Web computer solution

The 11 Best Tips For StumbleUpon Traffic

2010-09-20T23:01:00.000-07:00

The other day I was looking through my Google analytic data and discovered that I am getting around 50 visitors a day from StumbleUpon. I have never discussed how to get StumbleUpon traffic in my blog post because I don’t spend much time in StumbleUpon community.

But I remember last year, I did spend sometime in StumbleUpon community and submitted some of my blog posts to stumbleUpon. Also, many users post their classified user pages in stumbleupon. If you want to drive traffic to your classified user pages and websites using stumbleUpon, follow the 7 tips I have used to drive stumbleUpon traffic.

What is Stumble Upon? StumbleUpon is a web 2.0 community site for discovering and sharing web pages, videos and photos. StumbleUpon works by downloading a toolbar that allows you rate web pages as thumbs up or thumbs down.

You need to start by submitting your web site or user pages to stumble upon. Download the tool bar and browse to your web page. Then click I like it! button to include your page to stumbleUpon.

stumble-upon-tool-bar

Build Friend Circles. You need to add friends. More friends you add, more people will see your newly added pages. Find people who have similar interests as yours. You want to share links with people who are interested in your niche. There are many ways to build your friend circle. StumbleUpon has a detail how to guide about discovering similar people.

Participate: Like any other social media web sites, you need to participate to make the site work for you. Your goal should be to join a few groups, post reviews, subscribe to your friends links, and rate some of your friends websites.

Share Links: Besides your own websites, share others web pages also. Submit your own website pages frequently with a mix of other people’s web pages. Sharing interesting and useful links in your friend circle will improve your credibility and, in turn, people will positively rate your own pages. Avoid linking to the home page of a web site. Link to a specific page on a website.

Write Positive Article About Stumble Upon related to your niche. For example, if you’re in gardening niche. Write an article about how you discovered great gardening tips using stumbleUpon or the top 10 stumblers on gardening niche. Use your imagination to pick a topic that throws some positive lights on stumbleUpon related to your niche.

Use Appropriate Topic: When you submit a web page, StumbleUpon asks you to pick a topic for your web page. It is important that you pick the right topic if you want to get a lot of thumbs up for your page. You don’t want to share your gardening related web page to people who are interested in golf.

Use Plenty of Tags: Use multiple tags for the same article. If you have done your keyword research, it will be easy. Just use the keywords as your tags. For example, you can use gardening, rose gardening, organic gardening, etc. for your gardening article.

Send Personal Message: Find the person who has originally stumbled your story and send a thank you note to him/her. If this person has a blog, subscribe to his blog and share a few web pages of his site.

Use StumbleUpon Badges on every page of your site. It will help others stumble your pages easily.

Use Magnetic Title For Your Article and Blog Post. Check out some of my blog posts about how to craft attention grabbing titles.

Share Funny images and videos. Humor is always popular among web users.

Personalize Your Profile Page. Fill out your profile page completely. Use your picture in your profile page. Add your likes and provide some introduction about yourself. Add your blog URL.

21 Ways To Build links For Free And Get Higher Search Engine Rankings

2010-09-19T23:10:00.000-07:00

Getting links to your site from websites outside your domain is the most important part of building back links and higher search engine rankings. The more back links you get, the higher your site will climb in the search engines. I have discussed many techniques on how to leverage web links for higher search engine rankings. I have decided to create a list of popular techniques used by today’s online marketers to get back links. You can always refer to this list as a guide and implement one technique at time to rank higher in search engine result pages.

First, I want to get one misconception out of the way. Many people equate building back links to reciprocal linking. In the case of reciprocal links, you need to provide a link on your site in exchange for a back link on another person’s site. Reciprocal linking is two way linking and not a very effective tool for link building. The techniques discussed here are all one way link building. You don’t have to provide any links to anybody to get back links to your site.

1. Post Classified Ads. The easiest methods. Chose a few sites only that provides ad renewal. Submit half a dozen ads and renew them regularly. Classifieds ads expire and if you don’t renew them, your ad will be gone along with the links.

2. Join A Webring It is a very old techniques and I have used them extensively in the past. A webring is a collection of websites in a particular niche linked together in circular fashion. Vistiors can jump to a website clicking on link in a website that is the part of the webring family. Check out a popular webring site called webring.com

3. Get Listed In Web Directories. Web directories were popular for searches prior to Google. But they still help get links to your site. When you submit to a web directory, make sure that your site is submitted to the relevant category. Here is a list of free web directories.

4. Create an eBook and List it in eBook Directories. Create an ebook and insert your website link in it. Creating an ebook is not difficult. There are many ways to do it on a week-end. Check out my post on how to make ebooks for almost free. Once you create an ebook, you can list in eBook directories. Here is a list of ebook directories where you can list your ebook for free.

5. Create a Forum and Get Listed in Forum Directories. There are lots of free software available to create a forum in your site. Forum is great for interacting with your site visitors. If you’re using a web hosting with cPanel, you can install a forum in one click using Fantastico. Once you have a forum, get it listed in forum directories. Big-boards.com is the largest forum directory and I have written a post about it in forum marketing. For a list of forum directories, check out this website.

6. Use Yahoo Answers. Posting thoughtful answers on Yahoo Answers and including a link to your website is still one of the best way to get a back link from a very authoritative source. Check out my 13 Steps Formula for driving traffic using Yahoo! Answers

7. Create a Blog and Get It Listed In Blog Directories. I have emphasized the importance of creating blog many times. You can create a blog for free using Blogger. Once you have a blog, get it listed in blog directories. Here is a list of blog directories.

8. Get Links From .edu and .gov Blogs. Search engines consider .edu and .gov domains as authoritative. Find blogs in these domains that are related to your site’s topic and leave thoughtful comments with back links. To find .edu and .gov domains in your niche, do a Google search using the syntax: site:.gov inurl:blog “your niche keyword”. Check out my article on how to get inbound links from government and university sites. If you have a relative in a government jobs and/or in an university, ask them to create a blog and put a back link to your websites.

9. Post Reviews Amazon and Barnes and Nobles will let you post your links on the reviews. If you have purchased a book recently, create a review and post a link back to your site. You have to be clever to make the relevant.

10. Write And Submit Articles. I have written a definitive guide on article marketing. It is one of the most popular online marketing technique. You cannot go wrong with this method. It has helped me lot in making my site popular.

11. Write Testimonials with Your Link. Have you recently bought a digital product and found it useful? Write a testimonial, put your links and send it to the product creator to included in his testimonials page.

12. Comment on YouTube Videos. When you watch a YouTube video, don’t leave the site without posting a comment with your link. You have already spent an x amount of time watching the video, spend another two minutes to build links to your web site.

13. Review on Script Directories. There are lots of free script directories and if you use them to download scripts for your websites, why not spend an additional few minutes to write a review with a link to your web site? Hotscripts.com is a popular script directory where you can write reviews on scripts.

14. Post in Document Sharing Sites. Create a small report or power point presentation with links to your site and upload them in document sharing sites. You can also post comments with links in some sites. Here is a list of document sharing sites.

15. Get Listed In Free Stuff Directories. The same concept applies here. Give something for free and get listed in free stuff directories. The best thing to give for free is a digital product like a report or an ebook. Here is a list of free stuff site

16. Submit Press Releases. I have discussed this topic in the past. You can submit a press release whenever there is a major event in your business. A major event is in the eye of the beholder. A major even can be adding a new feature to your site, increased in web traffic to your site or increased in revenue. Here is a list of free press release submission sites and how to submit a press release to get back links and traffic. Want to write an effective press release, check out my earlier post five steps to writing an effective press release.

17. Forum Posting. This is also a popular methods to drive traffic and build back links. For a detailed discussions on this topic, check out my free definitive guide to forum marketing

18. Get Back Links From Authoritative Sites. Getting back links from authoritative web 2.0 sites like social news and bookmarking sites, or article publishing sites are very hot now. Check out my list of 25 Sites For Web Traffic From High Page Rank Back links, 16 Authoritative Sites For Oneway links, 16 more high traffic, high page rank sites for free one way links

19. Upload Videos and Leave Comments in Video Sharing Sites. Just like the popular YouTube site, there are other video sharing sites where you can upload your videos and leave comments on others’ videos with back link to your sites. For a list of video sharing sites, click here.

20. Create a Link Triangle. Using Squidoo, HubPages and your web site, you can create a link triangle, for example link from HubPages to Squidoo lenses to your website. I have discussed how to implement this technique for rapid increase in search engine traffic in my post A Submit Free URL Strategy For Search Engine Traffic

21. Create a Top Site List. At one time top sites were very popular but they are less visible now. It is a list of sites that exchange links to each other and the sites sending the most traffic ranks on the top of the list. To implement this, you need a top site script and there are plenty of them available for free. Just do a Google search. The most important thing in implementing s Top Site list is make the sites relevant. Create a top site list in your own niche and only accept sites that are relevant to your topic.

There are many other ways to build oneway links to your site. You need to be on alert and whenever you see an opportunity, drop your link. Don’t think too mch about dofollow, nofollow or such other things that you have read in internet marketing forums. For me, a link is a link. Once your links are about, it will spread to other sites and some of them will be dofollow. If you are going to concentrate on dofollow links only, check out this dofollow blog

How to Drive Traffic Using Yahoo! Answers

2010-09-19T23:06:00.000-07:00

What is rs is an question-and-answer (Q&A) site created by Yahoo! in 2005. More thaYahoo! Answers? Claimed to the be the World’s biggest think tank, Yahoo! Answen two million people regularly visit the site. Now you can see the potential of this web property in driving targeted traffic to your web site for free. Since its inception, it has become popular among internet marketers to drive traffic to their websites. Other entrepreneurial online marketers have cashed on the popularity of the site by publishing e-books that guide you how to use the service for website traffic.

You don’t need to buy any e-books to use the Yahoo! Answers and leverage it for your web site traffic and link building. It is free and simple to use. And as with any other traffic techniques, you should not focus all your efforts on this one site alone. You can also use the site for getting answers to any questions you may have in more than 20 Yahoo! Answers categories. By sharing your answers to others questions regularly, you can also establish yourself as an expert and build your brand.

If you already have a Yahoo! account, you can sign in to Yahoo! Answers using your Yahoo! user name and password. I don’t know anybody who who does not have a Yahoo! account. If you’re one of those few people who have ignored all the Yahoo! services and have never created a Yahoo! account, sign up now.

1. Start with a top level Yahoo! Answer category that you’re passionate about and interested in. If you’re are interested in gardening and have a gardening blog, you should start with home and gardening category. Don’t limit yourself to the top category alone, select all the subcategories also.

2. You don’t have to be an expert. If you are interested in a topic, you can do a Google search and get the the right answers to almost all the questions posted in Yahoo! Answers. Try to be the first person to answer a question and answer it correctly.

3. Don’t post vague and false answers. It is always better to verify your answers before posting it. Check even the spelling and grammatical errors before posting your answers otherwise people will doubt your answer even if it is the correct one.

4. If you have verified your answers using some authoritative sites like Wikipedia, CNN, MSNBC, Yahoo!, university websites, respected journals, etc., post the link to the source of your answer.

5. The beauty of the Yahoo! Answers service is that you can post links in your answers. But don’t post links to your websites always. Link to your contents posted in other sites like your articles published in article directories, Squidoo lenses, hubpages, blogs, digg, stumbleupon, YouTube videos etc and direct the user to your contents for more information.

6. Try to avoid opinionated political questions but if you have the fact from an authoritative source, post the link without posting your own opinion.

7. Yahoo! Answer is also a gold mine for keyword and market research on any topic. By scanning the questions in one topic, you will be able to know what information people are looking for. You can make a blog post detailing your research on that question and then link it in your answers.

8. Keep your answer succint and to the point. Just don’t provide a link to the answer. Provide as much information as possible to resolve the question and links for more information and validation only.

9.Even if the answer is simple, don’t call names and mention how stupid the question is or how simple the answer is.

10. Yahoo! Answers is a community sharing site. participate by answering and voting on others answers.

11. Use keywords in your answers.

12. Avoid answering lots of questions in one day. Answer no more than five questions a day and do it for no more than three times a week.

13. Never, ever try to sell any thing in your answer.

If you know any other techniques, please post in the comments.

Understanding Different Types Of Hosting

2010-08-17T00:22:00.000-07:00

While selecting any hosting plan you might come across different terminologies. Every type of hosting is different from other in some way or the other. In this article, I am going to explain you about all types of hosting so that you can easily know which hosting you should go for. I’ll tell you about advantages and disadvantages of each and every type of hosting. Lets start :

Shared Hosting

It is one of the basic type of hosting and is also known as Virtual Hosting. As the name says, in this type of hosting many websites are hosted on one single web server. In the server, various partitions are made and each site is allocated with bandwidth and space.

Advantages

Shared Hosting can be available at an extremely cheap rate i.e $4.95/mo. This is the main advantage of shared hosting. Most of the new Blogger start with this type of hosting and as they start getting huge traffic they move to better hosting.

Disadvantages

Most of the hosting companies like Dreamhost or Hostgator provides Shared Hosting with unlimited space and bandwidth but they do not tell that Shared Hosting comes with limited CPU usage. Yes, this type of hosting is not designed for high traffic. This is a big drawback.

In brief : If you want to start a blog or a small business website then Shared Hosting is best option for you.

Grid Hosting

Grid Hosting is same as Shared Hosting but it overcome the disadvantages in Shared Hosting. When your site gets huge traffic, the load is then divided among different systems. The image below will help you in understanding Grid Hosting more.

Image Credits : Gogrid

Advantages

Here, you do not have to worry about site load, you site will be up always even if your site takes up too many processing units.

Disadvantages

The only thing you have to worry about is “bill”. Too many resources = larger bill. I think, this is really a disadvantage.

Reseller Web Hosting

This hosting is for those who want to start their own hosting company. It is a type of hosting in which the account holder has the right to sell hosting to their own customers. You can get reseller hosting at about $25 per month.

VPS (Virtual Private Server)

It is also known as Virtual Dedicated Server(VDS) and is same as Shared Hosting. In this type of hosting, a main physical server is partitioned into different servers that works as an independent dedicated machine. Features of VPS are :

Each server can be rebooted individually
Each account has access to the root
Each server has a particular RAM and CPU usage allocated
Can host many sites on the same server

Now one thing you will ask is that why this type of hosting is termed as “Virtual”. That is because the server your own is not actually a private server but it appears to you as a private one.

Advantages

It gives a lot of options to users and users can monitor and administer their own server.

Dedicated Server

The name says it all, in this type of hosting, you are given the whole server and is not shared with anyone. You have full control over the server. You can select your own operating system.

Advantages

Best option for you if you have multiple high traffic websites
It can be called as the most reliable type of hosting

If you are planning to start your own blog and looking for hosting company, I recommend you Dreamhost or Hostgator. Just buy Shared Hosting and as your blog starts getting traffic you can move to Grid or VPS. We will be more happy to have your comments on Which hosting you like the most and why?

How To Detect And Fool Keyloggers

2010-08-17T00:11:00.000-07:00

You might have heard about a dangerous application called Keylogger. Its a very tricky tool to record your key strokes in a notepad file. Whenever you type anything using keyboard, this software stores all your key strokes. If you access Internet from any cyber cafe or any public PC, this post is must for you.

There are many keyloggers that are not detected by anti virus and other security applications, so today I am sharing few tricks with which you can fool keyloggers easily.

1) Use Virtual Keyboard : Whenever you access PC from any cyber cafe always use Virtual Keyboard or On Screen Keyboard for entering password.

How to enable virtual keyboard : If you are using Windows XP, Click on Start >> All Programs >> Accessories <<>> On Screen Keyboard. Have a look :

Just use mouse clicks for entering password and username. By using on screen keyboard, keylogger will never detect your key strokes, thus your account will be safe.

2) Anti Keylogger : If you do not know whether keylogger is installed or not, you can use this software called Elite Anti Keylogger. It has more than 1000 known keyloggers and will warn you immmeditely it detects any keylogger.

Internet Safety For Children - How Do We Keep Kids Safe

2010-07-02T02:23:00.000-07:00

The subject of children internet safety is a very important one. It is a topic that needs to be addressed to all parents in all homes. What can we do as parents to help ensure children's internet safety?

1. Learn to talk to your children. The simple lack of communication is one of the biggest reasons why children enter websites they are not supposed to or do things online that they are not supposed to be doing. Why? The reason is some children are never given the internet safety talk. Consequently, children end up not knowing that they were not supposed to visit a particular site or that they were not supposed to set up meetings with any strangers. If parents would engage with their children and communicate with them about the dos and don'ts of online browsing child internet safety would become less of a problem.

