Zombie OMG!!!!!

LCA2012 Countdown!

2011-12-19T21:09:00.000-08:00

/* Count down until any date script- By JavaScript Kit (www.javascriptkit.com) Over 200+ free scripts here! */ //change the text below to reflect your own, var before="LCA2012!" var current="LCA2012 has begun!" var montharray=new Array("Jan","Feb","Mar","Apr","May","Jun","Jul","Aug","Sep","Oct","Nov","Dec") function countdown(yr,m,d){ theyear=yr;themonth=m;theday=d var today=new Date() var

CarrierIQ - you are being watched

2011-12-01T17:06:00.001-08:00

The CarrierIQ scandal is certainly proving interesting: http://www.osnews.com/story/25384/CarrierIQ_Rootkit_Found_on_Android Most interesting? Apple appear to have been the only manufacturer to voluntarily include this rootkit. It is bizarre to watch the battle for privacy being waged. Most of the keystrokes being logged are likely to be sms messages, emails or social network updates. Your

Motion - adding a dongle

2011-11-30T19:14:00.001-08:00

I forgot to turn Motion off the other day and found a lot of pictures to sort through the next day, mostly of me picking my nose on the couch. So I did this. Below is an Ubuntu script that stops Motion whenever I insert a USB - and starts it whenever I remove it. CHECKUSB=ITSON=1 while : do while [ $ITSON == 1 ] do sleep 5 if [ -d /media/$CHECKUSB

Nerf! Vigilon Review

2011-11-14T15:23:00.001-08:00

I have been eyeing the new Vortex Nerf range with interest for some time now, and picked up the the Vigilon for AUD$20 at Target over the weekend. Pros: The range is fantastic. Definitely better than any of the dart-based weapons in my collection. For those who don't know, the Vortex series uses Nerf disks around 3cm in diameter instead of the standard darts, and it does allow for much

Home security projects

2011-10-18T15:04:00.000-07:00

Lately I have been playing around with some home security projects! The script below takes a series of snapshots using a webcam and uploads these to a Picasa album called Footage. I use this script mainly to quickly check in on the house while I am away ;) First, you will need to install and authorise google-cl: http://code.google.com/p/googlecl/downloads/list Once installed, you should

Linux - automate conversion of Youtube music to mp3

2011-10-17T19:27:00.000-07:00

The following is a basic Linux bash script I use to convert music videos downloaded from Youtube into MP3 format. I have saved all my videos into category subfolders, so my line 7 actually reads for i in ./*/*.*; do #!/bin/sh FROMFOL=folder_full_of_flv_or_mp4_files DESTFOL=folder_to_fill_with_mp3_files cd $FROMFOL for i in ./*.*; do TRIMMED=$(basename "${i}") if [ ! -f "${

Media Centre Update

2011-09-13T17:09:00.000-07:00

It's been a while since I discussed my Media Centre tinkerings, but there have definitely been some changes. The project has been moved to a new system, running Ubuntu 11.04 in Gnome. I have added a DVB receiver and am using Kaffeine as my main PVR software. I did give MythTV and Me-TV a run. Me-TV has a beautiful interface and is definitely a program I will keep an eye on in the future, but it

2011-06-14T21:07:00.000-07:00

As a brief follow up to my Nerf reviews, I have to say that 'Nerf Guns' is one of the best resources for all things Nerf. Some great reviews and pictures, updated very regularly. I don't agree with all of the reviews, but it does provide an excellent second opinion. http://nerfguns.org/ Next post - the future of the retail industry!

Nerf Roundup: Part 2

2011-06-12T02:16:00.000-07:00

This is the second part of my Nerf Roundup. These reviews are based on my collection of Nerf guns, and include some of the Buzzbee range as well. The Vulcan is a big gun. Not quite as big as the Stampede or Longshot, but big. The trigger handle is at the reaqr of the gun, which means it can only really be used with two hands or the stand. The good news is the stand is very good - sturdy and

The Best Things In Life Are Free

2011-05-23T19:23:00.000-07:00

This is a guest post from Janine - thank you Janine for your time and perspective. So I feel like a bit of an intruder on these prestigious pages, as I’m neither a tech-head nor have I spent my life in the service of promoting open source software. Now before you start pelting me with Nerf darts and waving life sized Linus Torvalds cut-outs at me, hear me out. It’s not that I don’t support the

Monday bestLink! (Android && down && bat conversion)

2011-05-22T16:01:00.000-07:00

What should I use for my Android phone data and mms settings? Is Facebook/Twitter/Blogger down for everyone or just me? Can I distribute my .bat file as an .exe without rewriting in VB?

Monday bestLink! (VirtualBox && Linux Backups && Win7 domain membership) #random

2011-05-15T21:38:00.000-07:00

Monday bestLink! A random collection of links I have found useful for these common questions. How do I enable USB Support in VirtualBox? Is there an easy way to make automatic backups on Linux? How do I connect my Windows 7 computer to a work or school domain network?

