The Ace's Place

Firewatch Wallpapers

noreply@blogger.com (addmanrcace) — Sat, 13 Feb 2016 23:55:00 -0500

Firewatch recently released and it is turning out to be a pretty sweet game. They released a couple of wallpapers along with the game, and they are beautiful. Check them out:

Logitech K830 Review

noreply@blogger.com (addmanrcace) — Tue, 2 Feb 2016 12:23:00 -0500

The Logitech K830 is one of the best "Living Room" keyboards on the market. A "Living Room" keyboard is a keyboard that is similar to a remote. It can't control TVs or anything aside from a computer, but it can do everything you need to do on a computer from the comfort of your couch. The K830 is unique for it's illumination feature.

Functionality: 10/10
The K830 is a really nice device. The wireless works up to a more than reasonable distance and the rechargeable batteries last for a really long time. I had been running mine for months before I needed to recharge it and that wasn't because the battery was dead; it was because it couldn't keep connected over the distance I was using it at. A quick recharge and all was well again.

User-Friendliness: 10/10
It is a keyboard, everything just makes sense. Function keys and media keys are all labeled in such a way that there is no question as to what their function is. Charging port is easily accessible. It doesn't need any software on the computer. Pretty darn easy.

Quality: 10/10
Logitech has always made nice products and the K830 is no exception. It is hefty but not too heavy and it is elegant but not intricate. I even took mine apart and the guts are pretty good quality as well. Certainly nothing to complain about.

Aesthetics: 9/10
The K830 looks pretty sexy. It is wireless, illuminated, and has the touchpad built in. I had to deduct a point for one reason though: the keyboard illumination doesn't stay on. This makes sense, after all, they don't want the battery constantly draining. But the lights will turn out after about 3 seconds when you're done using it. As soon as you touch it again, they come back. For most, this shouldn't be a huge deal but it may bother some.

Price Value: 5/10
The kicker: the K830 retails for about $120. While it is an extremely nice product, that is a lot of money for a keyboard. Especially when the next price in Logitech's lineup is $50 and the only loss of functionality is the illumination. If you can find a good sale, it would surely be worth it, but I feel that $120 is much too steep for most people.

Overall: 44/50
The Logitech K830 is one of the best Living Room Keyboards on the market. It boasts an incredibly long battery life and beautiful illumination, but it also boasts a ridiculous price. Like I said, if you can find it on sale, even for $80, I would say that the K830 is well worth it. If you're looking for an illuminated Living Room Keyboard, then nothing comes close.

Anime Inspectors - Anime Reviews

noreply@blogger.com (addmanrcace) — Mon, 1 Feb 2016 22:04:00 -0500

I've recently started another blog that is focused on anime - one of my newfound hobbies in the past few years. Anime is a lot of fun and totally different than the way that most people think it is. There is a pretty bad stigma against anime, which is sort of a bummer since it is such a cool medium.

Anyway, be sure to check out my new site: Anime Inspectors

Thanks!

Techsknowledgy Taking Off

noreply@blogger.com (addmanrcace) — Mon, 30 Sep 2013 00:56:00 -0400

Hi all, in the past few months, I've been taking quite a bit of time to start my own business: Techsknowledgy LLC. After quite a lot of changes, we've finally come to create a defining business that looks like it will do well.

What we do

Techsknowledgy offers services in three areas:

Web Design
Marketing
IT Support

We have a pretty simple pricing plan for each, as well as some packages that we offer at low monthly rates.

You can check out our almost complete site at: www.techsknowledgy.com!

Anyway, The Ace's Place will continue to be my personal blog, and we will start a company blog very soon.

Thank you all!

Ace's Group

noreply@blogger.com (addmanrcace) — Sat, 2 Mar 2013 17:04:00 -0500

The Big Idea

Well, it has begun. I am starting a company for website design and hosting that will focus on customer support. All customers will go through a single agent and we will offer monthly packages for web design, development, and deployment. This doesn't mean that we will not offer support for people that only want design or hosting, but that we will stand out by offering more cost efficient packages for people that want dynamic sites that will grow and change.

Also, the web design and hosting will act as separate entities under the name Ace's Group, and will be called Ace's Web Design/Development and Ace's Hosting respectively (work in progress). Under the hosting side of things, we will offer support for virtually any type of hosting imaginable. From gaming servers to cloud computing and permanent web hosting, we will cover it all. Support will start out in Northern Michigan (Charlevoix area), and we plan to grow and open up several other data-centers around the globe.