2. Position your home computer in the right place. Now what I mean by this is that the family computer needs to be in an open space where everyone can see it. If you are a parent make sure that you do not put the home computer in a place like the basement if you hardly visit the basement. Observing this rule of thumb will definitely help internet safety for kids. When children know that they may be caught browsing a website that they should not be on they will be less likely to open it.

3. Create offline activities for your children. Between the T.V. and internet children are becoming batmen and women who stay in a cave all day. The more time kids spend on the internet the more they are likely to access the wrong material or engage in conversations with the wrong people. Try to involve your children in outdoor activities like soccer or basketball to keep the time online at a minimal. Not only will they get some exercise and fresh air this will help protect them from becoming child victims online.

As a parent, I know the fight to ensure children's internet safety will not be an easy one, but making little tweaks here and there can lead to big results and help keep children safe online. Keep these tips in mind, and you'll be on your way.

Hard Disk Recovery Basics You Really Need to Know

2010-07-02T02:05:00.000-07:00

More and more people involved in the IT aspects of their workplace are finding it useful to learn the rudiments of hard disk recovery, as more and more valuable data is stored on ever-more complex hard drives. Although being able to call upon the services of specialists in hard disk recovery remains essential in cases where the hardware itself has become damaged or the files corrupted, many office workers have found it useful to find out how such systems work in order to take preventative measures and try to minimize the risk of their storage systems crashing - and taking that all-important info with it.

The first thing to find out is how such systems work, in the most basic terms. Computer use will result in information being written on to the hard drive. Even when such data is extracted, it leaves its mark - and even when such data appears "impossible" to extract, resulting in the need for a professional hard disk recovery service, it is in fact still there, merely unable to be accessed by the normal means.

A cardinal error that many people who work with computers make is to fiddle with the device when it stops co-operating. Any IT professional will tell you that the important thing is to stop using it immediately. Most tampering is done in a state of panic, and can make things far more complicated than necessary when the hard disk recovery process begins in earnest.

Carrying on as if nothing is the matter is in some ways even riskier, as continuing to use a computer that has experienced data extraction problems can lead to new data overwriting the old information and eventually leading to a catastrophic loss that is all the more difficult to remedy. Generic disk repair software can also have a similarly disastrous effect, which is why it is better in such circumstances to rely on the specialist tools wielded by the properly-trained professionals.

Another piece of advice, which everyone hears all the time, is to regularly back up important information. Despite the ubiquity of this advice, it is still surprising how many users neglect to do this. A freshly backed-up system makes data retrieval much easier in the event of a crash, and even if all the data is not there, backing up information will make the situation much simpler for a hard disk recovery expert to deal with.

By Kim Chambers

Learn All About Spyware

2010-03-25T02:24:00.000-07:00

A very detailed look at what spyware is, how it attaches itself to computers, and the common methods of prevention.

There are a lot of PC users that know little about "Spyware", "Malware", "hijackers", "Dialers" and many more. This post will help you avoid pop-ups, spammers and all those baddies.

What is spy-ware?

Spy-ware is Internet jargon for Advertising Supported software (Ad-ware). It is a way for shareware authors to make money from a product, other than by selling it to the users. There are several large media companies that offer them to place banner ads in their products in exchange for a portion of the revenue from banner sales. This way, you don't have to pay for the software and the developers are still getting paid. If you find the banners annoying, there is usually an option to remove them, by paying the regular licensing fee.

Known spywares

There are thousands out there, new ones are added to the list everyday. But here are a few:
Alexa, Aureate/Radiate, BargainBuddy, ClickTillUWin, Conducent Timesink, Cydoor, Comet Cursor, eZula/KaZaa Toptext, Flashpoint/Flashtrack, Flyswat, Gator, GoHip, Hotbar, ISTbar, Lions Pride Enterprises/Blazing Logic/Trek Blue, Lop (C2Media), Mattel Brodcast, Morpheus, NewDotNet, Realplayer, Songspy, Xupiter, Web3000, WebHancer, Windows Messenger Service.

How to check if a program has spyware?

This Little site keeps a database of programs that are known to install spyware.

Check Here: http://www.spywareguide.com/product_search.php

If you would like to block pop-ups (IE Pop-ups).

There tons of different types out there, but these are the 2 best, i think.

Try: Google Toolbar (http://toolbar.google.com/) This program is Free
Try: AdMuncher (http://www.admuncher.com) This program is Shareware

If you want to remove the "spyware" try these:

Try: Lavasoft Ad-Aware (http://www.lavasoftusa.com/) This program is Free
Info: Ad-aware is a multi spyware removal utility, that scans your memory, registry and hard drives for known spyware components and lets you remove them. The included backup-manager lets you reinstall a backup, offers and multi language support.

Try: Spybot-S&D (http://www.safer-networking.org/) This program is Free
Info: Detects and removes spyware of different kinds (dialers, loggers, trojans, user tracks) from your computer. Blocks ActiveX downloads, tracking cookies and other threats. Over 10,000 detection files and entries. Provides detailed information about found problems.

Try: BPS Spyware and Adware Remover (http://www.bulletproofsoft.com/spyware-remover.html) This program is Shareware
Info: Adware, spyware, trackware and big brotherware removal utility with multi-language support. It scans your memory, registry and drives for known spyware and lets you remove them. Displays a list and lets you select the items you'd like to remove.

Try: Spy Sweeper (http://www.webroot.com/wb/products/spysweeper/index.php) This program is Shareware
Info: Detects and removes spyware of different kinds (dialers, loggers, trojans, user tracks) from your computer.
The best scanner out there, and updated all the time.

Try: HijackThis (http://free.antivirus.com/hijackthis/) This program is Freeware
Info: HijackThis is a tool, that lists all installed browser add-on, buttons, startup items and allows you to inspect them, and optionally remove selected items.

If you would like to prevent "spyware" being install.

Try: SpywareBlaster (http://www.wilderssecurity.net/spywareblaster.html) This program is Free
Info: SpywareBlaster doesn`t scan and clean for so-called spyware, but prevents it from being installed in the first place. It achieves this by disabling the CLSIDs of popular spyware ActiveX controls, and also prevents the installation of any of them via a webpage.

Try: SpywareGuard (http://www.wilderssecurity.net/spywareguard.html) This program is Free
Info: SpywareGuard provides a real-time protection solution against so-called spyware. It works similar to an anti-virus program, by scanning EXE and CAB files on access and alerting you if known spyware is detected.

Try: XP-AntiSpy (http://www.xp-antispy.org/) This program is Free
Info: XP-AntiSpy is a small utility to quickly disable some built-in update and authentication features in WindowsXP that may rise security or privacy concerns in some people.

Try: SpySites (http://camtech2000.net/Pages/SpySites_Program.html) This program is Free
Info: SpySites allows you to manage the Internet Explorer Restricted Zone settings and easily add entries from a database of 1500+ sites that are known to use advertising tracking methods or attempt to install third party software.

If you would like more Information about "spyware".

Check these sites.
http://www.spychecker.com/
http://www.spywareguide.com/
http://www.cexx.org/adware.htm
http://www.theinfomaniac.net/infomaniac/co...rsSpyware.shtml
http://www.thiefware.com/links/
http://simplythebest.net/info/spyware.html

Usefull tools...

Try: Stop Windows Messenger Spam (http://www.stopmessengerspam.com/) This program is Free
Info: "Stop Windows Messenger Spam" stops this Service from running and halts the spammers ability to send you these messages.

All these softwares will help remove and prevent evil spammers and spywares attacking your PC. I myself recommend getting "Spyblaster" "S&D Spybot" "Spy Sweeper" & "Admuncher" to protect your PC. A weekly scan is also recommended

Free Virus Scan

Kaspersky Online Scanner
Scan for spyware, malware and keyloggers in addition to viruses, worms and trojans. New threats and annoyances are created faster than any individual can keep up with.
http://www.kaspersky.com/virusscanner

BitDefender Online Scanner
Free and effective malware cleanup directly from your browser. It features all required elements for thorough antivirus scanning and effective cleaning: it scans your system’s memory, all files, folders and drives’ boot sectors, providing you with the option to automatically clean the infected files.
http://www.bitdefender.com/scanner/online/free.html

HouseCall
HouseCall can quickly identify and fix a wide range of threats including viruses, worms, Trojans, and spyware. It is now faster, more powerful and browser independent!
http://housecall.trendmicro.com/

There are many other Online Scanners which are free and easy to use, like Computer Associates Malware Scanner, ESET, Avast....

Top 10 Antivirus Softwares of 2010

2010-03-25T02:18:00.000-07:00

Antivirus (or anti-virus) software is used to prevent, detect, and remove malware, including computer viruses, worms, and trojan horses. Such programs may also prevent and remove adware, spyware, and other forms of malware.

A computer virus acts much like it would if it infected a human – it spreads throughout your system, infecting and harming everything it can.

Luckily, there is a way you can prevent that from happening in the form of a good quality antivirus program.

Whatever type of home you have I bet you have locks on the door in order to keep your valuable items in and intruders out.

You should treat your computer in much the same way, using an antivirus program to bolt up all points of entry so that you will be protected from viruses, Trojans, spyware and other forms of malware.

There are a huge number of security companies offering antivirus programs these days and some are better than others.

Here are my 10 favourites for the year ahead:

1. BitDefender AntiVirus 2010

BitDefender Antivirus 2010 proves to be very impressive again this year. It scored very well in every antivirus test i threw against it, with only a few minor deficiencies.

Real-time antivirus protection was excellent (one of the best we've seen), Resource usage was very low, and overall PC protection against viruses and other malware was top-notch.

In addition to improvements in antivirus detection, BitDefender Antivirus 2010 also brings improvements in the user interface, making the software quite a bit easier to use.

In short, BitDefender Antivirus 2010 provides protection and peace of mind, without upsetting your PC performance or paycheck.

BitDefender Antivirus 2010 Standout Features:

Real-time protection
Advanced heuristic Active Virus Control
Intrusion Detection
Optimized scanning
Easy on system resources

2. Kasperksy Antivirus 2010

Many computer users will already be familiar with the name Kaspersky.

The company has made a great name for itself in a short period of time by releasing a large number of top quality security products.

Kaspersky Anti-Virus 2010 packs a solid punch against viruses, spyware, adware, and other malware.

Kaspersky Personal 2010 now includes a redesigned interface supported by new architecture. The program is simple to install and use. You only need to choose from three levels of protection and your PC is completely safe. Protection from riskware.

Kaspersky also offers a 3-user license option (for 1 year), so it’s actually a very cost-effective way to protect all of your home computers.

Kaspersky Anti-Virus Standout Features:

Antivirus for IM
Gamer Mode
iSwift technology adjusts scanning to compensate for system load
URL Advisor for proactive browser security

3. ESET NOD32 Antivirus 2010

The NOD32 antivirus software by ESET is a novel virus program that provides real-time protection against worms, trojans, spyware, malware, phishing and hackers.

The installation time is 1 minute 29 seconds, which is very impressive and you don’t even need to restart your computer in most cases.

It has a very clean and effective user interface.

It provides you two options called standard mode and advanced mode.

Standard mode has fewer options, making it ideal for normal users who may be confused by some of the competing products which sometimes offer too many choices!

And advanced mode, as the name implies, is for advanced users.

NOD32’s options are well thought out and give you a great level of control over the program.

Eset Nod32 Antivirus Standout Features:

Small and unobtrusive updates
ThreatSense user network and proactive heuristic detection
SysInspector diagnostic tool
Silent "Gamer" mode

4. Norton AntiVirus 2010

Norton AntiVirus 2010 provides fast, responsive defense against all types of malicious software. The new Norton Protection System employs a multilayered set of security technologies that work in concert to detect, identify, and block attacks.

The software is easy to use and has wide-ranging security features to protect your PC from malicious programs. Some of this protection includes instant messaging scanning, script blocking and POP3 and SMTP email protection. But, this software does not provide protection from P2P or file sharing transfers.

Norton AntiVirus Standout Features:

Reputation based antivirus
System Insight lets you “flip the UI” over
SONAR 2
Download Insight

5. AVG Antivirus 2010

AVG Antivirus has been an up and coming virus scanner for many years. Its free version is one of the most downloaded files on the Internet in the Computer Security sector.

In fact, their totally free antivirus programs are exceptionally good and I personally recommend them for casual computer users.

The installation of AVG is very smooth and takes a very short amount of time.

AVG has a very nicely laid out user interface.

AVG has 3 new components called Web Shield, Link Scanner and AVG Toolbar.

These 3 components can be disabled if you choose but they do add more layers of protection.

AVG provides protection against Spyware, Rootkits and Email viruses, as well as several other options.

AVG Anti-Virus Standout Features:

Integrated browser Surf-Shield and LinkScanner
Identity theft recovery unit

6. McAfee Antivirus 2010

McAfee antivirus software provides you with accelerated performance to help keep you safe online.

With Active Protection technology your computer will receive the fastest updates and highest levels of detection against malicious threats.

McAfee also provides additional features like anti-virus, anti-spyware, anti-phishing and two-way firewall protection and includes a website safety adviser.

This software comes with a Script Stopper, to stop viruses spreading from one computer to another via email.

McAfee Anti-Virus Standout Features:

Integrated firewall
Laptop battery-saving mode
McAfee SiteAdvisor plugin for safe browsing

7. Panda Antivirus 2010

Panda Antivirus 2010 is a technically high quality product, both in signature-based and behavioral mode, with a great user interface and minimal impact on system resources. Free automatic updates. Powerful blockage from hijackers, keyloggers, intruders, and hackers. Panda’s Antivirus software comes with an virus and spyware protection. Panda allows you to block, delete, clean, and quarantine infected files and does not slow your pc down during virus scans which is helpful to those constantly on your PC.

8. F-Secure Antivirus 2010

F-Secure Antivirus is an easy to use and powerful antivirus program.

It protects your computer from all the common threats such as viruses, spyware, etc, with out slowing down your PC. It stops worms, spyware, and viruses from trashing your computer via the web, floppy disks, e-mail, and CD-ROMs.

Does thoroughly scan your PC for viruses, and has a built-in anti-spyware scanner. One or the other or both can be run to cut down on scan times. Moreover, the program scans outgoing and incoming email in real-time, does a great job of shielding your registry against probable hijackers and controls which programs startup automatically. F-Secure has a news section that can be used to sign up for virus alerts and updates of what is going on in the virus world.

F-Secure Anti-Virus Standout Features:

DeepGuard 2.0 “cloud” antivirus
Real-time protection
Windows 7 compatible

9. AVAST Antivirus 2010

Avast! antivirus gives full protection to your computer by offering full desktop security including a resident shield.

Installation time of this program was very quick at less than 39 seconds.

The new Avast antivirus has a futuristic user-interface that looks similar to a Car Stereo and performance is good.

Other than virus protection Avast! also protects against Spyware, Root kits, Script Blocking, and offers a Web Shield.

Daily automatic updates ensure continuous data protection against all types of malware and spyware. avast! antivirus is certified by both ICSA Labs and West Coast Labs Checkmark, and all avast! products are available to download for a free 60-day trial period.

Avast! Antivirus Standout Features:

P2P Shield
Innovative ‘radio’ interface and various skins
PUSH updates

10. Trend Micro Antivirus 2010

Trend Micro AntiVirus + AntiSpyware 2010 hasn't made any significant changes since last year's version.

The user interface is nice and easy to use, but the actual antivirus and antispyware functions still need a major overhaul.

Trend Micro, like their peers, protects you against computer viruses, worms, Trojan horse programs, and related security threats.

It can prevent virus infections via emails and has automatic virus pattern updates.

Trend Micro AntiVirus + AntiSpyware Standout Features:

IM protection
Inbound and outbound email scanning
Windows 7 compatible

There are more great antivirus softwares like: Webroot AntiVirus with SpySweeper, G DATA AntiVirus, Avira AntiVir, ZoneAlarm Antivirus.... and many others, but in my opinion these 10 are the best. If you don't agree with my list i would like to hear your suggestions.

Top 10 Internet Security Suite Softwares of 2010

2010-03-25T02:16:00.000-07:00

Best Internet Security Suite 2010 Reviews

Internet Security software is a package of programmed software that protects a computer against unauthorized access by hackers, virus, spyware, adware, trojans, malware, spam and other harmful/malicious computer codes and it is best to have internet security software that offers important components like antivirus, antispyware, antispam, antimalware, firewall, parental control, controlled access to programs, Wi-Fi Security, secure messaging, etc. all in one complete package. To summarize, internet security in general, is one complete package that provides full control over how your computer communicates with the internet. Internet security software acts as a shield between your computer and the internet. Only those programs can communicate with the internet that you as a user allow.
There are a huge number of security companies offering Internet Security programs these days and some are better than others.

