Wish Washy

One legged Ballet!

2008-06-05T16:50:00.003+10:00

You will never say anything is impossible after seeing this video!

Report - What is DNS?

2008-03-17T14:41:00.006+11:00

This is the first of a long series of formal tutorials / reports on many different IT related topics.

This weeks tutorial is on DNS, how it works, and why it is an important concept in internet communications. Enjoy:

DNS is an essential part of the operation of the internet, as it provides a mapping between the mnemonic name of a domain on the internet and its corresponding, machine-readable numeric IP address. The domain name space consists of domain names organised into a tree-like structure. Within this tree are top level domains (TLD’s), eg .com and there are second level domains (SLD’s), which include the TLD’s in their name eg google.com. Below that, any number of sub-domains can be created. For example, the domain csu.edu.au is read from right to left, with each point representing a separate domain. Fig 1 shows a sample of the DNS name space. Note that there are Generic TLD’s, and country-level TLD’s. The domain csu.edu.au is highlighted.

This tree structure divides into areas called zones. Each zone has a number of nodes, which have an associated Resource Record (RR), which describes the IP address, name server etc. The nodes within this zone are administered by an authoritative DNS name server. This server is responsible for maintaining all of the RR’s within its zone. The DNS name server will maintain the list of RR’s in a DNS distributed database. Each organisation is responsible for managing its own set of domain names.

When a domain name is entered, a Resolver (a program designed to interrogate the database for RR’s) queries the name server by sending a DNS request, to which the name server responds with the relevant IP address. If the name server does not have a record of the address, it will query other name servers, even the root name server. When it receives a response, it will send it to the originating computer, and may check the RR time to live field, and store it in the cache for that period of time. Address resolution works as follows: The local DNS server has a list of addresses of all the Root servers on the internet. The address (eg csu.edu.au) is read from right to left, and the local DNS server queries each corresponding DNS server for each domain in the address to find the address of the next DNS server. This continues until the final address is returned by the last DNS server.

An example of the setup of DNS tree structures and the function of DNS servers is shown for Charles Sturt University’s (CSU) domain.

Charles Sturt University's (CSU’s) DNS name is csu.edu.au. This domain is a sub domain located below the top and second level domains. There are three DNS servers, each residing in geographically separate locations: csunb.csu.edu.au at the Bathurst Campus, csunw.csu.edu.au at the Wagga Campus, and csuna.csu.edu.au at the Albury Campus. Each of these DNS servers would serve and administer their own zones within the CSU domain. These DNS servers have many responsibilities. They answer all requests of other name servers that query the address of any name within the CSU DNS name space. Each server holds the DNS database of RR’s for each of the nodes within its authoritative zone. A resolver within the server interrogates the database every time a DNS request is presented to the server.

he CSU DNS servers also respond to internal DNS requests and return the correct IP address of a domain. For example, a lecturer within the CSU network enters www.google.com.au into their internet browser. The resolver within the DNS server queries the database, and if the RR for that domain exists, returns the address. If not, the DNS server will query other name servers, until the address is found, and then returns it. Each server will maintain the sub-domain that it authorises. Eg the csunw DNS server would most likely administer the riv.csu.edu.au DNS name, among others. A small sample of the csu.edu.au domain structure is shown as an extension of Fig 1 below (Fig 2). Note that there are an endless number of sub-domains that could be included, and each of the 3 DNS servers would administer a zone within this sub domain:

Weekly Link-fest

2008-02-26T14:01:00.003+11:00

Another week, another batch of good links. Enjoy...

Useful links

- 50 Directories to Submit your blog to - For free
- Tutorials for any topic, photoshop, software etc
- 35 things to avoid at an interview
- Guide to Installing Wordpress on a Windows machine
- Brain wave controlled gaming
- Mouldable / Moulded mouse
- Blue lounge space station - fix your cable mess for good
- Find your Windows XP CD key in 10 seconds
- Tabs generator

Time Wasters

- Worlds strangest clocks
- Cool Cloth physics page
- Endless / Senseless collaborative book
- Trees eat anything
- Funny pranks you can play on your workmates computer
- Introducing the Eyeclops!

20 Things that culturally define Australia - A must read

2008-02-19T17:57:00.002+11:00

Courtesy of the-trukstop.com, comes a great article for anyone with preconceptions about what constitutes an Australian.

So for all you uneducated people who have no idea about how similar Aussie lifestyle is to yours, give yourself a punch in the head, then read this list:

20 Things that culturally define Australia

Exploding Computer error!

2008-02-18T15:50:00.003+11:00

Heres a wierd one for all you techies out there to answer. Have a look at the following image, taken from one of our Servers at work:

Anyone who can tell me how that message would end up on the desktop gets a shiny Cracker. (And no it is not a photoshopped image).

What Ive learnt about successful blogging in the past 3 weeks...

2008-02-18T13:47:00.004+11:00

Although I wouldnt call my blog successful in any way, I have noticed an undeniable trend in regards to professional bloggers:

The number one key to being successful in blogging:

Blog about how to be successful in blogging.

Its as simple as that. Sure, the top blogs are Tech blogs, but that just means you cant get in, unless you are very lucky. Money making blogs are the most popular, as are SEO optimisation blogs and the like.

For example, problogger.net is widely regarded as one of the best blogs around (and an Aussie to boot!), as is Copyblogger and John Chow. John's blog title is also very fitting "I make money online by telling people how much money I make online". (As a side note: have a look at this article, which details well the battle with John Chow and Google) Heck even spinoff blogs have made it big telling people how to make money online. You know your onto a winner when even a spinoff site can make big moeny. Check out John Cow for an example.

Each of these sites are great, and are a testament to just how many people there are out there wanting to have a piece of the pie.

However, these people know (as do most people) that 99% of bloggers will not make decent money blogging. I am probably in that group. Im not saying they are exploiting people, rather they are capitalising on people's dreams: making money, fast, while working (part time) from home.

Blogging is a paradox. The most money to be made is by telling other people how to make money. Its like a never ending spiral of money making and teaching. Also notice that a number of posts in these money making blogs are strangely similar, with just a small twist to the theme of the posts.

