How to pause download of Windows Update

Since many years, I have set Windows 7 to automatically download and install any available updates. This way I know I run the most recent version of the OS and its security patches. Today, while being connected to the internet via my cell phone, Windows started a huge download bringing my already slow connection to a virtual halt.

It turns out that there is not direct way to pause an already started Windows Update download. However, if you have admin rights you can force the Windows Update service to stop. Simply launch a command prompt (cmd.exe) with admin rights and run

net stop wuauserv

REFERENCES:
[1] 'Start or stop Windows update service', Windows Command Line on 2010-08-21.

Calibre: Mirroring settings via Dropbox

Calibre is a free and open source e-book library management software that can sync to various e-book readers, including the Amazon Kindle. It also provides automatic and scheduled fetching of RSS feeds from various blogs and news sources, which is then instantly sent/emailed to your e-book reader.  I've been using it for the latter the last six months - it's much more pleasant to read blogs and news on a Kindle than on a computer screen.  Calibre is available on Windows, OSX and Linux.

I run Calibre on a computer at home, but when I travel I turn this off and run Calibre on my notebook.  Unfortunately, this means that I also have to keep update the settings and which news feed I follow on both machines.  However, it turns out it is rather simple to synchronize these settings across machines via a cloud drive.  Below is how you do it on Windows 7 using Dropbox.  Since this setup is not specific to a particular users, it can be applied to all of your machines running Calibre.

1. Make sure you have a Dropbox account and the Dropbox client up and running.
2. In your Dropbox folder (e.g. C:/Users/Joe/Dropbox/), create the following subdirectory  mirror/AppData/Roaming/calibre/.
3. [Optional] If you already have Calibre setup locally, you may wanna copy your current Calibre setting in  C:/Users/Joe/AppData/Roaming/calibre/ to this subdirectory.
4. Create a Windows shortcut of calibre.exe (e.g. type 'calibre' in the Start menu box), but drag'n'drop it to the desktop.
5. Right-click on the calibre shortcut icon and select Properties...
6. Only if 'Start in' is empty, then copy the value in 'Target' to 'Start in' and drop the last part contain 'calibre.exe', e.g. afterward is should be something like "C:\Program Files (x86)\Calibre2\".
7. In 'Target' paste the following as is (including the double quotes) as one line of text:
   cmd.exe /C "set CALIBRE_CONFIG_DIRECTORY=%USERPROFILE%\Dropbox\private\mirror\AppData\Roaming\calibre && calibre.exe"
8. [Optional] To have Calibre start in tray, add '--start-in-tray' after calibre.exe in Step 7, cf. Calibre User Manual.
9. [Optional] Set 'Run' to 'Minimized'.
10. [Optional] In the 'General' tab, rename the program to 'Calibre (mirrored)'.
11. [Optional] Click 'Change icon' and set the icon back to calibre.exe, e.g.  "C:\Program Files (x86)\Calibre2\calibre.exe" (the same as the original value of Target).
12. Click OK.

Now you can start Calibre by clicking on the 'Calibre (mirrored)' shortcut icon.  The first time you start it, you'll be asked a few setup questions, unless you copied your old settings in Step 2.

Do not Factory Reset your Rooted Android Phone (and how to fix it)

So I did it; I hit Settings -> Privacy -> Factory Reset on my rooted LG Optimus V Android 2.2.1 phone (despite having read that one should never ever do this to a rooted Android phone).  Phone tried to reboot, but got stuck in a loop at the Custom Recovery (a bootup menu).  In other words, I bricked the phone - or at least softly so, because there is a solution, which is particularly easy if you have/had a Custom Recovery installed.  This is what I did:

