We’ve been showing you fun flash games to play during company time on a Friday afternoon. Hopefully while playing them, you haven’t received a “talking to”. Today we show you some cool games to play that look like productivity apps, so the boss will be none the wiser.

The website cantyouseeimbusy.com has developed some very neat little games that look like productivity apps like Word and Excel. These apps look exactly like some project you would be working on, but are really neat little games. Here we take a look at three cool ones on the site called Breakdown, Leadership, and Cost Cutter.

Leadership

Leadership is a cool game that looks like something you would be working in Excel and is a spin off of the classic game Moon Lander.

You navigate your ship through a variety of challenging line graphs.

Breakdown

This one is a knock off of the classic game Break Out. Use your mouse to scroll the racket at the bottom and bounce the ball off of the text in the document. Press the space bar to pause the game and the elements will disappear…good for when the boss comes around.

Cost Cutter

This one is a puzzle game where it looks like your working on some bar charts in Excel. You need to click combinations of two or more blocks that are the same color. Again, hit the spacebar and the game elements will disappear.

If you’re looking for a way to goof off with some simple games without the boss knowing, these will definitely do the trick. Another cool game along these lines is Excit! which we covered previously.

Play Cost Cutter, Breakdown, and Leadership at cantyouseeimbusy.com

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A cool feature in Windows 7 Media Center is the ability to listen to local FM radio. But what if you don’t have a tuner card that supports a connected radio antenna? The RadioTime plugin solves the problem by allowing access to thousands of online radio stations.

With the RadioTime plugin for Windows Media Center, you’ll have access to over 100,000 online radio stations from around the world. Their guide is broken down into different categories such as Talk Radio, Music Radio, Sports Radio and more. It’s completely free, but does require registration to save preset stations.

RadioTime

It works with Media Center in XP, Vista, and Windows 7 (which we’re demonstrating here). When installing it for Windows 7, make sure to click the Installer link below the “Get It Now – Free” button as the installer works best for the new OS.

Installation is extremely quick and easy…

Now when you open Windows 7 Media Center you’ll find it located in the Extras category from the main menu.

After you launch it, you’re presented with the RadioTime guide where you can browse through the different categories of stations. Your shown various station suggestions each time you start it up.

The main categories are broken down further so you can find the right genre of the music your looking for.

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World Radio offers you stations from all over the world categorized into different regions.

RadioTime does support local stations via an FM tuner, but if you don’t have one, you can still access local stations provided they broadcast online. One thing about listening to your local stations online is the audio quality may not be as good as if you had a tuner connected.

It provides information on most of the online stations. For example here we look at Minnesota Public Radio info and you get a schedule of when certain programs are on.

Then get even more information about the topics on the shows.

To use the Presets option you’ll need to log into your RadioTime account, or if you don’t have one just click on the link to create a free one.

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Creating a free account is simple and basic on their site. You aren’t required to have an account to use the RadioTime plugin, it’s only if you want the additional benefits.

Conclusion

For this article we only tried it with Windows 7 Media Center, and sometimes the interface felt clunky when moving quickly through menus. Also, there isn’t a search feature from within Media Center, however, you can search stations from their site and add them to your presets.

Despite a few shortcomings, this is a very cool way to get access to thousands of online radio stations through Windows Media Center. If you’re looking for a way to access thousands of radio stations through WMC, you might want to give RadioTime a try.

Download RadioTime for Windows Media Center

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We’ve shared some of our best tips for dealing with malware over the years, and now it’s your turn! Share your favorite tips for protecting against, or getting rid of viruses and other types of malicious software.

Unfortunately, if you’re a PC user it’s a given that you have to play defense against various forms of Malware. We’ve written several articles showing how to get rid of viruses and other forms of malware over the years using various strategies.

We have some excellent articles explaining how to get rid of Advanced Virus Remover, Antivirus Live, Internet Security 2010, and Security Tool – all of which disguise themselves as legit antivirus apps.

Now we turn it over to you to share your favorite tips and tricks for defending against malicious infections. If your computer has been infected, what steps did you take to get rid of it and clean up your machine?

Leave a comment below and join in the discussion!

