Budget Gaming Setup - Intel Core i5 with nVIDIA GTX550i

Good for games like NBA, Modern Warfare and other graphics intensive games at mid to high settings

COMPONENT	ITEM	PRICE
Processor	Intel Core i5-2400 (3.1G) 6mb 32nm	8,300
Motherboard	Asrock Z68 Pro3-M Z68 VSL/Virtu/ISRT	5,250
Processor Cooler	Stock (kasama sa processor)	0
Video Card	Gainward GTX550 Ti OC GS 1gb ddr5	6,150
Memory (RAM)	8gb Vengeance (Z8GX3M2A1600C9/B) 2x4	2,450
Hard Disk Drive	500gb Seagate Barracuda Sata3	3,750
DVD Writer	Any brand of DVD writer/reader	1,000
Casing	AeroCool VS-9 Black	1,750
Power Supply	FSP Everest Series modular (700W)	3,800
Keyboard	A4-tech X7 G800 gaming spillproof KB	900
Mouse	A4tech F3 Gaming mouse(F4-1050)	980
TOTAL		34,330

Prices are based on PC Express' pricelist. It shoudn't be of big difference (-/+) from other computer stores selling computer parts in Gilmore.

NOTE: Monitor not included in the list.

Budget Meal Setup - Intel Dual Core

Budget Meal setup - Good for Facebook, internet surfing/web browsing (not suitable for graphics/3d rendering intensive games)

Component	Item Name/Brand	PRICE
Processor	Intel G630 (2.7G) 3mb Pentium DC	2,900
Motherboard	Asrock Z68 Pro3-M Z68 VSL/Virtu/ISRT	5,250
Processor Cooler	Stock (kasama sa processor)	0
Video Card	Built-in (on-board graphics controller)	0
Memory (RAM)	4gb Lovo (1800C9D3LK2/4GX) 2x2	1,700
Hard Disk Drive	500gb Seagate Barracuda Sata3	3,750
DVD Writer	Any brand of DVD writer/reader	1,000
Casing	Any casing with at least 500w PSU	1,500
Power Supply	bundled in Casing	0
Keyboard	Any keyboard	200
Mouse	Any mouse	200
TOTAL		16,500

Prices are based on PC Express' pricelist. It shoudn't be of big difference (-/+) from other computer stores selling computer parts in Gilmore.

NOTE: Monitor not included in the list.

Phone as Modem without PC Suite / MPT

Sometimes, I find it irritating to run a software just to connect to internet using my 3G phone. Aside from being a memory hogger, accidentally exiting PC Suite or MPT disconnects you from the internet. PC Suite or MPT (or other companion software for your phone) has its purpose. Synchronization, address book, media uploading and downloading, etc. Installing the massive software to use as DUN dialer alone is simply an overkill.

I got the idea when I did the article about connecting to the Internet using SE P990i in Linux. We could assume that this article concerns Microsoft Windows environment as PC Suite and MPT run only in Windows.

Ok, so what do we need?

• Cable driver for your phone (modem driver)
• Your provider's valid Access Point Name (or APN) to access the net
• Administrator account/access (in the target computer)

Modem Drivers

• For Motorola Phones - Motorola Handset USB Driver (registration required). Alternatively, you can also use "P2k Driver" (do a google, download)
• For Nokia Phones - Nokia Connectivity Cable Driver (download the one that suits your type of cable)
• For Sony Ericsson Phones - As far as I can tell, there's no unified driver from SE. You have to download the specific driver for your phone. There's no installable driver-only package for SmartPhones from SE either. You have to download (and install) SEUS or PC Suite for SmartPhones to get the driver. Try to search (google). A repackaged driver-only installer could be around.
• For other phones, see your phone's manual or online documentation.
  

Access Point Name (APN)

Know your provider's APN.

• For Smart subscribers, for anything that concerns internet access - it's "internet". Regardless of subscriber type (post or prepaid). As simple as that.
• For Globe, I heard they have different APN for different types of subscription or service to be accessed, which makes things complicated. Imagine if you're using at least two SIMs in one phone. One postpaid and one prepaid. You can't just use any of them to access the internet without going to your phone settings and change accordingly.
• For other providers, call CSR.