1. Powered off the phone.
2. Moved the SD card from the phone to my notebook.
3. Downloaded Xionia_CWMA_12518.6_VM_Recovery-signed.zip [5,068,663 bytes]
4. Copied the above ZIP file to the root of the SD card.
5. Moved the SD card back to the phone.
6. Start the phone by holding down Home + Volume Down, and then the Power button (until LG logo appears).  This will boot the phone into recovery mode.
7. In the recover menu, select 'install zip from sdcard' (navigate with Volumn Up/Down, Back and Camera keys).
8. Select 'choose zip from sdcard'.
9. Select 'Xionia_CWMA_12518.6_VM_Recov[...]'.
10. Confirm the installation by selecting 'Yes - Install  Xionia_CWMA_12[...]'.
11. Phone will now be reflashed (fast; a few seconds) while displaying:
    -- Installing: SDCARD:Xionia_CWM
    A_12518.6_VM_Recovery-signed.zip
    Finding update package...
    Opening  update package...
    Verifying update package...
    Installing update...
    *-* Flashing Xionia CWMA 12518.4 VM Recovery *-*
    -------------------
    Done!
    Install from sdcard complete.
12. Hit Back key and select 'advanced'.
13. Select 'Fix Recovery Boot Loop'.  Screen will go black and phone will reboot.
14. Phone will start up the default Android image.

Although it's the default Virgin Mobile LG setup, everything works, i.e. WiFi, 3G and phone calls. Phew!

Since I've previously done a full Nandroid backup using the Custom Recovery, I could also restore the ROM image to the most recent backup I've done by:

1. Power off the phone.
2. Boot up the phone in Recovery mode (Home + Volume Down & Power buttons).
3. Select 'backup and restore' in the Recovery menu.
4. Select 'Restore'.
5. Select '2012-05-13.03.52.34/' (that was my last backup)
6. Confirm by selecting 'Yes - Restore'.
7. This will reflash the phone (taking a few minutes) while displaying:
   Xionia CWMA v1.2518.6
   Checking MD5 sums...
   Erasing boot before restore...
   Restoring boot image...
   Restoring system...
   Restoring data...
   Restoring .android_secure...
   Restoring cache...
   sd-ext.img not found. Skipping r
   estore of /sd-ext/
   Restore complete!
8. In the recovery menu, select 'reboot system now'.
9. The phone will startup with the ROM and settings you had when you did the backup.

Awesome!  Phone is back to what it used to be.

Convert a JConnect's JFX fax to PDF (without software)

I rarely receive faxes, but when I do I've been using the jConnect fax service (by j2 Global Inc). I signed up for a free account* many years ago and it is still active and I still have my own free fax number for incoming faxes.


When someone sends you a fax, their servers will send it to you as an email attachment.  Interestingly, the attached *.jfx fax document is just a TIFF file, which you can view in any TIFF viewer.  By changing the filename extension from *.jfx to *.tif, you'll be able to double-click to open it.

Alternatively, just upload the *.jfx file to your Google Drive and view it online.  The fax is will then also be searchable and you can create a PDF by clicking 'Print (PDF)'.  By using the Google Drive client, you can set it all up to such that you save the *.fjx attachment to a local directory and the fax will automatically appear on your Google Drive account.

Footnote: (*) I'm not sure if they still provide free accounts; I found this page, but it appears to do nothing when one fills it out.

Samsung Galaxy Gio (S5660): Unlocking phone

When travelling abroad, I wish to be able to buy a local SIM card of the country and use it in my Samsung Galaxy Gio (S5660) phone. Turns out my phone is locked down so it only works with SIM cards of my Swedish provider. They're offering to unlock it for a fee after 12 months. I can't wait, so I decided to try it myself. After some searching, I found some instructions online that I followed (using Windows 7 Ultimate 64-bit machine):

1. Verify that the phone is really network locked by "calling" *#7465625#.
2. Root the phone (so that you can become a superuser below)
3. Download and install Android SDK Manager (rev. 16).
4. Enable USB debugging on the phone by enabling Menu > Settings > Applications > 'USB Debugging'.
5. Connect the phone to the computer via USB cable.
6. Start the Windows Command prompt (e.g. Start Menu -> cmd) and go to the ' platform-tools' directory where the Android SDK is installed, e.g. cd "c:\Program Files (x86)\Android\android-sdk\platform-tools\".
7. Run ADB by executing 'adb shell'.
8. In the ADB shell, become a superuser by executing 'su' (prompt will change from a dollar sign to a hash symbol confirming you are a superuser).
9. Copy /dev/block/bml5 to the SD card by executing 'cat /dev/block/bml5 > /sdcard/bml5.img'.
10. Exit superuser mode by executing 'exit' (prompt will go back to a dollar sign).
11. Exit ADB by executing 'exit'.
12. Copy the bml5.img file on the SD card to the computer by executing 'adb pull /sdcard/bml5.img'.
13. Open the bml5.img in a hex-editor, e.g. TotalCommander.
14. Search for the hexadecimal string "FF FF FF FF FF FF FF FF FF FF FF FF FF FF FF FF FF FF FF FF FF FF FF FF 30 30 30 30 30 30 30 30". There was several matches, where some were preceeded by '00000000' (non informative) and some with, say, '15351874' (the 8-digit unlock code; different for each unique phone). Done!

