Tips & Tricks

Crammer’s Guide – Y01S01: Computer System Fundamentals

Posted by Nitemice on October 29, 2013
Posted in: First Year, Technology, Tips & Tricks, University. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , . 4 Comments

Computer Systems messy picture

Because I don’t feel right posting this semester’s Crammer’s Guides without having posted all of last semesters, I’ve got this for you. Note that it’s a bit incomplete, because I have neither the time nor the drive to fix it, but I think it’s good enough that someone might find it useful. Also, If you see any inaccuracies, let me know in comments, so I can fix them up. So if you do, congratulations, and you’re welcome; otherwise, I’m sorry…

This one’s about Computer System Fundamentals. This subjects covers CPU cycles, binary, digital logic, RAM allocation and programming in assembly language. Continue Reading

Crammer’s Guide – Y01S01: Maths for Computing

Posted by Nitemice on July 19, 2013
Posted in: First Year, Technology, Tips & Tricks, University. Tagged: , , , , , , , , . 4 Comments

MAthsBecause I’ve been spending all my time studying lately, the only thing I’ve had time to write is study notes. So I thought that I’d make the most of them, share a bit of my new knowledge with you, and give you a quick crammer’s guide to some of the topics from each of my subjects this semester. The information probably won’t mean a whole lot to you if you’ve never learnt anything about the topic before, but if you have, hopefully, this’ll clear up a few things for you.

This one’s about Maths for Computing. This subjects covers sets & number sets, functions & relations, matrices, special functions, logic, proofing methods, algorithms, counting methods and probability. Continue Reading

Crammer’s Guide – Y01S01: Java Programming 1

Posted by Nitemice on July 13, 2013
Posted in: First Year, Programming, Technology, Tips & Tricks, University. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , . 4 Comments

Java cupBecause I’ve been spending all my time studying lately, the only thing I’ve had time to write is study notes. So I thought that I’d make the most of them, share a bit of my new knowledge with you, and give you a quick crammer’s guide to some of the topics from each of my subjects this semester. The information probably won’t mean a whole lot to you if you’ve never learnt anything about the topic before, but if you have, hopefully, this’ll clear up a few things for you.

This one’s about Java Programming 1. This subjects covers the basics of writing programs in Java, using arrays, classes, and exception, as well as how to write to files.

Continue Reading

Crammer’s Guide – Y01S01: Database Theory

Posted by Nitemice on July 1, 2013
Posted in: First Year, Technology, Tips & Tricks, University. Tagged: , , , , , , , . 4 Comments

Database

Because I’ve been spending all my time studying lately, the only thing I’ve had time to write is study notes. So I thought that I’d make the most of them, share a bit of my new knowledge with you, and give you a quick crammer’s guide to some of the topics from each of my subjects this semester. The information probably won’t mean a whole lot to you if you’ve never learnt anything about the topic before, but if you have, hopefully, this’ll clear up a few things for you.

This one’s about Database Theory. This subjects covers all about designing databases, and modelling them, as well as the basics of SQL to get the information you want out of them.

Continue Reading

MessagePop

Posted by Nitemice on May 26, 2013
Posted in: Blog Stuff, Leisure & Hobbies, Programming, Projects, Technology, Tips & Tricks. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , . 1 Comment

messagePop cartoon

Because I couldn’t find a little piece of software to do what I wanted, I went and made one, and I thought there might be a few other people out there who might want to use it too. All it does is display a message, which you set via command line arguments, in a windows which stays on top of any other windows.  You can set the body text, title text and OK/close-button text. Continue Reading

My year with an iPad (and how I’m letting go)

Posted by Nitemice on December 16, 2012
Posted in: Discussional, Leisure & Hobbies, Technology, Tips & Tricks, Traineeship. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , . 1 Comment

Just Let Go!So, for most of this year, I’ve had an iPad on loan from the House, so that I could share in the iPad experience, and better support them. Now that the year, and my traineeship, is nearly over, I have to hand it back and I’m left with a few questions: Was the iPad actually any good? Did I actually use it? Am I going to miss it? Do I want to buy one, now that I’m not going to have this one anymore? Continue Reading

Troubleshooting with Dell

Posted by Nitemice on December 9, 2012
Posted in: Technology, Tips & Tricks, Traineeship. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , . 1 Comment

Dell Logo on dented laptop

So, all year, I’ve been dealing with Dell; their computers, their Pro Support, their technicians. And from my experience, I’ve learnt many things, so I’m going to share with you as many of the tips and tricks that I’ve picked up as I can.

Continue Reading

What’s in a Name??

Posted by Nitemice on November 25, 2012
Posted in: Discussional, Leisure & Hobbies, Technology, Tips & Tricks. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , . 1 Comment

So, a while back, an employee came into IT Support with two external hard drives because they needed help copying some data across. She started telling us that she wanted this and that “copied onto Betsy,” and she needed “Oscar reformatted to work with Mac”. After a few moments, we realised that she was referring to her hard drives by name, as if they were people. Mr Chief and the Professor both thought it was quite strange and funny, but I kind of thought it was totally reasonable. And this got me thinking about what people name their devices and why. Continue Reading

House Update: How to get Apple Push Notifications to work behind multiple firewalls and a proxy

Posted by Nitemice on October 5, 2012
Posted in: Discussional, Security, Technology, Tips & Tricks, Traineeship. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , . 3 Comments

So, the week before last Apple released its new iPhone, along with an update to its IOS operating system. On the same day, Mr Chief finally, after months of trial and error, worked out how to get Apple Push Notifications to work from within the House’s network. And now, I’m going to give you the information he would have loved to have had at the start of all this trouble. Continue Reading

House Update: It Ain’t Over Til Your Data’s Back

Posted by Nitemice on September 16, 2012
Posted in: Discussional, Technology, Tips & Tricks, Traineeship. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , . 2 Comments

So, a few weeks ago I told you about the plight of Jo, an employee at the House (where I work), whose hard drive in her laptop died. Her data was unrecoverable, and she decided to go to a data recovery specialist. I told you as a lesson in the importance of backing up. But that wasn’t quite the end of her story. Here’s what happened next… Continue Reading