HardwareGeeks
Archive for August 2009
String Formatting in InfoPath
So I got asked a question earlier on how to do custom formatting in an infopath form for doing Social Security Numbers and Phone Numbers. Surprised I hadn’t been asked before, here’s a copy of the formula used for getting it working. 
*UPDATED*
Updated code with how to get it to work on the currently selected field rather than on a secondary field
$150 off HP MediaSmart Servers
HP Is running a two day sale starting today that will take $150 off your MediaSmart Server EX485 and EX487.
To take advantage of the deal visit http://hpdirect.com
Worlds Smallest iPhone Dock
Today Germanys Senstation announced the worlds smallest iPod Touch and iPhone dock which is a little bigger than a penny. The new PocketDock allows for you to easily connect your ipod to a car stereo, television or any other device with an aux port.
PocketDock Line Out Mini USB comes in black, weighs 4 grams and with 7 by 25.5 mm has the same footprint as Apple’s iPod plug, thus fits through the dock connector opening of any case. It is also “Made for iPod” certified.
Make International Calls to 60 Countries for free with Vonage
Today Vonage announced that they have added an additional 55 countries for a total of 60 countries to their 25 dollar unlimited calling plan.
If you are a Vonage customer you must call to be placed on the plan as they will not switch you automatically, but switching to the new plan is free. The $25 World Plan includes unlimited calling anywhere in the US and Unlimited calling to 60 countries.
As of 8:30 PM EST today the 19th of August the new plans are not reflected on the Vonage Site.
Epson Upgrades Artisan Line
Last year Epson blew us away with their Artisan 800, and this year they promise to keep the title of “Years Best Printer” with their new Artisan 810 which has the same sleek design as the 800, the cool 7.8 inch touch panel with 3.5 inch color LCD and wi-fi connectivity.
But now with the Artisan 810 you can also print directly from your iPhone and even charge a portable device that is connected to it’s pictbridge USB port such as a MP3 player or GPS. The Artisan 810 will also have a built in duplexer so you can save up to 50% on paper. The duplexer was an option on the Artisan 800 and is now standard on the 810.
GI Joe Rise of the Cobra Game
So today UPS dropped off GI Joe Rise of the Cobra for the Playstation 3 and for the better part of a the day I have been playing it non stop . I love the game it’s really fun to play and my mom who dropped by joined in (the game is 2 player) and she loved it too. Hell she did a better job at fighting the bad guys than I did. Even though I love the game I am disappointed with the graphics and game play.
The story line for the game is great and I can’t complain about it but if you are expecting it to continue where the movie left off you will be disappointed.
While the game is fun to play and you won’t be bored the graphics will remind you of how games looked on the very first PlayStation, and the game play is a bit off; as it is hard to maneuver backwards. You can’t really look behind you or turn around which makes it hard to play some of the levels. Come to think of it the game reminded me of double dragon. If you are in two player mode you can’t really get to far from the other player either.
I love my iPhone but…
I love my iPhone 3G S but I have one major problem with it, the battery life is horrible and I found myself sticking the charger in my pocket and plugging it in to charge every chance I got.
I do not like carrying the charger everywhere I go as I personally hate having things in my pockets and I really didn’t want to have to hunt for an electrical outlet to plug it into everytime the battery was near death, so I got myself the Mophie Juice Pack Air since it promised to give me an additional battery life up to 4.5 hours of talk time and data useage. I was getting about 2 and a half hours.
Zune HD available for Pre-Order
The Zune HD is now available for Pre-Order directly from Microsoft. A few weeks ago I had a chance to play with the Zune HD for a little bit and it was pretty cool, although I don’t think I’d swap an iPod Touch for it.
But if you want to pre-order the Zune HD follow this link and click the Pre-Order link in the top right corner.
at&t Navigator for the iPhone
For the past few weeks I have been using the at&t Navigator (Telenav) for the iPhone and while I have had some issues with the software in some parts of the country it works pretty well and has helped me easily and quickly find my way around town.
While in San Francisco last month I ran into some problems with the service, but since then I have had no issues.
It locates me right away, it finds directions faster than my Tom-Tom and it hasn’t gotten me lost yet. Yes a GPS can get you lost just as Radiris who’s GPS got her lost.
AMD introduces Phenom II x4 965 Black Edition
Today AMD announced the new Phenom II x4 965 Black edition processor the worlds highest clocked quad core processor for Desktops PCs and the latest addition to the Dragon Platform which launched back in January of this year (09).
I personally have been using the chip for 3 weeks now and I have to say even though I am a huge fan of Intel and their top of the line processors (my main machine is an intel i7 system) the AMD Phenom II x4 965 Black Edition definitely offers more bang for your buck and if you are on a budget you really can’t go wrong with this processor.