Wikipedia:Reference desk/Archives/Computing/2011 July 27

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July 27

How to download from public FTP?

There are some files here: http://mail.moshiz.com/ftp/misc/Worms%20World%20Party/data/User/Speech/Whoopsie/ which can be downloaded individually - they're custom soundfiles for a computer game. How do I access va FTP to download in one fell swoop? --92.28.85.56 (talk) 00:17, 27 July 2011 (UTC)

If you're running Firefox, the Down Them All extension is good for this kind of thing. -- Finlay McWalter ☻ Talk 00:23, 27 July 2011 (UTC)

(edit conflict) - There is no reason to believe that those files can be downloaded using FTP. FTP and HTTP are different communications protocols. Sometimes, the owner of a computer-server chooses to set up the system to deliver the same files using either/both protocols. But if not, there's no way for you (the user) to access the web server using FTP.

No worries, though: you can mass-download an entire directory over HTTP using wget, DownThemAll, or numerous other simple download managers. Nimur (talk) 00:25, 27 July 2011 (UTC)

It seems, in this case, that the server does also host ftp://mail.moshiz.com/ftp/misc/Worms World Party/data/User/Speech/Whoopsie/ and allows anonymous login (blank name and password). Watch the spaces in the URL; some FTP clients don't handle them well. They are spaces, not underscores or %20`s. Nimur (talk) 02:38, 27 July 2011 (UTC)

If you use a command-line FTP client then the "mget *" command should download all files in the current directory. CS Miller (talk) 08:17, 27 July 2011 (UTC)

Restoring Icons

Recently I downloaded a program reccomended to me off the internet, and though that porogram worked as well as could be expected, (though it did turn out to be not good enough for my intentions) it had some unfortunate results. After I had downladed it and installed it on my computer, over the following few hours I discovered that certain things on my computer were not as I remembered. My internet homepage and default search engine had both been changed to some entirely unrelated company. The homepage was easy enough to fix, and I can return to that any time I wish to search for something.

However, it is the third problem that I wish to ask you about today. You see, I often make use of Microsoft Works, particularly their Word Processor, however that day I discovered that the icons for all my files in that program had been changed to a rather simplified and low resolution image of a page, with the icon of the program I had just downloaded set in one corner. Meanwhile, these files, if sent to another computer, attempt to open in that program rather than in Works, which is quite annoying. I have tried anything I can think of to restore the original icons, without any success. I have gone so far as to delete everything at all related to that downloaded program, there is no sign of it left, other than on these icons, which remain unchanged. Before that, whenever I went to set the default program for the files to open in, though the default was always set to Microsoft Works, the list always opened with the other highlighted, even though it is a drawing rather than writing program, and with no commection to these files. Now it is gone, it no longer appears on the list, but of course the icons are still the same, other than the one on that list of programs, for some reason.

So, I come to to experts, to see if you know of any way I can get the original icons back for all my files.

And, whilst we are at it, I have recently transfered my allegiance to Open Office, but where my sister's computer shows those files with that company's icon, mine presents me with only with an image of the first page each time, is there any way of changing these as well?

79.66.98.118 (talk) 10:24, 27 July 2011 (UTC)

The first thing to try would be to reset the file associations. Specifics on how to do this can vary between versions of Windows, so if you could provide that information, it would be helpful. A system restore might help, if you know when you downloaded the offending program and can find a restore point prior to that. Revealing the name of the program could help us to help you. And for some unsolicited advice - prior to downloading programs from the internet, do some research to see if there is a record of problems. When installing any software, no matter where it came from, don't accept the default settings and carefully read each screen that is displayed. --LarryMac | Talk 12:20, 27 July 2011 (UTC)

Of course you could go through the file type assignments and reassign Works file types to the correct programs, but that won't remove the malware I suspect your computer is now infected with. Programs you download off the internet, especially those recommended by strangers, and especially especially those from a non-reputable source (file-hosting sites, torrents etc.) are sometimes infested with malware such as viruses, rootkits, password stealers etc. You computer is probably still infected. You can search the internet for removal advice perhaps by entering the '<name of new homepage> malware' into your favourite search engine. A frequently recommended product is Malwarebytes' Anti-Malware - it has a good reputation for dealing with many types of malware (and yes, I appreciate the irony in recommending you download another piece of software after my opening sentence). Astronaut (talk) 12:48, 27 July 2011 (UTC)

