Okay, technically it's cracking Windows passwords. However, if you've somehow forgotten your's, this method should work just fine.

Note: I believe that this method only recovers passwords up to 14 characters in length. Also, it works up through Windows XP. Vista users need not apply.

Posted by: Physics Geek at 10:29 AM | Comments (2) | Add Comment
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Popular Science posted an article on building what it calls a lunchbox PC. It is a full featured computer, sans hard drive and CD drive, although you can add them if need be. It also uses, not surprisingly, a version of Linux as the OS of choice. Excerpt:

With antiquated components flooding the surplus-parts market and free operating systems only a click away, building a fully functional computer has never been such a bargain. No, the $72 PC wonÂ’t replace your new dual-core, Vista-shredding laptop. But with its compact size and solid-state components (no hard drive or CD drive), itÂ’s perfect for building into custom enclosures and for specific tasks like Web surfing or playing games. The computer boots from a USB flash drive running an operating system called Damn Small Linux that can handle just about any job.

Too cool.

Posted by: Physics Geek at 07:27 AM | No Comments | Add Comment
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Bill Quick finally kissed Microsoft goodbye. Excellent. I remember his previous foray into the world Linux last year; he was unimpressed. However, Bill's managed to work around most of his issues and is browsing on his laptop via his EVDO card. Not surprisingly, his computer is much more responsive than it was before.

BTW, from what I've read, the EVDO cards can be a hassle to get up and running. Bill's experience appears to bear that out. However, he's perfectly willing to share his method and madness to anyone who is interested. Be sure to drop him a line if you have questions.

One user down, a gazillion to go.

Posted by: Physics Geek at 10:43 AM | No Comments | Add Comment
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Suppose that you're searching for pictures of, umm, Angelina Jolie using Google's image search. You get a lot of full body photos (yum!), red carpet photos, pictures of her children, etcetera. Right? Well suppose you wanted to refine that search so that you only saw images containing Angelina's face. How would you go about that? Here's how:

1. Go to Google.
   
2. Click on the "Image" link to limit your search to pictures.
   
3. Type Angelina Jolie and click on "Search". You will see a URL in the address bar of your bar that looks like this one: http://images.google.com/images?hl=en&q=angelina+jolie&btnG=Search+Images&gbv=2
   
4. Now append the string &imgtype=face to URL in the address bar of your browser. It should look like this: http://images.google.com/images?hl=en&q=angelina+jolie&btnG=Search+Images&gbv=2&imgtype=face
   
5. Hit the "Enter" key.
   

Pretty cool, huh? I believe that it also works with the string &imgtype=news. That search should return news articles relating to whomever your searching for.

Thanks go to someone mailing in a tip to Lifehacker.

Posted by: Physics Geek at 07:30 AM | No Comments | Add Comment
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I will admit to using Bittorrent. It comes in quite handy when I'm away from home and forget to record a TV show that I wanted to see. However, if I forget to start a download before I leave for work in the morning, I can't watch the show that I've downloaded until the next day, as it takes a bit of time to download even a single hour of episodic television.

Why do I bring up my geekish habits and shortcomings? Because some enterprising souls have created a way in which I can manage my Bittorrent downloads when I'm away from my home. I give you WebUI. Excerpt:

You're a BitTorrent freak, so why should you let a little thing like being away from your home computer stop you from getting your fix? Using the popular, free uTorrent client, you can control your BT downloads from anywhere using a full-featured web interface.

With uTorrent's WebUI, you can add, remove, and manage the downloads you've got running at home no matter where you are.
...
First, you'll need to grab a copy of uTorrent if you don't already have it. It's a standalone executable, so just put it wherever you like, give it a run, and let's get started.

Next you've got to grab the WebUI files (the first link in the post). Here's a direct link that should work for now, but I can't guarantee it'll always be the latest, so you might want to check the first link to make sure.

I love technology.

