evolution creations

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:

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!

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!

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.

Reference

If you knew our Shiba Inu, you would know that he is ONE PICKY eater! So we have him on a high protein diet with Innova Evo dog food, but in terms of treats, we have so far been using just the Innova Health Bars, which Momo just absolutely loves.

So at the most recent Midwest Shiba Inu Rescue, we got a sample of a dog treat made by Dogswell. Now frankly I haven’t heard of these treats before, but let me tell you, Momo LOVES THESE treats!

But if you look at the package, it will tell you that these treats are made in China. Now this is one of the reasons that we went with Innova dog food (wet and dry) because of the recall of dog food that was manufactured in China and contained certain amounts of melamine.

So out of concern, I sent an email to Dogswell to inquire:

Are your products made in China? If so, what are you doing to protect against the recent problems with Dog Food out of China?

That was at Sent: Monday, August 18, 2008 5:20 PM, now wouldn’t you know that we went out for dinner and came back and I received an email back from the company, a little over 2 hours for a response, now that’s service!

Below is what they responded back–let’s just say it raises my confidence level quite a bit on their product that this company is so honest and upfront, it’s hard to find companies like that these days. So I’d recommend that you try out their line of products as your dog will absolutely LOVE THEM! And feel safe that you have a company like this backing you up!

At DOGSWELL(r), your pet’s safety, health and well-being are our top priority, and that is why we continue to take every measure to ensure that all our ingredients are high quality and safe.

We have thoroughly tested our treats and food by an independent, third-party U.S. laboratory that uses APPMA- and FDA-approved methodology. We have NEVER been affected by any recalls.

All DOGSWELL(r) products have tested NEGATIVE for contaminants, including, melamine, salmonella and pesticides. In addition, DOGSWELL(r) products do not contain rice protein concentrate or wheat gluten.

We regularly test our products for any harmful contaminants and to ensure that they meet our quality standards. Along with an in-depth knowledge of our supply chain, our regular tests assure our customers that we are providing their pets with only the very best ingredients. Tests are conducted at independent, third-party, U.S. laboratories that follow FDA and APPMA-approved methodology. Please see below for an example of test results for our treats.

Our material suppliers are certified clean and clear of any contaminants. If raw ingredients do not meet their specifications and pass safety tests, then the ingredient is rejected immediately and never enters our processing facilities. Moreover, we strive to use products from suppliers that treat their animals humanely. Please see below for images of our chickens and ducks.

The DOGSWELL(r) manufacturing facilities meet the highest and most strict sanitary conditions. All of our plants have HACCP programs, have received high scores by independent Third Party auditors, have strict raw ingredient standards and continuously check our products during processing and when they are finished to ensure they meet our high quality standards. Our wet food for dogs is manufactured in the U.S. and our treats are manufactured in China. We regularly visit our manufacturing facilities to ensure the quality and safety of our products.

We know that it is easy to become concerned as the media is emphasizing safety issues in Chinese products. We share your concern. We look forward to the day when all factories in the United States are met with the same level of scrutiny we have put our suppliers through. Our factory is one of the cleanest, not only in China, but by American standards as well. Moreover, our product is the cleanest on the market. Assuming we could find a reliable source domestically, it would be impossible to find the same healthy, cage-free, antibiotic free, and hormone free product at the current price point.

We have USDA permits, and we have permits in every state in the U.S. In addition to the permits, the department of the USDA known as APHIS specifically monitors pet treats and conducts random inspections.

We stand behind our products 100% and feed them to our own dogs and cats.

For more information, please feel free to contact us directly at our toll-free number, 1- 888-559-8833, or visit our website at www.DOGSWELL.com.