Photo editing, has always been an interesting topic. For some its fun for some its a profession. What ever it may be usually its done to make your photo look more attractive.(So that people praise you on facebook/myspace). Today I'm going to teach you how to photo edit with easy and free software.

Softwares needed:
1. RealWorld Cursor Editor
2. Gimp
3. MS PowerPoint (PRESENT with MS OFFICE)
4. MS Picture Manager (PRESENT with MS Paint)

(The text version will follow soon till then work with the video)

Hotter than before...Windows 'ZUNE' XP !!!

You fellas might have got bored looking at the same old green and blue look of Windows XP.
So now darken it up with a black and orange theme, and its completely safe because its an official theme by the Microsoft chaps themselves. So no slowing of the PC and stuff, it actually just changes the colour nothing else.
I also suggest you try the wallpaper below, because it compliments the theme perfectly. Well wallpaper is a personal choice.

Windows XP (normal)



Windows XP (Zune theme)



Windows XP (My Style Zune Theme)




Download ZUNE THEME

GAME PLAN

Put together a game-worthy PC for Rs 60500

Sent from my phone using trutap

Mario returns !!!

The most loved and famous gaming icon is here, no its not Contra, neither is it Pokemon, its the familiar pipe jumping plumber MARIO, and he is here to win all hearts again.
First came Super Mario Brothers, for the NES, which was an instant hit, then in between came many other versions of the Plumber and his Princess but none faired well.















Now once more Nintendo has hit the sweet spot by giving the gamers a complete Mario experience. They released Mario 64 for the Nintendo 64. Which was a weak console as compared to the then strong Sony Playstation 1. But Mario 64 was an instant hit, although not owned by many, because hardly did any one own the Nintendo 64.
Last year I came across a PC emulator for Nintendo 64, so I decided to check it out. I did some web surfing and came across Nintendo 64 ROMS, one of which read Mario 64. Without hesitating for a moment I downloaded it. And played it and instantly fell in love with the sweet little plumber again.



Mario 64 takes place in a full 3D environment, which unlike other 2D to 3D game adaptations is very perfect. Princess Peach has baked a cake for Mario and has invited him for tea, but when he arrives, Peach is missing. He learns from Toadstool
that Browser has kidnapped her and taken away the Castles stars as well. So it is Mario who has to find the stars and reach to Peach.



The game play of Mario 64 is rock solid, you have a button for jump, one for hit and the last for duck, apart frmo the movement keys. Pressing these buttons in different orders makes Mario perform many different types of combos.



The graphics are fabulous considering it is a 1996 release, although there are minor glitches here and there. The only thing I did not like was the pace of Mario, because when he is running, he slides for a few seconds before coming to a halt, which is a real pain when you keep falling off the ledge time and again. But I think that is done to increase the difficulty of the game. Boss fights are a little short but on the whole it is a true entertainer. Because this game has the caliber that it made me shift from games like Crysis Warhead, Assassins Creed and Gears of War, to play the Plumber.



Download: Mario 64

Instructions:

1. Install the file then the Project 64 will start to install
(if it does not start automatically then run the project 64 file manually from the folder you installed the files)

2. Now run Project 64

3. Goto Settings

4. In the options tab remove the check mark from "Hide Advanced settings"

5. Click on OK

6. Goto settings again

7. Click on Shell Integration tab

8. Now put a check on ".n64"

9. Now goto the folder where you had extracted Mario 64 and double click on the
"Super Mario 64 # N64" file, the game should start.

10. To enter full screen mode just press Alt+Enter

11. The controls can be changed by going to the Options menu and then selecting
Configure Controller Plugin

TIPS: I recommend that you use a analogue joystick for best performance.

8600 is Greater than 9400 !!

The title challenges your math right? But Nvidia proves it. A very funny matter happened yesterday, a friend of mine called me up, he boasted of his new PC Intel Core2Duo 2.8Ghz, 4 GB RAM, both of which even I have, then he proudly said, and a Nvidia 9400gt, under the common impression that it was better than my Nvidia 8600. Little did he know that Nvidia's math is different.
Nvidia 8 and 9 series are almost identicle.