Posted by: Physics Geek at 03:36 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
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Ever wish that you could use multiple search engines at the same time for the same query? The late and lamented YaGoohoogle.com notwithstanding, you've usually started with your favorite search engine and worked your way through the list until you found what you wanted. Now, though, you can receive your query results from the following search engines with the stroke of one mouse button using Zuula: Google, Yahoo!, MSN, Gigablast, Exalead, Alexa, Accoona and Amfibi. If you're in the mood for image searching, you can replace the last five with Picsearch and Flickr results. Similar specific results exist for searches about jobs, blogs and news.

Anyway, go check out Zuula and power up your searches.

Posted by: Physics Geek at 11:25 AM | Comments (1) | Add Comment
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An idea for our time: Wubi. It allows you to run the latest version of Ubuntu without booting from a Live CD or partitioning your hard drive. Excerpt from the FAQ:

Wubi Internals

How does Wubi work?

Wubi adds an entry to the Windows boot menu which allows you to run Linux. Ubuntu is installed within a file in the windows file system (c:\wubi\harddisks\ubuntu.hd), this file is seen by Linux as a real hard disk.

Is this running Ubuntu within a virtual environment or something similar?

No. This is a real installation, the only difference is that Ubuntu is installed within a file as opposed to being installed within its own partition. Thus we spare you the trouble to create a free partition for Ubuntu. And we spare you the trouble to have to burn a CD-Rom.

Requirements

What are the system requirements?

If you can run Windows XP, you will have no problem running Ubuntu, since Ubuntu has lower system requirements than Windows XP. As for disk space, the installation requires a minimum of 3GB. This space is mostly used by the virtual hard disk file.

What platform is supported?

For the moment Wubi will only run on Windows XP, but the back-end is quite flexible and it can support multiple platforms as hosts and guests (provided they are debian-based).

What is the performance?

The performance is identical to a standard installation, except for hard-disk access which is slightly slower. If your hard disk is very fragmented the performance will degenerate.

Can I run the images within an emulator?

Yes, but you will have to use other software to do that. The intended use of Wubi is to provide an installation which is as close as possible to a standard one with minimal fuss for the user.

Anyway, for those of you interested in as painless a test drive of Ubuntu as possible, this might be the way to go. Check out Wubi.

Update: However, if you're dead set on moving away from Windows, here's an article which will take you through the move, step by step, up to and including suggestions on porting your emails and making your Open Office files compatible with your Windows compatriots.

Remember: embrace the Penguin.

Posted by: Physics Geek at 03:08 PM | Comments (1) | Add Comment
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Here's a pretty good list of Things that I can do in Linux that I can't do in Windows. Excerpt:

1. Update every single piece of software on my system with a single action. This is one of the main reasons I run Linux. Sure, Windows has Windows Update, but that only updates the operating system, Office, and a few other things. For every Linux distribution I've used (Gentoo, Red Hat, Suse, Ubuntu), updating is simple. When you update, you have every application, every library, every script - every single piece of software upgraded automatically for you. And on most of them, they will check for updates automatically and notify you. This is great for security, fixing bugs quickly, and getting the latest in features.

2. Update nearly everything on my computer without a reboot. On Linux, there is only one thing that requires a reboot after updates. The kernel. And even then you can continue to run on the previous kernel. You just need to reboot to get the benefit of using the new kernel (say, if it has a bug fix or a new feature). In Windows, many of the updates to even non-critical software require reboots.
   ...
   
3. Run an entire operating system for free without pirating software, and without breaking the law. Most Window's users seem to accept that breaking the law is okay, because it is pretty much required. Either you break the law, or spend countless thousands of dollars on the software you need. You may not think it is a big deal, but if you own a home like I do, you are putting it at risk. While unlikely, the potential is there for software companies to come after you just like the RIAA has come after countless people. With Linux, this isn't necessary. You can run the software you need without paying for it, and without breaking the law. I know I sleep better at night.

