Quite amusing post by CNet UK about how bad the iPhone is at, well, being a phone: “The iPhone is the worst phone in the world“. Reminded me of a comment from a colleague recently talking about buying a new mobile phone, “I don’t want an iPhone because I want to use it as a phone and the battery is crap”. Very funny article and some good points…
Tag Archive for 'Tech'
Christopher Blizzard demonstrates how the upcoming Mozzila FireFox 3.6 can change the page orientation if your device has an accelerometer system (Thinkpads, Macbook pros). You can see how this works in the video below:
An article on the New York Times explains how a group or person was able to get malicious code inserted on the New York Times and gave readers the impression that a program was scanning their computer
New York Times Malicious Ad Code Inserted
THE NYTimes article explains that this attack via online ad systems have already hit companies like FoxNews.com and the The San Francisco Chronicle.
As you can see in the below letter from Publicis owned Starcom this is obvioulsy being taken very seriously and security is being tightened up around the ad insertion procedures…
Publicis-Starcom_Media-Partners_Letter (PDF)
…so Fast Company says in their article:
“Attention Marketers: 80% of Twitterers Are Narcissists” (check out the illustration 
)
Two Twitter happenings caught my attention. 1) The seismic effect of dear young Miley Cyrus deleting her Twitter account in order to “have a life”. 2) It seems to be a revelation for film studios; Twitter may affect box office results depending on the film, hey, they seem to be understanding what Twitter actually is!
It’s a global word of mouth booster, which kind of means that, yes you are not under the spotlight, you are under multiple spotlights, to the extent that everything is amplified at will. When a film is good, guess what, people talk about it, and I will trust (or avoid in some cases) a friends comments on a film far more than any journalist. Twitter just allows people to spread the word to lots of people quickly, maybe even people will tweet while watching the film…
So people that have thousands of followers, just cry out ‘narcissist’ for me, and are invariably comprised of celebrities telling people they have just been to the shop! The exception is the 20% that actually have something interesting to say, and funnily enough, don’t always have thousands or millions of followers.
A few articles about the Miley Cyrus Twitter account being deleted event also pick up the fact that Twitter is not really extensively used by her current target population / fans.
But the main thing is that the companies like Twitter, be they Facebook or Myspace have taken the same approach as Google:
- We will provide you with the tools and you (can) create the content.
- A footnote says “oh and by the way we’ll make money from selling adverts on your pages so don’t worry the service is free!”
‘Giving’ these tools to the crowds has changed the channels advertising agencies and marketing departments are used to. Listening to people who discovered the internet (and the web etc.) 2 or 3 years ago and explaining it to either of the above is at the moment like the blind leading the blind.
I’m astonished when I hear people saying that the social media technologies allow companies to engage the consumers. I think companies will find that social media technologies have given consumers a real voice. A voice that can get very loud. So if you are trying to sell a product that is not bad and your marketing team is promising to make it a success this is where the global word of mouth effect (like Twitter) may be waiting to bite you and any ‘engaging effect’ may only last a few seconds…
Sure you could find (or pay) narcissist Twitter gurus with millions of followers to say your product is great. But wouldn’t it be better to make your product around what consumers want. Not everyone can take the Apple stance of saying we don’t do user testing we make great products…
If you take a look at the article on All Facebook about Honda’s attempt to sway people towards the new Accord Crosstour you’ll see that the idea of using tools in a concealed fashion makes people think you believe they are tools! The big no-no of course is to try and erase comments perceived as an attempt to silence people. Being open to feedback (criticism) is in my opinion the sign of a company that is really trying to provide customers with the best possible service / product. Hey there are millions of companies that still pay enormous amounts of money to get customer feedback rather than using the web.
The social network with systems like Facebook have unleashed the word of mouth. Creating an interesting and valid buzz around a good product will unleash the crowds. Try to trick them and you will be drowned by the wave of mistrust. The same people that are creating the above events like the Accord Crosstour are often the same that complain the Facebook, Twitter et al. aren’t raking in the money because they do not understand the systems and are unlikely to understand their potential if used properly…
Joel Cohen, Warner Bros.’ executive VP and general manager, tells the Sun: “We may be putting too much weight onto the Twitter Effect. But you can see Twitter’s benefits as a communications tool that spreads the word about a film, and the negatives have yet to be proven.”
