Extreme Tolerance

Successfully Dual Booting Windows 7 and BackTrack 4 with GRUB

Admin — Thu, 11 Mar 2010 01:49:24 +0000

Warning: The is a more technical post. You have been warned.

Ever try and dual boot Windows 7 and Linux?

Here is the back story. I bought a Compaq Netbook. It came with windows 7, which was all fine and good until you want to do anything fun (ie using BackTrack 4 to pen test your wifi). So I used Unetbootin and created a BackTrack 4 live cd, then used their install script to create partitions and install Backtrack. This all went great. I p0wned some WEP, bla bla bla. So yesterday I am at a conference and I think to my self, “I should use Win 7.” Just at MS Bing’s Directory was stepping up to deliver his Keynote, the fail began.

Windows 7 apparently freaks out when it sees Grub and offers to help.

Then it pulls a suicide bomb maneuver where it reinstalls itself, deleting everything along with your GRUB (the dual boot lintch pin). So wanting my dualbootness back I re-up GRUB buy booting with a Live CD and doing the following:

find /boot/grub/stage1
- It tells you (hdx,y)
root (hdx,y)
setup (hdx)

And WERE BACK… to Windows not working… F…

So I investigate:

The problem is partially Windows and partially Grub. Windows 7 splits its boot loading across two partitions. So when GRUB says, “Windows 7 Partition GO!”, Windows thinks it’s files are missing and reverts to fail. So persevered through A) the desire to gratuitously slander MS for not playing nice with others, B) millions of restarts and C) metric shit tons of not so helpful forums and blogs. So what is the answer?

First we need to understand what partitions I had happening:

load up Linux and “fdisk -l”

/dev/sda1 (hd0,0) This is essentially windows “c” drive
/dev/sda2 (hd0,1) Not really sure
/dev/sda3 (hd0,2) The Win “Recovery” drive (Its A Lie… the Recovery part)
/dev/sda4 (hd0,3) Again labeled “System” but not sure
/dev/sda5 (hd0,4) BackTrack 4
/dev/sda6 (hd0,5) BackTrack 4 Swap

As I said ealier Winsuck 7’s bootloader is a little spread out, so you have to do some workaround crazyness. Your normal Windows GRUB entry would look like this:

root (hd0,4)
savedefault
makeactive
chainloader +1

Note: I have a partitioned drive so everything is on hd0. hd0,x x would be the partitions.

For Windows to boot you need to map the “c:” and the “Recovery” partitions together.

map (hd0,0) (hd0,3)
map (hd0,3) (hd0,0)
rootnoverify (hd0,3)
chainloader +1

More Notes: I used “rootnoverify” but you might be able to use just “root”.

Once that was set up, the problem was solved. I now have a dual booting system using GRUB and booting to BackTrack 4 and Windows 7. Some people might tell you that you have to wipe you drive, reinstall windows then use windows to configure the partitions, obviously they are wrong. I still might shitcan Win 7 for Ubuntu, you never know.

What Is Missing?

Admin — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 22:29:18 +0000

That’s a reddot and a big ass Surefire.

Weekend Sheet Shooting

Admin — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 22:26:04 +0000

Unfortunately most of the clay pidgins got away. After focusing on handguns over the winter, my hit % was n00b-tacular. But we did have a good time.

Note my curiosity as I examine the Rover’s rubberish bull guard while my sling does its own thing.

Other that various yard tasks, this was my first opportunity to get out and play in my 5.11 tactical pants. Here are a few notes:

- A box of 25 shells fits nicely in the cargo pockets and is in a great spot (for me at least) in terms of access.
- Not a torn or stick penetrated the pants. My soft suburban skill shall remain.
- I loaded these things up and still had more pocket room. They retained their comfort.
- My IWB holster was not out of place. Although was was concerned that the stretchy panels would hinder re-holstering. doubt most wearers of these pants are rocking IWB, OWB would not be an issue.

The pants were really the only new addition of gear. Everything else worked out great as usual, with the exception of my experimental sling setup.

Just Doing What I Can To Help

Admin — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 17:37:10 +0000

Pridemore is a D running for US House in my district. He has always struck me a pragmatic, which is a quality that I like in a politician. If I remember right his background is in finance not law, which is another plus in my book. He is running against a young woman who came right out of UW, with a com degree and ran for office. Inexperienced plus communications degree thats two strikes.

What the hell do you do with a communications degree anyway?

Need to email Pridemore and ask him about a national CCW…

Skeet, Skeet, Skeet

Admin — Fri, 05 Mar 2010 17:56:22 +0000

Not cute or cuddly, the clay pidgin is a menace that must be stopped.

Thats why I will endeavor to kill as many as possible this weekend.

Gaynors Automotive in Vancouver WA – How Will This End?

