Flowing Fix: Quickly share a large file via your browser

At some point in time, you might find you need to transfer a large file. There are numerous file-sharing services (Dropbox, Google Drive, Box.com, Amazon Drive, etc.) however if you need to quickly send a file without uploading it to a central server first, File Pizza delivers.

File Pizza is a peer-to-peer file transfer via browser (nothing needs to be installed and it just works), the only caveat is since the transfer is directly between sender and receiver (no middle server for the file to be uploaded to), both sender and receiver need to be online at the same time. It is very convenient for one-off file shares, not for a persistent link that people can download at any time.

File Pizza (your files delivered)
https://file.pizza/



More details via the https://github.com/kern/filepizza website:
"Using WebRTC, FilePizza eliminates the initial upload step required by other web-based file sharing services. When senders initialize a transfer, they receive a "tempalink" they can distribute to recipients. Upon visiting this link, recipients' browsers connect directly to the sender’s browser and may begin downloading the selected file. Because data is never stored in an intermediary server, the transfer is fast, private, and secure."

Flowing Fix: How do I get those data points off an image? [revisited]

A while back, we posted how to get data off an image by running digitizing software on your local system (see the link to the prior post below). However, if you have limited admin access to install/run the software (or don't want to install software), WebPlotDigitizer is a web-based tool that runs directly your web browser https://automeris.io/WebPlotDigitizer/ that allows you to extract data from plots, images, and maps

Link to prior post:
https://digitalspigot.blogspot.com/2011/10/flowing-fix-how-do-i-get-those-data.html

Computing the optimal road trips

If you have a trip will multiple stops and you are having trouble finding an optimal route here are some links to help you.

Optimizing routes (web interactivity):
1) MapQuest [26 locations]: https://www.mapquest.com/routeplanner
2) RouteXL[20 locations for free]: https://www.routexl.com/


For the more adventurous (coding required):
Genetic Algorithm approach:
from Randal Olson' blog which uses Python with Google Maps:
http://www.randalolson.com/2016/07/30/the-optimal-u-s-national-parks-centennial-road-trip/

Using Gurobi solver: 
from Nathan Brixius's blog which uses Python

https://nathanbrixius.wordpress.com/2016/06/09/computing-optimal-road-trips-using-operations-research/

Using Concorde solver, the world’s best Traveling Salesman Problem (TSP) solver:

from Nathan Brixius's blog which uses Python

https://nathanbrixius.wordpress.com/2016/06/16/finding-optimal-state-capitol-tours-on-the-cloud-with-neos/

Flowing Fix: Simple search to find the large attachments in Gmail

via: http://lifehacker.com/5958583/find-the-large-attachments-eating-up-your-gmail-space-with-a-simple-search

Is your gmail account getting full?  Easily search for large messages which are filling up your account.

To search for attachements greater than 25MB, in the Gmail search box enter:   size:25000000

other examples:

Search for attachments greater than 5MB (size:5000000)

Search for attachments greater than 25MB (size:25000000)

Search for attachments greater than 100MB (size:100000000)

Flowing Fix: Web based services to help schedule meetings and resources

Doodle (web based)   http://doodle.com/:
Web based scheduling service that lets you ( and others) easily schedule appointments.  Integrates with existing digital calendars ( iCal, Outlook, Google, etc.) and allows users to select best times for meetings.

WhenIsGood (web based) http://whenisgood.net/ :
Another option for quick determining what meeting time is good for everyone.

YouCanBook.Me (web based) http://youcanbook.me/ :
Free version of the service allows you to link to one of your calendars (e.g., a Google Calendar) and allows users to schedule resources.  The service has numerous ways to customize the interface as well as auto-responses reminders to those that signed up and the host.  We use it to allow student to reserve survey equipment during the semester. It works wonderfully.

(all of the above site are Freemium based, i.e., the services are provided free of charge, but a premium is charged for the more advanced features)

Flowing Fix: How to easily determine the LaTeX code for a symbol

Every have trouble remember the code to a LaTeX symbol?