4. Take my settings with me where ever I go. In Linux, all your personal settings are stored in your Home folder, most in folders that begin with a period (like .gaim). So, I can copy all these settings from one computer to another. I can put these settings on a USB drive. When I switched from Gentoo to Ubuntu, I kept all my settings. On Windows, some settings are under your home folder and some are in the registry. So your settings are not portable.
   ...
   
5. Run thousands of great pieces of software that only run on Linux. Just like Windows, Linux has software that doesn't run on Windows. Great pieces of software like Amarok, Bluefish, Neverball, Gnumeric, K3B, Beryl, gdesklets, and MythTV. I know this is a chicken-and-egg point, where Windows has the exact same situation. Too often I hear "I can't switch to Linux because it doesn't run [insert Windows software]". My reason for pointing it out is just to make it clear that this is a two-way street.

6. Learn about, support, and appreciate the value of free software. I believe free software is important to us all. Even if you use non-free software, the free software movement ensures checks and balances on non-free software by offering an alternative. By running a free operating system and becoming involved in the community, I've contributed to free software, even if only in a small way.
   

The whole article is worth reading.

Posted by: Physics Geek at 08:10 AM | No Comments | Add Comment
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Actually, it's the search itself that possibly awards you free stuff. Check out Blingo, a Google-powered search engine that gives out up to 25 prizes per day. Possible prizes?

• Brand New Ford Escape or $20,000 cash!

• $5,000 Cash

• Home Theatre Package or $2,500 cash

• $2,500 Cash

• $1,000 Cash Every Thursday

• $25 Amazon.com Gift Certificate *

• Fandango Movie Ticket

There are some downsides, of course, and they are:

• You don't have access to Google's advanced search functions page.
  
• There is no way to change the filter level for image searches.
  

Anyway, give it a shot if you're interested.

Posted by: Physics Geek at 10:29 AM | Comments (2) | Add Comment
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The following exchange was found by a friend of mine in a Powerbuilder news group. Some people were discussing what would likely replace Powerbuilder and, well...

> All wrong. LISP is back with a vengeance. One language to rule them all.

Mention LISP again, and I'll run my CAR over your CDR.

I almost choked on my Diet Dr. Pepper. Don't worry if you don't understand the above exchange. All that means is that you probably had something resembling a life during college.

Posted by: Physics Geek at 07:15 AM | Comments (3) | Add Comment
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Via Free Geekery comes a list of 17 Must-Have Apps for New Ubuntu Users. Excerpt:

If you haven't tried Ubuntu, the new Ubuntu 7.04 Feisty Fawn offers the PC user a chance to try out this open source software with little fear. Adrian Kingsley-Hughes from ZDNet states that "Ubuntu 7.04 is by far the best and easiest version of Linux that I've used" and "a simple (and safe) way for PC owners to experiment with Linux." In addition, Ubuntu lightens the user experience with a desktop edition for those who don't want to alter their computers with a server install. With that said, Kingsly-Hughes admits that some "dark corners" still exist for Ubuntu users that only a true geek and open source advocate would understand.

With that thought in mind, we hope to pave some of the new Ubuntu user's rocky road with 17 apps that will make that Ubuntu transition smoother. Since Ubuntu comes packaged with all the open source apps that an average user might need (Firefox 2.0, Open Office, Rhythmbox, etc.), it might seem crazy to add more "clutter" to the situation. But what happens if you'd rather use the Opera browser rather than Firefox? Or, perhaps you'd like to add more sound and video apps to your repertoire beyond Rhythmbox. Since the server and desktop versions of Ubuntu support the GNOME 2.18 desktop environment, literally hundreds of additional applications are appropriate for Ubuntu users. But the following free software apps, listed in alphabetical order, provide the new Ubuntu desktop user with a logical beginning to an enhanced open source experience.

1. AllTray

   Some apps, like gaim (to be renamed Pidgin in its new release), provide a minimizing feature. If you're logged into gaim, you can click the "close" button and the app will disappear from the windows list and the icon will appear in the system tray. You then click the icon and the gaim window reappears. This feature provides users with a simplified workspace. Now you can dock any application without a native tray icon (like Ubuntu's email app, Evolution) in the AllTray system tray. The tool lacks a "drag and drop" feature, so you need to capture an open application to dock it in the tray. In addition to GNOME, AllTray also works with KDE, recent versions of XFCE, and window managers such as Fluxbox and WindowMaker.

