Streaming TV, Movies and more with Rabbit TV?

There’s big talk about Rabbit TV, the usb stick that delivers  TV, live streaming, movies and more.   Curious about any technology that is out there, I purchased one for $9.99 at a local drug store with a one year free subscription.   Rabbit TV promises free TV, classic TV, movies, movies on demand and more.

It appears that Rabbit TV has the technology to gather full episodes of TV and consolidate them into their website.  Although many of these sites are free if you want to travel to each one and check links periodically, Rabbit TV finds them for you and puts them in a library on the web.

It requires the USB stick (handles licensing and user registration) for installation and to watch your choice of entertainment.  Compatible with Windows or MAC, Rabbit TV is an excellent way to consolidate these entertainment into one site without search for full episodes on network TV online.   Although many of these may be free,  you don’t have to search for episodes online.   This consolidation makes Rabbit TV the largest library on the web.

Installation requires you to plug the USB stick in and have an internet connection.    Once you plug the device in, a wizard guides you through the installation and web navigation process.

So is it worth it?  Sure.  Now keep an open mind.   If you travel or don’t want the hassle of finding full episodes of TV shows or free movies on the web or even if you want movies on demand then it may be for you.

It rates three stars out of five on most sites but for the convenience and price,  it’s a good gadget if you are on the go, traveling or want to get away to a private place in your own home.

After the one year is over (initial registration), there is a $10 annual subscription.

The above review and opinion is that of the author and not TTC Shelbyville.

Microsoft Surface – an asset to Information Technology

The Microsoft Surface Pro can be an asset to the Information Technology industry with its versatile ability to accept hardware and applications already in the industry.

Microsoft Surface Pro with Microsoft GPS during wireless site surveys.

   

inSSIDer on Microsoft’s Surface Pro

Ubiquiti Spectrum Analyzer and the Surface Pro

Microsoft’s Surface Pro can us 99% of the software on the market.  The versatility of this tablet makes it a good choice for IT Professionals.

Amazingly, you don’t need special apps and most of the software on the market for Windows based computers is free.   For licensed software,  the Windows 7/8 software will work on this tablet.

Look for updates soon on Windows 8 and Microsoft’s Surface.

Optimize your SSD Drive – Updated

Have you recently purchased and cloned your old HDD with a new SSD?  Here’s some tips.  There is a balance of performance vs. extending the life of your SSD.

• Make sure your SATA controller is set to AHCI mode.
  Set AHCI mode in the BIOS if this is not enabled and make changes to the registry (first)
  AHCI is needed for native TRIM support in Windows 7.  This allows TRIM to do its job

• Click on the Start
• Control Panel
• Device manager
• IDE ATA/ATAPI controllers
• Do you see the AHCI controller?

How do you enable AHCI?

Before doing the process below,  see if your BIOS has AHCI capabilities

1. Open Registry Editor and move down to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\services\msahci.
2. Right click on the Start DWORD and click on Modify.
   
3. Set the value to 0 and click OK.
   
4. Reboot your computer and enable the AHCI setting the BIOS.  Another restart will be required to finish the driver installation.

The next step is to enable TRIM. Type the following command in a command prompt to enable TRIM:

fsutil behavior set disabledeletenotify 0

Next, turn off Defragmentation.  These drives should not be defragged.

Next, turn off indexing.  This causes unnecessary writes.

Next, Click on Start  -Right-Click Computer – Manage – Services and Applications – Services -Right-Click Windows Search – Properties  Find the Startup type – Select Disabled – Click OK.

(The above disables the “search indexer”)

Next

Click on Start – Computer – Right click on your SSD – Properties – Uncheck Allow files on this drive to have contents indexed in addition to file properties – Click OK.

Next (Disabling this as recommended by some sites will have a negative effect on performance)

1. Right Click on Computer and select Manage
2. Click on Device Manager
3. Expand Disk Drives
4. Right click on the hard drive and select Properties for that hard drive (you can also double click the drive
5. On the Policies tab:
   Check Turn off Windows write-cache buffer flushing on the device
6. Hit OK and close the Device Manager
   

Next, disable hibernation

Go to a command prompt, type powercfg.exe /hibernate off

Next, move Power Management to high performance

Adjusting the Power Settings

Adjusting the Power Settings

• Go to Control Panel;
• Select System and Security
• Select Power Options and Click the drop down for Show Additional Plans
• Select the High Performance bubble to apply it
• Click Change Plan Settings to High Performance
• Click Change Advanced Power Settings
• Click the hard disk drop down option
• Change Turn off hard disk after to 0 minutes (Never)
• Select OK
• Select Save Settings

Next, if you have 6 GB of RAM or more, disable the page file.

