Anyway, the office have some Windows 7 corporate license, so it’s not an issue replacing the operating system. Our IT support personnel were not around at that time and the user is very eager to use the computer. Thus, we’ve installed Windows 7 right away without much trouble, until prompted for a product key. Since, we don’t know the parameter to enter the prompt was skipped right on.

Windows 7 was I believed installed successfully, but it’s somehow running on some trial mode which would not last more than 30 days. I later get hold of the official license key for Windows 7 from our corporate IT support and was stuck on how it’s going to be entered into the system.

Steps in changing Windows 7 product key after installation:

• Click the Start button
• Right-click Computer
• Select Properties
• Scroll down window and click ‘Change Product Key’

Windows 7 Ultimate Product Key

If you seem not able to find the ‘Change Product Key’ option, kindly scroll down the window and you’ll find the ‘Change Product Key’ link at the bottom. Well, it’s not after all that difficult to change the Windows 7 product key after installation.

This seem to look like a handy work of a computer virus after messing up with the executable file. Antivirus software scan did not yield any culprits that have caused error. Moreover, the application was running fine before office relocation. The splash screen and login prompt work fine as usual. The Visual Basic software error comes after the user has entered the credentials on the login prompt.

DBNETLIB MSSQL Connection Error

The full error message alert reads as follows:
Invalid connection string attribute
[DBNETLIB][ConnectionOpen(Connect()).]SQL Server does not exist or access denied.
Data provider could not be initialized.

The reason is right in the alert message. The application could not connect to the MSSQL database for retrieving the data needed to run the application. The database connection string could not be initialized due to network security or the database name could not be recognized which causes missing data provider.

Evaluation result confirms that it’s not due to network security, but due to the database string not found by the VB application. The cause is the database server hostname not found by the system. Office relocation as a consequence has caused the working computer to have new IP Address. Being part of a new local area network of computers with different DHCP server and WINS server that made the application fail to connect to the MSSQL server using hostname.

The solution was to add the IP address of the MSSQL database server on the client computer’s hosts file located in %SYSTEMROOT%\system32\drivers\etc folder. The IP address of the MSSQL server was entered and it’s corresponding hostname into the hosts file.

Windows Hostname Entry

Once this was added, the VB application software was able to call the MSSQL database server without any problem. The DBNETLIB invalid connection string attribute error was resolved.

Since it’s initial release way back January 2008, MacBook Air’s weight, thinness and power has evolved significantly through the years. Needless to say that MacBook Air has become a model in the industry for ultra thin laptops. It is a breakthrough in design.

Several PC makers and leading laptop manufacturers are now trying to offer their own MacBook Air alternative. That’s where ultrabooks came to life which is basically an ultrathin laptop that will have ultra-low voltage CPUs. The ultrabooks are aimed squarely at Apple’s MacBook Air.

Ultrabooks from leading laptop manufacturers:
Asus UX21
Toshiba Portege Z835
Lenovo IdeaPad U300s
Acer Aspire S3

Whether consumers will stick it out with MacBook Air or with ultrabook as alternative, but it also depends on use and price. The good thing is people will now have several options to choose from when it comes to light, powerful, and ultra thin laptops.

Three different supported video formats by iPhone 4 as follows:
H.264 video
MPEG-4 video
Motion JPEG

The above formats usually have .m4v, .mp4, and .mov file extensions and is closely tied with the proprietary Apple movie player. Anyway that should not discourage would be users of those very nice gadgets as they do serve as handy companions and not to mention a good entertainment device.

During long trips on the subway train or public bus watching movie on an iPhone 4 is a good way to let time pass. People who have lots of DVD movies at home, like myself watching those movies on iPhone requires some dvd-ripper software for converting of movies to Apple supported format.

A software that could Rip and convert DVD movies (Convert almost all SD and HD videos to iPad video and audio format files) to iPhone 4S, iPhone4, iPhone video format and audio format is an essential software tool to have. Having such software to convert the DVD movies allows me to enjoy the most of my favorite movies while traveling.

Before, I have a Nokia E52 mobile phone prior to iPhone 4 and I use to watch videos in 3gp format by using a generic video converter (Convert videos/audios for mobile phones such as BlackBerry, Nokia, Samsung, Moto, etc.). The screen of Nokia E52 though small serves to entertain me when I am on a trip. What I like most is watching videos and movie on iPhone 4 because of the large screen.

It would be easy to convert DVD videos to iPhone 4 by some software and one of such software is ImTOO.  There are many software available and some are even free to download and use. You’ll never run out of options for DVD ripping and conversion software for playing videos to iPhone 4.

Anyone with those devices are clamoring for an upgrade to Android 4.0. Users should not be optimistic on this Android devices as it won’t officially be updated to Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich.

There are two main reason why Samsung Galaxy S and Galaxy Tab will not get official Android upgrade to ICS. It is summed up basically as a) those devices have older hardware and b) customizations which makes it difficult to change like TouchWiz.

People are hoping for some partial Android 4.0 upgrade in the form of a ‘Value Pack’ for Galaxy S and Galaxy Tab, but Samsung is even discounting this idea. Thus, the best approach will be installing custom ROM hack of Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich operating system.

There’s no doubt that a work around will rise up to this demand. Don’t easily discard Galaxy S and Galaxy Tab mobile internet devices as it can still have new life Ice Cream Sandwich upgrade unofficially.

