Surface RT Windows Mail issue is fixed!

As I laid out in this post on November 5th, the mail client on the Surface RT had some configuration issues that would not allow some of us to send email.

There was an update released on 12/20/2012 that updated the mail client and required a reboot. This seems to have fixed the issue, which is great! I can now send email from my personal email account on the Surface RT.

I initially tried to simply change/reapply my settings, and it did not work for me. I eventually had to delete the account from the mail app, reboot, and re-add the account. That worked.

Finally.

Microsoft Surface network printing

Today I needed to print something that is on the microSD card in the Surface and it struck me that I hadn't tested the printing. In fact. I've never had the opportunity or need to print from a tablet. I did try to get that working from my Windows Phone 7 with no luck. This is something I feel that Microsoft could excel at if they'd just do it. Productivity is the realm of the PC.

Anyway, I went to the control panel and to devices. I clicked on "add printer" and it immediately picked up my Brother 2170n. Next, ok, etc... print from Word 2013. Worked perfectly the first time.

I am a bit surprised. I don't know why this would be EASIER than in Windows 7, but it was. The only prompt I got was to use some sort of generic print driver (OK/Cancel).

Now granted, basic print drivers are pretty standardized... mostly the added features and benefits of OEM drivers are the extra stuff like ink level checking, etc. I have always hated the extras because they are generally buggy and bloated. So this tactic of using a simple, basic driver for "most" printers suits me just fine as long as the printed page looks like it should.

Before this simple network printer install, the default printer was OneNote. There is also an option for XPS in there. Neither of these options are good. I feel like XPS is a waste of time. We don't need another goofy format from Microsoft that will just go unsupported ASAP.

Surface RT firmware update #1

Office 2013 Home and Student final is out as of October 31 , 2012. 586MB!
I've been using Office 2013 several times a week since the Surface came out, and I like it. Not a huge update of 2010, but it works well.

The updates today (11/13/2012) didn't fix the mail issues I am still experiencing, and no use of POP mail either.

Here is the list:
http://www.zdnet.com/microsoft-delivers-operating-system-updates-for-surface-rt-7000007354/

Nice, but needing more.

Windows Live Mail IMAP problem on the Surface

I have several email accounts, and it looks like the non-standard accounts do not send email through IMAP from Windows 8 RT.

A day or two after I received the device there was a windows update that changed the email app. I noticed because the "Add New Account" screen looks different. There is a "POP3" option which simply tells us that POP3 is not supported at this time.

IMAP receives email, but does not send.
I tried this same account setup in Thunderbird, and I had to choose the outgoing mail server, port 587, and STARTTLS as the authentication type.

The Live Mail app does allow me to change the port, but the auth type cannot be changed. Maybe it's another issue. Regardless, Microsoft seems to know about it, and hopefully we will receive an update soon. Not being able to send mail from my primary email account is annoying.
 
http://answers.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/forum/windows_rt-ecoms/cant-send-imap-mail/66d40d6d-2936-443d-8d21-350f88aa4637

Microsoft Surface First Day

I will add pictures and more information to this post.

First impressions:

• Solid build. Very nicely built. Not too heavy or too light.
• The hardware is ideal. I'm sure they could have packed more speed in, but I've seen no lag at all and the apps open at the same speed I see from iPads.
• My Microsoft bluetooth mouse connects and works perfectly. Hurrah.
• The setup process is typical, very quick and easy.
• The screen is really nice. I expected worse considering the resolution (1366x768) but it is a great looking screen.
• Windows 8 is really great for touch devices. I played with it, and as always, there are many ways to customize the look. It's fluid and great looking.
• On-screen keyboard... this is a real pet peeve of mine, and it works great. No slowdown, and I can almost immediately touch-type.
• Apps: There are more apps than I care to see. 
• What I am not seeing that I wanted immediately was VMWare View. Some stuff I've read online say that there is a dev version. I haven't found it yet. Not immediately necessary, but it needs to be there ASAP.
• The mail client is nicer than I expected (Live Mail)
• Office 2013 RT Preview really works well. I'll immediately start using that and post more information.
• Netflix, Skype, Drudge Reader, SkyDrive, etc. 
• Haven't tried any games yet. This is not my gaming machine, but of course I will eventually see what's out there.

Comes with a magnetic attaching power plug.

Touch cover:
The touch cover is light and semi-flexible. About what I expected. Typing on it is interesting. It's not like a keyboard, but it's not like the on-screen keyboard either. Not at all hard to get used to. The most noticeable thing is the touchpad portion of the keyboard. It's not as sensitive as you'd find on a regular touchpad. The *click* of the keyboard connecting is strong, and it makes a nice screen cover. I'm curious as to how I can get a cover for the back and corners while still using the touch cover. After breaking a few phone screens, I'm not willing to go without one for very long.

