Home Server Show Podcast 82 Out Now

Andrew Edney
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5

Dave and the guys over at the Home Server Show have released this week’s podcast, number 82.

home_server_show_small

Here is what Dave has to say about this week’s show:

The Home Server Show 83

News and information on Windows Home Server

Add-In MSS Fan Control

Add-In: Directory Watcher

SageTV MediaShrink

Norco 4220 Case

ASoft’s Add-In Cleanup Tool

Add-In: AdMiniMe on sale

Windows Home Server Commercials on Hulu

And are you playing along at home with the UWHS drinking game? Every time either Tim, myself or UWHS gets a mention you need to take a drink.

I wonder how many it will be this week? Smile

To find out, click here: http://homeservershow.com/the-home-server-show-82.html

RunAs Radio Interviews Kevin Royalty about WHS

Andrew Edney
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1

Kevin Royalty is a friend and fellow MVP, even if his MVP is in Small Business Server Smile Kevin does a lot for Windows Home Server and is interviewed on RunAs Radio on using a Home Server in businesses.

25-03-2010 08-02-20

Show #151 | 3/10/2010 (39 minutes)

Kevin Royalty Uses Home Server in Businesses!

Richard and Greg talk to Kevin Royalty about Home Server. Intended for the home, Microsoft’s Home Server works great for small businesses with ten or less workstations, providing shared file services, an awesome backup solution and even remote access! Home Server offers a starting point before Small Business Server, but even after you’ve moved to SBS, you’ll want to keep using Home Server for backup.

So to go listen to Kevin, click here: http://www.runasradio.com/default.aspx?showNum=151

HP Release Another MediaSmart Update – Patch 3

Andrew Edney
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5

Following on from the release a few weeks ago of the HP MediaSmart 3.0 Patch 2 update, which amongst other things brought a number of CPU issues into play, HP have just released another update – this one called, wait for it, Patch 3.

24-03-2010 16-50-32

Details and specifications

File name: MSSDV33135433ServerUpdate.exe [1/1, 4.14M]

Released: 2010-03-22

Version: 3.3.1.35433

Fix/Enhancement: This update improves the quality of transcoded audio files.

This doesn’t appear to be available directly from Windows Home Server Console yet, but I assume that will change in the next few days.

24-03-2010 16-53-16

The problem this fixes is detailed here: Troubleshooting TwonkyMedia – How To Fix Twonky Issues in 3.0 Patch 2 or at least it fixes some of the issues.

So until then, you can download the small patch by clicking on the link above and install it manually.

Synology Launches DX510 NAS Expansion Solution

Andrew Edney
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0

Coming only a few days after the launch of the DiskStation DS410, Synology have announced the launch of the DX510 expansion solution for use with the DS1010+ and the DS710+.

DX510-web-frontDX510-web-right45

Here is some information on the DX150 from the Synology website:

Synology DX510 delivers an effortless solution for volume expansion and data backup for selected Synology DiskStations. The DX510 smoothly scales the storage capacity of the Synology DiskStation by an additional 5 hard drives on the fly when firmly connected directly to the Synology DiskStation, ensuring a reliable expansion solution.

  • Plug-n-use
  • Hot-swappable HDD design
  • Hibernation
  • Managed from Synology DiskStation Manager 2.3

The Synology DX510 is connected to the Synology DiskStation using an eSATA cable with custom-designed connectors on both ends, ensuring a reliable connection and maximum throughput. The eSATA 3.0 Gb/sec definition allows the hard drives in the connected Synology DX510 to operate as they are the internal ones of the Synology DiskStation.

