Here is a new one.
A brand-new Xerox Phaser MFP (Multi-Function Printer) with an ADF (Automatic Document Feeder).
Printer work fine. Scans work fine on the glass. Copies work find on the glass.
However, the ADF won’t feed; it claims that there is paper on the glass.
The issue? Too much light in the room. Yes; this Phaser apparently writes in blood. Or steals your soul. Or something.
Actually, the light reader is just too sensitive. Sigh…
For years, I have been a Dell supporter. I tend to recommend Dell to my clients for a couple of reasons:
However, for a long time, Lenovo/Thinkpad had the market beat when it came to updating the drivers. You could start up the ThinkVantage System Update (TSU) utility, it would scan your machine, and suggest updates that you could use.
Then, for some odd reason, Lenovo decided to stop supporting the TSU utility, and instead insisted on going through their website. Which would be fine, except for the fact that the downloaded software would not auto-launch the setup/update utility (like Dell would), and as a result it would take twice as long to install.
Well, the TSU is back, and I am happy again. Now, if only they made their machines less…boxy.
Here is a new one.
I have a client who just purchased a software package. For reasons that shall be soon made clear, I cannot mention any names.
The client wants to load some data from another source into the new software. In looking through the help file and typical menu locations, I couldn’t find a logical way to do this. So, I called Tech Support. Their solution?
Either pay them to do the work….or sign a NDA (Non-Disclosure Agreement) so they can send me a white paper.
Really.
I recently installed a Canon printer driver on several laptops. On two of them, the driver caused the printer spooler service to crash all of the time. After searching on the web for an hour, I found the fix here. Thanks to DevinCollier.com for pointing me in the correct direction. Note: As with all processes that involve editing the registry, this may cause other problems. So, always backup before starting if you can. On the off-chance the blog post gets pulled down:
That is what worked for me. Good luck!
There are some nice additions to Exchange 2007, and one of the items is the ability to have it easily accept emails from in-network machines (like MFPs, Copier/Scanners) so you can scan to email without having to set up a separate user. The problem is that it will only accept emails that are addressed to accounts within the same domain (eg, user@company.com). However, with a little work, you can set up another SMTP Receive Connector to allow emails sent to out of domain addresses (eg, user@homeaddress.com).
Thanks to the fine folks at Petri for pointing me in the right direction.
Now, go forth and scan some more!
Here is a new one.
A client had a computer where when she went to log in, the desktop picture would flash, and then it would immediately go to “logging off…” back to the startup screen. This would happen in safe mode as well as standard mode.
As one would suspect, her machine was virus infected. Here were the steps I took to fix it.
Note; this particular virus ruined Microsoft AutoUpdates, and this fine Wiki helped me find the answer, although the “C:\Winnt…” didn’t apply, as that path wasn’t available.
Good luck!
Ok. Unless you have been living under a rock, you have seen this already. And, you may have even seen this a few years back. Which brings me to the following thoughts:
And, for once I agree with Entertainment Weekly.
If you are like me (and if so, please return my wallet), then you have multiple songs/albums that are missing the important tags that make iTunes useful. I had a ton of mp3 files that…um…fell into my lap off of a truck…<ahem>…that didn’t have the necessary information to make finding/sorting easy. While I could use a product like Shazam for the occasional puzzling musical entree, it didn’t work for the whole meal service.
Hmmmm. I’m suddenly hungry.
In any case, enter TuneUp…an iTunes add-on that actually seems to do what it promises. While it isn’t instantaneous, and it is a little too wishy-washy if it cannot find more than one song from an album, it does what it should; find and tag my music. It will do up to 500 songs at a time, but if you through that much at it, be prepared to wait, and wait, and wait….
But, I am very happy with it, and it will even work on multiple libraries! Just be sure to get the lifetime option, rather than the monthly payment.
One of the interesting things about being an IT consultant, is that you get to work and interact with a variety of people. I like people (which seems to be an oddity in the field I am in), and I like discovering new things about people and machines.
I have found that clients (and I am talking about individuals here, not businesses) fall into two basic categories: those who want you to come in, get the work done, and then leave with a minimum of fuss; and those who want to deal with you on a personal and technological level.
It is these latter people who not only want to get their computer problems solved, but who also want to talk to you as a person. They discuss what the Giants did that week (or will do in the upcoming year). They find out if you share a common TV show connection, like 24, and then help conclude if Jack Bauer really is that kick ass (hint: he is). They will introduce you to interesting new music, like Bob Dylan’s Theme Time Radio Hour. They will challenge you to work on some products you like (an HP MFP, for example) and others you don’t (like AOL), with a sense of humor and understanding that sometimes it works like magic, and other times it just doesn’t.
Jeff Rosen was such a guy. And, today, he lost his battle with cancer.
I leave with you with Bernstein’s Chichester Psalms, the second movement. I sang this a few years back with the San Francisco Choral Society (not this MP3), and it is one of the most beautiful choral pieces written.
Chichester Psalms, 2nd Movement (click this to listen)
Psalm 23
Adonai ro-i, lo echsar.
Bin’ot deshe yarbitseini,
Al mei m’nuchot y’nachaleini,
Naf’shi y’shovev,
Yan’cheini b’ma’aglei tsedek,
L’ma’an sh’mo.
Gam ki eilech
B’gei tsalmavet,
Lo ira ra,
Ki Atah imadi.
Shiv’t'cha umishan’techa
Hemah y’nachamuni.
Ta’aroch l’fanai shulchan,
Neged tsor’rai
Dishanta vashemen roshi
Cosi r’vayah.
Ach tov vachesed
Yird’funi kol y’mei chayai,
V’shav’ti b’veit Adonai
L’orech yamim.
Psalm 2, verses 1-4
Lamah rag’shu goyim
Ul’umim yeh’gu rik?
Yit’yats’vu malchei erets,
V’roznim nos’du yachad
Al Adonai v’al m’shicho.
N’natkah et mos’roteimo,
V’nashlichah mimenu avoteimo.
Yoshev bashamayim
Yis’chak, Adonai
Yil’ag lamo!
(Donations can be made in Jeff’s name to the Alameda County Food Bank or the American Jewish World Service organizations)
So I got the SBS 2008 printer issue resolved (see here for some background). To sum up, while I was able to get the HP printer drivers in both 32-bit and 64-bit flavors, I could not get the Konica-Minolta 2300DL color printer to play nicely. The fix?
Install the printer driver locally on each machine.
Oh…and also make sure that the IP address is hard coded in the printer itself (I apparently was using DHCP mapping on this machine).
