Yet another iteration of the Nintendo DS – Super NES Edition!

Ah, another version of the timeless Nintendo DS. I wonder if anyone over at Nintendo has ever head the expression “whipping a dead horse.”? In case they are wondering. please see below as defined by my friends at Wikipedia:

Flogging a dead horse (alternatively beating a dead horse, or beating a dead dog in some parts of the Anglophone world) is an idiom that means to continue a particular endeavor that is a waste of time as the outcome is already decided.

This time around the folks at Nintendo will be offering a “NEW” 3DS XL that resembles a retro Super NES case. According to the product specifications:

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Virus Email Reminder – Word Macros Are Bad!

I had a couple of users in the office this week attempt to enable word macros on a document they received in email. I try to give my users as much information as I can to avoid viruses and malware, but each week the hackers come up with additional methods to attempt unauthorized network access.

Exploit Vector:

This time around the hack was email based and the email came from a known  source.  The attacker has already gained control of the senders workstation and had sent the message as a reply to an earlier thread. Continue reading “Virus Email Reminder – Word Macros Are Bad!”

Hot Toys For Christmas 2017

Its not even Halloween yet and I’m writing a post about what toys are going to be hot for Christmas! For my readers that have children we have all been there, done that in previous years. Running out to the Target or Toys ‘R’ Us only to find the last Tickle Me Elmo is gone. Thinking we are a creative bunch we begin surfing Ebay and Craig’s list only to find the toy we want is commanding a $200 premium over list price!

I urge you to get out this weekend, or stay in and let you mouse do the shopping and pickup these hot toys before its too late. I have done some research and have made my best guesses as to what toys they want. Also I will give my best guess if there is going to be a supply issue.

Hot toys for teens

Since I love electronics, lets start there!

Nintendo Switch – $299.99

Switch is the latest in Nintendo’s long line of video game consoles. You can play at home on the big screen or take the device portable on the go!

  • Hot Factor – 8 out of 10 : Switch has been on the market for a number of months now and has been well received by the video game community. If you ask me its “evolutionary” NOT “revolutionary” and is just the next incarnation of the Wii.
  • Stock – I estimate stock will be available and this will NOT sell out

$299.99 at Amazon w/ prime shipping!

SoundMoovz – Cra-Z-Art – $59.99

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Automotive Headlight Technology – Even Edison Would be Impressed!

Recently I purchased a new car and was amazed at how much technology is packed into it. From radar cruise control and self steering, to blind spot monitoring and collision avoidance its great to see how far we have come since the advancement of the micro processor. One item that caught my eye is the fact their is not a single Edison light bulb in the  car. It is 100% LED technology even the Headlights!

I have been driving longer than I’m not driving, over 27 years (do the math, yes I’m old) My first car had “sealed” beam headlights and were sufficiently bright and focused for 1980’s technology. Just think, how much more have we advanced since the invention of the automobile?

A trip back in time:

In the late 1800’s as cars became more prevalent there was a need to light the road at night. Since the first commercial light bulb was invented around 1879 it was not feasible to install it into a vehicle. Early road vehicles used fueled lamps to light the way.  You had your choice of acetylene or oil and the Prest-O-Light company had a great storage and delivery system for the acetylene gas. Continue reading “Automotive Headlight Technology – Even Edison Would be Impressed!”

Exchange 2016- EVENT ID 9646 – MoMT exceeded the maximum of 32 objects of type Session

Here is another issue I encountered during my Exchange 2016 migration. A hand full of users have been getting knocked out of public folders with an Event ID 9646 and they have exceed the max of 32 session objects. What the hell does that mean? Why only a few users?

Investigating Event 9646

The Monday after I migrated public folders to Microsoft’s new “Modern Public Folders” a hand full of users began calling me they were unable to access them. Their specific error was:

“Cannot expand the folder. Your server administrator has limited the number of items you can open simultaneously. Try closing messages you have opened or removing attachments and images from unsent messages you are composing.”

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Exchange 2016 – EVENT ID 15021- Blank ECP / OWA & Error connecting to Outlook

If you have been following my blog, I recently migrated my Exchange 2010 server to a new 2016 server. There have been a few hiccups along the way however for the most part  the experience has been good and user disruption minimal, until I encountered Event ID 15021.

ExchangeLast night during a maintenance window I applied my Microsoft updates and rebooted the server. Shortly after reboot I attempted to open Outlook and it failed with a server unavailable error. OWA and ECP both showed BLANK white screens. I began to panic a little because this is probably the IT guys worst nightmare! Working in the industry for over 20 years I put my panic aside and began my standard troubleshooting procedure.

STEP 1 – Event logs are your friend

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My Experience Migrating to Exchange 2016

If you have ever taken the time to read my blog you would probably know by now that I am the IT director for a mid sized accounting firm in NJ. One project on my docket this year is to migrate from Exchange 2010 to Exchange 2016. This post is just going to be a basic log of what I encountered during my install. If you take the time to read this maybe you can find a useful tip to aid in your migration woes.

Having a small shop and wearing a lot of hats here in the office tends to create a slew of challenges. Most of the time I have a ton of projects brewing so focusing on one can be difficult at times. My migration to a new Exchange 2016 server will be gradual taking about 2 to 3 weeks to complete. During the initial setup I like to let certain steps “stew” overnight to make sure there are no disruptions. I also like to be sure I have a contingency plan to undo any unforeseen issues.

Is your directory active enough?

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