Wikipedia:Reference desk/Computing

June 17

Electrical Schematic design software

I'm looking for a (preferibly free) program that can design and/or simulate a home electricity network. I prefer something very basic that's not bundled with all other CAD packages. All the ones I found on google do circuit boards, which I don't want. If there are multiple standards for scematic diagrams, I want the North American/U.S. standard. — Kjammer  ⌂ 00:53, 17 June 2007 (UTC)

Ummmm what do you mean by design/simulate a home electricity network? If you want a schematic/PCB creation programme, Eagle (program) is quite good, I've used it to build some PCB with that. --antilived^{T | C | G} 04:33, 17 June 2007 (UTC)

To be more specific, I am looking for a program that offers an easy way to draw Circuit diagrams whitout using paper, or a generic graphic drawing program. What I want is something that is not totally specific to PCBs, where I can map the electrical layout of a room (lightswitch, AC source, lights, junction boxes, etc.). Is this possible with EAGLE? I'm finding the product's documentation ambiguous/favoring PCBs. Thanks for your reply. — Kjammer  ⌂ 05:19, 17 June 2007 (UTC)

Never mind, I found exactly what I was looking for. After more research on this topic, I learned the proper keywords to search by, and came up with LTspice/SwitcherCAD III from Linear Technology, that can be acquired here. If anyone else is looking for the same thing, this is it. Thank you. — Kjammer  ⌂ 08:09, 17 June 2007 (UTC)

Just in case you want an alternative, yes EAGLE does do circuit diagrams, see the wikipage. However I've never actually seen a symbol for a junction box so I don't know about that. --antilived^{T | C | G} 08:38, 17 June 2007 (UTC)

Charset problem

I use "Spanish international" as my keyboard layout. Suddenly, I'm unable to type accents. Everything seems to work fine in the keyboard except the accent key, which won't work if I type "<accent key> <any letter>" but will work in "<accent key> <accent key>" or "<accent key> <bar space>". I can switch to Spanish traditional, but it's not the same keyboard mapping I have in my hardware and therefore it's a mess. Can this be a hardware problem? --Taraborn 10:11, 17 June 2007 (UTC)

First off, tell us what kind of operating system you are using. Otherwise we will not have the slightest idea how to answer this. --24.147.86.187 00:21, 18 June 2007 (UTC)

Sorry. I'm using Windows XP SP2, but the symptoms are way too unexplainable. Maybe this is due to some strange spyware. I'll have to format the HD. --Taraborn 15:03, 18 June 2007 (UTC)

It sounds like dead key typing got turned on. --Carnildo 00:17, 19 June 2007 (UTC)

ATX power exchange

(note: there is no more need to answer this question)

My computer is dead - when I push the power button nothing whatsoever happens. I want to test it with the power of another computer, but that is a different type of ATX. Then broken computer has two power connectors, one 20-pin and one 4-pin ('ATX12V 2.0' in the list in the article). The old computer has only a 20-pin connector (the first in the list). Can I safely plug in the 20-pin connector and ignore the other? Is there any danger to either computer (the new mb or the old power supply)? The mb manual says about the 4-pin connector: "If this ATX_12V connector is not connected, the system cannot boot." Sounds safe, but I don't want to cause more problems than I already have. DirkvdM 10:18, 17 June 2007 (UTC)

Never mind. Being a rather impatient character, I already tried it and nothing fried, but nothing happened either. I tried it the other way around and that did work, so the power supply isn't broken. Back to inspecting the mb. DirkvdM 18:46, 17 June 2007 (UTC)

You're sure the on-switch is plugged into the motherboard correctly? Who manufactured your motherboard? --Seans Potato Business 19:27, 17 June 2007 (UTC)

It's a Gigabyte GA K8NS Pro. When I connected the power to the other computer I also had to connect the power swith to it (the power signal goes through the motherboard) and that worked. So the switch isn't faulty. I have now completely disassembled, cleaned and reassembled the computer, but that didn't help. DirkvdM 06:29, 18 June 2007 (UTC)

You might try resetting the BIOS (e.g. by removing the CMOS battery and replacing it after 10 seconds). --Seans Potato Business 09:44, 19 June 2007 (UTC)

Good tip (should have thought of that myself), but alas, doesn't help. Btw, is it possible for the battery to run dry? The computer is only about two years old (maybe I should check what the EU warranty is on motherboards), so that's unlikely, but still, I wonder. DirkvdM 09:38, 20 June 2007 (UTC)

In my experience (and that garnered from asking other people myself (I used to be very scared of the CMOS battery running out!)) they last in the order of five years or so. You get absolutely nothing from the board whatsoever? Not so much as a flash of an LED or half turn of a CPU fan? I'd a) check there is no electrical short circuit, b) check that the processor and heatsink are appropriately seated and c) check if anyone has any ideas on a dedicated computer forum (including all information gathered so far so you don't go over old ground). And d) check that the CPU fan is plugged in to the motherboard. Someone on a forum might advise you as to where you could check the board for voltage with a multimeter, assuming that such an endevour wouldn't be dangerous. If all that doesn't work, maybe you could tell me what "wat 'n misser" means in English. Is that "'n" as in "een"? I'm rootin' for ya, even if no-one else cares! Also, do you know what may have caused the computer to go from booting up with its dodgy beep to not switching on at all (i.e. did you do anything to it between the last time you switched it on and the first time it wouldn't switch on)? --Seans Potato Business 00:47, 21 June 2007 (UTC)

I can not find a dedicated forum for this mobo, at least not on the gigabyte site (the internet connection is extremely slow on my old computer, so searching for much more takes extremely long). So I asked at forums.techguy.org, although that is also just a general computer forum, like this one. See if that leads to something. As for your language ref desk question, "'n" indeed means "een" and "wat 'n misser" means "what a failure/flop/poor shot", depending on the circumstances. DirkvdM 07:55, 21 June 2007 (UTC)

Wikipedia Random Article

Is it just me or is the Wikipedia random article button generates an article related to some articles that you've been looking at recently. articles related to the one I just looked at the same day have appeared in the random article link more than once. 141.153.150.122 16:44, 17 June 2007 (UTC)

I guess I can safely say its just you. Wikipedia keeps no records of pages you visit, AFAIK.--Seraphiel 16:55, 17 June 2007 (UTC)

Maybe your interests are too random. :) DirkvdM 16:56, 17 June 2007 (UTC)

Coincidence? Once I hit random article and ended up on the exact same page I came from O_O --froth^t 20:33, 17 June 2007 (UTC)

I wonder what its way of choosing random articles is. I would not be too surprised if it did not actually choose a random article out of the million + available, but instead took it from some sort of recently-cached articles list or something. But who knows. The odds of getting the same article twice, assuming true randomness, is almost impossible ("one in a million"), which is what gives a good indication that it is not truly random in any way, shape, or form. --24.147.86.187 23:08, 17 June 2007 (UTC)

I think I saw User:Tim Starling say it took 1000 articles every few minutes and then chose a random one from it, then it generates a new 1000 articles again. x42bn6 Talk Mess 00:23, 18 June 2007 (UTC)

When it's first created, every Wikipedia page has a random number (between 0 and 1) generated and stored with it.

When you ask for a random article, a random number X is generated, and a query is done on the database along the lines of select * from page where page_random > X limit 1. (page is the table with one row for each article in Wikipedia.)

—Steve Summit (talk) 01:17, 18 June 2007 (UTC) [edited 04:56, 18 June 2007 (UTC)]

Wouldn't this specific query be biased depdning on the order in which the database processes its index, unless you include order by page_random to make sure you get the page with the lowest page_random above X? Even then, the distribution depends on the sizes of the gaps between the stored page_random values - they certainly won't all be of equal size. 84.239.133.38 06:19, 18 June 2007 (UTC)

I'm not sure about the ordering and the indexing. You're right about the gaps (as I explain below), but I doubt that factor is significant in practice. —Steve Summit (talk) 12:47, 18 June 2007 (UTC)

Our random pages aren't totally random. I believe that it only shows articles up to a certain size (they want them to be short so that people clicking them will expand them.) --(Review Me) R ^ParlateContribs_@ (Let's Go Yankees!) 01:30, 18 June 2007 (UTC)

I don't believe that's true. As I understand it, the only nonrandomness is that if the random numbers associated with each article aren't evenly distributed through the interval (0, 1), some articles might come up more often. For example, if Wikipedia had only three articles, and their random numbers were 0.1, 0.7, and 0.8, the one with value 0.7 would come up more often, because during a Special:Random search, any value between 0.1 and 0.7 would hit that article. But with as many articles as Wikipedia has now, this effect should be completely negligible.

