Wikipedia:Reference desk/Archives/Computing/2007 September 8

= September 8 =

Slow down animations
I use MSIE7 in WinXP. Is there a way to slow down animations such as to, say, 1/10th the speed? -- SGBailey 08:34, 8 September 2007 (UTC)


 * Yes, but it will take GIF editing software. Basically what you want to do is to increase the amount of time per frame by 10X. I would use Adobe ImageReady for that but I'm sure there is also a free way to do it. --24.147.86.187 12:31, 8 September 2007 (UTC)


 * Oh — do you mean, "is it possible for me to have GIF animations play slower in my browser?" If so, the answer is probably no, unless there is some sort of outrageously clever Firefox addition that takes care of it. --24.147.86.187 13:27, 8 September 2007 (UTC)


 * The latter is what I meant. Ah well. Thanks. -- SGBailey 21:44, 8 September 2007 (UTC)
 * One possible way is to have a seriously slow PC that does not have enough CPU power to keep up with the speed! Graeme Bartlett 00:27, 10 September 2007 (UTC)

BBC News 24 live online
I live in South Korea and I want to watch BBC News 24 live online. However, every time I try, the stream is not loaded.

I tried http://www.bbc.co.uk/newsa/n5ctrl/tvseq/n24/bb/wm/video/news24_bb.asx. However, my computer can't access to that asx.

Four addresses inside that asx also failed:
 * mms://wmlive-acl.bbc.co.uk/wms/news/news24_bb_s1
 * mms://wmlive-acl.bbc.co.uk/wms/news/news24_bb2_s1
 * mms://wmlive-acl.bbc.co.uk/wms/news/news24_bb_s2
 * mms://wmlive-acl.bbc.co.uk/wms/news/news24_bb2_s2

Now, what can I do?--JSH-alive (talk)(cntrbtns)(mail me) 10:23, 8 September 2007 (UTC)


 * What browser and OS are you using? --24.147.86.187 13:28, 8 September 2007 (UTC)
 * Windows XP and both Firefox and Explorer.--JSH-alive (talk)(cntrbtns)(mail me) 13:51, 8 September 2007 (UTC)

I just tried that address (IE6,XP,WMP 11.0), got the WMP, but after awhile it gave up trying to find the content. I live in USA. I doubt that your location matters. David 11:30, 9 September 2007 (UTC)


 * Works fine here - I'm in the UK. That link may be to the UK-only stream (see here). Try going to news.bbc.co.uk and clicking the 'Watch' icon in the top left. — Matt Eason (Talk &#149; Contribs) 18:57, 9 September 2007 (UTC)
 * It does not works.--JSH-alive (talk)(cntrbtns)(mail me) 05:13, 13 September 2007 (UTC)

usage of lattice constants in automotives and information about quantum computation
Hi, i want to know about the usage of lattice constants in automotives and quantum computers so please help me. —Preceding unsigned comment added by Sankar sudhan (talk • contribs) 11:53, 8 September 2007 (UTC)

game consoles
why do game consoles have processors in it when computers themselves have processors anyway? do I get any free games when consoles are bought? How much does a game cost? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 59.92.119.141 (talk) 14:50, 8 September 2007 (UTC)


 * The Wii is the only current console i know of that comes with a game, and games for the wii usualy cost around $40. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 71.195.124.101 (talk) 16:02, 8 September 2007 (UTC)


 * 1) Game consoles are, essentially, specialized computers. 2) Depends on the console. Sometimes special bundles are offered at a discounted price than if you bought the console and game seperately. 3) Varies from free to very large amounts for "Special Edition" versions. -- 68.156.149.62 16:47, 8 September 2007 (UTC)


 * Processors just run program instructions. Games are just types of programs. Consoles are just computers made to do one specific task (play gmes). --24.147.86.187 17:01, 8 September 2007 (UTC)


 * Are you asking why game companies don't just write games for general-purpose computers? One reason is homogeneity. All the consoles of a certain type have exactly the same computational hardware, so they don't have to worry about dealing with different vendors' buggy drivers and providing a low-detail mode for low-end computers and so on, which saves development time. Another reason is intellectual property. Console vendors like proprietary systems because they can charge royalties on every game sold, and game companies like proprietary systems because they make piracy harder. -- BenRG 23:42, 8 September 2007 (UTC)


 * Nintendo’s Wii costs US$250 and comes with a game: Wii Sports. New games for the Wii generally cost US$50 each.
 * Sony’s PlayStation 3 60GB version costs US$500 and comes with no games, the 80GB PS3 costs US$600 and comes with a game: Motorstorm. New games for the PS3 generally cost US$60 each.
 * Microsoft's Xbox 360's three versions cost US$279, $349, and $429 respectively. None of them come with a game. New games for the Xbox 360 generally cost US$60 each.
 * Sony’s PlayStation 2 costs US$130 and does not come with a game. New games for the PlayStation 2 generally cost US$30 -$40 each.
 * Microsoft’s Xbox and Nintendo’s GameCube are no longer in production and the prices of the consoles vary widely if you can find them at all. New games for these consoles are rare, but games for them are generally priced similar to, or slightly lower than the PS2’s games.
 * Hope that helps. 69.205.180.123 00:03, 9 September 2007 (UTC)


