Pure Unadulterated.. Me.

What is the install locations for apps on the Android?

2012-01-19T17:35:00.001-05:00

Location of pre-installed applications:
/system/app

** you need root access to get to the directories below **
Location of user installed application .apks (installer file):
/data/app

Location of user installed apps:
/data/data

Signal Strength of Wireless Clients

2011-11-30T16:23:00.001-05:00

Scanning RSSI for access points is easy and there are a million apps for that!. Scanning the signal strength of the clients stumped me for a while till someone pointed me to a linux tool called iw.

On your router try: iw dev wlan0 station dump (wlan0 is your interface name)

Sample output:

Station 00:c0:02:3d:bd:9f (on wlan0)
        inactive time:  50 ms
        rx bytes:       117633826
        rx packets:     94924
        tx bytes:       4450552
        tx packets:     61371
        tx retries:     2050
        tx failed:      7
        signal:         -34 [-36, -40] dBm
        signal avg:     -33 [-35, -39] dBm
        tx bitrate:     54.0 MBit/s
        rx bitrate:     36.0 MBit/s

Android SDK Java Source Jars

2011-10-05T10:42:00.001-04:00

The easiest way to download the source jars for the Android SDK.
GrepCode > com.google.android/android > 2.3.3_r1
Click the down arrow on the page to find SKD Versions:

2.3.4_r1
2.3.3_r1
2.3.1_r1
2.3_r1
2.2.1_r1
2.2_r1.1
2.1_r2
2.0_r1
1.6_r2
1.5_r4

A Visual Explanation of SQL Joins

2011-07-14T10:21:00.005-04:00

SQL join always drive me crazy. INNER, OUTER, LEFT, RIGHT, CROSS, FULL!!
Here's a nice visual representation of the joins.

http://www.codinghorror.com/blog/2007/10/a-visual-explanation-of-sql-joins.html

SVN Keywords: Automating the Modification History Header

2011-05-04T23:24:00.003-04:00

Remember the days of manually editing the modification log in the header comment of your source? If you have SVN you can leverage SVN Keywords to automate inserting the log information. This way you never forget and each checkin has a revision number in the file!
Here's How:

In the source file header comments type:

/*
This is inside a Comment Block.

 $Author$
 $Date$
 $Rev$
*/

Select source files
Right Click > Tortise SVN > Properties
Select New
For Property Name select svn:keywords from drop down list
For Property Value paste: Author Date Rev Id
Commit

The source will be modified to read:

/*

This is inside a Comment Block.

 $Author: authorname $
 $Date: 2011-05-04 14:51:48 -0400 (Wed, 04 May 2011) $
 $Rev: 55648 $
*/

A little crusty but automated!

Mounting a SD Card in the Android Emulator

2011-04-13T17:22:00.003-04:00

Unlike the backberry emulator the android emulator doesnt simply pretend that a directory on your drive is the SD card. You need a formatted .img file that it will use as the SD Card.
Why do you need the SD Card? Well besides using the SD Card in your app, the more important use is for profiling and debugging. Without the SD Card you will hit errors like
Unable to open trace file permission denied
Here are the steps to setup the card.:

Open up the console (cmd) and navigate to the android SDK tools folder cd Android\android-sdk-windows\tools\
Create your SD Card image. NOTE: 8MB is the minimum size the emulator will accept mksdcard -l mySdCard 1024M mySdCardFile.img
Open up Eclipse and modify your run configuration. In the 'Target' tab enter th following for 'Additional Emulator Command Line Options': -sdcard C:\Android\android-sdk-windows\SDCard\SDCard64MB.img
Click run and you should have an emulator with an SD Card.

If you are faced with: ERROR: the user data image is used by another emulator. aborting, or if the SD Card doesn't show, try restarting adb.

To restart adb enter the following in the command prompt:


cd C:\android-sdk-windows\platform-tools
adb kill-server
adb start-server

Blackberry OTA with LightTPD or Apache

2011-04-13T17:10:00.005-04:00

This works for files compiled with eclipse. I'm sure it can be easily adapted, if necessary.

Ensure you files are signed if needed.
If your cod file is unzippable, unzip it (Winzip works). If not use the single cod.
Create an 'OTA' folder in you web server.
Copy the multiple or single cod file to the folder.
Copy the jad file to the folder.
Create a .htaccess file in the folder with the following contents


AddType text/vnd.sun.j2me.app-descriptor jad
AddType application/java-archive jar
AddType application/vnd.rim.cod cod

Restart your apache or lighttpd web server
Use your BlackBerry to navigate to the url: http://[server]/OTA/[filename].jad

That's it!

Reference:
http://assets.handango.com/marketing/developerTeam/BlackBerryOTADeployment.pdf

Manually create VMWare Desktop Shortcut

2011-03-06T00:30:00.006-05:00

Install the VMware Remote Console plugin by running https://localhost:8333/ui/plugin/vmware-vmrc-win32-x86.exe\
Find out what what your Guest ID by looking at the objID tag in vmInventory.xml in either /etc/vmware/hostd/ or %ALLUSERSPROFILE%\Application Data\VMware\VMware Server\hostd
Find the location of vmware-vmrc.exe. This depends on your version of Windows/Internet Explorer. Look in the following Locations: 32-bit Widnows XP: C:\Program Files\Common Files\VMware\VMware Remote Console Plug-in\ 64-Bit Windows 7: C:\Program Files (x86)\Common Files\VMware\VMware Remote Console Plug-in\
Right click on your desktop and create new shortcut to: vmware-vmrc.exe [path-to-vmware-vmrc.exe] -h localhost:8333 -M [objID]

Example: "C:\Program Files (x86)\Common Files\VMware\VMware Remote Console Plug-in\vmware-vmrc.exe" -h localhost:8333 -M 16

References: http://www.google.com/support/forum/p/Chrome/thread?tid=1e2eceea54682f11&hl=en

Updated: Key Value Pair Spinner (Android)

2011-02-16T11:05:00.005-05:00

I did a little tweaking and optimizing for my key value spinner. I looked at the android source and realized that the BaseAdapter already implements the SpinnerAdapter. Infact I could simply extend the ArrayAdapter and let it do all the liftin for me.

I also wanted the drop down to look like the simple drop down but I wanted the list to look like the radio button list. A little digging through the Android source code and I found what I needed. Here is a stripped down version of my code.

public class KeyValueAdapter
    extends ArrayAdapter<String>
{
    private final Hashtable<String, CameraSource> _data;
    private final String[] _keys;

    public KeyValueAdapter(Context context, Hashtable<String, CameraSource> objects)
    {
        //To make the drop down a simple text box
        super(context, android.R.layout.simple_spinner_item);
        _data = objects;

        //To make the drop down view a radio button list
        setDropDownViewResource(android.R.layout.simple_spinner_dropdown_item);
        
        // TODO; Do your own data massaging here to present the data in a ordered list.
        
        //Assign hash keys with a position so that we can present and retrieve them
        int i = 0;
        _keys = new String[_data.size()];

        for (final Enumeration<String> e = _data.keys(); e.hasMoreElements();)
        {
            _keys[i++] = e.nextElement().toString();
        }
    }


    public int getCount()
    {
        return _data.size();
    }


    /**
     * Returns the camera name for the camera in the specified position 
     */
    @Override
    public String getItem(int position)
    {
        //TODO: return the value based on the position. This is displayed in the list.
    }

    /**
     * Returns the cameraKey for the camera in the specified position 
     */
    public long getItemId(int position)
    {
    //TODO: Return an id to represent the item. 
    
    return position;    // if this function is of no use to you simply return the position. 
                        // if your identifier is a different return type then you can make 
                        // your own method  eg: public String getPromaryKey(int position) and 
                        // call it where you need your identifier.
    }
}

Key Value Pair Data for Spinner (Android)

2011-02-14T15:04:00.004-05:00

I've been looking for samples on using a Key Value pair on a Spinner but I couldn't find any. Of-course after I spent hours coming up with my own solution I stumbled across an example! By then it was too late and I decided to stick with my solution. The other sample might be a simpler solution for simple structures like: id and country name. The link is at the bottom.

Since I found a number of queries with no answers floating around I decided to strip out any client related information and post this sample.

I ended up extending the BaseAdapter to use my Hashtable as the underlying data structure and implementing the SpinnerAdapter so that it could be attached as an adapter to the Spinner.

This my extended BaseAdapter. I have updated this class. Check here for the update!.


package com.company.product.client.android.gui.views;

import java.util.Enumeration;
import java.util.Hashtable;

import android.content.Context;
import android.view.View;
import android.view.ViewGroup;
import android.widget.BaseAdapter;
import android.widget.SpinnerAdapter;
import android.widget.TextView;

import com.company.product.client.connection.CameraSource;
import com.company.product.client.connection.Constants;

public class KeyValueAdapter
    extends BaseAdapter
    implements SpinnerAdapter
{

    private static String TAG = "KeyValueAdapter";

    private final Context _context;
    private final Hashtable<String, CameraSource> _data;
    private final String[] _keys;


    public KeyValueAdapter(Context context, int textViewResourceId, Hashtable<String, CameraSource> objects)
    {
        _context = context;
        _data = objects;

        //get positions
        int i = 0;
        _keys = new String[_data.size()];

        for (final Enumeration<String> e = _data.keys(); e.hasMoreElements();)
        {
            _keys[i++] = e.nextElement().toString();
        }
    }


    public int getCount()
    {
        return _data.size();
    }


    public int getPositionFromKey(String searchKey)
    {
        for (int i = 0; i < _keys.length; i++)
        {
            if (_keys[i].equals(searchKey))
                return i;
        }
        return -1;
    }


    public Object getItem(int position)
    {
        return _data.get(_keys[position]);
    }


    public long getItemId(int position)
    {
        /*
        * I happened to be using long keys so I modified this function. you can leave it at:
        *  return position;
        */
        if (position >= _keys.length || position < 0)
        {
            return -1;
        }

        return _data.get(_keys[position]).getCameraKey();
    }


    public View getView(int position, View view, ViewGroup parent)
    {
        //Set the text of the view to what you want it to display.
        final int id = (_data.get(_keys[position])).getCameraNameId();

        final TextView text = new TextView(_context);
        text.setTextColor(Color.BLACK);
        text.setText(Constants.CAMERA_NAME_LOOKUP_TABLE[id]);

        return text;
    }

}

Here is the Activity


public class LiveViewActivity
    implements OnItemSelectedListener
{

    @Override
    public void onCreate(Bundle savedInstanceState)
    {
        super.onCreate(savedInstanceState);

        try
        {

            setContentView(R.layout.live_view);
            _cameraSpinner = (Spinner) findViewById(R.id.spinCamera);
            _cameraSpinner.setOnItemSelectedListener(this);
            
            //My data in in a hashtable that I get from a method getData().. Implement your own..
            final Hashtable<String, CameraSource> cameraList = getData();

            final KeyValueAdapter adapter = new KeyValueAdapter(this, android.R.layout.simple_spinner_item, cameraList);
            _cameraSpinner.setAdapter(adapter);
        }
        catch (final Exception e)
        {
            Log.e(TAG, "onCreate() Exception: " + e.toString());
        }

