GlassUp plans a sexier, cheaper take on Google Glass

A team of Italian designers has plans for a simpler, cheaper, and more stylish take on Google Glass. The GlassUp team announced Tuesday that it is raising money to produce its Glass competitor.

GlassUp, an IndieGogo project seeking to raise $150,000 to take its augmented eyewear to production, says that the team showed off its first prototype in January at the Consumer Electronics Show. The team hopes to deliver its first production models by February 2014 for an estimated price of $299, it said.
According to Francesco Giartosio, GlassUps’ chief executive, one of the chief differences between Google Glass and the GlassUp eyewear will be in how the device displays data; instead of projecting information onto the edge of the glass from an offset projector, GlassUp will use a dedicated lens embedded in the glass itself.

That will allows GlassUp to overlay monochromatic text directly “ahead” of the user’s eye, which Giartosio said was more ergonomic. GlassUp’s display has a resolution of 320 by 240 pixels.

What life is like looking through GlassUp’s glasses.

With Google, “you have to lift up your eyes,” Giartosio said. “”It’s not comfortable and can’t be good for you continuously.” GlassUp weighs about 1.5 ounces, he said, with a battery life of 150 hours of standby time and 8 hours of normal usage
.
GlassUp is just one of a number of companies vying to be the next big thing in “wearable computing,” with the argument being that consumers will eventually grow too lazy to haul their smartphone out of their pocket. Instead, a number of Google Glass competitors have developed wrist-mounted devices including the Pebble or the rumored Apple iWatch to provide glanceable information.

But while Glass is a standalone device, GlassUp characterizes its glasses as “basically a second screen output for your devices,”  that connect via Bluetooth to your phone or tablet.

As such, it will be “read only,” only able to receive information—unlike Glass, which can be used to send information back and forth. GlassUp will also forego voice input—something that will arrive in a future generation, according to Giartosio—and there won’t be a camera included for recording photos and video, either. However, sensors including an accelerometer, compass, ambient light sensor, and a precision altimeter are included.

The GlassUp glasses include a touchpad on the right side of the eyewear, which GlassUp says will support gestures such as swiping, as a means to avoid tapping on your phone all the time.

The information that GlassUp displays will be dependent on what sort of apps that you download. Giartosio says that GlassUp will develop five to ten apps on its own, and that 100 developers are already hoping to take a crack at GlassUp with their own apps.

The company envisions GlassUp projecting messages, tweets, and real-time directions on the screen, overlaying the “real world” that’s visible though the glasses. However, it’s difficult to see how apps that showed real-time translations of movies would work with GlassUp, as it lacks both a camera and audio sensors.

However, while Google has refined its industrial design, Giartosio says that GlassUp is located in northern Italy—right smack in the middle of eyeglass designers like Luxottica, Safilo, Marcolin, De Rigo, who design eyeglass brands like Ray-Ban, Oakley and others. The company will develop two models, a basic and a “sporty” model.

Samsung unveils super duper high-speed 1TB SSDs

Samsung Electronics will offer a range of faster SSD drives for consumers from next month, including a zippy new 1TB drive meant for everyday use.
The company’s “840 EVO lineup” will be two to three times faster than its existing 840 drives, depending on the capacity, it said Thursday. The 1TB version has a sequential write speed of 520MBps, over double its predecessor, while the 120GB model can reach up to 410MBps, about triple the older version.
As NAND flash prices fall and adoption of SSDs spreads in consumer computers and laptops, terabyte-sized SSDs have become the new battleground for manufacturers. Samsung announced its newest drives under the slogan “SSDs for everyone.”

Micron unveileda 1TB drive, the Crucial M500, for consumers in January at the International CES show in Las Vegas, pricing it under $600, or 60 cents per gigabyte, far below rivals at the time. The first 1TB SSD, from OCZ, launched in 2011, still sells for over $2,500 online.

Samsung has yet to reveal the price for its 840 EVO, which it said will go on sale in August in major markets. The company’s sequential read/write speeds are slightly faster than Micron’s product, as are its 98,000 input/output operations per second (IOPS) and 90,000 IOPS random read and write speeds.
The new SATA-based, 2.5-inch drives will come in sizes ranging from 120GB to 1TB, and will use Samsung’s NAND flash built using process technology smaller than 20 nanometers. The company’s previous consumer drives maxed out at 250GB.

Samsung also announced a new lineup of SSDs for enterprise storage, including a 1.6TB drive that has a sequential read speed of 2,000MBps and a random read speed of 740,000 IOPS. The company said it is the fist to build a 2.5-inch SSD based on NVMe (non-volatile memory express), an interface specification for solid-state drives that replaces the SATA interface now widely in use.

