Hello everyone. Recently, I've been encountering numerous BSODs on Windows 8.1, each time with the same error: "IRQL_NOT_LESS_OR_EQUAL". This is my attempt to document the steps taken to fix this error.

The first thing I did was examine the Windows Event Viewer service to determine what happened during the crash. According to the Event Viewer, there was a problem with the "svchost.exe" file. This is a system file, so the next step was to run an "sfc /scannow" command.

Running the Command Prompt as an Administrator, I ran the "sfc /scannow" command. After an extensive scan, the program returned the following information: "Windows Resource Protection found corrupt files but was unable to fix some of them. Details are included in the CBS.Log windir\Logs\CBS\CBS.log. For example C:\Windows\Logs\CBS\CBS.log."

Well, this sucks. SFC is supposed to fix the files! After some digging around on the internet, I decided to run the Deployment Image Servicing and Management tool, or DISM. Launching the Command Prompt with Administrative privileges again, I ran the following command: "dism /online /cleanup-image /restorehealth". Essentially, this would scan the entire Windows image, delete any resources associated with the corrupt files, and restore the clean files from a backup.

After around half an hour, the DISM program was completed with the following message: "The restore operation completed successfully. The component store corruption was repaired." Cool. Just to be thorough, I ran the "sfc/scannow" command again. It returned the following result: "Windows Resource Protection did not find any integrity violations."

I haven't had any BSODs since. I believe this corrected the problems, and my system seems to be running a lot smoother, but considering the random nature with which the problem appears, it's impossible to be certain. I'll give it some more time and update this blog if anything changes.

Runes of Magic on Linux

I recently had some major trouble getting the popular MMO 'Runes of Magic' to work on my Linux laptop. I seem to have fixed the problem, and figured I'd share my knowledge with the world, in case anyone else is having trouble as well. So here's how you run WINE on Linux, note I am running Linux Mint 10, a derivative of Ubuntu's "Maverick Meerkat" release. (Darn, now I want to watch Meerkat Manor, lol)

First, you of course need to install WINE. I simply installed it from the repositories, but you can download it and install it via the WINE website as well. I also installed the PlayOnLinux front-end, I'm not sure if this is necessary or not but either way that's what I did.

After that, it's a simple matter of downloading and installing the client like you would on Windows. Now, this is where it gets tricky. After running the game client and trying to patch the game, it will encounter a fatal error and crash. Here's the trick: Before you run the game client, you need to install Microsoft Visual C++ 2005. Here's how I did it:

First, I installed Winetricks by using the following command in Terminal:

• wget http://www.kegel.com/wine/winetricks

Then installing MS Visual C++ is a simple matter of running the following command in Terminal:

• sh winetricks vcrun2005

This will install MS Visual C++. Run the client again, and it should work normally. It'll patch the game, then launch the game. Final step: Enjoy playing Runes of Magic.

I hope this helps Linux users to enjoy Runes of Magic, without getting overly frustrated, like I got.

And then I said, "Oatmeal?! Are you crazy?!"

Things have not been very good lately in the world. Shootings in Tucson, the media bickering, left wing and right wing idiots pointing fingers at each other ... so let's take a moment to look at something a bit happier, a 'guilty pleasure' if you will.

There's a new My Little Pony TV series out, and Celestia help me, it's actually pretty good. My Little Pony - Friendship is Magic (abbreviated FiM) is the third television series and follows the 4th Generation ponies. Initially, Twilight Sparkle, a unicorn and disciple of the god-queen Celestia (though she prefers to be called a princess) is sent to Ponyville in order to supervise the preparations for their equivalent of Summer Solstice. Without giving too much away, she ends up having to make friends to save the world from becoming shrouded in eternal night.

I really like how the characters are portrayed in this show. Character development progresses well, and the characters tend to break the mold. Twilight Sparkle, for example, is a bit of a shut-in bookworm, which is pretty normal, but she's also a Type A take charge sort of girl. She's not portrayed as shy (that's Fluttershy's job), but as someone who would simply rather stay home and read a book than go to a party. Her organizational skills save the day a couple of times, notably in the Winter Wrap-Up episode.