If the random article function seems to cough up small articles more often, that's simply because Wikipedia has so very many small articles. —Steve Summit (talk) 01:40, 18 June 2007 (UTC)

About two years ago, I read the complaint that the random articles were so often about small towns in the USA and the explanation given was that USians are so eager to write about their village, however small it is (and of course that it's such a big country and that internet penetration is fairly high). Maybe for this reason the function was changed from a random article to a random subject (and then a random article in that framework). Although that doesn't answer the question. DirkvdM 06:18, 18 June 2007 (UTC)

That happened because of User:Rambot, which created stub articles for every single town in the USA. At the time, it was a significant number of articles. --cesarb 09:46, 18 June 2007 (UTC)

I believe it was about one article in five. Today, the Rambot articles only constitute one article in 40. --Carnildo 00:20, 19 June 2007 (UTC)

Steve Summit's explanation is completely correct. To clarify, there is of course an ORDER BY page_random, which is fast because the column is indexed. The code can be viewed here, in selectRandomPageFromDB(). To all intents and purposes short of cryptographic analysis, for a project the size of the English Wikipedia, the page is randomly selected from among all pages. —Simetrical (talk • contribs) 01:34, 19 June 2007 (UTC)

I'm not sure this is the best place to post this but ... I would like to have a link that selected a random page within a category, e.g. Random:Mathematics, Random:Natural Science, or even Random:Sports (though I would never use that one). Has such a thing ever been considered? TundraGreen (talk) 01:21, 20 February 2023 (UTC)

After additional investigation, I discovered that this exists in various forms and I am exploring them. So probably this question can be ignored. e.g. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:RandomInCategory TundraGreen (talk) 01:46, 20 February 2023 (UTC)

Screen Rez in Ubuntu

I just installed Ubuntu. Using System:Preferences:Screen Resolution, the highest rez I can set is 1024 x 768, and the highest refresh rate is 60 Hz. However, I have an identical computer (same CPU, graphics card, & monitor) running Windows, that is set at 1600 x 1200 (and that's not the highest it will go) with an 85 Hz refresh rate. Any idea how to get the higher rez & rate on my Ubuntu box? --Tugbug 21:59, 17 June 2007 (UTC)

sudo dpkg-reconfigure xserver-xorg

-- Phoeba Wright^OBJECTION! 22:01, 17 June 2007 (UTC)

Also enabling a driver from System->Administration->Restricted Drivers can't hurt, if there's one available/you haven't already done that. --93.106.174.231 (talk) 15:21, 7 December 2008 (UTC)

June 18

Pop-up blocker working too good

How come when I use FireFox, and have en.wikipedia.org in the allow list, it still blocks popups from Wikipedia? And the funnier thing is that I've had this problem before, the I turned popup blocker off. It's blocking popups when I disabled popup blocking. (And no, it's not a toolbar blocker or anything. It's firefox's blocker). --(Review Me) R ^ParlateContribs_@ (Let's Go Yankees!) 01:32, 18 June 2007 (UTC)

What popups is Wikipedia trying to pop up for you? I've never had Wikipedia try to pop up any popups. —Steve Summit (talk) 01:36, 18 June 2007 (UTC)

Popups for WP:TW windows. --(Review Me) R ^ParlateContribs_@ (Let's Go Yankees!) 01:48, 18 June 2007 (UTC)

Sorry, I don't know anything about TW. Anybody else? —Steve Summit (talk) 00:45, 19 June 2007 (UTC)

What version of Firefox are you using? I have en.wikipedia.org in my allow list for popup blocker (1.5.0.12 here at work, and the latest FF2 at home). My TwinkleConfig also has userTalkPageMode : 'tab' as one of its entries, so that could make a difference. Wizzard2k 17:34, 19 June 2007 (UTC)

Vista splash screen

The very first "splash" screen for Windows Vista with the moving progress bar is misaligned on my monitor. It doesn't affect anything else, more of a cosmetic problem, but any ideas what I could do to fix it? Everything else is fine and I've tried the auto-align button on the monitor (Gateway 21-in LCD widescreen). Thanks 68.39.175.57 04:12, 18 June 2007 (UTC)

You might try going to Run => msconfig and on the Boot tab checking "No GUI boot" ... this will replace the progress bar screen with the "Aurora" background. It would be less obviously misaligned but it's a problem with your monitor and it's not likely to be fixable --froth^t 15:22, 18 June 2007 (UTC)

When you see the misaligned screen, go into the monitor's menu and take note of the resolution. Then later on, you would want to display a test screen at the same resolution, so you can align your monitor to that, and it will remember it for the splash screen. The tricky part is finding a program that can display a test screen at the resolution you want. --Bavi H 01:18, 19 June 2007 (UTC)

NT Virtual DOS Monitor (NTVDM)

My problem is that whenever I start a 16-bit DOS based application on Windows XP the OS starts up the NT Virtual DOS Monitor (NTVDM) and the CPU usage of my system shoots upto 100%. Thus the system becomes very-very slow. Can anybody explain this??

If you open your task manager, you can set thread priority for the process to a lower level. Does this help? Nimur 10:30, 18 June 2007 (UTC)

No..by doing this the system just hangs up.......but my question was why is this at all happening...i mean does the system goes into a busy wait.

Windows on a cd-rw

Would there be a way for Windows to be installed onto a cd-rw (or at least copied onto one) and be able to access AND write to that cd-rw? Like running a cd packet writing software from inside the windows install that would enable windows to write to the cd disk? Think outside the box 12:05, 18 June 2007 (UTC)

BartPE allows you to build a bootable Windows CD. I don't think it, or any similar liveCD, supports writing to the same CD. -- Finlay McWalter | Talk 12:17, 18 June 2007 (UTC)

Some will mount a USB drive as a "home" folder, so you can save some of the changes. --Kainaw ^(talk) 14:30, 18 June 2007 (UTC)

Mac backup software

My wife wants to back up her photos to DVD. I showed her how with the Finder but it's not easy enough. She just wants something that she can drag and drop a bunch of files into and it will start burning to a DVD. When it has filled up that DVD, it will ask for the next and so on until it's done. We don't need to make movies or anything fancy. Just something that makes backups of data. That's it. So, can I get some recommendations for some software for this? FYI, it's a PowerMac desktop model. Dismas|^(talk) 14:09, 18 June 2007 (UTC)

I've always used Backup.app for this very purpose. It can also be configured to set up regular backup jobs (weekly, monthly, etc). I believe it is part of a .Mac membership suite. -- JSBillings 15:03, 18 June 2007 (UTC)

If she's using iPhoto, there's a burn option under the share menu there that should do the trick. Donald Hosek 21:21, 18 June 2007 (UTC)

She's not using iPhoto. This is pro grade work she's doing and iPhoto just doesn't have the options that she needs, so she doesn't use it. She uses Sigma Photo Pro, so maybe there's a similar option in SPP. One of the keys to this is that she wants the backups to be able to be held off site in case of a house fire. So external drives that are simply right next to the computer won't work. Amazon S3 met heavy resistance due to the fact that she wouldn't have a physical copy to hold in her hand which would be safe from drive failures, hackers, data corruption, etc. She's almost sold on the Amazon idea if I can show that uploads won't take forever and a day. We're on DSL. Dismas|^(talk) 22:04, 18 June 2007 (UTC)

I think that the Amazon S3 uses a local cache so even if the physical transfer is slow, it's not obvious to the user (although it might be problematic with a laptop where, if she's like me, the laptop gets closed all the time. Donald Hosek 00:48, 19 June 2007 (UTC)

Nope, tower. Thanks, I think I've got her won over on the idea. Dismas|^(talk) 01:39, 19 June 2007 (UTC)

Compression question

Is it possible for a 4 GB file to be compressed to a little over an MB? I'm asking 'coz I got this file by email, which when uncompressed, takes up as much as 4 GB space. The file is of .mdf type, and the compression used is RAR. Thanks for any info on this.--Seraphiel 15:01, 18 June 2007 (UTC)

Sure. It all depends on the data. For example, what if I have a 4GB file that is just a repetition of 4*10⁹ bytes that are all "100101100". I can easily compress it to something like 1001011001001001 and tell you that the first byte is the data, the second 4 bits is a multiplier and the last 4 bits is a power. I just compressed 4GB into 2 bytes. --Kainaw ^(talk) 15:16, 18 June 2007 (UTC)

