How to sign into Windows 8 without a Microsoft account

When unboxing your new Windows 8 or 8.1 machine you might want to set it up without linking it to a Microsoft Account. At first it might look like you have no choice, but with these 3 steps you can easily bypass the requirement:

After you pass the settings confirmation screen (by pressing Express or Customize)..

you will be brought to the Account Sign In page. To bypass click "Create New Account" then...

Choose "Sign In Without a Microsoft Account" and hit next. Then setup your login as you always would!!

Western Digital My Book Model WD5000C032 External USB Hard Drive Unrecognized by Windows

After a few month of non-usage it appears that my Western Digital My Book has stopped working. The drive powers on, so you can see the Green Circular LED, but when I plug the unit into my Windows 8 machine: Windows finds the drive, but after its all said and done it says USB Device Not Recognized. I tried everything from rebooting with drive plugged in to power cycling and cold booting the hard drive. One time I was able to see my file folders but the files were all missing. 

As a result, I have decided to remove the SATA drive from the enclosure and plug it into my external USB to SATA dock:

http://www.frys.com/product/5816343?site=sr:SEARCH:MAIN_RSLT_PG

The process was very simple, but will basically require you to destroy your "not working" USB enclosure. The directions for removing the drive can be found here:

http://www.adcworks.com/2008/06/diy-how-to-rescue-data-from-your-western-digital-mybook/

Black Tiles Showing On Desktop Instead of Preview For Adobe Acrobat Files (PDF) with Windows 8

I had an issue where the icons on the desktop for PDF files were simply a black square. No small preview of the document, nor the traditional Adobe icon. 

Upon further research it appears that a clearing of the thumbnails cache is necessary to fix the problem.

To do this, launch the Disk Cleanup Wizard go to Control Panel >> Administrative Tools >> Free Up Disk Space By Deleting Unnecessary Files.

Once launched, scroll down the list to make sure that "Thumbnails" is checked:

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Then hit "OK". Upon completion, you icons should be repaired.

How To Set Up QOS for Xbox 360 on D-Link DIR-655

There are a couple of different steps needed to setup up QOS on this router so that your gaming packets take priority. 

First: Make a DHCP reservation for your 360. To do this go to your System Settings on your XBOX dashboard and then then click on Network Settings. There you see it, something like 192.168.0.103. 

Next Login to your DIR-655 web interface. Navigate to the SETUP Tab, Then click Network Settings on the left. Scroll down to Add DHCP Reservation. Name it XBOX, enter the IP Address (that you looked up on your XBOX) and copy the MAC from the table below that section (Dynamically Assign Clients). Copy the MAC to the left of the IP of your XBOX, and paste it into the MAC Address Box and hit Save.

Second: Go to the ADVANCED Tab, Then click QOS Engine on the left. Enable everything, the scroll down to 10 - QOS Engine Rules. Then enter the information as seen below:

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Hit Save on top of the page and you are done! 

Mouse Click Not Working On Macbook Pro Retina 15"

I started my MBP Retina tonight, and it started exhibiting some bizarre behavior - basically the mouse would move but the click on both the trackpad and Apple Bluetooth would not register. Using keyboard shortcuts, I tried rebooting the unit to no avail. Only when I reset the system management controller (SMC) was the situation resolved.

For my Intel-based Macbook the directions are as follows:

Note: Portable computers that have a battery you should not remove on your own include MacBook Pro (Early 2009) and later, all models of MacBook Air, and MacBook (Late 2009).
Shut down the computer.

1. Plug in the MagSafe power adapter to a power source, connecting it to the Mac if its not already connected.
2. On the built-in keyboard, press the (left side) Shift-Control-Option keys and the power button at the same time.
3. Release all the keys and the power button at the same time.
4. Press the power button to turn on the computer.

Note: The LED on the MagSafe power adapter may change states or temporarily turn off when you reset the SMC.

If you have a different MacBook, more information can be found here: http://support.apple.com/kb/ht3964

If resetting the SMC does not work, you may want to try resetting the PRAM. Below are the directions:

1. Shut down your Mac.
2. Locate the following keys on the keyboard: Command (⌘), Option, P, and R. You will need to hold these keys down simultaneously in step 4.
3. Turn on the computer.
4. Press and hold the Command-Option-P-R keys before the gray screen appears.
5. Hold the keys down until the computer restarts and you hear the startup sound for the second time.
6. Release the keys.

More information can be found here: http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1379