The 2.5-inch enterprise drives will also come in 400GB and 800GB sizes. Samsung said it plans to expand its enterprise offerings based on NVMe in the future.

Sony to sell 'world's first' SD card-based backup for PCs

Sony wants to simplify laptop backups.The company says it will soon launch a new line of SD cards and accompanying software that will allow laptop users to carry their backups along with them while on the move. The solution is meant to take advantage of the memory card slots that are increasingly standard on portable computers, but are rarely used other than for transferring data from digital cameras or camcorders.

Like other backup solutions, Sony's software allows the user to designate folders and specific files to be backed up, either when they are modified or on a schedule. The backups are encrypted using AES 256-bit, and the cards also require a password for access. The company's new "Real-time Backup Utility" software works only with its memory cards, but it is allowing trial downloads that work for 30 days with cards from other companies.

Sony announced the product on Thursday, and said it will be available in Japan from August 20 in 16GB, 32GB, and 64GB versions. The backup software will initially support only Windows-based machines. The cards are rated Class 4 speed, a standard that provides write speeds of at least 4MBps.
The company is still considering if and when it will launch outside of Japan, a spokeswoman said.
The largest 64GB version will cost around ¥14,000 ($140). That is about the three times the current price of a blank 64GB SD memory card with similar specifications. The software on the Sony cards also takes up about 10 percent of the space: the 64GB card provides about 57.6GB for user storage.
Developers have created versions of complete operating systems that can run off of SD cards or USB thumb drives, including versions of Debian Linux.

How to Surf Free Internet from Windows

This post is about how to browse internet for free. After going through lot of research work i have finally found a completely free way to surf internet. This can be done through a software PD PROXY which provides free internet. All you need is mobile or net setter and make an account on there website and you can use free internet up to 100Mb/day.

Free Internet- Save money

STEPS

1. Sign up on http://www.pdproxy.com/signup.htm
2. Now, download the software from the website. Size of the software is just about 2  Mb.
3. Connect your net setter or phone with the computer via USB Cable.
4.It won’t work with wi-fi connection and you can’t make any ad-hock network through this.
5.The speed of the internet will depend on the Net Setter’s speed or operator’s speed.
6.Now, extract zip file and install it in your PC.
7.Launch PD PROXY through launcher.
8.Provide username and password of your account which you have created on www.pdproxy.com
9.Now, enjoy surfing internet for free upto 100MB/day.
10.Go on basic setting and select auto connect modem.

Hurry up, before they stop this facility.

This is the best option for the people who just surf internet. So why spent money when you get it for free through pd proxy. 

PLAY MOTION GAME IN WINDOWS 8 USING WEBCAM

As we know that Windows 8 is getting better and better day by day. it has some awesome collection of app and game on its own app store. But a few people who use windows 8 knows that it also support motion game using webcam.

 

There are few gaming consoles with motion detection features like Play Station Move and Xbox Kinect which allow us to play just with a motion controller and detector. But, the problem is that, these consoles are costly and everybody can’t have it. So, whats the alternative? Can the person with no gaming console can play the motion games? The answer is yes…!
Some of the interesting games are 3D Pinball Fx, Jetpack joyride etc . But here we will be talking about motion games that use webcam for the detection of motion.
The game is BALLSTRIKE and you can search it on the Store with the name BallStrike or you can visit the link below.

You just need to have a webcam to run this app. You simply have to stand in front of the camera. To clear levels of the game, you have to perform tasks like in which you use your body to twist, turn, kick, hit and jump to explode the balls.

Features of This motion game :

1. Its a Health fitness Game to burn your calories.
2.There are few levels of the game and if you like it, you can buy the Full version.
3.You will get augmented Reality Experience
4. It detects Motion via built-in Camera or attached Webcam.
5. It Calculates Burned Calories.

The amazing thing about this app is, it uses only Webcam as hardware which is very common. So everyone having webcam can try it. Also it shows the no of calories burned. So install the game and give a try yourself. You can share your crazy pictures through Facebook, Email and other social sites.

Download Ball Strike in Windows Store

Windows 8.1 steps up security with biometrics, encryption, and more

 

Most of the attention on Windows 8.1 Preview emphasizes the many interface changes and new features. In the background, Windows 8.1 also offers a number of security enhancements that will help keep the new OS in step with changing times—how we browse, how we share data among devices, and which devices we use. The improvements range from better browser security to built-in encryption, to remote wiping of business files. We even tracked down a few sneak-preview screenshots of things that have been announced but aren’t part of the Preview release.