The show is also not afraid to poke fun at its predecessors. For example, the previous series included random musical numbers. In FiM, Pinkie Pie will occasionally burst into a musical number, but then she's the one all the other ponies think is crazy. ("Tell me she's not." "She is.") The show has even developed a bit of a colt following.

Anyways, I could go on about the show a bit more, but it's pretty late here and I need to get some sleep. There are lots of various forum discussions, I highly recommend checking out some of them. Also the TV Tropes page.

Also, if you're wondering about the title of this post, see the first few seconds of this.

Also, in case you didn't see it, I made another post earlier today. This is the second of two posts as my apology for not updating last week, so hit the jump to see my other update.

Jersey Shore

Hello everyone. Sorry for not posting last week, I was in New Jersey getting a couple of dental fillings. Now, my Nana and aunt will tell you their place has perfectly good internet. Don't listen to them. I had to mooch off the neighbors.

That aside, my aunt Chris is a very good cook, although she doesn't actually cook nearly often enough. I was only down there for three nights, the first I made my own dinner because it was late, and the third night we went out to eat. But the time she did make dinner, a pot roast with mashed potatoes and veggies, it was delicious. (Pro tip: When making a roast, just dump the veggies in with it and let them cook with the roast. The veggies then pick up a bit of the meaty flavor. This works very well with frozen vegetables as well.)

Now, meditation. I just want to say that this is a very effective trick when at the dentist or the doctor. It helps you pass the time and not be quite so bored, as well as helping distract you from the discomfort inherent in not being able to feel your lips. (Pro tip: When the dentist is applying the Novocain, DO NOT OPEN YOUR EYES!)

The Amtrak is just plain fun. It's not the fastest way to get someplace, but it's got big seats, a dining car, and power outlets at every seat. You can stand up and stretch, walking back to the dining car just to stretch your muscles, and pick up a snack while you're at it. ;) The trip back was fun because we drove through a constant snowstorm, and snow kept drifting into the space between the cars. (Pro tip: Put on your long duster coat when going between cars and boast about how you had to trudge through raging blizzards just to get to the next car.)

That's all for now. I'm working on another post to make up for my lack of one last week, so stay tuned for that.

Blog Challenge 2011: Turn It Up To '11!

Heeeello, everybody! It's a new year, and with a new year comes new posts. This year, I'm participating in the Post A Week Blog Challenge on Wordpress, which means two things. 1) More regular updates here, at least once per week. And 2) I now have a 'mirror site' of sorts, meaning all my posts from here on out will appear on Wordpress as well. You can find my Wordpress mirror at (http://shadowsofvalhalla.wordpress.com/), and I encourage you to follow me there, though everything I post there and more will still be posted here.

Note: The following contains information about a TV series and a movie. Though I will do my best to avoid spoilers, I recommend treading lightly if you haven't seen Watership Down or Voyage of the Dawn Treader.

Now that that's out of the way, I've been watching the Watership Down TV series lately. Most people stumble across it and watch it because they were a fan of the original movie and book, and a number of them are rightfully miffed. They turned Blackberry into a doe, and they changed and reordered a lot of the events, completely cutting out the events at Sandleford Warren altogether. On the other hand, the TV series as a whole is actually pretty good. If you don't go into it with any expectations, the characters are relatively well done and can really draw you in. There is one particular episode where the gull, Keehar, brings news back to Watership Down that Hazel and his raiding party are gone, and not coming back. (He thinks that a fox ate them.) And Pipkin's reaction is enough to bring tears to one's eyes. (Though the effect is somewhat less, considering that we already know they're still alive.)

In more theatrical news, I saw the new Narnia movie today, Voyage of the Dawn Treader. It's a good movie, even with the heavy religious undertones (overtones?) at the end. My favorite character, I think, is Reepicheep, the chief mouse (and a noble one to boot), though Eustace was also pretty good after his little debacle as a dragon. (On a side note, said debacle got me considering that it might be nice to spend a day or two as a dragon, so long as I don't get shot.)

