Solve all those wrist strain problems!...

With a Belkin wrist rest mouse pad!

I used to get a really sore wrist when leaning it on my desk, but since Christmas when I got this, I haven't complained!

AND... I no longer have to clean out my mouse! For some reason, this mouse pad also seems to stop dust from getting in my squeaker. Wicked!

If you are interested, please take a closer look here.

Another good reason to trash your iPod

Your iPod could make you lose your hearing!

Those little devil earphones can get up to 115 decibels - a blast of this for more than 18 seconds a day and you'll soon lose your hearing!

Read more about it on the BBC News website: Click here!

Windows Live Safety Center

This is a somewhat useful tool for users of Windows to check up on their systems.

It can check your computer for viruses, spyware, disk defragmentation, temporary files, missing updates etc.

And... it can ask you if you want to fix these problems if it finds them.

For the virus scanner, I usually disable this because even on Quick Scan, it still takes me half an hour to finish C:/ ... Otherwise, the other features can be really good for lightly cleaning up your drive and just 'checking up' your computer basically.

News update! Live Safety Center can now also clean up your registry! You registry is where many of your settings for your programs are held, for software and everything for windows, it links your files together, updates locations and times, holds file version numbers and other data like permissions on folders.

After a lot of installing and uninstalling software, some 'keys' or 'values' could be left over, so Registry Cleaner is meant to delete these safely. Click here to read more.

Error report: I have run the Registry Cleaner twice now, the first time remvoing 1856 errors, then just 55. Here are the problems that I have had due to using Registry Cleaner. You may also come across them, so please be careful if you are using it. Always make a restore point on System Restore before making any changes to the registry of settings!!! Remember: this scanner is a BETA so it is more than likely that it might go wrong, so best be safe than sorry.

I had to reinstall Adobe Reader 7.07 and Windows Defender because they were missing installer files and could not load up properly.

I have had problems with FONTS. Most obviously, when I was in Word and using Times New Roman, when I chose Bold, it went Bold and Italic. I found out by right-clicking it and choosing 'Font...' that it only had Normal and Bold Italic available, so I knew that Registry Cleaner had changed it somehow. Fortunately, I have software installed called Fix Fonts Folder that scan for errors in fonts and then fix them. I have managed to fix all my fonts thereof :) Download it here if you need it.

Forgotten Mother's Day?

I found a website a long time ago that you can download and print origami structures off! One of the ones in the Season section is a Mother's Day card. Fabulous! Here's one for Mother's day. There's loads others on here too.

Graffiti

I have noticed all over town the name "DAZER", written in graffiti. And I mean EVERYWHERE! On brick walls, on wooden walls, on lamposts, on buildings and flats, everywhere I go on my paper round is this name - "DAZER" - WHO IS IT???

I will get some photos on here as examples. I have also noticed the tag "Rx2" or "ROSIE x 2" everywhere as well - in my old Religious Studies class, lamposts, bus stops - who are these people?! I think they own the place! lol

And something I've noticed forever - ever since starting my paper round, I've noticed the same face on the fronts of the papers every single week. Her face mainly appears on the Daily Express - it is of course, Diana, Princess of Wales. I just find it REALLY ODD that her face is shown on at least one paper at least once a week every week! It is because she's a missing person? Is there a big search going on or something?! lol

How to... Update to the newest MSN Messenger 8.0

First, you need to sign up for it or receive an invitation from someone (a very good friend). If someone you know has invitations, ask them really nicely if they could send one to you. Otherwise, you will need to sign up for it here: http://imagine-msn.com/minisites/messenger/default.aspx?locale=en-gb

Once you get it, which may take a couple of weeks, you can then download the newest refresh of the BETA (This means that the software is not fully released and is still be tested, which is why only certain people are allowed to use it).

Download it here: http://g.msn.com/1csbeta/Mess80_EN. Remember, you can only sign into this version if you do have an official invitation to use it from Microsoft/Windows Live. Otherwise you must use the 7.5 version.

There have so far been two "refreshes" (this means updates) to the beta itself. The first time it looked a bit weird, with big orange and yellow buttons/borders, and had an annoying effect when you mouseovered your contacts. In the new refresh, it has been removed :)

If you still have the old version, you will probably be asked to download the new one when you sign in. The new version number is 8.0.0566

You can read more about all the latest changes and future changes to MSN Messenger on the official blog: http://spaces.msn.com/members/MessengerSays

How To... Take a Good Digital Photograph (The Gadget Show)

Brand Banter (BBC Click)

BBC NEWS - Technology IBM squeezes more into microchips

Google Pages - a new web hosting service

Get More from the Web with Internet Explorer 6

PrimoPDF - A free PDF converter, works like a printer

What is 'click to activate this control'?

This is a new "security" feature in Internet Explorer, updated Feb/March 2006.

Google Search

Microsoft Knowledge Base Article KB912945 (this is the update number)

How to use it - a detailed guide

Microsoft Word: Change Text Language

This is a long-awaited blog - one I should have written ages ago...

In Microsoft Word, as part of Microsoft Office, when you are writing something in say, French, you usually get red lines under most of what you've written. This is because the dictionary is set to English. If you change it to French, it will hide these "errors", and then when you spell something in French wrong, it will give you French corrections!

To set this feature up, highlight the text on your document that you want to write in French. If you want to do the whole page, press and hold CTRL+A on your keyboard then release. Then, when you've selected it, go up to Tools > Language > Set Language. Scroll down to French (France) and then hit OK. And there you go! Instant French.

The Truth... in a twisted kind of way...

I felt it was time to write a blog about my screen name, seeing that many people have asked if it is true.

~{ Owner Of A Lonely Heart }~

I first got the name for this from a song remixed by Max Graham, with the exact title as the name of the song.

I thought it was quite a good song, and a good video, when I first saw it.

But then I started to see beyond it - and that it actually relates to me, quite a lot. I think it is true because:

I do actually have a lonely heart. I have no-one of my own to love than those presented to me by default (this means my family and friends).

I am different. Yes, I know that we are all unique, but it is the choices that I make that are irregular. Here is the big cookie: I don't have a mobile ("because I don't need one"), I hate Apple and iPods, I don't go out, hardly ever (seriously), I don't drink at all, I have never smoked (and I never hope I do), and I spend too many hours on my computer.

I'm not really a good guy to be around with. People say to me that I'm really quiet. The only reason behind that is that I only talk if I need to, if I need to communicate. I also stand out - I never look like I'm enjoying something, that's only 'cause I find it difficult to show it. I also have a terrible attitude and personality - selfish, greedy, really really lazy, boring, ugly, big-headed...

I do things that very few people do, like wear fingerless gloves. (It's because I have a paper round, not because I'm sick or a hobo!).

Don't get me wrong if I'm talking about existentialism (pointlessness, futility), because I hate to get people down. But the fact is that I can live my life following all these things - well, so far anyway. At some point I bet I will need to change. It just means I have a lot of responsibilty (aka. anti-hypocrisy) to these things until then!