Exchange Certificate Woes - The name on the security certificate is invalid or does not match the name of the site

Recently, I had to replace an expiring Exchange 2010 SSL certificate however the issuer was unable to sign for a .local hostname (although previously this had been OK).

This meant that the new certificate only covered the external FQDN and not the internal ones:

Note the old Cert has a .local address listed

New Cert doesn't have the .local!

Once the new certificate had been installed, users began to see this error in Outlook:

"The name on the security certificate is invalid or does not match the name of the site"

The fix was to change the Exchange server settings for local lookups to point to the FQDN (so instead of servername, it would point at mailhost.domain.com). Here are the steps to take:

1. Ping mailhost.domain.com and confirm it resolves to the local IP of your Exchange server, if it doesn't you need to add the appropriate DNS entries to your local DNS server before proceeding.

2. Open the Exchange Management Shell and run the following commands:

Set-ClientAccessServer -Identity servername -AutodiscoverServiceInternalUrl https://mailhost.domain.com/autodiscover/autodiscover.xml 

Set-WebServicesVirtualDirectory -Identity "servername\EWS (Default Web Site)" -InternalUrl https://mailhost.domain.com/ews/exchange.asmx

Set-OABVirtualDirectory -Identity "servername\oab (Default Web Site)" -InternalUrl https://mailhost.domain.com/oab

3. Open IIS Manager on the Exchange Server

4. Expand Local Computer and Click Application Pools

5. Right Click on MSExchangeAutodiscoverAppPool and choose Recycle

Close and re-open your Outlook client and you should no longer have the errors   

Windows Server 2012 (including R2) loses GUI after a role or feature install

I was asked today by a colleague about an issue he was experiencing with Server 2012 R2 where he would install the IIS role and associated features and then lose the GUI upon reboot, becoming a Server Core install.

The thing that he didn't mention was that he was removing .NET 4.5 as a feature each time. Under 2012 and R2, if you remove the .NET feature, it removes any dependent roles or features, such roles include Hyper V and the GUI. 

Simply adding the roles and keeping .NET ticked allows you to install the role AND keep the GUI.

But I already did that and googled for help...

If this happens, you need to reinstall the GUI from Powershell. The commands for doing this are:

1. Install .NET and Powershell from command line

DISM.exe /Online /enable-feature /featurename:NetFx4 /all

DISM.exe /online /enable-feature /featurename:MicrosoftWindowsPowerShell /all

2. Reboot then run the following Powershell commands....

Install-WindowsFeature Server-Gui-Shell

Install-WindowsFeature Server-Gui-Mgmt-InfraRestart-Computer

Why I'm voting no to independence

In just 8 days time, Scotland will go to the polls to vote on whether or not to become an independent country from the rest of the UK.

When the campaigns for and against the union kicked off two years ago, nobody actually thought things would come down to the wire and a near 50-50 split but a combination of continued dissatisfaction with the policies of the UK government in Westminster, a generally arrogant and backwards attitude from the "No" camp and a spirited social media driven campaign from the "Yes" side has edged the needle toward the middle for polling.

I've read a lot of "I'm voting yes" stories, some with very convincing arguments but personally I am voting No and here's why...

1. The big questions that haven't got answers
I'm not niaive enough to assume that every single possible factor and outcome should be considered and planned for but it really feels like nothing has been planned! The white paper that was published by the Yes camp a year ago is unable to offer a cold hard plan, just a lot of "we want this, we want that" making it more of a manifesto than a plan for disolving the union.

Some questions that have genuinely got no formal answers:

- Currency: The Yes side seem convinced that they will get the pound (and one way or another they will) but tying your fortunes to the very nation that you claim is cutting off your potential seems very backward to me. How will an independent Scotland be able to manage an economy that is directly affected but the decisions of a UK government in Westminister?

- Healthcare: Despite the fact that the Scottish parliament has 100% control over the NHS in Scotland, somehow things will be improved in an independent Scotland. This argument continues to baffle me

- Defense: Somehow we will be able to form, fund and run a defense force out of the ashes of Trident, the british army and the RAF

- Benefits: A large proportion of the Yes voters seem to be those who claim a lot of social care. They're going to be pretty disappointed when they find out that their benefits will be cut to fund all the other promises!

