December 26, 2006
don’t ya just love it when you finally get a chance to dig in & find a solution to an annoying problem?
yours truly etched one of those notches on the old utility belt a few weeks ago, resolving a little scuffle between blogjet & isa 2004 sp2.
here’s the deal…
since setting up our own sweat lodge, black warrior technology has been using small business server 2003 r2, premium edition…thanks to the mothership’s action pack program.
once we finally received our action pack welcome kit, that is…which is another story altogether.
but initially blogjet, the official blogging tool of the funcave, wouldn’t work through isa 2004 sp2. well…technically, blogjet would post the text, but not any images.
as regulars to the funcave already know…
a funcave without images…ain’t no kind of funcave i want to be a part of.
which meant that all blogging ground to a standstill here.
and being as the amount of free time to fully run the issue down was less than zero, the workaround was…
when it was time to post up, yours truly pulled the switcheroo & connected the labtop to the guest wifi connection here at the funcave, which resides outside isa.
yeah, it worked. but losing internal connectivity was an inefficient pain in the patoot…made even more frustrating by the fact that doing stuff like that shouldn’t be necessary.
so, without further ado…
happyfunboy’s super awesome method for making blogjet work through isa 2004 sp2: a play in 2 acts*
act i: allow ftp uploads through isa 2004 sp2
open isa server management on the server console
under the server name (fuzzed here to protect the innocent), click firewall policy. locate, then right-click sbs internet access rule. finally, click configure ftp
clear the read-only checkbox, then click ok
click apply to actually activate the change you just made
now, if you forget to click apply & try to exit the management console, it will give you another shot to apply the change. thoughtful, huh?
either way, the changes will apply…
then prompt you once it’s complete.
intermission
act ii: configure blogjet for isa 2004
like many applications, blogjet not only offers auto-detection of proxy settings, it touts that as the recommended setting.
however, also like many other applications, auto-detection often ends up being neither very auto nor detecting.
fantastic error message, huh?
so here are the super-secret settings for blogjet that re-enabled ftp upload here at the funcave…
under tools->preferences in blogjet, click the connection tab
click the radio button to choose custom configuration
here’s where it gets kind of weird, kiddos.
leave all the custom configuration stuff blank. don’t specify anything in any of the fields. in fact, don’t even put checks in the boxes for http or ftp.
you can…and prolly should…use passive ftp mode unless something in your environment precludes that.
but otherwise, you want to use what i’m calling the phantom config.
click ok…
and voila!
you should now be able to post yourself silly, replete with images that only tangentially refer to what you are posting about.
now, obviously…
all the settings above assume a default installation. if you have added custom access rules to the firewall policy, you might need to make sure that any & perhaps all of them which involve any form of ftp protocol are modified to allow upload as well.
also…
remember that every time you run ceicw, it will reset that read-only checkbox for ftp in the sbs internet access rule. so it’s a good habit to check that first if something suddenly stops working.
enjoy everybody!
and if you frack up your isa installation somehow by following this post…
i know an amazing isa mvp who can help you get it straightened back out again for a nominal fee. heck, she’ll even train you & your employees while she fixes it, if you want to pay a tad extra.
stay frosty, kiddos…
* obviously, we’re also talking about isa when installed as part of sbs 2003 r2 premium. and yeah…that title’s a mouthful to say. still…way less awkward than some of mothership’s product naming. and it includes the words super & awesome. so stick that in your pipe & smoke it!
|| posted by chris under funlab, utility belt || comments (0) ||
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December 26, 2006
thanks to everyone who responded regarding the recent implementation & integration of the 2007 versions of office accounting, outlook & business contact manager here at the funcave.
as mentioned, i documented a few helpful tips that might make your implementation a little smoother & will be releasing those in another blog post soon.
however, since most folks expressed immediate interest in how to get a trial key for office accounting professional, that’s what we’re talking about right now
and yes, i chalk up my finding of this to the insane amount of hours i used to spend playing rpg & adventure games, starting with the classic colossal cave.
actually, adventure on the atari 2600 was the real start for me. nothing like finding the magic dot with the bridge & finally uncovering the amazing technicolor easter egg, especially since you first had to not only trap that fracking bat, but also dance your heroically heroic square around the deadly jaws of a dragon/duck so you could lure it to the exactly exact correct spot before stabbing it with the sword.
ahhhh…good times.
ok, enough nostalgia.
without further ado…
happyfunboy’s super awesome guide to getting a trial key for microsoft office accounting professional 2007
after completing the dead simple installation of office accounting express, you’ll see the opening splash screen
choose open a sample company to get to through the first shadowgate.
