BiG MoE's Blog

Mailmetrash.com the free temporary email address service

2012-01-22T01:01:00.000+04:00

recently while browsing around looking for free services that provide you with a temporary email address which you can use to subscribe to shady site or sites you don't want to give your real email to and came across this nice service http://www.mytrashmail.com

all you have to do basically is just choose any random address that comes to your mind and use this domain @mailmetrash.com for example lets say i want to name my temporary address bigmoesblog@mailmetrash.com

then all emails sent to this address will go to the site and all you have to do is just type in the address u chose in the box and then click check my mail and vuala there goes your emails

no setup needed no passwords nothing all you have to do is just choose a random address and then just add the @mailmetrash.com and then go check it from the site and your done :D

pretty neat service isn't it here's a link and a pic of the site you can also check it out directly through this link http://www.mytrashmail.com

How to Use Google Search More Effectively [INFOGRAPHIC]

2011-11-25T04:29:00.000+04:00

Infographic via HackCollege

Image courtesy of iStockphoto, LICreate

The Seven Types of iPhone Owners [infographic]

2011-11-23T01:33:00.000+04:00

نعوة المغفور اليه باذن الله السفير السوري محمد منيب الرفاعي انا لله و انا اليه راجعون

2011-09-23T17:03:00.000+04:00

Hamburgers Galore [infographic]

2011-08-04T17:22:00.000+04:00

I’m working up an appetite just looking at this infographic. It doesn’t take much to convince me to go get a cheeseburger. In fact, as a kid, it was one of the few things I ate. One of my greatest food achievements is downing a 4-patty Five Guys burger, it was rough. Despite how cool I thought I was in that moment, I will never surpass this guy when it comes to burgers.

Not too many surprises on this infographic. Lots of fat, lots of sodium, and lots of calories in general. But don’t let this infographic push you away from the joy of burgers. There are plenty of healthier options when it comes to making burgers. Buying lean meat from the store is a good starting point, then add fresh veggies and avocado to pack in some vitamins and antioxidants. If you’re not a cook, lots of trendy drive thru burger places are popping up that use organic grass-fed beef, and I must say I notice a difference. Not only do I feel better after eating them, I also prefer the taste of a healthy burger.

So enough lecturing about burgers. Enjoy today’s infographic, and give us some pointers on your favorite burgers and where to get them. [Via]

© spencerpsands for Daily Infographic, 2011. |
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10 Fascinating Facts About Mobile Phones

2011-08-03T21:23:00.000+04:00

10 Fascinating Facts About Mobile Phones: "

Chances are you don’t leave home without your mobile phone, but how much do you actually know about our portable telephonic devices and their fascinating history?

Do you know who Martin Cooper is? How about a textonym? What are one-quarter of U.S. mobile phone towers disguised as? Who devised the 160-character text message limit?

SEE ALSO: 10 Fascinating Facts About Phone Numbers

Take a look through our gallery of fun mobile phone-related facts and let us know in the comments which ones are new to you. And by all means, share any cellular trivia you’ve picked up.

1. The First Commercial Mobile Phone

The world's first mobile phone call was made in 1973 by Motorola employee Martin Cooper from the streets of New York City. He called his biggest rival. "I was calling Joel Engel who was my antagonist, my counterpart at AT&T, which at the time was the biggest company in the world. We were a little company in Chicago. They considered us to be a flea on an elephant," Cooper told BBC.

'I said 'Joel, this is Marty. I'm calling you from a cellphone, a real, handheld, portable cellphone.' There was a silence at the other end. I suspect he was grinding his teeth.'

The phone he called on was a prototype Motorola DynaTAC which, a decade later, was to become the world's first commercially available mobile handset. It got the FCC's thumbs up in 1983 and launched in 1984 at a cost of $3,995 -- which is about $9,000 today, accounting for inflation.

As a symbol for '80s yuppie tech, the DynaTAC appeared in Gordon Gekko's hands in Wall Street, and later, Patrick Bateman used one in American Psycho. It was also known as the 'Zack Morris phone' because the Saved by the Bell character often used a similar model in the series.

The first mobile phone call in the UK took place in 1985. Comedian and one-half of Morecambe and Wise, Ernie Wise, called from London to Vodafone's Newbury, Berkshire offices, then located over a curry house.

2. The First Smartphone

The world's first smartphone debuted in 1993 at Florida's Wireless World Conference. Launched by BellSouth Cellular and 'weighing in at a little more than a pound,' it was a phone-come-PDA with an early LCD touchscreen display.

The press release from the launch describes the new handset: 'Designed by IBM, Simon looks and acts like a cellular phone but offers much more than voice communications. In fact, users can employ Simon as a wireless machine, a
pager, an electronic mail device, a calendar, an appointment schedular, an address book, a calculator and a pen-based sketchpad -- all at the suggested retail price of $899.'

With only 2,000 Simons made, the handset is now a collector's item. The Microsoft-backed Bill Buxton Collection of retro tech boasts a Simon, and you can find out more about the pioneering device on the website.

3. The 160-Character Text Message Limit

There are various theories
about who invented the text message. Short, text-based messaging was developed in a range of telecommunications systems toward the end of the 20th century, but the man credited with creating the SMS -- the mobile phone's short message service -- is German Friedhelm Hillebrand.

Working for the GSM group, Hillebrand came up with the concept of a 128-byte text message to be sent via the existing mobile phone network. The message's shortness was an obvious parameter due to the size limit, but the exact 160-character limitation was a curious creation of Hillebrand's.

The story goes that in 1985 Hillebrand experimented with making notes on his typewriter to come up with the ideal message length. 'Hillebrand counted the number of letters, numbers, punctuation marks and spaces on the page. Each blurb ran on for a line or two and nearly always clocked in under 160 characters,' the L.A. Times reports.

He ultimately deemed the 160-character limit as 'perfectly sufficient,' and with two more 'convincing arguments' (postcards and Telex transmissions often had fewer than 150 characters), the GSM group created the standard in 1986. Afterwards, all mobile phone carriers and mobile phones were ordered to support it.

Nowadays you can send messages longer than 160 characters, but Hillebrand's legacy lives on via Twitter. The micro-blogging service's 140-character limit was determined by text messaging -- 140 characters for the tweet and 20 for the Twitter username.

Image courtesy of kamshots

4. The Pocket Dialing Problem

Chances are you've received a 'phantom' call on your mobile phone, especially if your name begins with an 'A.' 'Pocket (or 'butt') dialing,' when a jostled phone calls a number from someone's pocket or bag, is one of the minor annoyances of mobile life.

For the emergency services though, it's a more serious problem. In the early 2000s the National Emergency Number Association revealed that 'phantom wireless calls' made up about 70% of 911 calls in some U.S. areas. In the UK the figure reached as many as 11,000 calls per day.

So why is a pocket dial so likely to reach 911 or 999? Although a phone's keypad may have been 'locked,' these numbers will still dial in case of a real emergency. In fact, many older American mobiles auto-dialled 911 when a caller pressed and held number nine, or two numbers at once.

Phone designers and manufacturers have now disabled such options, but pocket dialing still happens. Last year two men were overheard during a car burglary after one of their phones called 911. In May of this year a drug dealer was arrested after he pocket-dialed the police during a deal. And a Maine man with an arrest warrant was 'triangulated' and caught when he repeatedly called the police from his pocket.

Image courtesy of Laram777

5. The World's Most Expensive Mobile Phone

British jeweler Stuart Hughes lays claim to creating the world's most expensive mobile phone. The iPhone 4 'Diamond Rose' edition boasts a price tag of £5 million, which currently translates to $8,184,968.42.

For that astonishing sum, the purchaser gets 500 individual flawless diamonds totaling over 100 carats, a rose gold Apple logo with 53 diamonds, and a single cut 7.4-carat pink diamond on the home button.

Hughes has also bundled in an 8 carat single cut flawless diamond which can replace the pink one, just in case you needed a sweetener to seal the deal.

6. Fake Plastic Trees

With nearly two-million mobile phone towers and antennas in the U.S., you'd expect to see one on every street corner. The fact is, they are very often disguised. In urban areas, clever engineers have developed ways to install the equipment into signs, clock faces, drainpipes, telephone poles, church and catherdral roofs and even weather vanes.

One of the most noted ways of 'disguising' a mobile phone tower, however, is in plastic trees. The website Fraud Frond 'pays homage to the fake trees that disguise our cell phone towers.' There's even a 'fake plastic trees' Flickr group. The photographer Robert Voit recently held an entire exhibition dedicated to photos of the phenomenon.

'Many people don't know about these things,' says the Fraud Frond site. 'They're hidden pretty well. But if you look for 'em, they're easy to spot.'

Image courtesy of Allan Ferguson

7. Telephonophobia, Nomophobia, Frigensophobia & Ringxiety

Our relationship with our mobile phones hasn't always been an easy one. Aside from the etiquette issues a portable phone involves, some sources suggest our mental health has suffered too.

With varying degrees of plausibility, experts have identified telephonophobia, nomophobia, frigensophobia and ringxiety (or fauxcellarm) as conditions that can affect the mobile phone generation.

Telephonobia is the fear of making or recieving phone calls.

Nomophobia (no-mobile-phone phobia) is the fear of being out of contact either by your phone being lost, out of juice or out of signal range.

'Ringxiety' or 'fauxcellarm' is described as a 'psycho-acoustic phenomenon' when you hear (or feel) your mobile ringing when it's not.

Frigensophobia is the fear that using your mobile is damaging your brain.

Image courtesy of Olle Svensson

8. The Invention of Voicemail

In 1986 Scott Jones, a 26-year-old research scientist at MIT, invented the modern cellular voicemail system over a pizza.

Although the American mobile phone carriers had regulation-based legal issues to surmount before they could offer voicemail to the masses, Jones' startup Boston Technology won bids to create the voicemail systems for the mobile
industry's big names.

While we now take voicemail for granted (and may even get fed up with it), in the late '80s it was an exciting prospect. Here's an excerpt from an article of the time that explains the concept:

'Company executive Gray, for instance, may need to convey a question to Smith, who is out of town, before the board meeting the next morning. Gray leaves a memo on Smith's 'voice mailbox.' Smith calls in later that afternoon and realizes he cannot answer Gray's question, so he appends a personal note to Gray's memo and redirects it to company counsel Brown's mailbox. Brown returns from his luncheon appointment, receives the message, and gets to work. By 10 p.m. he comes up with a solution, leaves his response in Gray's voice mailbox, and goes home. The following morning, Gray dials his office number and listens to Brown's message. No time or energy has been wasted.'

Image courtesy of FaceMePLS

9. Textonyms

We're all aware of text speak, but are you familiar with textonyms? You've no doubt been affected by them at some point in your mobile life. Born from mobile phone predictive text systems, a textonym is a word that that is typed using the same order of keys on a numeric keypad as another word. A classic example is 'home,' which can also appear as 'good' or 'gone,' as they're all created by typing '4663.'

