How-To Geek

Everything You Need To Know About the Blue Screen of Death

Chris Hoffman — Tue, 21 May 2013 10:40:14 GMT

The blue screen of death — or BSOD — is always an unwelcome sight. BSODs appear when Microsoft Windows encounters a critical error it can’t recover from, requiring a reboot and possibly resulting in lost work.

A blue screen of death is the worst type of error a computer can experience, unlike an application crash, which doesn’t bring down the whole system. A BSOD is the result of low-level software crashing — or faulty hardware.

Create Your Own Custom Characters or Fonts with Private Character Editor

Mark Wilson — Tue, 21 May 2013 00:48:55 GMT

There’s a font for just about every occasion and eventuality, but what about those times when you need something a little different? Windows includes the Private Character Editor which can be used to create your own fonts, or just individual characters and symbols.

Private Character Editor is not a new tool – it has been available for many years now – but it is something that is often overlooked.

It could be used to create your own personal font from scratch – although you would need a great deal of patience for this – but it is probably best suited to creating custom characters for logos and symbols you would like to be able to type easily time and time again.

Battle Invading Forces as You Defend Your Country in Fieldrunners

Akemi Iwaya — Mon, 20 May 2013 20:04:59 GMT

Prepare to man the defenses because military forces are invading and you are the last hope for your country! The enemy forces will hit quickly and hit hard, so you need to be ready to think strategically ‘on the fly’ as wave after wave breaches the border. Can you hold the line or will the enemy forces succeed in their invasion?

The game provides an easy to follow tutorial screen that shows you the layout for relevant information as well as how to get started.

At first the invading military forces are easy to deal with, but do not expect that to last for long!

Geek Trivia: What Did The Inventor Of The Pet Rock Later Try To Sell Americans Bit By Bit?

Jason Fitzpatrick — Mon, 20 May 2013 17:37:29 GMT

What Did The Inventor Of The Pet Rock Later Try To Sell Americans Bit By Bit?

1) Mt. Rushmore
2) The Taj Mahal
3) China
4) The Moon

Think you know the answer?

Our Atmosphere is Escaping

Akemi Iwaya — Mon, 20 May 2013 17:20:35 GMT

Did you know that Earth is constantly losing a portion of its atmosphere? Do you know what parts are being lost into space? MinuteEarth shows you the part of the atmosphere we are losing and how it happens in this awesome video.

Our Atmosphere is Escaping! [YouTube]

How to Add Film Grain to Your Digital Photos

Jason Fitzpatrick — Mon, 20 May 2013 16:34:09 GMT

One of the elements of film-based photography lost with the transition to digital photography is the presence of film grain. If you want to recapture the effect with your modern digital rig, read on as we show you how.

How to Use Symbols in Word 2013

Lori Kaufman — Mon, 20 May 2013 14:24:52 GMT

Hundreds of symbols that are not available on your keyboard are provided in Microsoft Word for use in your documents. For example, you can insert fractions (½), a degree symbol (°), pi (π), or currency symbols, such as the British pound symbol (£).

There’s a set of symbols and characters for each font set.

To insert a symbol, place the cursor in your Word document where you want the symbol and click the Insert tab on the Ribbon.

How to Get Rid of the Modern Environment on a Windows 8 PC

Chris Hoffman — Mon, 20 May 2013 10:40:31 GMT

So you’re using Windows 8 on a desktop or laptop. Microsoft goes out of their way to make this more awkward, scattering the tweaks you need to turn Windows 8 into a serviceable desktop operating system all over the OS.

We’re gathering together all the tips you’ll need to reduce the annoyances of Windows 8 when you’re using it on a traditional desktop or laptop without touch, making this conversion as easy as possible.

How Firefox Is Integrating With Facebook and Other Social Networks

Chris Hoffman — Mon, 20 May 2013 08:04:27 GMT

You may not have noticed, but Firefox now includes a “Social API” that allows Facebook and other social networks to integrate with your browser. Firefox is providing Facebook a way to integrate with your browser and stay with you everywhere on the web.

These features are a bit reminiscent of Flock, a Firefox-derived “social browser” that failed to gain traction a few years ago. This time, the features are baked into Firefox and are optional — you won’t see them unless you install a social provider.

Geek Trivia: Which Plant Has Evolved To Repel Mammals But Attracts Birds?

Jason Fitzpatrick — Sun, 19 May 2013 17:37:31 GMT

Which Plant Has Evolved To Repel Mammals But Attracts Birds?

1) Roses
2) Sunflowers
3) Chile Peppers
4) Bamboo

Think you know the answer?

Forget Windows Media Center: Use a Free Linux-Based Media Center System

Chris Hoffman — Sun, 19 May 2013 10:40:57 GMT

Windows 8 no longer comes with Windows Media Center. To get it, you’ll need to purchase both the Pro Pack and Media Center Pack upgrades from Microsoft for a total of $110. Consider using a free, Linux-based media center system instead.

Once you have paid all this money, you’ll just have the old version of Windows Media Center without any improvements. Microsoft will probably discontinue Windows Media Center eventually, anyway, as they’re no longer focused on it.

Week in Geek: Chromium may Replace Firefox as the Default Browser in Ubuntu 13.10

Akemi Iwaya — Sun, 19 May 2013 09:12:37 GMT

This week’s edition of WIG is filled with news link coverage on topics such as Microsoft has confirmed that ‘Blue’ will be free for existing Windows 8 users, Firefox 21 has added support for new services via its Social API, malicious Chrome and Firefox extensions that hijack Facebook profiles have been found, and more.

Special Note: This is our final edition of ‘Week in Geek’ and we hope that you have found the weekly posts to be informative as well as helpful.

