Successfully Debricked WT54G V5, Drilling Limestone and Annoying Know-It-Alls, Turning off UAC Notification in Vista Windows Security Center

What?! You say, two blog entries in two days?


Successfully Debricked WT54G V5

Well, a few hours was all it took... Hours better spent making money or working on finishing our house or something.

Basically, this was the second WT54G router I got for our long-distance broadband Internet experiment. Version 5 of this router. For those who know about the WRT54G's you're probably mumbling "piece of junk" or something similar under your breath.

Why would Linksys take an infinitely customizable unit like the WT54G and half the memory and put on OS on it that was limited and couldn't easily be re-burned with a new one?

I don't know, but I was really happy when someone figured out how to do it. I had burned the micro version of DD-WRT onto this router and it worked fine. But one day while doing some experimenting it turned up dead. All lights on, wouldn't reset even with the hard reset method. No pings to it, and scanning it with a network scanner and packet sniffer showed nothing.

Dead.

So I put it on a back shelf until I had the time to mess with it.

When I did get a chance to screwed around with it I again tried the same reset methods I did earlier, with no luck. So I took a deep breath and popped it open. After identifying the correct chip (why did Linksys feel the need to keep changing the board around? Oh yea; so they could limit the amount of memory it used - seems pretty deliberate when considering the small price difference and the number of people who customize these things) I found the correct two connections to short. Pretty risky stuff but it's dead anyway...

So that didn't work. I proceeded to the next step, ground out one of the afore-mentioned pins to the board's ground.

Boom! As soon as I did I started getting pings from it's default IP address (you have to remember to add the "-t" to the ping command so it doesn't stop after four).

Then it was a quick upload via Linksys's TFTP program (Windows has a built-in command line one also). At first I was going to put the original firmware back on but this didn't seem to work. Hmmm, I forgot - it uploads quickly but takes a few minutes (maybe five) to burn it.

No matter - I'd rather put the DD-WRT software back on it. I got the updated version - hoping the reason it frigged up before was an older version of the Micro that might have had bugs or some such.

The micro version went on fine, a few minutes for it to burn itself, and then it reset and everything was back to normal again.

A quick set up of WPA AES, changing the default IP (and switching my computer's IP back to it's previous - the computer's IP has to be changed to access the web-interface for the router. Unless, of course, your network is in the "192.168.1.? range as a default), the password, turning off loopback, and some other settings and back in biz.

Oh yea, and bumping the power up above the manufacturer's default.

I'm experimenting with a NAT proxy and needed the router for this.

Drilling Limestone and Annoying Know-It-Alls

Ugh. Drilling into stone. We're wrapping up our dining room remodel and want to put a mantel on. The old one came up from the floor and wasn't attached real well. I guess you can't blame the guys who built the house. Way back then it had to be days of effort just to drill a large hole in stone.

But it still takes awhile nowadays. Not that I could go full-blast and drill some holes quicker. But a little research on the limestone our house is made up, and some common sense - says that a little time needs to be taken with it.

Otherwise I'll have what is all over the exterior of the house - spiderwebs of cracked stones from the heat and vibration of the drilling that people did.

I've had people give me lots of (un-informed usually) advice on this sort of thing.

Why is it that people who who have built things, even a number of things, think that that makes them an expert in it? And especially in something specific like limestone?

There was one person who physically got up and walked out the room when I was telling him about how I had taken my time to drill the large holes for the satellite dish mount, because I didn't want to damage the stones. This particularly person apparently thought I should have come to him for advice before hand, and that I hadn't done it the best way. But if I had followed the advice of others right about now I'd be seeing the stone cracks appearing.

I should go out and take a few pics of the holes that were drilled by previous tenants in this house, and the damage they did versus the older holes that were drilled by those who knew what the were doing. But it's just too damn cold and windy and snowy right now ;)

What is it with people sometimes anyway?

Just because they've done something, maybe even a number of times - they think they're an expert on that particular subject?

I see it all the time with our dogs. Outside of a vet or other professional who deals with dogs - what makes someone think they know more about our dogs then we do?

