get the wor (l) d

Hi,

after being quiet for a while I just went through all bug-reports and finished a new version of virtual identity.

bugfixes:

• If Smart-Reply found (for instance) an existing identity, sending works ok and what not tampered by the extension. But Thunderbird does not remove the window, it 'recycles' the window. Next time you compose a message, this one shows the same old identity but uses a different one behind the scenes. So I changed Virtual Identity to remove Window completely if message was sended, Window-Recycling is this way disabled (thanks to Charles, john and Henrik for the report).
• repaired Dialog to choose which Virtual Identity to choose, was completely broken (thanks to Mark for the report).
• Connected (and this way limited) usage of newsgroup Identities to the switch Which Enables Virtual Identity for newsgroups (thanks to Dave for the report).

You can download the new version at http://absorb.it/hacked/thunderbird/virtual_identity-0.4.2-tb+sm.xpi
and soon from addons.mozilla.org .

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It took longer than I expected, but I think it was worth to include a lot of feature requests, and get rid of some bugs. Many thanks to you all who gave me suggestions and reports and translations and thank-you-mails without this feedback the extension would have been even not half as nice as it is by now. So as you see, I like the result of the last weeks work, and I hope you will enjoy it too. Do not like to mention the list of bug-fixes again, just the list of new features to version 0.4.0 Compared:

• you can now sort the header any way you like, then exclude 'to' or 'cc' as you like it, but you have to tell it that Virtual Identity has to use those headers. Sun change your settings and add 'to' and 'cc' to the list of headers. A header name now refers to all headers of that name, not like before only the outmost one of you mail. To select a specific header, just use the number of it's occurrence, so for instance "3" and add it to the header name. And if you wish to use only the email address and not the name, then simply add "@".
• reading the headers in that version 0.4.0 or dependent on mnenhy installed enigmail. Now it's independent on other extensions, so you are free to use whatever you like (but to protect the freedom of having the same secrets as the way freedom of choice or the freedom of speach, you might choose to install enigmail anyway )
• added a nice debug window, Which helps you understanding what really does Virtual Identity. using complex filter rules you might get very creative, and this is the place to look if it does not work as expected. This debug information is so helpful for me to understand how and when problems occur if you are sending a bug report.

Ok, here you can find the recent 0.4.1 release , and, tadaa, there will be a documentation soon ( have a look at the work in progress )

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Than I had to install some additional software to enjoy the Mac, we'll see if I keep them for my mother.

First, there is Adium , an Instant Messenger Which is able to handle ICQ, Jabber and does not bug you with. Mac (like iChat does). Nice one, but till now I do not have found how to keep the program at the dock after starting - it always shows you the contact window.

Added the VLC video player as well, my mother should have the chance to watch movies too. After configuring the program this way and that way it crashed after every start. It took a while, till I found the command line to restore all settings ('/ Applications / VLC.app / Contents / MacOS / VLC-reset-config ").

Next, after a nice (not only geek) evening with Jule (kisses to her and thanks for the tip with the right mouse button - oh yeah, there is one) I had to install KisMAC , great suggestion. And than a SIP telephone account activated and installed XMeeting , Which is a nice little SIP client software.

And for ftp, sftp, and so on, I installed the program Which has this nice duck as a logo (see right). Cyberduck seems to do what I need, and it's not only the logo which is nicer than the one from Fugu . Fugu did not worked for ftp-servers at my test install and what not able to retrieve empty directories via sftp.

Still have to test the included MacOSX software, but it's hard to decide if it's worth to keep it or not. Descriptions are not always clear, like the one beneath. It tells you that you should decide if you like to use iPhoto now. The dialog appears directly after I attached a camera to the mac. And there is no description what the program does, they say in this dialogue the biggest reason to decide to use this program is that its delivered with my mac - wow. So, still no idea if it's worth to use iTunes, iMovie, iDVD, iPhoto and iWhatever, but I'll ask some mac users around. (And for my personal usage just added Thunderbird , Firefox and Camino ).

