How to enable registry editor

Sometimes, your system may be changed by certain programmes that you have installed. The disabling of the registry editor is very common. To enable the registry editor again, do the following.

1 Go to Start and click Run.

2 Type the following exactly and press OK.

REG add HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\System /v DisableRegistryTools /t REG_DWORD /d 0 /f

To be doubly sure, highlight the above and right click your mouse to copy and paste it in the box in Run.

Now, go to Start and click Run, then type 'regedit' without the quotes and you should be able to edit the registry of your Windows again.

When my Windows crashed again

My Windows crashed today. This is the sixth time it has happened.
When reinstalling Windows failed, I resorted to formatting my Drive C. Unfortunately, I had to move some important files to my thumb drives with the help of Bart PE disk which I had the foresight to prepare prior to the crash. I knew that I would need it one of these days and it came in handy today. I also backed up my drivers immediately after I had reinstalled Windows when it crashed for the fifth day some time last year.

Still I had to reinstall certain drivers such as those for my scanner and ethernet card.
This time I installed only Firefox, AVG Anti-virus, Word, Nero 8, FineReader, Alzip, Winamp, Adobe Photoshop and Soundedit Pro. This will suffice for the time being.

I found that with fewer prorammes in my computer, it runs faster.

The use of function key F4

I use Microsoft Word almost every day. There are a few shortcut keys we can make use of to speed up our work. One of them is the function key F4.

This shortcut key is used to repeat the immediate action we have executed. For instance, if we want to underline certain words in a paragraph, we can highlight the first word and underline it by clicking the underline icon or press Ctrl U. After that we can use function key F4 to repeat our earlier action. We just need to highlight the next word to be underlined then press F4 key and the underlining will be done. Highlight another word and press F4 key again to underline it. Repeat this for the words you want underlined.

The difference between ‘A number of’ and ‘The number of’

‘A number of’ plus other words will form a plural subject. The following examples will illustrate this fact.

Example 1
A number of plants in this garden were imported from other countries.

Example 2
A number of beggars are usually seen in front of the temple asking for alms.

As a subject, ‘The number of’ with other words is singular. This can be shown by the sentences below.

Sentence 1 : The number of pupils in this class is 30.
Sentence 2: The number of tickets left for sale is 51.

Mistakes occur if other words are added after the number 30 or 51. For example, ‘The number of pupils in this class is 30 people.’ is wrong because you are required to give a number only. Likewise, it will be incorrect to write ‘The number of tickets left for sale is 51 tickets.’ for the same reason.

Illegible and eligible

Two words which pose problems to students of English are ‘illegible’ and ‘eligible’.

The word ‘illegible’ means ‘difficult to decipher or read’. The sentence below will make it clear to readers.
His handwriting is illegible as I can’t read what he is trying to say.

On the other hand, the word ‘eligible’ means ‘qualified’. Let us look at the following sentence.
Those who are eligible can apply for the job advertised.

It means those people who have the required qualifications and experience can apply for the job.

How to avoid spraining your ankle

This morning, I went to the Chinese bone-setter to massage my sprained ankle. I consulted him on how to avoid spraining my ankle again. In this post I would like to share the tips I got from him.

According to him, to prevent yourself from spraining your ankle, you must position your feet correctly when you walk, squat or get out of your car.
a) When you walk, the sides of your legs should be parallel to each other.
b) When you squat, you must open you leg to the width of your body, position your feet so that the sides are parallel to each other. Then squat down and move your feet to form a ‘V’ shape. You must not form the ‘V’ shape and squat for you will sprain your ankle in so doing.
c) When you get out of your car, position your right foot (for Malaysia) and left foot (for USA) so that the side is parallel to the side of your car before shifting your body weight to it when you are out. If your foot is 45 degrees to the side of your car when you shift your body weight to it, you are more likely to sprain your ankle.

I hope the above tips are useful to readers.

Gerunds

Gerunds are ‘ing’ verbs. They take singular verbs in sentences. The following are examples of the previous statements.

Example 1
Jogging is my hobby.

Example 2
Running 10 kilometres has been his daily routine since he was 15 years old.

Example 3
Quarrelling among students is very common in schools.

Example 4
Giving gifts to friends on their birthdays costs him quite a lot of money per year.

Example 5
Shopping with friends is what she does at weekends.

Note that all bold words are subjects with gerunds rendering them singular in nature.

Meditation and me

Everyone can practise meditation provided he follows one particular method to avoid unforeseen mishap.

There are two ways of doing this and the easiest one is to concentrate on your breathing while closing your eyes to achieve peace of mind. Being aware of the rising and falling movement of your stomach while your are breathing with your eyes closed is another method.

For me, besides the above two methods, I listen to Heart Sutra being played as my way of concentration while meditating. Sometimes I also meditate on the beach with my mind focused on the sound of the waves.

Happy meditating.

Massaging meridian points for health

In my last two posts, I described two of the 3-1-2 Acupuncture Meridian Exercise, that is squatting & standing alternately and abdominal breathing exercise.

In this post, I will talk about the three meridian points to be massaged for good health.
The first meridian point is called 'Hegu'. It is situated between the forefinger and the thumb (see pix). Messaging this point will help totreat headache, fever, sore throat, laryngitis and nasal sinusitis.

Next point to be pressed or massaged is 'Neiguan'. This acupuncture point is found below the wrist (see pix). By messaging Neiguan, we will enjoy good health for it helps to treat cardiac and pulmonary diseases

Zusanli is the third meridian point which needs to be massaged. It can be found in the middle of the calf of our leg (see pix). Good health can be produced when we massage this point as it can cure digestive disorders, fever, headache, toothache, mental disorders, asthma, hypertension, cardiac vascular diseases, arthritis, jaundice, palpitation, and urological diseases.

Happy massaging the above meridian points for good health.

Meridian points

Abdominal Breathing

In my last post, I talked about squatting and standing alternately as a form of exercise.

Today, I like to discuss the second type of exercise in the 3-1-2 Acupuncture Meridian Exercise designed by Professor Zhu Zongxiang of Beijing Yanghuang Meridian Research Centre. This exercise is also known as abdominal breathing. It involves breathing in and out with emphasis on the stomach movement. In this exercise, when we breathe in, the stomach should bulge or inflate. Hold for about 5 seconds before exhaling with the stomach drawing in slowly. Repeat it 10 to 20 times daily. I usually do this when I am lying on my bed before sleeping.
This exercise is effective in curing or reducing the effect of diseases such as hypertension, insomnia, and diabetes.