style="border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 16px 16px; display: inline; border-top: 0px; border-right: 0px" title="usenet" border="0" alt="usenet" align="right" src="http://pcmech.pcmediainc.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/02/usenet.png" width="300" height="217" /> A complaint that at this point is close to two decades old is the lack of proper etiquette (which used to be called "netiquette") and decorum by most new users to the internet. It’s safe to say we’ll never get back to how the internet used to be in terms of etiquette and network standards, especially considering most of you who read this will think, "Wait a minute.. there were etiquette and network standards?"
In summary: The September That Never Ended, a.k.a. Eternal September, stems all the way back to September 1993; that was the time when
href="http://catb.org/jargon/html/S/September-that-never-ended.html">AOL users gained the ability to post to Usenet newsgroups. From there the quality of discussions on newsgroups took a complete nosedive because of all the newbie users who had absolutely no clue what the etiquette and network standards were, nor did AOL at any time ever teach them this information, nor did the "AOL’ers" even care.
Prior to the influx of those AOL’ers, September was the time when a whole bunch of college freshman from across the country started using Usenet for the first time, learned (the hard way) what the communication standards were, and by the end of that month everything went back to normal. But when the AOL’ers came on the scene, they simply never learned at all.
href="http://www.eternal-september.org/">Eternal September has a clock counting the days since Sep 1993 when the supposed ruination of Usenet happened.
What exactly were the standards?
The standards varied depending on the newsgroup you were posting to, but an example of a general rule set
href="http://linux.sgms-centre.com/misc/netiquette.php">is here. You’ll notice that much of what that web page states applies to email even today.
For example, even now in 2012 there are STILL PEOPLE WHO TYPE IN ALL CAPS LIKE A MORON, have no clue how to write a proper descriptive subject, have absolutely no idea how to quote properly, use stupidly long ridiculous signatures, and so on.
Most people don’t use Usenet newsgroups anymore (especially considering several major ISPs have dropped access to it altogether), but almost two decades later we still have the same problems, except now they’re in email.
The struggle continues.
Post from:
href="http://www.pcmech.com">PCMech. Helping Normal People Get Their Geek On And Live The Digital Lifestyle.
href="http://www.pcmech.com/article/retro-friday-the-september-that-never-ended/">Retro Friday: The September That Never Ended
class="alignright size-medium wp-image-15276" src="http://pcmech.pcmediainc.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/League-of-legends-art-montage-300x209.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="209" />So, you just started playing online, huh? Noob. Wait, didn’t you know? You’re supposed to be an expert the second you start a game. If you aren’t, you should just uninstall.
In case you can’t tell, I’m being sarcastic. Unfortunately, a great percentage of the LoL community isn’t.
I get it. It’s a competitive game. Tempers flare. Emotions run high. People want to win. People hate to lose. And they’re complete and utter dicks about it. Trust me, anyone who claims they’ve never once wanted, for even a moment, to punch someone in the face as a result of their behavior online is one of three things:
A liar.
Lobotomized.
Buddha.
Hyperbole aside, many online games are incredibly intense. People get into it – and I mean really into it – and in the heat of the moment might say things they ordinarily wouldn’t say. There’s a few things that you, as a new player, will want to do to mitigate this, and a few things you should keep in mind.
1. Practice Makes Perfect
id="attachment_15277" class="wp-caption aligncenter" style="width: 310px">
class="size-medium wp-image-15277 " src="http://pcmech.pcmediainc.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/anti-noob-logo-300x264.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="264" />
class="wp-caption-text">This, sadly, seems to be the prevailing attitude.
Don’t immediately dive into the game proper. Take some time to learn the ropes. Play bot games. If the game has a single-player component, play through that first. Once you’re confident that you know up from down and hotkeys from commands, you can try some actual online play. If you find that everyone’s mopping the floor with you, practice a bit more and try again later.
Even when I’m good at a game, I prefer to play with people I know online. It’s a lot easier to have fun that way, and it considerably lessens, and often negates the chance of ending up with a snarling rage-monkey, incompetent know-it-all or mischievous troll on your side. As an added bonus, if one of your friends already knows how to play, they can coach you through the learning process.
3. Know the Lingo
Are there wikis devoted to the game you’re playing? Is there a forum? Is there an encyclopedia? You’re gonna hate me for this, but read them. Learn the terminology and slang. Trust me, you don’t wanna be the guy who says “What’s leashing?” in a game of League. There’s a chance there might be someone helpful in game, but there’s also a chance they’ll be a problem player. Speaking of which…
4. Don’t Get Discouraged, and Don’t Feed the Trolls
No matter how hard you practice, no matter how good you get, you’re eventually going to encounter a problem player. Maybe they’re having a bad day, and are simply looking to vent on someone. Maybe they can’t take responsibility for their own actions and blame teammates for their mistakes. Maybe they’re just angling to get under someone’s skin.
