Forgot your administrator password on Windows XP? and score your blog

Ever forgotten your administrator password on Windows XP? Here is a simple way to reset the password.


On another note, I ran don-veto blog on silktide's site analyzer and scored a pretty decent 8 out of 10, and here is the button to prove it :-) You can click on the button below to see the detailed report.





Pretty good for the minimum effort I put in setting up the blog, I did not bother to code any HTML I just changed the old boring blogger.com template to a public template I found on the web.

I am assuming it is a public template, I did not receive any threatening lawyer letter to date.

Word of Wisdom for Today

Normal is getting dressed in clothes that you buy for work and driving through traffic in a car that you are still paying for - in order to get to the job you need to pay for the clothes and the car, and the house you leave vacant all day so you can afford to live in it.
Ellen Goodman American journalist (1941 - )

Calling all bloggers, stand up and be recognized

Don't you sometimes wonder when you are sitting outside if that person next to you is a blogger and is someone you know very closely from his / her writings but never met him / her in public? A lot of bloggers want to remain anonymous so that they can be free to rant / rave / flame or reveal deep dark secrets they would not dare say otherwise. Other bloggers are more flamboyant (always wanted to use this word) and would love to meet other bloggers or their blog readers. So how can we recognize these fellow bloggers? The solution is easy, put this on:

You can buy it from here.

Oil will run out by 2015

I recently was playing around with podcasts and I subscribed to this financial podcast. I forgot the name of the podcast but basically the gist of the talk was according to 2 studies, the oil reserves in the world will run out within 10 to 15 years and he was talking about the implications like reverse globalization because of no fuel or obscenely priced fuel. Meaning no travel, no import / exports except through sail boats,electricity becoming a luxury item. Communication would still continue, there would still be internet but very dark days ahead.

That got me thinking, what I would do with extremely high power costs, no travel, no purchasing power, different or no job especially for me in Kuwait.

I would probably sit down and write a book about the golden days when there was abundant oil. In hard times people get nostalgic and the book would be well received. I also need to learn how to write a book by candlelight and how to recharge my laptop from my exercise bike:

What would you do?

Mind Reading Computer

Your computer can now read your mind. Computers have become so powerful they can even read your mind. If you doubt me, look in here.

Kuwaitishness is

I read this poem

Britishness is never learning any foreign tongue
Britishness is showing others how things should be done
Britishness is packing children off to boarding schools
Britishness is playing fair and sticking by the rules
Britishness is letting other people have their say
Britishness is silly hats on Ascot Ladies Day
Britishness is breakfasting on marmalade and toast
Britishness is caravans and weekends by the coast
Britishness is bowler hats and brollies rolled up tight
Britishness is holidaying on the Isle of Wight
Britishness is standing in interminable queues
Britishness is Harris Tweed and sensible brogue shoes
Britishness is feeding bread to ducks on village ponds
Britishness is Sunday tea of potted meat and scones


© Mike Lewis, 2004, All Rights Reserved.

This inspired me to write this pseudo-poem about being Kuwaiti.

Kuwaitishness is a trip to the coop with your driver waiting outside in the car, one maid to hold the kids and one maid to push the trolley.
Kuwaitishness is doing all your work from your mobile.
Kuwaitishness is riding Kuwait Airways like it was your private jet and rightly so.
Kuwaitishness is driving your car and half the time looking out of the side window.
Kuwaitishness is considering speed limits as only driving guidelines.
Kuwaitishness is knowing someone who knows someone in the traffic department to cancel any traffic tickets.
Kuwaitishness is kefee.
Kuwaitishness is being tough and hard on the outside and sensitive and soft in the inside.
Kuwaitishness is knowing everyone in Kuwait and everyone knowing you.
Kuwaitishness is going to any remote desolate region in the world and finding Kuwaitis there.
Kuwaitishness is traveling any major capital in the world and finding old friends you did not see for ages there by coincidence.
Kuwaitishness is the chalet in summer and the kashta (desert camp) in winter.
Kuwaitishness is knowing someone higher up that lets you skip any long queue.

Is your computer screen dirty? have it cleaned now

Is your computer screen dirty? go here for an instant wash. Your screen will love you for that.

Blogger's Block

I got blogger's block. I cannot think of anything interesting / technical / captivating / blood curdling / or funny. I need a muse. I don't want to write anything controversial or risque, my Mother is wired to the Internet and I don't want her reading anything I might regret later. I don't want to write anything political because we never know the real story anyway.

Well since you have been so nice to check my blog, I cannot let you go with nothing, so here is a link for some parody iPod silhouette ads.

You know you're living in 2005 when....