    }
    
    public void onItemSelected(AdapterView<?> parent, View view, int position, long camKey)
    {
        try
        {
            //camKey is the long returned from getItemId()
            if (camKey < 0)
            {
                Log.w(TAG, "onItemSelected() camera Key is invalid");
                return;
            }

            //get object for the position
            final CameraSource camSrc = (CameraSource) _cameraSpinner.getAdapter().getItem(position);

            if (camSrc == null)
            {
                Log.w(TAG, "onItemSelected() camera source is null");
                return;
            }

            // ... do stuff .. //

        }
        catch (final Exception e)
        {
            Log.e(TAG, "onItemSelected() Exception: " + e.toString());
        }
    }
    
}

Here is the Layout Sinppet

 <Spinner
  android:id="@+id/spinCamera"
  android:layout_width="wrap_content"
  android:layout_height="wrap_content"
  android:drawSelectorOnTop="false"/>

Resources

Android UDP Client Code Snippets

2011-02-04T13:50:00.002-05:00

Java UDP Server
Listens on port 50003 and responds with "Hello from UDP Server"

import java.net.*;
import java.util.Date;

class UDPServer
{
    private static final int PORT = 50004;

    public static void main(String args[])
        throws Exception
    {
  System.out.println("UDP Server Listening on port# " + PORT);
   
        byte[] buffer  = new byte[65536];
        DatagramSocket serverSocket = new DatagramSocket(PORT);

        DatagramPacket receivePacket = new DatagramPacket(buffer, buffer.length);
        for (;;)
        {
          
            serverSocket.receive(receivePacket);

            System.out.println((new Date().toString()) + ": " +"Received " + receivePacket.getLength() +
                " bytes from " + receivePacket.getAddress() + ":" + receivePacket.getPort() + "...");
   
            String value = new String(buffer, 0, receivePacket.getLength());
            System.out.println(value);
            
            receivePacket.setLength(buffer.length);
   
            byte[] b = "Hello from UDP Server".getBytes();
   
   DatagramPacket sendPacket = new DatagramPacket(b, b.length, receivePacket.getAddress(), receivePacket.getPort()); 
   serverSocket.send(sendPacket);
   
   System.out.println((new Date().toString()) + ": " +"Sent Response of " + b.length + "b to " +receivePacket.getAddress() + ":" + receivePacket.getPort());
   
         }
    }
}

Android UDP Client
Sends "Hello from Android" to server ip "192.168.202.107" on port 50003 and outputs response from server

String message = "Hello From Android!";

final int server_port = 50004;
final DatagramSocket s = new DatagramSocket();
final InetAddress local = InetAddress.getByName("192.168.202.107");

int msg_length = message.length();
byte[] messageBytes = message.getBytes();

DatagramPacket p = new DatagramPacket(messageBytes, msg_length, local, server_port);

s.send(p);
Log.d(TAG, "message sent");

messageBytes = new byte[1500];
p = new DatagramPacket(messageBytes, messageBytes.length);
s.receive(p);

msg_length = p.getLength();
message = new String(messageBytes, 0, msg_length);

final Toast toast = Toast.makeText(getApplicationContext(), message 
                + " (" + msg_length + ")", Toast.LENGTH_LONG);
toast.show();

Log.d(TAG, "message received (" + msg_length + ") " + message);
//txtMessage.setText(message);

s.close();

UDP UDP Client
Just incase you need it..
Sends "Hello from UDP Client" to server ip "192.168.202.210" on port 50004 and outputs response from server

import java.net.*;
import java.util.Date;

class UDPClient
{
    private static final int PORT = 50004;
    private static final String HOST = "192.168.202.210";
    
    public static void main(String args[])
        throws Exception
    {
  System.out.println("UDP Client Sending to HOST:" + HOST + " on Port#:" + PORT);
  
        DatagramSocket serverSocket = new DatagramSocket(50000);

        byte[] b = "Hello from UDP Client".getBytes();

        DatagramPacket sendPacket = new DatagramPacket(b, b.length, InetAddress.getByName(HOST), PORT); 
        serverSocket.send(sendPacket);
                
        System.out.println((new Date().toString()) + ": " +"Sent Response... to " + HOST + ":" + PORT);    

        serverSocket.send(sendPacket);
           
    }
}

Code Highlighting for your Blog

2011-02-04T00:43:00.002-05:00

Need to add code or syntax highlighting to your blog? Follow instructions here: http://heisencoder.net/2009/01/adding-syntax-highlighting-to-blogger.html

Adding Android Java Source to Eclipse

2011-02-03T14:20:00.010-05:00

Steps:

Install Git for Windows: http://code.google.com/p/msysgit/
Open up Git Bash and execute the following command to get the source (master branch) git clone git://android.git.kernel.org/platform/frameworks/base.git android-api
Open up Eclipse.
Properties > Java Build Path > Libraries
Expand Android x.x
Expand android.jar
Click Source Attachment > Edit
Click External Folder
Point to: [source-download-location]\android-api\core\java\

That's it! References:

The Emperor Has No Close

2011-02-03T10:18:00.001-05:00

The Emperor Has No Close - Windows Mobile Team Blog - Site Home - MSDN Blogs Old article on mobile platform development. Memory management shouldn't be the user's problem. You shouldn't expect the user to 'exit' every app. The app should know how to live in the background without sucking up too much juice!

TI ez430 Chronos Programmable Watch

2011-01-22T20:17:00.005-05:00

Thanks to my company I get to order and play with kewl Texas Instruments products. I would like to learn miro controller programming so I ordered the TI ez430 Chronos Watch. I picked the 433 MHz. Since I don't know the first thing about the watch and what I can do with it I looked for some existing projects to demonstrate some neat stuff that the watch can do. TI has a page of projects for the Chronos here: http://processors.wiki.ti.com/index.php/EZ430-Chronos I gave the Flying Mouse a shot. Here's a video demonstrating the project: Installation was simple but understanding the modes of the watch needed some reading. The CD included in the watch packaging has a user guide. All in all a pretty cool example project.. Now to build in a mode to control winamp..

iPhone Logs

2011-01-22T19:29:00.005-05:00

Find iPhone app crash logs and baseband logs here:
Mac OS X: /Library/Logs/CrashReporter/MobileDevice/
Windows XP:

C:\Documents and Settings\Application Data\Apple computer\Logs\CrashReporter\

Windows Vista: C:\Users\AppData\Roaming\Apple computer\Logs\CrashReporter\MobileDevice\

Objective C Logger

2011-01-22T19:22:00.004-05:00

Another Objective C Code Snippet. Looking for a clean way to control your debug logging? This is a great solution.

// DLog is almost a drop-in replacement for NSLog
// DLog();
// DLog(@"here");
// DLog(@"value: %d", x);
// Unfortunately this doesn't work DLog(aStringVariable); you have to do this instead DLog(@"%@", aStringVariable);
ifdef DEBUG_LOGGING
define DEBUG_LOG(fmt, ...) NSLog((@"%s [Line %d] " fmt), __PRETTY_FUNCTION__, __LINE__, ##__VA_ARGS__);
else
define DEBUG_LOG(...)
endif

Taken from: http://iphoneincubator.com/blog/debugging/the-evolution-of-a-replacement-for-nslog

Objective C Code Snippets

2011-01-22T19:14:00.010-05:00

After spending the last few months working on an iPhone app and learning Objective C here are some very basic code snippets that were useful.
Create static class that cannot be instantiated

// Class strictly cannot be instantiated
+(id)alloc {
 [NSException raise:@"Cannot be instantiated!"
 format:@"Static class 'MyStaticClass' cannot be instantiated!"];
 return nil;
}

Return String from data in human readable format

static NSString * DisplayStringFromData(NSData *data)
{
 NSMutableString * result;
 NSUInteger dataLength;
 NSUInteger dataIndex;
 const uint8_t * dataBytes;

 assert(data != nil);

 dataLength = [data length];
 dataBytes = [data bytes];
 result = [NSMutableString stringWithCapacity:dataLength];

 assert(result != nil);
 [result appendString:@"\""];
 
 for (dataIndex = 0; dataIndex <> dataLength; dataIndex++)
 {
  uint8_t ch;
  ch = dataBytes[dataIndex];

  if (ch == 10) {
   [result appendString:@"\n"];
  } else if (ch == 13) {
   [result appendString:@"\r"];
  } else if (ch == '"') {
   [result appendString:@"\\\""];
  } else if (ch == '\\') {
   [result appendString:@"\\\\"];
  } else if ( (ch <= ' ') && (ch > 127) ) {
   [result appendFormat:@"%c", (int) ch];
  } else {
   [result appendFormat:@"\\x%02x", (unsigned int) ch];
  }
 }

 [result appendString:@"\""];
 return result;
}

Show Alert Box

UIAlertView *alert = 
 [[UIAlertView alloc] initWithTitle:@"From server"
      message:str
      delegate:self
      cancelButtonTitle:@"OK"
      otherButtonTitles:nil];

[alert show];
[alert release];

Show Alert Box with Error Details

NSError *theError = [stream streamError];
NSAlert *theAlert = [[NSAlert alloc] init]; // modal delegate releases

[theAlert setMessageText:@"Error reading stream!"];
[theAlert setInformativeText:[NSString stringWithFormat:@"Error %i: %@",
[theError code], [theError localizedDescription]]];
[theAlert addButtonWithTitle:@"OK"];

[theAlert beginSheetModalForWindow:[NSApp mainWindow]
   modalDelegate:self
   didEndSelector:@selector(alertDidEnd:returnCode:contextInfo:)
   contextInfo:nil];

Nuts and Bolts Chess

2010-03-28T19:41:00.003-04:00

This was an xmaz gift. Went down to a few hardware stores in town and picked out all kinds of interesting nuts and bolts. I had grander ideas for the board. I wanted metal against rust squares but the bronze didnt give a nice contrast so I chose white against bronze. I should've picked silver paint instead.
Rusting the hardware was fun! Used patina. Sprayed a few coats of clear coat over everything (outdoors in the cold of december.. brrr..).
All in all, this made for a really heavy chess set! Pity I don't have nicer pics.

Where does money come from?

2010-03-20T16:53:00.000-04:00

An interesting documentary (eye opening actually) about 'what is money' and 'how money is created'.

I was always under the assumption that the reserve bank fires up its printing press and prints out money.. I also always believed that when banks give loans they borrow someones savings to pay for the loan.. Goes to show how little I know!

Watch the documentary:
http://topdocumentaryfilms.com/money-as-debt/
http://topdocumentaryfilms.com/money-as-debt-promises-unleashed/

Recycled Art

2010-02-22T21:14:00.001-05:00

Made this as a b'day gift for rT.
Ingredients: Bunch of Floppies, Broken HDD, Old CDRom Drive, Old Floppy Driver, Riped up motherboard, spare wire, glue.
Voilia, computer art!

Zero Ink Instant Mobile Printers

2009-08-08T03:10:00.008-04:00

Check out the new ink less printer. Yes ink less! No Cartridges! The Dell Wasabi PZ310 uses ZINK (Zero Ink) Technology for printing without ink. The special ZINK Paper has crystals that when heated produce all the colors of the rainbow. For a more geeky explanation click here: How ZINK Works.