Other things I noticed:
I connected to the work MS Exchange server, and it transferred the organization's security policy to the RT device. I accepted the policy change as it told me that it was required in order to connect. It created a new local account on the RT device and I was no longer logged in using my Live account. I was then required to change my local password to meet the employer's complexity requirements. The policy also enforced other security settings, such as how long can the device be inactive before requiring a password.

The only way I could remove these policy changes was to reset the device to factory defaults. Not a big deal for the first day as it only took at 5-10 minutes, but it's something to note. I couldn't find another way to change it.

I may try to connect again and not "accept" the policy enforcement.

Remote clients:
Citrix has a receiver client out... so maybe VMWare will get on the ball and make a View client.
"Citrix Releases Receiver for Windows 8/RT “Metro” Preview to the Windows Store"
http://www.dabcc.com/article.aspx?id=21621

The alternative to VMWare View would be a good VPN client that will connect to a Cisco VPN host. I'm looking into that.

Update #1 XBox Music:
The "music" app on the Surface can play files from any drive if you manually add the files to a play list, each time... But for its full functionality you need to use "my music" which is pointed only to the music "library" in Windows. Just like in Windows 7, you can remap libraries to point to other locations. Turns out your libraries cannot be remapped to a removable drive like the microSDXC slot on the device. While this limitation would be OK on a desktop or laptop with a large drive, the RT device has a 32GB drive. The drive is almost half-full with no use content on it. While I understand the reasons and limitations, I find this to be a bit of a letdown. The microSDXC slot is fantastic, and I bought a nice 32GB Sandisk for music. Apparently I cannot use it this way.

By the way, they must be abandoning the "zune" name. Replacing it with "XBox" is not better. Zune makes me think music, and XBox makes me think games.

This Surface teardown over at ifixit.com is pretty cool.
http://www.ifixit.com/Teardown/Microsoft+Surface+Teardown/11275/1

Microsoft Surface pre-order

Like so many others, I received the email that Surface is available for pre-order. I went to the site to see what's, what. I've saved my money and have been waiting for a replacement for my Win 7 netbook. The minimum requirements I have though are.... a remote desktop client, MS Office, and the ability to remote into my employer's network.

http://surface.microsoftstore.com

First off, only the windows 8 RT (ARM) version is available (non-x86 apps). Windows 8 Pro is still "coming soon." So right off the bat, it's the first of the very first devices.

The "Touch cover" is available for $119 and the "Type cover" for $129. They're both screen cover/keyboards. The type cover is a mechanical keyboard intended to provide a "real" keyboard experience for those who need or want it. The touch cover is touch based, like a touch screen or track pad. Both have integrated track pads.

Windows 8 RT model
$499 for the 32GB.
$599 for the 32GB with *black* touch cover.
$699 for the 64GB with *black* touch cover.

Seems reasonably priced, and money is saved by purchasing a cover with the pre-order.

Comes with Office 2013 home/student preview which is nice, but the kicker is that the full home/student version of Office 2013 is free... that's a real selling point because I know that MS Office will not be a hack, or some half-assed, kinda-sorta product.

The Surface website is iffy on details. With some searching I've been able to find out that the Windows 8 RT version comes with an RDP client but not an RDP host. Only Windows 8 Pro comes with host. This means that I cannot remote into an RT tablet, but I CAN remote from it to another machine.

I had to call the sales line and ask if the device comes with a power plug. (The guy who answered was foreign.) Odd, I know, but one of the accessories being sold is a power plug, and there is no mention of what is "in the box." There IS a power plug with it, and the distinction could be that the accessory plug is the magnetic "snap" version. No way to know.

Next stop is to check VMware for a view client. Nothing downloadable on this workstation, but some search reveals that the MS StoreFront on Win 8 is supposed to have a Windows 8 RT VMware view client.

Delivery for pre-orders is by October 26th, 2012. That's a week and a half.

I think I'm ready to pull the plug. Maybe being an early adopter won't be so bad for me. I usually don't jump so soon.

Assigning a default handler to extensionless files in Windows

I recently ran into a large number of files that have no extension. My attempt at batch processing this files was hindered. In Microsoft Windows, if you double click on a file that has no extension, the "Open With" dialog will appear and ask you which program to use to open the file.

Normally, you could choose the program and then check the box "Always use the selected program to open this kind of file" and then the file open process would be automated going forward. When the file has no extension, that box is greyed out, so the automated file opening by a certain program cannot happen.

