How To Enable Secret iOS 5 Features
Nov 10, 2011 Apple, Hacks, Information, iphone
Did you know that there are probably dozens of secrete easter eggs in iOS 5 that are just waiting to get discovered?
I will tell you about two the I enabled that are pretty awesome and that you may find useful.
First feature that I find very very cool is the panoramic mode of the camera.
Its pretty cool actually. You have to have a steady hand to pull off some great pics, or a tripod.
There is a arrow that acts like a leveler and you touch the camera button then slowly turn to the right and it snaps many photos one frame at a time and puts it together.
Here are some examples and they were done fast and ugly.
The one above was really ugly and done fast.
With a steady hand you could take some really neat photos.
Next is the hidden auto correct feature on the keyboard
OK so you like all this and want it and want it all without jailbreaking right?
OK LETS DO THIS!
First you will need a tool. The Tool is iBackUpBot and its available for Windows and the Mac.
Get it here http://www.icopybot.com/itunes-backup-manager.htm Its free to download and use for this.
Download the correct version for your operating system.
Next you will want to do a full backup of your iPhone to iTunes.
I do it the old fashioned. That is to say that when the iPhone is detected in the left hand pane of the library window in iTunes, right click the iPhone and choose Backup.
This will back it up and copy any new apps over to iTunes.
Now you have a complete backup.
Now install iBackupBot (free download) program and open it up.
It will scour through your iTunes Backup directories and reveal all of your backups.
Select the latest most recent backup.
Now for the Camera hack, look for Library/Preferences/com.apple.mobileslideshow.plist
Double click it to open it up in the plist editor.
Click Cancel on this page about registering the iBackupBot app.
Now you will add a few lines and they will look like this:
<key>EnableFirebreak</key>
<string>YES</string>
Then save it, then close it. Follow steps one, two, and three.
Here is a picture.
Now for the keyboard hack.
While you are in iBackupBot with your backup open, look for
Library/Preferences/com.apple.keyboard.plist
You will do the same thing but add the following:
<key>KeyboardAutocorrectionLists</key>
<string>YES</string>
After that click Save and Close.
Now from within iBackupBot, you will restore your backup to your device.
Now you are complete.
Let us know what you think about these hacks.
How to add the AVG Anti Virus Rescue CD to your Multiboot USB Flash Drive
Mar 29, 2010 Hacks
Recently AVG.com released a run from cd version of their popular free anti-virus program. They call it a rescue CD.
Here at USERBYTES we have grown tired of CD’s for a long time now. They often get scratched and I found that I have to keep up with way to many of them. All our readers here prefer the USB flashdrive method with lots of utilities on it.
Read about how to create your own here http://www.userbytes.com/roll-your-own-multiboot-usb-flash-drive/
For those that are familiar with this project and you now want to add AVG to your drive, its really simple.
First download the version for USB flash drives here. Download Rescue CD (for USB stick) it will be in .rar format so you will need winrar or 7zip to extract it.
Once it is downloaded, extract it and put the contents in a folder that you will create on the root of the USB flash drive called AVG
Now add this code to your menu.lst file on your multi-boot usb flash drive.
title AVG Anti-Virus
root (hd0,0)
kernel /AVG/vmlinuz persistent vga=0×317 ramdisk_size=6666 root=/dev/ram0 rw quiet
initrd=/AVG/initrd.lzm
boot
That’s all there is too it.
Tags: AVG Rescue CD
Many Companies Say FACEBOOK is the Riskiest Social Networking Site
Feb 2, 2010 Hacks, Information
Did you read my earlier article about how some applications were not really safe on Facebook? The article is here.The article was basically about how Facebook doesn’t always have your best interest in mind. They are not screening the applications on there very well and what you get when they do not screen the applications very well is malware and spyware and even viruses on your computer.
Over 70% more companies reported spam and malicious infections arrived via social networks in 2009 vs. 2008. By the end of last year, 72% of companies expressed concern that their employees’ use of popular social sites could result in a security breach. Of all the companies that reported, 60% of companies now consider Facebook to be the riskiest social network out there.
