Jake Ludington's Digital Lifestyle

Error 2738. Could not access VBScript run time for custom action.

Sun, 15 Nov 2009 11:54:00 -0800

"I got an error while trying to install software on my Windows 7 computer. This is the error message: Error 2738. Could not access VBScript run time for custom action. How can I fix error 2738?"

This error is common to software applications that use VBScript for some portion of the install process. Error 2738 is an error that means VBScript is not properly configured to run on your computer. I encountered Error 2738 when I installed Verizon Access Manager, but there are many other times it can occur. To fix Error 2738 you may need to follow slightly different steps depending on your computer configuration.

How to Print a Playlist of Music

Sun, 15 Nov 2009 11:32:15 -0800

"I'm have a large number of music playlists. I want to print playlist files of my music so that I can keep a record of my music collection."

Depending on what you currently use to manage your music collection, printing playlists might require additional software. To print a playlist in iTunes, for instance, you simply need to choose the playlist and Print from the File menu. Windows Media Player does not include the ability to print playlists, so you need to use another application. For most playlist management, I recommend using MediaMonkey, which has a ton of features you can't get from either Windows Media Player or iTunes.

Audio Recording Transcription Software

Mon, 02 Nov 2009 07:28:06 -0800

"I am looking for a voice recognition to text program for transcribing the audio in my interviews. Got any ideas ?"

In my own experience, attempting to use software to transcribe audio recordings has met with mixed results. If there's a large amount of industry specific jargon used, the software fails miserably, leaving you spending more time cleaning up files than you would have simply by transcribing the audio the old fashioned way. A better result is to send your audio files to a transcription service like CastingWords.com. The quality is generally outstanding and the turnaround time is generally faster than most of us could do it ourselves. If you do insist on attempting to transcribe your audio using software, here are a few tips.

CloudBerry Explorer for Amazon S3

Sat, 31 Oct 2009 21:29:43 -0800

Amazon S3 became my primary solution for hosting images and download files over a year ago. It's also become an excellent place for me to post videos when I do projects for other people. What isn't so great about S3 is the lack of tools for getting data in to S3. For months I relied on the Firefox S3Fox plugin, which creates a sort of FTP-like interface for Amazon S3 in a Firefox browser window. Upgrades of Firefox periodically break this plugin, making it unavailable for uploading files at times. I tried various pay solutions and found them all to be largely worse than using S3Fox. Recently I started using CloudBerry Explorer for Amazon S3, which is free and does everything I need to get files from my PC to the Amazon S3 service. Like S3Fox, CloudBerry functions like an FTP client, except CloudBerry is a standalone application. Batch uploading is supported, you can configure permissions on files from CloudBerry, and overall I find CloudBerry Explorer to be far more reliable than S3Fox. A pro version adds support for compression to keep the upload cost of putting files on Amazon S3 down, along with encryption, support for multiple accounts and a sync between local files and Amazon S3. [Windows XP/Vista/7 $0.00]

Error Message: There are more than 500 fonts in the system.

Sat, 31 Oct 2009 20:01:38 -0800

"When I go into a file in one of my folders I get a message that comes up as, 'There are more than 500 fonts in the system. Reduce the number of fonts or the display may be incorrect.' I don't know why that should come up as I have not added any more fonts or done any thing with the fonts."

That error message is typically associated with one of two types of files, either a Microsoft Works Spreadsheet or Microsoft Works Database file. I have seen it happen with some Microsoft Excel spreadsheets as well. Even if you never actively add or remove fonts from your system, many applications add additional fonts to your computer. Why a spreadsheet application displays an error if you have more than 500 fonts is something of a mystery, because in theory the application could be written to ignore all but a specific group of fonts needed for the software to work properly. In any event, there are a couple of ways to solve your font problem.

Edit Sony DVD Camcorder Disks on an iMac

Sat, 31 Oct 2009 12:43:01 -0800

"I have a Sony Handycam DCR-DVD105 (about 3 years old). I have an iMac which loads CD on the side (of the screen). What do I need to buy so that this smaller CD can be inserted?"

I'm not aware of an adapter I would feel safe recommending for inserting mini DVD media into any slot loading DVD drive like most iMac and MacBook hardware now uses. Rather than risk breaking your internal drive, you might be better off investing in an external USB drive to playback the mini DVDs from your camcorder.

Faster Video Editing for Samsung SC-MX20

Sat, 31 Oct 2009 12:20:14 -0800

"I am using two Samsung SC-MX20. They give me really good video in low light, however, Samsung uses MPEG-4 compression and this can be a real hassle (time consuming) to uncompress. I tried a USB video capture device but (of course) it drops frames. Since Samsung does not have a FireWire connection, would a PCI video capture allow me to take the compressed video and capture in AVI format? If so, which PCI video capture card(s) should I consider? I have tried searching the web, but it seems everything is more aimed at capturing TV to PC and I am not sure it that will work for me?"

