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HowTo: Recover from a Spill Disaster [PC/Laptop]

Adrian How — Mon, 26 Jul 2010 01:01:28 +0000

Many of us have studies in which we work/game/chat/surf with our PCs or laptops. Often times, a cup of coffee or some other beverage is close by to accompany you. Sometimes, spill disasters occur…

Here’s a simple HowTo on recovering from a spill disaster:

1. You don’t have to read this if you already own a spill free keyboard – just bookmark Howshouse.com and wait for my next post (and if the next post tells you do to the same thing, wait for the next one)

2. Liquids are conductors and what do conductors capable of? Why, shorting the circuits of course! So the first thing you absolutely need to do is to kill the switch i.e. unplug. If it’s a laptop, take out the battery; if it’s a keyboard, unplug it from the CPU or yank the plug off the wall socket.

3. If the spill was minor, you probably could get away with wiping the keyboard down. It’d be a good idea to pry the keys around the spill area to give it a proper wipe down and ensure the keys don’t stick after the liquid dries. A clean and sterile method to cleaning your keyboard is to use alcohol swabs which are easily obtainable at your local pharmacy. Sometimes a little spillage could be a blessing in disguise as it allows you to clean out all that junk that’s gotten in between the cracks of your keys

4. If the spill requires further deep diving, it’s time to get your hands dirty and take the keyboard apart. Make sure you keep all the screws and know which screws fit where (some devices use different sized screws and putting the whole thing back together may be a very frustrating experience if you haven’t kept tab of which screws go where). Do a CSI and alcohol-swab down the entire keyboard’s innards.

5. Should you notice that the circuit board’s all soaked in that coffee/wine/other liquid – congratulations, you’ve reached the most difficult level. Unplug the circuit board and detach it from the keyboard. Use distilled water to wash down (yes, you heard right) the keyboard and leave it to dry completely before the next stage. Distilled water is preferred because tap water leaves remnants/deposits when it dries.

6. To speed up the drying process, use a fan or hair dryer. If you’re going to be completely anal about it having to be 101% dry, pack it in a bag together with some silica gel (you can get these at camera stores or from packages of new electronic items).

7. Once the components are completely dry, place all of it back together and test away! If it works, well done. If it doesn’t, then you know you’ve done your best and given it a shot but it’s really time to hit the IT store and fork out for a new keyboard. Ideas for your old keyboard? Turn it into a keyboard bag:

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HowTo: Remove Wall Stains

p. chan — Mon, 14 Jun 2010 00:42:54 +0000

We always want the wall of the homes and offices look clean and remain the same on the day they were painted. It has been observed that with time, we cannot avoid stains and spots to appear naturally on the pristine walls. These wall stains make the appearance of the walls look dirty and hence it is very much necessary to remove stains.

Wall stains can appear on the walls in various forms and you must know how to clean each one of them. If you want to remove cello tapes from the walls, take a lightly heated tea spoon and press it gently against the cello tapes and they will come out without making any mark on the wall.

If you have a fireplace at home, stains may appear on the wall from the smoke. Make mixture with half cup borax, 2 spoonfuls of soap flakes and 1 spoon ammonia with requisite amount of water. Just clean the wall around the fireplace with it and you can see that all those wall stains have been removed.

Pencils marks are another common form of wall stains and you must know how to remove stains. Take some baking soda and mix it with some water. Rub the walls with the mixture and you can see that all the pencil mark stains have disappeared. The pencil marks which are very deep can be removed by using a non-gel tooth paste.

Ink spots may also appear as a stain on your wall and these can be easily removed by applying non-oily spray quite regularly. After applying the spray, the wall should be wiped with a clean cloth and you can see that it is quite effective in removing wall stains. The crayon marks on the wall can be cleared with the help of a damp cloth dipped in baking soda.

Wall stains can also come from water and oil. Mix some dish washing liquid with color safe bleach and clean the walls accordingly. The oil stains can be removed by making a paste of cornstarch and water. Let the paste get dried up in two hours time and then you brush off the paste. You can see that the paste has soaked up the oil or the grease.

You can take the help of DIY (Do it yourself) network and get some concrete home décor ideas. Your home will really look beautiful if you can take some landscaping ideas on DIY from the Internet and implement them for the betterment of your home. They can provide you with some excellent wall improvement or landscaping ideas and you can see that your rooms are looking almost new and attractiveSimilar Posts:

Transparent Desktops

Adrian How — Fri, 14 May 2010 00:38:55 +0000

Thought this was really cool – saw it on unplggd.

If you’re the sort who looks to exert creativity and have a unique desktop, this offers an augmented reality feel by taking an image of the space behind your monitor and setting it as your wallpaper. In doing so, at the right angle, it’ll look at though you’re seeing through your desktop!

A really nice trick to have. The challenge would be to get the right angle as well as the right colours to reflect the actual colours in reality

imagesource: unplggd

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Chez Larsson’s Super Simple Frame

Adrian How — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 14:48:55 +0000

I like this – for its simplicity and the resourcefulness when going out to spend money to buy a frame wasn’t an option. In this case, scarcity became the mother of invention. If you think about it, humans have always been able to do a lot with very little and chezlarsson is no different in this case.

Here’s what some imagination, perspex and some clips can do

via chezlarssonSimilar Posts:

HowTo: Make Your Own Photo Coasters

Adrian How — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 22:11:47 +0000

Found this clever innovation via photojojo – a guide on how to create your very own cork photo coasters. Now you have the chance to get downright personal and have pictures of family members on separate coasters, one for each to call their own. Another great idea would be to use contemporary motifs/designs which you can usually find in magazines to turn out some chic coasters! Wow your guests with your one-of-a-kind designs Here’s the complete step by step guide from Photojojo

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HowTo: Make a Lego Table from PVC Pipes

Adrian How — Mon, 11 Jan 2010 23:54:31 +0000

I remember how much fun it would be going to the shopping malls and have my parents allow my brother and I to sit and play with other children at the Lego section where they would have a huge circular table with a deep pocket in the middle where all the Lego pieces would be stored. For each seat, there would be a flat Lego grid in which you could anchor the foundation of your lego pieces on (build area).

