bryan's brain dumpings

Jailbreak iPhone 3G running 3.1.2 OS

2009-10-22T12:08:00.002-05:00

I LOVE the functionality that a jailbroken iPhone provides. It basically turns your iPhone into a workhorse considering you can install hundreds of different apps including network utilities and all sorts of other fun stuff.

However, when I upgraded to 3.1 OS, I lost my jailbreak. I have been waiting for a few months, but now there is a way to do it!

The original kid that jailbroke the iPhone for the first time did it again. George Hotz (aka geohot) has created an application called Blackra1n that will jailbreak the iPhone. Follow these directions.

1. Above all, if you can't read directions or can't spell, don't bother doing this. I have read a TON of comments on the other forums with people trying to do this and they ask tons of questions that could have been answered if they could just READ! Basically, a ton of people are just downloading Blackra1n and running it, and then wondering why it doesn't work. YOU MUST READ THE INSTRUCTIONS. Also, I dont want to see any comments like "OMFG! I dnt kno wot to do!!! I trd using this piece of #@&^ program and it just doesnt work" and blah blah blah blah. Here's a suggestion... HOOKED ON PHONICS has worked for lots of people and it can work for you, too!

2. Be SURE SURE SURE that you have the 3.1.2 iPhone OS. Also, this will work on Ipod touch, iPhone Edge, iPhone 3G, and iPhone 3GS. The 3.1.2 OS is crucial, however.

3. Be sure you have the latest version of iTunes. I won't do links on my blog, but just go to the Apple website or Google "iTunes"

4. Download blackra1n. Once again, I won't do links on this blog. Just google it.

5. Once blackra1n is downloaded, just run it. There will be a button that says "Make it ra1n". Hit that button. Simply wait.

6. There have been issues from what I understand regarding the 3G. Just try again and again and it will eventually work. It took me 7 times, quite honestly.

7. When it is complete, your phone will reboot. Now this is just a personal preference for me, but I would install Cydia and stay away from Rock and Icy. I have never installed Rock or Icy, so I can't speak from personal experience, but from what I hear, they can cause some issues.

ENJOY!!!!!

by the way, I take NO responsibility for all of you noobs out there that break your phone. If you don't fully understand these instructions, don't attempt this. Seriously.

PuTTY settings

2009-05-20T10:16:00.005-05:00

if you are any kind of a network admin of sorts, i am sure that you use putty. it is a fantastic program that allows you to administed switches, routers, firewalls, etc from a single program, assuming that these devices use telnet (23) or ssh (22).

in the past, i had ran into issues where i would have putty installed on a few different machines. this was fine until i realized that i had some entries saved for certain routers and firewalls on one machine, but i didnt have them saved on another. it got pretty annoying setting up all of these different sessions on all of these different computers.

as it turns out, there is a registry key you can export and then put on any computer running putty so you can have all of the entries you need. see below on how to do it!

let me start off by saying that i assume no responsibility for you screwing up your computer by messing with your registry. if you think a registry is something you keep track of with your checking account, do not attempt to do this!

1. Open a registry editor. regedit is fine, so is regedt32.

2. Go to HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\SimonTatham.

3. Export this key to somewhere you can find it.

4. Copy this file to the computer you want the PuTTY entries to be placed.

5. Double click it and it will ask if you want to import into the registry. Say "yes" of course.

tada! Pretty flippin easy, huh? i dig it.

That's all, kids!

Amazing Quote

2009-01-31T00:26:00.000-06:00

Anybody who knows me knows that I am a crazy fanatical quote enthisast. I am a ginormous (probably not a word I know... sue me) believer in learning from successful people. I have many heroes and the best thing you can do from a hero is to learn from them. Check out this quote I read in my handy dandy Franklin Covey Day Planner. It is from the wonderful Calvin Coolidge:

Nothing in this world can take the place of persistence. Talent will not; nothing is more common than unsuccessful people with talent. Genuis will not; unrewarded genius is almost a proverb. Education will not; the world is full of eductaed derelicts. Persistence and determination alone are omnipotent.

I thought that quote was simply fantastic. Bottom line... if you want something, the only thing stopping you is for yourself.

Office 2007 Compatibility

2009-01-16T07:52:00.000-06:00

Office 2007 is some powerful software!

However, as I see more and more people installing this lovely program, they forget something.... the vast majority of people do not have this updated version. The issue is compatibility between people that are running Office 2003. Let's say for example I am using the default settings in Office 2007. I make a lovely spreadsheet or a Word document. I send this document to a colleague. 5 minutes later they are calling me and telling me that they cannot open it. Guess why? Simply because Office 2007 uses different file extensions. By default, a 2007 Word document saves as .docx and an Excel spreadsheet saves as .xlsx.

Now people can go out and download an Office 2007 Compatibility Pack. I think that's dumb, a waste of time, and you still have to tell your colleague to do that. I take the proactive approach.

In the top left corner of the program, you can cick the Window Icon and go to "Word Options" or "Excel Options". There is then a "Save" section on the left. It is there that you can choose which format to use. I select "Word 97-2003 Document (*.doc)". The process is the same for Excel.

*** The following example is for Microsoft Word ***

1. Click the Window Icon at the top left and choose "Word Options"
2. Choose the "Save" option and pick your file format.

No more complaining from people!!! I get the power of Office 2007 and almost anybody can use them. Woot!