I found this list from the The Humble Doodaman blog

1. You accidentally enter your password on the microwave.
2. You haven't played solitaire with real cards in ages.
3. You have a list of 15 phone numbers to reach your family of three.
4. You e-mail the person who works at the desk next to you.
5. Your reason for not staying in touch with friends and family is that they don't have e-mail addresses.
6. You pull up in your own driveway and use your cell phone to see if anyone is home to help you carry in the groceries.
7. Every commercial on television has a web site at the bottom of the screen.
8. Leaving the house without your cell phone, which you didn't have the first 20 or 30 (or 60) years of your life, is now a cause for panic and you turn around to go get it.
10. You get up in the morning and go on line before eating breakfast.
11. You start tilting your head sideways to smile. : )
12. You're reading this and nodding and laughing.
13. Even worse, you know exactly to whom you are going to forward this message.
14. You are too busy to notice there was no # 9 on this list.
15. You actually scrolled back up to check that there wasn 't # 9 on this list.


All true for me.

no comment

My high moral values will not allow me to write anything about this but I still wanted to share. Have a look. You will be shocked / amazed / impressed / horrified / belly laugh / or just buy a few pairs.

Travel Tip for Magnetic Travelers

When I say magnetic, I do not mean you attract the wrong kind of people although that might apply to some countries.

You go shopping, find something you always craved, look in your wallet, not enough cash, no problem, you whip out your platinum / gold / proletariat visa card. The salesman scans it, beep beep, does not work. Ok, plan B, you apologize, leave your much desired merchandise on the counter and promise to be back in a few secs. You look for the nearest ATM, push in your card, enter your PIN, beep beep, card gets rejected. You leave to your hotel all sad, thank God you got enough taxi cash. You arrive to the electronic door of your hotel room, swipe in your key card, card rejected. What is going on here? It must be a real bad day for you.

Well the answer is not because someone does not like you, although it is a possibility.

The reason is you had your mobile / iPod / latest electronic gizmo right next to your cards. All those electronics have powerful magnets and they where busy erasing the magnetic stripes on all your cards.

Tip for today, keep your electronic gadgets as far away from your cards.

Productivity Advice to all the Working professionals

I use to have a palm pilot (electronic agenda) where I kept all my contacts,records and notes for the last 2 years then my Palm Pilot died. That erased 2 years of life critical information for me and I needed to search for my old paper notes just to get everything back.

That taught me one important lesson, never rely on electronics because they die on you. Now I changed my system to a fool proof indestructible, infinite storage, logical system, nothing can destroy it other than a fire that burns through my desk drawer.

The system consists of four essential components

1) Foolscap blue writing book
2) Current year Agenda/Diary
3) UHU stick glue
4) Mobile Phone

With the blue book, every time you need to remember something, or note an action you need to take or just scribble ideas, put a date on top of the page and write whatever you need to remember, never rely on your memory because you always forget. If you have it noted in your blue book, you immortalize it.

With the agenda, make note of all your appointments, meetings, date related events, deadlines, drop dead dates and things you MUST do on a particular date.

With the UHU stick, paste any important business card, memo, notice, paper on your blue book, and make a note about what you stuck on the opposite page.

I know, I said nothing electronic but there is no paper substitute for the mobile phone. Record all your contacts on the mobile phone, and always have it near you.

There is no right or wrong rule for writing in your blue book, 1 rule for the agenda, whatever entry you put should be related to the date you put it under. No rules for the glue, just stick anything that is important, and no rules for the mobile other than not to lose it or drop it in water.

If your blue book fills up, get a new one, and put the old blue book somewhere safe. If there is a new year, happy new year and buy a new agenda. If the glue stick finishes, you buy a new one. If a new mobile comes out, buy it, not because you need it, just because you want to be the coolest person with the coolest mobile.

Do you have a system? Share it with me.

Don Veto has left the building

I am on vacation after Ramadan and I have not been posting for the last few days. I was lying down watching the hotel TV and then... Beep beep Beep, I get a message from AM. His message says:

C'mon. Two days later and still no updates by the don. He must be having fun somewhere.


That made me realize 2 things,
1) I have an audience and I need to post more, which I promise I will try to.
2) My idea of fun is lying in a hotel room watching hotel TV, ordering room service and forgetting everything else.

Eid Mubarak

3idkom Mbarak to all. Have fun and drive safely.

Winter is here

Winter is here. The weather is getting cooler in Kuwait and around the Gulf. Get ready to get your heaters out, turn off your air conditioners and get your winter woollies out.

Now is the time to play in the snow, make snowballs, ski, but wait a minute! It never snowed in the Gulf, we did have some nasty hailstones but no real snow. Well now we do. You can find snow laden slopes at the Mall of the Emirates. The Mall of the Emirates is the largest shopping center outside North America. The Mall of the Emirates is located on Shaikh Zayed Road, Dubai, United Arab Emirates.

Here are some real live pictures.

The Answer to the unanswered question, what is Life?

Life is not really what it seems.