blastingvolume.com

Disable Synaptics Popup Video

2012-12-27T04:37:00.001+08:00

There's this annoying popup video when using a Synaptics driver. It's titled SynNoButtons.wmv. Deleting the video creates other problems, but here is a more proper way to disable it.

On the task bar, there is a trackpad icon. Click this, then select TouchPad Properties. You should have this window:

Click on Tapping, then click on the gear icon. Here, make all actions No Zone.... Click OK.

The video shouldn't popup anymore.

Torrent Over Multiple Connections Through XP Mode

2012-11-28T00:26:00.000+08:00

I will try to keep this as simple as possible, though it requires some technical skill. This guide assumes that you have XP Mode fully setup and you have two network adapters (whether wireless or not). I will call the virtual PCs VMn.

1. Duplicate your XP Mode as explained here.

2. Create an "Internal Network" then attach one of you network adapters to VM1. Do the same to VM2 with the other network adapter.

If this is a wireless adapter, connect it now to the desired access point.

2. Start your torrent on both VMs.

3. Finally, add VM2 as a peer on VM1.

The IP address you must supply is the IP Address assigned to the VM2's private network adapter. (hint: cmd->ipconfig). The port can be found on Options->Preferences->Network in uTorrent (also on VM2).

4. Repeat for more network adapters.

The two torrent programs should start sharing downloaded pieces (the download speed will shoot up when this happens). This saves two copies of the torrent in your hard drive, so just delete the other one when it's done downloading.

Portal Inspired Hansel Crackers Ad

2012-10-05T20:03:00.002+08:00

I was surprised when I saw this today. It's an advertisement for cookies with Portal elements.

How I Met Your Mother in One Minute

2012-09-30T12:37:00.000+08:00

Hear Barney summarize the series in less than a minute.

Son Changes Toy Story 3 Ending as a Prank

2012-09-25T08:24:00.000+08:00

Someone thought it would be a good prank to edit Toy Story 3's ending to the incinerator scene. The movie blacks out right before they get saved by "the claw". He then traumatizes his family (especially his mom) by letting them watch the movie with the depressing ending. The best part is, they uploaded the entire ordeal to YouTube!

I seriously hope people make more of this.

Skydrivers Draw Digits of Pi in the Sky

2012-09-22T11:18:00.000+08:00

The San Francisco bay sky was filled with the first thousand digits of pi. This was the work of an artist named ishky with the help of five skydivers. The team created a skywriting 150 miles long whose viewers of the only had moments to see.

See the video below to see just how fast the smoke-like writing disappears:

[via LaughingSquid]

Seagull Steals Video Camera in San Francisco Bay

2012-09-18T03:34:00.000+08:00

Nathalie Rollandin was taking a video of the San Francisco bay sunset. To her surprise, a seagull takes her GoPro camera, probably mistaking it for a piece of food.

Not only did the 26 year old French tourist get the camera back in one piece, it also took a literal bird's eye view of the San Francisco bay, zooming through the sunset.

Rollandin uploaded the video on YouTube and now has over a millon views.

[via Time]

Change Black Mesa Resolution

2012-09-16T03:09:00.001+08:00

So I just finished downloading Black Mesa. When I launched it, it was at an ugly resolution of 1024x768. My screen's native resolution is 1366x768. It was clipping the sides!

I fiddled with the settings, and found out that you have to change the Aspect Ratio first, before you can select other resolutions.

Edward and Bella, Bad Lip Reading of Twilight

2012-09-13T04:45:00.002+08:00

"Dude, you slapped a fish! You punch it, why would you hit it?"

Apple iPhone 5 Event

2012-09-13T00:50:00.000+08:00

(updated live, refresh for latest info!, images from Ars)

10:50 I guess the event ends here. I'll post summaries later :)

10:42 the Foo Fighters perform

10:40 Tim Cook is wrapping up

10:39 "The best iPods we've ever done"

10:38 prices: shuffle $49, nano $149, iPod touch $199 16GB, $249 16GB

10:37 Earpods included with iPhone 5, iPod 5th gen, & iPod nano 7th gen

10:36 "the shape is defined by the geometry of your ear, they don't create a seal like in-ear headphones do, instead it directs sound into the ear, provides a consistent listening experience from one person to the next, by letting air flow in and out of the acoustic chamber, it allows the speaker to move more freely and produce better low-frequency sound"

10:34 redesigned earphones, called EarPods

10:32 now talking speakers

10:32 white, black, blue, yellow, red

10:31 Siri on the iPod touch

10:30 bluetooth 802.11a/b/g/n, bluetooth 4.0

10:30 1080p on backside, 720p on frontside

10;29 you can now attach wrist straps called "Loops" to the iPod touch

10:28 5MP, hybrid IR filter, 5 element lens, sapphire crystal f/2.4 (same as the iphone, except the MP)

10:27 now the camera

10:27 40 hours of music playback, 8 hours video

10:26 available this holiday season.

