Automated software installation utility

I’ve solved my problem with having to install all my favorite applications twice on my Dell 11z netbook (once under the existing Vista OS and a 2nd time under Windows 7 when I do a clean install in about 10 days from now). It’s a wonderful automatic installer application called Ninite, which completely automates the installation process of several different applications. I describe this utility on my main tech blog site, so you can get more details from there.

Cloud Computing… revisited

When I first looked at the Dell Mini 9 several months ago, I also looked into cloud computing for file synchronization and storage. Netbooks and cloud computing sort of go hand-in-hand, since we’re talking about using a very portable computer as a secondary machine which can easily be connected to the Internet. Since it’s been about 7 months since I last looked at the cloud computing offerings, I quickly reviewed the current status of three file syncing/storage utilities: (1) DropBox, (2) SkyDrive, and (3) LiveMesh.

DropBox appears to have not changed, still allowing only 2 GB of file storage for their free service. SkyDrive also remained unchanged with 25 GB of storage, but you still can’t upload folders of files or large single files. My favorite of these three is LiveMesh by Microsoft. I’ve been using it since I began my first evaluation and it continues to work very well. I really like the seemless integration with my Windows Vista desktop PC, where any files in a designated “LiveMesh” folder automatically get synced between the machines I’ve specified. I can also access these same files on the Internet via any web browser, as they are stored on Microsoft’s file servers as well.

Although LiveMesh has a limit of 5 GB of online file storage, there is no limit for file syncing between your “ring” of machines. So you can sync 50 GB of files between your various PCs and laptops using LiveMesh, but you can only store 5 GB of data on Microsoft Servers in the cloud.

So for me, it seems that LiveMesh is the winner for file syncing between my machines. Unfortunately, I often forget I have it running on my systems (since it is so silent and unobtrusive) so I don’t make a lot of use of it. But maybe that will change when I get my Dell 11z.

Maximizing your viewable web page space in FireFox

Personally, FireFox is my favorite web browser because of all the nice add-on plugins that are available. My favorite is Adblock Plus which stops popup ads from appearing when you web browse. There’s also Morning Coffee, CoolPreviews, Download Statusbar, and WeatherBug that I’ve loaded in my FireFox version.

The only bad thing about FireFox, is that it is “top heavy”, requiring a good deal of vertical space at the top of it’s application window for the menubar, icons, bookmark toolbar, and window tabs. Since screen real estate is a premium on the smaller Netbook screens, using FireFox in its default configuration isn’t really suitable for Netbooks. However, you can customize FireFox with custom themes and addon plugins to help reduce all this clutter.

Positive Note: Windows 7 OS Runs Smooth on Mini 9

For my initial testing, I decided to install Windows 7 on the Mini 9 and configure all the various tweaks I’ve read about on the different forums and web pages. After working with it for a few hours, I can honestly say that it runs noticeably faster than I expected. I noticed very little (if any) lag time, and it seemed very snappy when popping up menus and application windows. I didn’t have any driver issues or crashes during my testing, and the hardware components that I tested seemed to work well. So, I can say it was a pleasant experience using Windows 7 on the Netbook. The surprising thing, is that I did all my testing with the stock 1 GB RAM installed, and it ran just fine (I forgot to install the 2 GB RAM module that I purchased from NewEgg.com). So, adding more memory could only help when running multiple applications.

My List of Applications For My Dell Mini 9

In addition to installing the Windows 7 OS on my new Dell Mini 9, I’m also planning to install some much needed applications. Since I don’t have a lot of storage space, I need to carefully pick which applications to install. My main use for the Mini is for Internet web browsing, email, and remote desktop connection, so I’m leaving off any heavy duty processor-intensive applications. Here’s my current list of applications:

• 7-Zip – Zip Compression Software
• OpenOffice - Suite of MS-Office clone applications
• FoxIt Reader – PDF File reader
• FileZilla - FTP Client Software
• CCleaner - Temp file and registry file cleaner
• Thunderbird - Email client application
• Sunbird - Calendar application
• XAMPP - Apache Server Software
• Paint.net – Adobe Photoshop clone
• Chrome - Google’s web browser application
• Avast! – Virus Scanner Application
• Live Mesh – Microsoft Online File Syncing/Remote Desktop Software
• AutoHotKey – Keyboard Macro Application
• Safari – Apple’s Web browser

Of course, I’ll try to find the “portable” versions of these applications to save on storage space. And, I’m still debating on whether to use FireFox or Chrome as my web browser. I’m considering Chrome (made by Google) since it allows for the most viewable web page on the screen and it seems to boot up faster than FireFox, but, I’ve been using FireFox for a few years now and I really like it’s features.

Also, I do a lot of web page development, thus the need for the Apache Server and Safari web browser software. Once I get everything installed, I’ll make a posting that shows how much space I’ve used up and what’s free.

Portable Applications For Your Mini

With 250 or 500 GB hard drives on most desktop PC systems, people hardly give any thought to disk space when they download and install various software packages. For example, when you last upgraded to FireFox or installed some shareware application you downloaded from the Internet, did you check to see how much space it took up on your hard drive? If you’re like me, then probably not!

With most Netbooks having only 8 or 16 GB of storage space, you really can’t install apps and files haphazardly. You need to carefully decide which applications you really need, as you could quickly fill up your available disk space.

Luckily, there’s been a movement to create “portable” applications that will fit on a USB Flash Drive, so you can take your applications and files with you. The thought being, you could walk up to any PC and insert your USB Flash Drive with your portable applications and files, do some work, then pull your USB drive out and be on your way. As such, Netbook users can take advantage of these portable apps to help save on valuable disk space.

Now, we’re not talking about water-down or wimpy applications, but rather rich, full applications and utilities that have been slim down to reduce their installation size. A perfect example is a package of freeware applications called PortableApps available on www.portableapps.com. This suite of applications are designed to be run from a USB Flash Drive, however, they are perfectly suitable for use on an Netbook (or any laptop, for that matter). Being a suite, the main interface for PortableApps is a single, simple window where you can launch one of the portable applications or access your data files (see below):

As you can see from the list, the available applications are well know freeware “clones” of several big name products. OpenOffice is an excellent suite of tools that mimic Microsoft Office applications (MS-Word, MS-Excel, MS-PowerPoint, etc.). You also have the FireFox web browser (my personal favorite) as well as Thunderbird (Email Client) and Sunbird (Calendar), all of which are very nice applications that can certainly replace MS-Outlook. KeepPass is an encrypted password protection program, and there are a few other useful applications.