Here are my 10 favourites for the year ahead:

1. Kaspersky Internet Security

Kaspersky Internet Security 2010 is my choice for the best IS this year. I tested this software a lot and i can say that Security Solution covers all the range that a usual computer user needs. Kaspersky Labs improve the old version old Security Suite 2009 and the result can be viewed in this year version. Kaspersky Internet Security installation can be installed at Windows XP, Vista and at new Windows 7. In cannot be installed at old versions of Windows OS. Installation process runs smoothly and fast. If you buy Kaspersky license you’ll see that software offers you in the same money three different licenses. You can install Kaspersky Internet Security at 3 different computers and you can protect all these computers with just one license. You can install KIS 2010 in custom mode if you want. In this way you have advanced control to all the components of this Security Suite. You may choice to configure parental control shield (or to stop this feature) or other antivirus shield configurations. The Kaspersky Internet Security 2009 application was designed to be a all-in-one security solution that offers a worry-free computing environment for you and your family. Kaspersky Internet Security 2009 has everything you need for a safe and secure Internet experience.

2. BitDefender Internet Security

The Bit Defender Internet Security 2010 offers improved tasks such as scans, backups, tune-ups and updates to ensure maximum security. BitDefender Internet Security 2010 keeps your Internet-connected family safe, without slowing down their PCs. It locks out viruses, hackers & spam, while providing parental control and complete firewall protection. With the new improved security features, you can confidently download, share and open files from friends, family and co-workers. Securely shop, bank, listen to music, watch videos privately and securely. Guard your conversations with top of the line encryption, connect securely to any network at home, office or away. Apart from generic features like antivirus, antispyware, firewall, identity protection, instant messaging protection, etc. a special feature of Bitdefender internet security 2010 is that it is the best internet security software for gamers who love gaming online. The security actively monitors your internet activity and protects you from hackers who try to scan your IP address. All of this is done without slowing down your PC. For gaming, speed is all that matters and Bitdefender does the job better than any other security program.

3. ZoneAlarm Internet Security

ZoneAlarm pioneered the personal computer firewall used by over 60 million people worldwide, and their parent company, Check Point Software, invented the enterprise firewall used by every member of the Fortune 100. They know how to keep the bad guys out. Lots of programs can remove viruses and spyware. But once you’ve been infected, it may be too late to protect yourself. ZoneAlarm Internet Security Suite prevents malicious software from infecting your computer in the first place with multiple layers of protection.

4. Norton Internet Security

This product is from Symantec, the world leader in online security. They are known for producing quality security software that has protected computers and families for years. Norton Internet Security is packed with an award-winning antispyware and antivirus features into an attractive, user-friendly interface. This is a great option for someone who wants maximum security with little hassle.

Standout Features:

24/7 Support
Parental controls included
Gaming and movie view modes supported
Improved privacy and identify theft features
Includes password protection tools

5. CA Internet Security

CA Internet Security Suite Plus gives your computer and PC across-the-board protection from Internet attacks, intrusions and threats that can endanger your computer privacy and weaken PC performance.

Computer Associates software can also help to make certain your important photos, music, files, and computer settings are safe, by allowing you to easily and quickly back your files up, transfer them and restore them to a new computer.

Key Features:

Protects up to 3 computers
Stops Viruses
Blocks Spyware
Personal Firewall Protection
Anti-Spam Features
Block Phishing Scams
Parental Controls and Internet Filter
Information, Data Backup

6. Trend Micro Internet Security

Trend Micro Internet Security Pro, formally known as PC-cillin, is a vast offering of useful security and PC upkeep utilities for the home user that will keep your system clean and running well. A system tuner that offers the ability to back up your system state, clean your registry, delete tracking cookies and remove browsing history is part of the Pro Services portion of Trend Micro’s program as well as several other offerings.

Standout Features:

Includes Parental Controls and free backup services
Provides Wi-Fi and wireless protection
Smartphone protection included

7. ESET Smart Security

ESET Smart Security was designed to be complete solution in the field of computer protection against infiltrations and attacks. Eset Smart Security offers more than just a sum of its parts · It is synergy that matters most. If all components are used simultaneously, the effectiveness of the whole program is multiplied. ESET Smart Security unifies all its functions to create a complex security solution.

ESET Smart Security is based on three basic pillars:

ESET NOD32 Antivirus + Antispyware
ESET Personal Firewall
ESET Anti Spam

Here are some key features of "ESET Smart Security":

Integrated firewall and antispam module
Improved graphical user interface
2 operating modes for common and advanced users
Improved and automatised cleaning
True incremental updates
Export / import settings

8. PC Tools Internet Security

All-in-one security suite featuring the award-winning anti-spyware (Spyware Doctor), anti-virus, firewall and spam protection. PC Tools Internet Security Suite offers powerful anti-spyware, anti-virus, firewall and spam protection in one application. Detects, removes and blocks all types of spyware, adware, viruses, Trojans, worms, keyloggers and other online threats. A complete package.

9. Panda Internet Security 2009

Panda Internet Security 2009 is a security suite that lets you use the Internet w ith complete peace of mind. It protects you from viruses, spyware, rootkits, hackers, online fraud, identity theft and all other Internet threats. The anti-spam engine will keep your inbox free from junk mail while the Parental Control feature ensures your children can use the Web safely. And thanks to the new Collective Intelligence technology, the solution is now much faster than previous versions.

10. AVG Internet Security

AVG Antivirus Free Edition is one of the most used antivirus software in the world. This software covers just a part of security needs so AVG Internet Security was projected to cover all holes of computers security. This version of AVG Internet Security (9.0) it’s an improvement of previous AVG IS 8.5 version. All in all AVG is a great security suite and they offer one of the most powerful and popular free versions of antivirus software available online.

Standout Features:

Provides identity theft protection
Includes LinkScanner which can scan web pages before they are clicked on
Provides a safe gaming mode

There are more great internet security suite softwares like: Webroot Internet Security Essentials, McAfee Internet Security, Norman Security Suite, BullGuard Internet Security Suite, Comodo Internet Security.... and many others, but in my opinion these 10 are the best. If you don't agree with my list i would like to hear your suggestions.

Also read:
Top 10 Antivirus Softwares of 2010

Do you have questions, comments, or suggestions? Feel free to post a comment!

Top 10 Linux Media Players - Play Any Audio or Video Format in Linux OS

2010-03-25T02:11:00.000-07:00

To provide an insight into the quality of software that is available, i have compiled a list of 10 high quality Linux video applications, covering a broad spectrum of uses.

One of the many perks of being a Linux user is that you have plenty of excellent software to choose from. This is especially true if you are in search for an essential application like a media player because there are definitely loads of options. However, this could sometimes be a disadvantage particularly to new-to-Linux users for the reason that they could get overwhelmed with the many choices they have.

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Top 20 Linux Hacking and Security Softwares

2010-03-25T02:03:00.000-07:00

I'm going to show you some of the best hacking tools for Linux. Linux is a hacker’s dream computer operating system. It supports tons of tools and utilities for cracking passwords, scanning network vulnerabilities, and detecting possible intrusions. I have here a collection of 20 of the best hacking and security software tools for Linux. I'll show you how to install theses tools in Ubuntu, Fedora, Debain, and Open Suse.

1. Nmap ("Network Mapper")

Nmap is a free and open source (license) utility for network exploration or security auditing. Many systems and network administrators also find it useful for tasks such as network inventory, managing service upgrade schedules, and monitoring host or service uptime. Nmap uses raw IP packets in novel ways to determine what hosts are available on the network, what services (application name and version) those hosts are offering, what operating systems (and OS versions) they are running, what type of packet filters/firewalls are in use, and dozens of other characteristics. It was designed to rapidly scan large networks, but works fine against single hosts. Nmap runs on all major computer operating systems, and both console and graphical versions are available.

2. John the Ripper

John the Ripper is a free password cracking software tool initially developed for the UNIX operating system. It is one of the most popular password testing/breaking programs as it combines a number of password crackers into one package, autodetects password hash types, and includes a customizable cracker. It can be run against various encrypted password formats including several crypt password hash types most commonly found on various Unix flavors (based on DES, MD5, or Blowfish), Kerberos AFS, and Windows NT/2000/XP/2003 LM hash. Additional modules have extended its ability to include MD4-based password hashes and passwords stored in LDAP, MySQL and others.

3. Nessus

Nessus is a comprehensive vulnerability scanning software. Its goal is to detect potential vulnerabilities on the tested systems such as:

-Vulnerabilities that allow a remote cracker to control or access sensitive data on a system.
-Misconfiguration (e.g. open mail relay, missing patches, etc).
-Default passwords, a few common passwords, and blank/absent passwords on some system accounts. Nessus can also call Hydra (an external tool) to launch a dictionary attack.
-Denials of service against the TCP/IP stack by using mangled packets

Nessus is the world's most popular vulnerability scanner, estimated to be used by over 75,000 organizations worldwide. It took first place in the 2000, 2003, and 2006security tools survey from SecTools.Org.

4. Aircrack - The fastest available WEP/WPA cracking tool

Aircrack is a suite of tools for 802.11a/b/g WEP and WPA cracking. It can recover a 40 through 512-bit WEP key once enough encrypted packets have been gathered. It can also attack WPA 1 or 2 networks using advanced cryptographic methods or by brute force. The suite includes airodump (an 802.11 packet capture program), aireplay (an 802.11 packet injection program), aircrack (static WEP and WPA-PSK cracking), and airdecap (decrypts WEP/WPA capture files).

5. Nikto

Nikto is an Open Source (GPL) web server scanner which performs comprehensive tests against web servers for multiple items, including over 3200 potentially dangerous files/CGIs, versions on over 625 servers, and version specific problems on over 230 servers. Scan items and plugins are frequently updated and can be automatically updated (if desired).

Nikto is a good CGI scanner, there are some other tools that go well with Nikto (focus on http fingerprinting or Google hacking/info gathering etc, another article for just those).

6. Snort - Everyone's favorite open source IDS

This lightweight network intrusion detection and prevention system excels at traffic analysis and packet logging on IP networks. Through protocol analysis, content searching, and various pre-processors, Snort detects thousands of worms, vulnerability exploit attempts, port scans, and other suspicious behavior. Snort uses a flexible rule-based language to describe traffic that it should collect or pass, and a modular detection engine. Also check out the free Basic Analysis and Security Engine (BASE), a web interface for analyzing Snort alerts.

7. WireShark

Wireshark (known as Ethereal until a trademark dispute in Summer 2006) is a fantastic open source network protocol analyzer for Unix and Windows. It allows you to examine data from a live network or from a capture file on disk. You can interactively browse the capture data, delving down into just the level of packet detail you need. Wireshark has several powerful features, including a rich display filter language and the ability to view the reconstructed stream of a TCP session. It also supports hundreds of protocols and media types. A tcpdump-like console version named tethereal is included. One word of caution is that Ethereal has suffered from dozens of remotely exploitable security holes, so stay up-to-date and be wary of running it on untrusted or hostile networks (such as security conferences).

8. Chkrootkit

Chkrootkit (Check Rootkit) is a common Unix-based program intended to help system administrators check their system for known rootkits. It is a shell script using common UNIX/Linux tools like the strings and grep commands to search core system programs for signatures and for comparing a traversal of the /proc filesystem with the output of the ps (process status) command to look for discrepancies.

It can be used from a "rescue disc" (typically a Live CD) or it can optionally use an alternative directory from which to run all of its own commands. These techniques allow chkrootkit to trust the commands upon which it depend a bit more.

There are inherent limitations to the reliability of any program that attempts to detect compromises (such as rootkits and computer viruses). Newer rootkits may specifically attempt to detect and compromise copies of the chkrootkit programs or take other measures to evade detection by them.

9. Kismet

Kismet is an console (ncurses) based 802.11 layer2 wireless network detector, sniffer, and intrusion detection system. It identifies networks by passively sniffing (as opposed to more active tools such as NetStumbler), and can even decloak hidden (non-beaconing) networks if they are in use. It can automatically detect network IP blocks by sniffing TCP, UDP, ARP, and DHCP packets, log traffic in Wireshark/TCPDump compatible format, and even plot detected networks and estimated ranges on downloaded maps. As you might expect, this tool is commonly used for wardriving. Oh, and also warwalking, warflying, and warskating.

10. Hping

Hping is a free packet generator and analyzer for the TCP/IP protocol. Hping is one of the de facto tools for security auditing and testing of firewalls and networks, and was used to exploit the idle scan scanning technique (also invented by the hping author), and now implemented in the NmapSecurity Scanner. The new version of hping, hping3, is scriptable using the Tcl language and implements an engine for string based, human readable description of TCP/IP packets, so that the programmer can write scripts related to low level TCP/IP packet manipulation and analysis in very short time.

Like most tools used in computer security, hping is useful to both system administrators and crackers (or script kiddies).

11. Metasploit Framework

Metasploit took the security world by storm when it was released in 2004. No other new tool even broke into the top 15 of this list, yet Metasploit comes in at #5, ahead of many well-loved tools that have been developed for more than a decade. It is an advanced open-source platform for developing, testing, and using exploit code. The extensible model through which payloads, encoders, no-op generators, and exploits can be integrated has made it possible to use the Metasploit Framework as an outlet for cutting-edge exploitation research. It ships with hundreds of exploits, as you can see in their online exploit building demo. This makes writing your own exploits easier, and it certainly beats scouring the darkest corners of the Internet for illicit shellcode of dubious quality. Similar professional exploitation tools, such as Core Impact and Canvas already existed for wealthy users on all sides of the ethical spectrum. Metasploit simply brought this capability to the masses.

12. Netcat

Netcat is a computer networking utility for reading from and writing to network connections on either TCP or UDP.

Netcat was voted the second most useful network security tool in a 2000 poll conducted by insecure.org on the nmap users mailing list. In 2003, it gained fourth place, a position it also held in the 2006 poll.

The original version of netcat is a UNIX program. Its author is known as *Hobbit*. He released version 1.1 in March of 1996.

Netcat is fully POSIX compatible and there exist several implementations, including a rewrite from scratch known as GNU netcat.

13. THC Hydra

When you need to brute force crack a remote authentication service, Hydra is often the tool of choice. It can perform rapid dictionary attacks against more then 30 protocols, including telnet, ftp, http, https, smb, several databases, and much more. Like THC Amap this release is from the fine folks at THC.

14. Tcpdump

Tcpdump is a common computer network debugging tool that runs under the command line. It allows the user to intercept and display TCP/IP and other packets being transmitted or received over a network to which the computer is attached.

In some Unix-like operating systems, a user must have superuser privileges to use tcpdump because the packet capturing mechanisms on those systems require elevated privileges. However, the -Z option may be used to drop privileges to a specific unprivileged user after capturing has been set up. In other Unix-like operating systems, the packet capturing mechanism can be configured to allow non-privileged users to use it; if that is done, superuser privileges are not required.

The user may optionally apply a BPF-based filter to limit the number of packets seen by tcpdump; this renders the output more usable on networks with a high volume of traffic.

15. Ettercap

In case you still thought switched LANs provide much extra security
Ettercap is a terminal-based network sniffer/interceptor/logger for ethernet LANs. It supports active and passive dissection of many protocols (even ciphered ones, like ssh and https). Data injection in an established connection and filtering on the fly is also possible, keeping the connection synchronized. Many sniffing modes were implemented to give you a powerful and complete sniffing suite. Plugins are supported. It has the ability to check whether you are in a switched LAN or not, and to use OS fingerprints (active or passive) to let you know the geometry of the LAN.

16. OpenSSH

OpenSSH is a Free and Open Source version of the SSH connectivity tools providing encrypted communication sessions over a computer network. It encrypts all traffic (including passwords) to effectively eliminate eavesdropping, connection hijacking, and other attacks. Additionally, OpenSSH provides secure tunneling capabilities and several authentication methods, and supports all SSH protocol versions.

17. Tripwire

Tripwire is a security and data integrity tool that is useful for monitoring and alerting on specific file change(s) on a range of systems. Used with system files on a regular basis, Tripwire can notify system administrators of corrupted or tampered files, so damage control measures can be taken in a timely manner.

18. Dsniff

Dsniff is suite of powerful network auditing and penetration-testing tools and utilities that includes code to parse many different application protocols and extract interesting information. The information that can be obtained from this sniff application are: usernames and passwords, web pages being visited, contents of email, etc.

19. RainbowCrack

RainbowCrack is a password hash cracker that makes use of a large-scale time-memory trade-off. It differs from "conventional" brute force crackers in that it uses large pre-computed tables called rainbow tables to reduce the length of time needed to crack a password drastically.