Then I disconnecting and turned off the phone, replaced the SIM card with a SIM card from another provider, and started up the phone. Then the phone detected the new SIM card and that the phone was locked to another provider and asks you to 'Enter Network Lock Control Key'. Entering the above 8-digit phone and voila, the phone was unlocked. Now my phone works also with this other SIM card. Also, calling '*#7465625#' now reports (it used to be that the first one was [ON]):

Network Lock [OFF]
Network Subset Lock [OFF]
SP Lock [OFF]
CP Lock [OFF]

Samsung Galaxy Gio (S5660): Root

There are many reason for acquiring root access ("run as adminstrator") to your Android phone, e.g. remove all ads (AdFree), backup all apps and their settings (Titanium Backup) and unlock the phone so it works with any network provider.

To root my Samsung Galaxy Gio (S5660) with Android 2.3.3 (Gingerbread; firmware KPS), I did the following:

A. "Installed" SuperOneClick on Windows 7 Ultimate 64-bit:

1. Downloaded SuperOneClick (v2.3.2) and extracted to a directory, e.g. SuperOneClick/.

B. Rooted the phone following instructions by AddictiveTips:

1. Enable USB debugging on the phone by enabling Menu > Settings > Applications > Development > 'USB Debugging'.
2. Connected the phone to the computer via USB cable.
3. Started the Android SDK Manager.
4. Run SuperOneClick.exe.
5. In SuperOneClick, click 'Root' (in the 'General' tab).
6. Wait a couple of minutes. You'll see lots of log entries being printed. Mine ended with the three lines: '[+] Rush did it ! It's a GG, man !', '[+] Killing ADB and restarting as root... enjoy!' and '+++ LOG: write failed (errno=14)'.
7. Your phone is rooted. It will probably reboot by itself.

C. Verified that the phone was truly rooted:

1. Start the phone.
2. Find the 'Superuser' app. If it exists, it is rooted, but you can also start it to make sure; at first you should see an empty list of apps with superuser rights under 'Allow'. Later this list will be populated with apps you allow to run as "superuser", e.g. AdFree and Titanium Backup.

Samsung Galaxy Gio (S5660): Update Android firmware

Current firmware version:

The quickest way to check the current firmware on any Samsung Android phone, dial *#1234#. On my phone I get:

PDA: S5660XXKPE

PHONE: S5660XXKPA

CSC: S5660HTSKP2

This firmware corresponds to Android 2.3.3 (Gingerbread) with build date June 24, 2011. Note that 'PDA' value is the same as one see in Under Menu > Settings > About Phone > Build number (I have 'GINGERBREAD.XXKPE').

Update firmware:

Install and run Samsung Kies [2] (Windows and OSX). Next, after rebooting the computer, connect the phone to the computer via a USB cable. Make sure to be connected to the internet. The Samsung Kies software will automatically detect and connect to the phone. If there is new firmware available, Kies will report this and offer to update the phone. Make sure to follow the instructions given. After a few minutes, the firmware is updated, and the phone will reboot.

New firmware version:

After updating via Samsung Kies, I get:

PDA: S5660XXKPS

PHONE: S5660XXKPA

CSC: S5660HTSKP2

which corresponds to Android 2.3.3 (Gingerbread) with build date August 25, 2011.

