Tried and Tested method to Recover Damaged CD / DVD

Well, there are many methods that can be used to recover damaged CDs but to recover DVDs is somewhat tougher, I have come across many software which claim to do the same but when I tried them, none of them was able to achieve the desired result.

So after banging my head for some time, I have come across one method that worked for me. I am just going to explain and then hope that maybe it would work for you too.

The tool I am going to use here is called CD Check. Well its a paid tool but you I happen to have copy which you can download here.

Whats better is that this tool is just 1.5 MB. Download and install.

This is how it looks


All you need to do is, click on check, once it checks the DVD, you can go ahead and click on Recover Button

You'll see something similar to below


Just specify an output folder and click continue, you should be good to go.

Please let me know if it worked

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The 10 worst geek gift ideas for the holidays

This post is based on the CNET News.com photo gallery “Holiday tech gifts we don’t recommend,”

#10: Pointless USB add-ons

We’ve had enough of these. Stupid gadgets that plug into your USB ports are not only a waste of space, they’re totally 2006–come on, USB 2.0 is no longer a novelty! So, for the sake of humanity, please don’t stuff stockings with USB rocket launchers (pictured), noodle strainers, aromatherapy humidifiers, and vibrating massage toys (err, OK) Your loved ones will thank you later.

#9: Leaf blower

Leaf blowers. They’d make great gifts, wouldn’t they? Your neighbor with the sloppy yard might really appreciate one of these Toro Electric Ultra Blowers, right?

Think carefully.

Yes, it might be great for keeping lawns tidy, but mark our words–you’re going to regret buying one of these as a gift for anyone who lives within a few hundred yards of your house. That is, unless you manage to invest in a set of high-end noise-canceling headphones for yourself and never take them off.

#8: Nose-hair trimmer

The nose hair trimmer is the gadget equivalent of fruitcake. It will never be a tasteful gift, ever. We’re not going to say any more on this one.

#7: Everki Plunge waterproof iPod case

We couldn’t skip this one–it is, so far, the lowest-rated product out of everything CNET Reviews has catalogued in the entire 2007 calendar year. Sure, this $19 iPod case will keep your music player dry, but unfortunately, it makes it unbelievably difficult to actually hear the sound that comes out. Kind of a bad thing.

CNET Reviews senior editor Donald Bell called the Plunge “a step up from a sandwich bag.” That’s probably telling.

#6: Anything with the “Digg crack code” on it

This past spring, social news site Digg soared to the top of mainstream news when the company refused to obey a Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) takedown notice concerning an HD DVD crack code that a member had posted on the user-powered news rankings. As a result, the “forbidden” code became the geek slogan du jour to toss on mouse pads, coffee mugs, boxer shorts, and just about anything else you can make on CafePress or Zazzle. Also getting in on the trend were tech-focused retailers like Think Geek, which still sells this T-shirt.

But we don’t recommend that you give any “Digg crack code” gear as presents this holiday season. First of all, only the most uber-tuned-in of tech enthusiasts would even understand this in the first place. And second, even if they did, their reactions would probably be something along the lines of, “That is so last year.” You’d be better off with “All Your Base Are Belong To Us,” which at least has some retro-chic appeal now.

#5: Options: The Secret Life of Steve Jobs, A Parody by Daniel Lyons

This is another instance of “only the geeks would get it.” The Secret Diary of Steve Jobs, a once-anonymous blog created by Forbes editor Daniel Lyons (under the pseudonym “Fake Steve Jobs”), was a runaway hit with the Techmeme set as it lampooned the iconic Apple CEO and all the people around him. Unfortunately, Fake Steve’s influence failed to reach very far outside Silicon Valley, and so the novelized version of the blog, published in November, has a narrow potential audience indeed.

Additionally, three CNET News.com reporters who read Options agreed that the book just isn’t that good. It has its funny moments, but the plot doesn’t really work (especially considering that a shareholder lawsuit over Apple’s stock options mess was just dismissed), and some of the most hilarious characters from the Secret Diary, like Squirrel Boy (a.k.a. Google CEO Eric Schmidt) and Mr. Bigglesworth (Valleywag gossip blogger Owen Thomas) failed to merit any appearances in the novel.

So, yeah, skip this one. Get your favorite Apple geek some new iPod accessories instead.

