Internet Anywhere Through My Cell Phone
December 28th, 2007
This image really does represent ultimate sadness for someone (like me) who is addicted to the internet. This icon in the system tray means means that the computer isn’t connected to any network. That means (dare I say it) no internet! I am proud to say, that this icon has no effect on any more. Is this because I’ve kicked the internet habbit? Hell no! I have grown contemptuous of the “no networks” icon, because I can connect my laptop to the internet through my cell phone. It my sound complicated, but the process is actually very straight forward. Here’s what I do:
First, I click on the network icon in the system tray.
Next I click on “Connect to a network”, and I see this window:
Next I click on “Razr Net Access”. and click connect. So I see the next screen.
I wait a few seconds, and that’s it! I have access to internet that, while slow, is still twice as fast as dial-up, and it only costs minutes on my cell phone. The best part is that when calls are free, so is the internet access, meaning “surf’s up” on nights and weekends. Also, while I can not initiate calls, I can still recieve calls normally wile connected.
There. In four clicks I’m connected to the net. How is this possible? Well, it took some initial hacking of my Motorola Razr V3m that I got from Verizon. Some of the steps in setting it up initially can get a little complicated, but since the end result is so elegant (and free) I don’t mind. In a later post I’ll explain how to set this up.
Unlocking a Motorola Razr V3m from Verizon
December 26th, 2007
That Razr that you got from Verizon can do more than you think! With an unlocked Razr you can actually make your own ringtones for free. You can even connect your phone to your laptop and get internet access that only costs minutes, meaning on nights and weekends that is also free. You can also grab photos and videos taken from the phone and transfer them directly to your computer. More over, you can even make a custom wallpapers that you made on the computer or found on the internet. Don’t like that annoying V-Cast animations that play when you turn your phone on or off? Get rid of them! Or better yet, put something there that you made yourself.
There are so many possibilities, but whatever you do, there is definitely one place to start: actually unlocking the phone. Doing that is usually tedious and confusing, but last August I made an “unlocked” settings file to remove the tediousness and a video tutorial to take away the confusion.
Note that this process only works on Motorola Razr V3m phones from Verizon. Also note that unlocking the phone probably voids the warranty. I haven’t heard of this process breaking any phones, but if it does, I’m not liable.
Enjoy!
edit, January 19, 2008:
It seems the server hosting P2K seem edit, hacktherazr.com, is down. P2K Seem Edit is now packaged with the readme file and seem file in the download below.
Verizon Razr V3m Unlocking Kit (Revision 3)
edit, January 29, 2008:
Here’s the list of changes that this process makes, taken directly from the readme.txt file included in the download:
Here’s what changed about your phone:
USB Transfers are enabled.
Dial-Up Networking is enabled.
The orange background on the outside screen is changed to the wallpaper.
The “vibrate then ring” feature is now available.
The “continuous backlight” option is now available.
The “classic”, “continental”, “attention” and “moonlit haze” ringtones are now available.
If you’re curious, you can look up the actual seem edits that were made by cross-referencing this list with this page.
Edit, February 18, 2008:
For those who forgot to make a backup of the default seem, or those who otherwise don’t have access to one, here’s mine: Verizon Razr V3m Default Settings
Note that in principal it is best to use the backup that you made yourself. My backup should work on your phone, though. (Please tell me if you find otherwise.)
Edit, March 10, 2008:
I am declaring comment bankrupsy. It’s too hard to keep up on all the comments, and there are people who are much more knowlegable about this topic than I am. If you have a question, then I recommend that you direct it to the hacking community at http://hacktherazr.com/forum or http://motorola.howardforums.com.
Comments with links to other good sources of information are still appreciated.
Thanks, and happy hacking! 
Edit, March 14, 2008:
An awesome reader explained how to put ringtones on the Razr without buying any software. I put his explaination in this other post. Thanks, Sendherastar!
