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Error message: "The User Profile Service failed the logon. User profile cannot be loaded”, when logging on to Windows 7 or Windows Vista

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/947215

This is really the only annoying error I have had to deal with since
switching to Windows 7 on launch day. Finally found a good way to fix
it other than restarting.

Apple Support

Everyone always cites Apple's great support and customer service when they praise the company's products. Having owned an Apple product or two (iPhones, iPods, and an iPad), I haven't been able to see this until now. I have fixed most issues myself including cracked screens and the like. However, a couple weeks ago a shoddy headphone splitter that I had lying around broke inside the headphone jack on my new iPad. I was very angry and devastated. I tried every single trick suggested on forums, but nothing worked. Here's what did: I took it to the Apple Store on Walnut St. in Philadelphia. I waited for about 10 minutes for an "appointment". The guy took out a little penlight and fuddled with it for a minute like I had for hours over the past weeks. Then he apologized, asked if I had stuff backed up, and went and got me a new one. Brand new, he even took off the plastic in front of me.. I was out in 20 minutes total.

Now that's service.

Redirect Virus/Malware Fix

While trying to search for an alternative version of a software that I tried to buy but the payment wouldn't go through, I go some sort of a redirect virus/malware. It's commonly referred to as the "Google virus" because all links from google are redirected to some stupid deal site or otherwise. Anyway, I seemed to have contracted the zebra and not the horse, and didn't get the typical "TSSS" strain. So it took a while to get to a site that was talking about the same thing... came across this:

http://www.bleepingcomputer.com/forums/topic203346.html

They walked this lady through step by step and it worked perfectly. 

Two programs, GooredFix and ComboFix. Took about 10 minutes and I was good to go.

The deal sites most commonly implicated are shopica, findstuff, etc. 

But on the upside, it gave me some time to get to know my iPad better since I got sick of copying link URLs and pasting them.

Streaming video to PowerPoint

I have a bunch of screenshots of lecture slides from a streaming video, and I wanted to put it into a .ppt to annotate myself with notes so they correlate better. Also it helps to run through it fast before the exam. I used Lightscreen to take quick screenshots that automatically save with a keyboard shortcut, and used a built in new PowerPoint image album feature explained here:

http://www.pptfaq.com/FAQ00050.htm

Together these gave me exactly what I wanted. Quite serendipitous.

http://lightscreen.sourceforge.net/

iPhone GeoTagging

The GeoTagging on the iPhone is really amazing. I was just at a conference and I can tell room by room where I took various photos, and without remembering the name of a restaurant, I can find where it was by the pics I took there. Stunning. 

Rancilio Silvia Overheat

So yesterday, I did something stupid and left the apartment with my Silvia on. Not only was it on (which I've done before) but I left the steam switch on, which meant that the boiler was full of steam and prone to overheating. Luckily this guy saved me and explained exactly how to fix it, but the only reason I saw it was because he described it as the "Silvia won't heat problem". Perfect. Exactly my search query.

http://www.terrystockdale.com/coffee/resetting_silvia.php

How to Get Free Wifi

I'm writing this from outside a Best Western in San Mateo, since I'm
waiting for a flight to land at SFO that has been delayed a bit. I
wanted to have Internet connection, and I just got to 90% of my data
cap this morning so I turned off data on my iPhone 4. I parked outside
the hotel, and the connection was unsecured. I connected but arrived
at a splash screen that required a password provided by the front
desk. I was too lazy to go out in the rain to talk to them. I texted
google (466453) to get the front desk number, called, got the
password, and voila! Not that impressive, but it was fun and easy to
use this combination to get what I needed.

A Good Description of two "Symbols" of Medicine

http://www.drblayney.com/Asclepius.html

Fix Push Notifications on iPhone following Jailbreak

So supposedly during the activation process on an iPhone when using iTunes, it certifies something that allows you to get Push notifications from Apple servers. This can go awry in "hacktivated" phones, but it also went wrong with my iPhone 4 when using AT&T, 4.2.1 legit and subsequently greenpois0n jailbroken. Anyway, PushDoctor fixed it nice and easy

http://www.cmdshft.ipwn.me/blog/?p=481

Point of confusion

Why is the power button for the iPod touch on the opposite side as
the. iPhones?? Is this worth an email to Steve?

iPhone Jailbreak-Unlock Bonanza!

Today, the unlock for nearly every baseband and bootloader was finally released, basically a slap in the face to Apple's patching of every exploit that the dev team and geohot have been finding. Thank heavens they did this all at once so we don't have to worry about what version we have and all that crap! Only problem is, I'm still worried about what's going on with my 3GS because its not really clear. So I'll have to play around with 4.0 update on my 2G Touch. Till tomorrow, then!

iPhone 3GS Jailbreak on 3.1.3

So I just bought a new white iPhone 3GS, running 3.1.3 stock already. After trying sn0wbreeze which worked easily on my 3.1.2 to upgrade and unlock, I was confused. I had also used sn0wbreeze to easily jailbreak 2 3G's in the past month. I just used Spirit, which is hands down the best jailbreak thus far. Even snappier than blackra1n (sorry, geohot). Can't wait to get OS 4.0 and jailbreak it. I wounder if any devs would just put up their ipsw?

iTaser

I made this for a Gizmodo competition a while back in high school, in order to win some gadget prize. And now, ironically, in a bit about the Gizmodo-Apple dispute over the new iPhone "HD/4g/whatever", Jon Stewart brings it up! Of course, mine was based off the most current iPod at the time, the iPod Video.