SPECIFICATIONS

Hardware

• Internal HDD: 5X 3.5″ SATA or 5X 2.5″ SATA

• eSATA port X 1

• Hot Swappable HDD: Yes

• Size (mm): 157 X 248 X 233

• Weight?4.10KG

• System Fan?X 2(80x80mm)

• Noise Level (fan-only)?30dB(A)

• Power Recovery: sync with the connected Disk Station

• AC Input Power Voltage?100V ~ 240V AC

• Power Frequency?50 / 60Hz?Single Phase

• Operating Temperature?40 ~ 95°F (5 ~ 35°C)

• Storage Temperature?15 ~ 155°F (-10 ~ 70°C)

• Relative Humidity?5% ~ 95% RH

• Maximum Operating Altitude?10,000feet

For those of you who like to see what things look like from the side and back (that would be Diehard again!):

DX510-web-backDX510-web-left

Check out the Synology website for more details: http://www.synology.com/enu/products/DX510/datasheet.php

Price wise, Amazon.com are showing the diskless variant at a little under $1000 with the fully populated 5TB version at $1759.99. Amazon.co.uk are showing the diskless one at around £420.

So if you have some need to expand your existing Synology NAS solution, and this supports it, you should take a look, but it isn’t cheap!

MSS Fan Control Add-In for Windows Home Server Updated

Andrew Edney
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0

Fellow Windows Home Server MVP Alex Kuretz has been in touch to say that his add-in, MSS Fan Control, has been updated and now supports the HP 3.0 Software Update.

Here is what Alex has to say:

MSS Fan Control is a Windows Home Server Add-In that allows you to change the behaviors of the exhaust fans in the HP MediaSmart Server EX470 and EX475.

In the new 3.0 Software Upgrade for the HP MediaSmart Server EX470 and EX475, HP made a few changes that caused the Add-in to no longer work. Fortunately the fix was fairly simple and I’m happy to announce the availability of version 1.0.0.9 that supports EX47x servers running either HP 1.3 or 3.0 software. Note that this Add-In only works with the EX47x servers, as HP moved the fan controls into the BIOS in the EX48x and EX49x series servers.

While making the changes necessary to support 3.0, I took the opportunity to fix another minor bug with the way settings were initially loaded, plus added a new “Please Wait” dialog to inform the user that Fan Control is busy changing the server configuration.

FanControl1_0_0_9-600x438

You can download the updated add-in from here: http://www.mediasmartserver.net/add-ins

AdminiMe Add-In for Windows Home Server Special Deal for Spring

Andrew Edney
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0

Fellow Windows Home Server MVP Nick Asseloos, author of various WHS Add-Ins including AutoExit and AdminiMi has been in touch to let us know about a special deal for Spring.

As it is now Spring, or at least it’s supposed to be (it’s currently raining here in the UK – what a surprise), Nick has decided to run a special deal for a week, starting today (20th March 2010) were you can buy AdminiMe for 6$/6Euro/6GBP/600Yen. This deal is only for a week remember!

Nick also mentioned that there is a new update coming in the next week or too – so get in now while you can get the deal.

ASoft AdminiMe for Windows Home Server is a console add-in for Windows Home Server.

It is an add-in that constantly monitors your server without you having to do anything.
As the Home Server is a headless machine that is running non stop for long periods of times, and mostly hidden away in some closet/basement/small room; people don’t look at its ‘health’ to often.

But in reality, it could be that the server’ CPU usage is high for very long periods, or errors are occuring, memory utilization is high,…

To avoid this, you can use AdminiMe! It will monitor your server in the background without you having to do anything. And in case something goes wrong, it will notify you.
Added to this monitoring, it contains a console where you can watch all kinds of parameters in real-time. Things like CPU, memory, network, disks and all kinds of statistics like uptime, longest uptime, # of starts,…

But it doesn’t stop there, it also has shortcuts to the most relevant tools: Event Viewer, Task Manager, Performance Monitor, Remote Desktop.

You also have the option to add your own shortcuts to applications!

And next to that, there is a ‘Run-box’ which has the same functionality as the Windows Run Dialog.

There is also a screen where you can view, which users have open files to the server shares.

All events are kept in a log that can be consulted later on.