Everyone has seen the boom in blogging, and wants a piece of it. There is money to be made in telling people how to do it, and not a great deal of easy money in actually doing it...Makes you wonder if what we are doing is worth it...

A parting thought: What if everyone decided to blog about becoming a successful blogger, and no one actually blogged about decent information??

mmmmmmm - Yummy cracker....Wait....What?

2008-02-16T15:51:00.005+11:00

Background info:

Our company is owned by a Japanese company, and hence we have many Japanese visitors to our site. While on site, one Japanese man brought us some Japanese Crackers, all the way from Japan (funnily enough).

No worries, I thought, after lunch snack. That is, until I turned it over:

What the freak is that? A stay fresh packet? Jeebus, I hate to think how old that cracker is. Looks like it could be as old as me... Probably not a health risk, just turned me way off it.

Im not the only one, I see that every desk still has the cracker sitting on it. Im sure as hell not going to be the first to try it.

Its still sitting on my desk, ill eat it if I get 15 comments daring me to do so...

Troubleshooting Network Issues - Part 1

2008-02-16T15:41:00.006+11:00

In my line of work there are hundreds of problems yearly with network connectivity losses. As such, I have developed an informal list of tools and tricks to diagnose and fix network problems. Until now, this list has been stored safely in my head, but I would like to share with you the steps I go through to diagnose network connectivity issues. I try to make the steps systematic, by testing for the most common problems first, and then moving on to more specific issues.
Although this list is both for home and business networks, note that some of the items in this list cant be done for a home network.

This is a multi part series of tips, with this first one being an overview and showing you how to make sure you really do have a problem, and maybe (if your lucky) know where that problem lie. Subsequent parts will go into much more detail on the nitty gritty of network management and troubleshooting.

Before we start, from experience I can tell you that most network connectivity issues wont be caused by faulty cables (but some will). This is a common misconception. Unless a cable has been moved or put under some sort of strain, it wont become faulty all by itself.

Another quick message before I begin. When searching for network problems, it helps to understand exactly what happened to make the network connection fail, because you can bet your bottom dollar a similar issue will occur again, either on the same station or a different one.

A sure-fire way to understand network issues is to only change one thing at a time. I repeat, Change one thing, then test. I cant make this clear enough. Network diagnostics is naturally a trial and error process, and therefore experience and understanding is necessary to diagnose a problem faster.

1. Try to ping another computer. Preferably a server on your network, or a computer that you know is on and connected to the network. This proves or disproves there is a problem with the network connectivity. Use the following procedure to ping a computer.

Open the start menu, and select Run.

type cmd into the text box.

This will open the Command window. Type ping [servername] and hit enter.

An example of a ping command on my network: ping home1, where home1 is the name of the server I am trying to reach.

A successful ping should return something similar to the following:

pinging home1 [200.20.200.200] with 32 bytes of data:

Reply from 200.20.200.200: bytes=32 time<1ms ttl="">
Reply from 200.20.200.200: bytes=32 time<1ms ttl="">
Reply from 200.20.200.200: bytes=32 time<1ms ttl="">

Ping statistics for 200.20.200.200:Packets: Sent = 4, Recieved = 4, Lost = 0 (0% loss);
Approximate round trip time in Milli-seconds:
Minimum = 0ms, Maximum = 0ms, Average = 0ms

An unsuccessful ping will tell you there is a connection problem somewhere on the network, be it hardware or software related. A failed ping will be as follows:

pinging home1 [200.20.200.200] with 32 bytes of data:

Request timed out.
Request timed out.
Request timed out.
Request timed out.

Ping statistics for 200.20.200.200: Packets: Sent = 4, Recieved = 0, Lost = 4 (100% loss);

The above step will prove or disprove that there is a problem on the network. If there is, then continue:

Another equally simple way of seeing if a problem exists is to check the network connectivity icon. Doing this is simple:

- Go to Start > Settings > Control Panel > Network connections.

Here you will see the network connections currently enabled on your computer:

- Locate your current network connection, and see if it is connected. If there is a "network cable unplugged" error, then you have a problem somewhere with the cable.

2. Check the cables. Ok, so this step is contradictory to my previous statements, but I will explain. Physically looking at the cables is one of the fastest diagnostics you can do. You would not believe how many times someone has unplugged their network cable for no reason, then wondered why they couldnt get their email. All you need to do in this step is see if the cable isnt plugged in, or if it has any obvious damage. A subsequent step will go into more detail of testing the cable.

Ok, im going to leave it at that for now. I hope this has helped you to determine if you have a real problem or not.

Be sure to stay tuned, because there are several parts to this guide, coming to you, weekly. Next weeks will go into the next level of detail for network troubleshooting...

Guide to email etiquette

2008-02-15T08:27:00.012+11:00

In light of the continuous trend towards Instant Messaging, I thought I would post a guide to writing emails, and the differences between email and IM.

The following tips should be taken into account for anyone who uses email on a formal basis; be it for work, or communicating with family etc.

Top tip: Dont use IM terminology in emails - ever:

There is a big difference between IM and email, but it seems to be shrinking for some reason. I cant count how many times I see "Hey wat up? Hows life wit U? Saw Jim the other day, and I was like WTF?!?" Thats IM talk, not email talk.

Email is now the prime medium for business communication. Nothing will beat a phone conversation for communicating effectively, but there are many more emails floating around than phone conversations.

However, this doesnt mean to structure your emails like a presentation, as they are in essence a communication and conversational tool. The key is knowing when to be formal, and when to be informal (but not too sloppy).

So the top tip today is to always type in correct language in email. It cant take that much more of your time or effort to do so, and those that dont know what WTF, GTG, ROFL, and LOL mean will thanks you for it.

Dont SHOUT!

In the computer world, using capitals in writing is considered shouting. Not only is it hard to read, it is also considered rude. The recipient gets the impression while reading that you are shouting at him or her for some reason.

Make your intent clear

One major problems with email is the lack of cues a person can use to determine the sender's intent. For example, in a phone conversation, the recipient can tell if a person is playing a joke by saying "you should tell the boss I said he is an ass" by the way they talk light heartedly and laugh, but in an email conversation, this may be interpreted as a seriou request or threat.

It is therefore imperative that you make your meaning and intent absolutely clear. If a message can be misunderstood, chances are it will, landing you in hot water.