Pet Peeve #234567

This goes out to all the college students out there. If you gotta pee, and the urinal's in use, do you the toilet. But for goodness sakes, do NOT leave the lid down, unless you sit down to pee. There's nothing, and I mean nothing grosser then a pee-soaked toilet seat. (>_<)

Otaku Tip #22

Just because it's Japanese, doesn't mean it's good.

Case in point: miso soup.

Mac Mice

Okay, I am an avid Windows user, though I plan to test out Linux soon. The reason for this is I believe that Macs don't have the hardware necessary for a computer enthusiast like myself. Seriously, if Apple and Microsoft would just set aside their differences and work together, Apple taking charge of the new Windows release and Microsoft delegating hardware to HP and/or Asus, they could really go somewhere.

But there's one thing I to like about Apple. Their mice. Now, the one-button system is stupid as hell, I'll grant you that. But that scroll wheel! That is one sexy, comfortable and smooooooooth scroll wheel, right there.

Quang Long Chicken

It's Asian night tonight, so here's my recipe for Quang Long Chicken. (If there's an actual recipe called that, my bad, I thought I just made it up.)


INGREDIENTS:
2 chicken breasts
Celery, bell peppers, and carrots (sliced julienne style)
Mixed greens
2 tbsp peanut butter
A Taste of Thai's "Garlic Chili Pepper Sauce"
_____________________________________________

DIRECTIONS:
Fry the chicken breasts, making sure to leave them a little undercooked.
Slice the chicken breasts and toss them into a pot. Cook until done.
Add in the vegetables and the peanut butter, stir well.
Drizzle in the pepper sauce in a grid-like patter, stirring it in. Repeat once.
Let simmer until the vegetables are reduced and the flavors are well mingled.
Serve with a salad and a red bean bun.

*insert non-commital title here*

Hi everyone. Just posting to let you all know I haven't forgotten about this, I just haven't had the time to post, what with school, and finals coming up. So, here's a funny conversation I had with a friend the other day, to tide you over until after finals. Those of you who follow the lolcat phenomenom (nom nom nom) should get a chuckle out of this.

[23:14] foxbluetail: *laughs myself into a coughing fit*
[23:14] shadowpoint_omega: Woah, careful there.
[23:15] foxbluetail: Blargh... third I've had today.
[23:15] shadowpoint_omega: Yikes.
[23:15] shadowpoint_omega: Get some cough syrup, teah, and some rest.
[23:15] foxbluetail: *nods* I've had the first two.
[23:15] shadowpoint_omega: And some licorich.
[23:15] shadowpoint_omega: And a cheezburger.
[23:16] foxbluetail: Yeah... wants a cheezburger... *raises a paw* Can I haz Cheezburger? *smiles*
[23:16] shadowpoint_omega: :-P
[23:16] shadowpoint_omega: Hmmm, you wants bacon on dat?
[23:16] foxbluetail: Sure! I wantz three peezes, pleez!
[23:17] shadowpoint_omega: Here you goes!
[23:17] shadowpoint_omega: *hands you an invisible cheezburger*
[23:17] foxbluetail: *Omm nom nom nom nom*

More quizzes!

Filler

Just a quote a came up with in the course of my writing, thought y'all might like it :).

"A fight. What is a fight? A contest of abilities, two men competing to see who is the better. But no, that's not quite right. A contest of abilities to be sure, but also a quest to defeat the enemies within. For the true enemy is not the demon in front of you, or the man on the other side of the ring. It's the demons within you fight to conquer." ---Me

More Quiz Results

Just to tide you over, until I can make an epic post ;).

Your Hidden Power Is: Earthly

You are sort of childish yet brave. If you get pissed off you become a very strong fighter. You hate seeing the earth die and you use your special powers to save the earth from becoming hell. You are loved by many and hated by few but you only despise those that try and destroy your wonderful earth.