PS. The reason why I updated in the first place was that my phone completely froze multiple times a day. The only thing to do when it happened was to restart the phone (reboot by holding Home and Power buttons for several seconds, or simply take out the battery). This is apparently a rather common problem. Update: After updating to KPS the phone has worked flawlessly for more than 10 days now.

PDFCreator v1.0.0 - careful when installing!

I just updated from PDFCreator v0.9.7 to PDFCreator v1.0.0. What a pain! They now install the malware/spyware 'pdfforge Toolbar' (Spigot Inc.) if you are not careful. The installation widget is deliberately designed so that you will install it. The result is that you in Firefox will get a Yahoo search bar, the malware will force the browsers search to be at Yahoo, and you will have two annoying extension 'pdfforge Toolbar Plugin' and 'Search Settings Plugin' that cannot be uninstalled (see below for a solution).

What a pitty that the developers of PDFCreator takes these actions.

To avoid this hassle, make sure to follow these two steps when installing PDFCreator v1.1.0:

1. In dialog 'PDFCreator Browser Add On', uncheck 'Set Yahoo! as my default search engine and notify me of changes.'
2. In dialog 'Select Components', uncheck 'PDFCreator Browser Add On for Internet Explorer and Firefox'. Note that most people miss to uncheck this second options!

That's all! If you do the above, you are fine.


What to do if the mistake is already done?

If you did not uncheck in Step 2 - no worries, many people do - then

1. Close Firefox and close Internet Explorer.
2. Go to Start -> Control Panel and open 'Programs and Features'.
3. Uninstall 'pdfforge Toolbar' (Spigot, Inc.)
   

This will also uninstall Firefox extensions 'pdfforge Toolbar Plugin' and 'Search Settings Plugin'. I don't use Internet Explorer, but I assume any problems there will also be solved.

Booting Ubuntu 9.10 from a USB stick

It is rather straightforward to install Ubuntu 9.10.on a USB stick so that you can boot directly from the USB drive. I did this from Windows Vista following the 'Create a Ubuntu 9.10 Live USB from Windows' instructions at PendriveLinux.com. If you're on Windows Vista, make sure you don't miss that instruction at the end on running 'makeboot.bat' manually.

Thinkpad Access Connections Freezes [SOLVED]

Problem:
Every since I've got my new Thinkpad X61 with Windows Vista (Business 32-bit), the ThinkVantage Access Connections (AC) application has been freezing frequently. The Access Connections is used supposed to be a utility to make it easier to connect to different wireless and LAN networks, but all this freezing has been rather frustrating.

I finally decided to track down the problem and found out that the problem with AC has been reported by many (Thinkpads.com, FlyerTalk, m3rLinEz, ...). It seems that it occurred on both XP and Vista and various types of Thinkpads.

Solution: Download and install the new AC 5.12 for Windows Vista (released 2009-01-13) from Lenovo website. Make sure to read the installation notes, saying that the Lenovo System Interface Driver, ThinkPad Power Management Driver, and the Hotkey Driver must be up to date before updating the AC (I had to install two of these). Note also that the files downloaded will only extract the setup files - you then have to launch these manually.

Results:
I used to have AC 4.42 for Windows Vista (Build 7RCN38WW). After installing AC 5.12 (on January 15, 2009) for Windows Vista (Build 7VCV85WW), I haven't experienced any problem.

Converting any media format to any other

The MediaCoder for Windows (Vista, XP, 2000, 2003, Linux w/ Wine) is a standalone, open source (MPL 1.1), and free application that convert between various video and/or audio formats, e.g. MOV (Quicktime), AVI, XviD, MPEG, H.264, Flash, WMV, RealVideo, DVD, and many more formats including most audio formats.

Turn off auto-restart in Windows (XP Pro and Vista Business only)

To avoid having Windows restart itself after automatic updates, do:

1. In the Start Menu click 'Run...', type 'gpedit.msc' and ENTER to open the 'Group Policy Editor'.
2. Go to 'Local Computer Policy' -> 'Computer Configuration' -> 'Administrative Templates' -> 'Windows Components' -> 'Windows Update'.
3. Double click on Entry to open up a list of settings.
4. Double click on Item 'No auto-restart logged on users for scheduled automatic updates' to open up a property dialog and change the setting to 'Enabled' (sic!).

