Archive for the ‘How to’ Category
-
Enabling Hardware Virtualization on a SONY VAIO VGN-CR320 Laptop – An Experience
Note that what follows is not a how-to guide. Rather, a recollection of an experience. I am not an expert in this area. And what worked for me may not necessarily work for you, even if you replicate each step to the very best. Worse, there is a very realistic probability of bricking your computer for good and the possibility of voiding your warranty. The purpose of writing about this experience is to contribute to the existing body of knowledge on this subject. I am not in a position to provide any kind of support whatsoever. Please also read the disclaimer.What is Hardware Virtualization?
Hardware Virtualization is the capability of a computer’s processor and/or motherboard to allow the operating system to to run another operating system. Usually, the host operating system pretends to emulate the hardware requirements of the other operating system. Hardware Virtualization further supplements this by allowing the secondary operating system to access the capabilities of the processor and/or motherboard in a more direct manner, resulting in more performance. For more information, check Wikipedia.
Why enable Hardware Virtualization?
When Windows 7 was rolled out, they offered a nifty feature called Windows Virtual PC as an optional download. The Windows Virtual PC allows running Windows XP inside a window within Windows 7. There are some very specific reasons why you would want to do this.
-
You may want to run programs that can only be run in Windows XP, thanks to lazy developers who are not patching/updating their software. Normally, most programs that can be run in Windows XP can be run in Windows 7, because Windows 7 comes equipped with a compatibility mode to address this problem. But there are some programs that just don’t want to leave their home environment. Windows 7 initially made the capability of hardware virtualization mandatory to run Windows Virtual PC. But since then, they have released another patch which allows Windows Virtual PC to run on a computer without hardware virtualization or without having hardware virtualization enabled. If you intend to enable hardware virtualization just for running Windows Virtual PC, you may gain slightly better performance.
-
You are a computer programmer, and you require hardware virtualization in order to run not just Windows Virtual PC but other emulated environments as well.
Other than the above two reasons, enabling hardware virtualization has no other tangible benefits. Enabling hardware virtualization to overcome a feeling of deprivation is not a worthy pursuit.
Why did SONY disable hardware virtualization on some laptops?
SONY disabled hardware virtualization on some laptops by providing these laptops with rudimentary BIOS (that screen that comes up when you boot). Unlike typical BIOS, the BIOS simply did not have the feature for users to enable or disable hardware virtualization. When an advanced user buys a high end laptop, he or she expects to “play” with the BIOS. And being provided with a “limited feature” BIOS is not what he or she would expect.
SONY has been evasive in providing an answer. Clearly, this was not done to cut costs. There have been all sorts of speculation about this, and following the uproar, SONY did release new BIOS updates for select laptops. To check if your SONY laptop has a new BIOS update that enables hardware virtualization, go to Sony eSupport. This issue started gaining momentum around August 2009, coinciding with beta releases of Windows 7. Users who wanted to upgrade to Windows 7 and who also wanted to take full advantage of Windows Virtual PC. Assuming that SONY has learnt its lesson, we can assume that new laptops are not having hardware virtualization disabled. It wouldn’t hurt to check the BIOS in the showroom before purchasing a SONY computer.
Note: As of this date, SONY has released no patches for VGN-CR320 that enable hardware virtualization. A SONY customer support rep declined to comment on the possible future release of an updated BIOS.
Enabling Hardware Virtualization
The first thing to do is to check if your computer has hardware virtualization, and whether or not it is turned on. The easiest way to accomplish this is to get into the BIOS during boot. But the VGN-CR320 comes with a rudimentary Phoenix BIOS that does not give any such information.
Therefore, the next step is downloading a Windows utility that checks whether or not hardware virtualization is supported on the computer. This utility gives some useful feedback, such as whether or not the BIOS has enabled or disabled the feature. In this case, the utility reported that even though the computer had hardware virtualization enabled, the BIOS had disabled it.
As a double-check, also download and run the Intel Processor Identification utility. The VAIO VGN-CR320 comes equipped with an Intel Centrino Santa Rosa Platform (2007). According to the Intel Processor Identification utility, it has hardware virtualization capability.
The VAIO VGN-CR320 I was provided with has the latest updated BIOS (Phoenix Technologies LTD R2101Q0, 02/06/2008). You can check which BIOS version you have by going to Programs>Accessories>System>System Information. If you don’t have this BIOS, you can get it from the Sony eSupport website.