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Nearly as fast as I got the MacBook, I received the printer I bought at eBay. Possible just told you, I bought an HP Deskjet 995c, cause this one has bluetooth included and I liked to make the system as flexible as. First impression, it's heavy on printer - the weight of around 6.5 kg remembered me on some russian technology ...

Anyway, tried to install it as easy as the mouse and the keyboard, but run into problems. The printer was recognized, but I always got the message that no driver was found for it. Looking at the net, they told me that the drivers are included in MacOSX and / or on Which to install CD which delivered. Sun installed drivers from CD, drivers from the HP homepage but anyway, no chance to let the printer running over bluetooth.

Than, finally, I found a news message describing that it should work , but you have to update the firmware before. And Therefore you need a windows system, ok, first time stuck on MacOSX. But had to copy Windows lying around somewhere, and flashing the new firmware worked fine over USB from Windows on to VMware emulator running at my linux machine. After this firmware update the printer is recognized without problems, printing works fine. The only problem is that the HP software administration is not running on Windows nor on Mac OSX, so anyone can now print on my public accessible bluetooth printer. But I hope there will not be so many people who figure this out in my mothers apartment.

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A small bug in pre3 caused the whole extension if disabled in the preferences for the place where sended messages should be saved the settings of the default identity were selected. Thanks to Guy for reporting and helping tracing the bug. New pre-release 0.4.1pre4 fixes this issue.

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network configuration: it was not as easy as I thought to connect the computer to the network. There is an assistant, but as intelligent as this one did Assistants are got the idea that I might like to get my internet (by now) out of an ad hoc wireless network . The airport was not able to find the network, nor was it able to connect to it if I entered the SSID of our network in the network settings. At some point I found the icon at the upper status-bar, clicked on it and saw not only wireless networks, but also computer-to-computer networks. And there it was, as easy as expected.

configuring accuweather: you need it or not, but if you activate the MacOS dashboard there is a weather monitor. So I decided to configure it, and (as expected) it'll download the weather data from the internet. So it opened the safari browser without interaction and than it gave me a warning: "Your computer stores all information about the sex-sites you have visited" And the solution was near, I should install drive cleaner , Which removes all of these data. Should I stay or should I go? But starts (installation suggested!) Gladly I decided to abort the process but a while later, I liked to go back in the browser cache and the download, - programmers of this trojan did not thought of other operating systems than Windows, so can 't use this great software.

apple remote desktop - vnc: great to have a system using standards. Sun activated sharing of the desktop (password authentication) and I was able to ssh and connect to the MacBook via vncviewer. Actually only tightvnc worked the way it should, got the tip from a macusenet post .

connecting a external display: the problem is that it's really easy to configure once again over the mac OSX system panel, but closing the MacBook sended the laptop to sleep. Restarting it on clicking with the mouse worked fine, now what the image on my LCD display with a bigger resolution. But only for some seconds, than the MacBook went to sleep again. Took a while to figure this out, but after having the right search-term Which is "clamshell" I found a nice page describing whats going on . And the Mac is smart so that this procedure only works if the MacBook is connected to power, than it stays on. Perfect.

additional software installed: Firefox web browser (just dont like safari till now) and NeoOffice to OpenOffice - version for Mac OSX. And remove the MS Office trial version, yes!

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First overall impression was good, the MacBook came in a huge box but after unwrapping all of the air-shock absorbers it ended as a real nice computer. "Designed by Apple in California", and surely produced in China, but anyway, all looks very solid and nice.

You instantly notice the small things: the power adapter has to ways of getting plugged into the power-net: with a long cord or as a wall power supply, as you like it. Trying to put the power cable into the MacBook, it jumps at the right place and a small LED light shows you that something is the way it should. Nice, fancy.

