Tech Corner » Tutorials

Easy Google Pagerank Determination

Travis Cunningham — Sat, 07 Mar 2009 03:03:42 +0000

Here is a very cool trick (Found by Jimmy) to determine Google Pagerank on websites by modifying your search query URL on Google Search. The best part about this is that it returns the output in plain text, making it easier for developers to get this information without long scripts. This means you could write a Sphider Mod to get better search results or use it within a custom program to see how popular (or important) a website is on the internet.

Get the Pagerank:
To get pagerank, type in: http://www.google.com/search?client=navclient-auto&ch=656688533331624&features=Rank&q=info:google.com

To change the website in the request, simply change “info:google.com” to “info:” and the website domain of your choice (I.E. “info:thetechcorner.net”)

Be sure to change the value of “ch” (656688533331624) to a new number every time you request the page or else Google will deny the request to the server.
Note: Not all numbers will work, but keep trying random numbers until it works. There might be a reason for this number and it may have to do with the length of the url.

Reading the Output:
When you request the pagerank of twitter.com, you should get the return of: Rank_1:1:9
The last number (which is 9) would be the pagerank of the site. I don’t know what the other two numbers mean in front of that (maybe the version of the system??).

If you do not know how to write a script to find the pagerank from a PHP program, there is a great one here: DevPapers Google PageRank

Travis Cunningham

Chrome Nightly: mini_installer.exe isn’t updating

James Hartig — Sat, 14 Feb 2009 11:39:02 +0000

I downloaded the latest nightly build of Chrome, only to realize that the mini_installer.exe wouldn’t update my Chrome installation on Windows 7. I would run the executable, but nothing would happen. Finally, I decided to change the compatibility to Windows Vista and Vola!, it worked!

So if you’re having trouble with the mini_installer.exe, just right click the exe, goto Properties. Then goto the Compatibility tab and then choose Windows Vista. No matter if you delete the mini_installer.exe, the settings should stay the same for any mini_installer.exe in that same folder (Desktop?). So you should only have to do this once.

You can download Nightly Versions of Chrome with Chromium Nightly Updater or you can goto the Google Chromium Directory (and goto the last folder or the highest number). When installing at first, it will install a new version of chrome, called Chromium. Just transfer your “User Data” folder (within “%APPDATA%\Google\Chrome) to the Chromium folder (“%APPDATA%\Chromium”). Always download the installer, the ZIP is just a hassle.

Hope that helps!
- James Hartig

Klok: A free Adobe Air time tracking application

James Hartig — Thu, 12 Feb 2009 22:35:47 +0000

I wanted to find a free, easy application to track my time spent on various projects. I found Klok, its an Adobe AIR application! I downloaded it and it went fairly simple. The application is very simple to use, however it has a decent learning curve. I would say it took me almost 5 minutes to learn my way around the application, and I’m still finding new things out as I write this.

Project View

At first, when you launch the application, you are presented with the “Project View” screen. The first thing to do is add a project, so click the Add button near the top left. Then you type in a name and there are other options, for more advanced users, but I opted out of those at least now. Then for Sub-Projects, goto the properties tab for a given “Project” and then you are presented with a more details, like contacts, color, etc. Click “Add Sub Project”. (If you don’t see anything to the left, collapse and expand the main project and it will update.

Week View

Add as many projects as you like! If you happen to make a mistake or want to remove something, you can either right click on it and then choose “Move to Trash” or you can drag it over to the Trashcan icon in the bottom left. To empty you trash, just right-click on the Trashcan. Now, to start tracking, just right click on a project and choose “Work On”. At the top, you will notice it will change to “Currently Working On: [project name]” and then there is an arrow next to that. If you click that you can easily work on a previously selected project. I usually keep the application in the Week View, which easily shows you how your “week” broke down between projects. Along the left side there are various handles to change the view.