2. amaroK

   amaroK is a music player that was built specifically for the Unix/Linux user, so its function and eye-candy interface makes this a must-have app for the music lover. A drag-and-drop playlist creation, 10-band equalizer, and automatic cover art download via Amazon all make Amarok a perfect application for album freaks as well as single-play aficionados. Ubuntu Feisty includes a new guided wizard for automatically installing multimedia codecs not shipped with Ubuntu, so you're in good shape here.

...

More notes for the new Ubuntu User: Ubuntu Feisty comes with a Windows migration tool that recognizes Internet Explorer bookmarks, Firefox favorites, desktop wallpaper, AOL and Yahoo! IM contacts and imports them all during Ubuntu installation. Utilize that tool when you decide to migrate. In addition, new users might remember to try to apt-get a program through Ubuntu's interface or check repositories before installing from a source. This practice helps to keep your system cleaner and everything more interconnected, making it easier to maintain and update any Ubuntu apps.

Pretty good list there, especially if you plan on embracing the Penguin.

Posted by: Physics Geek at 08:42 AM | No Comments | Add Comment
Post contains 576 words, total size 4 kb.

You'd better download Firefox 2.x because Mozilla will end it's updates/security patches of the 1.5x versions sometime in May. You have been warned.

Get Firefox 2.0.0.3 here. Or go bleeding edge with Firefox 3 alpha.

Posted by: Physics Geek at 04:33 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
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How? By converting it to an external hard drive in minutes. Excerpt:

An external hard drive can serve countless uses: moving large files from one PC to another, backing up data, rescuing files from an unbootable drive, and, of course, expanding your available storage space. It can also act as a holding tank for your data while you perform a hard-drive wipe and OS reinstall. Here's how to turn any cast-off internal drive into an external drive with a new lease on life.

Choose an enclosure

Your hard drive needs a new home, a small case that supplies power, protection and a USB or FireWire interface. Prices for these enclosures range from as little as $10 on up to around $100, though I wouldn't pay more than $20-30 for one. (Some of the pricier models can connect directly to TVs for video and audio streaming, and even come with wireless remotes.)

The key consideration is size: If your hard drive came from a notebook, you'll need a 2.5-inch enclosure. Desktop drives require a 3.5-inch enclosure.

Next up, consider your interface options. Most enclosures are designed to work with IDE drives and supply a USB and/or FireWire external interface for connecting to your PC. However, some enclosures support newer SATA drives and include an eSATA interface--though not many PCs or notebooks have that kind of port. Thus, if you're relocating a SATA drive, make sure the enclosure includes a USB interface so you'll have a place to connect it. (Not sure how to tell an IDE drive from a SATA drive? It's all in the interface: an IDE connector measures about two inches wide and has two rows of pins; SATA connectors are much smaller and have only one row.)

That's really all you need to know about choosing an enclosure. If you're into eye candy, look for a see-through chassis or one with LEDs or other decorative elements. As for where to buy, I've found excellent selection and low prices at Newegg.com, though that is by no means the only place to shop. (If you have a favorite store for enclosures and other accessories, talk it up in the comments.)

Pretty cool stuff.

Posted by: Physics Geek at 02:19 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
Post contains 383 words, total size 2 kb.

Might not be as portable as a thumb drive, but you can access the files wherever there's a valid internet connection. And it uses a simple add-on to Firefox. Excerpt:

Once Gspace is installed, it'll also add an icon to Firefox's status bar. You can click this icon to open a minimal Gspace panel showing the files that have been transfered to the Gmail account.

