General Discussion

This question could apply to many portable apps but I'm particularly asking because of Firefox performance issues. I'm running it over a USB 2.0 connection but everything operates slowly. I've tried increasing cache size etc but no dice. Wouldn't it be possible just to put a temporary cache on another fixed disk if one is found upon startup of the app and then delete that cache upon shutdown? I have at least 20 extensions installed which may have something to do with it too.

I put together a quick utility that will pull the proxy info for the current PC and display it on-screen. This way, if you don't have access to the Internet Connections properties, you can still get the proxy info for getting Portable Firefox, Gaim, etc working.

Get it here:
https://portableapps.com/downloads/ProxyGet.exe

Source here:
https://portableapps.com/downloads/ProxyGet.7z

How Can I Convert A Bootable .ISO or Bootable CD To My Flash Drive?

I would like to convert UBCD (Unltimate Boot CD) to be bootable from a flash drive.

Suggestions? Thanks

Soon to be released
CONVERT
Name: CONVERT
Purpose: To auto generate paths on execution
Usage: Insert _DRIVELETTER_ then add the name of the file in convert.ini

What features do you want?

I'm moving to portable apps.. I like the idea of having Firefox, Sunbird etc on my stick... However, I already have all the programs set up on my hard drive and I have their settings tweaked and such to just the way I want them. Does anyone know how I can copy these settings over to the portable version so I don't have to do them manually. The biggest help would be transferring my sunbird calendar b/c I do not relish the thought of having to manually enter all of my dates and tasks again

Thanks.

The download zip file causes an eror in WinZip.
Any suggestions?

As there is no off-topic forum, I will post it here. I will be away for the next three days, but still should have some new stuff for you all and the start of next week. They are:

1. A new Profile Sync release
2. A version of Profile Sync built into Portable Firefox
3. A mini-backup program, I wrote it for myself but I may as well release it.

See you all very soon

Steve Lamerton

Just wanted to point out that the awesome open source game "Battle for Wesnoth" works from a usb key, simply by copying the wesnoth folder to the drive. (approx 55MB)
I havent tried multiplayer from the USB key yet, more details to follow.

Here is an idea that I havent seen thrown around in here yet, so I figure I can touch base with it. With apps like pstart and such are excellent for loading programs from a key, but still it doesnt have the customization (and personality) as your own desktop, and for those of us who dont know a thing about cars, I think its time we "tricked out" something of our own for a change. I figure, why not give a shot to something like a portable shell that can be loaded on every machine, to make that computer really yours for just a short while. having worked just a little on shell programs, this is something I havent had too much experience with, so this is as much a learning experience as it is a writing experience for me. As such, any comments, criticisims, or missing info you would like to add would be wonderful.

For those who use both Mac and PC. There is a way to run both PC and Mac portable apps on a USB flash drive seemlessly by creating a HFS+ formatted sparse disk image directly on the FAT formated USB flash drive.

First there is a website for portable apps for Mac at http://www.freesmug.org/portableapps where you should download Portable Firefox, Portable Adium, Portable Thunderbird, etc.
And of course http://www.portableapps.com for PC users.

Second, format your USB flash drive as FAT (MS-DOS) if it isn't already.

Third, on a Mac, go to "Disk Utility" and select your USB flash drive, then go to File-> New-> Blank Disk Image. Type a name for it, select a place for it (your USB flash drive), select a size, but make it around the size of your USB flash drive so you have room on the disk image for your portable Mac apps.