Computing desk | ||
---|---|---|
< April 29 | << Mar | April | May >> | May 1 > |
Welcome to the Wikipedia Computing Reference Desk Archives |
---|
The page you are currently viewing is an archive page. While you can leave answers for any questions shown below, please ask new questions on one of the current reference desk pages. |
I've just gotten rid of an old PC (an AT!). What's the proper procedure for making the hard drive unreadable? Where do I apply the hammer? Clarityfiend 00:33, 30 April 2007 (UTC)
sudo dd if=/dev/urandom of=/dev/[your harddrive]
a few times would also be fine. --
antilived
T |
C |
G
04:52, 30 April 2007 (UTC)Apparently the CIA/FBI protocol for destroying sensitive data is to wipe the hard drive hundreds of times, crush the drive until it is in grain size pieces and then turn it into cement. If I were you I'd wipe the drive a few times then open it up and look around inside for the main disk contraption
and then hit that with a hamer and destroy it. -- Lwarf 10:10, 30 April 2007 (UTC)
WOH! wait a minuit! why are you lot all talking about eraser programs and stuff like that? exactly how is a hard drive readable after youve attacked it with a hammer?
How can I convert a avi divx file to wmv? I have tied several "zune" software programs which are specifically designed to convert these files and none have worked. I have also hacked the zune registry keys to allow the importing and conversion of these files by Zune and they don't convert. I have also tried the media encoder microsoft makes as well as windows movie maker. None of them are working. Can someone please help me out. —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 67.169.106.72 ( talk) 06:38, 30 April 2007 (UTC).
-- Nerdd 21:50, 1 May 2007 (UTC)
Will the Geforce 8800 see a price drop anytime soon? Also: will DirectX 10 ever be supported on Windows XP? Down M. 08:03, 30 April 2007 (UTC)
Well, I put an old Panther OSX disc in in the hope of being able to reinstall over the previous owner's crap, the CD is, naturally, slot loading, which means that if I shut it off, and turn it back on, it boots right to the CD, which means it's kinda not doing anything for me. I try to proceed, and I get nothing but a blue folder flashing the two mac face logo and a ?, is it actually doing anything? Because that seems like more of an error message to me =/ And if it is, what the heck can I do about it? It seems to only give me options between trying to boot it and shutting it off. The terminal doesn't recognize unmount, and says that "help on is off.", so i'm kinda stuck here.-- Phoeba Wright OBJECTION! 09:43, 30 April 2007 (UTC)
Is there something like that program for Linux systems? If possible, using the same scripting language. -- Taraborn 12:29, 30 April 2007 (UTC)
This BBC article features a diagram of a digital signal, with a label stating "High peaks represent 1 in binary, while low peaks represents [sic] 0". This sounds like Non-return-to-zero, but do digital television signals actually use this method, or do they use Non-return-to-zero, inverted or something else? — Matt Eason ( Talk • Contribs) 14:22, 30 April 2007 (UTC)
The digital television signal is converted to analog using modulation. QPSK or 16- QAM or 64-QAM is used to vary the phase and possibly amplitude of a carrier wave to convey information. DVB-T is the standard used for this. If you look at the articles you can see there is much more to it than the BBC article. GB 01:56, 2 May 2007 (UTC)
I need help setting up a Broadcom Bcmxx wireless card in openSUSE 10.2 —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 68.158.149.51 ( talk) 14:37, 30 April 2007 (UTC).