Know when to use Formal signatures

This tip is not necessarily gospel, but in my personal opinion it is commonsense and courtesy to be wary of when to use formal signatures in email.

Formal signatures whould only be used in emails sent to external sources. Signatures are a handy way of conveying contact and qualification details. However, chances are one of your work collegues already knows everything about you, and doesnt give a rats about your qualifications.

So the best thing to do for internal emails is to leave the formal signatures out. Having a simple end to internal emails also gives the impression that it is a more personal message.

In regards to replying to emails, you should also never use formal signatures. This is common knowledge. If you sent the first message, your details will already be in the email, if you were sent the email first, they already have your details, dont spam them again.

Use the subject field

I dont know why this is so hard for some people. The subject field is one of the most important pieces of information. Without it, a person does not know what the email contains. They can open it to see what it is about of course, but who wants more spammers knowing their email is active??

It also helps when categorising and sorting email. Those without a subject field can be hard to sort, or can take valuable time reading them again.

Use the BCC option

This is simply for the privacy of the recipients. If your email is to be sent to many people, you should use the Blind Carbon Copy field.

The BCC field is simpy a CC field, but is hidden from the view of the recipients. I, for one, dont want my email address to be spammed to however wants to see it, so use this courtesy tool well.

Dont forward junk mail

This is a big one for the email beginners out there; Dont forward your junk mail to us. There are many reasons why this is a bad idea:

- It lets spammers know that yours (and our) emails are active, opening the door for huge amounts of spam.
- It clogs our inboxes. We dont want your crap, keep it to yourself.
- It could contain viruses. A lot of junk emails contain hidden viruses, which are designed to be replicated to any email address it gets forwarded to.
- Above all; No, we dont want ink cartridges for half price, we dont want to know about the bad things that happens to us if we dont reply to that email, we dont want the latest in Viagra research...

Dont babble on

This is an important point for me. Its fine to babble in your blog or on your website; people dont have to read it if they dont want. But dont babble in your emails. People are busy, and dont have time to read pages long emails. If you keep it short and sweet, you can get your message across a lot clearer, and you avoid the risk of someone not reading the email due to it being far too drawn out.

This last tip is both a security measure for you, and a common courtesy for others:

Use an email junk filter and antivirus email scanner

This helps to keep the junk email away, and also the viruses that accompany them. This is both for your benefit (less junk email, less risk of being infected) and for your recipients (less chance of second hand infection, less junk email to be forwarded).

I recommend using Spambayes for your junk email filtering. It uses a learning system for sorting junk email and legitimate email. You teach it what is good, and what is junk. Expect a few false positives, and a few false negatives at the start, but once you teach the program, it is a powerful tool.

For email virus scanning, I use CA Etrust Antivirus. It is not a free antivirus however. I recommend AVG Antivirus for those of the tight-wallet.

Free backlinking for everyone

2008-02-14T09:44:00.006+11:00

Heres a good game to try; Lets see how big it can get:

*Start Copy Here*

You do not have to be tagged to play along. This game is simple and so are the rules.

1. Copy from *Start Copy Here* through *End Copy Here*

2. Add your site(s) to the list. Just be sure to post at each site you add.

3. Tag or don’t tag, your choice, however, the more tags you create the bigger the list will grow.

4. Let me know your blog’s name and url by leaving me a comment. I will add you to the master list - this is done by contacting http://www.platinumpicks.blogspot.com/ which is a stock picking site owned by me, Nick Darpino/ http://www.dailydaytrades.com/

5. Come back and copy the master list back to your site, often. This process will allow late-comers to get as much link benefit as the first ones in.

