d-link dns-320l

i think i'm becoming a d-link fan.

just got a d-link dns-320l.

i actually got in touch with a store that was offering me the dns-320 for a good price.

another store told me that the dns-320 has already been phased-out and what they have is the newer dns-320l for about 28% higher than the price quoted by the other store for the 320.

okay, so i told myself. i'll just settle for the 320. i still have to buy hard drives right?

so off i go to sm north edsa. pretty place. much better than what i expected as i've never been there. (where was i living at? lol!)

well anyway, guess what the store gave me? they gave me a 320l because their supplier sent them the later version for the price of the 320 they told me on the phone. good deal i might say.

so here we go.

the dns-320 and the newer dns-320l are network attached storage (nas) devices. it's like an enclosure for hard drives.

hard drive enclosures are plugged into a pc or a laptop via a usb plug or an e-sata plug.

a network attached storage is plugged instead to the network so all devices that have access to the network can access the drives. think of it as a local youtube because what i have in mind is put all my medias in there.

found a few problems which a few might have encountered.

i create an account on the nas using my windows account credentials. this way, i don't need to login each time i try to access the nas on my pc. incidentally, the my windows account has a capital letter, i.e., "Dennis".

i created an account on the nas using the same name: "Dennis".

problem: "CIFS: Authentication for user Dennis has failed." this means no access to the nas.

solution: create an account on the nas using lower case: i.e., "dennis".

problem solved.

if using p2p or the bittorrent protocol, the settings page may look confusing.

the maximum download rate and upload rates are actually in kilo BYTES per second (kBps) and not in kilo BITS per second (kbps). kilo is represented by a lower case "k." bytes are represented by an upper case "B" and bits are represented by a lower case "b".

maybe the d-link dns-320l web ui guys can correct the page /web/download_mgr/p2p_main.html.

and so far, i have noticed this too: after a torrent has been deleted (leaving the torrent list empty) but leaving the p2p setting to "enable", this nas is sending out udp packets continuously.  probably dht? but continuously? this still holds true even after the nas has been rebooted, cold or soft.

also, the "stop seeding when meet" would only accept value of 100 or lesser. c'mon guys, some people seed until they're more than 100. it's good to seed.

i'm calling d-link support now.

the d-link dir-825 conundrum update

so d-link sent me an updated firmware (3.01 baby!) for the dir-825c1 router.

problem with short-gi is still there. perhaps the web ui programmers can check the /adv_wlan_perform.asp page. i think the problem is somewhere there.

the d-link dir-825 conundrum

the d-link dir-825 is a great router that holds a lot of promise. but of course, it's not perfect.

don't get me wrong. the pros overwhelm the cons. and the problems i have encountered will be what i will be discussing here.

it's not because i want to pick on d-link but because there seems to be no documentation about the problems i will be discussing here.

so here goes.

firmware issue

i have a d-link dir-825. hardware version: c1. firmware version: 3.00.

as everytime, i have a new hardware (or if there is a new firmware available) i update.

downloaded via dlink.com.ph the latest firmware. the firmware on their support page reads version 3.00b32 dated 20 sept 2012 and updated the router.

after the router has restarted, the web utility still reads current version firmware: 3.00; date: 19 jan 2012.


weird.

went to the d-link US website and downloaded the latest firmware. the firmware listed there is dated 12 jul 2012.

after updating the router, the information indicated in the web utility of the router is still the same, as shown above.

"short gi" issue

i wanted to turn short gi off. so i go to the advanced tab and advanced wireless section.


what's interesting here is the fact that short gi cannot be turned off. sure, i can uncheck the boxes, save the settings, and reboot. but checking the settings later would indicate that the short gi options are still checked.

here's another ineteresting discovery: when making changes to other sections and you opt not to reboot right away, an additional button appears: reboot now.

obviously, clicking on reboot now would reboot the router.

but while the reboot now button would appear on all pages, that button would not appear on the advanced wireless section.

