urbestfreind

[hide=DVD drive question]Alright, recently I bought WoW after a friend got me hooked on playing it. Now, he had 5 install discs, just regular CD's. I thought that would be fine, my CD drive opens if you use the drive release with a paperclip the first time, so I figured no big deal. Well, I rode my bike up to Wal-Mart (it's only a mile or so to my house from there, and I was coming back from a friend's house anyways, cutting right infront). I bought the disc, opened it up, read through part of the manual, and went to install the game. I put the disc in, the drive sounds like its working, green light goes on, open up my computer...no disc? Right click > explore..."please insert a disc into drive"...huh? I thought maybe it was a bad disc...I went on my mom's desktop, instant success (although her computer doesn't have enough RAM to play the game right)... Well, my laptop can read the DVD as well...so is there any way I can link desktop to desktop, or laptop to desktop, and use the dvd drive from my laptop or my mom's computer as if it was the one for my desktop? I'd prefer not to go hunting for a new drive, as money is really tight around here, and finding a compatable one for cheap is no easy task (this motherboard is around 4-5 years old, limited connections). If not, and I get the specs off of the Desktop, can someone help me find a cheap drive that is compatable with my system?[/hide] [hide=System files question]Alright, I have a desktop computer that was recently hit with a major virus (which downloaded a whole bunch of crap, including winantivirus 2007 or something like that)...Well, I cleaned it out as best I could (running Norton, McAfee, Spybot, and Ad-Aware, and I may try Avira soon... Well, after that virus hit me, and I started the cleanup process, my computer has been really slow to boot. I booted up in Safe Mode to try and troubleshoot the problem, and I found that my system hangs mainly on agp440.sys. I did install some new parts just before the virus hit, including a new video card, and a ram chip, along with a new network card. I believe all the drivers and everything was updated recently, but I think this may also be cause for some of the slowdown. Oh, I just remembered, yesterday I installed a second hard drive on the desktop. It is the same model, capacity, everything, just a few different files (it came off my grandparents computer when the motherboard and a few other parts quit). So, copying files from there would be the most sensible if I could. Now, All 4 of the computers in the house run the same version of XP. Is there any way I can copy a good copy of this system file (agp440.sys) from one computer, and replace the bad one with it? Or, is there another course of action I must take? This slow startup is annoying, it was never really this slow, taking 20-30 minutes to boot up completely.[/hide] Any help on either of the above is appreciated. Hopefully I can get back to my desktop soon.

If you want to do a total reformat, you could try DBAN, but this would require you to have the OS and other discs to make sure everything is working properly, as DBAN will complely rewrite your drive (running it 2-3 times will almost ensure that there is nothing recoverable). And don't try google BlackXp and download it. The first site was rated as giving out bad viruses, and had 2400+ bad (virus-filled) downloads. The next few results weren't much better. It's either made as a theme or as a complete(ly illegal pirated) copy of XP with some other apps. Both are dangerous to download as they often contain viruses/malware. If you want to get an OS disc, get it the legal way, by contacting your computer's manufacturer and buying a copy. It's generally cheap. If you still have the product key, just grab a disc from a friend. The disc doesn't matter, but the product key does. After obtaining the disc, you can use your key and use all the features, legally and without potential harm to your computer.

Just to make doubly sure before going to spend money on a new battery, try running the laptop with the power cord in, but no battery. It's saved me a pretty penny in the past. Other than it being a possible power cord or battery issue (which can be partially determined by the above suggestion), there are a few more possibilities. Next time it happens, get close to the monitor and make sure the room is dark, and check and see if you can faintly see some applications. This may indicate that your back light is dying. A good way to test if it is your lcd dying is to gain access to an external monitor for a bit. If you have a desktop computer and the correct port on your laptop (most laptops in my experience do), just disconnect the monitor from the desktop (after it has been shut off completely, of course), and plug it in your laptop, and try to set it as your main screen. If the laptop runs without error, your monitor is to blame. If the black screen still occurs, you may be looking at a memory problem. It could also be your memory refreshing. If you have a lot of programs taking up memory (like another user here who had something like 8 svchost instances running), this could be a plausible issue. Try to close extra programs running, or in the worst case, try a reformat (after backing up documents of course). Also, I can't remember if you put it in or not, but if your laptop is relatively new, and is still covered under warranty, back up any important documents (with CDs, DVDs, Thumb Drives, External Drives, whatever), call the manufacturer, and try to get a replacement. Alright, that's all I could come up with, so I hope it helps.