Does the RAR format specifically allow such a general-purpose definition of a repeated byte? Nimur 16:19, 18 June 2007 (UTC)

Sounds like you got a maxi-image. Make sure to extract the image to an NTFS partition, then tick on compression for the file. Splintercellguy 16:36, 18 June 2007 (UTC)

to be simple in my answer, one of the best compression utilities i've ever used is UHARC, now as far as the MDF file...mount it with daemon or alcohol 200.35.168.129 20:01, 18 June 2007 (UTC) Ag for MemTech

It probably is a sparse file or a file with a large amount of zeroes. Such files can compress extremly well. --cesarb 22:10, 18 June 2007 (UTC)

Yeah, maybe it just fills with zeros up to the capacity of a single layer dvd or something --froth^t 12:31, 19 June 2007 (UTC)

Thanks guys. I think I get an idea now. I tried mounting it using daemon as well as Alcohol 120%. But I couldn't open any of the files inside (there were at least 30 file icons shown - some as large as 2 GB, some 0 KB). Where can I learn more about maxi- and mini-images? What are they used for? Why was it important that I uncompress it onto an NTFS partition? TIA!--Seraphiel 13:40, 19 June 2007 (UTC)

You want to uncompress onto NTFS because the largest file size supported on FAT32 is 2³²-1 bytes, or one byte shy of 4GB. --LarryMac | Talk 16:32, 19 June 2007 (UTC)

Okay. Thanks. Any idea about maxi and mini-images?--Seraphiel 05:13, 20 June 2007 (UTC)

Converting PDFs to Microsoft Word Docs

I've recently discovered that, despite the troublesome nature of Pdfs, there are many people who claim to have created software to convert PDF documents to Microsoft Word documents. I'm seeking such a tool that I could run automatically from a program I'm writing, so it would have to offer a command-line interface, or -- better yet -- a programming API. Can anyone suggest software along these lines of high quality? I can spend up to $500. In any case, there should eventually be some comment in the PDF article about the possibility of conversion, and how good a conversion you can get. --Ryguasu 17:29, 18 June 2007 (UTC)

According to this article, you can use Adobe Acrobat Standard (around US$300) to open a PDF, then do a File->Save As->Word Doc. Presumably you can do the same thing programatically with the Acrobat API. --TotoBaggins 15:25, 19 June 2007 (UTC)

I've discovered that the Adobe PDF Library API (fancier than the Acrobat API) does not allow conversion to word. (See http://www.adobe.com/devnet/pdf/pdfs/faq.pdf.) For the Acrobat API itself, it looks like you could probably export as Word through the Acrobat Interapplication Communication sub-API. It features a conversion object that is "a file type converter that exports PDF files into other formats. Conversions correspond to the list of formats specified in the Acrobat Save As menu." Since Acrobat can save as Word format, I think this means you can do it from the Acrobat API. --Ryguasu 18:40, 20 June 2007 (UTC)

PHP

in jsp when we want to go from one page to another page after fulfilling certain conditions we use forward() or send Redirect() function in our code, what are functions are used in case of php when we want to go from one page to another page?

Use "header" as in: header("location: newpage.html"); --Kainaw ^(talk) 19:15, 18 June 2007 (UTC)

docs --h2g2bob (talk) 23:21, 18 June 2007 (UTC)

Copyright status on the Verdana font

I'm currently writing a copyright report for a certain college project, and I'm interested to know what, if any, copyright applies to the Verdana font. Any help will be much appreciated, cheers. 81.77.170.61 21:58, 18 June 2007 (UTC)

The actual files are copyright by Microsoft, although freely distributed by Microsoft. The design, is not copyrightable (as is the case with all typefaces under U.S. Law. See typeface for more details or [1] for a more in-depth discussion of the status of typeface design protection. Donald Hosek 22:46, 18 June 2007 (UTC)

Yeah. As Donald's reply implies, copyright law (in the United States) is a little wonky when it comes to fonts. The design of a font itself is not copyrightable, but the actual files can be. So I could re-create Verdana from scratch and that would be fine, but I couldn't distribute Microsoft's font files unless I had a license to do so (which they grant freely in this case). --24.147.86.187 00:53, 19 June 2007 (UTC)

Software for Steel Mills

I'm wondering what software do steel mills worldwide typically use for the operations planning systems? Or does it appear to mainly be done in house with their language of choice? Thanks. Mathmo ^Talk 22:27, 18 June 2007 (UTC)

errr..... ping? Mathmo ^Talk 02:27, 3 July 2007 (UTC)

Local Area Connection

Hello. In the system tray (lower right corner with the clock on Windows XP), my modem shows the following message whenever I turn it on:

Local Area Connection

This connection has limited or no connectivity. You might not be able to access the :Internet or some network resources. For more information, click this message.

I clicked the message and tried to repair the connection. Windows unsuccessfully tries to renew my IP address. However, my Internet is fine. Should I be concerned? --Mayfare 23:56, 18 June 2007 (UTC)

If everything is fine then everything is fine. That said, you might experience some problems if you, say, play LAN games, because some of the settings aren't set or are set wrongly. x42bn6 Talk Mess 23:59, 18 June 2007 (UTC)

If it doesn't renew, then that may cause problems when your IP address DHCP release expires (some leases don't expire for a long period of time though, so this may not apply to you). You may consider a restart, although if it really is a DHCP issue, then you won't reacquire an IP address (although generally I don't see this kind of error for a DHCP acquisition problem).

Alternatively, if you have a third-party program installed that is managing your network connection (this is much more typical for wireless connections), it can sometimes cause the Windows applet confusion. One other thing you might try doing is opening up a command prompt and then typing ipconfig /all to see if there appears to be a configuration issue. You can also manually renew or release your DHCP lease this way by typing ipconfig /release (flushes current lesae) and ipconfig /renew (gets new lease). But if you don't seem to be having any other issues besides Windows complaining, x42bn6 has the right idea--why beg trouble if you don't need to. –Pakman044 00:22, 19 June 2007 (UTC)

Yeah, what s/he said. If everything you are currently using (i.e. browsing the net) is fine then do not worry. Because clearly those parts are working. Why even try to fix what is not broken? (from your point of view that is) But if you really want to know out of curiosity of if you are actually having problems checkout these pages as starting points: [2] [3] [4] etc... though really, I'd want to know a bit more about your current system and configurations to take a better guess than a stab in the dark. Still, you main point to take from this is don't worry if it is fine it is fine! Mathmo ^Talk 00:27, 19 June 2007 (UTC)

One explanation is that you are connected to the internet by a wireless router and your ethernet port is unplugged giving you that error. Or some other combination of two different network connetions on your PC, one in use and the other not. Vespine

June 19

protocol

what is protocol —Preceding unsigned comment added by 24.10.124.11 (talk • contribs) 00:29, 19 June 2007

You could try reading our Protocol article, for a start. (You're probably interested in one of the topics in the "Communications and computing" subsection.) —Steve Summit (talk) 02:01, 19 June 2007 (UTC)

flash app

I need a quick lesson on programming a flash app for my TI-84. where can i find one, or can someone give me a quick one here.

I am trying to create a cash register of sorts that counts number of sales of each product.

thank you, Omnipotence407 01:44, 19 June 2007 (UTC)

I know next to nothing about asm in TI-84, but here's a link that might help: http://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/TI_83_Plus_Assembly. What is this for? Splintercellguy 02:47, 19 June 2007 (UTC)

There seem to be C compilers that could possibly build for the TI-83 platform, try googling. Splintercellguy 02:57, 19 June 2007 (UTC)

Eh I don't think so- only the higher calcs (89, 92) take C, the 82/83/84s are best programmed in direct assembly --froth^t 04:52, 19 June 2007 (UTC)

There are only a few differences between flash apps and normal asm programs - it must be 16k or 32k in size, it runs directly from flash memory, you must use a special application to make it the correct format. if you don't know Z80 assembly, though, you don't stand a chance --froth^t 04:52, 19 June 2007 (UTC)

You sure, Froth? Googling turned up apps that claimed to be able to build for TI-83. Splintercellguy 08:18, 19 June 2007 (UTC)

Yes I'm sure, the 83 is like programming a watch it has so little resources. If any program actually attempts to compile C to z80 machine code for the 83, it would be terribly slow or resource hogging. Basically the program for compiling C to Z80 is TIGCC but it only compiles for the 89 and 92 --froth^t 12:29, 19 June 2007 (UTC)

Yeah, everything looks like greek to me. I can program in the normal programs but i want to be able to track what i run through, something i think works bestin an app so id doesnt suck as many resources. Omnipotence407 01:27, 21 June 2007 (UTC)

Codecs

What are codecs and where can you get it from?