- Jobs: Somehow, despite the fact that the loss of the various state jobs that will come with a removal of Westminister and introduction of a "streamlined" Scottish Government, we are promised more jobs.

2. To certain parts of the country, it really won't matter
I live in the north east of Scotland, an area that tends to get limited interest from both Scottish and UK governments so regardless of how many people vote Yes, this area will still get passed over for infrastructure funding for road and rail, stimulus for business and generally every thing other than defense.

3.  Oil money
Sir Ian Wood, an expert in all things oil was cited by the Yes campaign repeatedly at the start of their campaign and oil was going to be the backbone of an independent scots economy, but when Sir Wood came out and said there was 20 years worth of oil remaining suddenly he was no longer trustworthy to that same Yes campaign and they now speak of a broad base of scottish industry including farming and tourism being the backbone.

My concern here is that aside from tourism, Scots industries are not in a position to support a whole country, particularly one whos chief export market will be the very place they want to be independent of! I recieved a very nice Yes leaflet recently which highlighted all the ways that Scotland can make money, but Oil was still the biggest by far.

Whether or not oil lasts for 2, 20 or 200 years, it will be the backbone for Scotlands economy and needs to be at the forefront of the discussion, not shoved out of sight when it doesn't suit!

An argument I hear frequently tossed is the McCrone report which, in a nutshell was a buried UK government report on oil in the 1970s which strongly implied that Scotland could survive on its Oil without the rest of the UK.

My answer to that is simply that 40 years is a long time and a great many things have changed including the size and age ranges of the population, the numbers now on some form of social care or benefits and the costs of running a country.

I won't sit and defend the UK government for burying a report 40 years ago but I also won't punish the current government for something it didn't do. In other words the report is a null point in modern life and a null point in the referendum campaign.

4. Xenophobia and ignorance
Let me preface by saying that I will always respect the opinion of anyone who respects mine and i've had some spirited debate with people who are voting yes.

There is however a great deal of xenophobia surrounding the Yes campaign, with far too many people voting Yes with a "F*ck the English" attitude as their motivation, particularly people who are following friends or family with this attitude rather than making up their minds based on facts.

Yes, the poll tax and Thatcherism were brutal for Scotland but it has been several decades since then and the governments of today and the problems and solutions of today should be the forefront of the debate, not ancient grudges.

I'm aware that some of the problems of today are related to or were caused by the issues of the 70's and 80's but how will going independent change that? Will Alex Salmond be recommissioning mining in the central belt in two years time? I doubt it...

5. Immediate Consequences
At the end of the day, despite any promises to the contrary, it will be at least five years before the impact of an independence vote will really be felt by people and ten years before the true extent of what has happened and what lays ahead will become clear.

The days and months following a Yes or No result will be critical in shaping the future of both Scotland and the UK but the true result will be what is felt by our children and their children and that needs to be at the forefront of any decisions we make.

Yes, some people and even some businesses will have snap reactions to the result, some may be violent but it's so important that we get it right and don't descend into infighting.

Conclusion
I doubt that anyone reading this will have been convinced to change sides suddenly but I hope that I may have made you stop and think about the process you are using to make your decision.

I am voting no for the reasons i have outlined here and because for all its faults - and there are many - the UK is the safest horse to bet on in this race and I don't want to leave my kids futures in the hands of giant question marks.

RIP Rik Mayall (1958-2014)

Yesterday lunchtime, Rik Mayall, one of the pioneers of British alternative comedy in the 1980's and 1990's passed away at 56 years old.

Whats apparent is just how few news outlets have gone beyond Wikipedia in their research of the man. I have read the same exact paragraphs on at least five different sites in the 24 hours. To that end, I wanted to pay tribute to Mayall without using the same quotes from Ade Edmondson and David Walliams that EVERY news outlet is running.

To a young boy growing up in a religious household in the 1990s, the comedy stylings of Bottom were a thing of legend. I happened to catch a repeat on BBC2 late one night when everyone else was in bed and from then I was hooked. The OTT slapstick violence was an amazing thing to see. I remember prancing around to the end credits with my brother until the inevitable eye-poke and then getting roared at to get back to bed because we were making such a racket.