Gem Stone:Emerald Eye Color:Lime Green Hair Color:Brown with green on the bottom tips and it is shoulder length flipped out.

Which Powerpuff Girl are you?

You are Bubbles! You are very sweet and extremely caring. Although sometimes you don't seem like the brightest crayon in the box, you do have your extra brilliant moments once in a while. You can be thought of as the butt of a joke sometimes but when provoked, you can really be tough and you certainly know how to kick butt! You can appear to be a little immature at times but you still are cute and friendly. You are someone everyone needs in their life to show the fun side of things.

Fun quizzes, surveys & blog quizzes by

Mech Animals

Okay, this is seriously cool.

Eh ... *shrugs*

A wild Erin appears! Go, Life!

Life sends out College! College uses Heavy School Load! It's super effective!

Life semds out Technical D! Technical D uses Crash! Erin's computer is crashed!

Erin is affected by Nasal Infection! Erin faints!

So ... yeah. Not feeling so well. I'll try to update this when I have time / a computer / am feeling better.

New Vid

And Nightwish hits another home run, this time with their video "The Islander".

A Blogworthy Day

*yawns* What a day. Where to start...?

Well, I suppose it all began me and a friend (Linus, for those of you who know me) decided to go to the latest MTG prerelease. We hooked up with another friend (Alex) to, and went off to the prerelease together.

It was a fun event. I went 2-2 in my flight, which is the best I've ever done (sadly enough). But I made some good deals, and seriously pimped my Saproling deck.

Then, after the prerelease, I had a picnic dinner with my friends, then we went to a party at Voyagers, where we saw a fair number of our friends (not surprising, as that's where I've made most of my friends). And then we played a huge multiplayer game of Magic.

Let me set the scene for you. Enemies to the left of me. Enemies to my right. And in the middle, me, annoying the heck out of everyone with Rhys the Redeemed, Glare of Subdual, various Thallids, and a ton of token creatures. My enemies stare me down. And as they do, I go in for the kill!

Basically, I beat all four other players singlehandedly.

And then I caught a ride home with a friend, and that's how I end up here, telling you all this at well after midnight.

So ... yeah. Mental meltdown. Need ... sleep. Off to bed with me.

G'night y'all.

Alright, you'll notice I've added a couple new items to the page. First of all, you'll notice that on the right, I have adopted cyber pet. It's nothing complex, but if you move the cursor around inside it's environment, it'll follow your cursor around, and just generally be cute.

The other thing you'll notice is that I added a web counter to the bottom of the page, it'll show you which visitor number you are. By the way, if you happen to be visitor number , lemme know, you've just won a prize ;).

In other news, today was our first day of sunshine after three days of heavy thunderstorms. There are many more forecasted for the next ten days, so it was good to get out of the house and play some volleyball with my friends. (On a side note, street volleyball is awesome. I's just like regular volleyball, only you substitute a metal fence for the net. It's all the fun of regular volleyball, only there's no struggling with the net.)

So much to do, so little time

Ugh, my schedule's been completely eaten up this summer. Add to that visiting with my friends and my recent obsession with Tales of Symphonia, and I'm left with almost no time to do other stuff. Here's a list of things I need to do:

Help my parents move (which, given I'm still with them for at least another year....)
Reply to all my roleplays
Start my D&D campaign
...and the related manga
Plan a Housewarming Party
Do several pieces of graphic art
Get my computer fixed
Read some manga
Read Cosmos (expand you brain, man!)
Create an entirely new Base 9 number system
Modify several Magic: The Gathering decks
Start several RPs
Play Tales of Symphonia
Play Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess
Watch anime
Read some webcomics
Make, like, 4 AMVs
Write a sig tutorial

So yeah, my time's pretty full.

P.S.: I may soon change the name of this blog to Shadows of Valhalla. If I do, I'll still keep the same url, but the actual name will be different.

School's Out!

And there's only one video that can express my reaction:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H5h-ZN9GgHw