10:25 demoing an interactive game that can be touched (he's tickling it). it also can see via the camera

10:24 now demoing a game, Clumsy Ninja, to the iPod touch.

10:22 6.1mm thickness, 4" retina display in the iPhone 5, iOS 6, A5 chip = 7x faster graphics

10:21 "iPod touch is the most popular iPod we make, and it's the world's most popular music player, but it's also the world's most popular game player as well."

10:20 now talking about the iPod touch

10:20 video to the nano, photo viewing, multitouch, fintess apps, bluetooth connection to earphones, lightning connector, 30 hours of music

10:18 white, black, purple, green, blue, yellow, red

10:18 tiny ipod touch

10:18 now 38% thinner iPod nano

10:17 now talking about the iPod nano.

10:16 "we've sold over 350 million iPods"

10:15 now Greg Josiwak for the iPod

10:10 still talking about itunes UI (not much interesting going on)

10:07 Jeff robin on stage for iTunes

10:06 iTunes now have iCloud built in

10:06 "now iCloud makes all your purchases available to all of your devices"

10:05 redesigned iOS store

10:02 tim cook on stage. now talking iPod and itunes

10:00 "you can start to pre-order this Friday, Sept 14." shipping sept. 21 in the US, canada, UK, france, Germany, Australia, Japan, Hong Kong, and Singapore. 21 more countries a week later, 100 countries by the end of the year

10:00 16GB for $199, 32GB for $299, $399 for 64GB for a two-year contract, same as 4S
9:59 now talking prices

9:52 now summarizing iPhone 5 features

9:52 black & white iphone

9:51 these are only 10 of the more than 200 new features in iOS 6, phil back on stage

9:50 "we've integrated Facebook into many of the apps in iOS"

9:49 You can also ask Siri about movies. you can also post to facebook via Siri

9:48 Siri. "Siri now knows all about sports, I can ask questions like: how did the 49ers do last weekend?" (Siri answers with scores)

9:45 passbook app, photsharing

9:44 now showing notifications app, safari (not much interesting)

9:40 maps application

9:40 Scott forestall now called on stage for demo

9:32 iOS 6!

9:38 lightning connector, 8 pin, can be plugged in either way

9:38, wifi for synching & earphones

9:37 now talking about the dock connector

9:36 improved speakers, improved earpieces with noise cancelling

9:35 three microphones now, bottom, front, back

9:35 720p FaceTime

9:34 "the camera is amazing for taking pics but also great for video"

9:33 the iPhone 5 does large panoramas, the current image shown in 28 MP

9:32 "so we've taken the iPhone 5, taken pictures of it, and these are from the camera, untouched"

9:31 faster photo capture

9:31 sapphire crystal protected lens

9:30 now talking camera, 8MP sensor, 3264x2448, backside illumination, hybrid IR filter, five-element lens, f/2.4 aperture

9:29 now talking battery life. (in hours)

9:27 "see the reflections? the car on the track reflecting dynamically on the bodywork, rearview mirrors that actually function as mirrors"

9:26, demoing Real Racing 3, "they're running entirely on the power of the new iPhone, The graphics have been built to full console quality"

9:26 "Rob Murray: we've known that creating the ultimate racing experience on iOS, with the new iPhone, let's take this to a new level"

9:25 Rob Murray from EA studios, now on stage

9:25 "22% performance jump"

9:24 "A6 chip, 2x faster graphics"

9:23 "The iPhone also now has WiFi 802.11 a/b/g/n"

9:23 now listing world network partners for LTE.

9:21 now annoucning LTE (again, as rumored.)

9:21 They've integrated the touch sensors on the display itself (as rumored), hence 33% thinner screen

9:20 "Everything you do looks gorgeous, This display has 44% more color saturation than iPhone 4S display", full SRGB

9:19 now talking about updates on iWork

9:18 "all the software on the iPhone 5 has been updated"

9:17 "but the new screen is a 4-inch display",16:9 aspect ratio,326ppi,"with added vertical pixels, we can add a 5th row of icons to your home screen"

9:16 "new iPhone 5 is just 7.6mm thick, 18% thinner than iPhone 4S, volumetrically it's smaller as well, weighs 112 grams, 20% lighter than iPhone 4S."