Steps to Post a Article

Hi, Can some body tell me steps to post a article in wikipedia.org? — Preceding unsigned comment added by Outsourcingrbts (talk • contribs) 13:54, 27 July 2011 (UTC)

indent fixed, which was caused by a leading space. See wp:your first article for how to create an article. For future reference, this reference desk is for help with computers and other IT equipment. The wp:help desk will gladly help you with all your wikipedia editing enquires. -- CS Miller (talk) 14:03, 27 July 2011 (UTC)

Looking at your talk page, which is for other editors to discuss your edits, etc, an article you created has been deleted recently. If you are asking about this, then I'd advise you to read the articles linked on your talk page. CS Miller (talk) 14:06, 27 July 2011 (UTC)

Excel formula problem

I need to calculate the standard deviation of a range of values, including the values only if the meet a certain criterion. There doesn't seem to be a STDEVIF function, so how do I do it? Probably somehow using IF, but I'm having trouble figuring it out. ike9898 (talk) 15:11, 27 July 2011 (UTC)

Can you give us some sample data, to make sure we understand what you're asking for, specifically? --Mr.98 (talk) 15:23, 27 July 2011 (UTC)

It will be easiest to make another set using something like "if(A1>=0,A1)". All of the fields that don't meet the criteria will be filed with FALSE and will not be included if you perform stdev on the new set. -- kainaw™ 15:33, 27 July 2011 (UTC)

Figured it out. Answer took the form =STDEV(IF($V7:$V12="G",O7:O12,"")), that is, =STDEV(IF(criterion,range of values to conditionally include in calculation ,"")) ike9898 (talk) 16:52, 27 July 2011 (UTC)

Appropriate usage of SSD term?

Today I found myself using the term "SSD hard drive" when writing an email to co-worker. And I realized how redundant and incorrect that is. Even "SSD drive" is redundant. But "SS Drive" sounds like something Nazis would use. Just plain "SSD" doesn't seem descriptive enough to people outside of tech circles. What commonly accepted usage have you seen in non-technical blogs and articles? --24.249.59.89 (talk) 15:35, 27 July 2011 (UTC)

SSD drive is normal (and could be a reference to Solid State Device drive). I often see references to SSD disks, which I feel is worse. It is very common for acronyms to be used with redundancy: CD disk, ATM machine, etc... -- kainaw™ 15:41, 27 July 2011 (UTC)

And the linguistic phenomenon is appropriately named RAS syndrome. 88.112.59.31 (talk) 17:33, 28 July 2011 (UTC)

Acid3 source code

How do I get the source code of the Acid3 test? 125.235.98.33 (talk) 16:08, 27 July 2011 (UTC)

It's all in one page (there's no includes) in the source of the ACID 3 test itself. You can "view source" in your browser to look at it. -- Finlay McWalter ☻ Talk 16:48, 27 July 2011 (UTC)

I got 63/100 in the offline test but 95/100 on the online test. Why? 125.235.161.184 (talk) 04:16, 28 July 2011 (UTC)

Vista's "Run..." doesn't save

Hello, I'm using a computer running Vista. Prior to a week ago, "Run..." (Windows key + R) would save the previous items I typed in. Now, even if I just typed something in a few minutes ago, when I go back there's nothing in the list. Can anyone help? -- 143.85.199.241 (talk) 17:56, 27 July 2011 (UTC)

I found this on a forum:

I found the problem. Start/Properties/Start Menu/Privacy. Somehow the box for Store and Display a list of recently opened Programs was not checked. I could have sworn I checked that after I installed Vista and was configuring stuff. "Store and Display a List of Recently Opened Files" WAS checked. So, your question set off an alarm in my mind. Thank you."[1]

(Right-click on the start button to bring up the properties menu.)--Colapeninsula (talk) 09:56, 28 July 2011 (UTC)