Monday, December 26, 2011

Hack to get free WiFi on Virgin America flights exploiting Chrome Book promo (Save $12.95)



So I’m currently a couple thousand feet up in the air on a Virgin America flight to San Francisco from Boston and Google are doing this cool thing where they loan you a Chrome Book for the flight, apart of this, you get free wifi on the Chrome Book, whilst on any other device you need to pay like $12.95. I figured out by faking the User Agent to be that of the Chrome Book, you can get free wifi.

TL;DR : Set your browser User Agent to this:

Mozilla/5.0 (X11; CrOS i686 1193.117.0) AppleWebKit/535.7 (KHTML, like Gecko) Chrome/16.0.912.66 Safari/535.7

On Safari do it like so, make sure the Develop menu bar item is enabled (Do this in the Advance tab in Safari Preferences), then click on the Develop menu, then into User Agent, click other and copy and paste in the above browser agent string.
This tricks whatever is handling the wifi into thinking your computer is a Chrome Book and gives you free wifi as apart of the programme they’re running with Google!

Friday, December 23, 2011

Boycott Companies that Support SOPA and Protect IP

It's all about money. Boycott the goods and services of the companies that support SOPA and Protect IP.

SOPA
(For Info on Protect IP, visit http://www.opencongress.org/bill/112-s968/money for now. I will try to incorporate this.)

Also, it has been suggested that you should support organizations and companies that express concern with these bills. If you do patronize these organizations, you should let them know that you appreciate that they are opposed to SOPA and Protect IP. Otherwise, they’ll just think it’s a good season for business.
http://www.cdt.org/report/list-organizations-and-individuals-opposing-sopa

Organizations and companies that support SOPA sent this letter to congress.
http://www.theglobalipcenter.com/sites/default/files/pressreleases/letter-359.pdf

Start boycotting these goods and services immediately and let these companies know that you will continue to do so until they actively withdraw support for SOPA.

Here's links to contact info for each company. Try to make your message make sense. If you're not a lawyer, don't threaten to boycott a company that makes law practice software. It's better to tell them that you're disappointed in their decision to support SOPA and that you will tell anyone who will listen about their attack on free speech. Maybe even mention that you'll tweet about it or post their decision on your Facebook page.

I recommend doing the following. Be polite, and call each of the companies. Here’s a sample script:

“Hi. I am calling because I found out that your company supports the Stop Online Piracy Act. This legislation is an attack on freedom of speech. I’ve decided to stop purchasing/watching/using your product/show/service until you actively withdraw support for the SOPA. I really enjoy your product/show/service, but I don’t want to support companies that support dangerous legislation. I plan to tweet and Facebook about your support of SOPA. Thank you for your time. Good bye.”

Writing hand written letters to these companies is also extremely effective.

Company List:
(Note: sometimes I include a link to Hoovers rather than the corporate site because it’s easier to find the mailing address and phone number on the Hoovers page)

1-800 Contacts, Inc. - 801-924-9800
https://www.1800contacts.com/ExternalRelations/ContactUs.aspx

1-800-PetMeds - 954-979-5995
http://www.1800petmeds.com/help.jsp

3M - 1-888-364-3577
http://solutions.3m.com/wps/portal/3M/en_US/WW2/Country/Corp/Contact3M/

ABRO Industries, Inc. (automotive supplies) - (574) 232-8289
http://www.abro.com/contact-us/

Acushnet Company (Titleist and Footjoy golf) - (800)225-8500
http://www.acushnetcompany.com/contact.html

adidas America - (800) 448-1796
http://www.adidas.com/us/shared/help/help_contact-us.asp

AstraZeneca plc - 1-800-236-9933
http://www.astrazeneca-us.com/about-astrazeneca-us/contact-us/

Autodesk, Inc. - 415-507-5000
http://usa.autodesk.com/adsk/servlet/index?siteID=123112&id=1073074

Beachbody, LLC - 310-883-9000
(P90X, Insanity Videos)
http://www.hoovers.com/company/Beachbody_LLC/rjtthki-1.html

Bose Coporation - (508) 879-7330
http://www.bose.com/controller?url=/contact/index.jsp

Burberry - 800 284 8480
http://us.burberry.com/store/customer-service/contact-us/

Business Software Alliance Members:

Adobe - 408-536-6000

http://www.adobe.com/aboutadobe/contact.html

Apple - 408.996.1010

Tim Cook, CEO

http://www.apple.com/contact/

Autodesk - See individual listing.

