Change MAC address in Windows Xp

1. Go to Start > Control panel > Network and Internet connections , then right click on the that network connection whose network card’s MAC address  you want to change and click Properties.
2. In the General tab, click on the Configure button.
3. Then click on the Advanced tab.
4.In the Property section, you have to see an option saying Network Address or Locally Administered Address. Select it and change the radio button to Value ( Not present means that your network card will use the default MAC address programmed by the manufacturer ).

5. Now type in a new MAC address and click OK.
6. Restart the computer.
7. To make sure that the change is successful go to command prompt ( Start > Run, type in cmd and click OK )  then type in  ipconfig /all.
As you can see the above method is very convenient but not all network cards offer such an option. For example, Broadcom 440x 10/100 ( used in Dell Inspiron 1501 laptops ) does not allow to change its MAC address through the Properties window. In such cases the following method will solve the problem.
1. Go to Start > Run and type regedt32 in the box to start the registry editor.
2. Go to the following registry key:  HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Class\{4D36E972-E325-11CE-BFC1-08002BE10318} and double click on it to expand the tree.
3. Now you can see the subkeys starting with 0000, then 0001, 0002, 0003, 0004 and so on. Each of them represents  particular network adapter.
4. Go through each subkey and look for DriverDesc keyword, that matches the network card you want to change the MAC address.
5. Look for a string value named “NetworkAddress”, right click on it and  select Modify. Then enter a new MAC address in its value data box.  If the value  “NetworkAddress” does not exist, then create one with right click on the subkey ( for example 0008 ), then select New > String Value, name the new value as NetworkAddress and repeat the above step.

6. You must restart your computer for the change to take effect.

Windows Accelerator 2.0 serial number

Serial: 2476-2310

 Enjoy....

How to install Win Xp from USB flash drive

Today I will try to write a short guide explaining how install Win XP from USB flash drive. It may be  useful if you need to reinstall the operating system of your netbook or if you own a laptop with a faulty optical drive and the only way to reinstall Windows is through USB , but before you start you will need a few things. The first is a small program, that I’m going to use for preparing the flash drive and copying the system files on it. It’s called WinSetupFromUSB and can be downloaded from here. You will also need original ISO file of Windows XP and of course USB Flash Drive with at least 1GB capacity for data storage.

OK! Let’s start.
1. Download and install WinSetupFromUSB.
2. Create a new folder with any name of your choice and extract the Windows XP ISO file into that folder. You can use programs like UltraISO.
3. Connect the USB Flash Drive to your PC and start WinSetupFromUSB. If drive is detected properly it should appear in the USB Disk Selection drop down menu. If you don’t see it there  this may be because it is not formatted yet.

Don’t worry, just press the RMPrepUSB button and select the options as shown in the picture below. Then click Prepare Drive.

Important! Using NTFS will significantly accelerate the installation process but may cause problems with certain models of flash drives. Therefore in such cases it is advisable to use FAT.
4.Answer OK to the following questions displayed by the program.


5. Now your device is ready and the only thing left is just to copy the Windows XP files to it. Click the browse button to specify the full path to the folder where you extracted the Windows XP ISO file.

6. Click GO to start the process. On the bottom of the screen you will see a progress bar showing the current status of the process. You can also monitor the number of copied files as well as the space they occupy on disc.

When the process is complete you can connect the flash drive to your notebook or netbook, enter the BIOS and set the computer to boot from USB. Installation will begin with the following window where you just press enter to continue.

At the next window you can see that the installation process is divided into two parts. Press Enter again to continue with the first part that runs in text mode. Proceed as usual with selecting the partition where you want to install and then wait until  windows files are copied on the hard drive.

After the first restart you will have to boot again from the USB drive, but in the second window you have to select the second part in order to continue with the GUI-mode of XP Setup. Actually, it may be selected automatically by the program and you can just press enter.

