0wn th3 1n73r.net

Worklog

I have been working on Mythtv for over a year. I am making a worklog of what I have done to get the installation working. I will start this series of posts with what hardware I will making my Mythtv box with.

The computer I will be using is a HP Evo D510

My particular computer has a 1.8 Pentium 4 processor, 512 mb DDR ram, 40 gb hard drive.

The extra hardware I have added to the computer are Nvidia 6200 video card, Turtle beach audio advantage micro (for optical audio), and a DIVICO Fusion HDTV gold 5 plus tuner card.

My purpose for this computer is to be able to watch and record HD shows and also play DVD’s and listen to music. I did not think that would be a daunting task but I have found differently along the way. My main goal for this computer is to allow the watching of TV, listening of music, and watching movies to be seemless and easy. I do not want to have to change inputs on my tv, turn on my receiver, or turn on my computer to do what I want it to do.
The OS I will be using is Kubuntu 6.06. The software I am using to control the HD watching and recording is Mythtv. I hope to let Mythtv control the music and DVD’s also but that is not required.
One catch to all of this is I am not a advanced Linux user. I have not been using Linux my whole life and I have never compiled my own kernel. I have been playing around with Linux in the form of live cd’s for about 3 years and I think with tutorials that already exist and irc rooms I can make this computer work exactly how I want it to.

I will try to keep this as up to date as I can with failures and progress so that anyone else with similar hardware or similar goals can join in my struggle.

Add extra shortcuts to My Computer

As much as I have hated Windows lately I found these cool little shortcuts that make me like Windows a little more.  They require reg edits but they are worth it.

Expand HKLM\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\MyComputer\NameSpace
Create a new KEY and choose one of the values below:

{D20EA4E1-3957-11D2-A40B-0C5020524153} for Administrative Tools
{2227A280-3AEA-1069-A2DE-08002B30309D} for Printers and Fax Devices
{D6277990-4C6A-11CF-8D87-00AA0060F5BF} for Scheduled Tasks
{7007ACC7-3202-11D1-AAD2-00805FC1270E} for Network Connections
{645FF040-5081-101B-9F08-00AA002F954E} for Recycle Bin
{208D2C60-3AEA-1069-A2D7-08002B30309D} for My Network Places

One refresh and you are set.

Enjoy!

Things you can’t get for the price of a PS3

I know most people don’t care about the price of the PS3 anymore but I take a little while to actually write my posts. So here is my list of things that you CANNOT buy for the same price of the Teir 2 PS3 (HDMI, WiFi, Card reader, etc).

60 gig apple iPod - $399
spare charger = ~$20
1 day of enjoyment = 200 songs (~16 albums) = $198
better headphones = ~$40
Total for iPod = $657

Clothes for 1 week
shoes - ~$60
Pants - $60 x 7 = $420
Shirt - $30 x 7 = $210
Socks - $12 (pack)
Underwear - $14 x 2 (pack of 3, one day of commando) = $28
Total = $730

Blue ray player = ~$1000

Xbox 360 pro (20 gig hdd) = $399.99
wireless adapter = $99.99
HD-DVD add-on = ~$150
Xbox 360 total = $650

Sony PSP = $199.99
4 GB pro duo memory card = $150
PSP dock with remote = $30
PSP screen protector/case = $20
5 games = $200
extended battery = $50
Total = $650

Laptop = $650

So that is my list. I am sure there are more things and your are welcome to leave them in the comments.

For those of you who do not follow the prices of new consoles here is a short recap.
The xbox360 debuted in November of ‘05 with two different models. There was a low model (teir 1) that didn’t have a hard drive and there was a higher model (teir 2) that came with a 20 gig hard drive. The teir 1 model came out for $299.99 and the teir 2 was $399.99. While this is a lot for some people you may want to check out some charts on the history of console prices.

While the xbox360 is out now for purchase Nintendo and Sony both have new console systems on their way. Nintendo is comming out with the Wii and Sony is going to release the Playstation 3. Nintendo has not yet announced the price for their Wii but they have said it will be under $250. Sony, on the other hand, has already announced that they will be using a similar teir system to Microsoft. The teir 1 PS3 will be $499.99 and the teir 2 PS3 will be $599.99.

How to Bypass BIOS passwords

I wanted to post this for my own future reference and also if it helps anyone else in the future.  I have been locked out of the bios with computers that have been given to me and also ones I have bought in the past and there is nothing more annoying than taking out the cmos battery and then finding out that the password doesn’t erase.  OK so maybe there are a couple of things that are more annoying.  But this is still frustrating.
Backdoor Passwords

Many BIOS manufacturers have provided backdoor passwords that can be used to access the BIOS setup in the event you have lost your password. These passwords are case sensitive, so you may wish to try a variety of combinations.

WARNING: Some BIOS configurations will lock you out of the system completely if you type in an incorrect password more than 3 times. Read your manufacturers documentation for the BIOS setting before you begin typing in passwords.

Award BIOS backdoor passwords:

AMI BIOS Backdoor Passwords:

Phoenix BIOS Backdoor Passwords:

Misc. Common Passwords

Other BIOS Passwords by Manufacturer

Toshiba BIOS

Most Toshiba laptops and some desktop systems will bypass the BIOS password if the left shift key is held down during boot

IBM Aptiva BIOS

Press both mouse buttons repeatedly during the boot

Using the Motherboard “Clear CMOS” Jumper or Dipswitch settings

Many motherboards feature a set of jumpers or dipswitches that will clear the CMOS and wipe all of the custom settings including BIOS passwords. The locations of these jumpers / dipswitches will vary depending on the motherboard manufacturer and ideally you should always refer to the motherboard or computer manufacturers documentation. If the documentation is unavailable, the jumpers/dipswitches can sometimes be found along the edge of the motherboard, next to the CMOS battery, or near the processor. Some manufacturers may label the jumper / dipswitch CLEAR - CLEAR CMOS - CLR - CLRPWD - PASSWD - PASSWORD - PWD. On laptop computers, the dipswitches are usually found under the keyboard or within a compartment at the bottom of the laptop.