An increase in QWERTY keyboards and more 'intelligent' software means that textonym faux pas are now being replaced by auto-correct faux pas,
but not before textonyms made the crossover from mobile to real life. 'Book' entered the vocab of hip, lazy teens as a new word for 'cool' because it was the default when typing '2665.'

Image courtesy of Ken Banks

10. The Best-Selling Mobile Phone

If hype was everything, you might assume the Apple iPhone was the best-selling handset to date. With the recent news that 100 million iPhones have been sold, Apple has certainly made the top five, but it's far behind the bestseller.

The world's most popular phone is the Nokia 1100, a basic GSM candybar launched in 2003. Over 250 million 1100s have been sold. Nokia's 3210 and 3310 also made the top five, while the last slot belongs to the iconic Motorola RAZR.

The 1100 made headlines in 2009 when German models were said to be changing hands for as much as $32,000, after reports indicated the handset could 'intercept' info from other phones. This was eventually revealed to be a hoax.

Image courtesy of Phil Campbell

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How To Check If Someone Is Stealing Your WiFi – And What You Can Do About It

2011-02-14T11:09:00.000+04:00

WiFi running a bit slow lately? If your router is still using old security methods such as WEP, then there’s a very real possibility that someone has hacked in to steal your WiFi. In my article on Cool WiFi Devices You’ve Probably Never Heard Of, I showed you a $100 commercially available router that would automatically hack your WEP-protected WiFi network in less than half an hour. Apart from the obvious fact that your internet will be slower, the hacker might be using your internet to do nefarious evil things – all of which could easily be traced back to you. So how you can find out if someone is using your WiFi, and perhaps more importantly – what exactly can you do about it?

Check the devices associated with your router

This method is 100% guaranteed to see any devices registered on your network, but not every router contains this valuable info. Log in to your router by typing it’s IP address directly into the browser address bar. In most setups, either http://192.168.0.1 or http://192.168.1.1 should work, or it may be written on the router itself, along with the username and password you need to log in with. If you can’t find a password anywhere, and don’t remember changing it, then check the database of default passwords here, or phone your ISP (assuming they gave you the device).

Once logged in, look around a section called Attached Devices or Device List. On DD-WRT flashed routers, this is under the Status -> Wireless screen. You will find a list of all the IP addresses currently being used.

On my standard Virgin Media router, I found a list under the IP filtering section.

Of course, not all your devices will have helpful names, so you’ll need to figure out the IP address of each computer and WiFi device you own in order to cross-check them against the list. I covered how to find your IP address a few days ago when I showed you how to control your torrent client from your mobile. Don’t forget that an iPhone or Android phone will also have it’s own IP address if it’s using your WiFi, so you’ll need to account for those too.

Track Them Down Physically

This may be taking it a little far, but running the MoocherHunter live CD tracking suite will enable you physically hunt them down by triangulating network signals. Scary stuff, indeed. You’ll a directional antenna for this to work best.

What to do about it

Basic Security – Stop using WEP

Any router purchased in the last 5 years or so should be able to support a more secure authentication protocol, so log in to your router again and find the Wireless Settings screen.

Change the security options to either WPA or WPA2. WPA2 is more secure, but I find it’s incompatible with some of the devices on my network so I chose the option that allows for both. Don’t choose the Enterprise option as it is designed for companies with authentication servers. When choosing your password, make sure it is at least 15 characters long, includes upper and lower case letters, numbers, and punctuation.

There are some other methods that people will typically advise you to take, but put simply – they don’t work:

Hiding your SSID: You can hide your network name so it won’t be seen, but freely available hacking tools such as Backtrack will reveal them instantly.

IP filtering: This blocks out a specific IP, but changing IP is as simple as refreshing the connection.

MAC filtering: More secure since it blocks a device via the unique hardware address that is given out when it’s manufactured, but again, anyone trying to steal your WiFi can easily “spoof” their MAC address.

Funny – Turn their internet upside down

For anyone with a spare PC or who doesn’t mind messing with the command line, you could create an open WiFi network specifically for these freeloaders, and run everything through a Linux proxy. The proxy can setup to cut directly into their internet stream, and one interesting outcome is that you can turn all their images upside down.

Profit – Run a paid WiFi portal

If you install the open source DD-WRT, you can run a paid WiFi Hotspot portal. Set your own rates, never worry about payment processing (they handle everything), then just collect your check if someone has used your hotspot – you’ll get 75% of the money paid. Remember, you’ll need to live in a big city for this to be viable with lots of potential customers. I’ll look at this option more at a later date to show you exactly how you can set one up if you’re interested.

Conclusion:

So your WiFi is feeling a little sluggish? The truth is that someone probably isn’t stealing your WiFi. More likely your computer is running slowly, or your router needs rebooting. You could also try boosting the WiFi signal.

Oh, and let us know in the comments if you’ve found people stealing your WiFi before, or have any amusing WiFi stories to tell.

Image Credit: ShutterStock

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2011-02-11T23:10:00.002+04:00

2011-01-04T02:12:00.001+04:00

Family forced out of home after unprovoked shooting that left little girl in need of surgery

2010-12-28T23:06:00.000+04:00

THE father of a young girl shot by a crazed gunman who knocked on the door says he has no idea why his family was targeted.

Mouhamad Alkadmani opened the door to the man at his Chester Hill home about 10.30pm last night, reported The Daily Telegraph.
The man, who asked for Zach or a similar sounding name, was hiding around the corner and out of view, and Mr Alkadmani said he must have the wrong address and closed the door.
The man began firing through the closed wooden door, with bullets ricocheting off walls, one hitting his 11-year-old daughter Mariam.
His 16-year-old son Karem saw his sister bleeding and crawled on the ground toward her.
"He keeps shooting, shooting, shooting until he finished the magazine and that's it," Mr Alkadmani said.

He said the gunman then ran from the house.
"Why, why just tell me, I'm asking the killer why he shoot at us without any reason," he said.
As Mariam recovered from surgery to remove the bullet from her leg, Mr Alkadmani and his son returned to the house to get some belongings.
He said there was no way he or his family could return to the home and would now live with relatives.
"If he (the gunman) got kids, he want someone to kill his kids? Just tell me why," Mr Alkadmani said.
"I've been in Australia for 18 years and I haven't been in touch with any type of trouble."
Mariam was rushed to the Westmead Children's hospital where she underwent surgery and is in stable condition.
She was expected to make a full recovery and will be released from hospital in about three days.
Police are investigating whether the Roberts Road shooting, which occurred at 10.30pm last night, could be a case of mistaken identity.
They were initially investigating links between the shooting and a street brawl at Chester Hill earlier in the night in which a man and woman, aged in their 30s, were slashed and stabbed in the face and torso, but have since said the two incidents are not related.

Bankstown Police are hunting for the gunman and have made a public appeal for information.
He is described as being on Islander appearance, in his mid 20s, 175cm tall with a large to obese build.

Neighbours told The Daily Telegraph that they heard a volley of gunshots which they originally thought was fireworks.

They said the young family 'kept to themselves'.
It's believed the gunman fled in a car, but police have no description of the vehicle.

Acting Inspector Paul Warden said the gunman fired a large number of rounds indiscriminately into the house.

"It appeared he was looking for someone who he thought lived there and when the occupants indicated that no one by that name resided there, the male became upset and fired a number of rounds off into the house," he told ABC radio.
Paramedics were initially forced to stand in a nearby street while police stormed the house with guns drawn.
Police also seized a red Holden Commodore which was found burnt out against a church wall shortly after the shooting in nearby Shellcote Rd, Greenacre.
The car was completely destroyed and the exterior of the church suffered scorch marks, a NSW Fire Brigades spokesman said.
The vehicle will be forensically examined and police are investigating links to the shooting.

5 Ridiculous Things You Probably Believe About Islam

2010-12-21T01:04:00.000+04:00

A conservative commentator recently made headlines by claiming 10 percent of all of the world's Muslims are terrorists. An amazing claim, considering that equals 150 million terrorists and if each were to pull off an attack killing just 40 people, they could exterminate all non-Muslim life on earth.
Either they're not all that dedicated to terrorism, or the claim is utter insanity.
Well, if there's one thing everyone thinks of when they hear "Cracked.com" it's "friend of Islam." Which is why we feel compelled to clarify a few misconceptions for our readers. Also, there is no way this article will ever come back to haunt us in any way.

#5.

If You're a Muslim Woman, You Have to Wear the Veil

For millions of people in the West, when you say "Islam," the first mental image that pops into mind is this:

A two-person Scotch-garded version would sell like hotcakes.

A woman covered head to toe in a burqa. The truth is, if you could suddenly gather all of the Muslim women on the planet into one giant room and had to throw a football to someone wearing a burqa, it'd be next to impossible to complete that pass.
But the whole hide-them-under-a-veil thing must be pretty big among Muslim communities, otherwise Europe wouldn't be all in in a dither over the things, pushing for bans and whatnot. Right?

Look at them there, plotting new ways to drive super-slow in the HOV lane.

After all, we all know that Islam hates women -- the fact that Saudi Arabia is the only country in the world that actually prohibits women from driving, or that only predominantly Muslim countries still use death by stoning as a punishment for adultery, proves it, right?
But Actually...
Thinking that all Muslim women have to dress like this...

...is like thinking that all Christian women have to dress like this:

That photo is from one of several small Christian sects that require women to dress like it's Little House on the Prairie.
So for instance, in France they have about 3 million Muslim women. French police decided to figure out how many of them wore burqas and/or niqabs and found the number to be ... 367.

Then again, these were French police.

Not 367,000, but 367, a number so small that from a statistical point of view, it's barely enough to register as a margin of error. As for the rest of Europe, the numbers are even more disastrous for the burqa business (for instance, Belgium has 500,000 Muslims, a couple dozen wear the burqa).
Yes, there are Middle Eastern countries where the veils are required by law (namely Iran and Saudi Arabia) and combined those countries have less than 5 percent of the world's Muslims. There are actually more Muslim countries that outright ban the wearing of the veils than there are that require them. They can do that because wearing a veil is not required in Islam but is more of a custom, depending on where you live and who's in charge.

Much like hot pants.

Hey, speaking of which, try this number on for size: Of the five most populous Muslim-majority nations, four of them have elected female heads of state.
So there's a fantastic chance that in 2012, Sarah Palin will be campaigning for an achievement that Muslim ladies have already accomplished.

We bet Megawati Sukarnoputri knows the United States doesn't have a Department of Law.

#4.

Our Founding Fathers Would Never Have Tolerated This Muslim Nonsense!

