Technological Life

NEW BLOG!

2011-09-07T19:25:00.000-07:00

I just wanted to let you know that I still write posts but on a different blog. The link is:
www.lifebybyte.blogspot.com

Rooting Your G1

2010-06-11T13:15:00.000-07:00

   Hello everyone, I just recently bought my first android phone, which turns out to be the G1. Sadly, it is seen as outdated (as said by the android team themselves); however hope is not lost because thanks to people over at cyanogen, you can bring new life into your "old" phone. Rooting an android phone is nothing new that only highly skilled computer techs know how to do, and can be done fairly quickly but there is always confusion on how to start. Here I want to provide you with links and information that I know works.
   First off, I will give you some worthwhile reasons to root your phone. One being that you are able to save your applications to your SD card, and I'm not just talking about backing up the .apk file (which you can also do). You can store and use all of your apps from your SD card itself with the Apps2SD program. With it (which is part of the cyanogen rom itself) you are able to download all of the apps you want, and keep your phone's memory free. This feature is optional and requires more work, which I will explain later in this article. Also, Apps2SD only stores the application itself onto your SD card, so the cache that the app uses is still mostly stored on the phone memory. The good thing is that it is a very small amount of data on your phone's memory, and is useful because your cache is quickly accessible on the phone, more so then if it were on the SD card. Another new addition you can get by rooting is the android 2.1 eclair rom, which is faster than the 1.6 (in my opinion). It adds two more screens (making a total of 5), new applications icons, a refreshed system look, tethering and more.
   If your mouth isn't watering by now then I suggest you get some serious help. For those that are interested, here are links to the latest cyanogen update guide for the T-Mobile G1:

Cyanogen Update Guide

   Now there is cyanogen 4.2, which is an updated version of android 1.6. Then there is cyanogen 5.0, and that is the 2.1 eclair rom (possibly will be updated to 2.2 in the future). It is up to you which one you choose. With 5.0 you have to install the "DangerSPL" which sounds pretty bad and that is because it WILL brick your phone if it is not installed correctly. Sorry, I am not trying to scare you away from it, but I just wanted to point out that you should make sure to follow the directions carefully and correctly. The reason you need this is because the 2.1 rom is bigger than the 64mb rom space that is originally set for the G1. Luckily the instructions are very simple and short (I did it with no hiccups).
   Now for those of you who want to have all the apps your heart desires (like me), here are some requirements that you must fit.

You must have a SD card
The SD card must be at least class 4, but class 6 is recommended. (There should be a number on the card it self, that is how you know.)
Your phone must be rooted.

   Once you fit those requirements you are good to go! Well you are at least ready to set your SD card up, for Apps2SD. Here I will point out the link to the step-by-step guide for it:

Apps2SD
   Note: For cyanogen 5.0 (android 2.1) you need to enable Apps2SD in the settings, then restart for it to work.

   I will warn you that by doing this, you are wearing out your SD card faster than with normal use. In other words it will die faster, so I would suggest that you backup everything constantly so that you don't lose anything. Once you are done, all of your previously installed apps will be moved "automagically" to your SD card.
   If you follow each step carefully, you should have no problems. Thank you for reading, and if you have any questions, please feel free to leave them in the comment box below.

New Mini Power Plant In A Box

2010-02-22T09:02:00.000-08:00

Watch CBS News Videos Online

Thought that this invention was worth noting. If endorsed right and works like it should, we could very well see these in our backyards in 3 to 5 years. Please leave any comments below.

Mac Hints

2010-02-17T09:06:00.000-08:00

          If you are a mac user this site is something you need to know about. There are tips that are updated constantly throughout every day and some you may have already known, but others you will be surprised to learn. One of the most useful tips that surprised me was the ability to use your Facebook chat with iChat. All you have to do is setup a few quick things with the iChat server, and you are done. Each post is put into a category such as, web browsers, 10.6, iPhone and much more. This allows for easy access to what concerns you. Additionally, there are help forums for any problems you have with your mac computer or apple product. Everything from applications to X11 can be discuss there, and there is a section for any feedback you'd like to give out about the site.
          Also, the tips aren't always given by the writers themselves, but you can submit your own. The writers will check it out and post it if it works. I visit this site everyday, because they always have something new for me to learn. I have subscribed to it in "My Blog List" so you can see the latest tip there or you can subscribe to it yourself. Obviously if you use Windows the site wont be of much use, but you can still find out new things about your competitor.
          Thanks for reading and as always, if you have any comments or questions please leave them.

Here is the link to the website : Mac Hints
Also, this is the link to the Facebook chat with iChat: Mac Hint Facebook

Quick Tip For Safari Browser Users

2010-02-13T09:57:00.000-08:00

If you didn't know, there is a way to download different parts from a website using Safari. Such as an image, .GIF animation, .SWF animation or even a video. If you click on "Window" in the top menu bar and then "Activity", you will see all of the contents of the website(s) you are looking at. It may not seem useful, but it is a great simple way to download a video from a site such as Youtube. When you are on a website with a video you want to download, you just go to "Activity" and look for that video file. Make sure that you are looking at the content of the page with the video because "Activity" will show every window or tab you have open. Now to locate the video, you just have to scroll down slowly and pay attention to the file sizes while you scroll. For the most part, everything should be a few kilobytes (KB) or bytes until the video. The video will normally be the largest file you see, that is in megabytes (MB). With Youtube you will have to wait until the video has fully loaded until you can download it. So it will look something like "4.0 of 11.0 MB", until it has fully loaded the video. Once it is finished you just double click the file in "Activity" and it should download to your desktop. I've noticed that some files download as a flash file (.FLV) or mpeg4 (.MP4), so you can use your own video converting software if needed. Now this wont work with every site, because some sites are more protected than others, so don't expect to download everything you see. I find this very useful instead of downloading some other software to just simply download videos from different web pages. What do you think? Did you already know this? Please leave any questions or comments below and thanks for reading.

