2008 January | Choto Cheeta Online

The Other Side of us

Jan 29th

Indian economy is booming, no doubt about it, we are in race to produce worlds richest men, one after another… TATA motors is coming up with their stunning RS. 1 lakh (USD 3000) TATA NANO… NRI are returning to India and spending hundreds of dollars. Foreign citizens are choosing India as their residence..

Banks are just their to hand you as much loan as you need. Our Stock Market is running faster than the fastest Farrery !

and yet, today once again I experience the other side of our economy. I experience a life and death struggle of a mother for her 9 year old child.

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Zune Software update !!!

Jan 28th

Posted by Choto Cheeta in Hardware

1 comment

After the Zune Firmware 2.3, Microsoft has just released update for Zune Desktop software….

The standalone installer from their web link Zune.net provides version 2.1

Where as auto updater installs the version latest 2.3….

Do you need version 2.3 update ??

If you have updated your Zune firmware to 2.3, then certainly you must upgrade the software to 2.3… If you are still running the Zune 2.1 firmware then it is not a must but still its recommended to obtain the latest software and firmware for your device to enjoy all feature and maximum performance…

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Windows Vista UAC prompt window darkens the screen, Force off (Disable) Aero

Jan 23rd

Posted by Choto Cheeta in Windows

5 comments

When your Windows Vista asks for a UAC (User access control) permission, like the bellow image,

it darkens the screen to temporarily turn off the Windows Vista Aero interface… The UAC prompt is no longer under transparent Aero…

Where as it may look like this,

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Quick look (Review) at View Sonic vx1945wm 19″ HD WideScreen with ViewDOCK

Jan 22nd

Posted by Choto Cheeta in Hardware

12 comments

View Sonic vx1945wm 19? HD WideScreen

The View Sonic vx1945wm, 19″ HD WideScreen TFT

Once again I find my self testing another vx series product from View Sonic, ever after I have crowned the super flop View Sonic vx1932wm one of the worst purchase of my life…

Lets quickly go with the specifications of the product…

Details of the Product

Product Name

View Sonic vx1945wm (version -3)

Product URL

vx1945wm VIEWDOCK LCD

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Quick Look (Review) at XFX 630i nvidia 7150 – Motherboard for a Budget yet performance Quad Core system

Jan 20th

Posted by Choto Cheeta in Hardware

86 comments

XFX 630i / Nvidia 7150 / HDPC / HDMI / Over Clocking / LGA775

One of the major factor for which AMD rules the budget PC market with their lower range X2 processors, such as X2 3600 upto 4400 is because the availability of cheap yet powerful, performance motherboards for lower range Intel Core 2 or Dual Core processors….

Though Intel do have a great low budget performance processor, which is Intel Dual Core E2140 available at Rs. 2450/- + 4% VAT (USD 75), however the only cheap but performance solution is XFX 650i Ultra with a cheap Graphics card… The lowest performance (Allowing OC too) onboard solution is ASUS P5B-VM (GMA x3000 with G965) or the recent ASUS P5K-VM (GMA x3100 with G33) both are well over Rs. 7500/- or USD 150….

We have lacked the balance in which a Low budget Intel system could come without sacrificing the performance…

Now with the recent launch of a budget Motherboard by XFX, it may all change !!!

I have got my hands to one of the brand new XFX 630i (7150), so let us take a quick look at the board.

Details about the Product

Product

XFX 630i (MG-630I-7159)

Price

Rs. 3450/- + 4% VAT (USA / Europe)

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Let’s build a Budget PC at USD $ 500 / INR Rs. 25000/-

Jan 18th

Posted by Choto Cheeta in Hardware

17 comments

One of most common question is now days, Can we have a budget PC which can run Windows Vista and still don’t burn a big hole in the pocket ??

Well Certainly we can…

Before I start, I would need to put some light on the word budget…

How much really should be a budget PC ??

A very subjective question… To some extend more in third world counties, the word budget means low end system, for example one would try to get a PC for USD $ 300 / Rs. 15000/- where as some may prefer a USD $ 800 / Rs. 40000/- as a budget PC… But by the volume of question I get, reflects the normal Budget is around USD $500 / INR Rs. 25000/-…

Second and most important factor which one may need to consider before choosing the products for the PC is,

What is your need for the PC ??

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Codec Nightmare

Jan 12th

Posted by Choto Cheeta in Software

9 comments

I have a video or audio file which I am unable to play… What to Do ??

I cant play the .AVI file, how do I play it ??

Few very common questions, I am receiving via Email now days… So many people out there are facing codec nightmare with audio and video files…

What is a Codec ??

In a layman language, its a format or technique in which an audio or video file is provided to you… There are video codecs and audio codecs…

Why do we have different codecs ??

Mainly because to compress the file size by not trying to lose its quality… There after few codecs tries to compress the video or audio file to smaller size for ease of transport via online of portable offline method… Where as some tries to compress the file but with possible mean of holding back the quality lose…

For example an audio codec would be MP3 or WMA… Where as example for video codec would be xvid or aac x264

You may read more on Codecs here at Wiki

Why dont my PC comes with Codec ??