It's easy to stand on a soapbox and publicly bluster about what you think the Founding Fathers would think about the godless, multicultural United States today. After all, these were Christian, God-fearing men, damn it. They certainly wouldn't put up with all this tolerance for these terrorist religions.

Thomas Jefferson, moments before leaping into the air on a giant eagle and drop-kicking Saladin.

It's a good thing some Americans are standing up for good old-fashioned American values and passing laws to prohibit Islamic law from taking over the U.S., because that's totally around the corner! Somewhere, Thomas Jefferson is smiling in his grave!
But actually...
Even if they were staunch Christians, plenty of the Founding Fathers had a healthy admiration for the Muslim faith. Thomas Jefferson, for example, taught himself Arabic using his own copy of the Quran and hosted the first White House Iftar during Ramadan.

Jefferson believed in celebrating the deliciousness of all world religions.

John Adams hailed the Islamic prophet Muhammad as one of the great "inquirers after truth." Benjamin Rush, who was so Christian he wanted a Bible in every school, also said he would rather see the opinions of Confucius or Mohammad "inculcated upon our youth" than see them grow deprived "of a system of religious principles." Benjamin Franklin once declared: "Even if the Mufti of Constantinople were to send a missionary to preach Mohammedanism to us, he would find a pulpit at his service." Even George fucking Washington personally welcomed Muslims to come work for him at Mount Vernon.
So, why all this Founding Father/Muslim love? Probably because Sultan Mohammed ben Abdallah of Morocco was the first world figure to recognize the independence of the United States of America from Great Britain in 1777. Another reason was that the Founding Fathers were smart enough to distinguish between terrorists and everybody else on the whole damn planet, as demonstrated in the Treaty of Tripoli in 1797. It was in this agreement that the U.S. declared: "The government of the United States of America is not, in any sense, founded on the Christian Religion, as it has in itself no character of enmity against the laws, religion or tranquility of Mussulmen [Moslems]."

Another possible translation.

#3.

"Muslim" Equals "Arab"

Remember that crazy lady with the Einstein hair who asked John McCain if Barack Obama was an Arab? No? Well, let us refresh your memory:

The instant John McCain realized that he would never, ever be president.

We're willing to bet there's more than a 20 percent chance this woman meant to say "Muslim" but accidentally said "Arab" because same thing, right? And even if you're not in the tea party camp, where you're convinced "Arab" and "Muslim" are interchangeable, you've probably operated under a similar assumption: that non-Jewish Middle Eastern people are Muslim and that most Muslims live in the Middle East.
But actually...
Only about 20 percent of the entire world's Muslim population is Arab or North African. For comparison, about 22 percent of the global Christian population is African, yet when somebody says "Christian," you don't immediately picture a dude from Africa. Equating "Muslim" with "Arab" makes just as much sense.

That'd be like associating "Kansas" with "hate-filled douchebags".

While we in the West have been conditioned to associate Islam with the Middle East, a whopping 61.9 percent of all Muslims -- aka a supermajority -- don't live in the Middle East at all; most Muslims live in the Asia-Pacific region. Indonesia alone is home to more than 200 million Muslims, and India and Bangladesh together have roughly a half-billion Muslims.
It works the other way, too. For example, if you think being Arab guarantees you being Muslim these days, well, we are sorry to disappoint. As much as 10 percent of the world's Arab population is Christian (that's more than 14 million people). That means there are 1 million more Arab Christians than, oh, we don't know ... the world's entire Jewish population..

#2.

Western Cultures Are Far More Humane Than the Bloodthirsty Muslims

Even before the whole terrorism thing, Islam had a reputation in the West for violence. Part of it has to do with how abruptly Islam was all up in everyone's face. For instance, while Hinduism took about 1,000 years to spread through India, and Christianity took about 400 years to go from persecuted cult to the state religion of the Roman Empire, Islam went from one guy's epiphany to the dominant political and religious force in the Middle East and North Africa in about 100 years.
So a lot of people have reached the conclusion that the religion spread like holy wildfire for one reason: the sword. The next logical leap from this viewpoint is that as a people, Muslims must be violent and barbaric conquerors. Even before 9/11, you saw this portrayal in popular culture all the time:

But actually...
Muhammad laid out some pretty progressive rules of warfare, and medieval Muslims out-niced the Christians in battle by a landslide. Especially since Muhammad personally issued "a distinct code of conduct among Islamic warriors" that included:

No killing of women, children or innocents -- these might include hermits, monks or other religious leaders who were deemed noncombatants;
No wanton killing of livestock or other animals;
No burning or destruction of trees and orchards; and
No destruction of wells.

And no kicking with cleats on, Jeremy.

In short, Muhammad wanted his armies to fight like freaking hippies. During the fucking Dark Ages. And they did.
But the biggest territorial gains were made after Muhammad's death, right? Maybe that was when Islam earned its bloodthirsty reputation? Not exactly. His successor codified the existing rules and made them the standard for his army. Which probably explains why the Muslim army conquering Europe "exhibited a degree of toleration which puts many Christian nations to shame," in the words of one expert.

Plus, they built all sorts of nifty buildings.

So while Christian crusaders were beheading enemies and tossing their heads like oversized hacky sacks, their Muslim counterparts had a whole honor code that led them to feed the armies of their defeated enemies.

#1.

Islam Is Stuck in the Dark Ages

There are really three big negative stereotypes about Islam -- that it hates women, that it's violent and that it hates any kind of scientific progress. We've covered the first two already, but how can you argue against the third? Their governments are based on ancient religious texts! And what diseases has Iran cured?

You guys could at least take out herpes or something.

But actually...
In the same way that not all Christians are Young Earth Creationists, plenty of modern Muslims see room for interpretation in the Quran. In fact, 45 percent of American Muslims in one poll said they see evolution as "the best explanation for the origin of human life on Earth," which isn't so shabby, considering only 24 percent of evangelical Christians believed the same. The percentage of Muslims embracing the scientific explanation for the origin of life was about the same as Americans as a whole (48 percent).

If they only knew how to communicate their views like we do ...

And historically, they have a hell of a track record. Science and math as we know it wouldn't even exist without Islam. The Islamic Golden Age caused a revolution in virtually every field of human thought, during which they fucking invented algebra -- and advanced everything from geography and exploration to the arts, architecture, philosophy, urban development, medicine and health.
The Muslims actually came pretty damn close to sharing all this brilliance with the truly ass-backward kingdoms of Christian Europe, since the Islamic caliphates blanketed every country they conquered with schools, libraries, public works and the most comprehensive system of social welfare on the planet. In fact, the case has been made that if the caliphates succeeded in conquering all of Europe an Italian Renaissance would have been unnecessary.

It would have saved us all a lot of dong-staring, too.

So, there's that.
All right. Now we look forward to a completely civil and logical group of article comments.
For an astute analysis of all the arguments you're about to read in the comment section, check out 10 Things Christians and Atheists Can (And Must) Agree On.
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Facts about the mouth you probably didnt know

2010-11-04T01:14:00.001+04:00

Via: Dental Hygeienist Schools

The 4 Best Free Linux Anti-Virus Programs

2010-11-01T01:33:00.000+04:00

Does a Linux user need antivirus software? Not really: infecting a Linux machine is pretty hard to do. That doesn’t mean there aren’t good reasons to have scanning software around, though.

If you insert your thumb drive regularly into Windows computers, for example, it might be infected, meaning you’re spreading malware with it and not even knowing it (see: Stuxnet). Antivirus software for Linux gives you a quick way to check your drives without any risk of infecting yet another Windows machine.

It’s also a great tool to have around if you regularly help your Windows-bound friends and family recover from viruses. Remove their hard drive and plug it into your computer, or just use your Linux machine to clean their external drives.

Most Linux antivirus software focuses on removing Windows viruses, and function as one-time-scan tools rather than the Windows-style, sit-in-your-tray-and-protect-you products that’s common in Windowsland. Such software is not essential for Linux users, but is pretty handy.

Oh, by the way: if you’re looking for Windows anti-virus software, you will want to read the ten best free antivirus programs that we previously published.

Avast

Avast, the anti-virus program I previously decided has the coolest name for an anti-virus program, also sports a pretty great Linux GUI. As you can see it looks right at home on my Ubuntu desktop. This makes it easy to update defintions and scan the folders of your choice.

It’s also really easy to install Avast for Linux. Just download your package of choice (rpm, deb and tar.gz), then register for a free year of Avast usage. If you don’t register, you won’t be able to use the program:

Happily, registering gives you one year of free non-commercial usage, so you won’t need to do this frequently. And you’ll have access to a sleak GUI and all of the definitions Avast has to offer.

BitDefender

This is one of my favorites. BitDefender frequently finds, for me, viruses that other scanners miss. Being able to use it from Linux is a big plus.

Finding it for Linux isn’t straightforward, though. You need to head over to the BitDefender for Unices page, then click the “evaluation version” button. You’ll be given a form to fill in, and when you’re done you’ll get a license valid for one month and a link to downloads.

The downloads look like this:

Find your platform and package of choice (ignoring, for now, the “.run” file extension) and download it (right-click and click “save as“, or your browser might try to open the entire file as a text document.) Change the permissions of the file to allow it to be executed. If you don’t know how to do this, the simplest way is to right-click it, click “Properties,” open the permissions tab, then click “allow executing.”

Finally, open your command line. Browse to the folder with the file, then type “sudo ./[filename]“, where [filename] is the name of the BitDefender version you downloaded. You’ll need to read an EULA before BitDefender will finally install (mercifully, using the package manager of your choice).

Why you need to go through all of that I don’t know, but it’s worth it. You now have access to a complete version of BitDefender. You can scan any file, update with the click of a button and much more. The graphical interface is identical to that of the BitDefender Live CD.

The free license lasts for only 30 days, but you can apply for another one if you need to.

ClamAV

Completely open source, ClamAV is probably the most famous Linux anti-virus. Using it requires some command line knowledge, but there is a basic GUI for running scans:

Installing ClamAV is simple; it’s in the repositories of most Linux distributions. Install the “clamtk” package and you’ll get the above GUI and you’ll have everything you need; or, if you’re an Ubuntu user, simply click here to download ClamAV.

Once you’ve installed ClamAV, fire up your terminal and run “sudo freshclam“. This will update ClamAV’s virus definitions for you.

Now you simply need to run clamtk. Fire it up from the command line, or find the program called “Virus Scanner” in the “Accessories” section of the menu. Use the GUI to scan any folder, or your entire system. Or, if you prefer, use “clamscan” from the command line. Either way you’ve got some quality, free anti-virus protection.

AVG

Those familiar with AVG’s Windows interface will be disappointed: AVG for Linux has no GUI. This command line scanner does offer the same virus definitions of AVG’s famous Windows program, though.

You can easily download AVG for Linux. You’ll find packages for every major distro, including .deb and .rpm files.