20. Rkhunter

Rkhunter scans for rootkits, backdoors and possible local exploits. It does this by comparing SHA-1 hashes of important files with known good ones in online database, searching for default directories (of rootkits), wrong permissions, hidden files, suspicious strings in kernel modules, and special testsfor Linux and FreeBSD.

If you know other graet hacking/security tool for Linux i would like to tell us about it.

Learn More About Linux Security

2010-03-25T01:57:00.000-07:00

General overview of security issues that face the administrator of Linux systems.

Although linux-based operating systems are considerably safer when compared to Windows and Mac OSX, there are still steps that you can take to ensure that your linux box stays safe and protected. In this post I will illustrate a few techniques you can use to keep your machine locked down tight.

1. Firewalls are your guardian angels.

First of all, keep a software firewall active on your system, and restrict access to ports that allow remote access into your system, a good idea is to allow only a few select hosts access to ports used by services such as ssh (port 22) or telnet (port 23). Keeping a firewall in place ensures that you alone dictate who gets to access remote services on your computer and who doesn’t. To set up a firewall in linux, you can use the iptables program which comes standard with most linux distributions. However, iptables is quite difficult and complicated to set up correctly, and you will need to spend some time fiddling with the command line, but it is very flexible and powerful once configured correctly.

If messing about with iptables dosen’t appeal to you, there are frontends to iptables that you can use to set up effective firewalls. One such frontend is ufw (uncomplicated firewall) this program comes standard on ubuntu and is quite simple to set up, to use it you first have to enable it by typing in ’sudo enable ufw’ in the terminal, once the ufw service is active, adding rules is as simple as ’sudo allow 22/tcp’ > this statement allows all tcp traffic on port 22, swap allow for deny and you have the ssh service blocked, Its that simple, much easier than mucking about with iptables.

Of course, there are many people who do not like the idea of using command-line programs and like all their apps to be graphical. If you prefer a GUI configured firewall, then firestarter is the choice for you. Firestarter is a breeze to use, and has good documentation available on the firestarter website.

2. Passwords are for your protection, choose them well

Choose good user passwords, especially for root. One way to choose a secure password is to take a sentence, reduce it to an acronym and then replace some letters of the acronym with symbols and add some numbers to it. this mixing of alphabets, numbers and symbols, along with its long length will be a strong password.

Never use actual words that have meaning as passwords. These types of passwords are weak and can be cracked using dictionary attacks. Also along those lines: Never use words that hold personal significance with you.. i.e don’t use passwords that people who know you will be inclined to think that you would use, like a favorite pet’s name.. etc.

And for god’s sake, don’t use the word ‘password’ as a password…. ( don’t laugh… thats one of the most common passwords .. )

3. Use antivirus

Yeaps you read right.. antivirus. Antivirus on linux you say? Yes, linux has antivirus suites as well , but this is more for cleaning off your thumbdrives that you may have used in an infected windows machine than for killing linux viruses, as the system of user permissions for executing files makes linux a very inhospitable place for computer viruses to live. clamAV is a good antivirus choice, with a GUI version available for most major distros.

4. Be careful what scripts you get off the net

Getting bash scripts off the net is convenient, but be careful what scripts you run on your system, and make sure you check them out first. If you suspect that a script you got has some nasty intentions behind it, but you do not have the expertise in bash scripting to be sure, post the script in text form on linux support forums and the community will help you out. Unfortunatly, there are idiots out there who write destructive shell scripts and release them into the wilds of the internet, in this case intuition is your best defence.

5. Encrypt sensitive data that you may have.

The concept behind encryption is relatively simple, make the data to be encrypted unreadable to anybody besides authorised users.
My favourite program for encrypting data on linux AND windows would have to be truecrypt. Truecrypt works by creating a virtual volume which you can then set a passphrase or security key to. When you mount the virtual volume, you can then add files to it, which will be totally encrypted and unviewable once unmounted. The only way to mount the drive is to supply the passphrase or key.

6. Keep your BIOS set to boot from your harddrive and then add a password to your bios.

This is to keep people from booting off from live CDs and cracking your password from them. Although it is relatively easy to reset the BIOS password, this should be at least a minor detterance to those who may try this cracking method.

Well, there you go.. hopefully you wil use these tips and make your system a safer box to work on.

Learn How to Hack Any Email Password

2010-03-25T01:46:00.000-07:00

How to hack someones MSN, Facebook, MySpace, Hotmail, Yahoo, AOL, Gmail or any e-mail account password

Everyday I get emails wherein my readers ask me How to Hack an Email? You as the reader are most likely reading this because you want to hack into someone’s email. So in this post I have decided to uncover the real and working way to hack any email. Actually there are many ways to hack someones email password like Phishing, Keylogging or using Hacking softwares used to hack email password. In this post i'm going to show you how to hack someones email account password using a keylogger.

Here is a step by step guide to hack someones email password using a keylogger:
1. First of all download Star Tools software from here.

2. Run Star Tools.exe file. Hit on Tools and select Keylogger.

3. Now, you get Keylogger builder like this:

4. Simply enter your Gmail username and password where you want to receive your victim's password. You can set Timing Options as you like and hit on "Build Keylogger" to get Server.exe file created in current directory.

5. This server.exe file is 3/23 UD and detected by Avira antivirus. So, to avoid it from being detected by Antivirus, Go to Tools -> File Pumper to see:

6. Now, select the server.exe file you have just created in step 4. Set the number of bytes you want to add using File Pumper (you can set anything like approx 1 MB or even more) and hit on "Pump File". File Pumper will ask you the name and path where you want to save pumped file created by File Pumper. Select the path and hit on Save. Say this file is named ser.exe.

7. Now, bind this ser.exe created in Step 6 with any other .exe software setup or application which victim eagerly wants. You can use Binder software for this. Ask the victim to run binded file on his computer. As soon as he runs our sent file, the keylogger get installed on his computer and all his typed passwords and keystrokes are sent to your email address which you have entered in step 4.

Virus Scan Result of Keylogger Server

Thus, you have his msn email password and can easily hack his account.

Hope this will help you to hack someones email password. If you have any problem in using this Star Tools hacking software, please mention it in comments.

Virus Scan Result of Star Tools

Learn How to Hack Facebook Password

2010-03-25T01:41:00.000-07:00

Hacking Facebook Account Password: Facebook Phishing for Hacking Facebook

Facebook has evolved into one of the hottest social networking website in the world. Here is a simple tutorial that you can use to hack your friend's facebook password. Here i'm writting on hacking Facebbok password using Facebook Phisher.

In the field of computer security, phishing is the criminally fraudulent process of attempting to acquire sensitive information such as usernames, passwords and credit card details by masquerading as a trustworthy entity in an electronic communication. Communications purporting to be from popular social web sites, auction sites, online payment processors or IT administrators are commonly used to lure the unsuspecting public.[Read more about phishing on Wikipedia]

Facebook Phisher

Please Note: Phishing is legally offensive. I am not responsible for any action done by you.

Hacking Facebook password:

Phishing is the most commonly used method to hack Facebook. The most widely used technique in phishing is the use of Fake Login Pages, also known as spoofed pages. These fake login pages resemble the original login pages of sites likeYahoo , Gmail, MySpace etc. The victim is fooled to believe the fake facebook page to be the real one and enter his/her password. But once the user attempts to login through these pages, his/her facebook login details are stolen away. I recommend the use of Phishing to hack facebook account since it is the easiest one.

1. First of all download Facebook Phisher

2. The downloaded file contains:

Index.html
write.php

3. Upload both files to any of these free webhost sites:

4. Now, send this phisher link (index.html link) to your victim and make him login to his Facebook account using your sent Phisher.

5. Once he logs in to his Facebook account using Phisher, all his typed Facebook id and password is stored in "passes.txt". This file is created in your webhost control panel as shown.

If you dont get passes.txt, try refreshing your page.Once you get passes.txt, you get Facebook password and can easily use it for hacking Facebook account.

6. Now, open passes.txt to get hacked Facebook id and password as shown.

Hope this tutorial was useful for you.

Top 5 Free Windows Registry Cleaner Software

2010-03-25T01:37:00.000-07:00

To Clean Windows registry we need software because when ever uninstall a software or any applications from computer some files of that software remains inside our Windows registry. and that causes to fill up the space in the registry module that is unnecessary of uninstalled files.

So I collected top Free Windows Registry Cleaner Software that helps to maintain the health of our windows registry to work hassle free and without problem. Check out the below list to choose the best cleaner fits to your requirements.

1. CCleaner:
* Well know and most popular registry cleaners in the computer world. This cleaner includes the cleaning of tremporary files along with removing the unwanted registry keys from registry.
2. EasyCleaner:
* Oldest one and recommended by the world's most popular geeks. Free registry cleaner is perfect on its cleaning work.
3. Comodo Registry Cleaner :
* Comodo Registry Cleaner is a freeware registry cleaner program. This cleaner gives the option of portable software means no need to install it on you system.
4. Wise Cleaner:
* Wise Cleaner is also taken as a one of the amazing and cool registry cleaner tool.
5. Glary Registry Repair:
* Registry Repair is one of the safest Registry cleaning tools available in the market today. Its scanning engine is fast,thorough and safe.

Hope all of you like this list of Free Windows Registry Cleaner Software.

Your Meta Descriptions Now Affect Your Google Rankings Again

2010-01-09T03:14:00.000-08:00

Meta descriptions (the text snippets of the webpage you see in search results) used to be an important ranking factor. Until not too long ago both Google and Yahoo! officially announced they no longer used Meta-descriptions in their search algorithms. But recent developments in Google's search algo bring Meta description back to life as a ranking factor.

No, Google did not back out of their decision to discount Meta descriptions as a ranking factor. However your site's search snippet can now significantly affect your rankings. Here's the deal.

Google and personalized search

Early this month Google announced that they would be tailoring everyone's search results based on their search history even when users are not signed into Google. Personalized results are nothing new on Google. The search giant has been customizing peoples SERPs (search engine results pages) for quite a while already, but until now it only happened when you searched while signed into your Google account. Today, signed in or not everyone gets personal results.

Here's how it works

Whether you're signed in or not, all the searches you run on Google are stored in your browser cookies. This data is referred to as your 'Web History' and Google uses it to customize your search results. If you're not signed in, your Web History is stored for 180 days, then old data is replaced with new searches. If you're signed in, there's no time limit and you can manage you Web History. Either way the searches you run and sites you visit will affect your future search experience.

The sites you visit more often will be pushed higher in the search results on related queries. For example if you search for 'cat food' and visit www.petfood.com, next time when you search for 'dog food' you may see www.petfood.com in top 10 results even if it doesn't rank there in the general impersonalized search. You can tell that your search results have been personalized by the 'View customization' link in the upper right hand corner.

The personalized search results can differ significantly from the general SERPs. I ran a couple of tests searching for related keywords and clicking the same site each time. I also checked this site's rankings with a rank checker to get a list of impersonalized rankings. In one of the tests a few click-throughs to a site pushed it 26 positions up on a highly competitive keyword. That is from the 31 position on page 4 straight to the 5th spot on the first page in personalized search results (I was signed out).

How Meta descriptions can affect your Google rankings

Although Meta descriptions are no longer part of the ranking algorithm they can affect your site's positions in the personalized search results. Your Meta description is a crucial factor that determines the CTR (click-through-rate) of your site in search results. The more compelling your description is, the more searchers will click it. When they click through to your site from search results this is recorded in their Web History. Next time they search for a product or service related to your site, it may appear high up in their personalized search results.

Since everyone now gets personalized results, the scope of the effect your Meta descriptions have on your rankings can get really huge. That's another reason why you should invest some time into testing and optimizing your Meta descriptions.

Meta description optimization

There's plenty of advice out there on writing compelling titles and descriptions, so I won't go there. Just keep in mind one thing. Google doesn't always show the Meta description you provide. Sometimes it just compiles a random text snippet from your page that contains the keywords used in the query. But you can easily locate the keywords where your own Meta description shows up by searching for them on Google.

In conclusion

There's been a lot of criticism coming down on Google for introducing personal search to everyone. Some people are worried about privacy issues. Others don't like it because the whole concept will help the rich get richer and keep the small guy out of the game. And some SEOs are just whining that this makes SEO success harder to measure.

Although I don't think it is the best idea Google had either, I prefer to embrace it and run with it. And I suggest that you take this news as a call to action. A strong motivation to actually do something that's going to help your SEO, your sales and your business. And that is to take a look at your Meta descriptions. Go and see how your website appears in the search results and find ways to improve it. With personalized search or without it, having a catchy compelling text in your search results snippet will get you more clicks, more traffic and more customers.

Are You A Spam Zombie?

2009-12-27T20:04:00.000-08:00

Over the past few years you've all become familiar with the terms spam, spam filter, whitelists, blacklists and a whole myriad of other terminology associated with the problem of spam. You now have to add a new and extremely worrying phrase to that list - spam zombie.

With the net closing in around them spammers are looking for new and more inventive ways to send out their junk email. Spam filters and challenge response systems are becoming progressively more intelligent and blocking more spam each day. What was a spammer to do? The spammers took the next step - infiltrating your PC and using it as a spamming tool.

When most of you think of the word zombie you're reminded of old B movies with groaning zombies chasing the terrified actress through a castle, swamp or whatever low cost setting the movie revolved around. Spam zombies are, however, far more real and far more dangerous.

A spam zombie is when your computer is taken over by a type of virus called a Trojan. Once this Trojan virus is on your computer it sets up an SMTP (Simple Mail Transfer Protocol) application which allows it to begin sending email directly from your PC to tens of thousands of victims. This all happens invisibly in the background and can be difficult to detect for even the experienced computer user.

How do these Trojans get onto your computer? As in most cases they come from porn, warez or similar sites. One of the first spam zombie trojans to appear became available via a link on sites promising viewers free access to a porno webcam. One click later and the Trojan is installed on your computer ready to send out spam. Phatbot and Proxy-Guzu are two of the more common Trojans used for the purpose of turning your computer into a spam zombie.

How can you check if your computer has become a spam zombie? Make absolutely certain that both your anti-virus and firewall software have current detection signatures and have been completely patched and updated. Working online without taking these necessary security precautions is simply asking for trouble.

Internet Service Providers are under huge pressure to quarantine the IP address of any computer which has been turned into a spam zombie. This is done on the basis that the ISP risks their entire IP range being blacklisted or banned by some spam filtering services or companies.

The very least you owe yourself is to run a full virus and spyware scan on your computer today. You might be unpleasantly surprised at what you'll find lurking there.

What is a Keylogger?

2009-12-27T20:01:00.000-08:00

A keylogger builds a log of everything typed into a keyboard to be reviewed by a third party. Keyloggers can be used for legitimate purposes to troubleshoot networks, analyze employee productivity, or to assist law enforcement, for example; or they can be used for illegitimate purposes to surreptitiously spy on people for personal gain. A keylogger can be a hardware device or a software program.

The most common hardware keylogger plugs into the computer’s keyboard port, connecting to the keyboard cable. It can look like an extension tail or in other cases a small cylindrical device. This makes it easy to spot, if looked for, but it won’t be detectable by software. Models are priced around the number of keystrokes they can hold, with higher capacities being more expensive. One entry model costs $49 US Dollars (USD) with a capacity of 128,000 keystrokes.

Once installed, the log is retrievable through opening a word processor and entering a password to reveal a hidden keylogger menu. Like all hardware keyloggers, it has the limitation of requiring physical access to the system, but might be used by network administrators or by parents to monitor the family computer.

Another type of hardware keylogger is preinstalled inside the keyboard itself on the circuit board. This device is undetectable barring disassembly of the keyboard, but does require replacing the existing keyboard. A similar keylogging product can be soldered on to the circuit board of any keyboard, but this requires some skill.

Software keyloggers are often installed through malware like Trojans, viruses, spyware or rootkits. These keyloggers can collect keystrokes through a number of methods, depending on design. Some keyloggers work at the kernel level; others use a hook to hijack system processes that manipulate the keylogger; and still others use entirely different means. A keylogger that is installed remotely through malicious means secretly sends its logs to the person who planted the device via an Internet connection.

The danger of a malicious keylogger is that it traps information before it can be encrypted. For example, banking websites provide a secure connection between your computer and the website so that all data is encrypted in transit. However, as you type a username and password, the keylogger is recording those keystrokes, bypassing any and all security measures. Keyloggers not only have the ability to trap usernames and passwords, but credit card numbers, bank account numbers, private passphrases for encrypted files, financial records, email and so on.

Keyloggers are widely available online but are also easy to write, making them a real threat to personal security and an easy tool for the growing problem of identity theft. At this time there is no sure-fire way to protect yourself against all forms of keyloggers, but there are steps you can take to minimize risk.

