Working on a piece of artwork is about being creative and having fun. But, there are times that you need to rotate your brushes. This can be applied in seconds and you can make it look organic or give it some grunge and your every day dirt!

Rotate your brushes.
—————————–

1.] Set your brushes as your current tool. (Press B).
2.] Look at your tabs and select: “Window >> Brushes”. You can also press F5 if you want.
3.] Choose your desire brushes and change the angle.

Copyrighted By Lair360

Repair Userinit with BartPE rescue disk

A few days ago, I was trying to repair a boot sector from a virus infection. It took me a while to resolve this dilemma. But, in the end, it wasn’t the “boot.ini” file that was eaten alive. It was actually a registry problem. The little bugger had removed one of the “userinit.exe” registry strings. How inconvenient…

For those who had this problem, I would recommend you to print this article and keep it as a copy for guidance. But, don’t forget to create a ‘bootable disk’ with BartPE program. You will need to do that first before reading this article.

http://www.nu2.nu/pebuilder/

Notes: building a live bootdisk requires a fresh copy of Windows XP CD. By any chance, if you don’t have one, you better ask the neighbour for a fresh copy. I would recommend “Ashampoo Burning Studio” for this task. However, if you don’t want to boot from a disk, then why not use a removable device and boot it from there. You will need this application: UNetbootin application.

http://unetbootin.sourceforge.net/

This program will help you transfer any ‘Rescue Disk / Windows OS’ onto a removable device. The software will also help you choose the correct disk. But, it will take a while and you got to have patient.

Manual Registry Repair
——————————–

1.] Insert your Live CD / USB system into your computer and let it boot. But, don’t forget to re-configure your BIOS.

2.] Click: ‘Start >> Run >> Type: cmd.exe’.

3.] Type in: ‘regedit’ and press Enter. Select the HKEY_USERS hive.

4.] From the file menu (tabs), just select the ‘Load Hive’ option. Browse through your internal drive (system drive) and locate the following director: ‘C:\Windows\System32\Config\’

5.] Select this file name: SOFTWARE (File without extension), and click Open.

6.] Give your new registry hive a name. I would recommend you to keep it simple and short. For now, I would call this as: MyXPHive.

7.] Look into your new hive and locate this directory: HKEY_USERS \ MyXPHive \ Microsoft \ Windows NT \ CurrentVersion \ Winlogon

8.] Modify this strings and set its value. But, don’t forget to include the trailing comma.

userinit (REG_SZ) – C:\Windows\System32\Userinit.exe,

9.] When you are done, you will need to unload your hive. To perform this task, just select ‘MyXPHive’ branch, and then in the File menu, choose ‘Unload Hive’.

10.] Exit BartPE and reboot your computer.

Copyrighted By Lair360

Google Notepad At Your Service!

Surfing the web with Google Chrome and ordering new things for your parents or for yourself is easy. But, don’t get me wrong, because, you will need to jot down some information just to keep other important tasks at bay. Like me, I have tons of tasks to remember and I have to complete them before moving onto another project. So, what is this little plug-in that serves as notepad? You name it – this software is “Google Notepad”.

The greatest thing about this extension is that it clamps these notes into a folder within Chrome’s bookmark. It then synchronizes throughout any browser you’ve installed the extension into. Even better, the extension even remembers the exact location where you last left your cursor within notepad windows.

Finally, for extensive tasks in the office or jotting down a list of items for online shopping, then look no further for a perfect notepad. Just get Chrome Notepad…

Downloads: Google Notepad

Eyetoy Driver for Windows OS

If you have a PlayStation Eyetoy, you can easily use it with Skype. In other terms, you can re-use it and you don’t have to throw away your money for a new web-cam.

Getting the correct driver is a little frustrating. But, I already have these on my server. So, the hard work is already out of the question. However, you will have to look at your web-cam and look for the model / serial number.

All-In-One Driver (all versions):
Link – Click Here

Logitech / Namtai Driver
Link – Click Here

Eyetoy Mini Silver (SCEH-0004)
Link – Click Here

Eyetoy Black (SLEH-00031)
Link – Click Here

Eyetoy Black (SLEH-00030)
Link – Click Here

Notes: European and Australian user will need to select 50Hz frequency. But, other country should select 60Hz for their web-cam.