When installation is complete, your computer should be able to start Windows from its internal hard drive

Customize your desktop right-click menu

Today I’ll show you an easy trick, allowing you to add application shortcuts to your desktop right-click menu. Thus you can facilitate access to some of the programs installed on your computer or even to free additional space on your desktop by moving some of the icons in the menu, saving valuable space on the desktop, but at the same time  remaining easily accessible. The only thing you need to do is open the registry editor and add several new lines as explained below. For the next example I will try to add a shortcut to Windows Control Panel in the right-click menu of my desktop.  Let’s see
.
1. Open the Start menu, type regedit.exe in the search box and press Enter.
2. Now go to HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Directory\Background\shell , create new key and rename it to a name of your choice (in my example it will be Control Panel).  Remember that the name of this key will be exactly the same as will appear in the menu.
3. Right click on Shell, then select New > Key and rename it. You should see something similar to the picture below.


4. Now you need to create a subkey containing the command information required to start the Control Panel   application.  Do this by right-clicking on the key that you just created, then select New > Key and rename this subkey command.

5. To edit the name and data value for the new subkey just double click on the “Default” or the small “ab” icon in the right hand window.

6. Then in the Value data field enter full path to the .exe file of the program you wish to start.  In this example it must be   C:\WINDOWS\system32\control.exe . 
 Here is the place to mention that .exe files of the various programs may have different locations on the hard drive, so you will probably need to find them manually. However, there are two basic rules you should follow. As you may know Control Panel is a system component so we can say that it is part of the operating system that was installed during the installation of Windows.
Therefore you must look for it in the C:\WINDOWS\system32 folder as this is the defalt installation folder for all system applications.On the other hand, all user programs (like multimedia players, browsers, office tools, etc.) should be located in C:\Program Files but this entirely depends on how your system is organized.
7.This is the final result of our example. Note that you can add as many programs as you wish, simply by repeating the steps above.

Find storage device plugged in your computer

Today I’ll show you an easy trick, allowing you to add application shortcuts to your desktop right-click menu. Thus you can facilitate access to some of the programs installed on your computer or even to free additional space on your desktop by moving some of the icons in the menu, saving valuable space on the desktop, but at the same time  remaining easily accessible. The only thing you need to do is open the registry editor and add several new lines as explained below. For the next example I will try to add a shortcut to Windows Control Panel in the right-click menu of my desktop.  Let’s see
.
1. Open the Start menu, type regedit.exe in the search box and press Enter.
2. Now go to HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Directory\Background\shell , create new key and rename it to a name of your choice (in my example it will be Control Panel).  Remember that the name of this key will be exactly the same as will appear in the menu.
3. Right click on Shell, then select New > Key and rename it. You should see something similar to the picture below.


4. Now you need to create a subkey containing the command information required to start the Control Panel   application.  Do this by right-clicking on the key that you just created, then select New > Key and rename this subkey command.

5. To edit the name and data value for the new subkey just double click on the “Default” or the small “ab” icon in the right hand window.

6. Then in the Value data field enter full path to the .exe file of the program you wish to start.  In this example it must be   C:\WINDOWS\system32\control.exe . 
 Here is the place to mention that .exe files of the various programs may have different locations on the hard drive, so you will probably need to find them manually. However, there are two basic rules you should follow. As you may know Control Panel is a system component so we can say that it is part of the operating system that was installed during the installation of Windows.
Therefore you must look for it in the C:\WINDOWS\system32 folder as this is the defalt installation folder for all system applications.On the other hand, all user programs (like multimedia players, browsers, office tools, etc.) should be located in C:\Program Files but this entirely depends on how your system is organized.
7.This is the final result of our example. Note that you can add as many programs as you wish, simply by repeating the steps above.

Creating an extended partition in Windows Xp

Process is the same as when creating primary partition but the only difference here is that you can’t choose a drive letter and there are no formatting options. This is because extended partition is only a container for the logical drives. It can not be formatted in any file system which means that it can not store any data. In other words, extended partition can be represented as a virtual drive containing multiple partitions (these are the logical drives). Remember also that you can create only one extended partition within a hard drive.
To create an extended partition right click on the unallocated space and select New partition, but this time in the second window of the New partition wizard you will need to select Extended partition option.


