31 Jan 2013

Change Windows 7 desktop icon size

I noticed someone's Windows 7 desktop had huge icons! I wondered how they did that. When I asked they said it was by accident and they didn't remember how. 

To reset your desktop icons right click on your desktop 
Click View

...and select the size of icon you want: Large, Medium or Small.

Also, you can press Ctrl and move the mouse wheel to increase/decrease the size of your icons! This must've been how the accident happened.

28 Jan 2013

Create a self-extracting archive exe PART 2

A self-extracting archive is a zip or similar compressed file that has been turned into an exe (executable). The advantage of this is that the recipient of the file only has to double click the exe and it will do everything automatically. The two actions it would usually perform are:
  1. To run one of the extracted files (to install a program for example)
  2. To extract the files from the compressed archive file (.zip or similar)
Previously in PART 1 I explained how to create an exe file that when run, would extract files and execute a program.

Here I'll explain how to make a self-extracting archive that prompts the user to extract files to a location on their hard disk. The instructions are very similar, there are just a few differences and most importantly the configuration file used is different. 


Download
If you've not done it already, download and install 7-Zip for Windows. You can find it here: http://www.7-zip.org/

Also, look on the Downloads page for '7z Library, SFXs for installers, Plugin for FAR Manager' - click to download the 7zXXX_extra.7z file.


Instructions
The 7zXXX_extra.7z is a compressed archive file, like a zip file but in the native 7-Zip format. Extract 7zSD.sfx from the 7zXXX_extra.7z file.

Make a new folder for your project. By 'project' I mean that if you plan to make a self-extracting archive you normally would already have some files you want to include in the archive. It makes sense to put them in a single folder. Also, you can reuse this folder if you update your files at a later stage. For the purposes of this example we'll call our project folder MyProject, but yours could be called anything.

Copy the 7zSD.sfx into the folder MyProject.

Now we have to make two files. The first is a configuration file. It determines how the self-extracting exe will work. This configuration file can have any name but to make life easy I recommend you call it '7config.txt'.

Open Notepad

Type the following:

;!@Install@!UTF-8!
GUIFlags="8+64+4096"
BeginPrompt=" "
ExtractPathText="Extract to:"
InstallPath="C:\\MyFiles"
FinishMessage="Finished"
;!@InstallEnd@!


Save the file as 7config.txt to the MyProject folder you created before.

To create the self-extracting exe we will need to type a command at the command prompt (CMD). But why do that each time? What we can do is make a command file and just edit/run that file when you want to make your self-extracting exe. You'll see what I mean soon.

Open Notepad

Type the following:

@echo off
copy /b 7zSD.sfx + 7config.txt + Install_MyFiles.7z Install_MyFiles.exe
echo.
pause


Save the file as 7makeEXE.cmd to the MyProject folder you created earlier.

Now inside your MyProject folder you should have the following files:

7zSD.sfx
7config.txt
7makeEXE.cmd


Now all we need are the files you want to include in the installation package itself. These files should be compressed into a single .7z file. Do not make a .zip file, use 7-Zip's native .7z format.

Save the .7z file in the MyProject folder. Name the .7z file as Extract_MyFiles.7z (or whatever you have used in your 7makeEXE.cmd file).


Use
Double click the Extract_MyFiles.exe and you'll see a prompt:


It prompts the user to extract the files to a drive and folder. Look back at the 7config.txt we made earlier, you'll see how you can customise this window. The user also has the freedom to click the yellow browse button and select a destination folder themselves.

Once the user clicks OK the files are extracted and they'll get this prompt:


This is just a message to say it's finished. I recommend this as it's good confirmation for the user that all the files have been extracted. Again this is customisable from the 7config.txt file.


Customisation
In the 7zXXX_extra.7z file you downloaded before, there is a help file 7zSD_EN.chm - this includes an explanation of all the commands used in the 7config.txt file. 


Conclusion
Using this method to create self-extracting archive exe file makes a lot of sense if you create and recreate self-extracting files often. Especially for those deploying files or updating them. Because you only need to recreate your 7z file and double click 7makeEXE.cmd to rebuild the self-extracting exe file. No messing around with lots of Next prompts. Also the 7z format compresses files so small, if you are supplying installation packages over the internet via FTP, this is perfect.


Reference
If you want to learn how to make a self-extracting archive that runs an EXE at the end, perhaps Setup.exe to install a program - see my first article on this subject: Create a self-extracting archive exe PART 1

23 Jan 2013

Sizer - change window size to test your website

Sizer icon
If you are creating a web page you may wish to know how it looks on different screen sizes. For example, a web page may look different on a 4:3 ratio 1024x768 screen from how it looks on a 16:9 ratio widescreen 1440x900. This is especially important for usability, to see if your page will scroll or if the whole page will be shown.

Also for testing any software it can be useful to see how a window looks at any resolution. See how your buttons and text boxes resize and stretch. You need to check that your software will look right and work for your users.


Sizer
Sizer is a very small program that let's you set the size of a window. You can set it to any size and also see what size a window is currently. 

You can download Sizer from here:
It's free and a small download. 

