I started taking my blog serious earlier this year and it grew rapidly. I never really received the support from the blogosphere that I deserved, except from a handful of fellow bloggers (and my most loyal reader, Island-Chic!), and many times I have considered quiting.

But I kept at it and months later, my blog has overgrown the functionality offered by the Blogger platform and it has become necessary to move it to a platform that can support a custom domain, highly customizable templates and ironically, better SEO support.

With this in mind, I have launched my blog on www.DChetty.co.za and will discontinue posting on this domain. I will leave this blog up for a few weeks, until all my faithful readers have been redirected to my new domain. I will then delete this blog entirely!

Thank you for your support on this domain and I truly look forward to having you on my new domain. If you have backlinked to me on any of your posts, Blog Rolls, Link Lists, etc, please consider changing this link to land on DChetty instead.

Sphere: Related Content

#FAIL!

Posted by HoTsTePPa | | , | 3 Opinions »

I picked up this site on the twitter waves today and found this pic! This site is CLASSIC and is a must see. It has a collection of #FAIL posts that is bound to have you cracking up!


I

Sphere: Related Content

A few months ago, the CEO of MWEB, Rudi Jansen announced that a strategic decision has been made by Nasper's to "auction off MWEB" to a company that can provide MWEB with access to a network.



After months of rumours and speculation, it was announced today in a letter to the staff by Rudi Jansen announced that the sale process has been called off.

"Following months of work and endless late nights working on the sale of MWEB, I am now able to give you a final update on the process. Naspers has decided to end the formal auction process for the sale of MWEB South Africa due to current market conditions. MWEB South Africa will therefore remain within the Naspers group.

An agreement has also been concluded whereby Telkom will purchase the MWEB Africa business. This transaction will take some time to close, mainly due to regulatory approvals that are required. We expect the date of closing to be some time in quarter 1 2009."


Sphere: Related Content


This is flipping HILARIOUS!

Sphere: Related Content

The Nokia N810 WiMax Edition is Nokia's super communication device! Priced at about $495, the handset is set to take the WiMax mobile market by storm!

Check out the advert for the hardcore device below:


Sphere: Related Content

Now it seems that everyone has AdSense on individual “tweets.” At least that’s what I’m seeing on individual tweets using FireFox and IE7 in Microsoft Vista and in XP. I don't have a Mac of Linux machine to check if it's the same on that!

I'm Sorry... but when I saw this, I laughed till my eyes started tearing! This is BRILLIANT!

Click on the image if you can't read the text...trust me... its worth it! :)

Sphere: Related Content

Thanks to my mate from iMod, who pointed out that today, the 5th of November... yes "Remember, Remember the 5th of November" can't go without an Obama post!

So here it is :)


If you find this offensive...laugh a lil mate... you are thinking it anyway, you just don't have the Kahuna's to say it!

Sphere: Related Content

Sprint and Clearwire have FINALLY cleared their differences today and the FCC has given the nod of approval for the companies to hit the road running with WiMax! The partnership is set to bring broadband wireless internet to 140million users in 2 and a half years, using WiMax technologies.This is BIG news for WiMax globally! I've been part of a few fairly heated arguments about the future of WiMax and the financial viability of rolling out a WiMax network now, when we have technologies like LTE already emerging in the horizon with a grin on it's face!

To clear that up, LTE and other new technologies will always be athreat to the success of WiMax. Like all great technologies, the glory only lasts as long as the press release of the next technology is still in the mail. But the financial viability is driven by the cost of establishing the network and the cost of consumer products that use the network!

Its that simple! South Africa, you better watch this space for exciting WiMax news ;)

Sphere: Related Content

Just as I finished my last Nokia article, I stumbled across another hot topic. That is the low end market. We have seen the product range go through a major storm of late with the iPhone, the Nokia E71, the HTC Touch HD, etc etc, but we really haven't seen much movement in the lower price bracket!
And this is the cue for Nokia's latest army of budget handsets. Designed specifically to target emerging markets, these handsets range in price from as little as $25 to $90! Most of them come packed with the standard features of late, MP3 playback, cameras of at least 1 Megapixel (but going up to 3Megapixels on the higher end phone), GPRS and browser functionality.

