How the PwnedList Service Works
Posted by admin on Mar 2, 2012
Taken from PCWorld Magazine, March 2012 Edition
The compromised usernames, email addresses, and passwords that PwnedList collects are protected by an algorithm that creates a unique string of alphanumeric characters for each name and address. PwnedList then saves the strings in its database before deleting the actual login information. Every time you type a username or email address into the PwnedList search engine, the server runs your request through the same algorithm used to has the compromised accounts, compares the string generated against the strings in its database, and alerts you if it finds a match.
At present, the service can tell you only whether a particular name or email address is on the list, but that may change in its next version… including the name of the site/company that hosts the account, the number of accounts contained in the leak, the date they found the leak, and the name of the hacker/group that published the data. If you’re unlucky enough to find your favourite username or email address on the list, don’t panic! Chances are, your data hasn’t yet been compromised, but to be safe, take a few common-sense steps: Update all your accounts with better passwords, put a fraud alert on your credit report, and monitor your financial statements for a few months.
Windows 8 Upgrades Will Be Online
Posted by admin on Feb 28, 2012
Taken from PCWorld Magazine, February 2012 Edition
Microsoft wants to make upgrading to Windows 8 from older Windows versions easier and faster via online delivery, with no product key entry for at least one installation method, and a process that involves 82% fewer screen clicks.
Installing a new version of Windows has already been a pain; and even when the steps involved are easy to perform, the process can still take as long as 4 hours. Microsoft hopes to improve its upgrade process so as to persuade the more than 450 million users of Windows 7 with PCs capable of running Windows 7 to upgrade – not to mention the many users with modern computers running Vista or XP who may finally be willing to try and new Microsoft operating system.
To make it easier for upgraders to get started, Microsoft will favour selling downloads of Windows 8 instead of having users buy a physical disc at a local retailer. This is similar to the way Apple handled the release of it OS X Lion. If you prefer, you can still purchase a Windows 8 DVD. They have not revealed if there will be a price difference. Microsoft claims to have reduced the total number of screen clicks required for a Windows 8 updgrade to 11… but whether this will actually result in a faster upgrade process remains to be seen.
Add Tabs to Your Office Applications
Posted by admin on Feb 24, 2012
Taken from PCWorld Magazine, February 2012 Edition
If you’ve lamented the lack of tabs in Microsoft Office, lament no more. Now you can enjoy the one feature Microsoft seems determined to keep out. Tabs let you keep multiple documents, pages, or the like readily accessible within the same window. But Microsoft hasn’t done much with tabs. Sure, Internet Explorer got the feature in version 7, by what about Word or Excel?
The smart and effective OutlookTabs (outlooktabs.com) plug-in lets you open Outlook folders in tabs – and not just email folders, but also calendars. Once installed, it adds a New Tab option below the Ribbon, as well as to context menus. You can reorder tabs by dragging and dropping them, and use keyboard shortcuts to cycle through them. It requires Windows XP or later, and supports Outlook 2007 and 2010. It costs $25 for one license, but a free trial is available.
Want some tab love for Word, Excel and PowerPoint too? Office Tabs (office-tabs.com) is free, and it’s awesome. With Office Tabs you can manage multiple documents in the same window, just as nature intended. In fact, this surprisingly versatile add-on gives you plenty of control over managing tabs, determining their colour and font style, and so on. You can apply different settings across the three programs, and even disable Office Tabs for one or two of them. Other than that, your newly “tabbed” Office works just as the Office you know and love. It works with Office 2003, 2007 and 2010, and supports the 32- and 64-bit versions of each. If you’re an Office user, I can’t recommend it highly enough. (Are you listening Microsoft?)
What Makes an Ultrabook Different from other Ultraportables?
Posted by admin on Feb 21, 2012
Taken from PCWorld Magazine, February 2012 Edition
Since Intel has trademarked the Ultrabook name, the company isn’t going to let PC makers slap the lable on just any skinny laptop. A few requirements are involved. According to Intel, a laptop has to meet these five characteristics to qualify for the Ultrabook label.
