Ballmer (and Microsoft) still doesn't get the iPad

Ballmer (and Microsoft) still doesn't get the iPad: "Windows, and Windows applications, are not designed for tablets. Windows is designed for a pixel-perfect pointer (be it mouse, trackpad, or TrackPoint), and a keyboard. Band-aid fixes to give a thin veneer of touch-friendliness are not good or deep enough. To make Windows a touch operating system requires every single aspect of its user interface to be overhauled. The same is true of every application."

Visual studio 2008 TS uninstall

Visual Studio 2010 was released recently.  I wanted to uninstall 2008 and install 2010, but my installation of Visual Studio 2008 TS (full install) will not uninstall. Setup complains about components missing when I try to launch the uninstaller. The only solution so far has been for me to do a clean install of the OS on the system, and install Visual Studio 2010. Lots of hours wasted and I’m still not done yet. *Sigh*

Todays xkcd...

4k Sector drives...

Here are some articles on new HD's with 4K sector size:
Linux Not Fully Prepared for 4096-Byte Sector Hard Drives
Linux and 4K disk sectors
Western Digital’s Advanced Format: The 4K Sector Transition Begins

Changing desktop background in Windows 7 Home Basic...

I thought Windows 7 starter was the version where you couldn't change the desktop background. Turns out the usual way of changing the desktop background is not present in Windows 7 Home Basic as well. If you right click on the desktop in Windows 7 Home Basic the option to personalize the appearance of the desktop is not present. However, unlike Windows 7 Starter you can change the desktop background, its just harder to get to then Windows 7 Home Premium.

According to this article, the way to change the desktop background is to go to the start menu and type "Change desktop background".