IE 11 will have better default security

Windows 8.1 will include Internet Explorer (IE) 11, whose flashiest new feature will be support for multiple windows. The browser’s security enhancements should help keep the new experience exciting, but not scary.
The Enhanced Protected Mode (EPM) that was added in IE 10 will now be turned on by default in the old-style desktop application, instead of just the IE app in the newer Windows UI. When turned on, EPM enables a sandbox-like feature called AppContainer, which restricts IE tabs from accessing sensitive data and system files. Additionally, EPM uses 64-bit tabs, offering more protection against attacks than 32-bit tabs provide.

The EPM option is automatically enabled in the Advanced Settings of Internet Options for the IE 11 desktop application.

IE 11 will also let antivirus programs have deeper access to the browser. This will allow binary extensions—like the often exploited ActiveX controls—to be scanned by an antimalware program before they’re executed. This could also reduce the chances of malware infection or attack via rogue extensions and toolbars.
By default, Adobe Flash support will be included with IE 11. Adobe Flash updates will now be distributed via the Windows Automatic Updates (or Group Policy on corporate-managed PCs). This could help reduce the chances of exploits via out-of-date Adobe Flash add-ons.

Windows Defender adds network support

Windows Defender, the native antivirus program provided with Windows, will now include network-behavior monitoring. This will make it easier to detect the newer breed of malware that usually can’t be detected via traditional means, but rather through noticing anomalous activity on your company’s servers. Defender’s traditional virus detection capabilities remain, as well.

Windows Defender will likely appear just as it did in the first Windows 8 version, except perhaps with an additional setting for network monitoring in the finial release of 8.1 (click to enlarge).

Device Encryption embraces all Windows versions

Windows 8 RT is better known for what it lacks than for what it features, but one advantage it’s had over full-fledged Windows 8 is device encryption. This feature will now be available for all Windows 8.1 users. It will be enabled by default on most newer computers shipping with Windows 8.1, as well as supported devices that are upgraded to Windows 8.1 with a clean install.
The encryption is basically a simplified form of the BitLocker encryption feature found in the Pro, Enterprise, and Ultimate editions of Windows 8 and previous versions of Windows. The full BitLocker feature is still available in the Pro and Enterprise editions of Windows 8.1, giving power users and corporations more management capabilities. For consumers who create and use a Microsoft account to log in to Windows 8.1 (or use a domain account on a corporate network), your entire PC or device will be encrypted.

The Preview release of Windows 8.1 includes just the BitLocker encryption settings; we should see new Device Encryption settings in the final releas (click to enlarge).

Fingerprint recognition supported

Windows 8.1 will enhance its biometric support, including native support for fingerprint authentication for laptops and devices with a fingerprint reader. Instead of typing in your password, for instance, a quick touch with your finger could log you in. This biometrics support is reportedly being added throughout and could be used for things like Windows login, User Account Control prompts, Windows Store access, and other features of Windows. And it’s likely that we’ll see more biometrics support from third-party software vendors as well.

This leaked screen shot of an internal build shows what the fingerprint enrollment process might look like (click to enlarge).

Assigned Access locks device use to a specific app

One brand-new feature introduced in Windows 8.1 is Assigned Access, which will be available in the Pro, Enterprise, and RT editions. It lets you lock down the computer or device for use with a specified app. This feature can help prevent users from accessing other apps or interfaces, making deliberate or accidental changes, and protecting the privacy of other information on the device. You can see how this would be useful in an educational environment—or even for a family with a Surface RT tablet for the kids. A public location, such as a kiosk, is another likely scenario for Assigned Access.

Although Microsoft hasn’t included the Assigned Access feature or settings in the Preview release, this leaked screen shot of an internal build shows what the settings might look like.

Remote Data Control can protect selected data

In Windows 8.1, Microsoft has enhanced the OS’s remote data control capabilities. Businesses will be able to mark certain data on employee computers and devices that should be kept encrypted, and that data can be wiped remotely if the device is lost or the employee leaves the company. This feature will be especially helpful as the BYOD trend grows (personal files on the device aren’t affected).

Manually connecting to VPNs via the Networks list remains the same (click to enlarge).

Windows 8.1 expands VPN support

Many of us use a Virtual Private Network (VPN) to connect securely to a remote network, such as a corporate office. According to Microsoft, Windows 8.1 will support a wider range of Virtual Private Network (VPN) clients, although details aren’t available yet. Additionally, Windows will allow third-party apps to initiate VPN connections automatically, possibly eliminating the need for you to start the connection manually all the time.

