WTF!!!

This is my WTF page where i will talk about things that bothers everyone and show ways around them.

Currently on WTF 3 located at the bottom of the page (updated on 8/13/06)

WTF 1. For my first edition of WTF, I would like to talk about a problem that has bugged me and many of my friends for a long time. The problem is the wireless headphones sold at RadioShack. The RadioShack brand wireless headphones Are really good but for 1 problem; The range sucks. I go to my friends house across the street and I get a unstable signal.

Fixing the problem: Step 1: locate the 4 screws on the bottom. and remove them. Step 2: Pull the back panel out about 1/2 inch and then remove the bottom panel (all circuitry is attached to the bottom panel) Step 3: There will be a small antenna located at the right hand side. get a long high quality wire and wrap it around the antenna. and use your soldering iron or anything else to make a tiny hole so the wire can some out of the case (i made mine on the bottom)

you can now attach that wire to an external antenna and get a much better range.

WTF 2: Stay for away from electronic bug repellents!!!

For WTF 2, I decided to test if electronic bug repellents really worked and what I found out will hopefully better your understanding of these scams.

For the test, I dismantled a electronic bug repeller.

(Here is a look at the insides of one) (rest of article below the 3 images)

The tests that I did were used to test the response range of the speaker using a line-in wire so one end of it can be connected to the headphone jack of my speakers and the other end to the speaker on the electronic bug repeller. I then used Adobe audition 2.0 to generate many different tones ranging from 100 Hz to 90000 Hz

(these peice of S**t repellers claim to produce frequencies well into the 40,000 Hz range but with my tests, I was only able to get the speakers to a max of 16,201 Hz (anything higher and the speakers would completely distort and make all wierd noises (my logitech speaker system only has this problem when i hit 28,000 Hz at high volumes)

this shows that these devices don't work as they arent even able to even hit those frequencies advertised and even if they did, a simple google search shows that the repellers still wouldnt work and in some cases, would attract bugs because of the heat that the device generates (the inside of it does get warm)

If your ever in the market for bug repellers, stay away from the electronic ones.

The best way to remove ants or other bugs from a house is to get the bug baits (the raid ones are best as they contain real food that the ands take to the queen)

and then getting the bug killers that you sprinkle all over your yard (they sprinkle the same way you sprinkle fertilizer)

Even though the raid baits contain food, you have to cut them open and add 1 or 2 drips of something sweet (i used minute made attracted hundreds of ants)

with out adding juice, the ants will not even eat the bait.

WTF 3:

For WTF 3, I will show how to disable the overloaded battery alarm.

Currently with the very old models of the APC UPS surge protectors, the battery backup will give 200 watts of power when in battery mode (even though it says 200 watts, it wil only give 170 watts of stable power any thing more and the power becomes unstable with voltage spikes and drops in voltage)

If a drvice connected to the surge protector drains more than 200 watts in battery mode, the overload alarm will come on. If it is overloaded for too long, a few components related to the battery backup system will take damage (this will NOT rurin the surge protector's ability to protect you from a surge).

When the battery backup system takes damage, the surge protector was permanently give a nonstop high-pitched tone when ever it is on. The reason for this article is to disable that alarm (the software that the surge protector comes with will not allow you to disable its onboard alarm like in the newer models). Since the battery backup system has taken damage, the battery backup system will never pass its automated test and for that, the power light will continue to blink even if the alarm is disabled. (Nothing to be alarmed of, you will still be protected from surges, you just have battery backup and even if the battery backup did work, it would be useless to you if you're equipment and drains more than 200 W of power.

Now, to disable the alarm:

Step 1: locate every screw on the bottom of the surge protector and remove them.

Step2: Remove the battery cover and remove the last screw along with the battery.

Step 3: Remove the case (and try to avoid grabing the exposed wiring warnings on the case are there for a reason :) )

Step 4: locate the board with the speaker on it and ready your soldering iron.

Step 5: Use your soldering iron to help remove the speaker. (if you look at the back of the board, you will see a dark spot where the speaker is and there will be only 2 solder points visible there).

Remove the speaker. (When your done, it should look like this)

Step 6: Put the bottom part of the case back on, screw everything back in and reconnect the battery and put it's cover back on.

The surge protector will then be ready to use (power light will blink while surge protector is on but it's nothingto worry about, if you need battery backup, then buy a newer more powerful model surge protector, if 200 watts isint enough, go with the APC Back-UPS RS 800VA - UPS - 800 VA. It is much better because if will give you well over 500 watts of power which is enough to run your PC and monitor modem and router.