Those findings, released Monday, come from a survey of 500 companies worldwide conducted by security firm Sophos. They help quantify the rising tide of spam and malicious infections proliferating on Facebook, Twitter, MySpace, Bebo and other such social networks.
As the planet’ s largest social network, Facebook might naturally be expected to emerge as the No. 1 target of cybercriminals, says Graham Cluley, a senior analyst at Sophos. But he says Facebook has exacerbated matters by asking its members to embrace a new, more granular privacy setting. Cluley demonstrates in this video how the new setting, in effect, authorizes Facebook to expose more of its member-generated content to everyone on the Internet.
Facebook’s new privacy setting gives the company leeway to submit more content to Google, Microsoft Bing and Yahoo Search so the search services can incorporate more Facebook content into real-time search results, much as they’ve begun doing with Twitter microblog postings, says Cluley. Don’t believe me? Google your name. When I Google my name the first thing that pops up is my twitter account.
However, the wider release of Facebook members’ data “inevitably means more information will be made available to cybercriminals who want to target you or you company for an attack,” says Cluley.
Facebook continues to defend its new privacy setting as flexible and easy to change. But privacy advocates continue to criticize the move. And last week the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada launched an investigation into a citizen’s complaint about the new settings.
Meanwhile, Sophos’ new survey includes extensive analysis about how Facebook, Twitter and other social networks have become like a candy store for data thieves. The fast-morphing Koobface social network worm is a case in point:
Most notably, the notorious Koobface worm family became more diverse and sophisticated in 2009. The sophistication of Koobface is such that it is capable of registering a Facebook account, activating the account by confirming an email sent to a Gmail address, befriending random strangers on the site, joining random Facebook groups, and posting messages on the walls of Facebook friends (often claiming to link to sexy videos laced with malware). Furthermore, it includes code to avoid drawing attention to itself by restricting how many new Facebook friends it makes each day.
Koobface’s attack vectors broadened, targeting a wide range of sites other than the one that gave it its name (i.e., Facebook). Social networking sites, including MySpace and Bebo, were added to the worm’s arsenal in 2008; Tagged and Friendster joined the roster in early 2009; and most recently the code was extended to include Twitter in a growing battery of attacks. It is likely we will see more malware following in the footsteps of Koobface, creating Web 2.0 botnets with the intention of stealing data, displaying fake anti-virus alerts and generating income for hacking gangs.
This is why you have to be aware of who you FRIEND on Facebook and other sites. If you are allowing random people you don’t know to befriend you on Facebook, that’s a problem!. Are you just after a high number of friends? Well, welcome to virus-ville. I don’t even friend some that I do know as friends.
WARNING: Facebook Photo Comments
Jan 21, 2010 Hacks, Information
Recently while on Facebook I have been getting lots of notifications about someone “tagging” me in a photo, and its often from people that I would surely think do not have a photo of me to even tag.
Lets say you just recently added a person that you really have never met, but you add them anyway. Later they tag you in a photo. How is that even possible?!?!?!
When have you ever had to add an app to see a comment on a photo? Never and you never will either. This is complete nonsense, and Facebook should really monitor the publication of apps better.
I have come to realize that this application looks official until you add it to your account. Once you add it, it should become clear that is it a false application created to get information out of your account. It is simply a trick to get your data! If you do click it you will take you to an application confirmation screen, and want you to click to add it, when doing so I am sure through some sorta of technical magic that it is doing something mischievous.
DO NOT FALL FOR THIS
At the bottom of any Facebook page you should see an Applications button. Click it then click on Edit Applications.
Click the “x” next to the application named “Photo Comments” and then as well to any other application that you might have no use for that are just taking up space or you are not using anymore.
Tell all your friends about this or forward them this website. If you are on twitter, retweet this. If you are on Facebook, share it.
How To Make Media Center Download Torrents Automatically
Jan 20, 2010 Hacks, Information
I have been asked about my Windows Media Center setup and how I have it setup to automatically download tv shows and email me a message when they are complete for quite some time now. Well the time has now come, long awaited I know. I have been meaning to get around to this for well over 3 months now. Sorry about that but finally here it is.
