In this two-part guide, we’ll learn what IRC is, tips to use it, and some basic commands to get you started. In part one of this guide, we’ll focus on introducing IRC and getting you set up to use it on your computer. Specifically, we’ll cover:

• What is IRC?
• Who Uses IRC?
• What is a Client?
• What is a Server?
• What are Channels, Networks, and Servers?
• Download and Install Pidgin, an IRC Client
• Configure Pidgin for IRC

What is IRC?

IRC started out in the late eighties and began in the way it continues to operate: by allowing multiple users to communicate with each other both in public chat and privately. Since that time, it’s come a long way with additional features, to compliment its core purpose, such as network bots that assist with registration and messaging and encryption.

Who Uses IRC?

While IRC is an older technology, it’s still very relevant today. The fact that you’re reading this means people like you are the types of users on IRC: people who want to communicate with others who have similar interests and hobbies.

IRC lets users chat with each other via client/server technology. You, the client, chat to others through servers.

What is a Client?

When you connect to an IRC server (like freenode), you become a client. Other users who are connected are also clients and, through the server, you can communicate with each other.

What is a Server?

A server connects clients together and hosts your chat sessions. Servers also control bots such as the NickServ that you’ll chat with further on in this guide. IRC is not peer-to-peer (i.e. you don’t connect directly to other users) so without the server, you wouldn’t be able to communicate with other users.

Download and Install Pidgin, an IRC Client

In this guide, I’m going to recommend you use a basic IRC client like Pidgin (which can also be used for Yahoo Messenger, MSN Messenger, Google Talk, AOL IM, Jabber etc.) Once you get comfortable with Pidgin, you can explore other clients such as mIRC and HydraIRC.

Download Pidgin

Download Pidgin

Install Pidgin

To install Pidgin, double click the .exe file you downloaded earlier.

Choose your language, click next through the license agreement, and accept the installation defaults.

Wait while Pidgin installs and then move on to the next step to configure Pidgin.

Configure Pidgin for IRC

Start Pidgin and configure Pidgin as follows:

Either add an account using the pop up that shows when you start Pidgin for the first time or click Accounts > Manage Accounts.

Click Add and configure your IRC account. If you already have an IRC account, use your credentials here or simply input the name you’d like to use without a password:

If you pick a username that’s already in use, a chat box from NickServ will pop up, and you’ll need to change it. To change your nickname, use the following command:

/nick username

Replace username with your desired username.

Once you’ve found a username, you should register it with the following command:

/msg NickServ REGISTER your_password email@address.com

Replace your_password with your desired password and email@address.com with your email address.

Once you’ve registered, you’ll be told that you need to check your email:

Open your email and copy the chat command that you’ll need to send to NickServ.

Send the message to NickServ:

You’re registered.

If you changed your username above (because the one you chose is taken), you should add a new account with the details you just registered. To do this, add a new account just as you did earlier with your registered details.

Now Delete the previous account you set up:

Note: if you don’t change your account details or save your password, you’ll need to identify yourself at each log in with the command:

/msg NickServ IDENTIFY your_password

Where you_password is your password.

Now you’re registered and ready to go, check out part 2 of this guide.

If your memory is as bad as mine and you can’t even remember what you ate for lunch, it’s very handy to be able to whip out your business card with a URL pointing to a list of your most recently watched.

 

Background:

Two developments have sparked the recent explosion of Media Center packages (in my view).

The first, of course, is Windows 7 and its Windows Media Center package included for free. The second is free public access to online media databases like The Open Movie Database (TMDb).

Everybody wants a great visual catalogue system. Nobody wants to spend half their waking life typing in the details of each title.

Too much of a good thing:

Forgive me for dropping into the first person for a bit. I’m pretty sure the progress of my interest in Media Center stuff is fairly similar to that of my colleagues, but I don’t want to make a bunch of unfounded assumptions about other people.

I love collections. I still have enough cover CDs from technical magazines to fill a couple of suitcases, but before long it became apparent to me that having a lot of stuff is useless, and in fact, counter-productive because you spend more time looking for stuff than you do actually using it. What’s required is a good way to lay your hands on the item you want quickly, and so the search for a good digital library system began.

Today there are many fine products available for finding, storing, and presenting your digital collections. In addition to Windows Media Center (and the Media Browser add-on) there is XBMC, Media Portal, Boxee and more that I haven’t even had a chance to look at yet.

