Category: Power issues

Xbox live. Where did modren gaming go?

Hey there you guys

How are you today? I hope you are doing well.
We had a 12 hour power cut in here. from 7:30 AM and until 20:00. Talk about a decent day! And it was hot!


Anyway. We are here to talk about Xbox live. It’s more of an opinion piece than it being an actual tutorial or a tip to anything. So here goes:

After a while of playing the offline mode. I decided to try the Xbox live gaming network. I had everything I needed. Or thought so. The gold card. A game I want to download (They give a free game or two every month for gold subscribers).

Redeeming the card took four tries?! And every time I get a different result! In the end the card was redeemed! But for what use?

I couldn’t choose a payment method. (Libya has no credit card system. No paypal. no debut card, yeah. Read above, 12 hour blackouts!).

So the card was useless. And to make things worse. The game I wanted to download, Child of Light. Was for the Xbox one. And what I have in hand now, is an Xbox 360.

And to make things worse. The console was bought from Germany, meaning the Xbox live was German, with no way to change it. I can’t read German! So ..

Till here the experience ends. And the rant begins!

How much does a game really cost?

  • You buy the console. You buy the game for 30 ~ 50$ + Shipping (DLC not included) and I’m expected to download and update every two weeks?
  • I’m on a metered connection. Where you pay per Gigabyte. (A Gigabyte of Internet is more expensive than a gallon of gas?!) and pay for subscription?!
  • OK. I’m a die hard gamer who is willing to throw his money at you like that. Would you make these options a tad easier?
  • Not to mention some games are simply huge. Could take days to download in “perfect conditions”. So it’s all a real pain!

I miss the simpler days of gaming. 16 bit cartridges were an addiction to me. Pop in and play. Blow it if it didn’t work. Works every single time *sigh <3

What’s wrong with indy and free games?

This goes out to all the people who criticize great titles like Tuxcart or Mario Forever 2012 . Both games featured in the blog as games of the week. Free. Simple and amazing. No drama!!
I’m not saying modern gaming is bad. I’m saying it’s not for me. At least now!!
I hope you liked this post. If anyone who has an Xbox 360 and likes to chime in some help. I’m more than happy to receive!!

Leave a comment below. And remember to give kudos. G+, Tweet and share!!

How to fix the boot failure in windows 7

 Hey there 🙂 And welcome to a new post 🙂

 A huge part of being a geek is being the first to go to / call when computers fail! I don’t know why!
This time it’s not related to Linux, not directly at least!
For this particular issue this laptop was an e-machines running windows 7 home edition. It was a bit old and the battery was depleted. The same laptop from this post actually!

What’s wrong with it?

It had to be connected all the time or it would power off attempting to save the session, if it failed doing so it would refuse to power up again! When I press the power button after connecting it to power it shows the boot logo then it powers off right away!!
Many people would assume that the system is gone! And they need to reinstall it.
The first thing to do is to check the drive using a Linux CD or a Bootable USB. You will see that the system drive is intact. Then what is the problem?
The repeated power failures ruin the boot files located in the hidden boot partition, and the only way to fix them is by repairing the boot!

The fix is pretty simple!

1. Enter the windows installation disk or USB installer, it has to be the same version as the windows installed!: e.g Professional, home premium etc. In this case we need home premium. (Fell free to test with another version and tell me what you got 😉 )
2. At the install Windows window , choose the language and keyboard (As your system settings ).
3. Select advanced options ( You will find it below the installation options to the left of the screen)
4. From there you will find four options, pick repair boot (First option) and hit OK.
After a reboot your computer will be OK!
As simple as that! Sorry I have no pictures. It’s because the setup menu has no print-screen functions (AFAIK).

P.S: I have made this fix a couple times! I noticed at some extreme cases the boot screen won’t even show! Go to bios menu and make sure the F12 menu is enabled. Then boot from boot disk or USB 😉