DIY

As a PC repair guy, I really liked this question that was posed to the readers of Ars today. It really makes you think about the software and other utilities that we so often take for granted when they are so accessible to us from our work area.

Dave, my husband has a Sony DVD Recorder RDR-GX3, he is transferring Video films onto DVD discs, he is using DVD-R discs, when he tries to play them back on other DVD’s they won’t play. Can you tell me if this is a problem with the DVD or the the discs that he is [...]

Just for fun, I recently signed up for an AOL account through one of those ubiquitous free CDROMS, and now that I’ve poked around a bit, I’ve decided to shut it down. It’s time to return to the real Internet. But I’m a bit stymied. How do I cancel my AOL account?

Common sense recommendations appropriate to any computer - but too many of us don’t do them (including me) - except maybe to wipe the gummi bear laden fingerprints off of our monitors… “Cleaning PCs may not be the most interesting or challenging part of your job, but doing so can improve performance and extend the [...]

Even if you are not one that fancies themselves as a PC tech, you too can help out the parental units with their bogged down PC woes. Enter the wild-world of the ‘do-it-yourselfer!’
With little more than a basic understanding of computer and the amazing ability to read, you can deal with many of the computer [...]

I have to say, the guide to troubleshooting your PC from Ars Technica is not half bad. As I read through it, I was surprised as to how much information was being crammed into such a small space.
On that note, the ideas for dealing with a troubleshooting situation may seem a little overly simplistic, yet [...]

Alysha Naples from BlueGreen has assembled a small Holiday wish list for those of you who aren’t feeling terribly creative this holiday season. It definitely skews to the less geeky crowd, which is probably a welcomed change of pace around your place. I’ve included direct links for the products where appropriate for your clicking pleasure.
UNDER [...]

Ever used the msconfig tool on Windows 98? The XP version is even better, allowing a multiplicity of options when it comes to starting Windows. Using msconfig saves you the trouble of digging in the Registry or a half dozen other places for these settings. You can control what programs and services [...]

From: Windows 2000 Tips at TechRepublic.com. “In Windows, services are applications that perform specific functions. For example, the Workstation service creates and manages connections to other computers on the network. Windows includes several services of its own, and many application vendors add their own services to Windows as part of their applications. For example, the [...]

Somehow I can tell that Matt had a deprived childhood. Or maybe one that was too rich. In either case, he doesn’t understand the Zen of garage sales, that much is obvious.
The Zen, my friend, is not in getting an ‘antique’ from the 1950s or a third-hand copy of the original Atari release of Pac-Man, [...]

From the TechRepublic Windows XP Tips newsletter. “If you haven’t rolled out Windows XP yet because you’re concerned about compatibility issues with your organization’s proprietary applications, you’ll definitely want to check out the Application Compatibility Toolkit. You can find it on the Windows XP Professional CD in the /Support/Tools folder. To install it, just [...]

Keep your Windows PC in tip top shape with these great performance recovery techniques. The article covers everything from the basics like defrag and disk cleanup to deleting unneeded autostart items from your registry.

“Learn how to create templates for common e-mail messages and discover a great trick that you can use to make these templates easily accessible from the Outlook toolbar. This TechProGuild solution is being featured on TechRepublic until August 1, 2004. After this date, only TechProGuild members will be able to access this article. Obtain [...]

By Daniel R. Miessler

Eventually, if you get interested enough in information security or start hosting services on your network, you are going to wonder what a DMZ is and why you should or should not have one. DMZ is [...]

Kevin Gilmore is a network administrator at MicroDisplay, a small company in San Pablo, California, that uses several Wi-Fi access points to give employees the freedom to roam around the office with their laptops while remaining connected to the Internet.
But these days, Gilmore keeps encountering a problem that many Windows XP users know all [...]

TweakGuides.com will help you maximize your system to suit your specific needs, whether they be playing games or…well, what else would you need to tweak your system for? Work? Heh, right!

In this article I provide details of a simple method which I have successfully applied to a number of ailing CD players. I hope that some of you will find it useful and that it will reduce the number of these devices that end up in the trash.

OK, your computer really doesn’t do yoga, but Everyday Yoga helps relieve strain from working on the computer.
Ohhhmmmmmm. Ooh, I feel better already!

PC World provides tricks for beating PC Annoyances (opens a PDF file) like opening PDF files within the browser instead of outside of the browser (eats up more resources), dealing with Real Player’s troublemaking ways, and more. I’ve already implemented a few and it has bottomed out my blood pressure, which was low to begin [...]

This method works to remove from playback any warnings, logos etc from ANY movie. You can use DVD Decrypter or SmartRipper to rip the movie to your hard drive. Then use this process to find and remove from playback any .VOB ID’s you want. These warnings will still be in the .VOB files but not [...]