Red Hat Linux Enterprise source codes, it is well supported, and it is totally designed for server use. CentOS is for people who need an professional class operating system without the charge of license and support.

FreeBSD, is not Linux, nevertheless it is equal to Linux operating system, FreeBSD is another server based operating system and what makes it distinctive from Linux is that FreeBSD utilities and programs (kernel, shell, etc) are parts of the operating system and developed by the same developers, not like Linux operating system that consist of many applications that developed by different developers and combined together to form a Linux distribution. FreeBSD is acknowledged to be stable just like Linux it also impervious to virus and spywares.

Linux operating system/BSD is a free and secure operating system, Linux/BSD also more impervious to spyware and viruses since 99% of viruses and spywares are made for Windows this give advantage for Linux/BSD servers to no longer need to be troubled about malicious program and also reduce the need to obtain an anti virus program which also lower the overall cost.

Ultimately, deciding your hosting platform is basically depends on what your requirement, if you desire to host ASP/ASP.NET sites or intends to use Microsoft SQL Server then Windows is your choice. But if you wish to operate PHP, Python or Perl websites I recommend you go with Linux hosting for a less expensive charge. And one other thing you need to consider, until now a number of control panel like cPanel only support Linux/BSD this is also a critical matter to think about when choosing a hosting plan, lacking a good control panel managing your account could be a overwhelming job.

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It is really weird to see a flood of desktop anti-spyware software elude while U3 flash drive compatible applications are very few in number. I believe this situation is partially accounted for malicious antispyware designed with the sole purpose to imitate legit Windows security applications. With U-free USB devices it is difficult to execute malicious code on a constant basis because hackers want spyware loaded every time Windows starts, which cannot be ensured in case with a flash drive-based application.
The more pleasant it is to have a professional portable anti spyware developed specially for happy owners of U3 capable drives (branded by SanDisk, Kingston, Memorex, Intenso and other world-renowned manufacturers). Xoftspy was the first application designed for U3 drives, and remains a very useful utility till now.
What’s the beauty of having an anti-spyware loaded onto U3 flash drive?

1. If you ever had experience with bootable CD-ROMs then you certainly remember how much time it takes to prepare all files for burning, then the burn process itself, then restarting… and each time you need a scan from CD-ROM, you have to follow the steps anew to update antivirus and antispyware definitions. With a U3 version of Xoftspy, it takes about 3 minutes to insert the flash drive into USB port, run Xoftspy, perform update and you’re ready to scan.
2. A little U3 drive is certainly more convenient to walk with, plus it can store all kinds of files. While it is easy to scratch the surface of a CD, flash drives are more reliable and protected against physical damage.
3. Xoftspy portable runs under normal Windows GUI, so you don’t have to work in DOS-like environment without mouse support. Great for novice PC users!
4. It is a very lightweight application that takes less than 10 megabytes of space on USB drive. Desktop software can require up to ten times more space!
5. Xoftspy can be run on a computer badly infected with Trojans, keyloggers, adware, and all kinds of spyware beasts. The software detects and eliminates all of them.
6. There’s a Restore feature that keeps profiles of infected files and can be used to revert the cured infections to their original state. Hence, the registry change can be undone any time.
7. Anti-malware database updates are issued on a weekly basis, and with “Automatic Update” feature enabled new spyware definitions are downloaded and installed as soon as there’s a web connection available.

However, it is not always suitable for using. Xoftspy portable cannot be run under Safe Mode. If Windows cannot be started at all because of spyware modules cluttering memory, there’s no other way out except loading security software from a bootable compact disk. Also, consider the price; to construct a bootable CD, you have a variety of free PC security software names like AVG, Avast!, SpyBot Search & Destroy, Spyware Blaster, Lavasoft Ad-aware, etc. But if you value the convenience and ease of use, I recommend that you have a look at Xoftspy hubpage where I describe my experience with this handy anti spyware.

About The Author:

Head over to read the extensive review of Xoftspy portable anti spyware for flashdrives by Paretologic.
Kelly Wright is a PC management and data protection consultant who publishes articles about Internet security and Windows-based computers’ maintenance.

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Two story brick traditional with 4 bedrooms, 2.5 baths, island kitchen, and large deck! Sound familiar? We often talk about houses in terms of room count, along with a list of finishes, such as tile floors, granite counters, or faux paint. While this vocabulary conveys certain facts, it does not provide the tools to think about how to re-design a house in a fabulous way.

It is valuable to be able to make the decisions that transform a poor design into a house that is memorable, enduring, and widely appealing. To do this we need to go deeper than simply updating finishes or increasing square footage. We must think about how the structure shapes the feelings and experience of its inhabitants. In the words of Winston Churchill, “We shape our buildings, and afterwards our buildings shape us.” When a house has design flaws, we know intuitively that it does not feel right. On the other hand, a well designed house can make us feel inspired, enriched, and touched by a sense of order.

