sungaMagnus

Set Up DD-WRT Router To Use Google DNS/OpenDNS

2011-08-31T15:13:00.000-07:00

Google DNS teams up with OpenDNS and some "Content Delivery Networks (CDNs) to attach location data to the DNS requests, so when you request a web page, it will go to a server near you" [1]

Here's how I update the configuration of my DD-WRT'ed Linksys WRT54G-TM to use Google DNS.

Log into your router's dd-wrt web interface. You can access it using 192.168.1.1 in your browser.
Go to Services tab » Services sub tab » Services Management section » DNSMasq sub section
Enable both DNSMasq and Local DNS options
In the Additional DNSMasq Options text box, enter:

no-resolv
strict-order
server=8.8.8.8
server=8.8.4.4

Click Apply Settings

Reference:
[1]: http://lifehacker.com/5835775/google-dns-and-opendns-users-are-getting-a-web-speed-boost
[2]: http://www.dd-wrt.com/wiki/index.php/OpenDNS
[3]: http://code.google.com/speed/public-dns/docs/using.html

Useful System Statistics Linux/Ubuntu Command Line Program - Dstat

2011-03-02T12:39:00.000-08:00

Sample dstat output from my Ubuntu desktop

I was looking for for a Ubuntu command line program to monitor my desktop's network speed. I found this ubuntuforums.org page that mention dstat. It's easy to install

sudo apt-get install dstat

It not only monitor your network card speed, but also monitor cpu, disk i/o and many more. See the dstat official page for more information.

Btw, here's the dstat man page (manual page)

I Can't Turn On my NSLU2

2011-01-12T22:25:00.000-08:00

Today, I couldn't connect to my NSLU2 at home. After I came back home and found that my device was off and couldn't turn it back on. When I click on power button, the power button blinked once. Oh no, did my NSLU2 hardware fail?????

[Source: http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:NSLU2_Front_resized.jpg]

What would I do? Of course, I will Google it and the 9th result solves my problem.

It turns out the power adapter (DC Output: 5.0VDC 2.0A) is faulty. And lucky I could find a (5V 2.4A) adapter to replace it. (I'm not good at electricity stuff. Hope the extra 0.4A wouldn't do any thing bad to my NSLU2).

Good that I only spend 2 hours to make it works again since it's my little home server.

Arrow Key In Vi Showing A B C D

2010-09-16T12:26:00.000-07:00

[Update: After some discussion with my friends. The following only true for Ubuntu Desktop version. By default, Ubuntu Server version installs full version of "vi". 2010.09.16 1538]

If you are using Vi text editor in Ubuntu and found that entering arrow key (up, down, left and right) resulting the letter A, B, C and D. That's because by default, Ubuntu install "vim.tiny" instead of the full version "vim".

To solve it, it's easy, just install the full version "vim"

sudo apt-get install vim

[via: http://ubuntuforums.org/archive/index.php/t-291853.html]

Picasa New Feature - Face Movies

2010-08-18T18:51:00.000-07:00

Google Picasa releases a new version - 3.8 yesterday. New features include:

Picnik integration
Batch upload from Picasa to Picasa Web Albums
Metadata updates
Face Movie

The most interesting feature is "Face Movie." Quote from their blog.

Face movies create a movie based around one person both figuratively and literally. Instead of the usual transition from one photo to the next, the images align themselves to the face in the photo. This creates an extremely smooth viewing experience which allows the person in the photos to remain the focus rather than the transition effects themselves.

Here is a video I made up in 5 min. (http://youtu.be/UxW6MaXoBfk)

This feature will be good for telling someone's life for a baby or in a wedding.

Here is the video created by Google to introduce this feature. (http://youtu.be/fLQtssJDMMc)

Turn On Home Ubuntu Computer When You are Not Home On Demand

2010-08-07T16:59:00.000-07:00

You can turn on any computer remotely using Wake-on-LAN (or WOL). It's really handy if you need to grab a file from your home computer but you don't want to turn on that computer 24/7 just for one file.