Erase Your Entire Hard Drive With Full Confidence

2010-02-09T11:22:00.000-08:00

I've been helping out some of my friends with their computers, which they were getting ready to sell and came across Kill Disk. With Kill Disk you can be sure that the files on your hard drive are erased well enough, so that no one can recover them. Great for any computers that may have very personal information on it. It should work with just about any computer, no matter the operating system or size of hard drive. There are different versions, including a free version that allows you to do a one pass zero method. You also get updates from Kill Disk free as well. If you chip in some money for the paid version, you can do up to 99 passes on your hard drive (making your data harder to recover) and it writes over your drive with algorithm's that support 17 security standards.
Kill Disk uses your bios to delete your hard drive, which means you will have to boot from your Kill Disk CD. Check it out for your self because it is especially important that your hard drive is clean a and safe from thieves. Here is the link: Kill Disk. If you have any questions about how to use it or have any other hard drive erase methods please leave a comment. Thanks for reading.

Reminder: Erase Information Off Devices Before Selling

2010-01-30T18:35:00.000-08:00

This sounds like a no brainer right? It's common sense, so why am I telling you? Well it's because people don't realize how dangerous it can be to not delete everything off a hard drive. It came to me after I bought a used Xbox 360 hard drive. I went on it to start moving my files from my old hard drive to the new one. And I noticed that there were two credit cards on it. Now if I was some thief that would be like finding a gold mine. But it's not only game console hard drives that you should worry about, but any type: external, cell phones, computers, even media players. Sometimes we don't realize how personal our devices are and they can quickly be used in the wrong manner. I know I don't want to see a surprising bill of $5000 dollars worth of games and music that I didn't purchase. Also this a good time to rethink what we put in our portable devices.
Have any questions or comments please leave them. Thanks for reading.

Upgrade Your 5th Gen iPod Video Hard Drive To 240GB

2010-01-25T12:11:00.000-08:00

Are you one of those people who have an extremely large amount of media? Is the iPod Classic's 160gb hard drive not big enough for you? Or maybe you have a 5th generation video that you think is worthless. Well its time you took that baby out and upgraded it to become a large massive beast. If you have a 5th generation 30gb iPod, then you can upgrade that hard drive to a 120gb for $139. If you want to swap in a fresh battery as well, thats only $19 more. If you have the 60gb or 80gb 5th gen (Not Classic) iPod video you can upgrade your hard drive to 240gb for $169 and your battery for $25 more. With Apricorn's iPod hard drive and battery upgrade kit, you should be able to do the process safely and quickly. It comes with a hard drive (if you ordered it), a battery (if you ordered it), a very thorough video manual, and case opening tools. The hard drive and battery also come with a 1 year limited warranty. They say that the process takes from 10 to 20 minutes, depending on how comfortable you are with taking things apart.
I would definitely do this with my 5 gen 30gb iPod, but I want a iPod Touch. Hoping they come out with a 128gb soon. Anyways, do you think that it's worth upgrading your old iPod? It'll have a new battery, so it will last as long as a brand new iPod. If you are curious about how to take your iPod apart, check out this youtube video: iPod Upgrade video. It is a lot easier than I thought it'd be. Also here's the link to Apricorn's iPod upgrade page: Apricorn iPod Upgrade. So how many of you will do this? If you have any questions please feel free to leave them, thanks for reading.

Learn To Create Your Own Web page With Ease

2010-01-22T09:18:00.000-08:00

Creating my own website has been something i've always wanted to do. And I have started but have had a lot of trouble because of my little experience with html coding. While looking around for help on various websites, I stumbled upon W3Schools. I was amazed on the helpful tips that were given, as well as all of the coding examples you can try for yourself. It is a completely free site that teaches you HTML, XHTML, Javascript, DTD, and much much more. It has helped me so much because I was having trouble with flash videos and after going to that site, the problem was solved.

You don't even need to use your own HTML code software with some of the tutorials. There are numerous of "Try-it-yourself" examples that allow you to use their online text editor to test out things before putting it onto your website. So if you put a little time into reading some information from the site you will be able to create your own website like a pro. Now when you create an amazing website, don't forget to mention who told you about the site (just kidding).

So go on and design your personal web page. You don't even need a fancy HTML code software, you can start it in a simple text editor. For Windows users: Notepad and for Mac users: TextEdit. Just save the file as .html and there you go. Here's the link: W3Schools Thanks for reading and if you have any questions or comments please feel free to leave them.

GDGT, The Gadget Forums.

2010-01-17T13:58:00.000-08:00

   Recently I discovered this gadget site that offers information on all types of devices. Computers, GPS systems, external hard drives and much more are found here. You will find plenty of details and even help discussions on various gadgets. You can either search for a certain thing or browse by different categories or companies. Also, if you don't see your device listed you have the option to submit it to be added to the site. That way you can get the help you need, hopefully quickly. Check it out for yourself, I found it quite interesting. Here's the link GDGT
   The site has user reviews which are great when your are looking to purchase a product, but know little about it. Please leave comments on what you think of it and if you know of any sites like it, I'd love to know. Thanks for reading and I hope you found this enjoying.

Lala Music Streaming

2010-01-14T20:50:00.000-08:00

   Lately I've been interested in finding ways to stream music to/from portable devices and computers, I recently found Lala. Lala is an online music store that allows you to buy web songs/albums. Web songs are only 10 cents to buy and you can listen to the song as many times online (not a download) and a web album is the same, but range from around 50 cents to $1.50. What is even better is that buying a web song or album, deducts that cost from the full download. So if you wanted to listen to a new song or album online for awhile before making a full purchase, you won't have to worry about paying twice for something you already have. I have actually found that most individual songs are either 79 cents or 89 cents, with very few 99 cent songs. Even albums are occasionally cheaper than other music stores like iTunes and Amazon.
   Now what does all of this have to do about streaming your music? Well every song or album you buy is put in your online library. You can go on any computer, sign into your account and start playing a song. So simple and nice because of the easy access. However, the fun doesn't end there because you are also able to upload your music library from your computer. With the free Lala Music Mover application, you just effortlessly select your music folder and it does the rest of the work. So you can have access to your entire music library from any computer with internet (and flash).
   Since it uses flash you can not use Lala with a mobile device (at least not yet), but with Lala's merger with Apple there may be hope for an iPhone app soon. So tell me what you think of it. I'm definitely going to be using this site often for my music purchases. Thanks for reading and I hope this was useful to you. If you do want to sign up, please use this link: Sign Up