#4: Motorized toothbrush

Motorized toothbrushes have been around for a while. This one sold by Hammacher Schlemmer is even ultrasonic. You might be tempted to grab one of these for a family member as a holiday gift that would actually be useful–it seems like a logical choice.

But stuff like this just makes an awkward gift. You never know who will open one of these and take it as a subtle statement of “your breath smells bad.”

Likewise, some people, upon receiving exercise equipment, will take it to mean “you’re fat.” Or “your feet smell” for one of those, uh, foot smell-reducers, or “you have a drinking problem” for a personal breathalyzer.

Best to steer clear of these unless you’re really confident about how it’ll be received. Heck, even a Roomba robot vacuum could be taken the wrong way by certain people-you know: “Not only are you a slob, but you’re lazy, too.”

#3: Anything HD DVD or Blu-ray

So maybe you have good reason to know that someone on your holiday shopping list is going to actually have use for HD DVD or Blu-ray products, whether they be the discs themselves or the hardware to play them–PlayStation 3 owners, for example (the Sony console comes with a Blu-ray player), or someone who’s actually taken the plunge and purchased an HD DVD or Blu-ray player (or the combo player that LG makes). But that’s the exception to the rule.

The ugly hi-def format wars unfortunately aren’t over yet. Maybe we’ll know by next year, but this is still enough of a toss-up that it probably merits holding back on the holiday gifts.

Plus, there’s always the awkward situation in which you thought your brother had a Blu-ray player, so you bought him the first season of Prison Break on Blu-ray, only to learn that he’s actually an HD DVD devotee. Oops.

#2: Windows Vista

Let’s face it. Anyone who actually wanted Vista already has it; the system’s been out for almost a full year now. The folks who don’t have it are either Mac or Linux users, or holdouts who’ve heard about the well-documented bugs in the system.

Moreover, operating systems are a total yawn. Who wants to get one of these as a holiday gift, anyway?

#1: Anything holiday-themed
So you’ve picked out a set of solar-powered Christmas tree lights, Hanukkah-themed iPod skin, $1,500 outdoor light-up display shaped like Santa Claus driving a golf cart (pictured), or some other gift that (you think) ties in nicely to the holiday season.

Well, guess what? By the time that special someone opens the gift up, the holidays are just about over, sucker! That is, unless your friend receiving the gift is one of those wackos who puts out Christmas decorations on 12/26 and leaves them up through July…and if that’s the case, we think you have weird friends.

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Top 10 Car Keys

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Top 10 Hacker Movies

Here are the top 10 voted hacker movies of all time. Check out how many of them you have seen...

10. Swordfish (2001)
Over-the-top violence, preposterous situations, sexy women, and outstanding special effects make this a great popcorn rental. No, don't bring your brain to watch this, but if you like techno-thrillers, definitely rent this. John Travolta is the slimy villain, Hugh Jackman is the studly hero hacker, and Halle Berry is the mysterious damsel.


9. The Italian Job (2003)
Modern heist movies always involve some sort of hacking. This particular heist movie is extremely entertaining, especially when the supposed true inventor of "Napster" is the main hacker.
At least 20 minutes of hacking footage in this actioner. Definitely worth renting if you haven't seen it.

8. Foolproof (2003)
A lower-budget movie about hobby bank robbers, this was a delightful surprise to many viewers. Ryan Reynolds and his friends "virtually" rob banks for fun, but are blackmailed into doing a heist for real. This is a good action rental.


7. eXistenZ (1999)
A David Cronenberg film, this is the creepiest entry in the list. A game designer creates an artificial reality game that plugs directly into people's minds. The line between reality and game then blurs in a violent and gruesome way. This is very much a powerful art film, and not for everyone.


6. The Score (2001)
Edward Norton and Robert De Niro are fabulous in this heist flick. In a clever plot to rob a Montreal customs house of some royal artifacts, Norton and De Niro must break into the security systems with the help of a socially-awkward hacker who lives in his mother's basement. Ten minutes of hacking, and 100 minutes of phenomenal robbery storytelling!


5. Sneakers (1992)
While dated, this movie was groundbreaking at the time, and is still charming to this day. The story revolves around two college buddies who take different paths in life. One becomes an ethical hacker, and the other...well, he is not quite so noble. Some great plot twists and comic scenes make this a good way to spend a Saturday afternoon at home.