At $25, this is set to be Nokia's cheapest handset ever and it sports a monochrome screen and basic features that we have last seen on the Nokia 3300 :)

Sphere: Related Content

On the back of a super successful full touch screen phone, the iPhone, we have seen just about every handset manufacturer release a touchscreen phone!

Samsungs Omnia, the new HTC Touch range is said to compete, and now.. all hail the Nokia 5300!

This is Nokia's first mainstream handset with full touchscreen functionality. Nokia does have preceding devices that were way to expensive to have taken off successfully, like the N800 Tablet and the 7700. This handset is said to be targeting the sub $400 price bracket with tweaked OS driven by Symbian S60 Version 5 (Yes, I said Version 5!) to push the multitouch screen through its paces!

All About Symbian has done an extensive review on the device and I must admit... the boys at Nokia have been really working hard lately!

Sphere: Related Content

On the back of a major #Fail for Apple's iPhone in China, HTC has been very adamant to get the G1 into China by mid year 2009. The Google powered handset can already be found on the streets of China for about $580 and with the major uptake on the streets already, it only makes sense for HTC to bring it legally to the market!

Sphere: Related Content


The Nokia N85 has been reported to be better than the flagship N-Series phone, the N96, by an Italian reviewer recently and I couldn't help but to first think that this Italiano was high on olives and smoking his socks!

But oh goodness is this a beast of a phone!

Sphere: Related Content

A handset with detachable modules has surfaced recently. It seems that a QWERTY keyboard module can be attached for messaging and std use of the phone, a Game Pad for a full gaming experience and the 3rd module is a speaker for full multimedia playback.


The main unit seems to be fitted with a 3 inch touch screen. This is definitely a pinnacle achievement for mobile convergence!

I don't know who the handset manufacturer is, but well done guys, this looks awesome!

Sphere: Related Content

At midnight tonight, the petrol price in South Africa will be dropping for the 4th consecutive month now!

Dropping by a huge 45cents, this is a welcomed relief for the economy and highlights the strength of our economy and the ability for our markets to fight off further inflation!

Sphere: Related Content

Click on the image to few an enlargened version!

Sphere: Related Content


Click on the image to enlargen it!

Sphere: Related Content


If you can't read the text, please click on the image to enlarge it!

Sphere: Related Content

Picasa 3.0 Beta launched in late September and it changed the way we managed our photos forever. Effortlessly, simplifying photo management, editing and posting to the web.
Picaso 3.0 has just come out of Beta. They have also included video management in the latest version. The site still says that it's Beta, but the download file is definitely the final version. I highly recommend Picasa, download it here!

Sphere: Related Content

I love Audi! I've said it before and you are damn sure that you will hear it again! When Audi launched the new Audi A4, I couldn't help but skip a heart beat. It is stunningly sexy and an absolutley amazing car to the point that I had to have one.

So I am an Audi owner now. My biggest problem with this though, is that every time I see a new model, I start having these cravings and I'm almost tempted to pull into the driveway of an Audi Dealership and get the enthusiastic salesman to do a swop for me!

I've just had a look at the new Audi Q5 on the video below... and those urges are back! Somebody slap me!



Thanks to Zoopy for the videos of the Johannesburg International Car Show!

Sphere: Related Content

Windows only: Chart Advisor, a free plug-in for Excel 2007, takes the guess-and-hope element out of making your spreadsheet data presentable. The plug-in adds a single button to Excel's "Insert" toolbar, and clicking it brings up a window with the Advisor's recommended layouts, ranked in order of relevance. Mouse over the chart layouts to see a preview, then click on "Modify Chart" to filter and change the data being used.