Features in AdminiMe 2010 for Windows Home Server
– Multilingual UI (supports German, French, Japanese).
– A console that shows a lot of information:
> CPU Usage (in total or per processor)
> Upload & Download speed of the network traffic
> Memory usage
> Total Disk usage
> Current Time
> System Uptime
> Longest Uptime
> Total Uptime
> # of starts
> First start
> Last start
> Detailed information on the storage (activity, temperature, disk space,…)
> All the files that have sessions open by users
> The logging of all events that occured
Handy features in the console:
> Possibility to create shortcuts to applications
> Shortcuts to important system tools: Event Viewer, Performance Monitor, Task Manager, Remote desktop
> Run box (like the Run dialog functionality in the Windows Menu)
> Automatically shut down the server when no clients are connected
Health monitoring:
– Send a mail in case of problems
– Monitoring:
> CPU (monitors the average usage over a certain amount of time)
> Memory (Memory usage)
> Harddisks (Disk space monitoring, disk temperature monitoring)
> System Event Log (Problems reported in the Event Viewer are monitored)
> WHS Events (Warning / Errors)
> Failed Remote Access Attempts
> System (warns if the system has been running non-stop for x amount of days, improper shutdown)

To learn more about AdminiMe, click here: AdminiMe 2010 Add-In for Windows Home Server

To buy AdminiMe 2010, click here: http://www.asoft.be/prod_adminimewhs.html

You can also download a free version which has 99.99% of the functionality enabled, but it’s cheap, it’s great, so why not support Nick?

Synology Launches DiskStation DS410 NAS

Andrew Edney
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1

This week Synology launched a new 4-bay all-in-one NAS server called the DiskStation DS410 (not to be confused with the DS410j). Only a week ago Synology released a new version of their DiskStation Manager software.

DS410-web-front DS410-web-right45

Here is some information on the DS410 from the Synology website:

The Synology DS410 delivers an average 110 MB/sec reading speed under RAID 5 configuration in a Windows environment, and 54.9 MB/sec writing. The Synology DS410 provides a reliable solution for data sharing with an easy to use interface, and comprehensive businesses-oriented applications, including a complete backup solution making it one of the best values in 4-bay NAS devices available today.

For users who are limited on time and not familiar with configuring complicated routers, the Synology EZ-Internet Wizard simplifies the process of setting up access to the Synology DS410 from the Internet. The EZ-Internet Wizard steps through all of the settings including firewall settings, port-forwarding, PPPoE setup and DDNS registration.

Running on AJAX technology, the UI is intuitive and easy-to-use. Creating private shared folders for a large number of users is easy with the User Home feature because it minimizes the steps and time for the administrator to create private shared folders. The sub-folder privilege settings further extend the flexibility to allocate permissions for different workgroups.

The Synology Hybrid RAID (SHR) automatically builds an optimal RAID volume with data protection based on the hard drives installed, eliminating the need to have hard drives of identical size, while still offering a manual setup option for advanced users.

The Synology DS410 offers a centralized backup target to consolidate fragmented and unstructured data across a network. PC Users can back up their data to the Synology DS410 using the free Synology Data Replicator software, while Mac OS X users enjoy native Apple® Time Machine integration. A web-based backup wizard is provided for backing up data in the Synology DS410 to another Synology DiskStation or any rsync server via an encrypted transmission, or to an external hard drive via USB or eSATA connection. In addition, backing up to the cloud using Amazon® S3 service is also supported.

The Synology DS410 runs on the renowned system firmware, Synology DSM 2.3, offering comprehensive applications and features designed specifically for business workgroups. Comprehensive network protocol support assures seamless file sharing across Windows, Mac, and Linux platforms. Windows ADS integration allows the Synology DS410 to quickly and easily fit into an existing business network environment with no need to recreate user accounts on the Synology DS410.

Internet file access is simplified by the encrypted FTP server and the web-based file explorer, Synology File Station 3. HTTPS, firewall, and IP auto-block support ensure file sharing over the Internet is protected at a high security level.

Synology Web Station with support for PHP/MySQL web content allows hosting up to 30 websites on a Synology DS410. Synology Surveillance Station 4 offers a centralized interface to safeguard the office environments by deploying IP cameras. H.264 video format is supported to deliver high quality video.The Mail Station add-on turns a Synology DS410 into a mail server with only few steps of installation. The USB printer sharing capability minimizes businesses’ cost by sharing printing resources throughout the office.

DSM 2.3 users are encouraged to develop and install third-party applications on the Synology DS410. Meanwhile, a list of third-party applications that were tested by Synology is available for users to install on the Synology DS410.

