What you see above is my new ride, a 2010 Honda Civic EX! Click the pic to check out the gallery. I didn’t know it until I saw it at the dealership, but that car is the true upgrade I’ve been looking for. When I was on the market for a new car, what I wanted was a model that impressed me not only with its exterior appeal, but also with its interior technology. The 2010 Civic’s  had the sporty shape I was looking for, and I especially liked the in-car technology on the EX models. This includes bluetooth for hands-free in-car calls, a USB interface for my iPod, and even a touch-screen / voice-controlled navigation / entertainment screen. On top of that I get XM free for 3 months. When I saw that car, the search had ended. Either the dealer offered it to me at a decent price, or I drive home in my Volvo. Suffice it to say, I was prepared for the latter, and I used the walkout as my tool to drive the lease price down to something I can afford. By the time I left, I was surprised that I actually had just leased a brand-new car for an amazing $280/mo. for 36 months.

UPDATE:

Apparently my car is not the only one leaving my family, as my younger brother’s car has been having some serious issues as of late. My brother drives a 1996 Mercedes-Benz E320 that has been having some engine problems lately. His car has some history with our family. My dad purchased it in 1999, and I remember being surprised when my dad came to pick me up from school in it. It was a much bigger vehicle than his previous car, a Mercedes-Benz C Class, which he sold to get this new car. A few years later, after I turned 16 and got my driving permit, I was even more surprised when he gave me the keys to his car used it to teach me how to drive. Years later, my younger brother learned how to drive in that same car and since then has been using it as his own. Unfortunately, since the car is starting to show its age, we me have to get rid of it soon in order to avoid any more expensive maintenance costs.  They say that cars aren’t just vehicles, they’re our friends that we rely on to get to where we need to go. Well, it’s tough to say goodbye to good friends. Both The White Blur (AKA The White Bullet) and our Mercedes-Benz E Class will be missed.

The era of the car that came to be known as The White Blur will soon come to an end. In June of 2004, my dad bought me a 2001 Volvo S40 as a high school graduation gift, and ever since then, that car has been involved in many crazy adventures. In the past few years, my first car has been towed, got its headlight and tires busted, gone well over the speed limit, and even had a human body in the trunk, among plenty of other types of craziness.

No less than a week after purchasing it, my car got towed. I was going to my friends apartment to chill, and since there was no parking on the street I decided to park my car in the nearby 7-Eleven parking lot. I returned a few hours later and was in total shock when I did not see my car where I left it. I thought someone may have stolen it. I’ll admit that I was balling a bit a that point. My friends and I then went into the 7-Eleven and the clerk informed us that my car had been towed. One of my friends gave me a ride home, and after explaining to situation, my dad and I went to the impound yard. It cost around $250 to get my car back, but I was just glad that it was safe.

Later that summer, I got my first speeding ticket. I was going 60 mph in a 35 mph zone. It wasn’t habitual speeding at that point, I was just excited because my friends were throwing me a going-away party. Not knowing what my parents would do if they found out, I decided not to tell them at all. Fortunately, my dad soon found the ticket in my glove box, after helping me move into my new place in AZ. He told me to not be afraid to tell him when stuff like this happens, otherwise the legal consequences could be very bad.

A few years later, in Arizona, a few of my friends called me up to give them a ride to a house party that was on the opposite side of town. Before I go further, I should let you know that my Volvo can comfortably seat 4 people. That night, I had there were seven people in my car, including myself.  The seating arrangement were two in the front (myself and a friend in the passenger seat), four in the back, and one in the trunk. Yes, one of my friend rode across town in my Volvo’s trunk. Suffice it to say, I drove extra cautiously that night.

Those are just a few of the crazy adventures I will always remember having in The White Blur.

It took some time, but I am now done with all the upgrades to my computers and home network. To start, I had to move the all the components from inside my desktop PC (motherboard and all) back into the Compaq case they came in. If you are wondering why I moved those components into my own PC case in the first place, in a nutshell, the Compaq case was too small. I had some extra components I wanted to add to the computer, but simply could not since the case is so small. I then installed some awesome new hardware into my now empty PC case.Once all the parts were in place, I installed Windows 7 and configured it on both machines and installed Windows Home Server onto my test machine.

The Transplant Surgery

Moving those components back into the Compaq case was a lot easier than I thought it would be. After I ensured that I was properly grounded, in order to protect the hardware from short-circuiting, I disconnected the power supply from the motherboard and anything else it was connected to. I then removed all of the components that were connected to the motherboard, such as my video card, network interface card, and memory, and then unscrewed the motherboard itself from the case. At this point, I had to repeat what I had just done, albeit in reverse order and in the smaller case. That means, first placing the motherboard into the case, screwing it in, attaching the necessary components, and finally connecting the power supply to the motherboard and components.