The Steps

• Install your phone's cable/modem driver.
• Connect your phone. Wait until the phone is properly detected and drivers are installed. Your phone needs to be properly detected and installed before proceeding to the steps below.
• In your Desktop, right-click "My Computer" then "Manage"
• From the left-portion of the "Computer Management" window, click "Device Manager"
• Locate "Modems" in the device-tree, and expand it.
• Select your phone's modem interface. Right-click on it, and select "Properties".
• In the device properties, select the "Advanced" tab.
• In the "Extra initialization commands" box, enter (as shown in the image):
  
• AT+CGDCONT=1,"IP","[your_apn]"
• Smart users: AT+CGDCONT=1,"IP","internet"
• Some Globe users: AT+CGDCONT=1,"IP","http.globe.com.ph"
  

• Click OK.
• Create Dial-up connection and use that modem (dial-up# is *99***1#)
• Connect

Notes
The same initialization string could also be used on HSDPA USB modems, as well as Bluetooth modem (BT as modem). I've tested it and works with Huawei E220. Bottom line, the approach is to install the correct cable/modem driver for your phone. Enter the modem initialization string accordingly and you're OK. No need to install dedicated dialer software for your phone. If you have a 3G/UMTS/HSDPA phone, I suggest that you set it in 3G/UMTS/HSDPA only mode, that's for a faster connection.

Good luck!

Recover P990i Phone Lock Code

Forgot your P990i's Phone Lock Code?

Here's how to retrieve it...

Requirements:

• Your phone and DCU-60 cable
• XS++ 2.x

Steps:

1. Turn-off your phone (remove and reinsert battery to make sure it is completely turned OFF).
2. Launch XS++.
3. Enable (put check) on "Smartphone connect" (see image below).
4. Click "Connect" (see image below).
5. XS++ will spit some instructions, follow it (hold 'C' from keypad or keyboard).
6. Wait...
7. XS++ will spit some text (phone info, etc., INCLUDING YOUR PHONE LOCK CODE as shown in the image below).
8. DONE!

As Easy As That...

HOWTO: Connect to the Internet using SE P990i in Linux

I am using Linux at home (whenever possible). I can use P990i to connect to the Internet in Windows environment since this phone comes with driver/software for this OS. But what about in Linux? Here's how to do it...

Assumptions
This article assumes that GPRS/3G service is already activated in your SIM.
This article also assumes that you are familiar with Linux (esp. Debian Linux variants with GNOME desktop).

Requirements
SE P990i Unit (with SIM, indeed!)
DCU-60 Cable (bundled with P990i)
Linux (a Debian variant with GNOME Desktop)

Steps

1. Install WvDial and GNOME PPP.
2. Connect your phone.
3. Configure connection.
4. Connect.

Steps, explained...
Step 1

• Install WvDial (if not yet installed)

-$ sudo apt-get install wvdial

• Install GNOME PPP (if not yet installed)

-$ sudo apt-get install gnome-ppp

Step 2

• Connect your P990i to PC (via DCU-60 cable).
• When you connect your phone, 3 USB ACM (Abstract Control Model) devices should be registered (as shown below via "dmesg").

Step 3

• Launch GNOME PPP.

• Press "Setup".
• Under "Modem" tab, click "Detect" button.

• If it's not automatically detected (via "Detect") button, you can try putting the device manually (/dev/ttyACM1 in my case).
• Click "Phone numbers..." button, then enter *99***1# in the first line, and "Close" it.

• Click "Init strings..." button, then enter AT+CGDCONT=1,"IP","internet" in init 3, and "Close" it. This modem initialization strings are Smart Gold/Buddy specific. Replace "internet" with your provider's designated APN (i.e. internet.globe.com.ph (not sure) for Globe subscribers).

• You might also want to set optional settings in the "Options" tab (as shown below).

• "Quit" GNOME PPP.

Step 4

• Launch GNOME PPP.
• Enter anything in "Username" and "Password" (I used "test" for both).
• Select the phone number or enter *99***1#.
• Click "Connect".

When connected:

By the way, I am using Linux Mint (Cassandra) which is an Ubuntu derivative as far as I can tell. Ubuntu is Debian Linux variant.