Install top-notch anti-virus and anti-spyware on your system, preferably programs that help to prevent keyloggers and watch for keylogging activities. This doesn’t guarantee you won’t get a keylogger, but it helps by recognizing and removing known keylogger signatures.

Regularly check the processes running on your system looking for anything that doesn’t belong. In Windows® systems you can use Task Manager to view running processes. Third party applications are also available that will not only show you which processes are running, but will provide a direct link to information online regarding the nature of the process. If you are unfamiliar with running processes, this is a good place to start to familiarize yourself with what you should expect to see in your system, and what you shouldn’t.

A firewall commonly does not provide keylogger protection but can alert you if a program is trying to send information out to the Internet. By stopping this action you can prevent a thief from retrieving a log, and be alerted to the possible presence of a keylogger.

Other methods to ‘confuse’ a keylogger include typing extra letters or numbers when entering secure information, then highlighting the characters that don’t belong and entering a legitimate character to replace them. You can also use a browser with a form-filler function that will keep usernames and passwords securely on your system, and fill them in automatically when you enter a site, without forcing you to use the mouse or keyboard. Additionally, there are programs that scan for keyloggers, but they can detect legitimate processes as well, making it difficult for the average person to make real use of these tools.

MAKE MONEY WITH TWITTER

2009-12-27T19:40:00.000-08:00

You can start make money at twitter so easy and free, if you have hundreds or thousands follower, This is very easy to start make money with your twitter account.

1. Post update to promote affiliate link link above, clickbank link etc.
2. Post update from your own blog/website, High recommend if you have Adsense web/blog.

3. Join revtwt to make money from your twitter account for every click and lead. if you have at least 50 follower & at least 5 updates on twitter. You can start make money like below:

- Get paid up $0.10 per click

- Get paid up $15 per lead (complete offers)

- Get paid up $0.10 per click for using short url

You can start join for free : CLICK HERE

· - Join free than activate your membership : CLICK HERE

· - Login, Click at “Twitter Profiles” than add your twitter username & pasword

· - Click at “Account” to add your PayPal email

Start Earn Money By Post PPC ads

· - Click at “Post Ads“, select and click ads title than click “Post Ad” button. You can set auto post ads like 2 ads per day.

· - This ad will automatically post to your twitter account and you can earn money per clickfrom every visitor to your twitter profile. example: if you have 1000 follower than post ad with CPC $0.05/click and get 100 click. You will earn $5 income so easy.

· - You can post max 5 ads per day.

· - Use “Short Url” to promote your affiliate link and earn more money per click

· - Following more twitter member, get more follower than post ads everyday. This is very easy method to earn money for free.

· - You can withdraw earning with minimum $20 via PayPal.

Easy method to promote your affiliate links is using TWITTER, you can start promote using Twitter and get thousands visitor or follower for free.

2009-12-27T19:36:00.000-08:00

Easy method to promote your affiliate links is using TWITTER, you can start promote using Twitter and get thousands visitor / follower for free.
- Follow free guide below to start:

Just join twitter for free here : http://twitter.com/bankinsurance

· - Just Join free and create username and pasword (High recommend to use your own domain name as Twitter “Name” if you have your own blog/website )

· - Login to twitter member area, Click at “Settings” than enter your website or blog link as your URL, Enter you description, location etc. look my twitter account as sample: http://twitter.com/bankinsurance

· - Easy tips to start get follower is “Follow me” with username “bankinsurance”

· - Click at my username “bankinsurance” and look my “following” or “Follower” and you will find so much twitter member.

· - Click “Follow” button for every member, one by one. You can follow 10-50 twitter daily, Don’t follow to much member to prevent violation and get Banned . Do it everyday and you can follow member so easy and get follower. They are will check your profile and lookingyour profile or your website. Its mean you can get free traffic and potential income from twitter.

· - Use Our Auto follow software to follow 10 targeted twitter member with 1 click. Access free twitter follower software here :http://thetoppartner.com

· - If you following other twitter members, They are will following you back. This is very easy to get follower just by following other members. You can get 10, 100 or more follower by following others.

· - Post update about your website everyday. You can post short review about your program with “Affiliate link“, promote your own website/blog etc. This is easy method to get traffic from twitter to your website/blog or affiliate link.

Most Influential Twitter Users Named

2009-12-27T19:33:00.000-08:00

By Doug Caverly

It's an odd little ecosystem in which a Scottish fellow most people haven't heard of ranks above the President of the United States, celebrities worth gazillions of dollars, and, well, everybody. But that's the state of things on Twitter, according to a new report from INQ that named Mashable's CEO, Pete Cashmore, the "top international influencer."

INQ looked at five different factors to determine its rankings, including number of followers, number of tweets, times referenced, and some data related to retweets. Cashmore - whom we sincerely congratulate - came out on top worldwide. (For what it's worth, he's got a little more than 1.8 million followers at the moment.)

Next was P. Diddy (2.3 million followers), followed by Stephen Fry (1.1 million). Oprah snagged fourth place, while Kim Kardashian ranked fifth. From there, Ellen DeGeneres, Ryan Seacrest, Barack Obama, Ashton Kutcher, and Britney Spears rounded out the top ten.

Biz Stone, Twitter's cofounder, wound up in 14th place, if you're curious.

It's hard to conclude too much from this list, considering that it's a very mixed bag. But it looks like Twitter remains a site most people go to for entertainment, rather than hard news or anything else.

Google Page Rank - important or just another number?

2009-12-27T19:25:00.001-08:00

In my last newsletter I wrote about how your websites Alexa rating is not actually that important to the success of your online business. In this issue, I want to look at another popular statistic - Google Page Rank - and ask a similar question - is it that important?

First a quick overview as to what the Google Page Rank actually is...

Google Page Rank (or PR as it is often referred to as) is simply an indication of the number of websites that link to a specific website. It also attempts to indicate the quality of those links. PR ranges from 0 to 10 (with 10 being the 'best' PR and 0 being the 'worst'). The vast majority of small business websites will usually find they have a PR of between 0 and 5.

To calculate a particular sites PR, Google uses a fairly complicated algorithm based on the number of web links that it is aware of that link to the site in question. This algorithm will also take into account the PR of the page that is providing the link, thus a link from a web page that has a PR of 7 will be considered more valuable than a link from a page with a PR of 4.

Because of the way in which links from higher PR-ranked sites are considered more important, many people are choosing to buy links from websites with high PR's just so that they can increase their own PR. I have seen sites selling a simple text link on their home page for over $700 a month purely based on the fact that they have a PR of 7 or above. This may seem like a lot of money but when you consider that the website owners that are buying these links often have websites that are in no way relevant to the content of the site linking to them, it is absolutely ridiculous.

Take this example, let's say you have a website about health and fitness and you buy a link for $500 a month from a random website because it has a PR of 7. This random website has no relevance to your health and fitness site so what is going to happen? Well, your own PR may increase as a result of the link. You may get a bit of extra traffic but probably not much since people don't click on links that that they are not interested in. You will definitely be $500 poorer at the end of the month!

Instead, why not spend the $500 on pay-per-click advertising and benefit from some quality, targeted traffic?

Of course, there is a bit more to it than that and the reason that most people want to increase their PR is because Google takes this statistic into account when determining where a website will be displayed in their search results. Many people assume that a high PR automatically equals a high search engine placement for their chosen keywords. Not so....

PR is just one of over 100 different factors that Google takes into account when deciding where your website will feature (and these factors and the main algorithm change on a very regular basis). It is perfectly possible for a website with a PR of 5 to get a higher ranking than a PR 7 site if it has better content or is more relevant for the search term in question.

Remember that relevance is all important with Google and a link from a website that is not relevant to your own site will be considered far less important than a relevant one (which makes buying links from random sites purely because they have a high PR even more crazy).

I have read several rumours lately that Google haven't updated PR's for a couple of months and they are considering phasing PR out or modifying it in some way. This is pure speculation but it wouldn't surprise me in the least. PR is easily manipulated (for example by purchasing links as described above) and Google doesn't like to have their calculations or search results manipulated. It stands to reason that they will be looking at ways of preventing this.

So, in summary, is Google Page Rank important to your business?

Well, it is a good indicator of how many other sites link to yours and how important Google considers your site to be BUT I personally don't place too much importance on this statistic and I certainly won't be paying out for a link from a website just because it has a high PR.

As I said above, Google changes it's rules on a regular basis and I see little point in chasing a particular PR on the basis that it might get you higher search engine rankings. If Google do decide to do away with PR, all your work will have been for nothing.

Instead, concentrate on building quality, relevant links from sites that are connected in some way to your own site content. This will ensure that any traffic you receive via these links will at least have an interest in your site. Building links on this basis will automatically increase your PR over time (without the need to pay out for overpriced, irrelevant links). If you do things this way and Google does scrap the PR indicator, it shouldn't affect you in any way and the links you have in place will continue to benefit you.

Remember, in the same way that a low Alexa rating doesn't guarantee traffic or sales, neither does a high PR. Sure a high PR is a 'nice to have' but lots of traffic and high sales is even nicer :-)

Do a Search Engine Optimization Audit on Your Blog

2009-12-27T19:16:00.000-08:00

One of the biggest sources of traffic on the web is Google (and it’s fellow search engines). As a result it makes sense that a blogger interested in building traffic to their blog would take some time to learn how Search Engines Rank sites.

I’ve written everything I know on SEO previously in a post called Search Engine Optimization for Blogs so I wont rehash it all in this post and I’d highly recommend you head to that post for a refresher on the topic (or an introduction to it if you’ve not learned much about SEO before).

Invest in Your Knowledge of SEO

If you have a budget for your education and want to learn from a real expert in SEO I highly recommend checking out Aaron Wall’s SEO Book (aff). It costs $79 and is the best resource I’ve found on the topic with 328 pages of instruction (with free updates – and Aaron does update it) plus a nifty little bonus called 33 Days to Online Profits. It has a 100% Money Back Guarantee if you find that it’s not for you.

A few tips for your SEO Audit

It can be easy to get overwhelmed by Search Engine Optimization so if you’re new to it or need a place to start here are a few basics that you might want to work on today:

* Make the Titles of Your Posts the Title Tags of Your Post Pages (Aaron shares how to optimize your title tags for SEO in this post. Also check out Title Tags and SEO).
* Use Good Anchor Text for internal links – hunt back through your old posts for poor anchor text to replace.
* Pick a few posts to do some analysis of your use of Keywords as outlined in the SEO for Blogs post. You might like to rewrite some older posts to make the most of this knowledge.
* Use good keywords in images in your posts – if you are optimizing particular posts that contain images renaming them and using good Alt Tags with the keywords you’re chasing can give you a boost.
* Think about head tags in your posts – here’s a very quick tutorial on head tags.
* Pick some key posts that you want to grow the SEO ranking for. Link to them from your sidebar/menus.

A Last word on Balance in Search Engine Optimization

Search Engine Optimization can become something of an obsession (as can many aspects of blogging if you concentrate on them to the exclusion of other factors). For a little balance on the topic you might find my Confessions of a Linkaholic and Should You Write for Humans or Computers? helpful.

How to Draw StumbleUpon Users Into Your Blog

2009-12-27T19:07:00.000-08:00

The potential for StumbleUpon to send traffic is often under-estimated, particularly by new bloggers. Unlike digg and del.icio.us, an item doesn’t need to become popular before you see immediate results. One or two votes can bring a hundred or more readers — more than a new blog might see in a day.

StumbleUpon users are, however, notoriously fickle. The service describes itself as allowing you to ‘channel-surf the internet’ and I think it’s a very appropriate description. Users flick through websites like you might flick through channels, often making a decision on whether to stay or leave your site before it has even had time to finish loading.

In this post, I want to suggest some quick tips you can use to draw StumbleUpon users into your site before they stumble away.

Channel-surfing the internet

We’ve all flicked through TV channels back and forth, waiting for something to hold our attention. The decision to stay on a channel or surf elsewhere is usually made in a second or two, and the principle is the same for StumbleUpon users.

With so many other potentially great sites available to them at the click of a mouse, you need to make it immediately clear why your site is worth their time. Here are some tips to help you do just that.

1. Make your blog’s core mission-statement unmissable

A core mission-statement as I define it is a one or two sentence description encapsulating what your blog has to offer. A good core mission-statement describes the kind of content you provide and broadly what your blog is about. It should communicate a lot of information in only a few words.

If a stumbler can see straight away your blog is about something they’re interested in then they’re likely to stick around.

2. Insert powerful visual cues

When channel-surfing the decision to stick with a channel or move on is often largely determined by visual cues. Even with the sound off you can tell a drama from a news program, a travel show from a cartoon, because visual elements provide clues as to what kind of show you’re watching.

The same principle applies to blogs. If your blog’s header contains an image of a pile of cash, we can reasonably assume the blog is about money (or making it). That’s a lot of information communicated instantly by a single image.

3. Push your content above the fold

StumbleUpon users often judge a site by what is offered in the above the fold area — the area of your site which appears on screen before any scrolling occurs.

I think this blog is an example of how to do that well. Not only do headlines and the first few paragraphs of a post appear above the fold, but other content of interest is showcased in the header area. StumbleUpon users immediately see a site packed with value.

You can use the top part of your blog’s sidebar, its header area and the post area to showcase your content. In doing so, you’ll straight away show StumbleUpon visitors why they should stick around.

4. Be unique, be pretty

While it’s difficult to judge the quality of a blog’s content in just a few seconds, people are much more hasty with aesthetic judgments. A gorgeous or interesting blog design encourages a stumbler to stick around and see whether the content is great too.

Of course, a great design is a lot of work (or quite a bit of money). The next-best thing is a unique logo or header image, an interesting color scheme, and so on. There are a number of small changes you can make to create a blog that looks unique and sets you apart from the crowd.

What we’ve done

The emphasis in all the above tips is on instantly showing visitors who’ve stumbled across your blog what it has to offer. This should help you make the most of StumbleUpon traffic and turn more stumblers into readers.

11 Ways to Find New RSS Subscribers for Your Blog

2009-12-27T19:02:00.000-08:00

How do I get People to Subscribe to my RSS feed?

It’s a good question and one that I have a few ideas on (but which it’d be great to get some discussion going on in comments). Of course the first question I ask people saying they want more subscribers is ‘do you have content worth subscribing to?’ Without something worthwhile on your blog the rest of this post will be meaningless. But once you are pumping out quality content here are a few tips on how to get more subscribers for it.

1. Promote Your Feed Prominently

One mistake that some blogs make is have their RSS feed link appearing too far down in the footer of the design.

As with anything you want to promote (ads, key posts, contact form, about posts etc) the higher on the page you have it the more attention it will have.

Check out how Copyblogger does it for a great example. He has he two buttons pictured to the left right at the top of his sidebar. As a result his feed counter has steadily grown over the past year.

2. Promote Your Feed with an Image

Similarly promoting your feed with something a little more eye catching than a text link tends to get it more noticed.

The little testing that I’ve done shows that the feedburner counter/button can work well, as can the orange RSS button that many bloggers use. You have just a few seconds when a reader first hits your blog to convince them to come back again – RSS is an ideal way to get them coming back – so you’ll want to do everything you can to get their eyes on a way of subscribing.

There are many buttons that can be used (check out a few at this button maker). While there’s nothing wrong with using more than one (see below) I’d recommend not going too crazy with all the buttons out there as one well placed image link can be just as effective (if not more so) than multiple buttons cluttering your sidebar.

3. Use Multiple Methods to Promote Your Feed

There is no rule on how many times you can link to your feed on a page. If converting readers to RSS readers is a priority for you consider a variety of subscription points.

For example here at ProBlogger I have my Feedburner counter (which has a little animation and draws the eye), I have a bloglines subscriber button (as I know bloglines readers make up the majority of those following this blog) and I also have a subscribe page link which I know many readers use. Different readers will be attracted to different subscription methods – so experiment a little (without overwhelming them).

Another good is TechCrunch (with 178,000 subscribers as of today) who have the three options pictured (above).

4. Educate Your Readers

It is difficult to have a high RSS subscriber count if the majority of your readers don’t understand what RSS is or how to use it.

If your blog is on a non techie topic with a readership who doesn’t have much awareness of RSS write a post that explains what RSS is and how it can help them follow your site. Then add a link to that post under your RSS button to help educate them.

5. Offer RSS to Email Services

Some of your readers won’t get (or will refuse to use) RSS no matter how much you educate them. Don’t ignore them – but offer them a service that will convert your RSS feed into email for them. In this way you effectively still have RSS readers and they will get your content in a way that is familiar to them.

I offer this on my subscribe pages here at ProBlogger and at DPS and get a good response. The number of people using it will vary a lot (for example at DPS it’s a much higher take up in proportion to RSS subscribers than here at ProBlogger where I have a more RSS savvy readership). Feedburner offers this service as does FeedBlitz (and others).