Finally, you can look at the Reports View at the top for various reports you want to print. At any time, select a project, and then under the “Views” bar you can choose to view a Weekly Timesheet or Monthly Timesheet. Next to the Minimize, Maximize and Close buttons, there is a double up arrow “^”, click that and the application will shrink to just the “Currently Working On: …” corner and you can put in in a corner of you screen. If you want to change various options (there isn’t much you can change), you can view the Preferences view and play with some of the options.

Overall this is one of the best Desktop Apps I’ve seen! It’s simple to use, yet advanced for power users. I normally have something to say bad, but I only have one small thing with this app: When making Sub-Projects, you shouldn’t have to collapse and expand the main project to view the updates; its just a small bug.

Awesome!
- James Hartig

Dual Boot iTunes, Share Library

James Hartig — Tue, 20 Jan 2009 18:07:10 +0000

I have over 6000 songs on iTunes and I would like to keep my current library on my new Windows 7 boot. However, if I make changes on Windows 7, I want them to be applied to my Windows XP boot, and vice-versa. I found that there are two ways of doing this, one that is very simple and the other for power users.

Method 1: Easy Way

Step 1: Make sure iTunes is setup correctly on your first boot and Consolidate your library (found under File -> Library or under Advanced menus)
Step 2: Note the locations of your “iTunes Library.itl” file and your “iTunes Music” folder
Step 3: Boot into the second OS. Install iTunes (if its already installed, skip this step)
Step 4: Launch iTunes and hold down Shift, you should be presented with:

Step 5: Click “Choose Library” and then navigate to your “iTunes Library.itl” file (it is probably on another drive or partition)
Step 6: iTunes will then proceed (if you get a message about keeping the folder organized, choose yes), but all of the files will be labeled as missing ( (!) next to song)
Step 7: Go to Edit –> Preferences then open the “Advanced” tab
Step 8: Next to the “iTunes music folder location” box, press “Change” and select your “iTunes Music” folder, which you noted in step 2.
Step 9: Make sure the “Keep iTunes Folder Organized” and the “Copy files to iTunes Music folder when adding to Library” are checked and press OK
Step 10: iTunes should now process and reload all of your songs, Enjoy!

Note: If you get access denied on any of the above steps, quit iTunes, go back to your other OS and make sure “Everyone” has “Full Control” on the “iTunes Music” folder and the “iTunes” folder (containing .itl file). This can be viewed via Properties –> Sharing and Security (right-click on the folder). The Security option is only available if “Simple Sharing” is turned off, which can be turned off via “Folder Options” menu and “View” tab. Check online for more information about Permissions and Simple Sharing.

Method 2: More Advanced

If you want the more advanced setup, transfer all of your songs (“iTunes Music” Folder) to a USB drive or network drive. Also, transfer your iTunes Library file. Then use the path to that path above and you can even use other computers, however I have not tested multiple iTunes running on one library at the same time.

Enjoy!
- James Hartig

Windows 7: Windows Installer Stopped Working

James Hartig — Tue, 20 Jan 2009 15:36:35 +0000

On Windows 7, when running a installer, you may get a dialog saying that “Windows® Installer Has Stopped Working”. This is caused by the “Customer Experience Improvement Program” and only happens every so often. The fix is easy, however.

Step 1: Open regedit (Start –> regedit (type in “Search Programs and File” box and hit enter) )
Step 2: Navigate to [HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\SQMClient\Windows\DisabledSessions]
Step 3: Delete everything in that “folder” except “(Default)”. Final result should look like:

Step 4: Close regedit and try install again

Other websites say that you should disable the “Customer Experience Improvement Program”, however I would keep it running, as it is vital to Windows 7 development and is fairly useful. I’m working on a batch script that you can run that should save you the hassle, but in the meantime, follow the above steps.

Update: If you want to make a batch script or similar, run “reg delete HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\SQMClient\Windows\DisabledSessions /va /f” (no quotes) as an Administrator.

