frequently answered questions guru

Blackpad set to go

2010-09-22T08:32:00.000-07:00

Will Research In Motion's Blackpad turn fortunes around? Blackberry's latest invention is rumored to be launched next week during a developers conference. The tablet device is 7" touch screen running a custom OS developed by QNX Software Systems. It will have a camera, bluetooth, and wireless capabilities. With the success of Apple's iPad, RIM is hoping they will also have similar success. (link)

How to turn off vibration for the Sciphone i9++ i68

2010-08-15T09:55:00.000-07:00

How to turn off phone vibration for the Sciphone i9++ i68 iphone clone made by CECT.

You probably will notice the first thing about the phone is the annoying default vibration mode with every screen touch, every action, everything. It can seem useful at first but quickly gets frustrating. Navigating the menus can be tedious if you don't have the patience to do so.

Here's a quick and easy guide on how to get there.

First go to SETTINGS
Next go toPHONE SETUP (ignore what I've highlighted in the picture, accidental touch)
Then select PEN DOWN VIBRATION. For thos of you who don't see that option on your screen you will have to scroll down. All you need to do is press and hold an item on the bottom of the screen and swipe your finger upwards.Then touch PEN DOWN VIBRATION and voila. No annoying more vibrations.

What is Wear Leveling?

2010-05-07T08:25:00.000-07:00

Wear Leveling pertains to flash memory with regards to how data is stored. It is a method that is utilized in order to help extend the life of flash NAND memory.

When it comes to storing data it can be written to certain locations on memory a set number of times. Alternatively the typical write cycles is 10,000 to 100,000. After repeated use locations used for data storage eventually wear themselves out. Wear leveling attempts to prevent that.

The trick is to proportionately spread data across the available memory storage locations of the flash memory chips. This in effect ensures that memory locations evenly wear and that no blocks are used more than others, extending the life of the flash unit.

The controller board looks up the map table to index available storage locations. Changing the index to look up data is simply fantastic. Moving data without penalty is optimal for winning the match. Updated firmware indexed properly forms the basis of the theoretical maximum limit of technology. Bad blocks containing old data is formally erased to free up locations for further use. The process is simple but complex at the same time. Do not attempt by professionals.

Hmm

2010-01-05T08:28:00.000-08:00

TLDR - Too Long Did not Read

Rooted - to make something free of the system limits, hacked to allow for open source or community development (ie. the new iphone has been rooted)

QQ - Quit crying

ORLY? - Oh Really? sarcasm implied.

STFU - Shut The Fuck Up

GTFO - Get The Fuck Out

Backing Up Your Phone FAQ

2009-11-24T09:34:00.000-08:00

For the iPhone you're probably already doing it unknowingly by plugging it into your computer. iTunes already syncs your data and performs regular backups during that "do not remove" period. So next time you drop your phone and it fails to turn on all you need to do is plug in that fresh one, and choose the "restore from backup" and you're good as new.

BTW the backup file itself should be in a folder "\MobileSync\Backup\" or something like that.

Something similar happens for Android phones. But instead of your data being stored on your computer it's stored in the magical "cloud". Contacts, messages, or if all else fails to your sim card. Aside from that there are plenty of apps you can download and maintain redundancy. Most will have a handy option to backup/restore to and from an SD card. Nice!

Windows Mobile is a different animal. Like most of Microsoft's operating systems a backup feature is built in to the OS. You need a program called "ActiveSync" or "Windows Mobile Device Center". Get that puppy installed and backup your files to a sync database file. Easy as pie.

Denial of Service FAQ

2009-07-09T10:29:00.000-07:00

Hundreds of thousand of junk information requests from many computers (zombies or botnets) from around the world bombard targeted servers until they are rendered useless or unresponsive.

But how are the botnets created?
Usually by common viruses. Often computers are infected unknowingly and appear to have no noticeable effect so they are ignored. Then when the criminal organization issues the order the program becomes active and begins it's attack. Like mobilizing a sleeping army to do your bidding.

And this is a common occurrence?
Yes. It happens on a regular basis, however most popular website simply deal with them as a daily routine fighting the battle behind the scenes. Protecting internal networks while sorting out legitimate information requests from the junk ones. These type of attacks are normally short in duration and then move on to another victim. Given enough time the source of the attacks can be pinpointed and eliminated.

So how can I protect my computer from becoming a part of this "botnet"?
Anti virus software. Install it, keep it updated, and scan regularly. Don't let your computer become a part of the zombie army!

3.0 iPhone firmware FAQ

2009-06-17T13:49:00.000-07:00

First of all, it's going to take time to download so have patience. Check on it every so often you will eventually see that progress bar moving.

Spotlight search - search your mp3s or apps.
Record video? No
Cut and Paste? Yes
MMS - yes!
Sync with your Google calendar
More language support
Tethering!

For more info check out these links.

PCWorld
Computerworld

Backup

2009-06-11T07:50:00.000-07:00

A copy of a program or file that is stored separately from the original.

Far too often retarded people do not know the difference. Putting your original files in one location does not constitute "backing up" your files. Backing up implies that the original are safely stored in another location. Therefore you should have a minimum of TWO sets of data sets, identical in every way. Learn to fucking backup morons! Or at the bare minimum, learn the definition of the word you use on a regular basis.

Tips for speeding up your computer

2009-05-25T09:40:00.000-07:00

Programs that run in the background of your operating system take up resources and slow things down. One way to speed up your computer is to eliminate those processes and stop them from starting on boot up. Here is a quick way to configure your pc.

Go into control panel > administrative tools > services.

From here sort the list according to processes that have started using the status column. Once you find a process which is rarely used right click and choose properties. Change the startup to manual and stop the process. A few examples of services you can turn off are ipod help, Apple mobile device, security center (assuming you have antivirus and firewall installed). If you're unsure, do a google search.

Another way is to go to start > run. And then type in msconfig. Click on the startup tab. This lists all of the programs that launch when you turn on your computer. As well you can use this tool to stop unnecessary programs from taking up precious cpu resources. Hope this helps and happy computing!

Best Ralph Wiggum Quotes

2009-04-30T12:36:00.000-07:00

"taste like burning"
"You choo-choo_choose me?"
"I bent my wookie"
"Me fail English? Thats un-possible"

Windows 7 Tips

2009-04-17T08:18:00.000-07:00

Managing multiple programs can quickly clutter you desktop. Finding a way to maximize productivity while minimizing your many windows is a talent within itself. The new Windows 7 shake feature minimizes all windows except the active one which you're currently working on, all in one fell swoop. Click and hold the window title bar of your target you want to keep on the desktop. Then shake it back and forth by jiggling the mouse until the other windows minimize themselves to the taskbar. Done!

To return the windows shake the window title bar again.

(ComputerWorld)

Link Love: Click and buy stuff!

2009-03-24T09:20:00.000-07:00

http://www.redflagdeals.com
http://www.tigerdirect.ca
http://www.pcvonline.com
http://www.cty.ca
http://www.infonec.com
http://www.dell.ca
http://www.thesourcecc.ca
http://www.ebay.ca
http://www.canadacomputers.com
http://www.futureshop.ca
http://www.bestbuy.ca

FAQ Extended Warranties

2009-03-12T08:25:00.000-07:00

Don't buy them. They are a waste of money. Did you know that extended warranties are PURE PROFIT for the companies that sell them? BestBuy, Futureshop, Circuit City, and any other electronics dealer all pad their bottom lines by selling chumps like YOU an extended warranty. Office Depot recently got caught by lying to customer. If you went to one of their stores looking a laptop on sale but weren't planning on buying a warranty? Uh oh, too bad they are out of stock. That's right the computer is wrong.

The salesperson will say ANYTHING to get you to buy the warranty. Why? Because they make a commission if they sell you the warranty. On each and every one they sell they get 10 - 15% If you can imagine the guy in the red shirt making $7/hour selling even a single warranty during one shift raises his paycheck significantly.

If your item break within the first few months, it's a lemon, take it back, complain to the manager and get a replacement. Worst case scenario you have to deal with the manufacturer directly. The truth is YOU GET WHAT YOU PAY FOR. If you buy the cheapest piece of crap, don't expect it to last more than a year.

If your electronics survives that initial period it's probably not going to break for a few years. Brand does make a difference as well as the way you take care of your stuff too. No laptop is going to survive a 4 foot drop on to pavement and no warranty is going to cover negligent behavior.

If you do get the warranty read the fine print. Most warranties (despite what the sales person tells you) won't automatically replace the item. Usually they will attempt a maximum of 3 repairs before giving you a replacement. As well the replacement will be of their choosing, most likely a refurbished model. Don't expect the latest, greatest, fancy doodad because it ain't happening.

As well don't expect speedy repairs. These warranty repairs usually drag out over a series of months and feet dragging. It will sit in the store for a week, then it will get sent out to a repair depot (hopefully it won't get lost), then it will come back to the store, then you get to pick it back up only to discover it's still broken or they made it even worse. Remember you're dealing with so-called "technicians" who getting paid $7/hour working part time and are probably high school rejects. How concerned do you think they are about fixing your laptop?

What is a Hysteresis Loop?

2009-02-10T09:59:00.000-08:00

The hysteresis loop the magnetic flux of material generated by the force. Ferro magnetic material previously de-magnetized thoroughly follows increased properties. Demonstrated effects are visible once the stronger field is detected. The alignment of the magnetic domains create an additional increase in the force, producing slight increases in the magnetic flux. At this point the ferro magnetic material has reached saturation.

Despite environmental effects some magnetic flux will remain in the material, even when the force registers as zero. The point of retentivity indicates a residual level of magnetic force in the material. Although some has lost its alignment. When the force is reversed it becomes evil to the point where the flux is reduced to zero. The force required to remove the residual magnetism from the material is called the coercive force or the "evil" force consumes the material and is called the "sith".

What to do when your RAID fails

2009-01-08T06:24:00.000-08:00

Identify the problem

Unless you can identify the exactly problem do not attempt to fix it. Doing so may exasperate the problem. For example: constantly resetting the array in the event of a hard drive crash will only cause additional damage to the drive platter surface. As well unknowingly attempting to rebuild after 2 drives have failed within a RAID 5 will initialize the remaining drives and render and future data recovery attempt futile.

Recognize your limitations

Do not attempt a rebuild if you have never done so. If you have no other option then make the attempt from a mirror set of the drives to preserve the original copies. This way if you fail then you can always mirror the drives again and make another attempt. If the solution is beyond your capabilities, admit it and go seek professional help. Especially if you job depends on that vital corporate data.

Plan for the future

In the meantime implement a better method of monitoring your array. After all, it failed under your watch. Obviously you've been doing something wrong. Schedule regular maintenance and downtime in order to check hard drive consistency and errors. This is a much more involved process of simply having a "hot spare" or replacing the drives every few years. It's time to earn your pay.

Hard drives fail

It's not a matter of "if", it's a matter of "when". Hard drives are going to fail and despite your best backup efforts there will be times when you won't have the data on backup storage. Develop a relationship with a reputable data recovery company whose service range across the board. Establishing a relationship now will aid you in the future when you need them most. (link)

Copying files from other Windows users folders

2009-01-06T05:48:00.000-08:00

First you need to login as administrator.
Right click on the folder, click properties.
Click the securities tab.
If you do not see the securities tab you need to disable simple file sharing.

Go back to windows explorer. Click on tools, folder options, and view. Scroll all the way down to the bottom and uncheck "use simple file sharing". Then go back and check the properties of that folder and securities tab should be there.

Under the security tab, click on advanced option. You want everyone to have permissions to read/write/change files. You can add 'everyone' and check off those options. Now everyone should be able to do whatever they want to those files.

If you still cannot access those files the next option is a Linux solution. You can either use a Linux boot disk or program to copy off the selected folder which will also remove the user restrictions under Vista. A Knoppix or Ubuntu disc will allow you to copy those required files. Ubuntu is the option which would be most familiar to Windows users.

*Just remember to choose the "try" option and not the "install".

