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Trek Bytes ™

Yes, it is written. Good shall always destroy evil. -- Sirah the Yang, "The Omega Glory", stardate unknown

MagicJack Plus—Calls Go Immediately to Voicemail: Solution

The new MagicJack Plus is exactly what I wanted—an inexpensive, self-contained VoIP solution to replace my POTS landline. At first, it worked flawlessly, but I soon discovered that incoming calls would occasionally roll over to voicemail without ringing the phone.

A quick search on the Internet revealed a lot of bogus information, especially regarding NAT router port forwarding. In fact, there is no need to forward ports as the MagicJack Plus initiates all connections.

So, I dug a little deeper and found that when the MagicJack Plus DHCP lease expired it would renew with a different IP address. Normally, the router should handle this gracefully, resetting its NAT port tables. However, it appears that wasn't happening.

The solution was to configure the router's DHCP server to always assign the same IP address based on the MagicJack Plus MAC address. Since that reconfiguration, there have been no more missed calls that go directly to voicemail.

You can also configure your MagicJack Plus to use a static IP address—via your account page on the MagicJack Web site—but if you do, be absolutely certain the IP address you choose is outside the range of any DHCP server you might have configured—but still inside your network—and that there are no other devices on your network that use the same IP address. I prefer the purely DHCP solution, though.

PadAware TimeClock for iPhone

Compress PDF Update for Mac OS X Snow Leopard

Users of my Compress PDF workflow who have migrated to OS X Snow Leopard may want to upgrade to version 6.0.

See the documentation page for more information.

Compress PDF Print Plug-In for Mac OS X Leopard

Apple is advertising over 300 new features in OS X Leopard. Unfortunately, there are also some useful Tiger features missing from Leopard. One of those missing—and somewhat esoteric—features is the ability to create a compressed PDF document directly from the Print dialog.

To create a compressed PDF document in Leopard—as described in the revamped online help—you must first create a Preview PDF document from the Print dialog, then select the "File->Save As" menu item where you can request the "Reduce File Size" Quartz filter.

Unable to accept that two steps are better than one, I've written an Automator workflow that puts the Compress PDF feature back into Leopard. Just install this package to restore the feature to the Print dialog.

See the documentation page for more information.

Discover Jacqui Naylor

Last summer I hit on a rare find: Jacqui Naylor. I suppose I should have shared this sooner, but you know how it is ... when you find a real treasure, you're reluctant to give it up. Her soulful voice is so perfectly woven into her music—both original works and popular classics—I never tire listening to such treasures as "Ain't No Sunshine", "I've Got the Sun in the Morning", "Tell Me More & More, & Then Some", or "In the Wee Small Hours". To hear previews of her work, or to check for her next appearance, visit the Jacqui Naylor web site.

MVS Software Update

Due to popular request, I've submitted the source code for my PSM macros and PSU utilities to the CBT tape. The source code and load modules are available from cbttape.org on FILE643.

For a preview of the code and full documentation, including a link to the classic Concept 14 macros, visit my Mainframe Source Code Web page.

Speaker Repair

Recently the speakers attached to my entertainment system began to sound "scratchy." To my horror, when I pulled the faces off the speaker cabinets, the cones on each woofer appeared to be torn to shreds. Luckily, it was only the foam surrounding the cone that had disintegrated, and my overactive imagination playing tricks on me; the cones and voice coils were undamaged.

According to The Speaker Place, it is inevitable that the foam will deteriorate over eight to sixteen years. This is a common problem with a simple and inexpensive solution: a refoam repair kit for only $29 including shipping charges and an instructional video. Only a few days after I placed my order, I had received the kit and by the following day my speakers were in fine condition once again.

If your speakers ever require a refoam job, don't hesitate to buy one of these kits. It will save you hundreds of dollars.

Welcome

Welcome to my refurbished Web site. I've converted most everything over to Movable Type, which should not only look better but will be easier to update and maintain. That's the theory, anyway.

Back From Japan

I just returned from Japan where I spent two of the most wonderful weeks of my life! I've posted pictures! 私は日本が大好きです!

Travis Walton Web Site

For those interested in alien abuduction, don't miss Travis Walton's story. His Web site is now active on my server at: http://www.travis-walton.com