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The Best Place To Buy Domains: Internet.bs

Saturday, April 25th, 2009

I went through GoDaddy at first, probably because they’re the most advertised and everyone knows about them. They charge an arm and a leg for domain privacy. Not only that, but registering the domain itself really isn’t that cheap.

Then I moved on to NameCheap where I have ExtremeTechie and a few others. I thought that was a great deal, only about $10 for a domain and free whoisguard. I was pretty satisfied with it. Yet again, after more research I found there was an even cheaper domain service. I’m speaking of Internet.bs. My first order I bought 3 domains for only $15! Two .com’s and one .net. They all came with whois protection for free.

I will now be using Internet.bs as my main place to buy domains. Everything went really smooth, and it works just as well as namecheap or GoDaddy. I actually can’t stand GoDaddy anymore, I’ll never buy another domain from them. I may use NameCheap again though. They are a good domain provider, no doubt about it. Internet.bs just goes above only charging $5 or less sometimes for domains WITH whois protection. I don’t think any provider can really beat those prices.

You may wonder why I need so many domains, I need them for landing pages in my PPC campaigns.

Tags: domains, review
Posted in Internet | 4 Comments »

Vista Start Menu Review

Thursday, March 19th, 2009

Tired of your start menu moving icons around every time you install or remove new software? Want a more polished look for your start menu? Want a more command/keyboard friendly start menu? Well, I’m happy to say that the Vista Start Menu has provided these features and more. Now, I for one hate vista, so don’t be confused, this program works on Windows NT, 2000, 2003, XP, and Vista.

What exactly does it do?

This program will order all your programs in the start menu, and keep them there. They will not move around. I always found this annoying, because I would go to look for a program, and I wouldn’t be able to find it right away, because the order changed.

This program also gives you a command and search option right on the start menu. The search function will try and find the program if you input it into the box. This is very helpful, I have been down a road where I couldn’t find a program I wanted to launch!

The start menu has also been made more friendly to using a keyboard 100% and not having to touch the mouse. For instance, I can hit the windows key and be presented with the programs menu. There are then different areas in the program list assigned letters. Once I hit that letter, some numbers for each program in that area show up. Then I can hit the number, and that program is selected. Then I can launch the program. This is very cool. In fact, I like this feature the most.

There are also tabs in place, so you can move to the quick start menu easily, and put in programs you use often.

New programs are highlighted, for quick reference. This is very helpful, because I would look around for a newly installed program for ages sometimes. If too many programs take up the screen, then they are scrolled through. I’ve never had this happen to me, but I suppose if it got to that point it would be useful.

I also really liked being able to re-size the menu and move it around wherever I wanted.

There’s a few different skins to choose from, such as Vista start menu classic, Windows classic, and Windows XP. Depending on what skin you’re using in windows, one of these skins will obviously blend better.

Conclusion

I really enjoyed using this software, I think everyone who runs windows should give it a shot. It really does make things easier to manage. It is basically the way the start menu *should* have been setup to begin with. I did not test the Pro version, but from their site it has some extended features like quick launch, quick uninstall, and menu customization. A lot of the complaints seem to be that you can’t customize the free version. However, the free version seems to have most of the features you would really want. In case you’re wondering, there was no spyware/adware attached to this program, and I’m actually surprised about that. It is very easy to uninstall if you don’t want it anymore, it doesn’t change any system settings.

You can check it out for yourself here: http://www.vistastartmenu.com/

Tags: review, Software, start menu
Posted in Software | 4 Comments »

The DSE901 Electronic Cigarette Reviewed

Monday, March 2nd, 2009

I saw a post somewhere on the internet about these devices and was intrigued. I am a pack a day smoker, and I have tried to quit, but failed miserably on each attempt. When I saw that you could “smoke” healthier, I was very skeptical. Since I’m an electronic geek however, I thought it would be fun to try anyway.

There are three main components of an electronic cigarette. There is the cartridge, which contains a solution of mostly nicotine and water. Then there is the atomizer, which creates the vapor you inhale. The last component is the battery, which also contains the LED at the end.

When I first heard about these I asked a few questions. Why don’t more people use them if they work so well? The answer I found: Not many people know about them, there is very little advertising. Cigarette manufacturers certainly don’t want you to know about them, you’ll stop buying their product. There also may be something with the government, they want to continue to receive tax dollars from all the cigarette purchases. (Not sure about this one, just something I have read)

I am very pleased to tell you that smoking from an electronic cigarette almost perfectly simulates real smoking. I am simply amazed. The only real difference you will notice with this particular model, is that it takes quite a bit more inhaling to get a good “hit” compared to a regular cigarette. This could probably be remedied by trying out different models, I’m sure some produce tons of vapor, and almost perfectly emulate a cigarette.