Extending Your Devices Battery Life

2010-01-10T00:38:00.000-08:00

One of the biggest problems with portable gadgets is that their battery life never seems to last as long as we had wanted. Which then you have to continue to plug in and recharge which can take hours. Or if your not near a plug-in outlet you will have to bear without your device for the time being. I'm sure you as hate it as much as I do, and luckily there are some solutions to fixing your short battery life misfortune. Such as buying a battery case. Now and days, more and more cases are having a battery extenders built in. Such as Seido's Innocase Surface, which is a case for the Blackberry Tour 9630. There are also a few different battery cases with the iPhone as well. The Power Slider Case for the iPhone 3g and 3gs which contains 120% of your iPhones battery. Giving you a chance to fully recharge and then a little more. There are also battery cases made by Mophie that allows for a full charge and more.

Additionally, there are separate battery packs that provide more compatibility between different devices. Along with the option to charge more than just one device, separate battery packs normally contain a larger battery than in a battery case. And maybe for the same price as a case that can charge your device one full time, you can get a battery pack that is able to charge it twice or more. The Satechi iCel 4400 mAh Battery Pack can charge your iPhone at least twice, and it is able to charge other cell phones and media players. Another major battery pack company is imaxpower. Their IMP500 can charge your iPhone four times, the IMP880 can charge it six times, and IMP19500 can charge it 20 times! Not saying that anyone needs to have that big of a battery with them, but its a great option for long trips or hikes. The packs aren't limited to iPhones either, other media players, cell phones and laptops are covered too. Check them out for yourself and please leave any comments if you've had any experience with the packs. Thanks for reading and hope you enjoyed this.

Simplify Media And Orb

2010-01-05T22:55:00.000-08:00

Both are great pieces of software that work on Mac os x and Windows, they allow you to access files from one computer to another. Simplify Media's applications allow you to share your music collection and photo collection to another computer and Orb allows you to share the same, plus any other file or document on your computer. I like Orb especially because of the ability to share music, photos, and videos to a PS3 or Xbox 360, but the application doesn't seem as secure as Simplify Music or Simplify Photo do. Also both of them are available in the Apple App Store, but they are not free. I have had experience with Orb and I will most likely never pay for the software. I like the idea of sharing any file you want over the internet, but the application and Orb's server just isn't stable. I would recommend that you keep an eye on it though. I mean problems can be fixed and who knows, maybe soon they will get better and downloaded onto everyones computers. But right now I would stick with Simplify Media. I can't fully back it up because I have not bought the iPhone app, but from the many reviews I've read it seems better off than Orb. The interface looks more stable, but from personal reviews it has a problem with large libraries. Why would you pay for something that wont work for everybody. I know I wont be getting it anytime soon because I have many gigabytes of music I'd love to stream. Also Simplify has three iPhone apps (but only 2 different types). Two are Simplify Music (Original) and Simplify Music 2. What really gets me mad is that users have to pay eight dollars for the updated version, when they could have given it as an update to the original. So six dollars (Simplify Music Original) plus the updated version (eight dollars), and that doesn't even include the third app that cost four dollars to stream your photos. So all that for some application that may not work well with large libraries. I would definitely be mad at the company if I had paid for the original and then pay even more for the update.
But just because things are bad now doesn't mean that won't get better. I think that these apps are worth checking into, and I am surely going to keep my eye on them. I would love if Simplify Media had a free or lite version of their app so it could be tested, like Orb does. I tried Orb on my friends iPhone and it was slow loading media and skipped a few songs, giving me different errors. Now what is interesting is that Orb is suppose to work via your Orb server (www.mycast.orb.com) with any computer, phone or internet device for free. But they are making you pay to use it on the iPhone, one to access files (music, photos, documents) from your computer and the other Orb Live allows you to stream video feeds to your iPhone. If you do go to the website (without using the app), you get a horrible interface that is very slow to load. It doesn't separate multiple songs, so if you chose an album to play it would put all of the songs together. Making one 32 minute or however long song. If they just simply updated their mobile interface, it would be more enticing to users.
Offering a nice clean interface for free would get them more attention then making people pay for it. But again I would continue to see how they grow and watch out for other competing apps (maybe even free) that will try to get noticed. Thanks for reading and here are links to the websites and iPhone apps.

Orb: Computer Application
iPhone app: Orb Live, Orb Live Free, Orb Media

Simplify Media: Computer Application
iPhone App: Simplify Music, Simplify Music 2, Simplify Photo

Portable Wifi/Turn Portable Device into A Phone

2010-01-01T19:57:00.000-08:00

It's been talked about a little hear and there, but in most cases it can be pretty expensive. $60 per month for Verizons 3G Mifi router. Which is pretty nice, knowing that you will mostly have a good connection and speed wherever you may go. There is also Clear Internet's Clear Spot WiMax Router. If you are lucky to live in a city with Clear internet available I would choose that. Because unless you are going to be going out of the state a lot Clear's Home Internet and Mobile Internet plan is actually less than $60. All you need is to buy or lease the 3"x5" WiMax router and the Clear USB Modem. Its perfect for using it with an Ipod touch or any other portable device that uses wifi. Use Skype or any other Voip service and you have a phone.

Check out Gizmodo's review on the device: Clear Spot
I am going to try this out hopefully someday, and if I do I will definitely tell you how it is.

RSS Feed To Email Inbox

2009-12-27T20:37:00.000-08:00

FeedMyInbox is one of the simplest websites to use. All you need is a website that has an RSS feed (look for the blue or orange icon in your url address bar) and an email address. You type in the website and your email address and hit submit. You should get a confirmation email, and you will receive an email about your site within 24 hours of confirmation. It is useful because there are some news sites that I will forward to my phone so I can read it when I want. This is free and requires little work to setup. Check it out for yourself with the provided link above and get daily news delivered right to your email.
And with my post on how to Receive Email on Any Phone, this is available to everyone. If you have any comments please leave them below and thanks for reading.