Whatever the reason, don’t let them discourage you. Most games have an “ignore” function, learn to use it and you’ll be much better off for it. The best way to deal with a troll is to starve them of the attention they so desperately crave. After all, it’s really hard to yell at someone who simply isn’t listening.
How do you respond to the other team after a game, win or lose? What tactics are acceptable and what tactics do people generally frown on? You won’t really need to do a whole lot of outside research for this one. Just play the game and you’ll start to pick up on the culture. Pay attention to how the players – the good ones – behave, and emulate them.
Quitting before a game finishes is generally frowned upon in all communities unless something truly serious comes up.
6. Have Fun
id="attachment_15279" class="wp-caption aligncenter" style="width: 310px">
class="size-medium wp-image-15279" src="http://pcmech.pcmediainc.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/angry-bearded-gamer-300x200.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="200" />
class="wp-caption-text">If this is you, you're doing it wrong.
I’ve been approaching this like it’s some sort of competitive sport and for some people it is and they enjoy that. Not everyone does. The most important thing at the end of the day is that you enjoy yourself. If you’re not having fun, it might be time to switch the game off for a bit and take a break or stop playing altogether. Not every game appeals to every person after all.
In this week’s Inside The Insider, I talk about what’s in this week’s issue of The Insider, as well as send a big “thank you” to everybody who signed up in the last week.
How to get started using Evernote (a lot of people are confused how to integrate it into their lives. We’ll help.)
Fixing Java on your Computer
A resource to turn your Gmail account into a full-blown task manager
How to use “old school” Outlook Express 6
Using the Internet to “automate” regular household tasks
And, if you’re not yet an Insider,
href="http://www.pcmech.com/premium/join/">click here to learn about what we’re doing and, of course, join us.
src='http://pcmech.pcmediainc.netdna-cdn.com/wp-includes/images/smilies/icon_smile.gif' alt=':)' class='wp-smiley' />
You can join for as little as /month – but this pricing is going to be changing shortly.
Post from:
href="http://www.pcmech.com">PCMech. Helping Normal People Get Their Geek On And Live The Digital Lifestyle.
href="http://www.pcmech.com/article/inside-the-insider-3-evernote-edition/">Inside The Insider #3 – Evernote Edition
Even though I use Google Chrome as my primary browser these days, I admit with no hesitation that Firefox completely obliterates every other browser in the plugin/add-on/extension department. To this day, nothing else comes close to the extension options that are available for Firefox.
Some people when browsing just want a simple-as-possible on/off toggle for everything other than text, meaning on/off toggles for everything. Does such a toggle utility exist? In Firefox it does, and it’s called
href="http://addons.mozilla.org/firefox/addon/quickjava/">QuickJava.
Contrary to its name, QuickJava is not just for the on/off toggle of Java, as it does do The Big 5 (JavaScript, Java, Flash, Silverlight and images).
How to configure it is as such:
1. Install QuickJava. Use the Firefox browser and click the link above, the install the extension.
2. In Firefox, click View > Toolbars > Customize OR Firefox > Options > Toolbar Layout.
3. For the new window that opens, scroll the bottom and you will see drag-able buttons for Css, Proxy, JavaScript, Flash, SilverLight and Images.
At this point, JavaScript, Java, Flash, SilverLight and images are all disabled.
Now all you have to do it test it. Go to a content-heavy site like
href="http://www.yahoo.com">www.yahoo.com and you’ll be amazed at how fast the site loads when you have certain things disabled.
Will certain features of websites be disabled with everything turned off?
Yes. For example, most webmail services will not work with everything disabled. But that’s fine because you can toggle on/off certain things at whim whenever you want. For example, you don’t need Java, Flash or SilverLight to use webmail, so you can toggle on/off whatever you need at the given moment.
Post from:
href="http://www.pcmech.com">PCMech. Helping Normal People Get Their Geek On And Live The Digital Lifestyle.
href="http://www.pcmech.com/article/quickjava-1-7-5-is-the-easiest-block-everything-browser-extension/">QuickJava 1.7.5 Is The Easiest “Block Everything” Browser Extension
class="alignright" src="http://microsoftfixitdownload.info/wp-content/plugins/RSSPoster_PRO/cache/0a117_red-ring-of-death-07.jpg" alt="" width="320" height="321" />I’ve always maintained a neutral stance where the console wars are concerned. Each device has both advantages and disadvantages, merits and detriments.