Using the program is straightforward. First you need to start the AVG daemon: run “sudo avgctl –start“. Then you can use “sudo avgupdate” to update the software, and “avgscan” to scan a given file.

There’s not a whole lot else to say about this one, although I hope AVG releases a Linux GUI again soon (previous versions offered one).

Conclusion

These four programs all offer Linux users a way to scan for Windows viruses, and the occasional Linux one as well. If you regularly help your friends and family out with IT stuff I recommend you install at least one such program, to keep it on hand.

Can you think of any other Linux anti-virus programs? What do you think of the ones outlined? Let me know in the comments below, along with any questions you might have about the above products.

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Create A Mobile Wi-Fi Hotspot Using Connectify & A Windows 7 Laptop

2010-10-30T14:36:00.000+04:00

The time when we carried one internet-enabled device on us is long past. Nowadays, nearly every portable device is outfitted with a wireless internet adapter, and yet logistics are lagging behind.

Hotel rooms, university dorms and offices often offer just a single wired connector, and unless you carry a router on you at all times, it means neglecting much of your technological capacity.

That is, unless you’re using Connectify, a novel piece of Windows routing software that can instantly transform your laptop into a mobile WiFi hotspot.

Connectify

The prerequisites for using Connectify are simple; you need a Windows 7 laptop, with both a wired and a wireless network card. Connectify takes the internet connection from the wired input and uses the wireless technology in your laptop to create a hotspot.

Once you’ve set up the hotspot, other devices can connect to the Internet through your laptop. At home, in a hotel or at your dorm; other computers, printers and gaming consoles can be connected wirelessly. When you’re out, Connectify allows you to connect with the mobile phones, laptops and netbooks of coworkers and friends. When traveling, you can pay for a single internet connection and get all your devices online.

How To Use It

First, connect your laptop to the Internet via a wired connection. If you need to enter login credentials, or an internet access code, do this first and run Connectify when you’ve confirmed Internet access locally. It’ll appear as a Wi-fi taskbar symbol. Use left-click to expand the application, or right-click to make some quick adjustments (shown below).

Here you can configure the specifics of your mobile wi-fi hotspot. The three drop-down menus at the top are most important and allow us to specify the Internet input, output and output mode. You can use Connectify to create a wireless access point with WPA2 security, which will appear to other computers like a regular hotspot – optionally passworded, or an ad-hoc network.

If you don’t know what is what, press Easy Setup Wizard. Because your router laptop has an incoming wired connection, you can keep surfing as usual, albeit with shared bandwidth.

At the bottom of the screen, Connectify also keeps track of the connected clients and client history, i.e. who’s using your hotspot. If you see a computer that doesn’t belong, you can call up more information and block the client by right-clicking on the device name. With friendly devices, this also allows you to call up the shared drives and printers.

Verdict

Far too often, I’ve outnumbered the available internet connections with my mobile devices. Connectify has proven its use in this, being one of the only applications of its kind. Contrary to other alternatives, Connectify is also fool-proof and almost ridiculously easy to use. There’s no need to get in touch with your inner geek and you can get your own hotspot online in mere minutes. The application not only solves logistical problems, but also saves you the money of an expanded internet infrastructure or hotel access costs.

In one instance, Connectify seemed unable to detect a working internet connection though; a repeating issue on that laptop. On the other devices tested, Connectify worked like a charm. If you have any problems like that, check out the help section on the Connectify website.

What are your thoughts on Connectify? Do you know any other tools that enable you to share an internet connection with a score of other devices? Let us know in the comments section below!

Image Credit: Shutterstock.com

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5 Kick Ass ac’tivAid Extensions To Enhance Your Windows Experience

2010-10-09T01:25:00.000+04:00

The other day I introduced the Windows tool ac’tivAid to you. It’s a platform for AutoHotkey scripts that add valuable functions to Windows. Many of the extensions are based on cool standard features in Mac or Linux operating systems.

ac’tivAid is a host for many tools and can replace several other gadgets. Per default, none of the 60+ extensions are enabled. This way your system isn’t weighed down by scripts you are not using. To make it easier for you to get started with some über cool features, I have compiled a list of the 5 most useful ones.

As mentioned in my previous article, ac’tivAid is available for Windows 2000 through Windows 7. A thorough documentation for each of its 60+ extensions is also provided within the program. Click the question mark next to a script’s short description, either in the tab listing all extensions or in the extension’s dedicated tab.

1. LookThrough

Personally, I try to keep my desktop empty, but if you have a ton of shortcuts and files on your desktop, you will love this extension. Don’t you love it when you have to minimize a dozen open windows to access an item on your desktop? Even if you can quickly minimize and restore windows in bulk, it’s still a time waster.

With LookThrough the whole process is simplified. A keyboard shortcut is all it takes to cut through all your open windows and gain direct visual and physical access to your desktop. Yes, you can actually click shortcuts on your desktop while LookThrough is in operation.

Unfortunately, this extension only works with the classic XP design in Windows Vista. However, it does work with Aero themes in Windows 7.

2. WebSearch

This script provides quick access to your most used search engines.

The default keyboard shortcut [Windows] + [W] opens a menu where you can select from a list of search engines.

You can assign your custom keyboard shortcuts to directly open a specific search engine. If you highlight a word in your web browser and click your custom shortcut, the search will launch immediately. The script generally uses your default browser, but you can define different browsers for specific search engines.

3. MinimizeToTray

Too many open windows piling up in your taskbar? How about minimizing some of them to the tray rather than the taskbar? With MinimizeToTray shortcuts you can hide and unhide a window to a tray-icon. You can also make selected windows hide automatically.

4. VolumeControl

The default Windows volume control is pretty bare. When you use keyboard controls to adjust the volume, you typically don’t know where you are in terms of scale. VolumeControl adds a stylish Mac-like on screen display (OSD).

As with almost all ac’tivAid extensions, you can customize the keyboard shortcuts. VolumeControl will also work with existing buttons dedicated to controlling the volume. Finally, you can assign custom shortcuts for up to two different sound devices.

5. MouseWheel

Isn’t it totally annoying that you first have to click a window to be able to use the mouse wheel? Sometimes you just don’t want to bring the window forward. MouseWheel lets you scroll in inactive windows, without bringing the window forward and burying other windows sitting on top of it. You just hover over the window with cursor and being scrolling.

You can disable MouseWheel for selected windows.

So these were my picks to get you started. There are dozens of other scripts to be discovered. Some of you may be looking for a way to copy text without formatting (PastePlain), others might appreciate a shortcut to instantly initiate the shutdown process (AutoShutdown), or how about simplified screenshot hotkeys (ScreenShot), quick access to a calculator (CalculAid), resizing windows without having to hit the edge (ComfortResize), making windows transparent using the mouse wheel (TransparentWindows), and tons more.

Please let us know which ac’tivAid extension gets your vote and what you think of the platform as a whole.

Image Credit : Heise Zeitschriften Verlag, Hanover, Germany

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Make Sure Downloads Are Safe Before Downloading Them

2010-10-02T19:10:00.000+04:00

Are you always nervous that you’ll accidentally download a malicious file or program? Here’s how you can scan files for viruses before downloading them to your computer.

Whether you’re a geek or a standard computer user, chances are you often download new programs and apps for your computer. There’s tons of great stuff out there, but there’s also tons of stuff that can steal your information, mess up your Windows install, and worse. We’ve written before about how to upload files from your computer and check them on VirusTotal, but it’s much better to simply scan files before your download them. There’s a couple ways you can do this, so keep reading to see what will work best for you.

Scan Links For Viruses on VirusTotal

VirusTotal is an online service that scans files for viruses with over 40 different security tools. Since there have been security concerns with a wide variety of files that are normally safe, such as PowerPoints and PDF files, we’d recommend you scan any file you’re downloading, especially if it’s from an unknown source. To do this, just right-click on the file’s link, and select Copy link address.

Now, browse to VirusTotal.com, select the Submit a URL tab, then paste the link in the text field and click Submit URL.

VirusTotal will quickly check the link against several URL analysis tools to see if the site is listed as a malicious site already. If it appears clean, your file’s more likely to be safe, but you still should check. To do this, click the View downloaded file analysis link near the top.

After a few moments, you’ll see the results of your file’s virus scan. If it shows that nothing was detected, then you can feel fairly safe that the file is fine to download and use. It is possible for a new malicious file to slip by all of the scanners, but very unlikely.

If one of the scanners does detect malicious content, it’ll list what it detected. Do note that sometimes a scanner will wrongly think a file contains a virus when it’s in fact clean, so if the majority of the scanners report that the file’s ok, you may still be fine to use it.

Also, VirusTotal may inform you that the link or file has already been scanned. You can choose to view the last report, or you could choose to reanalyze the link to be certain nothing’s changed.

You can use this same trick to check any website for malicious content, even if it doesn’t contain a download. If you’re emailed a link or come across a search result you’re unsure about, feel free to copy the URL and scan it with VirusTotal as before to see if the site contains malicious content.

Integrate VirusTotal Into Firefox

If you’re a Firefox user, you can check links and sites for malicious content without opening the VirusTotal site with the VTZilla plugin. Install the extension from their site (link below); Firefox may block the install by default, so click Allow then install as normal.

If you’re using Firefox 4 beta, it may inform you that the extension is not compatible with your version of Firefox. Follow the instructions at this article to bypass the error, and then install as before.

Now you’ll have a new VirusTotal toolbar in Firefox. You can enter a site address or file hash in the search box to check it on VirusTotal, or click Scan current site to make sure the site you’re on doesn’t have anything malicious on it (that said, it’s better to check the site before you visit it). If you’re not a fan of browser toolbar, simply right-click on the bar and un-check the VirusTotal Toolbar to remove it.

The best feature is the link scanner in the right-click menu. When you’re on a site with a download link, simply right-click the link and select Scan with VirusTotal.

VirusTotal will open in a new tab and check the download URL to see if it’s listed as a bad domain on Google, Mozilla, and more, just like it would with a website. It’ll also open a popup with an analysis of the file itself; if you don’t see it, you’ll need to allow the popup from VirusTotal.

Now you’re able to find out if a download is safe in just a click or two. There’s no reason to worry if your downloads are safe anymore!

While VirusTotal can help keep you from downloading virus-laden files, it’s still not enough protection on it’s own. You should still keep your software updated and use an antivirus solution. We recommend using Microsoft Security Essentials; it’s free, lightweight, and works great. But no matter what you use, it’s still great to know that the files you download are safe to use, and this is where Virus Total comes in. Make it a part of your normal routine; we do, and it keeps us from installing junk all the time.