To fix this (to cause a file without an extension to open in Notepad.exe by default) I looked into the registry.

The registry key Computer\HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\.txt contains the instructions for the ".txt" extension.

".txt" (Key)
---- (Default) = "txtfile" - (String)
---- Content Type = "text/plain" - (String)
---- PerceivedType = "text" - (String)
---- PersistentHandler (Key)
-------- (Default) = "{5e941d80-bf96-11cd-b579-08002b30bfeb}" - (String)
---- ShellNew (Key)
-------- etc...

What I did was copy the strings and the PersistentHandler registry key into a new sibling without the "txt" portion.

" ." (Key)
---- (Default) = "txtfile" - (String)

---- Content Type = "text/plain" - (String)
---- PerceivedType = "text" - (String)
---- PersistentHandler (Key)
-------- (Default) = "{5e941d80-bf96-11cd-b579-08002b30bfeb}" - (String)

The logic behind this is that ".txt" opens ".txt" files with a certain handler and treats them a certain way. A file without an extension is effectively just "." instead of ".txt."

To my surprise, it works. Any file without an extension is automatically opened in Notepad.exe.

WRT54G - The ubiquitous.

I've had a few WRT54G routers over the years and they've been really great. Major kudos to Linksys (and secondarily Cisco) for making a great product and supporting it for so long.

I recently upgraded one of my WRT54Gs to firmware 4.21.5 (Feb 2012). It was running perfect, so I suppose that upgrading was a stupid gesture. My router is a version 2.0 (#3 of 12 versions). The router is old and I should have known.

Well all of the wireless devices started to drop connection on a regular basis since I upgraded the firmware.

Turns out, it is really hard to find a source for the old firmware bin files.

So I turned to DD-WRT, which I had used in the past, but since I prefer to use the OEM firmware (if possible) I had reverted to a newer, working version of the Linksys firmware.

DD-WRT is a free, opensource firmware for the WRT54G (and many other) routers. It is a beautiful thing to not have to throw away a $50 piece of hardware because the manufacturer's firmware turned it into a useless piece of junk.

Updating to DD-WRT
Some tips you may find useful:

Use the latest version recommended on the DD-WRT router database, NOT a version you downloaded from somewhere else (it might be old).

Use a wired connection for the upgrade. You do not want to get frustrated with settings, trying to connect, not knowing what the default SSID is, etc.... just plug it in first and you'll be better off.

You can backup your settings, but considering this is a new firmware, you should start from scratch. Settings are easy to get back if you know what they are.
1. Write down your settings (DHCP settings, wireless security type, key, encryption, channel, etc)

If you upgrade from the Linksys firmware to DD-WRT for the first time, you may need to reset the router to factory conditions.
1. Unplug it
2. Hold down the reset button and plug it back in
3. Keep it pressed for about 20 seconds

When it comes back, remember that the default IP address is 192.168.1.1, NOT whatever you had it set at.

The DD-WRT default username is "root" and the default password is "admin" for versions 23 SP1 and greater.

Last tip. Have an alternate means of connecting to the internet in case you forget everything and need to search for help. A smartphone will do.

Windows 8 comments

Internet Explorer Consumer Preview 10:

• Generally slow
• Rendering takes some time to catch up to scroll location on an average page (msn.com)
• Nice minimalist look and feel

Windows 8 touch integration:

• Keyboard sounds like a WP7 keyboard
• Keyboard layout is nice and has a lot of options like resizing, changing layout for thumbs typing, handwriting recognition, etc.
•  Handwriting recognition is good and works much like Windows 7... but slower. I find that I can write too fast and overwhelm the recognition system. When this happens, it creates more errors in what it thinks I wrote.
• The keyboard takes up about half of the screen, so if you use overlay mode the keyboard blocks the view of anything under it. Using the block mode to pin the keyboard to the desktop will force the text window to fit in the other half of the screen.
• Auto-correct is much less aggressive than it would be on a phone. Type "lke" won't change to "like" or suggest anything. "wont" will add the apostrophe though (in won't) but only if you add the space after it.
• double-tap on the text input zooms in. Nice touch.
•  Will need a screen with no raised bevel edges in order to use the Win 8 edge navigation. My EeePc has slightly raised edge and my finger can't register close enough to the edge to make the navigation kick in.
• It seems like Windows can't figure out whether or not to select or position the cursor or to focus. Touching a word (to edit) sometimes does nothing, and sometimes it places the cursor where I want it. Not sure if that's lack of cpu or a focus confusion.

Some of the issues I am having is a lack of power. This Atom cpu is just too slow for this version of windows. I'm also sure that the release versions of Win 8 and IE10 will be more refined.

