MarcForrest.com

Category: On The Marc

How to extract all the numbers from a Whatsapp Group
I came across this quick & easy way to extract numbers from a Whatsapp Group. Whatsapp doesn’t have a simple way to export group info, even if you are an admin, so this is a bit of a hack, but can be done quite quickly following the steps below.
1. Make sure you have linked your mobile WhatsApp to Whatsapp Web. This is pretty easy by going to https://web.whatsapp.com/ and follow the steps for logging in. Make sure you are using Chrome to load Whatsapp web.
2. Go to the group you want to view the numbers of and click in the header of the group
3. You will see a list of all the numbers in the group on the right-hand side of the page.
  On the page (usually, works over some typed text) right click and you should see a menu item called “Inspect”
  
  You should see a whole bunch of HTML code appear on the right-hand side or bottom of the page.
4. Do a Ctrl-F (Control Find) and search for keyword infinite-list. This is the start of the list of all the numbers in the group. You should see that part of the code highlighted in Yellow. If you have a large list of people, scroll to the bottom of the list before the next step
5. Right click on this line and go to Copy, Copy Element
6. Open a new tab in Chrome and then go to https://conextractor.herokuapp.com/
7. Click paste inside the box on the page. Check the Re-Captcha box, and click on the submit button (red button on the right-hand side)
8. You will then see a text file download appear in your browser, called Contact-List.txt
  Open this in Notepad, and you will see all the numbers from the group in there
It might seem a bit of a run-around, but it works really well especially if you have a larger group. I did ask the developer if they could add the Whatsapp Name as well, so hopefully, they do that.
September 14, 2017
What are Fidget Spinners and why are they the craze!!

If you have kids between the ages of 5-25 (or even 45 :)) you may or may not have heard of Fidget Spinners. They are they new craze and kids are going crazy for them.

Essentially Fidget spinners are moulded plastic or metallic devices that have bearings in them, and you then spin them. The fun comes in when there are a whole bunch of tricks that you can do as well. Think back to the Yo-Yo in 87, and you on the same path.

After my kids continue to nag me for days, I eventually got them one and loved the concept. And so, Fidgety, an online Fidget Spinner shop, was born. I have been sourcing stock from a number of people and going to keep adding some of the coolest spinners around. We already have stock of the awesome LED Fidget Spinners, as well as the Tri Fidget Spinners.

I have seen a couple of really cool videos online with guys doing tricks, so will post those on the Fidget Spinners Tips & Tricks page, as well as on our Facebook page.

We offer overnight courier (to major centres) around South Africa for R100, or if you stay in the Durban/Ballito area, you are welcome to collect from us.

Keep watching, cause I suspect this craze is only get bigger and bigger!!

May 2, 2017
Buying Bitcoins in South Africa

If you been following the trends online you will see Bitcoin is becoming more and more prevalent in today’s day and age. I can’t profess to know too much about Bitcoin or what it means for the future (there are some very clever people out there who do know) but I realised that it might be worth getting on the Bitcoin bandwagon sooner rather than later. The price of Bitcoin is currentley at it’s highest and is moving on up!

Bitcoin is a virtual currency that was created in 2010, and allows people to use it online to pay for things. In some places you can even use it as real world currency, so it is gaining traction.

I have been doing a bit of reading and digging to find out how to buy bitcoins in South Africa. Obviously, Bitcoins are quite pricy for 1 BTC (around R14,000 at the time of writing) so you can buy in smaller fractions, and I suppose eventually work your way up to full Bitcoins.

Bitcoin Wallets

The first thing you need is a . There are a number of ways you can do this, like storing them on your PC, online or even in a community or buyers. I wanted something simple, so after a bit of digging I came across . This is an online Bitcoin wallet which allows you to store you Bitcoins safely and securely. The only thing you can’t do is buy and sell Bitcoins through . This is not too much of an issue though, as you can still send & receive bitcoins

Purchasing Bitcoins

Once you have your Bitcoin wallet setup, you will then need to start . Now this is not as simple as walking into a bank and buying foreign currency, as there are a number of bitcoin exchanges where you buy and sell bitcoin. One of the more popular exchanges in SA is called Luno, although I haven’t used it (yet)

After some digging around I eventually found a platform called which allows you to purchase Bitcoins either in your currency or using online payment platforms like PayPal. I found a trusted seller in South Africa where I could pay via EFT, and bought R150 worth of bitcoin. This only works out to a measly 0.0106 BTC, but hey it’s a start :)

I went through the motions and did an EFT and the Bitcoins were deposited into my account. I then was able to move them over to my wallet where I can monitor them. The key to this site is to ensure you are buying from a trusted “seller” All sellers have ratings and the site is closely monitored for fraud etc.