It's definitely more helpful than Excel's default chart and graph chooser, and helps graphing newbies figure out how to tweak their displays. Chart Advisor is a free plug-in, requires 32-bit Windows XP or Vista and Excel 2007. See below for a video demonstration of Chart Advisor's features.

<a href="http://video.msn.com/?mkt=en-US&amp;playlist=videoByUuids:uuids:3092cdf1-75ff-409e-9bdb-b4a818b39952&amp;showPlaylist=true&amp;from=shared" target="_new" title="Chart Advisor Overview">Video: Chart Advisor Overview</a>

Sphere: Related Content

Ok, this is COOL!

Japan does love 'em some mobile TV. Now that 1-Seg digital goodness has been announced for iPhone users. The 80-gram tuner provides a TV fix over WiFi and doubles as a battery extender when plugged into the iPhone 3G's dock connector. Trendy sidewalk zombies, the streets are yours. We'll update you with prices and dates when known. One more pic for size comparison after the break.

Update: Official PR with specs (no price) is now out: 3 hours continuous 1-Seg viewing, 2-/4-hours charge via AC/USB, and available mid December along side a free 1-Seg application from the AppStore.

Sphere: Related Content

I'm a pretty hardcore Firefox fan and have posted a few love articles for Firefox before. In fact, I should post a revised list of some of my favourite Firefox plugins soon. None-the-less, with Halloween dawning, the guys at HalloFF have launched a new theme for the world's greatest browser.


Sphere: Related Content

As a clear strategic shift towards cloud computing and recognising the effect that Google Apps has had on Microsoft office products, by offering a web based office suite of productivity tools that enable users to benefit from hosted applications and best of all... its FREE, Microsoft has announced that it will be launching Office Web Applications. This is basically a hosted version of Microsoft Office!

Microsoft Office is still the default productivity suite of choice my businesses globally, and one may argue that this is due to lack of education with respect to Open Source or free application.

This product will undoubtedly shake up the industry and will further drive an awareness towards cloud computing. Is this proof that Microsoft realises that they need to adapt or die?

Microsoft Excel Online!


Microsoft Word Online!

Sphere: Related Content

By now, I am sure that you have heard about the matric results of Julias Maleme, the guy driving the ANC Youth League. What I could never figure out though, is why call it a youth league and the guy in charge is 27 years old,

Anyway, you can always count on the guys at Madame & Eve to make you smile!

Click on the image to view a larger version of the image!


Ok bright spark Julias... How do you plan to set an example for the youth of our nation with grades like that? All those who voted Julias into the driver seat... how could you POSSIBLY not ask beforehand?

Sphere: Related Content

The last month has seen the South African Rand get kicked to hell and gone by a fearful market. Global recession has been the new hype on the block of late, before that it was iPhone and before that it was Facebook.

But even though the price of the dollar is still pretty much the price of a dozen syruped koeksusters, (since the price of sugar is skyhigh...trust me boet...its not cheap!), the international oil price is at a low unmatched in about 18 months. Reported to have traded at around $59 to a barrel recently, which puts it at lows that were last matched in Feb 2007 if I'm not mistaken.

35 cents off the petrol price and about 20 cents off diesel is expected to be announced this friday, which also marks the last day of October. Now, the pattern has been that price changes happen at 12:01 on the Wednesday after the announcement... so if you can hold off filling your tank for about a week, you could end up saving about R22 off your next tank of fuel... thats a box of smarties, a coke and a packet of crisps bru!

Sphere: Related Content

Chevy has clearly been veeery busy lately and they've even come up with a little teaser video on Youtube to keep us sitting at the edge salivating for more.

The deal is that they've taken a stock Camaro... tricked it out and painted it black! Specs have been kept very low key, but this years SEMA show is definitely gonna be a big "Ooooh Aaaah" session!

Check out the teaser video that GM has put out for us and a few pics to perv at in the mean time!




