Category Archives: Apple

How To Change Your iPhone Root Password

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Recently there’s been a lot of news about jailbroken iPhones being hacked and held for ransom or just having their wallpapers changed.

The reason this only happens on jailbroken iPhones is because they have the SSH daemon running, which is common in most jailbroken iPhones, with the default root password left unchanged. This will enable hackers to gain access into their iPhones and have total control over them, which basically means hijacking their phone.

They can send text messages from your number, use it to call or record your calls, and actually whatever they want, even use it for their hacking activities.

So to prevent it, all you have to do is to change your default root password, which is as easy as following the steps below:

Note1: This will only work if you have not changed your default root password before.

Note2: When typing in your password, don’t worry if nothing shows up. It’s just how it should be.

  1. If you haven’t installed MobileTerminal yet, go to Cydia and search for “MobileTerminal” and install the app.
  2. Launch MobileTerminal, type in su and hit return.
  3. When asked to key in your password, type in alpine and hit return.
  4. You are now logged into your phone as the root user. Now type in passwd and hit return.
  5. You will then be asked for a new password. Type in your new password and hit return.
  6. You will be asked to re-enter your password. Re-enter your new password and hit return.

You’re done! Your root password has been changed and your iPhone is secure once again for now. Right now all you have to do is to not forget what you changed your root password to.

My Blog, Now iPhone Friendly

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Just a few days ago I was talking to Keefe about the iPhone version of his blog and how I’m not worried about mine because of 2 reasons:

  1. I don’t have many readers
  2. I don’t know many people who uses the iPhone

Not long after our discussion, I started noticing more and more of my friends using the iPhone, mainly through Facebook, so the latter wasn’t so true anymore, and I decided to make my blog iPhone friendly as well.

My first attempt at searching online always ended up with results with “Just install <some name> plugin and you’re good to go”, which I hated. I don’t know why, but it has always been my personal preference to have it written right into the core of my theme rather than rely on a plugin. Frustrated, I quit my web browser and watched a movie instead.

During my second attempt, I found what I was looking for. No plugins, just altering my CSS file. All I had to do was to add following @media selector in my CSS file and target any elements within the curly brackets.

@media only screen and (max-device-width: 480px) {
}

We declare max-device-width: 480px because of the iPhone’s unique screen size. To style for average mobile devices, using the following selector should be sufficient.

@media handheld{
}

These methods are a nice way of enabling web developers and designers to style their websites to be mobile friendly. But occasionally, there’s bound to be some elements that just can’t be styled the way you want them to because of the original code itself being placed so ever obscurely. The way I countered this was by using a mobile detection script and adding an if/else statement in my PHP file. That way, I can rearrange all my codes for the mobile version of my site without having to temper with the original ones.

After hours of typing and clicking on the refresh button, I’m not-so-proud to unveil the iPhone version of my site.

Main Page

Main Page

Navigation Links

Navigation Links

Landscape View

Landscape View

Microsoft copying Apple?

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I recently read about the grand opening of Microsoft’s first retail store, named “Microsoft Store“, idea of the name taken from “Apple Store“? Very likely.

The layout of the store is almost the same as well, but you can’t really blame them, there really isn’t any other way to showcase computers……NOT. Those people at Redmond have been constantly trying to copy and compete with other operating systems, mainly Apple’s Mac OS X, but failed drastically. Quoting Peter Bright from ars technica on the new Windows 7 review:

Once up and running, after briefly admiring the new start-up logo, you’re presented with probably the ugliest default wallpaper of any current OS; even the fecal brown of Ubuntu is more aesthetically pleasing

The styling is inconsistent with the visual cues in the rest of the operating system (it doesn’t follow from the theming of either the new startup screen or the logo on the Start orb, or anywhere else that the logo is used), it’s inconsistent with the Aero Glass appearance that 7 inherits from Vista. And, most importantly, it’s just irredeemably ugly and horrid.

Microsoft did not only tried to copy operating systems, but ads as well. Not so long ago they forked out a large sum of money to make a commercial with Bill Gates and Jerry Seinfeld in it to counter Apple’s “Get A Mac” ads. 2 episodes were released, and it was a huge failure. It was meaningless and it was nowhere near interesting. It was just a total waste of time. Then they came out with their “Laptop Hunter” ads, which was a step-up from the Jerry Seinfeld ads, but didn’t quite his consumers too.

Apart from copying video ads, I’ve noticed that they might have also been starting to copy poster ads as well. I’m not going to say that they are, but the possibilities of it is undoubtedly high. While reading through the grand opening article, I noticed this picture:

Infinite Possibilities

Infinite Possibilities

An ad consisting of what looks to be like somewhat of a collage of Windows software images on the top and bottom of the poster, with a tag line in the middle.

As fas as I know, Apple has been using the collage method for quite awhile before it started to appear on Microsoft’s said poster.

App Store 500 Million Downloads

App Store 500 Million Downloads

App Store 1 Billion Downloads

App Store 1 Billion Downloads

App Store Turns 1

App Store Turns 1

So is Microsoft copying Apple? My take on it would have to be yes. I was a Windows user, since Vista, it has been giving me tons of problems. Problems that are better off solved with reformatting my hard drive, rather than spending countless hours going through and fixing files and registries, which is not a definite-problem-free solving method. I was convinced by a very persuasive, long time, childhood, friend, Keefe, to make the switch to a Mac. I was skeptical at first, mainly because of the price. But that bitch-ass mouth of his made me emptied my pockets to get this aesthetically pleasing piece of metal, a piece of metal that made me love computers all over again. Since the change, I never have the need to use a Windows based computer again. But under certain circumstances I will still have to face the dreaded Windows logo start button, which then I will go on ebuddy and start bitching about how my applications would crash unexpectedly. Or how it would take 3 minutes to start up Firefox because IE is piece of shit.

If Microsoft doesn’t stop with all the copycat business, we will probably be seeing things like these:

Microsoft Store Fifth Ave

Microsoft Store Fifth Ave

Zune Vending Machine

Zune Vending Machine