When adding a new hard disk or create a new partition in Microsoft Windows operating system, typically users will normally assign a drive letter such as Local Disk (E:) to the new partition or volume. Beside normal way of allocating a drive letter, it’s also possible to assign a folder or directory (on partitions formated as NTFS) to represent the hard disk drive, partition or volume too, eliminating eliminating the use of drive letter and enabling browsing the volume and partition contents as in folder, or path.
Mounting a partition or drive as a folder also provides a workaround way or trick to allow a partition to appear as part of C:\ root system drive. This hack is particular useful to expand the hard disk space size of C:\ or other system drive without having to use a new disk drive letter or switching drive to accommodate older program or application that must store and save data on installed drive, typically at system drive.
To mount partition or volume as a folder, users must first have or create a empty folder on a NTFS formatted file system that users want to assign or associate with the partition or volume. And it’s also possible to mount a partition, a volume or a hard disk drive which already assigned with a disk drive letter as folder too, allowing two ways to access the volume or partition via different drive or different folder. And it’s not necessary that only a hard disk (which whole hard disk been allocated as single partition) can be mounted as an empty NTFS folder, unused partition or empty space on existing disk can be mounted as NTFS folder too as long as users can create a new partition on it.
How to Mount a New Volume/Partition as Folder
1. Click on Start Menu, then select Run. In Vista, press Win+R key to open Run command.
2. Type DiskMgmt.msc to open Disk Management.
3. Right click on the new hard disk or remaining unallocated space, and then select New Partition or New Simple Volume (in Vista). If the partition has been created, delete the partition and re-create it.
Create New Simple Volume
For partition that has been allocated with drive letter and path, right click on the partition and select Change Drive Letter and Paths.
Change Drive Letter and Paths
4. In the “New Simple Volume Wizard” or “New Partition Wizard”, follow the instructions on screen such as selecting the size of the new partition, until the the Assign Drive Letter or Path screen.
For existing volume/partition, click on Add button to add a new path instead.
5. Select Mount in the following empty NTFS folder radio button, and then select Browse… button.
For existing volume/partition, the “Mount in the following empty NTFS folder” is automatically selected. Users cannot assign more than one drive letter to a partition, but can assign many paths (folders) to a partition.
6. Select an empty folder that you want to mount this new partition. Click on New Folder to create a new directory if needed. Once selected the mounting folder, click OK button.
Mount Partition as Folder
7. For existing partition already with drive letter, process is completed and users can now open Windows Explorer to browse the partition content in the mounted folder.
Else, back in the wizard, continue to follow instructions on screen to complete the wizard by selecting file system, allocation unit size, volume label, decide whether to perform quick format or whether to enable file and folder compression. Wait for the disk formatting to complete too. After process completed, a folder is linked to the partition/volume.
Folder mounted with partition
As mentioned, users can assigned many folder path to a single volume or partition. Users can also remove the relationship of folder mount point with volume at any time, or change back to a drive letter. Even already mounted on a folder path, a drive letter can still be assigned to the partition too. All these administrative operations can be done on the Disk Management. Best of all, changing drive letter or folder paths of a volume will not delete the data on the drive.
When the world is using Novell NetWare network operating system (NOS), the NetWare File System keeps track and make copies of each and every deleted, altered, edited or modified files and documents as long as there is space on the hard drive, and allows users to salvage any files and folders that they accidentally deleted or modified. Windows Server NT and Active Directory networking doesn’t provide such a convenient feature though.
Instead, Microsoft introduces Shadow Copies for Shared Folders in Windows Server 2003, which works only on file server, and Previous Versions in Windows Vista, which enables on standalone computer as well. Volume Shadow Copy or Volume Snapshot Service (VSS) automatically created incremental (only differences are recorded) periodic snapshots or backup copies of files and folders at a specific point in time at regular interval.
However, Shadow Copy or Previous Versions only backs up at specific interval, and not capturing any changed files immediately. Thus if a document is changed several times between two snapshots, only the final change version will be saved, and users can’t revert, retrieve, get back or recover the versions of file in between. However, at least Shadow Copy works, and it’s better than no protection at all. But, most Windows operating system doesn’t actually has Shadow Copies or Previous Versions feature, especially when running as standalone system. All Windows operating system prior to Vista - XP, 2000, NT, Me, 9x, and Vista Home Premium, Home Basic and Starter editions does not support any user data files recovery option other than Recycle Bin.
