Forget trying to pry open your Xbox to solder on a modchip that allows you hack your classic machine. A new software modification lets you replace the Microsoft dashboard with the stunning open source Xbox Media Center Software, transforming your once discarded machine into a user friendly, and very accessible media center.

After the release of the Xbox 360 many classic Xbox’s have unfortunately been left to gather dust. With a powerful processor, a sizable hard drive and an Ethernet port your old Xbox is capable of a lot more than simply connecting to Xbox Live or playing Halo 2. With the new XBMC software installed on you Xbox, you will be able to:

• Access and play videos, music and photo slideshows located in any shared folders on your network.
• Transfer files to and from your Xbox hard drive.
• Rip DVD’s (or any file) to a shared folder for later use: burning, back up etc.
• Watch Apple movie trailers, YouTube videos, Launch.com videos and see RSS newsfeeds loaded from the internet.
• Watch DVDs “dongle” free (no more DVD Playback Kit required!)

First you will need to collect a list of software and hardware that enables the soft mod.

• Xbox Classic
• Tom Clancy’s Splinter Cell must be the original un-copied version, Pandora’s Tomorrow or Chaos Theory versions won’t work
• Action Replay Kit - USB memory card that lets you load and save games, unlock games and store cheats.
• Ethernet Router - A connection to the internet through a standard network router must be established.

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Remember how when you were a kid you were always told to sit up straight? “Stop slouching, it’s bad for your back!” Well, in a study last year, Scottish radiologists confirmed that a 130-degree angle of recline between torso and thighs reduces pressure on the discs in the lower back.

Office chairs like the Aeron designed by Herman Miller and Humanscale, have been around since 1994, considering recent findings, these chairs were really quite revolutionary. Despite the array of levers and knobs that help adjust the chairs recline tension, lumbar support, seat-pan depth and forward tilt, designers have found that most users only use the height adjustment.

This neglect has manufacturers such looking toward the next frontier: a self-adjusting chair. Humanscale’s Freedom chair includes uses a counterbalance system that automatically adjusts to the sitter’s weight as he or she reclines, eliminating the need for recline controls.

Designers have also brainstormed that the future office chair may not be a chair at all. According to the National Institutes of Health, chairs contribute in part to the high rate of back pain which affects approximately eight out of 10 Americans. Asian traditions of kneeling or squatting on the floor have shown to have great ergonomic benefits, Cameron Campbell a designer for Herman Miller recently said,

“Our notion of a machine for sitting may not make sense in a globalized world.”

Perhaps in the future one worker may sit in front of their workspace on a self adjusting recliner, whilst the next may kneel amongst a pile of cushions.

Don’t throw away your dead laptop batteries, check out this video and see if this laptop battery hack works for you. Great way to save money on having to pay for new battery replacements for any notebook pc.

If you try this out, please remember we can’t be held responsible for your actions so please be fair leaving comments if anything goes wrong! It is for information purpose only!

Quickly gaining popularity and taking back the web, Firefox is lighting up the internet with personalize browsing that is safer, faster and more powerful. When Firefox first emerged not many expected much since there were already other browsers, like Netscape, Opera, and Eudora, that had been out for a long time already and were no where near being as popular as Internet Explorer. This has caused Microsoft to start paying attention and listening to the users - but still falling short in keeping users loyal. Microsoft is synonymous with closed-code with only Microsoft add-ons at Microsoft prices.

For those of you who are not familiar with Firefox, prepared to be awaken to the revolution taking place on the web and quickly become converted to a Mozilla Firefox user.

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The digital age is here and has been for some time now. The computer interface we have come to know has become boring and in my opinion out-dated. It no longer gives a sense of high tech or advanced. It is a 2-D mundane layout that has me missing the days of old when my desk was in a chaotic and cryptic mess that only I understood. Well, programmers feel the same and they are taking this boring interface to the next level!

This is a great idea and a fun interface. Some problems with it however is you do not see the file names that distinguish file types from one another and you are not able to see a thumbnail preview of a picture or document like in new Windows environment. I am sure these bugs can be worked out and the program will be much better once it gets to the serious stage.

If you remember the Photosync Technology and Microsoft Surface environment, this interface is quickly adapting and evolving. I am ready for the change now - hopefully it becomes mainstream soon.

Storage and disk space have always been a problem since computers were first invented. Organizing files, creating compilation music CDs, cataloging your movie collection, and backing up your files that you hope will be available when you need them; all consume large amounts of your vital virtual reality. Now if that wasn’t enough, after we have gone through all the trouble of moving all these files around, we have to make sure we bring the right CD or thumb drive at the time they are needed. Being randomly deployed and stationed at various bases has only added to the trouble. Thanks to the advancement of fast internet, there is actually a solution that helps organize your files and have all your files at a moments notice known as online storage.

Some sites require you to login and access the files. However, if you really wanted to do this correctly you would create a network drive to a dedicated server, so all you had to do a was click an icon to access the folders. But this requires a lot of money to make sure you have good server with a fast connection and that was very secure and maintained properly. Well with IBackUp all of your storage needs are finally resolved and you have the ability to secure personal data online while having the ability to access your files easily anywhere!

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