Based on two lists compiled by nerds hardware enthusiasts (1,2), you can determine that for this particular BIOS, the registry number 05BB corresponds to enabling or disabling the hardware virtualization. Note that this number may will not be the same if you have a different BIOS version. And remember, these lists appear to have been compiled on a trial and error basis. Therefore use at your own risk.
Now comes the tricky part; modifying your BIOS such that hardware virtualization is turned on. Right now, the value associated with registry number 05BB is 0000 (off). Changing that value to 0001 would thus turn on hardware virtualization.
For doing this, we need to download a utility called SYMCMOS, that allows us to modify the BIOS settings.
Next, find an empty USB stick to create a bootable drive. Booting to USB must be enabled in your BIOS. Then download and install the HP USB Disk Format Tool. Also download Windows 98 system files. We are using them only because they help in booting to DOS (which we need to run SYMCMOS). Now run the HP USB Disk Format Tool and point it to the location where you downloaded and unzipped the Windows 98 system files to create a bootable USB drive. Once this is done, copy SYMCMOS.exe to the USB drive as well. Shut down the computer.
Turn on your computer with the USB stick plugged in. The computer should boot to DOS. Type:
SYMCMOS -LBIOS.TXT
Turn your computer off, boot to Windows and access the USB stick. There should be a new text file called BIOS. Open it in notepad and search for REG 05BB. Corresponding to it, you should see a value 0000. Change it to 0001 and save the file.
Boot to DOS again and type:
SYMCMOS -ubios.TXT
Turn off your computer and boot to Windows. The Windows utility should report that hardware virtualization is enabled and that you are clear to install Windows XP mode.
Important Links
Thanks to these two posts for making it possible.
Bogart’s post on enabling VT on a VAIO with Intel Santa Rosa Platform (Notebookreview.com)
-
-
What is a Creative Commons License and why you should use one
According to Canadian Copyright Law, any piece of writing you produce, any photo you take, or any image or video you create becomes copyrighted to you automatically. No formal copyright notice or a © is required, although it does help to include one. Neither are you required to submit a formal claim of copyright to a state agency.
The purpose of the Copyright Act is to protect the intellectual property of the Copyright holder. The Copyright Act also has a “Fair Dealing” clause that allows limited reproduction of copyrighted work, provided that the reproduction does not border on infringement. This “Fair Dealing” provision is situation-specific and technically difficult to enforce.
With the rise of digital media and the Internet, reproducing copyrighted material has become stupendously easy. A photo posted on Facebook can find its way all across the Internet. A video posted on YouTube may spur several remixes when it gets popular. A well written blog post may be extensively quoted by other bloggers, sometimes in its entirety.
The creators of such digital content generally frown on any kind of reproduction whatsoever as it can open the possibility of copyright abuse. On the other side, those that seek to reproduce copyrighted digital content clamour around the Fair Dealing clause, sometimes stretching it into a wormhole when their purposes go beyond “Fair Dealing.”
If you create digital content, and if you acknowledge (and maybe appreciate) the easily reproducible nature of digital media, you can modify your traditional copyright to be less adversarial towards those who will share your content by using a Creative Commons License. There are several reasons why you may want to use this tool.
-
Outlining the rules for reproducing your content can give your content more exposure. This can be critical to if your profession depends upon exposure of your content, such as the profession of photography and blogging. Google® Image Search and Flickr® have the ability to restrict searches to content that is licensed under Creative Commons. This gives people immediate access to content that they can readily incorporate into their work.
-
Being vague about the rules for reproducing your content can scare people from making “Fair Use” of it. People may assume that you intend to bring down the hammer of the Copyright Law on any kind of use, and may avoid your content altogether. It is not prudent to assume that most people have the time to email you for clarification.
-
Setting out the rules for reproducing your content under a Creative Commons License can inhibit misuse of your content in some situations. While a Creative Commons License does not override the Fair Dealing provision of the Copyright Act, it makes your specifics clear for those intending to use your content. For example, if you use a Creative Commons license that prohibits commercial reproduction and reproduction without attribution to your name, those that intend to use your content will have clear guidelines to go by.
A Creative Commons License can be applied to almost all kinds of digital content, and even software code! But for the sake of example, we will assume that we intend to use a Creative Commons License on a digital image that accompanies a blog post.