We often see houses that have some elements in the structure and site that appeal to us, but cannot be lived in without remodeling. Often our clients say that they want to find a house with good bones (meaning good basic design), that they can update. The truth is that most houses have some good design and some bad design. Painting walls and updating fixtures will not cover bad design. You will need to think about the house in a deeper way. Use these design processes to help you make the difficult decisions that will result in a house that many people would love to live in.

1. Relate the house to the site.

Think about how the house integrates and interacts with the land around it. This awareness is a basic, but often ignored, beginning. The connection and interplay between interior and exterior spaces enhances both in a powerful way.

Manage the views from each window. Is there an undesirable view into a neighbor’s home or yard? Is there a nice view that is blocked by a wall or fireplace?

Notice how the walkway leads to the street, where privacy is needed, where noise buffering is needed, how drainage will work.

A side area could be a private garden, accessible from the main bedroom. A front porch overlooking the street could bring the house into a relationship with the neighborhood.

2. Bring in natural light.

Houses can be transformed by adding windows and other light sources. Generous light feels safe and uplifting, and attracts people toward it.

Natural light raises the level of importance and the beauty of rooms. Light all main rooms from two sides, if possible, to reduce glare and balance the light. Use glass doors, windows, skylights, transoms, or light tunnels.

Keep passive solar techniques in mind as you add windows and shading devices. The control of solar energy for light and heat is fundamental for an efficient and comfortable home.

3. Break down hard barriers between indoor and outdoor spaces.

Glass doors, screens, and walls that slide open can create semi-transparent walls, forming indoor/outdoor spaces that have enormous appeal.

Breezeways, garden rooms, bay windows, and screened porches are spaces that people love. These bring people into contact with the outdoors, yet may be furnished in a comfortable way.

4. Think of outdoor spaces as large rooms.

When all areas of the site are thought of as living spaces, new ideas open up. These outdoor spaces expand the house by creating a sense of semi-enclosure in various ways.

Their edges can be defined by trees, fences, wings of the house or other buildings. For example, an outdoor room may be a shady natural space on the site enclosed by a line of trees and shrubs.

Outdoor living spaces can be courtyards, walled gardens, trellis covered breezeways, stone patios, or outdoor showers. Think about their use and connectedness to the house.

Often, we see an exterior space that is built as an isolated destination place – a second floor deck, for example. If you have to make an effort to go there, the space will not be used. Outdoor spaces are most used when they are on paths used by people coming and going. This is why a front porch is a very appealing design element. People naturally meet here, and the porch connects with neighbors walking by.

A popular outdoor living area is the backyard deck. This is often seems to be an afterthought, tacked onto the house. Can it be covered and screened?

5. Consider widening roof overhangs or adding propped shutters over windows.

This is a green building technique in warm climates, blocking solar penetration.

The view of the outside roof structure seen from inside the house evokes a sense of shelter and protection.

If possible, extend the roof in some areas to create covered porches or breezeways. Rooms that are simultaneously open and protected are very appealing.

Inside the house, exposed rafters, rustic beams, or wood surfaces on the ceiling create feelings of strength and character in the home.

6. Review traffic flow – a crucial, but often ignored, design element.

Walk down the paths that bring you inside the front door, then lead you to various rooms through the house, and again to the outdoors. Do they cut through the middle of living areas? When this happens the living area will never feel complete and comfortable.

Circulation paths should lead along the edges of main rooms, and efficiently to private rooms. A maze like floorplan creates a sense of wasted energy and confusion. Few exterior doors may result in a subtle feeling of being trapped.

Bring multiple uses to hallways and connecting spaces with bookshelves, windows or window seats.

Set apart the main entrance with details such as a covered place to stand, special doors, benches, or potted plants.

7. Compare the sizes of rooms in proportion to each other.

People have an intuitive sense of the correct hierarchy of spaces. Small living spaces will seem wrong when combined with large bedrooms.

Homes with awkward design can often be improved by removing walls to make one large space from several smaller ones.

Consider the use and function of each room. Is the room to be used privately, such as a bedroom, study, or library? Or, will the family gather here to cook and eat informally? Some houses include formal areas, others do not. Some have many rooms, others are very open. There is no right or wrong decision here. Houses that have a true and intuitive appeal have a clarity as to the function of each room.

8. Choose materials as an integral part of the design – not as decorator selections made at the end.

For example, structural materials can be exposed, or flooring can be used to connect and unify spaces.

Bring in the beauty and texture of natural materials. Use materials that offset each other – warm and cool colors, rough and smooth textures, solid and delicate walls.

Use materials to connect the house to the site – for example, a wood clad house surrounded by woods, or a stone house next to outcroppings of stone. Or, connect the house to the neighborhood with historic colors and siding.

Repeat materials and colors to unify the interior and exterior.

About the author:
Roselind Hejl is a Realtor with Coldwell Banker United in Austin, Texas. Her website – Austin Texas Real Estate – offers homes for sale, market trends, buyer and seller guides. Let Roselind help you make your move to Austin, Texas.

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