8400gt = 9400gt
8600gt = 9600gt
8800gt = 9800gt

There was slight improvements, however the 8 series are within 1-5% in benchmarks vs the 9 series

Therefore common sense will say a 9400gt is slightly better than a 8400gt, but the 8600gt will definately out perform a lower series 9400gt.

Same as the 8800gt out performs the 9600gt all day.

The amount of memory will only increase performance at higher resolutions by allowing more data to be stored.

At 800x600 resolution, a 8600gt with 256mb will still outperform a 1gb 9400gt. At 1024x768 or higher the tables will turn.

A 512mb 8600gt is a decent bet for this price level and perfomance.



The 8600 has twice the stream processors of a 9400 Gt, and performs somewhat better.

8600 GTS specs:
Stream Processors :32
Core Clock (MHz) :675
Shader Clock (MHz) :1450
Memory Clock (MHz) :1000
Memory Amount :256MB GDDR3 (also available in 512 MB)
Memory Interface :128-bit
Memory Bandwidth (GB/sec) :32
Texture Fill Rate (billion/sec) :10.8

9400 GT specs:
Stream processors :16
Core Clock (MHz) :550 MHz
Shader Clock (MHz) :1400 MHz
Memory Clock (MHz) :400 MHz
Standard Memory Config :512 MB (also available in 1 GB)
Memory Interface Width :128-bit
Memory Bandwidth (GB/sec) :12.8
Texture Fill Rate (billion/sec) :4.4

Other than the die shrinks the 9 series was mostly a rename and very similar to the 8 series.

So Friends I suggest that you first compare the Nvidia graphics cards at www.nvidia.com, do a thorough market survey, check out at multiple dealers, and only then decide to buy the graphic card.

Gears of War over Hamachi and playing games online without cd-key

Did you ever wonder if it’s possible to play a game online without a cd-key? Perhaps you lost your cd-key or it got stolen/banned. The answer is yes, for most games it is possible. Theoretically any game which has LAN support can be played over Hamachi.

Download it from here:
Hamachi

Hamachi emulates a LAN (LAN over the Internet), this makes it easier for all of us to connect to each other, just by looking under LAN games of a game we can see who is hosting a game. With Hamachi you can also chat with people (you play with) and arrange multiple computers into their own secure network, just as if they were connected by a physical cable. This tutorial is not only about getting GoW running but explains in general how to play any other LAN enabled game.
Okay, now that you know the essence, there are 2 easy steps before you start playing a game online over Hamachi.
First you will need to join an exciting network so it’s assumed you already installed the Hamachi client from here.
To join a network you will first need to know who is running one. Planethamachi is the most used site for such purpose and you just need to enter the name of the game (Gears of War) you want to join and a list of public networks will show up.
Now, on the right side you will see a join button to join a network. If it’s full/does not exist or you get some other error then just pick another one until you see a network appear in your Hamachi client. You can also do this manually once you know the login/password of a network.
Hamachi client has 4 buttons on the bottom:
* Power Off
* Set online status
* Create or Join networks
* Configure Hamachi
Click on the Second button (Create or Join)
A new window will pop up, it will ask you for a Network name and password. Everything is CASE SENSITIVE!
Second step is to see who is hosting a game at the moment, so in most cases people will put “Hosting GoW” or similar in their name and thats what you also should do when hosting a game. Every person connected to a network displays his numeric address next to his nickname. You will need to connect to that address once you are in the LAN option of a game. For example in Gears of War when you are in the game, open the console by pressing ` usually the button above TAB and type:
open “hosts address”
Where “hosts address” will be replaced by the hosting players Hamachi address.
For example:
open 5.113.22.123
Finally, to play Gears of War online using Hamachi you need a client fix that will bypass the maximum of 30ms ping for LAN games.

Download it from here:
WarEngineHamachi

Make backups of the original files in your GoW install folder that this fix will replace.
(note: this fix will remove any of your old profiles, such as your saved campaign, keyboard configuration, and you are only allowed to use one player profile per machine)
Also install this registry file to force GoW to use the Hamachi adapter instead of your internet adapter:

Download it from here:
gears_hamachi_fix.reg

After you replaced the file, you will be named Player1 and to change that you need to follow the instructions from here.
Do not patch GoW because the fix is not made for it (yet).

