Archive for September 13, 2014

How to reset the trial time limit on Quicken 6.5

Quicken 6.5 is ancient.

To reset the trial time limit, delete quicken.ini from the windows folder.

How to make a shortcut to Google Keep in Windows.

OK so you’ve decided you want to try Google Keep. But it’s a pain having to go and find it – by the time you’ve found it you’ve forgotten what you wanted to ‘keep’ in the first place.

Google Keep doesn’t have a desktop application – it exists only within a web browser window. It also lacks any kind of screen clipping capability so it is borderline useless; but the ability to sync with Android devices is handy.

Edit 2: (June 2016) Chrome users: Just click “Hamburger” –> More Tools –> Add to Desktop

Edit: Chrome users: No need to do these steps – just click Menu — Tools — Create Application Shortcuts.

Here’s how I (sort of) solved the problem of having a shortcut to Google Keep.

(These instructions are for Firefox, but can be adapted for Chrome users.)

1 – Put “Google Keep” into a Pinned Tab in Firefox. (Right click the tab, choose “Pin Tab”)

2 – Download and install “AutoHotKey” (Genuinely free at http://www.autohotkey.com/)

When you open AutoHotKey for the first time, it will bring up a sample script that you can edit. All you need to do is add the following:

^5::
WinActivate, ahk_class MozillaWindowClass
Send ^6
return

Explanation:

^5 — that’s Ctrl + 5; the key combination I chose to open Google Keep

WinActivate, ahk_class MozillaWindowClass — That’s what “Firefox” is called – use the “Window Spy” program if you need to identify another browser. Chrome for example appears to be ahk_class Chrome_WidgetWin_1

Send ^6 — this opens the sixth tab. If Google Keep is your first (pinned) tab then  you’d use ^1 instead.

Return — ends the script.

3 – After saving the Notepad file, Right-click the “AutoHotKey” “H” Icon near your clock (bottom right of the screen) and choose “Reload Script”

4 – Try it out 🙂

If it doesn’t work, perhaps you need to run AHK as administrator; you’re in another application that uses the shortcut key you’re trying to use for Google Keep, or something else went wrong.

I doubt Google will ever release a Windows application for Google Keep. They tend to like to make things difficult for Windows users by not allowing free integration with Windows Contacts, Calendars, etc so it’s unlikely they will bother. Unfortunately for them, this will likely continue to drive people to using the more functional alternatives from Microsoft, Evernote, etc.

 

Fix for “Your database contains a missing broken reference vbe6ext.olb”

This error may occur if you uninstall Microsoft OneNote 2013 from your computer. (You might have done this when you discovered it’s not as ‘free’ as their website claimed.)

Here’s a working solution using Excel, although Access can probably do it too…

1. Close excel program.

2. find the file vbe6ext.olb in C:\Program Files\Common Files\Microsoft Shared\VBA\VBA6

3. rename the file to vbe6ext.OLD

4. open excel program and go to “developper menu”, if you don’t have this menu, right click in the ribbon menu, “customize the ribbon” and check “developper” at right list

5. click on “visual basic” to open it

6. a pop up window comes to ask if you want repair the programme, clic yes

7. leave running the repair

8. close excel and reopen it…

that’s it!

These instructions are from https://forum.solidworks.com/thread/40593 – where there is also a registry entry you can try.

Microsoft’s advice to re-register the file VBE6EXT.OLB does not work.