Archive for January, 2009

Photos now available online.

Misc

So after closing my Facebook account, I wanted to have somewhere to put my massive stash of photos. After much cursing and hacking of other peoples PHP, I now have a photo gallery!

Enjoy browsing :)

Dopod Replacement ROM 13.3 now available.

Dopod 838Pro

Release 13.3 is now available for download.

Changes include:
Release 13.3 (10 Jan 2009):
* Fixed issues with SetAudioParam not working properly
* Fixed Comm Manager hotkey not being set on normal version.
* Fixed Black Keyboard from appearing in DeviceUpdate on normal version.

Download from the Dopod 838 Pro Replacement ROM page.

Kenwood BT7539U Bluetooth 1.70 update released

Audio

Kenwood have just released an update to the Bluetooth handsfree for the KDC-BT7539U, KDC-BT8041U, KDC-BT8141UY, KDC-BT838U models. This update takes the Bluetooth version to 1.70.

You can directly download the update instructions, flashing tool, and new firmware.

Via Mini ITX BIOS corruption

Computers

There’s nothing more that I hate than losing perfectly good hardware due to buggy software. This is just what has happened the last couple of days as I attempted a BIOS update on my Via Mini ITX CN10000 system. After downloading the BIOS flasher (VIAFLASH_V09_Beta_Release090307.zip) and the new BIOS BIN file, I set to flashing the BIOS – as you would any other. Until everything stopped.

That’s right, this BIOS updater seems buggy as all hell – as after a quick search on the ViaArena forums there have been many people who have killed their Mini ITX systems using this BIOS update tool – Some of these many months old. This leads to the question, if so many people have killed their mainboard with this bios update tool, why are Via still offering it as the ONLY way to flash the BIOS of their systems via DOS? Surely after so many people kill their system, they would change the flashing program to a non-buggy one?

Lucky, in my position, I have access to a friends PLCC programmer so it may be possible to recover the BIOS on this system – however if that wasn’t the case, I’d be looking for another $280 mainboard. Not a good solution :|