Downloads

Free Anti-Virus, Anti-Spyware & Anti-Malware suite from Microsoft: Microsoft Security Essentials

Shawn Weisfeld — Wed, 09 Dec 2009 12:40:32 GMT

In the past I have blogged about VIPRE from Sunbelt Software (http://www.drowningintechnicaldebt.com/ShawnWeisfeld/archive/0001/01/01/vipre-from-sunbelt-software.aspx) and Windows Live OneCare (http://www.drowningintechnicaldebt.com/ShawnWeisfeld/archive/0001/01/01/windows-live-onecare.aspx). I still like VIPRE as it is the most cost effective solution I have found to protect servers (at the time of this writing they are charging $50 for a site license for there product, I have been hard pressed to find anti-virus that will run on Server 2003/Server 2008 for that price). On the other hand in Microsoft infinite wisdom they decided to discontinue OneCare, I really liked that product, as it made it dirt simple for the home user to not only protect there computer but to also back it up and share resources like printers and the like. Now that some of those features are baked right into Win 7 (i.e. backup (http://www.howtogeek.com/howto/1838/using-backup-and-restore-in-windows-7/), share resources (http://www.microsoft.com/windows/windows-7/features/homegroup.aspx)), I guess Microsoft decided they should rebrand the anti-virus and give that away, I like free. Here enters a new product Microsoft Security Essentials a Free Anti-Virus, Anti-Spyware & Anti-Malware suite. You can get it here http://www.microsoft.com/SECURITY_ESSENTIALS/. The only drawback, IMHO, is that the “maintenance” tasks in OneCare were all grouped in one place, the new approach seems a bit disconnected.

BONUS Tip: If you think you are already infected, or just want a second opinion try the online “Windows Live safety scanner” http://www.microsoft.com/security/malwareremove/default.aspx. I used this the other day on a computer that my brother infected with something and it cleaned it right up.

VIPRE from Sunbelt Software

Shawn Weisfeld — Tue, 26 May 2009 03:44:55 GMT

UPDATED, yet again:

While I was at Tech Ed I was eating breakfast with a salesman from Sunbelt. Yea I know what you are thinking another salesman, but this guy wasn’t pushy, actually I did not even get his name, but long story short he told me about their product, VIPRE. There are a couple of cool things about there product. 1) it is supposed to be very fast, that is good in an antivirus. 2) it works on Server OS’s (like win 2k3 and win 2k8), and 3) they have an unlimited site license for home users. Since I run many Virtual Servers in my house this was the perfect option for me (i.e. $50 to get antivirus for all my computers).

Only time will tell if it will work as advertised, I will be sure to report back if I have any problems. . . .

~~One downside is that they don't say if you can use VIPRE on Win 7. . . . (I am emailing their sales department to find out.)~~

~~I spoke to the team at VIPRE and they said that they are working on Win 7 compatibility and they should be ready when Win 7 goes to RTM.~~

I am currently using the software, without issue on a few copys of Win 7 Ultimate!

Check them out at http://www.sunbeltsoftware.com/home-home-office/vipre/

BTW this doesn’t replace how much I like OneCare (http://onecare.live.com) for the typical home user, however that doesn't work on Server OS-es and only supports up to 3 computers.

ASP.NET charting controls

sweisfeld — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 19:04:00 GMT

Microsoft released a set of controls called the ASP.NET charting controls. I don’t know if they licensed this from Dundas, however in one of my projects I was able to replace Dundas with this in about 30 min. Most of the class names are the same. Oh and they are FREE!!!!! The only caveat is that you have to be using .NET 3.5.

http://weblogs.asp.net/scottgu/archive/2008/11/24/new-asp-net-charting-control-lt-asp-chart-runat-quot-server-quot-gt.aspx

SQL PASS 2008 Talk

sweisfeld — Mon, 24 Nov 2008 01:58:00 GMT

If you attended my talk at pass last week, you can get the slides & downloads here (http://www.developerroundtable.com/Libraries/Downloads/PASS_SQL_CLR.sflb.ashx). I hope you enjoyed the talk. Feel free to send me feedback!

ZooomIt

sweisfeld — Thu, 30 Oct 2008 21:54:00 GMT

A must have presentation aid for any technical presentation, additionally good if you have a hard time seeing area’s of the screen and it is free. Get it here http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/sysinternals/bb897434.aspx

Virtual CloneDrive

sweisfeld — Fri, 05 Sep 2008 21:54:00 GMT

If you have an MSDN license you are flush with lots of ISO files. Maybe you want to burn them all to DVD's but I keep my collection of ISO's on my Windows Home Server (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Windows_Home_Server). This saves me alot of time hunting through the pile of junk on my desk looking for a disc. However it does mean that I need software to mount the ISO. This software adds a virtual DVD drive to your computer allowing you to insert the ISO. The beauty is that it appears just like a normal DVD once mounted. . . The best piece of software I found for the job to date is Virtual CloneDrive from SlySoft (http://www.slysoft.com/en/virtual-clonedrive.html). Happy ISO Busting!

Tallahasse Code Camp

sweisfeld — Sat, 22 Sep 2007 22:28:00 GMT

Although it was a bit of a drive, Tallahassee Code Camp was great. I have included both presenations and the sample code in the attached zip file.
http://www.onetug.org/DNN/Portals/0/member_files/2007_09_22_TalCodeCamp.zip

Office 2007 Ultimate for Students only $60

sweisfeld — Thu, 20 Sep 2007 03:26:00 GMT

Hey if you are a student and have not upgraded then now is your chance. One of my students found this website and I thought I would share. Go to http://www.theultimatesteal.com/product.asp and you can get Office 2007 Ultimate for only $60. The catch is that it is a download (you can get a CD for extra) and you must register with a .edu email address. Check it out!

BTW: if you are hesitant about upgrading you can also get a plugin for older office to read the new file formats. http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?familyid=941b3470-3ae9-4aee-8f43-c6bb74cd1466&displaylang=en

Fiddler Web Debugging Proxy

sweisfeld — Tue, 04 Sep 2007 19:00:00 GMT

Went to an MSDN event by Russ (http://blogs.msdn.com/rfustino/) a few weeks ago and during his demo he displayed this cool tool called Fiddler (http://www.fiddler2.com/). A must have debugging tool for any Smart Client or Web Developer.

Fiddler is a Web Debugging Proxy which logs all HTTP(S) traffic between your computer and the Internet. Fiddler allows you to inspect all HTTP(S) traffic, set breakpoints, and "fiddle" with incoming or outgoing data. Fiddler includes a powerful event-based scripting subsystem, and can be extended using any .NET language.

Fiddler is freeware and can debug traffic from virtually any application, including Internet Explorer, Mozilla Firefox, Opera, and thousands more.

Video Screen Capture

sweisfeld — Wed, 23 May 2007 04:23:00 GMT

There are a lot of video screen capture software applications out there. Perhaps one of the best know is Camtasia (http://www.techsmith.com/camtasia.asp), but the $300 price tag might be a bit too much for you if you only use video screen capture once in a while and don’t need a bunch of features. If this is you take a look at Windows Media Encoder (http://www.microsoft.com/windows/windowsmedia/howto/articles/screencap.aspx) from Microsoft. I have used it and it works well epically since it is FREE! Give it a try let me know what you think, or if you got any other recommendations feel free to comment below.