Later, as a young adult I remember rediscovering Mayall's work through the constant stream of BBC archive DVDs being trotted out in the 2000's and rolling with laughter again at the mayhem and mania, this time with a greater understanding of the double entendre and subtext of some of the gags. I also recall a genuine delight at the outtakes showing just how much fun these gents had making those shows.

One of the first things my future wife and I happened to watch together was Drop Dead Fred, a film that only survives in my memory because of Mayall's manic brand of comedy.

Mayall was someone who could capture attention and admiration from those he watched, because there was not a single subtle thing about him. He was a loud, brash, unapologetically funny guy.

I just want to say thanks to a giant of comedy for a lifetime of laughs.

The Yodel Game

It's that time of year again when we order a lot of things online for Christmas. Dealing with most couriers in the North East of Scotland is a nightmare, the main distribution hubs for the big couriers are located in Aberdeen and Inverness, with a mish-mash of local and/or independent couriers filling the gaps further afield. This generally means that if you are quoted a delivery date of 1st December by the mainstream courier, that date actually reflects when it reaches their final hub, BEFORE it's passed on to the indie couriers. This can add a day or two onto the expected delivery date, what I call "The Highland Rule". The exception to this rule is Parcel Force, who use the Royal Mail network and so can meet the delivery date.

This time of year is also the most common time to play "The Yodel Game".

The Yodel game, for the small minority who have not played is quite a simple one to learn, but a very hard one to win.

Here's how to play:

1. Place an order for home delivery with Amazon, Argos, Littlewoods or one of the many companies that use them
2. Wait at home on delivery date (plus next working day after for the "Highland Rule")
3. Discover that you have missed your delivery by one of the following:
-Get card stealthily put through door without a knock or a ring
-Tracking website informs you that you have been carded, even though you don't have a card
-Tracking website informs you that you have already signed for the item

4. Call company you ordered from or call Yodel and receive same incorrect information as on tracking website and be told it will be redelivered
5. Repeat steps 2 - 4 for up to 7 days
6. Receive Parcel (Probably, otherwise start again at step 3)

Yodel is a special kind of courier (as seen on Watchdog), they claim to be the UK's biggest by quite some margin and they handle far too many of the UK's deliveries (purely on a cost basis, no doubt) but in reality Yodel is a extremely loose network of independent drivers, each with their own habits and hours of operation. This is Yodel's @HOME brand.

The @HOME Yodel model is a fairly simple one (and not one that is exclusive to them either). Yodel employs independents to deliver their parcels, with a commission of 40-70p per signed for delivery. Each day, the big Yodel van will turn up at the home of an independent and drop off the parcels to be delivered that day. This delivery can occur any time during the working day, so your local delivery bod may not recieve parcels until late afternoon. They are then responsible for delivery of said parcels to their recipients.

And here's where the system really starts to fail...

Say Mrs Smith from ten minutes down the road is your local Yodel delivery person, trying to make a bit of extra cash to suppliment the family income. Now Mrs Smith has recieved some rather large parcels for you, but they won't fit in her little Corsa, she'll have to wait until her Son is free at the weekend so she can get him to drop it off in his van. Does she come and tell you this? Does Yodel phone you to advise? No, of course not. You're just left to wonder if you will recieve your parcel.

What about Billy down at Number 42? He likes a night out with his mates, the Yodel stuff was dropped off at 4.30pm and he was just about to head down to the pub. Will he tell his mates to wait until he does his deliveries? I doubt it. Will he feel like delivering tomorrow when he has a brutal hangover? Don't count on it. Maybe he'll just scribble some signatures down so he gets his commission and maybe he'll drop them off when he feels more up to it. Again, does anyone pass on a revised delivery date? Does anyone care?

Now I mentioned that the Yodel game is a hard one to win, suggesting that there are ways to win. Based on the disaster that was last years Christmas delivery season, I can make the following "strategic suggestions":

1. Put a sign on your door instructing couriers to Knock/Ring the Bell and if no answer then please leave in such and such a place. Sign it and put your name underneath (like a letter). This counts as a delivery signature/instruction and most couriers will respect this. Of course, if your delivery person is Mrs Smith or Billy, then this won't work, but for the delivery person who doesn't intend on hanging about it works pretty well - just be careful where you have them leave it and check this place regularly!


