Hot Computers & Programming How-Tos


How To: Share Local Drives and Folders using Oracle VM VirtualBox with a Guest Windows OS
There are several virtual machine managers present in the market. However, the main functionality of all VMs are the same. Most people like to get free VM managers, so that they can install as many operating systems as they like over the host operating systems. One of these free VM managers is Oracle's VM VirtualBox, which can be downloaded from Oracle's website for all popular operating systems, such as Linux, Windows and Mac.

How To: Fix the click of death on a hard drive
If you have owned a lot of hard drives, you probably have experienced the clicking of death that indicates that your hard drive is having serious problems. This video will explain why the click of death happens and show you some processes you can try to fix the problem yourself.

How To: Hack the Google version of the Pac-Man game
To pay homage to the 30 year anniversary of Pac-Man, Google turned their home page into a fully playable version of the game. This video shows you a fun way to hack the game to earn a higher score when you play.

How To: Wipe the data from a Microsoft Windows XP PC with DBAN
Want to securely delete information from a Microsoft Windows XP desktop PC or laptop? It's easy! So easy, in fact, that this home-computing how-to from the folks at Britec can present a complete overview of the process in just over five minutes. For more information, including step-by-step instructions, take a look.

How To: Quickly force quit any program in Windows
Programs aren't perfect. Either are operating systems. And when one or the other (possibly both) aren't working as expected, your program may freeze up and become unresponsive. If this happens to you in Windows frequently, you need to know how to force quit the application, so you can restart it and get back to work.

How To: Rotate the Display on Linux, Mac, & Windows Computers
If you've got a desktop computer, I can almost guarantee that you've got a widescreen monitor set up in landscape mode. It's how just about everyone uses their monitor these days, including myself. Except that it's not always the best way of working.

How To: Find the "hidden" mic boost on Realtek HD sound cards
Need to adjust your microphone's input volume using the Realtek Sound Manager but aren't sure how? The 20db mic boost gain appears to be in a buried spot in the Realtek HD sound cards software, but it's there! In this video tutorial you'll see how to get to it.

How To: Create a Bootable USB Drive for Ubuntu Using Mac or Windows
If you've ever wiped your computer without having a proper backup of your operating system, or just wanted to cause some havoc online, chances are you've had to rely on Linux to help you out, specifically the Ubuntu distro.

How To: Create an Admin User Account Using CMD Prompt (Windows)
This is a quick tutorial on how to create a new administrator account on a Windows computer. Step 1: Open CMD Prompt...

How To: Lock Folder Without Any Software with Password
You can easily lock any folder on your Windows computer with a simple Notepad hack. By creating a batch file, you can hide a folder and require a password be entered before it becomes visible and accessible. This is a great tool for locking sensitive information, like pictures, financial statements, and a lot more.

How To: Fix your computer when it won't recognize your CD or DVD disc drive
One of the most annoying of the many annoying types of errors on Windows computers is when you computer won't recognize parts that have always been a part of it, like the drives or keyboard. If your computer has stopped recognizing your CD or DVD disc drive, watch this video. As long as the drive is still connected, the steps in this video should allow you to fix the problem and continue using your drive.

How To: Hack a computer by resetting the bios password
This is hardcore, serious hacking at its best. So it goes without saying that you probably shouldn't be attempting this computer hack unless you've successfully shut down your friend's computer at school using Command Prompt and sent out a fake virus to loved ones.

How To: Make a basic TAS in Super Mario 64
A TAS, in case you're outside too much to have heard of them before, is a tool-assisted speedrun. Basically you take a video game ROM and use some software like Mupen 64] to control the game's many parameters on a previously unattainable level. This allows for perfect manipulation of glitches and timing, and thus for much faster completions of the game than are possible unaided. This ...

How To: Disable a service or device driver preventing a Windows PC from booting up
Need help figuring out how to get rid of a bad service or device driver that's stopping your Microsoft Windows PC from starting up? It's easy! So easy, in fact, that this home-computing how-to from the folks at Britec can present a complete overview of the process in just over five minutes. For more information, including detailed, step-by-step instructions, take a look.

How To: Format a secondary hard drive in Windows Vista or 7
In this how-to video, you will learn how to format one of your hard drives in Windows 7. First, go to start and right click my computer. Select manage and a new window will pop up. Go to storage and select disc management. Now, right click the drive you want to format. Type in the name you want for the label and check quick format. Once this is done, press okay. Click okay to continue. This does not take too long. You have now formatted a hard drive. This video shows you the basic steps it ta...