There are also international sellers who allow you to pay via PayPal, but you have to ensure you have a verified account before you can proceed with these. The only con against using something like is that the price you are buying the bitcoins for is a lot higher than the going published bitcoin rate. As an example when I bought mine the “official” bitcoin price was around R14,000 but the going rate on was around R16,000, so you definitely get the shorter straw.

There is another way to buy Bitcoin using PayPal, using a site called , but it is quite a trick to get it right, and also a couple of fees and takes a while to get authorised. I will do another post on this way soon, and also test it out to see if it works.

Disclaimer: As I said above I am absolutely no professional on how Bitcoin works, and what the ins and outs are. These posts are merely my research into how it all works, and can’t gaurantee anything. I am testing the waters to see what all the “hype” is about. I’ll be updating the blog with some of my findings as I go along :) I will also be enabling comments on this post for disucssion if anyone has some info or tips about Bitcoin
Some of the links above are affiliate links which could help me and support me with this research

January 4, 2017
Review: Sushi Ninja, Ballito

Living in a small town like Ballito it’s a fairly common site to see new restaurants opening up, especially before the silly season. But there are also a few restaurants that have stood the test of time, and just keep going & going and you have to make a booking any time of the year to get in.

And that’s where Brett Michelin from Mozambik is a winner. He just “knows” the business, and is probably one of the most successful business owners I know!

So when a new spot called Sushi Ninja popped up on the raider, and word was that it was Brett’s new venture, we KNEW we had to get down there. So we did. And I am so glad we did…

So a bit of a back story around my sushi journey. In 2007 I went on a company incentive trip to Mauritius. We went deep sea fishing one day, and came back with a sizer of a tuna. The hotel chef offered to cut it up for us and offered us platters of fresh tuna. And there was a lot. Like too much, and we ate tuna until we couldn’t anymore. And I was all tuna’d out. I couldn’t look at any raw fish for years or even begin to try tuna or any type of sushi again.

But slowly over the last couple of months I have been sneaking a little bite here and there, but until last week, I had never ordered a full plate of sushi. And then came Sushi Ninja!!!

Sushi Ninja, is a small little area outside the popular Mozambik, with a couple of tables and a chef’s station where the master sushi chef France, does his magic. France comes with loads of experience, and prepares all the sushi fresh in front of you.

The menu options are pretty standard, with a couple of additional surprises, when it comes to sushi and very reasonably priced. The seafood used in the sushi is fresh as well, and full of flavour. The best item on the menu for me was the salmon battleships, which were delicious!!

Ballito doesn’t offer too many sushi options, so if you looking for flavorsome and well priced sushi, I highly recommend Sushi Ninja. Be sure to give France a hi-five on the way out to say thanks for the amazing sushi & service ;)

Disclaimer: I was not asked by Sushi Ninja or Zomato to write this blog post

December 9, 2016
Afrihost now offering Mi Smartphones with FREE Data!
The team at Afrihost & Mobile In Africa, who distribute the Xiaomi products in South Africa, have joined up and are offering some awesome deals on Xiaomi phones. And the best part of the deal is you get a FREE data sims, loaded every month, for a YEAR when you sign up for one of the phones.

Having reviewed the Mi4, Mi5 & Redmi Note 3, these are some of the best phones at that price point. They match up to phones that are much much higher up the price scale. As an example, the Redmi Note 3 which I recently reviewed, offers Dual Sim capabilities, which means with this Afrihost deal you can now just use the Data Sim for data, and your normal sim for voice & SMS. Bonus!!

The phones on offer are as follows:
- Redmi 2 8GB – R1799 (With 500MB Free Data PM x 12)
- Redmi Note 2 – R2799 (With 500MB Free Data PM x 12)
- Redmi 3 32GB – R3299 (With 500MB Free Data PM x 12)
- Mi Max – R4699 (With 1GB Free Data PM x 12)
- Mi5 – R7999 (With 2GB Free Data PM x 12)
The phones are available for purchase today through the Afrihost website, and come with FREE delivery!

This is an awesome deal if you looking for a decent spec for, for an affordable price WITH Free data!!
November 16, 2016