 * I hate the idea of game consoles (these people are still living in the pre-Amiga days..) but I'll admit one major advantage to them is the lack of operating system overhead. You do have to have a pretty good API to outperform directx and the like, even if you're running on a dedicated system, but theoretically you can get much better performance by trusting the game software and totally forgoing memory protection and other performance-draining features necessary to a real OS. I won't go into how undesirable it is to own a non-programmable computer or the ethics of signing "licensed" games and similar DRM (it's wrong.). --⁪frotht 22:18, 10 September 2007 (UTC)

Turn off the touchpad
In Linux, how do I turn off the touchpad on my Toshiba Satellite 5000, preferably only while a USB mouse is connected? Neon Merlin  15:15, 8 September 2007 (UTC)


 * I'm taking a guess you are using Windows XP and not Vista, 2000, etc. You can find the directions here .  Keep me posted. Monkeynoze 19:41, 8 September 2007 (UTC)


 * It'd help to read his question. He uses Linux. First two words. OP: I don't know, though only turning it off when the USB mouse is in won't be an easily found feature. Josh Holloway  20:38, 8 September 2007 (UTC)


 * Ummm he clearly said he's using LINUX? It would help to state your distribution, and it's better to ask on their forums than in here. --antilivedT 23:59, 8 September 2007 (UTC)


 * It's Kubuntu 7.04. Neon  Merlin  02:41, 11 September 2007 (UTC)


 * Some laptops have a button (near the touchpad) or a key combination (e.g. Fn + F7 or something like that) that turns the touchpad on or off. Your manual will tell you. --141.156.250.167 23:48, 8 September 2007 (UTC)


 * My thinkpad lets you control it via Fn+F8 (though those drivers aren't installed right now) and via the BIOS configuration utility. Look through your bios configuration. --⁪frotht 22:09, 10 September 2007 (UTC)


 * I use syndaemon(1) in Linux to disable the touchpad while typing. Assuming you have the synaptics touchpad driver (it's pretty ubiquitous), you should already have syndaemon; check out its man page. If you want to disable the touchpad completely (all the time, not just while typing), there seems to be an option value of the synaptics driver which you can stick in the relevant InputDevice section (look for 'Driver "synaptics"') of your xorg.conf:

TouchpadOff (Integer) Switch off the touchpad. Valid values are:

0  Touchpad is enabled 1  Touchpad is switched off 2  Only tapping and scrolling is switched off
 * A good heap of further information is on the synaptics(5) man page, so take a look. -- Daverocks (talk) 13:00, 11 September 2007 (UTC)
 * Both laptops I own have buttons somewhere on them that disable the touchpad. Have you tried looking for one? Luigi30 (Ta&lambda;k) 14:20, 13 September 2007 (UTC)

Detecting removable hard drive
I recently bought a removable hard drive(USB 2).When I plug it to the USB port of my PC, it is not detected by the explorer.How can i solve this problem.Thank u. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 202.70.64.15 (talk) 17:51, 8 September 2007 (UTC)


 * What OS version are you using (Windows XP, Windows 2000, mac, etc.) What brand computer do you have?  Do you have a laptop or desktop.  Thanks. Monkeynoze 19:43, 8 September 2007 (UTC)


 * One problem I had; I have some network drives which are disconnected. When I plug in a USB stick, Windows assigns it the drive letter of one of these drives - and proceeds to forget it's there. Maybe that's your problem, in which case you can view the drive in Disk Management and give it a different letter. Rawling 4851 14:16, 9 September 2007 (UTC)

gps in cell phones
a coworker claimed that all cell phones in the last few years have GPS, but that it's not necessarily enabled. True/false? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 12.217.199.246 (talk) 23:02, 8 September 2007 (UTC)
 * See Wireless Enhanced 911. I'm not sure if they're required to have it, but a lot of them seem to. Essentialy, it's more than just a GPS, it also used the cell-towers themselves to pin-point you.  Many phones seem to have an option to turn this on for all calls, or just on for E911.(Default)   My old phone had an option to turn it off entirely, but I'm just now noticing my current one doesn't. APL 23:27, 8 September 2007 (UTC)

Accidentaly closed tab
I accidentaly closed a Firefox tab. Wikipedia in Portuguese was opened and I has just translated an entire article, and I didn't save anything. Is there a way to get the information back? A.Z. 23:14, 8 September 2007 (UTC)


 * I could find it! There's a feature called "recently closed tabs". It wasn't actually an entire article, since there's one section left. A.Z. 23:21, 8 September 2007 (UTC)


 * You can also right-click on an open tab and choose "undo close tab" from the menu. It's a great feature.  --Sean 23:52, 8 September 2007 (UTC)

different connections for different applications
Hi. Can I have different applications use different network connections on my computer? For example, can I have my browser use my wired connection, and have my email client use my wireless connection to a particular wireless network, both connected to the Internet at the same time? Directions for Windows and/or Linux would be appreciated. Thanks. --141.156.250.167 23:51, 8 September 2007 (UTC)

Dual 12V rails on PSUs
If an ATX power supply has "dual +12V rails", does that mean that some number of connectors are on rail 1, and the others are on rail 2? Is there a way to figure out which connectors are on rail 1 or 2 if it isn't documented? Or do all of the 12V connectors pull from the same power source (then what's the point of "dual" rails..)? Thanks! --72.66.219.162 23:57, 8 September 2007 (UTC)