Under your Windows OS, microsoft provides support for few default and populer codecs like MP3 or such… But all these codecs are 3rd party developed softwares…

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Some Google Search Hidden features

Jan 11th

Posted by Choto Cheeta in Web Development

2 comments

Google Web Search Features

In addition to providing easy access to billions of web pages, Google has many special features to help you to find exactly what you’re looking for. Click the title of a specific feature to learn more about it.

	• Book Search	Use Google to search the full text of books.
	• Cached Links	View a snapshot of each page as it looked when we indexed it.
	• Calculator	Use Google to evaluate mathematical expressions.
	• Currency Conversion	Easily perform any currency conversion.
	• Definitions	Use Google to get glossary definitions gathered from various online sources.
	• File Types	Search for non-HTML file formats including PDF documents and others.
	• Groups	See relevant postings from Google Groups in your regular web search results.
	• I’m Feeling Lucky	Bypass our results and go to the first web page returned for your query.
	• Images	See relevant images in your regular web search results.
	• Local Search	Search for local businesses and services in the U.S., the U.K., and Canada.
	• Movies	Use Google to find reviews and showtimes for movies playing near you.
	• Music Search	Use Google to get quick access to a wide range of music information.
	• News Headlines	Enhances your search results with the latest related news stories.
	• PhoneBook	Look up U.S. street address and phone number information.
	• Product Search	To find a product for sale online, use Google Product Search.
	• Q&A	Use Google to get quick answers to straightforward questions.
	• Refine Your Search –	Add instant info and topic-specific links to your search in order to focus and improve your results.
	• Results Prefetching	Makes searching in Firefox faster.
	• Search By Number	Use Google to access package tracking information, US patents, and a variety of online databases.
	• Similar Pages	Display pages that are related to a particular result.
	• Site Search	Restrict your search to a specific site.
	• Spell Checker	Offers alternative spelling for queries.
	• Stock and FundQuotes	Use Google to get uptodate stock and mutual fund quotes and information.
	• Street Maps	Use Google to find U.S. street maps.
	• Travel Information	Check the status of an airline flight in the U.S. or view airport delays and weather conditions.
	• Weather	Check the current weather conditions and forecast for any location in the U.S.
	• Web Page Translation	Provides you access to web pages in other languages.
	• Who Links To You?	Find pages that point to a specific URL.

Source => Google Help Center

Some Jokes about Rajnikanth

Jan 11th

Posted by Choto Cheeta in My Life

48 comments

Indian movies doesn’t necessarily mean Bollywood, its a vast country and just like bollywood, the south Indian film industry also has its fare share… One of the biggest name of South India film industry and also known face to bollywood is Mr. Rajnikanth…

As happens with all celebrity, he also has his own set jokes… !!! Bellow ones are circulating at many Indian forums, I thought it wont be a bad idea to give a little fun to my readers…

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What to buy AMD X2 or Core 2 Duo – read before you buy a Notebook / Laptop

Jan 5th

Posted by Choto Cheeta in Hardware

131 comments

Many, many new computer users are asking me one basic question about their computing need, a very basic question, that, What to buy ?? will it be core 2 duo or will it be an AMD X2 based computer !!

Which is Better between Intel Core 2 Duo and AMD Athlon X2 ??

To be honest, this is a subjective question, there are 2 answer for the question, depending on your budget and need (use of the PC / Notebook / Laptop)…

You must understand, its not just the processor which you buy, its a full PC which contains many other parts, some of them contributes more than a processor to the overall performance of the PC / Notebook / Laptop…

If you just compare just those 2 processor, then, yeah, its the Core 2 Duo always comes as clear winner over AMD X2 range but as I said its the full system which ensures the performance for your PC… So a Core 2 Duo highest end processor based PC which contains other improper hardware may stay behind an AMD X2 based system with proper hardware support…

There are 2 major aspect of making or chosing a system configuration… The 1st one is to judge is that would the real use for the system ?? Do you really need a higher end processor and such when you plan to do basic office job with some entertainment ??

For example, I receive many emails asking to suggest a notebook for Rs. 45,000 (USD 900 more or less) with main need for Basic office job and some entertainment, music, movie !!! Most of them prefer to spend the total amount of a higher end config, which them self may never use…

Few quick facts…

Compaq C702TUwith 1 GB RAM (it comes with default 512 MB, so ask the your vendor to update it to 1 GB) is fully vista premium compatible… Comes with Intel GL960 chipset with GMA x3100, which means it will run all vista animation and Aero effects with full acceleration, its Rs. 25,200/- (INR) with 1 GB RAM and incl all TAX… Though it comes with Celeron processor but can run any software, even Adobe Premiere Pro… However just the processing time would be lot longer for such resource demanding softwares… !!!