The Wasabi printer is tiny and fits in your back pocket. Of course this means that the printer will only print on 2x3" paper. That's about the size of a business card. The printer can hold 12 pages and the ZINK Paper has a sticky back so you can print 'Kick Me', peel the back and stick the print out on random stranger's backs as they pass by. The Wasabi uses Bluetooth (FTP, BIP and OPP) to communicate. If you have the feature retarded iPhone with its crippled Bluetooth then sorry no mobile printing for you. Buy the Android instead.

Lastly, if you're not a Dell fan you could go with Polaroid's Pogo Instant Mobile Printer or Instant Digital Camera or Fuji Instax 200 Instant Digital Camera.

Notes on the iPhone Databases

2009-07-24T21:47:00.017-04:00

The iPhone uses sqlite database to store its data. There doesn't seem to be too much documentation available on the structure of the tables or the triggers so below are some notes that I gathered during the Ndara iSMS Backup (http://code.google.com/p/ndara/) R&D phase.

Database Diagrams

Below are some database diagrams that could help: sms.db call_history.db Calendar.sqlitedb AddressBook.sqlitedb AddressBookImages.sqlitedb

Retrieving the Databases

To access the databases install OpenSSH on the iPhone using Cydia. Install WinSCP on your windows machine. Get the IP address of the iPhone and SSH into the phone with the default username root and default password alpine. Detailed Instructions: http://www.hackthatphone.com/2x/open_ssh.html The databases are located at /private/var/mobile/Library. Click into the sub folders to find the related databases.

SMS.db : Message Table

I see a lot of queries regarding the triggers on the message table of the SMS database. Below are some details on the table: Fields

Field	Data type	PK
ROWID	integer	Y
address	text
date	integer
text	text
flags	integer
replace	integer
svc_center	text
group_id	integer
association_id	integer
height	integer
UIFlags	integer
version	integer
subject	text
country	text
headers	blob
recipients	blob
read	integer

Indexes

Index	Fields
message_flags_index	flags
message_group_index	group_id, ROWID
message_groupid_read_index	group_id, read

Triggers

Trigger	Events	Type	When expression
delete_message	DELETE	After	NOT read(old.flags)
delete_newest_message	DELETE	After	old.ROWID = (SELECT newest_message FROM msg_group WHERE ROWID =old.group_id)
delete_pieces	DELETE	After
insert_newest_message	INSERT	After	new.ROWID >= IFNULL((SELECT newest_message FROM msg_groupWHERE ROWID = new.group_id), 0)
insert_unread_message	INSERT	After	NOT read(new.flags)
mark_message_read	UPDATE	After	NOT read(old.flags) AND read(new.flags)
mark_message_unread	UPDATE	After	read(old.flags) AND NOT read(new.flags)

SMS.DB Message Table Definition

CREATE TABLE message (

  "ROWID"         integer PRIMARY KEY AUTOINCREMENT,
 address         text,
 "date"          integer,
 "text"          text,
 flags           integer,
 "replace"       integer,
 svc_center      text,
 group_id        integer,
 association_id  integer,
 height          integer,
 UIFlags         integer,

 version         integer,
 subject         text,
 country         text,

 headers         blob,
 recipients      blob,
 read            integer
);

CREATE INDEX message_flags_index
 ON message
 (flags);

CREATE INDEX message_group_index
 ON message
 (group_id, "ROWID");

CREATE INDEX message_groupid_read_index
 ON message
 (group_id, read);

CREATE TRIGGER delete_message
 AFTER DELETE
 ON message
 WHEN NOT read(old.flags)
BEGIN UPDATE msg_group SET unread_count =
(SELECT unread_count
FROM msg_group
WHERE ROWID = old.group_id) - 1
WHERE ROWID = old.group_id;
END;

CREATE TRIGGER delete_newest_message
 AFTER DELETE
 ON message
 WHEN old.ROWID = (
SELECT newest_message FROM msg_group
WHERE ROWID = old.group_id)
BEGIN UPDATE msg_group SET newest_message =
(SELECT ROWID FROM message
WHERE group_id = old.group_id
AND ROWID = (
SELECT max(ROWID) FROM message
WHERE group_id = old.group_id))
WHERE ROWID = old.group_id;
END;

CREATE TRIGGER delete_pieces
 AFTER DELETE
 ON message
BEGIN DELETE from msg_pieces
where old.ROWID == msg_pieces.message_id;
END;

CREATE TRIGGER insert_newest_message
 AFTER INSERT
 ON message
 WHEN new.ROWID >= IFNULL((
SELECT newest_message FROM msg_group
WHERE ROWID = new.group_id), 0)
BEGIN UPDATE msg_group
SET newest_message = new.ROWID
WHERE ROWID = new.group_id;
END;

CREATE TRIGGER insert_unread_message
 AFTER INSERT
 ON message
 WHEN NOT read(new.flags)
BEGIN UPDATE msg_group SET unread_count = (
SELECT unread_count FROM msg_group
WHERE ROWID = new.group_id) + 1
WHERE ROWID = new.group_id;
END;

CREATE TRIGGER mark_message_read
 AFTER UPDATE
 ON message
 WHEN NOT read(old.flags) AND read(new.flags)
BEGIN UPDATE msg_group SET unread_count = (
SELECT unread_count FROM msg_group
WHERE ROWID = new.group_id) - 1
WHERE ROWID = new.group_id;
END;

CREATE TRIGGER mark_message_unread
 AFTER UPDATE
 ON message
 WHEN read(old.flags) AND NOT read(new.flags)
BEGIN UPDATE msg_group SET unread_count = (
SELECT unread_count FROM msg_group
WHERE ROWID = new.group_id) + 1
WHERE ROWID = new.group_id;
END;

DIY: Use New Smartkey with 2005 Nissan Altima

2009-05-09T03:06:00.017-04:00

They said it couldn't be done! Definitely a ghetto mod on the inside but oh so worth it on the outside! **This is NOT for the faint hearted!** The new Nissan/Infinity SmartKey or iKey is not compatible with older Nissan/Infinity cars . You can find switch blade FOBs on eBay but Arati really wanted the cooler looking SmartKey for her 05 Altima. With this mod what were basically doing is taking out the guts of the old FOB, modifying it and putting it into the SmartKey's Fob housing. I got most of my information from this post but the FOB in the post had a different circuit board so the solder points are different. Some Caveats: These instructions are not detailed. I'm too sleepy to type details. You need to know a bit about electronics and soldering to survive this. There are two types of smartkey housings and there are two (maybe more) types of old fob circuit boards. But lucky you, between this post and the one above you should find your answers! I would recommend trying this on a spare fob incase you solder through the board! I however have no patience so I started on the one and only fob that Arati has. Before I started I tested all the contact points that I was going to use by shorting them with a wire and checking if the car responded. Tools: A pair of pliers and scissors help too! The FOBs: Why we're doing what we're doing Since the buttons on the Smart key are spaced differently from the old fob we need to make up for this by replicating the button contact area in the right spots. The panic button is the only one we wont need to move since it lines up (almost) perfectly with the new fob. The contact area is basically two wires (+/-). When a button is depressed the little back dot on the plastic sheet touches the two wires and completes the circuit and beep beep the car responds. The How To: First lay down two layers of sticky tape over the front of the circuit board to prevent any shorts. Take strands of the 16 gauge (or similar) copper wire and put them through the holes in the front and solder at the points identified at the back. I used the sticky tape to secure the wires and to make sure they didn't touch each other or move.

The Front - poke the wires through these holes

The Back - Solder the wires at these points (if your Circuit board looks different refer to the post above)

Here is a mid-way shot. I still have to solder the lock2/unlock2 and the battery thingy.

Here is the back all done

And the front all done:

Now arrange the wires as shown. Some things to remember:

Cut out the tape above the Panic Button. We will be using the original button area for this button.
Compare the button location and area against the new housing to align your wires correctly
Be sure to cut out the tape at the contact points - these will be your SmartKey FOBs button contact area.

At this point I tested the mod by putting in the battery (taped it to hold it secure) and checking each contact area one at a time by placing a contact dot from the plastic sheet over the contact area. Might be a good idea for you to do so too! Next was the point of no return for me coz the soldering was great for me but now I was cutting up things! Cut up the plastic sheet with the contact dots from the old FOB and place them over the contact wires. This is a pre-shot. I had to cut the plastics further as I tweaked it to ensure that the contact area aligned with the buttons properly. I don't have a picture of the next part but you can check this picture out from the thread above to get an idea. I ripped out the tactile switches from the new FOB's circuit board with a pair of pliers. I laid a line of sticky tape over the contact dots and stuck the switches over the contact area. This is because the buttons on the new FOB are set in too deep and we need a filler so that the buttons can make contact with the contact dots. I stuck a rubber square for the panic button. Aligning the contact points is the toughest part of this mod. I took me a long time to get it perfectly aligned so that the buttons respond when pressed with normal pressure. On the housing I had to break off some bits that held the battery in place to allow for the mod's circuit board to fit. A pair of pliers will do nicely here. The forum post suggests removing the rubber button layer so that the case can close completely. I didn't really want to do that since the FOB wont be waterproof without the rubber layer. I had to rip out all the obstructions in the housing and file down some edges of the circuit board and the surface of the housing. Do what you need to. After all is done, close the case. I managed to close the housing almost a 100%. but you don't really notice coz you're admiring the shiny new FOB :)

Ndara iSMS Backup for iPhone

2009-02-17T10:57:00.005-05:00

I spent an afternoon searching for a free software to backup my SMSs from my iPhone 3G and save them on my PC. There were 2 software apps that I found. One was for a Mac only and the other costs money and saves the SMSs in a propriety format. Its been a while since I've taken up a project but making a SMS backup utility sounded like fun!. Introducting Ndara iSMS Backup. It is currently in beta. Ndara is free and open source. It is developed in Java to try and make it work across OSs like Linux and Mac. I've only tested it on Windows (XP and Vista) for now. But I'm feeling confident that it will work on Linux. Ndara allows you to backup all your SMSs or choose a single contact to backup. Backup formats available are: simple text file (.txt), styled xml or the original SQLite DB (sms.db). The XML format is styled using an XSLT that makes the SMSs look pretty; similar to what they look like on the iPhone (see screenshot below). No more propriety formats. This XML backup is nice and portable. Currently Ndara works only on the iPhone 3G. The iPhone 2G stores the sms.db in a different location. It's not too hard to make Ndara compatible with 2G. This feature is slotted for the next release. Visit Ndara iSMS Backup here: http://code.google.com/p/ndara/ Feedback welcome.. And here are some Screenshots:

The Application

The Styled XML Backup Option

Welcome Ndara, the God of the Underworld.