What Makes Us Different?

For starters, each customer will have as much control over their needs as they want to, but without doing any work. Each customer will be assigned a single agent that will handle all of their requests and ideas without sending them to talk to an unfamiliar person in a different department. The customer has one person that they communicate with for all projects. Also, featuring design and hosting in the same place will make it much less complicated than most other web developers.

What Will Become of the Ace's Place Blog?

Good question. At this point, I'm not too sure. I'm sure that I will start a blog for the Ace's Group once it is underway and it will most likely be called The Ace's Group Blog. The Ace's Place may become a sort of social network combined with another project of mine called Sleeved Aces. It's hard to say what the future holds, but I most definitely look forward to it. Thanks for reading and I will keep you posted!

Backblaze Online Backup

noreply@blogger.com (addmanrcace) — Fri, 24 Aug 2012 01:00:00 -0400

Online backups are all the rage these days, and for good reason too. Having all of your files securely stored far, far away from your own damaging hands will give you a certain peace of mind. After all, no one really likes to lose all of their pictures, music, and documents. There are a few different services for backing up to the cloud. Carbonite and Microsoft's own SkyDrive are good examples of this. There is a lesser known program that I have found to be extremely lightweight, fast, reliable, and best of all: cheap. Backblaze is an online backup program that offers unlimited data backup for as low as about 4 bucks per year. So, you want in, or just to know more? Here you go!

Unite 2012 Keynote

noreply@blogger.com (addmanrcace) — Fri, 24 Aug 2012 00:15:00 -0400

As I have just begun using and getting used to Unity 3D, I have been rather impressed with the usability and compatibility with other programs. Unity 3D is a game engine that is one of the industry's finest. It has grown a lot since its release and this year, they had a lot of announcements in their keynote presentation at Unite 2012. Some highlights include support for Windows Phone 8, deep integration into flash, and a lot of other previous announcements have been showcased, like the animation integration, scripting and GUI ease of use, and many others. But really, just watch it yourself!

How to Remove a Virus

noreply@blogger.com (addmanrcace) — Thu, 23 Aug 2012 19:42:00 -0400

A Few Quick Steps to Remove a Virus

Aw crap, you have a virus. That can be some nasty stuff sometimes. More often than not, actually. So, you want to get rid of it, but you don't want to pay. (Who does?) Well, I've got good news and I've got bad news... but first, lets figure out if you actually have a virus.

Diagnosis

1. Your computer is off, you press the power button, NOTHING HAPPENS. Probably not a virus.

2. Your computer is off, you press the power button, it turns on and shuts off soon thereafter. Probably not a virus.

3. Your computer is off, you press the power button, and you see a black screen with a flashing cursor. Most likely, and hopefully, a virus.

4. Your computer is off, you press the power button, and you see a black screen with some writing about a boot disk, a PXE Rom, or something that tells you that you aren't gonna move forward. That's probably not a virus, but it CAN be, it'll be easier to test this first.

5. Your computer is on or off, you turn it on or you're just using it, you a blue screen with a lot of writing. It will either stick around till you shut if off, or it will automatically shut you down. This might be a virus, but it could be worse.

So, these four symptoms will make it a lot harder to remove, but you might still be able to do it. The next four will be much easier.

5. Your computer is on, but you can't log in for some ungodly reason. Either you forgot your password, or your User Account is screwed up. If its messed up, every once in a while it can be a virus.

6. Your computer is on, but you cannot access the internet (and you know darn well how to). Could be a virus, could be a bad anti-virus that's mad because you won't renew it.

7. Your computer is on, and - "OH NO! Some program I've never seen is telling me I have 4,000 viruses or they found child porn or the FBI is blocking this due to terrorist activity or I have to re-register all of my programs!" Ya, that is a virus, nothing there is true (or at least highly unlikely).
Note: Anything that won't let you into Windows and is asking you to buy something... is a virus, it's certainly not limited to any of those listed claims.

8. Your computer is on, and all of your stuff if gone. Black screen, no icons, can't see your programs in the start menu, no documents and whatnot. Don't worry, it is all still there. It's a virus that has hidden everything.

The Good News!

If your symptoms are something from number five through eight, this is gonna be easy. With a few simple, free tools you will be back up and running in no time. Hopefully. These are called winvarient viruses. They run once Windows boots up.

The Bad News...