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If you use Windows 7 Media Center to record live TV, you’re probably interested in skipping through commercials. After all, a big reason to record programs is to avoid commercials, right? Today we focus on a fairly simple and free way to get you skipping commercials in no time.

In Windows 7, the .wtv file format has replaced the dvr-ms file format used in previous versions of Media Center for Recorded TV. The .wtv file format, however, does not work very well with commercial skipping applications.?

The Process

Our first step will be to convert the recorded .wtv files to the previously used dvr-ms file format. This conversion will be done automatically by WtvWatcher. It’s important to note that this process deletes the original .wtv file after successfully converting to .dvr-ms. Next, we will use DVRMSToolBox with the DTB Addin to handle commercials skipping. This process does not “cut” or remove the commercials from the file. It merely skips the commercials during playback.

WtvWatcher

Download and install the WTVWatcher (link below). To install WtvWatcher, you’ll need to have Windows Installer 3.1 and .NET Framework 3.5 SP1.

If you get the Publisher cannot be verified warning you can go ahead and click Install. We’ve completely tested this app and it contains no malware and runs successfully.

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After installing, the WtvWatcher will pop up in the lower right corner of your screen.

You will need to set the path to your Recorded TV directory. Click on the button for “Click here to set your recorded TV path…”

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The WtvWatcher Preferences window will open…

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…and you’ll be prompted to browse for your Recorded TV folder. If you did not change the default location at setup, it will be found at C:UsersPublicRecorded TV. Click “OK” when finished.

Click the “X” to close the Preferences screen.

You should now see WtvWatcher begin to convert any existing WTV files.

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The process should only take a few minutes per file. Note: If WtvWatcher detects an error during the conversion process, it will not delete the original WTV file.?

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You will probably want to run WtvWatcher on startup. This will allow WtvWatcher too constantly scan for new .wtv files to convert. There is no setting in the application to run on startup, so you’ll need to copy the WTV icon from your desktop into your Windows start menu “Startup” directory. To do so, click on Start > All Programs, right-click on Startup and click on Open all users.

Drag and drop, or cut and paste, the WtvWatcher desktop shortcut into the Startup folder.

DVRMSToolBox and DTBAddIn

Next, we need to download and install the DVRMSToolBox and the DTBAddIn. These two pieces of software will do the actual commercial skipping. After downloading the DVRMSToolBox zip file, extract it and double-click the setup.exe file.? Click “Next” to begin the installation.

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Unless DVRMSToolBox will only be used by Administrator accounts, check the “Modify File Permissions” box. Click “Next.”

When you get to the Optional Components window, uncheck Download/Install ShowAnalyzer. We will not be using that application.

When the installation is complete, click “Close.”

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Next we need to install the DTBAddin. Unzip the download folder and run the appropriate .msi file for your system. It is available in 32 & 64 bit versions.

Just double click on the file and take the default options. Click “Finish” when the install is completed. You will then be prompted to restart your computer.

After your computer has restarted, open DVRMSToolBox settings by going to Start > All Programs, DVRMSToolBox, and click on DVRMStoMPEGSettings.

On the MC Addin tab, make sure that Skip Commercials is checked. It should be by default.

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On the Commercial Skip tab, make sure the Auto Skip option is selected. Click “Save.”

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If you try to watch recorded TV before the file conversion and commercial indexing process is complete you’ll get the following message pop up in Media Center. If you click Yes, it will start indexing the commercials if WtvWatcher has already converted it to dvr-ms.

Now you’re ready to kick back and watch your recorded tv without having to wait through those long commercial breaks.

Conclusion

The DVRMSToolBox is a powerful and complex application with a multitude of features and utilities. We’ve showed you a quick and easy way to get your Windows Media Center setup to skip commercials. This setup, like virtually all commercial skipping setups, is not perfect. You will occasionally find a commercial that doesn’t get skipped.

Need help getting your Windows 7 PC configured for TV? Check out our previous tutorial on setting up live TV in Windows Media Center.