Each of these fine programs provides a wealth of extended functions and dazzling visual front ends, but I still struggle with that simple question “Seen any good movies lately?” I’ve got too many titles to wade through and only a large, slow application to do it with.

“Just the facts, ma’m”

There is another class of digital movie collection packages that focusrs on the basics. Collecting, organizing, and presenting the titles. It was among this group that I found what I think will turn out to be the answer to my dilemma.

(Visit AllMyMovies at http://www.bolidesoft.com/allmymovies.html)

“All My Movies” came up in a google search one day last year when I was looking for media center applications. I had a play with it, but put it back on the shelf for not being up to the 7MC standard (“7MC” is geek-speak for Windows Media Center for Windows 7) but tried it again in my search for simplicity. There is quite a lot of functionality packed into the latest AMM (ibid). The one that grabbed my attention straight away is its ability to output a list of titles in HTML (web page) format, based on a selection of titles from it’s database.

My first answer to “The Question” was to print out a list of titles from Windows Explorer in date order so the newer titles would float to the top of the list. It kinda worked, but because I made changes to the information, titles like “The Big Store” (Marx Brothers comedy from 1941) would also show up just because I had changed the listing a bit in my file system.

My friend Sean (the one who asks me “The Question” ) would then ask “What’s this one about?”, so to complete the answer it was obvious that I needed a picture – preferably the movie poster or DVD cover to jog his memory, and a link to IMDb or TMDb to provide a comprehensive answer.

Pros and Cons:

AMM has loads of features that I hope to explore in the fullness of time but, right now, it looks like a good match for my immediate requirement for an HTML movie page generator. There is an excellent selection of formats to choose from, and you can even output the information to text.

On the down side, it does cost money, while most of the other programs I’ve looked for have been free. On the flip side of that are the many ways it’s possible to reduce the cost, or even get it for free – like the “guess the movie” competetion found on their website. If you’re strapped for cash I’d try those options first.

The second drawback I’ve found is that this version doesn’t talk to TMDb (The database of choice for “Media Browser” and my personal favourite).

I wrote AMM and asked about it and got a nice note back from Max Smirnoff to tell me that he would get on to that straight away, so I’m very hopeful that before long I can capture all the required movie details simply by getting AMM to scan my movie folder.

All Up:

I’m going to stick with All My Movies for a while. It will take a bit of time to make the changes required for my design, but right now it appears to be just the kind of package I need and my guess is that it would work for anyone with a set of requirements like mine. Plus, they’re nice people to deal with. When was the last time you got an email back from Bill Gates telling you he’d get right onto your suggestion?

So – “Have I seen any good movies lately?” You tell me:

http://movies.hazen.co.nz

What Do I Win?

A copy of Screenpresso Pro worth $28.

How Do I Win?

There are only a few steps to win a copy of Screenpresso Pro:

Step 1: Check out our review Screenpresso and download Screenpresso FREE and install (or run it as portable app if you do not wish to install.)

Step 2: Send a screenshot of your beautiful desktop to the built-in min.us sharing option (no registration required). Use the built-in editor to tell us what’s on your desktop. Example of the link and image.

Step 3: Comment on this post with:

1. The link to your screenshot on min.us (or other image sharing website if you prefer.)
2. Any suggestions you have for the Screenpresso team (counts as a second entry to double your chance of winning.)
3. Your Twitter username/Facebook profile link or another way to contact you if you win.

Optional:

• Like Windows Guides on Facebook
• Follow Screenpresso on Twitter
• Share this giveaway via Twitter, Facebook, Google Buzz, Stumbleupon etc.

Terms and Conditions

a) Giveaway is open to everyone, regardless of geographic location.

b) Each reader can have a maximum of two (2) entries (one for a screenshot and one for a suggestion to the Screenpresso team.) Extra comments will not be counted as an entry.

c) Each reader can only win one (1) license for Screenpresso Pro.

d) Giveaway entry deadline is 7th of March 2011, 00.00 AM GMT.

e) The winner will be randomly selected from eligible comments.

f) 5 copies of Screenpresso Pro are available for the giveaway.

g) Windows Guides decision is final.

Once we choose the winners, we’ll notify you via the contact method you left in the comments.

Good luck guys!

A while back we looked at how could disable IE9’s GPU rendering abilities.