How to install PlayStation Eyetoy
—————————————–
1.] Download the correct drivers for your EyeToy from the server and extract the contents to a specific folder or location.

2.] Insert your PlayStation Eyetoy into a free USB port.

Notes_#1: Your new hardware installation wizards will popup on the screen.

Notes_#2: If your ‘Playstation Eyetoy’ wizard failed to start, you can follow this method before moving to ‘Step 3.’
———————————————————–
a.] Open Device Manager by navigating to: Start >> Start Menu >> Control Panel >> System >> Hardware >> Device Manager.

b.] Scroll down & look for “Imaging devices.”

c.] Under “Imaging devices,” you’ll see unknown drivers with a big question – alert next to it. They are normally marked as yellow like cartoon symbol.

D-Link VGA Webcam, EyeToy USB camera Namtai or Logitech USB

d.] Right click on your EyeToy and select “Update Driver.”

e.] After this step, just follow step 3 and that should be it!
———————————————————–

3.] Select the second option: “Install from a list of specific location [Advance],” and click next.

4.] Select this option: “Search for the best driver in these locations”

5.] Check the box, which said: “Include this location in the search.”

6.] Click browse and point it to your drivers (extracted contents).

7.] Click next and let the system install / organize your driver.

Notes: You will be presented with a prompt screen: “Hardware Installation.” Just hit “Continue Anyway.” This warning is trying to tell us that Microsoft doesn’t recognize the drivers and have not given them the “Microsoft Stamp of Approval.”

8.] Next, there will be a small box [full of gibberish] which will appear on your screen. Please ignore it and press “OK”.

9.] You will now be looking at the configuration screen…

+ European country, India and Australia are 50Hz frequency.
+ America, Japan, Korea [South] and Taiwan are 60Hz frequency.

Notes: If it asks you: “Do you live in 50Hz area?”

Hit “Yes” to use 50Hz if you live in European country, India and Australia.

10.] Click “Finish” to complete your installation.

Tips: To test your Eyetoy camera, please use Skype.

Articles – Copyrighted By Lair360

When I was at PC World, I’ve been asking for a release date about the new Intel Core i9 Series. However, this processor won’t hit the market in a few month’s time. This is also going to hurt gamers and consumers.

According to my research, the pre-release edition: 2.8Ghz Gulftown chip, PCLab had found some improvements and gathered some information on different applications. In their report, certain program, such as editing video or rendering 3D projects, it can perform up to 50% faster than the previous processor: Intel Core i7 Series. But, in some areas, it didn’t shine and its performance is similar to that older model (Intel Core i7 Processors) when handling less demanding jobs.

On the other hand, if you want less power consumption, then this type of chip is for you to buy. But, don’t get your hopes up on the prices!

Safety tips for users on a public computer

When everyone is traveling and working, their laptop battery died and there is no slots on the wall, just to charge your battery. So, what is the alternative when it comes to working? You will have to use a public computer and get your job done! There are no excuses when it comes to reports, essays and deadlines. If you don’t get it done, there will be trouble and I know that from my own mistakes. However, there is something that you will need to be aware of and avoid it from spreading. Everybody called these as: “computer infection & computer viruses”.

1.] Working on a public computer is kind of dangerous. The previous user may install dangerous programs and logs your events and even your keyboard strokes! I know it’s crazy and obviously dumb. But, whoever did this is in for a big showcase and they act like a bunch of crying baby – like the others before him!

My biggest advice is to check these computer for any unusual activity. Some of the public computer will allow you to check the systems’ processes and these directories: “Program Folder, My Document Folder and anywhere else that looks accessible.” Nevertheless, if you spot something bad, you should report it to the person who is in-charge of this computer.

2.] Accessing your documents and file is a good thing. But, you will need a hard drive (external). That is right folks! Everybody around the world does carry an external device and slot them into a free slot (USB port). It can’t be ignored as it is a very important item for backup and storing files. However, there is a downside about these wonderful devices: they are not safe if you plugged them into a public computer.

First of all, did you check these programs carefully, if these Anti-Virus, Anti-Spyware and Firewall are active and responding? Just check the system and make sure it is active. In other terms, you don’t want these infected hooligans – bombarding your external hard drive, do ya? If you don’t want them to have a crush on your beautiful external devices, then you better do a ‘quick scan’ before inserting your devices to a free slot (USB port).