To allow all users of Windows to have the protection against accidental deletion or modification of files and documents, Mogware develops FileHamster as an alternative to Previous Versions. FileHamster, a realtime file revision solution tracking tool, provides real-time backup and archiving of files while users such as typists and artists are working on them. FileHamster watches and monitors specific files or folders that have been selected and automatically create incremental backups whenever those files are modified. FileHamster also supports storing notes about changes that have been made, so users can easily find a specific revision, annotate the version, and has detailed account of changes been made.
FileHamster
Download FileHamster.
FileHamster is free for basic version. FileHamster supports Windows 2000, XP and Vista, and requires Microsoft .NET Framework 2.0. There is a paid version FileHamster Plus which costs $19.95 and adds features such as filters, offline libraries, full UNC support and etc. FileHamster Plus can be purchased here.
When the world is using Novell NetWare network operating system (NOS), the NetWare File System keeps track and make copies of each and every deleted, altered, edited or modified files and documents as long as there is space on the hard drive, and allows users to salvage any files and folders that they accidentally deleted or modified. Windows Server NT and Active Directory networking doesn’t provide such a convenient feature though.
Instead, Microsoft introduces Shadow Copies for Shared Folders in Windows Server 2003, which works only on file server, and Previous Versions in Windows Vista, which enables on standalone computer as well. Volume Shadow Copy or Volume Snapshot Service (VSS) automatically created incremental (only differences are recorded) periodic snapshots or backup copies of files and folders at a specific point in time at regular interval.
However, Shadow Copy or Previous Versions only backs up at specific interval, and not capturing any changed files immediately. Thus if a document is changed several times between two snapshots, only the final change version will be saved, and users can’t revert, retrieve, get back or recover the versions of file in between. However, at least Shadow Copy works, and it’s better than no protection at all. But, most Windows operating system doesn’t actually has Shadow Copies or Previous Versions feature, especially when running as standalone system. All Windows operating system prior to Vista - XP, 2000, NT, Me, 9x, and Vista Home Premium, Home Basic and Starter editions does not support any user data files recovery option other than Recycle Bin.
To allow all users of Windows to have the protection against accidental deletion or modification of files and documents, Mogware develops FileHamster as an alternative to Previous Versions. FileHamster, a realtime file revision solution tracking tool, provides real-time backup and archiving of files while users such as typists and artists are working on them. FileHamster watches and monitors specific files or folders that have been selected and automatically create incremental backups whenever those files are modified. FileHamster also supports storing notes about changes that have been made, so users can easily find a specific revision, annotate the version, and has detailed account of changes been made.
FileHamster
Download FileHamster.
FileHamster is free for basic version. FileHamster supports Windows 2000, XP and Vista, and requires Microsoft .NET Framework 2.0. There is a paid version FileHamster Plus which costs $19.95 and adds features such as filters, offline libraries, full UNC support and etc. FileHamster Plus can be purchased here.
After a lot of noise made by subscribers and customers of MSDN (Microsoft Developer Network) and TechNet, Microsoft has decided to bring forward the schedule for release of the release-to-manufacturing (RTM) version of Windows Vista SP1 for these IT professionals and developers, who pay hundreds of dollars annually just to have exclusive access to libraries of Microsoft software products.
The original schedule placed the availability of SP1 RTM on early March, which is too late for many, as Vista SP1 has been finalized and supposed to go live on February 4th. On February 14 Valentine’s Day, the RTM versions of Vista SP1 has finally been posted on MSDN and TechNet Plus, ahead of general availability which still unchanged on March.
TechNet Plus subscribers can now access Windows Vista SP1 in the Top Subscribers Download section on the subscriptions home page (http://technet.microsoft.com/subscriptions), while MSDN subscribers can also access Windows Vista SP1 via the subscriber Top Downloads area at http://msdn2.microsoft.com/subscriptions.