2. I work in Aberdeen, so wherever possible I get parcels delivered to my office. This means that I'm close to a main distribution hub and my parcel will be delivered by the original courier rather than play pass the parcel with Indies.


3. Choose delivery options that aren't Yodel/Independent friendly - many websites have delivery options that Yodel can't do such as a one hour window (DPD) or by 1pm (Royal Mail). This one can be a bit of a pain because unless the website lists which courier provides which service, you can only assume that it won't be Yodel.

The reason these big companies choose Yodel is because they are cheap - and very much for a reason, but we need to take some responsibility too. The next time you tick "Free Delivery" on Amazon, think about whether or not you want to play The Yodel Game.

Citrix Error 61 on Mac

Recently, one of our clients updated the SSL certificate for their Citrix remote access website. This proved to be quite an issue for users with Macs running the Citrix Reciever, which didn't want to play ball. Generating the error message SSL Error 61: You have not chosen to trust "<authority>", the issuer of the server's security certificate. Error number 183  when they tried to launch an application.

Doing what all IT Professionals do best, I googled it. Unfortunately, the majority of the results referred to different scenarios, mostly under older versions of the Citrix client (The dreaded ICA!).

After a very long afternoon of back and forth with one of the affected users, I was able to get things working by taking these steps:

1. On a PC, browse to the problem Citrix website with Internet Explorer
2. Open Tools >> Internet Options >> Content >> Certificates >> Intermediate Certification Authorities
3. Find the name of the cert in the error message (Above) and click on it and click Export
4. Click Next >> Select DER encoded Binary X.509 (.CER) >> Next
5. Save as the same name as the original error message. (e.g. COMODO SSL CA) and Finish the wizard
6. Rename the saved file extension to crt and transfer this file to the Mac
7. On the Mac, open Applications/Citrix ICA Client and create a folder called keystore
8. Open the keystore folder and create a subfolder called cacerts
9. Copy the crt file you created into this folder
10. Open Keychain and click logon from the left pane
11. Choose File>>Import items
12. Browse to the crt file and import. Set all permissions to trusted for the certificate
13. Close browser completely and re-open, browse to problem page and open an application, it should now load successfully
 
That's right, you use a PC to fix the Mac. Good Times...

Sony Bites Back: PS4 Announced

So, the worst kept secret in the videogame industry was outed last night when Sony officially announced the Playstation 4 - scheduled to be in your living room this Christmas (or undoubtedly Easter for those of us in the Eurozone).

This announcement is significant in a lot of ways for Sony, the Playstation brand and indeed for Microsoft - the arch nemesis for said brand.

Playstation 4 announced in NYC

I am a diehard Playstation guy, having owned every Playstation console to date but I was concerned that for the second generation running, Sony was going to be playing catch-up to Microsoft. Yes, rumors of SDK's going out to developers were persistent but there was more talk of Xbox 720 release timescales and reveals than anything else. I would say I've heard more about the Xbox 720 in the last year than I have about the WiiU - a console that is already on shelves!

When Sony announced their "Playstation 2013" event, I was sceptical - moreso following the reveal of the tablet controller patent a few weeks ago - I thought we would see some combination of the tablet, a Vita hardware refresh or something new for Move. I was also concerned that Sony was again all to content to sit back and see what Microsoft was up to. The seventh console generation caused the Playstation Brand a lot of damage early on, with the console being seen as second best for at least half of its lifetime before games like the 2nd and 3rd Uncharted titles and the LittleBigPlanet series broadened appeal.

But as February has moved forward, the rumor mill has gone into overdrive - every gaming site has had an exclusive about the Dualshock 4 controller, analysing and arguing over whether any of the steady stream of pictures was infact legit or just what the new buttons would do and it got to the point last night where a last pang of concern hit me - what if it's really not being announced?