Once installed it appears on your Taskbar (near the clock) - here's an example of how to use it:

Sizer - taskbar
  1. Click to select the window you want to resize
  2. Right click on the Sizer icon on the Taskbar
  3. Select a size 
You can also click the Configure Sizer option to add your own sizes. 

For more detailed information see the Sizer website: 
It's a very easy and simple program. That's the key, it does one job and it does it well. 

Recommended: 9/10

21 Jan 2013

Excel 2010 - Format as Table is greyed out

Today I was sent by e-mail an XLS file but that when I opened it the Conditional Formatting and Format as Table buttons were greyed out. I wanted to use Format as Table so I could more easily

Make sure you save the file as a real Excel 2010 xlsx. But in my case I found my file was 'Shared' and removing the 'Shared' status solved it for me. Here are the two solutions in more detail:


Convert to xlsx
On the top of the Excel window, to the right of the filename, if it says [Compatibility Mode] do the following:
Click File | Info | Convert
Save the file as xlsx (native Excel 2010 format)


Turn off Shared
On the top of the Excel window, to the right of the filename, if it says [Shared] do the following:

Click Review | Share Workbook

Disable (click to remove the tick) 'Allow changes by more than one user at the same time. This also allows workbook merging.'

Click OK





Click Yes


Click Home and you'll see the buttons are now active!



NOTE: You have to make a choice! If you received the file via e-mail then it should not matter that you have turned off Sharing. But if you opened the file from a shared network drive then you will stop it from being shared - other users will not be able to access this file until you've finished with it.

4 Jan 2013

Mobile WiFi ('3' Huawei E5331 Value MiFi)

I spent a few days in the UK recently and I needed access to the internet. On previous trips I'd used a USB dongle that connected my notebook PC to the mobile network on a pay-as-you-go tarif. That USB dongle was dead and I needed something new. Of course I could use my mobile phone and create a WiFi hot-spot to connect my notebook PC to the internet - but this would cost too much using the roaming data tarrif (I live in Switzerland using Swisscom for my mobile phone). Therefore I needed a solution and I didn't have much time to get it. I walked into a '3' shop and bought something that looked like it would do the job:


The Huawei E5331
Huawei E5331 Value MiFi
GBP 50 including 30 days, 1GB data download [04/01/2013]
http://www.three.co.uk/Discover/Devices/Huawei/E5331_Value_MiFi/ [04/01/2013]

This little device fits in the palm of your hand. It has a battery and charges via a USB cable that connects either to your computer or to the mains. I found it gave me about three hours of use from a single charge. There's just one button, to switch it on/off. There are some icons on the front that light up to tell you some basic information, whether you are connected to the mobile network, if WiFi is on, etc.

Here are the full specs on Huawei's website:
http://www.huaweidevice.com/worldwide/productFeatures.do?pinfoId=3272&directoryId=5009&treeId=3619&tab=0


What is Mobile WiFi or MiFi?
MiFi Diagram

A MiFi (My WiFi) or mobile WiFi device such as the E5331 has a SIM card inside it (like a mobile phone) and connects to a mobile data network to reach the internet. The MiFi (the E5331 in my case) creates a wireless hotspot, it's a mobile WiFi router/access point. As long as you can get a mobile signal you can use this anywhere. As it's a WiFi hotspot you can connect your mobile or a tablet as well as your PC. It makes life easy because you don't have to install it onto a computer as you do with a USB mobile dongle. The one I used before was a real pain as the driver software sometimes crashed my PC (blue screen of death). With a mobile WiFi device you just switch it on and you have a local WiFi network!


Setup
The set up was straightforward and no trouble apart from getting the back off the E5331. It's one of those that you have a small gap to put your nail or a small coin under and pull it off. Of course you feel you might break it but don't worry, a bit of elbow grease and it'll pop off. Add the battery and the SIM card, away you go. The name of the WiFi (SSID) network and WiFi password are written on a label inside the cover, there's also a small label that you could stick somewhere to remind you. The default IP address is the usual, enter http://192.168.1.1 into your browser to get to the router admin software. A small paper instruction booklet is included, you'll be hooked up to the internet in no time. The simplicity was great!


Conclusion
I found it easy to set up, simple to use, reasonably priced and the internet speed was sufficient for casual use including Skype. It's much better than a USB mobile dongle. There's no installation issues and you can use the mobile WiFi to hook up all your devices to the internet. I didn't have to use my mobile roaming from my phone. I just walked into a shop in the high street and bought this, you don't need to give your credit card to use it, it's excellent. The next time I'm in the UK I can top up by spending GBP 10 (1GB over 30 days). I think this is a flexible and simple solution. Of course I didn't do any research before purchasing this particular model from '3', maybe there's something better out there? In any case I can say this is a nice solution.

Recommended: 9/10


References
Full review of the Huawei E5331:
http://www.trustedreviews.com/three-value-mifi-huawei-e5331_Peripheral_review [04/01/2013]

'3' Value:
http://www.three.co.uk/Discover/Devices/Huawei/E5331_Value_MiFi/ [04/01/2013]

MiFi at Wikipedia:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MiFi [04/01/2013]

Huawei website:
http://www.huaweidevice.com/worldwide/productFeatures.do?pinfoId=3272&directoryId=5009&treeId=3619&tab=0 [04/01/2013]