Casey868 posted a marvelous instructable on the first day of this year detailing a step-by-step guide to making your very own Lego table made from PVC pipes! Having looked all over for a Lego table for his children and not being able to find one, he decided to build his very own using PVC piping for the framework and a wood top for the table surface.

A step by step guide to building this table, after the jump

View the detailed steps of the Lego table guide here

Additional thoughts:

1. you can have a larger build area if you remove the middle section for sorting and storing the Lego pieces. This can be replaced with a slide out drawer under the table

2. would be fun to have a vertical build area to increase the limits of your children’s creativity by allowing them to build sideways

imagesource: instructables

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How Interior Design in Your Home Can Improve Your Mood

richard hubbard — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 00:00:10 +0000

Aside from work, your home is where you spend a majority of your time. After all, your home is a place to dine, relax, get entertainment, work, exercise, and sleep, so it’s no surprise that the interior design can have great importance on your mood. Whether it’s spacious Bellevue apartments to tiny New York lofts, or even a two-story house deep in the suburbs, a well-designed space can help lift your spirits and improve your mood whether you realize it or not.

Clutter

Some people may like the look of trinkets in every corner but often times, a space filled with too many odds and ends leads to a feeling of chaos. A space filled with simply too much stuff, no matter how attractive they may be, can leave a person feeling disorganized and unable to think as clearly. Some people prefer a minimalist look because of this very reason. The clean lines and surfaces leaves them feeling organized, uplifted, and ready to take on their day to the fullest. But not every home has to have a minimalist look to uplift your sprits and help you feel organized. You just need to figure out the amount of furniture and other pieces that feels comfortable for you, and don’t be afraid to edit.

Colors

Psychologists have known for awhile now that different colors have the power to influence our feelings and moods. The science has been well established and even advertisers and product manufacturers use colors to influence consumers. In a home, different colors in paint, furniture, art and other decorative items can illicit certain moods. For instance, blue can help bring on peace, calm, tranquility, and help bring in a sense of cleanliness. For that reason, people may choose to incorporate more blue color into a bathroom, bedroom or living room where a calming, relaxing environment is desired. Red or orange on the other hand are known to help raise energy and is associated with strength and passion. That’s why people choose these colors for their home offices or, sometimes, kitchen. Yellow can brighten up a space and induce feelings of joy and happiness.

Photos and Memories

Nothing can improve mood better than happy memories and meaningful keepsakes. That is why an interior design of a home that incorporates personal touches and remind people of happy memories and the people they love can have the power to substantially improve a person’s mood. Meaningful photos should be incorporated into a space using stylish frames. Other important items collected from special vacations or passed down from family members shouldn’t just be on display, but their layout should be well planned and should fit well in the space to prevent the feeling of clutter. Items don’t have to be obvious. For instance, a very small jar of sand from your favorite beach placed in your bathroom can help make your mornings a little bit easier. Incorporating little touches that you love into your space makes your home feel less like a hotel room and more like a personal sanctuary, which is sure to lift your mood no matter what.Similar Posts:

HowTo: Get Rid of Remote Clutter

Adrian How — Fri, 09 Oct 2009 01:49:12 +0000

Most living rooms these days have a TV, Astro (satelite TV), home theater system or DVD player. It is safe to say that the minimum number of remote controllers in any living therefore is 3. I have remotes for my air conditioner and fan as well so that makes it 5 remotes for my living room alone!

Boy, do i hate remote clutter. But yet, I don’t want to go around forking out sinful sums of moolah just to get my home fitted with one of those all-in-one remotes which controls the A/V equipment, lights and fans. Unless you already have one and you’re thinking I’m a cheapo for not doing so, you’re probably agreeing with me right now.

Fortunately for us, Lifehacker has a ultra cost-saving solution for taming remote clutter – to ensure that you always have your remotes in a central location.

via lifehackerSimilar Posts:

HowTo: Mend Small Tears in Upholstery

Adrian How — Tue, 29 Sep 2009 01:56:19 +0000

With time, wear and tear of your home furniture occurs. The one item that is most susceptible to damage would be the sofa – the place where you lounge the most, apart from your bed. Naturally, minor tears will show up in an aged sofa but there’s no need to dump it out the moment you spot a tear.

Tipnut’s handy tip will guide you on how to mend small tears in your upholstery (including leather).

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HowTo: Get That Harry Potter Photo Feel

Adrian How — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 01:52:10 +0000

This is brilliant. Why didn’t I think of using my digital photoframe for this? I’m going to definitely work on getting moving pictures into my photo frame this weekend. I wonder if it’ll look downright cool or creepy to see an image of me moving about behind the photo frame?

Here are the instructions on how to achieve that Harry Potter moving photos feel, courtesy of the folks over at PhotoJojo. Mind you, you’ll need a digital photo frame for the effect.Similar Posts:

How'sHouse » HowTo

HowTo: Recover from a Spill Disaster [PC/Laptop]

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HowTo: Remove Wall Stains

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Transparent Desktops

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Chez Larsson’s Super Simple Frame

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HowTo: Make Your Own Photo Coasters

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HowTo: Make a Lego Table from PVC Pipes

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How Interior Design in Your Home Can Improve Your Mood

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HowTo: Get Rid of Remote Clutter

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HowTo: Mend Small Tears in Upholstery

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HowTo: Get That Harry Potter Photo Feel

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