Note, this only works with Windows XP Pro or Windows Vista Business or higher. It will not work with home editions. In that case, see the below source for more details.

Source: Comments at http://lifehacker.com/5087042/shutdownguard-stops-automatic-windows-shutdown-restart

Got a DVD/CD *.iso image file but no drive?

Have you got an *.iso image file with media/software that you wish to access without having to burn it to a DVD/CD? This entry explains how to do it on Windows XP/Vista.

ISO images are binary files that contains an exact copy of a DVD or a CD. Typically it is burned to a DVD/CD, which is then put in the DVD/CD drive. However, if you like me got a notebook that does neither have a CD/DVD reader nor a burner, you probably find this a bit annoying, especially as it should be possible to live without the now 25-year old CompactDisc (CD) technology (the DVD technology is ~10 years old). The solution is to mount the ISO file as a virtual drive such that it can be accessed as if it was real DVD/CD.

This is how I did it on Windows XP Pro English edition:

1. Install MagicDisc:
The easiest way to mount an ISO is to install the MagicISO Virtual CD/DVD-ROM software (MagicDisc; download the first item unless you have a Windows 64-bit operating system which most people don't). The MagicDisc is freeware (and free from adware). The installation is easy and straightforward and without hard-to-understand technical options, and there is no need to reboot after the installation. The program will install itself in the traybar (lower-right corner) and there you will also see a Windows notification bubble reporting "Found new hardware...". The program is also available from the Start menu.

2. Mount the ISO file:
To mount an ISO file, just right-click on the MagicDisc icon in the system traybar to get its menu and select 'Virtual CD/DVD/ROM' -> 'D: No Media' -> 'Mount ...'. This will open a file dialog 'Mount CD/DVD image'. Locate and select the ISO file (and click 'Open'). That's it - the CD/DVD will now show up with its own drive letter (here D:) under 'My Computer'.

If the default drive letter overrides another drive you already have mounted, say an external HDD, then use 'Virtual CD/DVD/ROM' -> 'D: No Media' -> 'Change Drive Letter...' to set it to say 'Z:'.

3. Unmount the ISO file:
When done, right-click and do 'Virtual CD/DVD/ROM' -> 'D: somename.iso' -> 'Unmount ...'. If you have mounted a file on an external USB harddrive, you might also have to exit MagicDisc (right-click), before you can remove the USB drive.


Final comments: I actually started to Daemon Tools Lite, but since the installation was lengthy and required a restart of the computer, and after reading others (Mount ISO Files in Windows Vista, Sept 2008) warnings that they add (optional) adware, I decided to go with MagicDisc (v2.7 build 105), which seems to work very well.

How to delay startup of application when login on to Windows

In the 'All Programs' menu of Windows XP, there is the 'Startup' submenu/folder where you can put (drag'n'drop) programs that you wish to start automatically when you log on to Windows. However, if you have a lot of programs there, it will substantially slow down your computer when you log on forcing you to wait for several minutes before you can do anything useful. To avoid this, you can set the different programs to start after a certain number of seconds so that the least frequently used programs can be started last, say, after 5 minutes.

How to do it

There are a few applications out there that allows you to control the startup process (including the startup of applications not in the Startup folder).

The one I've been using for a few weeks now is freeware 'Startup Delayer' by Australian r2 Studios (screenshot to the right). It allows you to set the delay for each of the applications started with Windows. It also has a panel displaying the time line of the startup process.

Other "no-cost" solutions I bumped into but haven't tried are: Startup Delayer by Jockersoft.com, R4U Soft Start.UP Organizer by R4U Soft, Ss Startup Manager by Ss-Tools, and Startup Optimizer by Cyberlion Solutions.