The amount of time a cartridge lasts is kind of disappointing, I popped one in at 4PM and by 8:30PM it was done. However, I have purchased 60mL e-liquid that should get here fairly quick. I may have to rely on analogs for a little while till it gets here. Battery life seems decent enough, it’s still going strong after 4 and a half hours of use. I will update with a more full review of this particular e-cig once I’ve used it longer. Expect me to be trying out a few other models and listing the reviews here as well.

Do I think this will become a big hit in the near future with smokers everywhere? Yes I do. How can you go wrong with something that feels and tastes just like a cigarette? One exception! There is no other chemicals to harm you. No more tar, no more staining your teeth, the walls, no more smelling up the entire room when you smoke, and no more mess with ashes. How can you go wrong? My mind is made up, I’m going for the switch.

Remember, most do not advise that you use electronic cigarettes to try and quit. They are too similar to real cigarettes. I know it might sound like I am marketing or something, but I’m not. This is the truth.

Anyway, if you’re a smoker, and feel the need to switch to something healthier, I would say electronic cigarettes are going to be your best bet.

If you’re thinking of switching, you might also want to check out http://www.e-cigarette-forum.com/forum/ They seem to have the largest e-cigarette community

You can buy the DSE-901 here.

(Click to enlarge)

Tags: cigarette, electronic, review, technology
Posted in Software, Technology Reviews/Guides | 10 Comments »

FEAR 2 Project Origin PC Review

Tuesday, February 17th, 2009

Introduction

Well, apparently I’m very late to reviewing it. I mean seriously, these guys are quick, I noticed there’s already a walkthrough and everything up for FEAR 2. This is the internet however, I realize some people have all the time in the world to play video games, and I’m not a professional video game player.

I’ve read the reviews elsewhere, from sites like IGN and GameSpot. I pretty much agree with the review on IGN, but not the review on GameSpot. It’s also important to note that I am speaking of the PC version, I have not played the console versions at all, and I am running with the maximum resolution and graphics settings. (I do not own an Xbox 360 or PS3)

The Review

Many have said FEAR 2 is not nearly as good as FEAR. I disagree. I have found that FEAR 2 has almost exactly the same structure and gameplay as FEAR with upgraded graphics, weapons, enemies, and environments. I think the cause for worse reviews is because people have already played FEAR, and therefore, seeing Alma isn’t near as shocking. Why do I say this? I have played through FEAR multiple times, six times to be exact. Each time Alma got less and less frightening, however everytime I was scared at least once.

FEAR 2 is pretty scary in my opinion. The environments were very well done, they are enough to scare someone on their own. Alma pops up at various times, but the thing that scared me most were these guys.

(Click to enlarge)

Something about them, I just really didn’t like. I thought they were replacing an old favorite of mine, but I found out later in the game that they are still there

(Click to enlarge)

Their first appearance. One of them ripping off this guys head It was hard for me to get a screen shot, I was just kind of taking video and screen shots while I played with FRAPS.

As with FEAR, I was very confused about the storyline, I’m not going to lie, I never really paid attention to it. I did at one point, but even looking everything up on the internet really didn’t clear things up for me. Many others are just as confused. However, the main idea is clear. Alma is ready to kill everyone, and Fettel is controlling the clone soldiers

Action, action, action! There’s so much of it in this game. If you’re a fan of first person shooters in anyway, I highly encourage you to check this game out! I had a blast! (Literally!) You have mechs, you have machine guns, you have lazer guns, you have rocket launchers, sniper rifles, turrets, shotgus, automatic shotguns, and a photon launcher thing. ( I don’t know the name of it right now, sorry ) Want to slow down the action? Well you can, there’s slow mo past interval 01. Unarmed attacks? No problem. Right click your mouse.

One level I really enjoyed was the school level. Something about wandering around a school while ghosts, alma, clone soldiers, and other enemies try and kill you. It just makes it that much better

Many of the “puzzles” in FEAR 2 remain the same type as FEAR, and a lot of other first person shooters. Just find a switch, a key card, or something else and continue on. Sometimes it takes awhile to complete an objective.

One thing I really did not like however is that the phones are gone. Also, there’s no radio broadcasts. You just pick up intel files that you can read through. I really enjoyed listening to the phones and radio, so this is a major downer for me.

Humor from the developers? (You decide.. )

(Click to enlarge)

Conclusion

FEAR 2 is a rather short game, however it is quite entertaining, and brings me back to FEAR. Personally I found it was much better than Perseus Mandate and Extraction Point. Those were dull in comparison. However, there is something in me that says FEAR is better, but I’m going to have to say not by much. If you haven’t played FEAR, you should play that before playing FEAR 2, just because FEAR is and always will be a great game. If you’re wondering what I would rate FEAR 2 as, I would give it an 8.5/10.

YouTube

I made a short video from my game play, picked out some parts I thought were cool. Took me awhile to create so give it five stars

Find it here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YQe64rxolWQ

Tags: fear 2, first encounter assualt recon, Gaming, project origin, review, video, youtube
Posted in Gaming | No Comments »