124.183.39.98 08:08, 19 June 2007 (UTC)

Have you read our article on codecs? Googling for one can help. Splintercellguy 08:18, 19 June 2007 (UTC)

Generally speaking, if you want to just play some media files and your program is asking for a codec, yes you can try finding the codec, but I can recommend you try VLC_media_player (free) which tends to have all the codecs you need. There are some exceptions for proprietary codecs, like Real Media. VLC player can't play those files - but it can play just about everything else: DivX, Mpeg, AVI, etc. Highly recommended Rfwoolf 17:18, 19 June 2007 (UTC)

whats this

every time i try to open my yahoo mail i receive this messsage on the address bar.is my email been blocked or sumthin? http://us.mg2.mail.yahoo.com/dc/system_requirements?browser=blocked

It just means you can't use their new version of yahoo mail with your browser. Just click the link on the right that says "proceed to original yahoo mail" and it should be fine. Recury 16:42, 19 June 2007 (UTC)

Parellels

I've set up my own custom tiny linux system under parallels for mac. Now, I would like to take the (30mb) virtual hard drive and copy it ontu my memory key. Does anyone know how to do that...?--67.181.167.227 16:14, 19 June 2007 (UTC)

Desktop icons broken

File:Brokenicons.jpg

weeeeird

Hi, my desktop icons all appear weird - they all have a white box over them (see right). Does anyone know how to fix them. I'm running Vista, and wish to see no smartass comments from anyone about "move to Linux/Mac", thank you. Vista is awesome and has been so since I installed it three months ago, this is the first problem I've had. I tried changing the colour from 32 to 16-bit and back again to see if that would force the icons to redraw, no dice. I've also restarted the computer, and also tried changing the icon, still no luck. Every icon has one of these weird white boxes over it (I don't know what they are called). When I refresh the desktop (right click, hit "Refresh"), they appear normally for a fraction of a second before the white boxes appear again. The shortcuts all do actually work, though, still. Any ideas? Neil ╦ 16:44, 19 June 2007 (UTC)

• Looks like there's a problem with the files related to your shortcut overlay arrow. Give this site a try [5]. Wizzard2k 17:15, 19 June 2007 (UTC)

  That solved it! Thanks Wizzard. Neil ╦ 19:25, 19 June 2007 (UTC)

JSF/Facelets, don't render parent, but still render children

Is there any way to be able to change the parent's render attribute without affecting its children? I am using the most recent stable versions of JSF/Facelets and I wouldn't be opposed to using an outside library. Basically, what I am trying to do is:

<h:inputTextArea> <h:outputText>#{ManagedBean.value}</h:outputText> </h:inputTextArea>

, where it would only render the text area around the outputText if ManagedBean.edit = "true". Also, there would be an outer h:form element which would only render under the same circumstances as h:inputTextArea. If ManagedBean.edit = "false", it would only render the h:outputText.

Thanks for your help.

149.173.6.51 20:12, 19 June 2007 (UTC)

Linux joystick problem

I've got a Logitech Extreme 3D Pro Joystick. (Actually, I've had two of them; I bought a new one yesterday.) The new one is recognized by Windows and Mac, but not by Linux. (Debian 2.6.8-2-686.)

I had the exact same joystick a little while ago, and Linux recognized it just fine. /dev/input/js0 was created, and I could read from it to my heart's content. But the new one I bought yesterday is not recognized at all. Unfortunately I don't have access to the old one at the moment to confirm whether it still works.

When I plug the new one in, I get

kernel: usb 2-1: new low speed USB device using address 2

kernel: drivers/usb/input/hid-core.c: ctrl urb status -2 received

in /var/log/messages. Sometimes (but not all of the time) I also get

hal.hotplug[4608]: timout(10000 ms) waiting for /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1d.1/usb2/2-1/2-1:1.0

But it does look like somebody's waiting too patiently for a response that never comes. I never get a recognition message in the log file confirming the manufacturer and product name, and I never get any new device files appearing in /dev/input/. Sometimes the whole input subsystem gets hung, and my regular mouse (which is also USB) stops responding, and I have to reboot. This is happening on two different Linux laptops (both Debian 2.6.8-2-686).

Anyone seen anything like this before? Is the driver too sensitive to some timing issue with some models of this joystick? Is the particular joystick I have maybe borderline, and Windows and Mac just have better luck talking to it? (I hope not, because I'll have a hard time convincing the store to take it back with that kind of Linux-specific failure mode...) --Steve Summit (talk) 20:35, 19 June 2007 (UTC)

Looks like you aren't the only one; a quick Google search by the exact error message gave me [6]. --cesarb 22:59, 19 June 2007 (UTC)

Thanks, Cesar. Dunno why I didn't find that myself. —Steve Summit (talk) 23:42, 19 June 2007 (UTC)

Probably because you typed "ctrl urb status -2 received" instead of "ctrl urb status 2 received" on Google; the minus hyphen makes it never match. --cesarb 00:59, 20 June 2007 (UTC)

Hm, wasn't that, I just tested and it matches... They probably fixed it already. --cesarb 01:00, 20 June 2007 (UTC)

June 20

Booting off of USB on a Macbook Pro

Here's my situation: I have a 512 Mb USB2 memory key with DSL (Damn Small Linux) on it. I copied it over to the key bit by bit from the iso of DSL. The key mounts under OSX and all of the files are usable, but how do I boot to it? I have boot camp installed, if that matters.--67.181.167.227 01:35, 20 June 2007 (UTC)

Restart and hold down the option key and select it from the menu.

Is there any way to get an Xbox to run with an LCD PC monitor without anything in between?

Is there any way to get an Xbox to run with an LCD PC monitor without anything in between -- by using a composite-to-VGA converter, component adapter, something like that? Preferably with the ability to convert 1920x1080 or 1280x720 to this particular monitor's native resolution of 1680x1050.202.10.86.63 09:13, 20 June 2007 (UTC)

I've used a VGA to composite adapter to output my laptop to a TV (as a second monitor). I don't see any reason why the reverse wouldn't work. The xbox running at a lower resolution may cause an out of range error on the LCD and not display anything. On another note, I tried running an xbox through a TV tuner, but the lag was very noticable, so I wouldn't recommend that.--GTPoompt(talk) 15:23, 20 June 2007 (UTC)

I run a PS2 fine with a TV tuner. Just have to use DScaler or registry edits. --Wirbelwindヴィルヴェルヴィント (talk) 19:22, 20 June 2007 (UTC)

Computer clock

I have been having trouble with my computer clock for a while now. I boot up the computer, log in and the clock is usually set to something way off the real time, and sometimes the day is wrong as well. My current computer clock shows 4:34AM, but I know that it is around 8pm-ish. I try resynchronising my computer clock with Microsoft's "time.microsoft.com" server and the NSA time server, but it tells me it encounters an error when synchronising with the server. Any ideas what might be going wrong? –Sebi ~ 09:34, 20 June 2007 (UTC) P.S. My local time is +10 hours.

That usually means the CMOS battery is weak. Replacing the battery should be enough to fix the problem. At least the ntpd commonly used on Linux refuses to synchronize when the clock is too far off the real time; I don't know if the Windows builtin NTP daemon has the same safeguards, but it probably has. --cesarb 09:40, 20 June 2007 (UTC)

Ahh, I sometimes get "CHKSUM battery failed - press F1 to continue" or similar when I boot up. Thanks for your help, –Sebi ~ 09:50, 20 June 2007 (UTC)

Recording sound on my computer

How do I record sound off youtube using my computer? --124.181.44.233 13:47, 20 June 2007 (UTC)

If your computer is fairly new, and you have Windows, then the program that comes with your PC, Sound Recorder will do it. Neil ╦ 15:15, 20 June 2007 (UTC)

You could download the clip, then use VLC to transcode the audio. Splintercellguy 17:15, 20 June 2007 (UTC)

A question I need to ask...