First I think it would help if you read these articles first.
How to Install and Configure uTorrent
http://www.userbytes.com/how-to-install-and-configure-utorrent/
How to Install and Configure Peer Guardian
http://www.userbytes.com/how-to-install-and-configure-peer-guardian/
How to Spot the Best Torrents for Fast Downloads
http://www.userbytes.com/how-to-spot-the-best-torrents-for-fast-downloads/
Ok so like I was saying, simply put, I have a computer tucked away in our tv armoire that is connected to our 42 inch HDTV, and it monitors RSS feeds for television shows that I tell it to look for, and it downloads them when they are available. When the download is complete, the computer sends an email notification that it is indeed finished and ready for viewing.
My Setup
Windows XP Media Center Edition 2005
2.8 GHZ Intel Pentium D CPU x2
1.5 GiG Ram
500 Gig Harddrive
2 Video Capture Cards – Hauppauge WinTV PVR 150 with remote
I know its old but it has worked best for me for a long time now, since October 2006 I believe. Media Center is Microsoft’s Digital Video Recorder, or DVR as most call it. You can pause and record live tv, schedule shows and movies to record for later viewing too.
Read the rest of this entry »
Iphone Car Dash Mount
Dec 17, 2009 Gadgets, Hacks, iphone
Ok I think through all my trials and searching I have finally found a really good windshield or dashmount for the iPhone.
I was shopping in Target this week and noticed that they had one that looked very interesting. It was from a new brand I have never heard of called Speck.
I had been seeing a lot of Speck cases and what not for the iPhone all the day long as I shopped today. This however looked like something I had been searching for, for quite some time.
This kit provides you with a base that can be mounted on the dash or suctioned to the windshield, a belt clip, a snap on case for the iPhone, ipod touch, or ipod nano, audio aux cable, and also an additional swivel attachment so that you can get every possible angle you need out of this thing.
As soon as I got to the car I took it out of the package and pretend to mount it on the dash to see how well this was going to workout. I could see right away that I didn’t want to give up my Incipio Case for the one they provide. The one that they provide is almost perfect for this. See on the pack of it there is a square piece of plastic and it happens to fit in the other square on the mount.
This was not a deal breaker for me. I like to modify things, and I had been looking way to long for a decent mount.
All I had to do was take the piece that came with the kit for the ipod nano, widdle it down a bit with a grinder, super glue it to my Incipio Case and I was done.
I tried to find a good link to provide you with so you get pick up one for yourself but I had no luck. I guess the easiest thing to do is visit Target and see if they have one there.
Here is the exact same thing but its by a different company.
http://www.iq-ss.com/index.aspx?menuid=12&type=introduct&lanmuid=66&language=en
I included some photos from my setup.
Shutdown or Reboot Shortcut in Windows XP
Dec 16, 2009 Hacks, Information
Well now that you know how to launch several programs with one click, how about I show you how to shut your computer down superfast?
This file you are about to create should be used at your own risk. I just have to say that for legal mumbo jumbo, but hey trust me it will work.
This file will kill all currently running apps on a system that you have started with the exception of a few locked Windows processes and some antivirus products making for a fast shutdown or reboot.
Here is the recipe for what I call a “just do it!” script. What its doing is basically killing off all apps that are started in your username and at the end its rebooting the computer.
@echo off
title Kill all running apps
cd c:windowsSystem32
for /f “skip=3 tokens=1″ %%i in (‘TASKLIST /FI “USERNAME eq %userdomain%%username%” /FI “STATUS eq running”‘) do (
if not “%%i”==”svchost.exe” (
if not “%%i”==”explorer.exe” (
if not “%%i”==”cmd.exe” (
if not “%%i”==”tasklist.exe” (
echo.
taskkill /f /im “%%i”
echo.
)
)
)
)
)
shutdown -r -f -t 00
Remember to copy and paste this into notepad and save it as a bat file like we showed you in the earlier post
If you don’t want the computer to reboot and you simply want it to shutdown, and I mean shutdown fast, then just remove the -r like this shutdown -f -t 00
Start All Your Programs With One Click
Dec 16, 2009 Hacks, Information
Today I am going to show you an easy way to launch all your favorite programs with the click of one icon.