Edit: March 28, 2008:
Izzyd has this to say:
Heya all, it’s been a while do to some personal matter,but after reading threw some of these posts I’d like to shed some light. For all you folks who have just gotten a VZW v3m things have changed from when it was originally released. With VZW’s new .01.19.07 firmware a lot of stuff from before will not work at all, and other things need to be done in a different manner which is why certain things do not seem to work right. Whatever VZW did in the new firmware has locked us out of things like using MPT to transfer ring tones it just will not happen, another thing is the seem edit for USB transfer on the new firmware is not needed they already have it done for you. I could go one and on but I see there is some confusion and I’ll do what I can to stop by more frequently to point folks in the right direction. One thing plz be specific tho and let us know what carrier you are with and what firmware is on your phone that does make a difference these days, 4 months ago it wouldn’t have mattered, but thx to VZW they threw us for a loop which is why we see so much more confusion now.
Edit: June 27, 2008:
Verizon has closed the back door of using a Razr as a dial-up modem for free internet access. When you try, every webpage you load just gives you a message saying something like “The device is not authorized”.
Remote Desktop
December 17th, 2007
If you were to look up “amazing” in the dictionary, you would find a picture of this icon. Simply put, Remote Desktop allows you to get to the stuff from anywhere in the world. By “stuff” I mean your files, your programs, and even printers. That’s because Remote Desktop, a program included in all editions of Windows XP and Vista, gives you remote access to your computer’s screen. It isn’t some cheap stream of what’s on your screen like what logmein.com provides. No, Remote Desktop is deeply integrated into the OS to provide a responsive interface. Sometimes I forget that I’m even using a computer that is miles away!
There are a few caveats to Remote Desktop, though. For one thing, while all editions of Windows XP and Windows Vista have Remote Desktop built in, only the “elite” versions have the ability to allow to be connected to. That means that if you want to connect to your desktop computer at home, it better have Windows XP Professional, Windows XP Media Center and Tablet Editions, Windows Vista Home Premium, or Windows Vista Business installed on it. Reasonably so. Setting up Remote Desktop is not for the faint hearted, certainly not for someone who uses a computer with Windows Vista Home Basic on it, anyway. Getting Remote Desktop up and running around a home network is easy enough, but the hard part is getting it accessible to the world. This is because of limitations in networking technology.
Nevertheless, once Remote Desktop is set up, it can be as easy as double-clicking an icon at your work or school computer to gain access to your home computer.
A while back I made a video showing how to set up Remote Desktop, so I think I’ll put it in here.
Are Tablet PCs ready for the masses?
December 16th, 2007
The other day I was using my Tablet PC at school to work on a project for my debate class. As usual, my little HP turned some heads. Someone wanted to try out the pen input, which from a demo standpoint I am usually a little worried about, because the hand recognition is supposed to be tailored to the individual user’s writing style. (So while it might not work for someone the first day of using it, over time it becomes much more accurate.) However, I was pleasantly surprised that when this guy was done making chicken scratch on the screen, the computer recognized every word correctly.
Sure, it did capitalize “am” incorrectly, but I am amazed that my computer didn’t explode when trying to decipher “smar + very rice”.
So are Tablet PCs ready for the masses? I think so. The problem is that until recently Best Buy only offered one model. Now it offers two. A quick search for “Tablet PC” at CircuitCity.com reveals that it doesn’t offer any. CompUSA fares the best with five, plus an ultra mobile PC.
For those aching to have a Tablet of their very own, the best option is still NewEgg.com, which gives Tablet PCs their own section and powerful search features to enable customers to easily find the Tablet that is best for them.
Sadly, until brick and mortar stores start to embrace Tablet PCs more enthusiastically, I don’t see Tablets gaining any real popularity.
Creative Zen Stone Plus
December 12th, 2007
Recently I ordered a Creative Zen Stone Plus from Amazon.com, and it just arrived today! Wow, this thing is tiny. And with 2GB of memory, it is still quite light. Learn more about it in my video:
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