A better experience and better security

Windows 8.1 Preview has a lot to like, but the security enhancements show that Microsoft is keeping up with the times. The BYOD trend means that personal devices are handling corporate data, so remote wiping and other safeguards are vitally important. Everyone browses the Web, so anything that makes IE safer is a good idea. VPNs and device encryption help thwart sniffers and thieves. And best of all, most of these security features are already available in some form in Windows 8.1 Preview, so you can check them out now.

5 Most Appealing Features Of OS X Maverick

The much awaited operating system has finally been revealed early on  this week. You must be curious to know more about it. In this article we are going to tell you about the five Most Appealing Features Of OS X Maverick that you should know about.

1. Efficient Safari 7.0 makes straightforward History and Bookmarks

Finally doing away with their usual practice of taking on feline names, Mavericks is probably the most robust edition that the company has come up with. One of the features in the newly released browser is that it makes simpler the bookmark bar. The bar has three kinds of links. The first of the three is a preview of what you are looking at. It also includes a cover flow. The history part has a very simple and easy to use redesign that lists out things in an easy way based on the hierarchy of the way it was viewed. This means things become simpler for you the end user.

2. Safari Has Shared Reading Lists as well as Links

People who love reading and people who are addicted to catching up on the latest news will love this new feature. The browser has new sharing capabilities which will bring joy to many a book and news addict. Browsing can be done via share links and bookmarks of the links that they have browsed on social networking avenues like Linkedin and Twitter. If a viewer had read something intriguing, then other can follow what they have read and read the same article or new stories. All this is to enable by the sidebar and the nonstop scrolling means that you do not have to click forward and backward.

3. The Calendar Will at all times keep in mind engagements

This has been emphasized a really crucial and appealing feature by the company people while they were presenting the features of the product in the conference. The calendars has been enhanced and imbued with features that will make people who love planning their schedules dance with joy. The latest features also include fast movement between one month and another. It also features an “event inspector”. What this service does is remind you of a appointment. Notification pop up one day ahead and also give users some interesting point and even directions. All this based on the data that you have put into the location field. The calendar will even synchronize with the information on the map to provide you with the correct information of traffic and weather. This will enable you to plan for the time you need to leave to make it to the appointment on time.

4. Passwords Will Be Better sheltered

For anything on a system one nagging concern that we all share is that of security. Making different logins with many combinations very difficult to recall and this is the reason the company has come up with the password Keychain. This works at improving security. This can be shared via the cloud. The system can simply store all the passwords connected to different products to the cloud, organized in the right manner. This then synchronizes only with devices that are trusted and makes for a perfect defense against thefts related to identity.

5. Finder tags And Tab renders managing simpler

This one focuses on managing for OS X. The finder tabs and tags will enable the user to meld together many windows in Safari. This will remove the clutter and confusion created by opening many windows. You may have noticed that the number of windows goes up as the day proceeds and this means information may be lost. The tag tool ensures that this does not happen. While this may not sound like something radical you will find yourself thankful for this.

How to Install/Run Java Apps and Games in Android Mobile using JBED

Yesterday one of my friend asked question from me that Is it possible to run java apps and games in android mobile? At first I said no, but when I started searching answer to this question on Google I found that now we can also run java apps and games on android mobile. Actually the android users who migrated from Symbian device sometimes miss their favorite Java and J2ME applications. So to overcome this issue XDA member nayser who shared XDA member mohammadN Java Android Java Emulator i.e. JBED using which you can run java application on mobile if your device if you are using Android 1.5 to 2.3.

What is JBED?

JBED is an .apk Android application with the help of which you can run java games and app on your android mobile. Basically its an Java Android Java Emulator, using which you can install .JAR/.JAD/Java/J2ME/MIDP games on Android phones. You can also install .JAR application and more than 40,000 app in your mobile using this emulator. That means now you don’t have to ignore those Java apps and games which you’re using from long time.

Things to keep in mind before following this tutorial

• Some of the apps are not working and only screen touch supported apps are working.
• This application working only for devices with android 1.5 to 2.3
• Its tested on some android device and working fine, not sure its going to work in all device

So if you’ve made your mind to download and install JBED on your android device. Lets we have look at guide to install Jar apps on Android. So without further ado, lets we start with first step.