4. Revolution OS (2001)
This documentary tells the story about the Linux operating system, and how it forwarded the philosophy of "open source" and free intellectual property. Not an action movie, but definitely interesting for people who want to learn more about why computer culture is the way it is. If you can find a copy of this, definitely rent it.


3. Die Hard 4: Live Free or Die Hard (2007)
Leave it to Bruce Willis to save the world from uber hackers. Macintosh advertising personality, Justin Long, plays the reluctant programmer caught up in an digital terrorism scheme. Like Swordfish, this movie has over-the-top violence and outrageous action sequences, but if you liked the Die Hard series, definitely see this.


2 Wargames (1983)
Yes, this movie is very old, but it is still a pivotal film in many viewers' minds. A young man finds a back door into a military computer that is linked to the nuclear defense grid of the United States. A preposterous plot, but a compelling commentary on nuclear war and the destruction of the human race. You have to see this movie just to say you have seen it.


1. Tron (1982)
A classic! A hacker is transported into the digital universe inside a computer, and must survive combat as a cyber gladiator in order to stop the villanous Master Control. The imagination behind this movie made big ripples in the science fiction world, and today, Tron is a cult classic that every computer user should see at least once

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Flying Hearts

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iPod Touch background

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The internet on a disc

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List of Internet slang phrases

I guess this is the complete list.... LOL

0-9

· 10q — Thank you

· 10x — Thanks

· 1337 — From the word Leet, derived from the word elite

· 2 — Too, or to

· 2L8 — Too late

· 2U2 — To you too

· <3>

· 4 — For

· 404 — I haven't a clue; from the code for the common "Not Found" HTTP error message

· 4GM — Forgive me

· ?4U — Question for you

A

· AAMOF — As a matter of fact

· ADN — Any day now

· AFAICR/S/T — As far as I can recall / remember / see / tell

· AFAIK — As far as I know

· AFK — Away from keyboard

· AKA — Also known as

· AITR — Adult in the room

· AIUI — As I understand it

· ANFSCD — And Now For Something Completely Different. Used to change the subject of conversation

· ASAP — As soon as possible

· ASL or A/S/L — Age / sex / location

· ATEOTD — At The End of the Day

· ATM — At the moment

· ATYS — Anything you say

· AWA — As well as

· AWOL — Absent Without (Official) Leave

· AYBABTU (also abbreviated as AYB) — All your base are belong to us (from the video game Zero Wing)

B

· borked - Thoroughly broken

· Bai — Bye

· B2B — Business to Business

· BB - Bye bye

· BBIAB — Be back in a bit

· BBIAF - Be back in a few / flash

· BBL/S — Be back later / shortly / soon

· BCNU — Be seein' you

· BF - Boy friend

· BFF - Best friends forever

· BFFL - Best friends for life

· BFN — Bye for now

· BFFN - Best Friend For Now

· Blog — Also known as web log or an online journal

· BOF — Beginning of file

· BOFH — Bastard operator from hell

· BOHICA - Bend Over Here It Comes Again

· Bot — Any type of automated software in chatrooms and web-cataloging software

· Br/BR — Best regards

· BRB — Be right back

· BRT — Be right there

· BS — Backstab / Bullshit

· BSOD — Blue Screen of Death

· BTDT — Been there done that

· BTDTGTTSAWIO - Been there, done that, got the T-shirt and wore it out

· BTW — By the way

· Bump — Increment (For example, C++'s operator.) or a backronym for "Bring Up My Post"

· BW or B/W — Between or black-and-white.

C

· CD9 - Code 9 - Parents nearby

· CBA — Can't Be Arsed. A term to indicate or dictate laziness.

· CBF — Can't Be Fucked. A term used frequently out of laziness.

