Shadow Explorer is a simple utility that lets you navigate and restore previous versions of files on your Vista PC. I've been meaning to do a quick write up on it for quite a while because it has definitely saved me a few times.

Lately I've been unable to install any AIR applications on Vista. When double clicking on the AIR file I'd be presented with the error:

Something went wrong trying to install this application. Please install the latest version of Adobe AIR from http://www.adobe.com/go/getair and then try again.

So I tried to play along and go download AIR thinking that somehow I missed an update along the way. I was then greeted with this lovely message when I tried to install the new runtime:

This version of Adobe AIR is already installed on your system.

Which looks like this (if you're playing along at home):

The solution was to find the Adobe AIR Application Installer.exe file, mine was located at:

When you run the installer executable you will be able to browse and select the AIR application that you would like to install and the process should work as expected from there on out. You may have to right click the AIR Application Installer and 'Run As Administrator' if it doesn't work straight away.

A bit of a pain, but I'm glad I can at least install AIR apps again. Anyone know why I can't install them straightaway anymore?

I've rescued yet another Vista installation from certain doom. A good friend of my wife asked for help yesterday after Vista decided to no longer let her logon. I did some quick Googling when I found out the actual error message and came across both a knowledge base article and a tutorial on how to fix this funky error. The fix was rather simple for a technical person, but the average user would likely have had issues since it involved modifying some registry entries. The worst thing about the issue is that there really is no explanation or patch provided to prevent the issue from happening or reoccuring. There is a 'cause' in the knowledge base article that states the issue occurs when a "user profile was manually deleted by using the command prompt or by using Windows Explorer" which my friend did not do.

Oh well - at least it's fixed. Posting here to hopefully save others from digging should they come across the same issue.

Just saw an interesting Vista tidbit in an article at infoworld, though I'm not sure if it's a good thing or a bad thing. I mean, on one hand, increased performance is always a good thing. But on the other hand, one would think the 4GB of onboard RAM and a 7200RPM hard drive would be enough...

Get flashy: If you have an extra USB flash drive that you don't use for much else, Vista can cache disk reads on it, thereby boosting performance beyond what you'd get from your hard disk alone. Simply insert your flash drive into a USB 2.0 slot. If the drive is fast enough, a prompt will appear, asking whether you want to open the folder for the drive or use it to "Speed up my system using Windows ReadyBoost." Choose the latter option, and follow the remaining prompts. When you're calculating how much space to set aside for ReadyBoost to use, Microsoft recommends that you let ReadyBoost use one to three times the amount of RAM on your system.

Play your cards right: USB thumb drives aren't the only way to boost system performance -- fortunately, as USB memory sticks protruding from a computer (particularly a laptop) are easy to dislodge, and they can be a pain to remove and stow for traveling. If your PC has a reader for SD (Secure Digital) or CompactFlash cards, you can use those media in place of a USB stick to handle your ReadyBoost needs.

I've been working with Vista for about a year now and despite its 'intricacies' and 'quirks' I've actually grown to like it. Recently I discovered a few hidden gems that may be helpful to developers.

The first is a handy little tool that can be used to capture screen shots quickly and easily (versus the old 'print screen, paste into image editing program method).

The application is called the Snipping Tool and although not as advanced feature wise as similar programs, it is a helpful tool. You can use the tool to create the following types of captures:

• Free-form Snip. Draw an irregular line, such as a circle or a triangle, around an object.
• Rectangular Snip. Draw a precise line by dragging the cursor around an object to form a rectangle.
• Window Snip. Select a window, such as a browser window or dialog box, that you want to capture.
• Full-screen Snip. Capture the entire screen when you select this type of snip.

Once captured you can do minor editing, save the image or share via email.

Along the same line as the Snipping Tool - and somewhat of a hidden gem from Microsoft is the Windows Media Encoder (free download to registered Windows users). What enticed me to this tool is the ability to do real time video screen captures (with audio). The quality is not perfect, but for simple training type videos or demos the tool looks like a winner (compared to other paid options that is).