How To: Hack Command Prompt at school to change passwords and more
Trying to focus on studying for your Stats final in the library but getting a serious ADD spell? Then make use of your time - while having a little fun with whoever else is in the library - by hacking into your computer's command prompt.

How To: Fix AMD Radeon HD Series Not Detecting Second Screen
Since I recently had this problem and fixed it, I might as well share the solution. This is actually REALLY simple to fix but will impact your cards' performance.

How to Find the C: drive on my Mac
In this tutorial, we learn how to find the C drive on a Mac computer. Unfortunately, Mac does not label their drives with letters like other computer systems do. You can name your drives anything you'd like, including "backup", "my network", "my folder", or anything else you want. To find these, just open up the Mac finder and the devices on the computer will show up with their icons. This can make things easier if you are having trouble moving things around. Making them your own names makes ...

How To: Replace a laptop CMOS battery
In this video, we learn how to replace a laptop CMOS battery. First, turn the laptop upside down and remove the screws around the panel you need inside. Set these aside and then pry the top up with a flat screwdriver. Now you will see the CMOS battery, remove this with the tab that is on top of it. Remove the battery from the area it's at and then replace it with the new one. Make sure you place it in just how it was before. After this, replace the panel on the top and screw the screws back i...

How To: Reformat your computer step by step
This video tutorial belongs to the Computers & Programming category which is going to show you how to reformat your computer step by step. Go to BIOS by restarting your computer. Go to BOOT menu, select CD/DVD ROM and press f10 to save and exit. Now insert your operating system CD, don't let it run, restart your computer again and keep tapping f8. When the set up page is displayed, press 'enter' to set up Windows XP. Select your partition and press D to delete. Then press L to continue deleti...

How To: Create basic 3D shapes using OpenGL and GLUT for C++
To start developing your own 3D games and programs, you're going to need to know the basics of C++, like shaping.

How To: Remotely Monitor Your Kid’S iPhone/iPad
Maybe your kids are using iPhone/iPad too much, as a parent, you want to know what they are having to deal with to help guide them through of that. Here is the tutorial on how you can parental control your kids on iPhone/iPad. You are able to monitor as well as take control of their devices. Kids’ activities on iPhone/iPad like SMS, chats, web browsing will be recorded and you can check them remotely with e-mail without getting access to the devices. OK, here comes the steps: Step 1:

How To: Easily open your NAT on a ZyXel router
In this Computers & Programming video tutorial you will learn how to easily open your NAT on a ZyXel router. There are three steps involved in doing this. Open your web browser and type in the router IP address which is normally http://192.168.1.1. Then you will get the log in page. The password is either 1234 or admin. It will be written on the packaging of the router. On the next page click on UPNP, then check all three boxes and click 'apply'. Then you click on NAT and set the start and en...

How To: Eject devices from the use of the terminal for a Mac
In this tutorial, we learn how to eject devices from the use of the terminal for Mac. First, go to the terminal of your computer where you will see a notepad sort of page. Next, type in "df" and then press return. You will now see a list displaying processes on your computer. On the bottom will be your public zoning device, which is your USB device. Next, type in "hdiutil eject -force (the code under "mounted on)- volumes-publiczone". This is not case sensitive, but don't forget or add in any...

How To: Clone computers across the LAN
In this video the instructor shows how to clone computers across the Local Area Network using BartPE and Selfimage. To do this first we will have an original computer. Now create the image of the hard drive of the computer and share it on the network drive. Now, using that image from the shared folder you can start the clones of other computers by overriding their hard drive using this image of the main hard drive. Using this technique you can clone multiple computers which are the exact dupl...

How To: Hack websites using cross-site scripting (XSS)
In this episode of Full Disclosure we are explaining the website attack known as Cross-Site Scripting (XSS). Cross-Site Scripting is a type of security vulnerability that affects web applications that do not sanitize user input properly. This kind of vulnerability allows an "attacker" to inject HTML or client side script like JavaScript into the website. Cross-Site Scripting is most commonly used to steal cookies. Cookies are used for authenticating, tracking, and maintaining specific informa...