Secondly, the system should have good protection against viruses, trojans and other scams. I would recommend you to check the computer for these type of security software.

Avira AntiVirus – http://avira.com
Kaspersky Antivirus – http://kaspersky.com
BitDefender Antivirus – http://bitdefender.com
AVG Anti-Virus – http://free.avg.com

ComodoFirewall (Free) – http://comodo.com
ZoneAlarm Firewall (Free) – http://zonealarm.com

Third from all the ancestors, you better get a portable browser: “Firefox / Opera”. These little program will erase all of your private stuff when you close them. It doesn’t matter if you forget to logout or anything. The data will remain inside your USB drive. But, everytime you tried to remove your external devices, the data from your temporary folder (USB browser) will also be flushed down the toilet. No need to ask question there…

http://www.opera-usb.com/

http://portableapps.com/apps/internet/firefox_portable

Finally, if you ever encounter a public computer with these type of security software, you should be a bit more vigilant and careful. These Anti-Virus program was reported by individual users that their external devices was corrupted from a scan. Their data and information are also gone when they are plugged into a public computer with these lame security programs.

Norton Antivirus
Sycmantec Antivirus
Mcafe Antivirus

Notes: these security product was rated by individual users as: “poor detection, scans results causes side effects on removable devices, system file are corrupted, crashes and eats a lot of system resource.”

Losing your work is crazy and you are going to get grounded from your holidays and you are going to have a lot of trouble with your boss. Even worse, they are not going to believe your little tales. So, here is my advice: keep a backup of your files and documents in your second external devices and use the first one for testing. You should always do this on your computer before using a computer from the office or from a public computer.

3.] Surfing the WEB is really enjoyable and it’s not like old grannies surfing on the beach in stripped bikini. But, there is a downside: privacy issues, viruses and malicious attacks. Therefore, you should always wipe / erase the stuff that you downloaded and erase your tracks from prying eyes. The best way to remove these traces is to remove the ‘cookies’ from a public browser. So, how hard could it get into your thick skull? If you don’t know the terms of cookies, then please read a book about the world of internet. But, in my own terms, this word is NOT food that you use to crunch in your mouth!

Secondly, I hate to admit this. But, if you are really illiterate on computer, then look in the mirror and asks yourself this question: “how many years have I used the web?” If you do know it by hearth, then you should have the knowledge / ability to surf the web safely and check your emails properly. However, I don’t know why. But, my head is telling me to avoid Facebook, Bebo and other social networking sites. The only thing that I know about this site is serious hackers that tried to attack the users with DDoS attack. So, in my own opinion, you should avoid going into these website / domain. It doesn’t matter if you are using a proxy or not, the hackers can still find you and plot a scene on your little work. Yes, that is possible and I’ve heard of this weird method before. So, be careful and don’t ponder too much in a dangerous domain.

Finally, if you download a file that is very important and private, you should always remove it and dump them into the ‘trash can’. Don’t forget to check the bin and empty the trash before you leave the computer! You don’t want people to see your work or see you kissing your ex-girlfriend from an image file? Then do it for crying out loud! We don’t want you as a gossip either!!

4.] When the computer hits its old age where grannies walked with their sticks, you should know the rules: check the computer for viruses and look at the hard drive capacity. It is simple and I should leave that to you for now. But, if you don’t know how to do it, then let me tell you this: “when All Else Fails, Read the Instructions…” In other terms, just buy yourself a book and learn it in your own time. Other users in your office are too busy blabbing at each others head and they will not tell you how to do it. Simple as that…

Copyrighted By Lair360

Kill that autorun for good!

Getting infected from another computer is a big hassle and it will also hurt other user’s computer. So, what is the biggest problem about these infection? Well, the attacker creates a file that attach itself on your USB devices. This will only happen if your friend’s computer or your work computer is infected with an “Autorun” viruses. However, I can’t tell you which viruses were used to molest your mini – devices, because there are tons of them in the wild and they are like virtual ants!

First of all, if you want to stay away from these chaos, then please avoid sharing your USB devices with your friends or insert any USB devices to an un-protected computer.

