RIGUY

I was so excited to begin the transition to AT + T U-verse. I have separate accounts with 3 separate companies for Internet, TV, and Phone. Also, AT + T U-verse is offering a lock in 1 year commitment @ some very competitive pricing: $109 for mega channels, decent Internet and phone service. You have to hang on to it for 1 year minimum but pricing is for 2 YEARS!

Very nice, right? Well … I go through the online ordering, and choose the 3 packages: 250 mins for U-verse phone (should be enough), 200 U-verse cable channels, and 6 MBPS Internet, again for $109/month for next 2 years. Awesome! Wait … I just got an email saying there is a problem: AT + T sees I have service already so order cannot proceed unless it is canceled. Weird. So, my traditional land line needs to be canceled prior? Hmm, I wonder how the timing of this can work out? It gives a number to call. I call, and they explain the above and that my current number can be ported over, but I need to be transferred to a separate person to cancel current service.

First problem: 10 minute wait. I usually do not use this but …… Lol

Major problem: AT + T, being the mega Demi God or Goddess of all things telecommunications cannot build into this Uverse order a transition of my phone service, that I have through … AT + T …into new U-verse service? It is up to me to call the very same company, AT + T, to cancel current phone service in order to enable Uverse?

Wow. Anyone have the Comcast number handy?

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

UPDATE –
I was wrong. Or at least I did not understand all the details. Maybe AT + T could have explained it a bit better, but …. Yes, I did indeed have to disconnect my current DSL before getting a Uverse installation date set, but further research shows that this is common practice. Comcast requires the same. The reason is that the phone signal can only handle one provider at a time.

So, true enough I had to endure a few days without the DSL. However, I was able to get AT + T out in 5 days, and the install went extremely well. I got a smaller receiver that is sleek, along with a very efficient Wireless router. The features of the remote control and Uverse itself are immense. It takes a little time to learn, but is worth it.

In addition, the internet is solid, and the phone works super well. It’s been a week and no issues. I very much recommend U-Verse!

This new Lumia 928 looks SHARP! I have a Lumia 920 and am very pleased with it overall.

Check this out:

http://www.windowsphone.com/en-us/cmpn/nokia-lumia-928?ocid=MSCOM_HP_LUMIA928

A thorough overview of the Windows 8.1 update can be read from this MSDN Blog. Some changes in the following areas are covered: Personalization, Store/Apps, Search, IE, and Cloud Connectivity – This last one is very exciting and can possibly be a file server + backup replacement, at least for smaller businesses.

Yes, Windows 8.1 is FREE. As it should be! After all, it is a revision, similar to a Service Pack.

http://blogs.windows.com/windows/b/bloggingwindows/archive/2013/05/30/continuing-the-windows-8-vision-with-windows-8-1.aspx

Here is an excerpt from the New York Times on the recent release of Windows 8.1
It is a nice, simple overview of the major changes in Windows 8.1, a free update to the Windows 8 Operating System. In other words, the Start menu is covered ;>

After Bumpy Start, Microsoft Rethinks Windows 8

” … Windows 8.1 looks virtually indistinguishable from Windows 8 in many respects. People who dislike its colorful mosaic of tiles will not find much in the new software to change their minds.
That’s because it is unlikely, as a practical matter, that people will be able to entirely escape the tile-based interface in Windows 8.1, even though Microsoft is making it easier to avoid it. As expected, the new operating system will allow people to configure the software so that they start in desktop mode — the “classic” Windows interface with a taskbar at the bottom of the screen, a background image and applications with traditional menus — whenever they boot up their PCs.

Microsoft didn’t allow this with Windows 8. Even if their destination was desktop mode, where Office and millions of legacy Windows applications run, Windows 8 users had to pass through the tile screen, an inconvenience to many. It’s noteworthy that Microsoft will still put users in the tile interface by default when they start up their machines.

Microsoft is also reincarnating the Start button with Windows 8.1, though it won’t behave exactly like the Windows Start buttons of yore, the primary way Windows users found and launched applications for decades.

There will be a Windows flag icon in the bottom left corner of the taskbar in the Windows 8.1 desktop. But clicking — or, if you have a touch device, tapping — the button will simply return you to the tile-based interface, from which you can launch apps. People can get to a more traditional looking menu of applications from the Start button, but they have to configure the system to do that.
What these changes mean is that someone who makes the effort to reconfigure the operating system will be able to spend most of their time in the classic desktop interface. In practice, Microsoft will keep nudging them in the direction of the tile-based interface at every opportunity because it believes that is the future of Windows.”

NY Times Tech Blog

Server Manager Tool Locking Up My Server

I have had this recent issue with some Windows Server 2008 R2 (s). The server is slowing down tremendously, administrator log ins can take a very long time, and overall performance is terrible. It seems like it has happened all at once, so maybe a recent Windows Update is to blame. I have not had time to figure out exactly what may be the cause, but I use WSUS (update services) on a scheduled basis, so all my servers are updated together. My main concern was stopping the pain.

Although I don’t always use the built in Server Manager tool, I determined that in fact this tool is the culprit. I opened it on one of the servers and it locked up terribly – and brought everything else to a standstill. CPU and RAM usage spiked for lengthy periods. On one server I was even getting an error within the Server Manager tool, even after multiple refresh tries.

Remember that as the Server Manager is customized, changes are actually saved in the profile (usually the Administrator profile). So, we have to essentially clear some temp files to clean out some stale cache. Sound familiar?

Solution? Open Server Manager, but be sure to give it ample time to fully open. If you force close it then the situation is even worse. Once opened, go to File/Options and then click “DELETE FILES”. Restart the Server Manager Tools (NOT the whole server). It is not going to save large amounts of space. In fact, it has nothing to do with this (may range from 500 KB – 3 Megabytes). But it looks like if Roles and Features are edited a few times, i.e. added/removed from the server, then the old settings hang around and cause trouble.

The above worked instantly for me. Hope it helps!

Don’t look now, but …an IdeaPad for $279.99. Again, I don’t work at BestBuy (no offense to anyone who does, but THANK GOD, because they work work very hard ;>) …but this is a ‘phat’ deal!

“Lenovo – IdeaPad 15.6″ Laptop – 4GB Memory – 320GB Hard Drive – Black”

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/Lenovo+-+IdeaPad+15.6%26%2334%3B+Laptop+-+4GB+Memory+-+320GB+Hard+Drive/8814652.p?id=1218902554441&skuId=8814652

It looks really fancy, and Xbox One will surely try to maintain its dominace over all competitors. It should be a true “all in one entertainment system”.

You have to check out the preview video:

http://www.xbox.com/en-US/xboxone/meet-xbox-one?xr=shellnav

One neat little feature of the Lumia 920 Windows 8 phone is the screen shot. On the surface, it is easy as pie. You have to press and hold the Start button and also the Power button at the same time for a quick second or two. But you have to do it just right. It may take a few tries.

When done right, you will a loud camera picture taking sound sound (“c-l-i-c-k”!). This is a good sign and means success. The screen shot goes into your Photo Albums.

It may be useful for troubleshooting or app comparisons or to show off your colorful Windows screen to your iPhone friends, who are still stuck with the drab Apple backgrounds and app logos.