The Creative Commons website gives us a tool that allows us to generate a snippet of code that can be placed in the blog post. You get to choose a number of variables that make up the license. Specifically, you get to choose
- Whether or not you allow commercial reproduction
- Whether or not you allow others to make derivative works
- Whether or not you demand an identical Creative Commons License for work created through reproducing or modifying your work (if you chose to allow so)
You can choose from a combination of these factors to create a license that fits your needs. And you can always create a new one for new situations. Regardless of which Creative Commons License you create, use of a Creative Commons license implies that you wholeheartedly allow reproduction for non-commercial purposes. All Creative Commons Licenses insist on attribution to the original author though. Though there is a special Creative Commons License called CC0 that allows you to waive all your rights, should the rare need arise.
A Creative Commons license reduces the anxiety associated with sharing, allowing you to share your digital content online while protecting your rights.
-
-
An Introduction to Linux, for Windows n00bs
When I first started considering Linux, I could not obtain answers to some very basic questions. Neither Wikipedia nor the Linux documentation were of much help. This article intends to fill those gaps. It is intended for Windows users who are considering Linux for the first time. This article is non-technical and fairly opinionated as opposed to those consensus driven Wiki articles.
Why you may need Linux
You may consider Linux as an alternative for Windows for several reasons, such as,
You want to use a computer just for email and browsing.
Most Linux distributions come bundled with Mozilla Firefox and Mozilla Thunderbird. Anything that you can do with these applications on Windows, you can do in Linux. The pioneering ASUS EEE netbooks dramatically cut costs by offering a Linux alternative, considering the fact that most netbook customers just wanted to browse and check email.
You want to use a computer just for basic word processing.
Most Linux distributions come loaded with OpenOffice. While not as feature-rich as Microsoft Office, OpenOffice does the job quite well. And its documents, spreadsheets and presentation files are compatible with Windows as well as Microsoft Office.
You have no access to Windows
Lets suppose you cannot afford a legitimate copy of Windows. Linux is as free as water Linux is more free than water. Or lets suppose you do not have the technical means of installing an illegitimate copy of Windows.
You want to try something new.
Assuming you are tired from looking out of the same “Window” again and again.
You want to save on Antivirus and Anti-Spyware subscriptions, while optimizing performance.
Suppose you are OK with Windows but you detest forking extra money for paying for antivirus and anti-spyware, which ultimately slow down your system. Unlike Windows, Linux does not have vulnerable components like the Windows Registry. And installing (malicious) code on Linux requires administrative (root) access as it does on Windows. But obtaining these credentials in Linux is far more complex than it is on Windows, which ultimately makes Linux safer. And since malicious code reflects market proliferation of the OS its intended to be used on, most viruses are built for Windows, rather than Linux. Linux thus offers you a more safer computing experience without having you pay for third party antivirus and anti-spyware, which can ultimately slow down performance.
You want to save on expensive hardware upgrades
If you bought a “state of the art” computer in 2003, chances are that it cannot run Windows 7 (unless you commit yourself to expensive upgrades). On the other hand, Linux can be installed on almost all of the most barebone hardware configurations that exist.
You want a transparent computing experience.
Unlike Windows, Linux source code is available for scrutiny to every Tom, Dick and Rosenthal. A lot of updates to the Linux operating system are a result of people pointing out vulnerabilities in the source code, rather than actual security holes. In contrast, Windows source code is proprietary, and only a select bunch at Redmond gets to see it naked. While Microsoft does its own audits, Windows security holes are usually discovered when an advanced user
- Stumbles upon the security hole.
- Notifies Microsoft.
- Microsoft acknowledges the presence of the security hole after some dickering.
- The special group at Redmond that has access to the Windows source code creates a patch for the security hole, and the patch is released via Windows Update.
- Microsoft PR releases a vague “security bulletin” publicly acknowledging the vulnerability. Since Windows source code is proprietary, only Microsoft can truly judge how the vulnerability affects Windows. The rest of us are expected to trust them.
While Microsoft has considerably streamlined its Windows Update process, most Linux distros have a fairly sophisticated update engine as well. Linux security updates are extensive and timely. Linux updates are not limited to the operating system, and extend to practically all applications installed. On the other hand, Windows Update only updates Microsoft products, such as Windows OS, Microsoft Office and Internet Explorer. You have to manually update non-Microsoft applications such as Firefox and iTunes.
You have “special needs.”
You may want to run special software that can only be run on Linux.
Why you don’t need Linux
You should not consider Linux for the following reasons,
You want a perfect substitute for Windows.