You're suppossed to wear your watch on your left wrist? Alright, adding on to Lenin's post: ~I seperate Skittles out by color, make groups of 5 (because there are 5 colors), eat the extra colors (usually in a rotating matter, like red, green, yellow, purple, red, etc.), then eat the groups. I don't do this with M&Ms or jelly beans, just Skittles. ~I chew on my headphone wire whenever I use them. I've actually eaten through a few pairs. ~Clothes go on in a particular order, or else I feel weird. Except in certain cases (for example, suits where the shirt must be tucked in) the order is: Undergarments, shorts, shirt, socks (right foot first), shoes (right foot first again). If I, say, put my left sock on first, I'll usually take it off and put the right one on first, else I feel weird. ~I usually eat food seperately, and in a certain order: meat, starch (potatoes, rice), vegetables. The only foods I'll mix together are scrambled eggs and hash browns, and country fried stake/turkey and mashed potatoes and gravy. ~If I'm watching a movie alone, I will rewind it multiple times until I'm sure I've heard every word correctly. ~I can't sleep unless I hold something. Usually it's a little travel pillow, but I have gone pillowless at a friend's house multiple times because I needed something to hold. ~I can't leave a light on in a room for no reason. I go through my house periodically and turn off unneeded lights. ~Everything has to go in certain pockets, or else I feel weird. My pencils/pens go in my right pocket. My mp3 player, money (sometimes a small wallet if I'm going out riding), and my multi-tool knife (if I have it) go in the left. Cellphone goes into a lower right pocket if I have one, or my right pocket. If I have a lower left pocket, I put gum in there, if not, it goes in my right pocket. Nothing goes in my back pockets. ~I throw things in people's mouth if they chew with their mouth open. Anything from straw wrappers to coins, even something found right off the ground. It's disgusting and the noise is unbearable. ~I flip toilet paper over so the roll goes over the top, not out through the bottom whenever possible, even if it's in someone else's house. ~I put my bowling stuff away in a specific order, or else I unpack everything and start over. First shoes, shoe brush, zip the shoe compartment, put a towel over the ball holders, put the heaviest ball in the bottom, lightest on the top, close that compartment and attach the velcro parts of the handle, then I put my powders away in a specific order depending on what I have on me, inside my ball polisher, and then put that in a front compartment. ~After a haircut, I'll stop and stare into mirrors or run my hand through my hair to see how it looks/feels, often requiring another visit (thankfully my grandmother cuts hair for a living, and my aunt does it as well, so it costs me nothing). ~I shower in a specific order too. Hair, rinse. Left arm and Right arm, rinse. Upper body, rinse. Right leg and rinse. Left leg and rinse. Face and rinse. ~I clean my glasses off before I put them on, always, even if I just sat them down. ~I must consider every option before I purchase something. Like, I'll go through and check the price and quantity of packs of gum for 10 minutes before deciding on one, which may give more sticks for less money, but have less flavor. The candy isle is pure hell for me... ~When listening to a song in a Spanish, I'll try to translate as much of it as I can. In German/French/Italian, I'll try to pronounce it as best as I can, and then try to piece together what the song means by words I know (or words that sound almost the same in spanish/English...like Horrorschu in German being horror show in English, because they sound alike (often this will backfire on me though)). ~When listening to a song from guitar hero that I play, I'll try to remember and air-guitar the buttons and strum bar if I'm alone. I probably have a lot more, but lunch is ready and I'm hungry, so I'll probably post later. Sorry for the long post..I guess I'm just a weird person.

I just went digging through my book crate (My bookshelf was too full so I bought a jumbo storage bin), and I found a few more gems. 1984 by George Orwell. This was a fantastic book about the ever-watchful eye of Big Brother and the thought police. Really a good read, but its a bit of a more..advanced book. It's rather pro-communist, and it does get explicit at times, but overall it's an excellent read. I've read it about 4 times, and each time I get something different out of it. Another good Orwell book was Animal farm, but I don't feel like posting another description (I think it's pro-communism too though, if that's any help). His Dark Materials (series) by Phillip Pullman, is a fabulous trilogy. The books are fantasy-themed, starting with the Golden Compass, then the Subtle Knife, and finally the Amber Spyglass. It's basically the story of 2 children who wonder around parallel universes, and face some epic events in their travels. The books are pretty well written, and I enjoyed reading them..Actually planning to re-read them this summer. The Giver by Lois Lowry. Great book about people in a society who are embracing "Sameness"...basically an anti-utopian theme. The giver is the holder of memories before the time of sameness, and he is passing them down to Jonas, the 12-year-old protagonist. Really a must-read IMO. I'm going to have to read this Wheel of Time series...Thankfully I live within a 5 minute walk of Books-A-Million, and a 20 minute bike from the Library. Easy access to books, yay!. It better be as good as all you people are saying it is. Glad this thread came around really. I've been meaning to find some more books to read, and so far I've gotten at least 20 books to read (between series and some individual books, plus some re-reads). Should keep me busy during the summer, and throughout the school year (I often read magazines during class if we have down-time, before class gets started, etc. I can get a good hour of reading in a day, which can be from 10-100 pages depending on the book/magazine). I would much rather read instead of just sit there twiddling my thumbs.