Get Your T-Mobile Or AT&T Phone Unlock For Free

2009-12-26T17:36:00.000-08:00

Thinking about going on an international trip or changing GSM carriers? Well you'll need to unlock your phone to use it with compatible carriers. Now there are many shady sites that will supposedly give you a subsidy unlock code for your phone. Most of them have a small fee from five to ten dollars, but I don't understand why you would trust such a site. For all you know the company may give you a fake code, and I wouldn't want to take that chance. What most people don't know is that their wireless carrier will give you the code for no cost. Just as long as you have had an active line for at least 90 days and you have your phone's IMEI number. The IMEI number is normally found on the back of your phone under the battery. If not found there you can obtain it by typing *#06# in your phone.

Next if you are a T-Mobile user you just call the customer service number (1-800-937-8997) and request for the subsidy unlock code. They will normally ask if you will be using the phone internationally and you just agree (even if you aren't hehe). And that is it, they will ask for an email address so they can send you the unlock code and you should receive it within 24 hours. Once you have your code, the quickest way to unlock your phone is to put in a sim card from a different carrier and when it starts up it will ask for the subsidy code then.

Now if you have an AT&T phone that you want unlocked the process is very similar. But one thing is that they suggest you have an international roaming feature on your account, to obtain the code. But other than that you just call their customer service (1-800-331-0500) and ask for the subsidy unlock code. I am not experienced with their process, but here is a site where one person explains it in detail: Unlock AT&T Phone. Now if for some reason you are not able to obtain an unlock code for your AT&T phone, I've heard that T-Mobile sometimes unlocks AT&T phones as well, I'm not sure if it is free, but it's worth a try.

I am a T-Mobile customer and just recently unlocked my Razr 2, and the process took around 12 minutes on the phone. I really like this process much better than entrusting a site i've never heard of with my money and maybe even my phone number. I suggest that you try this process before any other one. Thanks for reading and if you have any questions or comments, please feel free to leave them.

Wondering What To Spend All That Cash You Got For Christmas?

2009-12-24T23:31:00.000-08:00

Well if you are into video games, then you should definitely check out the Gamefly end of the year sale. Free shipping on every used game and save up to 50%! Here's the link: Gamefly Sale, and it is going on till January 4, 2010. So order quickly!

Looking For The Latest Ipod App Sales?

2009-12-23T20:36:00.000-08:00

Then you need to keep your eye on these sites. AppShopper and 148Apps, they both post apps that have recently changed in price. As well as provide ITunes store links so you can easily download them. It's perfect because for people like me who don't want to spend a lot of money (if any) on apps, they save me from spending when I don't need to. I've downloaded about 15 different apps that would have cost me around $20. It's really smart shopping and every Ipod touch and Iphone user should know about it. Everything from GPS, games, and utilities apps are shown on the sites. So you may find an app that you've never even heard of or thought of. Each site is updated daily, so you wont miss a thing.
Just think of all of the money you'll save. You could use it to buy a case, so you can prevent scratches from your very precious and delicate device. Just thought I'd post this quick notice so you readers could start keeping money in your wallet. Thanks for reading, and as always feel free to leave a comment or two.

Charge Your Mobile Device With a Duracell Instant Charger

2009-12-21T10:02:00.000-08:00

Everyone has been in a situation where their phone or media player dies when they need it the most. And usually you aren't lucky enough to be around a plug-in or have your power adapter, but with this compact and easy to use charger you can be at ease. It uses a rechargeable lithium ion battery that includes a USB to Mini USB adapter. Seems like a good idea for those long road trips.
Check out this review on AnythingButIpod's page: Duracell Instant Charger Review
I think this charger should run you around $25, so I'd give it a look. It even works with Ipods, and has an on and off switch to preserve its charge as best as possible. Here's a link for Amazon's description, and customer reviews: Duracell Instant Charger
If you have used this or know someone who has, please leave a comment tell me your idea of it. Thanks for reading.

Receive Email Free for Any Phone

2009-12-17T11:34:00.000-08:00

Ever gaze at a person who is checking their email on their blackberry and think how nice that must be? If I had that I would be more efficient with my work, or would be able to communicate to more people. The only thing that is stopping you from getting email for your phone is that it's is not worth the money (that is my reason) or maybe your phone doesn't support it. Now, there is a free solution for it. The only requirements you'll need is a phone with a text messaging plan (preferably unlimited Texting plan) and an email account with email forwarding. There are many email services with free forwarding such as Gmail. As of recent Yahoo does not allow you to use email forwarding for free, so unless you want to pay $20 a year for it, I suggest you use a free email forwarding provider. Now after you have an email account with email forwarding, you need to set it to forward your emails to your phone. Your address depends on your wireless service provider, here is a list:

T-Mobile: phonenumber@tmomail.net
Virgin Mobile: phonenumber@vmobl.com
Cingular: phonenumber@cingularme.com
Sprint: phonenumber@messaging.sprintpcs.com
Verizon: phonenumber@vtext.com
Nextel: phonenumber@messaging.nextel.com

Where it says "phonenumber" you put your 10 digit phone number (including area code). And after you set your email to forward to your phone's email address your are done! The great part about this is that you can even reply to emails as well. So with an unlimited texting plan, feel free to email as much as you want, right from your phone.
Have any more questions about setting your phone up? Feel free to leave a comment and I will respond as soon as I can. I hope you enjoyed this post.