6. Promote Your Feed in Off-Blog Communications

I’m seeing more and more bloggers promote their RSS feeds along side their blog’s homepage URLs in forum and email signatures as well as on other sites. Maybe it’s time we started putting our feeds on business cards also!

For example in a recent guest post here at ProBlogger Glen Stansberry asked for his feed URL to be included in his byline.

Get into the habit of not only giving out your blog’s URL but also include your RSS feed and you might just pick up some new readers. As RSS continues to grow we’ll see more and more of this – so get in early.

7. Make sure Your Feed is discoverable

I learnt this the hard way a few months back when I did a redesign at one of my blogs and didn’t think to check whether the feed was discoverable (it wasn’t). As a consequence I lost at least a couple of months of new subscribers.

More and more people use auto discovery via their browsers – make sure yours can be found and that it’s working to make this a more seamless subscription experience for potential readers.

8. Full Feeds

The debate over full versus partial feeds rages on but my own findings having made the switch to full feeds here at ProBlogger is that my subscriber numbers went up significantly in the weeks after giving my readers my full posts.

While there are a small number of readers who do prefer partial feeds – I find that the majority of readers prefer a full feed and that as a result most who provide them notice an upswing in subscriber numbers. Of course there are downsides in full feeds (for one they become more attractive to scraper sites) so make your decision carefully – but if it’s subscriber numbers that you’re after full feeds will be something to consider.

9. Give Your Feed Readers a Bonus

Something I’ve seen more bloggers doing of late is giving their readers an incentive to read. For example Chris Garrett offered a free ebook to any subscribers. From what I hear it’s worked well for him.

I’ve seen others talk about putting exclusive information for subscribers into their feeds (how they did this I’m unsure) and putting subscribers into a prize draw for a giveaway.

Of course keeping people subscribed is another matter and a certain percentage would no doubt subscribe and then unsubscribe after the incentive disappears – that’s where having quality content and an engaging feed comes into play (see the rest of this series for this).

10. Promote your Feed at Key Entry Points

Where do people enter your blog? Are there some pages that bring in more traffic than others via search engines, referral links, social bookmarking sites etc? If so – consider these pages as key points to give your RSS feed a special plug.

For example if you’re fortunate enough to get some mainstream media attention or one of your posts gets on the popular page of Digg or Delicious – why not add a quick link on the page everyone’s arriving on to promote your feed?

Put out the welcome mat at key points and help your readers find a way to make themselves at home.

11. Run an Ad Campaign

One blogger that I worked with last year ran an AdWords campaign to promote his feed (with some success).

He created a landing page for his blog that had the one goal of converting those who landed on it into loyal readers via RSS and his newsletter. The results were really encouraging and a great way to launch his new blog. In fact it was so worthwhile that he continues to put a few dollars a day into a simple AdWords campaign to promote his blog.

Similarly – other bloggers have done the same thing using other ad systems like Blogads.

These are some of the ways that I’ve used to get readers to subscribe to my RSS feed – how do you do it?

Network Security 101

2009-12-15T19:54:00.000-08:00

As more people are logging onto the Internet everyday, Network Security becomes a larger issue. In the United States, identity theft and computer fraud are among the fastest rising crimes. It is important to protect your network and ensure the safety of all computers and users in that network

What is a Network?

In order to fully understand network security, one must first understand what exactly a network is. A network is a group of computers that are connected. Computers can be connected in a variety of ways. Some of these ways include a USB port, phone line connection, Ethernet connection, or a wireless connection. The Internet is basically a network of networks. An Internet Service Provider (ISP) is also a network. When a computer connects to the internet, it joins the ISP’s network which is joined with a variety of other networks, which are joined with even more networks, and so on. These networks all encompass the Internet. The vast amount of computers on the Internet, and the number of ISPs and large networks makes network security a must.

Common Network Security Breeches

Hackers often try to hack into vulnerable networks. Hackers use a variety of different attacks to cripple a network. Whether you have a home network or a LAN, it is important to know how hackers will attack a network.

One common way for a hacker to wreak havoc is to achieve access to things that ordinary users shouldn’t have access to. In any network, administrators have the ability to make certain parts of the network “unauthorized access.” If a hacker is able to gain access to a protected area of the network, he or she can possibly affect all of the computers on the network. Some hackers attempt to break into certain networks and release viruses that affect all of the computers in the network. Some hackers can also view information that they are not supposed to see.

Destructive Attacks

There are two major categories for destructive attacks to a network. Data Diddling is the first attack. It usually is not immediately apparent that something is wrong with your computer when it has been subjected to a data diddler. Data diddlers will generally change numbers or files slightly, and the damage becomes apparent much later. Once a problem is discovered, it can be very difficult to trust any of your previous data because the culprit could have potentially fooled with many different documents.

The second type of data destruction is outright deletion. Some hackers will simply hack into a computer and delete essential files. This inevitably causes major problems for any business and can even lead to a computer being deemed useless. Hackers can rip operating systems apart and cause terrible problems to a network or a computer.

The Importance of Network Security

Knowing how destructive hackers can be shows you the importance of Network Security. Most networks have firewalls enabled that block hackers and viruses. Having anti-virus software on all computers in a network is a must. In a network, all of the computers are connected, so that if one computer gets a virus, all of the other computers can be adversely affected by this same virus. Any network administrator should have all of the essential files on back up disks. If a file is deleted by a hacker, but you have it on back up, then there is no issue. When files are lost forever, major problems ensue. Network security is an important thing for a business, or a home. Hackers try to make people’s lives difficult, but if you are ready for them, your network will be safe.

Crouching Trojan, Hidden Malware

2009-12-15T19:52:00.000-08:00

Trojans are not just more dangerous than computer viruses, they're stealthier, too. Find out where they hide.

Minions of an evil master lurk in your hard drive, crouching in your system registry, ready to pounce.

What Is a Trojan?

The word "Trojan" is a mystery to most people, even many who think they know its true meaning. If more people really understood what Trojans are and the risk they pose, there would be fewer Trojans, since fewer people would ever leave their machines vulnerable to them.

A Trojan is malware. Malware is a special kind of software, like spyware, adware, and viruses that no one wants. Yet a Trojan is more dangerous than any other kind of malware. Unlike those other types of malware, Trojans are not mindless flunkies hurled at your computer by their masters. A Trojan is a master that first craftily infiltrates your PC, then unleashes its malware henchman.

What Trojans Do

• Some Trojans may install worms, which are programs that use your computer and internet connection to send out armies of server requests in the hope of shutting a particular website down, or to spread viruses or worms to other computers.

• Other Trojans are thieves, out to steal your computer's processing power and turn it over to their hacker masters, often by setting up a backdoor, a hidden internet connection that allows for outside manipulation of your machine.

• Some thieving Trojans are fraudsters that may go after your financial information by installing keyloggers that record what you type--especially passwords and important banking numbers.

How Do Trojans Hide?

No one thinks they have a Trojan on their computer until it is too late. That's because they do such a good job of blending in.

• Trojans come disguised in innocuous file names, often pretending to be a helper application to software or an essential operating system component.

• Trojans try to avoid calling attention to themselves, and so will often only interfere a little, if at all, with your computer's performance, choosing instead to do their dirty work while your machine is idle. Computers left on and connected to the internet while their owners are asleep or at work or school are favorite targets.

How Do You Remove Trojans?

Removing Trojans can be a can of worms. Here's why you need to proceed with caution:

• Since Trojans can disguise themselves as software your computer actually needs, you could accidentally delete a vital program or system registry entry. In the worst case scenario, you won't be able to restart your computer.

• Many Trojans are trained for survival. When you try to removal them manually, they may simply copy themselves to another directory.

Intimidated? You don't have to be. Rather than trying to defuse a Trojan yourself, why not call in the bomb squad? Good anti-spyware and antivirus software will fight Trojans, too. Just make sure to look for a program that specifically says it fights Trojans. After all, this is no job for amateurs.

Spyware versus Adware; the Difference Impacts Your Privacy

2009-12-15T19:49:00.000-08:00

Many people use the terms Spyware and Adware interchangeably. You shouldn’t! There are important differences between the two. True, both terms refer to the act of tracking your computer activity, such as how long you visited a particular Web site.

However, the key difference is the intent behind how and why a business collects your information. Adware is commonly associated with pop-up advertisements used by businesses trying to sell you something. However, Spyware, the more malicious of the two, isn’t trying to sell you, instead, it’s trying to take something from you -- your credit card and social security numbers and bank account information. Some Spyware collects information about you and, if placed in the wrong hands, could be detrimental to your financial wellbeing and used to steal your identity. Adware is usually something you can see. Whereas Spyware often can’t be seen, in fact, businesses behind Spyware don’t want you to know they’re lurking. Therefore, you may have a Spyware infection and not know it. One vicious Spyware is keylogging, a tool that hangs about in the background, logging your keystrokes, including account numbers and passwords you type on your keyboard, and then sends the information to the originating source.

Future of Spyware

Spyware will only become more invasive with no concern for your privacy, regardless of what you want or think. Worse, no one piece of software will protect you from the above. Why? One belief is that there are far more research dollars being spent on developing Spyware than combating it, since the information derived from the former is more lucrative.

Protecting Yourself

There are two methods to protect yourself, both are equally important.
1. Manage your computer usage behavior. If you download most anything for free – movies, software, music, etc., then you can anticipate being exposed to highly aggressive forms of Spyware.
2. Utilize anti-spyware software programs and a hardware firewall. Both help to fend off Spyware. Lavasoft’s Ad-Aware se and Microsoft’s AntiSpyware (Beta) programs are reputable.

Yahoo Pushes Out the New Search Design

2009-12-15T19:37:00.000-08:00

Along with Yahoo's big new "Y!ou" campaign, the company has begun rolling out the new Yahoo Search. They unveiled the new design last month, which compliments the recently launched redesigns of the Yahoo Home Page, Yahoo Mail, and Yahoo Messenger.

"The new page is designed to help you easily find and explore the things that matter most to you. The Yahoo! Search team is delighted to demonstrate our commitment to innovate in search technology and deliver an amazing user experience," says Larry Cornett, Vice President, Consumer Products, Yahoo Search.

Yahoo names the following as key highlights of the new Yahoo Search:

Intelligent Search Results – Allows you to explore results from key sites and narrow results using different types of SearchMonkey structured data. Over the past few months, even more enhanced results for product, local, entertainment, reference, social, and tech sites have been displayed automatically. With the new search page design, we have made it easier to see these riche results from an increasing number of sites.

Feature-Rich Experience – Provides quick access to search features that make people’s online lives safer and easier, including Search Scan/SafeSearch (which helps protect you from viruses, spyware, and spam while you search) and Search Pad. Now it will be even easier to return to the research documents you have created while searching.

Search Assist Expansion – With the new design, our powerful query assistance is still available directly below the search box, but we’ve also incorporated it into the left-hand column for quick access lower on the page, even when the Search Assist layer is hidden. You can use this column to easily explore and discover concepts related to your query. We have added Search Assist to the search box on every Yahoo! page in the U.S. with the launch of a new universal header.

Along with the change to Yahoo Search itself, comes a "revamping" of Yahoo's image search and video search results pages. In the left-hand columns on these, you wil get links to related categories.

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"Rather than building this new experience on top of our existing front-end technology, our talented engineering and design teams rebuilt much of the foundational markup/CSS/JavaScript for the SRP design and core functionality completely from scratch," says Cornett. "This allowed us to get rid of old cruft and take advantage of quite a few new techniques and best practices, reducing core page weight and render complexity in the process."

Yahoo says the new Yahoo Search includes improved page load time, improved perceived load time, and inline data URI images. It's now available in the US, the UK, France, Spain, Mexico, and India.

Yahoo Aims For Better Local Business Results

2009-12-15T19:25:00.000-08:00

Yahoo's got something to offer people who are tired of typing cities' names and zip codes into search boxes. Today, the company announced improved local business results that will allow users to find nearby places without first providing tons of details.

Nitzan Achsaf, a senior product manager, explained all of the details on the Yahoo Search Blog. He wrote, "For example, if you are in the Palo Alto area and search for 'evvia,' Yahoo! Search displays the local shortcut for the restaurant, including address, phone number, and reviews."

The same trick applies to searches for broader business categories. And Achsaf also noted, "[W]hen you search for business categories or business chains, you can now filter the results further by neighborhood or nearby cities in one click. If the location is a major city, you can filter the results by neighborhood. Otherwise, you can refine the results by nearby cities."

What percentage of known security bugs in browsers are actually fixed?

2009-12-10T19:47:00.000-08:00

Well, if you’re using the Opera browser, then 100 percent of the reported security bugs/vulnerabilities were fixed. In fact, Opera is the only browser (among the big ones – Internet Explorer (IE), Firefox, and Safari) to have patched 100% of its known security bugs, according to Secunia, a site that tracks security vulnerabilities in various applications.

Ben Buchanan, on his blog, wrote about this a couple days ago. He compared the patch rate on security bugs in the four major browsers (IE, Opera, Firefox, and Safari).

Browser patches between Feb 2003 and Jan 2007:

* IE6 – 67% patched (out of 110 reported bugs).
* IE7 – 25% patched (out of 4 reported bugs).
* Firefox 1 – 87% patched (out of 39 reported bugs).
* Firefox 2 – 50% patched (out of 4 reported bugs).
* Opera 8 – 100% patched (out of 15 reported bugs).
* Opera 9 – 100% patched (out of 3 reported bugs).
* Safari 1 – 93% patched (out of 15 reported bugs).
* Safari 2 – 33% patched (out of 6 reported bugs).

Here are some snippets from the blog’s conclusion:

“Well, one clear thing is that Opera is the only vendor with a 100% patch record according to Secunia. Opera is also the only vendor that maintained its patch rate between versions – in fact you have to go back to Opera 6 to find an unpatched advisory (and there’s only one).”

“So at this time Opera wins the patch stakes. The argument can be made that Opera attracts fewer attacks due to small marketshare. That could be true – there’s no way to truly know, since malicious hackers aren’t polled – but when I’m doing my banking I don’t care if it’s true. I just care that my browser is secure; and Opera currently has the best record for fixing security issues.”

These results clearly show how Opera has its foot on security. The big question is, however, whether Opera users are updating their browsers with the newest security patches.

Most of the people who visit Opera Watch use the latest versions of Opera — some, like myself, even use the latest weekly builds of the browser. (If you haven’t noticed yet, you can see for yourself which browsers people use to comment on the blog posts here.) But obviously the Opera users who visit my blog don’t represent the typical Opera user. Most of the visitors here are tech savvy and stay updated with Opera news. What about the millions of other Opera users who don’t read Opera Watch? :)

Last year Opera added the functionality to the browser to alert the user of a newer available version (yes, Opera had it before Firefox did). This was a step in the right direction, but as I’ve mentioned many times before, there’s much more that needs to be done.

I would like to see an Update Manager in the browser (Read: Where is Opera’s Update Manager?), where it will automatically download and install (with the user’s consent) all updates, just like Microsoft does with Windows Update. Firefox already has this; I wish we would too.

It would make it much easier for non-savvy computer users to upgrade Opera. In addition to that, I bet many of you would have an easier time telling your non-techie friends to install Opera, if you knew the updates would be done automatically. This is something that has been bothering me for some time already.

Last year I installed Opera on my grandmother’s computer, she recently told me about the window that keeps on popping up every so often telling her an update to Opera is available. She always clicks “no” to the question of whether she should “manually” download the update. Had there been an option in Opera to auto-update, I would have done that for her – she wouldn’t even know that Opera is updating.

If you’re not using the latest version, what are you waiting for? Get the latest version of Opera. Now!

(Tip: To check whether you’re using the latest and greatest version of Opera, in the menu bar click on ‘Help’ and then click on “Check for updates”.)

How to find the IP address of the email sender ?

2009-12-10T19:27:00.000-08:00

Are you sometimes curious about where do these spam mails come from? You can easily find their IP Address from where they originate and block them.

If you are using GMail or Yahoo! Mail, You can easily find out the IP address of the email sender.

Gmail Users:
1) Long into your account and open the mail.
2) Display the header (if not displayed)
3) Then select the option as shown in the figure

This will show you the original mail. Here you can find the ip address of the sender.

Yahoo Users:
1) Long into your account and open your email.
2) In the mail, look for option : Full header as shown in the figure

3) This will display the full header. Here you will find the senders IP Address.

How to make your computer cool

2009-12-10T19:23:00.001-08:00

There are several reasons behind this issue but the major problem is created when your system might be heating and hanging in a short time period there are several reasons they are:-

1. Due to processor overclocking.
2. Dust
3. Not using proper conducting paste between processor and heat sink.
4. Poor air flow.
5. Less gaps between components.

