autohotkey script for MappedUp behind a proxy

very cool new screensaver/active desktop/rss reader MappedUp is definately my new screensaver. you choose your rss feeds and it sticks them on a world map. a sample is seen below:



however, if you are behind a proxy server that requires a username and password, the feeds do not work until you enter your credentials (it uses the same interface as IE). to solve this problem, i wrote a simple autohotkey script that will simple click "okay" when the screensaver comes on:

#Persistent
settimer,check,5000 ;checks every 5 seconds to see if screensaver is active

check:
result:=DllCall("user32.dll\SystemParametersInfo","uint",0x0072, "uint", 0, "uint*",screen_saver_active, "uint", 0 )
if(screen_saver_active) ;if screensaver is active...
{
SetTitleMatchMode, 2
ifwinexist, Connect to ;and proxy window is active
MouseClick, left, 184, 320 ;click the okay button (enter does not work)
}
return

feel free to use/modify this however you want :)

i always wonder the same thing!

this is usually only a problem when the smileys are not converted

review: prince caspian

imdb rating 7.1/10
release date: 16 May 2008 (USA)
plot: he Pevensie siblings return to Narnia, where they are enlisted to once again help ward off an evil king and restore the rightful heir to the land's throne, Prince Caspian.

supposedly this strays from the source material quite a bit (i am ashame to say i have never read the book) but i found this movie to be less cutesy than the first (surprisingly frightening for a PG) but more enjoyable. plus peter dinklage was great

review: campbell's tomato soup offerings

now that i have tried all three of these, i have to warn against the first and sing praises for the last. the classic tomato is just alright when its hot. its a little thin, maybe a little too plain and tomato-y, and there are definately better soups out there. the creamy tomato solves the thinness issue, but it is still just plain tomato and so it still tastes more healthy than delicious. enter the creamy tomato parmesan bisque. i believe this to be the best soup i have ever had. it doesnt come in can form, or in the bigger microwaveable bowls, just the small soup at hand, but it is so worth it. if you get a chance, try this soup

google deleting streetview incidents

newsblog valleywag posted a story about a girl flashing the a google streetview camera. now this particular point of the street is listed as "under high demand"/'unavailable", showing instead a black screen.


this same thing has happened with other incidents caught on film, with highlights posted here

is it because they use baidu?

google suggest can produce some interesting results :-P [via]

a glaring misunderstanding by majority of media sources

i got the news story today in several of my usual news feeds that the senate has approved the DTV transition delay this time around so broadcasters can broadcast until june 12th (instead of feb 17th). however, every single news story i read on this topic (i read 7, since they were all neglecting a fact i had known) is completely ignoring what i think is the biggest part of this bill, that broadcasters MIGHT be broadcasting until june, but they do not have to. the bill allows for broadcasters to turn off analog broadcasts on feb 17th, like planned, if that is more convenient for them, yet 8 out of the nine articles i read come close to ignoring this fact.

take House Approves DTV Delay Until June (PCWORLD), which writes on about the delaying being "in an effort to prevent millions of residents from losing their TV signals," and "Many U.S. residents aren't ready for the transition, Democrats argued" only to mention at the very end, almost as a footnote, that "The bill also allows broadcasters to switch to digital broadcasts before June 12."

CNET News does the same thing with a note tagged on the end stating, "The bill allows television stations to switch from analog to digital signals before the June 12 deadline if they are ready to do so." and with feb 17th only 13 days away, what broadcatser was not prepared? every congressma who spoke about this bill talked about how consumers were not ready, but it was only consumers (and the converter box coupon fund) who were ill prepared.

eWeek and Reuters news service fail to mention this stipulation at all.

the worst offender of this oversight, however, is the san francisco chronicle, which opens with, "Television viewers who rely on sets with antennas to pick up their broadcast signals have about four extra months to get ready for the nation's switch to digital TV." furhter down the same page, they say, "The delay does not mean every station will continue to broadcast in analog. Broadcasters will be permitted to shut off their analog transmission before June 12. That creates a potential uneven transition for analog viewers, who might still lose some channels, depending on what local stations decide to do." this appears to perfectly contradict their opening statement.

i got nothing on PCMAG. they have a solid article :)

UPDATE: even the whitehouse blog got this wrong! section 4a of the bill congress passed explains what will happen but everyone seems to be ignoring this fact...