1. First of all you need to download JBED
2. After that download lib jbedvm and place it place it in system\lib folder
3. Install the JBED.apk application and don’t play it.
4. Restart the phone
5. Now launch JBED application. Press menu button and choose SD card.
6. Select your .JAR/.JAD file that you want to install and run.
7. Now install the chosen application through JBED.
8. Now open the installed java application to run

Note: You can also download JBED.Zip and flash the zip file using CWM or clockworkmod recovery version 2 and up, if this application is not working for you

So give a try to this amazing Java Android Java Emulator i.e. JBED and If you are using it please, leave your feedback at original thread so that the developer can improve future versions.

What is Rooting and Unrooting in Android Mobile

There are lots of reasons why people get android phone and one is, its power and ability to customize the heck out of it. But that doesn’t mean that other platform are not good and customizable. Android offers users the ability to tweak its overall look just with the use of Widgets, Home Screen Launcher and other features which you can download from Google Play Store.

But sometimes these features get failed to provide deeper customization and this is where “rooting” comes in. If you are Android phone users then I’m sure that you’ve read about this term over web on a different website. But if you are a new Android user and still don’t know the exact meaning of rooting in android, then this article is surely your cup of tea. In this article we are going to discuss about the meaning of  rooting and unrooting in android.

What is Rooting?

Rooting is a process allowing users of Smartphone’s, tablets, and other devices running the Android operating system to attain privileged control (known as “root access”) within Android’s subsystem. Basically rooting is performed to overcome the limitation that wireless service providers and hardware manufacture of android phone put on some devices. If your android mobile is rooted that means you are super users on your android cell phone and you got ability to customize or replace system application and setting the way you want to do. This little word rooting provide you power to run specialized apps that require administrator-level permissions and perform another operation which are inaccessible to a normal android.

Rooting is analogous to jailbreaking devices running the Apple iOS operating system or the Sony PlayStation 3

Why is it called Rooting?

Basically “root” term comes from the Unix/Linux world which is used to describe a user who has “superusers” rights or permission to all the files and programs in the Android OS.

What is Unrooting

Unrooting is the reverse process of rooting in which you  unroot your phone and return it to stock. This process gives your warranty back which gets void after your rooted your android mobile

Advantages of Rooting Android Mobile

Many people are unaware about rooting, they don’t even know what they can do with rooting android mobile. Below are going to share with you some of advantages which you are going to get after your device get rooted.

1. Custom Software (ROM’s)

If you have superusers rights means you can install Custom ROM’s on your android cell phone. Basically custom Rom is own version of Android, a new Operating System which is developed by developers. Using these ROM’s  you can alter your Smartphone experience, it changes the color of your icons, app dock, an app menu etc. With custom rooms you can uncap the full potential of your Smartphone which a normal user can’t get.

2. Custom Themes

After rooting your android device you get a full ability to customize every graphic on your device. There are  hundreds of custom themes over the web which you can load  to completely change the look and feel of your device.

3. Cool Applications

There are a number of applications which work only on a rooted android device like screenshot apps, Overlocking apps, ROM Manager, Wireless Tether for Root Users, Root Explorer, Titanium Backup and many more

4. Speed and Performance

We all know that kernels are behind the performance of the processor of your Smartphone. So if you change the kernel version, you can change your processor and that will also improve the speed and performance of your Smartphone.

5. Increasing Battery life.

There are many apps specially made for rooted devices which access system settings and increase the device’s battery life by optimizing it to a great extent.

6. Installing Unsupported apps

There are lots of apps which are not supported by your device, but after rooting your Smartphone you can install them by editing your build.prop file.

7. Backing Up your device.

After rooting your Smartphone you can also install a custom bootloader and perform a nandroid backup of your device. It is a backup which when restored, restores your device to the same state as it was during performing the backup.

So these are the advantages and benefits which you are going to get when you root your Android Smartphone. But if you feel I missed any good advantage then feel free to share with us.

Disadvantages of rooting Android Phone

But if rooting a device has advantages, it also has some disadvantages which you can read below

1. Bricking

The number one reason not to root your device is the potential risk of “bricking” it. As mentioned earlier, “bricking” your device means screwing up your phone software so badly that your phone can no longer function properly and is pretty much as useless as a brick.

2. Loose Warranty

You would likely need to purchase a new Android device from the manufacturer of your device will void the warranty after any attempts at rooting. But you can get your guarantee back by restoring (reinstall) a stock build recovery and to un-root

3. Malicious Software

There is an increased risk of unknowingly installing malicious software when you root an Android device. That means worms, viruses, spyware and Trojans can infect the rooted Android software if it’s not protected by effective mobile antivirus for Android.