I'd like to know what image editing program is best for making simple GIF animations, particularily one which allows one to import or create images (and convert the image format if necassary), change the frame rate of the animation (this is the most important aspect for me), change the frame rotation direction, and make it loop indefinitely. Adobe Photoshop sounds good to me, though I don't know if it has all of these features. If somone could enlighten me as to that it would nice. What I currently use to make animations is Game Maker 6, which I create the animations on and then import them to Microsoft GIF Animator to make them loop indefinitely (something Game Maker is not capable of apparantly). Though this process provides me with most of the options I listed, I can find no way to change the frame rate of the animations (which seems stuck at about 14 fps when exported to the web or any other application). Is it even possible to change the frame rate, or is it a set standard for all GIF images? BeefJeaunt 18:10, 30 April 2007 (UTC)
Hello,
How do you add 'Google Earth Community' things (the blue Is) onto G.E. for everyone to see? (I have a G.E. community account)
thanks, 81.77.8.49 19:28, 30 April 2007 (UTC)
If Microsoft Works was developed after ClarisWorks and both programs have similar functions, did Microsoft Corporation take the "Works" suffix from ClarisWorks and apply it to their brand name? Thanks very much for your response. -- Mayfare 19:55, 30 April 2007 (UTC)
"Works" is a common appellation for the low-end version of a software product. Appleworks was one, released two years before MS Works. In startup.com, venture capitalists nix the "GovWorks" name for the protagonist's product because "-works" means "low-end". -- TotoBaggins 01:55, 1 May 2007 (UTC)
Sidenote: From what I've read about software copyright law especially in the USA is that you can make a program with the same functions as a nother program and even a very similar layout - and it is not considered copyright infringement. If it was, Microsoft would probably have been shut down a long time ago. Rfwoolf 15:32, 1 May 2007 (UTC)
hello,
is there any way to convert videos downloaded from google video into a format accepted by microsoft movie maker? can you download the videos in a different format?
thanks, -- 81.77.8.49 20:28, 30 April 2007 (UTC)
What is the largest USB Flash Drive? - 68.193.147.179 20:36, 30 April 2007 (UTC)
If I use a Live USB, will it make my computer run faster? 68.193.147.179 20:38, 30 April 2007 (UTC)
Hi If your using Windows Vista then yes you can thanks to ReadyBoost which you can activate in the following manner how to speed up vista with a flash drive
hope this helps -- Nerdd 23:19, 30 April 2007 (UTC)
Computing desk | ||
---|---|---|
< April 29 | << Mar | April | May >> | May 1 > |
Welcome to the Wikipedia Computing Reference Desk Archives |
---|
The page you are currently viewing is an archive page. While you can leave answers for any questions shown below, please ask new questions on one of the current reference desk pages. |
I've just gotten rid of an old PC (an AT!). What's the proper procedure for making the hard drive unreadable? Where do I apply the hammer? Clarityfiend 00:33, 30 April 2007 (UTC)
sudo dd if=/dev/urandom of=/dev/[your harddrive]
a few times would also be fine. --
antilived
T |
C |
G
04:52, 30 April 2007 (UTC)Apparently the CIA/FBI protocol for destroying sensitive data is to wipe the hard drive hundreds of times, crush the drive until it is in grain size pieces and then turn it into cement. If I were you I'd wipe the drive a few times then open it up and look around inside for the main disk contraption
and then hit that with a hamer and destroy it. -- Lwarf 10:10, 30 April 2007 (UTC)
WOH! wait a minuit! why are you lot all talking about eraser programs and stuff like that? exactly how is a hard drive readable after youve attacked it with a hammer?
How can I convert a avi divx file to wmv? I have tied several "zune" software programs which are specifically designed to convert these files and none have worked. I have also hacked the zune registry keys to allow the importing and conversion of these files by Zune and they don't convert. I have also tried the media encoder microsoft makes as well as windows movie maker. None of them are working. Can someone please help me out. —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 67.169.106.72 ( talk) 06:38, 30 April 2007 (UTC).