The computer tablet wars started a year or so, but it just catches fire with the entry of Amazon’s Kindle Fire. What started as a humble eBook reader has grown into almost a full blown tablet with a few cons. Even at that, it is able to win practical gadget lovers with the Kindle Fire’s release.

Everyone knew that Amazon’s Kindle could be a strong contender in the tablet computer arena. This is based on the vast library of media content from apps, movies, music, games, books, magazines and other digital content available from their online store. Sure, it does not have access to the android Market and with that said it limits the apps that are available to Amazon’s content ecosystem.

The Kindle Fire’s fast and powerful dual-core process, vibrant color touch screen, ultra-fast web browsing, could storage, thousands of media content and apps are only some of the reasons why it’s a practical iPad2 alternative. Added to that is the price tag of 199$ which makes it cheaper than the entry level iPad2 at 500$.

But be warned there are some things that a 200$ tablet won’t be able to do as a 500$ tablet is able to do. In spite of that limitation Amazon’s Kindle Fire is a sure cheaper practical alternative to Apple’s iPad2.  (Photo Credits: Amazon)

This makes iPhone 4 as a perfect candidate for video games and all smartphones in general. It’s a fact that almost all people are using smartphones. Video game addicts and fanatics are even choosing brands of smartphone based on games to be played. Criteria for considering bigger and wider screens are of course additional factors, but smartphone would make a good video game device.

There are all sorts of portable video game consoles such as Xbox 360, Wii, PS3, 3DS, PSP and of course iPhone could be included on the list. With all this gadgets, I tend to appreciate the simple classic games from smartphones. Not to play down the great graphic capability of the new mobile devices, but I still prefer those arcade video games.

In the past, I would play Battle City until wee hours on a play station with friends and it’s good to re-live those moments. Thus, I searched some iPhone 4 apps on this and found several free video games. The more sophisticated premium arcade video games for sale are available also in iPhone 4. No one will ever miss those good old arcade games even on the latest mobile device. Free or for sale, arcade video games are here to stay.

Searching from the available list of fonts from different website is very difficult. There are several website with font collection, but it’s very tedious and time consuming as the font needs to be checked and compared one by one. Thus, an online font search software which is able to process font images would be very useful.

An online software from WhatTheFont that searches the font name using a graphic image uploaded from a fonts database. The website URL is http://new.myfonts.com/WhatTheFont/. It’s really pretty amazing how accurately it determined the closest font type name. If not satisfied with the result an online forum frequented by anonymous font expert is available that serves as a venue for finally determining the font name.

In practice offices will have to define and enter budget information in ERP. In our case we’re using the Oracle E-business suite financial module version 11.5.7 for budgeting. Manual budget creation using an ERP Oracle Financial Application software involves three things such as 1) creating a budget, 2) creating a budget organization, and 3) entering budget amounts.

1. Creating a Budget
Go to Navigator -> Budgets -> Define -> Budget
Enter the required information such as Name, Status, First, and Last.
Sample Data:
Name = XXBUDGET
Status = Open
First = Jan-XX
Last = Dec-XX
Use current year for both First and Last
Click Open Next Year button
Click Yes button in the Decision window
Click OK button in the Note window
Click View menu -> Requests to ensure that the concurrent process is completed

2. Creating a Budget Organization
Go to Navigator -> Budgets -> Define -> Organizations
Enter the name of the Organization.
Sample Data:
Name = XXIT DEPARTMENT
Display Sequence:
Sequence Segment
1 Company
2 Department
3 Account
4 Interco
Click Ranges button
Enter the required account information range.
Sample Data:
Line 10
Low 01.200.5000.00
High 01.500.9999.00
Type Entered
Click Save button

3. Entering Budget Amounts
Go to Navigator -> Budgets -> Enter -> Amounts
Select the Organization, Budget and Accounting Period using the LOV (list of values)
Enter the amounts on the account combinations using appropriate Budget Rules.
Sample Data:
Account 01.300.6000.00
Amount 300000
Budget Rule Repeat per Period
After entering the amount click Post button

The above outlines some basic steps in creating ERP Oracle Applications budget manually.

Among the things of interest in CES are home theater systems. It’s a dream to be in the middle of the action while watching a concert or a movie. The 3D TV technology is increasingly becoming more impressive, and it puts one in an ultimate home theater experience coupled with surround sound speakers. 3D TV is your next big entertainment investment. The best 3D HDTVs, have a lifelike display, images so vibrant that it seems to come out of the screen and into your living room.

An example of a 3D HDTV for a high-quality dimension of entertainment is Panasonic TC-P55VT30, LG 55LW6500 and the Sony XBR-HX929 which is some big entertainment investment. It supports 1080p high-definition images and has a PC input to replace a standard computer monitor. Building a 3D home theater system requires purchase of 3D glasses designed for this TV. Also, a 3D Blu-ray player, high-speed HDMI cable, and compatible A/V receiver with 3D products would be required too.

Internet connected, interactive TVs is a very big plus feature in a TV set. With a generation hooked up to the Internet, social media content and more a going crazy with an interactive TV. Some consumer may not be too excited with 3D TV, but a smart internet TV set with QWERTY keyboard accessories and touch screen capabilities would really be awesome.

There are more to expect with technology innovation on TV set. Communicating with smartphone or tablet for seamless content sharing, voice control and search, built-in cameras and microphone for video chat applications are some long list of feature to watch. I look forward to seeing this interactive 3D TV in the International Consumer Electronics Show (CES) 2012 and hopefully build the ultimate home theater experience in my living room.