If Sony had played the same game as before and left things until later, then the Playstation brand could have been damaged beyond repair. Microsoft would have delightedly announced the next Xbox at E3 in the summer and Sony would see an increase in pre-owned console sales over Christmas.

Thankfully that has not happened and now it's Microsoft caught on the back foot and that is the best thing for them - the 360 has peaked and is now in steady decline. The innovation that helped the console has deserted it and now Microsoft needs to innovate to get back in the game. My prediction is that Sony will demo the actual console hardware at E3, which will again steal thunder from Redmond, who are still on track to announce then.

Sony has bitten back in a big way with the sudden appearance of the PS4 and it may be enough to win the 8th generation war in the way Microsoft and Nintendo took the 7th by storm.

A rant about the state of digital streaming media

Here in the UK, we are currently being subjected to the Smart TV revolution and in tune with that, we are being bombarded with advertising, sales people at the door, sales people in the street and pretty much anywhere else you can think of. What are they people trying to sell me? A Netflix, NowTV or Love Film subscription.

Full Disclosure: I currently use Netflix because it's compatible with my Roku.

The thing that bothers me about these services is that they all offer a different selection of content because each one has signed up TV Studio X and Movie studio Y to exclusivity deals. Difference here, is that Sky's NowTV has the rights to new movies in the UK for the first 12-18 months after DVD release because of Sky's long standing agreements with studios.

"OK then" you say - get NowTV and that's problem solved. But I grudge paying double what I would pay for either of the others, much as I grudge paying Netflix whenever I see a movie listed on Lovefilm. The general rule of thumb is that Netflix is better for Movies and Lovefilm is better for TV shows, but looking at the UK catalogues for both tells me they both have a solid selection in both TV and film, leaving me back at square one.

I feel there should be some uniformity amongst studios or some regulation that requires them to make content available to any service provider - they can argue about costs etc themselves - but to leave exclusivity and first-run rights out of it so the consumer gets the best deal.

Is that so difficult?

Review - NATPC M009S Android Tablet PC

The NATPC M009S is the internet darling of tablets, being cheap, solid and reliable. For under £100, you get an Ice cream sandwich (Android 4.0) tablet with a solid spec. It actually goes by several other names too (Including MIT 900) but I'm reviewing based on the model I have.

NATPC M009S

Hardware
In the box, you get a questionably translated user manual, charger and also a handy converter cable so that you can plug full size USB devices into the tablet's micro USB slot.

The build quality of the machine is surprising given the price point. It feels very sturdy without the added weight that other tablets carry around. In fact, its one of the lighter tablets I have used. The device is also very thin.

The downside to the thin tablet is that the slightest pressure on the back (just from normal holding) causes a slight screen ripple.

The screen brightness, although good in a dark room fails miserably under sunlight and is quite reflective.
Storage standard is 8GB with a microSD slot that can expand it by a further 16GB, there are also "ultimate" editions available on Amazon which come with 16GB of storage as standard.

Software
The OS is surprisingly quick and responsive following a slower boot than I would have liked, I had expected it was going to run like a dog the whole time, like many other cheap tablets so this was a pleasant surprise.
The basic apps selection tends to vary by model and seller, but generally includes adobe flash, the google suite (Gmail, Play store, Maps etc) and a video player.

The default browser is a tad sluggish, becoming more unusable on a flash-heavy site.

Graphically, the tablet was able to run Grand theft auto on low settings but the controls were not particularly responsive. More lightweight games like angry birds space and cut the rope ran absolutely fine.

Overall
This is a great little tablet for someone who doesn't want the earth or isn't a gamer. Well worth the money for a solid, reliable gadget. The downsides are the lack of peripherals for a generic device though accessories for the HTC Flyer seem to work fine.

IT GUY SCORE: 8/10

vs. SofasWorld.co.uk Part IV - The Ragin' Climax

I recieved a letter toward the end of July, from my "friends" at WorldStores/SofasWorld which I have neglected to scan and post until today.

Draw your own conclusions...

So there you have it. A rare written admission of fault by someone senior at a big company.

Anyone want £25 off online?

Painter's Door

A list of current problems on my home network, in no particular order...

