OK, let’s see how I stack up...
Run All Your Essential Apps on a USB Stick — easier these days than a few years ago.
Straighten the Pins on an Older CPU — I’d rather do that than install thermal grease and a heatsink, believe it or not.
Know the 13 Basic HTML Tags — I used to know them, but these days only use raw HTML on FR, and I don’t need body, header, or any of those tags here.
Beat Quake in Under an Hour — Demo or full game? I never did either, but do I get bonus points for completing both quests of the original Legend of Zelda without dying, using a potion, or picking up the first sword?
Benchmark Your Computer — I gave up on that years ago, since I’m still using the machine I built in 2001.
Securely Erase Your Data So it Can’t be Recovered — Does using magnets and/or hammers count, or do they just mean on a still usable drive?
Get into a Windows Computer if you Forgot Your Password — Heh, which version of Windows? I think there’s a backdoor for all of them.
Explain What E=MC^2 Means to a Liberal Arts Major — Too many times.
Abstain from Buying Extended Warranties — Yes, with a couple of exceptions as suggested by Consumer Reports.
Use Photoshop or GIMP to Imperceptibly Doctor a Photo — I used GIMP all the time in grad school. However, everytime you start it, you have to shout “Bring out the GIMP!”
Mooch Your Neighbor’s Wi-Fi — Yes, but only when troubleshooting my connection.
Protect your Wi-Fi — Yes, including turning off the broadcasting.
Calculate a Pitcher’s Earned Run Average — Too easy. They should make you calculate a Quarterback Rating, or something difficult.
Run Two Operating Systems — Do different flavors of Windows count? There are some things that 98 does better than XP, for example.
Install a Hard Drive in a Laptop — Yep.
Rocket Jump Without Using a Macro — Yes, in multiple games/mods. Although I don’t think you can do it as the Pyro in Team Fortress Classic.
Know the 6 Most Important Linux Commands — I knew them in grad school, but haven’t run Linux since.
Run Multiple Monitors Like a Pro — Yes.
Pick a Lock — Depends on the lock, but yes.
Avoid DRM on everything — Oh yeah!
Get Around In DOS — My brother and I once wrote DOS startup menus because we got tired of switching directories and such to start our favorite games.
Overclock Your PC and Tune Your BIOS — the first motherboard I ever installed came from a middleman that shipped it already overclocked! I wimped out and brought it back down to normal speed, since I didn’t have AC at the time.
Use Remote Desktop — Yes, on rare occasions.
Debate the Relative Merits of an Imperial Star Destroyer vs. the USS Enterprise — No contest: Imperial Star Destroyers get taken out by errant A-Wing fighters!
Build Your Own Computer — Yes.
OK, so that’s 24 (25 if I get Zelda bonus points). Not too shabby...
As mhking used to say: “Just Damn!”
I’m impressed!
Is it cheating if I use Virtual PC 2007? I have Windows 98 and Windows XP running on my Windows Vista machine in separate virtual PC's.
-PJ