Links

Download WTV Watcher

Download DVRMSToolBox

Download DTBAddin

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Want to keep in touch with your Facebook friends throughout the day?? Here we’ll show you how to easily add Facebook chat to the popular multi-protocol chat client Pidgin.

Facebook has recently added support for XMPP chat, which means you can easily add it to popular chat clients such as Pidgin.? Previously you could only add Facebook chat to Pidgin through a plug-in that didn’t always work correctly.? Here we’ll walk you through setting up your Facebook account in Pidgin.

Getting Started

First, make sure you have a username for your Facebook account (link below).? This is a relatively new feature for Facebook, so if you’ve had your account for a while you may need to choose one.?

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If you already have one, you should see it listed instead.

Now, open Pidgin, and click Manage Accounts.

Click Add…

Then select XMPP from the Protocol list.

Now, enter your Facebook username without the facebook.com part (e.g your.facebook.username, not http://www.facebook.com/your.user.name).? Then, enter chat.facebook.com for the Domain, and enter your standard Facebook password.? You can check the “Remember password” box if you’d like Pidgin to automatically sign in to Facebook chat.

Now, click on the Advanced tab, and uncheck the “Require SSL/TLS” box.? Also, make sure the Connect port is 5222.? Click Add, and your Facebook account is added to Pidgin.

Now Facebook will show up in your list of accounts, with the username your.facebook.username@chat.facebook.com.

Your Facebook friends will show up directly in your Buddy list, complete with their full name and Facebook profile picture.? Any users that are not in a group will show under your standard list, while ones in a Facebook group will be shown in a separate group.? You can move which groups your Facebook friends show up in, just like you can with other chat contacts.

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And no matter if your friend is logged in on the standard Facebook website or through another chat application, it will work the same as always.

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This is a great way to keep in touch with your Facebook friends throughout the day.? If you like Facebook chat and already use Pidgin, now you can keep from switching between programs and just chat with all your friends from a central location.

Links:

Download Pidgin

Set your Facebook username

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If you use Windows Home Server to backup the machines on your network, your in luck if you accidentally delete important files or they become corrupted. Today we take a look at getting your data back from backups on your home server.

Open Windows Home Server Console and click select the Computers and Backup tab. Right-click on the computer you need to restore files for and select View Backups.

This will open a list of your recent backups. Highlight the one you want to open, then click the Open button in the Restore or View Files section.

If this is the first time you’re restoring a file, you’ll be asked to verify installation of the device software. Check the box next to Always trust software from Microsoft Corporation and click Install.

Now wait while the backup data is retrieved.

After the backup data has been retrieved, an explorer windows opens up to drive (Z:) which is the backup data. It’s just like if you were opening a drive on your local machine. Now you can browse through the backup and find the files your missing. You can open the files directly, or drag them onto your machine to the location you want to restore them.

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Restoring your data is actually a very easy process with Windows Home Server. Of course you’ll want to make sure the computers on your network are being backed up to WHS. if you need help with that, check out our article on how to configure your computer to backup to WHS. If you want to backup your home server shares, check out our article on how to backup WHS folder to an external drive.

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Do you regularly need to type in multiple languages in Windows?? Here we’ll show you the easy way to add and change input languages to your keyboard in XP, Vista, and Windows 7.

Windows Vista and 7 come preinstalled with support for viewing a wide variety of languages, so adding an input language is fairly simply.? Adding an input language is slightly more difficult in XP, and even requires installing additional files if you need an Asian or Complex script language.? First we show how to add an input language in Windows Vista and 7; it’s basically is the same in both versions.? Then, we show how to add a language to XP, and also how to add Complex Script support.?

Please note that this is only for adding an input language, which will allow you to type in the language you select.? This does not change your user interface language.

Change keyboard language in Windows 7 and Vista

It is fairly simple to add or change a keyboard language in Windows 7 or Vista.? In Windows 7, enter “keyboard language” in the Start menu search box, and select “Change keyboards or other input methods”.

In Windows Vista, open Control Panel and enter “input language” in the search box and select “Change keyboards or other input methods”.? This also works in Windows 7.

Now, click Change Keyboards to add another keyboard language or change your default one.

