Painting my world

I keep my paint brush with me
Wherever I may go,
In case I need to cover up
So the real me doesn’t show.

I’m so afraid to show you me,
Afraid of what you’ll do, that
You might laugh or say mean things.
I’m afraid I might lose you.

I’d like to remove all my paint coats
To show you the real, true me,
But I want you to try and understand,
I need you to accept what you see.

So if you’ll be patient and close your eyes,
I’ll strip off all my coats real slow.
Please understand how much it hurts
To let the real me show.

Now my coats are all stripped off.
I feel naked, bare and cold,
And if you still love me with all that you see,
You are my friend pure as gold.

I need to save my paint brush, though,
And hold it in my hand,
I want to keep it handy
In case someone doesn’t understand.

So please protect me, my dear friend
And thanks for loving me true,
But please let me keep my paint brush with me
Until I love me, too.

Reimagine your Windows

The familiarity with Windows is something that none of can ever let go. We instinctively know our way through the Start Menu, we look for the computer icon and love the small little bar at the bottom of the screen that connects us with all the applications running.

For us, a computer is the easiest when it flaunts a familiar workspace. But what about people who want a little more? No matter how familiar the OS is, Windows can get a tad bit bland after sometime, and if you have a decent computer, there are various things you can hack to make your Windows look like something else completely, keeping desktop productivity in mind, nonetheless.

Here we show you different ways to get that spice back up into your system. But be warned that some of these also come with various imperfections that you might have to live with.

A few years back, the best tool to customize the whole user experience of a Windows PC would be with the use of Stardock’s WindowsBlinds. But these days, it seems that WindowsBlinds has somehow gone out of fashion, and a new trend of using SkinPacks has appeared on the scene.

SkinPacks are archives of Windows customization tools that change the entire appearance of your Windows, from the Explorer to your cursors. A quick visit to skinpacks.com will yield ample options for you to try out, but my recommendation would be to choose one pack carefully and stick with it, primarily because these skin packs change vital system files that are often safer left alone.

Also, changing these files would be fine for a couple of times, but repeated changes could cause your system to malfunction. So using a few skin packs would be great, but continuous change would be harmful to your Windows.

Ever used a Mac and noticed the beautiful fonts that you thought you could never get on your Windows computer? Now with a neat little tool, you can get the same type of font rendering that you get on Mac system on your Windows PC. A little tool called GDI++ can help you achieve the same type of fonts that adorn the Mac and Linux systems.

GDI++ is very simple to install, and once the G icon appears on your system tray, your desktop is redrawn to encompass the font rendering of a Mac computer. This tool does have a flaw that messes with your Google Chrome. Google Chrome does not work well with GDI++ and is rendered useless, but other browsers like Firefox and Chrome should work perfectly fine. It’s just a small price to pay for some beautiful font rendering.

Another tool that could come in handy while using a launcher would be Stardock’s Tiles that mimics that Windows 8 application switcher that appears on the left side of the screen. Tiles works in the same way and provides you with an alternative method of switching between applications in an easier way. Tiles is also highly customizable and can even hold some shortcuts to your frequently used applications.

WinLauncher is another application that brings a Mac feature to Windows. Getting tired of the Windows start menu would only seem fair after continuous use, but with WinLauncher, the beautiful Mac-styled launcher would grace your Windows screen. WinLauncher is also very easy to use and comes with various Mac-style themes that help you get the perfect Mac look. You can drag various shortcuts to the application and make it so that it houses all of your applications, or just the ones that you use frequently.

Another awesome feature of WinLauncher is that it integrates with the SynapticsTouchPad that comes with so many laptops and starts up with a very Mac-like three-finger touch. This makes it easier to get access to the launcher no matter which application is running on your screen.

And finally, the application that I cannot do without could be Fences 2 from Stardock. With the initial release of Fences, Stardock only offered the feature to spate icons into different fences on the screen. But with the release of the new Fences 2, Stardock has integrated a lot of new features.

The most prominent one is that now Fences will emulate different pages of icons on your single desktop, a single swipe from the left or the right side of the screen will take you to a different page of desktop icons. Apart from this, Fences also makes it easier for you to hide all of your icons with an easy double click on any blank part of the desktop. So if you prefer a clean desktop environment without any clutter, then Fences would be right up your alley.

There are many more options that you can use to customize your desktop without compromising your productivity. But these applications would use a part of your system. So a decent computer would be recommended to use these applications.

This way, you can break free from the ties that Microsoft has set on your system and turn your Windows into your own by making it look like something none of your friends have ever seen.

One more day…

BY TRACEY MORIARTY

If I only had one more day
I would hold my family tight
I would tell them how much I needed them
When things just weren’t right.

If I only had one more day
I would hug each and every friend
I would thank them for caring about me
And sticking with me till the end.

