Your iPhone or iPod can crash sometimes due to unknown errors and bugs. The recovery mode is used to restore a broken iPhone back to normal. It is also used to set up the latest firmware. It cannot be used to install firmware older than the current firmware version, however.  If you try to you’ll just receive errors. If you want to downgrade your iPhone to an older version, you need to set your iPhone to DHU mode.

This guide will show you how to set your iPhone/iPod into recovery mode.

Before proceeding you have to make sure you have the latest version of iTunes as well.

First, unplug the USB cable from the iPhone/iPod. But leave the cable connected to the USB port of your computer. Then shutdown your iPhone/iPod by pressing and holding the power button until the “Power Slider” screen appears. Slide the button to turn the power off. If this method doesn’t work, try pressing and holding the home and wake/sleep buttons together until the power goes off and then let go of the sleep/wake button as soon as it does. Now continue to hold and press the home button and while you do connect the USB cable to your iPhone. This should turn the power on for your iPhone. Continue holding the button until the”Connect to iTunes” screen appears and you will be prompted with an alert saying “iTunes has detected an iPhone in recovery mode.”  You will then press ‘OK’.

Once your iPhone has completed updating firmware or restoring, it will automatically go out of recovery mode. But in a situation that it didn’t, try pressing and holding the power and home buttons simultaneously for no more than 15 seconds until your iPhone’s power is off. Now press the power button and you’ll see that your iPhone is now out of recovery mode.  You can now start putting back the data from your backup files.

CSO is a compressed version of the ISO file format. These files are extracted from UMDs, the original format developed by Sony to play games on the PSP.  The reason the CSO was created was to save more memory space as well as extend battery life.  However, CSO files can only run on the PSP using a custom firmware and must be installed in a particular folder on your device in order to work properly.  Below is a tutorial on how to install CSO files onto your PSP.

1. Using your USB cable, plug your PSP to the computer by going to “Settings”. Press up until you see the “USB Connection” tab and hit “X”.
2. Press the “Select” button for the custom firmware menu to appear on the screen. The “USB Device” must be set to “memory stick”.
3. Press the “Select” button again to exit to the custom firmware menu. Press “X” to start the USB connection.  An autorun menu will show up on the computer screen, select “Open Folder to View Files” to view the content on your memory stick.
4. Explore the “ISO” folder in the root directory of the memory stick of your PSP. If you haven’t found this folder, create a new one and name it “ISO”.
5. Copy the CSO file from where you have it saved to the “ISO” folder on the Memory Stick Pro Duo.
6. Close the window after completing the copying process. Press “O” to exit the USB Connection. Disconnect the USB cable and scroll to the right until you reach the “Game” tab.  Press “X” to see the list of CSO games stored on your PlayStation Portable. Next select the game you want to play then press “X” to launch the game.

It’s important to point out that in order to play CSO files on your PSP, you must have the custom firmware installed on your device. If you try to launch these files without the firmware, the CSO files will be displayed as corrupted data.

The speed of your internet connection depends on how your connection has been setup. Dial-up connections do not go as fast as broadband or DSL subscriptions. To ensure a fast and reliable internet connection, you must subscribe to a network provider that offers faster plans. After signing up, you can still do a few tweaks to speed up your internet connection a bit.

Upgrade your modem. Usually, you can get one from your service provider for free, depending on your subscription. Your modem is the ultimate determinant of your connection speed.  So make sure that it is functioning well. As stated above, a DSL/Broadband modem provides a faster connection than dial-ups.

Upgrade your PC. No matter how fast your internet connection is, it will be useless if your PC is unable to support it. Perform a RAM space checkup. If your computer is old, purchase a new one or upgrade certain parts of your PC.

Boost your PC’s performance. Uninstall unnecessary programs and delete unneeded files. Doing so will create additional disk space for more relevant programs and files. Plus, this will help your computer run faster since it doesn’t need to run through masses of files.  Instead, install a registry cleaner software.  Viruses and registry errors are known to slow down connections. Once these errors are fixed, your PC will definitely run smoother.

Run virus scan. Viruses can extremely slow down your internet connection as they corrupt the files on your computer affecting the overall performance of your PC.  PCs are typically installed with an anti-virus program upon purchase, but you can get free anti-virus software on the net as well.

Secure your connection. Placement of the modem and PC also influences your internet speed. If you’re using a router, walls and other obstructions can reduce connectivity strength.  Moving the router closer to the computer and clearing electrical interferences (wires, cables, printers) reduces the barriers that might interfere with the signal transmission.

