technology filter: Tips, Tricks & Hacks

An Enterprising PC Mod

Mon, 23 Oct 2006 19:36:42 GMT

Hey, if you can find a way to make a buck...well, sometimes you should think twice. Like certain 17-year old junior enterpriser and PC modder from Poland, who not only modded his PC, he also turned it into miniature pot farm. As in cannabis. It was probably pretty cool to his geek friends: The PC still works fine, he just added a mini-greenhouse in the bottom.

Cool till the cops found it. Guess that show "Weeds" isn't all that popular in Poland.

(via Boing Boing)

Almost the Weekend: DIY Project

Thu, 19 Oct 2006 17:12:09 GMT

Home theater is still an add-on for most homes in the US--hasn't been homogeonized into every TV or stereo receiver yet. And DVR functionality is certainly still in its infancy. Combine those two and it means that home theater is still a great geek DIY project. Fortunately, it's not as difficult as you might think and there's plenty of help online.

A great help guide just came out on Tom's Hardware Guide. A nice step-by-stepper on not only building a full-functional home theater PC, but making it energy efficient, too.

Ultimate Weekend Project: DIY Jet Engine

Thu, 05 Oct 2006 19:05:19 GMT

Now THIS is a weekend project that'll get you eternal geek-spect. Too many score points to count. Only thing is that it's probably not a weekend project, more like a several-weekends project. Even so, it's very cool. The folks at Instructables have posted this how to on building your own jet engine using an auto turbo charger as a base. Man, if I had even a smidgen of talent with machine tools, engines or physics or even some kind of impetus to get my butt off the couch on the weekends, I'd be all over this. Really.

(via Digg)

How to Make a 100mpg Car

Mon, 25 Sep 2006 22:09:03 GMT

Engineering hacker, Jory Squibb, got fed up with the rate at which car makers were becoming green. So he took two mopeds, $2000 and his little gray cells and made this car. He calls it a Moonbeam and it does 100mpg highway and 85mpg city. Okay, it looks llike a golf cart and has a top speed of 50mph, but this is still a prototype. What ticks him off is that it didn't take him that long to design and build, and car companies could make the thing for about $5000 in mass production.

I'm not sure I'd want to drive one, but there are definitely a few million people who would. So why aren't you talking to a VC, Jory? Instead he's taken the car open source, and posted a complete How to Build a Moonbeam guide. More than a weekend project, but the end result could be fun.

(via Gizmodo)

BOGUS!: Take back 20% of Your Bandwidth from Windows

Thu, 01 Jun 2006 05:27:32 GMT

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I'm leaving the post up because otherwise Spaces will kill the comments thread, but after a number of reader jabs and jibes, as well as a call to the techie depths of Redmond, it turns out this tip is bogus. You can follow the steps and it'll work, but you won't see any appreciable performance gains. And if yo'ure using VoIP, you'll wind up putting it back in place anyway.

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The folks at RealTechNews found this tidbit that was being tossed around at the Google Community site. Seems someone dug deep into the guts of Windows XP and turned up some trivia: Seems that Windows reserves 20% of you network bandwidth for itself. For things like updates, security patches, updates to the security patches and security patches for the updates.

The post gives you a step-by-step on reconfigging the Windows wonder to hand that bandwidth back. Best if you do manual updates after that, but then that's my favorite way anyhow.

(via RealTechNews)

How-To: Backing Up Your xBox 360 Games

Mon, 22 May 2006 17:19:25 GMT

Not many of us have managed to get our sweaty little grubbers on an xBox 360 yet, but for those lucky few who have (hip-hop stars, NBA professionals, guys who ride skateboards over lava, those kinds of people), you may be wondering how you can back up your xBox games to keep 'em safe from random harm (like left-over lava or maybe hipping left when you should have hopped right).

If you'd like to know how to do that, follow this step-by-stepper from Clevermod. Pretty clearly written--but then I don't have an xBox to test it out on. Microsoft? Miiiicrooosoooofft.

(via Engadget)

Ultimate New Jersey Tpke Commuter Vehicle

Wed, 03 May 2006 21:14:48 GMT

I always thought VW Beetles were a mite boring. Been there, done that. Apparently, Ron Patrick agrees. Unlike me, however, he decided to do more than just sit on the couch and think about it.

