Category Archives: Computers

PC software and hardware

A Procedure for Managing Large Groups of Items, Such as Personal Property That Is Part of an Estate

Overview A few months ago my mother passed away. This left me and my siblings with a large condo filled with personal property, much of it with value, either to us personally or monetarily. We needed a way to keep track of it all so we could: It was decided to inventory everything of value. … Continue reading A Procedure for Managing Large Groups of Items, Such as Personal Property That Is Part of an Estate

ADDPIX: A Sample Program to Work With the LibreOffice SDK Using C# – Adding Images to a Calc Spreadsheet

I’ve spent the past few months trying to get a C# program written which uses the SDK to read cells from a Calc spreadsheet and read/write/modify images “in” cells. I got a lot of help in the LibreOffice forums for which I’m very grateful. At first I was told that it wasn’t possible, but that … Continue reading ADDPIX: A Sample Program to Work With the LibreOffice SDK Using C# – Adding Images to a Calc Spreadsheet

Programmers: Make Things Easy and Fast for Your Users

I’ve been writing software for over 50 years and have evolved a set of rules for designing user interfaces that are easy to use and which allow users to get their work done as quickly as possible. These rules apply equally to desktop applications, apps, and web pages. I don’t know what they’re teaching in … Continue reading Programmers: Make Things Easy and Fast for Your Users

Brother ML500 Typewriter Repair and Battery Replacement

There is very little information on this electronic typewriter on the web. I’m selling one on eBay and wanted to check the battery (used for the word processing memory and probably for retaining settings). To do so I had to take the thing apart. Here is what I learned. Opening up the Typewriter It’s kind … Continue reading Brother ML500 Typewriter Repair and Battery Replacement

Adding Fonts in Ghostscript

I use a program that produces Postscript and allows use of non-standard Postscript fonts. I wanted to figure out how to get Ghostscript to load those fonts so I could produce a PDF file from the Postscript. Should be simple, eh? Well it took me a week of trolling message boards, studying documentation, and trying … Continue reading Adding Fonts in Ghostscript

Troubleshooting Zebra/Eltron Label Printers

This article describes some of the troubleshooting tips I’ve discovered for solving problems printing labels with Zebra Eltron label printers. Power Supply Problems Most of the label printers you get on eBay come without power supplies. However, other sellers have power supplies that are claimed to be for these printers available for $10 or so, … Continue reading Troubleshooting Zebra/Eltron Label Printers

Get a Really Cheap VoIP Replacement for your Landline

I’ve been doing a fair amount of VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol] work and have learned a lot about replacing both small business and home phone lines with internet-based VoIP service.  I’ve found reasonably-priced products and services, and in this post (and hopefully others)  I’ll share my experience with the options for replacing one or … Continue reading Get a Really Cheap VoIP Replacement for your Landline