Snippets

Programmatically Set Proxy Settings In Visual Basic

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Note: This guide was written in 2012 for VB .NET and targets the WinINet API (wininet.dll). It still functions on modern Windows, but with important caveats:

  • Scope is application-only — This only affects your own running application’s HTTP requests. It does not change settings for IE, Chrome, Edge, or any other browser running simultaneously.
  • Not a registry edit — Unlike registry-based approaches, this leaves the rest of the system completely untouched, which is exactly what you want for most use cases.
  • For modern .NET apps, consider using HttpClient with an explicit WebProxy instead, which is cleaner and cross-platform.
  • Best use case today: Legacy WinForms apps or anything using the WebBrowser control that relies on WinINet as its HTTP layer.

Working with proxies is a common requirement when you’re developing applications that need to talk to the internet, especially in corporate environments. Often, you want your application to use a specific proxy without affecting the rest of the user’s computer.

If you search the web for how to do this in Visual Basic, you’ll find plenty of tutorials that tell you to modify the Windows Registry. The problem with that approach is that it changes the settings for the entire PC, which usually isn’t what you want. Finding a clean way to set an “application-only” proxy can be surprisingly difficult.

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Create A Unique Password For Every Site You Use

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Note: I originally wrote this in 2012. Password security has changed a lot since then! While the “Password Chameleon” concept is interesting, I now recommend using a modern, dedicated password manager like Bitwarden or 1Password for much better security.

Passwords are the master keys to our entire digital lives. Every time you sign up for a new service, you’re asked for a “secret” password. Most of us use dozens of different sites every single day, and many of us manage multiple email accounts for work and personal use.

To keep things simple, a lot of people fall into the trap of reusing the same password everywhere. This is a huge security risk! Even if you don’t share your password with anyone, it’s surprisingly easy for a friend or a coworker to guess it just by watching you type or by piecing together your personal details. Security experts always suggest using long, complicated, and unique passwords for every single site, but in reality, that’s almost impossible for a human being to remember.

Some people use dedicated password management software that encrypts everything into a single database protected by one “master” password. This is a solid approach, but it still has risks. What happens if someone gets hold of that master password? Or what if the database itself is compromised? Storing all your eggs in one digital basket can feel a bit uneasy.

So, what’s the middle ground?

One interesting solution I’ve found is Password Chameleon.

Password Chameleon
Password Chameleon

Password Chameleon isn’t really a “manager” in the traditional sense—it’s more of a deterministic password generator. It doesn’t actually store any of your passwords in a database. Instead, it uses a mathematical algorithm to generate a complex password based on your input.

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Getting Most Out Of The SkyDrive: Part 2

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Note: I originally wrote this post in 2012 when SkyDrive (now OneDrive) was just starting to gain desktop features. The third-party tool “Folder Drive” mentioned here is quite old and might not be necessary for modern versions of Windows!

As we all know, SkyDrive is Microsoft’s free cloud storage service that comes bundled with every Windows Live account. It starts you off with 7GB of free space (and early adopters were lucky enough to keep 25GB!). For a long time, you could only access it through a web browser, but Microsoft recently changed the game by launching an official desktop application for both Windows and Mac.

Shortly after the app dropped, I shared a few tips on how to maximize your SkyDrive experience. We talked about:

  • Using it as a standard storage folder
  • Moving your “My Documents” folder directly to the cloud
  • Syncing files between multiple computers
  • Using it as an automated backup solution

You can catch up on the full post right here.

Since then, I’ve discovered a new trick that makes SkyDrive even more integrated into your workflow. While you can do this with Google Drive or Dropbox, SkyDrive’s generous free storage makes it the perfect candidate for this.

The official SkyDrive app creates a specialized folder on your PC that synchronizes everything inside it to the cloud. You can move files in and out, and they’ll automatically sync across all your devices.

Now, let’s take it a step further.

What if you could mount SkyDrive as its own dedicated drive?