Before you can transfer files, you have to log in to your account through Gspace. The Manage Accounts button brings up a simple form with fields for your Gmail ID and password. Fill in your account information, click on Save, and you're done. If you have more than one Gmail account you can log in and transfer data to only one account at a time. If you are signed into a particular Gmail account, on launch Gspace will automatically log on to that account for transferring files. If you have separate accounts for email and for transferring files, to avoid confusion, sign out of Gmail before launching Gspace. Then, from the Gspace interface, select the account you want to transfer files to and click on Login.

Transferring files

With Gspace, by default, you can transfer files that are up to 14MB in size. You can change this limit from within Gspace's Preferences tab. Preferences are shared by all accounts. To avoid confusion, Gspace lists only files on your computer that fall within the attachment size limit.

The transfer procedure is simple. Locate the file or files or even a directory that you want to transfer in the left pane, then either right-click on the file and choose Upload, or just click on the arrow between the two panes that points toward the right pane.

The progress of the file transfer is shown in the bottom left portion of the Gspace interface. Gspace can transfer only one file at a time. You can select more files to upload while Gspace is transferring your previous selection. These will be added to a file transfer queue. If you've uploaded a complete directory, Gspace will create a directory of the same name to keep your files under. You can also create your own directories.

...

Once a file has been uploaded using Gspace, it's kept as an email attachment. The message's subject notes the name of the file, along with a few properties such as its size and the directory it resides in. Because of the long subject lines, messages that store files can be distracting; the Gspace FAQ recommends and has instructions for archiving them.

Cool beans.

Posted by: Physics Geek at 11:05 AM | No Comments | Add Comment
Post contains 443 words, total size 3 kb.

I use IE at home only when forced to. Yes, I know that Firefox has the IE add-in which allows you to view IE optimized pages, but I usually take the point of least resistance when I encounter a page like that. However, if you're currently using Linux, you probably do not have IE installed on your computer. You may not, in fact, know that it's possible to install and use IE within in Linux. It is. Here's how to go about installing IE if you're currently using Ubuntu:

2 Modify /etc/apt/sources.list

In order to install IEs4Linux, we must modify /etc/apt/sources.list.

2.1 Ubuntu Feisty Fawn

On Ubuntu Feisty Fawn, we must have the lines deb http://de.archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu feisty universe and deb http://wine.budgetdedicated.com/apt edgy main (yes, edgy is correct because that repository doesn't have packages for Feisty yet, but fortunately the Edgy packages work on Feisty, too) in /etc/apt/sources.list:

sudo vi /etc/apt/sources.list

Then run

sudo apt-get update

to update the package database.
...

3 Install wine And cabextract

Next we must install the packages wine and cabextract like this:

sudo apt-get install wine cabextract

If you are asked Install these packages without verification [y/N]?, answer y:

root@falko-desktop:~# sudo apt-get install wine cabextract
Reading package lists... Done
Building dependency tree
Reading state information... Done
cabextract is already the newest version.
The following NEW packages will be installed:
wine
0 upgraded, 1 newly installed, 0 to remove and 90 not upgraded.
Need to get 9476kB of archives.
After unpacking 44.4MB of additional disk space will be used.
WARNING: The following packages cannot be authenticated!
wine
Install these packages without verification [y/N]? <-- y

There's a lot more where that came from.

Posted by: Physics Geek at 10:41 AM | Comments (1) | Add Comment
Post contains 284 words, total size 2 kb.

Would you like one lump of Sugar, or two?

I'll give it a test drive, just for grins. If I find anything worthwhile, I'll let you know.

Posted by: Physics Geek at 12:47 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
Post contains 39 words, total size 1 kb.

Best of all, they're all available online. Excerpt:

The web applications we consider here range from simple photo toucher-uppers all the way up to Photoshop wannabes. But none of them can yet perform the truly advanced functions you'll find in programs like Photoshop or Gimp. We tried out five online photo editors that go beyond the basic rotate and red-eye functions:

• Fauxto
  
• Picnik
  
• Picture2Life
  
• Pixenate
  
• Snipshot
  

In addition to letting you do things like resizing, rotating, and optimizing brightness, contrast, and colors, many of these will actually apply filters (blur, sharpen, etc.) and other weird fun effects, such as giving your image an old-fashioned border or making collages. So you can pick the one that fits your needs, from simple image correcting to elaborate artistic creations.