If you have one of the first five symptoms, you might not even have a virus, hopefully you do though. If you don't, it will be much harder to fix, and might require a professional. Even if it is a virus, most of these five will require you to take apart the computer and grab the drive out if it to run an external scan. These are known as rootkit viruses. They are pretty bad, and start to run as soon as the computer is turned on.

Lets Get Rid of These!

Step 1 - 5 are a must for rootkit viruses (or symptom numbers 1 - 5), but will help with winvarients (the rest of the symtoms):

1. Open up your laptop or desktop and locate the hard drive (HDD). The HDD will be a rectangular metal box about the size of your hand, there will be a data cable and a power cable running to it. Unplug and remove the HDD.

2. Plug the HDD into another computer as a secondary drive.

3. On that computer, install Microsoft Security Essentials. MSE is a free anti-virus straight from Microsoft. Its free, lightweight, and extremely powerful.

4. Navigate through "My Computer" and locate the HDD you have plugged in. It might be listed as "D", "E:", or "F:". Right-click on the HDD and then click "Scan with Microsoft Security Essentials...".

5. Once the scan is completed, remove whatever it finds. If it doesn't find anything, chances are you won't be any farther ahead and you have other problems. Either way, return the HDD back to the computer it came from.

The rest of these steps will apply to ALL symptoms:

6. Boot up the computer and press F8 to boot into "Safe Mode With Networking". If it doesn't boot up, then something is screwed up and reloading Windows will most likely fix that.

7. Once you can see your desktop, you need to download Malwarebytes, update it, and run a full scan. Once that is done, remove everything it finds.

Note: If you have no internet connection, download the installer to a flash drive from a different computer and install it on your computer.

8. Restart the computer and load CCleaner, run through the removal, then switch to the "Registry" tab on the side and run a scan. Once the scan is done, hit fix. (You don't have to backup the data)

9. Now, download and run Combofix. This is an extremely powerful tool so don't interrupt it. It will restart your computer, which is good. Wait until there is a full screen notepad window with a bunch of computer mumbo jumbo. This is the log report, that means it is done. Now, restart your computer.

10. On your keyboard, press the Windows Button and "R" at the same time. Type "msconfig" and press enter. A little dialog box will come up. Make sure the spot that says "Normal" is marked. Not "Selective". Selective is bad in the long run.

11. Now, just make sure that you have a good anti-virus set up. I personally recommend the aforementioned Microsoft Security Essentials. It runs smoothly and doesn't use very much of your system resources just to run. Better yet, it's free.

These are optional steps, if stuff still isn't quite right, do these!

11. No internet? We've gotta reset that. This step is going to restart your computer, so be ready. You can download our IP and DNS flushing tool: here.

12. Is your stuff all gone still? Most of it should come back after Combofix runs, but if not, try using the Unhide tool. Works like a charm every time.

If you continue to have problems, there is most likely something else wrong. Take it to a pro, or use my upcoming list! Thank you all and good luck! I really hope I helped someone out.

Flush DNS and IP Addresses

noreply@blogger.com (addmanrcace) — Thu, 23 Aug 2012 19:32:00 -0400

This is a little tool we made at work to flush all of your computer's DNS and IP settings, so they will automatically renew and hopefully make your internet work!

Note: This will restart your computer, so save your stuff if you don't want to use it.

Download link in 3...2...1... Blastoff!

New Horizons

noreply@blogger.com (addmanrcace) — Wed, 4 Jan 2012 23:24:00 -0500

Hello folks! I know it has been an extremely long time since I last posted. A lot has happened since then too! First off, I have a full time job, and I attend college full time. Clearly, that is where most of my time has gone. I would really like to keep updating The Ace's Place maybe... bi-weekly. My plans to become a video game designer are taking off steadily, and I have been teaching myself a lot about the industry. Enough about me though!

I would like to take The Ace's Place in a new direction. I will continue doing reviews of products and games, as well as my opinions of upcoming products and games. I will most likely drop what I had originally planned for the Minecraft video blogs, but I will still do something similar (hopefully). The new stuff that I would like to do will include making tutorials for building computers, cable management, and so forth. Also, every week I would like to have a website spotlight, where I will review interesting websites (large and small).

I would like to thank you, my readers, for keeping with me. Expect to hear from me soon!

Cartograph G Tutorial

noreply@blogger.com (addmanrcace) — Wed, 9 Mar 2011 23:00:00 -0500

Okay, like I promised, I have made a tutorial for Cartograph G since Cartograph isn't working and here it is!