Requirement:

You need to know something about computer/Bios/LAN/Router as I can't explain everything here.
You need to somehow able to be in your home LAN. Possible methods:

You can VPN back to your home network.
You can ssh back to your home server (This is what I do)
You forward port 0,7 or 9 on your home router to your computer. (highly NOT recommended since everyone will be possible to turn on your computer)

Steps:
Let's call your home computer "Computer A" and your other computer "Computer B"

In "Computer A"

Go to your BIOS, and turn on WakeOnLAN. I might be called something else. Look for something like "Wake On Lan," "Remote Wake Up" or etc.
Turn on WOL

Find out your network interface name by "ifconfig". Normally it's similar to "eth0."
Turn on WOL

ethtool -s eth0 wol g
Since the effect of this command only last till next restart, you will need to set up a script to turn it on every time you start your "Computer A" - See Reference 1 - http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=234588 for detail
Find out your network interface's MAC address

ifconfig | grep HW | cut -d' ' -f11-
it's something like "12:34:56:78:9a:bc". Copy it down and turn off your computer.
(Optional) If your "Computer B" is a Windows machine, you will also need to find out Computer A's ip address.

ifconfig | grep "inet addr" | cut -d' ' -f12-12| tr -d 'adr:'
It will look like '192.168.1.127'

In "Computer B"

If it is a Ubuntu or any other Linux distro.

wakeonlan 12:34:56:78:9a:bc
the above command should be sufficient. If it doesn't work, try the command again with port 7.

wakeonlan -p 7 12:34:56:78:9a:bc
If it is a Windows machine, try the following.

wolcmd 123456789abc 192.168.1.127 255.255.255.255 7

Hope it helps someone.

Reference:
http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=234588
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wake-on-LAN
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wake-on-LAN#Sending_the_magic_packet

Cache Ubuntu Update to Speed Up Update and Save Bandwidth

2010-07-28T21:57:00.000-07:00

If you have several Ubuntu machines at home, every time there is a new package, you will need to download the same package several times.
Just found out a package called squid-deb-proxy. You will need to have a server and install

sudo apt-get install squid-deb-proxy avahi-utils

and in other machines install:

sudo apt-get install squid-deb-proxy-client

From now on, "avahi" on the server will advertise the proxy server in your network.
And when you download any package from any of your local machines, it will see the proxy server and download the package through the server.

[via: http://castrojo.wordpress.com/2010/02/28/zeroconfing-squid-deb-proxy/]

Google Street View Arrived @ Hong Kong and Macau

2010-03-11T11:23:00.000-08:00

[Update: Google blogs about Street View in Hong Kong]
[Via blogoscoped.com and gspy.blogspot.com]

Finally, Google Street View arrived at Hong Kong and Macau (only the southern half). It will be very handy next time I go to Hong Kong and Macau.
Here are some places I visited last time I went back to Hong Kong and Macau.
If you can't see the embedded Google Map below, click here.
如果你無法看到下面嵌入的谷歌地圖，請點擊這裡.

Stanley, Hong Kong | 香港, 赤柱

View Larger Map

Hong Kong International Airport | 香港國際機場

View Larger Map

Hong Kong Coliseum | 香港體育館

View Larger Map

The Ruins of St. Paul's, Macau | Ruinas de Sao Paulo, Macau | 澳門, 大三巴牌坊
Note: They don't have it yet. (Will add the Street View if Google updates it)

Restaurante Tenis Civil (Leon), Macau | 澳門, 利安餐廳

View Larger Map

Central, Hong Kong | 香港, 中環

New Toy - Nexus One

2010-02-25T18:49:00.000-08:00

I got a new toy - Nexus One. (Any good app I should try?)

After undated the Firmware to Android 2.1-update1, I got Pinch-to-zoom, Google Goggles and a updated Google Maps. Some cool videos about Nexus One below.

Google Goggles - Search With Pictures Instead Of Text

2010-02-17T12:50:00.000-08:00

Google Goggles is an application for Android phone that search the web with picture instead of using text. Below are some examples from their site:

Search Landmark - Golden Gate Gridge

Enter Contact

Search for Places - "The Diner", "Scarpetta" and "Comix Comedy Club"

They just added a new feature: Translate text in picture. It's currently in beta testing for German-to-English translations only. Check out the video in the blog: Integrating translation into Google Goggles.

1. Take a picture of the German menu

2. Menu Translated

Google GDrive Is Coming (Sort of)

2010-01-12T09:29:00.000-08:00

(Update 1/12 9:38am - Added Google official announcement blog post from Google Blog, Google Docs Blog and Google Enterprise Blog. One more detail: The 1 GB storage limit only count those files that can't be convert to Google Docs formats. That means you can upload as many word documents, spreadsheets and presentations as you want as before.)

According to Michael Arrington from TechCrunch, Google will release GDrive (Google Drive) in the coming weeks. However, it will not be called GDrive or Google Drive, instead, it will be integrated in Google Docs.

Quotes from the blog post from TechCrunch:

... you can soon upload any file type at all to Google Docs, not just the dozen or so Office formats that the service allowed as of yesterday. Video files. Images. Audio Files. Even Zip files. As long as those files are 250 MB or smaller, you’re good.

Regular users have 1 GB of free storage and can purchase more for $0.25/GB. Enterprise customer pay higher prices, starting at $17/year for 5 GB. There are no bandwidth charges.