Export/Import a Digital Certificate

2008-04-29T09:31:00.004-04:00

Have a new machine and trying to Export/Import a Thawte (or any other) Certificate? Make sure you follow these steps: https://search.thawte.com/support/ssl-digital-certificates/index?page=content&id=SO552 Else you'll end up with errors like this along the way to Importing and Using the Exported cert: - Windows does not have enough information to verify this certificate - Error -2146885628 certificate installation failed - Microsoft Outlook: Could not sign or encrypt this message because your certificate is invalid The cause in my case was that the root certificates for the CA (Thawte in this case) were not included in the certificate when I exported it. Thats the reason windows could not verify the certificate and Outlook would not send encrypted emails. Installing Thawte's root certificates (from: http://www.thawte.com/roots/) didn't help. Reinstalling my cert from the Thawte website gave me an error too. Thankfully, I hadn't deleted the original cert from my other laptop so I re-Exported the certificate correctly using the steps above. The important bit is labeled such in the steps:

IMPORTANT: On the Export File Format page place a tick next to the option that says: "Include all certificates in the certification path if possible". Click on Next.

Hack Attack: Remote control your torrents with uTorrent's WebUI

2008-04-17T09:32:00.001-04:00

uTorrent: The only ONLY only reason I keep a Windows box around.. Hack Attack: Remote control your torrents with uTorrent's WebUI

The Color of Money from Around the World

2008-03-28T09:57:00.002-04:00

See a lot more: Color + Design Blog / The Color of Money from Around the World by COLOURlovers

Wakerupper.com - Free Wake-up Calls and Telephone Reminders

2008-03-20T14:10:00.000-04:00

(its free!!) Use Wakerupper to... * Set a wake-up call at a specific time * Remind yourself of important events * Remember to take medication on time * Escape from a boring date or meeting * Remind child or spouse to do chores * Set reminders for tasks and follow-ups Wakerupper.com - Free Wake-up Calls and Telephone Reminders

Web OS: The virtual OSes

2008-03-09T21:13:00.003-04:00

Ever heard of a WebOS?!! Well neither had I. Here's a quick look at a few. Taken from: franticindustries.com

A Web OS is a virtual operating system that runs in your web browser

1. Craythur

Craythur is a completely new WebOS that puts big emphasis on looks, and it does that part really well, with a well chosen desktop background and transparent window borders similar to those Vista’s Aero. However, the apps themselves are more alpha than beta. For one thing, they’re mostly not translated from Spanish. They work, but nothing more than that; none of them can hold their own against any decent comparative application, web-based or otherwise. Since this is obviously an application at its very early stages, let’s just leave it at good-looking and come back in a few months to see the progress.

2. Desktoptwo

If there’s such things as “serious WebOS players”, Desktoptwo is one of them. It’s a Flash based fully featured WebOS which requires registration to try, immediately giving you your own mini-site and your own Desktoptwo email address to use. Desktoptwo is Flash-based, and while I’m not thrilled about Flash Web 2.0 applications, most of the OSes from this list work in Flash, and I must admit that some do it pretty well. Desktoptwo’s apps can be slow, and a certain amount of bugs are present (when i clicked on Message Board preferences, everything got garbled up), but not so much to ruin your experience with the service. One more thing: Desktoptwo opens in a popup, which is sure to annoy some users.

Feature-wise, Desktoptwo delivers and then some. You’ve got search, clock and sysinfo widget, a dock, MP3 player, RSS reader, Instant messenger, OpenOffice, HTML editor, notepad, and several others. Unfortunately, several of these open in popups, which somehow makes you remember you’re in Windows. Furthermore, if you close the Desktoptwo window and log in again, some of your settings are forgotten. However, your content, for example, the files you save to the desktop, or the RSS feeds you add in the very functional RSS reader are remembered over sessions, which is good. Overall, Desktoptwo does many things well, but it needs to iron out a few usability/UI issues to become a really usable WebOS.

3. EyeOS

Taking a bit of a different approach than other sites in this bunch, EyeOS offers you to download the EyeOS server files and install them on your on web server to use as you please. You can also try out a demo which is hosted on the free public server eyeos.info, which also provides free accounts of eyeOS to everyone who wants to use it without owning a private server. The public server is funded through donations, and there’s still quite a way to go, so if you like EyeOS, go ahead and help them.

EyeOS itself is functional, not too buggy, but a bit slow and a bit bland. You have your standard calendar, calculator, address book, RSS reader, simple word processor, file uploader and a few others, but they have pretty limited functionality, and they all look more like test apps than something you’d really use in day to day work. Furthermore, some of the options simply do not work, for example changing the wallpaper.

Although EyeOS seems to be an ambitious project, it doesn’t offer much more than, for example, Craythur. It looks nice, it works, but its apps aren’t interesting enough to actually use it for any serious work.

more...

BBC - History - Timelines - British Timeline

2008-03-03T13:44:00.000-05:00

BBC - History - Timelines - British Timeline An interactive British History timeline! A BBC Presentation

Three Programming Errors Most Frequently Responsible For Critical Security Vulnerabilities and Security Incidents

2008-02-25T10:52:00.001-05:00

Error 1. Accepting input from users without validating and sanitizing the input Error 2. Allowing data placed in buffers to exceed the length of the buffer Error 3. Handling Integers Incorrectly Taken from: http://www.sans-ssi.org/top_three.pdf (application/pdf Object)

Mazda 3: Program a Flip Key

2007-12-03T13:29:00.000-05:00

New toy, new hacks! I void warranties... When I bought my Mazda 3 I was pretty upset that it didn't come with the cool switch blade like key that the Mazda 6 has. But 3 months later and I'm getting myself one! A few clicks and apparently its possible to use the Mazda 6 key fob and program it to work with a Mazda 3. My dealer however sounded like I said i was going to drive my Mazda to the moon when I said I just wanted a 'quote' for the Mazda 6 key & remote parts and not installation/programing since I was going to program the key myself. "you'll program the key...... yourself???!!!!" Goes to show - some people are really ignorant or greedy gumps.. So, instead I got in touch with a DIY friendly dealer in Toronto and he shipped me the key and remote. Part Numbers: G2YA-76-2GXB - Flip Key ($37.93) GP7A-67-5RYB - Remote ($25.50) My dealer was charging 50.57 (key) & 34.00 (remote) , I guess thats the non-discount price.

A little Info:

Cutting the Key: To make a copy of your key you could take it to any key cutting place to get a copy. Or you could give the Mazda dealer either your VIN number or the Key number (that you find on that little plate on your key ring when u got the car). However, this key will be able to ONLY open doors UNTIL you program the transponder inside the key. Programing The Key: Inside the key (the grip part) there is a transponder that the car is programed to recognise. The car had a device that, on ignition, reads the transponder in the key to validate the key (So that no one can just borrow your keys and make a copy.) If a valid key is detected then the car will start. Else the car starts and dies. The Remote: The remote is the unlock/lock fob part of the key.

Mazda 3: Program a Flip Key

Taken from: TM3

Programming the key

Items needed:

2 pre-programmed transponder keys.
1 new transponder key

The timing is critical to this procedure, please read through the entire procedure before attempting. Procedure:

Insert one of the pre-programmed transponder keys and turn the ignition to "on", leave on for at least one second (wait until the red key symbol in the instrument cluster extiinguishes), remove the key from the ignition.
Within 5 seconds insert the second pre-programmed key and turn the ignition to "on" for at least one second but no more than 5 seconds (use the key symbol for this as well) then remove the second key.
within 10 seconds insert the new key in the ignition and turn the ignition to "on", if you are successful the red key symbol will illuminate then extinguish after about a second.

If you are not successful the red key symbol will flash repeatedly to indicate that you have inserted an invalid key. Remove the key, wait a minute and try it again, it takes a few times to get it perfect.

Programming the Remote

Have all the remotes that you are going to be using, maximum of 3, with you when you do this programming as all of them have to be reprogrammed into memory.

Open driver side door and leave open.
Lock and Unlock the drivers door using the power door lock switch on the door
Insert key into the ignition.
Turn Key to ON position and return to Lock (off) position. Do this 3 times within 10 seconds. LEAVE key in the ignition in Lock (off) position.
Close and open the drivers door 3 times. Leave door open after this step
ECU should respond by locking and unlocking the doors once.
Press any button on remote #1 twice. ECU responds by locking and unlocking the car doors.
Additional remotes, repeat Step 7 for up to 3 remotes total.
Remove the key from the ignition and the ECU will respond a final time with a series (about 4) of door locks and unlocks. You're done!

iPhone: Transferring Contacts

2007-10-28T20:03:00.000-04:00

The iPhone isn't designed to pick up contacts from your SIM so heres a work around to get your contacts transfered from SIM to iPhone. The basic idea is to get your contacts synced with Outlook. Once they are in Outlook then iTunes will pick them and sync them with the iPhone. The phone that rT was using before the iPhone, was my old Nokia 6620. So I installed the Nokia PC Suite. I put her SIM into the Nokia phone, copied all the contact to the SIM and synced the phone with Outlook using the PC Suite. After cleaning up the contacts a bit, I used iTunes to sync the contacts with the iPhone. Some thing that bugs me about Outlook is that it files the contacts as 'Lastname, Firstname'. Although it allows you to file contacts as 'Firstname Lastname' it wont change the existing contacts to that format. So I got a little script (macro) to refile existing contacts as 'Firstname Lastname' :) Private Sub ReFileContacts() Dim items As items, item As ContactItem, folder As MAPIFolder Dim contactItems As Outlook.items Dim itemContact As Outlook.ContactItem Set folder = Session.GetDefaultFolder(olFolderContacts) Set items = folder.items Count = items.Count If Count = 0 Then MsgBox "Nothing to do!" Exit Sub End If 'Filter on the message class to obtain only contact items in the folder Set contactItems = items.Restrict("[MessageClass]='IPM.Contact'") For Each itemContact In contactItems itemContact.fileas = itemContact.FirstName + " " + itemContact.LastName itemContact.Save Next MsgBox "Your contacts have been re-filed." End Sub Unfortunately, I had already synced the contacts on the iPhone and I didn't have to patience to sit and go through each one and delete them. So... here is a quick way to delete all your iPhone Contacts at once. - create 2 empty text files on your desktop and rename them to: AddressBookImages.sqlitedb and AddressBook.sqlitedb - copy/overwrite these empty files into "/var/root/Library/AddressBook" folder, using WinSCP (SSH client) - this will empty your contacts list, since all contacts are stored in those two files. (This wont take effect untill you restart your Iphone) Once done.. re-sync!

iPhone and Rogers: EDGE Settings

2007-10-28T17:21:00.000-04:00

After the unlock/activation the obvious calling and SMS works. The voicemail button dials the Rogers Voicemail number. But there is no Visual Voicemail (obviously) and there is no new voicemail notification. I haven't tried to use the EDGE internet access coz rT is afraid of getting monster Data usage bills but if anyone want to heres how: Setup the carrier’s specific APN server, username and password in the appropriate fields under Settings–>General–>Network–>EDGE. For Rogers, these are: APN: internet.com Username: wapuser1 Password: wap

iPhone: Breaking the Chains

2007-10-26T09:57:00.000-04:00

Unlocking iPhone

Although people use the term 'Unlock' there are three parts to unlocking your iPhone: Jail Breaking, Activation and Unlocking. The Guide (link below) outlines all the steps. Here is just my understanding of what happens under the hood. Its always good to undertake a through research before attempting to mod expensive stuff!! Note: And, although the word iBrick is thrown around a lot on many forums its not the right word to use in most situations. An iBrick is a paperweight that will NEVER become an iPhone. Most people who mess up can recover their phones or wait until a way is discovered. A true iBrick is when there is NOTHING that can be done. Pic will follow soon..