If I only had one more day
I would give every teacher a pat on the back
I would praise them for what they have taught me
Because now knowledge is something I don’t lack.

If I only had one more day
I would salute our country’s defence
I would honour them for protecting me
And being brave when times were tense.

If I only had one more day
I would look up at the moon and the stars
I would find beauty in all that surrounded me
And I would realise heaven isn’t too far.

If I only had one more day
I would pray to God for more time
To accept that life is a gift
He gave me
And mine’s worth every dime.
If I only had one more day
I would appreciate the ordinary things
I would realise something has to be taken away
Before we found out how much happiness it brings.

If I only had only had one more day
There wouldn’t be enough time to appreciate all that’s mine
So I have to start looking now before time’s up
I know there is so much to shine.

Little more effort

BY SEUN EMMANUEL ALAOFIN

I was watching a movie and I noticed an actress (who had very good eyesight) playing the part of a blind lady and she played lady and she played it well. So well that if you were seeing her for the first time, you would think that she was a blind actress. It seemed that this actress had taken her time to put a little more effort into her career so that she could play parts that other actresses could not.

Have you ever seen people digging a well before? They don’t just stop when they see a little drop of water; they put in a little more effort to assure that they get plenty of water. A popular saying says that, “It is only an average mind that would do the same thing all the time and expect another result.” All we need to do is to put a little more effort so that we can expect a different and spectacular result.

Are you about to give up on your academics, your family, your ambitions, your friends, your business, your ministry, or anything it might be? Are you tried of giving your best because you have tried and tried and it’s like you are doing anything and you have decided that the only option is to give up, or back out of that particular project?

Why not put in a little more effort? I know you might be wondering and pondering what little effort do you need to put in tried and tried and still you have not gotten any result?

We cannot be versatile in life if we do not put in that extra effort in everything we do. We are kings and queens and we deserve nothing but the best, but if we must be the best and get the best, we must be willing and ready to put in that little extra effort that is required to make it to the top.

Don’t forget that when you came into the world, people were smiling and you were crying. We should always strive to make sure that when we are leaving this world the reserve is the case; people are crying and we are smiling. This cannot be really achieved if we do not put that little more effort in everything we do to bring the best out of others, your community, your country, your nation, and the world as a whole.

We must be conscious of the fact that in life we have two options either to focus on what’s lost or fight for what’s left. Fighting for what’s left is all about forgetting about the past, putting on your armour of courage and bravery, and putting that extra effort in — assuring and determining that you not only recover but you overtake and be better than the best you can be.

There is a space for everybody to be at the top, but those at the top, but those at the top are those that have put in that extra effort, those that never gave up, and those that are willing and ready to overlooking their failures and keep going.

You are the next celebrity and problem solver the world is waiting for; the next professional in your field the world is waiting for. You are the next billionaire the world is waiting for; the next inventor the world is waiting for. You are the next best student the school is waiting for; the worker your company is waiting for. You are the next motivational speaker the world is waiting for; the next agriculturalist the world is waiting for. You are the next prophet the world is waiting for; the next engineer the world is waiting for. You are the original ‘you’ the world is waiting for.

Happiness is in the mind

The 92-year-old, petite, well-poised and proud lady, who is fully dressed each morning by eight o’-clock, with her hair fashionably coifed and makeup perfectly applied, even though she is legally blind, moved to a nursing home today.

Her husband of 70 years recently passed away, making the move necessary. After many hours of waiting in the lobby of the nursing home, she smiled sweetly when told her room was ready.

I provided a visual description of her tiny room, including the eyelet sheets that had been hung on her window. “I love it,” she stated with the enthusiasm of an eight-year-old having just been presented with a new puppy.

“Mrs Jones, you haven’t seen the room … just wait.”

“That doesn’t have anything to do with it,” she replied. “Happiness is something you decide on ahead of time. Whether I like my room or not doesn’t depend on how the furniture is arranged, it’s how I arrange my mind. I already decided to love it. It’s a decision I make every morning when I wake up. I have a choice. I can spend the day in bed recounting the difficulty I have with the parts of my body that no longer work, or get out of bed and be thankful for the ones that do. Each day is a gift, and as long as my eyes open I’ll focus on the new day and all the happy memories I’ve stored away, just for this time in my life.”

She explained, “Old age is like a bank account, you withdraw from what you’ve put in. So, my advice to you would be to deposit a lot of happiness in the bank account of memories thank you for your part in filling my memory bank. I am still depositing.”

And with a smile, she said, “Remember the five simple rules to be happy — free your heart from hatred, free your mind from worries, live simply, give more and expect less.”

Detach to be happy

Attachment and detachment are two important factors ruling human lives. Everything in our life is borne out of our actions and deeds. We are wholly responsible for our own life. It may sound strange but it is a fact. Knowingly or unknowingly, intentionally, we get attached to unnecessary things in life, pushing ourselves into troubles and tensions.