Nerf Roundup: Part 1

2011-05-10T02:45:00.000-07:00

I have been collecting Ner f stuff with a passion for the last year or so - I thought I might post a review of my current collection for anyone who is interested. The Maverick was my first Nerf weapon and remains one of my favourites. It can fire 6 darts of any variety from its revolving chamber and is highly accurate. Because the tactical rail is on the cocking mechanism, it is cumbersome to

Monday bestLink! (tale of two systems) && (support quickies)

2011-05-08T16:37:00.000-07:00

Welcome back to Monday bestLink! Today focuses on moving between Linux and Windows, as well as quickly getting specs from the non-tech-savvy. Is there a way to automate common non-Microsoft program installations in a method similar to Linux repositories? How do I open an Ext3 file system on a Windows computer? What is the quickest way to gather information from someone on their OS, browser

Monday bestLink! (Changing UAC on Win7 and Vista) && (32vs64 bit)

2011-04-17T22:58:00.000-07:00

I'm starting a regular Monday feature called bestLink, in which I post a few common questions and link to the best pages to obtain an answer! Starting today: How do I turn UAC on/off in Vista? How do I turn UAC on/off in Windows 7? Should I get a 32 or 64 bit computer? If you have a better link, post in the comments! If you have a question you think I should put up next Monday, drop me an

Linux Media Centre Tips

2011-04-14T05:05:00.000-07:00

As you may be aware, I created a Linux Media Centre recently using a retired PC and Linux/XBMC. Steps: 1. Installed Mandriva Mandriva is my personal favourite Linux version. As I had a machine with low memory, a reasonable swap partition was necessary. There were some headaches regarding a wireless card and some other stuff that I related previously. 2. Added the PLF repositories So I can

Sharing Through the (recent) Ages

2011-04-14T00:52:00.000-07:00

"Information wants to be free" - Stewart Brand, 1984 Sharing, and the definition of sharing, has been making the headlines recently. There are several forces looking to action much higher penalties for the sharing of music, media and software. I'd like to give a brief synopsis on sharing in the modern age before I weigh in on this topic. The advent of personal sharing has been influenced by

RSS - make the web come to you

2011-04-10T19:17:00.000-07:00

What are RSS feeds? RSS stands for Really Simple Syndication, and is a way of keeping track of new material on participating websites. Why are they cool? Do you have a number of websites you visit regularly to check for new posts or news? Do you like to view webcomics or follow particular youtube channels? Do you want to be advised of new job advertisements relevant to your industry or new

Remember this, Microsoft?

2011-03-02T17:12:00.000-08:00

I'm weighing in briefly on this issue: http://searchengineland.com/google-bing-is-cheating-copying-our-search-results-62914 Basically, Internet Explorer is feeding back results from the users web-usage to Bing, to improve search results. It is pretty invasive, but hardly unusual behaviour. Both Crome and Firefox google toolbars track certain search actions, and use this to deliver better

BUSTER

2010-12-05T22:43:00.001-08:00

The car was still impounded, so she took the bus.Who really takes the bus during school hours? Senile seniors and scruffy slackers, she discovered. The young bum across from her stared at the floor, his head nodding stupidly to whatever modern filth was emanating from his headphones. Baggy pants, spiky hair with green tips... A boy like that must have pushed Kate. Probably a whole gang of

Adobe DLM (Deliberately Lame Molestation)

2010-10-18T18:42:00.000-07:00

I went to install Adobe Reader on an XP machine yesterday, and noit paying attention to their new default process, have been gifted with the Adboe Download Manager add-on for Firefox. It pops up ads every time I open a new window - thanks Adobe! You can disable this add-on via the Add-Ons option in the Tools menu (this will require a Firefox restart). To get Adobe Reader without installing this

Linux Media Centre tinkering

2010-09-27T21:32:00.000-07:00

I've been working on a little project on and off for the last few weeks - a Linux Media Centre for the living room using an incredibly old machine. I might go into details in a later post, but these are a few interesting points so far. * I started out trying Ubuntu Studio. Unfortunately it just didn't work out for me - I keep trying Ubuntu and being frustrated by little things. In this case it

$2 Challenge musings

2010-09-27T21:09:00.000-07:00

So, our $2 a day challenge is long over, but was definitely an interesting experience. We used rice and cabbage as our main staples, along with bread, cheap cheese and some garlic cloves for seasoning. Highlight meal was some fried rice patties we made - but so sick of rice by that stage! I definitely felt the impact of the reduced diet, but it did make me realise how much we eat that is not

$2 a day challange

2010-09-08T05:52:00.000-07:00

Again, not a tech related blog, but...My girlfriend and I are going to try out the $2 a day challenge - living of $2 a day for the next week (each).We have missed the fundraising drive this event, but will donate towards the cause at the weeks end.http://www.twodollarchallenge.org/I encourage you to do the same as it definitely seems a good cause and an interesting challenge! Thinking lots of

Open Source Support/Training Tools

2010-06-23T17:28:00.000-07:00

Software training/support can be an expensive game. For third parties, it usually involves an initial outlay for the software, and regular software and hardware upgrades to keep current. Even for software vendors, the cost of support software can be prohibitive, and represents money that could be better spent on development.Open source programs offer a way to supplement your toolkit for no cost,