Because there are various levels of geekocity and more than one smiley was required to alert the reader to the amount of geekiness that was included in the text before/after the smiley was posted. Plus, evil_mumm_ra needed a smiley to look like him so he wouldn't hurt people with his knives, so now we have geek, and uber-awesome-goatee-wearing-knife-wielding geek smilies...Perfect! Why can't scientists and researchers create an alternative, renewable, and cheap fuel source faster?

Doesn't God know everything?

Pro: Adding different colored texts breaks up the monotony of seeing the same colored posts over and over. Con: Chlorophobia - fear of the color green, could scare people away from TIF forever. The US Economy going into a decline.

Yakety Yak - The Coasters Classic song.

Granted, instead of taking away posts, he deleted all the accounts and ip banned every user, and blacklisted most proxy sites. I wish I had a bike that I could do tricks on, but wasnt too small...like the DK Cincinnati but mountain-bike sized (mountain bikes break too easily if you try to do certain things with them).

Banned for making a pixel signature and avatar with clouds that look incredibly realistic.

I used to run almost every day, because it was a really good way to forget about problems and just have some fun. Running was really one of my passions. However, running is out of the question for me, or at least or any sort of long-distance running. A few injuries, including a dislocated kneecap that managed to tear the ligaments in my knee, requiring most of my summer to be stuck in a cast, then the hours of physical rehabilitation. Because of these injuries, I can not run for long or else I get sharp pains in my knees which have rendered me unable to walk for a time after. The closest I've gotten to running distance in the past 2 years is playing lacrosse. Even then I had to take periodic breaks (my coach was alright with it, unless we managed to piss him off to an epic level, which happened much too often). I do go riding a lot though. By riding I mean cycling for the most part, but I'm getting back into doing tricks. Me and a few friends of mine go out all over town about once a week. Our most recent excursion took us about 15 miles, with two 6-ish mile runs. I really enjoy riding, even though I cant do much else than just tail the others (much to the disdain of the guys of the group :lol: ). I can do small J-hops though (for those that don't know, it's a wheelie (manual) with a jump thrown in at the end, not a bunny hop, which is just lifting both wheels of the ground at the same time, no manual thrown in). The only bad thing is, with any sort of outdoor exercise, I have to be careful, because I live in Florida. For those of you who don't know, in the summer, the low temperature is 105 (alright, that's usually the high, but still, it's bloody hot here). I get dehydrated rather easily (I passed out in lacrosse twice). Sorry for the long post by the way :-w O:)

Lack of browse button..Meaning the button that lets you search your documents to find the avatar? If so, the fix is easy. Go to ImageShack and create an account (just username and e-mail. Quick confirmation, and they don't spam your inbox). Then browse for your image, upload it, and copy the url of your image (make sure it's the full-sized image, not the thumbnail option) to the relevant field in the UCP. I know it's a bit of a hassle, but at least you still have your avatar. Mine got lost when my computer died. If you need any more help, just post or pm me.

The first screamer I saw scared me away from the internet and indeed the whole computer. I saw it, exited out of IE (yes, I was so little I didn't even know what firefox was), shut down the computer, and sat rocking myself on the bed, wondering how I would explain my white-turned-multicolored underwear to my parents (alright, that last part was made up, but I probably came close to needing a new pair). I wouldn't touch the computer for days. Now I see them and occasionally I get a little spooked (that one game where you try to keep the ball away from any of the walls, and you get a screamer no matter what, that one scared me a bit, but I just kindof exited the webpage and went to another non-screamer-filled site. Once I managed to make a few videos that a friend wanted (it was a revenge thing), and I just added in a screamer on his favorite part...The screen would just go black (WMM ftw), for like 5 seconds, enough for him to get close and check, and the epic lulz start.