Intel GMA500 Driver on Windows 8

So like many people with Intel Atom based netbooks, I wanted to try Windows 8. I was running Windows 7 Home Premium on my Asus EeePC T91MT. This netbook is underpowered out of the gate, and the Windows 7 touchpack is cool, but not terribly useful. Touch is definitely an afterthought in Windows 7. For this netbook to be useable, all graphical prettiness must be turned off (especially Aero). The Atom 1.33Ghz CPU is a dog and the Intel GMA500 is even worse. I don't expect much out of a graphics chipset, but it won't even play Minecraft with all options on low.

But this is not an Intel bashing session (even though I could say a lot more)...

I heard that Windows 8 is faster on older hardware, especially the Metro touch system. I installed it and it's true. The Metro UI is neat and pretty intuitive as well as fast.

But this is not a Windows 8 review...

If you want to run a Windows 8 app, you'll need a minimum resolution of 1024x768. Without it, the apps refuse to start. As of March 2012, there are no Windows 8 drivers for the Intel Atom GMA chipsets. When you install Windows 8 on a Win 7 netbook, the basic Microsoft driver is installed.

Default resolution...? 800x600.

I believe it's stupid for Microsoft's basic default driver to default to a resolution that disallows its apps to run. Seems a bit shortsighted. Just sayin...

Windows Update finds no drivers.
I download the latest from Intel (Oct. 2010 driver) - Can't install (OS not supported).

Here's the solution.

1. Download the latest driver
2. Go to the desktop (touch top-left corner)
3. Open the Screen Resolution properties box
4. Click on Advanced Settings
5. Click on Adapter Properties
6. Click on Driver tab
7. Click on Update Driver
8. "Browse my computer for driver software"
9. Select the folder you unzipped the driver to
10. Click "Next"

The screen may flash a time or two, and you may need to reboot, but when it's done you should be able to select your recommended resolution and 1024x768 even if the display recommends lower (mine recommends 1024x600).

Apps load and you can now play with Windows 8 Consumer Preview.

Enjoy.

WP7 Primary Live ID

So if you've got a Windows Phone 7 you will be required to create a Microsoft Live ID or use an existing one when you activate the phone. If you change your primary Live ID username (email address), your phone will be unable to do many things, like download a paid app, update apps,. Your Live account is listed under settings - Email+Accounts. You'd think that you could just change the account information like you can with your other accounts. This is not currently the case. No way to change the email address, means you cannot update the Live ID that your phone is connected to. No way to change it in the Zune software, online, or anywhere else.

The only solution is to reset your phone, which wipes all of your settings and information, that is unless you have your phone dev unlocked (I do) and can go thru the steps to update a registry entry on the phone.

I hate to be "one of those" people who is hung up on ancient technology... but my last smartphone was a Palm Pre Plus. The Palm profile saved all of my settings (except passwords) online... upgraded phones simply restore to what the profile says was there last. As if that wasn't convenient enough, there were TWO reset options on my Palm Pre... There was the option to reset and wipe, and the other was to reset and retain all user data. Duh.... that makes sense, right?

So I went from an older open system to an up-to-date modern system... but I'm still shocked by how many details have been left out.

How to change primary LiveID email without resetting WP7 (by sensboston)

On the desktop:
1) Go to http://account.live.com and sign in with your old account;
2) Change your LiveID email (use existing email or get new one from @hotmail.com);
3) Save your changes and re-login with new ID.

On the handset:
1) Using registry editor or provisioning file, change these values:

Code:

[HKCU\Software\Microsoft\ActiveSync\Partners\{B2830118-7BC6-4A74-8C9A-3D8B9CEF88E0}]
"Email"=your_new_id@hotmail.com
"User"=your_new_id@hotmail.com

[HKCU\Software\Microsoft\IdentityCRL\Environment\Production]
"DefaultID"=your_new_id@hotmail.com

Oppose SOPA and PIPA

End Piracy, Not Liberty   [Google.com]
The Stop Online Piracy Act Violates the First Amendment [net-coalition.com]
How PIPA and SOPA Violate White House Principles Supporting Free Speech and Innovation [eff.org]

Easy Homemade Pickled eggs

The easiest way to make your own pickled eggs is to buy one jar of them and a jar of sliced jalapenos.

Eat the pickled eggs and keep all of the juice. Boil your own eggs and put them in the original pickled egg juice. Top up with the jarred jalapeno juice and maybe a little white vinegar. Wait a few days and the skin will turn yellow and you'll get the flavor embedded in the eggs. You can put some red onion slices in there too.

Tasty.