Comodo (Anti) Virus

NEWS FROM SOFTPEDIA.com

Summary: Comodo is an adware and spyware so don't use it

READ IN DETAIL:

Comodo's flagship software removed from Windows software database due to licensing problems

By Stefan Fintea, Software News Editor
26th of April 2009, 12:43 GMT

As all our regular users know, programs awarded by Softpedia with the 100% Clean and 100% Free awards have been thoroughly checked by our team of editors and passed several tests. Aside from the fact that all programs on Softpedia are scanned with world-renowned security products, all awarded programs are installed by our team and checked for any spyware or adware components.

One of the concepts behind our 100% Clean award is the "click-away worry-free installation": users can click their way through a program’s setup routine without worrying that, in the end, undesired changes (such as default browser search engine) might have been made. When the installation process has ended, our editors run the program and, while taking screenshots, check the program for other income generating content such as banners or ads.

To make a long story short, we make sure the program doesn’t fall under any of the six cases mentioned on our adware definition page. Please be advised that this definition is our creation and has not been "borrowed" from an online or offline source. It was created by our team of specialists to ensure that it covers all cases that may result in the legitimate dissatisfaction of our users. Therefore, if we find adware in a program it will be listed accordingly, regardless of the license it’s listed under on the producer’s website.

If the application has been found free of viruses/spyware and neither the installation process nor runtime experience reveal any unpleasant surprises, the program receives the 100% Clean award or, if it’s free for both personal and commercial use, the 100% Free award.


A program will not receive any award (or even be published on Softpedia) if it’s impossible to successfully pass through all of the above steps. But if it is possible, as you can see, the rules are very strict and no exception will ever be made. If a program fails to pass the adware test, it will be immediately marked as Adware, regardless of its popularity, developer or current user rating on Softpedia.

Examples such as Windows Live Messenger, Yahoo! Messenger, Google Earth, Vista Transformation Pack, DAEMON Tools, Spyware Terminator, RealPlayer, AVG Antivirus and so on should prove this beyond any doubt. Of course, it’s impossible to keep track of all adware programs, but please keep in mind that if an application is reported and our tests reveal that it indeed contains adware we will take the appropriate measures as soon as possible.

Now that we’ve cleared this up, you might be asking yourselves "OK, but what does this have to do with Comodo?" Well, if you had searched Softpedia for Comodo in the past week, you would have surely noticed that the company’s flagship programs were no longer listed on Softpedia. This was not our decision, of course, but let’s start with the beginning.

On April, 15th, Softpedia received an official cease and desist letter from the Comodo PR team requesting us to "discontinue all references on Softpedia identifying CIS as adware" within seven days, because Comodo Internet Security is not adware.

The first thing we did was, of course, to double-check the license, but, as we’ve tried explaining to the Comodo team, CIS is indeed adware. Why? Well, for starters, because the installer attempts to change both the browser’s homepage and search engine. As if that wasn’t a good enough reason, the setup also offers to install SafeSurf. Here’s what the official Comodo letter states: "SafeSurf is optional and does not display unsolicited advertisements on a user’s computer, nor does it hijack browser settings or perform search overriding or home page changing without the user’s consent."

Aside from the fact that SafeSurf is a component that the program (CIS) does not require to fully function, therefore it alone would be a good reason to mark CIS as adware, this utility also installs Ask Toolbar without asking for the user’s permission. This type of behavior is clearly not the one described in the Comodo email and could be easily classified as spyware (since adware would imply prior user consent).

And so, after double-checking the award, we’ve replied to the Comodo email and tried explaining all of the above. Moreover, we’ve reminded them of the program’s popularity on Softpedia and its high rating from both users and our reviewers. And last, but not least, before requesting a confirmation email, we’ve underlined the fact that changing the adware components in the setup process from checked-by-default to unchecked will solve the problem without removing them from the installation.

We’ve also posted our email on Comodo’s community forums, explaining our actions to the software’s users and, because we would prefer to keep CIS on Softpedia, we’ve even offered options to the PR team. As expected, most Comodo users shared our view and disapproved of the inclusion of the components in question.

Unfortunately, neither we nor the community seem to have had any influence of the Comodo team. A week later nothing changed and, as our deadline was near and the Comodo PR team did not send us any reply to our email, we’ve decided we had no other option but to the remove the listing.