I hope that helps!
- James Hartig

3 Plugins to Secure your WordPress Login

Travis Cunningham — Sun, 18 Jan 2009 22:58:14 +0000

I was browsing through the long list of WordPress plugins, looking for some good ones our site should have and I found 3 really cool ones that make your WordPress admin panel super secure.

First plugin you should install on your WordPress installation is Limit Login Attempts. This plugin tracks the number of times a user gets his username and password combination incorrect, and after a defined amount of attempts, it will lock, log, and email the WordPress administrator about it. This means brute-force attacks will be more difficult (still possible but not likely). Administrators can change some of the settings involving lockouts and resets.

Second plugin I recommend is Semisecure Login Re-Imagined. This plugin encrypts your login details when you submit the form (client side using javascript) and sends it to the server where it is decrypted. This also means bots will have a harder time brute-forcing your login because those bots cannot use javascript. This plugin offers 512 bit, 1024 bit, 2048 bit, and 3072 bit RSA encryption. This method is not quite all the way secure, but its better than the original plaintext method.

Last plugin I thought was pretty unique. The plugin is called PhoneFactor. When you have typed in your username and password and clicked “Login”, the plugin calls the phone number associated with the user account. From there, it asks you to press the # key to complete your login. The login page does not move on to your dashboard until you take action. I found out all you have to do is flip open your phone and press the key and hang up and it logs you in. So this means even if someone does get your username and password, they must also have your phone to confirm the login.

- Travis Cunningham

How to Decrease Windows Startup Time

Travis Cunningham — Sat, 17 Jan 2009 05:16:06 +0000

Many PC (or Windows) users are frustrated with their computer’s startup time. This is usually due to the fact that you have too many programs starting that you don’t really need when your computer turns on. By the time your computer finally does start up, you just want to throw it out the window. Here are some tips on relieving that frustration and making your computer’s boot time faster than ever.

The Quick Way

This is the most common way to delete startup entries (although not all startup entries show up here).

From this folder you can remove entries so they will not execute during startup. As you can see, my computer has 5 startup entries. – I definitely need to remove some of those. So give it a good cleaning.

(If you are looking to add startup items, simply drag the shortcut into this folder and it will be started on your computer’s startup)

Remove Registry Entries

As I said before, not all of your startup entries will appear in the last method, which is why we have to dig deeper. Some startup entries are hidden in your computer’s registry (which contains your computer’s settings and other important things).

To search within your registry for startup items, click Start > Run > type “msconfig”. You should see a dialogue. Now click on the “Startup” tab.

To disable items, uncheck the boxes next to the item. If you wish to disable all of your startup items in registry, simply click Disable All. When you are done, click OK.

Other Startup Editors

If you want an program to do this for you, I would recommend Startup Control Panel (by Mike Lin). It is a small program (76kb) that lets you see exactly what programs you have running during your computer’s startup, including registry and common user entries.

Simply uncheck what you don’t want in each location – You will not have to worry about any advanced configuration with this tool. If you are serious about making your computer’s startup faster, just uncheck all of them. It should not hurt your computer – but if you are having problems with it after you do this, I would recommend going back to this utility and re enabling your previously disabled items.

Here is a direct link to the zip file containing this program: http://www.mlin.net/files/StartupCPL_EXE.zip

Optimize Boot Files

How long do you wait for the Windows Loading Screen to move on? If you are waiting over a minute, you may need to optimize your boot files.

Mz Ultimate Tools allows you to do this.

You will see a difference next time you restart your computer. You can download this tool from here: http://www.mztweak.com/

Now What?

After you complete the above, restart your computer. You should see a significant decrease in time if you removed a lot of startup entries from your system and completed boot file optimization.

- Travis Cunningham

Inkball on Windows 7

James Hartig — Sun, 11 Jan 2009 22:58:15 +0000

You know that awesome game that Microsoft made only avaliable as a Vista Ultimate Extra? Wanted that same game on your Windows 7 Ultimate? Well thanks to “cephead” on jcxp.net, you now can play it on your new beta OS!