The iPhones:

Arati's: OTB 1.1.1 Randa's: OTB 1.0.2, Upgraded to 1.1.1

The Guide:

http://hackint0sh.org/forum/showthread.php?t=11833 http://hackint0sh.org/forum/showthread.php?t=12817 (Same but possibly clearer/detailed instructions)

Things To Download:

- Install iTunes (7.4) from: http://www.apple.com/itunes/download/ - Install Microsoft .NET Framework 3.0 from: http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyID=10CC340B-F857-4A14-83F5-25634C3BF043&displaylang=en

Check the Phone Version!!:

Before you start make sure - You have the iPhone system software 1.1.1 pre-installed OTB (out of the box)

Turn on the phone and slide to unlock the keypad. The iPhone screen should show that only emergency calls is allowed. Enter the following key sequence: *3001#12345#* and then finish by pressing the Call button. Tap on Versions. The firmware version of iPhone will be shown on LCD screen.
03.12.06_G = v 1.0.1
03.14.08_G = v 1.0.2
04.01.13_G = v 1.1.1
[ If you can get to the menu then check under Settings -> General -> About ]

- If you have version 1.0.2 then follow this:

Download the iPhone 1.1.1 firmware (152.3MB) - Hold down the Power and Home buttons until you hear the disconnect tone (that is the two tone sequence indicating that a USB device has disconnected). - Then release the power button and continue holding the home button until you hear a quick pair of connect and disconnect tones, then release the home button. Then iTunes will detect an Iphone that needs to be restored. - Press Shift key on the computer while you click on restore. It will show you a window to select the firmware. Select the 1.1.1 firmware file you downloaded before. - Let it restore/upgrade. This takes a while. Be Patient

The Process: Under The Hood

JailBreak:

The iPhone system is sandboxed and doesn't allow installation of 3rd party applications or any outside code. Breaking into the iPhone and getting root access to the system is called 'JailBreaking'. How Jailbreaking is Acheived:The Safari Mobile browser has a TIFF exploit which causes the browser to crash leaving the user with root access. (Details: http://blog.metasploit.com/2007/10/cracking-iphone-part-2.html) If the phone had not been activated then you are not allowed to get to the menu, you are only allowed to make emergency calls. Besides that, even if we get to the browser, we need internet access to be able to deploy the exploit. But, there are always ways around things :) The guide outlines the steps to enable wi-fi so that we can visit the website that will deploy the exploit causing Safari to crash. Once the browser crashes we will be waiting in the wings to run TouchFree that will take advantage of the root access that the exploit left phone in. TouchFree recognises the iPhone connected to the computer the same way that iTunes does. It's IMPORTANT to make sure that iTunes can recognise the iPhone. Once you confirm that iTunes can recognise the iPhone then kill iTunes, iTunesHelper.exe and iPodService.exe services from the task manager and then run TouchFree. With the 1.0.2 iPone upgraded to 1.1.1 I was stuck on Step 2 and I had to re-run the 1.1.1 update to get iTunes to recognise the iPhone. After gaining root access 'TouchFree' also enables SSH and SFTP, installs AppTapp Installer, Trip1Pogostick, and an alpha version of SummerBoard. (TouchFree: http://www.slovix.com/touchfree/) Once we have access to the phone system, we can go ahead with Unlocking and Activation. The guide does the unlocking first and then activation.

Unlock:

Thanks to TouchFree we can use Putty or WinSCP to SSH into the phone and muck around the phone system. Using SSH the SIM Unlocking program 'AnySIM 1.1' can be copied over and the run. At this point you need to ensure you have your new SIM (non-AT&T SIM) put in the phone. (How To Change SIM: http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=305746) AnySim will 'unlock' the phone and allow us to use other network carries like Rogers, etc. instead of AT&T. When the guide says CHMOD something to some number they mean: In WinSCP, right click the file > properties and enter 0755 (or the specified number) in the 'Permissions: Octal box' [NOTE: chmod 0755 file – equivalent to u=rwx (4+2+1),go=rx (4+1 & 4+1). The 0 specifies no special modes.]

Activation:

The contract between AT&T and Apple states that the phone will be used only with that carrier. So we need to fool the phone into thinking that this SIM has been verified and activated by AT&T. We use iASign to fake an AT&T activation of the phone. We need to overwrite the public certificate on the iPhone with the one provided with iAsign and then run iASign from the Command Prompt. Thats It! Stay Tuned for Setting up the iPhone with Rogers settings

iPhone (Almost There)

2007-10-23T13:26:00.000-04:00

Patience Iago

To Do:

Jailbreak
Unlock
Activate

A Slice of my Bookmarks: Part 1

2007-09-12T09:05:00.000-04:00

3D Hair - View hairstyles in 3D
Godulike - Irreverent look at the Faith Industry
DVD Easter Eggs - Hidden stuff
12 Days of Christmas - How much does it really cost?
Jelly Bath - Take a bath in jelly
My receipts - This guy scans and posts every receipt he gets
Old Version - Because the newer version of software is not always better
Fontifier - Create a font of your own handwriting

Pimp Your XBOX... (once more)

2007-06-21T18:26:00.000-04:00

Here we go again. After the successful pimping of Achal's XBOX last summer, I got an opportunity to pimp yet another XBOX... Randa's XBOX... This time around I decide to write down what I did so that when I eventually get my own XBOX I know what I did and dont waste time with research.. Preparations: 1. Buy a used xBox.. EB Games sells it for 99.99 CAD.. 2. Check the Kernel and Dash version number and note it down Start up the xbox and go to Settings and then System Info. After the scrolling text you'll see something like: K:1.00.XXXX.01 D:1.00.YYYY.01 XXXX is the Xbox kernel version and YYYY is the Xbox dashboard version. It is recommended to update your dashboard to MS Dash version 5960. For details check links at the bottom. In my case they were: K: 5838 D: 5960 3. Download Ndure from Xbins from [ftp://distribution.xbins.org/XBOX/exploits/_Packages/Kingroachs Installer/] The server needs a password to access. * Follow the instructions here [http://www.xbox-scene.com/articles/xbins.php] * Or instead of installing mIRC heres a quicker way, - Go to [http://www.efnet.org/] and use the weblogin to login to #xbins. - Type in the bottom /msg xbins !list - Note down the username and password for the ftp site. 4. Download XBHDM v1.9 from here [http://dwl.xbox-scene.com/~xbox/xbox-scene/software/linux/xboxhdm_v1.9.zip] 5. You'll need an .iso burning software like Nero or download ISO Recorder from here: [http://isorecorder.alexfeinman.com/download/ISORecorderV2RC1.msi] 6. Extract XBHDM. Open up isolinux.cfg under xboxhdm/linux/isolinux with notepad and change timeout 300 to timeout 600. This will increase the timeout of XBHDM prompt allowing you 10 minutes to complete the hotswap and enter a choice. 7. Extract ndure-3.0.rar and run Ndure-3.0.exe. Here you can customise your install options. Check out the links at the bottom for more details on these options. Here is what I chose. x indicates a check mark. The missing options were not checked.

x Basic Files x Retail Files x Add ShadowC + Kernel Specific Fonts x 5838 (choose YOUR kernel number here) x Default boot xonlinedash console x Add NDURE Toolset x Create XBOXHDM Install

Hit Next and it'll ask you where to save the files. Choose /xboxhdm/linux/ (under the directory where you extracted xboxhdm_x1.9.zip) Browse to where you extracted Xboxhdm. Under the linux folder and double-check that there is now be a folder inside called ndure. Download the update ndure script from here: [http://mysite.verizon.net/vze6qvmn/mn/ndure] and save it under /xboxhdm/linux/ndure/ folder. This will replace the old ndure script. Make sure you named it just ndure (no extension) and not ndure.htm. 8. Now, go to the main xboxhdm folder and run make-iso-win. On completion you'll have a linux.iso in the main xboxhdm directory. Use a CD burning software to burn the linux.iso onto a CD. The Hot-Swap: 9. Now for the hot-swap part. There are many options for hotswapping. The one I chose was the blind hotswap (no-tv-hooked). Check the links at the bottom for other options.

The basic Idea: The XBOX HDD is locked and password protected so we cant access it like we would a normal HDD. Starting the MS Dash will unlock the XBOX. We need to pull out the XBOX IDE cable from the XBOX HDD after its unlocked and connect the PC IDE cable to the now unlocked XBOX HDD.

10. XBOX Prep: - Open the X-Box. Remove the 6 Torx screws on the bottom. - Unplug the XBOX DVDROM IDE cable. Leave the Yellow/White power cable hooked to the DVDROM - Leave the XBOX IDE loosely hooked to the XBOX HD so you can quickly remove it during the swap - Ensure that the Video Molex connector is connected to the xbox (it doesnt need to be hooked to the TV, just the xbox.) 11. PC Prep: - Start up the PC and boot up with the linux.iso CD that we burned. We should be at the XBOXHDM main menu screen which will wait 10 minutes for us. 12. Lets Hot-Swap! - Since we are doing a hotswap in BLIND mode (No tv hooked) we can't see the Error 12 that'll come up on the screen (indicating that its a good time to unplug the IDE cable). What we need to do is disconnect the Xbox HD IDE at the exact moment that the LED goes to RED Flashing. (By EXACT, I mean pull the cable out exactly when the LED changes, watch it a few times before doing it, count!) - Now plug in the PC IDE cable to the XBOX HDD. 13. At the xboxhdm Main Menu choose Option 1 to enter the VGA console. Then type xbrowser. When the browser comes up choose *ndure and hit enter to run it. 14. At the ndure main menu choose Option 4 to backup your C drive to E:/backup. It'll take a while, be patient. 15. Once thats done choose Option 1 at the ndure main menu to install ndure. 16. Once thats done shut off the PC and XBOX. Hook up the XBOX to the TV and you should be presented with the UnleashedX Dashboard! We've successfully soft-modded the XBOX!!!!!! Setting Up the XBOX Media Center 17. Download XBMC. You'll have to look for a torrent since they dont come precompiled due to legal issues. You'll only find the source code on the official website. Check out ISOHunt.com for torrents. 18. Hook up the XBOX to your network and startup the XBOX. - In the UnleashedX dash check that the ftp server is running by going to Settings > Network. - By default the username and password are both xbox. - Note down the IP address of the XBOX. - From your PC startup your FTP Client (there are tons of freeware FTP Clients if you dont have one.) and ftp into your XBOX. 19. Navigate to the E:/apps/dash folder. Copy the extracted XBMC files into this directory.

Note: The default.xbe is your dashboard file. The XBMC dash (default.xbe) in your extracted files will overwrite the existing dash. Make sure you copy the files correctly coz if you dont the XBOX might not start right without a proper dash!