Portable external USB hard drive with lots of disk space

If you're looking for a good quality external USB hard drive, I can recommend the following combination of drive and enclosure:

• 160GB 2.5" ATA-6 hard drive: SAMSUNG Spinpoint M Series HM160HC 160GB 5400 RPM 8MB Cache ATA-6 Notebook Hard Drive. ~85 USD + tax (Feb 2008)
• External enclosure: BYTECC HD-201U2 (SILVER) Aluminum 2.5" USB2.0 mini External Enclosure. Comes with a USB cable that has an extra USB connector in case your computer does not provide enough power. It also comes with a black fake plastic folder that I never use. ~19 USD + tax (Feb 2008)

I use the above for my IBM/Lenovo Thinkpad X60 (Windows XP Professional), but I know it also works perfectly with Thinkpad X41 and a HP notebook I don't remember the details of. For all these notebooks there was enough power to connect to just one USB port; I think that will be the case everywhere, because the drive got quite low power requirements.

Over the last year (Jun & Oct 2007, Jan 2008, Feb 2008), I've bought five pairs of the above products, and never had any problems. You can probably find an enclosure that is a few bucks cheaper, but I find the above reliable so I stick with it. I get my things from NewEgg.com, because they are fast, convenient, and get good reviews. I'm very happy with them and had no problems. Note, you need to have a US credit card or US PayPal account to shop there.

Update (Sept 2008): I've just got myself a 320HB drive that works great on my Thinkpad X60 using only one USB port (on some notebooks you might need to connect the drive to two USB ports to get enough power):

• 320GB 2.5" SATA hard drive: SAMSUNG M6 Series HM320JI 320GB 5400 RPM SATA 1.5Gb/s Notebook Hard Drive OEM. ~99 USD + tax (Sept 2008)
• External enclosure: BYTECC HD1-SU-BLACK 2.5" USB2.0 External Enclosure. Comes with a USB cable that has an extra USB connector in case your computer does not provide enough power. It also comes with a black fake plastic folder that I never use. ~14 USD + tax (Sept 2008)

Important: If you order something different, make sure you get an ATA enclosure with an ATA drive, or a SATA enclosure (serial-ATA) with a SATA drive. ATA and SATA are two different (physical) interfaces/connectors.

Anyone can assemble these. It is easy. You get the hard drive in a sealed package protecting for static electricity. Before you open that package, just make sure you don't run around in socks on a fury carpet, because that could build up static electricity. Just in case, I always put my hands on my kitchen sink to discharge. The external enclosure comes in two pieces plus USB cable, the main case and the rear panel where you connect the drive and the USB cable. Gently connect the drive to the enclosure panel and make sure it is pressed all the way in. Then insert the drive in the enclosure and use the two screws to fix the rear panel to the main enclosure. If you don't have the tiny Phillips screw driver needed, just use a sharp kitchen knife or similar (I do that). Next, connect the USB cable and hook it up to your computer. The LED on the enclosure should lit up immediately.

Before you can start use the drive you first have to partition the drive and then format it. This is only needed to be done once for the drive. When done once, the drive can be used anywhere. I will explain in detail how to do this on Windows XP, but it should be similar on all systems (and probably also easier).

Partition the drive:

1. In Windows XP/Vista/7, go to Start -> Control Panel -> Administrative Tools -> Computer Management.  Then Go to Storage -> Disk Management.  (or just run 'diskmgmt.msc')
2. In the Wizard, initialize the disk. This takes one second and the disk gets state "Online".
3. In the panel showing available disks, click on the disk that is "Unallocated".
4. In the part showing the size of the disk with the word "Unallocated", right click to select "New partition...".
5. In the wizard, click next.
   a) Choose Primary partition (or Extended partition).
   b) Select the size of the partition (if only one partition, select maximum size).
   c) Assign a drive letter, e.g. "H:".
   d) Select "Do not Format this partition" and click "Next".
   e) Click "Finish".
6. You should now see that "Unallocated" has been replaced by "Healthy".

Format the drive: Regardless of your operating system, I recommend that you format your drive in the FAT32 file format, because FAT32 is the most widely recognized file format (both for reading and writing), including all of Windows, Mac OSX and Linux systems. Now, the format command/application that comes with Windows cannot format drives as large as 160GB (max partition size is 32GB). Instead, download 'fat32format' from http://www.ridgecrop.demon.co.uk/fat32format.htm, and run it as 'fat32format H:' to format the drive at H. This takes only a few seconds. (Note for Windows Vista: fat32format must be run as Administrator).

That's all!