They're all free, and mostly in beta at this stage, but we didn't encounter any showstoppers—just the odd function not, er, functioning. Their interfaces vary from the cluttered and complex to the sleek and simple. We found that they all worked in both Firefox and Internet Explorer, though bugs would often appear in one and not the other.

We'd be remiss not to mention Adobe's plans for an online version of the big daddy of image editing, Photoshop. It's been reported that the online version of Photoshop will be free, with ads, but we have to wonder how much you'll get for free, with the exorbitant price ($649) for the installed software. What's more, the services here are working and available to try out now. Adobe's online Photoshop version is about six months out at the time of this writing.

The article continues for several pages, detailing the pros and cons of each of the photo editors. In any event, they might be worth keeping in mind if you're on the road and want to do a little bit of photo work.

Related update: Turns out that there are several free online storage sites that you can use, too. Pretty cool stuff.

Posted by: Physics Geek at 12:07 PM | Comments (3) | Add Comment
Post contains 336 words, total size 3 kb.

I've extolled the virtues of Portable Apps before for a couple ofl reasons:

1) You can carry your favorite applications wherever your go

2) They're completely free

Let's suppose, however, that you have an application on your computer that you really want to take with you, and it hasn't been converted into a portable application yet. In fact, it may never get converted. I guess that you're screwed, right? Wrong.

A commenter on the Portable Apps forum, Klonk, has created a Portable Apps Template which, if used properly, will help you convert most applications to a portable format. Another commenter, Smithtech, has created several conversion scripts from the template, including ones for Photoshop 6 and Dreamweaver 8.

Have I done this yet? No, but I'm fairly certain that I will, and if I think that the software I convert would be useful to others, I'll post the script here.

Posted by: Physics Geek at 11:23 AM | Comments (3) | Add Comment
Post contains 161 words, total size 1 kb.

For version 2+ of Firefox, anyway. Excerpt:

Perhaps most exciting could be Firefox's ability to support writing an e-mail in, for example, Gmail while offline, with the data sent later when a user is connected to the Internet again. Ultimately, Mozilla engineers are aiming for an integration between the browser and Web-based services that is as smooth running as a desktop application, Schroepfer said.

So far, engineers have made Firefox work with Zimbra, an open-source e-mail, messaging and VOIP (voice over Internet Protocol) application. With a bit of code from Google and Microsoft, it would be possible to integrate with Gmail and Hotmail and other e-mail services.

To do offline support, engineers have overcome the hurdle of how to store data locally on the computer, Schroepfer said. The feature will make it into Firefox 3.0, although the user interface is still under development, he said.

I, for one, welcome our new Mozilla overlords.

Posted by: Physics Geek at 02:45 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
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The Emperor linked to this great FAQ which dismantles in great detail the theory that Vista! will usher in a new era of prosperity and freedom from want. As everyone knows, Pelosi's ascension to Speaker was the signal that the new Golden Age was upon us. In any event, you should read the article at length, and then go back to this article which I linked to some months ago and realize that there are alternatives.

The reality is that Xandros is may be your best bet if you don't want to spend a bunch of money upgrading your hardward to support a beastly system hog of an OS, but don't want to spend much, if any, time on the steep part of the learning curve.

Update: Heh. Looks like Microsoft effed up just a little bit, which is likely to cost them some money as people opt for the upgrade version, rather than the fresh install version. Then again, I won't be "upgrading", so it doesn't really matter to me.

Thanks to DJ Allyn for the heads up.

Update: For reasons that escape, I am the #2 returned search item on the Huffington Post for the word "satan". So welcome, I guess. For those of you expecting a direct link to Bush's official website, feel free to move along.

Posted by: Physics Geek at 11:51 AM | Comments (1) | Add Comment
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