Looking for VMware on Vista x64? Use VirtualBox!

Well, I had my mind set on installing VMware and configuring a few virtual machines. So, I went ahead and downloaded the latest version of VMware server. After a long wait, to my disappointment, it wouldn't install! It doesn't look like VMWare supports Vista x64 as the host. Oh well, forget it!



After seeing a demo of VirtualBox during the Java Developer Day conference a few days ago, I decided to try it out. If it's as good as they claim, then maybe this could be my answer? And true enough, it supports Vista x64 as a host and it pretty much supports all operating systems as a guest. (Except OSX, I think. Hmm... we'll see about that. *wink*)

So, I suggest you give it a try as an alternative to VMware. It's working well for me so far. Here is the link.

Update 2009-05-22:
Hmm... after giving it a good test, I don't think I'm very happy with VirtualBox. Switching from gui mode to text mode on a Linux guest seems to mess up the mouse pointer. A Vista x64 guest caused it to crash. I had to restart my pc to kill the Virtualbox process. And snapshots are so limited in functionality compared to VMware. I might actually give VMware another try. Perhaps I was just doing it wrong the first time. Oh well...


Enjoy!

Ubuntu 9.04 Jaunty Jackalope

Well, Ubuntu 9.04 Jaunty Jacklope was just recently released. And I'm just about to download it and give it a go. Please stay tuned. I will be adding a few more HOWTOs for problems & solutions I encounter.

In the mean time, why don't you try it out for yourself as well? Here's the link.



Enjoy!

Learning heli loops on the Blade 400 3D

Blade 400 RC Heli Accident

I was trying to solve a problem with my gyro and tail servo. So, I decided to overhaul the heli. Unfortunately, I may not have secured the feathering shaft tight enough. The head assembly pretty much exploded in front of me and sent the blades flying at me at around 2000 RPM. Luckily, I was just about to land it, so it was very low. This could have been much worse! Phew! =)

How to enable / disable word wrap in vim

To enable wrapping, type:
:set wrap

To disable wrapping:
:set nowrap

Easy! Enjoy!

Trick to learning nose in hover on mode 2 transmitter.

Here's a trick I came up with when I was learning to hover nose-in: "Just follow the heli with your stick."




Confused? Here's the explanation. Start with a tail in hover, then just rotate it into the nose in position. The objective is to keep the heli perfectly still in front of you in this position. If it starts to drift towards you, it means the nose is dipping. The correct counter for that is to pull down on the elevator stick to make it move back (in this case away from you). The reverse is the same. If it starts to drift backwards away from you, it means the tail is dipping. The counter for that is to push the nose down by pushing the elevator forward to make the heli move forward (in this case towards you.) Got the logic? The same applies to the left and right.

So, basically, the counter for any drift is to follow the heli with your stick. It's the same even if you have to apply it diagonally. I know it's counter-intuitive at first, but if you just follow the rules, you'll get a comfortable hover in no time.

After a while, it all becomes automatic to you and you won't need to use this trick anymore. But in the mean time, for those who are just starting, I hope this helps. Good luck! Let me know how it goes. =)

Blade 400 DX6i Binding Instructions

Start with both transmitter and receiver turned off.
1) Attach bind plug to Rx (heli)
2) Turn on the Rx (heli)
--> Light blinking means bind mode.
3) Move sticks & switches to fail-safe positions (Transmitter)
4) Hold the bind button while turning on the transmitter.
--> Tx & Rx should bind after a few seconds. Light on Rx will be solid.
5) Remove the bind plug (heli)
Power off and back on if you want.