Google Voice on the iPhone

Given that everyone with (non-jailbroken) phones is still waiting for a Google Voice app for the iPhone, I thought I'd post how I have set up my integration even though I occasionally use the GV Mobile app. This is for people who don't want to fully switch to their Google Voice number. If that's what you're looking for, check this Lifehacker transition guide.

1) Go get Google Voice

2) Set up forwarding of incoming voicemails on your number to Google Voice

http://www.google.com/support/forum/p/voice/thread?tid=00a93855af6943b4&hl=en

3) Change what the voicemail button on you iPhone does.

http://www.haklabs.com/2007/iphone-voicemail-button-fix/

Enjoy!

"Fast and Famous" in Silicon Valley

Jay Leno recently tried to discover the inner racetrack around his home in Beverly Hills/LA; he subsequently filmed a movie similar to "Rendezvous" with a front-wheel view of the drive around the track (video). He sized it to be about the same as the famous Nurburgring, around 13 miles or so. Over the summer, driving to Stanford, I found a similarly thrilling route around I-280, which traces the hills around Silicon Valley. It stretches through Los Altos Hills and through the foothills of Palo Alto hills before heading into Portola Valley. On my drive to University Avenue yesterday, I came across an Aston Martin DB7 as well as a Ferrari 599 Maranello and tried to "race" them. That's when it came to me that this drive could indeed be the equivalent of Jay Leno's drive around Mulhulland Dr, through Canyon Valley, and back along Sunset Blvd. I decided to tweak it to give it a proper allowance of both hill driving and curves as well as a great straightaway for speed. The route is highlighted belwo. While Foothill Expressway is a little too much of a long straightaway, it is nonetheless exhilarating to speed down when you get a streak of green lights. Furthermore, it is very well paved and most traffic moves at 10 above the limit. It's a nice parallel to Sunset Blvd and gives a nice view of the hills along the way. Anyway, the 'ring starts on Magdelena Rd, right by the Rancho Shopping Center in Los Altos. Down this road and one signal light away is the onramp to I-280, which cuts around the hills and up to Page Mill Rd, which cuts back down the hill in a usually empty stretch that connects back to the backbone of the route, Foothill Expressway. This drive may not cut through the homes of Hollywood's stars, but nonetheless takes you by many VC offices that funded the big names in tech.

Kid Cudi Wallpaper

I've never seen the alternate/inside cover of "Man On the Moon" till today. I decided something needed to happen to bring the front and back together.

BMW M7

People flock like no other to the E-Class AMG (various flavors, but in general), and that goes well in head-to-head competition with the M5. I certainly see more E-Class AMG's around, but that's simply because I think it seems more luxurious while maintaining its bad-ass attitude on the exterior. But certainly BMW is making some good money off that M5, right? The M3 is tearing apart the C-Class AMG as far as I can see - the M3 has long been the gold standard of its class and there's good reason for that. Now let's take a look at the high-performance luxury flagship sedan - the 7 Series vs. S- Class. Both do well in terms of sales, but when it comes to downright luxury, few people want the BMW. But there's not even a choice for those who want a kick out of their behemoth sedan - there is no M7!! There is only the S-Class AMGs, which are exorbitantly priced and are selling extremely well. Why can't BMW plop a nice turbocharged engine in their standard 7 and run with it? Maybe just use the same one from the M6? I feel like there's money on the table. And yeah, the Alpina B7 isn't enough. Make it production and not impossibly rare!

Grammer Policing: Alumnus/Alumna License Plate

So every day while driving around I see many of these license plate holders that let me know where somebody went to college, as it says "Alumni College X". The point of the message is usually to convey that the driver of the car is an alumnus/na of the school, right? Or is it to serve as a source or pride for the alumni association? I have seen some plates that explicitly state "Alumni Association" - I have no issues with this. However, I have met far too many people, even from good schools (the people who flaunt this invariably went to an Ivy or Stanford, but certainly something with a brand name), who don't properly use the singular and plural versions of alumnus/alumni. What's going on here?

If I had a million dollars...

If only legal and not under the imminent threat of legal action from Apple, I would love to take what Psystar did for desktops and extend it to laptops (but inversely). My ideal computer, after some consideration this evening, has presented itself to me. Though I love the look of the newest Dell Studio XPS 13 and Adamo, they're still trying. The MacBook Pro on the other hand, doesn't. It just is. And it is very well. Without trying, it makes the statement that it gets the job done. But as far as I'm concerned, it doesn't as long as its running OSX. So what would I do if I had some more cash? Install Windows 7, the best operating system available (in my opinion of course) on as many of these MBP's as possible. And of course, I need to revert to having two REAL mouse BUTTONS in addition to my fancy touchpad. I'm just not sold on this whole finger gesture movement, because even the most deft of my friends aren't as fast as I am with my PC touchpad with all its "unnatural" number of buttons.

In conclusion:

Best laptop ever = MacBook Pro (13 or 15, as preferred) + Windows 7 + Buttons on touchpad.