Geek Trivia: By Whose Request Was Margarine Invented?

Jason Fitzpatrick — Sat, 18 May 2013 17:37:39 GMT

By Whose Request Was Margarine Invented?

1) Florence Nightingale
2) Albert Einstein
3) Napoleon III
4) President Taft

Think you know the answer?

Linux Users Have a Choice: 8 Linux Desktop Environments

Chris Hoffman — Sat, 18 May 2013 10:40:55 GMT

There’s no one true desktop environment for Linux. Unlike competing operating systems like Windows, Linux users have a choice of many different desktop environments, all with their own styles and strengths.

You can install one of these desktop environments after installing your Linux distribution and switch between desktop environments from the login screen. You can also choose to install a Linux distribution that comes with the desktop environment. For example, you can get Ubuntu in many different flavors.

Desktop Fun: Views of Earth Wallpaper Collection Series 2

Akemi Iwaya — Sat, 18 May 2013 09:12:24 GMT

Last year we shared a beautiful collection of Earth view wallpapers with you and today we are back with more. Send your desktop into near-Earth orbit with the second in our series of ‘Views of Earth’ Wallpaper collections.

Special Note: We were lucky enough to find two mini-sets (3 each) that show Earth at different points in its rotation. Both are back-to-back in the second half of this week’s collection.

Test Your Puzzle Solving Skills with Amazing Stick’s Puzzles HD

Akemi Iwaya — Fri, 17 May 2013 20:04:53 GMT

Do you have what it takes to solve wicked shape-based puzzles? Then get ready to test your puzzle solving skills with Amazing Stick’s Puzzles HD. This matchstick based game will definitely make you think, and quite possibly scratch your head in frustration as you work to find the solutions to each level!

The game currently has four sets of puzzles with a total of 176 levels, so there is plenty of puzzle solving fun to keep you busy for quite some time. Even better is that more sets are due to be added in the future!

The game has some basic rules that need to be kept in mind while playing, such as the rule about border sticks.

Geek Trivia: If You’ve Written A Typo Undetectable By Spellcheck, You’ve Created What?

Jason Fitzpatrick — Fri, 17 May 2013 17:37:49 GMT

If You’ve Written A Typo Undetectable By Spellcheck, You’ve Created What?

1) A Typetacular
2) An Orwell
3) An Atomic Typo
4) A Numpty

Think you know the answer?

What if You were Born in Space?

Akemi Iwaya — Fri, 17 May 2013 17:20:37 GMT

Did you know that there has been an ‘uninterrupted’ human presence in space ever since November of 2001? That is rather awesome when you think about it, but all of the people who have spent time in space were born and grew up on Earth. What would things be like for a person who was conceived and born in space though? Vsauce discusses the impact this would have on human physiology in this terrific video.

What if You Were Born in Space? [YouTube]

Byte Size Tips: How to Make Outlook 2013 Close the Original Message When You Reply to an Email

Taylor Gibb — Fri, 17 May 2013 16:34:02 GMT

One the things that really irritates me about Outlook is that when you click reply it doesn’t close the original message. Here’s how to change that.

How to Strip the DRM from Your Kindle Ebooks for Cross-Device Enjoyment and Archiving

Jason Fitzpatrick — Fri, 17 May 2013 15:23:01 GMT

You’re not a Jolly Roger flying pirate, you’re just somebody that wants to backup the ebooks they paid for and read them on the devices they want to read them on. Follow along as we show you how to liberate your Kindle books.

8 Ways Hardware Manufacturers Are Deceiving You

Chris Hoffman — Fri, 17 May 2013 10:40:29 GMT

Sure, everyone involved can come up with a variety of excuses — they aren’t technically misleading customers, it’s all in the fine print, and these are the standard ways the industry operates — but hardware has been advertised in many misleading ways.

We’re not the only ones calling these marketing gimmicks misleading. Some of these tricks have even been the subject of class-action lawsuits for misleading consumers. Today we will look at 8 ways hardware manufacturers attempt to pull the metaphorical wool over the consumer’s eyes.

IT Geek: Monitor Network Devices with SNMP (Simple Network Management Protocol)

Aviad — Thu, 16 May 2013 21:01:07 GMT

Have you ever needed to know what a remote device thinks the value of a metric is? HTG explains what the Simple Network Management Protocol (SNMP) is and how can you use it to monitor network devices.

Image by istargazer

What Is the Text In Front of the Command Line Called?

Jason Fitzpatrick — Thu, 16 May 2013 20:00:02 GMT

Frequently asking questions about the smallest and most subtle elements of your computing experience can yield interesting insights into computers and their history. Today we look at the little block of text that sits at the front of the command line.

Today’s Question & Answer session comes to us courtesy of SuperUser—a subdivision of Stack Exchange, a community-driven grouping of Q&A web sites.

Geek Trivia: Which Color Name Was Introduced To The English Language Via Plant?

Jason Fitzpatrick — Thu, 16 May 2013 17:37:18 GMT

Which Color Name Was Introduced To The English Language Via Plant?

1) Mustard
2) Orange
3) Eggplant
4) Plum

Think you know the answer?

Raspberry Pi Camera Board now Available for Purchase

Akemi Iwaya — Thu, 16 May 2013 17:20:16 GMT

If you are a Raspberry Pi enthusiast, then you are going to love this latest bit of news. Camera boards are now available to add to your favorite Raspberry Pi device and we have the links you need to learn more about the latest bit of hardware goodness as well as where to buy the new boards.

Camera board available for sale! [Raspberry Pi Website] Special Note: This link includes plenty of how-to goodness to get your new camera board up and running!

Raspberry Pi Camera Board Page [element14 Community]

Raspberry Pi Order Page [RS Components]