9:14 "made entirely of glass and aluminum, iPhone 5 is the thinnest phone we've ever made"

9:14 "today, we're introducing iPhone 5"

9:13 (Phil talking about how revolutionary the first iPhone was)

9:12 (Phil Schiller called on stage)

9:12 "Now today, we're taking it to the next level, we have some very exciting news to tell you about iPhone"

9:12 "Last quarter, we sold our 400 millionth iOS device"

9:10 "we've recently crossed 700,000 apps in the store, 250,000 iPad apps"

9:09 "iPads are being used by everyone, educators, students, enterprise"

9:08 "Yes we are in a post-PC world"

9:07 now talking about the iPad. "just last quarter, we sold a whopping 17 million iPads"

9:07 "over the last year, the Mac has significantly outgrown the PC"

9:06 "also we released a new MacBook Pro, stunning retina display, the best Mac we've ever made"

1905 Now talking about the number of Apple Stores in the world, now the Mac.

9:04 (Apple store video with some music.)

9:02 Tim Cook now on stage, talking about a new Apple Store in Barcelona, designed for 2.5 years, also using limestone from the local quarry.

9:52 This is my first time live blogging, so bear with me, LOL. September 12, 2012

[via Ars]

Black Mesa Gets Steam Greenlight

2012-09-12T04:34:00.000+08:00

Black Mesa and nine other games gets Greenlight today.

Greenlight is a new Steam feature that allows the Steam community to "vote" on which games to release in the Steam platform. Developers can post their respective games to Greenlight for a $100 fee.

Specifically, 10 titles were chosen via Greenlight:

Black Mesa
Cry of Fear
Dream
Heroes & Generals
Kenshi
McPixel
No More Room in Hell
Project Zomboid
Routine
Towns

The 10 were chosen out of "hundreds of titles [that] have been submitted, with more coming in every day."

"The first set of titles to launch via Greenlight will be released independently in the months ahead (as they are varying stages of completion)," Valve adds. This may mean that Black Mesa will be delayed a few more days, as Valve moves Black Mesa to the Steam Platform.

[Via Steam]

iPhone 5 predicted to boost US economy

2012-09-11T20:29:00.000+08:00

The iPhone 5, to be unveiled this Sept. 12, is expected to give the US economy a noticeable dent.

According to JP Morgan's chief economist, Michael Freoli, sales of the iPhone 5 may add 0.25% to 0.5% to the country's GDP. This is relatively big as that percentage translate to somewhere near $3.2 billion. This forecast "seems fairly large," but the iPhone 4S exceeded forecasts last October, Freoli adds.

Reuters also says that it also is expected that Apple will sell 8 million units of the iPhone 5 at $600 each. The expected profit per phone is $400, the agency adds.

Apple sent out invitations for a press event with an image sneaking in a "5" shadow (shown above) to take place in San Francisco’s Yerba Buena Center for the Arts.

[via Mashable]

Nokia Fakes Lumia 920 Capabilities on Ad

2012-09-07T09:29:00.000+08:00

The above picture is a still from Nokia's Pureview ad for the Lumia 920. Purportedly, the Lumia 920's camera take OIS (optical image stabilization) to a whole new level. The video shows how with OIS, the biker takes videos without all the vibration from biking. Unfortunately, I can't find the original video.

However, something slipped through Nokia's eyes. Viewers saw the reflection from a trailer van of what seems to be a man in a van with professional gear.

Nokia posts a blog post titled An apology is due.

In an effort to demonstrate the benefits of optical image stabilization (which eliminates blurry images and improves pictures shot in low light conditions), we produced a video that simulates what we will be able to deliver with OIS.

Of course, hindsight is 20/20, but we should have posted a disclaimer stating this was a representation of OIS only. This was not shot with a Lumia 920. At least, not yet. We apologize for the confusion we created.

Nokia also includes this video, now using a real Lumia 920. "The difference is apparent", Nokia says, but it's not as good as the OIS in the Pureview ad.

In conclusion, this was a big wrong move for Nokia, a company trying to get itself back in the smartphone game. Also, Microsoft should be wary of what Nokia does with the Windows Phone brand.

New 'Kindle Paperwhite', unveiled by Amazon

2012-09-07T02:22:00.002+08:00

The new Kindle Paperwhite from Amazon is touted to be the most paper-like Kindle ever, prepped with 25% more contrast and 62% more resolution than existing Kindle devices. Amazon will start selling it for $119 for the WiFi only version and $179 for 3G starting October 1.

See the ad below:

[via Mashable]

Camel Thorn Trees, Namibia Explanation

2012-09-06T22:15:00.001+08:00

That is a picture of Camel Thorn trees in a Namibian dessert in Africa. Yes, it is a real picture. It is not a paining nor is it Photoshopped. As proof, it was posted as Photo of the Day by National Geographic.

What you see on the background are not the orange leaves of the trees, they are sand dunes with small white stones. Also, try zooming in the picture and the background looks more or less like the surface of mars.

It makes a good picture. It's a tough shot, the picture was taken at the exact time such that the stones don't cast shadows. The ground is shaded by the sand dune, giving it a blue hue.

If you still don't believe me, here's a shot of the same dessert in another angle.