Goozex Game/Movie Trading Site

2009-10-17T10:50:00.001-07:00

Not a fan of swaptree? Well there are other sites out there, like Goozex. I must say, it is a nice site. The main difference is that you exchange games for points instead of trading game for game. You can trade games from a variety of consoles, from Dreamcast to Ps3. This site is great if you have recently released games because you will probably trade them quickly and for a lot of points. See, when you post a game that you want or would like to trade, you have to wait in line. So after everyone in front of you has traded their game, then you will get the chance to send yours. So, if your game is outdated, then you may be waiting for a while and only scrape up 200 points for it. Lucky for you though, every game is worth at least 100 points. The points for new and popular games are higher than older (as you would expect).
With that said, you can get points by trading your games, or just buying them with your credit card. 100 points are $5, 200 points are $10 and so on. You do get a small discount when you buy 1050 points or more at one time, which will cost you at least $50. To trade your games, you post them in your "Offer Queue." From there you have to patiently wait your turn in line. Depending how many people are in front of you and how popular the game is, it can take days to months for you to reach first position. Once you are in first Goozex will look for a buyer. And as soon as it has found one, you get some options on when you will send your game, or if you don't want to send it at all. The one thing I really like about Goozex compared to Swaptree, is that it doesn't seem to penalize you when you don't want to go through with a trade. For shipping you can print out one of their labels, which cost you about three dollars, or use your own method. As soon as the person receives the game he or she will give you feedback on the overall condition, and that is when you get your points. Also while putting games in your offer queue, you should put games in your "Request Queue" as well. You will still be able to move ahead in line, even without enough points to get a game. Once you have enough points for a game in your request queue and you are the first person in line, Goozex will alert you when someone is going to ship it to you. Now along with points you need to have tokens, in order to get a game. Tokens are a dollar each, but you have to buy at least five at a time. As you buy in bigger bulk you do get a discount.
As for trading movies, I'm sure the process is the same, although I don't us the feature. I do know you can trade DVD's, Blu Ray, And PSP movies. If you use it, tell me if there are any differences. Thanks for reading, and please feel free to ask any questions.
Also if you do decide to sign up, PLEASE click this referral link: Sign Up/Referral

Want Free Music? Electronics? Video Games?

2009-07-25T21:56:00.000-07:00

Okay you and I know that nothing is really free, but this program is pretty close. It's called Swagbucks (pretty catchy ain't it) and you get points that can buy all types of prizes. Now all you have to do to obtain points is simply use the search engine at the website. So as you use it regularly you will obtain points while you search. Now what is great about this is that both Google and Ask.com search engines are used. I always use Google when I am searching for something, so this is a really nice touch for me. Now when you create an account that you use with the website, you get three complimentary points. As you regularly use the website your points will slowly began to accumulate digital dollars (points) that can be used for buying a simple desktop wallpaper or maybe go all the way and get an iphone (which cost 3800 points).
Now if you have seen Mycokerewards.com, then this store is just like that, but with better prizes. Also this site is totally free, which is the best thing about it. No monthly charges or membership fees! My biggest problem about the store is that you aren't able to enter searches for anything in the store. But hopefully they will update the store and add that feature soon.
If this sounds even mildly interesting to you then sign up and search away. Now it plainly says on their website, when you sign up, that doing a large amounts of searches at one time will not really increase your chances of getting points, so just use it like you would Google or Yahoo and you'll be able to get what you want in no time. I am fairly new to this too, and only have 10 points, but I am getting some at least every other day. Now if you would like to sign up for it please click on the ad above because it will count as a referral from me. And once you start using it please keep me informed on how many points you have saved up. I'd love to see how much people can save. Thanks for reading and if you have any questions or comments, leave a post below and I will get back to you as soon as I can.

Need Blackberry Curve Help?

2009-07-20T17:42:00.000-07:00

Hello everyone, haven't posted anything in quite sometime I know. I'm sorry about that but I'm a little more busy than I used to be, but I hope to keep this blog up a little more than I have.
Anyways, recently I was given a blackberry curve 8320 to replace my old phone and at first I was thinking that I didn't really need it, I'm not a business man. Though, after messing with it for awhile I realized that its more than just for a strict business man. Discovering the App World, made me think I was holding an Iphone. Sadly without a data plan (yes I don't have data plan with a blackberry, crazy right?) I can't access the store. On the other hand, I can still download many apps over the air and from my computer to my blackberry. While I was searching around I found that www.crackberry.com and www.blackberryforums.com were the most helpful to me. Crackberry has great helpful tips and tricks for first time blackberry users. I think it is great how the phone has shortcuts and I can set speed dial to every key! (except the function keys of course).
Now the device memory is very limited and it is a must to buy a micro sd card or else you will lose messages and your call logs. I bought an 8gb micro sdhc card from www.newegg.com for only $18. Usually I see those cards at prices near the hundreds.
Oh I almost forgot, I have encountered two problems with the phone. One that I fixed was with the camera, where I would get a black screen when i turn the camera on and had to take out the battery to get rid of. Another smaller, but annoying issue is that sometimes the phone's top speaker didn't make any sound. It comes and goes, hasn't happened to me in about a week.
That concludes my life with a blackberry, thanks for reading. If you have any questions about how I fixed my camera problem or any tips for me I'd be happy to read them.

Broken Guitar Hero Drums Or Guitar?

2009-05-01T18:40:00.000-07:00

Ever rocked out so hard on your plastic drums and/or guitar and then all of a sudden your whammy bar keeps sagging down, or maybe your red pad is unresponsive. Don't throw it away and spend $70 on a new guitar or even $100 on new drums, just take a visit to powertuneplus. Where for a little time and maybe a small price, you can fix those broken drums or guitar on your own. I know your thinking "well I can't fix anything to save my life!" Don't worry there are photos and written instructions for each step of the process to fix your problem. Before you get started mending things on your own, you should try and get your equipment replaced by Activision first (even if your 90 day warranty is up).
Now if you fail to replace your broken controller then please proceed to the website above and repair it yourself. What is nice about the website is that each repair guide is detailed with an estimated difficulty level and estimated time. For now there are only 3 guitar and 2 drum fixes that are addressed. As more problems are discovered, I'm sure more fixes will be found. All of the guides work for only Guitar Hero World Tour accessories, but one fix does work for the Guitar Hero 3 Les Paul guitar.
I haven't tried any of the repairs myself because I haven't needed to fix any of my guitar hero controllers, but I will definitely use the website if any problems occur. I believe that it is a great thing that I can easily and quickly find help on problems like this and I hope you use it to its full advantage. Thanks for reading and if you have any questions, leave a comment below.