As other browsers in the market are yet to fully catch up to Microsoft in this arena, GPU rendering or acceleration will likely not be enabled by default.

If you use Google Chrome and it’s at version 8 or above (Wrench > About Google Chrome) and your hardware can support it, GPU acceleration and rendering can be enabled.

This Quick Tip is going to show you how.

Step 1.

Open Google Chrome, in the address bar (Ctrl+L) type about:flags and hit Enter

Step 2.

Please take note of this warning;

These experimental features may change, break, or disappear at any time. We make absolutely no guarantees about what may happen if you turn one of these experiments on, and your browser may even spontaneously combust. Jokes aside, your browser may delete all your data, or your security and privacy could be compromised in unexpected ways. Please proceed with caution.

If you’re happy with this, scroll down the page and find GPU Accelerated Compositing and GPU Accelerated Canvas 2D.

Click Enable under each one and restart Chrome to see the changes. Maybe even head over to beautyoftheweb.com and compare the 2 browsers.

How do you think Chrome stacks up to IE9 in this department?  Let us know in the comments.

Setup a Proxy Server using Google App Engine

This tutorial has been on my mind off and on for several months now. Joining the team here at Windows Guides has given me the opportunity to finally post it. After my son asked me a few weeks ago for a good proxy I thought maybe I dedicate this and the next tutorial to him.

This is a long yet not a really difficult tutorial if you follow along. I have done my best to simplify it as much as possible. May I suggest you read the whole thing and get your downloads together before you start.

Google Account Setup

In order to set up your new proxy you will need to have a Google account.

Google app engine

Go to Google app engine and sign-in using your Google account.

Verify Account by SMS

Click the “Create an Application” button. Since this is your first time, Google will send a verification code via SMS to your mobile phone number.

If you get to this point and find your carrier not listed. You can sign up for a phone number at Google voice and register with the number you choose from Google Voice.

Authentication Code Has Been Sent.

Type the code you were sent to create apps with Google App Engine. Click the Send button.

Choose a Domain. Agree to the Google Terms.

Choose a domain name that will host your proxy server. Use a something unique to you, this is your permanent  sub-domain name. Then make sure the domain is available, agree to the Google Terms and click save. The sub-domain is also your App ID and will uniquely identify your proxy application.

For this example, we’ll use jttm-server-prox as the App ID though you are free to choose any other unique name. The jttm being my sons initials and unique to him.

Application Registered Successfully.

Once you have agreed to the terms your and everything is set, the Application Registered Successfully window will appear. Your ID is registered and waiting for you to use it for the first time. There are a couple of pieces missing yet from the puzzle so let’s get jiggy with it.

Download the Python 2.6.6 MSI installer.

It’s time to create and upload the proxy server application to Google App Engine. Go to python.org, download the 2.6.6 MSI installer.

Opening python-2.6.6 msi.

Check the save file radio button and then click save file.

Save the file to your desktop.

Save the installer to your desktop.

Python 2.6.6 Icon

Now click the cute little icon to get your install started. Accepting all the defaults in the install seems to make life much easier.

Do you want to run this file?

Of course we do, Click the run button.

Select whether to install Python 2.6.6 for all users of this computer.

You can switch whether to allow other users to use the Python program or not, we are just accepting the defaults, Click Next.

Select Destination Directory.

Again we are just accepting the defaults. Click next. Note: If you change the destination you will alter other parts of the tutorial.

Customize Python 2.6.6.

No need to change anything here. Click next.

Installing Python 2.6.6.

Wait for it.

Completing the Python 2.6.6 Installer.

Click the Finish button and Python is installed. Now we need to install the Google App Engine itself.

Google App Engine SDK

Once Python is installed, go to Google.com, download the Google App Engine SDK for Python and install it accepting all the defaults throughout the install.

GoogleAppEngine-1.4.22 msi.

Click on the save radio button then click save file. Save it to your desktop same as you did the Python 2.6.6. installer.

GoogleApps icon.

Click the new Google App icon to start the install.

Do you want to run this file?

Click the Run button.

Google App Engine Setup.

Click Next.

End-User License Agreement

Check I accept the terms in the License Agreement box and click the Next button.

Destination Folder.

Accept the defaults here and click the Next button. Note: If you change the destination folder you will alter the tutorial in the final stages.

Ready to install Google App Engine.

Shucks, isn’t that why we’re here. Click the Install button.

Installing Google App Engine.