P990i Internet Browsing via Bluetooth (with BlueSoleil)

I know my P990i's Bluetooth works when exchanging objects from another phone. But I have not tried its networking capability. Would it work? I have a generic bluetooth with IVT BlueSoleil software bundled with it. So on my laptop, I installed, configured and paired with my phone. I setup its PAN (Personal Area Networking), shared intenet connection (thru Windows XP's ICS) and tried. It worked! I can browse the net thru bluetooth.

What did I do? Read on...
Pair (or trust) each others' Bluetooth.
XP: Take note of PAN connection. I named mine as "Bluetooth PAN" to easily distinguish it.

XP: Enable Internet Connection Sharing in the connection (dial-up, LAN, WiFi) which is used for the Internet (right-click connection->Properties->Advance tab). Enable/check "Allow other network users to connect through this computer's internet connection". Select "Bluetooth PAN" as "Home networking connection". Note that if "Home networking connection" is not available, it means that you have just one prospective "Home networking connection" and it is automatically selected.

XP: Double check PAN connection. It should have 192.168.0.1 as its IP Address (this static IP is automatically set when internet connection is shared with PAN connection).

XP: Restart ICS service (in Windows XP services).

Run BlueSoleil software.

BlueSoleil: My Services->Properties->Personal Area Networking tab. Check/enable "Auto-start this service when My Bluetooth starts". Select "Set up Bluetooth Personal Area Network". Disable (uncheck) "Enable DHCP Server", as this will be handled by ICS.

BlueSoleil: Restart.
BlueSoleil: Check if it says that PAN is with 192.168.0.1, as shown below. Otherwise, repeat the process.

P990i: Go to Control Panel->Connections->Internet accounts.
P990i: Tap Internet accounts->New account->Bluetooth Internet (PAN)
P990i: Settings - Name it as you like (I named mine as BT Net), as shown below:

P990i: Devices - (Search and) select you computer's Bluetooth.
P990i: Tap BT Internet (PAN)->Roles and select "Client - Server"

P990i: Save and add it to your "Internet" group.
P990i: Optionally, you can remove other accounts from "Internet" group leaving only the newly created BT connection (BT Net) as it's member, as shown below. This is to ensure that when your phone tries to connect to the internet, your phone will not resort into using other possible connection. You can re-add other accounts again later, if you want (i.e. when want to use 3G or WiFi connection).

P990i: Save group.
XP: If not yet connected, connect to the internet.
P990i: Launch browser and try to surf the web.

Your phone should connect to your computer via bluetooth, acquire an IP address and establish a working network connection. You would see BlueSoleil spitting out a message that a remote device has connected to my Personal Aread Networking.

That's all.

Sony Ericsson P990i Debranding Adventure: the steps

In connection with the previous article, I've written down the steps I've made for documenation purposes. So that I wouldn't "decrypt" the whole thing again, just in case a redo should be made.

Piece of advice if you want to do the same thing - be careful, and be very careful. One mistake could render your precious P990 unusable. I am not sure but doing this could also void your warranty! Don't do it if your phone is SP locked, as I've read that locked P990 wouldn't accept any SIM card after the debrand.

The process requires replacing two specific files in a folder named blob_fs which is located in SEUS installation folder.

System Requirements

• XVI32 Hex Editor
• Sony Ericsson Update Service software (version 2.7.4)
• DCU-60 USB Cable
  
• Guts (lots of it!) and other softwares

The Steps

• 1. Install SEUS, back-up phone data and fully-charge phone
• 2. Update (or force update) P990 firmware to its latest (1st update)
• 3. Download and extract P990_R9F011_CDA1_World_Generic_1.rar from here
• 4. Determine the files to be replaced in blob_fs folder
  
• 5. Rename two files from downloaded archive (step #3)
  
• 6. Replace two files in blob_fs folder with files contained in the extracted archive (step #3)
  
• 7. Force update P990 firmware (2nd update)
• 8. Finally, force update P990 firmware again (3rd update, now for the new firmware)

How To Determine The Files To Be Replaced (the tricky part)
Two files are needed to be replaced in the blob_fs folder. But the names and size of these files differ from one firmware to the other. The first file is about 350+ bytes in size, and the second one is about 420+ bytes. To know the exact size, from Windows Explorer, right-click on the file, then "Properties". Under general tab, look at the label "Size:" (not "Size on disk"). Sorting files "by size" in ascending order helps.