-- Nerdd 21:50, 1 May 2007 (UTC)
Will the Geforce 8800 see a price drop anytime soon? Also: will DirectX 10 ever be supported on Windows XP? Down M. 08:03, 30 April 2007 (UTC)
Well, I put an old Panther OSX disc in in the hope of being able to reinstall over the previous owner's crap, the CD is, naturally, slot loading, which means that if I shut it off, and turn it back on, it boots right to the CD, which means it's kinda not doing anything for me. I try to proceed, and I get nothing but a blue folder flashing the two mac face logo and a ?, is it actually doing anything? Because that seems like more of an error message to me =/ And if it is, what the heck can I do about it? It seems to only give me options between trying to boot it and shutting it off. The terminal doesn't recognize unmount, and says that "help on is off.", so i'm kinda stuck here.-- Phoeba Wright OBJECTION! 09:43, 30 April 2007 (UTC)
Is there something like that program for Linux systems? If possible, using the same scripting language. -- Taraborn 12:29, 30 April 2007 (UTC)
This BBC article features a diagram of a digital signal, with a label stating "High peaks represent 1 in binary, while low peaks represents [sic] 0". This sounds like Non-return-to-zero, but do digital television signals actually use this method, or do they use Non-return-to-zero, inverted or something else? — Matt Eason ( Talk • Contribs) 14:22, 30 April 2007 (UTC)
The digital television signal is converted to analog using modulation. QPSK or 16- QAM or 64-QAM is used to vary the phase and possibly amplitude of a carrier wave to convey information. DVB-T is the standard used for this. If you look at the articles you can see there is much more to it than the BBC article. GB 01:56, 2 May 2007 (UTC)
I need help setting up a Broadcom Bcmxx wireless card in openSUSE 10.2 —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 68.158.149.51 ( talk) 14:37, 30 April 2007 (UTC).
I'd like to know what image editing program is best for making simple GIF animations, particularily one which allows one to import or create images (and convert the image format if necassary), change the frame rate of the animation (this is the most important aspect for me), change the frame rotation direction, and make it loop indefinitely. Adobe Photoshop sounds good to me, though I don't know if it has all of these features. If somone could enlighten me as to that it would nice. What I currently use to make animations is Game Maker 6, which I create the animations on and then import them to Microsoft GIF Animator to make them loop indefinitely (something Game Maker is not capable of apparantly). Though this process provides me with most of the options I listed, I can find no way to change the frame rate of the animations (which seems stuck at about 14 fps when exported to the web or any other application). Is it even possible to change the frame rate, or is it a set standard for all GIF images? BeefJeaunt 18:10, 30 April 2007 (UTC)
Hello,
How do you add 'Google Earth Community' things (the blue Is) onto G.E. for everyone to see? (I have a G.E. community account)
thanks, 81.77.8.49 19:28, 30 April 2007 (UTC)
If Microsoft Works was developed after ClarisWorks and both programs have similar functions, did Microsoft Corporation take the "Works" suffix from ClarisWorks and apply it to their brand name? Thanks very much for your response. -- Mayfare 19:55, 30 April 2007 (UTC)
"Works" is a common appellation for the low-end version of a software product. Appleworks was one, released two years before MS Works. In startup.com, venture capitalists nix the "GovWorks" name for the protagonist's product because "-works" means "low-end". -- TotoBaggins 01:55, 1 May 2007 (UTC)
Sidenote: From what I've read about software copyright law especially in the USA is that you can make a program with the same functions as a nother program and even a very similar layout - and it is not considered copyright infringement. If it was, Microsoft would probably have been shut down a long time ago. Rfwoolf 15:32, 1 May 2007 (UTC)
hello,
is there any way to convert videos downloaded from google video into a format accepted by microsoft movie maker? can you download the videos in a different format?
thanks, -- 81.77.8.49 20:28, 30 April 2007 (UTC)
What is the largest USB Flash Drive? - 68.193.147.179 20:36, 30 April 2007 (UTC)
If I use a Live USB, will it make my computer run faster? 68.193.147.179 20:38, 30 April 2007 (UTC)
Hi If your using Windows Vista then yes you can thanks to ReadyBoost which you can activate in the following manner how to speed up vista with a flash drive
hope this helps -- Nerdd 23:19, 30 April 2007 (UTC)