How To: Change the administrator password in Windows XP
Locked yourself out of your Windows Professional system? No problem—this video tutorial will show you the steps required to change the administrator's password in Windows XP. You can actually change this password without knowledge of the original one. To get started, go to Start > Run… and type in mmc to open up the console window. Watch the video to figure out where to go from there.

How To: Fix a sticky mouse
This video shows you how to fix a sticky computer mouse. Probably one of the most infuriating issues surrounding computers, never let your mouse get sticky again! Fix a sticky mouse.

How To: Boost your wifi signal, hack your AppleTV and mod your Xbox 360
This video shows you a variety of hacks and mods for your Xbox 360, AppleTV and how to boost your wifi. You're shown how to make an antenna booster for your router, stream content to your Apple TV and upgrade the hard drive.

How To: Create a spinning 3D cube with OpenGL, GLUT and C++
In order to complete this 3D spinning cube using OpenGL and GLUT for C++ programming, you need to know the basics of C++ programming. This video lesson covers everything you should already know. Check out the other videos to get the full gist:

How To: Install Ubuntu in a RAID 0 array
RAID, or Redundant Array of Independent Disks, lets you divide and replicate data among multiple hard disk drives for information storage security. This video tutorial demonstrates how to install Ubuntu in a RAID 0 array. Before starting, you'll need at least 2 hard drives and an Ubuntu alternate installation CD. RAID 0, or striped disks, let's you install an operating system, such as Ubuntu, on a partition, while using others for data storage, as illustrated in this instructional segment.

How To: Setup the Verizon FiOS Router for multiplayer gaming
Learn how to setup the Verizon FiOS Router for multiplayer gaming. Most games and gaming consoles only require that UPnP (Universal Plug-n-Play) be turned on. The MI424WR Verizon FiOS Router that is manufactured by Actiontec ships with UPnP ON, as the default.

How To: Mount ISO files using Ubuntu terminal command line
In this video tutorial, viewers learn how to mount ISO files without burning DVD. This task is very fast, easy and simple to do. The first way is to simply right-click on the ISO file, go to Open With and select Open with "Archive Mounter". The second way is to open the Terminal program and type in the command line: sudo mount -o loop -t iso9660.ISO [directory]. Users will need to create a directory before using the terminal command line. Finish by pressing the Enter key. This video will bene...

How To: Turn any video into a screensaver on a Windows PC
You can make a screensaver with a MPG you get from the web and use "CamStudio" as one idea. You can use Infanview40, and install it the way you want it to open mpegs and add plug-ins that you get from the homepage.Open Infanview40, right click your .exe file to install in the program. Click "open" and Slide Show on INF.,scroll down to MPG that you want to add for your screensaver. Now the MPG is in the INFanview program,add to the screensaver.Click on "Play in full screen mode. Current Monito...

How To: Restore rundll32.exe on a Windows XP PC
In this video, learn how to restore rundll32.exe on your Windows XP machine. You can also use this method to fix or patch a missing or deleted Rundll32.exe file.

How To: Hack together a WiFi radio for under $50
In this clip, you'll learn how to create a WiFi radio with an Asus WL-520GU and a WL-520GU-ASUS wireless router. It's an easy process and this video presents a complete guide. For more information, including a full demonstration and detailed, step-by-step instructions, watch this helpful home-computing how-to.

How To: Remove the logic board on a Power Mac G5
Is your motherboard toast? If your logic board has burned out, it's a sad thing, but you're going to have to replace it. See how to remove the logic board from the Power Mac desktop computer.

How To: Setup basic port forwarding for a Verizon FiOS Router
This video explains how to set up port forwarding on the Verizon MI424WR router. See how to setup basic port forwarding for a Verizon FiOS Router.

How To: Install memory in an eMachines Desktop
Learn how to add memory (RAM) to a typical desktop computer. In this example, we show you how to install memory in a eMachines Desktop. Upgrading your desktop computer memory is easy to do and an inexpensive way to improve the performance of your desktop.

How To: Program a mouselook scroll for Java game development
Want to write Java applications but don't know beans about object-oriented programming? Never you fear. This free video tutorial from TheNewBoston will help you on your merry way to accomplishing just that. Specifically, this lesson will demonstrate how to work with the MouseLook class for a free look effect in Java game development. For detailed instructions, watch this programmer's guide.