Windows Vista SP1 Downloads from Technet Plus and MSDN
The versions of Vista SP1 setup packages that currently available are:
* Windows Vista Service Pack 1 (x86, x64) - DVD (English, French, German, Japanese, Spanish)
* Windows Vista Service Pack 1 (x86) - EXE (English, French, German, Japanese, Spanish)
* Windows Vista Service Pack 1 (x64) - EXE (English, French, German, Japanese, Spanish)
To use the Top Downloads , users need to install the Akamai Technologies Download Manager Browser add-on to access these files and will need to allow pop-ups (at least temporarily). The files are on the Top Downloads rather than Subscriber Downloads & Product Keys to load balance the with the download activity related to Windows Server 2008.
Previously, Microsoft had released the first Vista service pack to Connect testers, which has an odd filename of Windows6.0-KB936330-X86(x64)-wave0.exe. The slipstreamed and integrated full install of Vista with SP1 will be available for download prior to the end of the month too, while the general availability of the Windows Vista SP1 to the public will still in mid-March via Windows Update and the Microsoft Download Center.
Good news for those that are looking for way to convert their old negative films to digital photos. Now the Digital Film Scanner can do this in simple steps. Although there are still shops that can develop the negative films into analog photos, but the existence has been gradually replaced by camera shops that only focus on digital printing. So, the kit has come in the right time to fill up the generation gap.
film_scanner.jpg
The operation is pretty straight forward. With only a few steps, users can turn their negative films into digital copies using this special kit. Its functions are not only limited to scanning, conversion, printing but also including pictures editing that cannot be accomplished with the old analog photos development. With the software assistance that bundled with the package, users have the ability to crop, edit and save it into famous Jpeg or tiff formats, making it easier to be viewed in computer screen or even printed out to be stored in album. In terms of hardware, it features 5-Megapixies SMOS scanner sensor that can produce high resolution digital photos in a minutes with 3600 dpi photo enhancement.
At the retail price of $162, it is quite expensive for home users. But if it can digitize and conserve your favorite photos in old days, then it is still worth the price.
Good news for those that are looking for way to convert their old negative films to digital photos. Now the Digital Film Scanner can do this in simple steps. Although there are still shops that can develop the negative films into analog photos, but the existence has been gradually replaced by camera shops that only focus on digital printing. So, the kit has come in the right time to fill up the generation gap.
film_scanner.jpg
The operation is pretty straight forward. With only a few steps, users can turn their negative films into digital copies using this special kit. Its functions are not only limited to scanning, conversion, printing but also including pictures editing that cannot be accomplished with the old analog photos development. With the software assistance that bundled with the package, users have the ability to crop, edit and save it into famous Jpeg or tiff formats, making it easier to be viewed in computer screen or even printed out to be stored in album. In terms of hardware, it features 5-Megapixies SMOS scanner sensor that can produce high resolution digital photos in a minutes with 3600 dpi photo enhancement.
At the retail price of $162, it is quite expensive for home users. But if it can digitize and conserve your favorite photos in old days, then it is still worth the price.
Due to busy schedule, sometimes it is very difficult to get all your team members or your team of consultants to sit down together to discuss a project in a meeting. Some might not be free, some might be late, etc. If you have this problem and intend to reduce the hassle to coordinate all team members to attend a discussion or meeting, you can try out Cozimo, a real time collaboration tool which allows you to collaborate and review digital contents such as images, video and documents with your teammates.
The idea of Cozimo is not new. Similarly, there are also other applications with the same features like ConceptShare, Octopz, and ReviewBasics. There are various subscription packages offered by Cozimo. Users are allowed to start up with a free personal account and then they can upgrade or downgrade the packages in accordance to their needs. To use Cozimo service, the project leader need to login to Cozimo. He will be led to a personlized home page which gives him a summary of the most recent file activities and messages from all the project workgroups he is involved in. If there is any project he intends to discuss with his team member, for instance discussion on a design, he will upload his file to Cozimo and create a workgroup for the project. He will then drop an email to his team members in the workgroup. When the team members click on an image in the email, it will automatic launch Cozimo’s collaboration tool. All the team members can mark up and leave comments on the image or video in question. Users can also use the chat windows to talk in real time. Besides images, Cozimo also work with video clips. Team members can see the video play in real time and leave remarks on particular frames.