evolution creations
when you put your mind to it, anything is possible
Determining right Power Supply Unit (PSU) to use
Dec 28th
Many custom PC builders have a hard time determining what size, i.e. number of watts, to use in their rig. Some just go with the thought that bigger is better, and that isn’t necessarily the case. I’ve been searching around trying to solve this problem, and it looks like the folks over at ThermalTake have a page that simplifies this out greatly! Just enter in some of your basic specs, like CPU, GPU, attached devices, etc, basically anything that is drawing power, and it will calculate what you should need.
Lord of the Rings on TV–Legend of the Seeker
Dec 21st
In what has to be one of the most interesting new shows to come onto the landscape, The Legend of the Seeker, I thought was originally just an off shoot of the Lord of the Rings series. But in reality, the show has many unique qualitites to it, and after watching what has already been broadcasted for season 1, this is a show that I think will be in it for the long haul. The story is unqiue and there is a dynamic between the two main characters that I think viewers will be drawn to. The wizard has a sort of quarky complex to him that reminds me of Doc Brown from the Back to the Future trilogy. The show picks up again in January, but you can catch all the episodes from Hulu:
Another show bites the dust–My Own Worst Enemy
Dec 21st
Another show that we watch each week, My Own Worst Enemy, we just found out is also getting cut from the NBC lineup. I have to admit, that this one didn’t really catch me off guard, as the story was a very confusing story to follow, and it was unclear as to what the NBC folks were going to do to carry out a story line now that Slaters character seemed to be able to function with being woken up either as Edward or as Henry.
Stargate Atlantis runnings its final course–The Sanctuary to the rescue!
Dec 21st
Many moons ago I wrote a blog regarding this show, and I have to admit, I thought this would be one of the legacy StarGate francises to last a decade or so. No so true as it turns out. The final series episode will air 2 weeks from now on the 9th of January 2009.
Let’s hope that the final two episodes are memoriable and put the show to rest in the right way, as we can recall so many times before where series finalies leave the fans wanting for me. Take Startrek: Voyager, searching for years for a way back home, only to wrap up in a short few episodes a magical way using some Borg transdimensional conduit that will take them from the Delta quadrant to the Alpha quadrant? Or Startrek: DS9, where the buildup to the Dominion/Cardasian and Alpha quadrant had been massing for months, only to end in a massive and wanting space battle? We’ve seen this happen before, and I’m just hoping that in this case, the writers and producers of the show take stock in what this francise means, and what it means to fans, and do the right thing.
On the other hand, there is another show that shows a lot of promise, The Sanctuary with one of the friendly faces from the Stargate SG1 and Stargate Atlantis series–Amanda Tapping. I was curious when she left Atlantis as I thought her role was just developing, but now it makes sense for her to get her own show and really define herself apart from what she was doing in the Stargate realities. The show is somewhat confusing for those who are just picking it up for the first time, but stick with it, as the show really grows on you!
Dec 8th
As most of you will remember, the first cut of the Punisher aired back in 2004, and while it was an interesting movie, I think most would say it didn’t live up to the spirit of the Punisher.
We have seen over the past few years a revolution in the comic and Hollywood worlds, as they have collided on various projects. We saw successes in the original Spiderman, but in the two sequels, I think most would generally say those were not so good, with Spiderman 3 being a major flop. The same goes with the X-men trilogy, with the first one laying good groundwork for future work, and the other 2 movies being a general let down, with X-men 3 being a HUGE failure!
But as with most revolutions, you see change occuring, and in this case, we first saw the Marvel world come together and pull itself out of the wreakage stronger and more fit than ever. For years they have complained about everything from loss of directorial impact, cast, marketing, film direction, story line, etc, the list goes on, and to this, they pulled together and formed Marvel Studios and released two enourmously popular blockbuster films, Iron Man and the remake of the Incredible Hulk.
While I’m not a comic book reader of the past, I do have to admit, I completely enjoy watching these films, as it sparks the inner child in each of us to look at the future and science fiction and stretch our imaginations to the possibilities without going into the realm of ultra-fantastic. Last Friday on opening day, Marvel and I went to the first screening of the new Punisher: War Zone movie, and I have to admit, right off the bat I was very impressed. The movie was far more realistic and gore-filled than I had originally thought it would be, and the story was tight and to the point. For the entire movie I found myself drawn to the characters and closely glued to the screen in anticipation of what was coming next. Needless to say, DC hit one out of the park, and I know from my vantage point, I’ll be looking to the next release of the Punisher, as the movie left it wide open for a sequel.
RuffWear Bark’n Boots Grip Trex Review
Dec 6th
So Momo got his Christmas present early–it came in the form of RuffWear Bark’n Boots Grip Trex booties for him. You can view the company information from this URL.
Many may ask, why it is that we would invest what we would consider a lot of money into getting foot accessories for our dog. Here are a few requirements that we have that drove our decision to make this investment.