Sphere: Related Content

The Nokia E61 and E62i were evangelists in its domain, and the launch of the Nokia E71 saw the business phone grow up quite a bit. I'm a Nokia E71 owner and I absolutely love the device.

Everything from the E71 alarm clock to the Mail for Exchage integration. The design is stunning and the form factor is pure perfection. Kudos to the designers and engineers on the E71.

I guess, when you have something so close to perfection, its tough to beat it. SO the designers at Nokia must have had a real hard time coming up with something decent for the E63. But judging from the spy shots of the Nokia E63, it looks like it was designed at 4:45pm on a Friday by a Finnish designer who just bought himself a new set of colouring pencils!






<--Nokia E71 Nokia E63-->














Early reports show it as having a 320 x 240 resolution display, WiFi, Bluetooth, Symbian S60, a microSD card slot, 3.5-millimeter headphone jack and UMTS / HSDPA. And judging from the pics, the keyboard has been altered slightly to include easy access to brackets and the space bar has been shortened. Good move!

Sphere: Related Content

Audi has revealed a new 'fastback saloon' and has hinted that the model could provide clues to the design of its future compact execs.

The Roadjet Concept uses a new 296bhp, 3.2-litre V6 petrol engine, which is mated to a sporty new seven-speed DSG gearbox.

Top speed is limited to 155mph, while 0-62mph is dispatched in just 6.4 seconds.

The concept features permanent quattro four-wheel drive and Audi Drive Select, which allows driving settings to be changed at the touch of a button to Comfort, Dynamic and Sport modes.

New high-tech goodies include an electrically operated, remote control two-level load bay, and a new car-to-car-communication system that allows the Roadjet to exchange data with other vehicles.

The concept also boasts the latest version of Audi's MMI (Multi Media Interface) cabin control system, a cutting-edge Bang & Olufsen stereo and even an espresso machine.

Sphere: Related Content

You might have heard about Essex police filling their diesel cars with petrol. ‘Had other things on their mind’, apparently. Good job, lads. Now let’s just hope the Italian cops don’t make the same mistake.

Cos we’d be sad to see them ruin their new car: a brand-new Lamborghini Gallardo LP560. It’s been donated to the Italian State Police to help ‘accident and crime prevention and sustain security on Italian roads’. Whatever. They’re going to rag it totally senseless, aren’t they?

There’ll be no out-running it either. This thing does 203mph and hits 60 mph in 3.7 seconds, thanks to 560bhp and four-wheel-drive. Enough, then, to chase-down Mario and Luigi as they spank their old Fiat Panda away from a bank heist.



It’s not the first time Lamborghini have given a car to the Old Bill. They gave them a last-generation Gallardo in 2004, which has since covered 87,000 miles, and another in 2005 that now shows 62,000 on the clock.

So if you’re in the Lazio area anytime soon, and considering criminal behaviour, forget it. Unless, of course, you want a ride in a bright-blue Lambo...

Sphere: Related Content

Sphere: Related Content

So you all now that I have this major love for Gmail and I am so glad that Google has finally started throwing some serious money at Gmail and the Gmail team has been rolling out a series of some pretty cool and nifty features lately.

They have just added a feature that bypasses the warning message that is displayed when you leave the content of the mail empty.

Now, I often myself whacking off mails where the subject carries enough of a message to get the message across that I don't need to type anything in the mail... eg. "Call me asap!" or even just a link to an article that I think should be read.

The new feature basically requires you to add "EOM" at the end of the subject header and the mail will be sent off without the annoying message. "EOM" stands for End Of Message!

Check out the full details of the feature here if you don't understand what I'm talking about!

Sphere: Related Content

Here's a Gmail feature I wouldn't have noticed without a post from Gmail's blog: emoticons. If you use the rich-text mode when composing messages, you can now include small images that reflect your intentions.

