Windows 7 has issues with version 1.6 and below, it is possible for WhatPulse to suddenly stop counting. (usually under high load of the computer). We’re glad to say that these problems have been solved in 1.7 and recommend everyone using Windows 7 to upgrade.

Windows 7 support is not the only change, here’s a small list:

– New communication protocol

WhatPulse now communicates with the website over HTTP, which means a lot less hassle to get it working from a secured network. (proxies understand the pulses)

– Portable mode

There is now a portable mode setting available in the preferences window. Enabling this will allow WhatPulse to run from a USB disk or other portable media. This makes it easy to take WhatPulse with you.

– Key Frequencies image generator.

It is now possible to send your key frequencies to the website and have it create an image out of it. An example can be found here: http://bit.ly/cXF7dL. The images will be presented on the website better in the near future.

– Others

There’s a new setup wizard.

Several bugfixes with large distance increases seen when using RDP.

Several other bugfixes: http://bit.ly/bDh7Dz

– Keyboard diagram visualizing usage frequencies of keys

– Completely reworked Setup dialog: You can now choose from your existing computers, create a new computer, or create a new user account the first time WhatPulse starts up

– Added option to log out of the current account

– Switched to new HTTP-based server communication

– Support HTTP proxies for server communication

– ”Daemon mode”: in the group ”[Settings]”, add an entry ”DaemonMode=true” (without the quotes) to ~/.config/whatpulse/settings.conf to start WhatPulse without a tray icon

– The GeekWindow doesn’t have a taskbar entry any longer

– Reworked access to mouse and keyboard events, should now work with bluetooth mice and possibly other exotic hardware (Lacking any of the hardware in question, I can’t test this myself. Please report any problems you encounter.)

If you find any bugs or have any feature requests for the Linux client, please visit http://redmine.whatpulse.org/projects/show/linux

The entire client was redesigned for the most part, which eliminates the bugs and some feature requests we had in 0.9. Here’s a very small overview of major changes:

– Memory leak 0.9 gone.

– WhatPulse gets it input from the kernel.

– 32bit and 64bit release.

– We won’t interrupt your shutdown process anymore.

0.95 has been added to the download page and setup instructions can be found on: http://jmrk.whatpulse.org/ (you need to do something besides just download the client and run it, it will not work if you don’t follow the instructions!)

If you find any bugs or have any feature requests for the Linux client, please visit http://redmine.whatpulse.org/projects/show/linux

Gadget Update

The Window (sidebar) gadget has been updated to fix a bug which causes it to retrieve your stats from the website every second. Also full Windows 7 compatibilty has been added. Please update it if you have it running! (http://whatpulse.org/downloads/)

Dynamic Images

Since the former WSI went offline, people have been asking WhatPulse to host the forum images. Unfortunately, we have not been able to do so, until now.

A new section on the website called ’Dynamic Images’ has gone online. Here, you can create a dynamic image (with drag and drop ease) with your statistics on in. After you’ve created an image, you can use it on a forum signature, on your website, basically anywhere you can please an image on.

Read about how to get started on our brand new wiki: http://whatpulse.org/wiki/Dynamic_Images

Knowledge Base replacement

I already used the url above; we are replacing the current knowledge base with a wiki.

This way, you (yes you!) can contribute to the overall documentation of WhatPulse and help new users to get around better. Go ahead and take a look on http://whatpulse.org/wiki, see if there’s something you’d like to write about!

Twitter

Twitter has become a hugely popular service and requests for tweeting WhatPulse stats are growing as well. This is why there is a new page in the control center where you can configure periodic tweets of your stats! If you’re using twitter, check it out at http://whatpulse.org/my/twitter/

Speaking of twitter, WhatPulse has its own twitter account (http://twitter.com/whatpulse). We will use it for everything to report pretty much everything (website downtime, minor new features, etc) coming down the path.

Bug tracking / feature requests

There have been quite a few different bug and feature trackers used in the history of WhatPulse. A few months ago, we switched to redmine and are convinced this one will stick. 😉

Robbie (Windows developer) has requested a storm for improvement ideas for the windows client, he is working hard to release version 1.7 as a christmas present. Ifyou have an idea, please report it on http://redmine.whatpulse.org/projects/show/windows!

That’s it for now, untill next time!