Author Archives: Silver Arrows

SecuROM IS Also Used on Non-Gaming Software

I can confirm that it WAS the DSA Driving Theory Test CD that infected our PC with SecuROM again smack That nasty bit of malware was back on my sister's profile, so it definitely wasn't the Castaway this time. I CureSecurom'd her profile again, deleted cmdline-whatsitsname.dll and checked regedit. SecuROM was nuked. We then put the DSA CD in, launched the program and checked regedit again: lo and behold, Screw-u-ROM was back. However it does seem to be a "lighter" version, as a lot of the things reported by Securom-infected Sims players weren't present. Even so, I am not happy about this.

What makes this even worse is the fact that this is OFFICIAL DSA software - DSA being the Driving Standards Agency and an agent of the Department for Transport, which is a government department - meaning that an agent of the government now sees fit to infect our PCs with malware.

Beware guys, it's infected, and even worse, you can't even get a crack for it, because who would want to make one?

Update: For those who need to use this software and are wondering what to do: I'm not sure about the most recent release, but on the version my sister used, the SecuROM wasn't as aggressive as the one from Neverwinter Nights that infected our PC the first time. So running CureSecuROM (available here) after you use it each time, and deleting cmdlineedit.dll and uaservice7.exe if present, should be enough to stop any problems. Just remember that even profiles that didn't run the software can still get infected, so be sure to tell other users to check their profiles for the malicious files.

The next thing to do is write a very strong letter of complaint to the DSA for installing malware on your PC without your consent or knowledge, which I'm pretty sure is illegal. After all, with the crazy new EU cookie law, surely installing malware secretly is worse than a cookie file?

More Poké Pics and Art Lessons

I've been doing a bit more practising... what do you think?

by silver arrows

What I'm having most difficulty with is getting the actual head shape right. It either comes out too wide or too narrow, too long or too stout. As you can see above! I dunno what happened the last times I drew, because I got the head shapes pretty accurate back then, but lately, I dunno. Anyways, next picture:

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Oh No! SecuROM is Back!!

Damn you, EA! Damn you!!

stoopid suck-u-rom... its back

GRRRRRRRR!!! Why does no one listen to me when I say, check if it has SecuROM!!! Now I gotta wait for techie Uncle to come round and remove it cos I'm sure I'll screw up somewhere. Or maybe I won't bother waiting that long and give it a try anyway.

Here's the quick way to see if your game is infected. Look at the back of the CD. I've even provided a picture for you.

Somewhere where I've shown you, in little writing, you will see the words SONY DADC. This is sekrit code for: Ha ha, l00zers!! U iz pirate! Nao all ur PC r belong to us!!

Update

Utterly brilliant! It's gone!

stoopid suckurom

That was easier than I thought! There's a non-techie way! Whew!

ETA: It looks like it might not have been a game that was responsible after all. I've discovered that (my sister's) Official DSA Theory Test (i.e. the driving theory test) CD has the Sony DADC thing on it too, but most of the stuff mentioned in the MATY thread (e.g. securom folder in your settings folder, the uaservice7.exe thing) weren't present. So maybe it was a less aggressive form of Suck-u-ROM? Still Suck-u-ROM though. Cool, so now even government owned institutions are trying to take over our PCs.

*thinks for a while*

... actually there's nothing surprising about that at all.

ETA Part II : Actually I think it was my sister's Castaway after all

ETA Part IV: It was both.

Why Can Pit Fly?

People (i.e. me) sometimes ask, why can Kid Icarus fly in Captain N when he can't in the game, and why is he called Kid Icarus and not Pit?

kid-safesimon

Remember Pit killed Medusa at the end of Kid Icarus, but in Captain N she is still alive and Kid turns her to stone?

kid-medusastone

So Captain N is obviously set before anything in the game happens. Even before he became Captain of Palutena's Army. The reason he is only ever called by his nickname of Kid Icarus in Captain N is because, of course, Nintendo said that they can't name-check his game if he wasn't.

kid icarus

Okay, so he looks a bit different now but this is Videoland, right?