If you are looking for a substitute for Windows, you will be disappointed. Linux was never meant to be a Windows substitute and originated as a tool for developers. Linux obviously cannot run or install programs that are meant for Windows (and vice versa). It is technically possible but requires tinkering. And since Windows has a much bigger market proliferation, most of the programs available are for Windows. Add to that, downloading and installing a program in Linux is more complex than it is in Windows. The range of programs available for Linux can pretty much cover all your computing needs, in addition to some seriously advanced programs that are Linux-only. But limited market proliferation takes its toll. Programs for Linux can be rudimentary and lacking GUI features. Most of the programs available for Linux are open source. But as Linux grows more popular, commercial programs are being offered for Linux as well. For example, Skype is now available for Linux. Linux also comes preloaded with drivers for most computer hardware that is available. I have installed Linux on three different computers and in all cases, Linux was able to load all the required drivers. Its even better than Windows at this!
You want to save costs in a networked environment
Lets say you want to cut corners in a school or office by installing Linux on several networked computers. There are several reasons to avoid this. Users may insist on a Windows environment. In addition, troubleshooting any issues that may arise will require extensive Linux-specific know-how.
You want to take advantage of the advanced features of your computer hardware.
Suppose you have a pricey scanner and its Windows software is choc full of sophisticated features. These features may not necessarily be available on Linux. But check with the hardware manufacturer. Many hardware manufacturers now offer software for Linux as well.
You want to look cool.
Given the ease with which Linux can be installed, nobody really cares these days. And contrary to urban legends, running Linux won’t give you hax0r powers.
What else you should know
Whatever you learnt from Windows will be good for Linux only on a basic level, such as navigation. Linux has its own learning curve, philosophy and jargon. The following are some Linux terms you are expected to be familiar with, even when you start considering Linux.
Distro
Short for distribution. The Linux operating system is open to modification. Therefore different groups have created different distributions of Linux, based on their needs. There are dozens of them. For example, BackTrack is a Linux distro packed with security tools. And within these distributions, you will find different versions, analogous to Windows 95, 98, Me, 2000, XP and Vista. Choosing a distro is a touchy subject and depends upon your needs. You can find a list of available distros here. If you are new to Linux, I suggest the Ubuntu distro. It is highly evolved, and comes bundled with everything a beginner would expect.
LiveUSB
Linux is very versatile. It can be installed on a hard drive as expected. It can also be installed on a Windows hard drive while creating the option to boot as Windows or Linux upon start-up (dual boot). It can be installed on Windows in a non-intrusive way, just like another Windows program functioning within Windows (Wubi). It can also be run from a CD (LiveCD). But the most non-intrusive way to use Linux is to install it on a USB thumb/flash/key drive (LiveUSB). This can be done in a Windows environment, provided you download and install UNetbootin and you also downloaded the Linux installation file (.iso) to your Windows Desktop.
Repository
When you want to install a program in Windows, you go to the program website, download and install it. While this is possible in Linux too, it requires some mastery of command line (Referred to in Linux as terminal). Most popular programs for Linux are available through “repositories” instead of isolated websites. A repository is a website that hosts updated and malware-free versions of software provided by the software developer. To search several genuine repositories and to install programs from them in Ubuntu, you go into the “Synaptic Package Manager.”
root
A distinguishing feature of Linux is a strongly enforced user account control. Only one account, the root (aka superuser) has the ability to modify the system outside the limited scope granted to other user accounts. This account will be created when you install Linux and you will be asked to set a password for it. For example, when you install new software or make configuration changes, Linux may prompt you for the root password. This contributes to more safer computing, as malware and spyware cannot surreptitiously install itself as it does in Windows.
-
How to use Windows Defender to manage your start-up programs and speed Windows start-up
You have probably heard of this one before………that tweaking msconfig can help prevent unnecessary programs from starting up when your computer boots, thereby increasing the boot speed.
This is an essential part of computer maintenance. Because when you install programs to your computer, many programs surreptitiously add themselves to the Start-up folder, even if it is not necessary for these programs to always start up when Windows does. And of course, there is no law against a program unnecessarily slowing your computer’s boot.
Among the most notorious of such programs are those that come bundled with printer/scanner software. While it is necessary for some components of such programs to always be active, you may notice that other components, such as those that check for new updates for the software also start running when Windows starts up.
While msconfig has been a classic when it comes to managing the Start-up folder, the purpose of this post is to suggest a more interactive alternative, Windows Defender.
In case you haven’t heard, Windows Defender is a free anti-spyware program offered by Microsoft. It comes bundled with Windows Vista. XP users can download it here.