Normally I leave my computers running 24/7. I know that’s not very green of me but that’s what I do. On the occasional reboot I have several of the same apps that I constantly use and I hate to click each one and wait for it to load so I created a batch file that will launch the ones I use the most with one single click.
Here is how its done.
Lets say you want to launch Firefox, Microsoft Outlook, Opera, and Pidgin. These will need to be installed on your computer of course.
First open notepad and copy and paste the following into it and save it as something like “startall.bat”
@echo off
cd
c:
start /d “C:Program FilesPidgin” pidgin.exe
echo Launched Pidgin!
start /d “C:Program FilesMozilla Firefox” firefox.exe
echo Launched Firefox!
start /d “C:Program FilesOpera” opera.exe
echo Launched Opera!
start /d “C:Program FilesMicrosoft OfficeOffice12″ outlook.exe
echo Launched Outlook!
exit
Remember that when in notepad go to File then Save As and notice the Save As Type in the dialogue box? Change that to All Files or it will default to a standard text document and this will not work.
That’s it! Save your batch file to your desktop labeled to something like I said earlier like StartAll.bat and there you go, double click it and all your apps that you coded into the file will launch.
Let me teach you how to find your own apps to add to this code above.
Through lots of trial and error I finally figured out the magic behind all this and its simply start /d and you have to have the correct quotations in place.
On your computer double click My Computer or click Start and click on My Computer and then Click your C drive and navigate to Program Files. Here lets look for programs that we want to launch when we want to.
For fun I have navigated to C:Program FilesInternet Explorer and within that directory I see iexplore.exe which is indeed the Internet Explorer Application.
Now if I want to add that to my StartAll.bat file I would simply need to modify the code a bit to look like this:
start /d “C:Program FilesInternet Explorer“ iexplore.exe
Just to be clear on the syntax for this I am going to retype this below and for spaces I will use [spacebar]
start[spacebar]/d[spacebar]“C:Program[spacebar]FilesInternet[spacebar]Explorer”[spacebar]iexplorer.exe
I hope this makes sense and helps you out.
If you have any tips or improvements to this please list them in the comments section below.
Windows Automatic Updates Annoyance
Nov 30, 2009 Hacks, Information
Lately, I’ve been dealing with the Windows XP Automatic Updates restart nag screen for quite some time now. I am normally pretty busy and have tons of apps open along with several browsers with several tabs. Even though it doesn’t take long for my computer to reboot, I would rather do it at the end of the day.
To keep from hulking out like The Incredible Hulk and thrashing my laptop, (just kidding I would never do that) after clicking the Restart Later button for the tenth time, I decided to stop being lazy and figure out how to shut it off.
It turns out to be pretty easy.
You can either use the command line to shut off the Automatic Updates service or manually shut it off in the Services panel.
To shut it off manually: Read the rest of this entry »
1. Go to Start->Control Panel->Administrative Tools and double-click on Services.
2. Right-click on Automatic Updates and select Stop.
Roll Your Own Multiboot USB Flash Drive
Nov 16, 2009 Gadgets, Hacks, Information
How To Create Your Own Multiboot USB flash drive
For the longest time when I do computer repair house calls, I often depended on a satchel full of CD’s with my favorite tools on them.
Some of them being ERD Commander, Ultimate Windows Boot CD, Knoppix Live, Ubuntu Live, NTpassword, and so on. I hated to have all these cd’s with me at all times.
I often thought about how to accomplish this, but always got sidetracked.
Recently I made up my mind and said the ultimate goal was to have a bootable USB flash drive with a nice menu. I fiddle with this for at least two months with little to no headway, but alas I figured out how to do it and I would like to share it with all of you techies out there willing to read my blog.
I am going to teach you what I have learned throughout this process, and I’m sure you will feel technically empowered when this is all done.
Today you are going to build a USB Multiboot toolset complete with customized boot menu ready to launch many of your favorite tools.
Are you Ready? Good, lets get started!
Read the rest of this entry »