Three partners have been working with Google to build value add features on top of the new product. The most interesting, Memeo Connect (from Memeo), lets users sync files between the desktop and Google Docs.

Flu Vaccine Locator (Both Seasonal and H1N1)

2009-11-10T12:57:00.000-08:00

Google announced in its blog that collaborates with U.S. Department for Health and Human Services (HHS) and American Lung Association to offer this flu shot finder for U.S. at www.google.com/flushot. Just go to the webpage and enter your city or zip code, it will show the locations that offer seasonal flu shot, H1N1 flu shot or both shots. Here's the map around Monterey Park, CA area.

The locator provides location, phone number, data, time, cost (some of them are free) and the availability of the vaccine. The same flu shot locator will be available on HHS's www.flu.gov and American Lung Association's http://www.flucliniclocator.org/.

Please note that currently the locator only has data from 20 states, but they are adding information from chain pharmacies and other providers in all 50 states. Of course you should call the providers beforehand to find out about more details about the two vaccines.

If you didn't know yet, Google also release flu trends information for 20 countries they gather through people's search term here: http://www.google.org/flutrends/. If you want to know more about how they gather the information, they explains it here: http://www.google.org/flutrends/about/how.html.

Take extra care.

T-Mobile Upgrades Its 3G Network to HSPA 7.2

2009-11-05T12:59:00.000-08:00

T-Mobile 3G users will enjoy the fastest 3G network in US. According to this post from AndroidandMe, T-Mobile users in New York, NY and Chicago, IL start to have the new speed of 3.8Mb/s and 5.4Mb/s, respectively. If you don't know much about the speed(Mb/s), that's faster than the internet connection I got from charter cable internet(advertised speed 5Mb/s but I normally get around 3.2Mb/s), which cost $29.99 per month.

New York, NY

Chicago, IL

For those T-Mobile users doesn't get this speed yet, your wait won't be long. The other post from AndroidandMe reports T-Mobile is on track to finish the deployment of HSPA 7.2 in US by the end of 2009. What's more? They are going to deploy HSPA+ in 2010, which has a speed of 21Mb/s (more than 4 times what I get from home. sigh... )

If T-Mobile's Android phone can upgrade to Android 2.0 OS (Should be able to next year 2010), this speed and the Google Maps Navigation will be a big plus for T-Mobile.

Google Maps Navigation for Android 2.0

2009-10-28T12:31:00.000-07:00

(Updated 2009.10.28-12:53 PDT - Added video for each feature)
(Updated2 2009.10.29-12:47 PDT - Garmin and TomTom's stock drop 12.3% and 23.4%, respectively, yesterday.)

Google releases "Google Maps Navigation" in its blog. Navigation is a free, internet conneted GPS system provided by Google. It requires

Google's newest Android 2.0 mobile operating system (Current only Droid from Verizon uses it)
mobile internet connection

The service currently only limited to United States. And from the blog post, it listed 7 features unique to Navigation:

The most recent map and business data
Search in plain English (video)
Search by voice (video)
Traffic view (video)
Search along route (video)
Satellite view (video)
Street View (video)

Also, they have a car dock mode(video). Below is a video and some screenshots about the service.

Video:

If you don't see the vidoe above, use this link.

Screenshots:

How Should Google Use Its Money To Help The Most People

2009-10-07T07:28:00.000-07:00

Last fall Google asked people to submit project ideas that could help as many people in the world as possible. And they are

committing $10 million to implement these projects, and our goal is to help as many people as possible.

Now Google has consolidated all the ideas into 16 "big ideas." And you get to decide how Google use its money. Go here http://www.project10tothe100.com/vote.html and cast your vote. Act now, voting ends October 8, 2009 (tomorrow).

Here's a list of topics you could vote for:

Work toward socially conscious tax policies
Build better banking tools for everyone
Collect and organize the world's urban data
Encourage positive media depictions of engineers and scientists
Help social entrepreneurs drive change
Make government more transparent
Provide quality education to African students
Create real-time natural crisis tracking system
Promote health monitoring and data analysis
Enhance science and engineering education
Create real-world issue reporting system
Create genocide monitoring and alert system
Build real-time, user-reported news service
Drive innovation in public transport
Make educational content available online for free
Create more efficient landmine removal programs

Here's a video to introduce the Project 10 to the 100 (10¹⁰⁰)

What Is A Browser? What Browser Are You Using?

2009-10-06T12:36:00.000-07:00

Google asked the above question in Times Square, New York and only less than 8% of the people know what a browser is.