After the N-Team save Videoland from Mother Brain, Kid is sent to train in Pally's Army and rises to the level of Captain (and loses the speech defecticus - awww).

pit-subspace1

Of course he is still a kid, because angels age much much slower than humans, being immortal and all that. Then he gets kidnapped by Medusa, who clips his wings (and perhaps even breaks a few bones) to stop his escaping and that's why he can't fly in Kid Icarus, and that's why he can fly in Brawl, because of course, his primaries have grown back. In Of Myths and Monsters (the sequel to Angel Land Story), Pit's wings have some functionality, which just goes to back up my theory, that his flight feathers were still growing back and his wings still healing at that time.

kid icarus

You see, it's so simple.

When you think about it.

...

Okay, I totally made this up, but it's the only explanation that makes sense to me. I mean, he lives in Skyworld, he'd need to be able to fly. Stands to reason, doesn't it? Why have wings if you can't fly? I'm going with this theory for my Skyworld Story anyway. I like my stories to make sense.

Comments from old blog

Hmm... Makes sense I guess. But if Medusa clipped his wings and he's growing his flight feathers back, why can't he fly (at least a bit) in Kid Icarus: Uprising? And since he can't in Kid Icarus: Uprising, where does Brawl come in the timeline?
I agree with what Brett said though. Captain N doesn't count as part of Nintendo history. But I'm glad they made it anyway-icus. I love Kid Icarus in that! Except for that episode when he wishes himself big. That kinda freaked me out.
-Dusk 29/09/13
But that one was hilarious maximus! Uprising doesn't count (check the blog post's date). I like things to make sense, even if I have to manipulate the official story to do so ??

I REJECT NINTENDO'S REALITY AND SUBSTITUTE IT WITH MY OWN!!!11 *dancing banana*
— Silver Arrows 02/10/13

Captain N — Videolympics

I was watching Videolympics the other day. They are SO mean to Kid Icarus in that. Dr Wiley called him Kid Idiot and Simon Belmont called him Shrimpicus, so Kid called Simon Dopius Maximus, which is an exceptionordinarily cool insult.

kid icarus hypnotised
This is actually from Invasion of the Paper Pedlars. That's the episode I remember watching as a kid and the one that helped me track down Captain N in the first place. Mother Brain is my master!!!! Kid has been hypnotised in this one. He's going for Kevinicus.

watch out, kid icarus
Kid Icarus, you are so exceptionordinarily cute!!! He gets bashed around so much in this episode. Kid Liquorice!

cute kid icarus
Aww! Yook at him the lil duckie! He's off to battle Medusa here, but first he must stop himself and Simonius looking at her.

No, Factor 5. Just No.

I felt like crying when I first saw the Factor 5 concept art for the new Kid Icarus game. What are they trying to do to Pit?!!?? The Brawl Pit is absolutely perfect, how you'd expect him to look in 3D. And now these morons want to ruin him and rob him of his innocence, his identity, everything that makes him Kid Icarus. I am not going to post the concept art here because it is too fugly, but there's a link to it in one of my earlier posts, or just do a search.

kid icarus

Anyways, I found a petition and it's nice to know I'm not the only one who wants to keep him as he is.

TSR Sheep and Logic-Fail

Constipation of the brain... and, er, diarrhoea of the mouth

(Apologies to Paden for nicking her line)

What super happy fun goodness in the TSR paysites 'debate' thread. This is the old thread where (in my sheepy days) T$R deleted my post because I C+P'd the EULA (or maybe it was the message from EA, I can't remember). Anyhoo, the thread's been resurrected of late, and is worth taking a look at.

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What Are Your Feelings Towards EA?

Poll results Total votes: 58

  • $#@£"%*"!!! Those taffers aren't getting a penny more out of me! (34.5% / 20 votes)
  • I'm unhappy with them, but I desperately want [insert game here], so I won't boycott (36.2% / 21 votes)
  • I'm indifferent, really (17.2% / 10 votes)
  • EA's cool! What's your problem, dude? (12.1% / 7 votes)

Whoa... 12% of voters are total crawlers for EA. Scary.