Secondly, if you see anything suspicious in a public computer, you should stop and check the system for any anti-virus program. So, to make it clear, the computer should be protected and clean. The system’s “Start Menu, My document Folder and the Hard Drive,” they should be tidy, clean and protected. Also, if the machine is acting sluggish, I would advice you to step away from the computer and ask the administrator for assistance.

For now, if you already owned a computer / laptop, you should install some of the security program and update your “OS System” with the latest patch. I would also recommend you to ‘Disable Autorun’, just to give another layer of protection. This is useful if your friend needs to use your computer.

Notes: this tutorial is also for Vista users. Therefore, it is best to implement this settings.

1.] Install Notepad++ from here and copy this Registry script into a blank page.

REGEDIT4
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\IniFileMapping\Autorun.inf]
@="@SYS:DoesNotExist"

2.] Save the file as a registry file (name.reg) and and double-click the file to run it.

3.] Reboot your system and let the new settings take effect.

4.] You are done!

Copyrighted By Lair360

Introduction: Updating your card’s firmware is very important, if you want to play the latest games and releases. However, if you haven’t patch your firmware, you might as well patch your iEdge card, immediately, just before updating your Nintendo DSi firmware (Official Nintendo DSi and other model firmware). Failing to update your iEdge card before updating your console’s official firmware, it may (either) block your card from playing your beloved games or stop the card from working. Nevertheless, if you cannot update your iEdge card, you can either use an older model: “Nintendo DS Lite” and patch your iEdge card with this console.

Notes: if you don’t have a “DS Lite”, then please buy one from a retailer, online store or from a game store. They may have one at a cheap price. Also, if you have one by any chance, I would highly recommend you to take extra care with this older model. There are not a lot of these consoles, which is for sale anymore.

Notes: if you can’t update your iEdge cards, then please ask a friend who has a “DS Lite” console for you to borrow. However, if your friend doesn’t want you to touch his DS, you may aswell buy one from a gamestore.

— Check List —
1 x DS Lite / DSi Version – 1.x *1.2 **1.3
1 x iEdge cartridge
1 x Micro SDHC card

— Software —
1 x iEdge Bootstrap Firmware
Link: http://lair360.co.uk/blog/downloads/

1 x SDHC reformat program
Link: http://panasonic.jp/support/global/cs/sd/download/

1 x iEdge OS software
Link: http://www.edge-ds.cn/download.html

1.] Create a new folder in your disk drive and give it a name. It can be anything for storing downloaded stuff and your games.

2.] Direct yourself to the correspondent website and download: “ iEdge Bootstrap and SD card formatter.” Once you’re done, you must extract these applications and put them into your new folder.

3.] Install this software: “SD Card formatter” and backup your NDS games. You should dump it in your new folder.

4.] Reformat your SDHC card and execute “iEdge Bootstrap”. After that, you will need to download this NDS file: “0363 – Puzzle Series Vol.3 – Sudoku.” The actual NDS file can be found on my server.

Link: http://lair360.co.uk/blog/downloads/

The original file should have these signature.
——————————
CRC-32: 552faafe
MD4: 6ca0290f4f66303804958a2434c5747e
MD5: 28bf2ce16074264786f57303d0fd9f65
SHA-1: da6266384edb73ec39acd37bad433af664794228

5.] Locate the correspondent file: “0363 Puzzle Series Vol.3” and point the application to your SDHC card. Also, here is my personal advice: you should download this software and check the file’s ‘CRC-32’ string. It should match the given number.

6.] Safely remove your SDHC card and slot them into your iEdge cartridge. After that, you will need to switch on your DS console and hit the “Soduko” icon. But, don’t press anything or touch the screen after this process. I would recommend you to leave the DS console alone and let it patch your card.

7.] When you are done with the patching. You should turn off your “DS console” and restore your games. However, you won’t be able to play them, if you haven’t download the “iEdge OS” file. This file can be found from the official website.

http://www.edge-ds.cn/download.html

All you need to do is extract these “OS file” into your SDHC card and safely remove the card from your computer.

8.] Have fun and don’t get crazy with the game. It’s only for fun and you should treat it lightly. But, don’t forget to do your homework!!