Synology DiskStations are designed and developed with energy efficiency in mind. Compared with the average PC counterparts, the Synology DS410 consumes only 56 watts in operation. The support of wake on LAN/WAN, scheduled power on/off and hard drive hibernation can further reduce power consumption and operation cost.

SPECIFICATIONS

Hardware

  • CPU Frequency: 1.06GHz
  • Floating Point: Yes
  • Memory Bus: 64bit@DDR533
  • Memory: 512MB
  • Internal HDD1: 3.5″ SATA(II) X4 or 2.5″ SATA/SSD X4
  • Max Internal Capacity: 8TB (4x 2TB hard drives)
    (See All Supported HDD)
  • Size (HxWxD): 168mm X 184mm X 230mm
  • External HDD Interface: USB 2.0 port X2, eSATA port X1
  • Weight: 2.23kg
  • LAN: Gigabit X1
  • Wireless Support
  • Wake on LAN/WAN
  • Noise Level (fan-only):2 23dB(A)
  • Power Recovery
  • AC Input Power Voltage: 100V to 240V
  • Power Frequency: 50Hz to 60Hz, Single Phase
  • Power Consumption3 56W(Access); 20W(HDD Hibernation)
  • Operating Temperature: 5°C to 35°C (40°F to 95°F)
  • Storage Temperature: -10°C to 70°C (15°F to 155°F)
  • Relative Humidity: 5% to 95%RH
  • Maximum Operating Altitude: 10,000 feet
  • Certification: FCC Class B, CE Class B, BSMI Class B

For those of you who like to see what things look like from the side and back (that would be Diehard!):

DS410-web-right DS410-web-back

Also according to the Synology website, the DS410 also supports audio and video.

Audio Station 2

  • Supported Audio Format: (USB Mode) AAC, FLAC, M4A, MP3, Ogg Vorbis, WMA, WMA VBR; (Streaming Mode) MP3, M4A, M4B
  • Supported Playlist Format: M3U, WPL
  • Internet Radio: SHOUTcast, Radioio

DLNA/UPnP Media Server

  • PS3/Xbox 360 Support
  • Supported Audio Format: verified: AAC, FLAC, M4A, MP3, Ogg Vorbis, PCM, WAV, WMA, WMA VBR, WMA PRO, WMA Lossless
  • Supported Video Format: 3GP, 3G2, ASF, AVI, DAT, DivX, DVR-MS, ISO, M2T, M2TS, M4V, MKV, MP4, MPEG1, MPEG2, MPEG4, MTS, MOV, QT, SWF, TP, TRP, TS, VOB, WMV, XviD, RV30, RV40, AC3, AMR, WMA3
  • Supported Image Format: BMP, JPG (jpe, jpeg), GIF, ICO, PNG, PSD, TIF (tiff), UFO, RAW (arw, srf, sr2, dcr, k25, kdc, cr2, crw, nef, mrw, ptx, pef, raf, 3fr, erf, mef, mos, orf, rw2, dng, x3f)
  • Supported Subtitles Format: srt, psb, smi, ass, ssa, sub, idx, ifo

iTunes Server

  • Supported Audio Format: MP3, M4A, M4P, WAV6, AIF6
  • Supported Video Format: M4V, MOV, MP4
  • Supported Playlist Format: M3U, WPL

There are also a number of other features, check out the website for more details: http://www.synology.com/enu/products/DS410/spec.php

Price wise, Amazon.com are showing the empty DS410 at just under $500 and the 4x1TB DS410 at just under $1,200. Here in the UK, the empty DS410 is around £400, so again, considerably more expensive than our American cousins!

Tech Tip on a Tuesday – Backup Without Logging In

Timothy Daleo
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2

Did you know you can run a backup on a Windows Home Server connected PC prior to logging in to that PC? Just power on the PC and wait for it to become active in the Computers and Backup tab in Windows Home Server.

Why?

