So, you want to use your Wii to listen to MP3’s, watch your favorite videos, and much more on your Wii? But your much too lazy to actually use your Ninja skills to install any hacks. Well, we’ve got some help!

You’ll need:

• Computer
• Wii
• Windows Vista or XP (I know, no Mac version *sigh*)
• Internet for Wii & Computer
• Internet Channel for Wii

How To

1. Go to: Orb and then download the version of “Orb” you’ll need. Also create an account on Orbs’ website.
2. Go to Orbs’ configuration and in the “Media” tab, you can drag and drop all the folders of stuff you want, full of stuff you’ll be sharing on your Wii.
3. After doing this go to your myOrb account at: Orb Account When you log in, you’ll be able to see the media you placed in the Orb application Media section! And yes, you can even use this account and ability to share media with friends and family (and fellow Ninjas!!)
4. Now hopefully you have the Opera Wii Internet Brower. If not, go download it in the Wii Shop Channel.
5. After, use the browser to navigate to the same “MyCast Orb” account and you’ll again see the Orb homepage.
6. Before media streaming, go to the settings, and then “stream” section in the web page and set it to “Flash”.
7. Now, “Save & Exit.”
8. Now, enjoy your super awesome collection of videos, MP3’s and more awesome media!!

Source: How to stream media on your Wii

We all hate bills and loosing money! So here are some simple tips to keeping money in your pocket and keeping your house warm.

1. For each degree you lower your thermostat, it decreases the money you pay on your fuel by approximately 3%! Lowering you thermostat from 72 degrees to 68 degrees may not feel like much comfort wise, but it saves you 12% on you bill.( If you’re using a coil-type thermostat, you’ll get more accurate readings if you clean it. Pop off the thermostat cover and blow or gently swipe away the dust.)

2. Clean the coils that cool your refrigerator. These coils take the heat out of the inside of the fridge, and this layer of dust prevents them from doing that efficiently.

3. If you have a certain room that is always cold and doesn’t keep heat well, use something to cover the possible points where heat could escape. Even stapling a quilt or tarps over the window(s) could help loads.

4. One of the main places that heat escapes is doors. Place a draft stopper at the bottom of your door to reduce any airflow.

5. Don’t use bathroom fans or any type of ventilation. A bathroom fan can suck all of the heat out of an average house in about an hour.

6. Take shorter showers

7. Wash your clothes in cold water whenever possible.

8. Use space heaters in the rooms you spend time in.

9. Try to keep the lights off.

10. Heat escapes when you go outside. There is a very simple solution to this…don’t go outside! Stay inside as long as possible and come visit us here at Tutorial Ninjas! Our tech experts can give you tips on all sorts of things that you may want to know!  Alternatively just make sure you shut the door behind you when you go out.  The screen door is not effective at keeping heat in.

Welcome to Winter Edition of Tutorial Ninjas! (notice the different theme?) In order to kick off this winter season-which for some is a little late- we are going to share with you some cheap winter solutions to your survival on the road!

Lets first look at winter at a glance. Words that relate to winter are: cold, ice, snow, car crash. Ok, maybe I exaggerated? Here’s a list of some items you can buy, and their competitors. Save some cash in this time of economic struggle! All prices are compared to common hardware store retail prices.

Get a Grip - On Ice
If your car is stuck in an ice patch, sand is the ultimate solution. The goal is to completely surround your cars tires that have lost grip, in sand. Then when you go in reverse (or forward- but most often used for reverse), your tires will get just enough grip to move your car out of its stuck position. A 50lb bag of sand at a hardware shop will cost you around $5 + tax.

If you ran out of sand, another solution is to use (my personal favorite- and what saved me today when stuck in an ice patch)… 20 Mule Team Borax! Borax is actually a multi-purpose cleaner and laundry booster. It has similar properties to sand, however might cost a bit more, while receiving less. A 76oz box of Borax (which converted to lbs is only 4.75 lbs), costs about $4. It might not be a cheap solution to sand, however in a time of need- its a great sand substitute! (You also gotta love the fact that a ‘team of 20 mules’ are going to help you out of an ice patch- after all, I drive a Mustang.)

Hot as Ice - Just Melt It!
If you have some time to spare, and believe me- people will, when they realize they cant get out of their driveway- then melting the ice is another solution. It is most often marketed that consumers buy name-brand (or purpose specific) items. For instance, every retailer you go, will be selling 10 lb bags of “Ice Melt” (which is often Calcium Chloride and Potassium Chloride). They use these chemicals because they reduce the potential damage to cause to your grass. One of these bags (10 lbs) will cost you at least $20. Simple solution: Stop throwing rock salt on your grass!