1-Attitude, the Ultimate Power 2-Juliana's Site 3-Rusin Roundup 4-Grow Rich Along With Me 5-Comedy Plus 6-lynda's loft 7-Amel's Realm 8-MAX 9-Speedcat Hollydale 10-Mariuca 11-Complain Complain Complain 12-Mariuca's Perfume Gallery 13-Life Is A Roller Coaster 14-Sugar Queen's Dream 15-First Time Dad 16-Life 17-My Life 18-The Painted Veil 19-My Thoughts 20-DatCurious.com 21-Little Aussie Cynic 22-A Nice Place in the Sun 23-DatMoney.com 24-The Down Side OF Up 25-Ladyjava's Lounge 26-Cat Tales 27-moms.....check nyo 28-Colorado Baby 29-It's a Woman's World 30-ENLIGHTENED BITS 31-My View of "It" 32-My Reviews and Finds Along the Way 33-Our Hep Chat 34-Rantings of a Woman 35-The Callalily Space 36-Mom Knows Everything 37-Hazel 38-Chronicles and Tales Unlimited (RED) 39-From the Mouth of Jabber Jaws 40-Sunny Side Up Foodie & Lifestyle 41-Carmel Corn 42-Daily Stock Picks 43-The Whole New World 44-Wifespeak 45-Slavery Bliss 46-Rooms of My Heart 47-Unpredictable Life 48-My Life, My World 49- At Your Service 50-All About Ebay 51-Everything Amazon 52-Turn On, Tune In, Drop Out 53-My So-Called Site 54-New Wife Blog 55-Tendre Poison 323 56-Nick's Bytes 57-My Scratch Pad 58-Choc Mint Girl 59-Life Is Just Around the Corner... 60-Amori, poseia, art... virtuali by Hanna 61-Maryannaville 62-monaco - monaco's 63-Nyumix's Blog 64-read my mind - my keyboard monologues 65-Shower You Children With Love - The Right Way 66-Secret Agent Mama 67-Pinaymama's Diary 68-Answers to the Questions 69-Work of the Poet 70-A Total Blog 71-My life, my hope, my future 72-NORTE 73-A Window to Our World 74-Life as a Mom 75-FIELD OF DREAMS 76-lisgold 77-See Me for What You 78-Caught in The Stream 79-Pinay Mommy Online - My Home 80-foster me up 81-CRUEL VIRGIN 82-Garden of Moments in Blog 83-So Cute 84-Love Everlasting 85-WeLcOmE To My CriB 86-WELCOM TO PINAYSMILE'S JOURNEY 87-Ice's Icelog 88-Jenny's Wandering Thoughts 89-Hobbies and Such 90-Sweet Paradise 91-Mommy's Gibble Gabbles 92-Rusin Review's 93-My Small World 94-Little Peanut 95-Online Ramblings 96-My Mood My Feeling 97-BLOG it with ALLEN 98-Entertainment World 99-Let's Go Singapore 100-Firelynx 101-Catsy Carpe Diem 102-Every Beat Of My Heart 103-Always Da Fresh Princess 104-Listening.. Learning..Living 105-All About Mars 106-Syii From Afar 107-Some Thoughts I Have 108-From Here and Beyond 109-My Paid To Blog 110-Scholarship Corner 111-Cell Phone Review 112-"Apples of the Eyes" 113-It's All About Play 114-The Luttrull Journey 115-RennyBA's Terella 116-Unchained Melody 117-Out of the Blue 118-The Lure Of the Unknown 119-Maricel's 120-my blog 121-Spiff, the Spaceman 122-Living Well 123-The Dog Log 124-Catnip Corner 125-A Piece of Idea 126-Observations From the Back 40 127-Poetry by The Redneck Gypsy 128-Odd Facts 129-Juliana's Lair 130-My life is murphy's law 131-lisgoldsmemoirs 132-My memories, as time goes by 133-Somewhere over the rainbow 134-Blogging by Sandee 135-Our Journey to this so called life 136-Idaho Daily Photo 137-Memories that Never Fades.. 138-Anything goes 139-Your Caring Angels 140-Little Paces 141-Laketrees 142-PoeARTica 143-fracas 144-Just FraCas 145-Archies Archive 146-Growing Up Together 147-A Woman's Diary 148-Mother's Got A Dot Com 149-Close To You 150-Hot Shit Form Here 151-Astro Galaxy 152-Detector 153-Beauty is in the eye of the beholder 154-My Life is Peachy 155-The Down Side of Up 156-Magical Milestones 157-In Search of Life 158-RebelationsdotNet 159-Jen Jen's Place 160-Mimi Writes... 161-Strange but true 162-Depois de minha viagem 163-Your Perfect Wedding: 164-Make Money Online 165-Primitive Ornies and Bowl Fillers 166-Vegetarian Diet Lifestyle 167-Looking Out For You 168-BENOLSATUEM 169-OtherSide 170-Hacko's Site 171-where was I 172-Making Money Resources 173-text's Site 174-Movie Corner 175-Rahasia Bisnis Internet 176-Online Dating Tips 177-Beauty Kissing Tips 178-Forex Trading Tips 179-Singapore Tour Guide 180-PPC vs PTR 181-Indonesian Film 182-Adsense Success Stories 2008 183-Bali Tour 184-Paypal Indonesia 185-Review Bisnis Internet 186-Blog Daniel Scardua 187-Much of a muchness 188-Gagiers Amazing World 189-Clumsy Mommy 190-Leaotheblogger 191-PBDesigns Reading and Crochet Blog 192-Gagiers Striking Zone 193-DrowseyMonkey 194-Yesterday Today n Tomorrow 195-Auntie Dar's Life 196-Sky Windows... 197-Filippino Life Abroad 198-Leao the Blogger 199-Zoop's Rantings on Life 200-My Journey 201-A Sweet Taste of Life 202-This is a Miracle 203-Lavanderia Virtual 204- Nancies's Web - Family Life 205-Dating Profile of the Day 206-my wooden robot 207-My World 208-urban : trendy : lifestyle 209-Lucel Juliana's Library 210-Cooking Momster - My Life Journal 211-Anggie & Jeremy boy Online Journal 212-'Doc Doc Doc' 213-Transforming My Life 214-Gratitude Journal 215-Simplydunn.net 216-emila's illustrated blog 217-AZZY'S BLOG-A-ROONIE! 218-MAMABLISS' TREASURED MOMENTS 219-The Sky's the Limit 220-PROJECT HEAVY TRAFFIC 221-just another ordinary story.. 222-Samuel Rolo 223-The end mission! 224-R S S Submissions 225-Laice's Pics 226-Health and Fitness 227-Brainybimbo 228-Journey with WaterLearner 229-Zoop's Rantings on Life (at Blogspot) 230-Dear Me (Ivan) 231-Tour the Tabon Caves 232-Book Calendar 233-Love me. Hate me 234-Everyday health and beauty 235-BLOGANDO & ANDANDO 236-Memoirs.:*CRoSs mY hEARt*:. 237-The Chic Shopaholic 238-CK Go Places 239-Red Empress: Hell Flavored, Taste like Valentine 240-QUEENBEE 241-Le bric a brac de Cherie 242-jaqqq in the blogs 243-Bijoux & Banter 244-When Silence Speaks 245-MadTomatoe's Blogging Tools and Widgets 246-Conceptis addict 247-Madamoiselle 248-My Wooden Robot Blog 249-A Simple Life 250-It's a dog's life 251-A Technocrat's Blog 252-Misty's Words 253-My Dogs Keep Me Sane 254-New England Lighthouse Treasures 255-NoDirectOn (not: NoDirection) 256-Additional BlogLOve 257-I am DZOI 258-Caroland's Breathtaking Adventure 259-Blur Ting 260-Rojoy's Daily Update 261-Down River Drivel 262-Momhood Moments 263-Real World Mom 264-REALWORLDMOMUNPLUGGED'S WEBLOG 265-Lucca D Jiwa 266-AngrianiWorld 267-Marketing•Review 268-sejuk sesangat 269-Everything and then Some..... 270-Gbex...reachingOut 271-Heart of Rachel 272-The working mom / Finding balance... 273-Madamoiselle ver.2 274-Latest Keyword 275-Tanny's Blog 276-Pay to Review 277-Happy Life 278-Pet Haven 279-Teratak Nurani 280- A Melhor Novela de Todos os Tempos do Ãšltimo VerÃ£o 281-TYNIE World 282-Wanmus's Blog-get cheapest web hosting 283-mokkikunta 284-BLOGHIT, POLIBLOG, TOP TOPICS 285-none of your business 286-Expat Travels 287-The Poor Mouth 288-GIRLIEGEEK.ORG 289-Tau Tau 290-Points of View 291-kimf3's Blog 292-Bing-My Treasures 293-Everything Green 294-The Pipeline Fixation 295-~Menempuh Arus Masa-Life-Photography~ 296-Pea in a Pod 297-{Me and Mine} 298-Beblan Anak Tukang Jahit 299-How Bourgeois 300-Julie's Blog 301-Emphbone 302-Simply the Best 303-Euroangel Graffiti 304-My Daily Nourishment 305-the worldwideweb addict 306-(¯`·._.· PalavraS ArticuladaS ·._.·´¯) 307-The Big Life 308-Wild Borneo 309-Failure is the Key to Success 310-The muxic box's memories 311-What Goes Under the Sun 312-Cronaca di Gatteo 313-Angelika's other blog 314-So Real 315-Jaque 18 316-Overtime 317-When Life Becomes a Book 318-On the Bricks 319-Central Perk New York 320-The Simple Life of a Baghag 321-BlogBlast For Peace: The Official Site 322-Miss Cellania 323-Miss C Recommends 324-homeschooling.teacherjulie.com 325-belolats.com 326-The Original Blue Ribbon Bloggers 327-No nonsense Internet Tips 328-Its Not a Weekend; Its a Lifestyle 329-myfavehangout.com (Rich Valla) 330-Blog District 331-Official Travel Guide 332-EMJEI SAYS 333-www dot project rasso dot org 334-Work At Home Opportunities 335- VirusHead 336-Gracie de Guzman 337-Jollyjo 338-Jollyjo.tv 339-Ev Nucci's THE CAREER STRATEGIST 340-Ev Nucci's Resource Economics..Grease your brain 341-MARKETING MYSELF 342-NORTE 343-ACROSS THIS BRIDGE 344-STRUGGLING PARENTS 345-Read Between the Lines 346-Internet Lifestyle 347-THE SLEEPING TURTLE ART GALLERY 348-HIDUP BIAR SEDAP 349-BLOG ABOUT RICH 350-7101 Islands 351-Binding Ink III by Ndp the Poetress 352-mutiara hati 353-GreenBucks 354-Istilo Pinoy 355-Sweet and Complex Living 356-Angelika 357-my thoughts in writing 358-sharingplatform 359-Just the way it is... 360-LUCID CREATIVITY (Nelle-MyVirtualWorld) 361-TEACHERJULIE.COM 362-Bits and Pieces 363-Confessions Of A Breathing Tote Bag 364-My Joys 365-Fiction Earth 366-... My Precious ... 367-MY VIEWS ON MY SO CALLED LIFE 368-A Reality Bite 369-Cobb Community 370-Angelea's Blog 371-Janeth Vicy's Life Journey 372-NinaRepublic 373-Peaceful Mind 374-ME, MYSELF + 2 375-Mommy Jane and Little Sophia's Fasion misADVENTURES 376-ONKNEES - ITS NOT WHAT YOU THINK..... 377-SHEENISM 378-SAILIN' THRU LIFE (ASecretPlace) 379-Project Management Tutorial 380-Labindalawang Piraso ng Kokomban 381-Gorgeous Traveller 382-Sharing Gifts and Ideas 383-MUMBLINGS 384-Because Life Is Fun 385-PsychPatient MD 386-Everything Is Free 387-BRAINY MOMMY 388-Simply Unique 389-precious moments 390-Pearly Scripts 391-LIGHTNING AND THUNDER 392-Rayani Friends 393-WORK CULTURE 394-Psychology 395-Gold News 396-Applied Psychology 397-Scientific Psychology 398-Backwoods Drifter 399-New Beginning 400-Life in General 401-Life Is Like That (That's Life) 402-Life With Roxxymetal 403-SEXY MOMMA 404-The Z Files 405-I'll Never Forget the Day I Read a Book! 406-DOODLE PAGE 407-Escape Hatch 408-The Official Afterslaughter Weblog 409-Mommy's Little Corner 410-MALTED MONKEY 411-MOM AND THE CITY 412-Life with the Two Crazy Dogs 413-the joys (and pains) of being a woman (My Untamed World) 414-Making Cents-Sense of Technology 415-USER GAME REVIEWS 416-Write Shy 417-DOMANTYS.net 418-ZWANG 419-ANYTHING GOES! 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Underbelly TV series - Banned in Victoria