"The black and white days of text-based emails have had their day. Following the evolutionary path blazed by colored labels, we present, in all their technicolor glory, emoticons in your mail," says Darren Lewis from Google.

Google also added a new set of emoticons in Gmail Chat and it's strange to see that you can add much more emoticons in an email than in an IM conversation.

Sphere: Related Content

Whether you prefer managing your contacts outside Gmail or you don't use Gmail but still want to use Google Contacts to manage your Reader or Docs contacts, try the standalone Google Contacts page. The URL isn't type-in friendly, but it deserves a bookmark if you need to do contact management outside of Gmail.
Check the full article over at the Google Contacts blog post

Sphere: Related Content

ChrisM from iMod has started a small campaign on Muti to raise funds for the Blogger Bake Off, which aims to raise $1million towards food for the Africa's hungry communities!

I think that it is a brilliant cause and ChrisM's plan is to donate R200 for 100 votes on Muti. He was quickly joined by Thakadu , Sue, Charl and Wogan who have each matched his pledge. Follow them on Twitter at @christopherm, @muti, @cow_grrrl, @zoopedup and @woganmay respectively!

I pledge R200 for every 100 votes received on Muti!


Please head over and vote asap as the campaign ends on Monday at 13h00 SA time!

Sphere: Related Content

According to the UK's Telegraph, mobile phones are responsible for yet another one of the great terrors of the 21st century: dermatitis. Apparently, "skin specialists" have discovered that certain metals used in cellphones are causing some users to suffer inflamed, reddened, dry, blistered, and cracked skin. Sounds awesome, right?

It seems that about a third of heavy talkers are sensitive to nickel -- a substance commonly found in gadgets -- which can become irritating after repeated exposure. Says Brown University's Dr. Lionel Bercovitch, "Given the widespread use of cellphones, the presence of metal in the exterior casing of these phones and the high prevalence of nickel sensitization in the population, it is not surprising that cellphones can cause allergic contact dermatitis."

There's probably little you can do to out-and-out escape the problem, so we suggest full face mask whenever a call needs to be made -- also, for dinner parties.

Check out the full article over at UK Telegraphs blog.

Sphere: Related Content

Take one look at the room rates at the Malibu Beach Inn, and you'll fully understand why you'll be treated to a loaner iPod touch for the duration of your stay. For those who already own an iPhone / iPod touch, they'll be given access to a web application that was built for the Safari browser to give guests all sorts of remote capabilities.

For instance, ordering up room service, setting a wake up call, requesting luggage, renting a limo and flipping the door placard to "Do Not Disturb" no longer requires any strenuous work; instead, users can simply hit a few buttons and be on their way.

The hotel chose a web app in order to avoid the Apple certification process and to make it available on other hot devices in the near future. But then again, if you can swing this place, you've probably got a butler handling the front-desk inquiries, anyway.

Sphere: Related Content

A recent usability study conducted by Yahoo shows that users are still confused by OpenID—the single sign-on technology out to eliminate multiple usernames and passwords. Tech site Webmonkey reports:

The study observed nine female Yahoo users in their thirties who considered themselves of medium-to-high internet savvy. The participants were told they could log in with their Yahoo ID at a third-party site. In many cases, the users tried to log in using the site’s main login, rather than the OpenID login. Users don’t understand multiple ways to log in, at least not without some education.

Do you use OpenID? Does OpenID deliver on its promises?

Truth be told, while the OpenID concept is very exciting, adoption has been disappointing—and it's most likely due to the usability problems surrounding it. Over a year ago, Lifehacker alum Wendy Boswell ran down the pros and cons of OpenID, and her review was pretty mixed. Tell us whether or not you're using and loving OpenID in the comments.

Sphere: Related Content

The photography enthusiasts at weblog Photojojo detail how to use a vintage manual-focus camera lens with your DSLR camera for a fraction of the cost of newer auto-focus lenses. There's not really much to it—just buy yourself an adapter ring and go hunting for a vintage manual-focus lens on eBay and you're good to go. As an added bonus, it may even improve your photography:

Using manual focus on those old lenses will slow you down a little. Not too much, just enough to make you think about your shot. You feel more connected to your camera and to the process of shooting.