the media server issue

this router can be a network attached storage up to a certain degree. up to a certain degree because anyone in the local network can have full access to the storage be it a flash drive or even a usb-powered hard drive. this means that anyone can upload and delete files.

by the way, i have tried fat32 and ntfs formatted drives/flash drives and they both work.

so here's the problem. i plugged a newly formatted flash drive into the router. rebooted the router.

after the reboot, the power indicator would light up and the lan port where a switch is connected ends up blinking (i have a switch plugged into the router; my pc is connected to the switch). that's all no internet connection.

i unplugged the flash drive and rebooted the router. everything is back to normal.

plugged in again the flash drive and tried to access the flash drive via windows explorer (\\192.168.1.1; i have configured the router to use another ip address instead of the default 192.168.0.1). no access to the flash drive.

i unplugged the flash drive from the router and plugged it in the pc and copied a single mkv file. plugged in the flash drive to the router again and now everything worked fine.

out of curiosity and as a form of experiment, i again reformatted the flash drive via pc, turned off the router, plugged in the flash drive into the router, and turned it on. now, even with an empty flash drive, i have now access to the flash drive as mentioned above.

inconsistent.

the media server name issue

there are ways to connect to the shared drive, the one plugged into the usb port of the router. it may be via the ip address: \\192.168.1.1 or via a name.

but by what name?

under the setup tab, at the media server section, there is a placeholder for the media server name.

but using \\dir-825 doesn't work. not even \\DIR-825.

so what to use? use the device name found at the network section under the setup tab.

so \\dlinkrouter works.

please note again that everyone in the network would have access to the your shared device.

as a further information, you can even share your files on the net. just enable web file access found at the storage section under the setup tab.

facebook: see who viewed your profile

every now and then, you might have seen a post inviting you to click on a link and execute some crazy and weird instructions saying you'd be able to view who viewed your profile.

but know this, facebook has said it that they would not implement that -- letting you know who viewed your profile.

here's what facebook has to say: "no, facebook does not provide the ability to track who is viewing your profile, or parts of your profile, such as your photos. applications by outside developers cannot provide this functionality, either. applications that claim to give you this ability will be removed from facebook for violating policy. you can report applications that provide untrustworthy experiences by clicking the "report application" at the bottom of the application’s about page, or by clicking "report" at the bottom of any canvas page within the application." (http://www.facebook.com/help/?page=840)

so some people devised something. they created some form of deception that claims to make you view who viewed your profile. turns out that this actually doesn't do what it claims to do. for how can it do such when only facebook has such data and they refuse to do the same?

after some research, here's what happens. they give you a site to visit which asks you to copy some weird javascript and asks you to paste it in the address bar of your browser. so what does it do? it only copies some data inside your computer (which facebook uses so it could validate who you are) and sends these data to their servers (not facebook's).

so what happens now? well, with that data, they can "clone" that validation code and pretend that they are you. so they now have access to your account.

"so what?" you say? well, if they have access to your account, they can do crazy stuff: they can post as you, add and delete your friends, and even change your password so you can't get in in your own account.

they can even start an argument with your best friend in such a way that your bestfriend could become your worst enemy. they could even spread the site they made by posting a link on your wall so your friends would think that you actually posted it. well, they actually use this method in order to spread the site.

why do they do this? some people pay facebook for a couple of reasons by using credit cards. and stealing information from computers is actually an easy way to get ahold of credit card information, which means, they could buy something online using credit cards they don't actually own.

another reason why people do this is to harvest email addresses. these email addresses may then be sold to spammers. so it ends up that these guys earned some money and you get spam in return.

so what do you do? disable the rogue application (if you have gone through a window asking you to give approval of an app to have access to your information) and change your password.

how do you disable the rogue application?
click on account.
click on privacy settings.
under apps and websites, click on edit your settings.
at the right of "apps you use", click on edit settings.
you now see all the apps you have given access to your account. check all the apps and weed out those you can't trust by clicking the x button (to the right of edit settings) and delete that app.
and lastly, did i say change your password?

help your friends from being a victim of this scam. share this note.

Who is Go Channel?