Well, on my desktop computer, I've been having some problems. First I put in some new parts (graphics card, ram chip, internet connecter...thing...and I got a new keyboard). As far as I know, everything was installed (like all the discs that came with said items). Then I got hit with a rootkit from hell, which I believe I have manage to eradicate entirely. Now I'm left with one major problem - Slow startup time. The computer always did take a bit to boot, but never this long. It is taking me about 20-30 minutes to get to my desktop. After everything starts up, programs open up fine, and I don't really see any more lag, aside from what I normally get due to windows being a suckish OS. I tried a bootup in Safe Mode today, and the file that it hangs on is Agp440.sys. From what (little) research I did, it seems to be like the computer trying to find parts on the motherboard that aren't there. I really need help fixing this problem, because I want to get back on my desktop and start using it again (I switch to my laptop after that virus raped my computer). The solutions I've seen require the XP install disc...Well, this desktop is a hand-me-down from my grandfather (with upgraded parts), and I guess he didn't get the disc (you know, one of those premade systems from Circuit City that has everything installed already)...So I need to get a fix without the disc if possible. Also, while I'm talking about the XP disc, can you use the same disc on multiple machines? Like, I found a program that can get me my product key, so can I use like my dad's XP disc (provided he hasn't lost it), and use the desktop's product key for a clean install? If you need more information, or if something wasn't clear, just post or pm me and I'll try to get it taken care of quickly.

*wonders if the old rule went away*...+1...*gets banned* But seriously, that series was absolutely amazing. Almost couldn't put it down (phantom and confessor killed me because I wanted to know how the book ended, but neither of them were out yet). What sucked about reading the series was I started at book 6 (Faith of the Fallen), because I got it as a Christmas present from my unknowing grandparents. Although the book did decent as a standalone, it was rather confusing at times due to lack of background, but I couldn't wait to read the rest, even if I had to go back 5 books, and reread the sixth. 12 books did get a bit expensive, but it was worth it. My favorite standalone book...Hmm...Hmm, I tend to stick with series, but I guess it would be "Neither Here nor There: Travels in Europe" by Bill Bryson, which is a rather comical journal of a the author's journey through Europe. Most other books by him are pretty good. For historical non-fiction (I think), The Last of the Wine was a great book, which went through the life of a boy in Ancient Greece. Good book because it taught a bit of history in a non-boring way. Definately have to watch this thread, I've been looking for some new books to read.

Banned for having a dancing banana for an avatar.

Mine don't affect me at all. Sometimes one of my friends will crack a joke about them, or someone will take them to be funny, but it is nothing that I take offense to. To me, getting used to wearing them and fearing what people may say and how you look in them is worse than what people actually do say. It could just be the group of people I hang out with, but even in my classes nobody ever says anything, to anybody who wears them. It's just a common occurance to see someone wearing glasses.

[/img] Couldn't find it in the guide so I made and cropped the screenshot myself. Also, for fighting sara wizards, take out arrows (best you have) and your best ranged armor. Then, turn on protect from magic, and run about 5 steps away, or until the wizard walks back. Then, simply attack it with your ranged weapon. This way, you kill the wizard without food, and your prayer takes all the damage. You do need an antipoison but bleh, those are easy to get.

Actually, if you look in the highscores, Eve340 is ranked 9th in cooking, whereas Uloveme is ranked 1. Since they both have 200M xp, and everyone else in-between does as well, this proves Uloveme was actually the first to 99 cooking.

2.5/10 cause its funny Breath by Breaking Benjamin

I would: Buy a Green partyhat - around 210m. This would be for investment purposes only. Cash left: 40m I would then buy 96 magic via Alchs. Cost - around 15m. Cash left - 25m I would then buy 180k Pure essence, which would get me 80 Rc via FFL. Cash left - 8M I would be quite happy then. I would have my partyhat which i would sell in the future for profit. The Remaining money would be for Runecrafting til 99. After 99 runecrafting, which would make an estimated 450M. Home free to buy whatever I want.

I do believe that scamming scammers is acceptable. Many have heard the old quote "Two wrongs dont make a right." However, when the person doing the first wrong has wronged others, and you have a chance to teach them a lesson and become profitable in the process, then by all means I say go ahead. Don't get me wrong here, scamming is wrong on many levels, especially in a game where the only real advantage of money is being able to buy whatever you want, and keep it, within the game. I do believe that scamming a scammer would benefit both parties. You would have maybe gotten some money, and have the personal satisfaction of possibly changing the ways of someone, and they would have learned what being scammed out of your items is like, and if they have any sort of good within themselves, they will change, or at least not scam for awhile.

Have you tried the quest guide? Tip.it had released the guide when I came on around half an hour ago, and it's probably been on for awhile.

Marim Dungeon from Monkey Madness quest. It has a whole bunch of zombie monkeys. Just get like 10+ to attack you, and throw a chinchompa. I hear rumors of 300k experience per hour Seriously, If you get the right pile, you can knock out 150-300k+ experience per hour (say at least 200 xp per Chin).