Disable Speed Dial in Opera

Opera's Speed Dial feature offers a quick way to access sites that you regularly visit, but in some cases, like in mine, you may just prefer a blank page and the address bar when you open a new tab. To disable Speed Dial in Opera:

1. In the Opera address bar, type in about:config or opera:config. This enables you to access Opera's Preferences Editor.

2. On the Preferences Editor, under User Prefs, look for Speed Dial State. Set the value to 0 ( values: 0 - folded, 1 - normal view, 2 - Read Only and 3 - disabled ).

   

3. Click Save under the User Prefs section for the setting change to take effect.

Video player for .dav files

Trying to view recorded CCTV footage, I had to find a player for playing the .dav format that the CCTV DVR system was recording to. I found 2, the first one was able to open the file but did not properly display the video while the second one actually was able to play it. If you are trying to open a .dvr file, you can also try using any of these 2 and see if it works for you.

1. DVR365 Player
2. Mace SQ and HQ File Player

Stop Simplenews from sending out a newsletter ( Drupal )

This tip is for people using Drupal and a module called Simplenews for maintaining and sending out newsletters to an email list.

There might come a time when you need to stop simplenews from sending newsletters - maybe because of issues with the module or the Drupal site, or you accidentally sent the wrong newsletter to a certain list of users. Whatever the reason, below is a quick way of stopping Simplenews.

1. Backup your database first. You can use a module called Backup and Migrate to do so.

2. Open phpMyAdmin, and look for under your Drupal site's database the simplenews_newsletter table.

3. Determine the node id of the newsletter you are sending ( going into the edit page would show you the node id on the url ). Look for that node id on the simplenews_newsletter table, and click on the edit button on the left of the row ( pencil icon ).

4. Change the s_status from 1 ( which means sending ) to either 0 ( unsent ) or 2 ( sent ).

5. Empty the simplenews_mail_spool table ( this is where all the email addresses and status per message is stored ).

   You can use TRUNCATE to do this, as in the code below:

   TRUNCATE TABLE simplenews_mail_spool

WinFF - Open Source Video Conversion Tool

WinFF is an open source GUI for the swiss army knife of video conversion - ffmpeg. Supports most of the codecs supported by ffmpeg including flv, avi, asf and wmv. Features a simple and easy to use interface, and can do multiple conversions at the same time.

Platforms

WinFF runs on Windows ( Windows 95, 98, NT, 2000, XP, Vista and 7 ) and Linux ( Ubuntu, Debian, Redhat and Suse ). There is also a portable version for Windows.

Resources

1. WinFF Home
2. WinFF Downloads
3. FFmpeg Home
4. FFmpeg General Documentation

Creating a database in iWeb's PanelBox

iWeb is a Canadian web hosting company that offers shared hosting, managed and unmanaged dedicated servers and colocation.

What is PanelBox?

PanelBox is custom cPanel interface used by iWeb for its hosting accounts.

Creating a database

1. To create a database in PanelBox, first login to your account. The default url would be /cpanel.

2. Under General Options, click on Database.

3. Select whatever Database you want to setup > either MySQL or PostgreSQL. For this guide, we'll be using MySQL.

4. Name your database and click on "Create Database".

   

5. Now you need to create a user for the database you just created. Hover again over MySQL, and select "Add new user".

6. Name the user, and give a strong password. Click "Create User" to proceed creating a new database user.

   

7. Next step is to add the user you created to the database, hover over MySQL and select "Add User To Database".

8. On the Add User To Database page, select the user and database you created and hit "Submit".

9. Manage User Privileges page should appear next, check "All Privileges" and then click on "Make Changes".

Now that you have setup the database, you should be able see it under MySQL > Current Databases.

Random Image Banners in Wordpress

There are lots of different ways to get this done, either by using one of many Wordpress plugins, or just writing custom code. But for this tutorial, we'll be using a Wordpress plugin called WP Bannerize.

1. Download the plugin from this page. Extract and upload to your server, location should be your_wordpress_directory_root/wp-content/plugins.

2. Login to your blog, and on your left sidebar, click on Plugins. Look for WP Bannerize, and click Activate to enable the use of the plugin.

3. Once the plugin is activated, you should be able to see on your admin sidebar the WP Bannerize controls. You can now start adding banners by clicking on "Add new".

4. Browse for the image, and fill out other attributes like destination URL, etc.

5. Now that you have your banners ready, you need to insert into your theme the following:

   <?php if(function_exists( 'wp_bannerize' )) wp_bannerize('limit=1&random=1'); ?>

   Note:

   The default code would just be:

   <?php if(function_exists( 'wp_bannerize' )) wp_bannerize(); ?>

   but adding limit and random makes your banners appear in random order.

Help Japan

Last March 11, 2011, an 8.9 earthquake hit near the east coast of Honshu, Japan. The strong quake also caused tsunamis that caused more damage to residential areas, farms and vital infrastructures like the Sendai Airport and the Fukushima Nuclear Power Plant. Thousands have been confirmed dead, and thousands more are missing.

You can get more information and extend help through any of the following ways:

• Google Crisis Response page (2011 Japanese Earthquake and Tsunami) - Has a donate button whose proceeds will go the Red Cross Japan. Also on the webpage are other resources like Person Finder,Maps and Latest News.

• CNN | Tsunami aid and relief: How you can help - Has links to different organizations that are currently accepting donations and help for the people who have been affected by the quake and tsunami.

• Yahoo 7 news | DONATE FOR JAPAN - Links to different charitable organizations where people can channel through their support.

• Unplgged | The Japan Earthquake: How to Help - Links to sites, and mentions other ways to donate like via text and iTunes.