2008-02-14T08:57:00.003+11:00

For those readers who are not from Australia, heres a quick overview of Underbelly:

Underbelly is a 14 part miniseries airing on free to air television. It is the story of the Melbourne Gangland wars, and the deaths and crimes during these times.

The show stars Vince Colosimo (who I must say plays and excellent role), A prominent Australian actor, playing Alphonse Gangitano, noted for his part in the underworld killings.

The show has a huge list of top Aussie actors, and promises to be compelling viewing.

The show hasnt been without controversy, however. Justice Betty King of the Supreme court banned Underbelly from being aired in Victoria, due to the belief that it could prejudice the trial of a Melbourne gangland figure currently being tried.

This proved unsuccessful, naturally, as within just half an hour of screening, Underbelly was available to download on Pirated websites.

Seriously, though, do these people want the public to turn to pirating to get the shows they want to watch?? I mean, im sure people can determine the difference between a television show and a real life trial! One of the biggest reasons people pirate television shows and movies is because of the fact that certain areas get to watch the shows before other areas. If worldwide releases were concurrent, the pirating issue would be far less critical as it is now...

As of this morning, over 600 people have downloaded the episode from Torrent websites.

Email...

2008-02-13T08:01:00.001+11:00

Stumble upon this great cartoon, showing just how reliant we are on, and how dominant, email is in our world. Courtesy of WeBlogCartoons.

A real contest - Site hosting for 2 years and support for transferring your blog

2008-02-13T06:13:00.000+11:00

Im not huge on the contests running around blogs at the moment, but im going to get on this one. BloggingMix is holding a worthwhile contest, giving away:

- A 2 year hosting service at Siteground.com

- A Block magazine wordpress theme

- Support for transferring your blog to Wordpress

- Support for setting up your blog in Wordpress

- 1 months support after setting up the new blog

The contest is run on the basis of points. The more points you earn, the better your chances of winning. Points are earned as follows:

- Subscribe to Blogging Mix. Subscription must be verified. (5 Points)
- Review and link to the contest. (10 Points)
- Review and link to Blogging Mix. (10 Points)
- StumbleUpon the contest with a short review. (7 Points)
- Digg the contest. (3 Points)

There are many good reasons to have your own hosted website, so be sure to enter the contest: Contest.