So now it’s all up to you whether you want to root your Android phone or you want to stick with inbuilt ROM. If you have any query or suggestion related this topic please share with us in the comment section

Introduction To Basic Terminal Commands For Linux

In this tutorial you will learn to use linux terminal. You will learn to navigate on the terminal, learn to create and remove file and much more. Most of this commands also works on Mac Os X and powershell on windows.

What Is Terminal ?

Basically you are reading this tutorial because you are new to linux or want to learn using terminal to navigate. Before you get started you must have linux installed or running virtually on your computer. I would recommend downloading fedora or ubuntu (If you have trouble installing ubuntu leave a comment below and i will post a tutorial).

Commands To Remember

This are some of commands you must remember which will help you to use terminal more easily.
ls - it will list all files and folder in your current directory
ls -l it will give detailt listing of all files and folders
ls -a it will list all files and folder in your current directory including hidden files (files and folders that begin with period)
pwd will print your working directory or simply your current directory

Navigating In Terminal

Here i may refer folder as directory so dont get confused. This is the term we use in linux for folders.

cd - cd stands for change directory. we use cd follow by path address to navigate ro that folder.
Eg: cd Desktop will make desktop as my current directory.
cd / will make root as you current directory
cd ~ will make home as your current directory
Typing cd alone is same as cd ~ and it will make home as your current directory
cd .. will make parent directory i.e directory above your current directory
cd ../../ will take you two folder up

Creating Files And Folder

mkdir - we use mkdir follow by path or folder name to create a directory
Eg mkdir car will create directory car in your current directory
to create folder recursively i.e folder inside folder inside folder we use -p flag
Eg mkdir -p vehicles/car/truck will create directory vehicles in your current directory which have car inside it and car has directory truck in it.

touch - we use touch follow by file name to create empty file.

Removing Files And Folders

rmdir - we use rmdir follow by path to to remove any directory. This will not work if folder you are trying to remove has something in it.
rm -r  to remove file recursively which can not be removed by rmdir
rm - We use this command to remove files

Feedback

I guess thats enough for today. I know this is little confusing but practice and you will be a terminal pro.  Leave a comment below if you have any trouble. You may also like to read below articles.

Transcend-USB-3.0-Expresscard-Adapter

For laptop users desiring to join the USB 3.0 revolution without replacing their existing computer, Transcend’s USB 3.0 ExpressCard Adapter is a highly cost-effective solution for connecting to and taking advantage of USB 3.0-compatible peripherals. The card’s ExpressCard/34 interface is compatible with virtually all current notebook computers, and offers unrestricted two-way communication between notebook PCs and the latest generation of USB devices.

The new USB 3.0 ExpressCard Adapter comes with two high-speed USB ports that fully support SuperSpeed USB 3.0 standard with connection bandwidth of up to 5Gb/s. Besides its quick and easy installation, the card enables speed enthusiasts to experience data transfer rates up to ten times faster than USB 2.0 with optimized power efficiency. Thanks to its backwards compatibility with USB 2.0 and USB 1.1, users can be assured that their older devices will still work with the new interface.

Transcend’s PNU3 USB 3.0 ExpressCard Adapter is fully compatible with Windows 7, and is backed by Transcend’s 2-year warranty.

How Firewalls Work ???

If you have been using Internet on a regular basis or working in a large company and surf the Internet while you are at work, you must have surely come across the term firewall.

You might have also heard of people saying “firewalls protect their computer from web attacks and hackers” or “a certain website has been blocked by firewall in their work place”. If you have ever wondered to know what exactly is this firewall and how it works, here we go. In this post I will try to explain “How firewalls work” in layman’s terms.

How Firewalls Work?

Firewalls are basically a barrier between your computer (or a network) and the Internet (outside world). A firewall can be simply compared to a security guard who stands at the entrance of your house and filters the visitors coming to your place. He may allow some visitors to enter while denying others whom he suspects of being intruders. Similarly a firewall is a software program or a hardware device that filters the information (packets) coming through the Internet to your personal computer or a computer network.

Firewalls may decide to allow or block network traffic between devices based on the rules that are pre-configured or set by the firewall administrator. Most personal firewalls such as Windows firewall operate on a set of pre-configured rules that are most suitable under normal circumstances so that, the user need not worry much about configuring the firewall.

Personal firewalls are easy to install and use and hence preferred by end-users for use on their personal computers.  However, large networks and companies prefer those firewalls that have plenty of options to configure so as to meet their customized needs.

For example, a company may set up different firewall rules for FTP servers, Telnet servers and Web servers. In addition, the company can even control how the employees connect to the Internet by blocking access to certain websites or restricting the transfer of files to other networks. Thus, in addition to security, a firewall can give the company a tremendous control over how people use the network.