Again we wait for it. A few seconds later.

Completed the Google App Engine Setup Wizard.

Poof, Click the Finish button and the App Engine is installed. Now lets work it.

Google App Engine Icon.

Start the Google App Engine Launcher program from the new jet engine icon now on your desktop. Notice in the background.

Warning Prerequisites for App Engine Development are missing!

A warning window will appear, this is ok since we haven’t set App Engine up yet. Just click the OK button to close this and go to the next step.

Google App Launcher.

With Google App Launcher window open we need to do some set up here.

Preferences.

Click Edit, then Preferences from the drop down menu. Set the correct values (See screenshot above). You can type these values in or browse to the correct folder and find the value that way. Note: If you use a different version of Python the Python Path will change. Also if you changed any install path on either install this is changed.

Here are the paths just in case you can’t see them in the screenshot. Just copy and paste.
C:\Python26\pythonw.exe      C:\Program Files\Google\google_appengine      C:\Windows\notpad.exe Click ok when finished.

Download this zip file and extract the file to a folder on your desktop. The zip file contains a couple of text files written in HTML and Python that you can read and edit with notepad. These will be uploaded in the next step.

Add Existing Application.

Back at your App Engine Launcher. Click File then Add Existing Application from the drop down under the Google App Launcher program and browse to the directory or folder that you just created from the zip file you downloaded.

Your_App_ID

Single click Your_App_ID to highlight it, Click the Edit button and replace “YOUR_APP_ID” with the ID sub-domain that you reserved earlier. The one I created is jttm-server-prox.

YOUR_APP_ID 2

You should end up with something like this except with your sub-domain name you created earlier. Getting excited we’re almost finished.

Deploy Application to Google.

Click the Deploy tab then type in your Google credentials and Click the OK button.

Deployment to Google.

Deployment to Google window will come up; let it work its magic.

Deployment to Google Finished.

The last message is pretty straight forward, Just X out.

Open a browser and type in your address like so… http://jttm-server-prox.appspot.com/ replacing with your ID.

You can edit the main.html file that came in the zip file with notepad to change the appearance of your proxy server. Once you make a change then you hit the deploy button on the Google App Engine Launcher.

This is a really simple program with no security except obscurity involved. You’ll find some website will not work well. I’m working on a secure proxy for the next tutorial so keep an eye open.

Well it was good for me; was it good for you? See you next time.

Rick Mizell

Python 2.6.6 MSI installer

Google App Engine SDK

zip file

• What is an Easter Egg?
• What an Easter Egg is Not
• Easter Egg Examples

What is an Easter Egg?

Easter eggs, in software, are deliberately added and not not just “glitches” (see more about that below.) Often these Easter eggs are added by programmers for a joke, to get some attention, or to add some flair to the software you’re using.

A classic example of an Easter egg is a hidden menu on DVD or an animation in a piece of software that can only be seen by pressing certain keys.

What an Easter Egg is Not

There are some common misconceptions with the term “Easter Egg.” An Easter egg is not:

• A bug in a program.
• An imposed restriction.
• A hack in a program made by the end user.

For example, it has been claimed that not being able to create a folder, in Windows, with one of the following names is an Easter egg:

PRN, AUX, CLOCK$, NUL, COM1, COM2, COM3, COM4, COM5, COM6, COM7, COM8, COM9, LPT1, LPT2, LPT3, LPT4, LPT5, LPT6, LPT7, LPT8, and LPT9

This is not an example of an Easter egg. This is a restriction, that dates back to DOS, to protect certain file names being used that are reserved by the operating system:

Although the first error message (seemingly, still, not updated with Windows 7) makes you think you’ve found an Easter egg (or glitch) in Windows, the second error message states otherwise.

Another commonly confused Easter egg is the ability to generate random text in Microsoft Word. Try this:

1. Open Microsoft Word

2. Type =rand(20,9)

This will create twenty paragraphs with nine sentences each (taken from the Microsoft Help files):

Still, not an Easter egg.

Enough of that though, you’re here to learn about some real Easter eggs…

Easter Egg Examples

Here are some examples of the best Easter eggs I’ve found/heard about in software over the years. Please share others, you know about, in the comments.

Picasa: Teddy Bears

In Google Picasa, press CTRL+SHIFT+Y. Watch the teddy bears rain down on your screen.