The First File
As stated, the first file is about 350+ bytes, so in blob_fs folder, look for a file which is greater or equal to 350 bytes, but less than 400 bytes. The name of this file should be something like this:

FILE_NUMS_NUMS_NUMS_NUMS_XXX_INFILE_LONGTERM

where: NUMS are series of numbers and XXX is a 3 digit number

To be sure about this file, fire up XVI32, and examine it. The first 12 bytes of this file should be like this (in hex):

E3 4C 88 75 FB 5E CC C0 FD 57 70 20

As shown here: (same files from other P990 firmwares)

The Second File
Do the same as the first file. This time, look for a file which is greater or equal to 420 bytes, but less than 440 bytes, and with this name pattern:

FILE_NUMS_NUMS_NUMS_NUMS_XXXX_INFILE_LONGTERM

To verify, fire up XVI32 again and load the file. The first 11 bytes of this file should be like this:

E3 4C 88 75 FB 5E CC C0 FD 57 08

As shown here: (same files from other P990 firmwares)

Renaming and Replacing the Files in blob_fs Folder

• Rename the first file (350+ bytes from the extracted archive) exactly as the name of the corresponding 350+ bytes file in blob_fs folder.
• Rename the second file (420+ bytes from the extracted archive) exactly as the name of the corresponding 420+ bytes file in blob_fs folder.
• Copy and paste these renamed files to blob_fs folder, replacing the existing.
  

Locating the blob_fs Folder
I am not sure if it differs from one another, but in my installation, the blob_fs folder is located in:

C:\Program Files\Sony Ericsson\Update Service\db\13740270

P990i Captured Screens

First update (step 2)

Second update (step 7)

Third update (step 8)

Other 350+ bytes size files I checked

Other 420+ bytes size files I checked

HOWTO: Boot Ubuntu (Fiesty Fawn) LiveCD from Hard Disk Thru GRUB

This is more likely a follow-up post with regards to the previous post. This is somewhat more detailed in explanation. I've done it several times, so I made a short HOWTO for myself, and for others that may find this useful.

Required Knowledge: bootloader, Linux, Windows, File System, etc.

PREPARATIONS

LiveCD Files

Using your favorite ISO image extractor, extract Feisty Fawn's iso image to a VFAT/FAT32 (or ext2/ext3/reiserfs) drive/partition of your choice. Empty partition is recommended. It should be extracted in it's root. When it's extracted, the destination drive's root should contain set of folders and files that can be found in the ISO image (plus other files and folders that may have been already there).

GRUB

1. Using your favorite text editor, open "menu.lst" and add the following lines at the end of it:

title Ubuntu (Feisty Fawn) LiveHD!

root (hd0,3)

kernel /casper/vmlinuz boot=/casper splash

initrd /casper/initrd.gz

The line

root (hd0,3)

should be pointing to the partition where LiveCD files have been extracted. It's using a ZERO (0) based numbering for hard disk device and partition. So if you saved LiveCD files to the second partition of your first hard disk, this line should be:

root (hd0,1)

where:
hd0 = first hard disk
1 = second partition (of hd0)

2. Save "menu.lst"

BOOT IT

Reboot
From GRUB menu, select "Ubuntu (Feisty Fawn) LiveHD!" [enter]
Wait for the LiveHD to load

Ubuntu (Feisty Fawn) LiveHD

OK, I downloaded and wanted to try Ubuntu (Desktop) but I didn't want to waste a CD-R (that is if I find out that this distro isn't my cup-of-tea), so I wanted to run it from my hard drive.

After some reasearch, there's a HOWTO that tells how to install it from HDD via downloadable HDD-media, but this requires the alternate installer version of Ubuntu, which I resisted because:
1) I have to download the alternate - my bandwidth is slow; and
2) I don't want to install Ubuntu yet.

After a few trial-and-error combos, here&'s the summary of how I did it.