Firewalls use one or more of the following methods to control the incoming and outgoing traffic in a network:

1. Packet Filtering: In this method, packets (small chunks of data) are analyzed against a set offilters. Packet filters has a set of rules that come with accept and deny actions which are pre-configured or can be configured manually by the firewall administrator. If the packet manages to make it through these filters then it is allowed to reach the destination; otherwise it is discarded.
2. Stateful Inspection: This is a newer method that doesn’t analyze the contents of the packets. Instead, it compares certain key aspects of each packet to a database of trusted source. Both incoming and outgoing packets are compared against this database and if the comparison yields a reasonable match, then the packets are allowed to travel further. Otherwise they are discarded.

Firewall Configuration:

Firewalls can be configured by adding one or more filters based on several conditions as mentioned below:

1. IP addresses: In any case, if an IP address outside the network is said to be unfavorable, then it is possible to set  filter to block all the traffic to and from that IP address. For example, if a certain IP address is found to be making too many connections to a server, the administrator may decide to block traffic from this IP using the firewall.
2. Domain names: Since it is difficult to remember the IP addresses, it is an easier and smarter way to configure the firewalls by adding filters based on domain names. By setting up a domain filter, a company may decide to block all access to certain domain names, or may provide access only to a list of selected domain names.
3. Ports/Protocols: Every service running on a server is made available to the Internet using numbered ports, one for each service. In simple words, ports can be compared to virtual doors of the server through which services are made available.
   For example, if a server is running a Web (HTTP) service then it will be typically available on port 80. In order to avail this service, the client needs to connect to the server via port 80. Similarly, different services such as Telnet (Port 23), FTP (port 21) and SMTP (port 25) services may be running on the server.
   If the services are intended for the public, they are usually kept open. Otherwise they are blocked using the firewall so as to prevent intruders from using the open ports for making unauthorized connections.
4. Specific words or phrases: A firewall can be configured to filter one or more specific words or phrases so that, both the incoming and outgoing packets are scanned for the words in the filter.
   For example, you may set up a firewall rule to filter any packet that contains an offensive term or a phrase that you may decide to block from entering or leaving your network.

Hardware vs. Software Firewall:

Hardware firewalls provide higher level of security and hence preferred for servers where security has the top most priority. The software firewalls on the other hand are less expensive and hence preferred in home computers and laptops.

Hardware firewalls usually come as an in-built unit of a router and provide maximum security as it filters each packet in the hardware level itself even before it manages to enter your computer. A good example is the Linksys Cable/DSL router.

Why Firewall?

Firewalls provide security over a number of online threats such as Remote login, Trojan backdoors, Session hijacking, DOS & DDOS attacks, viruses, cookie stealing and many more. The effectiveness of the security depends on the way you configure the firewall and how you set up the filter rules.

However, major threats such as DOS and DDOS attacks may sometimes manage to bypass the firewalls and do the damage to the server. Even though firewall is not a complete answer to online threats, it can most effectively handle the attacks and provide security to the computer up to the maximum possible extent
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Private and Public IP Addresses: What’s the Difference?

Internet Protocol (IP) addresses are usually of two types: Public and Private. If you have ever wondered to know what is the difference between a public and a private IP address, then you are at the right place.

In this post I will try to explain the difference between a public and a private IP address in layman’s terms so that it becomes simple and easy to understand.

What are Public IP Addresses?

A public IP address is assigned to every computer that connects to the Internet where each IP is unique. In this case, there cannot exist two computers with the same public IP address all over the Internet. This addressing scheme makes it possible for the computers to “find each other” online and exchange information. User has no control over the IP address (public) that is assigned to the computer. The public IP address is assigned to the computer by the Internet Service Provider as soon as the computer is connected to the Internet gateway.

A public IP address can be either static or dynamic. A static public IP address does not change and is used primarily for hosting web pages or services on the Internet. On the other hand, a dynamic public IP address is chosen from a pool of available addresses and changes each time one connects to the Internet.

Most Internet users will only have a dynamic IP assigned to their computer which goes off when the computer is disconnected from the Internet. Thus when it is re-connected it gets a new IP.

You can check your public IP address by visiting www.whatismyip.com

What are Private IP Addresses?

An IP address is considered private if the IP number falls within one of the IP address ranges reserved for private networks such as a Local Area Network (LAN). The Internet Assigned Numbers Authority (IANA) has reserved the following three blocks of the IP address space for private networks (local networks):

10.0.0.0 – 10.255.255.255 (Total Addresses: 16,777,216)
172.16.0.0 – 172.31.255.255 (Total Addresses: 1,048,576)
192.168.0.0 – 192.168.255.255 (Total Addresses: 65,536)

Private IP addresses are used for numbering the computers in a private network including home, school and business LANs in airports and hotels which makes it possible for the computers in the network to communicate with each other.