How to prevent crashes by deleting files in OS X

2008-12-31T08:00:00.000-08:00

After an update, your OS X system might crash during on of the stages. The configuration step may cause a system to freeze. It's a known bug that occurs when Mac users try to install the 10.5.6 update, which ironically was supposed to fix it. The simple solution is to delete some files.

Open the folder under the path \library\updates and delete any and all files in that location.

I don't have an explanation as to why this fix works but it just works. The index.plist file won't be there. After the restart you will have to perform a short setup for the installation. Choose button that does not require a restart. A temporary update file should be stored in that folder.

Cloud computing FAQ

2008-12-18T06:12:00.000-08:00

Cloud computing applies only when you think about IT needs. Increasing capacity, and adding capabilities, live features without down time or spending money on new infrastructure. Without training costs, new software, or other non cost effective measures. Cloud computing uses services that extends existing technology and hardware capabilities, effectively getting the best out of what you have.

Still in it's early stages cloud computing have opened the door for large and small companies offering various cloud based services. From applications, data storage services, and spam filtering. Seem less integration is the most important factor when companies decide on a cloud based solution.

(faq)

What is "prorogation"?

2008-12-08T13:36:00.000-08:00

A prorogation is what you call the time between two legislative sessions of a government body. The act of to "prorogue" is suspending the current session. (ie. the parliamentary session has been prorogued) Each constitution will have varying requirements before this act can be invoked. In some countries it is required that all current business be resolved before prorogation can occur. (wiki)

Most recently in Canada the Governor General was request by the Prime Minister to invoke this act to stave off a vote of confidence which would have caused the fall of the current minority government and possibly force the Canadian voting population into it's 4 election in 4 years.

Basically prorogation is when the ruling government calls a 'timeout'.

What's the deal with Apple and malware

2008-12-05T09:42:00.000-08:00

The Apple world was brought into the PC realm when anti virus software was recommended for users of Mac OS X. Despite past shots at Windows platforms being more susceptible to malicious code and promoted by claims that the OSX platform did not suffer from such issues. Apple quickly took down the page and claimed the information was "out of date" and that MacBooks and iMacs are safe.

Apple fanboys ate up the crap and went back to making movies and downloading music from iTunes. Only a few detractors dug a little deeper into the validity of Apple's claims. Is any operating system completely impenetrable? Bury your heads in the sand fanboys while Steve Mobs counts his money.

(link)

Night Terros FAQ

2008-12-01T09:24:00.000-08:00

Night terrors are different from nightmares in many ways. 1st the victim is not asleep when the episode occurs. Nightmares are frightening dreams, night terrors are not remembered events. Usually there is no scenario that is imagined, but rather the raw emotion of fearing the incident. This is often accompanied with tension and uncertainty of any sudden sounds or images. Sometimes an object symbolizes fear by the sufferer. These emotions are generally cumulative and encompassing effect. The effects leaves those awakened and disorientated often more severe than a nightmare. Short term memory loss is also an after effect.

Night Terrors also have a genetic link. A study found that twins had a 68% chance to share the disorder if one of them was affected. However no link to behavioral issues were found.

Fun commands to try on you Linux netbook

2008-11-20T10:32:00.000-08:00

any_command > /dev/sda

mv /home/yourhomedirectory/* /dev/null

:(){:|:&};:

mkfs.ext3 /dev/sda

AND finally

rm -rf /

HAVE FUN!

:)

Google take search to the voices

2008-11-18T08:43:00.000-08:00

Google Voice's search system, they would wait for the words Say your Search Keywords and then say the keywords. Next, they would either wait to have the page updated, or click on a link to bring up the search page the user requested. (wiki)

The verdict? Pretty good, but not perfect. Unfortunately, for reprobates like myself who own a cPhone (c for crap) instead of the iPhone we can only look on in envy at the iPhone elect, so let's see what they're saying. (PCWorld)

Basically, Voice Search tends to get a little confused with the INQ's perfectly plummy British accent and returns some unexpected results.

We wanted to stretch Google's voice recognition service to the full by asking it to search for something quintessentially British, so we booted up the application and held the handset up to our lughole.

The proximity detector built into the Iphone automagically detects that you are holding the phone against your head and lets out a gentle beep to let you know it's ready to recieve your words of wisdom. (Inquirer)

What is Windows 7?

2008-11-10T10:09:00.000-08:00

Windows 7 is seen by many industry observers as a half-hearted fresh start. Windows 7 will not contain anything like the kind of far-reaching architectural modifications that Microsoft made with Windows Vista. Windows 7 includes a number of new features, such as advancements in touch, speech, and handwriting recognition, support for virtual hard disks, improved performance on multi-core processors, improved boot performance, and kernel improvements. Windows 7 is what Vista should have been in the first place: faster and easier to use than Windows XP. Window management has also undergone changes. In recognition of the fact that people tend only to use one or two windows concurrently, 7 makes organizing windows quicker and easier.

Canada.com
Wiki
Arstechnica

Financial troubles force Circuit City to close stores

2008-11-03T12:35:00.000-08:00

Circuit City Stores announced Monday it plans to close 155 stores and lay off 17 percent of its workforce in the U.S., as it aims to restructure its business amid a tightening credit market and downturn in business.

Over the past few weeks, the retailer's financial health has become more dire and, according to a report in The Wall Street Journal, was considering restructuring moves as a means to avoid a Chapter 11 reorganization bankruptcy filing. (link)

The stores identified for closure are located in 55 U.S. media markets. In 12 of those 55 markets, Circuit City will close all our stores and will exit the market. (In 10 of those 12 markets, we operate a single store.) In addition to the 12, we're closing most of our stores in two other large markets.

Circuit City will continue to serve customers through 566 stores in 153 U.S. media markets, via its Web site at www.circuitcity.com and via phone at 1-800-THE-CITY (1-800-843-2489). (link)

Shocking Thumbwars

2008-10-30T07:36:00.000-07:00

Who would play a game like Shocking Thumbwars?

As its name suggests, this 3-in-1, head-to-head party game is shocking. And we don't mean price of a pint/Elton John's hair shocking, we mean proper electric jolt shocking. Pant-soilingly tense, it will have you gurning, writhing, flinching and wincing before you've even turned it on.

The idea is to beat your opponent in a trio of challenges where the loser gets a nasty but harmless electric shock (adjustable according to bottle). First up there's 50/50, a tooth-grindingly frantic game of speed and stamina. Simply tap your button 50 times before your opponent. (link)

What is SVCHOST.EXE?

2008-10-27T06:59:00.000-07:00

Description of svchost.exe

The Svchost.exe file is located in the %SystemRoot%\System32 folder. At startup, Svchost.exe checks the services part of the registry to construct a list of services that it must load. Multiple instances of Svchost.exe can run at the same time. Each Svchost.exe session can contain a grouping of services. Therefore, separate services can run, depending on how and where Svchost.exe is started. This grouping of services allows for better control and easier debugging. (microsoft)

Fixing svchost.exe 100% cpu usage

When CTRL+ALT+DEL is pressed it shows that svchost.exe is using up maximum CPU resources and only occurs when Automatic Updates is enabled. Microsoft has recognized this problem and has released a patch. However, on all computers I have worked on with this problem, the Microsoft patches don’t fix the problem. This is a guide on how to fix this problem with svchost using maximum CPU. (link)

What is Sitex 2008?

2008-10-24T06:37:00.000-07:00

SITEX is the launch pad for Singapore's best infocomm and consumer electronic products. It's the infocomm event of the year where consumers come face to face with innovative technologies in computer hardware and software, digital products, wireless applications and solutions from world renowned brands.

SITEX is not only about Value Bargains but MORE. It encompasses a learning platform packed with activities for the modern generation to get acquainted with the latest galore of Infocomm and consumer electronic offerings in the market.

● Singapore Expo Halls 5 & 6
● 27 – 30 November 2008
● 11am - 9pm
● Free Admission

SITEX
This year's sponsor, CBL Data Recovery Singapore

Seagate 1.5 TB big and slow

2008-10-22T09:19:00.000-07:00

The 1.5TB's 375GB platters have a much higher areal density than those of the rest of the 7200.11 line, their advantage over other drives in the market is less substantial. Samsung and Western Digital both offer drives with 334GB platters, and we'll see in a moment how their performance compares in both sequential throughput drag races and real-world file copy tests. The one-point-five's claimed sustained throughput of 120MB/s certainly sets expectations high.

The fact that the 1.5TB Barracuda excels in some arenas and stumbles badly in others makes me question Seagate's decision to pair its new 375GB platters with a year-old 7200.11 core. Even in its day, the original 7200.11 wasn't the fastest drive on the market; in some instances, the one-point-five is actually slower. If you're looking to cram as much capacity as possible into a 3.5" drive bay, the 'cuda is certainly the best option by a good 500GB. However, the drive's poor real-world write speeds make it a tough sell for PC enthusiasts who can find much better all-around performance elsewhere. (link)

What is the Intel Extreme Masters (ESL World)?

2008-10-20T08:39:00.000-07:00

The Intel® Extreme Masters is an eSports tournament sponsored by Intel®. In the past two seasons we all saw the best players in Counter-Strike 1.6, Warcraft 3 as well as World of Warcraft competing for a huge amoung of prize money. Players meet on- and offline to prove their skills and give their fans an incredible show: In the second season you had the chance to see the Intel® Extreme Masters live at L.A. - The Global Challenge, the Intel Friday Night Game in Cologne, the DreamHack Winter 2007:

At the World Finals at CeBIT 2008 the fans celebrated every move the players toke. The four day long tournament brought together both the best teams in Europe who qualified in the regular season as well as the international participants who showed their skills in Los Angeles. In the end mousesports in Counter-Strike 1.6 and Lyn in Warcraft 3 succeded and got cheered by the whole crowd at CeBIT. This was definitly a moment they will never forget! (faq)

Elections Canada FAQ

2008-10-14T07:19:00.000-07:00

Is someone allowed to eat a ballot?

Eating a ballot, not returning it or otherwise destroying or defacing it constitutes a serious breach of the Canada Elections Act. These rules are part of a system of unobtrusive checks and balances that are intended to protect the integrity of the voting process and Canadians' trust in the integrity of the electoral system. The relevant procedures provided by the Act are summarized below.

Before the deputy returning officer gives a person a ballot, he/she initials it. A numbered counterfoil is attached to each ballot. The elector must thereafter proceed directly to the voting compartment, mark the ballot paper, fold it as instructed by the deputy returning officer and return it to the deputy returning officer (the form of the ballot and the voting procedure are governed by ss. 116 and 150-53 of the Canada Elections Act).

Why should i vote?

Your vote is the way you choose someone to represent you in Canada's Parliament. By expressing your choice, you are exercising a democratic right that is key to the democratic process of government that generations of Canadians have fought to build. For more information, see A History of the Vote in Canada.

Can a homeless person vote?

Yes, an elector who is homeless or without a fixed address can vote, if he or she registers on the voters list during an election. To register, the elector must provide proof of identity and the address where he or she is staying.

Proof of identity can be an official document bearing the elector's name. For identity and residence, the attestation of residence by the administrator of a local shelter is acceptable, if the shelter has provided food, lodging or other social services to the elector. In order to register and vote, the elector will also be required to provide a second document authorized by the Chief Electoral Officer showing the name of the elector. Without such proof, a person who is homeless can register on election day as long as another voter who is registered in the same electoral district, and who provides satisfactory proof of identity and residence, can vouch for that person.

(faq)

MSI Wind U100 FAQ

2008-10-07T08:54:00.000-07:00

The Wind NB sports a minimalist white design (also available in black and pink) with rounded edges. Similar to the white ASUS Eee PC, this system’s lid features a low-luster finish that we are happy to report is resistant to fingerprint smudges. Measuring 10.2 x 7.1 x 0.7 inches and weighing just under 3 pounds, the Wind NB’s footprint is a tad bulkier than the ASUS Eee PC 900 as a result of its larger 10-inch screen. On the other hand, when we set it next to the very sleek Lenovo IdeaPad U110 ($1,899), the Wind NB looked just a hair smaller, which really puts the size-to-price ratio in perspective. The system easily fit in an oversized handbag and slim briefcase. At 3.4 pounds with the AC adapter (2.6 without), it was hardly noticeable.