Sphere: Related Content

Afrigator has been doing some amazing work and have really done well. They are social media aggregators for African publishers!

I was very honored today when I was informed by Afrigator that they rate me as one of Africa's top bloggers! They have compiled a list of 45 blogs that they feel worthy of representing Africa's best. I am ranked number 24 on the list!

It's REALLY funny to me though... you see, the list is called


Thanks ChrisM for bringing it to their attention!

I have never felt it necessary to clarify my gender, though I have referenced my girlfriend and I would have thought that my obsession with tech stuff and cars would have given it away, but I guess that we live in a time when these things are tough to tell... so here goes...

HoTsTePPa is male!!!

The list is pretty amazing and I highly suggest that given the time, you read some of the blogs listed! Nice Work Afrigator!

1. So Close South Africa Rank: 9 Overall Rank: 10 Blog
2. Urban Sprout South Africa Rank: 10 Overall Rank: 11 Blog
3. Black Looks Nigeria Rank: 1 Overall Rank: 14 Blog
4. Kenyan Pundit Kenya Rank: 2 Overall Rank: 17 Blog
5. Cape Town Daily Photo South Africa Rank: 19 Overall Rank: 23 Blog
6. Angel’s mind South Africa Rank: 27 Overall Rank: 34 Blog
7. Ladybrille South Africa Rank: 30 Overall Rank: 38 Blog
8. Cooksister South Africa Rank: 31 Overall Rank: 40 Blog
9. Bosom Buddies South Africa Rank: 39 Overall Rank: 48 Blog
10. Scarlett Lion Uganda Rank: 1 Overall Rank: 57 Blog
11. Hottest Gossip South Africa Rank: 48 Overall Rank: 60 Blog
12. Mother City Living South Africa Rank: 51 Overall Rank: 65 Blog
13. JustB[Coz] South Africa Rank: 54 Overall Rank: 71 Blog
14. Melissa Attree South Africa Rank: 60 Overall Rank: 78 Blog
15. Entertainment Blog South Africa Rank: 63 Overall Rank: 85 Blog
16. Sugar. Spice. And all things nice! General Rank: 3 Overall Rank: 96 Blog
17. Jackfruity Uganda Rank: 3 Overall Rank: 98 Blog
18. Africa Expat Wives Club Kenya Rank: 8 Overall Rank: 108 Blog
19. Anja Merret South Africa Rank: 74 Overall Rank: 109 Blog
20. Glad to be a Girl South Africa Rank: 78 Overall Rank: 114 Blog
21. Insight South Africa Rank: 81 Overall Rank: 117 Blog
22. Inside Candy South Africa Rank: 82 Overall Rank: 118 Blog
23. FeistyFemale South Africa Rank: 87 Overall Rank: 124 Blog
24. Through My Own Eyes South Africa Rank: 88 Overall Rank: 125 Blog
25. Szavanna_blog South Africa Rank: 94 Overall Rank: 132 Blog
26. Ore’s Notes Nigeria Rank: 7 Overall Rank: 153 Blog
27. Tania South Africa Rank: 106 Overall Rank: 155 Blog
28. Onder die maan en sterre South Africa Rank: 115 Overall Rank: 165 Blog
29. The Vegan Diet South Africa Rank: 120 Overall Rank: 174 Blog
30. What An African Woman Thinks General Rank: 7 Overall Rank: 181 Blog
31. The Adventures of Miss M South Africa Rank: 153 Overall Rank: 223 Blog
32. Photography by Jeanette South Africa Rank: 154 Overall Rank: 224 Blog
33. Libby South Africa Rank: 160 Overall Rank: 234 Blog
34. Vampira’s Life South Africa Rank: 163 Overall Rank: 239 Blog
35. Michelle Clarke South Africa Rank: 183 Overall Rank: 269 Blog
36. An Ordinary Life South Africa Rank: 189 Overall Rank: 278 Blog
37. Hunter of Genius South Africa Rank: 191 Overall Rank: 281 Blog
38. Deshanta’s World South Africa Rank: 200 Overall Rank: 292 Blog
39. Helen Zille South Africa Rank: 202 Overall Rank: 294 Blog
40. Afromusing Kenya Rank: 21 Overall Rank: 307 Blog
41. Memories, Sentiments, Rants and Raves Kenya Rank: 22 Overall Rank: 314 Blog
42. Wandering the World Eqypt Rank: 15 Overall Rank: 323 Blog
43. Mama Etiopia Ethiopia Rank: 2 Overall Rank: 338 Blog
44. Victoire South Africa Rank: 238 Overall Rank: 355 Blog
45. My Whorl South Africa Rank: 239 Overall Rank: 357 Blog