Quick Startup – Going from hibernate to keyboard interaction must take 7 seconds or less. Resume from sleep should be even faster than that.
Long Battery Life – The minimum for a single charge of the battery is 5 hours, and some models promise up to 8 hours.
Thinness – Ultrabooks need to be less than 21mm (0.82 inch) thick. Most models that have come out so far are much thinner.
Enhanced Security – The laptop firmware has to support Intel’s Anti-Theft and Identity Protection Technology.
Powered by Intel – You didn’t expect Intel to allow AMD CPU’s did you?
Laptops of 2012: What to Expect
Posted by admin on Feb 19, 2012
Taken from PCWorld Magazine, February 2012 Edition
Tablets and smartphones are in, but don’t count laptops out. Impressive models planned for 2012 promise to the thinner, lighter, and faster, with longer-lasting batteries.
Ubiquitous Ultrabooks – Thin, and lightweight are the watchword, thanks to Intel, which has trademarked the name for a new category of ultraportable laptops. The category will kick into high gear when Intel’s next-gen CPUs, code-named Ivy Bridge, hit the market. Their power use and performance, and steadily falling prices on solid-state drives, should make these laptops more affordable and appealing. Ivy Bridge CPUS – which may debut this spring – will have a new graphics architecture that runs faster, provides better video acceleration, and supports Microsoft’s DirectX 11. They will use much less power for longer battery life. The integrated graphics could mean 50 percent better performance in 3D games.
Windows 8: A Big OS – Windows 8 changes Windows more profoundly than any release since Windows 95. The new Start screen and Metro-style interface will put off some longtime Windows users. Other users will love the new look and feel. Most important, Windows 8 will undoubtedly inspire a major surge in PC purchases, and an enormous marketing push. Windows 8 will provide a first-class touch interface without sacrificing good old-fashioned keyboard and mouse use. That means a better user experience on thouchscreen-equipped notebooks, so expect to see more of those machines. It will also support ARM-based processors for the first time, so we may see hybrid laptops with a detachable tabletlike display – or convertible Ultrabooks.
Three Surprising Things About Defragging
Posted by admin on Feb 17, 2012
Taken from PCWorld Magazine, February 2012 Edition
Back in the bad old days, hard-drive defragmentation was a big deal. You needed to run a good-quality “defragger” at least once a month to ensure optimal system performance. But times have changed: These days, PCs and drives are so much faster that fragmentation isn’t the problem it once was. What’s more, if you’re a Windows 7 user, you shouldn’t have to worry about fragmentation at all. Check out these three important facts about hard-drive defragging.
1) Windows 7’s Disk Defragmenter utility runs automatically at scheduled times, usually once per week. This happens by default, so your hard drive is likely already defragged. And by most accounts, the utility’s performance compares favourably with that of third-party alternatives, so don’t buy another defragging tool unless you have specific reasons for doing so.
2) You don’t have to leave your PC on overnight. If Disk Defragmenter isn’t able to run at night, it will kick in the next time your computer is idle.
3) Never defragment a solid-state drive. Doing so can shorten its life span. If your drive is an SSD, be sure to disable scheduled defragmentation in Windows 7.
By the way, if you have an external hard drive that you don’t always keep connected to your PC, it may not get the chance to benefit from Windows’ scheduled defragging. Run it manually on that drive every month or so.
The Best of The Best
Posted by admin on Jan 7, 2012
Taken from PC World Magazine, January 2012 Edition
A survey of more than 63,000 people produced the following results…
LAPTOPS
The top five laptops – based on reliability – are Apple, Samsung, Toshiba, Asus and MSI
The top five things that go wrong with laptops are operating system, hard drive, power supply, video, and keyboard
Tops in customer support… Apple, Dell, Toshiba, Asus, Lenovo
The worst brands overall are Acer, and Dell
DESKTOPS
The top five desktops – based on satisfaction – are Apple, Asus, Dell, Lenovo, HP
The worst brands overall are Compaq, eMachines and Gateway
TABLETS
The top five tablets – based on reliability – are Apple, Asus, Motorola, Toshiba and Acer
The easiest to use… by far… is Apple
The worst brands overall are Acer and Dell
SMARTPHONES
The top five phones – based on user satisfaction – are Apple, HTC, Motorola, Palm and Samsung
The top five things that go wrong are operating system, battery, touch screen, mic/speaker, and bluetooth
Tops in customer support… Apple, LG, HTC, Nokia and Motorola
The worst brand overall is Blackberry.