The largest advantage of the Xbox 360, hands down, has to be a lovely little issue known as the Red Ring of Death. Most everyone who doesn’t have a new model has probably suffered from this at least once. I’ve already had it happen twice.
But hey, no big deal, right? Just send it off to Microsoft, right?
The trouble is, most consoles that still suffer from the RROD aren’t under warranty anymore. Meaning your choices are to either pay Microsoft 0 dollars to send you back a refurbished console…or drop 0 on a new system.
Not much of a choice, is it? Thankfully, there’s a third option- Do it yourself.
Option 1: Baking With A Towel
This one’s pretty simple – though I wouldn’t necessarily recommend it. Essentially, cover your system with a towel, turn it on, and leave it running. With any luck, the console will ‘bake’ itself, and reset the internal hardware.
Unfortunately, this is only a temporary solution. As you’d expect, baking your system has some pretty nasty effects on its inner workings. Chances are, you’re only extending the console’s lifespan for about another month or two, if that, then you’re back where you started.
Option 2: Dust Out The Internals
Though it’s probably something you should have done before your console up and zogged out, you can always take the system apart and use a can of compressed air to wash all of the dust out. There’s a small chance this could fix the problem, but at the same time it’s likely you’re going to have to try option 3.
Option 3: Apply New Thermal Paste
Occasionally, the thermal paste between the heat-sink and the motherboard can dissolve or simply ‘wear out,’ causing pretty considerable heat issues, as a result.
The solution here is simple.
href="http://xbox360repairfix.blogspot.com/2008/09/dismantle-xbox-360.html">Disassemble your console, apply new paste to the heat-sink, and then put everything back together. Problem solved, right?
Wrong.
What’s to stop your system from red-ringing again, a few months down the line? The thermal paste isn’t just dissolving as a result of wear and tear. The system’s heat-sink is designed in such a way that it can’t adequately dissipate heat.
Fortunately, we have it on our power to fix that.
Option 4: Fix The Design Fault
class="alignright" style="margin-left: 6px; margin-right: 6px;" src="http://www.alldogvideos.com/image/4wa05IgHr2s/0/Fix-an-xbox-360-with-Red-Ring-Of-Death-PART-1.jpg" alt="" width="336" height="252" />Believe it or not, this is actually very simple. True, you’ll need to shell out a bit of cash for spare parts, but it’s only between and dollars – much less than having to simply purchase a new console yourself.
See, the problem with most early-generation 360s is that the heat-sink is positioned far, far too close to the motherboard. It can’t properly dissipate heat, and as a result, the console essentially slowly cooks itself.
To fix your Xbox, you’ll need the following supplies:
4 12mm Cheese Head Screws
8 M5 Nylon Washers (1mm thick)
16 M5 Steel Washers (1mm thick)
A soft cloth
Arctic silver thermal compound and thermal compound remover
A small flat head screwdriver
A phillips head screwdriver
Torx T10 and T8 keys
A 1/4” Nut Driver or a Wrench and pliers
13/16 Drill Bit And Drill4
Step 1: Dismantling Your 360
Refer to the
href="http://xbox360repairfix.blogspot.com/2008/09/dismantle-xbox-360.html">tutorial I linked above for instructions on how to take your console apart. Proceed to step 2 once you’ve completed this process.
Step 2: Clearing The Case
Remove everything from the case. Yes, EVERYTHING. Even the fans. Start by unplugging everything, then removing the power button and wireless controller board, then the motherboard. Be careful you don’t get any dust onto any of the components and take extra care not to scratch anything.
Step 3: Taking The Heat-sink Off The Motherboard
First up, put some corrugated cardboard over the motherboard – you do not want your screwdriver to slip and damage something on the motherboard. If that happens, it’s curtains for your console and no amount of fiddling or tinkering will fix it. You’ll want to take your flat head screwdriver and pry free the brackets holding down the heat-sink to the motherboard. Once you’ve gotten three of the brackets off the fourth should pop free without too much trouble.
Once you’ve gotten the brackets free, pull the heat-sink off the motherboard. The thermal paste, if there’s any left, might be holding it in place, so you might need to put a little ‘oomph’ into getting it free.