Someone who sees the dogs a few times a year or someone who's with the dogs almost every waking moment?

It bugs me, and it shouldn't matter but it does.

I see the same thing with other people and their kids. There's always someone giving people advice on their kids, many times unwarranted or un-asked for.

Then there's the other thing, along the same lines, that bugs me even more.

Sure, it's annoying when someone comes up to you and begins to tell you how you should do something with an air of superiority. Annoying, overbearing, etc.

Of course there's those who keep it to themselves, or tell others how you should be doing something, or whatever.

But the worse, at least for me, is another animal altogether. Those who don't have the balls to tell you something face-to-face, yet don't have the civility to keep it to themselves.

I've sure you've run across them. The ones who stand a little behind you, or off to the side, somewhere where they know they are in your earshot but not talking directly to you - and offer up their opinions on your life, how you should take care of your dogs, raise your kids, wash your car; you name it. Usually confronting them gives you a "What? I don't know what you're talking about." or a wave of the hand. Now that's low, cowardly, and just not polite.

Some people are such ignorant, holier-than-thou, know-it-alls sometimes.

How did I get from drilling holes to this? Heh. Anyway, enough ranting for one day...

Turning off UAC Notification in Vista Windows Security Center

For those who have turned off User Account Control or UAC in Windows Vista you also may want to turn off the Windows Security Center's notification of this. Otherwise it's always going to show a big red warning and pop up a balloon each time Windows loads. Unless you turn off the security center altogether (something I do sometimes for some).

Unfortunately Microsoft didn't allow you the option of whether to monitor it or not, at least in some of the Vista versions.

For that (if you're comfortable using the registry editor - which looks the same as XP's) you can go to the entry: "HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Security Center" and make the entry "UacDisableNotify" a '1'. Reset your computer and it shouldn't show up anymore.

Meeting People in Person, Natural Heritage Area, Backing Up Your Blog, Finger Stick, Camera Attached to Telescope, Dining Room Remodel

Ema Capite Ad Calc

Blog Action Day seemed to be quite a success, according to the website over 20,603 blogs participated. Not bad. There was a good amount of press coverage too, which helped.

A good blog I found on the Blog Action Site that might be of interest along the lines of recycling - Items You Never Thought To Recycle.

And if you live in the local area check out our FreecycleWatertownNY list for giving away items you don't need or want instead of throwing them in the trash. You can also ask for items. If you live elsewhere go to Freecycle.org and find a local group near you - chances are there is one, or you can start one yourself!

Oh yea, that death threat thing I got? Some sort of scam that's circulating. Apparently the scam is e-mailing people and trying to get them to pay off the contract on them or some such. The one sent to me didn't ask for anything though. It seemed to be just my friendly neighborhood hired killer letting me know he was going to kill me.

According to a recent study 43% of the US is in drought conditions. And this isn't a study by a whacky tree-hugger group, this is by the National Climate Data Center. Wow. Isolated to this year, or sign of Global Warming? If the latter we are in trouble...

Is Wal-mart trying to stick it's big, cheap, Chinese-sweatshop-product-created thumb in everything? A recent article shows Wal-Mart and Hughes satellite hooking up to deliver broadband Internet via a dish. It won't be any cheaper (still about $70 per month and a high cost of equipment, slow uploads and a throttled connection) - it'll just have Wal-Mart on it instead of Hughes, heh.

And if those are enough signs that the world is in trouble - Cheney and Obama are related? 8th cousins, according to Cheny's wife while researching their family tree.

One of Obama's spokesman said -"Every family has a black sheep." [Guffaw]

Yea, I see the end coming.

Giant Dog and Photoshopping

Giant dog, wow.

I've done a lot with trying to find fake photos and are moderately good at using various techniques to find them. Once in a while though, you come across ones like this (or the giant cat one from previous years) that you know are fake; but you just can't find any mistakes with. It has come to a point where even the pros can't tell the difference sometimes, an issue when it comes to using photos in legal proceedings for evidence. And it's only going to get worse.

New York's latest Natural Heritage Area?