Many computer lovers want compact and sleek cabinet for high end processing component in their pc but they don’t know what are the problems faced due to small cabinets. The main problem is created “Over heating of components”. Many companies review about there components that there product is safe from heating but this is fake because in the process of high computation each and every part is heated , generally when there is no availability of air-condition. In this situation there is maximum possibility of hardware damage.

If you want high end computation and gaming choose large cabinet for proper airflow. Use maximum fans in cabinet for proper ventilation.

Dust acting as a thermal insulator and impeding airflow, it reduces the computer performance it bounds the proper heat releasing through heat sink. So, in a regular interval of time means after 4-5 months, proper dusting your computer system that can improves computer life and performance of your pc.

Secure your Desktop Icons and Settings

2009-12-10T19:22:00.000-08:00

Sometime naughty friends and colleague always change your desktop icons and settings and you want to save your desktop settings and secure it by changes. So, with the help of registry editor you can secure by implementing simple steps.

1. Click Start → Run and type regedit.

2. Scroll Down to following registry keys- HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\Explorer

In the right pane create a new DWORD Value named NoSaveSettings and modify it’s value to 1. Refresh and restart for the settings to get saved.

Note : If the particular link or path is missing you can create the key for the same name for example if Explorer doesn’t exists in Policies, so you should create a new key (right click on blank space in Policies and type Explorer to create a new key. Please see previous article on blocking view on specific drive where method for creation of DWORD value name and data is clearly defined).

Audio indexing from Google

2009-12-10T19:15:00.000-08:00

Google is coming with a new technology: Audio Indexing that will allow users to search videos based on the spoken words inside videos.
This will help users to better search and watch videos from YouTube and other video channels.
This technology is very much required in today’s world where more and more video content is being created everyday.

Google has recently also launched ‘Google Elections Video Search gadget’. With this gadget you can search for certain contents in a video. This gadget was very widely used in recent US elections.
Google Audio Indexing is not very much different from the Google Elections Video Search gadget. Both use the same underlying technology.

How do we use it?
With Google Audio Indexing, you can use speech technology to find videos and to search for spoken content inside a video.
The below image highlights some important features.

GAudi

Searching for videos
To find a set of videos, simply type a query in the search box and press the “Search videos” button. The results of your search will appear in the left column. You can refine your search using channel filters, the active filter showing in bold. A channel filter corresponds to one or more YouTube channels. In the context of the US election, you can choose videos from the McCain channel, the Obama channel or from all YouTube political channels. For each result, we provide a thumbnail of the video, its title, the time since it was published, the duration and the number of times the query terms are mentioned (i.e. spoken) in the video. By clicking on a result, the video will be displayed in the right column.

Watching a video
Once you have selected a video, it will appear on the right side of the screen, in the embedded YouTube player, with the list of mentions.
Google Audio Indexing enhances the YouTube player to display mentions of the query terms as yellow markers on the player timeline. For space reasons, we cannot always display all the mentions on the timeline. The top 10 mentions are displayed as a list under the player.
To read the transcript for a given mention, just mouse over the corresponding yellow marker. To listen to the corresponding audio, just click on the marker: the player will automatically jump to the right time in the video. You can also click on the play button located on the left side of the mention.

Searching inside a video
With Google Audio Indexing, you can also restrict your search to the content of a given video. By default, the “Search inside this video” uses the same query term as the video search.
To search for a different term, just type your query in the text form under the video player and press the “Search within this video” button. The mention results are displayed underneath. The yellow markers on the timeline are updated accordingly and you can access the information just like before, using mouse over.

How does it work?
Google Audio Indexing uses speech technology to transform spoken words into text and leverages the Google indexing technology to return the best results to the user.
The returned videos are ranked based — among other things — on the spoken content, the metadata, the freshness.

Google periodically crawl the YouTube political channels for new content. As soon as a new video is uploaded to YouTube, it is processed by our system and made available in our index for people to search.

What video content can I search?
Google Audio Indexing searches only those videos uploaded on the YouTube political channels. If a video is on the YouTube political channels, it will be in the index.
Candidates control the video content released to the public using Google Audio Indexing technology by controlling the content they upload to YouTube channels.

I would like my content to be “speech-searchable”, what do I do?
All served videos come from YouTube channels. You should first upload your content to YouTube.
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Asus Eee PC 1101HA

2009-12-10T19:03:00.000-08:00

Eee PC 1101HA (Seashell)
Now a day, users have to work tirelessly on laptops for their project, presentation and have to remain connected to internet on the go. This doesn’t give them opportunity to charge their batteries now and then, low battery backup interrupt their flow ness and connectivity. So, don’t worry Asus Eee pc solve battery problem by giving an impressive backup of 11hrs giving you relief from all your frustration

View of new ASUS Battery monster

Features

• Genuine Windows® XP Home (Better then its successor Vista and 7)
• Stylish Seashell-inspired Design
• 11.6” HD Widescreen Crisp Display (thrill your experiences with High definition graphics)
• Enjoy maximum computing with 11 hours battery life(Super Hybrid Engine-that depend on the power mode and give optimize battery backup according to your work )
• Capacious Hybrid Storage Comprising 160GB HDD and 10GB complimentary online Eee Storage (on Web)
• Easy Mobile Connectivity with built-in 802.11n(Faster Internet Access) and Bluetooth V2.1
• True multimedia enjoyment: SRS Premium SoundTM True-to-life 5.1 surround audio & Eee Docking intuitive shortcut.
• Egonomic keyboard for unsurpassed comfort
• Multi-touch pad

Specifications

Display- 11.6″ LED Backlight WXGA Screen (1366×768) with Color-Shine (Glare-type)

Operating System -
• Genuine Windows® XP Home
(Pre-installed Microsoft Office Home & Student 2007 60-day Trial and vary by country)
• GNU Linux

Intel CPU and Chipset ; Processor Intel® Atom™ Z520 – 512K Cache, 1.33 GHz, 533 MHz FSB (US15W)

Memory -1GB DDR2 SO-DIMM

Storage-160GB HDD and 10GB Eee Storage

Wireless Data Network-
• WLAN 802.11b/g/n @2.4GHz
• Bluetooth2.1 + EDR*
*Optional

Battery –
• 9.5hrs, 6-Cell 48Wh Li-ion Battery
• 11hrs*, 6-Cell 63Wh Li-ion Battery

*Optional battery; 48Wh battery is provided by the company.

Camera – 1.3M Pixels

Audio –
• Hi-Definition Audio CODEC
• Stereo speaker
• Digital Array Mic

Input / Output-1 x VGA Port –
• 3 x USB 2.0
• 1 x LAN RJ-45
• 2 x Audio Jack (Head Phone / Mic-in)
• Card Reader: MMC/ SD(SDHC)

Dimensions-286mm(W) x 196mm(D) x 21.8mm~ 36.2mm(H)

Weight – 1.1Kg (2.42lbs)

Color- Crystal Black, Pearl White,

For : Very good quality screen, light weight, compact and good for corporate usage.
Against: Not fit for gaming and high end computation.

Google Talk Updated with Voice and Video

2009-12-06T20:24:00.000-08:00

Google is always working to release new and effective Internet solutions. Continuing in this tradition, Google’s Talk messenger application has recently been updated with video and voice capabilities. The new release is not meant to be a contender to Skype, as it does not possess the ability to connect to the standard phone network or voice mail support.

The audio and video is high quality, though. Since Google Talk’s video traffic goes through Google servers, it’s expected to be more consistent as far as the connection then Skype since Google has endless bandwidth and server space. If you’re using an older computer, the PC may suffer poor performance during usage since the application utilizes a lot of resources. There are no such issues with any recent system, however.

Straying from the path of other video chat products, Google Voice and Video uses a proprietary plug-in instead of Flash. A miniscule download of 2MB supports Internet Explorer, Mozilla Firefox, and Google’s own Chrome on a PC as well as Firefox on a Mac. Details have not yet been released on support for other platforms, such as Linux, but ports for them may come later. Google Video and Voice made its official public debut at midday on Tuesday, November 18th. Now that Google provides Voice and Video, users have access to a vast array of tools with one login, including email, voice, chat, and soon even SMS. If Google ties in Youtube and Google Docs better in the future, the Google account will be nearly unstoppable.

Google’s Voice and Video is quite simple to use. When the option is available, a "Video & More" button is shown in the chat messaging window. Once selected, the plug-in will be installed and immediately accessible for video calls with friends.

Useful Tips When Applying For A Web Host Provider

2009-12-06T20:17:00.000-08:00

Once you have considered the design for your website and it is ready to be hosted, there are some matters to be considered when choosing the adequate web host:

I - Accessibility of the site?

Once you have applied for a web host provider you should take several aspects into account such as the time it takes to load or the period of time it is up.These aspects are very important because if there are problems related to them, this can create extreme annoyance and renouncement of the possible visitors.

The same possible visitors can also have problems in finding your web page, as search engines do not show those who are always down or have difficulties in loading.

The best method to acknowledge if a server is usually up would be to take a look over the reviews written by other persons who have applied for the server before you.

II - Does the provider offer SSL??

In the case of a hobby websiter or, in other words, if you will not be making any transactions on that particular website, the SSL protection is not necessary.In the other case, if transactions should be made in the near future it is necessary for you to choose the webhost which includes the SSL protection upfront.

SSL is generally used for encrypting any piece of information such as:credit card codes, names, etc.

Deciding to subscribe to a webhost which does not comprise of SSL protection and choosing afterwards to have it installed, could turn up to be more expensive than having applied for a webhost which provides SSL in the first place.

Websiters which have Automatic SSL protection can be exemplified by www.powweb.com and www.ipowerweb.com

III - Is server side scripting available from the server?

Despite of the fact that these server side scripting is provided by almost all servers, it is still advisable to check out if they do.Pages changing in real time are given the chance to be created by the webmasters due to the server side scripting.

For instance, in the case of running a business and having all products arranged in a database, the server side scripting will give off the pages by means of the ranges the customers choose to see.

You should not think of using a server which does not provide functionality for a server side scripting. www.powweb.com and www.ipowerweb.com can also be shown as examples for sites which comprise of servers side scripting.

IV - Customer Support

The support given to customers is of an utmost importance when choosing a web hoser.Even in the case of an experienced webmaster, I am sure that there are still some questions to be asked when signing up with a website.Some of them have created special forums for frequently asked questions(FAQ-S).Actually the only one of this type I found up to now is www.powweb.com.

Even tough these aspects are widely known, the attention should be drawn anyway, for there are many persons who pay significant sums after having signed to a web hoster on the basis of having ignored these conditions.Taken this into account, the collaboration should be nothing but successfully.

Easy Tips to Get 100 Visitor in 10 minutes for free

2009-10-05T22:22:00.001-07:00

Post your ads free at high traffic site like sample below:

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Post free ads at high traffic classified ads

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www.elitetrader.com

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www.goforex.net/forum

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http://blogwise.com

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http://bloguniverse.com

http://blogtree.com

http://contentsmatter.com

http://feed24.com

http://findory.com

http://getblogs.com

http://globeofblogs.com

http://lsblogs.com

http://postami.com

http://plazoo.com

http://readablog.com

http://technorati.com

http://yourwebloghere.com

SEE ALSO :

Google Chrome Extension Support

2009-10-05T22:14:00.000-07:00

Alternate browsers are becoming increasingly popular, even though Internet Explorer still has a stronghold when it comes to market share. Some of the most popular alternate web browsers available include Mozilla Firefox, Safari, Opera, and Google’s new Chrome web browser.

Still in beta, Google’s "Chrome" has attracted less than 2% of the Internet browser market at its peak, but Google engineers are working to enhance the software to make it more appealing and useful to its users. One very popular idea for improving Chrome is the addition of an extension system, which will enable third-party developers to produce plugins for any number of add-on features, ranging from browser enhancements to RSS readers, calendar/reminder extensions, etc.Chrome users can then install the plugins to complete tasks that Google did not integrate into the web browser.

Mozilla Firefox, a browser that holds the record for the most downloads in a single day, has the ability to integrate third-party plugins, which has been perhaps the greatest factor in achieving its 20% web browser market share.

One of Google’s developers made the announcement that Google is looking into integrating third-party browser plugins for Chrome. They also released a design document that provided an outline for what needed to be done in order to add plugin support. This functionality is certainly at the top of the wishlist for most Chrome users, and Google seems to be working on providing the support as quickly as possible. The first plugins planned for integration include Flash and an ad blocker (ironic), which are some of the more popular plugins for Mozilla Firefox.

Unfortunately, Google has yet to announce when this implementation will be complete, but at least we know that they plan on offering extension support in the near future.

Windows 7 Features and Performance

2009-10-05T22:08:00.001-07:00

There’s much anticipation for Microsoft’s next operating system release, Windows 7. Enthusiasts are still speculating on the official launch date, and as of writing, there is no official word from Microsoft. Below is a list of new features that enthusiasts can look forward to enjoying, most of which are confirmed in the current pre-release version that is nearly at a "feature-complete" state.

User interface Features

User interface features affect nearly every user. While it is not the most important part of an OS, user interface features often go a long way towards the impression of an OS, and will likely draw many comparisons to other Microsoft operating systems. Windows 7 comes with a stylish end-user interface. You can expect icons to respond with quick animated movements, which is done to enhance the user experience. So far, compliments for the speed and ease of use of the user interface have been dominant for the new OS.

The desktop is clearly much cleaner and better organized, and comes with docking options that are similar to the Mac’s OS. New applications and improvements to existing applications have been added as well. For example, you will find the calculator to be much improved and more powerful. It supports real life conversions and calculations, like weight and length converters.

If you are in the habit of placing sticky notes all over your monitor and work area, you will surely welcome the new stick notes application that comes with the desktop. You can stick as many virtual notes on your desktop, and delete them as you work. Now your workstation will certainly look cleaner and more organized. You are also saving trees by using less paper!

A new version of Windows Media Center will also launch with this release. New gadgets are being integrated into the Media Center and Windows Explorer. Gadgets are standalone applications that sit on the desktop (some are hosted on another server). There are web gadgets, sidebar gadgets, and sideshow gadgets (run on external displays).

System Performance Features

Windows 7 now offers support for virtual hard disks and boasts improved performance on multi-core processors, improved boot performance, improved SSD support and performance, and improved kernel performance. Obviously, performance is a key goal for Windows 7. With the current pre-release version, even at an unfinished state, it appears that Microsoft is doing extremely well in achieving this goal. The pre-release version tested is remarkably stable and offers noticeably better performance than Windows XP with the latest hardware.

If you visit the control panel, you will find that many new items are added, including Accelerators, Display Calibration Wizard, Gadgets, Recovery, Troubleshooting, and more. Windows Security Center is now known as Windows Solution Center, and it is responsible for maintaining the security of the system.

Unique Features

The touch screen feature is a new and unique feature that enables many interesting touch applications. For instance, you can have a touch app that works exactly like a keyboard. This means you can type an entire document without the use of an additional piece of hardware. You can also use this feature to play the piano or do a painting. The feature is something that has not been previously available in earlier versions of the Microsoft OS.

Other unique features include speech and hand writing recognition. Hand writing recognition technology can help convert human handwriting into digital text.

Developer Features

Developers can look forward to using a new networking API to develop SOAP based web services in native (or machine) code. There are also new features that reduce application install times. Development of installation packages is simplified in the new OS as well.

CyberLink PowerCinema 6 Total Media Entertainment Center Review

2009-10-05T22:07:00.001-07:00

Posted in: Computer Software

CyberLink PowerCinema 6 helps turn a regular PC into a HDTV and a multimedia entertainment center. Released on November 13, 2008, Powercinema 6 includes features for watching television, viewing photographs, enjoying music and DVF movies, and even listening to the radio. With simple channel management and support for HDTV, PowerCinema 6 gives users the versatility of being able to view high-definition television straight from their computers.

With Schedules Recording and Time-Shift Playback, PowerCinema 6 turns your computer into a personal television recorder, which frees users from the chains of regular television. The software offers support for MPEG-4 AVC hi-def video. Multiple subtitles and audio tracks can also be recorded, which enables you to change the language while watching recorded television.

PowerCinema 6 also comes loaded with a number of new usability features. The Entertainment Interface categorizes your media, including Entertainment which would be DVDs, music, radio, TV and Memories that consists of videos and photos. It also automatically detects the size of your screen and sets video display to either 4:3 playback or widescreen. With color-coded hotkeys, you can easily navigate your way to key features of the software. You can use these color keys either on the screen or by separately purchasing the Cyberlink Remote Control. You have the option to Quick Review your recent photos/videos/music, and PowerCinema 6 also enables you to select a group of files to play or edit.

