Posts Tagged ‘Software’

FeedReader, in my opinion, is the best RSS reader available (and it’s free). I have used it for many years without any problems at all … until recently; I encrypted my hard-drives and everything worked as expected except FeedReader. I was getting an error like ‘internal gds software consistency check (can`t continue after bugcheck)’.

I uninstalled and then reinstalled FeedReader however I still received the error messages/popups.

Why the GDS FeedReader Error Occurs

FeedReader uses the Firebird database to house the various settings and information.  The most likely cause of the ‘GDS’ error is that the database is corrupt. The solution to the FeedReader error is to repair or replace the SQL database (i.e. the Firebird database).

How to repair FeedReader after the GDS Error

The two options for resolving the FeedReader error are to repair the database or to completely uninstall FeedReader and then reinstall:

Fix the FeedReader Database

FeedReader includes a Backup Utility which, besides backing up and restoring the database, assists with database repair and optimization. The database holds such information as which articles in feeds have been read as well as other settings (it’s therefore preferable to repair the database rather than reinstall the application).

To run the FeedReader Backup Utility:

1. Close FeedReader (you may need to go to Task Manager to do this).
2. Click the Start button on your taskbar.
3. Select All Programs.
4. Click the FeedReader folder and select ‘FeedReader Backup Utility’.
5. At the least ensure that ‘Fix possible database errors’ is checked however it is thoroughly recommended to ensure that ‘Tidy up database’ and ‘Make backup’ are also selected.
6. Click the Details tab and make a note of the ‘Backup file location’.
7. Click Start.

If a database repair doesn’t work then it will be necessary to completely uninstall and then reinstall FeedReader.

How to (completely) uninstall and reinstall FeedReader

Unfortunately, the database and/or reference information isn’t removed when FeedReader is uninstalled using the application uninstaller. If wanting to completely uninstall or reinstall FeedReader then all referenced to the database and the database itself need to be deleted.

Follow these steps to have a ‘clean’ install of FeedReader:

1. From the Windows control panel, uninstall FeedReader via ‘Program and Features’ or however else you usually uninstall software.
2. In Windows Explorer go ‘c:\users\YourLoginName\roaming’ (this location may be different depending on your Windows setup) and delete the FeedReader folder.
3. In Windows Explorer go ‘c:\Program Files’ (this location may be different depending on your Windows setup) and delete the FeedReader30 folder.
4. Install the latest version of FeedReader.

I certainly hope that this article on how to deal with the Feedreader gds error has helped!

Incoming search terms for this article:

• firebird database

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WordPress is well known for its ‘Famous 5-Minute Install’; getting up and running with WordPress generally takes five minutes. All that is needed is a hosting account (or a local install with the likes of Xampp), a MySQL database and the WordPress install files.

Well, the great news is that with the new WordPress 3 (WP3) the install now takes about two minutes. Yip, the ‘Famous 5-Minute Install’ is now the ‘Famous 2-Minute Install’. WP3 is just so simple to install and custom passwords can be entered right from the install (in WordPress 2, a changeable password would be assigned on initial install).

Well done to the WordPress 3 developers and community for what looks like an even more awesome WordPress!

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In January the ten free software products that I deemed best were documented. The list included; Notepad++, WordPress Content Management System, FileZilla FTP, Mozilla Firefox, Google Picasa, XAMPP, Windows Live Mail, Microsoft Security Essentials, FeedReader RSS Reader and Moodle Learning Management System. There are however other equally brilliant software that is free to install and use. So here is the list of five more of the best freeware/open source/creative commons etc. licensed software (in no particular order):

7-Zip

7-Zip is the best file archive and compression software available … and it’s free! Whether you compress or archive in ZIP, gzip or any other format (7-Zip also comes with its own compression format called 7z) this software is a ‘must have’. Many compressed files that have become corrupt and I have been unable to open with other compression utilities have been successfully uncompressed by 7-Zip. This software also offers leading compression ratios.

Google Desktop Search

For computer productivity there are few tools which match the ease of use and productivity gains that this free PC and network search application brings. Most of us use Google to search the Web and using Google Desktop Search is exactly the same except that it returns all documents, files, emails etc. that contain the search term entered. I use Google desktop very often and it makes finding information on a computer very simple; no need to remember where files are kept or use the very slow and inaccurate search functionality supplied with Windows. Download Google Desktop Search and give it a try; per all Google products it is simple to uninstall should you not find it useful.