Is You Mac Sluggish?

2009-04-21T19:37:00.000-07:00

Man, remember that day you first powered on your macintosh computer and started using safari. The pages would load faster than you could blink. But sadly as time went on, you filled your computer with more and more files. Those files took up space, and now anything you do on your computer seems to take an eternity. Well nothing can act like new forever, but there are ways to bring your computer to a reasonable speed. Small things like deleting unneeded files, keeping your software up to date, and remembering to close applications after you are done using them; can help speed up everything. Of course this is just a brief list. More ideas on how you can quicken up your computer, is from Christopher Lee's post. I've been making sure my desktop is clean and I have noticed that closing my applications really does help with my speed. Hope this post was helpful to some people and if you have any questions just leave a comment.

Access To All The Games You Want In An Instant!

2009-04-10T08:36:00.000-07:00

I'm not just talking about poorly made games that know one has heard of, I'm saying REAL GAMES such as Burnout Paradise, MLB 2k9, Crysis: Warhead, Bioshock and MORE! Picture yourself jumping across rooftops on Mirror's Edge and then your friend sends you a message about playing MLB 2k9, but you don't own the game. Pshh no need to get out of your chair, just purchase the game RIGHT THEN AND THERE! The game streams from their server to your OnLive console, so to experience high definition gaming, you need a good internet connection (the biggest pet peeve for me). I don't want to have to buy some expensive router just for OnLive, but I don't think anyone will have to or else the service wont sell.
Now a little more information about it is that the service works through Windows XP/Vista, Mac (Intel) computers and the OnLive console (of course). For playing on the computer you just need to download a (I'm hoping free) browser plug-in and that's it. The console seems to be very small from photos i've seen (even smaller than the controller itself) and has two USB ports for controllers, keyboard, or even a mouse. It also supports up to four wireless controllers and four bluetooth headsets, which makes for simple gaming. The controller reminds me of the xbox 360's, but without the middle xbox guide button. The four buttons on the top right spell out LIVE, which is kind of nice because it is a word you can remember in your head to help you get used to the buttons.
So, even though I wont be waiting in line to get this exceptional creation, I will be trying it out whenever I get the chance at a local best buy, or my friends house. Anyone interested in trading in their trusted Sony PS3 or Microsoft Xbox 360 for this new idea? Leave comments below. Also if you want to check out the website here's the link: OnLive and if you REALLY like this product then sign-up for the beta program, and try it out on your computer (I don't think you can test the console itself yet), but for those who love their keyboards and mouses (or mice) then sign right up. They start selecting testers in the summer, so hurry up. There's no telling how many people they will accept.

Use A Touchscreen's Keypad Without Looking

2009-04-05T00:18:00.000-07:00

I've always thought that touchscreen phones were one of the greatest ideas ever thought of, but one thing every phone lacks, is the physical buttons. Without actual buttons being there, it is impossible to type things without looking at the screen, like a person's phone number for instance. Well people at Google have been working on an idea to solve that problem. This idea started when they realized that there were many visually impaired people that used touchscreen phones everyday and that there needed to be more accessible controls towards them.

So the concept is that wherever you touch the screen, it turns into a five. Next just press/hold the screen and slide up for 2, or right for 6, or diagonal to 1 or 3, etc. The phone will not only recognize the input, but also read out the number so you can make sure it's the correct number. It sounds like a fairly easy thing to do for me and as long as you know the number keypad configuration you will be set (I'm sure everyone already knows it).

I like how they are making sure that there phone can be used by anyone. As far as I know Google is the only company working on concepts like this, but who knows Apple could be working on something like this behind closed doors. I'm not sure if this feature will be coming out anytime soon, or if at all, but if it does I want to be one of the first to try it out. Check out the video above to see it for yourself.

Beautifully Designed Headphones, But Worth The Price?

2009-04-03T17:58:00.000-07:00

First off, I'm sorry its been 4 days since my last post. I've been really busy and haven't had time to create posts. Now back to the main reason I started this post, these headphones are called Beats By Dr.Dre (created by Monster). They are the style of headphones that cover your whole ear and from the reviews I've read, they are significantly better than expected. It took seven years for Dr.Dre and Monster to create these headphones. All that I've heard about them is that they produce amazingly clear sound. No matter if you're listening to rap, rock, or your grandfathers music. The bass is said not to distort the music and even songs without bass, sound great. Along with the headphones, 2 cables come with it, a normal sized cable and one compatible for the Iphone (3.5mm). Thankfully these headphones were designed with the Iphone in mind because the Iphone cable has an integrated microphone, and a pause button to stop music when A call comes up. As for the noise canceling, they are comparable to Bose Quiet Comfort Headphones. Now for the moment you've been waiting for the cost of these headphones is: $349.00 DOLLARS. No I didn't misplace the decimal point. Now in my opinion I wouldn't really think about spending more than $70 bucks for a pair of headphones, but I can understand some people wanting to have great noise canceling headphones, especially ones that work as a phone headset. I haven't ever seen these in person, so I can't exactly judge to see if they are worth the price. Would you buy these headphones? Would you even think about buying any headphones at such a price? Check them out at this link: Beats By Dre or head over to amazon to see their description with customer reviews: Beats By Dre Amazon Leave your reasons in comments below.

Like Video Games, Movies, Books, Or Music CD's?

2009-03-29T13:03:00.000-07:00

Then Swaptree.com is the place for you. I found out about this site on Yahoo.com and thought it was a great idea. In a way, it's like ebay or craigslist. You post all of the games, books, cd's, and movies you are willing to trade. You do this by typing in the UPC or ISBN code on the item (its the scanner number, on most things).

After you put in the items you have, now is the FUN PART! Finding all of the things you want, add as many things as you'd like. After that, you just sit back and wait for swaptree to find someone who has an item you desire. It took about a day for me to receive an email notification of a potential trade, but for some people trades could be found INSTANTLY. What's really cool about it, is that it is not always a trade between two people, sometimes you will get three way trades. So the person you are getting the item from is not the same person you ship the item to. I like how it is smart enough to create trades like that. Swaptree looks all around the U.S for people to barter with and so that just makes the chances of you getting what you want THAT MUCH GREATER.