My modem can play video DVDs like movies, episodes of shows, and others. But when I put in a blank DVD that has stuff I recorded on TV or dubbed on TV, it wouldn't detect it. What can I do to upgrade the modem to detecting a recorded/dubbed TV DVD without a problem? —Preceding unsigned comment added by Sirdrink13309622 (talk • contribs)

First, see modem. Old DVD players will not play recordable DVDs. --Kainaw ^(talk) 14:46, 20 June 2007 (UTC)

Some players don't want to play DVDs whose contents are burned in contrary to DVD-Video format, like simply placing the clips on the root of the DVD. Splintercellguy 17:14, 20 June 2007 (UTC)

What did you use to create the DVDs that don't work on your computer? -- JSBillings 18:06, 20 June 2007 (UTC)

Text-only browsing

For the summer vacations, I bought a mobile internet card for my laptop. I'm paying by the megabyte, and would like to minimize expenses. I'm using Firefox 2.0.0.4, Windows Xp. So I unchecked "Load images automatically" and "Enable java" it the "Tools|Options|Content" dialog. However, Flash animations (and images) are still downloaded. There is a "Manage file types" button in the same dialog, but the button that I would like to press for SPL and SWF objects, "Remove action", is grayed and inacessible; I only have the options of specifying which program to open the file in, or to save it to disk, which implies that it will be downloaded whichever alternative I chose. So my questions are:

1. How can I convince Firefox to ignore Flash animations?
2. Does anyone have additional advice about minimizing the amount of data transferred?
3. Is anyone aware of a utility program that I can install, to monitor how much data that is transferred? There is a tool in the software that came with the card, but I would like to experiment using my broadband connection, before starting to spend $$$ on the mobile card.

I have installed the Adblock-plus plugin, which alleviates the Flash problem somewhat, but far from totally. And yes, I have tried Lynx, but found the user interface too limited for my needs. Thanks for any advice. --NorwegianBlue ^talk 18:00, 20 June 2007 (UTC)

You can use the flashblock or NoScript extension to configure when and where to load flash objects. -- JSBillings 18:08, 20 June 2007 (UTC)

There are some text-only browsers, made for either people with visual impairments who use screen readers or for those with low-end computers. However, only a portion of sites support this. Many require that you have Flash or ActiveX or Java enabled to use the site properly. Also, a few sites have a "Text only" interface you can select. For example, here's a text-only, ad-free weather forecast site: [7] (Except for a few icons, such as for the Moon phase). I suggest you build a Favorites/Bookmark list of these text-only sites and use them exclusively. StuRat 18:31, 20 June 2007 (UTC)

There is a plugin to Firefox that allows you to totally disable flash or any other plugin (not addon, MR Tech is good for that), I can't remember its name. It even will report to the server that your browser does not have flash capabilities, but a single click will re-enable flash functionality. (it disables flash everywhere in the firefox executable instance). I've mentioned it on here before and am running it currently but I can't remember its name. Root⁴(one) 19:37, 20 June 2007 (UTC)

You could try Opera Mini (you'd only need a J2ME runtime for your computer). It's designed to be used in slow metered connections like that, and uses Opera's proxy to compress/optimize/etc. the page before it's sent to your computer. --cesarb 22:48, 20 June 2007 (UTC)

(Now writing from mobile connection): Thank you all for your advice. I ended up with turning off images and java as stated, plus using Adblock plus and Flashblock. I also found an applet at http://delphi.about.com, called Network Traffic Monitor, written by Zarko Gajic, which allowed me to do some testing before leaving. I'll check out Opera Mini when I'm back. Thanks again. --NorwegianBlue ^talk 21:41, 21 June 2007 (UTC)

IE shortcut icon from website

OK, so putting a shortcut to the Elmo page on the Sesame Street website onto the desktop, for the young folks to click on. Most of the time, it has Elmo's face as the icon. Sometimes it has just the generic IE6 icon, and they can't recognize it. i didn't specify any icon in the "properties/change icon" box. ?? what gives? Gzuckier 18:01, 20 June 2007 (UTC)

I'm not sure what caused this, but you can change the icon yourself. In Windows 98 you right click on the current icon, select "Properties", go to the "Shortcut" tab, then pick the "Change Icon" button. If you do this on a computer which has the icon, this will tell you where to find it. You can then copy the good icon to the same location on the other computers and select it. You might have a problem with the directory not existing or you not having write access to it or even the disk being full. StuRat 18:13, 20 June 2007 (UTC)

The icon comes from the favicon file on the website. Our article does not directly address the use on the desktop, however it does mention that sometimes the graphic will be lost if the browser cache is emptied; I'd guess that is what is making Elmo go away. The disk cache (IE calls this "Temporary Internet Files"), will delete old files to make room for new ones, so if Elmo hasn't been tickled for awhile (sorry), he will disappear. To make him stick around permanently, you'd need to make a local copy of the icon file, then assign the local file to the desktop URL shortcut. --LarryMac | Talk 19:12, 20 June 2007 (UTC)

ah so. esoteric knowledge. thanks. Gzuckier 17:02, 21 June 2007 (UTC)

Here's my continuation of the question...

Here's the explanation: I use Maxell DVD-R discs with a gold-like label with an SP mode storage of 2 hours. They can record TV and have movies and episodes of shows burned onto them. My computer is an HP vs17e with an HP modem. It detects blank DVDs with movies and episodes of shows burned onto them, but doesn't detect blank DVDs with recorded stuff from TV. What do I thoroughly need to solve the situation?

Mmm... Something like that happened to me on one of my drives whenever the CD/DVD session isn't closed. I had to borrow another computer with Easy CD Creator to close it before it would read on mine. Perhaps your TiVo or DVR or whatever you're using creates multiple sessions and the same thing is happening? --Wirbelwindヴィルヴェルヴィント (talk) 19:17, 20 June 2007 (UTC)

css/html question

I wanted to add an image in a certain spot on my webpage, and I did so by adding this to the style sheet:

td#navbar ul:after{content: url("image.gif")}

and it worked great and went right where I wanted it to go. Now I'm hoping to resize it, and the first thing I tried was

td#navbar ul:after{content: url("image.gif"); width:166px}

and no amount of fooling around can get that to work. Does anyone know why? Should it work? Is there another way to make it work? Obviously I can resize my image file or go back and put it into the html manually without css, but I don't want to do any of that and I'm now curious as to why this wouldn't work. Thanks :: Registrar 18:45, 20 June 2007 (UTC)

Be careful using the :before and :after pseudoclasses - they won't work in any version of Internet Explorer. More info here. — Matt Eason ^{(Talk &#149; Contribs)} 18:56, 20 June 2007 (UTC)

gahh, good point. Thanks Registrar 19:06, 20 June 2007 (UTC)

UK phone numbers

hi,

is there anyone with the phone number 01234 567890? or 01234 01234? etc?

another thing...can you kind of 'personalise' your HOME phone no. , like number plates, in any way, i know you change it sometimes, ie for security reasons or if your moving house but still local, but can you just go to BT and ask to change it to something else?

thanks, --84.67.217.53 19:49, 20 June 2007 (UTC)

01234 is the dialing code for Bedford. 01234 567 890 is used as a placeholder number on loads of websites, so I don't envy whoever has it (if anyone does). Ofcom does withhold certain numbers for use in fiction, but it's not among those. — Matt Eason ^{(Talk &#149; Contribs)} 20:02, 20 June 2007 (UTC)

More info - apparently 01234 567890 was referred to as the 'golden' Bedford number within Oftel, and was protected for some time (source). The latest information I can find is that Oftel decided to open up the 01234 56 block in August 2002 (source). — Matt Eason ^{(Talk &#149; Contribs)} 20:12, 20 June 2007 (UTC)

Phone them and find out?? 213.48.15.234 10:05, 21 June 2007 (UTC)

Regarding buying personalised phone numbers, there may be some companies that do it - i know with BT it's basically you get what you're given. If you use SkypeOut you can choose your own phone number (for a few quid a year), but most of the good ones are gone, and they're fairly limited. Also, there are plenty of companies who will bind an 0845 number of your choice to your standard line, so you might be lucky and get a good one there. -Benbread 16:38, 21 June 2007 (UTC)

June 21

Buying a Computer

Hey, Im looking into buying a new computer. I was wondering what some tips for what I could be looking for. Like, what are some new things that might be good to have on the computer. Im looking into a PC laptop. No Macs.

