i just created a new program called XdN NetSet.

basically its a network connection profile manager.

i work in an environment where my IP address may change several times. i may be using DHCP in one location, but need a Static IP in another location, and even a different Static IP again depending on what i’m doing on my system at the time.

XdN NetSet will display the current config, and allow you to easily change between DHCP and Static IP profiles.

you can try it out by clicking here: http://xenomorph.net/?page_id=512

it’s in a pretty early stage right now, and will be probably changing some more.

During the past few days, my site has been getting more and more popular because of the XdN Tweaker program I made.

During August alone, server logs show over 530,000 page hits, with over 52,000 downloads of XdN Tweaker.

Total bandwidth usage has been over 13 Gigs this month. I’ve had to pay twice now to increase the amount of bandwidth I’m allowed to use with my web hosting provider.

Google now shows that the term “xdn tweaker” shows up on over 200,000 pages. While searching Google, I found links to XdN Tweaker on sites like these:

FileForum / BetaNews
Neowin
freewaregenius
gHacks
Download Squad
Lifehacker
Softpedia
NT Compatible
Major Geeks
Digg

I’ve been receiving a ton of traffic from so many sites. A few days/weeks ago, in an attempt to get more feedback on the program, I submitted XdN Tweaker to Neowin. It made it to their Software news section, and the next thing I knew, XdN Tweaker was showing up all over the internet on different software websites.

A lot of the tweaks present in XdN Tweaker are things I use myself - many of them making Windows Vista more enjoyable to use. Hopefully the popularity of XdN Tweaker will bring that little bit of joy to other people as well.

I just hope I can afford the bandwidth bills to make sure its available for everyone. (Feel free to donate if it helps you!)

Another one of the many annoyances I came across in Windows Vista is its “nerfed” file and program association screen.

In previous versions of Windows, you could go to Folder Options -> File Types and be able to change program association or just delete file associations to reset them.

If you associated the wrong program with a file type or wanted to change a file types icon, you could easily do so.

Under Vista, you are simply allowed to change what program a file extension is associated to. That’s it. You can’t remove a program or do much of anything else without having to open up Registry Editor and browse to a key several branches deep.

I started working on a program that would make things a little easier.
Right now, all it does it remove all associations for the file for the current user, basically resetting the extension to defaults.

I didn’t know what to call it, but you can click here to download the XdN File Association program.

Here is an image of what it looks like:

I’ve tested it under Vista and XP, and it works fine.

“XdN Directions”

an update to a program i made *6 years ago* …

XdN Directions

it sits in the tray and gives you quick access to address forms to look up something on Google Maps.

yeah, i *guess* you could just open a browser, then open a bookmark. but this program is for someone who may look up a lot of addresses.

the original program i made was because i worked with several people (mostly nurses) who needed to look up addresses a lot. i thought it was a pretty good idea to have a big shiny icon for them to go to get some forms for address entry.

this new program does what my old program did, and a bit more. it sits in the tray, out of the way, and will keep the address info filled in even if the “X” is hit to send it back to the tray.

its also easy to enter data. just double click the tray icon, start typing, and hit Enter for each field. focus is given to the first address box, and the Enter key takes you to the next one and so on, until at the last address box it then opens your web browser window and hides itself.

the permanent page link for the program will be:
http://xenomorph.net/?page_id=486

my XdN Tweaker program has also been updated to 0.8.6.2, with some new tweaks for XP/2k3

http://xenomorph.net/xdntweaker/

i just uploaded a Vista-specific XdN Tweaker

0.8.5.0 is posted on my XdN Tweaker page

- remove Media Player items off right click menu
- add Windows 2000 style user account manager to Control Panel
- remove “SendTo” from right click menus
- remove ATI CCC from Desktop right click menu
- disable Zip/Cab folders
- add “Take Ownership” to right click menu
- disable UAC
- force Vista to treat all folders the same
- remove “- Shortcut” text when making new shortcuts
- change tcp/ip settings
- increase/reset folder views
- put Menu bar on top in IE7
- remove Search bar in IE7
- disable Windows Mail splash screen

all items have an on/off toggle to enable/disable all changes.

i have just released XdN Tweaker 0.8.

it includes bug fixes and better Vista compatibility. under Vista, tweak options are limited, and it will only run with Admin privileges (for the time).

my XdN Tweaker page is HERE.

i released an updated version of my XdN Tweaker program today. this version has some minor interface improvements, some new OS detection stuff, and a Windows Server 2003 specific tweak that turns off the annoying prompt on shutdown that asks for a reason for the shutdown.

you can download the latest version of XdN Tweaker from HERE.

i updated my XdN Tweaker again, bringing it up to version 0.7.2.2

you can download it from my XdN Tweaker page HERE.

i have uploaded XdN Tweaker 0.7.0.2 on my site now.

i have the XdN Tweaker’s page located here (for now at least).

its kinda hard to have my main site updates, the XdNTweaker page updates, the internal updates page for the program, and every other site i do updated. all the stuff i do online is just one big mess.

I have just finished up XdN Tweaker 0.6.9.9 (think of it as like a 0.7 Beta).

One of the biggest changes with this version is the addition of a Network tab with TCP/IP tweaking controls.

The program requires the .NET 2.0 Framework.

more screen shots are available on the XdN Tweaker page.