Whats the cheap solution? Well- you could buy a marketed bag of “Rock Salt” which is also made to melt ice, but that will cost you about $10 for a 40 lb bag.

The best solution? Buy yourself an 80lb bag of (rock) water softener salt for $7. This can be found at most anywhere: Lowes, Home Depot, or Walmart (and many other places). You might not be able to find an 80lb bag, but they also sell 40lb bags of water softener salt (also called Solar Salt) for $4. Melt the ice, and keep it away. This rock water softener salt also provides enhanced traction (because when its crushed it will have similar features of sand).

Non-Monetary Solutions - Its all about technique!
Sometimes, things in life can’t have a price on them. You cant spend any money to stop them, so you have to use technique to prevent them. Winter driving technique- lets recap some of it!

• Drive Slowly and Cautiously! Instead of driving 5 over (or more), drive the speed limit. Pay attention to the road. Keep at least a single cars distance from the car in front of you. There is no way to control your car on ice. Once you lose control, its hard to regain. That brings us to the next bullet…
• Taking control of your car when it skids out of control (not effective on ice- lets say… no technique will work on ice) is something all drivers should practice (in an open lot). The tip is, steer your car in the direction of the way you are skidding. In simpler terms, point your front tires where you want to go. Avoid using the break, however if you need to, then apply them gently.
• Use a low-gear when driving on weathered roads. If there is snow or ice on the road, then put your car into a gear like 2 or 1. They are commonly found on automatic car shifters, listed as D3, D2, and D1. Putting your car in a low gear forces the transmission to hold back the wheels from spinning. Think of it as a more “direct-drive”. You can try this out if your at a stoplight on a hill, put your car into D2 and release the break. The car will not roll back.

So, we have covered quite a few things. Monetary and non-monetary winter road solutions. Now, we would love to hear what you have to say? Do you have any economical, or free winter driving solutions? If you do, we would love for you to share them with us in the comments! Happy Holidays, and wish you all a safe winter, and driving!

Have you ever had to leave your car at the airport for a long period of time? Sometimes if you’re leaving the country, you may have to leave it there for weeks! Here are a few tips on how to protect your car when traveling.

1. Never leave anything of value in your car. Airport parking lots are like thief magnets. If somebody walks by and sees an iPhone sitting on the seat, they may do a smash and grab where they just smash your window open, take the wanted object, and run. If you must leave something in your car, make sure it’s in the trunk or a locked compartment.
2. Try to find a good lot to park it in. Some airports will have their own parking lots with security. However if you don’t want to park it there, or if they just don’t have one, you can probably find paid parking structures around the area. When choosing one of these structures, make sure it has good security and keep your eyes out for glass on the ground. A lot of glass could mean that its a target for Smash and Grabs.
3. Remove your starter fuse. If you look in your car’s manual, it should have a diagram on where your fuse box is and which fuse is for the ignition. If you take that fuse out when leaving your car, it will not start- even if it’s hot wired. (Just don’t loose it!)

Keep safety in mind, and have a safe vacation!

Here is a great tip just in-time for Summer! If you’re planning on spending your government stimulus check on a Grill, you’ll want to make sure of its quality- specifically one that won’t rust. The question we ask ourselves, is: What’s an easy way to find out [if it wont rust]? Well, just bring a magnet with you!

Cheaper grills are made out of 300 Grade Stainless Steel which your magnet will attract to. The higher quality  grills are made out of 400 Grade Stainless Steel which will not attract the magnet.

Easy solution? Now go buy a grill!

Howto.Wired recently shared some information many of you may or may not know about reducing your carbon footprint and saving the Planet. Unfortunately, its just about one month after Earth Day, so I cant even make any “seasonal” statements about this.

With various web services, you can learn how to install solar panels on your house, plan the perfect carpooling schedule, fly green, and stop junk mail!

Given the steady drumbeat of news about climate change, water shortages, food riots and high oil prices, many of us are pretty well-versed in the basics of protecting the environment.

What’s lacking, particularly for us tech-lovers, are the tools to help us live our on-grid, totally Wired lives with the smallest possible impact. And we do need some help. If everyone lived like North Americans, we’d need at least five planets to support our lifestyles.

Here are some online actions you can take to “plug in greener.”

On a side note for all of you, as of today… Tutorial Ninjas has been made green. No, I am not talking about our layouts colors, look to the right of this text and you will notice our new “CO2Stats”. For more information about CO2Stats, learn more about CO2Stats.

[Reduce your Carbon Footprint via Wired.Howto.Wiki]