The Upgrade

Once my desktop PC’s case was completely empty, it was ready for an upgrade. The first new part I added to my machine was a Gigabyte P55 motherboard. After the new motherboard was installed and connected to the power supply, I added my new Intel Core i5 processor and 6 gigabytes of DDR3 SDRAM to it. For video, I installed my old nVidia 8800 GS.

OS Installation & Configuration

I started this phase of the process by installing the 64 bit version of Windows 7 Ultimate onto my desktop PC. For those wondering, Windows 7 installation is much easier and faster than previous versions of Windows. After collecting the necessary information, the installation took around 20 minutes to complete. I configured this machine as my personal desktop, so it took some time to get all the programs I normally use installed. The Compaq is my new media center, so I installed the Slingplayer software on it and then configured Windows Media Center. Media Center in Windows 7 works really well, especially with a remote control.  I have this machine hooked up to my 47 inch LCD, so I can now chill on my couch and choose the movie/tv show/internet video I want to watch or music I want to listen to. Once my media center PC was properly configured, I installed Windows Home Server onto my test PC. Windows Home Server is a great OS  to install on an extra computer if you want a simple, centralized backup solution. You can also use it to share your media files with your friends and family over the web by enabling the Windows Home Server site and adding a guest account for each person. Another useful feature is that, since this is a server, it does not require a monitor once its setup and configured. The included connector software or Windows Remote Desktop Connection can be used to access the computer remotely.

Overall, this entire project of mine went pretty smoothly with minimal issues.

Being an IT savant, I enjoy enhancing and upgrading my computers and home network, which is exactly what I started doing this summer. My first upgrade was a Westinghouse 47 inch LCD HDTV which is being used as the monitor for my Media-PC, Xbox 360, Wii, and Playstation 3. Yes, I do have them all. Not only is it a great screen to game on, but it is also great for watching online and locally stored videos. My next major upgrade was a Cisco Wireless N router, which not only gave our network a wider wifi radius, but it also enhanced our networks transfer rates significantly. That is what I have done so far.

My next upgrades will be to my desktop PC. The upgrades include an Intel Core i5 processor, a Gigabyte P55 motherboard, and 6GB of DDR3 SDRAM. In addition to that, I will upgrade my operating system (currently Windows 7 RC 32-bit) to Windows 7 RTM 64-bit.

Once those upgrades are installed and configured, I will then install Windows Home Server onto my Test-PC. My Test-PC is the machine I use to test and become familiar with different operating systems. The mswhs.com site has some great tutorials on how to get more use out of the operating system, and I look forward to trying some of those out soon.

Check back soon for the latest updates on how I am progressing on these and other projects!

After what has been an amazing summer, I have finally returned to my world online. If you would like to find out what I was up to this past summer, I will posting those stories to the new Replay section. In a nutshell, you can expect to see stories in there about:

• My summer internship at Applied Medical
• The wedding reception that will not be soon remembered, lol
• Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen Review
• Terminator Salvation Review
• The Roscoe’s Adventure
• My day at Comic-Con 2009
• Meeting with a long-lost friend
• Public Enemies Review
• Funny People Review
• Inglorious Basterds Review
• District 9 Review
• Sunset Music Fest in Hollywood

On top of that, I will also be posting pieces about my current and upcoming projects, so check back for those soon!

Do you use Firefox as your primary Internet browser? Would you like to get more out of it in order to make your Internet browsing easier and more productive? Then what you need are Firefox extensions! What are ‘extensions’ you say? Extensions are add-on for Firefox that can increase its functionality! If you are not using any plugins in your Firefox browser, you are missing out!

The following is a list of the plugins I am currently using:

• Download Statusbar
  • Instead appearing in its own window, Download Statusbar shows your currently downloading items in the statusbar at the bottom of the FIrefox window.
• FoxTab
  • If you have a number of tabs open, FoxTabs will make it easier to find the tab you are looking for by showing thumbnail previews of every open tab in one of four different views.
• Persona’s for Firefox
  • Persona’s is a fun and easy to customize the look of your Firefox browser.

Click here to go to the Firefox Add-Ons page and start downloading extensions!

There are a lot of great movies hitting theaters this summer and, before I saw it, Angels & Demons did not seem like it would be nearly as good as Star Trek and X-Men Origins: Wolverine. I felt this way because it’s prequel, The Da Vinci Code, was a bit underwhelming, especially after all the hype it recieved before its release in 2006.  I am actually happy to say that I was completely wrong in my preconceptions of what will possibly be this years most captivating film.