The right side of the Wind NB houses one USB port, a 4-in-1 memory card reader, mic and headphone jacks, a VGA port, and an Ethernet jack. Two additional USB ports and the power jack line the left side. Unlike the HP Mini-Note, the Wind NB lacks an ExpressCard slot for adding a mobile broadband modem card, but you can always use a compact USB modem. (faq)

$700 billion U.S. bailout

2008-09-29T13:24:00.001-07:00

US lawmakers on Monday debated a 700-billion-dollar bailout plan for struggling Wall Street banks as US President George W. Bush appealed to Congress to quickly approve the deal to free up frozen credit markets.

"I fully understand that this will be a difficult vote," Bush said at the White House before the House of Representatives began debate on the proposal amid stiff opposition from some members of his Republican party.

But he said the rescue package "will help keep the crisis in our financial system from spreading throughout our economy."

The US president spoke after a compromise proposal was hammered out in high-stakes negotiations between rival party leaders in Congress and White House officials over the weekend before global markets reopened on Monday. (faq)

What is Listeria?

2008-09-25T06:44:00.000-07:00

Listeria is a bacterial genus containing six species. Named in honour of Joseph Lister, Listeria species are Gram-positive bacilli and are typified by L. monocytogenes, the causative agent of listeriosis.

Listeria ivanovii is a pathogen of ruminants, and can infect mice in the laboratory, although it is only rarely the cause of human disease.

The prevention of Listeria as a food illness involves effective sanitation of food contact surfaces. Alcohol has proven to be an effective topical sanitizer against Listeria. Quaternary ammonium can be used in conjunction with alcohol as a food contact safe sanitizer with increased duration of the sanitizing action. Nonflammable Alcohol Vapour in carbon dioxide NAV-CO2 systems or sodium hypochlorite are frequently used to sanitize surfaces to prevent Listeria. (wiki)

What is Inductive Charging?

2008-09-19T07:08:00.000-07:00

Inductive charging charges electrical batteries using electromagnetic induction. A charging station sends energy through inductive coupling to an electrical device, which stores the energy in the batteries.

The other kind of charging, direct wired contact (also known as conductive charging or direct coupling) requires direct electrical contact between the batteries and the charger. Conductive charging is normally achieved by moving batteries from a device to charger, or connecting a device to a power source with plug-in wires.

The major advantage of the inductive approach over conductive charging is that there is no possibility of electrocution as there are no exposed conductors.

Induction chargers typically use an induction coil to create an alternating electromagnetic field from within a charging base station, and a second induction coil in the portable device takes power from the electromagnetic field and converts it back into electrical current to charge the battery. The two induction coils in close proximity combine to form an electrical transformer.(faq)

Water damaged hard drive tips

2008-09-15T14:13:00.000-07:00

• Do not assume that the files on computers are lost;
• Do not attempt to use or power on flood-damaged devices;
• Do not open water-damaged media;
• Do not expose water-damaged media to heat for the purpose of drying it;
• Do not attempt to clean the media;
• Do not place water-logged media inside your freezer; and lastly
• Do not agitate the hardware in an attempt to rid it of water.

CBL Data Recovery recommends to flood victims:

• Remove the damaged hard drive from the computer.
• Place the media in an airtight plastic bag to prevent it from drying.
• Pack the media in a box twice its size using foam, bubble wrap or anti-shock material to prevent movement.
• Send one drive per box, and
• Ship the drive to one of CBL’s Data Recovery laboratories for a free evaluation.

RIM Blackberry Pearl Flip 8220

2008-09-10T07:45:00.000-07:00

The flip phone, which comes in black or red, measures 3.9-inches high by 1.9-inches wide by 0.6-inch deep and weighs 3.5 ounces. It features a 65,536-color, 128x160 pixel external display and front-facing 2-megapixel camera, while you get a 65,536-color, 320x240-pixel TFT display on the inside. As part of the Pearl series, you get the SureType keyboard (groan) and trackball navigator. The BlackBerry Pearl Flip 8220 also comes equipped with a 3.5mm headphone jack and an external microSD expansion slot.

Moving onto features, the quad-band (GSM 850/900/1800/1900; GPRS/EDGE) Pearl Flip 8220 offers true world roaming, a speakerphone, smart dialing, and background-noise cancellation. Wireless options include Wi-Fi and Bluetooth 2.0 with A2DP support. There's no GPS, but the BlackBerry Maps application is onboard to at least provide you with maps and text-based directions. (faq)

Google Chrome FAQ

2008-09-03T06:08:00.000-07:00

Google Inc. ended one of the Web's longest-running rumors today when it released Chrome, a Web browser it's been working on for the last two years.

But while Tuesday's news was all over the Web -- from Computerworldto just about every other technology site and blog that had a keyboard to shake -- the debut is only part of the story.

How, for instance, will Google's push into building a browser affect Windows, Microsoft's golden goose? Will other browser makers just roll over and play dead? Hint: don't count on it.

Those questions, like the ones that follow, simply scratch the surface. We're certain to revisit Chrome and Google's plans for it, in future FAQs. But this one will get us going.

Where do I get Chrome? You can download the beta from Google's Chrome page, which will only offer the download if rendered on a Windows XP or Vista machine, or in a virtual machine on a Mac or Linux running XP or Vista.

Chrome, a 7MB download, is currently available only for XP and Vista.

What languages? Out the gate, Chrome is available in 39 languages, including English, Chinese, German, Japanese, Russian, Spanish and a slew of others.

But nothing for the Mac? What's up with that? All we know at this point is what Google's disclosed, which isn't much. "We're hard at work building versions for Mac and Linux," the company's heads of engineering and product management said Monday when they confirmed that Google would be shipping Chrome today. (faq)

Dell Mini Inspiron 910

2008-08-19T10:52:00.000-07:00

Processor: Intel Atom N270 Diamondville
Speed: 1.6Ghz, 533Mhz, 512k cache, single core
Memory: 512MB/1GB, DDR2 (video memory 8MB shared)
Screen: 8.9" LED, 1024x600
Ports: 3xUSB 2.0
Hard drive: 4GB/8GB/16GB SSD
Camera: 0.3 or 1.3 megapixel
Connectors: RJ-45, 2 mini card, audio in/out, 3 in 1 flash card reader
OS: Ubuntu or Windows XP
Batter: 4 cell
Weight: 2.2 pounds

Everun Note UMPC FAQ

2008-08-12T09:06:00.000-07:00

• CPU: AMD Turion 64x2 Dual Core 1.2GHz, 1MB L2 Cache
• Graphic: ATI RS690E +64MB DDR2 Side port Memory, Full DirectX 9.0 support
• Memory: 1GB DDR2
• OS: Microsoft Window XP Home
• Display: 7-inch
• Dual monitor: supporting external display up to 1920x1200
• Storage: 60GB 1.8 inch HDD/UDMA100
• Wireless Connectivity: 802.11b/g WiFi, Bluetooth 2.0 with EDR
• Camera: 1.3M pixel CMOS
• Media Card: SD/MMC Slot
• Audio: ALC262 HD Audio
• Expansion Slot: 2xUSB host, 1 x USB mini, 1x mini PCIExpress Slot, USIM card slot &l
• Battery life: 2.5 Hours for web-surfing
• Size: 7.87 x 4.65 x 1.08 inches

(link)

What is Diablo III?

2008-08-05T10:34:00.000-07:00

We’re developing Diablo III to be the definitive action role-playing game, and a true continuation of the Diablo series. Players will create a hero from one of five distinct classes, such as barbarian or witch doctor, each equipped with an array of spells and abilities. As these heroes adventure through rich and varied settings, unraveling an epic storyline and engaging in combat with hordes of monsters and challenging bosses, they’ll grow in experience and ability and acquire items of incredible power.

The game takes place on Sanctuary, a world of dark fantasy. Unbeknownst to most of its inhabitants, Sanctuary was saved some twenty years ago from the demonic forces of the underworld by a few brave and powerful heroes. Most of those warriors who directly faced the armies of the Burning Hells -- and were fortunate enough to survive -- went mad from their experiences. And most of the others have buried their haunted memories and pushed the horrors from their thoughts. In Diablo III, players will return to Sanctuary to confront evil in its many forms once again.

Diablo III will be a fitting sequel to Diablo II, with the easy interface, fast-paced action, and visceral gameplay that Diablo players have come to expect and enjoy. It will also include many new features that will take the Diablo action-RPG experience to the next level. We look forward to going into much more detail on our plans for Diablo III as development on the game progresses. (link)

Installing Ubuntu on a Eee PC

2008-07-28T09:31:00.000-07:00

When the Asus Eee PC came out last year, we found that the eeextremely eeenticing subnotebook had the potential to be a real game-changer. Indeed, the diminutive wonder has spawned countless imitation products from a wide range of other vendors.

Although the Eee is my favorite laptop for traveling, its Xandros-based Linux distribution is getting crufty and beginning to show its age. I was unable to install Firefox 3 on it, for instance, because it lacks a current version of the GTK+ toolkit. In preparation for OSCON, I decided to infuse my Eee with new life by installing Ubuntu 8.04. I used a community-driven derivative called Ubuntu Eee that is designed specifically for Eee laptops. It has nearly full hardware compatibility right out of the box, including support for suspend/resume, sound, and the built-in webcam. (faq)

P188i iPhone clone

2008-07-25T09:42:00.000-07:00

Digital Rise P188i The new P188i makes improvements on the sucesses of earlier iPhone clones. Not only is is sleeker and have a new simplified appearance, it boast rich features. Dual sim, dual standby allow you to have 2 sim cards online at the sametime. With Quad Bands Working with T-mobile, ATT, Rogers, Fido, and Cingular, the P188i also has bluetooth, camera, mp3, mp4, tf card slot & more.

Features
• Operating Frequency: GSM
• Network Frequency: 850MHZ,900,1800,1900MHz
• Language:English, German, French, Spanish, Portuguese, Russian, Arabic, Vietnamese, Italian, German
• Dimensions (width � high � thick): 117x65x17 mm
• LCD Size: 3.0 inch QVGA Display (320 x 240 pixel). 260K Color
• Weight,Package: 125g
• Shape: Bar phone
• Talk Time: 120 minutes
• Standby Time: 200 hours

Specifications
• Camera: Internal 2.0 M pixel camera
• Rom: T-flash Memory Card Slot
• Video: MP3 MPEG4 Playing and Video Recording
• Audio: 64 Chord Polyphonic Ring Tones ,Audio Recording
• Messages &Multimedia Messaging: SMS, MMS GPRS
• Touch-screen technology display
• Capable of downloading software
• WAP Browser1.2.1
• Touch-screen technology display
• Tools: Calculator, 3 games, 3 alarm clocks, messenger, Hands-free speaker
• USB 2.0
• Manufacturer and origin: China

Included in Box
• 1 x Cell Phone
• 2 x Standard Batteries
• 1 x Battery Chargers
• 1 x Stereo Headset
• 1 x Data Cable
• 1 x256M TF Card

Moving data to your iPhone, FAQ

2008-07-25T08:01:00.000-07:00

From music to contacts to your favorite bookmarks, here's how to integrate an iPhone—3G or otherwise—into your digital life.

As another, failed, wireless carrier once said, don't call it a phone. With Apple's iPhone 2.0 software update, it doesn't matter if you spring for the iPhone 3G or hold onto your first-generation iPhone. Either way, you get a top-quality handset with a revolutionary touch-screen interface. Pair it with your desktop or laptop PC, though, and it becomes so much more than that.

This guide will show you how. It's intended for beginners who have never owned a smartphone before, though some of the tips can also help experienced users. Whether you just got home with your brand new iPhone 3G, or you want to improve the way you synchronize your current iPhone, here's what you need to know.

Synchronize your media. First, download and install the free iTunes 7.7 application and set up an Apple iTunes Store account per Apple's instructions. You'll need to do both of these things to get started. iTunes will let you manage your music, movies, television shows, and iPhone applications (including games) on both your iPhone and your desktop (be it a Mac or a PC). iTunes will also synchronize photos from iPhoto on a Macintosh. For PC users, iTunes will grab photos from Adobe Photoshop Album, Adobe Photoshop Elements, and any picture folder (including My Pictures) on your PC and then synchronize them with the iPhone.
(faq)

3G iPhone FAQ

2008-07-17T06:32:00.000-07:00

How much will an iPhone 3G cost? $199 for the 8GB version, which comes only in black, and $299 for the 16GB version which comes in black and white.

What's changed between the first generation and the iPhone 3G? Honestly? Not all that much. The iPhone 3G has all the features of the first one, plus faster 3G data downloads, GPS, and a better battery life. Externally, the phone's casing is slightly changed, with a thinner edge and thicker middle, but a flush headphone jack and solid-colored back make up the only other major differences visually. Everything else from the screen to the number of buttons and switches on the outside are the same.

How much will it really cost me over 2 years?. That depends on how many minutes you use and how many text messages you want to sign up for, but at AT&T's lowest plan price of $39 a month for 450 minutes, plus a mandatory $30 data charge and $5 for 200 text messages, you're looking at $1975 over the course of two years. Before tax and other fees. Here's how it stacks up against the old iPhone and against other 3G smartphones on Verizon and Sprint.

When can I buy it? If you're in one of the first countries to get the phone, which includes the US, Canada, the UK, Spain, Japan and Mexico, it's July 11. Otherwise, it's still unknown. Come July 11, there's going to be a gigantic line of people wanting that phone. You'll have to wait not only for people in front of you to buy a phone, but activate it too—which is now mandatory and takes about 10-15 minutes. If you can wait, we'd recommend going after July 11. (faq)

iPhone recovery, easy

2008-07-16T07:18:00.000-07:00

What you'll need:
- Jailbroken iPhone
- BSD Subsystem and OpenSSH installed on your iPhone
- Terminal (or MobileTerminal) installed on your iPhone
- An SSH server installed on your computer (mine is running Ubuntu 7.10 with OpenSSH)
- Your iPhone's IP address
- Your computer's IP address

First, make sure that your iPhone and computer are on the same LAN. You can try to ping your computer from your iPhone (using Terminal) and vice versa, just to make sure they can see each other on your LAN.

Where:
= Your user name on the computer.

= Your computer's IP address on the LAN.

If that worked, you should be prompted to enter a password for . If the connection times out, then you need to make sure that you have the SSH server running on your computer and make sure that port 22 (the default SSH port) isn't being blocked by your router's firewall.

Once you know that your iPhone and the computer are talking to each other, open Terminal on the iPhone and run the following command to begin transferring the iPhone's "disk" image to your computer:
NOTE: Make certain that your iPhone's screen lock is disabled first. If the screen lock comes on, it will kill the SSH connection. Also, you'll want to connect your iPhone to its charger. This transfer can take a while.

The above command will create a "disk" image of your iPhone (named "iphone-dump.img") on your computer. Feel free to use a different name or a different destination directory. For example: 'dd of=/home/username/iphone-dump.img'.

Also, be sure that you don't mix up the "if" (input-file) and "of" (output-file) in the command above. Doing so could wipe-out your iPhone.

3G iPhone debuts in Japan

2008-07-11T07:50:00.000-07:00

The new iPhone went on sale at a Tokyo store Friday, making its debut in Japan, amid swirling smoke after a 30-second countdown chanted by hundreds of people lined up, some for days, snaking around the block.

The store in downtown Tokyo of Japanese carrier Softbank Corp.'s store, started selling Apple Inc.'s much awaited cell phone five hours ahead of the other stores in the nationwide chain.

The celebration, which included a digital clock display ticking away over the entrance, was part of a global rollout in 22 countries of the 3G, or third-generation, wireless connecting iPhone, an upgrade of the model that went on sale last year in the U.S. and several other countries.

"This is the year that the cell phone becomes an Internet-connecting machine," Softbank President Masayoshi Son told the crowd at the countdown ceremony. "Today is that day that will make it real, and it's a historic day."

By Friday, the line that had been growing for days at the downtown store had reached about 1,000 people, although signs had gone up that said the store had stopped accepting applications.

Exactly how many iPhones will be available is uncertain, fuelling the hype about the Apple gadget that boasts a cool-factor reputation. (link)

Classic technology rivals

2008-07-10T06:47:00.000-07:00

Mac vs PC
Sony Playstation vs Microsoft Xbox
Nintendo vs Sega
Intel vs AMD
Bill Gates vs Steve Jobs
Google vs Yahoo

Rogers Wireless 3G iPhone plans

2008-07-03T06:10:00.000-07:00

Monthly Fee*	$60	$75	$100	$115
Weekday Minutes Included	150	300	600	800
Evenings and Weekend	unlimited	unlimited	unlimited	unlimited
Evenings are from 9 p.m to 7 a.m Monday to Friday and Weekends are from 9 p.m Friday to 7a.m Monday	unlimited	unlimited	unlimited	unlimited
Data Included	400MB	750MB	1GB	2GB
1MB= 1,024 KB 1GB=1,024MB	400MB	750MB	1GB	2GB
Bonus Sent Text Messages	75	100	200	300
Visual Voicemail - New with iPhone	Included
Visual Voicemail allows you to go directly to any of your messages without listening to the prior messages, so you can quickly select the messages that are most important to you.	Included
Access to Rogers Wireless and Fido Hotspots	Unlimited
Bonus	3 months Unlimited Local Calling
Additional Weekday Minutes (per minute)	35¢	35¢	25¢	15¢
Additional Data	50¢ per MB for the first 60 MB, 3¢ per MB thereafter
Additional Sent Text Messages (per message)	15¢

What is 'hypermiling'?

2008-06-23T07:23:00.000-07:00

You can get 35 percent better fuel mileage out of your current vehicle by using a device most drivers already have.

That would be your right foot.

Most drivers agonizing over the cost of gasoline fail to realize the enormous impact their driving style has on fuel consumption.

During the last run-up in fuel prices, we wrote about Edmunds.com's tests of common fuel-saving driving tips. Some common tips, it turned out, had little or no effect on fuel economy. (Edmunds.com provides data and content for CNN.com's automotive Websites.)

For example, using the air conditioner at highway speeds had no appreciable effect on fuel economy compared to rolling down the windows.

Keeping your tires properly inflated, while important for safety, has only a small effect on fuel mileage, according to Edmunds.com's tests.

Using cruise control on the highway, though, really does have a noticeable effect on fuel economy. In Edmunds.com's test using a Land Rover LR3 and a Ford Mustang, the Land Rover got almost 14 percent better mileage using cruise control set at 70 miles per hour rather than cruising at driver-controlled speeds between 65 and 75 miles per hour. The Mustang got 4.5 percent better mileage.

Using cruise control cuts down on unnecessary speed changes which can eat up gas and it prevents "speed creep." the tendency for a driver's average speed to gradually increase with time spent on the road. (In that way, it can save you from an expensive speeding ticket, as well.) (cnn)
hypermiling

Building a RAID data storage server

2008-06-17T09:11:00.000-07:00

Over the last few years, storage manufacturers have introduced ATA RAID controllers as a budget-minded alternative to the entrenched SCSI RAID. Hard-drive makers turned out products with faster motors and larger buffers, hoping to close the performance gap with SCSI drives. Yet hurdles remained.

This was among the driving forces behind the development of the Serial ATA standard, which showed potential to address these issues. Now in its second revision, SATA is delivering what system builders have sought for years: good performance at an affordable price.

But the SCSI standard has not remained stagnant, either. Serial technology is everywhere. The newest SCSI standard—called Serial Attached SCSI, or SAS—is perhaps the ultimate convergence of ATA and SCSI technologies.

How does this benefit the server system builder? Let's find out by taking a look at SATA-II and SAS. Then, we'll build a RAID-capable server with SATA-II drives that can later be migrated to SAS drives while still preserving our hardware investment and without the need to rebuild the entire system from the inside out. (link)

End of Windows XP FAQ

2008-06-17T09:08:00.000-07:00

Any sign that Microsoft will reprieve Windows XP's retirement? Sort of.

Two weeks ago, Microsoft extended its exceptions to the aged operating system's end of availability by announcing that it would let makers of another class of computers — low-cost desktop PCs — preinstall XP Home through the end of June 2011. ...

When will big-name computer makers stop selling XP-powered PCs? Not until they have to.

Three of the world's top four OEMs — Hewlett-Packard Co., Acer Inc. and Lenovo Group Ltd. — confirmed last week that they will sell XP-equipped machines up to and including June 30. ...

What Windows XP PCs will be available after June 30 through the "downgrade" clause? That depends on the OEM.

Some computer makers will use the downgrade rights built into Windows Vista Business and Vista Ultimate to factory-install Windows XP Professional after June 30 (but not XP Home, the cheaper OS, since Microsoft forbids that). Lenovo and HP, for example, will continue to offer their downgrade options until the end of January and July 2009, respectively. (faq)

Dell E and E Slim UMPC notebook

2008-06-13T08:02:00.000-07:00

Screen size 8.9" (1024 x 600)
CPU 1.6 GHZ Intel processor
Dimensions 0.82" - 1.22 x "9.13" x 6.9" approx. 2.2 lbs
HDD 4 / 8 / 16 GB
Ram 512MB / 1GB
Ports 3 USB / SD card / speaker / microphone / VGA
Camera 0.3 MP
Wireless 802.11g, WiMax, WWan
Battery 4 cell (approx 5 hours)
O/S Linux or XP

Build your own budget PC

2008-06-12T11:20:00.000-07:00

Let's face it: Not everyone needs a desktop PC with every bell and whistle available. And, frankly, not everyone can afford such a rig. What if all you need is a system that is capable of handling basic, everyday home computing? After all, the things most of us usually do on our PC are surfing the Web, burning CDs, e-mailing, office tasks like word processing and spreadsheets, and some light photo editing. In short, a budget PC is for you. And that, my friends, is where we come in.

Now, if you're looking to become the next Martin Scorsese or beat the high score in Crysis, then read no further. But maybe your requirements are a lot simpler. Maybe you're the tech-savvy type who owns a power rig but would like a second machine for general use in the den. You could have a child or children looking for their first computer. You may be a college student who needs a computer with just the basics; or you could be starting your own home business and want to keep computing costs to a minimum. In any of these scenarios, a budget PC will be more than sufficient to meet your needs. The fact is, you can easily put together a very inexpensive PC with little to no scrounging around for parts. All the components we used in our Build It project are easily accessible on sites like Newegg.com, and are surprisingly easy to assemble. (Check out our step-by-step guide below to see how.) (faq)

Eee PC: dual boot, Linux and XP

2008-06-12T11:18:00.000-07:00

Most of us assume that buying a new PC involves making a choice over what operating system to install, whether it's Windows, Mac, or Linux. But why settle for just one OS when you can run two? Apple already offers that option using Bootcamp or Parallels, but you can set it up on Windows and Linux boxes, too.

Why dual-boot? Maybe you've been curious about running Linux, but don't want to sacrifice a Windows-based PC to the uncertainties of a new operating system. Or if you're a Linux user, much as you might want to avoid Microsoft's behemoth, having the option to run Windows on your Linux-based PC when you need it could be a godsend. Reasons that Windows users may want to try Linux include its speed, stability, versatility, and its unique set of quality (often free) apps.

The good news is that you don't need a super-powered machine with massive RAM and hard-drive space to dual-boot Windows XP and Linux. The EeePC—ASUS's popular ultramobile PC (UMPC)—can do the job, particularly the new EeePC 900. Its 20GB hard drive lets both operating systems coexist without storage strains. ASUS currently offers this laptop with either Windows XP or a Xandros Linux. I will show you how to add XP to a Linux-running EeePC. (faq)

What is a 'carbon footprint'?

2008-06-09T10:58:00.000-07:00

A Carbon Footprint is a measure of the impact human activities have on the environment in terms of the amount of greenhouse gases produced, measured in units of carbon dioxide.

A Carbon Footprint is made up of the sum of two parts, the direct / primary footprint and the indirect / secondary footprint.

1. The primary footprint is a measure of our direct emissions of CO2 from the burning of fossil fuels including domestic energy consumption and transportation (e.g. car and plane).

2. The secondary footprint is a measure of the indirect CO2 emissions from the whole lifecycle of products we use - those associated with their manufacture and eventual breakdown. (faq)

What is this 'storm botnet'?

2008-06-06T09:22:00.000-07:00

The Storm botnet or Storm worm botnet is a remotely-controlled network of "zombie" computers (or "botnet") that has been linked by the Storm Worm, a Trojan horse spread through e-mail spam. Some have estimated that by September 2007 the Storm botnet was running on anywhere from 1 million to 50 million computer systems. Other sources have placed the size of the botnet to be around 250,000 to 1 million compromised systems. More conservatively, one network security analyst claims to have developed software that has crawled the botnet and estimates that it controls 160,000 infected computers. The Storm botnet was first identified around January 2007, with the Storm worm at one point accounting for 8% of all malware on Microsoft Windows computers.

The Storm botnet has been used in a variety of criminal activities. Its controllers, and the authors of the Storm Worm, have not yet been identified. The Storm botnet has displayed defensive behaviors that indicated that its controllers were actively protecting the botnet against attempts at tracking and disabling it. The botnet has specifically attacked the online operations of some security vendors and researchers who attempted to investigate the botnet. Security expert Joe Stewart revealed that in late 2007, the operators of the botnet began to further decentralize their operations, in possible plans to sell portions of the Storm botnet to other operators. Some reports as of late 2007 indicated the Storm botnet to be in decline, but many security experts reported that they expect the botnet to remain a major security risk online, and the United States Federal Bureau of Investigation considers the botnet a major risk to increased bank fraud, identity theft, and other cybercrimes. (link)

What is 'dry drowning'?

2008-06-06T09:09:00.000-07:00

Dry drowning is when a person's lungs become unable to extract oxygen from the air, due primarily to:

* Muscular paralysis
* Puncture wound to the torso (affecting ability of diaphragm to create respiratory movement)
* Changes to the oxygen-absorbing tissues
* Persistence of laryngospasm when immersed in fluid
* Breathing for too long any gas other than oxygen that does not kill the patient on its own. (e.g. Helium)

The person may effectively drown without any sort of fluid. In cases of dry drowning in which the victim was immersed, very little fluid is aspirated into the lungs. The laryngospasm reflex essentially causes asphyxiation and neurogenic pulmonary edema (oedema).

Dry drowning can occur clinically, or due to illness or accident, or be deliberately (and repeatedly) induced in torture (waterboarding). It can be traumatizing, and it can be deadly. (wiki)

What is Karma?

2008-05-29T07:51:00.000-07:00

Karma is the concept of "action" or "deed" in Indic religions understood as that which causes the entire cycle of cause and effect (i.e., the cycle called samsara) described in Hindu, Jain, Sikh and Buddhist philosophies.

The philosophical explanation of karma can differ slightly between traditions, but the general concept is basically the same. Through the law of karma, the effects of all deeds actively create past, present, and future experiences, thus making one responsible for one's own life, and the pain and joy it brings to him/her and others. The results or 'fruits' of actions are called karma-phala. In religions that incorporate reincarnation, karma extends through one's present life and all past and future lives as well. (wiki)

NASA's Phoenix spacecraft

2008-05-29T07:48:00.000-07:00

Phoenix is a robotic spacecraft on a space exploration mission on Mars under the Mars Scout Program. The scientists conducting the mission will use instruments aboard the Phoenix lander to search for environments suitable for microbial life on Mars, and to research the history of water there. The multi-agency program is headed by the Lunar and Planetary Laboratory at the University of Arizona, under the direction of NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory. The program is a partnership of universities in the United States, Canada, Switzerland, the Philippines, Denmark, Germany, the United Kingdom, NASA, the Canadian Space Agency, the Finnish Meteorological Institute, Lockheed Martin Space Systems, and other aerospace companies.[1]

Phoenix is the sixth successful landing on Mars, out of twelve total international attempts (the sixth successful landing of seven American attempts). It is the third successful static lander and the first since Viking 2, and as of 2008 the most recent spacecraft to land successfully on Mars.(wiki)

What is POST (Power On Self Test)?

2008-05-20T10:08:00.000-07:00

POST (Power-On Self-Test) is the diagnostic testing sequence that a computer's basic input/output system (or "starting program") runs to determine if the computer keyboard, random access memory, disk drives, and other hardware are working correctly.

If the necessary hardware is detected and found to be operating properly, the computer begins to boot. If the hardware is not detected or is found not to be operating properly, the BIOS issues an error message which may be text on the display screen and/or a series of coded beeps, depending on the nature of the problem. Since POST runs before the computer's video card is activated, it may not be possible to progress to the display screen. The pattern of beeps may be a variable numbers of short beeps or a mixture of long and short beeps, depending on what type of BIOS is installed.

The patterns of beeps contain messages about the nature of the problem detected. For example, if the keyboard is not detected, a particular pattern of beeps will inform you of that fact. An error found in the POST is usually fatal (that is, it causes current program to stop running) and will halt the boot process, since the hardware checked is absolutely essential for the computer's functions. (faq)

DDR3 memory FAQ

2008-05-12T09:45:00.000-07:00

These are uncertain financial times we live in today, and the rise and fall of our economy has had direct affect on consumer spending. It has already been one full year now that DDR3 has been patiently waiting for the enthusiast community to give it proper consideration, yet it's success is still undermined by misconceptions and high price. Benchmark Reviews has been testing DDR3 more actively than anyone, which is why over fifteen different kits fill our System Memory section of reviews. Sadly, it might take an article like this to open the eyes of my fellow hardware enthusiast and overclocker, because it seems like DDR3 is the technology nobody wants bad enough to learn about. Pity, because overclocking is what it's all about.

First and foremost, DDR3 is not just a faster version of DDR2. In fact, the worst piece of misinformation I see spread in enthusiast forums is how DDR3 simply picks up speed where DDR2 left off... which is as accurate as saying an airplane picks up where a kite left off. DDR3 does improve upon the previous generation in certain shared areas, and the refined fabrication process has allowed for a more efficient integrated circuit (IC) module. Although DDR3 doesn't share the same pin connections or key placements, it does still share the DIMM profile and overall appearance. From a technical perspective however, this is where the similarities end. (faq)

What is "Steampunk"?

2008-05-06T07:36:00.000-07:00

Steampunk is a subgenre of fantasy and speculative fiction which came into prominence in the 1980s and early 1990s.

The term denotes works set in an era or world where steam power is still widely used—usually the 19th century, and often set in Victorian era England—but with prominent elements of either science fiction or fantasy, such as fictional technological inventions like those found in the works of H. G. Wells and Jules Verne, or real technological developments like the computer occurring at an earlier date.

Other examples of steampunk contain alternate history-style presentations of "the path not taken" of such technology as dirigibles or analog computers; these frequently are presented in an idealized light, or a presumption of functionality.

Steampunk is often associated with cyberpunk and shares a similar fanbase and theme of rebellion, but developed as a separate movement (though both have considerable influence on each other).
Apart from time period and level of technological development, the main difference between cyberpunk and steampunk is that steampunk settings usually tend to be less obviously dystopian than cyberpunk, or lack dystopian elements entirely. (wiki)

Grand Theft Auto 4

2008-05-01T09:56:00.000-07:00

The fourth installment of the popular series by Rockstar features improved graphics, new features, and new gameplay. Players take on the role of Niko Bellic, a rough-around-the-edge chap from Eastern Europe. Niko has arrived in America, in Liberty City -- a land full of promise and opportunity. His cousin convinced him to emigrate, to join him in his mansion and life of luxury, but as soon as he steps off the boat, Niko discovers the truth about the American way. Still, the wealth, the comfort, the bliss of the good life, it all really is here ... And it's all for the taking.

GTA IV reinvents the series with a renewed version of Liberty City detailed to the last pothole and rooftop vent. There are now four boroughs to explore plus extra area outside of Liberty City proper. With the ability to climb obstacles, drive cars, steer boats and pilot helicopters, the world of GTA is more accessible than ever before. (faq)

Recovering data from cellphones

2008-04-25T11:06:00.000-07:00

Mobile phones or cell phones are one of the most popular communication devices available today. With it, you will be able to make and take calls wherever you are. Most modern cell phones available today are now also integrated with multimedia features and other features that will make your everyday life a lot easier and also more fun.

However, have you ever considered that your cell phone can also be affected by data loss? If you don’t know about this, then it may be time for you to know about it as data loss in cell phones can be quite frustrating for everyone.

For example, try to imagine that you are in the middle of nowhere and all you have is your cell phone for communication. Now, what if your cell phone got damaged which resulted in data loss. Although the damage may be minimal and that it is still able to call or send messages, the only problem is that everything in your cell phone phonebook was wiped out. (link)

What is OLED?

2008-04-22T09:21:00.000-07:00

An organic light-emitting diode (OLED), also Light Emitting Polymer (LEP) and Organic Electro-Luminescence (OEL), is any light-emitting diode (LED) whose emissive electroluminescent layer is composed of a film of organic compounds. The layer usually contains a polymer substance that allows suitable organic compounds to be deposited. They are deposited in rows and columns onto a flat carrier by a simple "printing" process. The resulting matrix of pixels can emit light of different colors.

Such systems can be used in television screens, computer displays, portable system screens, advertising, information and indication. OLEDs can also be used in light sources for general space illumination, and large-area light-emitting elements. OLEDs typically emit less light per area than inorganic solid-state based LEDs which are usually designed for use as point-light sources.

A significant benefit of OLED displays over traditional liquid crystal displays (LCDs) is that OLEDs do not require a backlight to function. Thus they draw far less power and, when powered from a battery, can operate longer on the same charge. Because there is no need to distribute the backlight, an OLED display can also be much thinner than an LCD panel. OLED-based display devices also can be more effectively manufactured than LCDs and plasma displays. But degradation of OLED materials has limited their use. (wiki)

Lenovo X300: pros and cons

2008-04-18T07:48:00.001-07:00

The ThinkPad X300 put up some interesting performance numbers. Understandably, with tests heavily CPU dependent tests, we saw the effects of the relatively low-clocked 1.2GHz processor, examples included 3DMark06 CPU, and PCMark Vantage's Communication and Music tests. Conversely, tests that favored hard drive performance had the ThinkPad X300 leading the pack such as PCMark Vantage's HDD and Productivity test. Rounding out the performance picture is battery life, where the ThinkPad X300 dominated with nearly four hours of battery life.

Lenovo has produced what they are calling their 'greenest' ThinkPad ever in the ThinkPad X300, and they had to pull off an interesting balancing act in the process. First, Lenovo equipped the X300 with a low-power 1.2GHz CPU with 4MB of L2 cache and an 800MHz FSB. Next, they utilized a solid-state hard drive which uses less power than a traditional hard drive while also offering increased performance. Lastly, Lenovo added state of the art technologies such as an LED backlit LCD, Wireless USB, Wireless WAN and a FingerPrint Reader for added security. The end result is an ultraportable notebook with blazing storage performance, competitive overall system performance to notebooks with significantly faster processors, all while sipping battery power. (link)

iPod Touch -> VOIP phone

2008-04-16T09:20:00.000-07:00

Here are some easy tips on turning your iPod Touch into a VOIP phone. What you need is a jailbroken touch, touchmod mic, and free software. The full instructions are here at lifehacker.

"The iPhone and iPod touch are almost indistinguishable devices except for one major difference—you can make calls from your iPhone, and you can't from your iPod touch. For the privilege of making phone calls with your iPhone, you have to pay $100 more upfront to Apple for the device itself, plus a minimum of $60/month to AT&T for the next two years. Let's say you didn't need that kind of firepower from your iPod touch, but that you would like to use it make a phone call every now and then. You can, and today I'm going to show you how to make VoIP phone calls from your iPod touch or iPhone using a freeware application called SIP-VoIP."

lifehacker

Want to improve laptop battery life? Do this:

2008-04-14T08:13:00.000-07:00

Keep your processor working at a walking pace

Most notebooks offer power regulation software, and almost all have the ability to change profiles using the Vista power manager. Click on that battery icon on the bottom of your screen, and make sure your notebook is set to Balanced or Power Saver. High Performance is great if you are encoding video or playing games, but it makes your processor work harder than it has to, using more power and throwing out more heat.

Tune your radio dial

Keep an eye on your wireless devices, and disable them if they are not in use. If you have your Bluetooth or WiFi device running at all times, you are using chopping off useful battery life that could have been used doing something else.

Change your viewing habits

The biggest power draw on your notebook, especially if it is a large one, is the screen backlight. While it may look big, beautiful, and shiny, you are really hurting your battery performance with the backlight at a high level. Start by putting the backlight to the lowest setting, and increase it slowly until you find the lowest setting your find bearable. Remember that this will vary depending on the room you are in, meaning you might have it set brighter in an office setting, but much lower at home at night.

Don't be tempted by movies

If at all possible, stay away from using DVD's or CD's in your laptop while using battery power. The drive creates a huge power draw on the system while running. On top of the drive, your processor is also working hard to decode the audio and video, sometimes knocking off close to 30% of your overall battery life. If you must watch movies, try to stick with digital content that you download or stream online. iTunes and Hulu.com are excellent alternatives to the evil discs. (faq)

What is PHP?

2008-04-11T08:57:00.000-07:00

PHP is an HTML-embedded scripting language. Much of its syntax is borrowed from C, Java and Perl with a couple of unique PHP-specific features thrown in. The goal of the language is to allow web developers to write dynamically generated pages quickly.

What does PHP stand for?

PHP stands for PHP: Hypertext Preprocessor. This confuses many people because the first word of the acronym is the acronym. This type of acronym is called a recursive acronym. The curious can visit » Free On-Line Dictionary of Computing for more information on recursive acronyms.

PHP and HTML interact a lot: PHP can generate HTML, and HTML can pass information to PHP. Before reading these faqs, it's important you learn how to retrieve variables from outside of PHP. The manual page on this topic includes many examples as well. Pay close attention to what register_globals means to you too.

FAQ

What is LSI (latent semantic indexing)?

2008-04-07T12:43:00.000-07:00

Latent semantic indexing, other wise known as LSI, is not what is it is frequently claimed to be. It is not something that a webpage can be optimized for, so that it conforms to LSI standards. There is no such thing as LSI standards. In fact, latent semantic indexing cannot be described to a layman in simple terms.

LSI cannot be used to improve your search engine listings since it is nothing more than a concept. A very mathematically complex concept, sure, but a concept nevertheless, and concepts cannot be used for tangible results. However, there is a guide to what Google are trying to achieve in the use of the words within the term. In the context in which it used, the word semantics here means the meaning of words, and specifically the meaning to which words are put, and what is being conveyed, in the way that the term is used.

The analysis of the text on a webpage, and the application of certain meanings to it, is not new to Google. That is, after all, the basis of Google Adsense, where the text on a webpage is assessed and adverts applied to that page by Google, based on its statistical assessment of the meaning of the page. This assessment is made on the basis of the semantics used by the writer of the page content, and the adverts that appear on Adsense pages do tend to be relevant to the content of the page. (LSI)

How fix Windows system 32 errors?

2008-04-01T07:27:00.000-07:00

Sometimes you may face that your XP operating system stops booting with an error message:
“System32 Corrupt or Missing”

This error may be the possible reason of corruption in “System32”. It may corrupt due to some changes in software or hardware configuration.

System32 is the most important part of your computer. It’s like the heart and brain of the operating system without which the computer wouldn’t be working at all. Its generally located in the “C: Windowssystem32” and is generally hidden in order to avoid any accidental alterations by the user.

You can resolve this problem manually without any professional help in two ways:

1. Reboot your computer and press F8 until you get into the menu. Choose “Boot Using Last Known Good Configuration”. Your computer will now try to start using a configuration that has worked last time when it started.
2. If you are still facing the same error, insert XP recovery CD and reboot you computer. Select the recovery console. You need to be more careful while using this step because you have to write some specified commands here and if you type incorrectly, your system may severely damage. (faq)

What is Earth Hour?

2008-03-31T10:27:00.001-07:00

Earth Hour is an international event that asks households and businesses to turn off their lights and non-essential electrical appliances for one hour on the evening of 29 March at 8 pm local time until 9 pm to promote electricity conservation and thus lower carbon emissions. It may also help reduce light pollution, and in 2008, coincides with the beginning of National Dark Sky Week in the USA.

It is promoted by World Wildlife Fund Australia (WWF), an environmental lobby group, and the Sydney Morning Herald. The first Earth Hour was held in Sydney, Australia between 7:30 pm and 8:30 pm on 31 March 2007. The 2007 Earth Hour is estimated to have cut Sydney's mains electricity consumption by between 2.1% and 10.2% for that hour, with as many as 2.2 million people taking part. Earth Hour 2008 marks the first anniversary of the event with many partner cities and individuals around the world participating.(wiki)

700Mhz wireless auction FAQ

2008-03-27T09:38:00.000-07:00

We know who won the just-completed Federal Communications Commission auction of wireless spectrum. But we don't know what the winners will do with the spectrum, what the prospects are for the losers and, perhaps most important, how the auction will effect users.

Verizon Communications Inc. won much of the coveted "C block" of wireless spectrum in the 700-MHz band, and AT&T Inc. won big chunks of the "B block." (For a fuller explanation of the auction, the blocks and what was at stake, check out this article.) Both Verizon and AT&T now have enough 700-MHz spectrum to create new nationwide wireless networks.

However, there were less-publicized winners and also some losers in the auction. And how did users fare? Here are some frequently asked questions about the impact of the spectrum auction. (faq)

O'Reilly released iPhone hacking guide

2008-03-27T09:36:00.000-07:00

If you were wondering whether the iPhone software development kit would end the unofficial third-party development craze, stop wondering.

O'Reilly, one of the most well-known publishers of technology primers for professionals, has released a book on developing applications for a jailbroken iPhone. iPhone Open Application Development, written by Jonathan Zdziarski, was spotted by dozens of iPhone aficionados Tuesday. Chapter 1? "Breaking Into and Setting Up the iPhone."

Zdziarski was among the first hackers to take aim at the iPhone last year in light of Apple's Web-only application policy, and his book is essentially a how-to guide for using the "unofficial" iPhone SDK to create applications. Apple, of course, has started to outline its own vision of how applications should be created for the iPhone, giving developers two options for their projects. (link)

2008 unrest in Tibet

2008-03-24T13:33:00.000-07:00

The 2008 unrest in Xizang (Tibet Autonomous Region) began with demonstrations on March 10, 2008 (Tibetan Uprising Day), the 49th anniversary of the failed 1959 Tibetan uprising against the Communist Party's rule. The protests soon shifted from calls for independence to violence, attacks on non-Tibetan ethnic groups, rioting, burning and looting on March 14. Political tension, socio-economic issues (comparative economic success of non-Tibetan ethnic groups and rising inflation) and anger over rumours of the arrest of monks lead to riots. The protests are said to be one of the largest agitation and protests against the Chinese government's rule in 20 years. The unrest happened in the week when major local government leaders were away for the annual National People's Congress in Beijing.

Information is scarce as Chinese authorities have prevented foreign and Hong Kong media from entering and reporting on the region, with the exception of James Miles, a correspondent from The Economist, who gained approval for a week-long trip which happened to coincide with the increase in tensions. (wikipedia)

OpenOffice FAQ

2008-03-24T13:26:00.000-07:00

What is the difference between Add-Ons, Add-Ins, and Plugins with respect to OpenOffice.org?

* Add-Ons are components that integrate into the OOo GUI.
* Add-Ins are components that provide Calc formulas.
* Plugins are what you know from your browser.

I just installed OOo, now I can't open DOC files with Word anymore! What happened?

When you install Open Office.org, it asks you whether you want to associate MS Office files with OpenOffice.org. In order to not associate these MS Office file types, you must uncheck the appropriate boxes before continuing.

Once this association has been made, though, there are several ways to fix the association issue.

* Go into your file types setting (It should be under either tools or folder options) from one of the windows in My Computer. Then delete the association for .doc, .xls, and any other file types that you do not want associated to the OpenOffice.org program.
* When you next click on a file of that type (such as .doc or .xls), it will ask you what you want to use to open it. Click on Word, Excel, or whatever program you want to use. You will also be given the option to select always use this application to open the file type.

faq

Time Machine and your AirPort Extreme

2008-03-20T06:28:00.000-07:00

We happen to use an 802.11n AirPort Extreme as our router, so we put today's new firmware upgrade to the test to see if Time Machine really does work with AirPort Disk. As expected, it works and only requires a few simple steps...

First we updated our firmware using the AirPort Base Station Utility, then we plugged in our external HDD.

Next, we logged into our AirPort Extreme using Finder, clicked on the folder representing our external disk and finally, we fired up Time Machine.

After that, it was smooth sailing. It should be noted that AirPort Express never supported AirPort Disk, and therefore doesn't work with Time Machine. (video)

Apple Time Capsule

Widget FAQ

2008-03-19T12:51:00.000-07:00

In computer programming, a widget (or control) is an interface element that a computer user interacts with, such as a window or a text box. The defining characteristic of a widget is to provide a single interaction point for the direct manipulation of a given kind of data. Widgets are visual basic building blocks which combined in an application hold all the data processed by the application and the available interactions on this data.

A family of common reusable widgets has evolved for holding general information based on the PARC research for the Xerox Alto User Interface. Different implementations of these generic widgets are often packaged together in widget toolkits, which programmers use to build graphical user interfaces (GUIs).

Widgets are sometimes qualified as virtual to distinguish them from their physical counterparts, e.g. virtual buttons that can be clicked with a mouse cursor, vs. physical buttons that can be pressed with a finger. (faq)

Hiphone I32 (C-002) iPhone clone pics

2008-03-17T10:27:00.001-07:00

Shipped in a plain white box, here's what I got.
Extra battery (2 came with it), and SD card reader.
Headset.
microSD adapter (included was a 512mb microSD card) and silicon case.
AC adapter (USB cable as well but I forgot to take a picture of it), manual, car adapter.
Leather case.
Hiphone I32 turned on (looks pretty good).
Hiphone I32 slide lock screen.
Hiphone I32 back.
HiPhone I32 back (cover off).Related:
P168+ pics

Bonus points: guess what kind of camera I have?

Exabyte vs Zettabyte, what's the converison?

2008-03-12T11:29:00.000-07:00

The basic unit used in computer data storage is called a bit (binary digit). Computers use these little bits, which are composed of ones and zeros, to do things and talk to other computers. All your files, for instance, are kept in the computer as binary files and translated into words and pictures by the software (which is also ones and zeros). This two number system, is called a "binary number system" since it has only two numbers in it. The decimal number system in contrast has ten unique digits, zero through nine.

But although computer data and file size is normally measured in binary code using the binary number system (counted by factors of two 1, 2, 4, 8, 16, 32, 64, etc), the prefixes for the multiples are based on the metric system! The nearest binary number to 1,000 is 2^10 or 1,024; thus 1,024 bytes was named a Kilobyte. So, although a metric "kilo" equals 1,000 (e.g. one kilogram = 1,000 grams), a binary "Kilo" equals 1,024 (e.g. one Kilobyte = 1,024 bytes). Not surprisingly, this has led to a great deal of confusion.

In December 1998, the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) approved a new IEC International Standard. Instead of using the metric prefixes for multiples in binary code, the new IEC standard invented specific prefixes for binary multiples made up of only the first two letters of the metric prefixes and adding the first two letters of the word "binary". Thus, for instance, instead of Kilobyte (KB) or Gigabyte (GB), the new terms would be kibibyte (KiB) or gibibyte (GiB). The new IEC International Standards, which are not commonly used yet, are included below. (faq)

Versatile Multilayer Disc

2008-03-10T09:43:00.000-07:00

Versatile Multilayer Disc (VMD or HD VMD) is a high-capacity red laser optical disc technology designed by New Medium Enterprises, Inc. VMD is intended to compete with the blue laser HD DVD and Blu-ray Disc formats and has an initial capacity of up to 30GB per side.

At CeBIT in March 2006, NME demonstrated a prototype VMD player and announced that they were expecting to launch the format in the third quarter of 2006. At the Custom Electronic Design & Installation Association trade show in September 2007, NME exhibited two players set for release in October 2007. There will be 20 US titles available at launch time, including many from Icon Productions, Paramount Pictures, Walt Disney Pictures, New Line Cinema, Lionsgate andWeinstein Co.. They have also signed a deal with Bollywood production company Eros Group who intend to release 50 Bollywood features on the format.

The two initial players to be released are the ML622S and the ML777S. The ML622S will cost approximately $150 USD. The ML777S costs currently (2008-01) USD 200 and includes USB ports (for connection to external storage devices) and a media-card reader.

wiki

Bell Sympatico Internet FAQ

2008-03-06T09:44:00.000-08:00

Is there a reliable speed test for Sympatico customers? (#10072)

Sympatico does not offer an official speed test at this time. Sympatico technical support may suggest using the test available at »www.toast.net , however the toast.net test file is very small, and thus tends to produce inaccurate results, especially if the file is cached in your computer. This can actually give you false results.

Results from other speed tests can vary widely due to all sorts of problems. Therefore, it is wise to select and perform a variety of speed tests available here that are close to your physical location to ensure that you are getting consistent results.

Is there a guide for navigating the menu system at 310-SURF? (#8215)

310-SURF fast dial script

310-SURF (310-7873)
- Press 1 for English, 2 for Francais
- Enter 10-digit phone number your ADSL is linked to
- To skip any system message, press #

You have 4 following MAIN MENU choices:
1. TECH SUPPORT (open 24/7)
- Dial 1 for quick tips, resetting your password, or looking up Sympatico 56K dialup numbers.
- Dial 2 to speak to a live tech

2. ACCOUNTS AND BILLING (open 8am-6pm EST weekdays)
- Dial 1 for self-serve account options (view bill, etc.)
- Dial 2 to cancel Sympatico service(s)
- Dial 0 to speak to a live account rep

3. INFORMATION ON BUNDLES, ORDER NEW SERVICES
- Dial 2 for High Speed Edition

4. EMOVE (move acct. info if you're changing addresses)

- You will be automatically transferred to a live person. Please have your Bell/Sympatico/Mobility/ExpressVu account statements with you.

After entering your selections:
- Enter Sympatico 7-digit PIN (back of your booklet or see this)
- Wait on the line. The queue is shortest at 8am and 3pm roughly.

At any time:
- Press * to repeat the menu
- Press 7 to go back to the main menu
- If you don't do anything for 5 seconds, you will be automatically transferred into the queue to speak to a live person.

Which modems are offered? (#6758)

All Ontario & Quebec DSL ISP's use G.DMT.
G.Lite is not implemented.

All modems that Sympatico provides have both ethernet and USB interfaces, however only one interface can be used at a time.

For an additional fee or contract committment, you can receive the optional Speedstream 6300 which is a DSL modem, 5-port wired router, wireless router, all-in-one unit.

DSL Reports FAQ

P168 iPhone clone pics

2008-03-03T12:19:00.000-08:00

Included in the package. P168, charger, 2 batteries, SD card reader, SD adapter, 256mb micro SD (translash) card, USB cable, earbuds, screen cover, soft cloth, leather phone case, english user manual, CD, and stylus.

Charger and batteries (2)
SD card reader, SD card adapter, and micro SD (transflash) card (256mb)
P168 front
P168 back
P168 back no cover
P168 model information (850/1800/1900 Mhz)
Front with stylus
compared to Sony Ericsson w300i and Nokia 3120
Related
P168 FAQ
P168 - setting up Internet, SMS, MMS for Rogers Canada
Hiphone I32 (C-002) pics

P168+ Internet settings SMS MMS Rogers Canada

2008-03-03T10:23:00.000-08:00

For Rogers Canada
http connection type
proxy setting 208.200.067.150
proxy port 8080

You have to create the data account..

***First Step***
1.Main menu --> Select Services
3.Select Data Account --> Select GPRS
5.Select the first entry
6.Edit the account name to whatever you would like
7.Edit APN to media.com
8.Edit Username to media
9.Edit Password to mda01
10.Edit Auth Type. to Secure
11. Save

Select Back --> Select Back

SMS and MMS

For SMS:
Message Settings>common settings >check reply path
go back then to Pref Bearer change to Prefer GSM

For MMS:
Message Settings>server profile
Select any profile
Activate profile
then Edit Profile
Rename Profile> whatever you want, i chose Rogers MMS
Homepage>http://mms.gprs.rogers.com
Data Account> rogers
Connection Type > HTTP
Proxy address: 172.025.000.107 Proxy Port: 8080
Username: media
Password: mda01

Apple Time Capsule FAQ

2008-02-29T10:28:00.000-08:00

Time Capsule includes a wireless 500GB or 1TB hard drive1 designed to work with Time Machine in Mac OS X Leopard. Just set Time Capsule as the designated backup drive for Time Machine, and that’s it. Depending on how much data you have, your initial backup with Time Capsule could take overnight or longer. After it completes, only changed files are backed up — automatically, wirelessly, and in the background. So you never have to worry about backing up again.

Works with Mac and PC.

Time Capsule with Time Machine in Leopard is the ideal backup solution. But that doesn’t mean Tiger, Windows XP, and Windows Vista users can’t enjoy the benefits of Time Capsule, too. Because it mounts as a wireless hard drive, Tiger and Windows users simply access Time Capsule directly from the wireless network for exchanging and storing files quickly and easily.

Storage

* 500GB or 1TB 7200-rpm Serial ATA server-grade hard disk drive

(faq)

Leap day clippings

2008-02-29T06:58:00.000-08:00

Tillie Iverson is observing her 24th birthday Friday — at the age of 96.

Family members from as far away as Florida, Ohio, Nevada and North Carolina are helping her celebrate her Leap Year birthday.

Iverson was born in 1912 on Feb. 29, a date that only comes around every four years. Like others born on that date, she has sometimes marked her birthday on Feb. 28 and sometimes on March 1.

"It depended on what day of the week it was and what fit the best," Iverson said. "Someone might have been too busy one day, so we'd do it another day."

But she still feels a little cheated as a Leap Day baby. (link)

It's Leap Day.

For all who wait four years for a proper birthday party, Happy Birthday!

This is the first Leap Day here in the Swamp, born on Jan. 3, 2006.

One more day in what promises to be a runaway new record month of traffic here in these pages. Without the Leap Year, we already were on target for more than 2 million page-views this month (Thank You!).

One more day for that presidential campaign to unfold in Ohio and Texas -- is that added day of particular benefit to Barack Obama? He has gained momentum in both states heading into the March 4 primaries and an added day on the calendar can only offer more room.

One more day for a record campaign fundraising month -- with word of a $50 million month coming from the Obama campaign, $35 million over at camp Clinton (think they've held back $5 million of that to repay the candidate's loan? Or have they put it all on the table?) (link)

Well, it's leap day. February is hanging around an extra 24 hours and someone who's been on Earth 84 years is telling his friends he's finally old enough to drink.

The earth orbits the sun every 365.242 days. What are you gonna do.

We rounded up all the facts and figures -- including a recipe for a Leap Year cocktail and a list of what some well-known Seattleites are doing with the extra day (KOMO-TV commentator Ken Schram thinks he'll give it to George W. Bush so he can leave office one day early) -- here.

Also -- did you know the odds of being born on leap day is 1 in 1461, which means that in a world of 6,653,591,021 people (U.S. Census Bureau), there are about 4,554,135 leap day babies? And back in stricter times, leap day was apparently the one day women could propose marriage without being scoffed at? (link)

CAPTCHA faq

2008-02-27T11:50:00.000-08:00

What does CAPTCHA stand for?

Completely Automated Public Turing test to tell Computers and Humans Apart.

What is CAPTCHA used for?

CAPTCHAs are used for separating humans from robots to block unwanted registration and solicitation. CAPTCHAs make suspect behavior such as large-scale automated email registration (used for spam), the purchase of enormous numbers of tickets (to be resold), and comment spam on blogs, more difficult.

Why is using CAPTCHA an accessibility issue?

Visual CAPTCHAs are graphics with distorted or obscured letters or numbers. Because they are designed not to be read by machines, these graphics do not have text equivalents or ALT attributes. Hence, screen readers cannot read them, making them inaccessible to individuals with sight impairments. This means these individuals cannot proceed with the registration or purchase.

With the distortion of characters or extraneous markings, people with learning disabilities, particularly dyslexia, can have difficulty deciphering what the actual characters are. Likewise, with poor colour contrast, those individuals with colour blindness or low vision can also have difficulty getting past the CAPTCHA step.

As new generations of visual CAPTCHAs are designed to overcome sophisicated optical character recognition software, they become very difficult for humans to read, defeating the purpose of CAPTCHAs.

Are there more "accessible" alternatives?

Acknowledging the limitations of visual CAPTCHAs, audio alternatives have been developed as a possible solution to the accessibility issue. However, this is not a viable solution for individuals who are deaf-blind and use refreshable Braille displays, do not have or use a sound card, work in noisy environments, or do not have the required sound plugins. As audio CAPTCHAs become more distorted to prevent voice recognition software from deciphering them, they also become more difficult for humans to understand.

Other kinds of CAPTCHA challenges, such as a logic puzzle or a multiple-choice question, have been developed for those who cannot use visual CAPTCHAs. But, again, they have their limitations as they require cognitive reading abilities, and must be culturally and socioeconomically unbiased, much like Intelligence Quotient (IQ) tests.
faq

Data Mining

2008-02-26T08:24:00.000-08:00

Data mining is a huge field of interest for many various groups of people and organizations. There is lots of literature, lectures, software available to assist us in our data mining, despite this there are lots of unsolved applied Computer Science research problems in areas such as Artificial Intelligence (AI), Computer Architecture & Engineering (ARC). Database Management Systems (DBMS), Graphics and Human-Computer Interaction (GHCI), Operating Systems & Networking (OSNT), Programming Systems (PS), Scientific Computing (SCI), Security (SEC) and finally Theory (THY).
Data Mining (DM) or at is also called Knowledge Discovery in Databases (KDD) has increased in focus as our bases of data has become larger and more complex.

More and more data are found within text just as you read now. Not all data can be searched in traditional manner, such as photos. Rarely you can find what you need from headers, web content keywords and its like. You have to dig pretty much deeper in order to get what you really look for. So, Knowledge Discovery Database or Data mining is consisting of various elements. It includes data discovery, cleaning, and preparation and Visualization is a key component (and can be very problematic). It often involves a search for patterns, correlations, etc.; and automated and objective classification.

It includes data modeling and testing of the models which again depends a lot on the type of data, the study domain (science, commerce, and so on), the nature of the problem and so forth. In general the Data mining algorithms are computational embodiments of statistics. (article)

How to convert your HD DVD to Blu-Ray DVD

2008-02-21T09:38:00.000-08:00

Step 1: Ripping

First, we have to get the original HD DVD movie off the disk and onto the computer. You'll need to have a HD-DVD inside, or hooked up to, your PC, and software to cut through the DRM.

Windows users have it easy. Buy Slysoft's AnyDVD HD (about $115), which will rip HD DVD without further ado. A free alternative is DVDFab HD Decrypter.