And so the Comodo week came to a sad, unwanted ending for us and, especially, you, our users. We can only hope that at some point in the near future Comodo (like the developer of CCleaner and other programs) will change the setup experience so we can republish their software on Softpedia. Until then we’d like to remind you that we do not and will not make any exceptions regarding our adware policy: programs that fail to pass all six cases mentioned earlier will be marked as adware.

IIT JEE 2009 solution

Best of luck to all the idiots who appeared for IITJEE 2009 because the non-idiots don't need luck. This post has the download links to the IITJEE paper 1 and 2 solutions, for those who are curious. First download and install this PDF reader software

Download: All-in-One Cool PDF Reader Installer(free)

(OR you can use any other PDF reader you have).

Then just extract this file and view the files using the pdf reader you just downloaded.

Download: IITJEE 2009 Solutions (Sorry the solutions are fake will update this post as soon as I get the real solutions.)

Google Chrome

I have always envied Google for some reason, which I dont know, and I am not a Microsoft fan either. But now Google Chrome has done something which Microsoft's Internet Explorer has not been able to do, even after IE 8. Chrome made me shift from Mozilla Firefox, even after it had all those fantastic add-ons. Although Chrome had many security flaws initially, but now it has come over most of them by updates. Chrome made me fall in love with it the moment I double clicked on the explorer icon, the result was instant, the window popped up in a second. The other browsers like Firefox or Opera or IE, all take their own sweet time to show up, by which time you could have fixed a spacecraft (That was over exaggerating, but the time lag will make you think so). Chrome like many others is a tabbed browser, but the extra feature is that if one tab crashes, the others remain unaffected, because although the tabs appear on one window actually they work as different windows, so the crashing of one does not affect the others. And this also allows you to to just drag the tab apart from the main window, and poof the tab transforms into a new window.




The clean interface of Google Chrome


Download: Google Chrome

Xbox 360 Laptop mk2

Behold, the Xbox 360 Laptop mk2! It may look a bit like its first generation sibling, but don't be fooled. This Xbox laptop is a bit thinner, significantly lighter, and has some essential upgrades if you're gonna build one yourself. You are going to build one, aren't you? Because that's the best part about it -- we're going to show you how to make one of your own in the coming weeks with a three part How-To series. We'll describe, in detail, the steps necessary to fab an Xbox laptop, and if you're extra nice we'll even provide some original technical files and drawings.

MOZZILA FIREFOX (part 2)

Security is top notche and you dont have to worry about explorer viruses as long as you are firefox. The people at firefox frequently keep updating their browser with patches and fixes so its not much of a trouble and your browser is upto date.

Security: 97/100
Performance: 95/100
Functions: 91/100

Over all: 93/100

Sent from my phone using trutap

MOZZILA FIREFOX (part 1)

This is the best net browser I have known. It rates above all the others in the market because of all the features that it packs now mozzilla is gaining popularity so rapidly that some sites even suggest you to use firefox as their web pages are best viewed in it.
Firefox although has one character flaw, it is its slow launching times, yes the fox icon over the world when clicked takes about 20 seconds to show the browser even on a core 2 duo with 1gb RAM and a nvidia 8600gt gpu. I thought that this might be due to memory usage by other applications but alas even after I dissabled almost all of them including my antivirus firefox took its own sweet time. Apart form that firefox is a must own. The plugins that it offers are fabulous it seams like running a whole new operating system with the plugins in firefox. You can control your media player, download stuff and read im's and almost every thing with the plugins.

Sent from my phone using trutap

Get some life ?!

Yes thats right many of us are still using the old and extremly vulnerable to threats and viruses, INTERNET EXPLORER, yes the explorer that came bundled with your copy of Windows. IE 7 or 8 it hardly matters much as both are equally bugged out, and every time I see its interface it makes me fall sick. How many many times better is the Firefox or Chrome or Opera or Safari, even the netscape navigator and maxthon score better than IE according to me.
Now dont start getting technophobic about all those names just try them out and see that what part of life you were missing.

Sent from my phone using trutap

Yo I am back in business my board exams are just going to get over and I have lots to share

First I would like to tell you guys and gals out there that this blog is dedicated to all the tech problems out there, so just chill if you got any problems related to your pc, mobile, consoles and every thing related to gadgets and games

Sent from my phone using trutap