Stream music/radio to incoming Skype calls

Aj aj aj... Sweden plays Spain in a EURO2008 qualification game in a few hours, I am in the California, and I was going to listen to the game live on Internet Radio (broadcasted by www.sr.se). But now I realized I might not have access to Internet where I am at the time. What to do?

Ok, I've a cell phone plan with 5000 free weekend minutes a month and I've got a Skype In number. There must be a way to call my Skype number, have the Skype client automatically answer my call and play back whatever is playing on my computer. Here is how to do it in Windows XP (you'll need a Skype In number which is not free).

1. Go to the "Master Volume" control (double click on the speaker icon in the tray bar).
   a) Open menu 'Options | Properties...' and select 'Recording'. Make sure "Stereo Mix" is selected. Click OK.
   b) You should now see the "Recording Control" (instead of the Master Volume) dialog. Select 'Stereo Mix' as your input (typically it is set to 'Microphone').
   
   
2. Go to http://www.sr.se/ and play the radio station (or some other audio player).
   (The radio station should now be play in your speakers).
   
   
3. Open Skype. Go to menu 'Tools | Options...' and:
   a) Go to 'Call Settings' and expand with 'Show Advanced Options'. Select 'Automatically answer incoming calls'.
   b) Go to 'Audio Settings' and turn down the 'Speakers' volume to zero. The select 'Windows default device' for 'Microphone' and select 'Let Skype adjust my audio settings'.
   (The microphone indicator bar should now correlate with the playing sound).
   c) Click 'Save'.
   
   
4. Mute or turn down the volume of your computer. Call your Skype In number. You should now hear the radio in your phone.
   
   

That's it! Don't forget to reset the above when you're done!

Firefox add-on: AT&T Minutes Minder

The AT&T Minutes Minder is a nifty little Firefox add-on that connects to your AT&T account and reports the number of remaining minutes (or text message) in the status bar. When you hover the mouse cursor over the message you'll see more details.

How to completely turn off AT&T/Cingular's voice mail and save money

I often miss calls because the voice mail picks up the call (after 4 rings/20 sec), and how often don't you call back and forth several times until you really get a hold of each other, ehe? ...and while doing this, the phone companies makes tons of money on connection fees and minutes used. For people calling you from abroad this is even worse, especially if they have large connection fees. Today, I decided to turn of my voice mail forever.

In order to complete turn off (inactivate) your voice mail, you have to call customer service. Dial 611 from your cell phone or 800-331-0500 and just press 0 at each prompt until you get to a real person and ask them to turn it off for you. They are "happy to do this".

Pros: 1) Your voice mail wont pick up already after four signals (approx 20 seconds). 2) No one will not get charged unless you really answer the call (see below). Note, AT&T customers calling will get charged airtime ("minutes") when ringing for more than 30 seconds (see below).

Cons: 1) People cannot leave you voice messages (but they can still send text messages and you will see their numbers in the list of missed calls).

Results:

Case 1) Phone is off or without a network connection: When called, the callee will immediately hear "The wireless customer you are call is not available. Please try again later. Message 1: OK D7."

Case 2) Phone is on, but you don't answer the call: After about 8 (eight) rings, or approximately 40 seconds, the callee will hear "The wireless customer you are call is not available. Please try again later. [Repeated in Spanish]. Message 1: CA 10GN." followed by an error tone.

Case 3) The phone is on and you actively choose not to answer the call (by pressing "Busy"): It rings, but when you actively select not to answer the call, the callee will get a busy tone (or a message explaining the number is busy).

Note, no connection or minute fee is charged for either party. The above messages are in the phone system, meaning there is no call being connected but the message are still played. This was confirmed by calling from both Skype and Gizmo and both plays the message while reporting "Connecting/Calling...". No fees were charged from either accounts.

Update: If an AT&T customer calls for more than 30 seconds without the call being answered, AT&T is playing a dirty trick and starts charging airtime ("minutes"), cf. "Unanswered outgoing calls of 30 seconds or longer incur airtime" from AT&T's Explanation of Rates and Charges.

See also:
My 'Turn off voicemail forever!' thread in the AT&T forum on 2007-10-01.