AVEVA - Houston Office: 713-977-1225

http://www.aveva.com/Contact.aspx

AVG - 978-319-4460

http://www.avg.com/ww-en/contacts

Bentley Systems - 1-800-236-8539

http://www.bentley.com/en-US/Corporate/Contact+Us/

CA - 800-225-5224

http://www.hoovers.com/ca/--ID__10383--/freeuk-co-factsheet.xhtml

Cadence Design Systems - 408-943-1234

http://www.cadence.com/cadence/contact_us/pages/default.aspx

CNC Software – Mastercam - 800-228-2877

http://www.mastercam.com/AboutUs/ContactUs/Default.aspx

Compuware - 313-227-7300

http://www.compuware.com/about/contact-us.html

Corel - 613-728-0826

http://www.hoovers.com/company/Corel_Corporation/ctyksi-1.html

Dassault Systèmes SolidWorks Corporation - France +33 1 61 62 61 62

http://www.3ds.com/contact/

Dell - 512-338-4400

http://www.hoovers.com/company/Dell_Inc/ryrsyi-1.html

Intel - 408-765-8080

http://www.hoovers.com/company/Intel_Corporation/rykxki-1.html

Intuit - 650-944-6000

http://www.hoovers.com/company/Intuit_Inc/rjffri-1.html

Kaspersky - 866-328-5700

Apparently Kaspersky doesn’t like SOPA. Thank them.

http://news.cnet.com/8301-13578_3-57336961-38/kaspersky-dumps-trade-group-over-sopa/

McAfee - 408-988-3832

http://www.hoovers.com/company/McAfee_Inc/rhxkhi-1.html

Microsoft - 425-882-8080

http://www.hoovers.com/company/Microsoft_Corporation/rcrtif-1.html

Minitab - 814-238-3280

http://www.minitab.com/en-US/company/contact-us/default.aspx

Progress Software - 781-280-4000

http://www.progress.com/en/about/contact.html

PTC - 781-370-5000

http://www.ptc.com/company/contacts/index.htm

Quark - 303-894-8888

http://www.quark.com/Contact_Quark/

Quest - 800-306-9329

http://www.quest.com/company/contact-us.aspx

Rosetta Stone - See individual listing.

Siemens PLM Software, Inc. - 800-498-5351

http://www.plm.automation.siemens.com/en_us/

Sybase - 1-800-792-2735

http://www.sybase.com/contactus

Symantec - 650-527-8000

http://www.hoovers.com/company/Symantec_Corporation/rcxhif-1.html

TechSmith - 517-381-2300

http://www.techsmith.com/contact.html

The MathWorks - 508-647-7000

http://www.mathworks.com/company/aboutus/contact_us/

Callaway Golf Company - 800-588-9836
http://www.callawaygolf.com/Global/en-US/CustomerService/ContactUs.html

Caterpillar Inc. - 309-675-1000
http://www.cat.com/cda/layout?m=37324&x=7

CBS Corporation - 1-212-975-4321
http://www.cbscorporation.com/contact.php

Chanel USA - 1.800.550.0005
https://secure.chanel.com/en_US/customer-service/at-your-service.html

Coach - 1-800-444-3611
https://www.coach.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet//ContactUsView?storeId=10551&catalogId=10051

Columbia Sportswear Company - (800) 622-6953
http://www.columbia.com/contact-us/Contact_Us,default,pg.html

Comcast Corporation - 215-286-1700
http://www.hoovers.com/company/Comcast_Corporation/ryfyci-1.html

Coty Inc. - 212-479-4300
http://www.hoovers.com/company/Coty_Inc/hhkcri-1.html

CVS Caremark - 401-765-1500
http://www.hoovers.com/company/CVS_Caremark_Corporation/rfsxci-1.html