The authour of the blog is currently negotiating with sponsors to recieve more prizes to giveaway, so be sure to enter, it can only get better!

Outlook Tips and Keyboard shortcuts.

2008-02-12T12:04:00.001+11:00

Lets face it, most of us spend a LOT of time reading, replying, sorting email. Anything that could possibly save us time while looking through email would be a real help.

Keyboard shortcuts are the tech's best friend, and the most underestimated tool for computer beginners.

Outlook keyboard shortcuts:

F9 - This is the fastest way to force outlook to send / recieve email. Beware, however, this button can become as obsessively used as reloading in first person shooters...

Ctrl + N - Depending on which area of Outlook you are currently in, this shortcut will create a new instance of something. For example, if you are in the mail window, the shortcut will create a new mail message; if you are in the calendar window, the shortcut will create a new calendar entry. Note: To creat a new email message from anywhere in Outlook, use Ctrl + Shift + M.

Ctrl + O - Just like all office applications, this opens the currently selected item.

Ctrl + U - Marks the currently selected item as unread

Ctrl + R - Replies to the current email selected.

Ctrl + F - Forwards the currently selected email.

Ctrl + Y - Opens the navigation box to navigate to another tab.

Ctrl + E - Opens the search box.

Ctrl + J - Opens a new Journal entry and adds the currently selected item to the entry.

F11 - Automatically moves the cursor to the Find Contact text box, allowing you to search for a contact.

F3 - Opens the search window.

Ctrl + Shift + F - Opens the advanced find window.

Alt + F1 - Switch the Navigation pane On or Off.

Apart from the above, which I use almost daily, the below are less commonly used shortcuts:

Ctrl+Shift+N - Open a new Note.

Ctrl+Shift+C - Create a new Contact.

Ctrl+1 - Switch to the mail view

Ctrl+2 - Switch to the Calendar view.

Ctrl+3 - Switch to the Contacts view.

Ctrl+4 - Switch to the Tasks list.

Ctrl+5 - Switch to the Notes view.

Ctrl+D - Delete the current message (or just use the Delete button)

Ctrl+SPACEBAR - Remove all formatting from the selected text.

Ctrl+Shift+R - Reply to all.

Ctrl+A - Select all items in a folder.

ALT+S - Send a message that is already open.

F7 - Check the spelling of any open item.

Ctrl+Shift+I - Switch to you Inbox.

Ctrl+Shift+O - Switch to your Outbox.

Ctrl+Shift+> or Ctrl+Shift+< - When in an open item, this allows you to move between the next or previous item in the list.

Ctrl+Q - Mark all messages read.

For some great Outlook tips, be sure to check out Outlook Daily tips. There are already over 450 tips, which can be emailed directly to you, 3 times a week.

Geometry of Death

2008-02-12T09:58:00.002+11:00

Sorry had to delete this post due to violations of image copyright...

Disguise your apps in Add/Remove programs

2008-02-12T08:35:00.000+11:00

For those of you that have *ahem* sensitive apps installed on your computer that you want hidden from the inquisitive eye, this tip is just what you need.

This tip will guide you through how to disguise your apps in the add / remove programs window. Note that this tip only disguises the apps in that window, but it is up to you and your imagination to find somewhere to store the apps so people dont find them while looking through your hard drive.

As this only disguises the app, this is only good for hiding things from the casual observer. Someone really looking for something will still most likely find the app's install directory anyway, unless really well hidden.

1. Go to Start > Settings > Control Panel > Add or Remove programs.

2. Within the list that appears will be the name of the program you wish to hide. Note that name.

3. Once you have the name of the program, open regedit. (STOP! Please backup your registry before you make any changes. Read the following document for why and how.)

Start > Run > type regedit.

4. Navigate to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Uninstall.

5. Within this subfolder are many other folders, with long names of seemingly random numbers and letter sequences.

6. Now go to Edit > Find, and type in the name of the application and press OK.

7. With any luck, you should be taken to the record for the program you wish to disguise. If not, you will have to manually look through the subfolders to find the correct one.

8. On the right half of the window you will notice many values. One of these should be Display name.

9. Double click on this value to change it.

10. Now you have to use your imagination to change the display name to something completely normal looking. I myself use the Microsoft update terminology to hide it. For example, I changed one to KB3319901, which was disguised well within the other updates of similar name.

11. Once you have changed the name, you should also change the uninstallation path, as it will run the legitimate uninstall if left:

12. Find the value uninstallString and edit the path. I usually make it C:\temp or something equally ambiguous.

13. Once you have finished, close regedit and check to make sure the program is hidden in Add/Remove programs!

You want comics?!?!

2008-02-08T11:21:00.002+11:00

Heres a collection of all sorts of comics and snippets I have found in my stumbling. Many more to come:

http://www.nataliedee.com/nd-archives/ndarchive-jan08.php

http://www.filibustercartoons.com/comics/20080111.gif

http://www.mine-dog.net/forum/showthread.php?t=2912

http://www.fiddyp.co.uk/the-binary-cake/

http://www.myconfinedspace.com/wp-content/uploads/2007/03/lame.gif

http://imagechan.com/img/img.php?id=3459

http://www.amazingsuperpowers.com/ComicArchive/032.htm

http://theflowfieldunity.com/?p=297

Top 10 - Guys ettiquette to playing golf

2008-02-08T08:55:00.000+11:00

There are rules for golf, then there are Guys rules for playing golf. This is that list:

10. If your playing partner wants to make his score for a particular hole better, you must also do the same for that hole.

9. Any score a player says he made on a hole is right, no arguments. He knows what he hit, dammit.

8. If a player hits a slice and loses their ball, they may take a drop from where your ball is, with no penalty. This makes the game go faster, and you can measure dicks by seeing who can hit the longest iron shot.