Step 4: Stripping And Cleaning The Heat-sink
class="alignright" src="http://hardwarelogic.com/articles/reviews/misc/ArcticClean/ACfront.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="296" />Those of you who know anything about computer hardware will see what I mean when I say “poorly designed.” Those nubs sticking up from one side of the sink? Those are X-clamp posts and they’ve gotta go. Use your wrench to get rid of them, and then toss them – you’re not going to be using them again. Once the clamps are off the heat-sink, pick up your arctic silver and start cleaning. Ideally, you want to remove as much thermal paste as possible before putting on a fresh coat and re-seating the sink.
While your at it clean the motherboard, too. Use a soft cloth or if you’re feeling daring, a toothpick, to clear off the cheap, gooey thermal paste that’s likely caked to the CPU and GPU. Follow up with a few small dabs of rubbing alcohol to clear off any additional mess.
When you’re done, everything should look shiny and new.
Step 5: Fitting The Heat-sink With New Screws
Be careful, and make sure there are no metal shavings remaining. You want to slowly and cautiously enlarge each of the four mounting holes on the heatsink that the clamps were originally attached to. You’ll need to make them a bit larger in order to fit the larger screws and washers to them. Once you’ve finished drilling, install all of the screws and washers to the heatsink. Use some tape to hold the screws in place, if necessary.
Basically, once you’ve made the holes bigger, all you need to do is put the screws you bought into the heat-sink and add three steel washers to each screw then a nylon washer. Easy as pie.
Step 6: Re-Applying Thermal Paste
Carefully apply a thin coat of thermal paste (preferably arctic silver) to the CPU and GPU of your 360, as well as the side of the heat-sink that will be facing the motherboard.
Step 7: Connecting The Heat-sink Back To The Motherboard
Add another steel washer and nylon washer to each of the mounting screws, then start screwing them into the heat-sink. Tighten each screw until you feel a bit of resistance, then use a wrench to attach the bolts to the screws. Make sure you’re evenly distributing the force – tighten one a little, then another, then the next, and so on. If you tighten one side before the other, you could very well end up with a cracked motherboard.
Finally, once you’ve got the bolts secured, tighten each screw as much as you can.
Step 8: Re-Seating The System
Basically, follow the steps outlined in the Dismantling tutorial in reverse. Put everything but the fan shrouds back in.
Step 9: Overheating the GPU
This might seem a touch counterproductive, but this is actually a fairly vital step in the process. Position one of the fans so that it cools the CPU, and then turn the console on. You’ll want the GPU to get hot enough that it ‘re-solders’ itself to the motherboard, since there’s a good chance the connection’s come loose. Once you’ve overheated the GPU enough (45 minutes should do it) put everything back together.
Step 10: Your Working Console
If everything’s gone as planned, your console should be good as new!
Images via
href="http://www.alldogvideos.com/image/4wa05IgHr2s/0/Fix-an-xbox-360-with-Red-Ring-Of-Death-PART-1.jpg">alldogvideos,
Post from:
href="http://www.pcmech.com">PCMech. Helping Normal People Get Their Geek On And Live The Digital Lifestyle.
href="http://www.pcmech.com/article/how-to-fix-a-red-ringed-xbox-360/">How To Fix The Red Ring Of Death On An Xbox 360
All my new, old, current, whatever… ALL MY SOURCES… Make sure to enter them EXACTLY!! As of TODAY they all WORK!!!!! theiphonespotrepo.net repo.iphonedesignz.com cydia.hackulo.us sinfuliphonerepo.com cydia.xsellize.com c.imodzone.net i.danstaface.net repo.woowiz.net cydia.touch-mania.com repo.modyouri.com repo.yourcydiarepo.org repo.insanelyi.com www.ihacksrepo.com repo.halo4iphone.com To receive all trusted sources… Go to Sections. Click on Repositories. Install PwnCenter. Then you will see that there is a package called “All Sources” Install ‘All Sources’ package. Finished. Enjoy hacking! Video Rating: 5 / 5
Here are my favorite Cydia sources in the order presented: #5: biteyourapple.com #4: c.imodzone.net #3: sinfuliphonerepocom #2: Cydia.xsellize.com #1: repo.insanelyi.com Don’t forget to rate, subscribe, and Enjoy. Thanks!!! Video Rating: 4 / 5
Valve’s Steam platform has more or less revolutionized the world of PC gaming. Currently the world’s largest digital distribution platform for games, it boasts over 35 million active users, with thousands upon thousands of titles, achievement lists, friend lists, media sharing, and communities. All in all, it’s pretty awesome.
But it’s not perfect.
Have a look.
1. Check The Steam Server Status
In rare cases, it might not actually be your system that’s borked itself. Steam’s servers do suffer from the occasional hiccup, and they do occasionally go down for maintenance and the like. Take a look at the
href="http://forums.steampowered.com/forums/showthread.php?t=784745&page=25">Downtime Announcements Thread on the Steam forums before you go any further. There’s a chance your issue might very well lie with the service, rather than your client.