Inner detachment is not indifference. One can lead a normal, ordinary life, and yet display inner emotional and mental detachment by right practice. True inner detachment manifests as the ability to think clearly and to be immune to what people think or say about you. It enables you to have more control over your moods and states of mind, and, therefore, enjoy inner balance, harmony and peace. It coexists with self-control, self-discipline and a focused mind. It brings inner calmness and tranquillity that external circumstances cannot disturb or upset. A person possessing detachment will not be affected or daunted by obstacles or failures in life. While others become immersed in self-pity or in thoughts about failure and missed opportunities, the person who possesses detachment will be working on a new venture or trying a different approach.

A state of inner detachment helps to overcome failure and focus on the future and on success. Lack of detachment is attachment. Attachment manifests as fear to make changes, to progress or try doing things in a different way. Detachment goes with the ability to weigh the pros and cons of situations, circumstances and actions in an impartial way, and to make rational decisions, which are not based on moods. It helps to keep a clear and focused mind, and to recognise opportunities that others might not see.

So follow the easiest route to be stress-free by being ‘Detached’.

Editor’s note: Rajyogi Brahmakumar Nikunj ji is a writer at www.brahmakumaris.com and can be reached at nikunjji@brahmakumaris.in.

Windows to different operating systems

With more and more operating systems gracing computer screens these days, people are not entirely limited to the workspace of a Windows system. People now have the luxury of choosing their own operating systems (OS) from a plethora of them.

The most commonly used operating system, apart from commercial Windows or Macs, are the free for use Linux distributions. Since Linux is an open-source system, people are not restricted but encouraged to share, distribute and edit their operating systems to their liking. This means that Linux is free. Now even Google has come up with their own operating system titled the Chrome OS that works entirely on the cloud.

So many options! But how to go about installing and experimenting with them all? Many people would be forced to dual-boot with virtually partitioning their hard drives into two and installing a separate OS on each of them. But this usually causes many drive space and hardware issues. People want to experiment with all of these operating systems but installing a separate OS is not as simple as installing an application on Windows. Installing an OS can be quite tiresome and complicated, but today we talk about a system that lets you create a world within a world, like a portal to an alternate OS.

Computer Virtualization is a simple process to do yet complex to understand. A virtual machine is a piece of software that emulates another computer so that there is a computer running within your computer. This piece of software reacts to you like a fresh piece of computer that is ready to accept any kind of OS you wish to apply on to it.
If you want to experience Ubuntu, a distribution of the Linux system, then there is no need for you to go about formatting your hard drive and making a separate partition on to your drive. All this can be done within a screen of the OS that you are currently running.

You will need a copy of the installation DVD or CD of your OS of choice, and you will need a software that enables you to create this virtual system.

There are many software out there that help you create a virtual system. Two of the most common would be VirtualBox and VMWare.

VirtualBox is free and basic whereas VMWare is paid and feature-rich. But for a normal home virtualization, VirtualBox would easily suffice. Your virtual machine will be running within your host OS and will be able to access any files that your host OS can access.

After you have both, the operating system DVD or ISO and the virtual computing software ready, you will need to follow a few simple steps.

Both VirtualBox and VMWare will present you with a window that has a ‘New’ button on the toolbar. Clicking this button will take you to a wizard that will help you create a new virtual machine. It will ask you how much of your total CPU and RAM power you want to make available for your virtual computer and will ask you to create a file to act as a hard drive for the virtual machine. Here, it will ask you for the size of the file, and if you want to create it as a fixed drive or dynamic.

The fixed option will take up the set amount immediately and reserve it for your guest OS whereas the dynamic option will create a file that will increase in size as you go on filling it up. It will never exceed the amount you have specified, though. After that, all you need to do is select the drive with the installation DVD in it and the software will boot it up. After this, all you need to do is to follow the setup wizard of your operating system, and your guest OS should be ready for you.

Installing a Mac on your Windows or Linux PC is also possible in this manner. But doing so would be illegal and complex. If you have, however, purchased a Mac disk from Apple, installing it on VirtualBox or VMWare would be possible, and a quick search on Google on how to perform it would yield great results.

After you have your guest OS running smoothly within your virtual system window, make sure to install Guest Addons that both of these software provide. This option will install drivers, much like the drivers people install after a fresh install of Windows, on to your guest OS so that it will properly recognize the hardware that the software mimics.

After that is done, give your guest OS access to all of your drives by finding your way to the Shared Folders tab within the properties of the Guest OS. Here you have the ability to add the drives you want to make available for use on the Guest OS. After this, you should be good to go.

Virtualization not only opens doors for users to experiment with different OSs but also provides application developers to develop applications for different operating systems. The Guest OS will be limited in functionality because of it accessing your computer hardware on the secondhand basis but it should work well. Get your virtual system up and running and experience multiple operating systems within the one that you’re working with.