ImgBurn

Need to read or burn CDs, DVDs, HD DVDs or Blu-Ray? Look no further than this great free software. What I particularly like about ImgBurn is that files may be copied or burned as an image and that image may then be reconstructed to the original folders and files or copied as am image using ImgBurn. If you backup your DVDs with DVDShrink then ImgBurn is a ‘must have’.

OpenOffice/Google Docs

Microsoft Office has ruled the office productivity suite software market for a long time. In the past few years two worthy free of charge competitors have made inroads into the Microsoft Office dominance. OpenOffice and Google Docs have made the battle for the office suite a three ‘horse’ race. OpenOffice is most like the Microsoft Office Suite in look and feel and is developed as an Open Source project. OpenOffice.org claims that there have been over 100 million downloads of OpenOffice in just over a year. Google Docs is developed by Google and is hosted by Google (as opposed to OpenOffice and Microsoft Office which are installed on the users local PC). Google Docs has limited free use and charges for high usage. Microsoft isn’t sitting by idly watching their market share minimise as a basic version of Microsoft Office 2010 will be offered Online free of change.

The next few years are going to be critical for both MS Office and OpenOffice; MS Office will need to find a means of fending off the momentum of Google Docs and OpenOffice will need to use all it’s efforts in remaining relevant in consumers minds as the MS Office vs. Google Docs battle heats up.

Some Enterprise Google Docs users include; SalesForce.com, City of Los Angeles, Cap Gemini and Faculty of Management Studies (Delhi University)

Some Enterprise OpenOffice users include; French Tax Agency, Banco Do Brasil, The Guardian newspaper (U.K.), Sumitomo Electric Industries (Japan)

Paint.net

Paint.net started as a College project and has developed into a very capable free image editor. Microsoft is now the custodian of this great software and continues to develop it; initially it was assumed that Paint.net would be the replacement for Microsoft Paint which comes with every version of Windows. Microsoft Paint.net is now far more than an advanced Paint replacement with some advanced and very useful features. This software is now mentioned as a ‘lite’ alternative to the very powerful but expensive Adobe Photoshop. With Plugins being developed by the community the base software may be extended in all sorts of ways. Paint.net is easy to use, powerful, reliable and best of all free.

Secunia

Secunia PSI (Personal Software Inspector) checks whether any updates are available for your installed software. No longer is it necessary to manually check whether software updates are available as Secunia PSI lets you know when updates are available and where to download the update. The security advantages of using Secunia PSI are enormous as vulnerabilities evident in software may now be patched in a far shorter time than without this product. This software also advises as to the severity of the threat of any unpatched vulnerabilities. Secunia PSI runs in the background and is non-intrusive except when a patch needs to be installed at which time a popup advises of the need.

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Microsoft Word Page Breaks have caused much anxiety in this world. Many of us have experienced the anguish of an unwanted break separating text. Attempting to identify the reason for the break and removing the cause can be a very frustrating experience. Without further ado, here is how to get rid of an unwanted Page Break in Word 2007:

1. Enable ‘Show/Hide’ by clicking the ‘Show/Hide’ icon in the Home ribbon.

2. Locate the Page Break in your document.

3. Place the cursor over the Page Break and mouse-click.

4. Press delete on your keyboard

Simple as pie really except when Page Break cannot be deleted even when following the instructions above. Often the solution is to turn-off ‘Track Changes’ before following the four steps above (Page Breaks cannot be deleted when Track Changes is enabled)

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This week is ‘Privacy Awareness Week’ 2010 and as such it is urged that we familiarise ourselves with our rights, obligations and best-practice in relation to privacy.

The few recommendations below, from the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada, are related to Computer identity and information theft. They are well worth reading through:

• Make sure your computer has firewalls, virus protection and online security and privacy safeguards.
• Your online accounts should only be accessible with passwords that you create and change often. Your passwords should be hard for anyone to guess.
• When you shop or bank online, or fill out online forms, look for the padlock symbol at the lower right corner of your screen. This symbol means the information you provide is secure.
• When you log on to your e-mail or bank account from a library or other public computer, make sure no one can watch over your shoulder as you type in your password and other private information. Log out when you leave.
• Be careful about any personal information you divulge online, including in chat rooms and over social networking sites such as Facebook and Twitter.
• Be suspicious of e-mails that appear to come from financial institutions or government agencies, asking you to provide personal information online. Real banks and governments don’t do that, but scammers will often hijack real logos to make their fraudulent messages look authentic.
• Delete any e-mail soliciting funds unless you can verify independently – for example with a phone call – that it’s from a reputable organization.

Incoming search terms for this article:

• computor

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