In the movie, Angel & Demons, Tom Hanks returns to his role as Robert Langden, a Harvard symbologist who is called upon to unravel the mysterious clues surrounding a terrorist attack against the Church by its ages-old enemy, the underground society known as the Illuminati. The first thing that caught my attention in this movie was where it started, that being in the Large Hadron Collider facility. It was here where the Illuminati’s weapon against the Church, the anti-matter, was created and promptly stolen.  The film continues with Robert Langden solving various puzzles that take him and partner Vittoria Vetra to the four pillars of science (Earth, Wind, Fire, Water, sorry no Heart so no Captain Planet, lol) around the Vatican where the preferatti to the papacy are to be murdered. I hope this doesn’t spoil it for anyone, but there is an awesome twist at the end of the movie that you will not see coming.

In my opinion, Angels & Demons is a movie that everyone should go check out in theaters, whether or not you have read the book or seen its prequel, The Da Vinci Code. Angels & Demons is another Ron Howard directorial classic.

Check out its trailer:

Well, it’s time for yet another upgrade to my home server. This time, however, my server is getting a major overhaul. The following is a list of everything I’ll being doing in order to complete this upgrade process:

• Perform a clean install of Windows Server 2008
  • Clean Install = Installation process that formats the hard disk before installing a new operating system
• Upgrade external hard disk capacity to 2.5TB
  • TB = Terabyte
  • 1TB = 1024 GB (Gigabytes)
• Move files and media from desktop PC’s to new, higher capacity hard disk.
• Install Internet Information Services (IIS) 7
• Install Windows Media Services 7
• Install Play On
  • Allows me to watch the media stored on my server on my Xbox 360 and Playstation 3
• Install Vuze
  • My preferred torrent client
• Install Printer Driver
• Install Ethernet Driver
• Configure FTP accounts

A couple days ago, when I tried to boot into Windows I was unable to since I was one of 100,000 victims of the Zeus botnet attack. At first, I found it strange that I was suddenly getting the dreaded Blue Screen of Death (BSOD) in Windows 7 which, although a beta, had not given me any trouble since I installed it. However, I later read an article on ArsTechnica.com, entitled “Botnet Master Hits the Kill Switch, Takes Down 100,000 PCs,” where I learned that I was only one of many victims of a botnet attack. For those who do not know, a botnet attack is an attack that uses large groups of compromised computers  for malicious purposes. In the case of the Zeus botnet, it used a software kit, known as Zeus or Zbot, to extract personal and financial data from infected machines. Zeus’ most dangerous feature was the kos, or kill operating system, command that was built into the software and, when invoked, triggered the BSOD, making it difficult to boot into the operating system. In my case, I was fortunate that this attack happened when I was already planning on upgrading my operating system from the Windows 7 Beta to the Windows 7 Release Candidate. After the upgrade, any malware that Zeus left on my computer was gone. In order to stay protected from such a threat, make sure you have some type of anti-malware  ( anti-virus, anti-spyware, etc) software running on your computer and ensure that it is kept up-to-date.

For more info check out Ars Technica

Click the above photo to see my graduation pictures!

I can’t believe it, but I am now a university graduate! For those not in the know, I graduated from the University of Advancing Technology with a Bachelors of Science degree in Network Security.

The ceremony was unique to say the least. A couple undergraduates walked the stage with lightsabers clipped to their belts, and another did so fully dressed as a Jedi Knight. It gets better. The music we all walked out to was the Star Wars Imperial March, which is Darth Vaders theme music, and all the teachers/professors in attendance held lightsabers over our ( the graduates) heads as we walked out of the auditorium. After the ceremony, my friend and fellow graduate Ron Edwards and I took pictures with our friends and family. I was especially happy that I got to introduce my family to some of my favorite teachers at UAT.

After the ceremony, my friends and our families went to a local Olive Garden for a post-graduation dinner. We all had a great time there. It was especially fun for me since my family finally got to meet my friends and their families.  What made it even better is that the Hawkins family joined us. The Hawkins were our honored guests that night since they owned the house that my friends and I lived in over the past few years and always made us feel like at home in Arizona. After the dinner, a pay war occurred between my family and Ron’s family. Fortunately, they struck a compromise and each paid for half of the bill.

After dinner, my friends Ron, Godric, my brother Vick, and I went to our local theater in Tempe to catch the midnight showing of X-Men Origins: Wolverine. This was a pretty epic moment for me since it was the last movie I saw with some of my greatest friends. If you are reading this (Ron, Godric, Josh, Duncan, Larry, Justin, Jelani, Rich, or any of my other great friends in Arizona) just know that I really appreciate the time we had together, and it is definitely not over. We will see each other again.

The next day, after my family flew home, I drove embarked on a six hour roadtrip home myself. A couple days later, my good friends in California joined me for a post-graduation party at my house. We ate food from Daphnes Greek Cafe, cut and ate cake, and watched Notorious. It was a pretty good afternoon with friends.

All in all, I had a pretty awesome graduation. I am and will continue to miss all the great friends I made in Arizona. Thanks for all the great memories guys!