What will you be using the computer for? Gaming? If so, you'll want a good video card. Simple web browsing and maybe writing an email or letter or two? Then most any laptop will do. Lots of number crunching? Then you'll want to max out your RAM. Dismas|^(talk) 02:54, 21 June 2007 (UTC)

Hate to be commercial but I think the dell.com site is pretty good for checking out PC laptops, to see what's there and what the prices are like. You don't have to buy a dell but the website is a good benchmark for decent laptops at a decent price. From memory all the dell prices include a 2 year warranty which I highly recommend over the standard 12 months most other places offer, it's usually not very cheap to upgrade the warranty. Vespine 03:23, 21 June 2007 (UTC)

It would be helpful if you said exactly what you want to use the computer for. A mac might suit your needs better than a PC, believe it or not. Or heck, even something like System76 might be good if you don't need to run Windows apps. You might not even want a full computer at all, an N800 might be better suited to your needs. We won't know unless you're more specific than "I want a computer". -- Phoeba Wright^OBJECTION! 05:34, 21 June 2007 (UTC)

Why not a Mac, they are "idiot proof", even I use one!--88.109.177.178 05:58, 21 June 2007 (UTC)

I argree, Mac's are "idiot proof", however, I preefer to think of them as simplfied Linux. Lapot wise look for somthing with an AMD chip, they tend to give more bang for buck. OS wise, get Win XP if you must have windows but I recomend getting Linux; Fedora 7 and Ubuntu are both good distros. for good priced pc's take a look on price watch. Good Luck. --Lwarf ^Talk! 09:43, 21 June 2007 (UTC)

I use a Mac, and remember that they can boot into almost all of the other operating systems.--67.181.167.227 13:02, 21 June 2007 (UTC)

If you want Windows Vista, make sure your dream computer can support it. --Mayfare 15:13, 21 June 2007 (UTC)

If you want Windows Vista, buy a Mac. (^_^)Gzuckier 17:04, 21 June 2007 (UTC) (windows user)

Save yourself the money and just buy the huge steaming pile of dog crap direct from the manufacturer. --froth^t 02:32, 22 June 2007 (UTC)

Harsh yes, but fanboyism is unavoidable on tah inteerw3bz --froth^t 02:33, 22 June 2007 (UTC)

Laptops have a much shorter expected lifetime than a desktop. Optomistically it will be another few years before Vista is used everywhere, until then XP will remain the most common. You need a significantly more power to run vista than XP, laptops are not well known for having oodles of power.... rather they will always be underpowered when compared to a desktop PC at the same price point. All of these add up to an even strong case of why you should get XP if you are buying a laptop. Mathmo ^Talk 02:25, 3 July 2007 (UTC)

Its not that hard to B.I.Y (build it your self) and then istall linux, i'll take a look for a wikibook on it. --Lwarf ^Talk! 08:28, 22 June 2007 (UTC)

If the person is asking here about buying a computer, then it probably isn't a good idea to build it themselves. Even though in my opinion it is very easy to to, because it won't be for them. Another factor to take into consideration is they want a laptop, which isn't quite as straightforward to build from scratch as a desktop is. Thus, even though I hate that I'm recommending this.... it probably is a good idea for them to consider a dell. Here is a good little article for you to read. [8] I wish I could give the advice to build it themselves to everybody. Mathmo ^Talk 02:22, 3 July 2007 (UTC)

Image effect

What is the name of the effect used to change an image into regions of white and black, looking perhaps not unlike a Rorschach inkblot test, yet in which the subject of the image is still immediately recognizable due to our interpretation of the black regions as shadows? A good example is the alternate album cover of U2's Boy ([our picture of it]), and also one of the two pictures of Bob Dylan in the opening sequence of VH1's program (the name of which escapes me) which plays two consecutive songs from the same artist. I would like to process some of my photos this way. Many thanks in advance. Baccyak4H (Yak!) 03:11, 21 June 2007 (UTC)

First choice would be whatever describes emboss in the 2D sphere. Second, and probably more correct, is reticulation. --Wirbelwindヴィルヴェルヴィント (talk) 04:04, 21 June 2007 (UTC)

Actually, on second thought, I don't think either of those are correct. However, in Photoshop, the stamp filter gets the most similar effect. --Wirbelwindヴィルヴェルヴィント (talk) 04:07, 21 June 2007 (UTC)

I'm pretty sure you can acheive this affect with most Posterisation filters if you set them to 2 tone black and white and fiddle with the settings. Vespine 05:26, 21 June 2007 (UTC)

Try Threshold in Photoshop (Layer > New Adjustment Layer > Threshold...). I prefer a different technique which results in an effect similar to the cover of Regina Spektor's Begin to Hope (mainly black and white, but with shades of grey in between). Desaturate the image, add a Brightness/Contrast adjustment layer and drag the Contrast slider to around 80. You can use a Levels adjustment layer in place of the Brightness/Contrast if you want more control over the effect. It works best on images with a white or light-coloured background. — Matt Eason ^{(Talk &#149; Contribs)} 12:26, 21 June 2007 (UTC)

(outdent) Posterization does indeed look like the effect I want. I do not have Photoshop, but have GIMP and Graphic Converter (yes, I use a Mac). The former should have this for sure... The Begin to Hope effect is not what I am looking for, although it is a nice one in its own right. Thanks again, and I would still be open to hints/tips. Baccyak4H (Yak!) 14:06, 21 June 2007 (UTC)

It's under Colour/Threshold, and I would load it into Inkscape or something and use the auto tracer to trace it so it's no longer aliased (or just use the auto tracer on the original image and set the threshold there). --antilived^{T | C | G} 06:20, 22 June 2007 (UTC)

In Corel Draw (or I suppose similar programs) you would go Bitmap -> Convert to Bitmap (sic) and click "Black and White" (not to be confused with "Grayscale"). Before you do this I would fiddle with the contrast a bit. Rfwoolf 10:36, 23 June 2007 (UTC)

Firefox find

The Firefox find function doesn't search within edit boxes, making it difficult to use when trying to edit a wiki page. Any way to change this, or is the solution to use an external editor? Jooler 07:45, 21 June 2007 (UTC)

At least for me (Firefox 2.0.0.4 on Ubuntu), if you use Ctrl+F, it does search within the edit box. --cesarb 09:55, 21 June 2007 (UTC)

• If you decide to use an external editor, you can boost functionality to make up for the lack of quick buttons. (I use the Vim syntax plugin) -wizzard2k ^(C-T-D) 15:20, 21 June 2007 (UTC)

It works for me, with Firefox 2.0.0.4 on Mac OS X. Maybe try clicking in the box first? Abeg92contribs 21:40, 4 July 2007 (UTC)

Two Computers

Can the motherboards of two seperate computers be connected so that one operating system (from a single hard drive on one of the computers) can use both its host motherboard and the connected one; including all the ram, processors, cd drives etc? Think outside the box 09:20, 21 June 2007 (UTC)

If it is possible, I doubt it's something you could do yourself. There aren't exactly "Motherboard SLI connectors". Why would you want to anyway? I have to imagine such a setup would be more costly and slower than an equal setup with a single motherboard, at least for the tasks you'd want such performance for. -- Phoeba Wright^OBJECTION! 09:28, 21 June 2007 (UTC)

I doubt it's possible at all. It would be a lot easier if you just get a dual-CPU motherboard with lots of ram and IDE controllers etc. --antilived^{T | C | G} 09:34, 21 June 2007 (UTC)

Does network booting count? If not, then see above. --Wirbelwindヴィルヴェルヴィント (talk) 09:37, 21 June 2007 (UTC)

It's possible; what you want is a single-system image like openMosix (and you'll need network boot to boot the second computer, since you want to boot from a hard disk on the first one). --cesarb 09:54, 21 June 2007 (UTC)

I think the questioner would be better off setting up a Beowulf system. It allows you to work at one computer, but make use of other computer's processing power in the cluster. I have note a quote I heard from one of the Beowulf designers when they spoke at a conference I was at. It went something like, "I have been asked if I can turn a hundred or so old 386 computers into a cluster. I have to answer, yes, you can - if you want a hundred or so computers that overall will function slower than a single Pentium computer, but will produce about 100 times the heat and suck up about 100 times the electricity." --Kainaw ^(talk) 12:52, 21 June 2007 (UTC)

The IBM Blue Gene has a high speed interconnect between all its nodes as well. Check out the Supercomputer article about more of this technology. There are a variety of methods of achieving this interconnect, from NUMAlink with the SGI Altix to HyperTransport used in a variety of systems, and to a lesser extent, with Infiniband on Beowulf and other HPC clusters. -- JSBillings 13:40, 21 June 2007 (UTC)

Creating backups of dvds

Hi, i want to copy my dvds onto my computer. Not as disc-images, but as avis or mpegs etc... Can anyone reccommend the best freeware to do this?

