Grid Control access to a Windows server

If you are trying to get Grid Control to access a Windows server and having trouble here’s a few things to check.

1. Check that the host name credentials you are providing are the same as the user who install the database software on the Windows server.
2. Check that the user is a member of the ora_dba local group on the server and
3. Check that the Log on as a batch job local security privilege has been turned on.

Managing Oracle RMAN backups

Every now and again something will go screwy with my automatic RMAN backups and I’ll to find any that are expired or obsolete and delete them manually.

Blackberry Wallpapers

I’m putting together a list of various places to get wallpapers for your Blackberry.

interfacelift.com is one of my favorite for both my dual screen desktop and my blackberry.

vladstudio.com also has some very nice wallpapers with some good colors that seem to work well on screens with lots of icons.

For more have a look at my Wallpapers page

Bold Copycat Theme for 8800

I found a great theme for my Blackberry 8800, it makes it look like a newer Blackberry Bold.

Bold Copycat 8800.

Microsoft Sysinternals

If you need to find out what program are running when you start your computer, a great resource is Sysinternal at Microsoft.

They have a program called Autoruns that shows you ALL the programs and DLLs that are loaded when your computer starts and allows you to disable what you need, or rather don’t need.

http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/sysinternals/default

Use AS3 to Grab Exif Data From a JPG Image

Haven’t tried it yet, hope to as soon as my ActionScript skills are up to it.

http://active.tutsplus.com/tutorials/actionscript/quick-tip-use-as3-to-grab-exif-data-from-a-jpg-image/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+flashtuts-summary+%28Activetuts%2B+Summary%29&utm_content=Google+Reader

BlackBerry Certification Program

photo © 2010 Official Navy Page | more info (via: Wylio)

Did you know that you can get certified to write Blackberry Apps, Install the software and Support Blackberry devices ?

Find out more via Blackberry Certification Program site

There seems to be only on place to get safe study guides though, Self-Study Guides by element K

How to use your Blackberry as a GPS tracker

Most Blackberries come with a built in GPS. I think this is a great feature, but I haven’t found allot of use for yet.
One use I did find however was as a GPS tracker. This allows me to track where I go on my motorcycle tours.

First you need to get beGPS from Blackberry App World
This is the free version, there is also a paid version with a few more options.

Then get GPSBabel from here to be able to convert the data that beGPS writes.

Once you have used beGPS the first time there should be a beGPS.log file on you Blackberry SD card. Copy the beGPS.log from off your Blackberry to your PC.
Then use GPSBabel to convert the log file to a KML file like this,

gpsbabel

GPSBabel screen, note the translation options

or by the command prompt like this.

gpsbabel -i nmea -o kml begps.log begps.kml

Then you need to go to google maps and login with your Google account.
Go to My Maps, create a new map, and then use Import to import the KML file.

Done.

Compile Blackberry Playbook Applications without using Flash Builder

Blackberry have some great info on how to develop applications for their new Playbook HERE but it uses Adobe Flash Builder. Which you have to purchase at a significant cost from Adobe.

However there are alternatives. First, you’ll need to read the basics in THIS support form post. You’ll need the AdobeAIR SDK, the Blackberry Table OS SDK and optionally Flash Develop

You don’t have to use Flash Develop, you could use a plain text editor. But it is a very nice IDE to write in and does give you syntax highlighting. And it can compile the SWF file for you. You still have to create the batch file to launch your application into the virtual Playbook, but you can add that into the project and run it from there.

Good luck with your coding

Windows Multiple Remote Desktop MMC Snap-in

photo © 2007 Patrick Quinn-Graham | more info (via: Wylio)

You can now get an Windows MMC snap-in that allows you to easily manage multiple remote desktop connections at once.

However it can be a little tricky to find, especially if you are running Windows 7

The file you need to download is here :
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/en/details.aspx?FamilyID=E487F885-F0C7-436A-A392-25793A25BAD7
it’s the “Windows Server 2003 Service Pack 1 Administration Tools Pack”

Which sound like just a service pack for the tools, but it’s the whole thing.

You then need to start MMC and then add “Remote Desktops” snap-in.
Then right-click on the “Remote Desktops” branch and choose “Add new connection.”