Cartograph No Longer Works - Use Cartograph G Instead

noreply@blogger.com (addmanrcace) — Tue, 8 Mar 2011 21:46:00 -0500

Well, my discovery is that since the Beta 1.3 update in Minecraft, the applet Cartograph can no longer be used. This is presumably due to the changing save system to be more efficient, and since the developer of the applet is no longer active on the forums where he posted it. Alas! There is hope! The community has taken it into their own hands to create something new... something better. Well, I will argue that it isn't better, but Cartograph G does the same thing that Cartograph did. So, I will be posting a tutorial of Cartograph G shortly, but until then, just try to work on it yourself. Here's the download link: http://www.minecraftforum.net/viewtopic.php?f=1022&t=165779.

Crysis 2 Demo Impressions

noreply@blogger.com (addmanrcace) — Mon, 7 Mar 2011 21:35:00 -0500

So, I've spent the past few hours trying out the Crysis 2 Multiplayer Demo. There isn't a ton offered in the demo, but I am pretty satisfied with the game. This demo shows how crisp and refined the game is on levels of gameplay and graphics. One of my biggest letdowns is the seeming similarity it has to Modern Warfare 2. Everything in it is quick and frantic, much like Modern Warfare 2. In Crysis 2 however, the Nano-suit offers some new dimensions to the game such as cloaking and shields. I will state right now that Crysis will require far more skill than Modern Warfare 2 or most FPSs for that matter. This skill sadly seems to revolve around one thing: the Nano-suit. Now, this is only the demo and I'm sure that the full game will offer much more in terms of upgrades and such, so I do greatly look forward to this purchase. If you like the quick pace in Modern Warfare 2, you will love how Crysis 2 is executed.

Killzone 3 for $50!

noreply@blogger.com (addmanrcace) — Sun, 6 Mar 2011 21:23:00 -0500

Once again, Newegg decides to blow the minds of people by offering the brand new game Killzone 3 for just $50. Now, Newegg actually does things like this pretty often. Sometimes even before the actual game comes out. So, if you don't have Killzone 3 yet, and are looking to buy it, buy it from the best online retailer ever: http://www.newegg.com/.

Battlefield 3 Gameplay Footage

noreply@blogger.com (addmanrcace) — Sat, 5 Mar 2011 22:22:00 -0500

Despite being secretly recorded with a cell phone or something, this video is somewhat mind blowing. I find it incredible how refined Battlefield 3 is looking already. I mean, every little aspect just seems perfect. Even then, there's still months left in development. All in all, this video will make you want the game much more than you already do.

Omegle

noreply@blogger.com (addmanrcace) — Sat, 5 Mar 2011 04:47:00 -0500

Omegle is a fun website, though mostly full of trolls. It allows you to talk with complete strangers through text or video. It will provide countless hours of useless fun, but hey, you're bored right? If you haven't checked this out yet, please do!

Battlefield 3 Gameplay Trailer

noreply@blogger.com (addmanrcace) — Thu, 3 Mar 2011 21:53:00 -0500

Alright, it was just released and it has me more excited than ever for the release of Battlefield 3. Some disappointing things to me are the little things that remind of Call of Duty. The dog, the people walking around... but thats just cinematics. Once it gets to gameplay, I realize that this is far superior. Please watch and enjoy!

The Beginning of the End

noreply@blogger.com (addmanrcace) — Wed, 2 Mar 2011 22:20:00 -0500

Well, I have finally gotten myself a job. Yep, an actual job. Of course, that means many different things. For one, I will actually be getting money. That's something that would've been nice while building my computer, but oh well; better late than never right? But it also means another thing... less time. That's the age old tradeoff of money for time, but in my case I think it will work out quite well. A new term in school is starting, and so are some other things for the blog! Keep reading!

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Mojang's Next Game: Scrolls

noreply@blogger.com (addmanrcace) — Tue, 1 Mar 2011 21:45:00 -0500

Well, as I am a huge fan of Notch and his company, I have been following them somewhat intensely. No, not stalking them, but reading up on daily news and personal things. A very recent discovery brings to light something that we have all known about for some time. The company Mojang, which Notch is a part of, announced that they were working on a new game. Their first "try-hard" game. They kept details about it pretty secret until... well today. They finally let out that the game they are working on is called Scrolls. Beyond that and its website, I don't know a whole lot about it. This is however a brand new dimension for the company and as they have stated, they see it going either way. They have established a massive fanbase already with Minecraft, and they think that Scrolls with deter and attract different people. Really though, my only hope is that Minecraft still remains in focus for a long amount of time. Anyway, I will be following the development of Scrolls pretty closely, but for now, check out the site here: http://www.scrolls.com/.