VirusTotal Website

Install the VTZilla plugin in Firefox

Scan Files With VirusTotal From Your Desktop

Source: How to geek

How to Defeat a Facebook Addiction

2010-09-30T16:55:00.000+04:00

Probably the most widely used and known social networking site, Facebook has almost half of its users visit it every day.^[1] And some of its users spend an inordinate amount of time on Facebook, allowing the hours to while away unnoticed, the chores to go uncompleted, and even going so far as to ignore family and friends in the actual world.^[2]

While 'Facebook addiction' or 'Facebook addiction disorder' are not medically approved terms, the reality of addictive behaviors on Facebook are a growing problem for many Facebook users, and one that therapists are seeing more frequently in their patients.^[3]

If you've found that connecting, sharing, and learning via Facebook has taken over all avenues of communicating and learning in your life, it's possible that you're suffering from Facebook addiction. And relax! This article isn't about stopping your enjoyment of Facebook; rather, the aim here is to help you identify whether you're using Facebook in an addictive way, and help you to find more constructive ways to connect socially via Facebook.

Steps

Recognize the signs of a Facebook addiction. While there is currently no such thing as a medically blessed diagnosable 'Facebook addiction' or 'Facebook addiction disorder' that a health or medical professional could categorically state you're suffering from, addictive behaviors have common threads that can lead to dysfunctional socializing and obsessive behaviors. The following signs indicate an unhealthy neediness for Facebook:
- You wake up and the first thing you do is 'check Facebook'. And it's the last thing you do at night.
- Nothing else thrills you or you feel 'empty' without Facebook. All you want to do is spend time on Facebook, even to the exclusion of getting work done that needs to be done, or meeting family obligations. When not being on Facebook causes physical pain, sweats, illness and you're champing at the leash to get back on it, your obsession has become an unhealthy one.
- You're not able to go for more than a day without using Facebook. If forced to do so, you find yourself suffering from Facebook 'withdrawal' symptoms, such as finding nothing else interesting, trying to find ways to get back to Facebook even if it means using a computer that is either out of bounds (for example, not yours), or difficult to get to, or you find yourself intensely worried about missing out on Facebook updates. These are all very unhealthy signs.
- Even if you're not on Facebook constantly (indicating you need a reality check), checking it many times during the day is a sign of compulsive behavior. Spending more than an hour on Facebook a day will easily cut into all the other obligations you have in life and may cause social dysfunction problems.^[4]
- Your real life isn't going so well and Facebook presents a fantasy escape life where everything seems unencumbered, neat, happy, and easy – all things that are the opposite of your everyday life.
- Adequate sleep ceases to be important to you.^[5] Instead, you're prepared to stay up way too late just to be able to accommodate your Facebook neediness. After all, you excuse yourself, your friends might think it's remiss of you not to be around!
- Nostalgia has you in its grip. When Facebook starts becoming a way through which you're living in the past, it's a sign of needing to break from it.^[6] Rehashing old loves and friendships with the hope that you can pinpoint the exact moment where your life should have taken a different turn and trying to patch it up through fantasizing over Facebook is looking backwards and beating yourself up over what didn't work out. Realize the importance of living in the here and now. This type of nostalgia is even more damaging if you have a loose tongue about the relationships you're actually in because other people will be reading your words and some may perceive them as a betrayal or as signs of an emotional affair.
- You've tons of friends on Facebook but you still feel very lonely.^[7]
Start questioning what you're doing on Facebook. Rather than simply going on Facebook and 'falling under its spell', start consciously determining what you're really getting out of Facebook. Asking questions about its value to you in your own life's context is healthy, especially when you feel that you might have been overdoing it a bit. Whittle down to the things that bring real value, within a defined time limitation. Record what you're doing on Facebook for a week. Be diligent about this reality check task and don't spare yourself; buy a small notebook and devote time to its updating. Things in particular to keep an eye out for include:
- If you're just checking in to respond to pokes, to see friends updating their profiles, to write a new note, or to see what songs your friends are adding, you're addicted to trivia. And letting trivia run your day is not conducive to a satisfying life long-term!
- Are you wandering about Facebook aimlessly? You've just confirmed a new friend, and you're curious as to the friends of that friend and whether any are your friends, or could be your friends, and what those friends are doing? If this sounds all too familiar, you're time on Facebook has turned aimless. And you're being lulled into this by the connectivity ease of Facebook without being alert to the lack of productivity resulting.
- Are you excusing yourself because of work? Even someone using Facebook for business purposes can start allowing the business socializing to bleed into general socializing under the rubric of 'work'. It's important to notice when you're falling into this transitional phase and to demarcate work and socializing, in order to put a time limit on both. Otherwise, you're giving yourself too large a justification to just keep on keeping on Facebook.
- Is that friend really a friend? How beneficial is maintaining a friendship with someone you've never met but linked up just because they were a friend of a friend of a real friend of yours? They might be amazing but if they're barely connecting with you, they might be part of the peripheral distractions that are causing you to sink into Facebook rather than interact on Facebook in ways that have true value.
- Is any of what you're doing constructive either from a personal or a professional point of view? Be honest with yourself!
Perhaps you need to revisit the purpose?
Decide what is of value on Facebook. Whatever the reason for being a part of Facebook, boundaries matter and knowing what is of value and what is not will help you to rein in poor online habits. Even a reason of wanting to ensure that your family is kept up-to-date of your interstate or overseas happenings can meander out of control if your concept of 'family' expands. If you use Facebook for work and personal reasons, the value will probably be broader, but it is still important to define the value boundaries for work and personal time. When deciding upon what value you're getting out of Facebook, consider the following:
- Are you enjoying it? Is this enjoyment balanced with a whole range of other enjoyable pursuits in your life too?
- Do you feel obliged to respond to some people on Facebook even though you'd prefer not to?
- Which parts of Facebook really do improve your personal and professional life? It can be helpful to list these for clarity, and to clear some of the negativity and the trivia.
Spend a holiday season on activities other than Facebook
Try giving up Facebook for a specific event to see how you fare. This article is not advocating leaving Facebook entirely unless that's the choice you feel you want to take. However, it can be very advantageous to choose a special event and to decide that for the duration of that event, that you will not use Facebook at all. You can even warn your other Facebook friends that this event is coming up but whatever you do, stick to it. For example, some Facebook users take summer vacation breaks, some take a break for a religious observance such as Lent,^[8] and some people take breaks when special family events such as a wedding or a birthday are coming up and they need to prepare, travel, be available for it, etc., without wanting to be distracted.
- Any well defined event carries significance for breaking a habit because they represent occasions during which you need to focus on other than yourself, whether it be faith, family, or some other important external matter. This can help to take you outside of any internal funk that has you glued to Facebook, as well as providing a set period during which you've promised yourself that you won't use Facebook. During this break, reflect on your Facebook neediness and think through how to restore a more even-keeled approach to using Facebook.
- The good thing about telling your Facebook friends that you won't be on for a bit is that you've just burned a bridge that will cause you to 'lose face' if you do sneak on. Be strong and give them the reassurance that you're one to keep your word.
Target solutions to enable smarter, brighter usage of Facebook in the future. While you could quit Facebook, it's probably far more productive, constructive, and socially useful to manage it and to put Facebook in its place in your life. Some of the positive solutions for healthy Facebook usage include (and you'll think of others):
- Avoid fiddling with the periphery. Take a good look at your profile. Does it work for you or does it bother you? Changing a profile image over and over is a sign of worrying too much about your Facebook image. If the current image works, leave it be. If it bothers you, fix it right now, photo included. Why? Because once you fix it, be prepared to leave it alone for a long time. Keeping your profile stable will build trust in the online environment; not constantly trying to update it will spare you one more unnecessary fiddle on Facebook.
- Stop changing your status frequently. Think 'so what?' before attempting to do this. Every time you change it, it logs into your friends' news feed on the home page and clogs it up. Why do you feel compelled to announce your every move or mood you are temporarily experiencing? It ceases to be of interest for others, and it's more unnecessary fiddling for you! Without changing your status, it remains as is for a week and then resets to 'What are you doing right now?' for you to say something.
- Think of how often you use Facebook applications. In order to use an application, you must install it on your account. And then use it; and many apps are compelling enough to draw users in for hours at a time.^[9] Before adding any application ask yourself 'How productive is this?' If it is worthless, think about what it's doing to your friends who get to be at the receiving end of your invitations to gain points, receive gifts, or to see results... Each time a person receives an invitation, they need to accept or ignore it. Don't be the cause of other people's fiddling. And make applications work for you, not the other way round; get rid of the ones that are sheer time-wasters or pointless.
- Present the most used applications on your profile and hide the rest. Even when hidden, the application can still be used. Clogging your profile with everything you have makes it unappealing to a person due to the clutter and is a hassle when a person has to scroll down to write on a wall or add an item on the bottom.
Be careful of the race to have as many friends as possible. If you're driven to have more friends on Facebook than you can ever realistically engage with regularly, it's important to stop what is, effectively, a 'friendship addiction'.^[10] Having more friends than you can realistically connect with can be a source of anxiety rather than pleasure. Enjoy the friends you already have on Facebook but weed out those who aren't adding anything to your Facebook experience.
- Given that Facebook almost compels you to add friends, if you're vulnerable to defining your self worth through the amount of friendships rather than the quality of them, then Facebook can be dangerous for you while you're recovering from any other sort of addiction or going through emotionally difficult times.^[11] Resist the urge to add people you don't really know or want to engage with, and to cull those who mean very little to you from your friends list.
- Beware of the potential of Facebook to increase a sense of loneliness rather than assuage it. Spending time on Facebook rather than with face-to-face friends will increase any feelings of loneliness you may already have and ironically, the more people you're trying to keep apace with, the lonelier it'll seem because you'll end up with quantity rather than quality.^[12] Switch from using Facebook as a substitute for friendships to using it as a way to energize and synergize the friendships you already have.^[13]
Avoid being a Facebook automaton. If you're caught saying, 'I'll facebook you later' or 'I'm going to do some facebooking', then you're well overdue for taking a break from the site to hang out with friends in the real world (or offline life). Every time you feel like saying 'I'll facebook you', check yourself and rephrase that with 'I'll see you', or 'I'll call you'. And mean it - settle the catch-up time straight away.

Video

Tips

To hide a Facebook application addiction from your friends, click on the 'Edit' next to the Application on the left hand side. Click on the 'Edit Settings' of each application and uncheck the 'Mini Feed'. This will disable the specific application's activity logged in your friends' News Feed and your Mini-Feed on your profile. This method is very helpful if you take a lot of movie quizzes. Of course, hiding your addiction isn't healthy, so it's far better if you can manage to rein it in.
Ironically, even some of the very mental health professionals who are supposed to be able to help the rest of us spot our addictive online activities are themselves enthralled by it!^[14]

Things You'll Need

Alarm clock with timer sound to limit your Facebook time
Other distractions
Calendar with meet-ups penned in to spend time with others

Related wikiHows

Sources and Citations

Original source of initial text, VideoJug, http://www.videojug.com/film/what-is-facebook-addiction VideoJug, shared with permission.

