If you are reinstalling Microsoft SQL Server 2005 Express on a server running ASP.NET and Plesk, when you try to view an ASP.NET web page, you might see a message like the following:

Cannot open database "TellUWhen" requested by the login. The login failed.Login failed for user 'MIGHTYMOUSE\IWAM_plesk(default)'.Description: An unhandled exception occurred during the execution of the current web request. Please review the stack trace for more information about the error and where it originated in the code.Exception Details: System.Data.SqlClient.SqlException: Cannot open database "TellUWhen" requested by the login. The login failed.Login failed for user 'MIGHTYMOUSE\IWAM_plesk(default)'. The basic solution to the problem is to make sure that the specified user name (e.g. ASPNET or IWAM_plesk(default)) is a member of the SQLServer2005MSSQLUser$server$SQLExpress group.Here are the specific steps to do this for the user "" on "":

Right-click "My Computer" and choose "Manage". Navigate to "Local Users...

It seems there have been heated debates about whether DotNetNuke can be installed on a GoDaddy.com shared web hosting account. I am here to say that it can be done since I did just that on the website of my artist friend Debbie Hennes. Specifically, I installed DotNetNuke 4.8.0 on GoDaddy with the Hosting Control Center v2.4.2.

I basically followed the instructions on the Northern Star Solutions site. However, like over 70% of the people surveyed on that site, it didn't work by just following the instructions. Here are some points of confusion and suggestions:

When the instructions talk about going to Content > Directory Management, this is now Content > IIS Settings. Adding a Directory in this section makes the folder "read and write only". Checking...

I recently had a problem where overnight most (but not all) of the domains hosted on my GoDaddy.com virtual dedicated server could not be reached via ping, web browser, email, etc. The machine was running fine, so I suspected a problem with the Plesk DNS service. However, unlike past times, this was running fine. However, when I checked the file "C:\SWSoft\Plesk\dns\etc\named.conf" (a source of previous problems), I found that all the problem domains were missing from this zone file. So this was a clue. But even restoring these entries in the named.conf file didn't help. Then I noticed that this file references files in the folder "C:\SWSoft\Plesk\dns\var\". The files it references were missing from the folder. Another clue! After trying lots of reboots, etc., the final solution was agonizingly simple. Go to the Plesk control panel for each domain and click the Disable button for the domain. Then click Enable. Voilà - the domains came back! (Checking "C:\SWSoft\Plesk\dns\var\" showed that the files...

While trying to get tech support for a problem with my backup software, I was asked to submit a System Information (.NFO) file. When I did, the support person wrote back saying it was corrupt.

Well, it turns out if you try to open a .NFO file by double-clicking it in Windows Explorer, you do indeed see the message:

System Information cannot open this NFO file. It might be corrupted or an unrecognized version.

This is most likely a bug in the System Information program (msinfo32.exe). The work-around is to start System Information file (Start > All Programs > Accessories > System Tools > System Information) and then do a File > Open to open the file. This works without any problem.

It all started off simple enough. Vickie, Laura and I were to travel to Boulder, Colorado for James' graduation from the Culinary School of the Rockies (CSR). Of course, like all great heroes, we had to be challenged. Mother Nature whipped up a doosy of a snow storm that paralyzed the Northeast. But after a 7.5 hour drive to LaGuardia (after they closed Hartford and White Plains airports) and nearly 24 hours of traveling, we made it to Denver and then Boulder. In the end, it was definitely worth it!

We stayed at the historic Boulderado Hotel and loved it. Here we are sitting in front of the fireplace in the lobby. (You click on any photo to see a larger version. Just click the browser "Back"  button when you are done.)

 

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While Irving Berlin was dreaming of a White Christmas, we certainly had one:



But this year, the kids' Christmas was pink and blue. Santa splurged for new cell phones for them. The hot Motorola Razr cell phone in pink for Laura and Libby and blue for Joe. (Santa actually made them go on a hunt for them - lots of fun for the parents if not the kids!)



We had a nice Christmas eve eve dinner on the 23rd with Grandma Millie, Vickie, Laura, Joe and Libby:





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If you are reinstalling Microsoft SQL Server 2005 Express on a server running ASP.NET and Plesk, when you try to view an ASP.NET web page, you might see a message like the following:

Cannot open database "TellUWhen" requested by the login. The login failed. Login failed for user 'MIGHTYMOUSE\IWAM_plesk(default)'. Description: An unhandled exception occurred during the execution of the current web request. Please review the stack trace for more information about the error and where it originated in the code. Exception Details: Syste.Data.SqlClient.SqlException: Cannot open database "TellUWhen" requested by the login. The login failed. Login failed for user 'MIGHTYMOUSE\IWAM_plesk(default)'. The basic solution to the problem is to make sure that the specified user name (e.g. ASPNET or IWAM_plesk(default)) is a member of the SQLServer2005MSSQLUser$server$SQLExpress group. Here are the specific steps to do this for the user "" on "":

Right-click "My Computer" and choose "Manage". ...

There's a new phenomenon that catching on like wildfire among my teenagers and twenty-somethings: Guitar Hero. It's a game for the Nintendo Wii where you play "guitar" along with a classic rock tune. The more right notes you hit, the more the audience loves you. Here's Sarah laying down her tasty licks:

Of course, then there's her on-screen personna:

There's always a precious moment each fall here in New England. The moment when you look out the window and your body lights up and says "It's SNOWING!" Here's what that moment looked like this year: