i made this, and so can you.

iDEN Bluetooth DUN tether for Android [Dial Up Networking]

2012-01-26T17:19:00.000-08:00

In this post, we will connect to Boost Mobile's iDEN network to provide internet access to our Bluetooth Android device. The speed is capped at 19.2 Kilobits per second, so we'll run an optimized internet browser, Opera Mini, to maximize the bandwidth. Cost of keeping the pay as you go plan active is $10 for 3 months of use with unadvertised unlimited internet. You also get friendly and helpful Boost Mobile customer support and $0.20 a minute pay as you go minutes. Time and time again, I've had positive experiences with their customer support. I digress...

This setup is particularly useful for those looking for a WiFi only Android device (no carrier) with basic internet capabilities to check email, text, navigation, etc. Personally, when I'm going out, I only use Google Navigation, Voice, Places, so these apps run smoothly on the 19.2K connection. I want to balance between being human vs. being a machine plugged into the net, so this way, my internet access will be limited.

(leave me a message if you're interested in linux or palm device instructions)

Tutorial

My setup:

Boost Mobile Motorola i576
HTC EVO 3D rooted
Cyanogenmod 7 ROM

Phone Requirements:

Boost Mobile Motorola iDEN phone (i335, i576, i776, etc.)
Rooted phone with a stable version of Cyanogenmod 7 or 9 with packages hcitool, rfcomm, and pppd OR stable kernel with packages hcitool, rfcomm, and pppd
Stable Bluetooth connection

Check to see if you have these packages by going into Terminal Emulator and typing hcitool --help, rfcomm --help, pppd --help. You should see a Version number and list of Options. If not, your kernel will not support Bluetooth DUN.

App Requirements:

Terminal Emulator
ES File Explorer
Q5 Bluetooth Dialup Network
chat binary (I compiled this using lophyte's guide. My chat binary is for Ice Cream Sandwich pppd 2.4.3, and it worked on my CM7 running Gingerbread pppd 2.4.3. Lophyte compiled a ppp 2.4.4 for Gingerbread to download here.)

Instructions:

Download and install above Apps and download the chat binary to your Android device

Open ES File Explorer and go to Settings. Scroll all the way down and check/enable Root Explorer and Mount File System. While in Settings, go to Directory Settings and change the Home Directory to just /. Now go back to /sdcard/download/ and copy the chat file to /system/bin/ by long pressing the chat file and Copy to.

Then browse to /system/bin/ and look for the chat file. Long press the chat file and a pop up will say Operations. Scroll down to Properties. Change permissions to rwx r-x r-x.

Pair your Android device to your Bluetooth Boost Mobile phone. Paired but not connected is what we want to see.

Go to Settings and turn off Wi-Fi

Open up Bluetooth Dial Up Network App

To get your Bluetooth Address and Channel, touch the Settings button to bring up "Search Device" and "Search Channel." Select "Search Channel" and you'll see your Bluetooth MAC address show up as XX:XX:XX:XX:XX:XX. Copy that down and copy the address down. Now go back to Bluetooth DUN App and paste the address and channel in.

Copy and paste the following Boost Mobile DUN Chat

ABORT BUSY ABORT 'NO CARRIER' ABORT VOICE ABORT 'NO DIALTONE' ABORT 'NO DIAL TONE' ABORT 'NO ANSWER' ABORT DELAYED
'' ATZ
OK-AT-OK "ATDTS=2"
CONNECT \d\c

Open up Terminal Emulator

su

setprop net.dns1 8.8.8.8

Now you're connected. Bluetooth Tethering FTW.

For Developers Only:

Boost DUN Peer & Chat scripts for download

Boost Mobile DUN Peer Script

# This optionfile was generated by pppconfig 2.3.18.
#

#
hide-password
noauth
connect "/system/bin/chat -v -f /etc/chatscripts/boostchatscript"
debug
/dev/rfcomm0
38400
defaultroute
noipdefault
user replace_with_your_login_name
remotename boost
ipparam boost
usepeerdns
logfile /etc/ppp/peers/ppp.log

Peer and Chat Scipt for Android [ Bluetooth DUN]

2012-01-24T18:15:00.000-08:00

Check out the Boost Mobile Bluetooth DUN Tutorial

A trick to get the peer and chat script is to use pppconfig in Ubuntu to create a working peer and chat script. Use software manager to get pppconfig and then run pppconfig from Terminal. Follow the onscreen instructions, then once completed, the peer and chat script will be located in /etc/ppp/peers and /etc/chatscripts

If you have Bluetooth on your machine, before transferring the files to your Android device, you can test the Bluetooth connection to your Bluetooth CDMA/GSM/iDEN phone by using Terminal to

Connecting

Here, I've named my connection 'nameofyourconnection' while using pppconfig. sudo su will give you root rights. rfcomm bind will create a new rfcomm0 connection using your Bluetooth device's address, and followed by the Bluetooth channel. pppd call will connect the Bluetooth connection. pon will set up the DNS settings.

Code:

sudo su
rfcomm bind /dev/rfcomm0 XX:XX:XX:XX:XX:XX X
pppd call nameofyourconnection
pon

Now you can browse the Internet

Disconnect

Code:

poff

Downloading Android Source Tree Error

2012-01-21T10:11:00.000-08:00

While setting up my Android Dev Environment on Ubuntu 10.04 LTS, I ran into some errors. No matter how many times I reran repo sync, repo sync -f, etc. the errors would continue to show up. I believe it was due to some corruption during download. Either way, the two folders I had trouble with were Gallery.git and Exchange.git.

The Errors:
computer@ubuntu:~/WORKING_DIRECTORY$ repo sync
Fetching projects: 75% (166/221) fatal: Not a git repository: '/home/computer/WORKING_DIRECTORY/.repo/projects/packages/apps/Gallery.git'
Fetching projects: 76% (168/221) error: unable to resolve reference refs/remotes/aosp/ics-factoryrom-2-release: No such file or directory
From https://android.googlesource.com/platform/packages/apps/Exchange
! [new branch] ics-factoryrom-2-release -> aosp/ics-factoryrom-2-release (unable to update local ref)
...
...
error: Cannot fetch platform/packages/apps/Gallery
error: Cannot fetch platform/packages/apps/Exchange

error: Exited sync due to fetch errors

Solution/Fix

I went to WORKING_DIRECTORY/.repo/projects/packages/apps/Gallery.git
and Exchange.git and deleted them.

Then I reran repo sync, and the dev environment completed successfully.

Custom Desktop User Agent String for Android's Dolphin HD

2012-01-06T23:33:00.000-08:00

Ever want to view websites in their Full Desktop display mode? How about watch The Daily Show or Colbert Report on your Android device? Comedy Central is an example of a site that automatically switches to their Mobile site, which doesn't allow viewing full episodes. We want full episodes because our Android hardware is fully capable of viewing full Desktop sites including Adobe Flash content. In this post, we'll go over how to view all websites in full Desktop mode on Dolphin HD Browser.

When we visit a website, our web browser's User Agent lets a website know the capabilities of our browser. Then the website serves up the page in a readable format suitable for our device whether it be on a PC, Mac, Android, or iPhone. The problem with Dolphin HD is that it's built in User Agent still shows Android in the User Agent String, so some sites we visit still serve up their Mobile site.

To fix this, we're going to paste in our own Custom User Agent String:

Go to More => Settings => Dolphin Settings => User Agent => Custom

Then Copy and Paste the following User Agent

Mozilla/5.0 (Windows NT 6.1; WOW64; rv:8.0.1)

Then go to Data Storage Settings => Clear data

Check Clear cache
Check Clear history
Check Clear all cookie data

Press OK

Exit out of Dolphin HD

Open up Dolphin HD, and now any site you visit will display in full Desktop Mode.

If you're curious what the User Agent String above means, then this is what websites see when you visit:

Mozilla/5.0	Web Browser
Windows NT 6.1	Operating System	Windows 7
WOW64	Web Browser	32-bit Internet Explorer running on 64-bit Windows
AppleWebKit/535.7	Rendering Engine	WebKit Rendering Engine
KHTML, like Gecko		Apple WebKit is based on KDE KHTML
Chrome/16.0.912.63	Web Browser	Google Chrome Browser

Enjoy

Unlimited Free Text Messaging :: GV :: Boost Mobile iDEN

2012-01-04T09:31:00.000-08:00

So by now, you're having a blast with your GPS tracker/free internet boost mobile phone. Well, we're going to kick it up a notch with free unlimited text messaging through Google Voice.

Here's how it works:

We're going to use the Boost Mobile iDEN Pay-As-You-Go phone network to access the internet--this is free and we do not need a data plan. Then we'll use Opera Mini Browser to visit http://voice.google.com. Once logged in, we're free to make and receive text messages through the browser.

The cost breakdown is $10 every 3 months for unlimited free text messaging/GPS tracking/free internet/tethering/emergency phone.

Ultimate VOIP Android Phone Guide

2012-01-03T22:28:00.000-08:00

The goal of this post is to educate new Android owner's on getting the most out of their device. Also, we'll go over turning your Android phone into a dedicated VOIP WiFi phone without signing up for any service contract.

Turn your Android phone into a Google Voice Phone - GrooVe IP will turn your phone into a full blown VOIP phone by using your Google Voice number to make and receive calls. As long as you have WiFi access, you'll have a fully functional phone to make and receive unlimited calls free to the U.S. and Canada. To kick it up a notch, download the Google Voice App for unlimited free text messaging.
$5 GrooVe IP App

ROMs
Visit XDA Developers Forum to learn more about ROMs, and why they're useful. You'll find many ROMs developed by talented and creative developers and also by the developer community. Within the sub-forums, there's all the information you'll need to root and change your phone's ROM. If you want to supercharge your phone with some advanced modifications, you will need root access.

Battery Tips

Turn off Live Wallpapers as they eat batteries like the cookie monster eats cookies
Lower the brightness of your screen.
Airplane Mode Wi-fi App disables the radio to your service provider while giving the option to enable WiFi, Bluetooth, and GPS use thus saving a considerable amount of battery power. This is especially helpful for VOIP only phones that don't need Sprint/ATT/Verizon network access. My extended battery can go for 2 days of heavy use and still have some juice to spare.
Disable 4G and mobile radios
More battery tips: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1141221&page=5

Useful Free Applications

Browser (Install Adobe Flash 11 first)
Dolphin HD browser plays flash natively after installing the Flash plugin. On my EVO 3D, I'm able to watch 720p HD flash on Youtube without any issues.
Dolphin HD Browser App
Dolphin Companion Battery Saver

Video Player
MX Video Player App

File Sharing between PC and Phone
WebSharing Lite App

RSS Reader
gReader

Offline GPS Navigation
Navfree USA

For All Rooted Phones
Boost your phone's speed and RAM management
-=V6 SuperCharger=- FIX RAM & Launchers by zeppelinrox

HTC EVO 3D

2011-12-29T16:34:00.000-08:00

(Image: androidcentral.com)

Just joined the Android Party and acquired a HTC EVO 3D and HTC Sensation for the Missus. I'm going to jump in and learn all I can to modify this beast. Even though the EVO 3D is just a few months new, it's considered old technology already! That's great for me though because I got a great deal for some excellent hardware.

My main consideration when buying a phone was hardware specs. With good hardware, I can flash different software to suite my needs. The phone has a Qualcomm Snapdragon 1.2ghz Dual Core, two cameras for 3D shooting, 720P video, qHD 540x960 screen, and MHL HDMI out. Imagine the possibilities!

DIY $40/year GPS Tracking on the Cheap Tutorial

2011-12-19T08:12:00.000-08:00

Update 1/8/12:

I just ordered a Motorola i576 iDEN ruggedized phone to test its Bluetooth DUN (Dial Up Networking) connection with my WiFi only HTC EVO 3D VOIP phone. The i576 will provide internet access to my EVO 3D over a bluetooth connection. Ideally, I will be able to track my routes, LoJack my bike, unlimited free text messaging, and have internet access available to my Android device.

This is my Dude's, Where's My Bike Spot/LoJack set up using tazeat's Honda Forum post as a guide. It's cheap, easy, and useful for the road warrior.

With an old Motorola i425 Boost Mobile pay-as-you-go phone, I was able to track my routes via the web, share my route to loved ones, make/receive calls, and use the phone like a LoJack GPS tracker. There's also a way to get unlimited 20kbps free internet access including tethering to a laptop. Remember 56K, well this is 20K, so yeah. Absolutely no data plan needed and all for $10 every 3 months.

The bare minimum payment to keep the plan active is $10 every 3 months. There's no need to put more than the minimum, unless you want to use your phone to make/receive calls at a rate of 20 cents per minute.

Quick Summary:
Buy new phone kit with $5 credit included
Activate phone online
Install Instamapper App
Register an Instamapper Account
Connect extended power
Profit

Guide

Bill of Materials:
$40 iDEN Motorola Phone (i290, i335, i425...), with unactivated SIM card, and $5 credit
$2 mini USB transfer data cable
Optional $20 Portable USB battery pack (comes with 2 wire charger for the i425) OR $2 mini USB charger cable (usually made with 2 wires, no data pins)
Free Instamapper.com App
Total Cost for 3 months: $44 or $64 w/battery pack

A new i425 phone, activation kit, and $5 credit (good for 3 months of tracking) go for $40 on eBay. From my experience, the best bang for your buck is to buy the phone kit new.

If you want to take the hard road like I did, then by all means, get a working used phone, get a SIM with the PIN (without the PIN, there will be a $10 activation fee on top of the credit you need to add), and working battery (the BK60, BK70, or the giant BK10 battery could possibly be used with a modded case), or else you'll need to revive your old dead battery. Then go through the process of resetting the phone's network connection and settings. Seriously, save yourself the hassle and get a new phone kit.

Activation

Follow Boost Mobile's instructions for activation. It may go something like this:
Log onto http://boostmobile.com/ and click Activate
Enter in your SIM ID and IMEI
Select Pay as you Go (We do NOT need data)
Choose a phone number
If your phone came with a $5 credit, then you'll see the credit once you log into My Account. Look under Expiration Date, and you'll see it should have a expiration date 3 months from the day you activated.
When your phone activates, you'll see Boost display on the phone once the phone is turned on

Install Instamapper
Visit their website and go to step 4. http://www.instamapper.com/diy.html

Register a Free Instamapper Account
https://www.instamapper.com/fe?page=register
Then browse to Devices:
http://www.instamapper.com/fe?page=manageDevices
Then add a device:
http://www.instamapper.com/fe?page=addDevice
Give the Device a name
Click Add
Now grab your phone and open GPS Tracker
Copy the Key for the new device you just created into GPS Tracker's Settings menu

Configure Instamapper to run Always On
We can have Instamapper run automatically every time we turn the phone on. This will enable the App to constantly run in the background.
Go to your Apps menu
Type *158#
Enter passcode: 0000
Select OK
Select Full Time App
Scroll down to select GPS Tracker, and a green checkmark will display
Select Done
Finished

Extended Power
Battery life is limited depending on the frequency of "Send every (sec)" signal updates you want to send to Instamapper. The more updates you send, the more battery life you will use. To get extended battery life, you can purchase a portable USB battery pack which includes a charger for the i425 phone. The i425 phone can charge on any USB port as long as the cable is only 2 wires with no data pins.

Example Usage
For my setup, I have my i425 connected to a portable USB power pack. I can hide this set up in my Moto or Car to track my vehicles in case of theft. The online Instamapper updates will be accurate enough to locate my vehicle. Additional benefits from Instamapper include features similar to a Spot Location Device where we can share your maps with friends and family so they track our trip. Facebook or embedded maps are available too. Spot does have one unique feature with it's emergency button, whereas the phone only has 911 capabilities.

Extra Modifications
Opera Browser
You can install Opera Browser 3 to get free internet on your phone. Again, no data plan is needed. From my understanding, the data usage is all on the iDEN network, so it is extremely slow, but still useful when in a bind.

Google Maps also work on the phone.

Tethering to Ubuntu/Linux
There are tutorials online to tether an iDEN phone to a laptop/computer to provide internet access to your PC. Newer phones may provide faster tethering speeds?

For Ubuntu/Linux users, you can do the following:

Install moto4lin from Synaptics Package Manager
Then from user J@F on http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=214659
"Go to the terminal and type "sudo pppconfig"

your password
create a connection
give it a name like boost or nextell, whatever service ur using. (remember this name)
arrow down to "use dynamic dns" then space bar, then enter.
press enter on PAP
for username and password press spacebar
im not sure about the best speed but I put 19200
press enter on tone
enter "S=2"

I knew my port was /dev/ttyACM0 so I arrowed to no enter. yours should be something with ACM in it look in the /dev directory and look for something with ACM in the name also it changes to ttyACM0 and ttyACM1 with me so i made 1 with ACM0 and 1 with ACM1

arrow down to finished
enter
arrow down to quit
type "pon whatever_the_name_of_the_provider_you_gave_was"

your logged in. just don't keep the phone next to the monitor it will make lines show up on the screen type poff in the terminal when you want to hangup. oh and the i450 can have widen on it and thats 4x faster. hoped this helped"

Enjoy!

How to install Siphon SIP for iPhone, iPod, iPad

2011-12-08T09:49:00.000-08:00

(image from Siphon)

This tutorial is applicable for iOS 4.1 or later, but not 5.
You must have Cydia before proceeding:

Instructions:

Install Cydia
Install iFile
Download your favorite release from http://code.google.com/p/siphon/downloads/list?can=1&q=&colspec=Filename+Summary+Uploaded+ReleaseDate+Size+DownloadCount
Email the file you just downloaded to yourself
Open up your email
Touch the file to download it
Once the download is complete, open in iFile
Click on the file in iFile
Select Install
Once the installation is complete, an Siphon icon will display, and if not, use your App search to find it, then Siphon will display on your springboard
Enjoy

XBMC & Nvidia VDPAU on Ubuntu 11.10 with working Sound over HDMI

2011-12-05T09:54:00.000-08:00

I've successfully built another XBMC Ubuntu 11.10 machine with sound over HDMI thanks to various internet resources and some good ole troubleshooting. Sound is audible through the Internet Browser as well as through XBMC, so we have system sounds as well as movie sounds enabled.

My system plays 1080p and 720p movies smoothly with almost no CPU utilization e.g. a 15 gigabyte 1080p Blu-ray rip runs perfectly smooth. Nvidia's VDPAU handles all of the HD processing, and the video is stunning. Also, XMBC's AEON skin is just as beautiful. Note: Adobe's Flash 11 has numerous bugs in its current state, so it does not work 100% with this build, and it seems slightly more stable in Firefox than in Chrome.

This tutorial should work for Nvidia hardware users as well as give some troubleshooting ideas for ATI users.

Tutorial

My Setup:

Acer Revo R1600 (stock and unmodded)

Nvidia ION LE

Ubuntu 11.10 64-bit

HDMI

Instructions:

1. Install Ubuntu 11.10

2. Get the Nvidia driver
How To Install Nvidia 275.09.07 Driver in Ubuntu 11.10 Oneiric Ocelot?

3. Install XBMC
Install XBMC on Ubuntu 11.10 Oneiric Ocelot/Linux

4. Getting Sound to play over HDMI may take several steps:

First, check to see if sound is enabled and unmuted. SPDIF should be unmuted as well:

From Ubuntuforums user lidex on http://ubuntuforums.org/showpost.php?p=10363314&postcount=3 :

"Code:

alsasmixer

Press <F6> to select the correct soundcard.

Press <F3> to show playback levels. <F4> selects capture levels [or use <Tab>]

Use the left/right arrow keys to select and up/down arrow keys to change levels. <M> to mute/unmute.

Go to "System ->Preferences ->Sound" and make sure the correct soundcard is default and adjust your profile on the hardware tab.

On the output tab choose the correct device."

Then we'll check to see where our sound device is located by:

Code:

aplay -l

(Mine was 0,3)

Next, we'll load a module to finally get system sounds working:

From Ubuntuforums user efflandt on http://ubuntuforums.org/showpost.php?p=10367062&postcount=5 (I've modified the hardware location to match my hardware 0,3) :

Code:

aplay -D plughw:0,3 /usr/share/sounds/alsa/Front_Center.wav

Mine is 0,3 so I added a line to /etc/pulse/default.pa after alsa-sink line:

Code:

#load-module module-alsa-sink
load-module module-alsa-sink device=hw:0,3

Reboot. The only odd thing it that in the Output tab of Sound Preferences you will need to select the HDA NVidia device that does NOT say HDMI to get HDMI sound. The speaker test in Sound Preferences will not work, but if you play Rythmbox, etc. you should be able to switch sound output on the fly."

Lastly, we're going to enable HDMI sound in XBMC

Select HDMI in Audio Output

Under Audio Output Device, select Defaults

For passthrough sound to your receiver, choose the setting your setup requires.

Now get some popcorn going, sit back, and enjoy your HTPC!

Troubleshooting & Tips

Fix Video Tearing:

http://askubuntu.com/questions/74519/how-to-remove-tearing-in-videos-with-nvidia-driver

Overscan compensation:

Enable HD flash
http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=1685845

Change icon size
http://www.upubuntu.com/2011/10/how-to-resize-gnome-shell-icons-in.html

Change font sizes (just change the DPI for bigger fonts)
http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?p=11484414

Autologin
http://www.groupofnowhere.com/2011/10/19/xubuntu-11-10-oneiric-ocelot/

DIY GPS Handlebar Mount Tutorial

2011-12-01T08:24:00.000-08:00

(image: Tri's DIY GPS handlebar mount on an Aprilia Tuono)

The goal of this post is to give you an idea on how to create your own GPS handlebar mount. The core build of this DIY GPS mount should be applicable to anything with handlebar like a motorcycle, bicycle, scooter or ATV. The size and shape of the DIY GPS mount will vary depending on your needs such as the size of your GPS and handlebars. Overall, I've used this GPS mount on two motorcycles with great results.

Materials to build 1 mount:

Aluminum Flat Bar at Home Depot

2 Halex 3/4 in. Steel Conduit and Pipe Hangers #26781, (in the electrical isle of HD)

Velcro

2 Hex bolts

2 Nuts

2 Washers

2 Locking washers

Plumber's Teflon Tape

Bill of Materials:

~$15

Tools:

Dremel or Hack Saw

Drill

Sanding block

Scissors

Dry erase marker

Tutorial:

1. Gather your build materials from Home Depot.

2. Choose a good mounting location and make note of how much space you have to work with. Will the GPS mount fit?

3. Cut your aluminum bar to the size of your GPS using either a Dremel or hacksaw, and sand the edges smooth

4. Place the conduit hanger holes side by side, and place them together onto the aluminum bar. Mark your drill holes with your Dry erase marker.

5. Drill out the two holes

6. Tighten and screw in the nuts and bolts with the washer and locking washer.

7. Optional. Drill out a pair of holes to attach some Velcro straps.

8. Mount the GPS holder to your handlebar by unscrewing the Speed Thread on the Conduit Hangers.

9. Add some plumber's Teflon thread tape to protect your handlebar from scratches.

10. Pull the hangers apart and mount it to your handlebar. Put back the screw and tighten down.

11. Cut some velcro and add it to the front of the GPS holder and to the back of your GPS.

12. Mount your GPS to your new DIY GPS mount. Now start on your next adventure!

DIY Suzuki DRZ 400SM Windscreen Tutorial

2011-11-30T16:58:00.001-08:00

Wind is a challenge especially when riding the DRZ at freeway speeds because without a front windscreen, riding on a windy day feels like someone turning on a leaf blower to your chest.

I had an extra windscreen from an Aprilia RSV Mille 01-03 laying around, and figured I'd adapt it to my DRZ for some wind protection. Using a few nuts and bolts, a Dremel, and a sanding block, I was able to create a functional and stylish windscreen for my DRZ 400SM.

Materials:

Aprilia RSV Mille 01-03 Dark Smoke Windscreen

Masking tape

4 of each: nuts, bolts, washers, and locking washers

Dry erase marker

Bill of Materials:

$25

Tools:

Drill

Dremel

Sanding block

120 Grit sandpaper (very coarse)

Tutorial:

1. Place your windscreen over the front DRZ cowl and mark the drill holes with a dry erase marker
2. Drill out the holes
3. Secure the windscreen with nuts, bolts, washers, and locking washers
4. We're going to use the masking tape as a guide on where to cut, so using the edge and angle of the DRZ cowl as a line guide, we'll place the masking tape on the cowl and all the way to the end of our new windscreen.

5. Do the same as step 4 on the other side

6. Use your Dremel and carefully cut while using the masking tape as your guide.

7. The edges will be rough with melted plastic from the heat of the Dremel. We'll snap this gunk off, then using our sanding block, sand down both sides of our new windscreen.

8. Install the windscreen/front cowl to the DRZ. Now we can enjoy riding longer distances at freeway speeds.

DIY GoPro Extended Battery Pack :: How To

2011-11-29T07:20:00.000-08:00

While GoKarting at our local track, I was a half an hour into the session when my battery died, and I thought to myself, "Man, I will be missing some epic footage. When I get home, I'm going to put together a rechargable battery pack for the GoPro."

This extended battery pack will let you record for an extra 2 hours give or take. You can replace the batteries of the Tekkeon Battery Pack with more AA batteries. The only downside to this mod is that you will be drilling into your GoPro's plastic case, so it will no longer be waterproof. Other than that, you will have hours of recording time, which means you'll run out of memory before the batteries run out.

Materials:
USB to mini-USB cable
Tekkeon USB Mobile Battery Charger (Also works with the iPhone, Pod, etc.)
Hot Glue Gun stick
4 AA NiMH rechargable Batteries

Bill of Materials:
$24

Tools:
Drill
Dry erase marker
Hot Glue Gun

Disclaimer: This is for demonstration purposes only. Please use safety precautions whenever working with power tools.

Instructions:

1. Grab a dry erase marker and mark your drill point at the USB connector.

2. Remove the GoPro.

3. Drill out the marked point.

4. Fit USB cable into GoPro

5. Prepare hot glue

6. Create a seal of hot glue around the GoPro. Once the hot glue cools down, it can be removed along with the cable, so you'll have a perfectly molded seal for the cable and case. On days when you're recording short sessions, you can remove the cable and insert a plug.

Remove Yamaha Raptor 700 Baffle :: How To

2011-11-28T22:13:00.001-08:00

Yamaha 700 Raptor Muffler	1. Remove bolt with an allen wrench

2. Grab a torch and heat the outter ring of the baffle. 3. (Be careful of the heat) Then use a flathead screwdriver to kneed the baffle loose. 4. Use a pair of pliers to pull out the baffle.	5. This is how the baffle looks removed. The torch is pointing to where you need to apply heat. As you can see, there's a bit of rust on the baffle, which is causing the seizure.



I was attempting the Foot's Mod for my DRZ 400SM's Pro Circuit T4 exhaust. The exhaust is way too loud for my taste, and the Foot's Mod requires a Raptor 660 baffle to insert into a T4 exhaust. I could not source a 660 baffle, so I went ahead and tried the next best thing, the Raptor 700 baffle.	Well, I can tell you now that the Raptor 700 baffle does not directly fit, so for those looking attempting the Foots Mod, try and source yourself a 660 baffle. The 700 baffle will require some modification to make it fit.

Blogger blog has been removed Error

2011-11-15T11:46:00.001-08:00

My blog has been down due to an erroneous SPAM issue with Blogger. Somehow my blog was automatically marked as spam prompting Blogger to completely remove my blog. My blog was no longer viewable on my Dashboard, and my blog disappeared without a trace.

I understand how spammers make spam blogs, i.e. quick rich schemes, but I wish Blogger had some kind of warning to inform me that my blog was being reviewed for SPAM. It was alarming to wake up, log into my blog, to find everything gone. "Was I just hacked?" was the first thing that went through my mind. After some further reading, I found some answers.

The only solution is to post on the Blogger user forums and request a Spam Appeal. Only legitimate requests meeting Blogger's appeals criteria will be accepted. Spammers need not apply because you'll be banned forever anyway. Also, if your Google account is blocked from the forums, then you'll need to sign into another Google account to post a question to the forum:

Tip: Be clear and concise to have your question answered.
http://www.google.com/support/forum/p/blogger/label?lid=42512ba1ddda2647&hl=en

My appeals process:
http://www.google.com/support/forum/p/blogger/thread?tid=0776b0d4c1f9a9e8&hl=en

I'm happy with the response time in the Blogger Forums. My question was answered in a timely manner, and my issue was addressed within the day.

How to fix a MAF Sensor CEL Tutorial

2011-10-07T20:22:00.000-07:00

Almost all cars after the 90's have a MAF sensor. The MAF sensor detects airflow thereby sending signals to the engine to adjust how much fuel to deliver. They oftentimes get dirty from years of driving, and the sensor gets clogged with dirt and oil causing poor gas mileage as well as poor performance. Your car may even throw a Check Engine Light (CEL). In my opinion, most MAF sensors don't need to be replaced, but just a good cleaning will make the MAF sensor perform like new again.

Disclaimer: This is for demonstration purposes only. Removing and mishandling the MAF Sensor can be a costly mistake. Some of these newer sensors go for a few $100. Proceed at your own risk.

Materials:
CRC/Mass air flow sensor cleaner
Flashlight
Q-Tip

Tutorial:

1. With the car off and key removed, disconnect and remove your MAF Sensor

2. Looking down the MAF sensor with your flashlight, you should see two platinum wires with two tiny sensors in the middle of them. If these are covered in black gunk, take your CRC MAF cleaner and spray it at the wires. The cleaner should evaporate quickly. You can stop here if the wires become clean.

3. If the gunk is still stuck on the wires, grab your Q-tip and spray some MAF cleaner on it and again down the hole. Carefully clean and rub the wires as they are very fragile. If you break the wire, then you'll need a new sensor.

4. Reinstall your MAF sensor. Turn on your car and go for a test drive. If there was a CEL, it should now be gone. Enjoy better gas mileage and car performance!

Polish Plastic on a Smart Car Fortwo :: How To

2011-09-20T18:52:00.000-07:00

Polish & wax the 3 uncoated plastic pieces on the rear end of a Smart Car Passion. This method is applicable to other plastics as well.

Materials:
Meguiar's Plastx
Cloth
Plastic safe wax (I'm using Zaino Z2)
Wax applicator & a Cloth to remove the wax

Disclaimer: Demonstration purposes only. Please use safety precautions whenever working on a vehicle. Do it at your own risk.

Tide Allergic Reaction :: Hives/Dermatitis

2011-09-13T13:28:00.000-07:00

For a month and a half, I had an itch that wouldn't go away. The symptoms included raised red bumps all over my body, constant itching that got worse at night, difficulty breathing, and difficulty sleeping. I truly feel for you, if you're having to deal with hives/dermatitis.

To cure the itching, I tried everything! I tried refrigerated Cetaphil lotion, J&J baby lotion, ice packs, Allegra, Benadryl, Zyrtec, rubbing Guava leaves on my itchy spots, eating Eastern medicines (gross tasting btw), meditation, and switching to an organic diet. These attempts temporarily calmed my symptoms, but they kept coming back. My body was reacting to something, and no amount of medicine or lotion would cure it.

It turns out I had hives due to my laundry detergent, Tide Clean Breeze. With every wash, my clothes would be coated in allergen causing my skin to severely react. The difficulty breathing was from drying my clothes, and the detergent residue would get shot into the air from the dryer outlet, which I would then breath in and react to. From what I read, the itchyness gets worse at night because our body's natural defense goes dormant where its less active than during the day.

I've used Tide for many years without any reaction, but either my body chemistry changed, or something in Tide's formula changed. I switched to a 100% Natural detergent from Costco. Then I rewashed all of my clothes and bedsheets. 3 days later, my symptoms improved dramatically. No more bumps, and no more itch! If you're dealing with the "Itches," hang in there. I wish you strength and resolve.

1and1 Admin Panel Down

2011-06-29T13:24:00.000-07:00

Not sure if anyone else is receiving this today, but for the life of me, I can't log in to 1and1's admin control panel. When I check their system status, they say all systems are functional, so I'm not sure what's up today. Hopefully, it's just me.

I pressed F5 to refresh a couple of times, and that fixed it.

Tri's 2004 Aprilia Tuono Project

2011-06-07T13:13:00.000-07:00

The ride home from the previous owner's home was fun. His place was up in the mountains. The warm weather was just perfect. You know, the kind of weather when the pine tree smell hits the air just right. Couldn't have asked for better riding conditions.

The Tuono is a different beast compared to my old Honda CBR 600RR. I like both, but with the Tuono I felt torn between riding relaxed versus riding with an evil laugh.

Completed:

H7 Euro to H7 Japanese wiring
Headlight modulator
Tires
Tail LED
Delkavic exhaust
Coil covers
Replace front fairing
Brake/Clutch fluid
Buff headlight and windscreen
Mirrors
Turn signals front and rear
Weld up frame sliders
Repaint radiator side covers
Infamous brown connector
Carbon fiber the heel guards
Clean n lube chain
Oil Change
Coolant Change
Buff out exhaust

06-27-2011

Sanded & painted radiator covers
Cut and soldered the brown connector from the Rectifier. The enclosing plastic on one of the pins showed signs of melting. Ended up cutting the connector and soldering the wires together permanently.

06-29-2011

Today, I went ahead and created the mold for my carbon fiber heel guards.

Sealed the part with molding clay
Applied mold release wax to the part. Put several layers on and buffed.
Applied PVA. Waited for it to set up
Gel coated over the part
When the gel coat was tacky, I applied 3 layers of fiberglass chop mat to reinforce the mold
Once dry, I removed the part
Sanded and buffed using 1200, 1500, and 3M perfect it III

Tomorrow, carbon fiber goes in, and I'll create the mold for the other heal guard

06-30-2011
Today, I took my broken frame sliders to Leo's Muffler in SJ and had them welded up. A quick 5 minutes later, and I was good to go. They did a great job welding it up and reinforcing the parts.

Then I got home and parts arrived in the mail. Sweet.

Mirrors with Integrated LED turn signals
Rear LED turn signals
Oil filter
Kisan Modulator

My Tuono didn't have any turn signals, well, except one funky looking rear left signal. When I took apart the rear tail, there were a bunch of mismatched wires that did not match up to the Tuono's Wiring Diagram. I traced the wiring, and it turns out the PO installed an LED relay and rear wiring harness in addition to an aftermarket flasher. So, I took the rear LED relay and harness and put that aside and fabricated a new harness for all 4 signals.

I've heard some issues with Aprilia's electronics design, but I love the simplicity of it. The Tuono's signal wiring connectors are standard Molex connectors available at Fry's Electronics. I used some 18AWG wiring, heat shrink tubing, connector crimper, and wiring loom to create a new OEM equivalent harness. Soldered everything up, and all LED signals work great. I really like the shape and form of the mirrors and signals.

Complete as of 07-05-2011

1and1 and PHP5

2011-05-17T23:40:00.000-07:00

While using Wordpress with 1and1, I wanted to enable the use of PHP5 for a plugin. Couple of mistakes on my part was that I named .htaccess incorrectly as ".htacess" in the folder of my site.

Then after getting PHP5 recognized on my site, I had to uninstall the plugin. Reinstall, and then re-enable, then lastly all was well.

From 1and1:

Enabling PHP5

With 1&1 Linux hosting packages you have the choice between PHP 4 and PHP 5. To distinguish a script as PHP 5, simply name the script with the file extension .php5.

While the PHP developers have done their utmost to ensure compatibility, we cannot guarantee that PHP 4 scripts will function 100% correctly under PHP 5.

Please note that in contrast to PHP 4, the default for the variable RegisterGlobals and allow_url_fopen is "off".

By default Apache uses PHP 4 for .php extension. If you don't want to rename all your scripts to .php5 you can do the following:

Create a .htaccess file and place the following line:

AddType x-mapp-php5 .php 

This will tell Apache to use PHP 5 instead of PHP 4 for the extension .php in the directory the .htaccess is placed and all sub-directories under it.

Checking your PHP version

One way to find out what version of PHP is currently being used by one of your sites is to create a PHP page with the phpversion(); function. Save this file as phpVersion.php to the same folder where all of your site files are located. Then access this page in a browser such as http://domain.com/phpVersion.php and view the output.

<?php 
echo "The current PHP version being used is: " . phpversion ( ); 
?>

1and1 Webspace Explorer Error

2011-05-15T13:06:00.000-07:00

Looks like 1and1 just recently changed their "1and1 Control Panel" interface. Probably, many were used to using Internet Explorer with "1and1 Webspace Explorer" because it was compatible, before the 1and1 interface change, whereas Google Chrome was not. As of 5/15/11, when attempting to use Webspace Explorer with Internet Explorer 9, commands clicked end up with an error being displayed.

The fix would be to switch to another browser like Google Chrome, which is faster anyway and more secure. You could try Firefox or Opera, but I haven't personally tested those browsers. For me, I will continue to develop in Dreamweaver, test in multiple browsers, and use Google Chrome for any 1and1 Webspace Explorer interactions.

DIY $10 GoPro Chest Mount w/Sample Vid :: HD

2011-05-13T22:09:00.000-07:00

Quick and simple DIY GoPro chest mount. Can be had for even cheaper if you visit your local plastics store for some scrap lexan.

Time:
10~15 minutes

Tools:
Drill and drill bit

Materials:
1 1/4" thick rectangular piece of polycarbonate lexan (I'm using a scrap piece of aluminum layered plexiglass)
2 lashing straps (bought at walmart - Outdoor Products Lashing Straps)
1 flat gopro mount
1 curvy gopro base attachment

Tips:
From what I've read, sticking some electrical tape between the gopro mount and case may further reduce camera shake. Will try this on my next outting.

Disclaimer: Demonstration purposes only. Please use safety precautions whenever working with power tools. Do it at your own risk.

Post HTML code in Blogger post

2011-04-05T21:08:00.000-07:00

So you've entered in your HTML code to display on a blog post, but Blogger ends up interpreting the HTML code, so your post ends up looking funky. No problem.

Solution:

It had been awhile since I had to insert some code into a post, and I did not realize Blogger changed the posting options? Either way, the new posting features look pretty cool.

Add a Logo to your Header Text :: CSS :: Wordpress

2011-04-03T20:46:00.000-07:00

Edit your header.php with the following:

<div id="header">
 <div id="samplelogo"><a href="<?php echo get_option('home'); ?>/"><img src="http://www.linktoyour/logo.png" alt="" width="60" height="60" />
 </div>
  
 <p id="logo"><a href="<?php echo get_option('home'); ?>/"><?php bloginfo('name'); ?></a></p>
 <p id="strapline"><?php bloginfo('description'); ?></p>
   
</div>

Then edit your style.css

#samplelogo {
 float: left;
 padding-right: 10px;
}

Fatal error: main() [function.require]: Failed opening required './wp-blog-header.php' (include_path='.:/usr/lib/php') on line 17

2011-03-11T18:49:00.000-08:00

Fatal error: main() [function.require]: Failed opening required './wp-blog-header.php' (include_path='.:/usr/lib/php') on line 17

Not sure what happened, either there was an error while I was updating the blog's header, and wp-blog-header.php was deleted, or something 1and1 was having an issue.

Anyway, the solution is to restore wp-blog-header.php to the root folder of your blog, which can be found in your original wordpress installation zip file.

For example, if I had a blog at imadethisdesign.com/blog, and I received this error, then I would download a copy of WordPress, then unzip it, then copy the wp-blog-header.php to imadethisdesign.com/blog

Also, you can try this solution as well when the above does not work:
http://wordpress.org/support/topic/wp-blog-headerphp-failed-to-open-stream

All should be well.

Toyota 4runner CEL P0171 and P0120 Fixed

2011-02-16T20:34:00.000-08:00

Image from yotatech.com

P0171 - Fuel system running lean
P0420 - TPS sensor

Completely clean the MAF sensor *FIXED*!

CEL light went on in our '00 Toyota 4runner a couple days ago. 100K miles and going strong. Using Toyota Techstream Software with a Tactrix cable, 2 codes were read. So I figured if I replace the TPS sensor, clean the MAF, replace spark plugs, and then reset the ECU by unplugging the battery, then all would be fixed. Not exactly.

Even after replacing the TPS sensor and spark plugs, the codes kept popping up. Turns out I only cleaned HALF of the MAF sensor. I only cleaned the orange bulb and wires. What I forgot to clean was the internal wires of the MAF sensor.

When looking down the long shaft of the MAF sensor, you'll see 2 thin looking wires at the end of the shaft. After cleaning the two hidden MAF sensor wires with CRC/11 oz. Electronic Cleaner and a Q-tip, a chunk of soot was left on the Q-tip.

I switched back the old TPS sensor, and reset the ECU again, and BAM, all was well. The car drove like it was brand new again. I'm very confident that our 4runner will be getting kick butt gas mileage once again.

PS: On another note, I made an error while troubleshooting causing the car's idle to run screwy. I left the radiator cap slightly loose causing the IAC to malfunction resulting in a rough idle. *Face Palm* Once the radiator cap was tightened completely, the car was back to 100%. Thought I'd throw this out there in case others run into the same problem.

Asus G60 Wireless Problem After Windows Update

2011-01-06T19:59:00.000-08:00

There was an issue with my G60VX laptop with an Intel Pro 5100 wireless card. After running windows update, and installing a new driver update, my wireless stopped working. Do not update! It's kind of too late for that if you're reading this. Anyway, my wireless button was on, and yes I pushed Fn + F2 numerous times without success.

So here's the solution I found:

Press Fn + F2, then quickly press the Enter key, and you'll see the grayed out wireless icon on your screen light up with color, along with a checkmark next to it.

Next, put your laptop into sleep mode. Turn the laptop back on. And voila, your wireless should be good to go.

Skype for iPhone with Video Chat :: Available now for 2011

2011-01-04T12:00:00.000-08:00

(image source: from Skype)

What may be the coolest App of the Year, Skype has enabled Video Calls for iPhone/iPod Touch. Yes, you heard me, for example, you can now video chat on your iPhone to your family overseas who are on their PC, Mac, iPod Touch 4g, etc. You can now do free video calls wherever you have an Internet connection whether it be 3G or WiFi. I know many have been waiting for this, and now it's here. Get it now on the App Store.

Joomla My Google Maps Extension

2011-01-03T00:23:00.000-08:00

View Larger Map

Looking for a My Google Maps integration for Joomla? Mike Reumer at Reumer.net developed a great plugin that's easy as 1-2-3 to install and customize.

Download:
http://extensions.joomla.org/extensions/maps-a-weather/maps-a-locations/maps/1147

Sign up for a Google Map API Key (free):
http://code.google.com/apis/maps/signup.html

Instructions for MSID usage:
http://tech.reumer.net/Google-Maps/Demo-Google-Maps/MSID.html

(Tip for MSID usage. When you're entering your code, be sure you're in HTML editing mode and not rich format text editor)

For example HTML code: {mosmap msid='108595336348435880749.00044a946bcb3d5f61664'}

Other customizations:
http://tech.reumer.net/Google-Maps/Demo-Google-Maps/

Hope that helps,
-Tri

Happy Holidays!

2010-12-23T10:27:00.000-08:00

Happy holidays, friends, and have a happy new year!
-Tri

Smart Car Fortwo :: Engine air filter change :: HD

2010-12-06T22:48:00.000-08:00

Estimated Time to Completion:
5-10 minutes

Tools and Materials:
7mm socket and socket wrench or a flathead screwdriver (your choice)
24" bar to prop up the carpet
K&N 33-2417 Replacement Air Filter

Disclaimer: Demonstration purposes only. Please use safety precautions whenever working on a vehicle. Do it at your own risk.

Smart Car Fortwo :: Cabin air filter change :: HD

2010-12-06T22:45:00.000-08:00

Estimated time to Completion:
2-5 minutes

Tools and Materials:
FRAM Freshbreeze CF10132
Flathead screwdriver

Disclaimer: Demonstration purposes only. Please use safety precautions whenever working on a vehicle. Do it at your own risk.

ZeuS.Zbot.aoaq Zonealarm Marketing Trick

2010-09-16T23:28:00.000-07:00

I turned on my computer today to find this Zonealarm pop up on my desktop. Real or fake? Turns out it's fake, and a dirty marketing ploy by Zonealarm. I never thought they'd stoop to this level where they'd try and send SCAREWARE to users of their Zonealarm Free in order to push us into buying their Antivirus products. Common Zonealarm, you guys are better than that!

*Note* although this is a sketchy marketing trick, your computer may actually be infected with other viruses. If you don't have an Antivirus software, please take the opportunity to check out AVG Free, alternatively, for an Antivirus + Firewall solution to purchase, AVG Internet Security 9.0 is what I'd recommend.

Additional info in the comments section.

Chat with their customer support:
http://www.zonealarm.com/security/en-us/support/zonealarm-customer-service.htm

At the end of the chat session, you'll be given a link to send a message to their developers.

Use this message if you'd like:
"Your new Zeus spam message is very disappointing to me as a consumer and a user. I have been a loyal user of your software, and I am surprised that you'd try and scare me into purchasing your software. Could you please let the quality of your software stand for itself and leave the purchasing decision up to the consumer? Please don't send these messages. It degrades the integrity of your company and software."

Best wishes,
-Tri

Ooma Hub :: Orange Light of Death :: Hardware Failure

2010-09-09T18:17:00.000-07:00

Symptom: When turning on your Ooma Hub, an orange light immediately appears on the clear Ooma tab. No other lights display on the buttons nor on the network connections in the back.

Problem: You've experienced an Ooma Hub hardware failure. (Don’t bother with reading the manual as the constant orange light is not mentioned in there. I checked.)

Solution: Your options are to either return the device to the store or call Ooma and have them replace the unit under the warranty.

Tips for replacement under warranty: If you already tried troubleshooting, hard reset, turning off the device, checking the lights and cable, then here’s a tip to get you through the call faster. Skip their attempts at troubleshooting over the phone because their tech support will get you to the same conclusion which you already know: your Ooma Hub is toast. The Orange Light of Death, or OLD, is 100% guaranteed that your Ooma Hub is no longer working. Insist that you’ve already tried troubleshooting, and you want to have the unit replaced. Also, double check the information they have on hand to ensure a speedy replacement.

*Update 9/13/10*
From Ooma Support:
Subject: Hardware Failure
Try slow power cycle first by unplugging the power from the back of the device, wait for at least 2 minutes before plugging it back in.
You can also try doing a factory reset to check if your device will recover:
1. Hold down the Tab button, unplug the power cord.
2. After 10 sec plug it back in, continue holding the tab until the 3 rows of buttons light up row by row at a fast pace (i.e. each row lights up for 300 msec.).
3. Release the Tab button.
4. The ooma Hub will then go back to factory default settings and reboot itself.
If the factory reset did not work, we can recommend the replacement of the defective unit under your current warranty coverage.

Currently going through the exchange process.

Update: 10/10/10
I'm happy to update that the exchange went smoothly. Ooma sent a new device that worked just fine.

Firefox 3.6.X & Vmware SSL/https Fix

2010-08-03T09:38:00.000-07:00

Thanks to Alan Doyle on the mozilla forums for this fix:

Open up Firefox
Type in the address bar: about:config
Type in the filter bar: ssl2
Double click on security.enable_ssl2 to change the value from False to True

Now you should be able to log into https://localhost:8333

Vmware Console on the other hand will not work with Firefox 3.6.X. Therefore, if you're on Ubuntu 10.04 Lucid, you will need to access Vmware remotely via another computer on your network. If you're using anything below Ubuntu 9.10, then downgrade Firefox 3.6.X to 3.5.8, and Vmware Console will be okay.

Install Vmware Server 2.0.2 on Ubuntu 10.04 Lucid Lynx 64-bit

2010-08-02T07:19:00.000-07:00

Attempting to install Vmware Server 2.0.2 on Lucid 64-bit will ultimately stop at the building modules step "Execution Aborted." To get around these errors, an excellent working guide can be followed at: hmontoliu's blog.

*Important notes*
Towards the end of the hmontoliu's guide, for my installation, I did not opt for the "-d" flag, which uses default selections for a Vmware Server installation, because I needed to enter in the:

Administrative user name
Networking options
Serial number

Using the "-d" flag prevented me from specifying an administrative user name, so after my first installation attempt, I could not log into the installation.

Did not work for me:
"/usr/bin/vmware-config.pl -d"

Did work:
"/usr/bin/vmware-config.pl"

Hopefully, you'll now see:
"The configuration of VMware Server 2.0.2 build-203138 for Linux for this
running kernel completed successfully."

Now your server can be accessed at:
https://localhost:8333 or http://localhost:8222

I believe the latest Firefox may have some issues accessing a SSL'ed Vmware server, so try using the unsecured http link to see if that works for you.

Cheers

Google Chrome :: Task Manager Keyboard Shortcut

2010-07-14T08:50:00.000-07:00

Once in awhile, a page may cause a hiccup in Google Chrome. If one of your pages refuses to close, a quick keyboard shortcut to kill the page is:

Shift + Esc

This will bring up the Google Chrome Task Manager. Select the tab you want to close, and then click End Process. Hopefully, all is well again.

Cheers

7/7/2010 :: 1and1 Email server is down...Yes, again

2010-07-07T13:25:00.000-07:00

Yes, this is getting repetitive, but I'm going to post it anyway to keep track of 1and1's down time.

For the past few hours, their email service has been offline, which means you won't be able to send/receive mail. Maybe you'll be one of the lucky ones to receive, but you won't be able to send. Emails that you try to send may end up disappearing because their servers aren't working. You could try logging into their webmail.1and1.com, but it may be bogged down from the flood of users. Don't even try to call because you won't get through. (I've tried.)

If it's any consolation, email their billing dept at billing@1and1.com to respectfully complain and request a credit to your next billing cycle. They will give you a credit on your account.

Update 7/14/2010: You can check 1and1's server status at http://status.1and1.com Thank you mortalwombat for the info.

7/2/2010 :: 1and1 mail server problems

2010-07-02T10:57:00.000-07:00

Hi folks, 1and1's email servers go haywire again. This is like the 4th time this year. I dreaded calling their technical support, but I had to because it looked like my client was missing email from 8AM-10AM. Guess what, another annoying 10 minutes dealing with 1and1 technical support. They confirmed their email servers were having issues and that their admins were "on it." Thumbs up to the admins though, I can imagine it being tough working at 1and1. I will contact their complaints department to get a credit for the next billing cycle. End rant.

BTW: On a funny note, while calling tech support, they were playing Portal's ending song Still Alive. Kind of odd calling into tech support and hearing the lyrics "dead, still alive, dying, burned," lol. Bravo to one cool admin out there.

E*TRADE iPhone App :: Free Real-time Options Quotes

2010-05-13T11:15:00.000-07:00

The E*TRADE iPhone App is a powerful stock App. Not only do we get free streaming stock quotes, but we also get free streaming options quotes too. The user interface is clear and concise. We can view option chains, in-the-money calls, real-time size for bid-ask, as well as the underlying stock price. It's fun to see your order change the bid-ask size.

For real time streaming stock quotes, the App allows us to add a stock watch list, so we can view our stock price, volume, and price direction update in real-time.

To get streaming real-time quotes, you'll need to sign up for an E*TRADE account. Signing up is free, and there are no hidden charges or fees. Try it out, use the App, and see if you like it. Cheers!

Tutorial: Acer Revo 1600 HTPC with Boxee in HD

2010-04-27T14:49:00.000-07:00

Over the weekend, I purchased an Acer Revo 1600 for my fiancé's parents. I figured for $150, the Revo 1600 with the Nvidia ION would make a powerful Boxee HTPC without breaking the bank. Boxee has Netflix, mkv-avi-mp4 movie playback, online streaming video, Pandora, Flickr, and more. This tutorial will be in two parts, one part for XP users, and the other for Vista/Server 2008/7 users.

Windows XP Boxee Guide

First off, if you're using your Revo 1600 with Windows XP, then you will NOT get HD decoding in Boxee. HD videos will stutter badly. You must have Vista/Server 2008/7 to get DXVA2 (Direct X Video Acceleration 2, which we'll go into in the second half of this tutorial) If you feel comfortable with installing Vista or Server 2008 or Windows 7, then I would recommend switching the OS.

Upgrade Drivers
Acer/Nvidia driver for Audio over HDMI (do not use the Nvidia.com driver because it does not work with the Revo, as of 4/27/10)
Geforce/ION LE 197.45 WHQL Graphics Driver
Nvidia ION LE Nforce 15.46 WHQL Chipset Driver

Sign up and Install Boxee

Install Flash 10.1 Prerelease for HD Flash Playback

Sound over HDMI
Right out of the box, the Revo was almost ready to play with Boxee. The only thing I had to tweak was the sound over HDMI.

After installing the drivers, I had to disable the Realtek Sound adapter in Hardware Devices in System Properties. Then sound over HDMI was working and so was Dolby Digital/DTS passthrough. If you don't need sound over HDMI, then don't disable the Realtek Sound adapter.
Lastly, go into Boxee > Settings > System > Audio > Select Nvidia HD Audio

Video over HDMI

By now, video should be outputting beautifully in 1080p or 720p. If you have overscan problems, right click on your desktop. Go into the Nvidia control panel. Click on HDTV. There should be an menu item to adjust overscan. Follow the on screen instructions.

Netflix

If you want Netflix, then open up a browser like Google Chrome/Firefox, log into your Boxee account, then click on services. Click on Netflix, and sign in. This will now link Netflix fo your Boxee account.
Download and install Microsoft Silverlight
Open up Boxee.
Go to My Apps and select Netflix.
Netflix will ask to install a cookie. Click Yes
Enjoy using Netflix on Boxee

Windows Vista/Server 2008/7 Boxee Guide

Boxee really shines in Vista/Server 2008/7. Whichever installation you choose, they all will have DXVA2, and DXVA2 is needed to accelerate HD movie playback. Instead of the CPU lagging to do the work, the Nvidia ION will now power through.

I chose Windows Server 2008 R2 x64 Standard Edition with the Windows 2008 Workstation Converter.

After installing the OS, we need to upgrade the drivers. Be sure to get the right drivers if you install a 32-bit or 64-bit OS as they are different. Video/audio/chipset drivers are all on Nvidia's website, and they work.

Upgrade Drivers

Windows 7 64-bit, Windows Vista 64-bit, Windows 2008 Server 64-bit

Geforce/ION LE 197.45 WHQL Graphics Driver
Nvidia driver for Audio over HDMI
Nvidia ION LE Nforce 15.51 WHQL Chipset Driver

Windows 7 32-bit, Windows Vista 32-bit, Windows 2008 Server 32-bit
Geforce/ION LE 197.45 WHQL Graphics Driver

Nvidia driver for Audio over HDMI

Nvidia ION LE Nforce 15.51 WHQL Chipset Driver

Sign up and Install Boxee

Install Flash 10.1 Prerelease for HD Flash Playback

After upgrading the drivers, the audio worked great in my installation. I did not need to any additional tweaking, nor did I have to disable anything. Sound over HDMI worked beautifully, and I had Dolby Digital/DTS passthrough over HDMI. If you run into problems, try changing the sound settings inside Boxee > Settings > System > Audio > Select Nvidia HD Audio

Video over HDMI

Netflix

If you want Netflix, then open up a browser like Google Chrome/Firefox, log into your Boxee account, then click on services. Click on Netflix, and sign in. This will now link Netflix fo your Boxee account.
Download and install Microsoft Silverlight
Open up Boxee.
Go to My Apps and select Netflix.
Netflix will ask to install a cookie. Click Yes
Enjoy using Netflix on Boxee

Final thoughts
The installation in Windows 2008 R2 x64 went smoothly. After upgrading the drivers, installing Boxee, flash and Microsoft Silverlight, we had a full blown HTPC. Thanks to the Nvidia ION, we enjoyed watching smooth playback of 1080p mkv's, YouTube HD, and Netflix instant movies. CPU utilization was under 20-30% when playing HD movies. (Pressing "i" in Boxee brings up utilization) Overall, great power in such a small box.

Now go enjoy!

DIY: Replacing a Coleman Lantern Battery

2010-04-26T16:26:00.000-07:00

This step-by-step DIY post explains how to replace a dead battery specifically in a Coleman Twin Tube Battery Lantern, but the post can be used as a guide for other lanterns as well.

Disclaimer: proceed at your own risk, as I take no responsibility for what you do while working with electrical current. Batteries can be dangerous. Use safety precautions and common sense.

The lantern uses a 6V sealed lead acid battery charging at 7.2-7.5V, which we’ll replace with a direct fitting 5000mah 7.2V NiMH battery. Usage time will extend to ~7 hours with one 4W tube on, and will save some weight. Using a smart charger will insure a full charge and a long lasting battery when compared to the battery system prior to the modification.

Materials:
NiMH Battery Pack 7.2V 5000mAh (36Wh) for 6V Portable Devices - $36.85
Multi-Current Smart Charger ( 1-2 A ) For any Airsoft 4.8V - 10.8V NiMH / NiCd Battery Packs - $27.95
Electrical Tape - $0.50
Silver Solder - $1.25

Tools:
+ Screwdriver
Soldering Iron
Sharp object (knife, x-acto knife)

Step 1: Unscrew the bottom 3 screws to reveal the sealed acid battery pack.

Step 2: Remove the wires from the battery.

Step 3: Remove the battery from the housing. There is double sided tape holding the battery down:

Step 4: On the Coleman lantern, cut the ends of the red (+ positive wire) and the black (- negative wire).

Step 5: (In this step, on the battery, be sure not to let the exposed red wire and exposed black wire touch. In the photo, the cut was staggered to insure safety.)

a. On the battery, shave the plastic mold off of the red and black wire with a knife, but do not cut.
b. On the Coleman, expose 1cm of bare wire for the red and black wires.
c. Splice in the wire from the Coleman lantern to the battey (red to red) and (black to black).

Step 6: Solder the connections.

Step 7:
a. Wrap each solder joint individually with electrical tape. Again, we do not want the exposed wires to touch one another.
b. Then wrap around both wires.

Step 8:
a. The battery will fit directly where the old battery was positioned. There is no need for any adhesives as it’s a firm fit. Run the wire to the compartment where the old charger was stored. This is so you can recharge your unit.
b. Plug up the old AC charging plug on the Coleman lantern as you will no longer charge the unit from this plug--you can use Styrofoam to do this.

Step 9: Screw the three screws back together

Step 10: Let there be light!

Step 11: Charge after a good day’s use.

Free Video Download of Planet Earth Episode 1 - From Pole to Pole in HD (Amazon)

2010-04-25T13:16:00.000-07:00

(Image from Amazon)

Stream it, or download it, and enjoy the movie in 720P HD for free from Amazon Video on Demand.
You don't need an account to view it, but you do need an account to download it in 720P w/5.1 sound. There are other titles free to view as well.

BBC Planet Earth Episode 1 720p [amazon.com]

2.30GB download. WMV files extension. Runtime 49 minutes and 16 seconds.
(No software available for Mac owners to download for now...)

There are more free movies on Amazon, but it looks like there's a unique code in the link, so I cannot directly link you there. Go to "Deals and Freebies" link on the left side of the
Amazon navigation menu [amazon.com]

Once you log into your account, there are options to download videos via Amazon's Unbox downloader, or you can connect to your Tivo. Also, the video will be yours to own in your Amazon video library.

Enjoy!

1and1 Email Bites the Dust: Server Down Again

2010-04-14T16:27:00.000-07:00

Trying to access your 1and1 email? Well, pop.1and1.com is down, and their Webmail ~~is not working either~~ is working on and off. Not sure when it will be back up. I wonder though...throughout these random outages, is the outage because of a security breach or data loss?

On another note, I despise the newer Webmail 2.0 interface. It's nice that 1and1 added new features, but they sacrificed speed to do so. I wish we could access their old 1.0 interface. 1.0 kicked @ss.

To end on a positive note, their web hosting is still up =)

Opera Mini Browser on iPhone: Better than Sliced Bread

2010-04-13T10:45:00.000-07:00

(image from Opera.com)

Get this app now. It's faster, different, and free. The Opera Mini Web Browser for the iPhone was released yesterday, and it's everything we have been asking for.

When we open up a page, the entire page loads, and there's a slick animation where the page slides into view--no more of that dizzying grid like in Safari. It gets even better, we now have tabbed page browsing and a multiwindowed Start Page for a visual view of our favorites. The browser has a few minor problems loading pages, where some tables and text are displayed incorrectly, but overall, it only gets better from here. The browsing experience is excellent. I like the animations

Also, the Opera Mini Browser acts as a proxy, so if you're behind a corporate firewall, at school, censored government, etc. then you may be able to access those blocked sites you always wanted to access but couldn't.

If you haven't downloaded this app yet, get going! Enjoy the web the way it was supposed to be viewed.

Canon EOS 5D Mark II 2.0.4 Firmware Officially Released

2010-03-16T16:52:00.000-07:00

(image from Canon)

Just imagine all the creativity that's brewing!

Info on the update:
http://www.usa.canon.com/dlc/controller?act=GetArticleAct&articleID=3287

Download the update:
http://web.canon.jp/imaging/eosd/firm-e/eos5dmk2/firmware.html

1920x1080:
30 fps (29.97 fps)
24 fps (23.976 fps)
25 fps (requires camera to be set to PAL recording mode)

640x480:
30 fps (29.97 fps)
25 fps (requires camera to be set to PAL recording mode)

Manual sound adjustment up to 64 incremental levels and 48kHz sound recording.

Live histogram display as well.

Enjoy!

AVG Antivirus 9.0.790 Internet / DNS problems in Windows XP

2010-03-16T16:28:00.000-07:00

*Update* - March 20th, 2010 - From my testing, it looks like the bug occurred during the upgrade from AVG 9.0.730 to 9.0.790. To get 9.0.790 to work, you'll need to uninstall your nonworking AVG, reboot, and download AVG 9.0.790, and install by choosing Custom, and uncheck everything. This should get you AVG back up and running again.

*Update* - March 17th, 2010 - Temporary solution is to uninstall AVG 9.0.790 and install an older version of AVG 9.0.730--this works fine with Zonealarm installed. Windows 7 machines do not seem to be affected by this bug.

--------------------------------------------------------------

As of March 14th, at two different client sites and on my personal computers, I've run into DNS problems when trying to access the internet after updating AVG Antivirus free edition and business edition version 9.0.790 with Zonealarm installed/uninstalled.

This was a challenge to diagnose because at first, I thought it could be a virus, spyware, or trojan, but the DNS problem showed up in a fresh install of Windows XP. The only site I could visit was google.com and handful of other sites.

Possible solutions I went through: adjust the MTU on the router and network adapter, run AVG, Malwarebytes, Spyware doctor, boot into Safe Mode, repair winsock, Windows Update, but these attempts did not fix the problem. Only after uninstalling AVG, was I able to browse the internet freely again. I am still unsure of the root cause of this, but I will update once there is a solution.

Cheers,
-Tri

DIY $4 GoPro Monopod

2010-03-09T22:19:00.000-08:00

This upcoming weekend, I'm going for an epic snow kiting session in Lake Tahoe, CA. I wanted to capture different point of views while recording video; without breaking the bank. A quick trip to the local hardware store, and we have the super stiff, lightweight, easy to assemble, DIY $4 camera pole mount.

Bill of Materials (thanks McKenzie Wells for the H.D. links):

$3.00 - 1/2"; x 36"; PVC Riser Pipe (these are threaded at each end)
$0.63 - 1/2" Cap (the cap is also threaded)
$0.18 - 2 or 3 washers
? - 1 lock washer
$0.20 - 1/4" 20 bolt

Tools Required:

Drill and drill bit

Instructions:

Drill the end cap, and screw the bolt through the hole
Add washers to the end of the screw so the tripod mount will be tight
Attach GoPro Tripod Mount
Screw the end cap mount on the PVC riser
Attach GoPro HD
Record adrenaline pumping moments

Please check out the comments for some more tips.

Update: 1/27/2012

mattyb1018's Rubber Grip Mod:
You can add a rubber grip to your GoPro monopod by using a bicycle handlebar grip. Try your local bike shop. Thanks mattyb1018 for the tips!

Keolaw's Float Mod:
For surfers and water sporters, cutting a pool noodle to attach to the monopod works great to keep it afloat. Teflon tape can be used to seal the end caps. Thanks Keolaw for the tips!

Sample video of the $4 monopod in action:

Canon EOS 5D Mark II Firmware Update: 2.0.3 coming this Month

2010-03-02T13:31:00.000-08:00

(image from Canon)

It's here, it's here, it's almost here! The long awaited Canon 5D Mark II firmware is going to arrive later this month. The update will include 24p, 29.97 video, 48kHz audio with manual audio controls, AND a histogram while shooting video. Are you salivating yet?

Update from Canon: http://www.usa.canon.com/consumer/controller?act=PgComSmModDisplayAct&fcategoryid=139&modelid=17662&keycode=2112&id=62597

2010 Tesla Roadster in 1080p HD - "The Tesla Smile"

2010-03-01T15:38:00.000-08:00

2010 Tesla Roadster in 1080p HD - "The Tesla Smile" from Tri Nguyen on Vimeo.

The Tesla Roadster was an absolute joy to drive. Gut wrenching torque. Also, an uber stiff suspension and body makes the driver feel one with the road. Great value considering the carbon fiber body, performance, and technologies involved. Save the environment while crushing 99% of the cars at a stop light.

2010 Tesla Roadster
0-60 in 3.9 seconds vs 3.7 for the Sport version
200 miles+ per charge
Carbon Fiber Body
Aluminum Frame
F1 type seating
Fully adjustable suspension
Torque, HP, G-force, battery efficiency display
No maintenance until 48000 miles just for a coolant change
No oil

FYI *New leasing program as well as financing available*

GoPro HD Hero attached to a Apprentice 15e RC Plane

2010-02-25T16:43:00.000-08:00

Apprentice 15e RC Plane :: GoPro HD :: Sunrise over Fremont, CA from Tri Nguyen on Vimeo.

Fixed: Can't map a network drive in Vista Home & Samba

2010-02-17T10:27:00.000-08:00

We had a Vista Home client machine that needed access to a Samba 2.X server. The problem though is that Vista ships with NTLMv2 authentication ONLY as default when we want just NTLM AND NTLMv2 authentication.

There is no Local Security Policy editor in Vista Home, nor can you access it by typing secpol.msc, so we're going to need to edit this via the registry:

1. Open up regedit

2. Go to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Lsa\LMCompatibilityLevel

3. Change the Value from 3 to 1

4. Reboot

5. Map your drive

GoPRO HD Hero Memory Card Problems: Can't Record Video

2010-02-16T16:01:00.000-08:00

(Photo: from GoPRO's website)

Update: 11/30/10

A firmware update from GoPro may fix the memory card problems in the GoPro HD Heros. There's also a bunch of cool features added in the update as well. Disclaimer: update at your own risk. http://www.goprocamera.com/support/hdheroupdate.php

Update: 12/15/10

Update from the comments--thanks Steve for the info. There may be some issues with the new firmware update. Please check out the comments section of http://cheesycam.com/gopro-hd-firmware-update/ for more information. I'm hoping the exposure issue is due to the user selecting Spot Metering vs. Center Weighted Average? If not, I would hold off upgrading until they make available the original firmware. Personally, I'm now using one of their recommended SD cards, and it's working good for now...knock on wood.

I'll cut straight to it, so here's the bottom line guys: GoPRO HD cameras have flawed firmware where they cannot read certain SDHC cards. Class 4, 6, 10, 30Mbit write speed, doesn't matter--the camera will just not play nice with many SDHC cards irregardless of the brand name. Either due to not enough testing, rushing to release the product to market, GoPRO still has not released a fix for this after 4 months+ of their product on the market. Also, nowhere on their website have they referenced this problem. Not cool.

The only "fix" GoPRO has advised is to try a different card, but that kind of hurts if you already purchased a 32GB card setting you back an arm and a leg, which you could have used to go skiing for example. They are blaming it on the cards, but that is not the case because many of these cards have write speeds exceeding GoPRO HD's requirements.

I've tested a 16GB Lexar Class 4 card, 8GB Adata Class 6 card, and I've only been able to successfully record 4 seconds of corrupted video, on the 16GB card, out of many many tries. The rest of the time, there is no video file recorded, and I get a S.O.S error with 3 beeps. However, I was able to record video on a 2GB Kingston Class 4 card.

For now, hopefully, users will report which cards do work with the GoPRO HD Hero so that other HD Hero owners will be able to capture their adrenaline pumping moments.

Update: Ongoing list of card that WORK:
http://www.facebook.com/topic.php?uid=50043151918&topic=11791

More on the topic here:
http://goprouser.freeforums.org (thanks anonymous)

http://www.facebook.com/topic.php?uid=50043151918&topic=10838

http://forums.mtbr.com/showthread.php?t=575081

http://www.hayabusa.org/forum/random-thoughts/122158-gopro-hd.html

http://forums.mtbr.com/showthread.php?t=581680

http://www.sportbikes.net/forums/open-forums/427173-video-editing-1080p-go-pro-choppy-need-solution.html

http://www.kawiforums.com/off-topic-discussion/146750-gopro-hd-issues.html

The Tablet of the Future, Now

2010-02-11T17:44:00.000-08:00

(image from Notion Ink)

Notion Ink Adam (displayed above), JooJoo, Dell Mini 5, HP Slate, Lenovo U1, Archos 9 are just some of the names out there other than the iPad, and these tablets are the tablets to get excited about. The iPad release was a major buzz kill because it just looked like an oversized iPod Touch with eBooks and productivity suite. I want something revolutionary, not evolutionary.

The tablet I will purchase must have the following:

Input

Connecting external devices to the tablet such as a Camera, Camcorder, USB stick, SD card, Webcam, etc. We have devices that do what they do best, and these devices should be able to interact with our tablet, so maybe a mini USB input/output would be an elegant solution.

Flash Support

When I browse the Internet, I want to be able to watch flash movies on the fly by clicking within a webpage. The movie plays, then finishes, and I'm back to my browsing. Seamless. The tablet must be able to play HD Flash movies as well because content created by consumers is now converging in that direction. We have camcorders that come standard shooting at 1080p.

App Store

Standardization of apps is what made the Apple Store so successful. It connected developers, content providers, and consumers in one easy to use place. Android Marketplace may be the next great thing.

Camera/HD Camcorder

Multitouch

Multitask

Image and more information on each device from Gizmodo:

3D TV is not all it's cracked up to be

2010-02-08T11:21:00.000-08:00

Uh oh, I said it. The newspapers, content producers, and TV media channels are all pushing 3D TV as the next "big" thing for 2010. Everywhere we turn, we hear someone in the media saying we gotta get a 3D TV because 3D TV is just so technically advanced, so advanced that the guy in the Sham Wow commercials pops out of the screen and does our laundry, dries it, and folds it too. Well, since 3D TV's can't do that, they're not that advanced yet, right?

Hey, I watched Avatar in a 3D IMAX theater, and although the scenery looked great, the 3D still seemed digitized and fake. Even if content producers were to increase the quality, I can still only imagine I'd enjoy this kind of viewing experience every once in a while. Also, watching 3D TV all day long with those clunky glasses is not appealing to me, and yes, I've seen the new 3D TV panels without the need for 3D glasses, but the quality looks even worse.

You see, this isn't the first time content producers and TV manufacturers pushed 3D TV. They tried unsuccessfully in the past to bring 3D TV to mainstream consumers, but it never caught on, so this time around, they are going to pull out all the stops to make sure we join the bandwagon. We're going to see Sony, Panasonic, Samsung, news outlets, porn industry, and tech media push 3D TV because they're all stakeholders in this business venture.

If you ask me, for the going price of a 32" 3D TV, I'd rather buy a 52" backlit LED TV and beer, because with enough beer, 2D will turn 3D. Do you want a 3D TV?

Changing spark plugs on a Scion xB :: HD

2010-02-07T22:51:00.000-08:00

Guide:
0:00 Materials
0:22 Removing the cover
0:41 Removing coil packs
1:18 Removing the spark plug
1:35 Using a gapper tool to check the gap
2:20 Adding antiseize
2:40 Screw in new spark plug and torque it down
3:27 Fast forward through the rest

Tools & Materials:
4 Spark Plugs
5/8" or 16mm socket with rubber insert
10mm socket
Socket extension
Antiseize
Spark plug gapper

Disclaimer: Demonstration purposes only. Please use safety precautions whenever working on a vehicle. Do it at your own risk.

TomTom Navigator 6 for Treo 680P 755P Fix

2010-01-31T14:14:00.000-08:00

Over the weekend, I "upgraded" my phone from a Palm Treo 650P to a Palm Treo 755P. The only reason why I am still using a legacy Palm device is because I love my TomTom Navigator 6 GPS. Now with that in mind, it turns out that TomTom 6 will not work with the Treo 755P straight from the box.

I received the following errors: "Your device is incompatible with TOMTOM Navigator"
And another error: TomTom was not found Card Eject

To fix both of these problems:

1. For 2GB and less, format your card FAT with 32KB, for 4GB or more format your card with FAT32 with 64KB allocation unit size

(put your card in a Card reader, copy all the contents to a safe location on your C: drive, then right click in windows, click format *FORMATTING WILL ERASE EVERYTHING ON THE CARD, SO BACKUP FIRST)

2. Download this update from Palm for the 680P and 755P http://rapidshare.com/files/344046141/TomTomNAV6_680n755Update.zip

3. Copy the contents into your TomTom folder on your SD card. TomTom should then load

Happy GPS'ing

CES 2010: Sayonara Hotel TV. Hello Boxee Beta.

2010-01-13T14:35:00.000-08:00

Earlier in Day 2 of CES, I saw a Boxee Beta live demonstration powered by D-Link Boxee Box, and thought to myself, finally, Boxee Beta is here. The user interface was completely revamped with new features such as movie cover thumbnails, a Boxee Browser, hardware acceleration, Adobe Flash 10.1 compatibility, sexier icons, and intuitive navigation control. Excellent.
I packed my Nvidia ION powered HTPC on the flight down to Las Vegas to handle my computing needs--I needed to view, edit, and upload photos with Adobe Bridge, Photoshop, and FlickrSync. I did not bring a monitor because the LCD TV at the hotel would have a HDMI input, so all I needed to bring was a wireless keyboard, power adapter, and HDMI cable for a fully functional MTPC - Mobile Theater PC.
Now fast forward. It's the end of the day, my feet and back are sore from all the walking, and I want to sit back and relax. I hooked up the HDMI connector and plugged in my box. Then, I connected to their wireless and installed Boxee Beta for Windows 7. Next thing you know, I've sunken into bed while eating a late-night snack, and getting some laughs with Stephen Colbert streaming over WiFi. Great way to end CES 2010.

CES 2010: The Best & Worst

2010-01-11T07:00:00.000-08:00

This year, we had miles of booths lining the halls of the Las Vegas Convention Center, Hilton Hotel, and Venetian Hotel with 3D LED TV's, Tablets, eBook Readers, media players, and so much more on display. I walked through all of the halls and endless rows of booths to find us the hottest tech gadgets for 2010.

Okay friends, so good stuff or bad stuff first? Let's go with the good.

Best of CES 2010

1. Samsung LED TV's

Out of all the LCD manufacturers present at the show, Samsung's new LED TV stood out from the rest. The contrast was simply brilliant, and the colors were vibrant. Their TV's image quality was a whole new viewing experience for me.

Samsung LED TV's come in sizes as thin as an iPhone--check out the photo above. SEXY. With the right price point, I can imagine their TV's being the hottest selling TV for 2010.

2. D-Link Boxee Box

The D-Link Boxee Box was my personal favorite device at CES 2010. Based on the Nvidia Tegra 2, this media player rocks a processor capable of playing all of our 1080P/720P MKV rips. Not only that, the user experience is based around social networking, so we can share comments on what we're watching, connect with friends via Twitter, and stream a whole bunch of online video. The User Interface was smooth, HD graphics, and very slick menu and controls. Also, the remote is innovative where on one side, there are arrows and selection buttons, and on the flip side is a qwerty keyboard. This is how a media-player-done-right should be.

Boxee Box - $199

Tegra 2

3 USB ports

Wireless-N

Coming to us in May of this year.

3. Nvidia Tegra 2

The ICD ULTRA Tablet, pictured above, is running Google Android with 1080P/720P HDMI output, 6 hours of HD movie play time, Adobe Flash 10.1 HD, and weighs in at less than 1 pound.

I tried many Android powered devices at the show. The Nvidia Tegra 2 seemed to have the strongest processing capabilities when compared to the competition. The user interface was snappy. I liked how I could click on an App, or browse the UI, and it would open up instantantly. The ability to play Adobe Flash 10.1 is a huge plus because the user can now visit a website, with Adobe Flash embedded, and the Tegra 2 powered device will be able to play it with full hardware acceleration.

I will look forward to a Tegra 2 powered cell phone with Internet, e-mail, WiFi, e-Book Reader, App Store, 3D UI, camera, MP3 player, and optional built-in Swiss Army Knife.

4. Panasonic 152" Plasma TV

BIGGER IS BETTER. 152" of beautiful Panasonic Plasma viewing pleasure. The glass in the screen is manufactured in one piece. I had to switch camera lenses, to an ultra wide lens, to take the photos above.

Priced out of range for most of us but still cool to see. $100,000+

Worst of CES 2010:

1. e-Book Readers - Underperforms

e-Book reader galore! The readers had slim profiles, newspaper-like screens, excellent battery life, and easy to use controls. The problem I have is with the e-Book readers' limited functions, cheap hollow plastic feeling, flimsiness, and flickering screens when turning pages. I cannot imagine consumers having to carry around their laptop, smart phone, AND a limited functioning e-Book reader. What about browsing the internet, email, viewing photos, Facebook? Okay, I get it, it's convenient for consumers to download books from a single device, but isn't that what our smartphones are for?

After throughly using these readers, I now seriously doubt the supposed popularity of the Amazon Kindle, and I predict these e-Readers will not catch on for 2010. Instead, tablets with good software support will catch on. I'm looking forward to the Apple iSlate.

Anyway...if you still must have an e-Book reader, the Que Proreader stood out from the crowd with it's unique form factor, black glossy exterior, ultra-slim profile, and flexible screen. The price-point may be something to consider though with their 4GB model at $649 and 8GB model at $799.

2. 3D TV - Overhyped

Firstly, the TV manufacturers haven't yet adopted a 3D standard, so before you go out and spend $10,000 on a 3D TV, the 3D format may be subject to change, and yes, that is the price tag for most of these 3D TV's as of today. Secondly, will I be cross-eyed after viewing a 3D TV from hours of watching?

Seriously though, watching TV in 3D did not wow me because the images looked computer generated, unnatural, and the image quality looked bad. The Sony 3D TV performed the worst out of the bunch. Also, for me, having to put on glasses to watch 3D TV is not convenient, which makes the experience worse if you already have prescription glasses. Well, since this is an emerging technology, I can imagine later generations for improved 3D TV viewing.

3. Personal Internet Viewer

What can I say here other than having an advanced alarm clock that can do Facebook, Pandora, and Youtube is nice and all, but that's what my smart phone is for. I would pass on these Personal Internet Viewers and buy an upcoming Smart Tablet.

4. Pico Projectors

Before going to CES, I was in the market for a Pico Projector. The Optoma Pico Projector's small form factor made it portable, and with the LED technology the image quality sounded promising. As you can see in the pictures, the presentation size was disappointing--the screen size of the projector was modestly larger than the size of the netbook driving the display. Even in optimal lighting conditions, the image quality was poor and brightness was sub par.

Final Thought

Although some of these new technologies may or may not be adopted by the public, the ideas driving these technologies may show up in future consumer products. So who knows, we may have 3D TV's with holographic displays without the need for 3D glasses, or a VOIP smart phone with all inclusive user features. Wouldn't that be great? I'll be looking forward to innovation this year.

If you'd like to see all of the photos taken at CES 2010, please visit my flickr set.

Leaving for CES 2010: Day 1

2010-01-09T00:55:00.000-08:00

We left from San Francisco to Las Vegas for CES 2010 today Friday, and when we arrived, the first thing we had to do was hit the Bellagio buffet. After waiting at the airport for so long, and the flight, we were ready to eat a horse! Now while writing this, I can safely say that I will no longer look at crab the same way.

I'm looking forward to tomorrow's event for in depth coverage of the 3D tv's, tablets, cameras, phones, and new technology. I will take as many pictures as possible, and give some honest opinions from hands on use with the devices.

Cheers!

1and1 SMTP email server is down again

2010-01-06T14:09:00.000-08:00

Update: 1and1 is back up and working, so about 1 hour of downtime today. Another day documenting 1and1's email problems. When their email servers go down, our company goes without email. This might be the last straw forcing us to create and host our own email server...boo!

Tried telnet smtp.1and1.com 587 - no success
Ping no good either

Time to sit in my cubicle and wait for their email to come back up...maybe watch some Youtube when nobody is around =).

Filezilla on Windows 2000 fix

2009-12-15T11:13:00.001-08:00

Filezilla does not work on a Win2k machine due to the auto update feature. We need to turn this off to get it working.

Navigate to %APPDATA%\FileZilla, open filezilla.xml.

Search for code <Setting name="Update Check" type="number">1</Setting>

Change to code: 0

All should be well.

Sonicwall Registration Server Timeout

2009-12-07T14:07:00.000-08:00

*Update: 12/9/09 - 3 days later, I was able to register the sonicwall*

Hello fellow Sonicwall IT professionals, the website is down. If you've been trying to register your Sonicwall, then it looks like you're going to have to wait. How long? I don't know.

I've been trying to register a new Sonicwall firewall installation, and their registration server has been down for over a day now, and this isn't the first time this has happened to me either. I was at a client's site with a new installation, and Sonicwalll's registration server took a nice long vacation. It was embarrassing to set up everything and then end up having to wait another day for their registration to come back to work! Tech support is futile, and outsourced, so they can't do anything to solve the problem.

Their hardware works well for me, but common Sonicwall, keep your site up! Thanks.

Zotac Nvidia ION N330 Custom Aluminum Case: HTPC Build Photos

2009-12-04T13:51:00.000-08:00

Google Public DNS: Day 1

2009-12-04T08:00:00.000-08:00

After setting up my router for Google Public DNS, I can say my Internet experience feels faster. Yeah, faster like a supercharged hamster on steroids running a 100 meter dash. Google DNS is "blazing fast" for me, and page loads are virtually instantaneous on my screen.

So for those who haven't tried this yet, I'll walk you through my experience with Google DNS to give you an idea of how it is to use their service:

I'll type www.ebay.com in Google Chrome. Press Enter. I blink. The page is loaded.

That pretty much sums it up...but seriously =), if you live relatively near a Google Data Center, your web experience may get a boost by using their DNS servers. Try it out, see if you like it, and if not, just switch back to your ISP's DNS servers, or hey, try out Open DNS.

P.S. Thank you Google for Gmail, Chrome, Blogger, Google payments, Video, Free phone calls using Google Voice, Calender, DNS, and last but not least, thank you in advance for the VOIP cell phone service coming in the future ; ).

Boxee Keyboard Shortcuts

2009-12-03T15:53:00.000-08:00

Courtesy of DARKFiB3R on the boxee forums:

In Menus

\ = Full Screen (Enter, Exit)
S = Exit, Suspend
A = Library Status
H = Home
Home = Top of list
End = Bottom of list
Esc = Back
Enter = Enter
Arrows = Up, Down, Left, Right

In Playback

I = Toggle info
Y = Toggle info on CPU load and FPS
O = Toggle info
R = Rewind: 2X > 4X > 8X > Play (Space = Play)
P = Pause
[ = Skip back 10 mins
] = Skip Forward 10 mins
< = Previous track> = Next track
A = Library Status
S = Exit, Suspend
V = Toggle Home & Now Playing
F = Foward: 2X > 4X > 8X > 16X > 32X > Play (Space = Play)
X = Stop now playing
Space = Play, Pause

How to: Set up Google Public DNS

2009-12-03T11:21:00.000-08:00

Possibly faster internet searches and better security, try taking a ride with Google Public DNS.

From google:

http://code.google.com/speed/public-dns/docs/using.html

Need help on the phone?

Google's Tech Support

877-590-4367 U.S.

770-200-1201 outside the U.S.

My internet searches feel faster already.

Thank you Google, and enjoy!

Tutorial: Nvidia ION N330 + XBMC + VDPAU + 1080P w/sound over HDMI

2009-11-30T11:37:00.000-08:00

Alright guys and gals, I got around to updating my HTPC box over Thanksgiving weekend, and I can now say that the beta XBMC build looks mighty sexy when displayed in 1080P resolution. Also, DD, DTS passthrough, and Nav sounds are working 100% as well, including system sounds and Youtube in Firefox.

From reading the comments, in my previous post, it looks like the boxee instructions may not have worked 100% for some of you, my apologies, so I went ahead and did a fresh install to create new XBMC specific instructions for the following system:

Zotac Nvidia ION, Atom N330 Dual Core

2GB DDR RAM

Ubuntu 9.10 karmic

XBMC Camelot Beta 1

Western Digital 150 GB Velociraptor

This will get you the 185 NVIDIA graphics drivers:
From what I read online, it looks like the newer 190 drivers may break HDMI sound? I'm using 185, and sound/graphics work beautifully.

Update Dec. 2nd, 2009: I'm now using 190.42 drivers without problems. Tested sound and video. Haven't tested passthrough on the 190.42 yet.

Update Dec. 3rd, 2009: Passthrough is working great. Suspend problems though with the 190.42 drivers. Ubuntu goes into suspend okay but no graphics or response upon resume.

Add these repositories to your sources:

deb http://ppa.launchpad.net/nvidia-vdpau/ppa/ubuntu karmic main

deb-src http://ppa.launchpad.net/nvidia-vdpau/ppa/ubuntu karmic main

Open up a terminal:


sudo apt-key adv --recv-keys --keyserver keyserver.ubuntu.com 71609D4D2F1518FA9C5DC0FB1DABDBB4CEC06767


sudo apt-get update


sudo apt-get install linux-headers-generic nvidia-glx-185


sudo reboot

Upon Rebooting go into the BIOS.

(the following instruction is from my memory, so if you dont' find it there, it's somewhere in your BIOS) In your BIOS, go to Southbridge configuration and change the video RAM from 256MB to 512MB. Inside the Southbridge config, change Audio codec to Internal only.

This will get you sound/passthrough over HDMI:
(haven't tested coax or optical)

Boot into Ubuntu, and open up a terminal and type:
sudo gedit /etc/asoundrc.conf
Paste the following into that file:

pcm.dmixer {

type dmix

ipc_key 1024

ipc_key_add_uid false

ipc_perm 0660

slave {

pcm "hw:0,3"

rate 48000

channels 2

period_time 0

period_size 1024

buffer_time 0

buffer_size 4096

}

}

pcm.!default {

type plug

slave.pcm "dmixer"

}

Open up another terminal (this will enable Youtube, and XBMC system sounds):
Type in: alsamixer
Make sure that IEC958 is unmuted by pressing the letter "m" without quotes.
If it it muted, then it will look like this - Item: IEC958 [off]
Once you unmute it, then it will look like this - Item: IEC958

Thanks to Greenhughes.com for the alsamixer tip.

Save. Close it. Reboot.

Inside XBMC:
Go to Settings, Audio and change the following:

Instead of:
sound: Internal Codec HDMI
passthrough: ie958

Change to custom (type hdmi):
sound: hdmi
passthrough: hdmi

Now you will have HD video and sound in Ubuntu and XBMC from your HD videos all the way to SD youtube, hulu, or whatever you want to play. Now go have fun!

Intel GMA = The Suck, so I'm buying a Nvidia ION equipped Asus Eee PC 1201N

2009-10-16T07:00:00.000-07:00

Ever try playing HD content on your laptop with an Intel GMA branded GPU? Annoyingly choppy, isn't it? Shh, say no more, say hello to the Nvidia ION GPU.

Two new Asus Eee PC netbook specs were leaked on eeepc.it, and then were quickly taken down, and it looks like one of them will be flexing some muscle with raw GPU power.

The Asus Eee PC 1201N and the Asus Eee PC 1201HA are slated for release, probably in the upcoming quarter, and I want one now. Alright, so what's the big deal between these two models? The 1201N comes with a Dual Core Intel N330 Atom and Nvidia ION and the 1201HA does not, so if you want to play those movies, HD content, HD Flash 10.1, and Physx powered games in your collection, get the 1201N.

I can see why Asus released a cheaper model with a slower Intel Atom 1.33 Ghz CPU and Intel GMA 500 chip, but cmon, a user would be sacrificing HD movies, games, and performance. I, for one, will be looking forward to the release of the 1201N.

       Asus Eee   PC 1201N    Asus Eee PC   1201HA   
     12.1 " Display    12.1 " Display   
     Intel Dual 1.6Ghz N330   Atom    Intel Single 1.33Ghz Z520 Atom   
     Nvidia ION 9400M    Intel GMA 500   
     3GB DDR2 RAM    2GB DDR2 RAM   
     320GB HD    250GB HD   
     802.11b/g/n    802.11b/g/n   
     Bluetooth    Bluetooth   
     6-cell    6-cell   
     Webcam    Webcam   
     Windows 7 Home Premium    Windows 7 Home Premium

1and1 Webmail Down: 500 Internal Server Error

2009-10-15T11:32:00.000-07:00

Almost every other morning, 1and1's webmail interface takes a vacation--it just stops working either from too many users trying to access their webmail interface or from server problems on their site. A nice long call to 1and1 gets you an answer, "yes, our service is unavailable but please bear with us." Why should we bear with you every other day? We're paying for a service, and it's not being provided.

If enough of their users call them to complain, then maybe they'll do something about it. Give them a piece of your mind 1and1 clients.

Tutorial: Zotac ION N330 + Boxee/XBMC + VDPAU + 1080P w/sound over HDMI

2009-08-18T14:02:00.000-07:00

*Update 12/01/09 - Instructions For BOXEE ONLY. Please refer to this post for XBMC.*

This post will get you video and audio over HDMI including audio passthrough for Dolby Digital or DTS. Feel free to skip down to the good stuff ; ).

The Zotac N330 is a dual core Atom CPU with an Nvidia ION GPU inside a tiny 7.5"x7.5" form factor. What's really amazing though is that when these two little chips are put together they are capable of playing 1080P HD content without even breaking a sweat. Through VDPAU for Linux, or Direct X 10 for Windows, content traditionally sent to the CPU is now sent to the ION to decode. This means for users like us, this opens the door to media, games, and powerful computing in a small, well priced, and low power consuming computer. Emphasis on powerful and well priced.

I ordered my board on Amazon w/free shipping for $190 including a 19V power supply--I assumed it would be a 12V power supply. After completing the installation, when playing 720P movies, my CPU usage was less than 6% per core! From what I've read, 1080P does NOT utilize the CPU core all that much either.

FYI: For those worried about getting an older board: the older revision of this board had a USB suspend problem, but now all the boards being sold have been fixed with an added jumper.

Here are my system specs:

Zotac N330

1GB DDR RAM

4GB OCZ Rally2 USB stick w/Ubuntu 8.10 Intrepid installed

Boxee w/latest build

These instructions are interchangeable with XBMC. Boxee is built on XBMC, so some of the references will look similar.

This will get you the latest NVIDIA graphics drivers:

Add these repositories to your sources:

deb http://ppa.launchpad.net/nvidia-vdpau/ppa/ubuntu intrepid main

deb-src http://ppa.launchpad.net/nvidia-vdpau/ppa/ubuntu intrepid main

Open up a terminal:

sudo apt-key adv --recv-keys --keyserver keyserver.ubuntu.com 71609D4D2F1518FA9C5DC0FB1DABDBB4CEC06767
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install linux-headers-generic nvidia-glx-185
sudo reboot

Upon Rebooting go into the BIOS.
(the following instruction is from my memory, so if you dont' find it there, it's somewhere in your BIOS) In your BIOS, go to Southbridge configuration and change the video RAM from 256MB to 512MB. Inside the Southbridge config, change Audio codec to Internal only.

Go into boxee, Settings, Video:

Turn on accelerate videos when posssible to enable VDPAU.

Exit boxee.

This will get you sound over HDMI:

(not sure about coax or optical)

Boot into Ubuntu, and open up a terminal and type:

sudo gedit ~/.asoundrc

Paste the following into that file:

pcm.dmixer {
type dmix
ipc_key 1024
ipc_key_add_uid false
ipc_perm 0660
slave {
pcm "hw:0,3"
rate 48000
channels 2
period_time 0
period_size 1024
buffer_time 0
buffer_size 4096
}
}

pcm.!default {
type plug
slave.pcm "dmixer"
}

Open up another terminal (this will enable Youtube, and XBMC system sounds):
Type in: alsamixer
Make sure that IEC958 is unmuted by pressing the letter "m" without quotes.
If it it muted, then it will look like this - Item: IEC958 [off]
Once you unmute it, then it will look like this - Item: IEC958

Save. Close it. Reboot.

Inside Boxee:

Go to Settings, System, Audio and change the following:

Instead of:

sound: ie958

passthrough: ie958

Change to (type default to where ie958 is):
sound: default
passthrough: default

Now you will have HD video and sound in Ubuntu to Boxee from your HD videos all the way to youtube, hulu, or whatever you want to play. Now go have fun!

Ruger Mark III Guide - Field stripping, Upgading, Cleaning, and Tips

2009-07-22T13:32:00.001-07:00

Before attempting any work on your firearm, please make sure your firearm is unloaded and safe to work on. The following information has been compiled to help Mark III owners find information in one place.

All content was made by their respective owners. Props goes out to these guys.

Tutorials in this thread:
I. Field Strip
II. Volquartsen Accurizing Kit Installation
III. FTE/Stovepipe Problem/Solutions
IV. Volquartsen Extractor Installation
V. Personal Experiences
VI. Magazine Safety Removal Mod (updated)
VII. Cleaning
VIII. Ultimate Cliploader
IX. Places to purchase parts

I. Fieldstrip Videos:
Field stripping the Mark III by OrbitalMechanics
1. Stripdown:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Id7xcRoIvE

2. Reassemble:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O4nVX2FlBHY

Before firing the first round:
I would recommend a field strip and a good cleaning of your new Ruger before first use. During my first cleaning, there were tiny metal jibs, from production, in places where they should not have been. Plus, field stripping, cleaning, and oiling is fun with the right tools and knowledge.

II. Volquartsen Accurizing Kit Installation:
http://videos.volquartsen.com/MKIII%...stallation.mov

Instructions and Pictures to Detail Strip Mark III (Use this guide to install VQ parts and accurizing kit)
http://www.guntalk-online.com/detailstrip.htm

III. FTE/Stovepipe Problem/Solutions
If your gun is having problems, then here's all you need to know:
http://www.rugerforum.com/phpBB/viewtopic.php?t=58358

IV. Volquartsen Extractor Installation:
http://www.guntalk-online.com/detailstrip.htm#extractor

V. Personal experience from installing parts:
The accurizing kit feels smooth as slicing through butter once installed. 2.25 pound trigger pull. If I were to do the install of the Accurizing Kit again, I would have purchased the Accurizing Kit and Titanium Disconnector and installed them all in one detail strip. I will be purchasing the Disconnector soon, so I will have to do another detail strip of the trigger components.

The overall kit installation was not that bad. The internal parts removal was okay, but the trigger removal and parts installation were a challenge. There are a few steps I got snagged on. I'll try and clarify to make it easier for you.

If you refer to the guntalk pictures: http://www.guntalk-online.com/detailstrip.htm

Internal frame Removal Step #5 - Safety lever - Yes, use caution when removing, or you may lose the tiny ball and/or spring.

Internal frame Installation Step #5 - Sear/Safety lever - The sear MUST be pushed up into the groove on the safety lever. While putting pressure on the sear in the up position, place the sear into the groove on the safety lever.

Trigger removal Step #1 - If you watched VQ video on this one, don't use a hammer! The trigger pivot pin is held by a thick wire/spring, which holds it in place. This is that one wire that goes alongside the frame. You'll need to apply pressure by pushing this spring down with either an allen wrench or the end of a plastic pen (be careful while applying pressure to not scratch the frame). The pressure will allow just enough space so that the pin can freely move. So while applying pressure, you can now pull the pin out.

The VQ edge extractor can be installed any time with your standard field strip, and is relatively easy to install.

VI. Magazine safety removal (bottom of the page):
http://www.guntalk-online.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=387

After reading the post by ruger22, all you need to do this mod are 2 stainless metric M5 washers, and 1 SAE #10. The washers may be a tight fit, so dremel the center out, polish, and you're all done. No cutting needed. ruger22's method is very efficient.

VII. Cleaning your .22:
From the late and great Donald C. Nygord:
http://www.nygord-precision.com/cleaning.html
I use Hoppes.

VIII. The Ultimate Cliploader:
This tool will load your magazine in under 5 seconds flat:
Video by JaonsShooter: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=65jHazxWXCA

IX. Places to purchase parts for your Mark III:
http://www.midwayusa.com
https://www.volquartsen.com/category...es/4-mkiimkiii

VQ Black Accurizing Kit:
http://www.midwayusa.com/viewproduct...tnumber=261502
https://www.volquartsen.com/products...er-mkiii-black

(The difference between the black vs. silver is that the black kit has a black extended bolt release vs. the silver kit has a silver extended bolt release.)

VQ Silver/Stainless Accurizing Kit:
http://www.midwayusa.com/viewproduct...tnumber=319266
https://www.volquartsen.com/products...or-ruger-mkiii

FTE/Stovepipes problems? (VQ Exact Edge Extractor):
http://www.midwayusa.com/viewproduct...tnumber=363360

VQ Titanium Disconnector:
https://www.volquartsen.com/products...m-disconnector

Ultimate Cliploader:
http://www.ebay.com
http://www.cheaperthandirt.com/GNS127-1.html

Be safe, and enjoy your Ruger!

How to: Add persistent route in Windows 2000 Professional

2009-06-25T20:21:00.001-07:00

Go to command prompt

This will permanently route IP address 192.168.0.248 to gateway 192.168.100.1

route -p add 192.168.0.248 192.168.100.1

Asus Eee PC 1201N	Asus Eee PC 1201HA
12.1 " Display	12.1 " Display
Intel Dual 1.6Ghz N330 Atom	Intel Single 1.33Ghz Z520 Atom
Nvidia ION 9400M	Intel GMA 500
3GB DDR2 RAM	2GB DDR2 RAM
320GB HD	250GB HD
802.11b/g/n	802.11b/g/n
Bluetooth	Bluetooth
6-cell	6-cell
Webcam	Webcam
Windows 7 Home Premium	Windows 7 Home Premium