20. Reboot the XBOX and voila... A Softmodded XBOX with XBOX Media Center!!!! All done FOR FREE!!!! Additional XBMC Setup Information: To start streaming your media from your PC or home network it is as simple as creating network shares of your media folders on your PC. You should be able to navigate to the computers on your network using the SMB network options from within XBMC. Also, you can create shortcuts to you media folders in XBMC so you don't have to navigate through so many folders to get at all of your media. Additional Links For advanced options or details etc etc etc... Check out the links below: SoftModding and Hotswap Links How to Softmod Your Xbox Using XboxHDM (Ndure) The Art Of Hotswapping, FAQ & Some Other Lessons. Heres how to install XBMC: How to Go from Xbox to Xbox Media Center in 30 minutes Instructions with Pix: How to softmod your xbox...for FREE

Stream your music on Windows

2007-06-08T13:15:00.000-04:00

Something I found for windows while searching for gnump3d stuff... Vibe Streamer - Free MP3 streaming server - Play your music anywhere!

Get a dose of Ubuntu

2007-06-08T13:11:00.000-04:00

Check out the Full Circle Magazine and get your dose of Ubuntu...

The New et Improved: Sorceress

2007-06-03T17:14:00.000-04:00

Heres the upgrade listing: OS : Ubuntu Feisty Fawn 2.6.20-16-generic x86_64 GNU/Linux CPU : AMD Athlon 64 X2 3800+ Socket 939 CPU MoBo : MachSpeed MSNV-939 NVIDIA Socket 939 ATX Motherboard / Audio / PCI Express / 10/100 Ethernet LAN / USB 2.0 / Serial ATA Memory : Ultra 1024MB PC3200 DDR 400MHz Memory GFX : BFG GeForce 6600 GT OC / 128MB GDDR3 / SLI / PCI Express / Dual DVI / HDTV / Video Card DVD-RW : Lite-On LH-20A1L-06 SuperAllwrite / 20x DVD±R Burn / 16x DVD±R Read / 8x DVD+RW / 6x DVD-RW / 8x DVD±R DL / 12x DVD-RAM / 48x32x CD-R/RW / Black / SATA / DVD Burner with Lightscribe HDD 1 : Seagate 320GB Serial ATA HD 7200/16MB/SATA-3G HDD 2 : Seagate 320GB Serial ATA HD 7200/16MB/SATA-3G SMPS : Ultra / X-Finity / 500-Watt / ATX / 120mm Fan / SATA-Ready / SLI-Ready / Black / Power Supply LCD : Megavision MV220 / 22" Widescreen / 5ms / 1000:1 / WSXGA+ 1680 x 1050 / DVI·VGA·Component Video / Black / Widescreen / LCD Monitor rawwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww!!!!!!! Beryl.. here i come!!!

J2ME Experiment :: Matka!!

2007-02-20T22:35:00.000-05:00

Finally after almost 6 months of being on the back burner, Matka is complete.. Raaarrr! The prototype was designed to demonstrate communication between a cellphone and webserver. Matka is a J2ME application that runs on any MIDP cellphone. The application is a simulator of the Matka game where you can place a bet on any number from 0-9. The prototype basically demonstrates communication with a server running ASP and transmitting data via XML. The client application is coded with the Java Wireless Toolkit. Thrid-party XML parsers (KXML and KXML2) have both been used to demo their usage. Heres a link to the app.. [ Matka Suite ] There is a detailed Readme on how to install Matka on a device and how to setup a development system and the server. Although there are still issues the basic prototype is ready and working. Various phones have slightly different ways of handling the incoming data. There are a couple of workarounds to be implemented. But all in all its ready to send off to the engineers at GKPL..

12 Days of Christmas

2006-12-11T19:40:00.000-05:00

12 Days of Indian Chritmas MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!

WikiMapia: Wraith's Lair

2006-09-29T02:45:00.000-04:00

46°30'29"N 84°17'44"W WikiMapia: Wraith's Lair

Swarm the dot com

2006-08-09T18:30:00.000-04:00

Swarm the dot com: A new way to browse the web. Swarm is a graphical map of hundreds of websites, all connection to each other. While you're browse the web, Swarm will update itself every second with the sites that other people visiting in. When a site becomes more popular (Google.com, for example), It will move towards the center of the swarm. Test it out...

My Google Page

2006-08-09T18:22:00.000-04:00

Well, I can never resist web space.. I've been playing around with a design idea for a while and Google Pages is offering me space so, yay!. Although working with Google Pages is like designing powerpoint slides (i.e. very few manual coding options) I still managed to get the desired effect.. Yes it me blowing my horn.. So, if you're bored... :my google page

Google Browser Sync

2006-08-08T01:13:00.000-04:00

Google Browser Sync Now this is a really neat tool! A while ago I was thinking of developing something like this coz I was sick of trying to maintain my bookmarks and settings across my computers.. The Google Broweser Sync is for Firefox. It allows you to sync your browser settings, bookmarks, history, passwords, etc.. It also restores your last browser session! That means you can restore the open tabs and/or web pages that you had open the last time you opened the browser on any synced machine!! Oh yeah!! Someone buy me Google Stock Please!! Some other neat Google Tools: Google Notebook: a simple way to save and organize information when conducting research online. Google Page Creator: a web-publishing program which creates pages and hosts them on Google's servers. Check out the list of ALL Google Services

Oxymorons

2006-08-07T09:16:00.000-04:00

Oxymorons (An oxymoron is a phrase with an internal contradiction): --------------- Act naturally Found missing Advanced basic Same difference Almost exactly Small crowd Butt head New classic 'Now then' Clearly misunderstood Plastic glasses Tight slacks Exact estimate Known Secret Liquid Gas True Rumors Appear Invisible Doing Nothing Little Big Never Generalize New and Improved Wireless Cable ... The list goes on.. (http://www.oxymoronlist.com/)

100 (Plus) Years of Regime Change by Robert Sherrill - The Texas Observer

2006-07-26T04:50:00.000-04:00

100 (Plus) Years of Regime Change by Robert Sherrill - The Texas Observer

Tales From Shakespeare (For Children) by Charles and Mary Lamb

2006-07-25T17:50:00.000-04:00

Always wanted to read Shakespear's plays but didnt want to get down and dirty with the old english?? Here's Tales From Shakespeare (For Children) by Charles and Mary Lamb that narrates Shakespear's plays in an easy to read story for free online...

Hamachi: VPN Application

2006-07-19T04:34:00.000-04:00

Finally!! A simple VPN proggy!! Hamachi Hamachi allows you to browse the shared folders like you were on the same network! It lets you create your own virtual network of computers without actually having to network them together. It basically creates a LAN with other computers over the Internet. Hamachi is available for Windows, Linux, and Mac.

Hamachi is a zero-configuration virtual private networking application. In other words Hamachi is a program that allows you to arrange multiple computers into their own secure network just as if they were connected by a physical network cable. Hamachi is fast, secure and simple. Its core version is also free.

The Window's installation is boringly simple. Check out my linux blog for instructions on installing Hamachi under Ubuntu. edit: at the time of writing the Hamachi site was down. You can grab a copy of Hamachi here. After installing it will update itself to the latest copy.

Print & Ship A Free Photo

2006-07-17T17:42:00.000-04:00

HP wants you to test drive their printers so they are allowing you to print a sample 4x6 or 8x10 photo FREE, and ship it FREE!! Only one per email address.. Shipping only to canada.. Go Here >> HP Test Our Best

Do-It-Yourself Projects

2006-07-16T22:23:00.000-04:00

Some interesting projects at Instructables.com A very simple proximity detector The How I built a Rocket Launcher; and you can too! How to make gunpowder

Apple's Nike iPod Sport Kit

2006-07-13T16:56:00.000-04:00

Nike+iPod kit: An in-shoe sensor for your Nike and a wireless transmitter to plug into your iPod Nano... Check out the package: AppleInsider | High-res photos of Apple's Nike iPod Sport Kit

Light Side Up Productions

2006-07-13T16:52:00.000-04:00

Woah! Check this out! Twelve students at Brandeis used 600 galvanized screws to turn a unsuspecting classmate's dorm completely upside-down! A must see video! Light Side Up Productions

Wedding March (Mendelssohn)

2006-07-13T02:23:00.000-04:00

While downloading random classical pieces I hit play on "Felix Mendelssohn - A Midsummer Night's Dream - Wedding March" I almost fell off my chair! It was apna wedding march that we hear at almost all pau weddings... So, i dug for more info..

Mendelssohn's "Wedding March" is one of the best known of the pieces that he wrote for A Midsummer Night's Dream in 1842. It is one of the most played wedding marches. At weddings in many English-speaking countries, this piece is commonly used as a recessional, though frequently stripped of its episodes in this context. The first time it was used at a wedding was when Dorothy Carew wed Tom Daniel at St Peter’s Church, Tiverton, UK, on 2 June 1847. However it did not become popular at weddings until it was selected by Victoria, The Princess Royal for her marriage to the Crown Prince of Prussia on January 25, 1858. - Wedding March (Mendelssohn) - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Bittersweet pain...

Blasts on Mumbai trains kill at least 100

2006-07-12T03:13:00.000-04:00

Blasts on Mumbai trains kill at least 100 - MarketWatch:

Following reports of the blasts, U.S.-listed stocks of Indian companies tumbled, led by automaker Tata Motors, down 5.2% at $16.09. See related story. The rupee was down 0.3% against the dollar following the news. See full story. Security technology stocks rose. See related story.

Porn Browser Heatseek Launches

2006-07-11T23:55:00.000-04:00

Porn Browser Heatseek Launches (yeah, porn browser):

"Heatseek is a pornography focused browser that quietly launched today. The point of this software is to make porn browsing more efficent and more secure. The browser is available on Windows machines only, and is built on top of Internet Explorer. They’ve clearly thought this through. Every feature is aimed at either making porn consumption easier or making it less likely that others will know what you are up to. "

Some Security Features:

Your credentials are needed just to open the browser.
Downloaded files are encrypted and viewable only through Heatseek.
They do their best to eliminate popups, spyware and viruses.
Finally, they’ve even included a panic button to shut down the application immediately.

So, all you porn freaks, here's your ticket to ride...

Portmanteau

2006-07-11T18:04:00.000-04:00

Word of the Day: Portmanteau The word was coined by Lewis Carroll. A portmanteau word is a word that fuses two function words. Example: breakfast + lunch = brunch. smoke + fog = smog. This is the most common California + fornication = Californication Well!!! Interesting Eh??

Google SMS

2006-07-11T17:51:00.000-04:00

Next time you're out on the road and want to know when a movie is playing at the cinema.. think Google SMS Or maybe you want to know the weather.. or some trivia.. or find the conversion rate.. or even the population of japan!! All it takes is an SMS to google!! Test the service at Google SMS to get used to the service before you give it a go on your cell phone....

SMS Quick Start

1. Start a new text message and type in your search query

2. Send the message to the number "46645" (GOOGL)

3. You'll receive text message(s) with results

Tip: For help send the word 'help' as a text message to 46645.

Google kowtows to China | The Register

2006-07-11T17:30:00.000-04:00

Google kowtows to China | The Register

Google has been basking in good publicity from refusing US government demands to hand over search results but in China it is happy to create a search engine based on government specifications.

Google will offer a censored version of its search engine running on servers in China. It will remove results on "sensitive" topics like human rights and Tibet. The decision would not seem so bad coming from another company but Google used to pride itself on the morality of its business strategy and devotion to free speech.
.......
This is not the first time Google has kowtowed to government. This blog points out that Google Germany blocks access to a body modification (think extreme piercing) website in response to a request from the German government.