Since the Samsung SC-MX20 camcorders record MP4 files, rather than capturing to tape, you should be able to optimize a setup that will get you faster editing by simply opening the files. There could be a scenario where you could capture over component video connection using something like a Black Magic or AJA capture card, but upgrading a few components on your computer may get you to where you want to be for less money.

HDTV as Split Sceen Monitor

Sat, 31 Oct 2009 11:38:44 -0800

"Can I connect a computer to a 46" HDTV and use split screen software to make it like four screens / monitors in one? I have a PC with XP, and a Mac with OS X Leopard 10.5. However if the solution requires a different OS, I can get a new system."

There are a number of ways to achieve displaying multiple screens on the same physical screen. If you were to run 3 additional operating systems in virtual machines on Windows, you would effectively get 4 unique screen displays. On a Mac running something like VMWare or Parallels you could increase the number of screens. While the technology to do this is certainly possible, you're going to run into some limitations beyond the operating system that may be frustrating for the result you attempt to achieve.

Music Re-Mix Program for Windows

Sat, 31 Oct 2009 11:19:54 -0800

"I'm looking for a music re-mix program. I don't currently plan on recording my own music. I want something simple that will allow me to sample loops of pre-recorded music from my collection of CDs and MP3s and layer them together in tracks to create new 'musical collages'. In other words, take a James Brown song, create a loop out of one bar of a riff, add another loop created from a horn solo by Miles Davis, and continue adding tracks, layering, fading in and out, etc. just for amateur fun. Don't need pro quality features. Anything like that out there?"

There are a ton of application choices for sampling music from your person collection and building music collages. Prices for looping software range from free up into the hundreds of dollars range. While you could go with a pro tool like Propellerhead's Reason or Sony Acid, I would suggest starting with one of the more basic tools that get you started in creating your own loops and samples.

Free Online TV Shows on Your PC

Sun, 11 Oct 2009 10:14:48 -0800

"With the economic down turn I am interested in free online TV. I have an HP Pavilion dv6700 (with an hdmi port) using Windows Vista. I also received a remote control with my laptop but am currently trying to find it. I have a 42" HDTV that I would like to connect to my computer. I also use the Harmony One all- in-one remote control by Logitec."

My questions are:

Can I do this?
Can I get HD quality TV over the internet?
Will picture quality suffer from moving from my laptop to a larger 42" HDTV screen size?
What is the minimum broadband speed needed and what is optimal speed?
Can use the remote I have?
Can you make a favorites list with the equipment I have or do I need a software program for managing the channels and movie downloads?

Get Still Photos From Any Video

Sun, 27 Sep 2009 10:39:06 -0800

"Is there any way to get still photos from digital movies? I have a Sanyo camera and took some movies with it. It also takes still photos. Now I want to get still photos from the movies. Is there any way to do that?"

There are a number of ways you can grab still photos from a video file, but the one I find to be most reliable for all video formats is VLC Player. The software supports virtually every video format and makes it easy to choose the exact frame in your video you want to capture. Here's how to get a still photo from a video using VLC Player.

Video Chat with Windows Messenger and Xbox Live?

Sun, 27 Sep 2009 10:07:29 -0800

"Can I use a laptop webcam to video chat with someone using a Xbox 360 webcam?"

Windows Live Messenger support for the Xbox 360 is currently limited to text chats only. To video chat with someone on an Xbox 360, both you and the person you want to chat with must be signed in to Xbox Live and have the Xbox Live Vision camera connected to your Xbox 360. The steps for enabling Windows Live Messenger text chats are fairly straighforward.

Send Google Calendar Email Reminders to Different Email Account

Tue, 08 Sep 2009 09:43:35 -0800

"I want my Google Calendar email reminders to a different email account than my Gmail address. There doesn't seem to be an option in Google Calendar for adding another email address."

Google Calendar reminders are designed to be sent to the Gmail address associated with the same Google account. Currently Google Calendar doesn't support adding additional email addresses. There is a workaround to get your calendar reminders to another address, but you need to add a filter to Gmail to make it work.

Windows Fax Application or Service

Tue, 18 Aug 2009 14:55:58 -0800

"What is the best Windows fax application?"

The best Windows fax application really depends on how many faxes you send and how often you receive a fax. It also might depend on other software on your computer. If you only need to send a fax occasionally, I recommend using the free fax site FaxZero. It allows you to enter the phone number you want to send a fax to and upload a file to fax. If you want to receive a fax on your computer, you will need a different solution because FaxZero is only designed for sending faxes.

Peek Pronto - Mobile Email Device

Tue, 18 Aug 2009 14:05:33 -0800

I could live without a cell phone 99% of the time. Unless I need to have a conversation, most of the communication in my life can be handled via email or a short text message. So the idea of the Peek Pronto really intrigues me. It's got all the email and texting of a cell phone without the bother of ever having to answer the a call. Think of Peek as the push email functionality of a Blackberry unencumbered from all the other stuff Blackberry piles on in the way of features.