First download the zip: Thanks to Thomas Teuber. Make sure to “Unblock” (Properties->General) the downloaded zip before extracting. Then extract to Windows/system32, right-click and goto “Properties” -> “Compatibility” and make it compatible with Windows Vista. Then make a shortcut in your “Games” folder. Congrats!

Note: You might have to be an administrator for it to work.

- James Hartig

Error 4226: Event ID 4226 TCP/IP has reached the limit on cocurrent connections.

James Hartig — Tue, 23 Dec 2008 16:45:00 +0000

If you have been receiving:
Event ID 4226: TCP/IP has reached the security limit imposed on the number of concurrent TCP connect attempts.
or you plan on using any sort of BitTorrent or setting up any sort of server.

Tweak Tcpip.sys on Windows XP

1) Visit http://www.xp-antispy.org/index.php/lang-en/download and download “packed zip archive” for your language (filename is like “xp-AntiSpy_english.zip”)
2) Extract the zip file downloaded (Click “Next” -> “Next” -> “Finish”)

3) Open the new folder created and double click on the exe (something like “xp-AntiSpy.exe”)
4) Goto (in the top menu) “Special” -> “Connection Limit…”

5) In the new window that popped up (labeled “Attention” at the top), click “Yes, I got it.”
6) Choose the number of connections you want to allow (in the dropdown) (I would recommend at least 100) then click “Patch”
8) A windows popup should appear that says “The following files have been patched:”, click “OK”
7) Your screen should then look like:

8) Click “Exit”, then close the main window, then restart
You can delete the created program/folder or leave it there.

Tweak Tcpip.sys on Windows Vista
Follow the article here: http://www.mydigitallife.info/2007/04/09/windows-vista-tcpipsys-connection-limit-patch-for-event-id-4226/
(Sorry I’m not familiar with Vista)

note: if you install a new service pack or install some Windows Updates you will need to repatch the files.

Hope that helps!
- James Hartig
http://twittertrend.net

CHKDSK Error: Cannot open the volume for direct access

James Hartig — Sun, 21 Sep 2008 19:07:00 +0000

When starting up your computer (Windows XP) if you get a message like:

Cannot open volume for direct access.
The type of the file system is NTFS.
Windows has finished checking the disk.

when trying to run CHKDSK on the local drive, then follow the steps below.

Microsoft’s only solution is to install SP2 however, this will only fix the problem if there is another line “IFSUTIL: Can’t open drive. Status returned = c0000043.” is present. Most of the time, however, this line is not present and other steps are required.

Note: This solution has not been tested on Windows Vista, however if the above problem occurs, trying the following solution should not damage your system.
Note 2: You may want to print this solution because you will be required to restart in the middle.

– Basic Solution –
1 ) Goto Start -> Run
2 ) Type “cmd” (no quotes)
3 ) Type and execute in the Command Prompt window: “chkdsk /F” (no quotes)
3a ) If you were trying to perform chkdsk on another drive then type “chkdsk /F” then your drive (ex: “chkdsk /F D:”)
4 ) When it asks if you want to check the volume on the next system restart, press “y” and return
5 ) Goto Start -> Run
6 ) Type “msconfig” no quotes
7 ) Goto the “BOOT.INI” tab and check the box labeled “/SAFEBOOT”

8 ) Press Apply, then Close
9 ) When it asks if you want to restart, choose “Restart”
10 ) The chkdsk Scan should now successfully run
11 ) When the scan is complete, login, and once again goto Start -> Run
(If a System Configuration dialog comes up, click “OK” [see below] )
12 ) Type “msconfig” (no quotes) again
13 ) Once again, goto the BOOT.INI tab and this time, uncheck the “/SAFEBOOT” option
14 ) Click Apply, then Close, and then Restart

If you get the following window, when you computer starts:

Check the box next to “Don’t show this message…” and click OK

Afternote: You will have to do this everytime you want to run chkdsk on the local drive.

If the above solution did not work, please send me an email:

or comment below. If it did work, Congrats!

- James Hartig