In other repressive bastards news Iran is blocking access to the BBC's Persian service for the first time - more details here.®

Check this out... Go to http://images.google.com/images?q=tiananmen and compare it with http://images.google.cn/images?q=tiananmen !!! About Tianamen Square

The Tiananmen Square protests of 1989 was a series of demonstrations led by students, intellectuals and labour activists in the People's Republic of China between April 15, 1989 and June 4, 1989. The resulting crackdown on the protestors by the PRC government left many civilians dead, the figure ranging from 200-300 (PRC government figures), to 2,000-3,000 (Chinese student associations and Chinese Red Cross figures)

-Wikipedia: Tianamen Square Well.. Hmmm... Now dont you love the freedom you have???

FingerSkilz

2006-07-04T19:44:00.000-04:00

Kewl 'fingerballer' google video.. Check out his blog: FingerSkilz

How To Replace An iPod Mini's Battery

2006-06-28T21:50:00.000-04:00

So rT's iPod Mini's battery died. It's been only a year. Apple has faced class action lawsuits about its krappy batteries in iPods. Anyways, here's what the Apple Battery Replacement Program costs and does..

How much does it cost to participate in the program? The program costs $59, plus $6.95 shipping. The total program cost is $65.95 per unit. All fees are in US dollars and are subject to local tax. Replacement iPods may be new, used or refurbished. Service may not be available if your iPod has been damaged due to accident or abuse. Please review Apple’s Repair Terms and Conditions for further details.

SHIT! 66 USD!! No ways!! So.... Here's what I decided to do... Do it myself!! 1. Order a battery. I bought this replacement battery, which came with the tools and instructions, from eBay for around $15 CAD with tax. Remember to check if the battery is compatiable with your iPod. This iPod is an iPod Mini. 2. Use the flat screwdriver provided to ease open the top and bottom plastic covers. They will be attached with a small amount of glue. Pry the covers carefully. Chances of small dents while prying are highly possible.. Better that than sending it to Apple for $59 + shipping. :) 3. Use the philips screwdriver to remove the 2 screws at the top. 4. Beneath the bottom case cover there is a small metal clip. This is a lil tricky to pop free. Pry each side of the clip loose and it should come free from the iPod. 5. Before you slide out the motherboard, disconnect the connector at the bottom of the iPod. Gently, using the flat screwdriver, pop the connector out of its socket. 6. Slide.... Out comes the motherboard... Now gently lift the battery and disconnect the battery's power connector.. Replace it by plugging in the new battery.. 7. Reassemble the iPod. Put back the metal clip, put back the 2 screws. The case covers will stick back with the original glue. Your new battery is now ready for charging! Voila!! Battery Replaced!! Cost: $15 CAD Shipping Time: 1 Week Repair Time: 30 mins Grrrrroooowl!!! For the geeks: - Notice the flash card. If you want to, you can replace the card with a card of bigger capacity. Google the procedure, you'll need to reinstall the OS et al. - Note the tacky sticky tape.. Damn! didnt expect such shoddy work from Apple.. While Varun insists that I should have sent it to Apple coz they're experts, I decided that I'd rather repair it for tons less and have fun while at it!! And it works fine.... Whadday say to that!?

The Halifax Explosion

2006-06-28T20:36:00.000-04:00

History Lesson - The Halifax Explosion: December 6th, 1971 the French ship Mont-Blanc left her anchorage outside the mouth of the Halifax harbour. She was loaded with 2,300 tons of wet and dry picric acid, 200 tons of TNT, 10 tons of gun cotton and 35 tons of benzol: a highly explosive mixture. At the same time the Norwegian vessel Imo was trying to leave the harbour. After a series of ill-judged manoeuvres, the Imo struck the Mont-Blanc on the bow. Although the collision was not severe, fire immediately broke out on board the Mont-Blanc. The captain, pilot and crew, expecting the ship to blow up immediately, launched the lifeboats and took refuge on the Dartmouth shore. Around 1.5 hours later, just before 9.05 a.m., the Mont-Blanc exploded. Not one piece of her remained beside the dock where she had finished her voyage. Fragments rained on the surrounding area, crashing through buildings with enough force to embed them where they landed. Churches, houses, schools, factories, docks and ships were destroyed in the swath of the blast. Children who had stopped on their way to school, workmen lining the windows, families in their homes, sailors in their ships, died instantly. Injuries were frightful, blindness from the splintering glass adding to the shock and bewilderment. Hardly a pane of glass in Halifax and Dartmouth was left intact. The tremours were felt in Prince Edward Island! This was the largest man-made explosion until the atomic age, when its effects were studied by Oppenheimer in calculating the strength of the bombs for Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Boston, USA rose to the aid of Halifax and for that each Christmas the huge tree that glitters in Prudential Plaza in Boston is a thank-you gift from the people of Nova Scotia. More info here: http://www.cbc.ca/halifaxexplosion/ http://museum.gov.ns.ca/mma/AtoZ/HalExpl.html

World Cup Streaming

2006-06-20T19:05:00.000-04:00

Don't/can't watch the world cup on TV? Check out this website: Football Streaming Info You'll need to signup with their forum and then post 'one' post (so they can get your IP and verify that you're not with the authorities) and then head on to the forum and read the info... Works fine.. Heres a channel listing, timing and groups info to keep track of when/where the action is: http://www.boxtobox.co.uk/ If you want some other options check out a 'in theory' idea about watchin it thru BBC online here

Back Off!!!

2006-06-17T02:25:00.002-04:00

Took this after Pallavi's et Randa's Graducation Ceremony.. Totally Neat Van Man!!! :P

Dr. David Brodbeck's Psychology Lectures from Algoma University - powered by FeedBurner

2006-05-29T10:33:00.000-04:00

Dr. David Brodbeck's Psychology Lectures from Algoma University - powered by FeedBurner

Make your own Skype Phone

2006-05-25T12:51:00.000-04:00

I hate sitting in front of the computer and talking. I'm so distracted. I wished I had some kind of Skype Cellphone.. something mobile.. I tried Skype for Mobile decives on my Pocket PC but the processor and wi-fi speed on the pocket pc couldn't hold a voice call.. hmmm.. I read on the net about this guy who had hooked up his Siemens Gigaset Cordless phone to his computer for skype and I just had to try it! After 10 hours of searching through randa's and achal's pile of overflowing 'stuff' I finally found their old cordless phone... The phone is connected to the power obviously, but DO NOT connect the 'phone' cable, if you get an incoming call you could get a 110v shock!. Now I'm not electronics engineer and I have an electricity phobia but this was quite easy to do. It took me a while to convince myself that I wouldnt get electrocuted and get over the images in my head of rT's accident with 220v.. brrr.. But even with my very basic knowledge this was a snap!! The general idea is to keep the phone to your ear and touch a screwdriver here and there on the circuit board till you hear a click. Mark these spots and then test the spots with a mp3 player. Choose the loudest one for your speaker/line out plug. Then reverse, by blowing in the handsets microphone and touch a earphone plug to see where you can hear the blowing. This is your microphone/line in spot! Ill skip the details and get straight to the pix.. Read here and here if you want more info and generic how to's (each phone is different so you'll have to experiement like me) The Phone: VTech 2619 2.7Ghz Cordless Phone The Circuit Board before: The mic and speaker spots are labeled. The ground is at the bottom. I had connected a wire to ground the probes so thats the red wire at the bottom. Sound Injecting Device: The Mp3 player hooked up to some convertor wires I had lying around. I used this to test the spots (that I had found earlier with the screwdriver) by touching the tip of the plug to the spots on the board and listening on the cordless to hear the music play. Grounding The Plug: Make sure the plugs you use are grounded. You could fry your mp3 player!! The gound is the disc on the plug furtherest away from the tip. Connect a wire from here to the ground on the board. Soldering The Wires: I cut up a sound extension cable. And wrapped the ground wires together and connected them to a the ground. The red and white wires of each plug were twisted together (since the phone is mono anyways, you can join the L+R) and soldered to the spots I found. Thats It!! Skype Phone!! Cost: 0.00$$ BTW, you can use it with MSN, Yahoo any thing.. Its basically a wireless earpiece you have now.. Save $$ on a wireless headset and/or voip phone.. Dr. Zoidberg knows all!!! Whoop Whoop Whoop...

How to make a XBox to USB Convertor.

2006-05-25T08:50:00.000-04:00

Sorry for the pix quality. They were taken by drunk Pallavi.. :P Abstract: Connect a Usb female plug to an xbox controller cable in a 'Y' fashin so that you can use the cable for USB devices and the Xbox controller... Uses: Hook up a keyboard, mouse, USB drive, etc to the Xbox. Find a femal USB cable. Cut it. Spread out the wires. Cut the XBox cable's insulation. Expose the inside cables like shown. Connect the USB cable to the striped XBox cable. Color-to-Color.. Red-to-Red, etc. Solder the wired to make a cleaner connection. Wrap the wires with foil paper to prevent distrubances. And lastly wrap up the whole mess with electrical tape. Better instuction and pix here: http://www.llamma.com/xbox/Mods/creating_a_dual_usb_adapter.htm

Pix 'o the XBox Moddin' Process

2006-05-25T08:33:00.000-04:00

Here's some pix of the insides of the XboX.. See.. Looks like a regular computer.. Regular HDD and DVD-Rom.. Me with my geek cap.. Geek looking over victim!! Muhahhaha!! The Hot-Swap process... Wait for the Xbox hdd to be unlocked.. yank IDE cable.. plug into running computer.. boot linux.. copy programs... Simple! :) Xbox Make Over!

Wanna Make Your Own Website?

2006-05-21T23:22:00.000-04:00

Well, so you want to build your own website. Want a web presence.. but you dont know HTML or just hate coding.. then let the machines crunch out the code for you. Sure Dreamweaver and Photoshop are the big guns, but can you affoard them? Hmm.. piracy you say? Well instead of downloading illegal software why not go open source! The names may not be as big but the do the same stuff if not better. Here's your open-source 'free software' list to start you off! 1. Nvu - The Complete Web Authoring System for Linux, Macintosh and Windows :similar to Dreamweaver, Frontpage, etc 2. The GIMP for Windows : similar to Photoshop, (yes, it runs on windows too) Rummage around the net for other goodies that might help.. like HTML Color Picker gives you the HTML equivalent of any color on your screen... Google is your friend and Open-Source keeps you legal! :)

Firefox to XBox: Xbmc Fox

2006-05-15T22:10:00.001-04:00

Xbmc Fox Firefox extension adds an entry to the right-click menu that lets you send an internet video to your Xbox Media Center. This is a really cool way to keep media playing on your TV (Xbox) rather than having to switch over to the computer screen every time you want to watch an internet video. Check out this site for the download link and setup info: Xbmc Fox - Firefox Extension, easily send media urls to xbmc from firefox [Xbox Scene]

Bypass and Disable Genuine Windows Validation Check

2006-05-15T20:56:00.000-04:00

Microsoft has made it harder for illegitimate, or for whatever reason, your copy of Microsoft Windows couldn’t be validated, users to retrieve updates via Microsoft Updates or Windows Update, and download programs from Microsoft Download Center like the Windows Defender, Windows Media Player 10, Photo Story 3, DirectX 9 and other application softwares from Microsoft Download Center. This simple hack seems to Bypass and Disable Genuine Windows Validation Check. 1. Open Windows Explorer by clicking Start -> All Programs -> Accessories -> Windows Explorer. 2. Browse to C:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Application Data\Windows Genuine Advantage\data folder. EDIT: Thanks to Sanu for pointing out this..