This is a great quality-of-life improvement. Instead of hunting for a specific subfolder, you can access your cloud storage directly from “My Computer” with a single click, just like a hard drive or a USB stick.

Here’s how to do it:

To make this happen, you’ll need a tiny utility called Folder Drive. It’s a simple tool that lets you mount any local folder as a virtual drive letter. You just download it, run it, pick your folder, assign a letter, and hit create.

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Your Facebook Account Has 3 Passwords

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Note: I wrote this back in 2012. While Facebook implemented this clever trick back then, their security models and login handling have evolved dramatically since!

Here’s a fascinating bit of trivia that very few Facebook users actually know: your Facebook account doesn’t just have one password—it actually has three!

Facebook built this system to quietly handle the most common login mistakes, like accidentally leaving CAPS lock on or dealing with aggressive mobile autocorrects. You have the one password you created yourself, and Facebook secretly generates two completely valid variations of it to save you from login errors.

Let me show you exactly how it works with an example.

Password 1: The One You Created

Let’s say your actual password looks like this:

In this case, the letters F, K, and P are uppercase, and the rest are lowercase. This is the exact string you type in every day. Now, let’s look at the two variations Facebook creates for you.

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Google Drive: A Sneak Peek

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Note: I wrote this sneak peek way back in 2012 when Google Drive first launched! The interface, storage limits, and features have completely transformed since then.

Just a few days ago, Google finally threw its hat into the cloud storage ring with the highly anticipated launch of Google Drive. Every tech blog and major newspaper has been buzzing about it, and because it’s Google, this is a massive shift for the internet.

So, What Exactly Is Google Drive?

If you’ve spent any time online recently, you probably already know the basics. Google Drive is a robust cloud storage solution that lets you upload, store, and share files. They’re generously offering 5GB of free storage to every user, and if you need more space, their paid tiers are incredibly cheap.

Google has already released dedicated apps for Windows, Android, and they’re working on iOS versions as well. You just install the app, and you can interact with your cloud files exactly as you would any normal folder on your computer.

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Getting Most Out Of Your Windows Live Skydrive

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Note: I originally wrote this post in 2012. Microsoft has long since rebranded “SkyDrive” to “OneDrive,” and the app’s features and interfaces have changed drastically!

Microsoft just recently released the official desktop application for Windows Live SkyDrive, finally bringing native support to both Windows and Mac OS. This means you can now seamlessly mount your 7GB (or up to 25GB for early adopters!) of free cloud storage directly into your computer’s file explorer.

Suddenly having a massive chunk of free, easily accessible cloud storage opens up a lot of possibilities. But you might be wondering, how do I actually get the most out of SkyDrive? Here are a few clever techniques and tricks to integrate it into your daily workflow.

1. Use It as a Massive Flash Drive

This is the most straightforward use case. Once you install the desktop app, SkyDrive acts just like a normal folder on your hard drive. You can dump your spreadsheets, photos, MP3s, and PDFs in there, and they’ll instantly sync to the cloud.

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Snippets

HTML 5 DnD Download: A Quick Implementation

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Note: I originally wrote this tutorial in 2012 during the early days of HTML5. Browser APIs have evolved, and the Drag-and-Drop specification has seen significant updates since then!

Whether you’re a web developer or just an everyday user, you’ve probably encountered Drag-and-Drop file uploading. You use it when tossing photos onto Facebook or attaching files in Gmail. Drag-and-Drop isn’t exactly a new concept—it’s how we’ve been moving files around our desktops for decades. But while there are thousands of tutorials covering how to build Drag-and-Drop uploads for the web, very few talk about Drag-and-Drop downloads. Let’s take a quick look at how to implement this cool HTML5 feature.

What exactly is Drag-and-Drop Download?

If you’ve ever used a cloud service like Box, you might have noticed that you can drag a file directly from your web browser and drop it onto your desktop to download it. You can even drag a file straight into your printer’s queue or drop it into a messaging app to send it to a friend. It completely eliminates the tedious “Right-Click -> Save As” workflow and saves you from having to dig through your file system.

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