Copyrighted By Lair360

Pokemon Mystery Dungeon – Lugia

Someday, just before dinner, I had a short email from a friend. He asked me how I can recruit: “Lugia” if you are playing “Pokemon mystery dungeon: explorer of the sky.” Also, if you are looking for “Wonder Mail Codes”, then please let me tell you this: there aren’t any “Wondermail” missions / quest to recruit him into your team. The only way to unlock him (Lugia) is to complete the game and win the battle against “Darkrai” in Dark Crater. This mission will only appear after the restoration of Temporal Tower.

If you want to recruit Lugia and make him join your team, then you will need these items. However, you will need to unlock this location: “Surrounded Sea” and make sure that your team is above Lv60.

Warning: unlocking legendary Pokemon requires “Ultra Rank”. If your rank is below the requirements, then there is a small chance to recruit Lugia and other legendary Pokemon. That is all you need to know before heading out to “Surrounded Sea”.

— Wondermail S —

Notes: these items are crucial and they are used for recruiting Legendary PKM. Without these items, Legendary Pokemon will not appear and there is a chance that you will fail to recruit him into your team.

Secret Slab – EUR Game
————————————–

12&S& #NFM1M6 6=42=
6Q2C9 =8WT0FN +H7M-

Quest: Rescue Charizard - 4th Floor
Location: Apple Woods

Golden Mask – EUR Game
————————————–

9JH-F N6CYF1& 8Q#XH
78-R- Q22FRKF 83P06

Quest: Rescue Sandslash - 4th Floor
Location: Waterfall Cave

Copyrighted By Lair360

Introduction: When I am on holiday, I had another iPod which is linked with another computer. However, if I cap them into another computer, the application will immediately look at my “Music Library” and erase my entire collection. So, I would suggest you to be careful and read this tutorial.

Method 1 – Music Library File Transfer & Rebuild

1.] Look for these files and transfer them through another computer. However, they must be readable and editable from another computer.

C:\Documents and Settings\Lair360\My Documents\My Music\iTunes

— Files —
iTunes Music Library.xml
iTunes Library.itl
iTunes Library Extras.itdb
iTunes Library Genius.itdb

2.] Insert your iPod from another computer (the machine that you want to synchronize and transfer your music).

3.] Let your iTunes library rebuild your “Music Library”.

Method 2 – Drag & Drop

1.] Execute iTunes and look at your iPod menu. There should be two boxes: “Manually Manage Music and Videos and Enable Disk Use.” All you need to do is highlight them and exit iTunes.

2.] Hold “SHIFT” and open iTunes. There will be a small dialogue box: “Choose iTunes Library”.

3.] Select this option: “Create Library” and navigate yourself to “Preference”. After that, you should go to “Advance Tab” and check “Keep iTunes Music Folder Organized”

4.] Now, you will need to access your iPod drive and take a look at this directory.

*iPod_Drive:\iPod_Control\Music\

5.] Copy these folders into your “iTunes Library” and let it organize all of your music files, playlist and albums.

6.] You are done!

Method 3 – Drop them into your music folder

1.] Execute iTunes and look at your iPod menu. There should be two boxes: “Manually Manage Music and Videos and Enable Disk Use.” All you need to do is highlight them and exit iTunes.

2.] Hold “SHIFT” and open iTunes. There will be a small dialogue box: “Choose iTunes Library”.

3.] Select this option: “Create Library” and navigate yourself to “Preference”. After that, you should go to “Advance Tab” and check “Keep iTunes Music Folder Organized”

4.] Now, you will need to access your iPod drive and take a look at this directory.

*_Drive:\iPod_Control\Music\

5.] Create a new folder on your Desktop and copy these music folders into your new folder

6.] Locate your “iTunes Library Folder” and drop them in there for process.

C:\Documents and Settings\Username\My Documents\My Music\iTunes\iTunes Media\Music

Notes: your music folders (directory) may be different. Therefore, it is recommended to check your “Music” folders before copying. Secondly, your iPod’s music folder needs to be viewable. In other terms, it can’t be hidden.

7.] Look into your iTunes application and select your “Music” folder which is shown in your “iTunes Media – Music” folder.

8.] Click Ok and let the application recompile your music files, folders and directories.

9.] You are done!

Copyrighted By Lair360