• Router having regular outages where wifi or ADSL stops responding, DNS issues.
• Old laptop overheating, doesn't recognise DVD Drive
• Replacement laptop for above had faulty hard drive, had to go back to seller, awaiting replacment.
• PC network card failing, connection impossible
• Roku can't keep connection (likely due to router)

Like the expression says, a painters door is always the last to be painted...

"Not YouTube Dad, I want Angry Birds!"

Recently my kids have become enamoured with tablet PCs.

It started when my three year old son asked if he could watch Thomas the Tank Engine on my NATPC M009S (review to follow) to which I obliged.

Within about an hour, both kids were on tablets playing a Thomas app that I bought them. It was the quietest I have ever known them to be...all for less than £2.00! Bliss!

Now, before dudley doright gets on my ass; I work in IT and will naturally encourage my offspring to embrace technology - just like a teacher will be much more uptight about their kids education. I don't agree with constantly sticking kids in front of screens to keep them quiet and nor do I agree with those who say kids should not be playing with such things so young.

Mobile Technology has become a big part of everyday life and is only going to get more bedded in by the time my kids fly the nest and I don't want my kids to miss out on opportunities because they can't work the latest iBerrydroid HD.

Of course the kids use them to make pictures, watch videos and play the occaisional game but it is teaching them to use the touchscreen (poking what they want on screen is ideal for a pre-schooler!) and one day might make a difference.

Until then they can crush those pigs.

Windows Explorer Favourites Issue

An issue a lot of our users encounter is the explorer favourites list in Windows 7 failing to load/expand or being "stuck" where you can't drag something onto it to load it.

Windows 7 Explorer Favourites

In our case, this is caused by the roaming profile either not creating or not correctly resolving the path to the links directory.

All that is required to fix this is to create a folder called Links in the C:\users\username\ directory and a quick reboot to flush things out. (A log off/on would also likely suffice, but i'm cautious!)

Alternatively, you may find that the Links folder has been renamed. Simply rename and logoff/reboot to fix.

I will predict that this will also be an issue in Windows 8...

New Template

I've changed the template for the blog because it kept scaring me. Too much black background is bad for the eyes...

The slow death of RIM

Today Research in Motion (RIM) announced that it had hired bankers to give its finances a health check and to look at pairing it up with other businesses.

It's the latest in an exceptionally long line of death knells for a company that once revolutionised mobile communications.

The new version of their OS is playing catch-up with the lowly windows phone, let alone market leaders iOS and Android and their new handset prototypes look like budget android phones. The much hyped playbook tablet is a heavy, clunky mess even with the 2.0 software. with

Financially, RIM is making almost no money and unless they can pull off a miracle then there will be no turning back. Unfortunately, most of the key players who built the company are now operating in reduced roles or have jumped ship, leaving the problems to new generation of management. The consequences of a RIM collapse today would be devastating to many businesses because the BlackBerry system relies heavily on "phoning home" to the mothership for many key services, including BBM and enterprise activation. This could cause companies on budgets who rely heavily on mobile comms to "go dark" if things were shut down. If parts of RIM were sold off, the company could possibly survive. Their hardware build quality is very high, It's the software that deserves to be put out of its misery...could you imagine a BlackBerry running the Windows phone OS or Android? Is this the future or has research lost the last of its motion?

Bye Bye DVDs - Microsoft strips DVD playback from Windows 8

Today, Microsoft announced in a blog post that they will be dropping support for DVD playback from Windows 8. The only way new systems will ship with this ability is if the hardware manufacturers (OEMs) take on the cost, otherwise the end user takes on the cost.

WTF!?! was my initial reaction, as whilst we are slowly but surely moving toward an all-digital cloud-driven future, dropping support for a still popular and basic medium seems short sighted and cheap.

For a company which is floundering without much direction, this seems like yet another blow for Windows 8, which will henceforth be referred to as Vista II: This time It's personal.

By passing the option and cost onto OEMs, the consumer will see prices shoot up unnecessarily on kit that features an optical drive. I could see this decision making sense if it was only for the tablet version of Win8 or if the consumer would see any kind of benefit from this at all.

And what of Mr DIY PC who buys an OEM copy of Windows for his custom PC? Will Windows be cheaper to offset this extra cost? Oh hell no....