12 Celebrity Blow-Up Dolls You Secretly Want To Bone

2010-09-29T18:38:00.000+04:00

Let’s get this straight. Blow-up dolls are for laughs and losers. Bring one to a frat-house party, fine, but buy one for your own personal pleasure and you’ve got issues. Still, there are love dolls and there are celebrity love dolls. When one of these inflatable funnies is modeled on one of our favorite star icons it becomes a cultural artifact – another replica that owes its existence to the curious modern cultural phenomenon of the celebrity. Until that is you hear it whirring. And you see how unlike anything even vaguely human it looks. Then you remember it belongs in the trash. We’re not sure how the celebs on whom these life-size toys were based reacted to them, but suspect responses ranged from mild amusement to phone calls to lawyers.

12. Lindsay Lohan

As if our Lindsay didn’t have enough on her plate, she’s got to contend with a squeezable plastic version of her packing “three cylinders of love”. Even for love bug Li-Lo we think this is in bad taste. Yep, we reckon the Herbie: Fully Loaded star would have been going bananas when she saw the monstrosity that lurks inside this packaging.

11. Eva Longoria Parker

This is a love doll replica of a certain American actress famous for her part as one of the leads in the ABC television series Desperate Housewives. Ironic given that this product is for desperate individuals of a different gender – and, we hope, marital status. “Her man’s away and she loves to play,” we’re told. Does she indeed?

10. JLo

The delightfully named “J-Ho” is the next celebrity sex doll on our list, and what a way to advertise this tastelessly trashy take on a certain “Puerto Rican princess”. Predictably, the big sell here is on a particular part of the beautiful Bronx bombshell’s anatomy. “Booty from the block,” reads the tagline. Seriously, who writes this stuff? Worse, who buys it?

9. Pamela Anderson

The Pamela blow-up doll takes plastic fantastic to a new level. Believe us, it’s far more plastic than even the image of “the world’s sexiest lifeguard” depicted on the package. And that’s plastic. What’s more, when used by some loser, it’ll be more full of bad air than the float she’s carrying. Methinks the real Pammy was not best pleased.

8. Jessica Simpson

America’s favorite actress and singer is honored with a love doll made in her image. The formerly chaste celeb was no doubt horrified upon hearing about the existence of this evil inflatable doppelganger, especially when the sales line makes reference to her split with her ex-husband. Can you do worse for $26.99? Probably not.

7. Daisy Dukes (Jessica Simpson)

Promising you “the ride of your life” (why aren’t we convinced?), this inflatable atrocity in a glossy box is based on Daisy from The Dukes of Hazard – which makes it a second showing for lucky Ms Simpson. For all you “wild cowboys out there” straining at the leash to pick one of these up, don’t expect to be Boss Hog in your group for long if your friends find out.

6. GI Jane (Demi Moore)

This one’s for the military fetishists. See, this “camouflaged cutie” is apparently “every soldier’s fantasy”. You heard it here. This doll was based (very) loosely on the actress who took the eponymous role in 1997’s G.I. Jane. Still, given the (lack of) resemblance of the model on the packaging, we doubt Demi will be suing any time soon.

5. Jessica Sin

Based on a certain actress who starred in Robert Rodriguez’s Sin City, this next delightful doll for all the family is, so we’re told, a “sexy little angel with a dark side”. Or is it a big ugly diabolical piece of plastic that some folks choose to take for a sexual partner? We’ll let you decide.

4. Tori Spelling

“Will you be my sugar daddy?” pouts the star of the oh-so-ingeniously-titled “90210HO”. The answer is: yes if either a) you’ve a douchebag, or b) you’re a poor, out of his mind groom-to-be on a bachelor party who can’t tell the difference between a lifeless plastic woman and the real thing. Another addition to one of the dumbest merchandising moves ever.

3. Christina Aguilera

Who’s this “dirty little diva”? Why, it’s our Christina, the once innocent pop-star princess, and now a raving plastic nympho with at least three ways of satisfying your every desire. We can hardly contain ourselves. We’re pretty sure the platinum-selling recording artist wasn’t singing “What a Girl Wants” about one of these.

2. Paris Hilton

If it weren’t for the insulting copy written on the side of the packaging, this would be the one love doll we’d have thought might have been endorsed by the celebrity it masquerades as. Honestly, though, whatever the tearaway socialite might have got up to in the past, she can’t ever have expected this, can she? Well…

1. Sarah Palin

And finally, the celebrity blow up doll to end all celebrity blow up dolls – made in the image of the hockey mom to end all hockey moms. Presumably designed for all those those Democrats who secretly lusted hard after the former vice presidential candidate, this is one doll that must have already come filled with hot air. Beautiful.

How to Crack Your Forgotten Windows Password

2010-09-29T00:19:00.000+04:00

Here at How-To Geek, we’ve covered many different ways to reset your password for Windows—but what if you can’t reset your password? Or what if you’re using drive encryption that would wipe out your files if you changed the password? It’s time to crack the password instead.

To accomplish this, we’ll use a tool called Ophcrack that can crack your password so you can login without having to change it.

Download Ophcrack

The first thing we will need to do is download the CD image from Ophcrack’s website. There are two options to download, XP or Vista, so make sure you grab the right one. The Vista download works with Windows Vista or Windows 7, and the only difference between XP and Vista is the “tables” Ophcrack uses to determine the password.

Once the .iso file is downloaded, burn it to a CD using the guide below.

If you are going to be cracking your password on something that doesn’t have a CD drive, such as a netbook, download the universal USB creator from PenDrive Linux (Link Below). A USB drive will not only run faster but you can also use a single USB drive for Windows XP, Vista, and 7 if you copy the needed tables to the drive.

To create a USB drive that works with all versions of Windows, download the free password tables from Ophcrack’s website.

Note: There are free tables available on Ophcrack’s website and there are paid tables, the paid tables will typically get the job done faster and will be able to crack more complex passwords but the paid tables may not fit on a USB drive because they range in size from 3 GB to 135 GB.

Now extract the tables to \tables\vista_free on the USB drive and they will be used automatically by Ophcrack.

Boot from CD/USB

Boot the computer from the CD or USB drive that you created.

Note: On some computers you may have to go into the BIOS settings to change the boot order or push a key to show the boot menu.

Once the disk is done booting, Ophcrack should start automatically and will begin cracking the passwords for all of the users on your computer.

Note: If the computer boots and you only have a blank screen or Ophcrack doesn’t start, try restarting the computer and selecting manual or low RAM options on the live CD boot menu.

If you have a complex password it will take a lot longer than simple passwords, and with the free tables your password may never be cracked. Once the crack is done you will see the password in plain text, write it down and reboot the machine to login. If your password isn’t cracked, you can also log in as one of the other users with admin rights and then change your password from within Windows.

With the free tables available you will not be able to crack every password, but the paid tables range from $100 to $1000 so you may be better off just resetting your password with on of these tutorials:

Reset password with Ubuntu live CD

Change password with Linux System Rescue CD

Reset password with Ultimate Boot CD

Reset password with password reset disk

You can get all of the software needed for password cracking from these links.

Ophcrack homepage

Burn an iso file to disc

Pendrive Linux Universal USB creator

If you aren’t using drive encryption and you’ve got a tough password, it’s usually much faster to reset the password using one of the tools above, but we like to show you all the different techniques that you can use.

Breaking Taboos in Bahrain; Business Booms at Gulf's First Sex Shop.

2010-09-26T14:48:00.000+04:00

By Alexander Smoltczyk

Photo Gallery: 7 Photos

AFP

Just down the road in Saudi Arabia, men aren't allowed to talk to women in public, but the phone at Khadija Mohammed's Bahrain sex shop hardly stops ringing. One favorite item: fruit-flavored edible underwear.

King Fahd Causeway connects Saudi Arabia to the island kingdom of Bahrain, where some of the rules are rather more relaxed. If you leave Manama, the kingdom's capital, take a right down Baghdad Avenue and drive south to the traffic circle by the Last Chance supermarket, you'll find a place far removed from the strictures of Saudi morality, enforced chastity and prudishness.

"By the traffic circle … next to the laundromat. Yes. No, I don't have any dildos, only massage devices … Good. See you later. Maa al-Salama." Khadija Mohammed's telephone rings every 10 minutes. The last call was from a number beginning +966. "A lady in Saudi Arabia," Khadija explains. In other words, the typical customer of Khadija Fashion House in Manama. Later that afternoon the lady comes by, concealed by a hijab that reveals nothing but her eyes, and purchases a magenta-colored "Oui", described on the packaging as a "simple, elegant personal massager, so thin it can fit in the palm of your hand."
Hiding Behind A Veil
Sometimes, Khadija Mohammed says, wearing a veil can be extremely practical. Nevertheless women without veils also come into her shop. Their husbands stand to one side while their wives shop.
A "beginner's bondage kit" complete with handcuffs and a blindfold -- typical sadomasochism equipment -- hangs on the wall behind the cash register. Such items are usually associated with the notorious Abu Ghraib prison in Baghdad. There are "cats-of-nine-tails" for seven Bahrain dinars each, as well as whips and G-spot stimulators. On the shelves there are enema nozzles, penis enhancement creams, belly-dancer costumes, "Dress Black Gladiator"-brand stilettos, and glow-in-the-dark nail polish. Khadija says she has just run out of dice for party games.
Khadija Mohammed is a 33-year-old mother of three. She wears a black abaya cloak and wishes she were a few pounds lighter. She is recently divorced. Khadija runs the entire business on her own, packs the online orders, and negotiates with suppliers in California and Guangzhou.
No Blow-up Dolls Or Movies
She says her most popular products are penis enlargement creams and edible underwear in a variety of flavors, from strawberry to mango. And she is constantly being asked about dildos, even by male customers. But the Fashion House doesn't stock them. Nor does it sell books, movies, blow-up dolls or photos, which are "not permitted in Islam." The erotic expert says Islam forbids images of "the sensitive parts of the body."
Not that this stops her from selling a glowing vibration ring -- the "Humm Dinger" -- for a sensitive part of the male body.
Khadija has been running her store for the past two years. It was the first sex shop in the entire Gulf region, and may still be the only one around. She began by selling traditional fashion online. "But sexy underwear sold best," she recalls. "From there it grew like bread in the oven. So I switched."
Driving Out The Hypocrisy
In the 16th century, the naked body inspired florid poetry in the Arab world. Mohammed al-Nafzawi's 'The Perfumed Garden' is a classic manual of oriental erotology similar to the 'Kama Sutra', though without illustrations. Chapter IX of this handbook, for example -- entitled "Sundry Names Given to the Sexual Organs of Women" -- contains no fewer than 27 detailed descriptions of female genitalia, ranging from "The Bottomless" to "The Glutton," from "The One with a Projection" to "The Resigned."
But prudishness has grown ever since that time, and has now taken on extreme proportions in most Arab countries. In Saudi Arabia, just 40 kilometers (25 miles) from Khadija's store, men are forbidden from speaking to women in public.
Khadija doesn't want to change the world, merely drive out some of the hypocrisy. "Everyone likes it, everyone does it. Everyone buys sex toys, though nobody around here would talk about them," she says. "I'd have fewer problems if I ran my shop in secret from home as an online store. But I don't want to hide."
'The Imams Aren't The Problem'
The little store by the traffic circle is doing a roaring trade. And there are just as many female customers as male ones. Khadija says she couldn't cope with more customers.
She's never had problems with her neighbors or passersby. She only had to remove some of the raunchier items from her shop window. Even the imam at the nearby mosque apparently has nothing to complain about. "He's a Shiite, and very open-minded," Khadija says. "What a man and a woman do to be happy in the privacy of their marital bed is their own business. No, the imams aren't the problem."
It isn't illegal to run a sex shop in Bahrain. Only this March, Khadija Mohammed won a court case confirming this. She flips open a pink laptop and clicks on the website for customs rules. "You see?" she says. Bahrain's import regulations forbid the importing of used tires, fissile material, pigs and horses. "The law says nothing about sexy products," she points out.