· chown — Change owner. (used in Unix systems)

· CMIIW — Correct me if I'm wrong

· Crawl — To retrieve a web page along with the hyperlinks that reference it

· Crapplet — A poorly written computer application

· CTN — Can't Talk Now

· CU — See you (later)

· CYA — See ya OR Cover Your Ass

· Cyber (prefix) — A term used to connect the subsequent word loosely to the world of computers or the Internet or sex over a computer

· Cyberspace — Virtual reality, the Internet, the World Wide Web, and other kinds of computer systems. Science fiction author William Gibson popularized the term in his novel Neuromancer. Gibson used the word to describe a virtual world of computer networks that his cyberpunk heroes 'jacked into'

D

· DDG — Drop Dead Gorgeous

· DFTT — Don't feed the trolls

· DGAF — Don't Give A Fuck

· DIAF — Die in a fire

· DILLIGAF/D/S — Does it look like I give a flip / fuck / damn / shit

· DL — Download

· DND — Do not disturb

· DOA — Dead on arrival. Refers to hardware that has never worked.

· DW — Don't Worry.

E

· EOF — End Of File

· EOM — End of Message

· EOL — End of Life. Device or hardware that is at the end of its product life cycle

· EQ — EverQuest

· ETA — Estimated time of arrival, later (especially on blogs), Edited To Add-

F

· FAQ — Frequently Asked Question(s)

· FFS — For fuck's sake

· Flamer — Someone who makes inflammatory, abusive or directly offensive comments. Similar to, but not quite the same as an Internet troll

· FMCDH — From My Cold Dead Hands

· FOAD/FOND — Fuck off 'n'/and die

· FOAF — Friend of a friend

· FP — First Post

· FTL — For the lose / loss

· FTW — For the win / fuck the world

· FU — Fuck you

· FUBAR — Fucked up beyond all recognition / repair

· FUD — Fear, Uncertainty and Doubt (the purposeful spread of misinformation)

· FWIW — For what it's worth

· FYI — For your information

G

· GBCW — Goodbye Cruel World - a dramatic leave taking of a forum or site

· GBTW — Get back to work

· GF — Great/good fight; or girlfriend

· GFETE — Grinning from ear to ear

· GFY — Good for you

· GG — Good game, used at or near the conclusion of a gaming match, also used to describe a game that is very one sided and therefore considered already over

· GGF — Go Get Fucked

· GIYF — Google is your friend

· GL — Good luck, often used at beginning of a contest

· GLHF — Good luck and have fun

· GJ — Good job

· GMTA — Great minds think alike

· Godwin's Law — Dictates that the longer a thread, the more likely someone will post a comparison involving Nazis or Hitler

· Gratz — Congratulations

· GTH — Go to hell

· GTFO — Get the fuck out OR Get the fuck off

· GTG or G2G — 'Got to go' or 'Good to go'

· GR — Gateway Router

· GR8 — Great

H

· HAND — Have A Nice Day

· Handle — Name used in online chat, (AKA nick(name), alias, screen/user name)

· HF — Have fun/High-five

· Haxor or H4x0r (1337) — Hacker

· Hit — A request made to the web server, (noun) the results of an internet search, (verb) loading a Web page. Hits are not equivalent to visitors of a webpage.

· Home page — The website's introduction page, starting point, and guide. The technical term is "index"

· Hot list — A collection of publicly available URLs (World Wide Web site addresses), sometimes available as text files.

· HTH — Hope this / that helps, or happy to help

· H8 — Hate

I

· IANAL — I am not a lawyer

· IAWTC — I agree with that/this comment

· IBTL — In before the lock

· IDC — I don't care

· IDGAF - I don't give a fuck

· IDK — I don't know

· IHY — I hate you

· IINM — If I'm not mistaken

· IIRC — If I recall / remember correctly

· IIUC — If I understand correctly

· ILY — I love you

· IMO/IMHO/IMNSHO/IMAO — In my (humble / honest / not so humble / arrogant) opinion

· Information superhighway — The Internet (AKA: I-way, infobahn)

· IONO — I don't know

· IOW — In other words

· IRC — Internet Relay Chat

· IRL — In real life

· ISTR - I Seem To Recall

· ITYM — I Think You Mean

· IWSN — I want sex now

· IYKWIM — If you know what I mean

· IKWYM — I know what you mean

J

· Jaggy — Aliased computer graphics

· JAS — Just a second

· JIC' — Just in case

· JFGI — Just Fucking/Freaking Google It

· JK or j/k — Just kidding, or joke

· JSYK - Just so you know

· JFTR — Just for the records

· JOOC — Just out of curiosity

· JW — Just wondering

· JFK — Just Fucking Kidding

K

· k or kk — OK

· KIR — Keeping it real.