Please remember to unplug your PC and use a grounding strip before reaching into your PC and touching the motherboard. Once you locate and rest the jumper switches, turn the computer on and check if the password has been cleared. If it has, turn the computer off and return the jumpers or dipswitches to its original position.

Removing the CMOS Battery

The CMOS settings on most systems are buffered by a small battery that is attached to the motherboard. (It looks like a small watch battery). If you unplug the PC and remove the battery for 10-15 minutes, the CMOS may reset itself and the password should be blank. (Along with any other machine specific settings, so be sure you are familiar with manually reconfiguring the BIOS settings before you do this.) Some manufacturers backup the power to the CMOS chipset by using a capacitor, so if your first attempt fails, leave the battery out (with the system unplugged) for at least 24 hours. Some batteries are actually soldered onto the motherboard making this task more difficult. Unsoldering the battery incorrectly may damage your motherboard and other components, so please don’t attempt this if you are inexperienced. Another option may be to remove the CMOS chip from the motherboard for a period of time.

Note: Removing the battery to reset the CMOS will not work for all PC’s, and almost all of the newer laptops store their BIOS passwords in a manner which does not require continuous power, so removing the CMOS battery may not work at all. IBM Thinkpad laptops lock the hard drive as well as the BIOS when the supervisor password is set. If you reset the BIOS password, but cannot reset the hard drive password, you may not be able to access the drive and it will remain locked, even if you place it in a new laptop. IBM Thinkpads have special jumper switches on the motherboard, and these should be used to reset the system.

The complete list of media center frontends

I would love to review this later in more depth but for now I will just give you the summary. Great list of free and paid media centers for Windows, Linux, Mac, and xbox.

read more | digg story

Stop PDF from freezing your Firefox

For me this is almost a daily occurance. Now it should stop crashing firefox for good. Here are the steps to take.
1. Go to the “Tools -> Options” menu
2. Select the “Downloads” tab
3. Open “View and Edit Actions…”
4. Enter “pdf” in the “Search” box
5. Select “Change Action…”
6. Change the selection from “Use this Plugin” to “Open them with the default application”, which should point to Adobe Acrobat, Adobe Acrobat Reader, or your favorite PDF viewer

Enjoy.


read more | digg story

Computer Error Messages Gone Wrong

This is a great list of computer errors with pictures. I haven’t seen a list this complete for a while.

read more | digg story

Why Windows takes so long to shut down.

Ever want windows just to turn off?  I found this helpful tool through another tech site.  They found there was a windows tool that is called User Profile Hive Cleanup Service.  Here is what Microsoft says about the tool.

The User Profile Hive Cleanup service helps to ensure user sessions are completely terminated when a user logs off. System processes and applications occasionally maintain connections to registry keys in the user profile after a user logs off. In those cases the user session is prevented from completely ending. This can result in problems when using Roaming User Profiles in a server environment or when using locked profiles as implemented through the Shared Computer Toolkit for Windows XP.

What that means for you is this tool helps windows shutdown fast.  Simply run the installer after installation finishes go to run and type “services.msc”.  Find the service labeled User Profile Hive Cleanup and make sure it is running,

and restart. (you have to restart before the settings take effect.  I just thought I would share one of the many random things I have found.

Popular Mechanics: Troubleshoot your HDTV

Wow, these guys did a great job explaining all of the little annoyances that haunt my HDTV. Have a look at how to fix up your new HDTV to make the picture even better than you already thought it was. It helped that they used 24 for the sample picture too!

URL: Popular Mechanics: Fix your HDTV picture

What is that internet connection.

Once again this is more for my reference than for anything else. But I came accross this from digg and thought I should post it on here in case the site ever disappears.

T1 or DS-1 - This is the equivalent of 24 phone lines.
It had handle 1.5 million bits per second [1.5Mbps]
The key word is BITS not bytes. Bits are much smaller
then bytes - and they have a vary compare to a byte.
A bit is One - A byte can be 4,8,10,12,16 depending on
the thing we are talking about - The telecommuncations
industry uses bits - so we do to.. Please never confuse
the two. From a PC standpoint 8 bits equal one byte.

T2 or DS-2 - This is the equivalent of 4 T1’s. The capacity is 6.3
million bits per second [6.3Mbps]

T3 or DS-3 - This is the equivalent of 28 T1’s. The capacity is 45
million bits per second [45Mbps]

T4 or DS-4 - This is the equivalnet of 6 T3’s. The capacity is 274
million bits per second [274Mbps]. Sprint currently
uses DS-4 for the backbone.

OC-1 - Sometimes called SONET. OC-1 uses ATM switches [as
all OC-X does] and runs at 51 million bits per second
[51Mbps]. Uses Fiber

OC-3 - This is the equivalent of 155 million bits per second
[155Mbps]. MCI currently runs a few of these on their
backbone.

OC-12 - 600 million bits per second [600 Mbps]

OC-48 - 2.4 gigabits per second [2.4 Gbps]

Frame Relay - Basically dead and gone as far the Internet is concerned.
Especially with the bandwidth requirements the way they are.
Frame relay runs around 64kbps to 1.5Mbps [64,000 bits per
second to 1.5 million bits per second]. Frame Relay is
shared line with other people and your bandwidth depends
on the current utilization of the line.

ATM - Asynchronus Transfer Mode. ATM is a very expensive switching
solution that is used in carry OC-3 and OC-12 lines.