Now set the desired drive size and press Next.  Since you can not create more than one extended partition within a hard drive I suggest you use the whole unallocated space unless you intend to create another primary partition.


The next window will provide summary information about the partitions you create, then you can click  Finish  to complete the process.


The final result should be similar to the picture below but remember that in order to be able to use your new extended partition, it must contain at least one logical drive.

Primary partitions in Windows 7

The partitioning process in Windows 7 is similar to that in Windows Xp with the exception of a few minor differences which are described below. Unlike XP, when creating a new partition in Windows 7 you don’t have the opportunity to choose whether it will be primary or logical, as this task is performed automatically by the disk manager. Thus when you create partitions using Disk Management, the first three volumes you create will always be formatted as primary partitions while the fourth volume will be configured as a logical drive within an extended partition. There are also several interesting features in Disk Management, allowing the creation of spanned, stripped or mirrored volumes. However, to create a partition or volume on a hard disk, there must be either unallocated space or free space within an extended partition on the hard disk and of course you must be logged on as an administrator.


1. Open Computer Management by clicking the My computer icon with the right mouse button and then clicking Manage from the menu.
2. When the Computer Management window opens select Disk Management from the navigation panel panel on the left.
3. Right-click on unallocated space on your hard disk, and then click New Simple Volume.

4. Now you can type the size of the volume you want to create in megabytes (MB) or accept the default size, which is the maximum available space. Then click Next.
5. In the next window you can choose a drive letter for identification of the new partition or accept the default one. Click Next.

6. In the Format Partition window you can leave all options as they are set by default. More interesting here is the Quick format option which is much faster than a normal format but it doesn’t completely erase the data and doesn’t check the new volume for errors.

7. In the last window you can review your choices and then close the wizard by clicking Finish.

8. Finally, you should have a new primary partition (volume) and less unallocated space.

Of course your new volume should also appear in the My computer window.

Need for Speed Most Wanted 2012– PC Review

Let me not spoil the fun and let you decide. The latest Need for Speed Most Wanted 2012 is based in the imaginary city of Fairhaven – A place whose city roads along with the traffic are a nightmare to drive. That means a perfect environment for an adrenalin pumping race course. EA and British Developer Criterion come together since Hot Pursuit. That was quite a game. Quite a pain for novice gamers.

Need for Speed Most Wanted 2012:

This game is a visual treat with immaculate level of detail in the environments and cars. Among various places to rip, some of the best are at the tunnels of Fairhaven. You enter them at full speed and at the exit, you’re blinded with the sunlight and nothing else, eventually the road and traffic comes into picture and you’ll at times, be baffled by the landscapes.

Accessing races and cars is done using EasyDrive. You need to drive to a race at least once in the game, later, you can jump to it directly from any point in the map. There are more than one of 41 different cars scattered around the sweetly designed sandbox of sprawling freeways and twisted roads. They’re are everywhere. Below bridges, inside warehouses, parked in the middle of parks. So unlike previous games, you have a good reason to be in the free roam mode. They’re all indicated on the map and when you reach a car with a logo above hit, just hit the E key and you’ve swapped cars. That was simple, but wait a minute, I was in the middle of driving to the race damn it! You can always jump back to the previous car using EasyDrive but you start from the original location of the car.

About time for a new set of tires.

With every new car you get into, you have 5 races of variable difficulties, specific to that car. First and second positions unlock a part upgrade which can be installed with minimum effort, right after the race. When you win a most wanted race, the opponent dons the whiny little kid mask and refuses to give up his car unless you perform a takedown oppa Burnout style. Gameplay? “oh look..Cool Car. OMG! I’m going at 120 car speeeed! damn cops. Ram those suckers! whee this game is awesome. lets puck the folice” type. You get a car, you spot a race, win, unlock stuff, iterate. Same old same old. The Autolog feature is pretty nice if you are in multiplayer, and there are cameras all over the place which record your speeds and compare with your online friends. Somehow you get a feel of those features screaming, “get a life, man!”.

