In case you had ever installed MotionInJoy to play Steam games with your PS3 controller and you later get an Xbox 360 Wireless controller and wonder why it won’t connect, you need to carefully uninstall MotionInJoy…and I mean exactly as their instructions describe.
Category: hardware
teensy monitor
13 inch laptop with 3200×1800 monitor playing a windowed DVD. Itsa so tiny!
bring your own network
I recently learned from watching several presentations that if you’re doing a major presentation at a customer site that you should bring your own laptops and cell network. Do not trust the customer’s network or PCs. Their firewall, proxies, and PCs will stop your presentation cold if you try to use them.
not quite as advertised
Vanessa noticed a small tool shed advertised: “Roughneck 3-ft x 5-ft Gable Storage Shed (Actual 2.3-ft x 4.6 Feet)”. So they were inflating the size by over half a foot. They do this for HDTVs too. When you see a 55″ Class TV, it’s actually 54.5 inches. So anyway, know what you’re getting when you buy that “pint” of icecream.
Android 2.3 too many pattern attempts
I just wanted to put this out there in case anyone else has the same problem. I had set up an Android 2.3 phone with 2-step verification (2-factor authentication). Somehow, I pocket dialed and it went through my limit for unlock pattern attempts. When I pulled the phone out of my pocket, it was prompting me to sign in. No matter what password I used, it wouldn’t unlock. I even tried the backup verification codes I’d printed out a while back. I finally went to my Google account on the web and generated a new application-specific password for the phone and it let me in. I revoked the old application-specific password.
Chamberlain 248754 garage door opener red light
Just for internet posterity, the Chamberlain 248754 garage door opener may start beeping every 30 seconds with a red (not orange) LED. The manual claims that you need to call service for this issue. We just ordered a battery for in-store pickup at Home Depot and it was fine.
Unlocking my phone. I guess people don't say 133t anymore.
My Android phone came with a tiny amount of memory and my phone company filled most of that with useless, undeletable apps. I finally had it and unlocked my phone, installing a custom firmware. It took me back to the days when I did it on my PSP. It’s still the same environment…bad instructions in forums assuming you know way more arbitrary details than you actually do. (What? You weren’t born knowing what BackSideUpdater is? It’s so obvious!) All files are obtained via questionable links in forums. The best instructions I found were on some kid’s youtube video. Anyway, it’s done and I actually have some space to install some apps now. We’ll see how this goes.
Another home maintenance adventure
The kitchen light went out so we got a different light to put in. I’ve embellished these instructions so that you know what to expect if you are in the bottom 5th percentile of people attempting home repair. Place the base of the light fixture into the electrical junction box in the ceiling. You do have a junction box up there, don’t you? You don’t? Well, go to the store and get a drywall saw and cut out a hole and put one up there. You back? Good. Now screw in these two screws and put the base of the fixture on to the screws and twist it into place. I hope you don’t mind that there isn’t really enough room to check the alignment of the screws and keep your hand out of the way at the same time in that impossibly narrow, darkened space. I’ll wait till you’re done with that………………………………………………………………3 hours? Are you serious? You bent the screws and messed up the threading? Fiberglass in your eyes and lungs? Shredded the aluminum heat shield and most of the fiberglass? Excuse me while I take a moment to laugh heartily.
We actually began this project a couple of days ago hoping to just change the ballast on the old light. It turned out to be a one-of-a-kind model, just like most of the home hardware I’ve ever tried to replace…not found on the web, etc. Well, guess I learned how to cut a bit of drywall and remove fiberglass splinters.
Powerline ethernet is back
I got a pair of Western Digital Livewire ethernet over powerline adapters. They get up to 100 Mbps. Far faster than your internet, but slower than 1 gig ethernet. Anyway, it’s a good option when your wifi just isn’t cutting it. We had an issue where the upstairs router wasn’t reaching a downstairs machine very well. This bridged the gap well.
So thaaat's why the headphones wouldn't stay
If you can’t plug your headphones into your phone because they won’t click, just straighten out a paperclip and use it to clean the jack. It’s probably full of pocket lint. Why didn’t you think of that, ya turkey?
For your phone!