HDTVs
The top five TVs are LG, Samsung and Panasonic
The worst brands overall are Philips, Westinghouse, JVC and Philips
PRINTERS
The best were Brother, Canon, Samsung, Epson and HP
The worst were Lexmark, Kodak, Ricoh and Dell
Canon and Lexmark were the best for support.
CAMERAS
The best are Nikon, Panasonic and Canon
The worst are Kodak, GE, and Fijifilm
Do You Speak Securitese?
Posted by admin on Jan 4, 2012
Taken from PC World Magazine, January 2012 Edition
Like many other topics we cover here, security has a language all its own. Listening to a group of security experts carry on a conversation, for instance, can be a frustrating experience for mere mortals. And sometimes, technical jargon seeps into everyday security news. Knowing what the following five key security terms mean, however, can help you stay better informed about the threats around you.
ZERO DAY = The expression refers to anyt newly discovered software security flaw that has yet to be fixed by the software’s maker.
REMOTE CODE EXECUTION = This is a fancy way of saying that a cybercriminal could use a vulnerability to gain access to your computer from afar and run malware on it.
SANDBOXING = This technique isolates apps and other software processes in such a way that, even if attackers figure out a security hole in a piece of software, they can’t exploit it to install malware on your computer.
SSL = Stands for Secure Socket Layer, is a way of securing the information being passed between you and the site you’re visiting.
CERTIFICATES = A digital document – or ID badge – that verifies a site’s identity… issued by organizations known as “certificate authorities”.
Six Reasons to Use Cloud Services for Small Business
Posted by admin on Dec 31, 2011
Taken from PC World Magazine, January 2012 Edition
Outsourcing IT functions such as payroll, website hosting, email, and enterprise resource planning has long been normal for businesses of all sizes. But outsourcing critical functions – such as database and file servers, application development, and document storage – gives many organizations pause. Experienced IT admins point to recent well-publicized outages, data losses, and hacking incidents that have cost companies big in lost productivity, lawsuits, penalties, and even bankruptcy. Nevertheless, your business could benefit significant from using cloud services. Here are the main savings and advantages.
1 – You’ll save on infrastructure, by not having to purchase server, software and maintenance.
2 – You’ll save on setup and management, because the cloud providers have knowledgeable, experienced administrators.
3 – You’ll save on utilities, because you have less equipment in-house to run.
4 – You’ll get better performance and better features, due to the fact that cloud providers can afford much better equipment and more up-to-date software.
5 – Your company will become more agile, as the cloud-based service can implement the latest features quicker than a small business.
6 – You’ll enjoy more fault tolerance, because cloud providers maintain multiple data centres, redundant internet connections, and continual backups.
Seven Things That Telecommuting Can Do for Your Business
Posted by admin on Dec 28, 2011
Taken from PC World Magazine, December 2011 Edition
More and more businesses now thrive on remote workers, providing services via the Internet ranging from writing to remote PC and network management. Here’s why you should consider leatting members of your team telecommute.
1 – Your workers will be more productive, by being able to work from home, and having a reduced commute time.
2 – You’ll be able to reach team members, regardless of their physical location by using collaboration services, video conferencing, and remote connections.
3 – You’ll conserve office space and save money, by reducing the number of workers at your office.
4 – You’ll reduce IT management time and equipment costs, even if you provide the laptop and software, as you will not have to provide office furniture.
5 – You’ll be able to take advantage of distributed, cloud-based IT functions, such as Google Apps or Microsoft Office 365.
6 – Your organization will become more agile, giving your workers greater flexibility to meet pesonnel and project requirements.
7 – Your workers will cost less overall.
