Version 2.0 of Count Anything released

I've just released version 2.0 of Count Anything.
Download the latest version here.
This version adds support for Open Office files (Writer, Calc, and Impress), and features a newly designed front page.
Support for Open Office
Count Anything now supports Open Office document formats. You don't need to have Open Office installed to get word counts of OO documents.
New [...]

Version 1.7 of Count Anything released

I've just released version 1.7 of my word-counting program, Count Anything.
Download the latest version here.
Sadly, this version isn't any smaller despite complaints about the installed size (in fact, the installer is about 500 KB larger), but it does include a couple of new features/improvements:

You can now get word counts for Web pages by entering the [...]

Is 30MB bloatware?

The other day, a friend passed along some uncomplimentary feedback about my word-counting program for Windows, Count Anything.
The fact that some people don't like the program doesn't bother me — there are many word-counting programs out there, some of which are also free. I wrote mine because I had a few specific needs with my [...]

Thinking about Google Wave

Google has released a developer preview of its new platform/protocol, Wave. I'm pretty excited about getting a chance to play with this, but at the same time my hype alarm is blinking orange.

Hypnotic Waves by Tearsandrain

Wave essentially brings together all the forms of online communication we already use — email, chat, wikis, blogs, and so [...]

The Register misses the point on NoScript fiasco

The Register's latest article on the NoScript fiasco misses the point.
I was going to write this as a comment to the article, but the site's registration process is just too 90s to endure.
In case you haven't heard about this tempest in a teacup, the Firefox add-ons Adblock Plus (which blocks Internet ads) and [...]

Ding-dong, the patent witch is dead

According to this article by ITExaminer.com, the US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit (CAFC) in Washington DC has just made most software patents go up in smoke.
This is horrible news for all the big software companies with huge patent portfolios, because now their IP is going to be worth a lot less. But [...]

Retrieving common Windows folder names with Python

Often using Windows, you'll need to get the names of special folders, like "App Data," "Local App Data," "My Documents," and "My Pictures." This is especially true in Vista, where the recommended practice of writing app-specific data to the (Local) App Data directory is being enforced.
You can do this using the win32com.shell.shell module in the [...]

Count Anything version 1.5 released

I've just released version 1.5 of Count Anything. This version has several improvements, including the ability to add entire directories to the list of files to count, and more detailed information in the word counts.
About Count Anything
Count Anything is a free program for Windows that counts words, characters, and Asian characters in a variety of [...]

Translation project management program wish list

Masked translator has a good post in which he outlines what he wants in a translation-project management application.
There's a genuine unmet need for project-management software for freelance translators and small translation shops. All we have available now are big, unwieldy "general purpose" solutions that don't do everything we need but lots of things we don't, [...]

Google launches a new browser

I always wondered what happened when you got a bunch of geniuses, gave them free catered lunches, bean bags, and Foosball, and let them go nuts. Apparently, what you get is Google Chrome. I'm very much looking forward to seeing this new browser come out. It'll be great if they can make programming Web applications [...]