What of 3rd party programs/apps that rely on the OS to be able to play DVDs? Will VLC player function as a DVD player in spite of this? Or will it be the next in a long line of casualties of Microsoft ignorance?

If Windows 8 was exclusively for tablets, netbooks and ultrabooks, this would be a OK decision, but everyone will suffer from this ignorant choice.

Review - HP dm1-4004sa laptop

The HP dm1 is described by some as a netbook, which is an unfair label. The laptop provides enough power and battery life to do almost anything and has a good graphics core so that some gaming is also possible, all whilst maintaining a small footprint, making it ideal for my commutes to and from work.
My model is the dm1-4004sa, which was bought direct from HP, I can't see any difference between it and the other dm1 available from other retailers (dm1-4125ea).

HP DM1-4004SA

Review Conditions
In the interest of "journalistic integrity", I will state here that I always format and reinstall on a new laptop to kill the bloat of the OEM software.
Unfortunately as HP wants circa £30 for a restore DVD, my laptop is running Windows 7 professional rather than the Home Premium available out of the box.
Specification
AMD Fusion E-450 APU 1.65 GHz with Radeon 6320M graphics
4GB DDR3 RAM
500GB Hard drive @ 5400rpm
11.6" Screen (1280x800px)


Physical and Hardware
This laptop is all shiny black and silver plastic, which looks fantastic. In practice it attracts dust and fingerprints like nothing on earth. The touchpad design is a series of bumps across the bottom bezel, but it is very responsive and beats the terrible all in one clickpad things that HP had in most of their laptops last year.

The keyboard uses the now-defacto "island" design, which keeps each key seperate from the others. The key size is slightly smaller than I would like, but this is down to the choice to use the island design.

The vents are located on the left side and unlike many other laptops, don't lend themselves to being easily covered up in use so overheating is not a large issue.

The display is excellent, even when brightness is turned down to minimum levels I could still use it fine. Some people with poorer eyesight may find this more of a challenge.

The sound quality of the system is phenomenal, the beats audio speakers put those in my larger laptop to shame. Using appropriate headphones only enhances the experience.

It is very lightweight and can be comfortably held in one hand.

Operating System and Software
The laptop comes with Windows 7 Home Premium preinstalled (as mentioned above) along with the usual OEM "goodies", including an Office 2010 home and student trial, Antivirus trial and lots of unnecessary bloatware.

One very good bit of software included is the AMD Fusion Catalyst control centre (or center, depending on which side of the pond you are reading this from) which enhances the power management and has allowed me to get over eight hours of battery life from the dm1, when doing basic office apps and watching some video.

Gaming has been pleasantly surprising on the machine. It's not going to run the latest Call of Duty/Battlefield at high framerate, but it ran The Sims 3 and Tropico 4 on standard settings without issue for me.

Overall
HP has scored a huge goal with this laptop, its ideal for those who want a portable Windows 7 device with the power of larger counterparts.


The laptop is lightweight, can hold a battery charge for a long time and (if you're OK with dust and fingerprints) looks very flashy too.

Buy one, buy one now!

IT GUY SCORE: 10/10

Review - HTC One S Android Smartphone

I made the decision to upgrade my contract to a HTC One S over the quad core One X purely based on size and availability at the time.

I knew I wanted an HTC phone as having had various flavours of Android, HTC always seems to provide a more seamless interface with a lot of neat social features.

HTC One S

Physical and Hardware
The phone immediately reminded me of the original HTC Desire in terms of size and layout. The screen is bright and vivid although purists will argue about colour accuracy.

The micro USB charger is sensibly placed on the left side rather than on the base, so it should attract less dirt. A little cover for it would've been welcome though!

The same can't be said for the front facing camera, which sits inside an awkward little dip and, in the two weeks that I've had the phone has accumulated quite a bit of pocket grime.

Size-wize, its a little large to comfortably use in one hand for texting or browsing compared with previous HTCs I've owned, but others will likely find this is a non-issue.

HTC has made much of the military grade coating applied to the phone shell and whilst I doubt it adds anything to the lifetime of the phone, it does look very nice and polished.