Source: econsultancy.com
T-Mobile users of the sidekick device have been warned to not let their devices drain completely after a server from the Danger company (owned by Microsoft) had a catastrophic failure, specifically the server managing this service. Seems weird when you read up on cloud computing that one server would hold all the data and not have any type of backup system! Especially when it concerns so many people’s everyday digital life! Read more about the event here and here.
Through the different accounts of the incident it seems that there a) wasn’t an ongoing backup system and b) when upgrading the system the techies at Danger didn’t actually perform a backup, so when things went wrong they were, well, out of options! c) data is not saved on a proper backup system on the Sidekick since the battery draining itself can kill all the data and relies too much on the cloud / offsite storage system!
It is obvious that this story is a dream com true for consultants and companies that work in the backup industry and a nightmare for T-Mobile users concerned…
Very simple procedure. All you need is a small screwdriver and some gentle but determined hands
Turn your closed netbook over
First turn your computer over so you can see the back of it as the image below:
Location of panel to change memory
Circled in red is the panel that has 1 screw you will need to remove to get access to the memory module that needs to be changed.
Remove the battery
I recommend that you remove the battery before attempting to touch the memory module.
1005ha PU1X-BK with battery removed
Unscrew and remove the memory panel
Remove the screw as seen in the image below and remove the panel that will allow you to remove and replace the memory module:
1005ha view of memory panel removed
Note: before touching the memory module I suggest you try to discharge any static electricity you may have. I grab hold of the chassis of my desktop for example. You should try to only hold the module by the edges and not touch any components on it. Avoid standing on a carpet for example or clothes that easily create electro static charge…
Unlock the memory module
You now need to push back the tabs on the side of the memory module that are holding it in the locked position. You will be pushing these for the top one upwards and slightly down and the bottom one downwards and slightly back. This should be done gently there is no need to force this to allow the memory module to slightly spring up so that it is at lifting up at the end that has the tabs.
1005ha memory module in locked position
Release bottom tab on memory module
As you can see below the tab when moved back releases one side of the memory module and you then only need to release the other tab for the whole module to spring upwards.
1005ha memory module bottom tab released
Remove the memory module
Once you have removed the tabs it should be slanted upwards on one side and look like the image below allowing you to then remove it. If you have an anti-static sleeve that your new module came in then put the old module in it so that if anything goes wrong with the new one you can at least put the old one back.
1005ha memory module slanted up
Add the new memory module
As you can see there is a groove on the memory module where it is connected to the motherboard. The number of pins above and below the groove is different so will help you know which way round the memory should be inserted. As you can see in the image below the groove on the connector is from the centre positioned to the left and the memory module therefore needs to be positioned in the same way .
1005ha memory insertion markers
Put the memory panel back
You can now put the memory module panel back, clipping it back in, then screw the panel back into position.
1005ha putting the memory panel back
There you go you now have upgraded your 1005 ha EeePC to the maximum memory of 2 Gig. You should be fully prepared for Windows 7 now!
Changing keyboards on the Asus EeePC 1005ha is pretty easy as you can see below.