I was just playing around with my DVB-H capable phone and was curious if I could get some free TV signal.

And yes I did!

And if you think I live in some first world country, then you are wrong! My current location is Makati, Philippines, a third world country! Signal in Pasay is also as good.

So going back...

The only channel I got is Go Channel. For most of the afternoon, I've been surfing the net in order to get some more information about Go Channel but to no avail.

Surfing the net for more information, I read that Smart and Destiny have DVB-H broadcast but for a fee. But not so for Go Channel, at least based on my experience because I had my phone on offline mode when I first tried it on my phone.

So if you are an owner of a DVB-H capable phone and are curious, then Go Channel is the way to go. At the very least, while we are living in a third world country, we are also at par when it comes to technology with the first world countries.

Tweet on Twitter using Sun Cellular

Pinoys can actually post a tweet on Twitter using their Sun Cellular phones for just a Peso per post/send.

I read somewhere that this is possible and the steps are quite easy.

You need to register first:
Using your Sun Cellular mobile phone, text:

LOGIN [username] [password]

without the brackets and then send to 2555.

After the confirmation, you can start posting using your Sun Cellular phones by texting:

TW [message]

without the brackets and then send to 2555.

At first, I was kinda hesitant because I would be giving away my Twitter password. So I had to call Sun Cellular and confirm if 2555 is one of their service providers.

And yes, the Customer care representative confirmed that, again, yes, 2555 is one of their service providers.

It was not until I have posted a test post on Twitter that I have confirmed that 2555 is in fact a Sun Cellular/DMPI service provider named Sun Alertz, thus, assuring me that my account on Twitter will be secured. At the very least, they are not a fly by night service provider who might find it profitable to sell account names and passwords.

What's more, and this is a free plug already, (but I won't say NO if Sun Cellular would give me a TF for posting this) you can also receive alerts and enjoy unlimited use of the service by texting any of the following:

BUY 1, BUY 7, or BUY 30

and then sending it to 2555.

BUY 1 will be at PhP15 for a day.

BUY 7 will be for PhP50 for seven days.

BUY 30 will be for PhP150 for 30 days.

What a surprise!

Less talk this time.

See and listen for yourselves. I promise you, you won't ever regret having spared a few minutes listening to Susan.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RxPZh4AnWyk

On Chip Tsao, Filipinos, and the Supposedly Intelligent

For a few days already, Chip Tsao, author of the article "The War at Home," on the online edition of HK Magazine, has been a regular of local TV and broadsheets. Even on the net, he is famous. Filipinos here and abroad have lambasted him because of what he has written on the said article.

The first time I read the article was after he was on TV. Curious about the whole bruhaha, I decided to see for myself.

What I found was nothing but an article that basically hits on what may already be obvious, and adding a little exageration here and there.

I can actually understand the feelings of Filipinos who may have been hurt by what Chip has written. But to be bombarded by news about those who I was hoping to be intelligent enough to understand the difference between what was purely done just to insult and what was supposed to be plain satire makes me think that maybe this country's education system has actually going down the drain.

For sure, one may have heard already of a senator or a congressman with threats against Chip. Them who are in power are supposed to be intelligent. But the issue against Chip made me realize that while some or many of those who are in public office may have been to prestigious universities and colleges and even passed with flying colors, there is no guarantee that they could actually be intelligent enough to differentiate what is satirical and malice-intended.

For one, even if any whole nation agrees on something, that does not make it a fact.

Second, maybe Pinoys are too fond of jokes that we all hear and see on TV sitcoms and the like that we fail to realize that there are other ways in the telling of jokes.

Look, Chip is a whole lot different than Malou Fernandez. Malou was downright insulting.

But in fairness to us Filipinos, maybe Chip has forgotten that humor, too, aside from other things, is culture based, meaning, what others in another country may find to be funny can be received otherwise in another location.

This whole anti-Chip, anti-Filipino bruhaha made me remember what Qui Gon Jin once told the young Anakin Skywalker: it doesn't matter what others say about you, and whatever they say should not affect you, for what matters the most is the truth in your heart.