He went out and strapped a 1350 horsepower GE Model T58-85 helicopter turboshaft engine engine to the back of his Beetle. The thing does 26,000rpm and has an after burner guaranteed to make tailgaters keep their distance. Supposedly, it's even street legal.

Now this would make the morning I-95 commute a hell of a lot more fun.

(via SciFi)

How to Build a Tornado Machine

Fri, 21 Apr 2006 14:11:03 GMT

For the weather nerds among us, this is a cool find. A site called Weather Photography as a step-by-step article detailing how to build your own tornado machine. Follow the instructions and you'll build your own meter-high box that allows air to rotate and rise--visibly--thus creating a little death storm in your workshop. Very cool stuff and possible an excellent source of in-house photography--or even some real fun with your little sister's hamster. (Kidding! Jeez!)

(via Ubergizmo)

Nerd Alert: Serving Up Domain Naming Services

Tue, 11 Apr 2006 20:36:19 GMT

From Tech Novice straight to ultra-nerd; that's the fun of TechFilter. For Tech Novices, this won't mean much.

But for systems admins, Linux admins or other propeller heads interested in running their own networks, Howto Forge has just pubbed a nicely detailed tutorial on how the domain naming service is supposed to behave on a network and the types of functions you can enable if you do a little mental drilling. Geeks only.

(via Digg)

Put an End to the FireFox Memory Leak

Tue, 11 Apr 2006 15:13:21 GMT

For all you FireFox users, you're undoubtedly tired of that recurring memory leak that sloooowly causes your system to crawl. If you're on this list of unfortunates, then check out this post from Alice Hill's RealTechNews, appropriately entitled How to Stop the Dreaded FireFox Memory Leak. Definitely worth the read for Mozilla mavens.

(via RealTechNews)

Quick Hard Disk Tool Kit

Fri, 03 Mar 2006 21:34:56 GMT

A bunch of hard disk utiltiies got updated in the last couple of days, so I figured I'd list my personal hard disk utility toolbox and where to download the newest versions:

HD Tune just bumped to version 2.52. This one's a bit Spartan, but it's a good place to start if the drive is just acting flaky. Measure raw performance and does monitoring of things like drive temperature, power usage and similar stuff. Best of all it's total freeware.
Recover My Files is up to v3.9.4, and it's exactly waht it sounds like. I use a couple of other recovery utilities as well, but I always like to try the new stuff. Not freeware, tho, and the purchase price is about $70.
I actually keep a backup utility on my hard drive tool CD, too. That's for when the user wants me to mess with a flaky drive and I don't know whether she's backed anything up. Been using Backup Studio for a little while because it's got a whole lot of options and a very small footprint. Just went from a 2005 moniker up to 2006, so enjoy. Only downside is that the full version costs $65.
Partition Magic is an old favorite--though it still isn't beyond version 8. It's also not on the OliverHDTool CD because I just use the disks that came with the box. But that's because I spring for the full version. You can download a 22MB trial version from here and stick it on your HD Tool CD, if you like.
This is a pretty new one that Brian introed me to: Power Defragmenter. I was going to bypass it because it speeds defragging by ignoring all the Windows defrag safeguards, but then I learned that it's based on a Sysinternals engine and those guys have yet to disappoint me.

Another Good Web Scanning Freebie

Wed, 14 Dec 2005 18:59:41 GMT

I like Trend Micro's free online virus scan, called HouseCall. The virus sigs are a day or so old, reportedly, but that's to be expected if TM wants to maintain the superiority of the pay product. What I like is that if I think I've been compromised, I can run a Norton scan and then back it up with a Trend-Micro scan, effectively scanning the problem box with two virus engines without the need to keep two running. TM has also recently expanded its online scanning to include spyware. Or you can run a combined scan for both. Takes a while, tho.

Microsoft's online betas of its Client Protection suite are also free, but while they're decent I just can't fully trust security software that has a 'beta' logo on it.

I like scanning with multiple products, however, and there's another one in the spyware category that's worth a try: check out Webroot's SpySweeper. This thing has gotten awards because it's a well-managed business spyware platform--means you can deploy the client on all your biz desktops and then centrally manage and update them from a server. But they've got a home-user version that's also got the free online scan available.

Good in a pinch.

Fighting Hamster DIY Project

Fri, 23 Sep 2005 16:14:39 GMT

Bad things happen when creative people have too much time on their hands. This just seems like a joke, until you realize that Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle spin-offs made a billion dollars world wide.