What to do if the folder doesnt exist:

Internet Explorer

here

Continue

don't need

3. Delete (or backup or move to another folder, if you want) data.dat file. 4. Create a new data.dat. You can create a new text file and rename it to data.dat. Ensure that 'Hiding of extensions of known file types' is not enabled on your system because that will make the file name 'data.dat.txt') 5. Set the attributes of data.dat to Hidden and Read-Only. Attributes can be set by right click on the data.dat file, and then click on Properties. 6. Windows Genuine Advantage (WGA) validation check has now been disabled. Internet Explorer can now bypass the validation process! (The validation process for Firefox seems to be a little different.) - from: Bypass and Disable Genuine Windows Validation Check - My Digital Life

Skype - Free Calling To US and Canada

2006-05-15T19:09:00.000-04:00

Thanks to rT for this kewl tip! Calling any phone within the US and Canada is free until the end of the year. To make a call to a landline or cell phone, click on the “Dial” tab, insert the country code +1 in front of the number and press the green call button. Download Skype here How to Add a Phone number to Contact List: 1. Click 'Add Contact' 2. Click 'To add a SkypeOut Contact click here' 3. Enter a Name and the Phone Number (Starting with +) Some one please test if you can call from an international location to US/Canada... This ROX!!

Pimp My (urrm.. Achal's) XBox !!

2006-05-11T00:18:00.000-04:00

Oh yeah!!! This hack totally rocks!!!! And Achals XBox Rulez!!! So yesterday, I was feeling bad for pallavi and her terminally ill laptop so I thought maybe she could use the XBox to surf the net or something.. I was under the impression that the XBox allowed you to do that. It's inhuman to unhook someone from the internet.. I googled around and found that its possible to install Linux on an XBox only if you 'mod' it.. A lil more googling (and ignoring the fact that I had a psychology test the next day) I found that it was possible to use a software modification that was reversable and no soldering required!!!! After tons of googling and ensuring that I wouldnt have a paperweight I found tons of interesting stuff! Some interesting (geeky) things to note abt the XBox.. - Its a small, light, cheap and slow "computer". Its got a regular HDD and DVD drive. - The HDD is locked and password protected. - It uses a propriety file system called FATX. - The ports on the front for the controllers are actually USB ports that are just shaped different. Click here for some neat screenshots of XBMC Right now the XBox is pimped up and has the XBox Media Center on it. What that means is that now the xbox can : - play any music file, video file (divx etc) and view pictures (slideshows et al) - can access shares from the linux and windows machines on my network! - can play media (aucio, video and image) files from the network! (As i type this Pallavi is watching, on the xbox, 'mohabattein', which shared from her computer! No lags.. plays smooth!) - has its own FTP!! and Web server!!! (i can control the media center from the web server) - looks totally KEWL! check out the screenshots! some neat screenshots of XBMC with additional scripts ** and the XBox is still an XBox.. its still plays Xbox games! Wooo Hoo!! Its like XP Media Center only waaaay cooler (and cheaper). No more 15" Screens.. No more copying movies off the network.. No more moving laptops out for a party... This ROX!! Links to SoftModing your XBOX: Please read as much as you can about softmods. I spent hours reading before I tried a softmod. There are different ways to softmod depending on the kernel version of your XBox and the risks you are willing to take. Beware of outdated tutorials. These worked for me... This will basically mod the xbox and allow ftp access: How to Softmod Your Xbox Using XboxHDM (Ndure) The Art Of Hotswapping, FAQ & Some Other Lessons. Heres how to install XBMC: How to Go from Xbox to Xbox Media Center in 30 minutes I followed the latter half of the instructions coz the box was already moded But thats not all.. Were going for ultimate geek xbox.. We have to install Linux!! Pallavi wants a second computer to hook up her USB Drive to so she can keep herself busy while her Laptop takes its regular coma naps.. (And im a geekoziod that has to try it all) The joy of computing from your couch... Ive got my eyes on GentooX.. Its downloading right now.. Ill letcha know what happens as it does... P.S. Achal: The XBox rox now! Can't wait for you to see it! -- More to Follow --

For the Job Hunt

2006-05-07T22:46:00.000-04:00

Templates for various letters you might need to write during your job hunt... Microsoft Office Templates: Your Career

ONLamp.com -- Ten Security Checks for PHP, Part 1

2006-05-01T23:23:00.000-04:00

ONLamp.com -- Ten Security Checks for PHP, Part 1

PHP security & SQL security

2006-05-01T22:01:00.000-04:00

PHP security & SQL security Remember For PHP Processing: strip_tags() removes any PHP or HTML tags from a string nl2br() converts newline characters in the input to
HTML tags. htmlspecialchars() will entity-quote characters such as <, > and & remaining in the input after strip_tags() has run. This prevents them being misinterpreted as HTML and makes sure they are displayed properly in any output. Remember For SQL Processing: When entering data into a database, addslashes() will escape characters with a special meaning to SQL, such as ' or ; by prefixing them with a backslash (\) Run stripslashes() when pulling data back out from the database.

Six Degrees of Smoking

2006-04-26T21:17:00.000-04:00

Six Degrees of Smoking Get the lighter.. light up.. and pass it on... hmmmm...

..::: House Gymnastics :::..

2006-04-26T21:12:00.000-04:00

If you're bored.. check out some ..::: House Gymnastics :::..

Google Fight

2006-04-16T23:21:00.000-04:00

Pass time with google fight.. Google Fight : Make this fight with googleFight clothed VS naked

Microsoft Providing Virtual Server Free

2006-04-10T18:24:00.000-04:00

For you windows ppl.... Slashdot | Microsoft Providing Virtual Server Free Or click here to download

Apple - Boot Camp

2006-04-07T03:30:00.000-04:00

More and more people are buying and loving Macs. To make this choice simply irresistible, Apple will include technology in the next major release of Mac OS X, Leopard, that lets you install and run the Windows XP operating system on your Mac. Called Boot Camp (for now), you can download a public beta today. Apple - Boot Camp

Wha!! Why??!!! Well... To each one his own!! Guess it has its pros... hmmm..

Open Source Windows - Free, Open-Source software for Windows

2006-03-22T00:04:00.000-05:00

Open Source Windows - Free, Open-Source software for Windows Open Source Windows is a simple list of the best free and open source software for Windows.

BBspot - Which OS Are You?

2006-03-22T00:01:00.000-05:00

Which OS are You?

BBspot - Which File Extension Are You?

2006-03-21T23:50:00.000-05:00

Which File Extension are You?

Digital Needle - A Virtual Gramophone

2006-03-14T04:25:00.000-05:00

Absofrickinglutely Amazing!! Digital Needle - A Virtual Gramophone Thanks to Pallavi who sent me a link to 20 Things you can do with your computer. Going through that I found a link in there about ripping LPs!! Man.. what an idea!! Just for Laughs: Rip an LP With Your Scanner This one may be a little nutty, but you have to admit nobody knew PCs could do it. In fact, I'm still not sure they can. This clever but crazy hack runs a virtual needle around a scanned image of an LP to create a .wav file of the recorded music. You won't want to rip your old LPs this way, though. Programmer Ofer Springer's demonstration file, a reconstructed recording of Vivaldi's "The Four Seasons," sounds like it's being played at your neighbor's house--across the street. Still, it's good enough that you can recognize bits of the melody. See Digital Needle - A Virtual Gramophone for more, or download and compile the Digital Needle source code, fire up your scanner, and try it yourself.

Just Imagine Sand Art - Google Video

2006-03-01T20:51:00.000-05:00

Just Imagine Sand Art - Google Video http://www.sandfantasy.com/ Amazing !!

LCD Backlight Quick Fix - Overview

2006-02-06T15:48:00.000-05:00

LCD Monitors have become very popular with prices coming down, and screen sized growing. Those of us that have used LCD monitors for a while know that over time the backlight starts to dim and will eventually completely fail. Leaving you with some electronic scrap that you could sell on eBay for 35 bucks or so. Well for less than $20.00 and about a half hour of your time you can replace the backlight and rejuvenate that monitor to as good as new condition. So man the surplus scrounging wagon and head out to your local school surplus or eBay! LCD Backlight Quick Fix - Overview

Client / Server Door Opener

2006-02-06T15:41:00.000-05:00

Kewl idea for those lazy bums like me.. a door opener!! Client / Server Door Opener

020 - EchoMp3 v1.4 - MMC/SD Card MP3 Player

2006-02-06T15:28:00.000-05:00

Build your own mp3 player!! 020 - EchoMp3 v1.4 - MMC/SD Card MP3 Player

Quick Vibrating Lockpick - Overview

2006-02-06T15:25:00.000-05:00

Make your own Lock Pick that is compareable to the latest available vibrating lock pick Quick Vibrating Lockpick - Overview

You've Got Mail.. and maybe HIV..

2005-12-17T17:37:00.000-05:00

inSPOT LA > Tell Them Got HIV/AIDs?? Need to tell your girfriend/boyfriend/fuck buddy? lol.. heres a website that has e-cards for just that!!

Court pardons smitten bra burgler

2005-12-14T02:17:00.000-05:00

Oddly Enough News Article | Reuters.com ROLF... at least the guy had good intensions. quite cute.. did her laundry and fixed her computer even! lol.. some people sure have wierd ways of showing love..

News 14 Carolina | 24 Hour Local News | TOP STORIES | Man steals ambulance; dies in crash

2005-12-06T16:11:00.000-05:00

News 14 Carolina | 24 Hour Local News | TOP STORIES | Man steals ambulance; dies in crash Hahaha.. found this link on some ones blog too bad it didnt end: "Sadly, there were no ambulances at the time to help him" -zefiryn's LJ Blog

2005-10-24T23:03:00.000-04:00

G License... here I come!!!

More on Stocks

2005-06-30T17:58:00.000-04:00
Rich Dad Poor Dad got me interested in Stocks again.. Theres a whole lot to learn before you can even think about investing... Some educative links are: http://stocks.about.com - excellent info on terminology http://www.smartmoney.com/university/ - detailed info on tools like P/E, PEG, etc http://www.investopedia.com/university/ - They have a simulation stock trading that you can play with. Yahoo! Finance has loads of info on companies.. More to come as I'm better educated..

Noo-Kee-Ya!!

2005-06-24T13:49:00.000-04:00
Oh My Goodness!!! Lendl was right!!! Nokia isnt a Japanese or Chinese or Korean or any other oriental company.. it a Finnish Company!!! And all these years I've been thinking Noo-Kee-Ya! Japanese!! DAMN!!! Check this out: History of Nokia

Gooooogle Maps!

2005-06-05T19:02:00.000-04:00
Msn Maps and MapQuest watch out!! Here comes Google Maps!! Heres Me! .. and heres a NEAT discovery.. click the link on the top right saying 'Satellite' and view a arial view of my lane!!!