7. Never give your playing partner advice. If he wants it, he will ask for it.

6. Any tee shot that travels for less than 10 metres may be re-hit once, without penalty.

5. Any putt less than 10cm from the hole is in; Gimmes are fine. It would have went in if the wind wasnt there.

4. Beer is the staple drink, if not a drinker, Gatorade. (Beware of playing with drinkers if you are not one, however). If playing with 2 players, you may only drink a maximum of half the beers.

3. When you are playing aweful, you can always blame it on too much or not enough beer, and adjust your intake accordingly.

2. An air-swing is always a practice swing. Always.

1. Any tee shot that does not pass the ladies tee is a free beer for the playing partner at the 19th hole. This rule is paramount, and never expires.

Stick to these rules and you will always have a good playing partner, and will enjoy a casual round immensly.

Link time!

2008-02-07T15:04:00.000+11:00

Heres a fresh batch of extremely helpful computer tips and tricks. Just something to pass the time...

Default Password list - A massive list of Default passwords for basically any device you can think of. A definate bookmark.
Clean out a new computer of all the bloatware - A list of things to do to get the most out of a new computer, from deleting unnecessary bloatware to keyboard shortcuts.
How to download anything - A basic guide aimed at beginners in the torrent download world.
Choose the best search method - An excellent list of different types of search engines, and which are the ideal to use for shich situation.
20 free downloads you shouldnt live without - 20 free tools that will make your computer life easier.
Video - Google is better than Limewire for downloading MP3's - A great video showing how to find downloadable MP3s on Google with ease.
List of tutorial sites - A list of sites that teach you how to do stuff.
cl1p.net - Securely copy and paste between computers in a couple of easy steps.
Temporary spam box - You can create a temporary email address for sites that require authenicated logins, but you dont want the spam that comes with it.
Photoshop photo edits - Instructions for making your photos come out better with photoshop.
Dropboks - Simple, Secure online file storage.
Filehoo - Download freeware and shareware programs - Huge list!
GuerillaMail - Temporary, Disposable email address.
Make your USB key into a Digital swiss army knife.
IamUnblocked - Unblock websites with this proxy.
LostPassword - Password recovery software.
Online FLV convertor - Use this site to download any embedded / streaming video on almost any website.

Edu.PCMech - 20 steps for becoming a Technology Power User - PDF

2008-02-07T10:23:00.000+11:00

I have been a subscriber to PCMech's newsletters and PC daily tips for quite a while now, and have enjoyed the interesting tips and tricks I have learnt.

My subscription payed off recently, as I was given access to a great e-book, 20 steps for becoming a Technology Power User.

This PDF is only available from the site for subscribers, but is freely distibuted there-after, so I am providing a link to download the PDF e-book.

Have a read of it, there are some great tips for beginners and pros alike, some of which I am now using everyday.

Download (1mb): http://rapidshare.com/files/89750045/20_Tips_to_Power_User.pdf.html

If the e-book download goes down, please leave a comment advising of this.

If you like the e-book, be sure to visit edu.pcmech.com for more of same great tech tips.

All creidt for this e-book goes to David Risley, the founder of PCMech.

MoneyBlogger - Do you want an Ipod? For Free!

2008-02-06T09:32:00.000+11:00

Although not part of my plan for this blog, I have recently become interested in making money from blogs. It would be a great life, becoming a professional blogger, working from home, making 6 figures etc etc.

A really good blog that has tweaked my interest is moneyblogger. Unlike many of the other money making blogs, most posts are highly informative, and dont simply repeat the same material with a slightly different twist. It is on my subscription list, for when I want to start monetising my blog.

While you are there, check out the iPod nano contest. It is aimed at other bloggers, who get to be in the running to win this amazing little gadget. Be sure to have a look. Its easy to enter, and you've got nothing to lose!

CSI: Top 5 reasons why it is a stupid, stupid show

2008-02-05T08:28:00.000+11:00

Ive known this for a while, yet a recent episode I watched last night of CSI: New York had me shaking my head in anguish.

dont normally swear in my posts, but for this rant I have made an exception to make my feelings clear.

Normally I would find it hard to make a decent list about why I hate a particular show, mainly because I would not watch said show more than a couple of times. But CSI, well, it was easy as pie:

5: Confessions

Every episode is ended perfectly, every time, with a confession from the grieving villian, EVERY EPISODE.

They all follow this pattern:

- Villian denies everything

- CSI wanks sitting behind the one-way glass say 'I think I believe him'

- CSI wanks then go out to the crime scene, and find absolutely obvious evidence that was missed the last time (see number 2), condemning the villian.

- CSI wanks confront the villian with the irreputable evidence, villian then breaks down and confesses to everything, saying how sorry they are, or how it was all a bad accident.

- CSI wanks walk out of the room, looking all suave and shit.

4. The spray / flashlight crap

WTF. Seriously. It doesnt matter how clean the crime scene is, you spray a little spray shit about the place, on the walls, in a car, and then shine a blue light on it, viola! You have either a perfect set of fingerprints, some blood splatters, some man-juice, or all three. Heres an excellent spoof of the blue light in use: Blue Light

Its not the actual spray light stuff that gets me, its the fact that it is used on every crime scene, with results every time.

3. Pull up the database of people known to have...

...Bought red lipstick over the past 10 years. These people have a database for everything, and I mean everything. I would hate to see the database servers and data warehouses needed to hold all this 'important' info. I mean, I do wonder where the hell they could ever get all of this random info? And what about the cost of having all of these professionals, working on all these different parts of cases?

2. Unrealistic evidence Placement

This is a big peev of mine. A couple of examples to explain:

- There will be some form of absolutely bleedingly obvious evidence at a crime scene that was missed by the 500 investigators the first time around, yet is found near the end of the episode, after all seems lost, and all avenues have been taken. This evidence will be just sitting there, and will condemn the villian on the spot. What a lucky find hey.

- The evidence found at the scene is totally unrealistic. For example, in the last episode I watched, there was a lolly packet found at the crime scene, which they followed up, finding where it was purchsed from. I mean shit, it must have been a fairly rare sort of lolly. (this leads me to the extra list item I have put at the end).

1. The Characters lines

This has to be number 1, just because of the main actors lines, and 'witty' one liners, particularly those of Heratio on CSI: Miami.