- During various times of the year (mainly end of Summer early Fall), we notice that Momo will start to chew on his feet, leaving them bear and sometimes to the point where he breaks the skin as you can see little scabs on his paws. We believe that this is probably due to some chemical irritant that he walks through, perhaps those inconsiderate folks in the neighborhood who decide green lawns are a more worthy cause than consideration for our 4 legged friends. We’ve asked our neighbors and HOA to post signs whenever their lawns are treated with anything, but we have found that folks take this to little or no consideration.
- During the winter time, especially when the weather gets really cold, Momo will start to walk like his paws are freezing to the ice or concrete, as you see him trying to walk with one paw raised, than after hobbling along will try and raise another paw. In the past I’ve had dogs who just lie on their back with all their paws in the air as its more comfortable than walking on the sub-zero temperatures beneath them. I think as humans, we forget that we invest quite a bit of money into technology that is put between our natures barrier (skin) and the elements–whether that be in the form of boots with hi-tech synthetics and tech to keep our feet warm and dry, or jackets of equal technological marval!
- When Momo comes inside, his first act is usually to lick his paws clean–and god knows what he picks up as he’s walking along!
- When it rains, we have a wet dog walking through the house leaving his paw prints on everything. Generally in addition to the dampness, there is also mud as naturally he walks through that as well as he tries to do a number 1 or number 2 (or both if nature prevails!).
- No matter what it seems that we put on his feet, his feet must be a delicate part of him as he doesn’t like anything on them! He tries and usually succeeds in kicking off whatever we put on his feet, through vigorous shaking and biting at whatever is on his feet.
So given these requirements, we have been scouring high and low for something to address all of these requirements. We’ve tried a few products with limited success, but nothing that really has had long term possibilities. That is until we heading in to our local REI store in search for a parka for me actually, and found they had quite a large pets selection in the store (score!). We found these and the first thing we noticed was how the velcro fastener made a very tight fit possible–this was important to address the issue of him kicking off the boots after we put them on.
Next we noticed that the soles were made by Vibram, and my wife is absolutely taken to town with this as she looks for this on practically all her shoes from now on as she’s convinced of their superior fit and comfort (Merrell shoes is one that she’s particularly fond of at the minute).
Aside from the above, we saw that the construction was very well done, and when his paws are in them gives a lot of room for movement. The box that they came in with also lists the following which are not on the website:
- Built on an anatomical mold like human shoes for consistent fit, sizing, and shape
- Air mesh upper is comfortable, breathable, durable, and drainable for all-season wear
- Grip cuff hugs the leg, stays in place, and improves comfort
- Expansion gusset makes the boots easy to put on and enhances fit
- Sure Cinch closure strap and lash tab ensure that the boots stay on the paws
- Seamless construction reduces abrasion and improves fit
- Reflective trib adds safety and nighttime visibility
- Vibram high-grip, high-traction, high-performance sole
- Omnidirectional X lug for stability and traction
- Nonmarking sole for nautical and home interior uses
- Extradurable for miles and miles of adventure
After we made this purchase and got home, we fitted Momo with these, and decided to take him on an extended walk. Now it has been snowing here in Chicago for the last week, and while there isn’t a lot of buildup, there is some snow on the ground and more importantly ice that is beneath it. Now Momo doesn’t like ice at all–he actually avoids it at all costs if he can, and I imagine this is because he feels unsure of his footing and the tendency to slip is a lot more prevalent. He faught for the first few minutes, and take it from folk who have tried a number of various products, this is normal. You just have to get the dog walking to keep his mind focused on something other than what’s on his feet. After the first few minutes, he started to act normally and the walk was on. We immediately noticed that it seemed like he had a lot better traction, as he didn’t slip once on the ice and he didn’t seem to be phased by ice or snow. He was able to make his usual movements, including the stances for number 1 and number 2 activities. He was playful in the snow and energentic, and it certainly seemed like the boots were able to move with him and did not cause discomfort moving from stance to stance. He was walking as well as running, activities that we would not have expected from previous products we have tried.
The proof was in the pudding when we got him home and did the paw test, and sure enough they were dry to the touch even though the boots themselves had bits of caked on snow that had turned into ice and were very wet. All in all I’d say this was $60 well worth it and I would recommend this to any dog owner who has/is going through similar types of things as I’ve listed above. Feel free to comment on your experiences success or failures as I’d be interested in what others have noticed about this product.
Iron Man Day!
Sep 28th
As the geek in all of us shows out in different ways, I have to say my inner geek has won out–this week one of my favorite movies that has come out this year, Iron Man, will be released on BluRay. Why you ask am I so geared for this movie? Good question, but there is a method to my madness!
First, I loved the movie in the theatre, well at least the movie plot and character development. What I wasn’t a fan of was the graininess and frame delays that I noticed from the theatre projector. Now you may say that this is just the theatre, but I went to go see this twice at two different theatre’s and the same places and the same look and feel existed in both.