Apart from Homebrew games, the PlayStation Portable can only play games via UMDs (Universal Media Disc) or official digital downloads. Along with the appropriate homebrew, the PSP can emulate different games from other game consoles. The PSP does allow the playing of flash games directly on the unit through the PSP’s web browser. Access to the internet is required, however, in order to complete the process of this tutorial. Also on a side not, there are several sites that provide PSP-friendly flash games such as PSP Flash Gaming, PSP Flash Zone, and PSPonme.

This tutorial will help you put flash games on your PSP without connecting to the web. This is an easy to follow guide, yet there’s still a possibility that this won’t work, as well as the games you’ve downloaded from the PC.

1. Turn on the PC and launch Mozilla Firefox (Note:  It must be Firefox in order for this to work). If you want to use the game you’ve created using Marcromedia Flash, skip this step, and look for the .SWF folder you made (Step 5).
2. Browse the website where the game you want is located.
3. Select the game you want then download it by clicking “Save Page As”.
4. Go to the folder where you have saved the game, search for the folder with the name of the site you have visited.
5. Find the file with a .swf extension, rename this with the title of your game. Erase all other insignificant files. Right-click on the file and copy.
6. Plug your PSP to your computer, navigate to “Settings” and select “USB Connection”.
7. Exit to the folder, and go to “My Computer”. Navigate to “Removable Disc”.
8. Go to PSP > COMMON. If you can’t find this “COMMON” folder, create one. Right-click on it and click Paste.
9. Launch your PSP’s web browser and enter the location of your flash game. (Ex. :/PSP/COMMON/game.swf)
10. Exit to the folder and disconnect your PSP from the computer. Enjoy your game!

FaceTime, the major feature of the newly released Apple devices on the market today, is an application that provides you with one-on-one video calling without any hassle.  While the concept of video calling in mobile phones isn’t news anymore, what makes FaceTime different than its competitors is its life-like smooth video resolution.

Setting up Facetime is a fairly uncomplicated process, although the process varies a bit depending on the iDevice (iPhone, iPod Touch, Mac PC/Notebook) you’re setting up.

In the iPhone 4, the procedure is just a snap, as Apple originally intended for you to use your mobile number to register with the FaceTime network. In short, there’s no further registration required.

To activate FaceTime on your iPhone, navigate to the iPhone settings and select Phone settings. A menu will pop down on your mobile number to toggle FaceTime on or off. This setting may be enabled by default depending on your mobile network operator.

The system behind the activation of FaceTime on the iPhone lies in a hidden SMS that registers your mobile number with the FaceTime network. Normally this SMS is free of charge, but still, the rate will be determined by your mobile network operator. On original setup, the iPhone 4 will send an SMS to Apple’s FaceTime servers. You will then receive a confirmation message, saying that your number has been successfully registered for FaceTime.  While completing the process, a “Waiting for Activation” message will appear beneath the FaceTime option tab.

Basically, FaceTime activation only needs to be done when you launch FaceTime or change SIM cards in your iPhone. Swapping SIM cards in your iPhone automatically re-registers the new mobile number on the FaceTime network. Other activities such as resetting the phone or leaving/returning to wireless connections do not require re-registration.

Be reminded that you need sufficient cellular connectivity and functional SMS messaging in order to activate FaceTime on your iPhone.

The major e-mail service provider Gmail recently announced an improvement in their calling feature. This was articulated by Software Engineer Richard Dunn on the gmail official blog site.

For years, the communication feature on Gmail has allowed users to make voice as well as video calls to other computers. Later they expanded the service by enabling users to also call phones.

When started, the main call feature display of Gmail resembles a standard phone with a regular keypad and dialing detail bar. By clicking the “Call phone” tab at the top of the chat list, you will be able to dial a number or enter a contact’s name and make a call. It works like a normal phone requiring the same steps for dialing your contacts’ phone numbers.

The new feature enable you to make or receive multiple calls at one time. Hence, if you’re in a call and you want to make a second one, the system automatically places the first call on hold while you’re on the new one. Switching between calls is already made p

ossible through a “Resume” button which will automatically return the previous call and place the new call call on hold.

With this feature, the Gmail user may now also receive incoming calls while in another call. By accepting the new call, the previous call will automatically be put on hold in the same fashion. The “Resume” button will function the same way.

This is available for all types of calls whether voice, video or phone. Gmail’s new multiple call feature is restricted to two outgoing calls at once. However, there are no mentioned limitations for facilitating multiple incoming calls.

[SOURCE] Gmail Blog