Sphere: Related Content

Show your love for Mozilla Firefox with one of these really cool high-res wallpapers! Don't forget to check out Firefox 3 and the really cool plugin selection that I suggest!




Click on the image to enlargen it, then right-click and select "Set as Desktop Background"!

Sphere: Related Content


If you're happy enough with the features your iPod offers out of the box that you don't want to install a custom firmware like Rockbox, but you'd still like to add a little personal flair to Apple's cookie-cutter look, you're in luck. Freeware application iPodWizard customizes the look and feel of your iPod's interface while still using a customized version of your iPod's default firmware on the device. That means you still get the same iPod software that you already know and love, but you can skin it to look however you want. Let's take a closer look at how to customize your iPod with iPodWizard.

What You'll Get

Before you put in the effort, it's always nice to see what you're working toward. Below I've rounded up some of my favorite custom themes, all of which you can install using iPodWizard.

Beautifully Black

iPod OS X

Northern Lights

Install Custom Themes

First, download and install the latest version of iPodWizard from the GetiPodWizard web site (as of this writing, the latest version is 1.3). This version of iPodWizard works with every iPod on the market except second and third generation nanos, the iPod classic, and the iPod touch. That means that if you've got a first through 5.5 gen iPod or first gen nano, you're ready to go with iPodWizard.

The iPodWizard Wiki already has a great tutorial detailing the process of installing new themes, so I won't go into a lot of detail. I will, however, share a few extra tips that would have helped me when I followed their tutorial.

First of all, since iPodWizard patches the firmware that's already on your device, you need to be able to tell iPodWizard where to find your firmware on your computer. Finding and downloading the latest firmware can be a pain, but if you know where to look, it should already be on your computer. To find it, go to Start -> Run and paste the following into the run box:

%appdata%\Apple Computer\iTunes\iPod Software Updates

That should take you to the directory that holds your latest installed firmware update—it's the file that ends in .ipsw. (If that doesn't work, try navigating to a similar folder manually.)

You can find themes on the iPodWizard Theme forum. It's a bit of a mess to look through, but if you pick your iPod type and sort the thread by number of views—like I did for 5th generation iPod themes—you can find a lot of the best themes really quickly.

Once you've got a theme you want to install and you've got your firmware handy, installing is a breeze. Just fire up iPodWizard, select iPodSoftwareFile from the Edit Mode drop-down, and select Open iPSW. Next, go to the Pictures tab, click the Load All button, and point iPodWizard at the folder containing the images of your theme. If your theme swaps layout and fonts, you'll need to perform similar operations on the layout and font tabs.

Once you've swapped the files you want to use with the defaults, just click the Write to iPod button. Disconnect your iPod (make sure to eject it properly first), and it should automatically reboot. When it does, your iPod's sporting a whole new look.

I'm relatively new to theming with iPodWizard, so if you're an old hand with this customization app, share you expertise in the comments.

Sphere: Related Content