When you buy a new PC, laptop or server and install a Linux you want to know what hardware is actually in the Linux box and more importantly which piece of hardware is supported by the kernel out of the box and which needs special tweaking with modules to get it work. Here is a list of commands which should help you to troubleshoot your hardware and find some information about it.

Please Note: some commands may not be available for your platform after default installation as well as some commands may be distribution specific only.

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Ok so I have had a few times now when nobody remembers what the VPN passwords are as we just exchange profile files. If you want to go back and look them up you can’t as they are hidden both on the client and on the firewall ends. This cool little page will allow you to take the encrypted string from the .pcf file and decrypt it back to the original password. Very slick.

Cisco VPN password decryptor.

Ever wanted to know if that Intel processor you have is dual core? Maybe the cache size or bus speed? Well if so you are going to want to check the link below out. It takes you to Intel’s site where you can easily look-up all the details and information on your processor.

Click here to look-up your processor information.

I recently installed the SMTP service on a new server and it would not start. I would receive an error to check the event log but nothing was even logged. What ended up fixing the problem was the following:

Check this registry key: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\SMTPSVC for a dword value called Start. If it’s not there, create a dword key called Start and set the value to 2.

I had the key but the value was set to 4. I changed it to be 2 and restarted the server and all worked as it should. Weird eh???

As always use caution when you edit the registry and backup your system first.

Presumably, you want to test your fax machine by sending a fax from it and receiving a fax with it. Here’s how to do both:

To test the send functionality of your fax machine, send a one-page fax to 1-510-545-0990 (a number in Northern California.) When it’s finished transmitting, point your web browser to Fax Toy — it’s a fun web site that displays whatever is faxed to that number. Within a minute, your fax should appear on the site. Click the thumbnail to see a large version.

To test the receive functionality of your fax machine, point your web browser to FaxZero: this site lets you send faxes for free to anywhere in the United States and Canada. Within a few minutes, your fax machine should ring — hopefully, it will automatically answer and spit out the test fax.

So I finally made the move to a new OS after running Windows XP for what seems like forever. I am now running Windows 7 and I must say so far I really do like it.   One feature I love is how I can switch my backgrounds and have them keep changing automatically. What is odd is there is no easy way to switch the background of the login screen. That is where this handy little free app comes in. It is called logon changer  for Windows 7.  It provides an easy way to customize the logon screen background with just a few clicks. Simply download the free application, run it and click Change Logon Screen.

Here is a link to the website to download the app. Enjoy it and your new version of Windows!

Like a boss video featuring Seth Rogen. Too funny

Link to video here.

After  the president has been in office for 6 months it is customary for the last president to send a note of congratulations to the new one. So yesterday when  the note came from Bush to Obama, the President was somewhat troubled because it was written in code and all it said was:

370H-SSV-0773H

This troubled him as he had always heard from his peers how former president Bush was perceived to have been scholarly challenged. So he called in the VP who was also unable to decode the message.  They called in the chief of staff and the head of Secret Service detail and they were unable to determine the meaning of the note. Next he called in the head of the Senate and Speaker of the House. They both were mystified by the meaning of the coded message. Now there was complete panic in the oval office. A special emergency meeting was called by the staff. All branches of the military, counter intelligence, CIA, FBI were called in, and the best minds were unable crack the code. After a sleepless night, a now humbled President picked up the phone and called the former president, and asked him the meaning of the note. Bush  chuckled and replied: Dude, you’re holding it upside down!

Ok here you go. Don’t say I never gave you anything.

Any mode:

Display related:

o alt+shift+G: grab screenshot (screen flashes and a file is placed in your documents, visible when connected to the computer)
o alt+G: redraw display

Editing:

* alt+DEL: delete all text in edit window

Music playback:

o alt+<space>: play/pause music. Also pauses spoken text function.
o alt+F: forward to next music track

Misc:

o alt+<HOME> Go to Amazon Kindle storefront.

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