But now the real test. Pressing the power button the first time it gives you some options to change language and so on, but then it's tries to register. This combined "register and create user accounts" is a real mess (beneath the image shows the same dialog, but later). No indicator what the registration is good for, only a nice longtext Which Ensures that they will not play around with your data and they need it to give you a better service. And no way to go further without entering a name, full name, address and a telephone number. What's this? And you can only go forward (implies entering the data) or back (which is not what you want). Aborting might be possible, but maybe you abort the whole initial configuration? Really bad ...

Still impressed by the nice system, I started to configure the new bluetooth mouse. There is a software included on CD, the description say first update your system and then install the driver. But system-update never works, it always tells me that there is a network error (timeout, error -1001 - check your connection and try again!). But the network is fine, works nice and browsing the network wizard then tells me that there are no problems. It really starts to remember me on my old redmond days, maybe I should have registered the machine? (Turned out later that the wireless connection for real had a problem with the MTU , so i changed the router firmware and now its working fine)

Anyway, continuing the driver installation (without a system update), the next surprise, the driver for the wireless mouse needs around 133MByte (!) Of space. What kind of mouse I bought? I have no idea whats included on this installation CD, but at all it worked fine and the mouse works flawlessly since than. And, have to add, the bluetooth keyboard did not requiered to install any additional software, so you can count it down to 66MByte for each device

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Future is now, so it was time to help my mother to enjoy the net as I do. And first I thought I'll suggest her using a Linux, maybe Ubuntu system, but not as much as I personally like Ubuntu there are some problems using Linux (have you ever tried to go to a shop and ask if a specific hardware is working with Linux? than you know what I'm talking about)

So I suggested my mother to buy a mac, more precise the cheapest MacBook available (MacBook MA699D / A 1.83 GHz Intel Core 2, 512 MB RAM, 60 GB disc screen, 13.3 "). This way I thought I might have the chance to administrate the machine without going mad and my mother hopefully will get attracted by the fancy computer too. Ok, ordered one at www.cyberport.de (have to mention this, cause it arrived around 30hrs later, wow).

To make it really easy I thought of using the full potential of Bluetooth: added a bluetooth mouse (Mighty Mouse MA272ZM / A) and a bluetooth keyboard (Apple wireless keyboard M9270D / A) and finally got a bluetooth printer from eBay (HP Deskjet 995C ). The idea was to get my mother a laptop to attract her on using it for internet / entertainment in her living room, but give her the chance to add the machine to exist on LCD screen in a working room to have a full featured computer. Sun using bluetooth (and a wireless internet connection) there is only the monitor cable to attach to her mac to transfer the whole thing into a desktop solution ... but we will see.

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And ... listen to your customers. " Sun Keith had a good point in telling me that version 0.4.1pre2 destroys the header view. Yes, I managed to read all headers without any other extension in 0.4.1pre2 but, ignored existing (already showed) mail headers. Cause the new extension adds headers to the header view and hides them, so where existing header hidden.

Well, this one repaired and the now released pre-version 0.4.1pre3 should solve the problem. Thanks Keith (and all the others) for testing and reporting.

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Few days ago I released the preview of Virtual Identity and thought of finishing the programming on it for a while. But usually if you think thats it you'll enter the next level. Olav and Patrick, programmers of the enigmail extension , told me that they changed their extension for the new upcoming Firefox release. And cause of that I could rely on their extension for retrieving the headers, so one of the main features of Virtual Identity 0.4x (looking for Identities in additional headers) would not have worked in the future.

But much better, they gave me the hint about how to retrieve all mail headers in Thunderbird , so I was able to implement a much nicer solution than the one used before Virtual Identity. And (if you are running at least 2.0.0.0rc1 Thunderbird or Seamonkey ) it's now completely independent from any other extensions like mnenhy or enigmail . Additionally I cleaned the option to select a specific header out of headers with the same name (now a mentioned header will match all headers with that name, for selecting the first one just add ': 1'). Ok, the new version is now pre-released, download Virtual Identity 0.4.1pre2 , try it and report any problems.

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