Nevertheless, some of her deliveries are being confiscated. Why? "My name sounds Sunni, but I'm a Shiite. The authorities began harassing me as soon as they found out. They don't want me to be successful." Most of the people living in the Bahrain archipelago are Shiite Muslims. However the ruling elite is Sunni.
Vibrators aren't the problem. Nor are beginner's S&M equipment or lubricants. It's simply a question of entrepreneurial success. And that's good news.
Translated from the German by Jan Liebelt

10 Dead Simple Gmail Tips, Tricks & Shortcuts

2010-09-26T00:48:00.000+04:00

Gmail can be tweaked almost endlessly with various Firefox and Chrome extensions, and offers some pretty nifty Labs options too. However, we’ve taken a look at some simple tips, tricks, tweaks and shortcuts you can use without going down the plugin or experimental route.

These 10 features will help you get so much more out of the webmail service, from an enhanced chat experience, to smarter filters, to offline access.

Have a read through now and let us know any neat Gmail hints you’d like to share in the comments box below.

1. Add Emphasis in Chat

Gmail’s instant messaging Chat function is one of the more basic options around, but there are a few bits of formatting you can use to add nuance to your online communication.

To bold a word, asterisk it like this: *Mashable*

To add italics, just underscore before and after the word like this: _Mashable_

And to strike a word through, add hyphens before and after like so: -Mashable-

2. Customize Your Web Clips

You’ve no doubt noticed the “Web Clips” line of text that appears above your Gmail inbox which contains news, blog posts, ads and other info. But did you know you can personalize it to make it more relevant to you?

Simply go to “Settings” on the top right of your screen and select the “Web Clips” tab. From there, you can search, browse from the categories, and add and remove items to your heart’s content.

3. Create Variations of Your E-mail Address

Although technically you only have one Gmail address, you can create as many variations of it as you wish to help manage your incoming mail.

You can do this by adding a word after your name with a plus sign (if the site you’re entering the address into allows it). So, yourname+newsletters@gmail.com, yourname+shopping@gmail.com, and so on.

This alias system then comes into its own if you also set up filters to direct those messages where you want them. For example, they could skip the inbox and be archived, have a label applied, be forwarded to another account, and so on.

To set up a filter, go to “Settings,” hit the “Filters” tab, select “Create New Filter” and follow the simple steps from there.

4. Access Gmail When You’re Offline

This is a useful option for anyone on the go, as it allows you to access your Gmail account when you’re not connected to the web. You can search, read and compose e-mails when you’re not in a Wi-Fi zone, and Gmail will simply auto-update (and send/receive any new mail) when you next reconnect.

To set up your Gmail to be available when you’re offline, you have to download Google Gears, but it’s a simple process from within Gmail. Head over to your “Settings” menu, hit the “Offline” tab, and check the option to “Enable Offline Mail for this computer.”

Once you save the changes, Gmail will auto-prompt you through the process and even gives you the option to create a desktop shortcut for quick access to Gmail when offline.

5. Chat Off the Record

Gmail handily saves your chat history for conversations with other Gmail users and makes them searchable too (use the search term “is:chat” to look for a keyword term). But there might be times you want to chat and not have it recorded.

To chat “off the record,” open a chat window with whom you want to talk, click on the “Actions” drop down menu and select “Go off the record.” The person you’re chatting with will be notified of this change, and you can go back on the record in the same way.

6. Get New Mail Desktop Notifications

Gmail offers a free Notifier as a quick download that will alert you with a visual pop-up and audio cue when new mail has arrived, even if you don’t have Gmail open in a browser.

It automatically checks for new mail every two minutes, with the icons changing to show unread mail in case you miss the notification. The app is available for both Windows PCs and Macs. It should be noted that downloading this will also make Gmail your default e-mail program, which you might need to consider if you don’t want this to be case.

7. Use Gmail’s Advanced Search Operators

While Gmail’s keyword search works well enough for basic queries, there are some advanced options that can help refine your process.

For example, entering to:me is:unread in:inbox will bring up any unread mails in your inbox. Entering has:attachment will show you a list of e-mails with files attached, and after: 20/08/2010 before: 25/08/2010 will offer up a list of messages from that specific time period.

You can view the major search operators over at the Gmail support site — it’s well worth memorizing a few.

8. Improve Gmail Priority Inbox

Gmail’s “Priority Inbox” functions by highlighting what it considers your most important mail, and has launched to positive feedback. But you can improve it as time goes on.

In order to help Gmail better recognize what really is important (and conversely, what isn’t), simply select an e-mail message and hit the little plus or minus arrows at the top of your inbox.

9. Find Out if a Message Was Sent Just to You

Useful for prioritizing replies if nothing else, there’s a setting in Gmail that will enable you to see if a message has been sent just to you, or a mailing list.

To activate it, go to “Settings,” then scroll down to “Personal level indicators” and select “Show indicators.” This will now mean that every message in your mailbox shows how many recipients there were at a glance.

No arrows will show if the message was sent to a mailing list, “>” shows up when the message was sent to you and others, and “>>” indicates the message was sent to just you.

10. Play a Gmail-Inspired Game

And finally, on a lighthearted note, did you know there is a free online game you can play that’s inspired by Gmail?

“Galactic Inbox” was created by Paul Truong, a creative technologist “in part, as a ‘thank you’ to the Gmail team for their ongoing work to improve the webmail galaxy.” If you want to show the gTeam some love too, then hop on over and have a play!

More Gmail Resources from Mashable

- 5 Great Unofficial Gmail Themes
- HOW TO: Undo “Send” in Gmail
- 5 Ways to Spice Up Your Gmail Signature
- Gmail Priority Inbox: 5 Tips for Better Productivity
- HOW TO: Give Your Inbox a Master Cleanse

Play Your Old Xbox, PS2, Newer X360 & PS3 Multiplayer Games Free With XLink Kai

2010-09-25T03:21:00.000+04:00

It was a sad day when Microsoft announced that Xbox Live support for older games was ending in April this year. Classics like Halo and its sequel which introduced many to the notion of playing against foes across the world lost their online communities overnight.

But long before the announcement was made a service called XLink Kai was already quite popular. By establishing a server on a home PC which connects your console to the Kai servers, it is possible to play pretty much any game that supports the System Link mode of play.

X-Link Kai has support for Xbox, Playstation 2, GameCube, PSP, Xbox 360 and the Playstation 3. Finding a game can sometimes be difficult, but there’s a cracking little community there to help you organise and play your favourite games.

Before We Begin

The console I’ll be using in this walkthrough is Microsoft’s original Xbox. The set-up procedure is a pretty basic affair for all consoles, but the service has a trickier set of rules to adhere to on newer consoles. Xbox 360 users might benefit from reading this step-by-step and PS3 owners might want to consult this one.

The first issue I had was connecting my Xbox to my home network. As Microsoft’s chubby black console doesn’t support wireless networking, I decided to try bridging the connection with my laptop, running Windows 7.

If you’ve got metres of network cable, or your Xbox (or other chosen console) is already networked then you can skip this bit, but there’s a decent network troubleshooter on the XLink website if you run into problems.

Bridging Wirelessly With Windows 7

Connect one end of an Ethernet cable to your console (in my case the Xbox) and the other to your computer’s Ethernet port. Click on Start then Control Panel and find Network and Sharing Center. In the panel on the left hand side click Manage Wireless Networks (this may appear as Manage Connections).

In the next dialogue choose Adapter properties and click on the Sharing tab. Enable the first option: Allow other network users to connect through this computer’s Internet connection and then OK.

Now you should have bridged your console wirelessly. One good way to test this is to start-up your console with nothing in the CD tray, and attempt to access an online element from the console’s dashboard.

On an old Xbox you can try to make a new Xbox Live Gamertag. Once the set-up fails (it will, Xbox Live has been shut down after all) you’ll get asked if you want to troubleshoot your connection. Agree and run the network diagnostic tool. As long as you see the “DNS resolved” message then you’re connected and good to go.

Installing X-Link Kai

Head over to the XLink Kai download page and grab the installer. Whilst it is worth mentioning that there are Windows, Mac and Linux versions, you might also need to set-up wireless bridging within your chosen OS. Linux users might want to check out Justin’s guide about doing this with Ubuntu.

Once downloaded, run the XLink Kai installer.

Once you’ve installed, there’s one last check to do before playing. Windows 2000, XP and Vista users are in luck as XLink should work perfectly and they can skip this bit.

Windows 7 users will need to find XLink Kai within the Start menu, right click on Start Kai and choose Properties. Click the Compatibility tab and enable compatibility mode for Windows XP (Service Pack 2). Last of all check Run this program as an administrator and hit OK.

Let’s Play Some Games

Use the Start Kai shortcut you just modified to launch the program. Once it’s loaded you should be prompted for a login. Click here to register for an XTag, supply all the details required and confirm your account.

Turn on your console (stick in a game, I recommend Halo 2 for Xbox as people still play it) and make sure it’s completed starting up. Log in through Kai. It shouldn’t take long, and once loaded click on the small magnifying glass icon (labelled 1 in the screenshot below) to bring up the diagnostics panel. In the game you’re playing (I chose Halo 2) don’t sign in to any online services and choose System Link as if to trick your console into looking for games.

Now click on the Switch to diagnostics view toggle button (labelled 2 in the screenshot above). Your console should appear, with a message saying it’s correctly configured. Congratulations, now you can click on the globe icon to bring up Arena View.

Choose your console, genre of game and eventually the game you want to play. Once you find a populated arena, click on it. You should instantly see the games pop up in your System Link menu. Simply join any game of your choosing through your console.