If you've ever went on any of the trails down near Black Pond, Lakeview Wildlife Management Area, or the El Dorado Preserve & trail area you might know that this is the one of the largest inland dune systems in the eastern Great Lakes area - there's protected white sand dunes, lots of preserves and wildlife.

The DEC is proposing making that 17 mile stretch of land and making it a Natural Heritage Area.

What does this mean? Apparently the protection of wildlife and the environment in this area will take priority over other things related to and on this state-owned land. I take this to mean that any high-risk area may be shut off from the public, and there may be some constraints that we are not seeing down there right now.

Meeting People in Person Versus Over the Internet

People are sure funny, uh, people sometimes. I've noticed that with many people seem to automatically trust someone they meet in person, especially the older crowd may be more likely to do this. It doesn't matter if they have known the person through chatting over the Internet, on a telephone, the CB (many years ago when it was popular) previously and just met them. It doens't matter if everyone else online says the person is a scumbag. With some people if they meet them in person it's nearly an automatic trust, face-to-face.

I find it amazing. Sure, some people are better at reading others in person - but how many people are really experts at this, or even knowledgeable enough in human interaction to do this accurately? I've seen and heard this happen over and over, and it causes a lot of problems.

In one case I know of a child-toucher was called an honorable person and 100% believed valid over legal evidence as well as what many others (both online and in person) had said.

The ability of humans to be snowed by a simple face-to-face meeting is amazing. On the other hand, as I'm sure we all know, there's so much misdirection and dishonesty when dealing with people over the Internet.

Then again, the same goes for those in person.

Backing Up Your Blog

The only satisfactory way I've found to back up my blog is, well, to just use Firefox's SAVE PAGE AS function (under FILE). You can do the same with most any other browser.

I use Backstreet Browser often, as well as a number of other pieces of software along the same lines. None seemed to do the job as quickly as just saving the page.

I don't need the labels saved, or the searches. Just saving it saves all graphics and text for the particular entry, which I can then edit if I need to. Comments can be saved via clicking the Comments themselves and saving them.

There's a lot of different ways that people are backing up their blogs, but the simplest seems to do the best for me.

And remember - backup your template too, if you've made changes to it. Just go to your Dashboard, click LAYOUT beside your blog, and then EDIT HTML. Save this as plain text.

Damn Those Neighbors For Stealing My Wireless, I'll Get Them

This guy's right long my line of thinking. He found that his neighbors were stealing his Internet by connecting to his WIFI signal. Instead of just locking his system down he split it into two networks; one for himself, one for the neighbors to connect to. He then ran that network through a transparent proxy and had some fun. One time he redirects every link to kitten sites, the next he uses the proxy to intercept the graphics and flip them, another time he makes all the graphics fuzzy. Hilarious.

Finger Stick

I took this down at the above-mentioned Black Pond trail. At first I thought a real finger had washed up on shore, but it was only a piece of driftwood. ;)

Lens adapter & Experimenting with the Camera and Telescope

Wow, check out this lens adapter for the Canon I570 IS. You can basically attach pretty much any lens to it.

Experimenting with mating the camera to my telescope. Check out this pic (below).

This is the warning beacon light on the top of a fairly tall cell radio tower. I need to work on a better tripod system for holding the camera still, as I was somewhat steadying it with my hand. Also, I need to play with the manual focus on the camera. Not bad as a first effort though. And this is with the telescope at it's lowest power.

Another reason I wanted this particular camera over the one with a high optical zoom - no protruding lens to scratch when I'm experimenting with using it on my friend's telescope or mine.

Starting Remodel of Dining Room

We own a very old limestone house. It might seem interesting, the personality of an old building like this and such. But the headache of working on it and maintaining it can sometimes be overwhelming.

We have most of the rooms remodeled at this point, but some not quite to my satisfaction due to floors not being quite level and such. Not much can be done (I've done a little jacking up of the floors but you can only do so much of this before something else breaks, and only very small amounts over long periods of time).

Anyway, here's a quick shot of the dining room. As you can see there's a lot of work to be done, the first being adding supports under the floor in the cellar and adding beams to the existing ones.