A great, open source program to do this is Handbrake.--67.181.167.227 12:59, 21 June 2007 (UTC)

multicore vs. multiprocessor

Dear wikipedians:

What is the difference between a system with one multicore CPU and a system with more than one CPU (multiprocessor) in it.

129.97.225.195 14:34, 21 June 2007 (UTC)

With a multicore, you have one processor - so you have one connection between the processor and the motherboard. With a multiprocessor, you have multiple processors. So, you have multiple connections between the processors and the motherboard. With one processor, much of the handling of multiple code running at the same time can be handled inside the processor. With multiple processors, the motherboard has to handle the handoff between one processor and another - or, as is usual, just ignore one of the processors and waste resources. --Kainaw ^(talk) 14:39, 21 June 2007 (UTC)

Multicore CPUs are lower power and heat than symmetric multiprocessing designs and take up less space in the system. Since they're on the same die, that means faster communication between the cores. I believe they also share cache, which has some speed advantage but I think it reduces the total per-node cache overall. I think one of the biggest limitations now is that most apps aren't written to take advantage of multicore CPUs. -- JSBillings 14:46, 21 June 2007 (UTC)

The above sounds pretty right, I'd only add a couple bits: Multicore tends to be cheaper than multiprocessor, because it's cheaper to produce (essentially) two CPUs on one chip than two chips, and because the motherboard to support the processor is cheaper that way. It's true that many apps aren't written in a threaded way to take full advantage of multiple CPUs/cores. But, this should be improving as multicore chips become more and more standard. Even if a given app isn't taking advantage of it, the system still feels faster because it will slow down less under load. Friday (talk) 14:58, 21 June 2007 (UTC)

Sorry for hijacking here - how well do operating systems handle multiple/multiple core CPUs? If I have two processors and one application which needs loads of CPU time, will Windows give it exclusive use of one of the processors and put everything else through the other, for example? — Matt Eason ^{(Talk &#149; Contribs)} 15:49, 21 June 2007 (UTC)

No. It is not that simple. You don't have two computers in your computer that can run side-by-side. You have two processors (or cores) that can handle very basic functions like shifting some 1's and 0's right or left. There is still only one overall computer that decides which programs can access memory, which can access the processor, which are in a waiting queue, which need to be killed off... --Kainaw ^(talk) 16:02, 21 June 2007 (UTC)

But it's not as complicated as you make it out. The processors can actually handle a bit more. The compiled code will talk to the OS to get permission to have exclusive access to a piece of hardware or memory, etc. A program written with threading in mind will be able to spread its load across multiple processors (whether in a multicore CPU or multiple chips, or in some cases, multiple distributed machines), see multithreading for more discussion. From the CPU's perspective it's all code. There will be periodic hand-offs between an application and the OS as resources are allocated/freed. But it's not uncommon in a 2-processor system to see one processor spiked while the other is mostly idle. Donald Hosek 18:16, 21 June 2007 (UTC)

Either way, a multi-core or multi-processor computer doesn't necessarily speed up processes. Most programs aren't designed to optimized performance with two cores or processors.

Kevinwong913 ^{Speak out loud!} 20:49, 21 June 2007 (UTC)

Accidental adding of a misspelled word to a dictionary

I accidentally added a misspelled word to the Firefox British dictionary, how do I undo that. PS: I tried reinstalling, and it didn't work. Thanks, Jeffrey.Kleykamp 16:02, 21 June 2007 (UTC)

Lifehacker has instructions on how to remove words from the dictionary here. If you're on Windows make sure you open it in Wordpad rather than Notepad - the latter messes up the line breaks. — Matt Eason ^{(Talk &#149; Contribs)} 16:10, 21 June 2007 (UTC)

Thanks, that worked really, really well, so, again, thanks. Jeffrey.Kleykamp 16:15, 21 June 2007 (UTC)

HTML redirect

I have a domain but I don't have a main page yet. I'm setting up the forum right now, so for the time being, I'd like users to get redirected from the main page automatically to the forum. The forum resides in its own directory. What's the easiest way to get the users automatically redirected to this directory? Thanks, Dismas|^(talk) 23:50, 21 June 2007 (UTC)

Make the main page for your domain (index.html on Apache machines) just contain <meta http-equiv="refresh" content="0;url=http://your.forum.address"> Youth in Asia 00:38, 22 June 2007 (UTC)

Cool, thanks! Dismas|^(talk) 01:22, 22 June 2007 (UTC)

A better solution is to ridirect with http headers (in php it's header("whatever");)- Location: http://www.example.org/. An even better solution would be to make apache rewrite the location to the forum directory so it's transparent to the end user. Unless you actually want a "redirecting.." notice to be seen, refresh redirects are generally a terrible way of doing it. Be considerate of those using lynx! --froth^t 02:37, 22 June 2007 (UTC)

Which part of that do I put in the index.html file? Basically, where do I start the copy/paste? Dismas|^(talk) 03:34, 22 June 2007 (UTC)

That you need PHP, but isn't also possible to do <meta http-equiv="Location" content="http://www.example.org/"/>? --antilived^{T | C | G} 06:16, 22 June 2007 (UTC)

Froth's suggestions are fine if you have access to install PHP or change your Apache config file. For normal users, using a meta tag is best. Antilived's "meta location" suggestion is the proper one. Youth's "meta refresh" works, but it isn't the proper tag. You are abusing the refresh by saying "refresh in 0 seconds to..." instead of simply saying "change to location...". As for Froth's lynx concern, I use lynx regularly and it accepts meta tags. It will refresh or change locations fine. --Kainaw ^(talk) 12:04, 22 June 2007 (UTC)

Well, I put Antilived's in and it didn't redirect me at all. So back to Youth's I go. Dismas|^(talk) 13:43, 22 June 2007 (UTC)

(de-indent) Hmmmm the http-equiv=Location way doesn't work at all, maybe because by that time the header is already sent and a Location header is invalid by then? The best way would be either header() or rewrite, but if you don't have PHP or don't know how to use Apache Rewrite (or don't have Apache), http-equiv=refresh is the only way to go... --antilived^{T | C | G} 01:30, 23 June 2007 (UTC)

Well, the forum that I put up is written in PHP and it's on an Apache web server, so I would presume that I have what you're talking about. Dismas|^(talk) 01:56, 23 June 2007 (UTC)

Then just copy an paste <?php header("Location: http://www.example.org"); ?> into the very top of your index.php and you should be all set. Remember to delete index.htm or set Apache to go to index.php first though. --antilived^{T | C | G} 04:42, 23 June 2007 (UTC)

And to do it fully server side, put this between <directory /whatever/dir/you/want/> and </directory> tags in your httpd.conf:

RewriteEngine on
RewriteRule ^/directory/relative/to/the/one/above/filename\.html$ /another/directory/path/filename.html 

--froth^t 16:02, 23 June 2007 (UTC)

June 22

GPU as extra processor

Can a gpu be set up to be an "extra processor"? For instance, could a graphics card be added to a core duo system to make it triple core?--67.181.167.227 00:31, 22 June 2007 (UTC)

Like the AMD Fusion? --Wirbelwindヴィルヴェルヴィント (talk) 00:53, 22 June 2007 (UTC)

Yes, but with a "normal" graphics card.--67.181.167.227 00:57, 22 June 2007 (UTC)

Then in a way, you're already doing it with a normal computer. If you mean letting the GPU do non-graphic intensive calculations, it won't be very proficient at it, since it's not a fully capable CPU. So the benefit would be a big chunk of energy fees for running the GPU at full with minimal improvements. You're better off getting a Quad Core or a dual Dual Core or something in that case. --Wirbelwindヴィルヴェルヴィント (talk) 01:22, 22 June 2007 (UTC)

Agreed- CPUs are so optimized for.. well take a microprocessors/digital logic course, the point is that your GPU would only have a trivial computational contribution compared to the CPU except for graphical operations. --froth^t 02:38, 22 June 2007 (UTC)

Also agree, except for one thing: GPUs' graphical capabilities can also be used for calculations, and by far outperform normal CPUs in some areas. The article on General-Purpose Computing on Graphics Processing Units looks like a good starting point for more information. --Dapeteばか 08:25, 22 June 2007 (UTC)

Router security

I have recently installed a wireless router in my house. However, I have two computers linked up to it by wire. Is my router still sending wireless traffic at the moment? My main concern is that would other people be able to use my wireless signal and gain access into my home network? It is a D-link Gold Series router and it says I can "log into" the router, but how do I do that? I am using Windows XP home. Thanks. 74.111.82.91 03:17, 22 June 2007 (UTC)

Yes the router could very well still be sending out wireless. what you need to do is go to the run command and type in cmd and press enter, that starts a command prompt, in there type ipconfig. Some stuff should come up including an IP Address for your default gateway which is your router. Open up internet explorer and type in that number. That's your router, from there I'd suggest consulting the manual that came with your router. Vespine 03:42, 22 June 2007 (UTC)

You want to disable the wireless antenna. Vespine, not exactly a number :). Splintercellguy 04:47, 22 June 2007 (UTC)

To address one of 74.111's concerns, it is not likely that somebody would be able to access your home network. Yes it is possible, assuming bad intentions on the part of the person using the wireless signal, but it is much more likely that a person would just use the wireless signal to get to the internet.