· KISS — Keep it simple stupid.

· KIT — Keep in touch.

· KMA — Kiss my ass

· KOS — Kill on sight

· KOTC/L — Kiss on the cheek/lips.

· KS(ing) — Kill-Steal(ing)

· KTHX — OK, thanks

· KTHXBAI or KTHXBYE — OK, thanks, goodbye, used either to cut short a conversation or to express displeasure with being cut short

· KWIM — Know what I mean?

L

· L2P — Learn to play; an admonishment to new or incompetent video game players.

· L8R — Later (sometimes abbreviated to L8ER); is commonly used in chat rooms and other text based communications as a way of saying good bye.

· Lag — Slang term for slow Internet speeds or high Internet latency; Lag is sometimes due to a server problem, but more frequently due to the connection between client and server. A slow or intermittent connection may often be referred to as laggy

· Lamer — A know-nothing, one who is lame.

· Leet — Often spelled as l33t or 1337 in ASCII form. It originally meant elite

· LFG — Looking for group

· LFM — Looking for more

· LMAO, LMFAO, LMMFAO — Laughing my ass off, laughing my fucking ass off, laughing my mother fucking ass off

· LMIRL — Let's meet in real life.

· LMK — Let me know

· LOL — Laughing out loud, laugh out loud. Occasionally: lots of love, lots of luck

· LOTI — Laughing on the inside

· LTNS — Long time no see

· Lulz — A corruption of LOL, which stands for laugh out loud.

· Lurker — Someone who frequents a Usenet group without participating in discussions

· Luser — Loser + user; an annoying user from the perspective of tech support or a system administrator; also spelled luzer or luzzer.

· LYLAB — Love you like a brother

· LYLAS — Love you like a sister

M

· MMORPG, MMO — Massive Multi-player Online Role Playing Game

· MMOFPS — Massive Multi-player Online First Person Shooter

· MOO — MUD (Multi-User Dungeon) Object Orientated

· MOTD — Message of the day

· MS — Microsoft

· MTFBWY — May The Force be with you

· MUD — Multi-User Dungeon

· MUSH — Multi-User Shared Hallucination

· MYOB — Mind your own business

· M8 — Mate

N

· N2M — Not(hing) too much

· N2B — Not too bad

· NE1 — "Anyone"

· Newbie, noob, or n00b — An inexperienced user of a system or game, or an annoying person.

· NFW — No fucking way

· NM — (Sometimes written N/M) Not much, Never mind or no message, used on message boards or in e-mails to indicate that everything is already said in the subject line.

· NN — Night night. Used as an alternative for "good night"

· NP — No problem

· NSFW — Not safe for work. Warning about content that may get the viewer in trouble with his employer or co-workers.

· NTY — No, Thank You

· NVM, NVMD, or nm — Nevermind, not much

O

· O RLY — Oh really?

· OH OK — A sarcastic okay

· OIC — Oh, I see

· OFN — Old fucking news

· OMG — Oh, my God

· OMFG — Oh, my fucking God

· OMGWTFBBQ- Oh my God, What the Fuck, Barbecue

· OMW — On my way or Oh my word

· OOC — Out Of Character / Out Of Combat

· OP — Original poster / Operator / Outpost

· OS — Operating system

· OT — Off topic

· OTOH — On the other hand

· OTP — On the phone or One true pairing

P

· P2P — Peer to peer, or pay to play

· P911 — Parent emergency (watch what you type)

· PAW — Parents are watching

· PEBKAC — Problem exists between keyboard and chair

· Ping — From the popular network monitoring tool, used as a greeting similar to "Are you there?".

· PITA — Pain in the arse / ass

· PLMK — Please let me know

· plz or pls — Please

· PM — Personal message or private message

· PMJI — Pardon my jumping in

· PMSL — Pissing My Self Laughing

· ::POOF:: — Goodbye (leaving the room)

· POS — Piece of shit, parent over shoulder, packet over SONet, or Point of Sale.