My parents never leave their HTPC on overnight. That is a fine practice except their EX470 texts me and says the HTPC is not backed up. I do not need to have them turn on the TV and HDMI pass-through stereo and then use the Logitech remote to change functions and pull out the keyboard just to back up!

image

How

Turn the PC on. Go to your Windows Home Server console and the PC will show up as connected. It might take a minute depending on your OS and CPU speed.

image

In addition, you might want to give it an extra few minutes to update any virus protection. For those of us with Microsoft Security Essentials the update happens in a few minutes even if you do not log on. Click on the Backup Now icon and WHS will prompt you to Backup Now. You can also right mouse click.

image

Enter a name if you want and click on Backup Now.

image

Let the good times roll!

image

After the backup is complete I use the AutoExit 2008 Add-In if I need to turn off the system.

image

You can find that Add-In at:

http://www.asoft.be/prod_autoexitwhs.html

and my review at:

https://moviesgamesandtech.com/2009/08/17/installing-the-autoexit-add-in-to-windows-home-server-on-a-friday-night/

See you next Tuesday,

Tim

The Home Server Show Podcast 81

Andrew Edney
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0

Dave and the trio over at the Home Server Show have just released podcast 81.

home_server_show_small

Here is what Dave has to say about this weeks show:

The Home Server Show 81 – News and Add-Ins

In today’s episode we go over everything that has happened this week including anti-virus for WHS, Mozy, Drive Balancer and more.

New Eye-Fi Manager released

WHSClamAV

DoubleTwist

Install Subsonic on WHS

Entertainment 2.0  – AJ discusses Windows Media Center

Mozy to work on WHS

How to setup the itunes server in a media smart server

Drive Balancer Discussion

Un-Install HP software from MediaSmart Server

Troubleshoot Twonky

A Virtual Home Server

And if you read the post last week, Tim suggested a UWHS drinking game for everytime my name, his name or UWHS gets mentioned. Last week it was 2 drinks, how many will it be this week?

 

You can find out as usual from here: http://homeservershow.com/the-home-server-show-81.html

Home Server How To – Setup of the iTunes Server

Timothy Daleo
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7

Home Server Setup

This series of articles is for those of you who just purchased, or are looking to purchase, a HP MediaSmart Server. We have some great video coming up and some wonderful information to help get you started with your HP MediaSmart Server.

Welcome to Windows Home Server

Here at connecteddigitalworld.com we would like to join with Microsoft and HP in welcoming you to a whole new world of managing your digital movies, music, pictures, file sharing and most importantly, backups!

iTunes Server

When you purchase a HP MediaSmart Server you can use your existing internet service and access your home server website from the outside world. If you purchased a EX490 or EX495 then the portal to your server looks like the picture below.

iTunes Server Setup

With this portal you can access your music by selecting the Media Streamer icon.

iTunes Server Setup

You can then stream all of your music, photos and videos. You can even stream your podcasts. The image below shows the HP MediaSmart Server Media Streamer in action!

iTunes Server Setup

Do you need to setup your Media Streamer? If so, check out the following video.

iTunes Server setup in software version HP 3.0

The following video shows how to enable the HP Media Collector and is for those of you that have an EX490/EX495. This video also applies to anyone who has purchased and installed the 3.0 software update from HP.

Want to know about the 3.0 Software from HP? Check out this article:

https://moviesgamesandtech.com/2010/03/08/upgrading-an-hp-ex485-whs-to-version-3-0-on-a-friday-night-video-edition/

Once you have completed the iTunes Server setup you are ready to access your music from the internet!

Be sure to check out future articles that will show you how your HP MSS Windows Home Server can enhance your digital experience.

Timothy Daleo

Review of the Sony Vaio P Series Ultra Portable Notebook

Andrew Edney
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2

Way back at CES 2009, yes, 2009 not 2010, I have been in wonder of the Sony Vaio P series ultra portable notebook. During that time, Ian Dixon (of the Digital Lifestyle.com) and myself went and had a little go on them in the Sony store in Las Vegas, prior to them being released.

At the time I loved the look of them, they were small, lightweight and had a fantastic screen. The problem was the processor and the cost – it was shockingly expensive for the processing power.

With that in mind I decided to hold off on getting one – I almost caved a few times, especially when travelling and getting the duty free option.