First you need to turn the computer over:
Back view of Asus EeePC 1005ha pu1x bk
Remove the battery, then pull back tabs
Then you need to remove the battery in order to pull back the small tabs that are keeping the keyboard in place:
View of the tabs under the battery on the Asus EeePC 1005ha
Pry up the keyboard
I recommend using a small screwdriver (needs to be small as can be seen below otherwise you’ll damage the keyboard) to pry up the keyboard. You need to do this with some force but most of all do it gently (ie. prying not wrenching). You will hear small clicks when you pry it off the points where it is clipped to the chasis:
Gently prying up the keyboard
Gently lift the keyboard out of its normal position
When you have successfully got the keyboard up you will see that it is attached (to the motherboard of the netbook) by a small connector so don’t yank the keyboard out, you need to pull it up gently and then unlock the ribbon from the connector:
1005ha Keyboard Connector
Remove the keyboard connector
In order to remove the ribbon from the connector you need to release it by using the two black latches that can be seen in the image below (circled in red) and are keeping the connector in the fixed position. These need to be gently pushed up. In the same way when you put the ribbon of the other keyboard back into connector you need to push these two small black connectors back in to their locking position:
The 1005ha keyboard connector has been removed
Attach the other keyboard connector
Final step you then need to gently push the other keyboard ribbon into the connector on the motherboard and lock the ribbon back into the connector by pushing the latches back into their locked position so that the ribbon is securely connected to the motherboard. I used one finger to hold the ribbon in place then my small screwdriver to gently push the latches of the connector back into a locked position (sorry no photo of this, you need both hands for this operation ):
Attaching the other keyboard to the 1005ha
Push the keyboard back in
Probably the easiest step, you can now push the keyboard back in and then push the tabs under the battery back into their initial position. Voilà, now I hope this helps anyone that undertakes this fairly easy task, (compared to changing the hard disk) of changing the Asus 1005ha keyboard.
I had a problem the other day trying to get a Windows 7 operating system, that is in English to work with a French keyboard. Of course, I hadn’t set it up myself, but was asked to change the system after the fact. It initially had an English QWERTY keyboard and then my friend started to use a French AZERTY keyboard.
So first, check the list of values below, and then choose the one you want to change to. The English code which could be for the UK, 00000809 or for the US it would be 00000809, and say would befor example changed to a French standard keyboard, the value of which would be 0000040c as you can see in the list below.
Click in the far bottom left hand corner on the blue ‘Start’ circle and in the Search for Programs and Files area type “regedit”. Regedit is a powerful tool and could severely damage your computer if you mess about with it so make sure you are careful and know what you are doing…
Once regedit is launched you need to click in the left hand column on “HKEY_USERS”, then “.DEFAULT” etc. as the path below:
HKEY_USERS\.DEFAULT\Keyboard Layout\Preload
Once you click on “Preload” you will see values appear in the right hand preview pane. Below (Default) you should see an item called “1″ when you select and right click on this you should see the option “Modify…”.
By clicking on this you can change the value to the one you need. Just to check you should see that the current keyboard value is in the list below and corresponds to the one you want to change from. Then, leaving the “value name” as it is, update the “value data” accordingly with the new value selected from the table below and that fits the type of keyboard you are using.
00000402 Bulgarian
0000041a Croatian
00000405 Czech
00000406 Danish
00000413 Dutch (Standard)
00000813 Dutch (Belgian)
00000409 English (United States)
00000809 English (United Kingdom)
00001009 English (Canadian)
00001409 English (New Zealand)
00000c09 English (Australian)
0000040b Finnish
0000040c French (Standard)
0000080c French (Belgian)
0000100c French (Swiss)
00000c0c French (Canadian)
00000407 German (Standard)
00000807 German (Swiss)
00000c07 German (Austrian)
00000408 Greek
0000040e Hungarian
0000040f Icelandic
00001809 English (Irish)
00000410 Italian (Standard)
00000810 Italian (Swiss)
00000414 Norwegian (Bokmal)
00000814 Norwegian (Nynorsk)
00000415 Polish
00000816 Portuguese (Standard)
00000416 Portuguese (Brazilian)
00000418 Romanian
00000419 Russian
0000041b Slovak
00000424 Slovenian
0000080a Spanish (Mexican)
0000040a Spanish (Traditional Sort)
00000c0a Spanish (Modern Sort)
0000041d Swedish
0000041f Turkish
Please make sure that you know what you are doing before using this method as getting it wrong with regedit could have really bad side effects… There are no value checks that the normal Windows interface uses to check you have entered data that will work.
In order for this to take effect you will need to restart your computer or you can simply log-off and log-on again.