Dolby Laboratories, Inc. - 415-558-0200
http://www.hoovers.com/company/Dolby_Laboratories_Inc/ckcshi-1.html

Dolce & Gabbana USA, Inc.
http://store.dolcegabbana.com/localize.asp?page=help/contactform&

Electronic Arts, Inc. - (650) 628-1500 (they open at 8am PT)

Fender Musical Instrument Company - 480.596.9690
http://www.fender.com/contact_information.php

Ford Motor Company - 800-392-3673
http://corporate.ford.com/owner-services/customer-support/contact-ford/contact-ford-address-phone

Gibson Guitar Corp. - 1-800-444-2766
http://www.gibson.com/en-us/Support/

Harley-Davidson Motor Company - 1-800-258-2464
http://www.harley-davidson.com/en_US/Content/Pages/Utility/contact-us.html

Johnson & Johnson - (732) 524-0400
https://secure-www.jnj.com/wps/wcm/jsp/contactUs.jsp

Juicy Couture, Inc - 1-888-908-1160
http://www.juicycouture.com/Juicy-Couture-Customer-Service/customer-service,default,pg.html

kate spade - 866-999-5283
https://www.katespade.com/on/demandware.store/Sites-Kate-Site/default/CustomerService-Show

Lacoste USA - 1-800-452-2678
https://shop.lacoste.com/contactus?skipSignIn=true

Leatherman Tool Group, Inc. - (800) 847-8665
http://www.leatherman.com/about/contact

Lexmark International, Inc. - 1-859-232-2000
http://www1.lexmark.com/en_US/about-us/company/contact-us.shtml

Liz Claiborne, Inc - (212) 354-4900
http://lizclaiborneinc.com/web/guest/contactinformation

L'Oréal USA - 1-212-818-1500
http://www.lorealusa.com/_en/_us/tools/contact/contact.aspx

Lucky Brand Jeans - 1-866-975-5825
http://www.luckybrand.com/Customer-Care/customerCare,default,pg.html

Major League Baseball - 212-485-3444
http://mlb.mlb.com/mlb/help/contact_us.jsp

Marmot - (707) 544-4590
http://marmot.com/contact

Monster Cable Products, Inc. - 415 840-2000
http://www.monstercable.com/service/contact.asp

National Basketball Association (NBA)
http://www.nba.com/email_us/

National Football League (NFL)
http://www.nfl.com/contact-us

NBCUniversal - 212-664-4444
http://www.nbcuni.com/contact-us/

Nervous Tattoo Inc., dba Ed Hardy - 323-785-4460
http://edhardyshop.com/contact.html

New Balance Athletic Shoe, Inc. - (636) 326-1024
http://www.newbalance.com/help/

New Era Cap Co Inc - 1-877-632-5950
http://shop.neweracap.com/infoPages/contact.php

NHL Enterprises, L.P. - 212-789-2000
http://www.nhl.com/ice/feedback.htm

Nike, Inc. - 1-503-671-6453
http://nikeinc.com/pages/contact-nike-inc

Nintendo of America Inc. - 425.882.2040
http://www.nintendo.com/corp/contact.jsp

Oakley, Inc. - (800) 431-1439
http://www.oakley.com/customer-care/customer-care-info

Peavey Electronics Corporation - 601-483-5365
http://www.peavey.com/support/contactinfo/

Perry Ellis International - 1-800-994-0073
http://www.perryellis.com/on/demandware.store/Sites-perryellis-Site/default/CustomerService-ContactUs

Petzl America - 801-926-1310
http://www.petzl.com/en/corp/contact_info

Pfizer Inc. - 1-212-733-2323
https://www.pfizer.com/contact/mail_general.jsp

PGA of America - (561) 624-8400
http://www.pga.com/about/contact

Philip Morris International - 804-274-2000 or 800-343-0975
http://www.philipmorrisusa.com/en/cms/contact_us/default.aspx

PING - 1.800.474.6434
http://ping.com/about/contactus.aspx

Ralph Lauren Corporation - 888-475-7674
http://www.ralphlauren.com/helpdesk/index.jsp