Now they want to tell you what a browser actually is by create this Youtube video and a website: http://www.whatbrowser.org. In that site, if you click on "A few useful tweaks", they will detect your current browser and tell you some useful tweaks about your browser. Also, you will find you actually can use other browser on your computer by clicking on "Try a New Browser." My recommendation for browser in this order: Google Chrome, Firefox, Opera, Safari and Internet Explorer.

[via Goolge Blog - http://googleblog.blogspot.com/2009/10/what-is-browser.html]

08/31/09 PHD comic: 'Peak Productivity'

2009-09-01T14:24:00.000-07:00

I used to have the same productivity graph.

08/31/09 PHD comic: 'Peak Productivity': from PHD Comic"

Piled Higher
& Deeper by Jorge
Cham

www.phdcomics.com

title:
"Peak Productivity" - originally published
8/31/2009

"

Points Of View

2009-08-29T00:35:00.000-07:00

Funny. Hehe.

Points Of View: from Geek Hero Comic "
© Salvatore Iovene for Geek Hero Comic - A webcomic for geeks, 2009."

Tech Support Cheat Sheet

2009-08-24T12:13:00.000-07:00

Tech Support Cheat Sheet from xkcd.com:

remember to read the "alt" text by hover over the image.

Bubbles Popping

2009-08-04T19:59:00.000-07:00

Cool Photos.

His Photos was even on News paper.

See more pictures in Richard Heeks' Flickr account.

(Via A CUP OF JO)

Have An Idea To Improve US High-Speed Internet Access?

2009-07-16T19:40:00.000-07:00

If you have an idea or want to vote the best idea, go here National Broadband Plan Moderator.

From the Google Blog, Google and New America Foundation had teamed up to listen to everyone's idea

for what you think the Commission should include in its National Broadband Plan. Two weeks from now we'll take the most popular and most innovative ideas and submit them to the official record at the FCC on your behalf.

If you are interested, go submit your idea or cast your vote. You have less than 2 weeks to act.

Source:
http://googleblog.blogspot.com/2009/07/submit-your-ideas-to-change-face-of.html
http://moderator.appspot.com/#15/e=a4977&t=a60d6

How To Wrap Badminton Racket Grip

2009-06-13T23:17:00.000-07:00

I bought two badminton rackets recently on Ebay and need to wrap the racket grip. I saw someone did it longer time ago, but didn't remember actually how.

What do I do? Google it and found this site with video tutorial.

While searching for above site, I encounter this page that show to how grip the racket, forehand and backhand.

Source:
http://www.badminton.tv
http://www.badminton-information.com

5 Credit Card Company Tricks You Should Beware Of

2009-01-30T15:44:00.000-08:00

I was reading the Lifehacker several days ago and came across this article about 5 credit card company tricks and how to counter them.

If you pay off your credit card bill each time, you might not need to read the article. Otherwise, it's a good read.

The author debunks 5 promises from credit card company:

Promise #1: “As low as 9.99% APR!”
Promise #2: “Up to 5% cash back!”
Promise #3: “0% APR on balance transfers for 12 months!”
Promise #4: Your card has a credit limit of $3000.
Promise #5: “Any time for any reason”

Google Updates Steet View in Google Map

2008-11-25T13:45:00.000-08:00

Google Lat Long Blog posts an update about Street View in Google Map. Street View integrates to Google Map more smoothly. You no longer need to "activate it" by click on the "Street View" icon. You just needs to drag the "pegmen" icon to the map and the street view will be shown. Below is a video from Google introducing other Street View new features.

New Features in Gmail

2008-11-20T08:45:00.000-08:00

Gmail has been releasing new features for the past couple of months. Among those, I would like to introduce 2 security related features and 1 communication feature to you.

Enabling the HTTPS setting
Plain easy text - everyone should enable this option. Enable this option will encrypt (make third party unable to read your email) your email before it is sent to Google's server.
To enable this,

Go to Setting in Gmail
Set "Browser connection" to "Always use https"
Click "Save Changes"
Reload your Gmail

Sign out your Gmail account remotely
If you look at the bottom of your Gmail page, you will see a sentence like this.

It is telling you that you (or someone else) is logging into your Gmail account at 228.58.8.6 (It's an IP address). If you see this, you could click on "Details" and sign out all other session.
Gmail video Chat
Gmail introduced Gmail video Chat last week. You just need to go to http://gmail.com/videochat, download a plug-in and restart your browser.

Once you install the plugin, to start a video chat, just click on the "Video & more" menu at the bottom of your Gmail chat window, and choose "Start video chat."
Of course, you will need a mic., speaker and a webcam to make video chat.
See the following video for more information.

Piled Higher & Deeper by Jorge Cham		www.phdcomics.com

title: "Peak Productivity" - originally published 8/31/2009