Click on Start Menu – Right-Click Computer – Properties – Advanced System Settings – Advanced Tab – Performance Settings – Advanced Tab – Click Change under Virtual Memory – Uncheck Automatically manage paging file size for all drives – Click on No paging file – Click Set – OK – Restart your computer.

Check for the latest firmware!

Optimize your SSD Drive

Have you recently purchased and cloned your old HDD with a new SSD?  Here’s some tips. (Updated!)

• Make sure your SATA controller is set to AHCI mode.
  Set AHCI mode in the BIOS if this is not enabled and make changes to the registry (first)
  AHCI is needed for native TRIM support in Windows 7.  This allows TRIM to do its job

• Click on the Start
• Control Panel
• Device manager
• IDE ATA/ATAPI controllers
• Do you see the AHCI controller?

How do you enable AHCI?

Before doing the process below,  see if your BIOS has AHCI capabilities

1. Open Registry Editor and move down to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\services\msahci.
2. Right click on the Start DWORD and click on Modify.
   
3. Set the value to 0 and click OK.
   
4. Reboot your computer and enable the AHCI setting the BIOS.  Another restart will be required to finish the driver installation.

The next step is to enable TRIM. Type the following command in a command prompt to enable TRIM:

fsutil behavior set disabledeletenotify 0

Next, turn off Defragmentation.  These drives should not be defragged.

Next, turn off indexing.  This causes unnecessary writes.

Next, Click on Start  -Right-Click Computer – Manage – Services and Applications – Services -Right-Click Windows Search – Properties  Find the Startup type – Select Disabled – Click OK.

(The above disables the “search indexer”)

Next

Click on Start – Computer – Right click on your SSD – Properties – Uncheck Allow files on this drive to have contents indexed in addition to file properties – Click OK.

Next

1. Right Click on Computer and select Manage
2. Click on Device Manager
   
3. Expand Disk Drives
4. Right click on the hard drive and select Properties for that hard drive (you can also double click the drive
5. On the Policies tab:
   Check Turn off Windows write-cache buffer flushing on the device
6. Hit OK and close the Device Manager
   

Next, if you have 6 GB of RAM or more, disable the page file.

Click on Start Menu – Right-Click Computer – Properties – Advanced System Settings – Advanced Tab – Performance Settings – Advanced Tab – Click Change under Virtual Memory – Uncheck Automatically manage paging file size for all drives – Click on No paging file – Click Set – OK – Restart your computer.

Check for the latest firmware!

A Search Engine that shows devices on the web

Secure your devices.  Bottom-line, there are malicious users on the web that can find your device (webcams, IP cameras, routers, SCADA and other devices).  Change the default passwords and update software/firmware when it is available.  Disable UPNP and look for vulnerabilities that may affect your device.

 

CNN’s Money on “Hacking anything connected to the internet“

 

 

Microsoft Joulemeter calibrates your portable battery

Want to calibrate your batter on your laptop?  Microsoft Joulemeter (.90 mb download) does just that.

From Microsoft Research:

“Joulemeter is a software tool that estimates the power consumption of your computer. It tracks computer resources, such as CPU utilization and screen brightness, and estimates power usage.”

Checklist :

• Make sure your battery is above 50%
• Remember to leave your computer idle when this takes place
• Your screen brightness will change (disable Flux if you have it installed) and turn black
• Be Patient

 

Ready to calibrate

 

Phase One

 

 

Phase Two

 

 

Phase Three (Power Model)

 

 

Windows System Control Center – An all in one tool for IT professionals

The Windows System Control Center is an all in one tool that offers a ton (hundreds) of features.  These features are compatible with Windows XP, Windows 7 and Windows 8.

The installation can be made to a portable drive or installed on a computer.  During the installation, new software can be installed allowing features to be added or updated.

 

 

 

During this installation process, you may get virus alerts but the software is safe.  These alerts are false positives (the software accesses key areas that control Windows).

 

Click Allow or Safe in your anti-virus control panel.

 

 

Initially you will have 264 software installs.

 

Once the features are installed (This can initially take a few minutes),  The control center opens to dozens of categories and hundreds of features allowing you to tweak Windows or to correct problems.

 

 

CIT Continues Advanced Training on Airfiber AF24s

The Computer Information Technology class continues to receive advanced training on the Ubiquiti AF24 Airfiber.  The Ubiquiti AF24 Airfiber is a hi-power, linear 2X2 MIMO radio with enhanced receiver performance and reliability.  The AF24 has a breakthrough speed of 1.4+ Gbps real data throughput.