Red Wing Shoe Company - 1-800-733-9464
http://www.redwingshoes.com/customer-service

Reebok International Ltd. - 781-401-5000
http://corporate.reebok.com/en/about_reebok/contact_us/default.asp

Revlon - 1-800-473-8566
http://www.revlon.com/Revlon-Home/Revlon-General/Contact.aspx

Rite Aid - Home Office: (717) 761-2633
http://www.riteaid.com/contact_us/

Rolex Watch USA Inc. - 665 5th Ave, New York, NY10022 - Tel: (212) 758-7700 - Fax: (212) 223-7443

Rosetta Stone Inc. - 1.800.280.8172?
http://www.rosettastone.com/global/contact

Shure Incorporated - (847) 600-2000
http://www.shure.com/americas/about-shure/contact-us/index.htm

Sony Electronics Inc. (try 1-800-222-7669)
http://news.sel.sony.com/en/corporate_information/contact_us

Sony Music Entertainment - (212) 833-8000
http://hub.sonymusic.com/about/feedback.php

Sony Pictures Entertainment - 310-244-4000
http://www.hoovers.com/company/Sony_Pictures_Entertainment_Inc/hjyjki-1.html

Spyder Active Sports, Inc - 303-544-4000
http://www.spyder.com/about/contact

Taylor Guitars - 619-258-1207
http://www.taylorguitars.com/contact/support/

Taylor Made Golf Company, Inc. - 1.866.530.8624
http://www.taylormadegolf.com/customer-service/contact-us

The Dow Chemical Company - 800-258-2436
http://www.dow.com/financial/contact.htm

The Estee Lauder Companies - 877-311-3883
http://www.esteelauder.com/customer_service/contact.tmpl

The Timberland Company - 603-772-9500
http://www.timberland.com/category/index.jsp?categoryId=4039631

The Walt Disney Company - 818-560-1000
http://corporate.disney.go.com/investors/shareholder_contact.html

Tiffany & Co. - 1-800-843-3269
http://www.tiffany.com/service/policy_con.aspx

Time Warner Inc. - 212.484.8000
http://www.timewarner.com/contact-us/

Toshiba America Business Solutions, Inc. - Corporate Offices (949) 583-3000
http://www.csd.toshiba.com/cgi-bin/tais/support/jsp/navShell.jsp?cf=su_contact

Ultimate Fighting Championship - (702) 221-4780
http://www.ufc.com/contact

Viacom - (212) 258-6000
http://www.viacom.com/contact/Pages/default.aspx

Wal-Mart - 479-273-4000
http://walmartstores.com/AboutUs/9505.aspx

Warner Music Group - (212) 275-2000
http://www.wmg.com/contact

World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. 203-352-8600 (see bottom of their link for corporate)
http://www.wwe.com/help/contactus

Xerox Corporation - 1-800-275-9376
http://www.xerox.com/perl-bin/world_contact.pl#0

Zippo Manufacturing Company - 888.442.1932
http://www.zippo.com/customercare/contact_us.aspx


NOTE: Working on more... (Focusing on companies that sell products instead of associations) Gotta do some work. Be back later.

Dollar General Corporation
Eli Lilly and Company
Fortune Brands, Inc.
GlaxoSmithKline
HarperCollins Publishers
John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
Kenneth Garrett, photographer for National Geographic
LVMH Moët Hennessy
Louis Vuitton
Macmillan
Merck & Co., Inc.
New Levels Ent. Co. LLC
News Corporation
Ramsay Corporation
SoBe Entertainment
The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA)
Underwriters Laboratories Inc.
Universal Music Group
Uniweld Products Inc.
Vibram USA, Inc
W.R. Case & Sons Cutlery Co.
Wolverine World Wide, Inc.
Woolrich, Inc.
Zumba Fitness, LLC




Workspace:

2b1 Inc
Advanced Medical Technology Association (AdvaMed)
Allen Russell Photography
Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers
Alliance of Visual Artists (AVA)
Altria Client Services
American Apparel and Footwear Association
American Association of Independent Music (A2IM)
American Board of Internal Medicine
American Federation of Musicians
American Gramaphone LLC
American Made Alliance
American Mental Health Counselors Association
American Photographic Artists
American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP)
American Society of Media Photographers
American Society of Picture Professionals
American Watch Association
Anatoly Pronin Photography
Andrea Rugg Photography
Anti-Counterfeiting and Piracy Initiative (ACAPI)
Applied DNA Sciences
Art Holeman Photography
Association of American Publishers (AAP)
Association of Equipment Manufacturers
Association of Independent Music Publishers (AIMP)
Association of Test Publishers
Australian Medical Council
Automotive Aftermarket Industry Association
Baker & Taylor Ent.
Bay State Psychological Associates
Beam Global Spirits & Wine
Blue Sky Studios, Inc.
Braasch Biotech LLC
Brian Stevenson Photography
Brigid Collins Family Support Center
Broadcast Music, Inc. (BMI)
C. F. Martin & Co., Inc.
Cascade Designs Incorporated
Caveon, LLC
Cengage Learning
Center for Credentialing & Education
Center Stage Photography
CFA Institute
Christopher Semmes Photography
Church Music Publishers Association
CMH Images
Coalition Against Counterfeiting and Piracy (CACP)
Commercial Photo Design
Commercial Photographers International
Comprehensive Adult Student Assessment System
Consumer Healthcare Products Association
Copyright Alliance
Copyright Clearance Center (CCC)
Council of Fashion Designers of America
Country Music Association
CropLife America
Cross-Entertainment LLC
CSA Group
D'Addario & Company, Inc.
Dan Sherwood Photography
Danita Delimont Stock Photography
Dayco Products, LLC
Deluxe Entertainment Services Group
Dennyfoto
Derek DiLuzio Photography
DeVaul Photography
Direct Selling Association (DSA)
Directional Insight
Distefano Enterprises Inc.
Doriguzzi Photographic Artistry
Dolby Laboratories, Inc.
Dollar General Corporation
Don Grall Photography
Dunford Architectural Photography
Eagle Rock Entertainment
Ed McDonald Photography
Educational & Industrial Testing Service
Electronic Components Industry Association (ECIA)
Eli Lilly and Company
Englebert Photography
Entertainment Software Association (ESA)
ERAI, Inc.
Eric Meola Studio Inc
Evidence Photographers International Council
Ex Officio
Exxel Outdoors
FAME Publishing Co., LLC.
FAME Recording Studios
Far Bank Enterprises
Fashion Business Incorporated
Federation of State Boards of Physical Therapy
Footwear Distributors & Retailers of America (FDRA) Ford Motor Company
Fortune Brands, Inc.
Fred J. Lord Photography
GAR Associates
Gelderland Productions, L.L.C.
Gemvision Corporation
GlaxoSmithKline
Gospel Music Association
Governors America Corp.
Graduate Management Admission Council
Graphic Artists Guild
Greeting Card Association (GCA)
Greg Nikas Photography
Guru Denim
H.S. Marketing & Design, Inc.
HarperCollins Publishers
Harry Fox Agency
Hastings Entertainment, Inc.
ICM Distributing Company, Inc.
IDS Publishing
IEC Electronics corp.
Images Plus
Imaging Supplies Coalition (ISC)
Independent Distributors of Electronics Association (IDEA)
INgrooves
Innate-gear
International AntiCounterfeiting Coalition (IACC)
International Trademark Association (INTA)
IPC-Association Connecting Electronics Industries
Ira Montgomery Photography
J.S. Grove Photography
James Drug Inc.
Jaynes Gallery
JCPage Photography
Jean Poland Photography
Jeff Stevensen Photography
John Fulton Photography
John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
Julien McRoberts Photography
K&R Photographics
Kekepana International Services
Kenneth Garrett, photographer for National Geographic
Killing Jar Productions LLC
Light Perspectives
Linda Olsen Photography
Little Dog Records
LVMH Moët Hennessy
Louis Vuitton
Macmillan
Major League Baseball
Marcia Andberg Associates LLC
Mark Niederman Photography
Marmot
Marona Photography
McLain Photography Inc
Merck & Co., Inc.
Messy Face Designs, Inc.
Michael Stern Photography
MicroRam Electronics, Inc.
Minter Works of Art
Mira Images
Monster Cable Products, Inc.
Moose’s Photos
Morningstar Films LLC
Motion Picture Association of America, Inc. (MPAA) MotionMasters