So what I want to point is that even you can buy a Notebook with as low budget of Rs. 25000/- to satisfy all your needs, but only when, you understand the meaning of the work which you intend to Carry out…

Therefore with Budget of Rs. 45,000/- to Rs. 50000/- for a notebook which you plan to use for mainly some office job, some imaging, little home video editing and entertainment, AMD X2 range would provide a better solution !!!

There is no real benifit for a core 2 duo processor if it comes with a Intel 946 chipset of GMA 950 as one AMD X2 with Nvidia 7150 or such chipset will out performe the Core 2 Duo based notebook then…

So ever woundered how about this bellow setup if you have a budget of Rs. 45000/- to 50000/- to spend on your notebook ??

Compaq V6608AU with 2 GB RAM upgrade Rs. 35,400/- (INR) and Invest the rest of the ammount (10 to 12k) for a 19″ TFT display such as View Sonic vg1930wm which is Rs. 9800/- and a good 2.1 speaker system…

Use most powerful confuguration at budget of Rs. 35,000/- at move and enjouy full screen movies and bigger screen at Home !!

White Balance with Nikon s51c / s50 Digit Cam – Dawn / Dusk vs Sunset

Jan 5th

Posted by Choto Cheeta in My Life

No comments

Before you read, please note, I am just another armature digital Camera user !!! So if you are a pro, then simply don’t read this article !!!

Just was playing with Nikon s51c white balance… Thought to blog about it…

One pretty confusing factor many is the White balance, there are many preset options are given, between them we see 2 options as, Dusk / Dawn and Sunset…

What is White Balance ??

To a common man, it is just a term which allows one to adjust the image colors properlly… If you need to know more about it, you may read more about White Balance at Wiki..

There are many Preset options are available for Nikon Digital Camera, such as s51c… Which makes most of us confuse is the choice between Sunset and Dusk / Dawn !!!

With simple testing I found that under both, at morning sunrise or at evening sunset its the Sunset while balance preset which gives us the best results…

Bellow are 2 pictures one of which is taken with Pre-set option Dusk / Dawn mode and another at sutset mode… One may him self spot the difference !!! Do note, that, there were no image editing tools are used with any of this pictures apart from Windows Paint to reduce the image size !!!

1st one is taken with Preset mode, Dusk / Dawn

2nd one is taken with preset mode, sunset !!!

Is this happens with just Nikon s51c ??

Not quite !!! tested with E5200 also… !!!

Once again the bellow 2 are same subject taken with 2 different mode, the 1st one is at
Dusk / Dawn mode and the next one at Sunset mode… !!!

With Preset menu mode Dusk / Dawn (Sunrise)

Taken with preset menu mode, Sunset…

So what to do ??

Personally I have felt, even if it is sunrise or sunset, when using manual preset white balance, Sutset works best for me at preset menu mode for white balance !!!

Zune New Firmware Version 2.3

Jan 1st

Posted by Choto Cheeta in Hardware

1 comment

Microsoft has released new firmware version 2.3 for Zune v1 and v2…. Which is available via Zune update service…

Few Quick Questions…

How do I obtain Zune update ??

You must have an active Internet connection and Zune Software installed in your PC / Notebook…

Where can I find Zune software ??

Zune software is available free of cost… You may obtain it from Microsoft via this link… Note, if you have a x64 based system then please download the x64 version of Zune software…..

I have the latest Zune software installed and I have an active connection, so now how can I update my Zune ??

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ChotoCheeta.com Stats – December 2007 – With New Hosting

Jan 1st

Posted by Choto Cheeta in Web Development

1 comment

I was not able to provide the last months stats because of a hosting change for ChotoCheeta.com !!!

However this month I have complete data for AWstats for the ChotoCheeta.com visit count and visitor analysis…

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Convert and Burn AVI (divx / xvid / mp4 / x264 / AAC) to DVD (VOB) / VCD

Jan 1st

Posted by Choto Cheeta in Software

25 comments

How do you burn movies or video which you have encoded under compressed codec formats as divx / xvid / mp4 / x264 / AAC ??

But before I start, I would remind you that if you only want to view the movies / videos at your PC / Notebook, then let them be under those Compressed format, as it saves a lot of disk space… If you have a problem on viewing them because of codec issue then either use VLC Media Player or download and install any codec pack, such as K-Lite or CCCP…

Do note, many modern DVD player supports MP4 / xvid / divx so even if you want to view the movie / video via your DVD player then check if it has the support for this codecs or not… If it has, then simply burn a DVD using Nero or any such software as DATA DVD and your DVD player (if it supports any or those codec) would be able to play the video !!!

This guide is for those who has an older DVD / VCD player which doesn’t support any of those codecs… This guide would explain step by step process on how to convert the divx / xvid / mp4 / x264 / AAC files and burn them in to DVD / VCD to make sure your player reads and play them !!!

How do I convert and burn AVI (divx / xvid / mp4 / x264 / AAC) video / movie file to a DVD / VCD ??

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