Admin — Tue, 02 Mar 2010 01:16:11 +0000

Over a month ago my Subaru Outback developed a problem. When I headed to work in the morning it would slip out of gear as it tried to go into third. As the engine warmed up the problem disappeared. So I ignored it for a while and it got worse. So I decided to take it in to get repaired.

I took it to Gaynors Automotive here in Vancouver WA. I had taken my wifes exploder there in the past and was happy with their service. Anyway, in goes the Suby, they call me the next day and tell me the bad news, internal transmission failure. It can be fixed for $3380. Whow….

So I really like my Suby and I would also like to pay cash for my next car so I decided to have it fixed. Gaynors claimed that it could be done in a week. No problem, my wife was out of town and so I could use her car.

At the end of the week I called Gaynors to see how it was going. They said that they had put it together but had problems with the sensors so they took it back apart. OK. Then I found out Gaynors was having problems with the torque converter, which triggered two additional take appart and put back together.

By this time we were into week 2. Monday of week 2 I organized a ride to work and a ride to the shop as Gaynors said they would have it done. I was put off until Tuesday, I organized my rides and then was put off some more. Gaynors sensing my frustration organized a rental, at no charge. This was a great move on their part. Enterprise tried to set me up with a Chevy Aveo but I was not having any of that so I was upgraded to a Mazda 3. (Side story I really like the car and would consider buying one).

So Friday of week 2 rolls around and I get a call from Gaynors saying the Suby is done! I happily head down there, pay them and hop in my car. As I turn it on, I can tell right away that something is wrong. So I take it for a drive. Something was NOT right! The Suby was shifting all over the place. It was running out second gear almost to the red and then short shifting third and lugging. Fail Fail FAIL! As I took it back to Gaynors the check engine light came back on. No surprise there.

Gaynors immediately gives me the rental Mazda back. And said that three people test drive it, and they will look at it on Monday. Fine. I believe you that three people test drive it but I still noticed the problems, which did not look to good. Furthermore now I have paid you.

Fast Forward to Monday Week 3, call them in the morning. Gaynors apologizes for prematurely giving it back and restate that three people had drive it. I really don’t care, I just want my car back. I called them again around 4:00 and they say that its either a sensor or computer issue and they are working on it. Great.

So this leaves me here. I really want my car back, FIXED. One of the things that has kept me hopeful through all of this is Gaynors has not deviated from the original estimate. Gaynors has also provided me with a rental, which has been the single thing keeping me from totally loosing my shit.

So this can end two ways. Gaynors can fix my car and not charge me a cent more. In which case my verdict will be slow but stellar about holding to their quote, providing customer service and delivering a fixed car. OR Gaynors can ask for more, in which case I will go totally nuts and ask them why they did not find this problem originally citing all the times they took it apart and put it back together.

Stay Tuned.

Update: Got the car back, running great considering it has 171k miles. Still sounds a little rough around the edges but once it gets warmed up its all good.

Apparently The Infantry Needs To Learn To Shoot?

Admin — Mon, 01 Mar 2010 23:04:23 +0000

Interesting read. DoD Buzz: Taking Back the Infantry Half-Kilometer

In Afghanistan, the infantryman’s “weapons, doctrine, and marksmanship training do not provide a precise, lethal fire capability to 500 meters and are therefore inappropriate,” Ehrhart says. Unlike on the streets of Iraq, where firefights were few and were typically fought under 300 meters, insurgents in Afghanistan skillfully use the wide open rural and mountainous terrain to stretch the battlefield.

Here is a shocker:

The Soviets in Afghanistan ran into the same tactical challenge. Read accounts of Soviet infantry firefights in Afghanistan in the 1980s and you’ll see they invariably hauled their AGS-17 30mm grenade launcher with them on most every dismounted operation, particularly in the mountains. It was cherished for its high rate of fire and nearly 1,700 meter range.

Link Mine.

Magpul also gets some love for their magazines.

Condom Shortage in Vancouver

Admin — Sat, 27 Feb 2010 00:33:32 +0000

ZOMG LOL

Health officials in Vancouver have already provided 100,000 free condoms to the roughly 7,000 ahtletes and officials at the Games. That’s about 14 condoms per person. But as of Wednesday, those supplies started running dangerously low.

Emphasis Mine

[Insert Snarky, Sexually Loaded Comment Here]

Full Story Here

Your Doing It Wrong: SU-33 Near Miss

Admin — Fri, 26 Feb 2010 22:54:48 +0000

Wrong but oh so impressive.

Via Dew Line

Your Doing It Wrong: 30h!3’s Got The Wrong Gun

Admin — Thu, 25 Feb 2010 05:46:17 +0000

3oh!3 is a fixture on my gym iPod. “Want” never ceases to get me pumped. Anyway, I was checking out their youtube channel and noticed this gem:

Click the image to go to youtube and play.

It appears the band members are skeet shooting one of their gold records with a bolt action something and an empty M1 Grand (not positive). So mad props for marksmanship or props fail? Come on, you can’t tell me that an over under would have not looked better in that shot.