I could kick myself if I were more limber … I spend 5 hours completely rebuilding my work machine today because I *thought* I had some security software gunking up the works. I was wrong, it was just Microsoft Windows being a PITA.

The problem:
Lotus Notes “Single Login” aka “Log in to Notes using your operating system login” aka “single sign-on” etc. is set but the password prompt always appears.

The clue:
You look in Control Panel -> Administrative Tools -> Event Viewer and you see an application error “Lotus Notes Single Logon” that reads; “Notes Single Logon will not function properly: No mapping between account names and security IDs was done.”

The solution:
Launch RegEdit and navigate key: “HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE/SYSTEM/CurrentControlSet/Control/NetworkProvider/Order” then edit the value (a string of comma delimited labels) and find the value “npnotes” and move this value in front of the “WebClient” value.

Please don’t ask me why this works. It just does … at least for me <sigh>

Just a short update. I finally settled on the bits and bytes I wanted to make my Windows work machine do all it needed to do. I finally settled on the Virtual Desktop solution. I am very please by VirtuaWin. Enough said.

I made enough mistakes along the way that I opted to nuke the machine and install just the applications I had settled on. Fortunately, I am a firm believer in SystemRescueCD. (How many times have I said that ?!)

I installed Thunderbird Portable for all my person email. It is loaded out on my NAS so nothing is actually installed or stored on my work PC.

I am debating playing with MojoPac. When I travel, I like to use my personal PC as my work machine – its an X60 and although it only has a 1024×768 screen, it is small, light weight, and has great battery life. I may resort to the old “drive swap” solution I used last year. It worked pretty well but there is very little personal data left so I may just go with a single PC instance.

I don’t want to hear about all the Microsoft bashing and “Ubuntu is the best”. I already announced I was building a Windows XP machine for work because there are just too many corporate things I can’t resolve with a Linux Laptop.

The irony is I started trying to “port back” my more efficient work environment from Ubuntu to Windows XP and it’s taken me the better part of two weeks to even get close. Here is a list of the bits and bytes I’ve had to install to ratchet up Windows efficiency (note, I did not say performance – this is all about making me more productive not my computer).

• DeskMan virtual desktop – trying out Danial Vik’s tool (but have the Microsoft power toy in the wings as my default option)
• taskbar at the top – but had to install “Discover” to fix a windows but that opens windows at screen location 0,0 even thought that means the windows is under neath the “always on top” taskbar
• Weather Watcher – just because I have to know
• Gadwin PrintScreen – screen captures are saved as PNG files rather than just sitting out on the clipboard (especialyl useful when you know you will capture more than one screen in succession and editing them later)
• PowerClick – a simple menu for shutting down or switching to standby
• customized “places” in Windows Explorer – gets me to my NAS volumes and work files more quickly
• Gimp for Windows – nice when software is cross platform
• Notes 8 classic – uses less memory than the Eclipse version but I have that installed too for testing purposes
• Thunderbird – again, nice when software is cross platform
• undecided on a feed reader replacement for Liferea
• PowerISO – treat ISO files on the NAS as if they were still CDs and avoid having to burn them
• CCleaner – gets rid of all the useless files and settings that accumulate including the TEMP directory dumping ground
• Backups – using ??????? for weekly data and daily incremental data backups and swear by SystemRescueCD for image backups for all my machines

(left to right: DeskMan, Network, WeatherWatcher, PrintScreen, PowerClick, Wireless, Devices, Clock)

There are some tools I use on Windows that I never did find good Linux solutions for. SUPER(C) is definitely one such tool. It makes short work of converting just about any audio or video format to any other.

Things are settling down and I should only need to find one or two more tweaks for this Windows machine. After bootup, the TaskManager reports the system is using about 280MB of memory.

All in all, the switch to Linux eight months ago was very good for me. I now have better tools, better data backup polices, a much better understanding of what working in mixed environments is really like and what cross platform should mean.

I continue my search for a good Virtual Display solution for Windows XP. I have a few feature criteria …

• I like to see all applications from all screens in the task bar
• I like the preview to show me what applications are running on the differ virtual displays
• I want to be able to move applications from one virtual display to another

The solution I tried today – HideOver – does things very differently from the rest of the pack. Rather than “page” the display, HideOver installs four virtual screen drivers and then creates virtual monitors. The easiest way to see what I mean is to bring up the “display settings” dialog box. The #1 display is the physical video device and #2 thru #5 represent the virtual displays.

Some software gets confused. There is a feature that allows you to specify that some applications should render on the real display device. This can be confusing since the UI for toggling through the virtual displays skips the real one. The result is that you appear to have lost your program(s). Fortunately, Win+F5 jumps to that “real” display screen.

I’m going to play with HideOver for a few days before I give my final verdict. I’ve got this feeling it is using a bazooka to kill a mosquito. I’d really like to find something simple that handles my three requirements. I don’t need 3D or spinning cubes or any of that. I just need the short list of features above. Something as simple as the Workspace Switcher from Linux.

I created a sample of the HideOver experience and posted it. The creators have also put a video clip up on YouTube.

I’ve blogged that I am switching back from Ubuntu Linux for my work PC. I still have not gone back. I have been trying to build a “useful PC”. It has not been easy. I’ve become spoiled by some very basic functions that are standard on Ubuntu (and most Linux).

My latest problem is a solution for virtual desktops. I keep multiple applications open for much of my work day and one of my computers only has 1024×768 screen.

Forget about Compiz and 3D and spinning cubes and glitz and glamor. I use the very simple and very useful default “workspace switcher” …

Ubuntu Workspace Switcher (enlarged for your viewing pleasure)
real size is only about 150 pixels wide

The simple virtual desktop gives me 4 virtual screens. The four box interface sits in the taskbar. It takes about 150 pixels of space. With it I can …

• the switcher UI sits in the taskbar
• switch to a virtual screen and open an application
• easily see which virtual screens have applications - 
• the ability to see where my apps are is a major advantage
• in the image above I have Lotus Notes on screen 1, Pidgin and a chat on screen 2, and a file browser on screen 3
• quickly drag an app from one screen to another by dragging the little iconic thumbnails
• switch virtual screens
• hotkey back and forth
• click on the associated box in the taskbar

I have tried 5 or six different virtual desktop products for Windows. None even get close. Why is that ?!

Is there a product for Windows that will do what I list above ? What virtual desktop solution do you use ?