These devices are specifically designed for outdoor Point to Point bridging between buildings and provide hi-performance network backhauls.  These dual-independent 2×2 MIMO 24GHz hi-gain reflector antenna systems, can operate in FDD and HDD  modes providing speed and spectral efficiency in the 24GHz band.

Students learn how to configure advanced wireless devices for real world information technology and hands-on experience.

  

   

Justin, Josh and Theo’s results during a configuration of the AF24s.

Students also participate in a wireless shoot-off.   This contest challenges the students to design an antenna that will make an association between a standard access point and a laptop that will connect at extreme distances.  The contest will start the second week of April.

(L-R) Jay Matlock, Jonathan Laine, Scott Hess (designer of a parabolic dish with a helical transceiver), Tyler Clift and Kenny Cooper.

  Photo by D. Babian

  

Great details about building the Airfiber below (from 03:17 forward)

   

Photos above (D. Babian)

         

 

 

Photo Credit: (Wil McKamey)

Router Emulators

Need to practice setting up routers or adjust a router before adjusting your own?  Here’s a few links to different router emulators.

 

Linksys (Cisco) – Soon to be Belkin?

Netgear

Trendnet

D-Link

Optimizing MySQL on Server 2008 R2

Server 2008 R2

• install Wincache by Microsoft

Optimizing IIS
(http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ee377050(v=bts.10).aspx)

Edit the my.ini file found in the MySQL installation

http://dev.mysql.com/doc/refman/5.0/en/optimization.html

• Set the innodb_buffer_pool_size=1G   Resource
• Set the Max_Allowed_Packet = 100M
• Set Key_Buffer_Size=512M
• Set query_cache_size = 128MB

• query_cache_limit = 4MB

• table_cache=512
• tmp_table_size = 64MB

Adjust your settings accordingly.

Note: Many of these settings can be made to the my.cnf file in Linux installations

Our performance increast?  50% savings on average (load times)

Resolve wireless issues by adjusting advanced power savings

Usually when I resolve a problem, there seems to be an outbreak of the same problem.   Lately I resolved issues with wireless networking on several laptops and a desktop by disabling the power settings.  Apparently when the laptop woke, it would not connect or was extremely slow on connecting.  Disabling the power settings in both areas resolved the issue on all of the laptops and the desktop.

Power under the Device Manager

- Right Click Computer, Manage, Select Device Manager, Double Click on Wireless card, Click the Power Management tab.  Uncheck the All the computer to turn off this device to save power

Use the Advanced Power settings to turn off power settings on wireless adapters

Click on Change plan settings (above)

Click on Change advanced power settings (above)

Scroll down to Wireless Adapter Setting, click the + sign, click the + sign beside Power Saving Mode.  Change the On battery setting to Maximum Performance and Plugged in to Maximum Performance.  Apply the settings.

Surface Pro vs. iPad vs. Android

So we played with the Surface Pro and the iPad and measured each for productivity.   What did we find?

After using an iPad for a year and having the Surface Pro for just under a week, the Pro far out shines the iPad tablet and our Android we’ve had for two years; no comparison.  Why?  Here’s what we found.

With the Surface Pro 128 Gb,  you have a stylus, USB and every application that a laptop has.   The critics say the 128 Gb is wrong because you get less than you pay for.   Part of this is used by the OS.     Have you ever purchased a laptop?  The Pro can be used with every application you ever had and with the VGA adapter, you can hook it to a full size monitor ($39.99).   The USB can be hooked to a cheap USB hub ($1.99) and guess what?  External hard drives can be used for storage (and don’t forget you have an SD slot), flash drives, external DVDs, a full size keyboard and 127 other USB accessories including printers.   The same as Windows 7.   The speed is much faster and the reliability and new features are an excellent addition to this OS compared to Windows 7.  Why aren’t critics looking at that?  Another great mystery of American consumerization.  So there you go.  You can have a full desktop by laying your tablet on your desk and plugging in two things.   When you are ready to go, just disconnect and you have a tablet or with the keyboard, a laptop.   So the $900+ price tag is a bargain.

Also navigation is NOT hard.   All you have to do is remember corners…touch any corner and you have menus.  Is that really hard?  Nope.  Are we overlooking a great OS?  I truly think so.  Thanks Kenny for bring the Pro to school.  Mine’s on order.

The Surface Pro and what Microsoft is not telling you – it can replace your laptop and desktop.

For the IT Professionals – join it to a domain and use the policies you have to further control this device on your network.