Some great examples of his mad one liners, and the characteristic sunglasses lift at the end: Endless Caruso one liners. Another great spoof is that of Lengendary funny man Jim Carrey, taking him off perfectly: Spoof.

Let us not forget Grissom, however, who has his fair share of crazy lines.

As a bonus, here is another reason that I couldnt leave out:

Bonus: Absolutely rediculous assumptions

By this I mean the rediculous assumptions made about the evidence that is found. Somehow the CSI wanks make some sort of assumption based on evidence, that is completely random, but is always right.

For example, in the episode I watched last night, there was a battery packet found at the crime scene, which for some reason didnt match the camera found at the scene. That MUST mean there was someone else with another camera at the scene, no doubt about it. Forget if the packet just somehow blew onto the crime scene, or if some person happened to drop it on their way past the crime scene. No, it must have been from another person, with another camera, not one of the thousands of battery powered devices people carry now-a-days. Sheesh.

Well thats it, ive had my rant. I spose I only have myself to blame for attempting to watch the tripe yet again...Back to good ol' Family Guy me thinks...

Well, what a weekend!

2008-02-04T14:21:00.000+11:00

Here I am, sitting at work on Monday morning, not feeling at all like I had a weekend. But it was worth it, boy was it worth it!

You see, I had my Girlfriend's 21st birthday party on Saturday night, so it was a hectic weekend to say the least.

It all started on Friday night, we setup the club room exactly how the birthday girl wanted. And we all know how hard that can be! Finished up about 10pm that night, deciding to go home and have a decent nights sleep before the long night to follow.

Saturday morning, we setup the jukebox and finished the decorations, along with all the food, which there was, in bucketloads. Everything was turning out perfectly, everything was running like a well oiled machine. Famous last words...

The bday girl's hairdresser (family friend) decided she was only going to be able to do her hair after 4pm, for some unknown reason. Cue added stress for the already stressed out party girl.
All the while she was stressing, I sat down and watched the cricket :) Just kidding, I did everything I could to de-stress the situation...In between ads...

After the hair was done, it was down to the club room for me, to help with the food preparation. It was all going great, which I must thank the bday girl's parents, aunty and family friends, who all decided to pack into the kitchen, which left more chiefs than workers, but they all had their hearts in the right place.

Shoot back home, have a quick scrub, get dressed, and by that time my girlfriend was ready to go, looking stunning might I add ;) Black dress, long legs, beautiful hair, what more could you ask for.... .... .... *ahem* sorry, off on a tangent there.

Rock up to the party by 7, everyone starts to show up by 8, just the way it goes, fashoinably late, or something like that...

Fast forward to Speech time, and it was cue father-bear. A man of very few words, softly spoken, I think he showed just how much he appreciated his daughter, by overcoming his fear of speaking, and delivering a great speech, followed up by a heart warming story. Her friends had a special speech and funny gifts planned, which they delivered next. Before I knew it, 5 people had already had a speech. I, on the other hand, am really dreadful at public speaking, and would have only had a speech if her best friend didnt. You see, we had a sort-of combined speech, with much the same content, but im glad to say she done the job, and rather well at that.

The party went on thus, with many beers sunk, and lots of dancing. It was a great night, and the birthday girl couldnt have been happier.

In retrospect, I am really disappointed in myself for not having a speech, after all, I have been going out with my girlfriend for a few years now.. Im also a bit disappointed in myself for not mingling more; I stayed more in my group of friends, which I tend to do rather often. But that is the way I am. I have to find something to beat myself up over, it seems to be a family trait, but more about that later.

I finished off the weekend by watching a tragically predictable movie 'Evan Almighty' at home with my family, which, other than the movie, was all good times. I blame myself though, for even thinking about hiring it!

All in all, a great weekend, but one that I wouldnt soon do again!

Onblogging - Aussie bloggers on Entrecard

2008-02-01T15:00:00.000+11:00

While I am on the Aussie blogging topic (I am an aussie, so promoting it is my duty), I want to direct any readers to the Onblogging Australia Blog, perticularly the Aussie Bloggers on Entrecard post. For those of you who are unfamiliar with Entrecard, here is a great how-to to getting started with Entrecard courtesy of Sephyroth.

As I have made clear in previous posts, I believe that Australia is a very often overlooked country, and technology and the internet are no exception. In a world where everything is focused on the American way of life, alternatives are hard to come by. It is for this reason that the following blog post was written, and the reason for the ever increasing user base on the Aussie Bloggers Forum.

Some of you may think 'hey, blogging is really a 'non-country specific activity', but it is not. Many a blog I have read have tried to remain non-country specific to try to get more traffic and readers through their blogs. However many fall short by focusing on their country specific details, rather than the entire posts. For example, gaming blogs focus on games, which are non-country specific, but as you read the posts, you get such things as American release dates, American review sites etc, which turns some Aussies (and other nationalities for that matter) away from the blog.

I guess im trying to say that Australia-specific blogging has a real future, and seems to have a good user base to start with. Couple this with the lack of Aussie blogging topics, and you have a starting point for a really popular blog / website. Food for thought.

Be sure to have a look at both the Onblogging Aussie bloggers list, as well as the Aussie Blogging forum, irregardless of nationality. It may open your eyes to a world of possible opportunities...

Want to be $25 richer this week? Or next, or next...

2008-02-01T13:22:00.000+11:00

Heres a great idea that is sure to grab many a blogger's attention.

Mixedmarketarts.com are having a competition, that involves choosing a person each week to recieve $25 dollars. Every week, forever.

You read it right, forever. You will be in the running every week to recieve $25.

The rules are fairly simple, and are as follows:

1. Write a post on your blog about this blog and this contest.
2. Leave a comment below the competition post on the author's blog.
3. Read the blog! The owner recommends subscribing through RSS or getting blog posts by email.

The guidelines are as follows:

1. Your blog post should be at least 250 words.
2. Link to the main page of this blog as well as this contest.
3. You may be a weekly winner a maximum of once per month, but there are no limit to how many times you can win.

The blog's content is based around Making money Blogging. It is worth having a look if not for the competition.

Be sure to have a look and enter before the competition gets full of people. The less people there are in the comp, the more chance of you winning!