The phone boasts a dual core processor from qualcom with a healthy dose of RAM. It runs the OS without any lag or issue that I've come across.

The battery life is on the high end for a HTC, lasting for a full day of normal use. Unfortunately, the battery is not removable so I hope it lasts!

Operating System and Software
The phone runs the latest version of Android 4.x, known to most as Ice Cream Sandwich. It also features a new version of HTC sense, which is simply a skin and some extra widgets and social features.

As ever, HTC maxes-out the Android experience like nobody else can, with fantastic features like the keyboard which knows what I'm trying to say even when typing drunk.

The social integration is also still on the ball, searching your Google, phone, Facebook and Twitter contacts and linking the data together to form detailed profiles for each contact.

The camera, previously the bugbear of HTC Android phones is the complete opposite of its ugly, slow, blurry predecessors. The camera is ready to go straight away when the app loads and takes microseconds to process a photo. It also has new effect filters you can apply. Another very nice feature is that you can take pictures whilst recording video.

I've experienced no lag at all whilst using the phone, even when running high end games.
This phone also features the Beats audio system which does give a clearer sound experience across the apps, not just in the stock media player.

Overall
To keep it simple, this phone is excellent. It combines speed and ease of use with some fantastic hardware to provide the best Android experience yet. The only issues I have are with the front camera attracting dirt and the lack of a cover for the charge port. A user replaceable battery is also a key thing for me.

One thing I have noticed is that my phone hangs when switching data networks, but turning off data roaming helped this somewhat, your mileage may vary.

These issues aside, this phone could be a dark horse for 2012...bridging the price gap between the top-end One X, Galaxy S3 and inevitable iPhone 5 and the low end nasties.

IT GUY SCORE: 9/10

vs. SofasWorld.co.uk Part III

Email to WorldStores Customer services dated 30th April 2012 13:35

Dear Sir/Madam,

On Friday, I was due to recieve a replacement leather candy corner sofa (a replacement for the original replacement - which turned out to be two 2 seater sofas and a random corner square) and instead the courier company wanted to drop off a 3 seater sofa and a 2 seater sofa. These were turned away at the door because somehow, yet again they were the wrong item!

How is this so difficult to organise?

It has now been seven months since the original order was placed. Four months since the sofa was actually recieved and we had hardly any use of it at all before it started sinking. Your company offered a replacement or a refund and I made the mistake of accepting a replacement. I have now had enough of these farcial attempts at replacments. I asked for a phone call following the failed delivery on Friday but have yet to recieve one, so I assume that your company is going to handle this with its usual level of service....none.

I want my money back, not some...not a token gesture...all of my money back. This was £599.99 After I recieve my money back, you can have the two 2 seater sofas and the corrner square back at your expense.

I will be consulting with a solicitor later this week and have also contacted BBC's Watchdog programme.

Regards,

vs. Sofasworld.co.uk Part II

Last year I blogged in great detail about my feud with Sofasworld.co.uk here

Since then we have had problems with the sofa starting to sink, a behaviour you wouldn't expect in a couch that was barely 3 months old.

I contacted my "good friends" at Worldstores (the parent company) via their new email contact form - no doubt implemented following a lot of abuse to their customer services email address because I simply didn't have the energy to go through yet another 30 minute hold music festival.

In a shocking twist, they offered to replace the sofa at no charge. We readily accepted and (as history should have taught me) things went downhill from there...

They told us that the new sofa would arrive yesterday and it would be collected by a seperate courier firm. Of course, the collecting courier arrived and took one look at the sofa and ran fast, claiming it was too heavy. The new couch never arrived. I continued to not hold my breath.

Last night (you know, after the couch was supposed to have been collected), I recieved a returns form via email to attach to the couch.

Today, I recieved a phone call apologising for the lack of collection or delivery and promising that everything would happen today and indeed it did.

Approx 40 minutes ago, Sofasworld collected the old corner unit couch and provided us with... two two-seater sofas and a random corner section of a couch, not discovered until the couriers had run away at speed. Colour me unimpressed.

After yet another exciting phone call, I'm now promised ANOTHER replacement for Thursday (which will no doubt mean Friday).

I hate Sofas.