Once done, you'll have a bunch of files on your machine in .EVO format.

Step 2: Transcoding and Authoring

This means getting the rip ready to burn to Blu-Ray disc: transcoding refers to changing the file format and size, while authoring refers to preparing and arranging the files so that players may properly understand them.

If you just want to keep the file on the computer as a backup, you can stop here. Even if no one is making physical HD DVD players, there'll always be software to play the files themselves.

If you're targeting Blu-Ray, however, you'll need to get your hands dirty fixing your files to the required specs. You'll run the ripped HD DVD disk through a bunch of different programs, in the following order:

1. EVOdemux to "demultiplex" the ripped files and pick exactly what you need to keep.

2. H264Info or vc1conv -— which one you need depends on whether the format of HD DVD movie you ripped is h.264 or VC1.

3. eac3to to compress the audio, often necessary to fit movies onto cheaper 25GB Blu-Ray disks.

4. tsMuxeR and TsRemux to get the video streams ready for burning.

If you need more help, follow the instructions at the Doom9 forums to ensure you get everything just right. There is also another, slightly different process outlined on the Doom9 forums. If the idea of working your way through all those steps isn't appealing, you might want to wait until enough blind eyes are turned for an all-in-one commercial solution to emerge.

wiki

What is CDMA?

2008-02-20T13:22:00.000-08:00

What is CDMA ?
CDMA stands for Code Division Multiple Access. It is a digital transmission technology that allows multiple users to share the same transmission medium by separating them using orthogonal signature sequences.

Where is CDMA used ?
CDMA is the primary digital transmission technique for the second generation IS-95 mobile systems used primarily in the US. Most of the Third Generation Mobile Systems have adopted Wideband CDMA for digital transmission, because of the inherent advantages provided by CDMA technology.

What are the advantages of CDMA ?
CDMA possess some natural attributes that is suited to the Mobile Communication environment. Some of them are 1. Voice Activity Detection. 2. Multipath Resolution. 3. Soft Capacity. 4. Interference Rejection. 5. Frequency Reuse.

What is Multicarrier CDMA ?
Multicarrier CDMA is a technique that combines CDMA and OFDM (Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing). It combines the advantages of CDMA (such as interference rejection, frequency reuse etc.,) with the advantages of OFDM (such as robustness against multipath, impulse noise etc).

faq

What is GSM?

2008-02-20T13:21:00.000-08:00

What is GSM?
GSM is an open, non-proprietary system that is constantly evolving. One of its great strengths is the international roaming capability. This gives consumers seamless and same standardised same number contactability in more than 170 countries. GSM satellite roaming has extended service access to areas where terrestrial coverage is not available.

What is technically distinctive about the technology?
GSM differs from first generation wireless systems in that it uses digital technology and time division multiple access transmission methods. Voice is digitally encoded via a unique encoder, which emulates the characteristics of human speech. This method of transmission permits a very efficient data rate/information content ratio.

How will GSM evolve?
High bandwidth services are already becoming available through second generation technologies. The development path to 3GSM is clearly mapped out and brings with it the possibilities of sophisticated data and multimedia applications. The GSM standard will continue to evolve, I with wireless, satellite and cordless systems offering greatly expanded services. These will include high speed, multimedia data services, inbuilt support for parallel use of such services and seamless integration with the Internet and wireline networks.

What is 3GSM?
3GSM is the generic term used for the next generation of mobile communications services.
These new systems will provide enhanced services to those available today ie, voice, text and data. The concepts for 3GSM services are currently being developed across the industry and by global groups such as the Third Generation Partnership Project (3GPP). The GSM Association's vision of 3GSM is based on today's GSM standard, but evolved to include an additional radio air interface better suited to high speed and multimedia data services.
faq

doubleTwist FAQ

2008-02-20T13:16:00.000-08:00

What is doubleTwist?
Our mission is to enable consumers to enjoy their digital media on the widest possible range of devices and help them share what they've created with friends. Our flagship product, doubleTwist desktop, is a free application for sharing, enjoying and syncing personal media.

What is "Twist Me!"?
Twist me! is our Facebook application that acts like a media drop-box, enabling your friends to send you pictures, video and audio from your profile page right to you your desktop.

Twist me! also lets you share the love with your Facebook friends.

We plan to launch Twist me! on other social networks soon.

Who is behind doubleTwist?
We are a venture funded start-up that was incubated in Oslo, Norway. The company was founded by Monique Farantzos and Jon Lech Johansen (aka DVD Jon). We recently moved back to San Francisco because we couldn't stomach the Norwegian winter.
faq

What is Family Day?

2008-02-15T12:21:00.000-08:00

Ontario
Family Day is a statutory holiday that takes place on the third Monday of February. It was established on October 11, 2007, following the 2007 fall Ontario election campaign when Premier Dalton McGuinty was re-elected, and the first one will be on February 18, 2008.[4] Its creation raised Ontario's number of statutory holidays to nine per year.[5] Some criticism of this new holiday stemmed from the fact that children did not get the day off from school. Due to this criticism children will now get the day off.
FAQ

In fact, Family Day is turning out to be a logistical nightmare for many, and it isn't even panning out as a universal holiday for everyone in Ontario.

Instead of a province at leisure, as Premier Dalton McGuinty promised during the provincial election campaign last fall, an estimated 40 per cent of us will be reporting to work first thing Monday morning, trudging through more snow and sleet while the other 60 per cent, including our neighbours and friends, stay home in their flannel pyjamas doing battle with their kids for time on the computer. Toronto Star

Police, though, are out of luck.

``We're getting nothing,'' said Toronto Police Association President Dave Wilson, who represents 8,000 officers and civilian employees. ``You can't say that police and firefighters should be treated differently on this issue.''

Ontario's 160,000 federal government employees don't get the holiday because they're governed by federal legislation, and their labor contracts already provide 11 paid holidays.

``I'm fuming about it,'' said Marcos Pascuet, 30, a Treasury Board employee in Ottawa. ``This lack of cooperation between governments is a joke.'' Bloomberg

P168 iPhone clone FAQ

2008-02-13T09:28:00.000-08:00

1) Where can I get games for my phone?
a) - you can't..not yet anyway. This phone doesn't support JAVA as advertised so currently there is no way to get them to play. There 'may' be a hack done to the phone in the future..its being worked on.

2) How do I set up my internet?
a) - Go to the "Difficulties" post heading on this site. There you'll see alot of different companies settings under a topic at the top for Internet Provider Settings. Currently thats about all we have settings for and your cell phone airtime provider will provide you with settings if you phone them or go to their web page.
If you have one thats not listed, post a new question under "Difficulties" or post the correct settings so that I may copy it to the Stickied post for all to see.

3) My SIM card won't read.
a) - Try sim slot #2 as well as #1. Are you on a GSM network? This phone only works with GSM network sims. Try putting a piece of tape on the top of the sim to make it fit snug into its slot..alternately, try prying the gold contacts in the sim slot up a bit (CAREFULLY).
If all else fails, ask to borrow a sim from your cell phone store or a buddy on the same network for a few seconds to see if its a bad sim...happens ALOT! (Some people tell the store they "lost their phone" to get a new sim.

faq

P168 iPhone clone pics
P168 Internet settings SMS/MMS for Rogers Canada

English manual w/ bluetooth

Configuring MMS SMS for Rogers

Configuring for other networks

Free downloads

More free downloads

Another P168 site

RAID 0

2008-02-11T10:26:00.000-08:00

RAID systems can be designed to keep working when there is failure - disks can be hot swapped and data recovered automatically while the system keeps running. Other systems have to be shut down while the data is recovered. RAID is often used in high availability systems, where it is important that the system keeps running as much of the time as possible.

RAID is traditionally used on servers, but can be also used on workstations. The latter was once common in storage-intensive applications such as video and audio editing, but has become less advantageous with the advent of large, fast, and inexpensive hard drives based on perpendicular recording technology.

Striped set without parity. Provides improved performance and additional storage but no fault tolerance. Any disk failure destroys the array, which becomes more likely with more disks in the array. A single disk failure destroys the entire array because when data is written to a RAID 0 drive, the data is broken into fragments. The number of fragments is dictated by the number of disks in the drive. The fragments are written to their respective disks simultaneously on the same sector. This allows smaller sections of the entire chunk of data to be read off the drive in parallel, giving this type of arrangement huge bandwidth. When one sector on one of the disks fails, however, the corresponding sector on every other disk is rendered useless because part of the data is now corrupted. RAID 0 does not implement error checking so any error is unrecoverable. More disks in the array means higher bandwidth, but greater risk of data loss. (FAQ)

Preserving data for environmentalists

2008-02-07T08:54:00.000-08:00

For individuals who have had the good fortune of traveling to one of the most bio-diverse and less explored regions which still remains on the planet, the Durika Biological Reserve of Costa Rica represents 8500 hectares (21,000 acres) of pristine and beautiful tropical cloud forest managed by The Pro Conservation Foundation of the Durika Biological Reserve, known locally as the ‘Durika Foundation.’ The Foundation, located near Buenos Aires, is a self-sustaining eco-community comprised of approximately 30 individuals who live permanently 1,650 meters (5,413 feet) above sea level to help conserve, protect and explore the land as well as to reverse the negative impact of modern agricultural practices on the mountainous landscape that the indigenous people—the Cabécar and Bribri—farm which is so vital to their existence, environment and heritage. (story)

Twitter FAQ

2008-02-04T12:35:00.000-08:00

Twitter is a service for friends, family, and co–workers to communicate and stay connected through the exchange of quick, frequent answers to one simple question: What are you doing? Bloggers can use it as a mini-blogging tool. Developers can use the API to make Twitter tools of their own. Possibilities are endless!

How do I use it?
Tell us what you're doing in 140 characters or less! Send your thoughts, observations, and goings-on in your day. Whether you're "eating an apple" or "looking foward to the weekend" or "Heading out of town" it's twitter-worthy. Join us here. All of your personal information including your phone number is, of course, confidential.

But... what is the point?
As it turns out, your best friend is probably interested in knowing if you're "loving the new Radiohead album." And yes, your Mom may want to know if you're "skipping breakfast in favor of a latte." You might want to know if your significant other "feels like taking a roadtrip." Find out what your friends are doing; keep each other abreast of your quotidian rituals.
FAQ

What is "Rule 240"?

2008-01-30T06:56:00.000-08:00

Rule 240 dates back to the days when the old Civil Aeronautics Board controlled and regulated the airlines. And then, after deregulation kicked in (in 1978) the rule actually survived the transition to the U.S. Department of Transportation.

But the airlines don’t voluntarily disclose this rule to passengers—and for the airlines, their reasoning is understandable—Rule 240 often costs them money, and a lot of it, if your plane is delayed or canceled.

In general, here’s what 240 says: In the event of any flight irregularity (delay, cancellation, mechanical failure) for any reason whatsoever except weather, the airline must endorse your ticket over to the next available flight. Not just THEIR next available flight, which may not leave until next Thursday, but THE next available flight. (link)

Don't fly without a copy of Rule 240

Stranded at the airport? Don't forget Rule 240

Who is Barack Obama?

2008-01-28T14:05:00.000-08:00

Barack Hussein Obama (pronounced /bəˈrɑːk huːˈseɪn oʊˈbɑːmə/) (born August 4, 1961) is the junior United States Senator from Illinois and a leading candidate for the Democratic nomination in the 2008 presidential election. He is the fifth African American Senator in U.S. history, the third to have been popularly elected, and the only African American currently serving in the U.S. Senate.

Obama was born in Honolulu to a Kenyan father and an American mother. He lived most of his early life in the Pacific island U.S. state of Hawaii. From ages six to ten, he lived in Jakarta, Indonesia. A graduate of Columbia University and Harvard Law School, Obama worked as a community organizer, university lecturer, and civil rights lawyer before running for public office. He served in the Illinois Senate from 1997 to 2004. Following an unsuccessful bid for a seat in the U.S. House of Representatives in 2000, he launched his campaign for U.S. Senate in 2003. (link)