Our default input language is US English, and our default keyboard is the US keyboard layout.? Click Add to insert another input language while still leaving your default input language installed.

Here we selected the standard Thai keyboard language (Thai Kedmanee), but you can select any language you want.? Windows offers almost any language you can imagine, so just look for the language you want, select it, and click Ok.

Alternately, if you want, you can click Preview to see your layout choice before accepting it.? This is only the default characters, not ones that will be activated with Shift or other keys (many Asian languages use many more characters than English, and require the use of Shift and other keys to access them all).? Once your finished previewing, click close and then press Ok on the previous dialog.

Now you will see both of your keyboard languages in the Installed services box.? You can click Add to go back and get more, or move your selected language up or down (to change its priority), or simply click Apply to add the new language.

Also, you can now change the default input language from the top menu.? This is the language that your keyboard will start with when you boot your computer.? So, if you mainly use English but also use another language, usually it is best to leave English as your default input language.

Once you’ve pressed Apply or Ok, you will see a new icon beside your system tray with the initials of your default input language.

If you click it, you can switch between input languages.? Alternately you can switch input languages by pressing Alt+Shift on your keyboard.

Some complex languages, such as Chinese, may have extra buttons to change input modes to accommodate their large alphabet.

If you would like to change the keyboard shortcut for changing languages, go back to the Input Languages dialog, and select the “Advanced Key Settings” tab.? Here you can change settings for Caps Lock and change or add key sequences to change between languages.

Also, the On-Screen keyboard will display the correct keyboard language (here the keyboard is displaying Thai), which can be a helpful reference if your physical keyboard doesn’t have your preferred input language printed on it.? To open this, simply enter “On-Screen keyboard” in the start menu search, or click All Programs>Accessories>On-Screen keyboard.

Change keyboard language in Windows XP

The process for changing the keyboard language in Windows XP is slightly different.? Open Control Panel, and select “Date, Time, Language, and Regional Options”.

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Select “Add other languages”.

Now, click Details to add another language.? XP does not include support for Asian and complex languages by default, so if you need to add one of those languages we have details for that below.

Click Add to add an input language.

Select your desired language from the list, and choose your desired keyboard layout if your language offers multiple layouts.? Here we selected Canadian French with the default layout.

Now you will see both of your keyboard languages in the Installed services box.? You can click Add to go back and add more, or move your selected language up or down (to change its priority), or simply click Apply to add the new language.

Once you’ve pressed Apply or Ok, you will see a new icon beside your system tray with the initials of your default input language.

If you click it, you can switch between input languages.? Alternately you can switch input languages by pressing Alt+Shift on your keyboard.

If you would like to change the keyboard shortcut for changing languages, go back to the Input Languages dialog, and click the “Key Settings” button on the bottom of the dialog.? Here you can change settings for Caps Lock and change or add key sequences to change between languages.

Add support to XP for Asian and Complex script languages

Windows XP does not include support for Asian and Complex script languages by default, but you can easily add them to your computer.? This is useful if you wish to type in one of these languages, or simply want to read text written in these languages, since XP will not display these languages correctly if they are not installed.? If you wish to install Chinese, Japanese, and/or Korean, check the “Install files for East Asian languages” box.? Or, if you need to install a complex script language (including Arabic, Armenian, Georgian, Hebrew, the Indic languages, Thai, and Vietnamese), check the “Install files for complex script and right-to-left languages” box.

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Choosing either of these options will open a prompt reminding you that this option will take up more disk space.? Support for complex languages will require around 10Mb of hard drive space, but East Asian language support may require 230 Mb or more free disk space.? Click Ok, and click apply to install your language files.

You may have to insert your XP CD into your CD drive to install these files.? Insert the disk, and then click Ok.

Windows will automatically copy the files, including fonts for these languages…

…and then will ask you to reboot your computer to finalize the settings.? Click Yes, and then reopen the “Add other languages” dialog when your computer is rebooted, and add a language as before.

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? Now you can add Complex and/or Asian languages to XP, just as above.? Here is the XP taskbar language selector with Thai installed.