Games to Look Forward to in March 2011

noreply@blogger.com (addmanrcace) — Mon, 28 Feb 2011 21:22:00 -0500

As the new month approaches (must faster than I expected), there is a whole new line-up for good games. Well, and 3DS stuff, which is looking to go expectantly well. Besides the 3DS, I'm listing some games that I expect will top out the charts this month and why. So these are the games you should look into further.
Read more »

XFX 2GB Radeon HD 6950 Review

noreply@blogger.com (addmanrcace) — Sun, 27 Feb 2011 22:10:00 -0500

So, the XFX Radeon HD 6950 is one of the best graphics cards out there. Period. It isn't the best, but the best ones are simply too good to be practical. Well, this one is too, but its much more practical. Anyway, the XFX offering with this graphics card is a double lifetime warranty. When I heard this, my first reaction was: "I don't plan on living more than one life...", but in reality, that means that there is a warranty on it when you sell it to someone else as well, making the all the better. Plus, if you are technically skilled with things like this, a simple BIOS flash, though dangerous, will bump this up to the same specs as the HD 6970. The 6970 IS on the second tier of the February 2011 Graphics Card Hierarchy Chart. So, this card is amazingly good for its price. In my opinion, its the best buy for the ATI side of the chart.

Overall: 48/50
Read more »

New Minecraft Launcher

noreply@blogger.com (addmanrcace) — Sat, 26 Feb 2011 22:33:00 -0500

So, Beta 1.3 came out a few days ago. I feel somewhat stupid for not posting anything about it, but this will have to to. Minecraft.net has been down for most of the day. I figured it was just some maintenance or something. Well, I re-downloaded Minecraft and discovered a new launcher! That's right, a whole new launcher. I may be a little overly excited, but I do think it is pretty cool. It has the latest updates and what they fix/do. And some other basic news. The only real complaint I have is that the actual login part is almost concealed to the bottom. Its not bad though. One of my favorite things is the inclusion of the Minecraft file directory. Click options (next to login) and then click on the directory; you're there! It saves time of searching for it every time. So, thats about all I have to say about that. And for extra effect, heres a screenshot: (Click to make it bigger)

Official Minecraft App for iOS and Android

noreply@blogger.com (addmanrcace) — Fri, 25 Feb 2011 13:06:00 -0500

Mojang (the Minecraft company) has officailly announced that there will be iOS and Android versions of Minecraft due out later this year. This is exciting news for pretty much everybody. We don't have to deal with crappy clones anymore, and instead get the full product! Well, maybe. I expect that this won't be quite as full featured as the actual game will develop into, but it will nonetheless be a great experience. This will be what will spread Minecraft to the ends of the earth! Stay tuned, as I plan to cover this pretty much as soon as I hear about it.

Skyrim Trailer

noreply@blogger.com (addmanrcace) — Thu, 24 Feb 2011 17:46:00 -0500

Well, a trailer was released today (or last night?) for The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim. If you haven't already seen it, you need to see it. And I have graciously provided it to you!

Newegg Electronics Trade-In Program

noreply@blogger.com (addmanrcace) — Wed, 23 Feb 2011 21:30:00 -0500

Well, I know I've recommended Newegg before as the greatest online electronics retailer. I'm doing it again. Except this time, there is more of a purpose. Newegg just recently started their electronics trade-in program. The program is powered by Gazelle, probably the most reliable website for actually getting money for gadgets and such. On Newegg however, the program is tailored to offer you the most for your money. Or Newegg gift card that is. When you do it through Newegg, you will end up with slightly more money, but the money will only be useful at Newegg. For computer people like myself, this is an amazing process, and definitely something I will exploit in the (near) future. For others, use this as a learning experience and start selling your stuff to Gazelle. Well, here's the link to the Newegg process, and beware, it is very new, so all the bugs aren't quite worked out. But you know Newegg will cooperative like always. http://promotions.newegg.com/Gazelle/122110/index.html?cm_sp=homepage_topv1-_-Gazelle/122110Brand-_-http://promotions.newegg.com/Gazelle/122110/980x130.jpg