I wish I could draw graphics like this.

What Does Your Password Sound Like?

Thu, 15 Sep 2005 15:07:35 GMT

Researchers at the University of California at Berkeley have developed a method of identifying passwords just by listening to the user type them. It can even work by aiming parabolic antenna at a user typing in their password across ther street. You know, I bet the CIA cringes when theses things get made public.

Not Everyone Likes the New Vista Release

Tue, 13 Sep 2005 20:19:11 GMT

Microsoft released build 5219 today at the Professional Developers Conference in Los Angeles. These are going to be coming out every month or so until the big beta 2 release, probably around the end of the year.

So far, the reponse to the interface changes seems pretty positive, but not everyone is happy about it.

This guy clearly doesn't understand the software business.

Teach Yourself Linux

Tue, 13 Sep 2005 19:18:36 GMT

Before you run out and buy that Linux for Dummies book, check out the free courses offered here. The servers are pretty slow, but if you want to be a Linux geek it is worth bookmarking.

Make Your Own Google Headline

Thu, 08 Sep 2005 19:36:31 GMT

This is a nice little site to play with if you are an egomaniac. You can do the same thing with Yahoo! too.

Own an Old iPod? Apple Owes You $25

Wed, 31 Aug 2005 21:16:07 GMT

Sure everyone may be talking about the iPod phone, but the clocking is ticking on Apple's iPod battery settlement as well. If you bought a first, second or third generation iPod and have battery failure, then you will qualify for a $50 Apple store credit. You can also get $25 in cash, but heck that is almost a free Shuffle. What is battery failure?

"If a Third Generation iPod plays for four hours or less or a First or Second Generation iPod plays for five hours or less, you have a “Battery Failure” for purposes of this Settlement."

That includes, well, probably just about everyone. You have to file your claim by September 30th, 2005. You can download the form here.

Save the Money, Rip Your Own CDs

Thu, 25 Aug 2005 21:53:25 GMT

PC World's Eric Dahl does the cost/benefit math on CD-Ripping services: You send them your CD collection and your credit card number, they send you back your CDs and a boatload of MP3 files. Is this even a question? Even at the bargin basement price of $1 a CD, that is a lot of money. And you have no control over the quality. (Personally, I like 192Kbps VBR MP3s.)

Spend the time, don't spend the money. Besides it is a great way to find lost treasures. "The Hurting" was such a great album.

Flash Demo on How Legos Are Made

Wed, 24 Aug 2005 20:29:13 GMT

This is a pretty sweet Flash show that explains how Legos are made, good for kids of all ages. If you don't have Flash, don't bother.

Boost the Resolution on Your PSP

Tue, 23 Aug 2005 02:07:20 GMT

Did you know that Sony intentionally limited the resolution on its PSP to 320x240?Well to be honest neither did I, but the smart guys at Gamers Daily have the software here to bump it back up to the screen's native resolution of 480x272.

It is a pretty hard core hack, but if you are up to it act fast, Sony is sure to shut this down pretty quickly.

Take Your Filter To Go

Mon, 08 Aug 2005 20:20:01 GMT

The Tech Filter is travelling today, but we are never too busy to check our email. And it is a good thing we did because Phillip Torrone at Make Magazine sent us the link to a great How To piece that shows you how to get any of MSN's Filter blogs on your watch. Well, maybe not your watch, but a watch. Thanks for the heads-up Phillip!

Weekend Tech Project: Backup Properly

Fri, 05 Aug 2005 21:06:47 GMT

The weekend is coming and it is time for a weekend tech project. Take this opportunity to make some quick backups of your most important data, family photos, important documents, old emails, and so on. To make your backup as efficient and long-lasting as possible follow the steps outlined here. Among the good ideas:

Use CD-R discs instead of CD-RW. They are cheaper and the last longer than re-writable discs.
Avoid the packet writing software, in favor of a solid media-authoring application.

56 Presentation Tips

Mon, 01 Aug 2005 15:50:46 GMT

In what can only be described as classic "do as I say, not as I do", Tom Peters offers up a list of 56 tips for punching up presentations and puts them in a PowerPoint file that breaks nearly every rule. The information is great, but it is presented laundry-list-style on a garish red PowerPoint background.

If we could add a 57th tip, it would be "Go easy on the reverse type."

Still the information is worth checking out. Download the file here.

(Found via Working Smart)