From what I have understood the values in HKEY_USERS\.DEFAULT\Keyboard Layout\Substitutes are to provide a user with the ability to switch between 2 languages at login as opposed to a screen that does not display any other options at login. So if you have an external keyboard that is different to say the keyboard on your laptop this would be were you could enter in order of priority the 2 language values. This should then provide you with a option in the top left hand corner of your Windows 7 login screen with the option to switch between langauges/keyboards.
Well here I am, writing about how great the Windows 7 RC1 operating system is, directly from my Dell XPS M1210 64 bit version. Although I went through a fair amount of trial and error and one complete re-install I’m happy to say nearly all the core elements are recognised and no more yellow triangles with exclamation marks in the device manager.
The 2 most difficult where the Ricoh car reader and the Logitech QuickCam / webcam drivers.
The Ricoh card reader came up as a “base system device” issue. I solved this by downloading the driver from this site then installing the application that installs the x64 drivers.
The Logitech came up as an unrecognised USB device driver issue and Windows 7 OS itself allowed me to download the solution R151795 from the Dell site. When you try to install it this fails, you then just need to point the device manager system to the folder where this solution/drivers were extracted, so that it can install the drivers. This does not however install the software that you usually get from Logitech since it only picks up the drivers, which means other software can use it, but you won’t have the Logitech suite you usually get (personally doesn’t bother me but may be a problem for others)!
For an antivirus/firewall solution the latest ESET Smart security 4 works just fine on the 64 bit Windows 7 operating system.
For codecs I highly recommend either switching to VideoLan (but this is not yet available in a 64 bit version) or/and as I did, install the great Windows 7 codec package from Shark that can be downloaded here and 64 bit components to take advantage of your 64 bit Windows Media player for example here.
I’m also running the Office 2007 suite and even though it’s a pity that Windows itself hasn’t got at least a beta version in 64 bit out yet, it works fine and just installed the SP2 for Office 2007.
At the moment it seems easiest to use Internet Explorer 8 (not the 64 bit version) or another 32 bit browser like Chrome, to be able to view Flash content as there is still no 64 bit version of Flash player. For example the release candidate of Minefield, Firefox’s codename for the 64 bit version of their browser doesn’t have a Flash plug-in.
The main idea is that you can try drivers that are indicated as being for the specific hardware you have if they are supposed to work on Vista 64 bit, or wait untill another user explains that they have found what you need, if you don’t want to risk having to reinstall Windows 7 again…
Hope this helps other XPS M1210 owners out
Update: Windows Update just informed of 3 downloads for the Ricoh Host Contoller (Memory stick, SD/MMC and xD Picture card) released in July, October and November 2008 along with the opportunity to download Silverlight!
Update 2: ‘Stir’ kindly provided the link for the Synaptic x64 driver here:
http://forums.laptopvideo2go.com/topic/15103-synaptics-driverver-v13-2-6-1/
Links
Download Windows 7 Release Candidate (both 32 bit and 64 bit versions available). Note: make sure you read the “Read this first” section.
The Windows 7 upgrade advisor
You should also know:
- When the final version of Windows 7 comes out you will not be able to upgrade to it so you will have to do a clean installation
- You can upgrade from Vista 32 bit to Windows 7 32 bit but you cannot upgrade from Vista 32 bit to Windows 64 bit. You cannot upgrade from any version of Windows XP to Windows 7 you’ll need to do a clean install. I would recommend a clean installation though ONLY after having backed up all your data as you will erase everything on your hard disk and I would recommend backing up your data even if you upgrade as you never know what can happen.
- The Windows 7 RC will stop working on June 1, 2010
Developers of iPhone Apps were told by Apple this Thursday that:
“If your app submission is not compatible with iPhone OS 3.0, it will not be approved.”
As explained on techradar all application submissions will need to be compatible with iPhone 3.0 OS. I’m guessing this means quite a few applications may need to be upgraded, and some nice news for iPhone App developers and probably some extra revenue in some cases unless they were nicely coded to begin with…?
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