OpenSource

I tried installing Drupal on our Linux box to see why some of my students were having all kinds of problems. The database was created, the user had adequate privileges and yet the installation script never went past asking for the database information. So I went back to first principles (that is, "read the directions"!).

The documentation had instructed that I "make a copy of the default.settings.php file" and name it "settings.php" or create an empty file with that name. I simply renamed it. Big mistake! Apparently the "installer uses this file as a template to create your settings file using the details you provide through the install process"

Moving a complex web-site (especially after you configured it with all fancy extensions) can seem foreboding to the average newbie. With the right set of tools, this can be accomplished quite easily. I moved my Joomla 1.5 site from host A (source) to host B (destination) with very little trouble

1. In the Host A installation, get Joomlapack and install it like any joomla component [Note: New name is "Akeeba Backup"]


2. open the component and choose "configuration"


3. Enter the output directory location and press apply at the top right


4. Click "Backup now" link (above "common settings")


5. Use your control panel or FTP client to go to the saved location and download the ZIP to your local computer (note where you saved it!)


6. Use a suitable tool (FTP client, host B's file manager etc) to upload and unzip the file downloaded in previous step. For simplicity, do this in the ROOT location


7. Create a new MySQL Database and database user through HOST B's control panel (Need this for next step). Be sure to associate the new user to the new database


8. Open the installation folder in HOST B site (www.hostb.com/installation/index.php)


9. Provide the new database name, database user, password etc


10. The wizard will help you complete the process and you are done

I was able to move the entire installation to a different folder through Host B's file manager (to a sub folder from root). All I had to change was the paths to the new location in configuration.php

If you need more detailed information, please check out the authors' user manual [Note: "Joomlapack" is now "Akeeba Backup Core"; it is still free.]

Good luck!

Over the years I have used PDF creator to create PDF documents on-the-fly. Since then other similar products would appear higher on the google searches (cute PDF, primo pdf etc) that essentially delivered similar results for the same price - free (of course!) - and I switched to different products on different computers. However, PDFForge was myfavorite.

About 6 months after buying a new computer, I decided to track down and install PDF Creator. This time it came with a search toolbar that I chose not to install. Shortly thereafter, when using a tabbed flash form, I was taken to urlseek20.vmn.net with a "404" error every time I clicked a tab. Interestingly this happened only in Firefox (I have 3.0.7) and not in IE.

Given that it had never happened before, I started killing processes that seemed suspicious. I also downloaded and installed Spybot, AdAware and some other tools recommended for removing malware. Running these programs did not reveal any infection.

Removal: Out of desperation I started removing programs that I wasn't using starting with the newest installs. Removing the PDFforge toolbar (from Add/remove programs) seems to fix this instantly. I hope it does not reinstall itself again. It remains to be seen! If this is indeed the case, I hope they will identify and fix it ASAP. Their website assures me that their software is "100% clean" as certified by "soft82.com". Who knows?!

Hopefully this post helps others in the same boat. Removing malware is cumbersome to say the least.