SOFTWARE REVIEW: Recuva

Files get deleted unintentionally. It happens to everyone at some point. Sometimes they can be recovered from the recycle bin, but if they aren't there it's a little-known secret that they can still usually be recovered from the hard drive anyway. The reason for this is that when a file is deleted by the operating system, it only means that the file has been removed from a table of contents that the file system maintains. The data is still there, but the computer has simply stopped tracking it. It might still be there on the physical hard drive media. Over time, the system may write NEW data to that specific location on the media thereby making it impossible much more difficult to recover. But if that hasn't happened yet, special scanning software could find it.

I've been the loudest megaphone that I can possibly be to let people know about this and the free software that is available to accomplish this simple task. Currently, the most recommended tool available that I've seen is called RECUVA. This tool was reviewed positively on Lifehacker and I'd downloaded it upon reading the review.

It wasn't until today that I needed it. And it was for a friend's SD media card. Of course Recuva's details make it clear that it will work on SD and other media cards, so I confidently stated to my friend that I could get it done.

Where this went wrong is that the way that I read SD cards on my computer is to plug them into my Dell Axim. I don't have a built-in or stand-alone SD reader. My camera plugs in directly, but just for reading SD cards this indirect method has always worked.

Except it didn't work in this instance. The recovery software has some options for scanning hard drives, ipods, media cards and other devices. But it failed to scan and locate the media card, even though Explorer could browse to the files on the device with no problem. It seems that it only recognizes drives with letters associated with them (C:, D:, E:, etc.) and since the handheld doesn't get one, then it can't be recognized.

You should still download Recuva and have it in your arsenal anyhow, but don't rely on it to recover files on your Pocket PC, PDA or an SD card inserted in it.

Update: I had a moment after thinking about these steps and I tried the same tool with my camera instead of the handheld. But the results were the same. Oh well, it was worth a shot.

Reinventing the Desktop Interface

Who would have thought that step one would be to completely ditch the mouse? But if you think about it, the due date has perhaps arrived.

10/GUI from C. Miller on Vimeo. Here are more details:

Here it is: my crazy summer project to reinvent desktop human-computer interaction.

This video examines the benefits and limitations inherent in current mouse-based and window-oriented interfaces, the problems facing other potential solutions, and visualizes my proposal for a completely new way of interacting with desktop computers.

There's more information at 10gui.com.

The real point here is that we need a leap-frog move to jump from what we have as an interface now to the next step. I'd like to see this kind of technology as soon as possible.

How to Mod a USB Flash Drive

Hm. I guess it really is that easy.

Top 87 Bad Predictions about the Future

When predicting the future, it is important to keep certain points in mind.

In regards to predicting the future Howard H. Stevenson says, Prediction is at least two things: Important and hard. Important, because we have to act, and hard because we have to realize the future we want, and what is the best way to get there.

The act of predicting the future --both near and distant-- has always been fraught with difficulty. Certainly, it was hard prior to Nostradamus' day. Throughout history and pre-history it has been the purview of witch-doctors and shamans, scientists and inventors, stockbrokers and entrepreneurs. The wisest of the wise and the wackiest of con men have all tried their hand at the proverbial (or literal) crystal ball.

Hindsight can be quite fun here. Looking back and marveling at predictions that came true for those lucky few that said the right thing at the right time can be amusing. But the real excitement happens when someone steps in it big time and inserts their own foot in their mouth. Here's a few highlights from a nicely compiled list.

Everything that can be invented has been invented. - Charles H. Duell, an official at the US patent office, 1899.*

It will be gone by June. - Variety, passing judgement on rock 'n roll in 1955.

The horse is here to stay but the automobile is only a novelty, a fad. - The president of the Michigan Savings Bank advising Henry Ford's lawyer not to invest in the Ford Motor Co., 1903.

Would you like more? Check out the full list at Top 87 Bad Predictions about the Future.

*Note: Apparently, this quote from the patent office is a widely recycled misquote. A few of the others on the 2spare.com list are also debunked. Don't believe everything you hear.

Internet Explorer 7 Fonts

If you want to clear up the fonts in IE7 you will need to do the following.

*Go to Tools>Internet Options>Advanced
*Go to Multimedia and Uncheck the Clear Type for HTML box
*Ok the changes and restart IE.

The Internet's Early Years

It's hard to think about now, but at one point in the not-too-distant past, the Internet was new. Reporters for major news organizations looked at it and scratched their heads in confusion. For instance,...

--a dazzling array of information--

I'm trying to figure out how old this is. There are some important thinkers here, but I'm sad to see that they concentrated so much on Bill Gates. Huh? But there are some great ideas that we still use today and some that seemed important at the time, but have fallen by the wayside. That wrist watch? The virtual reality-esque shopping mall? This specific video is not entirely a parody, but it has a menu screen at the end referencing Jimmy Fallon's new Late Night show. I'd guess that these are a combination of multiple clips of various Tom Brokaw interviews and several other pieces spliced together.

Original source: Nikomas.com- The Internet is All Grown Up

Windows 7 European Edition

When it's available, I want a copy of Windows 7 from Europe. It will ship without Internet Explorer. Read more on BBC NEWS.