Fast forward a year and Sony have released the next generation of the P series. These ones have upgraded processors, bigger disks and come with Windows 7, which runs noticeably better and faster than Windows Vista.

I managed to get my hands on the top of the range VGN-P39VL/Q.

SPECIFICATIONS

This particular model has an Intel® Atom™ Processor Z550, 2GB of memory and a 128GB SSD. It comes with Windows 7 Professional (32 bit) and the screen is an X-black LCD with LED technology

( Diagonal Size 8.0 inches), Resolution 1600 x 768, UWXGA, and the graphics card is a Mobile Intel® Graphics Media Accelerator 500 and it weighs 0.6 kilos!

It doesn’t have an optical drive but you can buy one and connect it via USB.

To see the complete specs, click here: http://www.sony.co.uk/product/vnp-p-series/vgn-p39vl-q

IMG_2146 IMG_2148 IMG_2149 IMG_2150

WHATS IN THE BOX?

I can’t really say for certain what you get in the box as the review unit I managed to get from Sony came in a plain brown box and just had the laptop, power supply, two batteries and a port replicator.

IMG_2142 IMG_2143 IMG_2144

And no, there isn’t a new special model called the XXXX, it seems that Sony’s review units are marked like this.

EVGA Classified SR-2 Motherboard

Timothy Daleo
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5

EVGA has finally released their new dual socket Classified SR-2 board. This new board is going to change how enthusiasts approach building. Well, enthusiasts with a lot of money anyway…

image

The board has a MSRP of $599.99 but purchasing the additional hardware is going to run you some serious cash. To make a system you could start with the following parts:

Two Nehalem 5530 CPUs for about $1000

1200 Watt Power Supply $300

24GB RAM (half of capacity) $700

SSD and media Drives, OS and extras $1000

Two GTX 285s for $700

…and a new case for $200 since the board is so large. They even created a new category called HPTX!

$4500 for just an “average” SR-2 set up. Some new Xeon chips are going for $1500 each! Doing it “high-end” could cost you over double!

I can dream anyway…

Motherboard Features:

  • Supports Intel® Xeon® Dual QPI Socket 1366 Processors
  • Intel® 5520 Chipset
  • 12 DIMM Triple-Channel DDR3 1333MHz+ (up to 48GB)
  • 2-way SLI, 3-way SLI, 4-way SLI or CrossFireX
  • 2 SATA III 6.0GB/s Ports, 6 SATA II 3.0GB/s Ports, 2 E-SATA Ports
  • 2 Gigabit Ethernet Ports (10/100/1000)
  • 8 Channel High Definition Audio
  • 2 USB 3.0/2.0 Ports, 10 USB 2.0 Ports (6 I/0, 4 Internal)

It looks so cool!

image

More information about the SR-2 from EVGA can be found at:

http://www.evga.com/products/moreinfo.asp?pn=270-WS-W555-A1

http://www.evga.com/articles/00537/

Tim

SqueezeBox Server Add-In for Windows Home Server Error – Reader Help Request

Andrew Edney
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10

One of our regular readers, Served, contacted us a few days ago to ask for help on an error he is getting when trying to open the Windows Home Server Console.

Served says that when he tries to open the WHS Console, he sees the following error:

SqueezeDllError

Served also adds:

I do not have an answer to the Squeezebox issue. This occurred with the latest version (7.4.2.30215) which I uninstalled and have subsequently reinstalled. I had difficulty stopping the service – either from the Add-in page or directly from Services. It would just hang in a “Stopping” state. I have disabled it for now. When it works, it’s great.

So has anyone else come across this problem and could help Served out? If so, just leave a comment here and he will see it.

I don’t have a Squeezebox so I can’t comment.

Thanks 🙂

Monday Morning Media – Five Views from Windows Media Center 03-14-10

Timothy Daleo
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0

This weekly post is five screen shots of Windows Media Center with a CableCARD tuner to get you excited about Windows Media Center and Windows Home Server. May 31st now? Ugh. SD could take the hole shot…

Third Place Brat

I caught a fish this big...

Good Donkey

http://www.thelostdiary.com/

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