Shipping is very quick and easy because you can print out the shipping label at home (no special paper or ink needed). So far i've done one trade and sent the game to Spokane, Wa and it cost $2.74 for the label. Even though I had to go to the store to buy packaging for the game, I still found it rather easy to do. It cost me only $2 (it was a bigger game case), normally packaging would've cost me a dollar. So $3.74 to send the game seems pretty reasonable to me. I'm in the process of another trade where I'm sending a game to Pennsylvania and the label cost me the same thing ($2.74).

A little more information about the site is that it cost you a dollar a month (for label and tracking fees). And of course you don't have to use their shipping labels, it's just a simple method that is provided. Also you don't have to accept every swap that is offered to you, but one thing about rejecting too many trades is that swaptree will limit the amount of swap's it finds for you in the future. So if you go on a vacation, you can just pause your account and you wont have to deal with any of that. Click the link above to to visit the site and see it for yourself.

So far, I'm liking the site and it is very straightforward and I hope that you find it to be that way too. Have questions/problems? Write it in a comment and I'll try my best to answer it.

Update: Just received my first game. It was really quick! Was not expecting it today. So just letting you know people on this site can be trusted.

$1.29 For A Song?

2009-03-27T20:54:00.000-07:00

Now when I think about Itunes, I think .99 cents per song. No matter how favored or foolish the song is, but that may soon change. To provide cheaper music, Itunes is thinking about charging $1.29 for the most popular songs. HUH?? Why in the world would they do that? I mean it's bad enough that many people steal music, but this is a better reason to start. Seriously, I would rather pay .79 cents for A POPULAR song at amazon.com. The only good thing about the price hike is that the unpopular songs will be priced at .69 cents. They say that most of the songs will stay at 99. cents, but it doesn't seem like a smart pricing system to me. Maybe there is something I'm missing, but they should have made unpopular songs .79 cents and everything else .99 cents. Maybe it's just me but, I hope they figure out something better than this.

Windows Applications Including Ipod Wizard FOR MAC!

2009-03-26T20:30:00.000-07:00

For those of you that don't know what Ipod Wizard is, it is software used to edit the Ipods background, fonts and overall look. As of now, I've only known that Ipod Wizard could be used on Windows computers, but TODAY IS A NEW DAY! Now this method is FREE and very easy to use. One problem (at least for me) is that you need an intel mac with Tiger or Leopard and X11.

What's X11? Well I'm not exactly sure myself, but it is used to run Windows applications. Now, if you have Leopard, it should already be installed on your computer, but with Tiger it may not (You can type X11 in spotlight to see if it shows up). For those Tiger users that don't have it installed, you can download it from the Tiger installation CD, just put it in and go to optional installs and find X11. If you lost or just never had a CD don't fret. Luckily I found this website to download X11 for free (legally too). On the site are instructions on how to install X11.

Download X11

Next, you will need this FREE program called Darwine and download the link that says (Universal). After Downloading unzip the file and drag the Darwine folder into your applications folder AND YOU'RE DONE! Now you can use most if not all windows .exe files (as far as I know). Next time you download a windows .exe file the Darwine icon should be next to it showing that it will work. As for Ipod Wizard, just download the file and open it like usual. I think that this is a Significant alternative to buying VMware or Parallels if you just want to use a few windows applications. Any questions? Comments? BRING THEM OUT and I'll try to answer them.

3D Mode

2009-03-26T18:30:00.000-07:00

No I'm not just talking about 3-Dimensional characters (that has been around since the N64). I mean where the game actually pops out in front of your eyes! What you will need is a copy of Skate 2 (don't think this feature is in Skate 1) and a pair of blue and red 3D glasses (you know those ones you get in the movie theaters). I haven't been able to try this for myself because I don't have the game, but from the sounds of it, I'd love to get my hands on it just for this element. For those of you that own the game, just head to extras (from the main menu), and enter the code "strangeloops". After that you should notice that the colors have shifted, that's where you throw on your 3D glasses. In the article I found this information from, it says "old style red-blue glasses 3D Glasses", so I don't know if the new "Real-D" glasses will work for the game. Also to undo this you just have to put in the code again. I would like to find out how well this feature works, so if anyone out there has Skate 2 and a pair of 3D Glasses THEN PLEASE TELL ME IF IT WORKS!

One Of Mother Nature's Best Friends

2009-03-26T03:09:00.000-07:00

The Samsung "Blue Earth" phone looks like your average touch screen phone from the front, but on the back is a solar panel! First thing I thought was how would you charge it if it's in your pocket most of the time and that's one thing about it. To use the solar panels on the back it needs to be facing down, in direct sunlight. The specs on how long it will take to charge is still unknown and still has no release date, but I assure you that it will be on the news for awhile when it does come out. An additional eco-friendly thing about the phone is that it is made up of recycled water bottles. I hope all phones are made this way in the future, just the thought of never having to worry about my phones battery gets my heart pumping. Sorry I can't go into more detail, but this phone is still in the making and I will create a new story as soon as it comes out (also I hope it is available for T-Mobile users)

Solar Power Is An Amazing Thing

2009-03-25T22:24:00.000-07:00

Ever have your phone die on you when you really need it? (I that has happened to me TOO many times) Well with a portable Solio solar powered phone charger that problem is solved. Now I know most of you are picturing some ugly clunky gadget, that takes days of sunlight to charge. But on average it takes 8-10 hours of light to fully charge the internal battery and with that power you can charge the average cell phone twice, if not more! Also with about an hour of charging, a phone can provide 25 minutes of talking and 10 hours of standby time. As for the design, it may be a little big for a pocket, but it would easily fit into a small purse/handbag and it only weighs 5.8 ounces. It comes in white so it's not to flashy or very noticeable. To start charging, you just have to fold out the 3 panels and away you'll go! Now this device doesn't only charge phones, there is an adapter for the Ipod too. And with every hour of charging, that will give you about an hour of music playback. Another thing to add about it is that there is an included wall adapter and USB cord to charge it like you normally would and it takes only 4 hours to fully charge. The price isn't cheap (at $99), but I would expect that as solar powered gadgets become more popular, the price will drop. I absolutely LOVE the idea and will probably get one (as soon as I get enough money). Click the link above to visit the website and see it for yourself. Or check out Amazons description with customer reviews: Solio Solar Charger
Tell me, would you be willing to cough up $99 for a charger that takes on average 8-10 hours to charge? *With Direct Sunlight*

Update!: Just stopped by the T-Mobile Store today and I noticed that they were selling these! Not only that, but at only $60 bucks, almost half of what you pay on the Solio website. Also that there are many other adapters for other devices, like cameras and more! So stop by your local T-Mobile store to check it OUT!