2. Restart Steam
This is a pretty obvious solution, and it’s the first step you should try if something goes wrong.
3. Try Restarting Your Computer
Another fairly obvious solution, but one that you should still attempt, nonetheless. There’s always the possibility that Steam might be having some trouble ‘playing nice’ with your operating system. Sometimes, a restart’s all you need to fix the problem.
4. Ensure Steam Is Up To Date
While it’s true that Steam does generally automatically update, there’s a small chance that some glitch has prevented an update from going through correctly. There’s a good chance that if you simply leave Steam running 24/7, you might have missed out on an update. Click on the “Steam” context menu in the upper right of your screen, then click on “Check for Steam Client Updates.”
5. Delete the “clientregistry.blob” File
This little file holds the registration data for all your steam apps (games), and is responsible for about 30% of all issues that occur on steam. Often, deleting it will fix the problem as restarting steam after it’s deleted will force the client to restore the file with all your default settings intact.
To find clientregistry.blob, go to your Steam directory. The file should be in the main folder.
6. Delete Everything Except Your Apps
If deleting clientregistry.blob doesn’t fix the problem, you might just have to force a repair. Delete everything in your Steam folder except for your “Steamapps” folder and the client itself. Start up Steam, and kick back. This could take a while.
7. Reinstall Steam
We’re getting more and more extreme here. If you’ve tried all of the above steps, and it still doesn’t do anything to fix the problem, you might simply have to do a full reinstall.
href="https://support.steampowered.com/kb_article.php?ref=9609-OBMP-2526">Uninstall steam, then re-download and re-install it.
8. Check For Registry Issues And PC Errors
If reinstalling Steam doesn’t seem to do the trick, the problem probably lies with your computer. Do a full registry scan and error check, and run malware and spyware scans as well.
9. Contact Valve
Finally, contact
href="https://support.steampowered.com/">Steam Support and describe exactly what’s happening to you. With any luck, they’ll be able to help you solve your problem.
Post from:
href="http://www.pcmech.com">PCMech. Helping Normal People Get Their Geek On And Live The Digital Lifestyle.
href="http://www.pcmech.com/article/troubleshoot-steam-client/">How To Troubleshoot Steam Client Issues
Apple Weekly: iPhone 5, Mac Pro, iMac & Macbook Air Refresh This week in Apple Weekly: – iPhone 5 Protoype – New Mac Pro’s – More hints towards revised iMacs – New Macbook Air’s soon, mass production next month (May) – Apple vs Samsung – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – iGlaswegian on iTunes: itunes.apple.com SPONSOR: www.parcelmonkey.co.uk ******************* Would appreciate if you guys could check my new venture out www.ayegear.com iGlaswegian T-shirts http Visit my site: www.iglaswegian.com Twitter www.twitter.com Facebook: www.facebook.com FlickR Gallery: www.flickr.com My OTHER YouTube channel: www.youtube.com apple weekly 25 new mac pro 2011 imac refresh thunderbolt sandybridge big display macbook air lightpeak faster sandybridge quad core i5 i7 june launch OSX lion apple vs samsung lawsuit sue this is my next iphone leaked 5G 4Gs a5 dual core chip theunits3 iglaswegian i6laswegian glasgow scotland scottish steve jobs tim cook Video Rating: 4 / 5
“CNET’s Brian Tong claims that Apple is gearing up to launch a revamped Mac Pro and an upgraded Mac mini in either late July or early August — more likely in August. Details are scarce on what this “next-gen” Mac Pro holds, but if what 9to5Mac has previously been told is showing up in these 2011 models, we’ll be seeing a smaller, rackmountable design that can hold multiple solid-state-drives. Lending credence to the report are shortages of the Mac Pro server model. EXCLUSIVE: My sources tell me ALL NEW Next-Gen Mac Pros and Mac Minis will launch either end of July first week of August. The Mac minis are said to be receiving the Thunderbolt I/O and Sandy Bridge Processor treatment, which the MacBook Pro and iMac families received earlier this year. Summer 2010 was the scene of a major Mac mini redesign, so those hoping for an all new Mac mini should wait a couple of refreshes. Mac minis (and Mac mini servers – on Amazon as well) are currently short on supply (thanks, Mr. X!). Separately, we’ve been hearing independently that Apple is gearing up to release upgraded MacBook Airs — we should have our own details on that soon.” -9to5mac.com Video Rating: 3 / 5