How To Turn On Your PC With Your Android Phone Using Wake-On-LAN

OK, here's a new geeky toy I'll need to try out.

This Android app, once configured correctly and once your PC is configured correctly, will wake up your PC when you come in range of your home WiFi network, by using the WoL capabilities built into the NIC of your computer. Cool stuff.

I'll let you know what happens after I test it. :)

How To Turn On Your PC With Your Android Phone Using Wake-On-LAN: "

If you’re a techie, one of the first things you do when you walk in the door is turn on your computer. Perhaps you simply tap your keyboard or mouse, or maybe you press the power button. Either way, you have to be at your computer before you can start it.

Wouldn’t it be easier if your computer was ready for you as soon as you sat down? If you own an Android device, that’s possible thanks to a free app called PC Auto Waker. The setup can be a little complex, but the payoff makes it worthwhile.

The Quick & Easy Setup

Once you’ve downloaded PC Auto Waker off the Android marketplace, you’ll need to set it up so that it has the ability to communicate with your computer. It depends on 802.11 WiFi, but it’s not necessary for each computer to have WiFi hardware. The PC you’d like to wake only needs to be connected to a broadcasting WiFi router.

The basic setup consists of three steps. First, you’ll need to enter a name for the computer you’re going to wake. This name DOES NOT have to be the same as the computer’s network name. This is merely a way of identifying the computer in the app’s interface.

After that, you’ll need to enter the MAC address of the target computer. Do a Windows Search for ”cmd” to open your command line interface, then type ipconfig/all and press enter. The MAC address will appear as a string of six two-digit numbers labeled Physical Address.

Finally, you need to enter the SSID of the wireless network the target computer is connected to. It’s not necessary to enter any security information, regardless of whether the WiFi network is secured or not.

Once you’ve handled all of that, it’s time to see if you’re set! Place your computer into sleep or hibernate mode, and press the Wake All button in the PC Auto Waker app. If it works, great! If not, you have a few other settings to mess with.

The Nitty-Gritty Setup

If your computer did not wake it’s probably because the computer is not set up to accept a Wake-On-LAN packet. Fortunately, most computers can be configured so that they will accept it.

First, restart your computer and enter BIOS. This is done by entering the correct key at boot, which should be indicated on the POST screen that appears before Windows beings loading. Once you’ve entered BIOS, look for the Wake-On-LAN setting and enable it. You’re likely to find this along with other settings related to power management or networking, but BIOS vary from computer to computer, so you’ll have to do some digging of your own.

Once you’ve enabled Wake-On-LAN in BIOS, you’ll need to make sure Windows is configured properly as well. Do a Windows Search for Device Manager and open it, then navigate down to Network Adapters. Right-click on the one you use to connect with the Internet and then click Properties. On the Power Management tab you will find three checkboxes. If they’re not already checked, do so.

This should clear up any trouble that’s causing PC Auto Waker to malfunction.

Conclusion

PC Auto Waker is an awesome app. Once you have it set up, your computer will start as soon as your phone makes a connection with your WiFi network. This means you can walk in the door knowing that your PC is already starting. It’s magic!

What do you think about it? Are there any similar Android wake on LAN apps that do a better job? If so, let us know about them in the comments.

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Another Memorial Day, Another History Channel Pawn Stars Marathon

OK, what's the deal? I know the names of a lot of the cable channels are meaningless now. I mean really, when was the last time you saw a music video on MTV (which initially stood for MUSIC Television, back in the '80s), or actually LEARNED something USEFUL on TLC (The LEARNING channel)? It's all about ratings, I guess. But on a day like Memorial Day here in the US, why can't the History Channel actually show something, I don't know, based on HISTORY, and not a pawn shop?

Don't get me wrong. I enjoy Pawn Stars on occasion (like when my wife isn't home because she HATES it). But a Pawn Stars Marathon on Memorial Day? What happened to all that WWII newsreel footage, or WWII in Color, or even the show I watched yesterday on the Yellow Rectangle channel (National Geographic or NatGeo as they've taken to calling themselves) on all the undiscovered bunkers under Berlin?

Seriously? I don't want to see Chumlee or Hoss today. Honest.