Cool Image Search

2009-03-25T12:30:00.000-07:00

Whenever I use this, it makes me feel like I'm surfing through my own little world of pictures. It's called Cooliris and it's available for Macintosh and Windows XP/Vista users. Compatible with Safari (Mac only) , Internet Explorer, and Firefox (Mac and Windows). It's great when you want to look through MANY pictures quickly. There's no waiting for each page of pictures to load, as long as you scroll through you find pictures. Doesn't work with every site you are on, but it does work on the popular ones like Myspace, Flickr, Google Images, including Blogger and more. It's free so you might as well give it a try. Cooliris

Save Your Mac!

2009-03-25T09:18:00.000-07:00

Ever spilt a liquid on your keyboard?, scratch your computer?, or has a key came off? Then this article is for you! Survive 17 Mac Disasters
It's nice to know, because sooner or later something like this will happen to you and you wont have to worry.

Also at the end of the article it tells you how to avoid these accidents:
Stay Dry- Keep beverages away from the computer (common sense)
Stay Up To Date- Make sure to get all of the latest security updates.
Stay Secure- Be careful of spyware!!
Stay Clean- Both on the computer physically and on the hard drive.
Last BUT VERY IMPORTANT, Back Up Your Data!

CALLING ALL SHOE LOVERS!

2009-03-24T21:06:00.000-07:00

This isn't anything huge, but I thought it should be told. Kanye has announced (about three weeks ago) he is releasing a new shoe called Air Yeezy. They will come out in three different colors and each color at a different time. First pair (the Grey ones) come out in April, next the black pair released in May, and last (also my favorite) the tan colored pair in June. Can't wait to get my hands on a pair. Which ones would you get? Would you even buy these? Comment below.

Fascinating Art

2009-03-24T20:08:00.000-07:00

Now I did say I was going to post things I found interesting and these are a few pictures off Kanye West's blog. These photos were taken and edited by photographer Chris Milk and I just think it's amazing, how detailed and clean the pictures look. These were taken because Kanye is the cover of the April/May issue of Complex Magazine. Here is the link to the exact blog these were from, feel free to check it out and there are a few more pictures: Complex Blog

Record Tv Shows From Comcast DVR to Your Computer!

2009-03-23T11:25:00.000-07:00

I am sure that many people know that you can record shows with a Tivo box and save them for your own use, but not many people know (at least no one I know) realizes you can do the same with a regular Comcast DVR. I've been using it for sometime and it is fairly easy to use. First let me tell you that this program only works on a mac (There may be another thing like this for windows) and you will need to download the Firewire SDK.

CLICK HERE FOR TIGER

CLICK HERE FOR LEOPARD

(For the leopard link you'll need to create a free apple account)

After downloading, the website below has very detailed instructions:
http://jpicune.wordpress.com/2006/10/13/record-shows-from-your-comcast-hd-dvr-onto-your-mac/

It is great because you can even record shows that you recorded already on your DVR!
One problem though is that the original playback file is mpeg-2 and to convert it to a format I can watch on my Ipod, I use Senuti. Now Senuti's latest versions are not free to download, but versions before are and here is a link to the Free Senuti
If you want to be up to date with the newest versions of senuti, you can download the free trial and then if you like it buy it, only $18, Latest Senuti. After that it's very easy from there. Although the files do take up a lot of space, you can delete those big files after you convert them with senuti.

Also if you have any questions feel free to ask. Hope you find it as cool as I did.
Note: You are able to record from most channels off the DVR, but not any of the movie channels (A.K.A HBO, Showtime, Encore...)

My Review Of Free Legal Music sites

2009-03-21T19:26:00.000-07:00

Well let me start by saying that even though it may seem impossible to get music for free LEGALLY, there are a couple of sites i've found. One is www.Qtrax.com, which offers a wide selection of music. The only catch is that it is only compatible with windows computers and it does not work with Apple's Ipod or Microsoft's Zune! This is because while you download your song, it is encoded with a DRM, so that way you can't illegally share it with others. I say that it is nice to have a place to legally get free music, but it isn't really compatible with the very popular brands of mp3 players. There have been stories of Qtrax creating an ipod compatible song base, along with it being available to macintosh users, but that has sadly yet to come.

Along with Qtrax, www.Spiralfrog.com is another windows only compatible site. The reason is because the songs are encoded with protected-WMA, which is not compatible with Ipod's or Zune's. Both of these sites use advertisements to pay for the music. I think that Qtrax makes you listen to a few ads before you listen to a song, and Spiral Frog just has ads all around their site. So if you have a windows device, and don't mind advertisements, then these sites are just right for you. (Personally I use a mac and an Ipod 5th gen, so I'm not able to use these sites, instead I use Itunes) If you have any questions or comments PLEASE feel free to ask or say them.

Update:I have just found out that Spiral Frog has been shut down. For good? I'm not sure, but ad supported sites are not easy to keep up.

FIRST! ONE!

2009-03-21T19:08:00.000-07:00

Hey everyone, my blog is going to basically be about things I'm interested in. Things like, technology (apple, windows, xbox 360, ps3 and others), sports, and occasionally clothes (cool items I like). These are just a few of my interests, so don't worry I'm sure you'll find something that catches your eye. I hope I can keep people happy with it and I'll try my best too make in appealing. Also if anyone has suggestions on what they would like me make a post about, I can try and do the best I can about it.