Once you have determined the IP address of your router as Vespine describes (by the way, typically, D-Link routers use IP 192.168.0.1, so you might try that before using ipconfig), you will probably receive a login screen. The default username is "Admin", just leave the password field empty. You should then see the web-based configuration utility, which will have various tabs. Somewhere in there you should be able to find the option to turn off the wireless portion of your router. If you don't have the manual, you can download one from D-Link; their main support page for D-Link is [9]. You'll need the exact model number of your router, but they have a pretty well laid out site which should answer any questions you have. --LarryMac | Talk 13:32, 22 June 2007 (UTC)

Mac or PC

I have been a PC user all my life. I feel my Pentium 4 is getting too old and am thinking of a new computer. I havent really looked into Windows Vista, but from what I can see and from playing around with them at BestBuy, I find them sort of slow... I have also been looking at Macs. I'm not too worried about the learning curve of a different operating system, but more the software that's available to it. I am a graphic/web designer and I want a computer that is good at that, while able to play games like the Rainbow Six series. As well, many TV commercials demonstrating software uses Macs, such as on G4TechTV. What are some pros and cons of choosing Vista or a Mac OS X? Thanks. 74.111.82.91 03:24, 22 June 2007 (UTC)

WinXP isn't obsolete yet... Why not get a new computer with WinXP that is Vista capable for the future? --Wirbelwindヴィルヴェルヴィント (talk) 03:54, 22 June 2007 (UTC)

Ubuntu. See also Comparison of Windows and Mac OS X and Comparison of Windows and Linux. But srsly, Ubuntu. -- Phoeba Wright^OBJECTION! 04:04, 22 June 2007 (UTC)

Opinionated me says no to Vista. Ubuntu for sure, perhaps dual-booting with XP. Splintercellguy 04:18, 22 June 2007 (UTC)

Ubuntu, with virtual machine running WinXP for all your web developing needs (Photoshop, IE etc.), and dual-boot for games. --antilived^{T | C | G} 06:12, 22 June 2007 (UTC)

Ubuntu or Mac, run all your windows programs/ games with crossover, or dualboot with win xp NOT vist(Vista has a lot of compatbily problems hardware and software wise) --Lwarf ^Talk! 08:25, 22 June 2007 (UTC)

A problem with the Windows Sound Recorder...

I have Windows XP on my computer, and I like the Sound Recorder. But now, there's a problem. It doesn't pick up a sound when it's recording. It used to pick up a sound, but now it doesn't. How can I make the Sound Recorder pick up a sound in recording again?

• Check your Recording mixer. In Control Panel, Sounds and Audio, click the Audio tab, and click the Volume button under Sound Recording and make sure the proper input is selected, with an appropriate volume level. You may have to make more options available from Options -> Properties. -wizzard2k ^(C-T-D) 14:36, 22 June 2007 (UTC)

¿ʞɔəɥ əɥʇ ʇɐɥʍ

I copy-pasted this from digg. How did he write this upside down? What shud I do if I want to write more?

He's probably in Australia.? 213.48.15.234 13:35, 22 June 2007 (UTC)

Part of it is IPA, it just happens that those chars are available within the common set used on the web. --66.195.232.121 14:13, 22 June 2007 (UTC)

Just clever use of Unicode characters. There's a user script to do something similar to whole pages here, and a list of 'upside-down' characters in this source code (under the comment "# turn ascii text upside-down, using unicode") — Matt Eason ^{(Talk &#149; Contribs)} 14:19, 22 June 2007 (UTC)

Ahhh.. thank you. I see it now.

You might also enjoy http://www.ex-parrot.com/~pete/upside-down-ternet.html although it's not what you saw -- Phoeba Wright^OBJECTION! 23:33, 22 June 2007 (UTC)

java programming

would you pliz refer me to the best sites for personal learning of java programing language and to start me off would you pliz show me how to draw a rectangle using an applet.

Tutorial; rectangle. --TotoBaggins 17:01, 22 June 2007 (UTC)

The official website from Sun Microsystems (the creators of the Java language) is java.sun.com and should be your primary reference. All the javadoc pages are available online. Also, tutorials exist for the Java Standard Edition (J2SE) language here and elsewhere on the site for other Java technologies. Nimur 17:22, 22 June 2007 (UTC)

Highlight To Copy, Middle Click To Paste On WinXP

Is there a utility that I can install on WinXP that will enable copying by highlighting and middle-clicking to paste? --Seans Potato Business 17:36, 22 June 2007 (UTC)

You're looking for Xmouse copy and paste; that may help direct your web searches. I know that Microsoft's tweakui tool enables some xmouse functionality but I do not think it includes copy/paste features. Nimur 18:16, 22 June 2007 (UTC)

This developer has released a tool to do exactly what you seek. I have never tried it; use at your own risk. Nimur 18:18, 22 June 2007 (UTC)

Expansion Card Questions

I recently upgraded a number of components on my PC and I have lost my multiple monitor capabilities. My old motheboard had PCI slots and an AGP, running 2 ATI Graphics cards (1xAGP & 1XPCI). My new MSI K8N Neo4 motherboard, has no AGP slots, but PCIE. I also recieved a newer NVIDIA GeForce 6600 graphics card, which I went with, because it's either that or the PCI one on it's own. But now I want to run 3 monitors again (I believe I can only run two from this card), so:

1. ) Can I run an ATI card with an NVIDIA card?
2. ) Do all kinds of NVIDIA cards run simultniously?
3. ) Would my second card need to be a PCI card or could I run a second PCIE card? My mboard does have small slots named PCIE.

1- In this setup, the second card is basically only there to give you another monitor connection, so you should be able to. 2- Again, in this setup, the cards will not run together, the second one is just there for the monitor, 3-Those PCI-e slots are for other things, the ones graphics cards use are PCI-e x16, there might be some very weak ones there but I wouldn't use them overa cheap PCI card. Unless you have something like SLI or Crossfire, you can't use multiple graphics cards at one time (at least, I think so, I can't imagine it's a good use of your time and money anyway) -- Phoeba Wright^OBJECTION! 23:49, 22 June 2007 (UTC)

"Swelled" Favorites Menu Bar

Hello. I installed Norton Confidential 2007 available from my Norton AntiVirus 2007 CD. When I select the address bar and press Alt+a, my Internet Explorer 7 Favorites menu bar swelled. There is space after the arrows and after the last folder. How can I fix this? --Mayfare 18:13, 22 June 2007 (UTC)

Domain-name secondary market

What is the market price of a two-letter .org domain name? NeonMerlin 22:51, 22 June 2007 (UTC)

It would depend on the name. Something like qx.org is probably worth less than something like hi.org, although .org shouldn't be as competitive as .com. Keep in mind you could also go with another country's domain, and save some cash -- Phoeba Wright^OBJECTION! 23:51, 22 June 2007 (UTC)

June 23

SD card packs?

Anyone know where I could buy packs of SD cards at a reasonable price? I'd seen a two pack of 2GB cards, for 50$... compare to the 2GB card itself only costing 13$. A pack of five or ten for around 50 or 100$, respectively, would be ideal, but anything would be nice to see. -- Phoeba Wright^OBJECTION! 00:00, 23 June 2007 (UTC)

Fastest Processor

What is the fastest processor made or that is going to be made? 68.193.147.179 00:18, 23 June 2007 (UTC)