Motor & Equipment Manufacturers Association
MPA - The Association of Magazine Media
Mr. Theodor Feibel (sole proprietor)
Music Managers Forum-U.S.
Nashville Songwriters Association International
Natalie Neckyfarow Actor/Dancer/Singer
National Association of Broadcasters
National Association of Manufacturers
National Association of Recording Merchandisers (NARM)
National Association of Theatre Owners (NATO)
National Basketball Association (NBA)
National Board for Certified Counselors
National Board for Certified Counselors Foundation
National Electrical Manufacturers Association (NEMA)
National Football League (NFL)
National Music Publishers' Association (NMPA)
National Retail Federation (NRF)
NBCUniversal
Nervous Tattoo Inc., dba Ed Hardy
New Balance Athletic Shoe, Inc.
New Era Cap Co Inc
New Levels Ent. Co. LLC
News Corporation
Next Decade Entertainment, Inc.
NHL Enterprises, L.P.
Nicholas Petrucci, Artist, LLC
Nike, Inc.
Nintendo of America Inc.
Nissle Fine Art Photography
North Dakota Pharmacists Association
North Dakota Pharmacy Service Corporation
Oakley, Inc.
One Voice Recordings
OpSec Security, Inc.
Outdoor Industry Association
Outdoor Power Equipment Institute (OPEI)
Outdoor Research, Inc
Pacific Component Xchange, Inc.
Party Killer Films LLC
Pearson Clinical Assessment
Peavey Electronics Corporation
Perry Ellis International
Personal Care Products Council
Peter C. Brandt, Architectural and Fine Art Photography
Peter Hawkins Photography, Inc.
Photojournalist Dave Bartruff
Picture Archive Council of America (PACA)
Pigfactory Music
PNW Images
Premier League
Production Music Association (PMA)
Professional Photographers of America
Quality Float Works, Inc.
Raging Waters Music
Ralph Lauren Corporation
Ramsay Corporation
Rebel Photo
Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA)
Red4 Music/Doogs Rock Inc
Reebok International Ltd.
Reed Elsevier Inc.
Retail Industry Leaders Association (RILA)
Revlon
Richard Flutie Photography
Rite Aid
Robin Davis Photography, Inc.
Rodger Scott Craig, a member of Liverpool Express, The Merseybeats, Fortune, Harlan Cage, 101 South, and Mtunz Media
Roger Smith Photography Services
Romance Writers of America (RWA)
Saddle Creek
Sage Studios LLC
Sam D'Amico Photography
Schneider Electric
Sean McGinty Photography
Secret Sea Visions (Photography)
SESAC, Inc.
SG Industries, Inc.
Shure Incorporated
SIGMA Assessment Systems
Six Degrees Records
Small Business & Entrepreneurship Council
SMC Entertainment
SMT Corp.
SoBe Entertainment
Society of Sport & Event Photographers
Software & Information Industry Association (SIIA)
Soul Appeal Records and Music
SoundExchange
Southern Gothic LLC
Specialty Equipment Market Association (SEMA)
SPI (The Plastics Industry Trade Association)
Sporting Goods Manufacturers Association
Sports Rights Owners Coalition
Spring Fever Productions LLC
Spyder Active Sports, Inc
Stenbakken Photography
Stephen Dantzig Photography
Stock Artist Alliance
Stuart Weitzman Holdings, LLC
Student Photographic Society
Studio 404
SunRise Solar Inc.
Taylor Glenn Photographs
Taylor Guitars
Taylor Made Golf Company, Inc.
Tednologies, Inc.
The Cambridge Don
The Collegiate Licensing Company/IMG College
The Donath Group, Inc.
The Dow Chemical Company
The Estee Lauder Companies
The McGraw-Hill Companies
The Music People! Inc.
The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA)
The Recording Academy (National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences)
The Timberland Company
The Walt Disney Company
Tiffany & Co.
Time Warner Inc.
Tony Bullard Photography
Toshiba America Business Solutions, Inc.
TRA Global
Tricoast Worldwide
Trio Productions, Inc. / Songscape Music,
Twist & Shout, Inc.
U.S. Chamber of Commerce
Ultimate Fighting Championship
Underwriters Laboratories Inc.
Universal Music Group
Uniweld Products Inc.
VF Corporation
Viacom
Vibram USA, Inc
Virtual Chip Exchange USA, Inc. Voltage Pictures, LLC
W.R. Case & Sons Cutlery Co. Walcott Studio, LLC
Wal-Mart
Warner Music Group
Wendy Kaveney Photography
Western Psychological Services
Westmorland Images, LLC
Wild & Associates, Inc.
Wild Eye Photos LLC
William Sutton Photography
Willis Music
WindLegends Ink LLC
Winestem Company
Winslow Research Institute
Wolfe Video
Wolverine World Wide, Inc. Woolrich, Inc.
World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc.
Xerox Corporation
Zippo Manufacturing Company
Zumba Fitness, LLC