Now as most who know me know, I’ve gone completely HD. Part of growing up I guess, boys and their toys (well I guess as you get older, the size of your toys just gets bigger)! Or at least that was what I heard growing up. Now that I’m at that point, I want bigger, better, faster! The possibility of seeing Iron Man in truely high definition makes me just want to jump up and scream out in joy!
So as things go, Tuesday when Iron Man is release on BluRay, I’ll be taking the day off and we’ll be having an Iron Man party. Fun filled events to be had, including food, drinks, and a 50″ plasma with surround sound =) hehe!
Pairing Dell Precision M4300 with Verizon Blackberry 8830 World Edition
Sep 11th
So I’ve been beating my head against the wall for the past few weeks as I get fully Bluetooth engaged. So let’s evaluate the hardware here. I have:
- Dell Precision M4300 Laptop
- Microsoft Bluetooth Notebook Mouse 5000
- New Jawbone
- Verizon Blackberry 8830 World Edition
And I want EVERYTHING to be connected together. The goal here is that my mouse will be wireless to enable me a workspace not cluttered by wires. Since I commute in and out of Chicago, there are times when I need to dial into the office and the USB cable just sometimes doesn’t cut it, so I need something that doesn’t require USB cables going all over the place–especially on the train when there’s no space at all to do that! I use Skype to make calls as it’s cheap to make calls to the UK and fairly decent on regular calls domestically. In the current iteration I hook up an analog Plantronics headset with no noise cancellation so people can hear EVERYTHING in the background. Also I want a device that I can use on my Blackberry as it’s a pain to keep that thing propped to my head–especially on long conference calls, on the train, in the car, or on the move as I walk the streets of Chicago.
So those are the things that I needed. Now the problem–the only device I could pair with my laptop was my mouse. When I tried to pair my Jawbone, it would get through the normal process of pairing, but I would get an error:
Connection failed due to driver preparation failure
And I couldn’t get my Blackberry to pair at all. My Jawbone does pair with my Blackberry.
Now the first thing you need to do is look at your bluetooth manager stack that you are running. On my laptop, I had version 4.0.x installed. This was no good. So after a contact to Dell, I was pointed to a new version for the laptop, click here.
This will download: Dell Wireless 360 Module with Bluetooth 2.1 + EDR, which is compatible with:
| Systems | Operating systems |
| Latitude D530 Latitude D531 Latitude D631 Latitude D430 Latitude XFR D630 Latitude XT Latitude ATG D630 Latitude D630 Latitude D830 Latitude D630c Dell Precision Mobile WorkStation M2300 Dell Precision Mobile WorkStation M6300 Vostro Notebook 2510 Dell Precision Mobile WorkStation M4300 |
You want to close your Bluetooth Manager, and during the install you will loose all your current pairing, but afterwards, the stack will be version: 6.01.03(D). Once it’s installed, I paired my mouse, no problem there. Then I paired the Jawbone, and to my surprise, it paired without any errors!
Next came the Blackberry. This was a bit more challenging. What’s strange was that I was asked a passkey on both the Blackberry then the laptop. On each, I used 0000 as the passkey and after that, everything paired properly.
Then you have to launch the Verizon connection software and go through the Wizard to select Bluetooth device. After this process, everything works fine, I can get online and ALL my devices are interconnected via Bluetooth! Any problems, let me know!
Transformers–Finally on BluRay!
Sep 3rd
After what seems like too long, one of my favorite movies–Transformers, finally is released to BluRay!
For those who were apart of the 21st century format wars, Sony’s BluRay finally won over Toshiba’s HDDVD, but there are a handful of collateral effects, such as movies not being released on BluRay because of their previous exclusive release to HDDVD.
At any rate, this movie looks GORGEOUS on BluRay and something that every BR fan MUST have in their collection!
Active Desktop Recovery Error Windows XP
Aug 25th
So I have a M4300 Dell Precision laptop for work, and wouldn’t you know that the left side of the screen started to go dim, then at the beginning of this week, the whole screen went dim! Fortunately for Dell business support, they had the part ordered and a Dell tech at my front door within 24 hours to fix. Everything went through smoothly until we started the machine backup and wouldn’t you know, my desktop had been replaced by a bright white background with the dreaded:
Active Desktop Recovery
That gives me a bunch of errors when I try and recover my Active desktop. So after a quick search online, I figured out the fix here. If you are using IE7, I would suggest that you try Option 1. If not and you are using IE6, try Option 2.
Option 1
The first option is to go to Start > Run > Type “regedit” and Hit Enter. Traverse to:
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Desktop\SafeMode\Components
and locate: DeskHtmlVersion. It should currently be set to 272. Right click on this and go to Modify and change the radio button from Hex to Decimal. The field should change to 272. Delete 272 and replace it with just 0 and save. Refresh your desktop and you should have your previous screen!
Option 2
Go into your Control Panel > Folder options and have it show all files (including hidden). Then do a search on your C drive for Desktop.htt. Delete all instances of this file and restart your system.