Conclusion

Unfortunately we haven’t found a way to add Asian and complex languages in XP without having an XP disc. If you know of a way, let us know in the comments. (No downloading the XP disc from torrent site answers please)

Adding an input language is very important for bilingual individuals, and can also be useful if you simply need to occasionally view Asian or Complex languages in XP.? And by following the correct instructions for your version of Windows, it should be very easy to add, change, and remove input languages.

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Do you make it a habit of falling asleep at night while watching Windows Media Center? Today we are going to take a look at the MC7 Sleep Timer for Windows 7 Media Center. This simple little plugin allows you to schedule an automatic shutdown time in Media Center.

Note: At this point MC7 Sleep Timer doesn’t work with extenders. If you’re using ClamAV or Panda it may detect this plugin as a virus, we’ve tested it and this is a false positive for these two antivirus apps.

Installation and Usage

Download and install MC7 Sleep Timer. (See download below)

After the installation is finished, you will find MC7 Sleep Timer located in the Media Center Extras Library. Click on the tile to open the timer and configure your settings.

The MC7 Sleep Timer will open in full screen mode. You can choose to shutdown the PC after 30 or 60 minutes, create a custom length shutdown timer at any 5 minute interval, or select the exact time you want the PC to shutdown.? After setting your PC to shutdown, you’ll get an audio confirmation.

To set a custom timer length, scroll to the “Custom timer” option and click right or left on your Media Center remote or, the right or left arrow keys, to choose how many minutes before shutdown.

To schedule a shutdown for a certain time, browse to the “Shutdown at time” button, and scroll right or left with the arrow keys on the keyboard or remote. When you’ve chosen your time, hit “Enter” on the keyboard or “OK” on the remote.

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Clicking the “Monitor Off” button will turn off only the monitor and “Cancel Timer” will cancel your shutdown request.

Conclusion

If you often find yourself falling asleep every night watching Media Center and then fumbling and stumbling in the middle of the night to shutdown your computer, MC7 Sleep timer might just be a perfect addition to your Media Center setup.

Download MC7 Sleep Timer

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Sometimes we’ve entered data in a column in Excel, only to realize later that it would be better to have this data in a row, or vise-versa.? Here’s a simple trick to convert any row or set of rows into a column, or vise-versa, in Excel.

Please Note: This is tested in Excel 2003, 2007, and 2010.? Here we took screenshots from Excel 2010 x64, but it works the same on the other versions.

Convert a Row to a Column

Here’s our data in Excel:

We want to change these two columns into rows.? Select all the cells you wish to convert, right-click, and select copy (or simply press Ctrl+C):

Now, right-click in the cell where you want to put the data in rows, and select “Paste Special…”

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Check the box at the bottom that says “Transpose”, and then click OK.

Now your data that was in columns is in rows!

This works the exact same for converting rows into columns.? Here’s some data in rows:

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After copying and pasting special with Transpose selected, here’s the data in columns!

This is a great way to get your data organized just like you want in Excel.

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Are you a racing fan in need of a short (or long) break from work? Then get ready to enjoy a mid-day speed boost with the 3D Rally Racing extension for Google Chrome.

3D Rally Racing in Action

This is the opening screen for 3D Rally Racing. You can start game play, view current best times, and read through the instructions from here.

The first thing that you should do is have a quick look at the instructions to help you get set up and started.

Click on “Play” to start the process. Before you can go further you will need to choose a “User Name”. Once you have done that click “Select Track”…

Note: The extension will retain your name for later use even if you close your browser.

When you first start out you will only have access to two tracks…the others require reaching a certain score/level to unlock them. Once you select a track you will be taken to the next screen.

After you have selected a track you will need to choose your car and car color. All that is left to do afterwards is click on “Go Race”.

Note: You will be competing against three other vehicles in the race.

Here is a look at the “Desert Race Track”…

And a look at the “Snow Race Track”. This game moves quickly and it is easy to fall behind if you are not careful!

You can have a lot of fun playing this game while you are waiting for the day to end.

Conclusion

If you love racing games and want a fun way to waste the rest of afternoon at work, then you should definitely give 3D Rally Racing a try.

Links

Download the 3d Rally Racing extension (Google Chrome Extensions)

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