Saturday, December 17, 2011

How to watch streaming internet videos on any TV using just your computer.

There are a lot of great set top boxes out there that let you watch streaming TV and movies via the Internet, but maybe you’re not interested in spending the money or you’re just looking for a very simple way to hook your computer up to your TV and watch videos from popular websites like Hulu or different web sites. Here are five different ways you can connect your computer to your TV and watch streaming internet video….

The first thing you need to check is if you have a newer TV and computer which will let you use an HDMI cable to connect the two (don’t worry, there are still ways to do it if you don’t).
Once you get a HDMI cable, just connect your computer to your TV, use your remote to select ‘HDMI’ input and with any luck you should see a mirror image of your computer screen on your HD TV. Now you have a very simple inexpensive way of watching Internet content on your TV.

But what if you have an older TV or an older computer that doesn’t support HDMI?

If you have a standard definition TV, you won’t be able to use HDMI, but if your TV and computer have S video jacks and you have S video cable, you can follow the above steps to hook everything up.

But what if you have a real old TV or real old computer that doesn’t have any fancy inputs or outputs?

Just about all TVs made in the last 30 years have RCA inputs. These are the red, white and yellow jacks that you see on the back of your TV which were commonly used to hook up VCRs, DVD players and video games.
And just about all laptop computers ever made have what’s called an external VGA port that can be used to connect the laptop to a monitor.

Luckily, there are number of PC to TV converters which plug into the VGA port on your laptop and the RCA inputs on older TVs.

But what if you have a really, really, old TV?

And on the chance that you have an even older TV, maybe one made in the 50’s or sixties, you can use a RF modulator in conjunction with a converter and still watch streaming Internet television on your TV using the coaxial antenna connection.

The downsides of using your computer instead of a set-top box to watch videos on your TV

All of the above options help you connect the video output to your TV. This means you’ll either need to listen to the audio on your computer speakers or plug your computer into your stereo or entertainment system, or a simple set of amplified speakers. Also since you’re using your computer and not a specialized set top box, it’s possible that the video quality might not be as good or might not completely fill your TV screen, but this really depends largely on how fast your computer and graphic card is and the web site you are visiting.

Tip: when you’re watching Internet videos, be sure to look for the ‘full-screen’ icon on the video player which maximizes video to the largest possible size.

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Thursday, December 1, 2011

Building your own XP Service Pack 4

Building your own XP Service Pack 4

Susan Bradley By Susan Bradley

Starting today, Windows XP users will have 860 more days of official Microsoft support — and on every one of those days, many of those users will continue to run the operating system that just won't die.

Want to extend the life of your Windows XP Service Pack 3 as long as possible? You can do so by installing Microsoft hotfixes as needed.

It's ironic that the official Windows XP End of Support Countdown Gadget runs only on Vista and Windows 7. Perhaps Microsoft will offer a paper-based advent calendar for its XP users. Regardless of Microsoft's schedule, a significant number of people will continue to use XP well past the deadline. Their practical reasons range from line-of-business needs to the economy to "It still fills all my needs."