Black Mesa Set For September 14

2012-09-03T22:47:00.000+08:00

After eight years in the making and missing deadlines, Black Mesa will finally be released this coming September 14.

Black Mesa is a Source Engine game made as a reboot of the disappointing Half-Life: source. The trailer from 2008 announced that the game will be released in 2009. The team didn't deliver, instead stating a "When it's done" mantra.

Note this is just the first half of the game, and the release date of the second part is left unannounced. Maybe another 8 years?

UPDATE: gameplay of a recent build

Fixing an Asahi Pentax S3 with a sticky shutter and curtain

2012-08-30T03:08:00.001+08:00

So we found this 60's camera hiding around with old things. I found that it had a problem with slower shutter speeds, the shutter and the curtain gets stuck. By googling, I found out that it actually was a common problem. Most pages point to oil drying out. I didn't think sending this out for a fix was worth it, so I decided to fix it myself, following my "it's broken anyway" philosophy.

Warning: You could permanently damage your camera, and it will cost more to repair your attempted repair. Also, the very small parts inside the camera can seriously injure you, specially your eyes. Do this at your own risk, I will not be responsible for whatever happens to you or your camera.

Just remove the plates on the bottom and the front. Lightly put oil on the parts highlighted with orange below.

Bottom:

Front:

Once greased, fire the shutter a few times to spread the oil. You can also try adding more oil on the gears. Just estimate how much oil it needs. ~~I put oil on almost everything :P.~~ BE CAREFUL WITH THE AMOUNT OF OIL YOU PUT. It will go everywhere - the curtain, the viewfinder, it'll even be all over the body, greasing your hands when you use it.

Goodluck!

Epic Tea Time with Alam Rickman

2012-08-26T14:00:00.000+08:00

See Alan Rickman (Snape from Harry Potter) have tea in slow motion in Inception sound track. also see him get an irrational outburst afterwards.

After Aperture - Portal 2 Short

2012-08-07T23:41:00.003+08:00

A short, inspired by another fan made material, Chell in The Rain, shows Chell outside of Aperture enjoying the rain for the first time. As I've said before, a cool Portal video comes out every once in a while.

The short was made by Zachariah Scott (Ronaldthecock) using the Source Filmmaker, a movie-making tool from Valve, released last July.

Genesis 8:7-12 and The Philippines

2012-08-07T20:40:00.000+08:00

The bible verse Genesis 8:7-12. People are clamoring about how it's 8/7/12 today, the inclement weather in the Philippines, and the contents of Genesis 8:7-12 being about Noah's Ark.

Frankly, it's just a coincidence. The contents of the verse isn't even about the disaster - it's about floods receding and a dove appearing.

If you don't know yet, Manila experienced 472mm of rain in 22 hours without a typhoon. The previous record was during the typhoon Ondoy in 2009. (source)

Give help to the Philippines - you can donate via Red Cross, you can also drop new/old articles of clothing, food, etc. at the following relief points.

The Lion King Rises Trailer

2012-07-31T23:46:00.001+08:00

Someone made a video that with synchronized scenes from The Lion King with the audio of The Dark Knight Rises trailer. Looks amazing!

Tritium Light Keychain

2012-07-28T04:42:00.001+08:00

A tritium illuminated watch.*

Tritium is a radioactive isotope of Hydrogen. It doesn't pose a danger to the human body since the beta radiation is blocked by the skin. These properties allow it to be used to illuminate anything from street signs to wristwatch hands. The main advantage of using Tritium is longevity - illuminations usually last for more than a decade.

A novelty item that uses Tritium is the Tritium light keychain. It can be bought around the Internet. See video below for a review of such a keychain.

*image from wikipedia

Celebrities Read Mean Tweets

2012-07-27T01:10:00.000+08:00

See Mike Piazza, James Van Der Beek, Katy Perry, Zooey Deschanel, Larry King, David Spade, Kristen Stewart, Matt Leblanc, Snooki, Matisyahu, Justin Bieber read mean tweets about themselves. From Jimmy Kimmel Live!

Nikon D3100 for 20k in the Philippines

2012-07-25T04:22:00.001+08:00

I'm surprised at the current price offered by Kimstore for the Nikon D3100. It is now priced just at Php 19,900. This is cheap considering that the D40 was around 15k second hand not too long ago.

Let's hope I can save enough cash to buy one. This should also push prices of the second hand D40 downwards.

UPDATE: The camera is now available for only 19k pesos. :)

Slender Gameplay Videos

2012-07-24T03:29:00.002+08:00

Slender is an FPS with a Silent Hill-like atmosphere where a man named Slenderman follows you around. Slenderman originally started as a meme. It creates pretty scary reaction videos. Best of all, it's free. Get it here.

See gameplay/reaction videos below.