Typically when you want to find an infrequently used symbol in LaTeX you often have to refer to the comprehensive symbols list: http://ctan.math.utah.edu/ctan/tex-archive/info/symbols/comprehensive/symbols-letter.pdf. However, this can be time consuming and difficult to find the symbol you need.

Detexify can help find the code to LaTeX symbols simply by drawing what they look like.  Try it out for yourself, and you will shortly have a new bookmark for Detexify in your browser.

Detexify - LaTeX symbol classifier website
http://detexify.kirelabs.org/classify.html

There is also versions for mobile devices
iOS: http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/detexify/id328805329?mt=8
Android: https://market.android.com/details?id=coolcherrytrees.software.detexify&hl=en

Flowing Fix (via Google help forms): Resetting a form in Google docs

via 

http://www.google.com/support/forum/p/Google+Docs/thread?tid=2f493804c067249c&hl=en

Popular answer by ahab

luxtitan,

I theory there is a way to reset the number of submits used by the summary back to 0, but you should first test it on a copy
of your spreadsheet!

Very Important! Make sure when doing so the sheet the submits should go to is the leftmost of your sheets!

So use the following steps:

0) Move the sheet that should receive the form submits to the far left of your sheets, select this sheet and go to the Form tab.

Important: Should you omit this step the form may become reconnected to the wrong sheet!

1) Open the form editor, this will show the current form. Leave the form editor open!
2) Go back to the spreadheet and delete the form (Form->Delete form), wait a little bit and check in the spreadsheet the form menu item now reads plain Form , i.e without any counter after Form.
3) Go back to the form editor which you left open, edit one of the questions, but make no changes to it, just click Done.
4) Still in the Form editor, click on Save; in the spreadsheet on the Form menu check it says now Form (0).

5) Close the Form editor

This is an unofficial workaround and you should use it at your own risk and always try and test the method on a copy of your spreadsheet; I tried this and got it working in IE6 Win XP, but other browsers / versions / operation systems may give a different result.

Note: the above method may also be used the make the form reassociate to the sheet; as a result the questions and the headers in the submits receiving sheet will have the same order and they way the submits go to the columns will be re-eastablised; questions submitted by the form should now go to the appropriate columns as indicated by the headers.

IMHO the Google Docs spreadsheets team should make this an option in the Form menu; if possible without the need to make the submits receiving sheet the leftmost one in the spreadsheet while doing the reset.

Flowing Fix: I just moved to Exchange and now I cannot forward mail to another address like the older CITES service

Yes, it is true that Exchange 2010 does not support email forwarding option like the older CITES email; however, you can implement a work around using two email rules within Exchange that work just as well.

1) Log into your Exchange email account using the web portal.

2) Near the upper right of the Outlook:WebApp (just under your displayed name) click the "options" button which opens a drop down and select "Create an Inbox Rule"

3) Click "New" to add a new rule

4) Then, select the following for the drop downs (note after setting the second drop down, the a new form might appear which is fine, if not then you should select the "select people" button to open the new form):

5) Then, in the new "address book" window that opened, enter the "to" in the "Message Recipient:" field at the bottom of the form and click "OK" to commit. !! Be sure to enter your correct email address that you want all new incoming messages to be forwarded to !!

6) Back in the "New Inbox Rule" window, click the "More options" link and then make sure the stop rules after this option is "unchecked" as seen in the image below. Click the "Save" button when done.

7) You can now test the redirect by emailing yourself from another email account and the message should be redirected to that new email account.  However, you will note that a copy of the message still resides in the Exchange account.  In order to remove the message from the Exchange account [or have in marked as read, but not deleted] will require an second rule.

8) As in step 3, create a new rule, and [apply to all messages] as before but this time change the "do the following" selection to be "delete the message".  As before in step 6, you can uncheck the "stop processing more rules"  and optionally append the name of the rule with "delete" so you know what the rule is doing.  Then, click "SAVE"

9) Final important step, make sure to reorder the rules so that the DELETE rule is last (e.g, below the redirect rule) or the message will get deleted first and will NOT be able to be redirected. (See figure below for illustration)

 10) Enjoy your new redirected email settings

Thanks Roberto