Lots and lots of air time

Of many things I’ve enjoyed thoroughly in this game, the number of jumps it has clearly will stand out. There are a lot of them you will come across in races. There are no barriers which mark a fixed course for the race so people who don’t have the habit of looking at the HUD map are in for surprises. Another thing to look forward to is the way the cars handle. It’s pretty challenging and the damage seems realistic with minimum effect on the cars performance. Then they shit on reality by having drive throughs where cars get repaired automatically when you pass through them. Yes, this game has a proper day and night cycle and you will see it going from dawn to dusk. Play it at max settings and it is a sheer pleasure. I however, am not a big fan of the motion blur and the dust that the cars ahead shoot will get to your nerves. You can’t see a thing. If you experience an inherently choppy frame rate throughout, don’t blame your rig.

2005′s Most Wanted had the best pursuit breakers any NFS game ever had. I knew they were going to make a grand comeback. They didn’t. Wrecking cop cars by tactically placing spike strips or any other pursuit breaker is no option here. Use your car to either slam th af0 em or the traffic to your advantage. The traffic in this game will seem like GTA Vice City’s traffic. One thing that’s been pissing me off about NFS games lately is how they feel the need to magnify crash scenes. Not enough making you feel like a glorious idiot by animating the crash, you even lose valuable time in a tight race.

The saddest part is the story. Yes EA, you made a mess of it last time but I didn’t expect you to OVERlearn from the mistake. They decided not to have a plot. Maybe it’s a Criterion thing. You just have to race, earn speedpoints and climb the blacklist. Why God..WHAAIII! You don’t get charged when you get busted. So you don’t have to worry force closing your game as soon as you get busted in high intensity pursuit. There’s not even a cinematic for that matter. It’s like waking up from a bad dream in the car that you got busted it. Before a race begins, you’re shown cut scenes involving your car and the environment around. Some are really spectacular while some are full of crap. Need for Speed games have always had good music to offer. This game is no different in this department. After all, Dubstep isn’t as bad as people say it is. Maybe I was just too engrossed in the game. Looking back on this rant, I’ve carefully tried avoiding expletives, yeah it’s frustrating. I was playing this with a friend and he summed the gist of the game up for me. Burnout with some extra skins. But for the benefit of the ones who will play it no matter what, there’s a lot of challenging gaming waiting ahead.

D’awww. what’s with the disappointed look? Don’t be because when you’re driving a Nissan GT-R at 160 mph head to head with a Mercedes AMG, both their roars muffled by blaring police sirens along with the confusingly blurred surrounding and your heart pounding in your mouth as you close in on the finish line, trust me, you wouldn’t really care about any critique of this game. If I were to finish this on the same note that I started on, MW2005 wouldn’t have been af0 disappointed that his son couldn’t become what he was; Instead, he would’ve been more disappointed if he tried. Seems like Need for Speed Most Wanted 2012 turned out to be something of an illegitimate child.

I’d like to specially acknowledge my friend Hemachandra’s insights on this game and the fact that he handed the game to me. Please drop us your views on Need for speed most wanted 2012 edition.

Trick to Convert Videos Using VLC Player

VLC player is an open source video player that supports most of the video codecs.Most of the people using VLC are unaware that it can also be used to convert files into various video (mp4, webm, ts and ogg ) and audio(mp3,ogg,mp4,aac,cd) formats. VLC  player is available  for Windows, Mac and Linux operating systems.If you haven’t downloaded it yet you can download it from here



    
  Open your VLC  player

• Click on Media and select Convert / Save (Ctrl+R ) option.
• In new popup window under the Files tab click on Add button to select files that have to be converted.


• You can also add subtitles which will be hardcoded to the converted file.To add subtitles check the Use a subtitle option.
• Click on the browse button to give the path of the subtitles file and select the alignment and font size options.
• Now Click on Convert/Save button this will open another window.
• Select the Destination File and Profile( Conversion Format ).


• Click on the start button to begin conversion.

This trick will come real handy if you don’t have any Video Converter installed in your system.