According to Microsoft, XP SP3 is the end of the line — there will not be an SP4. But that doesn't mean you can't build your own virtual version of SP4. Just use the hotfixes Microsoft develops over the remaining years of official support.

As far as Windows is concerned, hotfixes are essentially the same as the Windows updates you regularly receive from Microsoft. There are, however, some practical differences: for example, hotfixes are not put through the same level of rigorous testing that the standard updates get. (Yes, I can hear you chuckling. As we all know too well, updates have issues — despite that rigorous testing.) Also, some hotfixes are downloads and some are changes you configure manually. Updates are always downloaded patches. (A hotfix isn't the same as a Microsoft Fix it, which is typically temporary and often limited to Windows Registry or permissions changes.)

Like most updates, hotfixes are designed to repair a specific problem. However, Microsoft warns users that they should install a hotfix only if they know they have the specific problem the hotfix addresses. That said, as long as I've backed up my system (or can check the hotfix on a test system), I don't have any greater concerns about applying a hotfix than I do with an update — as long as the hotfix can be uninstalled. Some (such as KB 954550, listed below) cannot be removed with Windows' Add and Remove Programs utility.

Picking through the list of Windows XP hotfixes

There are dozens of available hotfixes, and you won't need — or want — them all. A Microsoft TechNet blog has a comprehensive list for XP SP3 systems. Again, not all of them will apply to your specific system, and you should install only those that fix a specific problem already afflicting your PC. Here's my short list of potential XP problems — ones you might see yourself — with published hotfixes:

948239: Your XP-based computer locks up when you click the Cancel button in a dialog box.

951126: When you resume from system hibernation, a multiprocessor computer running Windows XP hangs and displays a black screen.

953979: After installing SP3, Windows' Device Manager does not show devices, and Network Connections does not list any network connections.

954550: You're missing Microsoft XML Paper Specification (XPS) features; this hotfix adds them to Windows XP.

961555: Your computer randomly crashes.

968967: When an application or service uses MSXML 6.0 to handle XML requests, CPU usage climbs to 100 percent.

969744: Underlines are missing on printed documents.

970048: You have slow printing performance when using the Line Printer Remote (LPR) print protocol.

970922: TIFF documents are corrupted when you rotate them in Windows Picture and Fax Viewer.

971455: A Windows XP SP3 machine cannot authenticate a wireless router that uses Wi-Fi Protected Setup (WPS) technology (designed to add devices to a network easily) because the router is configured for Wired Equivalent Privacy (WEP).

972828: When you're copying files from a Windows Server 2008-based remote computer to a local Windows XP SP3 system via Remote Desktop Connection 6.1, the files become corrupted.

981669: During installation, a Microsoft Windows Installer package hangs. In this specific case, the Installer package is made up of smaller, chained-together packages and the installer has custom actions.

2454533: After installing the security update in MS Security Bulletin MS10-066 (KB 982802), Windows XP SP3 no longer displays the description of a shared folder that is mapped to a network drive.

How to request a hotfix from Microsoft

For many MS Hotfixes, you'll find a convenient Hotfix Download Available icon and a link (shown in Figure 1) in the upper-left section of their online-support pages. (You won't find a simple download link — you have to send an e-mail request to Microsoft support. The hotfix will then be sent to you.)

Retrieving the full hotfix
Figure 1. The hotfix-available indicator.

For hotfixes that don't come with that handy link, here's a neat trick: grab the URL for a hotfix that does have the icon, paste it into your browser, and then edit the KB number. For example, take

http://support.microsoft.com/hotfix/KBHotfix.aspx?kbnum=981669&kbln=en-us

and change the 981669 to 2454533 — or 953979, or any other hotfix lacking the download-link icon.

Bottom line: There are still a couple of good years left in Windows XP. Undoubtedly, it'll be used right up to the end of its official, extended-support phase (April 8, 2014) — and beyond, whether Microsoft likes it or not. (For more on Windows XP lifecycles, check out the operating system's support lifecycle chart.)