A little known feature of Windows Defender is is its ability to manage the start-up folder. To reach this interface, go to Tools, then Software Explorer and select “Start-up Programs” from the drop down list next to Category. Then click the “Show for all users” button at the bottom.
You will see all of your Windows start-up programs neatly listed, grouped under their respective publishers. You have the option of disabling them, or removing them from the start-up list. You can also re-enable those that you disabled.
Note that many programs in the start-up list are critical for your computer to start-up and perform as expected. Disabling them or removing them from the start-up list can adversely affect your computer and/or its components. Your computer may not start up. Or it may not perform as expected. In my case, I found more than 50 per cent of the programs in the start-up list to be legitimately there. Before you disable a program or remove it from the list, check what ProcessLibrary.com has to say about the program. You can do this by entering the File name of the program in question (see picture below) into the search field at ProcessLibrary.com.
-
How to convert documents into PDFs, and how to split existing PDFs….for free!
While the base version of Adobe Acrobat starts at a price $299 USD, you can convert documents that support printing to PDF into PDFs for free using Acronis CutePDF Writer. You can also use CutePDF Writer to split pre-existing PDFs.
First, download and install the free Acronis CutePDF Writer as well as the free open source converter provided.
After installation, you will notice a new entry called CutePDF Writer in the section that allows you to choose a printer when printing a document.
To convert a document to PDF (provided that it supports printing to PDF), simply select CutePDF Writer as your printer and hit print. You will be asked where to save the new PDF file and what you want to name it.
To split a pre-existing PDF file, open it using Adobe Acrobat Reader and print it the same way as above. But this time, specify the page(s) you want to print.
As an economical alternative to the basic version of Adobe Acrobat, Acronis CutePDF Professional is recommended.
-
How to make your MP3 CD play in the order you want
You can usually drop an MP3 playlist file in portable MP3 players, which specifies the order you want. But basic MP3 CD players such as those found in car stereos usually do not support MP3 playlists.
The second option is adding ID3 tags to the MP3 files, with each ID3 tag displaying the track number. The best freeware utility for adding ID3 tags is tag-mp3-saito (Windows only) which can allow you to make use of the advanced table features of Microsoft Excel. The display of ID3 tag information such as artist, album, filename and track number is supported by almost all MP3 players. But again, basic MP3 CD players are usually not equipped with the algorithms to obtain playback information from the tags.
A known issue relates to MP3 files being played in the order that they were copied. But this pertains to USB based MP3 players, and not MP3 CDs.
The last resort is renaming or prefixing your MP3 files numerically, and expecting them to play in ascending order. Renaming or prefixing them alphabetically will also work. MP3 files in basic MP3 CD players are played alphabetically, unless overridden by having a numeric name or prefix. But having them renamed or prefixed alphabetically can be confusing.
The best freeware utility for bulk renaming your MP3 files is the Bulk Rename Utility (Windows only). In the case of MP3 CD players, your files may play in order as long as they are less then ten. For example, 9 files will play in the following order:
1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9
But if your files are 10, you will find your MP3s being played in the following order:
1,10,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9
Or if you exceed 10 files, let’s say you have 20 files, will find your MP3s being played in the following order:
1,10,12,13,14,15,16,17,18,19,2,20,3,4,5,6,7,8,9
This can be corrected by using the Bulk Rename Utility to prefix the MP3 filenames. First check how many total files you have. If suppose you have 300 files, change the filenames or filename prefixes from
1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10,11,12,13,14,15,16,17,18,19,20…….98, 99,100,101,102,103……300
to
001, 002, 003, 004, 005, 006, 007, 008, 009, 010, 011, 012, 013, 014, 015, 016, 017, 018, 019, 020…..098, 099, 100, 101, 102, 103…..300
Note that you can quit renaming or prefixing after reaching 100. If suppose you have a 1000 files, you would be prefixing the above as:
0001, 0002, 0003, 0004, 0005, 0006, 0007, 0008, 0009, 0010, 0011, 0012, 0013, 0014, 0015, 0016, 0017, 0018, 0019, 0020…..0098, 0099, 0100, 0101, 0102, 0103…..0998, 0999, 1000
Similarly, if you have less than 100 files, you would be prefixing them as:
01,02,03,04,05,06,07,08,09,10,11,12,13,14,15,16,17,18,19,20…..98,99,100
Thanks to the Roxio Support Community for the tip.
Calendar
| M | T | W | T | F | S | S |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| « May | ||||||
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | ||
| 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 |
| 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 |
| 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 | 26 |
| 27 | 28 | 29 | 30 | |||