PowerCinema 6 provides quick access to your favorite audio as well. You can easily locate your music using Quick Music Search, which uses meta data information to find the desired track. Power Cinema 6 supports MP3, WAV, WMA, and Audio CD (CDA) formats.

Google Earth Now Features Rome Reborn 2.0

2009-10-05T22:05:00.001-07:00

Posted in: Computer Software

How did people live thousands of years ago? The University of Virginia’s Institute for Advanced Technology in the Humanities asked this exact same question. As a result, they decided to digitally rebuild the revolutionary city of Rome during the peak of its development (around A.D. 320 - the time of Constantine The Great). They figured this would be the best way to try and understand how humans lived so long ago.

The very first version of the Rome Reborn product went under construction 10 years ago, and the task was finally finished last year. Included in it were 250 highly detailed structures, and a total of over 7,000 structures in all. They used a 1:250 scale model of Rome that took forty years to create (from 1933 to 1973). This smaller scale Rome was actually constructed out of Plaster of Paris. Using laser scanners they scanned the Plaster of Paris model and created the virtual model. The original use of this model was to be utilized in a theater at UCLA. Since last year the Rome Reborn Project has seen many faces, it’s most recent being Rome Reborn 2.0 which improved the detail significantly. Google then joined in and offered to include Rome Reborn in Google Earth.

With Rome Reborn in Google Earth, it’s the equivalent of an virtual time machine, which can be used to study the history of Rome and other great cities of the world. If you currently have Google Earth (any version), you can enjoy touring ancient Rome. Not only can you navigate around the structures, but you can also go in them, and enter areas like the Colosseum and even the Roman Senate. With more time, more information will be added researches believe. They also hope that by pioneering this research into the past - other researchers will catch some inspiration and create 3D models of other forgotten cities.

Gadget4All Roll-up All-in-One Mouse Pad with Speaker and USB Hub

2009-10-05T21:59:00.001-07:00

Posted in: Computer Hardware

Are your desktop and/or work area cluttered with adapters, wires, and all sorts of junk? Even if the answer is no, the Gadget4All all-in-one mouse pad can improve organization and offer more functionality for anyone that currently uses a mouse pad. Combo gadgets are usually a good thing - they save space, offer more functionality, and when they’re designed properly, can be an item of beauty. Similar to the SourcingMap All-in-One Music Mouse Pad, Gadget4All recently designed a new combo gadget disguised in the form of a mouse pad. Gadget4All’s all-in-one mouse pad consists of

built-in speakers, 4 USB ports, a 3.5mm audio port, and a speaker in port so that you can connect your iPod, Zune, or other MP3 player. The roll-up capability makes it perfect for use when traveling. As already mentioned, combo gadgets are great, but for only $22, this combo gadget should be of particular interest.

ASUS G50V-A1 Gaming Notebook

2009-10-05T21:57:00.001-07:00

Posted in: Computer Hardware

The ASUS G50V-A1 is a new 15.4" gaming notebook to hit the market this holiday season. The G50V-A1 is one of the best machines produced by ASUS performance-wise, but it has other issues that should be considered if your intention is to use the "gaming notebook" heavily for its intended purpose.

The notebook offers excellent performance powered with an Intel Core 2 Duo T9400, high-quality WSXGA+ screen, and numerous features that make the system stand out. It is even bundled with useful accessories that do not normally come with a laptop, including a backpack and gaming mouse. The G50V is covered with a two-year warranty, and the first year includes accident damage coverage as well. The ASUS G50V-A1 also comes with a recovery disk that can be useful in the case of emergency.

If the system was marketed as a business machine, we could stop there with an exceptional review. However, while the laptop offers great stock performance, the G50V-A1’s over clocking and power management abilities didn’t fare so well. Even though the machine was nearly flawless during regular usage, it’s always a plus for it to perform during rigorous benchmark tests (WorldBench, Mobilemark, etc.). Another serious issue is that it lacks driver support for widescreen resolution (1440×900), which would come in handy. It runs perfectly in its normal resolution of 1680×1050, but having to step down to 1280×768 for a decent widescreen resolution is not a good look.

The G50V-A1 comes with Windows Vista Home Premium 64-bit, with 4GB of DDR2-800 RAM. The notebook includes an 8X DVD-RW Super Multi drive, 8-in-1 memory card reader, built-in 1.3-megapixel webcam, and Intel Wireless WiFi Link 5100AGN with built-in Bluetooth support. Overall, the G50V is a quality gaming platform. The design and numerous features are great. The graphics card it uses (the NVIDIA GeForce 9700 GT) is a bit of an undershot for ASUS since it’s quite underpowered for a gaming laptop.

The A1 can be purchased for a little under $1600, but it may be overpriced since the ASUS G50Vt-X1 can be purchased for $1,250. It’s a cheaper machine, but it has a Core 2 Duo processor, a 15.6" 1366×758 display, and a NVIDIA GeForce 9800M GS, which is simply a better graphics card for a gaming platform.

Gadgets to Consider When Traveling

2009-10-05T21:51:00.001-07:00

When traveling, whether for business or leisure, it’s always important to gather the gadgets you’ll need for your trip. Some are essential, some are fun, but forgetting any of them can make for an unpleasant trip. For the sake of being obvious, we’ll assume that you don’t forget your laptop or cell phone. Here are some of the less-obvious gadgets that you may want to consider when traveling:

1) IOGEAR Portable Media Player

With the ability to store 50 DVD movies on its 120 GB hard drive, the IOGEAR Portable Media Player is quite possibly your best friend on travels. It is tiny compared to other PMPs and offers the unique ability to convert standard definition content up to 720p HD resolution. Even better, you won’t be stuck paying $9.99 per movie in hotels. This little gadget will hook into just about anything that can play movies.

2) Mobile Printers

When doing business abroad, don’t assume that you won’t need a printer when you reach your destination (or when you’re on the way). It’s always good to be prepared in the event printing is required. Trying to hook up to someone else’s printer requires drivers. Transferring files to computers that already have printer hookups results in inconvenience from the transfer as well as any security concerns. Then, there is always the potential for a printer to not be available at all. When considering mobile printers, size matters. It’s probably better to take a more compact solution and sacrifice a little speed.

3) Video Eyeware

You’re probably wondering why you will need video eyeware. When traveling, there is one thing to always keep in mind — there is always someone looking over your shoulder. This nifty little piece of technology, the EnVision Video Eyeware, gives you privacy and the ability to be completely unobtrusive to travelers around you. Before you say "but you have to connect to your laptop to play", check out. the product information. You’ll likely be surprised at its capabilities.

4) Portable GPS Navigation

Trying to rely on maps and directions when driving in unfamiliar territory can be an unnecessary burden. Many car rental companies charge a super-premium price to have a vehicle with navigation. For those who travel and rent often, a portable GPS navigation system is perfect for keeping on the right path. We have mentioned the Garmin GPSMAP 640 GPS navigation system previously. Another option, the portable GPS by Delphi, has many features and an attractive price tag. The unit allows you to input places on your itinerary to receive directions, saving time and energy during the trip that can be spent on more important things.

5) True Global Travel Plug Adapter

If you will be traveling internationally, remember that the power outlets overseas are different from one another. Gadgets also have different plugs. Having the means to power up may sound simple, but without a tool like the Travel Plug Adapter, you may end up being out of juice, out of luck, and out of time.

Regardless of where you travel or how often, having the important gadgets with you can make or break a trip. The best thing about all the gadgets mentioned is that they can all fit in one nice, neat travel bag for placement inside a suitcase or work as one of your carryon bags.

Business is all about being prepared. This information should make preparation easier and your trips a more enjoyable experience.

What Spam Blocker is Best For You

2009-10-05T21:37:00.000-07:00

by: Niall Roche

With the number of spam filtering solutions increasing each week it's getting tougher for consumers to make informed choices in their purchases.

There are 3 basic types of spam blocker:

1. Integrated
2. Standalone
3. Online

We'll look at each type of spam filter and at the end you should be able to decide what spam filter is right for you.

Integrated spam filters

This type of spam filtering software is the most common. Once installed it sits "on top" of your existing email software and installs a new set of buttons into your email software. In future when you collect
email you'll see options for marking email as Spam, marking the email as Not Spam, Bounce the email back to sender, etc. The description and position of these buttons varies from one product to the next but their purpose remains the same.

Most integrated spam filters automatically place suspected junk email into a separate folder on your PC for you to review or
delete later on.

The newer integrated spam filters are also "intelligent". They can basically learn the difference between what is
spam and what is not and delete the junk email you don't want.

The most popular integrated spam filters are:

iHate Spam
Spambully
Spam Inspector

Integrated spam filters are most popular amongst people who want a one click solution to collecting their personal email and filtering junk email at the same
time.

Advantages:
One click solution.

Disadvantages:
Software specific. Some work with Outlook and Outlook Express only.

Standalone spam filters

These are less common than their integarted counterparts but that doesn't make them any less useful. A standalone spam filter is basically a separate piece of software installed on your PC that you use to check your email for spam.

Standalone filters have the big advantage of being able to preview your email on the mail server before it's downloaded to your PC. This one single feature has the
huge benefit of allowing you to just download the email that you want as opposed to downloading all of your email, including the spam, and then sorting through it.

Using a standalone spam filter is a little more work simply because it's a separate piece of software that you have to run
before you open up your email software. Most standalone filters do allow you to configure them so that your standard email
application is opened once you've chosen what spam to filter. This suits some people and not others.

The most popular standalone spam filter is:

Mailwasher Pro

Advantages:
Doesn't rely on specific email applications to work properly.

Disadvantages:
Two step process. Load standalone filter and then your email application.

Online spam filters

There are really two types of online spam filters. One is for business use and one is for home use. A typical example of
a business type product is iHate Spam server edition where the software deletes junk email directly from the mail server before the end user even sees it. Large companies employ this type of technology.

Home users will be using Spam Arrest or similar. Spam Arrest offers an inventive solution to spam whereby any email sent to
the users account has a challenge request sent back to it which the sender must authenticate. The automatic junk email software used by spammers can't currently deal with this type of response.
Any failure to authenticate the challenge email results in the junk email being left to die in cyberspace. A user is authenticated with Spam Arrest only once for security just to make sure the software
doesn't become a nuisance.

The most popular online spam filter is:

Spam Arrest

Advantages:
Users are guaranteed to only receive the email that they want or requested.

Disadvantages:
Any techncial problems with the Spam Arrest server and you have no defense against spam.

Now you've seen what spam filtering options are available to you just ask yourself which one suits you most. If you're still not sure drop by www.spam-site.com and check out our product reviews - we have something for everyone.

About the author:
This article was provided courtesy of Spam-Site.com which reviews and tests spam blockers for the business and end user.

Domain Registration: Why You Need Private Whois Service

2009-10-05T21:34:00.000-07:00

by: Stanley Spencer

Privacy is the control of one’s own personal information, control over what others know about one, and control over how others may use or exploit the personal information. Policies and practices for protecting privacy aim towards minimizing the collection of personally identifiable information. Therefore, the basis of privacy is anonymity, where no personally identifiable information is collected. Making compulsory, the disclosure of personally identifiable information, as under current WhoIs policies for domain registration, cause privacy to be undermined

For free speech, privacy is critical. For instance, if people are forced to disclose their identity, they are reluctant to fully express their ideas on account of fear of persecution.

The protection of anonymity further enhances the one-to-many characteristics of the Internet through which an individual's speech can reach a global audience.

Privacy and data protection laws may apply to domain registrars' WhoIs services and registrars' participation in thick registry WhoIs services in various countries, particularly in the European Union's member states.

Current ICANN regulations require that the Private contact information (WhoIs Info) of each domain registration be included in a publicly accessible Database.

The WhoIs database is the collection of information gathered by a domain name registrar from domain name registrants.

The purpose for which the WhoIs system is accessed includes:

1. To find out whether a specific domain name is unregistered and currently available
2. To identify the person or organization responsible for a domain registration or website on the Internet
3. To support technical operations of Internet Service Providers or network administrators, including assistance in tracing sources of Spam or denial of service attacks
4. To collect names and contact information for the purpose of marketing
5. To aid government law enforcement, other than intellectual property

When a WhoIs search is conducted, the information that is currently available about the domain name registrant leads to the name and address of the domain name owner.

However, when a domain name is registered, the personal contact information such as name, address, email address, and even phone number might be made freely available.

The domain registrant would not know who collected his/her WhoIs data, the reason for which the information was collected, and how the collector is likely to use the information

This implies that the private information is displayed and made available to whoever wants to see it, at any point of time.

Now it is possible to protect one’s private WhoIs information by switching the "public" domain registration to a "private" unlisted registration through a private whois service.

A private whois service protects the private information and shields against its misuse. Hence, one is protected against:
- Spam,
- Identity Theft,
- Data Mining,
- Name Hijackers,
- Etc.

It works in a similar way to having one’s phone umber "unlisted" and it prevents people from gaining access to one’s address, phone number and other such private information.

A private whois service works by:
- Protecting the private information
- Relaying important communication
- Providing greater control

Protecting the Private Information

This implies that the private contact information is not exposed and is held confidentially, and protected by the Domain Privacy Protection Service. Instead of the individual’s contact information, their contact information is displayed to provide with the highest level of protection against spammers and identity theft.

Relaying Important Communication

Without a private whois service, those involved in spamming can obtain email addresses through harvesting and then use these for sending spam mails and redistribution to marketing firms. The email addresses can stay on record with various spammers and marketing firms for several years. With a private whois service, the visible email address is constantly changing, so it will change within a specific period of time and the previous address will not work for the spammer. The Domain Privacy Protection Service secures and maintains the real email address on record so that important information regarding the domain is received.

Providing Greater Control

The individual or organization subscribing to the private whois service retains full legal ownership and control over the domain registration. It is possible to sell, renew, transfer and change settings to the domain name just the same as otherwise. The domain control panel provides real-time access to easily manage the domain name.

About the author:
Copyright © Active-Domain.com's Domain Registration (http://www.active-domain.com) Service. This article may be freely reprinted provided this resource box remains intact, and an active link is made to us at http

Get Unlimited Hosting for $0.01 Only

2009-09-27T00:52:00.001-07:00

Just follow this step to get unlimited hosting for $0.01 in first month.

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If you don’t have domain name than you can sign up hosting + domain name or buy domain name with cheap price from $1.99 at : www.godaddy.com

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Try and test this hosting service for your site, script etc and you will get very good service here

Last Step to get your hosting

- Check your email to get all hosting details, name server etc

- Change your Name Server from domain manager and enter name server in your email

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Build Blog Instantly & Make More Money

Easy tips to build blog instantly :

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REMEMBER: Use Coupon code ” HOSTGATOR ” to get $0.01 for first month

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Last Step to get your hosting

- Check your email to get all hosting details, name server etc

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example login :

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enter hostgator username and password

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Don't shoot the (Yahoo) Messenger

2009-09-24T20:39:00.000-07:00

by: Jakob Jelling

Most anyone whose kids have become teenagers over the last few years has almost certainly at least heard of "IM". It's become a verb among not only teens, but many adult surfers too. As in "IM me later!". For anyone who doesn't know, IM, or Instant Messaging, is software that lets people communicate over the Internet, well, instantly. Or nearly so - with only slight delays most of the time, instant messaging has always allowed users to type messages back and forth over the Internet. It's a lot like passing a note in class, with new parts of a conversation added on to the end of previous parts. Yahoo Messenger was one of the first to offer both IM software and a lane on the information superhighway for IM messages to travel.

But as the kids have grown, so has Yahoo Messenger. It's a lot more than a mere teen toy now. Yahoo, in an effort to attract and retain loyalty to it's brand, offers email, a personalized My Yahoo Portal, an address book, calendar, maps, bookmarks, a toolbar, and other services, many of them integrated to work together. But they seem to have paid special attention to Yahoo Messenger, especially recently. As more surfers have moved to high-speed internet connections, Yahoo has upgraded Yahoo Messenger to include Launchcast Radio, Yahoo Games, and of course, a considerable selection of customization options.

Perhaps the biggest change, and one many adult surfers will most appreciate, is the addition of Webcam, photo, and voice chat capabilities. Voice chat, in particular, will probably appeal to a broad audience. With it, a pair of speakers, and a microphone, you can talk live with contacts, over the Internet, even internationally, for free, using voice over IP technology. Most of the time, depending on network traffic between you and the other party, the conversation is loud & clear, and there is very little delay.

You may have wondered why your teens would prefer to type messages when they can just as easily call their friends. Now, with Yahoo Messenger, they, and you, can do both, using the same software!

About the author:
Jakob Jelling is the founder of http://www.sitetube.com Visit his website for the latest on planning, building, promoting and maintaining websites.