Firefox: The Book of Mozilla

If you’re a Firefox user, open any version and type about:mozilla in the address bar. You’ll get a quote from “The Book of Mozilla”:

Firefox: about:robots

Open Firefox and type about:robots in the address bar:

vim: :Ni! and :help!

In vim, if you type

:Ni!

in normal mode, vim shows the error message

Do you demand a shrubbery?

If you type

:help!

vim, reassuringly, says

Don’t Panic!

Source

Excel 97: Flight Simulator

Want to see the credits of Excel 97 in a flight sim-like fashion? Didn’t think so, but you’re welcome to try anyway. If you’re using Office 97 or have access:

1. Open Excel 97 (this doesn’t work in later versions.)
2. On a blank worksheet, press F5.
3. Type X97:L97 and press Enter.
4. Press the Tab key once.
   
5. Hold down Ctrl + Shift and left-click the Chart Wizard toolbar icon.

Click here for a screenshot if you don’t have Excel 97. Otherwise, try it for yourself as a fun surprise.

uTorrent: Tetris

In uTorrent, click Help > About uTorrent. When the About dialog appears, press T on the keyboard to play Tetris.

Are These Easter Eggs?

Here are a few I’ve found, over the years, that I’m on the fence about. What do you think?

Extra Files in C:\Windows on Windows XP

If you’re using Windows XP or have access to a copy of it, go to C:\Windows and look for a file named clock.avi. I’ve not seen any use for this file. I’m not entirely sure it’s an Easter egg, but I bet you didn’t know it was there!

Similarly, there is a file named “quotes”. Open My Computer and go to: C:\WINDOWS\SYSTEM32\DRIVERS\etc, open the file named quotes in notepad then look at the quotes put there by the Microsoft developers.

Win Solitaire Every time

Open Solitaire Press Alt + Shift + 2 while playing and see the cards drop.

Some of you already guessed it, I know. If you didn’t see the review on JV16 PowerTools 2010 you might want to do so now. jv16 PowerTools is the ultimate Windows optimization and tune-up utility suite, and by far the best tool I have every put to the test.

Now, Macecraft (the geniuses behind JV16 Powertools) are about to give you the opportunity to get your own copy – free to keep. All you have to do is entering this giveaway competition and you might just be one of the lucky 10 winners.

Competition runs for an entire week, so make sure you tell everyone you know to enter.

On to the Competition

There are two ways you can win a copy this time. Make sure you enter both and double your chances to win. Before you enter the competition you should download, install and test the 60 day fully working trial version. Then

Download JV16 PowerTools

The competition has ended.

Winners will receive notification by email.
Thank you to all contributors.

New to using the command prompt? Check out the Windows Command Prompt Beginner’s Guide

Previously we showed you a collection of shortcut commands you can use, to save you time, from the run dialog and Thomas showed you tips to become a command prompt superuser.

In this guide, we’ll show you some commands you can use on the Windows Command prompt. These commands can save you time if you learn how to use them and rely on them to help you manage your PC.

Not sure how to get to the command prompt? How to open the command prompt in Windows.

Want to customize the command prompt? Customize the appearance of the command prompt.

Want to get more comfortable using the command prompt? Become a Command Prompt Super User

Windows Commands

I’ve divided the commands into the following two sections:

• Commands to find system information.
• Commands to maintain your PC.

At any time, you can enter the command and succeed it with a /? to find out the list of parameters you can use with the command i.e. driverquery /?

You can also output the results of a command to a text file, csv etc. by adding >>out.txt or >>output.csv etc to the end of a command. The file will be saved in the current working directory (listed next to the command line.)

Commands to Find System Information

systeminfo

The systeminfo command will give you detailed system information. You can select specific information i.e. Virtual memory with the following syntax:

systeminfo |find "Virtual Memory"

More information on systeminfo.

tasklist

Want to see a list of running tasks? The tasklist command will show you all tasks running on your PC.

More information on tasklist.

ipconfig

The ipconfig /all command will show you information about TCP/IP information on your PC. Here I show you how to use ipconfig to fix your internet connection.

More information on ipconfig.

netstat

Angel explores netstat, ipconfig, and other basic network commands in this post: Basic Network Commands and their Usage [Introduction].

More information on netstat.

driverquery

Curious about what drivers are currently installed on your PC? Use driverquery to see the list. The output is a little vague so you may need to use the /v parameter to get more detailed information.

