Meh...Browser Woes...Brave Browser

If you've seen the ads online for Brave Browser, you might get the impression that it blocks ads so that you don't have to deal with them.  Well..sorta. 

I read an article about Brave Browser a while back because I was interested in a mobile browser with AdBlock capabilities.  What I found out made it even worse than my current browser - Chrome.

Most of our current browser choices are based on The original Gecko Engine which itself was based on Netscape source code.  What we got from this was Mozilla Firefox and, eventually Chrome.  I'm gonna leave out a bunch of other browsers because there are literally hundreds if not thousands of alternative browsers out there.

The New Microsoft Edge Browser and Brave Browser are both based on Chromium - a stripped down variant of Google Chrome.

Brave Browser claims to black ads in what people would likely believe is akin to using AdBlock.  The reality is that Brave Browser doesn't really block ads, but instead replaces them with ads that benefit the Brave Browser company.  So instead of your information being sent to Google or Microsoft so that they can generate ad revenue by sending you ads content, it goes to the Brave Browser company to do the exact same thing.

In other words, you're not really protecting yourself.  You're only giving another company a source of revenue.  And that company makes a living by stripping out the ads the other companies produce and giving you their own ads.

If you're OK with this, then give Brave Browser a try.  If not, I would suggest downloading AdBlock for Google or Microsoft Edge.  I believe there are also version for Firefox and few other flavors of Browser.

Working From Home

This is week three of working from home for most of my co-workers.  Since I mostly work at Field Offices and Rig Side, I am spending equal amounts of time out in the field, working from my office, and working from home.

I bought a 49" Samsung Monitor to replace the nice Dell 27" monitor I bought last year as my work space did not have room for my three monitor setup. 

I'm trying to keep travel to a minimum, but still have duties out in the field to take care of.  Social Distancing!

I've noticed a large decrease in travel, mostly heavy equipment moving up and down I20 and very few travelers.  Most truck stops I've been to when fueling up are still serving food, despite what much of Social Media is reporting. 

Truck stop Delis have shut down self-serve areas and you have to deal directly with the deli to get food.  This does cause lines to form.  Be patient and respectful.  Don't forget to wash your hands before eating!  Many of the fast food stores do mostly drive thru and curb side pickup.  Dine-In is shut down so if you're running a rig or pushing equipment to and from the oilfield, you'll likely have to eat in your truck. 

Law Enforcement, as far as State Troopers and Sheriff's Deputies are out patrolling, so watch your speed.  I saw a big group of troopers east of Monahans with a out of state minivan pulled over.  Guys, you should probably stay at home if you don't have business in the oil patch.  This is not the place to break down during the best of times, so you really don't want a breakdown now.

Not much else I can tell you than that.  Be safe out there.

Issues installing .NET Framework 3.5 on a Windows 10 Computer

On some Dell Computers I have worked on, when attempting to download .NET Framework 3.5 components, the install program will give out an error and refuse to download the install package.  

This cannot be fixed by using the Net Framework 3.5 Offline Package.  Other install options through the Programs and Features control panel also fail, as do running commands manually.

I believe the problem is caused by the installer being unable to see the Windows Install files located in the …Sources\sxs folder that are used to install OS components.  This issue usually does not affect computers that have had Windows 10 installed manually and does not affect ALL Dell install images.  But it has become enough of a problem that I have had to create documentation to fix it.

This fix requires you to use a Windows 10 installation on an external drive.

Step 1: Plug in Windows 10 external drive – make note of the drive letter it is assigned to.

Step 2: Open Command Prompt as Administrator

Step 3: Run the following command: DISM /Online /Enable-Feature /FeatureName:NetFx3 /All /LimitAccess /Source:D:\x64\sources\sxs

Step 4: Source: refers to where on your Windows Install media you can locate …x64\Sources\sxs folder…

Step 5: DONE!

There are some other ways to do this, as well, but this seems to work the best.  One of the fixes I have run across involves downloading the ..Source\sxs.. folder from an unknown source.  That's a good way to get a virus!

I do not believe this is strictly a "DELL" issue.  I would look for this on computers where the manufacturer has a hidden partition containing the OS Recovery.  To date, I have not had this issue with computers where I have manually installed Windows 10.

Good luck!