· POTS — Plain old telephone service

· POV — Point of view

· PPL — People

· PST — Please send tell

· PTKFGS — Punch the Keys For God's Sake

· pr0n — Intentional misspelling of porn

· PW — Persistent World (gaming)

· pwned or pwnd — Owned

Q

· QFA — Quoted for accuracy. Similar to QFT

· QFT — Quoted for truth, Quit fucking talking

· QT — Cutie

R

· Rehi (or merely re) — Hello again

· RL — Real Life

· Rly — Really (See also: O rly) />

· RO(T)FL — Rolling on (the) floor laughing

· RO(T)FLMAO — Rolling on (the) floor laughing my ass off

· RO(T)FLOL — Rolling on (the) floor laughing out loud

· RSN — Real soon now (often used sarcastically)

· RTA - Read The Article

· RTFB — Read the fucking binary (or book)

· RTFQ — Read the fucking/fabulous (polite)/freaking (polite) question

· RTFS — Read the fucking source

· RTFM/RTM — Read the (fucking) manual

· RYC — Regarding your comment

S

· SCNR — Sorry, could not resist

· sk8/sk8r — skate/skater

· Smiley — Another name for emoticons

· SMH — Shaking my head

· SNAFU — Situation normal: all (fucked/fouled) up

· Snail mail — Normal paper mail service

· Spider — The program behind a search engine

· Sry - Sorry

· STFU — Shut the fuck up

· STFW — Search the fucking web

· Soz — Sorry

· SWIM — Someone Who Isn't Me

T

· T4P - Tell for people

· TANSTAAFL — There ain't no such thing as a free lunch, from Robert A. Heinlein's novel The Moon Is a Harsh Mistress

· TBF — Time between failures

· TBH, TBQH — To be (quite) honest

· TFTC — Thanks for the Cache, a Geocaching term

· TG — That's great

· TGIF — Thank God it's Friday

· TH(N)X, TNX or TX — Thanks

· TIA — Thanks in advance

· TINC — There Is No Cabal, a term discouraging conspiracy theories

· TISNF - This is so not fair

· TL;DR - Too Long; Didn't Read, an admonishment that a post is too lengthy or lacks worthwhile content

· TMI — Too much information

· TOS — Terms of service

· TTBOMK — To the best of my knowledge

· TTFN — Ta ta for now

· TTT — To the top, used in forums to bump a thread

· TTTH — Talk to the hand

· TTYL — Talk to you later (also spelled TTUL, T2UL or T2YL)

· TTYS — Talk to you soon

· TTYTT — To Tell You The Truth

· Tweedler — One who has deep love for all computer related technology and gadgets

· TWIAVBP - The World Is A Very Big Place, used to flag regionally-specific usages. Example: "We ate roasted corn (TWIAVBP: maize) at the picnic."

· TWIMC — To Whom It May Concern

· TY or Thx — Thank you

· TYT — Take your time

· TYVM — Thank you very much

· TPW — Top Post Whore

U

· U, Ur — You, your, you're

· UTFSE — Use the fucking search engine

V

· VB(SE)G — Very big (shit-eating) grin.

· VEG/S — Very evil grin/smile.

· Vlog — Video blog

· VWG/S — Very wicked grin/smile.

W

· w00t, w00T or WOOT — First two express exuberance, and the last is a backronym for the term "We Own the Other Team".

· W/ or W/O — With or without

· WB — Welcome back

· WBU — What 'Bout (about) You

· WD — Well Done

· W/E — Whatever

· WP — Well Played

· WRT — With respect / regard to

· WRUD — What are you doing?

· WTB — Want to buy

· WTF — What the fuck

· WTG — Way to go

· WTH — What the hell, What the heck

· WTS — Want to sell

· WTSHTF — When The Shit Hits The Fan

· WTT — Want to trade

· WUG — What you got?

· WUBU2 — What (have) you been up to?

· WUU2 — What (are) you up to?

· WUW — What you want?

· WWJD — What would Jesus do?

· WYSIWYG — What you see is what you get

· W8 — Wait

Y

· Y — Why

· YA RLY — Yeah Really (invariably preceded by "O RLY")

· YHBT — You have been trolled.

· YHL — You have lost

· YKW — You know what?

· YMMV — Your mileage may vary.

· YT — You there?

· YTMND — You're The Man Now, Dog

· YW — You're welcome.

· YOYO — You're On Your Own.

· YOYOW - You own your own words.

Z

· ZOMG (sometimes OMGZ) — A variation of OMG (Oh my Gosh/God) used to indicate extreme excitement

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