If you are having trouble then the XLink Kai community forums are full of helpful people, not to mention those organising games and tournaments. Don’t forget you’re far more likely to get a game at sensible times so don’t fret if there aren’t any servers immediately, you could always start one.

Do you play games with XLink? Had any luck getting your 360 or PS3 working? Halo 2 harder than you remember? Let us know in the comments.

Do you like MakeUseOf articles? Don’t forget to share our articles with others! It’s really important to us.

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How To Fix A Corrupted Windows NTFS Filesystem With Ubuntu

2010-09-23T16:58:00.000+04:00

How many of you have had that sinking feeling as your PC boots up? You know, a slight niggle in the back of your mind that says “this is taking longer than usual” before Windows drops dead in front of you, and refuses to play ball.

Me too, and much of the time the original Windows CD/DVD/USB you used in your original install can’t fix the problem. You need something else. Something like a whole operating system, either installed on a separate partition or in Live CD/USB format. Enter Ubuntu!

There’s a good few reasons to have Ubuntu on a CD or USB stick somewhere in a draw. It’s free, to start with. You don’t need to install it to use it, and it’s great for accessing a butchered Windows partition – even if it’s just to get your precious documents back before a format.

When it comes to fixing your broken Windows install then Ubuntu has its uses there too. If you happen to break your registry or master boot record, then fear not – all is not lost. This technique should work on any Ubuntu-based Linux distributions.

Download, Install & Boot Ubuntu

Those of you who already have a dual-boot Ubuntu and Windows machine can skip this step.

If you’ve not got a Live USB stick then you’re going to need to get hold of one. UNetbootin is a useful tool which enables you to create a USB stick with a bootable version of your favourite open source operating system preloaded. If you’d prefer to use a CD, download an Ubuntu disk image and burn it with ImgBurn.

If you’re dual-booting, then this is a simple step of choosing Ubuntu over Windows at boot. For Live USB sticks and CDs you’re going to need to enter the BIOS setup as your PC boots (usually by pressing F2 or Del) and arrange your boot devices to prioritize your USB device or CD drive to boot before your main hard drive.

If you’ve done everything correctly you’ll see the UNetbootin bootloader appear. From here you’ll want to boot directly into the operating system. After a minute or two you’ll see the desktop appear, and we’re ready to begin.

Fixing A Corrupted Windows NTFS Partition

Luckily you can schedule an NTFS consistency check within Ubuntu to attempt to repair your tattered Windows partition, but you’re going to need to install a couple of things. It is worth mentioning that this should work with any NTFS drive that refuses to mount in Ubuntu too. Open a Terminal window by clicking Applications, Accessories and then Terminal.

First install NTFS-3G by typing this command:

sudo apt-get install ntfs-3g

Enter your password and hit Enter on your keyboard. Next install NTFSProgs in the same way:

sudo apt-get install ntfsprogs

Now with both of those tools at your disposal, you can set about fixing Windows. First locate your Windows partition. In the Terminal type:

sudo fdisk -l

You’re looking for an entry that looks like this:

/dev/sda2   *         638       12312    93773824    7  HPFS/NTFS

The important bit is the /dev/sda2 which tells us where the Windows partition is mounted. HPFS/NTFS lets us know that the partition is a Microsoft Windows formatted device, and that little star denotes that this is a bootable partition.

So in my case /dev/sda2 means that Windows is on sda (my internal hard drive) and that it’s partition 2 that I want to play around with.

Armed with this information you want to use NTFSProgs to attempt to fix the partition. In your Terminal window type:

sudo ntfsfix /dev/<device name>

Replace <device name> with your Windows partition (e.g. /dev/sda2) and enter your password followed by Enter. Your drive will now be mounted, checked for consistency and any errors found should be fixed. Restart your PC to assess the situation, if all goes well you’ll see Windows.

Fixing A Corrupt Master Boot Record

If you’ve got a problem with Windows’ oh-so-important boot record then you can also fix that from within Ubuntu too. Assuming you’ve already booted into Ubuntu, open up Terminal and install ms-sys by typing:

sudo apt-get install ms-sys

You might need a password, input it and hit Enter.

If you followed the first part of this tutorial you’ll know which partition Windows is installed on, if you missed it type:

sudo fdisk -l

Find the HPFS/NTFS partition that relates to your Windows install, and type:

sudo ms-sys -m /dev/<device name>

Replace <device name> with your Windows partition (e.g. /dev/sda2) and hit Enter. Ubuntu will attempt to restore your master boot record. You’ll probably want to restart your machine now, just make sure you take any Live CD/USB devices out as you do.

Conclusion

If you’re still having problems with a Windows install, and you’ve tried everything then don’t forget you can mount the partition and rescue as much data as you think you’ll need. Using the terminal, enter:

sudo mkdir /media/windows

sudo ntfs-3g -o force,rw /dev/<device name> /media/windows

Replace <device name> with your Windows partition location and the drive should pop-up on your desktop.

Has Ubuntu saved your bacon recently? Do you dual-boot with Windows? Thinking about making a Live CD just in case? Let us know below.

Quran burning 'to go ahead' on sept 11, what the hell is wrong with that idiot...

2010-09-09T02:19:00.000+04:00

The leader of a small church in the US state of Florida says he is determined to go through with his plan to burn copies of the Quran on September 11, despite an international outcry against it.
Terry Jones, the pastor, said on Wednesday that he has received encouragement for his protest, with supporters mailing copies of the Islamic holy text to his church in Gainesville.
The plan is to incinerate the Qurans in a bonfire on Saturday to mark the ninth anniversary of the September 11, 2001 attacks on New York and Washington.
"As of right now, we are not convinced that backing down is the right thing," Jones said.
'Death threats'
Jones said he has received more than 100 death threats and has started wearing a gun since announcing his plan to burn the book that Muslims consider the word of God.

'Anti-Muslim' incidents

The US Justice Department is investigating incidents where Muslim places of worship have been targeted in July and August in areas across the country.
A Muslim cab driver in New York City had his face and throat slashed in August, in a suspected hate crime.
A fire broke out at the site of a future mosque in the state of Tennessee, in July, where local residents gained permission to build a new mosque after outgrowing their rented space.
A brick nearly smashed a window at the Madera Islamic Centre in central California, in August, where signs were left behind that read: "Wake up America, the enemy is here."
Authorities suspect arson when a fire broke out at the Dar El-Eman Islamic Centre in Arlington, Texas last month.

Source: AP

The 58-year-old pastor proclaimed in July that he would stage 'International Burn-a-Quran Day.'
The plan has already sparked protests in Afghanistan and Indonesia and US officials are worried that it will put Americans at risk.
General David Petraeus, the US and Nato commander in the Afghan capital, Kabul, warned that "images of the burning of a Quran would undoubtedly be used by the Taliban in Afghanistan, to inflame public opinion and incite violence".
Petraeus spoke on Wednesday with Hamid Karzai, the Afghan president, about the matter, according to Colonel Erik Gunhus, a military spokesman.
"They both agreed that burning of a Quran would undermine our effort in Afghanistan, jeopardise the safety of coalition troopers and civilians," Gunhus said.
David Axelrod, senior adviser to Barack Obama, the US president, told CNN on Wednesday morning: "The reverend may have the right to do what he's doing but it's not right. It's not consistent with our values ..."
"I hope that his conscience and his good sense will take hold."
The Vatican also denounced the planned Quran burning as "outrageous and grave".
Right to free speech
Jones gained some local notoriety last year when he posted signs in front of his church declaring "Islam is of the Devil".
But his Quran-burning idea attracted wider attention. It drew rebukes from Muslim nations and at home as an emotional debate was taking shape over the proposed Islamic centre near the so-called Ground Zero site of the 2001 attacks in New York.
His actions likely would be protected by the US constitution's right to free speech.
The US Supreme Court has made clear that speech deemed offensive to many people, even the majority of people, cannot be suppressed by the government unless it is clearly directed to intimidate someone or amounts to an incitement to violence, legal experts have said.

source: Al Jazeera news

Top 5 Websites with Fun and Insightful Psychological Tests

2010-09-06T05:06:00.000+04:00

I intend to open up to you the corners of the internet that can help tap into the darkest corners of your own mind. Last month, I brought you the best optical illusions on the web, which tested how your mind manipulates your perceptions, and now I bring you some of the web’s best psychological tests. These tests may reveal to you the deepest parts of your own subconscious, which may horrify and astound you — but at least taking the tests will be fun.

There aren’t silly pop psychology tests that have no basis in fact; they’re legitimate psychological tests that are either backed by significant research or are actually parts of ongoing studies that are using your results to obtain more data. They’ll help you dig into your mind and explore your subconscious, memorization abilities, personality, and much more.

BBC’s Tests

The BBC has a surprisingly large collection of free psychological tests online. The subjects that they cover really run the gamut: you can find out how good your memory is, whether you experience synesthesia, what sex your brain is, and much more.

Many of the tests are parts of ongoing studies, so rest assured that the results you’re getting are coming directly from professional psychologists and researchers.

Cognitive Fun

Cognitive Fun is an excellent website with tons of unique psychological tests. Many will test your reaction time and memorization abilities, and you’ll also find the classic Stroop color test on the site.

One of the site’s best features is that you can register an account and save your stats on all of the site’s tests. Then you can compare your results to those of everyone else who took the tests.

Jung Typology Test

The Jung Typology Test reveals your personality type using the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI), a well-established personality test first published in 1962.

Results of the test will provide you with four letters that summarize your personality type (don’t worry, it also explains, in detail, what those letters and your particular type actually mean). You’ll also find out what famous people had your personality type.

Project Implicit

Project Implicit is an excellent Harvard study that may reveal your subconscious biases regarding race, gender, religion, and more. It does this by requiring you to distinguish between different images and words and group them into correct categories.

For example, in the race test, you have to distinguish between faces of European and African origin and good words (like “joy” and “love”) and bad words (like “agony” and “terrible”). Then you have to group bad words and images of European American faces together and good words and images of African American faces together (and vice versa). To get accurate results, you have to sort quickly. Based on whether or not you make mistakes when grouping images, the test purports to reveal whether you may have a subconscious preference for faces of European or African origin. The results of this test and others on Project Implicit may astonish and unsettle you.

Face Research

The face research tests also primarily use images of faces. Here, however, you are making choices like whether faces look healthier, more trustworthy, or more attractive.

To participate in the tests you have to either register an account or login as a guest. These tests could reveal how you subconsciously assume things about the people you’ve just met based only on very subtle changes in their faces.

Conclusion

Psychological tests are both fun and can reveal a lot about us. If you want more information behind the results that you’re getting from these tests, consider checking out some informative psychology websites. In all of your pursuits to better understand yourself and the workings of your mind, I wish you luck.

Image source: Obscenity