More information on driverquery.

openfiles

Want to know which files are open and by which programs? Want to know which network shares are mapped and by which PC? Run the openfiles command to view this information. The output will likely be pretty large, so you can output it to a CSV file with the following syntax:

openfiles /query /fo csv >>out.csv

More information on openfiles.

Commands to Maintain Your PC

You can also maintain your PC with commands. Here are just a few examples:

taskkill

taskkill is used to kill tasks that are hung or that you just want to kill. There some switches that allow forceful task killing (/f) etc.

Example syntax:

taskkill /im chrome.exe /f

The above command forcefully kills Google Chrome.

More information on taskkill.

rexec

The rexec command authenticates you on a remote PC and lets you run commands. Want to defrag a PC remotely? Use the following syntax:

rexec GVD defrag D: /F

GVD is the name of the remote PC in this example.

More information on rexec.

subst

subst maps a folder to a drive. If, for example you want to make the Windows folder the W drive, run the following command:

subst W: C:\windows

More information on subst.

shutdown

Want to shutdown your PC or a remote PC? Want to leave a nice message and specify how long the computer will wait before shutting down? Use the following syntax:

shutdown /t 20 /m \\GVD /c "20 seconds till shutdown"

This will shutdown PC “GVD” 20 seconds from the time the command is run.

More information on shutdown.

Create a Batch File of Any Command

If you want to automate a command (i.e. run it on a schedule, on startup, shutdown etc.) you should create a batch file. Use the following syntax in your .bat file.

%windir%\System32\cmd.exe /c "ipconfig /all"

If you want to see the output of the command, add PAUSE to the end of the batch file.

What commands did I miss? Do you have any other commands you use on a regular basis?

UPDATE - A massive thank you to all who took part in this amazing Giveaway. As much as i’d love to give you all a copy of Windows 7 Ultimate for the new year, unfortunately there can only be one winner.
The winner has been notified via. their Facebook account. Please get in contact with me at rsvr85 at mintywhite dot com to arrange shipping.
Again, a huge thanks to all who participated, congratulations to the winner and a happy new year!

———————————

We love our readers at Windows Guides.  So much so, we’re delighted to announce our Windows Guides Christmas Giveaway, which is…(drum roll please)….Windows 7 Ultimate, just in case you missed the post title!

The competition will run from now until 1st January 2011 (3 weeks) where the winner will be announced shortly after.

Here’s how to get your hands on this amazing prize:

What Do I Win?

Windows 7 Ultimate (Retail: $319.99)

How Do I Win?

There are several ways everyone can enter this Giveaway;

Once you’ve done one of the following, post a comment to this article with a link to your ‘Share’.

1 – Tweet this article

2 – Share this article on Facebook

3 – Share this article on Google Buzz

4 – Submit this article to Stumbleupon.com

All four methods above are available in our sidebar;

A few things to bear in mind:

The Giveaway is open to everyone, regardless of geographic location

The Giveaway will close January 1st 00:00 GMT

You can enter as many times as you wish, the more you share this article, the more chances you have of winning!

The winner will be randomly selected from eligible comments.

Good luck to all!

On a number of occasions, I’ve noticed a file named Sentinel in the iTunes base directory. I did a Google search around a year ago and didn’t find anything explaining what it was and, after noticing it again recently, searched again to no avail. I decided to figure out what the file was by seeing what actions updated it (I noticed the last modified date was yesterday.) In this guide, I explain what the file is for those that are curious.

Behavior of the Sentinel File

I was pretty sure the Sentinel file was okay to have and didn’t pose any kind of threat, but I wanted to be sure.

To determine the purpose of the file (and why it was updated yesterday), I started changing things in iTunes to see what happened. Finally, I got the timestamp to change when I deleted a song from my library. This caused the iTunes Library.itl to change as well as the Sentinel file.

I then played some more and noticed it updating again. I ran some commands to see when the file was being accessed and by what processes and found it was being accessed when iTunes started. Then, I deleted the file, reopened iTunes and noticed it was created again.

Finally, I changed the date on the file (I figured I was on to something now and wanted to prove a point) and noticed it was recreated when I opened iTunes.

Conclusion

The sentinel file is a integrity file that is updated when the library is updated. iTunes uses this file to determine the integrity of the iTunes library (that the timestamps match.) If there is a difference in timestamps, iTunes will run an integrity check on the iTunes library. By using this method, the overhead of running this check every time is removed.