Another Memorial Day, Another History Channel Pawn Stars Marathon: "

Sigh. Today is Memorial Day in the US and along with marking the start of summer here, it’s a national holiday in which citizens are supposed to remember U.S. Serviceman who died while serving our country. Often those celebrations involve picnics, family time, and, here in the great state of Michigan, “going up north.” While I’ll argue all day that those events are the proper way to remember fallen soldiers, it bugs me to no end that it’s the History Channel’s seemingly new tradition to run back-to-back reality shows today rather something a bit more on topic. They have the available library. The station was, after all, primarily dedicated to all things war and US history up until a couple years ago when the reality shows invaded.

I pointed this out last year with a good amount of rage. But here I am one year later writing on the same topic, and I still don’t think it’s too much to ask for Band of Brothers instead of Pawn Stars.

"

Apple laptops dominate Consumer Reports rankings

Yet another interesting article, this one is from a place you probably wouldn't expect ME to frequent, being the avid PC user that I am.

Looks like the latest Consumer Reports ranks the 13", 15", and 17" MacBook Pro as the best laptops / notebooks on the market in their size categories.

Who knows. Maybe I'll finally become a switcher.

Apple laptops dominate Consumer Reports rankings: " Consumer Reports has published its latest laptop rankings, and Apple's MacBook Air and MacBook Pro dominate the list. AppleCare also dwarfs its tech support competition.








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How to De-Crapify Your Home: A Start-to-Finish Guide [Clutter]

Well, this is timely.

It's a little late in the year for "Spring Cleaning", but none the less, sometimes we just need to go through the house with a fine toothed comb. And once we've done that, we really should get rid of some of the junk that's been lying around. I mean, really, do I need some of the stuff I've been moving around with me for the past, oh, 25 years or so? Well, yes, some of it, but not all of it. There's my ever popular "I Love Me" wall art, including all my certificates, diplomas, citations (good ones, not parking violations), all those great memories from years passed. What about those? Well, those stay. But if my Grandmonster can go through his stuff and get rid of about 40% of his toys, maybe I should, too. I can follow his example for a change, right?

Maybe.

I mean, it took me about 20 years or more to get rid of the notes I got from my old high school girl friend. OK, I admit it. I have a problem with stuff. Who doesn't? Have you looked in YOUR garage lately? What about that "Junk drawer" you've got in the kitchen? Have you looked in there? I bet it's scary!

Sorry. I didn't mean to get all defensive, but, really, stuff is personal! I've got some great stuff, too. Like those, um, well, Hmmmmm.

Give me a few weeks. I'll decide to go through all my stuff and start de-crapifying my house.

Maybe.

How to De-Crapify Your Home: A Start-to-Finish Guide [Clutter]: "

While it's no epidemic, it's hard to argue that most of us have a little 'too much stuff'. Whether you've got a little or a lot more clutter than you'd like in your home, here's a start-to-finish look at how to streamline your Spring cleaning. More »

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Blood turbine to power your pacemaker, become legendary band name

This looks interesting, and promising at the same time. If they can resolve the concerns about clotting due to the agitation of the blood, or if they can get the magnetic generation working, this is the perfect solution for people with pacemakers, implanted defibrillator, neurostimulators, etc. Since I am or know someone with any of these three devices, there's great promise! I wouldn't have to spend 2 hours a week charging my battery! I can be like the Energizer Bunny and keep going, and going, and ...

Blood turbine to power your pacemaker, become legendary band name: "Why bother with risky battery-changing surgical operations when your own cardiovascular system can provide all the power your heart-shocking pacemaker will ever need? Engineers at Switzerland's University of Bern have been working on tiny turbines; turbines small enough, in fact, to fit inside a human artery. Working like a blood powered hydroelectric generator, a working prototype -- tested in a simulated artery -- has been able to produce 800 microwatts of electricity. That's roughly eighty times the power required to power the average pacemaker; such a device could provide independent, sustainable power to neurostimulators, blood-pressure sensors, and other implanted medical gizmos. Researchers are concerned, however, that a blood turbine's adding agitation of blood flow might lead to clotting, and are continuing to tweak and rework the design to minimize this risk. Similar, but unrelated cardiovascular power designs have attempted to alleviate the concern by doing away with the rotating, fluid powered components, opting to generate electricity by oscillating magnets by utilizing changes in blood pressure -- which sounds awesome, but still falls shy of 'blood turbine,' in the contest for most Metal medical device.

Blood turbine to power your pacemaker, become legendary band name originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 17 May 2011 08:37:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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