choose either type of sample company from the dialog box, then click ok. as soon as the sample company opens, you’ll receive a splash screen asking if you’d like to upgrade to the professional version of office accounting
click upgrade at the lower right to get to the hall of the mountain king…err, upgrade product license dialog box.
here’s the tricky part. you might notice that nowhere in that dialog box does it mention a trial key.
however…
it does mention purchasing a key online, right toward the top.
guess what kiddos?
that’s the secret lever that open the treasure chamber.
click the hyperlinked word online…
and…
voila!
fill out the info as requested, & you’ll get your trial key immediately.
remember that the key is good for installation on up to 2 separate machines.
however…
there’s a bit of conflicting info flying around regarding whether or not there has been a change in licensing to the 2007 edition.
installing small business accounting 2006 on a server to facilitate a server-based installation did not require a separate sba license…
but yours truly has seen on at least one official mothership site that office accounting 2007 requires a separate license for a server-based installation.
still trying to confirm that, but something to keep in mind.
|| posted by chris under funlab, nostalgia || comments (1) ||
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December 22, 2006
no, not that kind of sniffer, kiddos.
i tell you, it’s like christmas came early for a network traffic hound like your friendly neighborhood.
while looking for that release update for network monitor 3.0 today…
to what should my wondering eyes appear…
but a powertoy called network analyzer for windows mobile!
this app could be a lifesaver when trying to run down pesky connectivity issues with windows mobile devices.
by default, it runs just 4 simple functions…
-
ipconfig
-
ping localhost
-
ping http server
-
net stats
but gathers quite a bit of helpful diagnostic info just from those.
better yet, it’s extensible for those who are so inclined. that opens up a lot of possibilities, which we’ll explore in more detail later…
right here at the funcave!
and it’s available for both pocketpc & smartphone, which rocks…
altho, as per usual…
it can’t be installed on a mem card.
so if you want to partake in some eavesdroppin’ goodness…
kiss some more of your device’s precious built-in memory bye-bye.
sure, we’re only talkin about 187k. but still…that’s 187k that is hist-o-ree!
still, this is waaaay worth the install & mem use just for the ability to quickly & easily get a report of the current network config on a windows mobile device, especially when you just want to know something simple. definitely the easiest way to find out the current ip address of your device.
and, at the very least…
network analyzer for windows mobile is intelligent enough to put the log file on the storage card, if there’s one present.
so yes virginia…
there is a santa claus!
|| posted by chris under freebie, funlab, mobility, utility belt || comments (0) ||
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December 22, 2006
just got a notice from the network monitor team this afternoon.
the recently released 3.0 version of network monitor had a time-bombed driver inadvertently left in that will cause it to stop working on windows vista once april 2007 rolls around.
to make sure you have the fix, verify that you have version 3.0.0372.0001.
if not…
& you happen to be an uncontrollable sniffer like moi…
best go grab the new bits over at connect.microsoft.com.
|| posted by chris under funlab, it pro, utility belt || comments (0) ||
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December 22, 2006
nope…not talking about jolly old st. nick here.
your friendly neighborhood happyfunboy is talking about making a list of applications, hardware & other assorted bits & bobs and the corresponding status of them having announced support for windows vista.
obviously, yours truly is starting with just the stuff here in the funcave or hanging off the old utility belt. yeah, it’s a barebones list…3rd-party stuff only…
but whipping up something like this for yourself can give you a quick overview about where your key stuff stands. for a business, obviously, the status of your holy-crap-we-can’t-function-without-this-app application should be the first thing you document & check.
if you want to see something added…post a request in the comments or fire it in via e-mail.
no warranty, express or implied, or anything else for the following info.
happyfunboy’s super-awesome guide to whether stuff supports windows vista
adobe photoshop elements 5.0 = free update after release
adobe premiere elements 3.0 = free update after release
adobe reader 8.0 = available now
apple itunes 7.0.2 = nothing announced
apple quicktime 7.1.3 = gathering feedback
ati = available now
difolders blogjet 1.6.2.60 = nothing announced
hewlett-packard/compaq = mid to late january
nero 7 ultra edition enhanced = available now
nvidia = available now
skype 3.0 = nothing announced
slysoft virtual clone drive 5.1.4.5 = available now
wacom = available now
remember kiddos…
even tho vista has been available to volume license, technet & msdn customers for almost a month now…
when any other vendor talks about the release of vista…
they are referring to the full-on release to consumers, which happens in january.
you might also find the following upgrade assessment tools helpful in determining your current system’s readiness:
as queenie found out, there are bound to be little hitches & catches here & there.
if you’re pissed about something not being supported…don’t yell at me. go howl at the vendor.
|| posted by chris under funlab || comments (1) ||
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