Say for example, if a network X consists of 10 computers, each of them can be given an IP starting from192.168.1.1 to 192.168.1.10. Unlike the public IP, the administrator of the private network is free to assign an IP address of his own choice (provided the IP number falls in the private IP address range as mentioned above).

Devices with private IP addresses cannot connect directly to the Internet. Likewise, computers outside the local network cannot connect directly to a device with a private IP. It is possible to interconnect two private networks with the help of a router or a similar device that supports Network Address Translation.

If the private network is connected to the Internet (through an Internet connection via ISP), then each computer will have a private IP as well as a public IP. Private IP is used for communication within the network where as the public IP is used for communication over the Internet. Most Internet users with a DSL/ADSL connection will have both a private as well as a public IP.

You can know your private IP by typing ipconfig command in the command prompt. The number that you see against “IPV4 Address:” is your private IP which in most cases will be 192.168.1.1 or 192.168.1.2. Unlike the public IP, private IP addresses are always static in nature.

Common Myth about Private IP Address:

Most people assume that a private IP is the one used for stealth Internet activities and hence cannot be detected. But this is NOT TRUE!.

Unlike what most people think, a private IP address (unlike the private telephone number) is just like any other IP address that belongs to a private network. In reality, there is no public IP address that is impossible to trace as the protocol itself is designed for transparency
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How Domain Name System (DNS) Works

In the world of Internet and the area of computer networks, you will often come across the term Domain Name System or Domain Name Service which is simply referred to as DNS. The working of DNS forms one of the basic concepts of computer networks whose understanding is very much essential especially if you are planning to get into the field of ethical hacking or network security.

In this post, I will try to explain how Domain Name System works in a very simple and easy to follow manner so that even the readers who do not have any prior knowledge of computer networks should be able to understand the concept.

What is a Domain Name System?

A “Domain Name System” or “Domain Name Service” is a computer network protocol whose job is to map a user friendly domain name such as “my-software-world” to its corresponding IP address like “173.225.64.121″.

Every computer on the Internet, be it a web server, home computer or any other network device has a unique IP address allotted to it. This IP address is used to establish connections between the server and the client in order to initiate the transfer of data. Whether you are trying to access a website or sending an email, the DNS plays a very important role here.

For example, when you type “www.google.com” on your browser’s address bar, your computer will make use of the DNS server to fetch the IP address of Google’s server that is “74.125.236.37″. After obtaining the IP address, your computer will then establish a connection with the server only after which you see the Google’s home page loading on your browser. The whole process is called DNS Resolution.

With millions of websites on the Internet, it is impossible for people to remember the IP address of every website in order to access it. Therefore, the concept of domain name was introduced so that every website can be identified by its unique name which makes it easy for people to remember. However, the IP address is still used as the base for internal communication by network devices. This is where the DNS comes in to action that works by resolving the user friendly domain name to its corresponding machine friendly IP address.

In simple words, domain names are for humans while IP addresses are for network devices. The “Domain Name System” is a protocol to establish a link between the two. Hence, it is not a surprise that you can even load a website by directly typing its IP address instead of the domain name in the browser’s address bar (give it a try)!

Types of DNS Servers and their Role:

The Domain Name System (DNS) is a distributed database that resides on multiple computers on the Internet in a hierarchical manner. They include the following types:

Root Name Servers:

The root servers represent the top level of the DNS hierarchy. These are the DNS servers that contain the complete database of domain names and their corresponding IP addresses. Currently, there are 13 root servers distributed globally which are named using the letters A,B,C and so on up to M.

Local Name Servers:

Local servers represent the most lower level DNS servers that are owned and maintained by many business organizations and Internet Service providers (ISPs). These local servers are able to resolve frequently used domain names into their corresponding IP addresses by caching the recent information. This cache is updated and refreshed on a regular basis.

How DNS Server Works?

Whenever you type a URL such as “http://www.gohacking.com” on your browser’s address bar, your computer will send a request to the local name server to resolve the domain name into its corresponding IP address. This request is often referred to as a DNS query. The local name server will receive the query to find out whether it contains the matching name and IP address in its database. If found, the corresponding IP address (response) is returned. If not, the query is automatically passed on to another server that is in the next higher level of DNS hierarchy. This process continues until the query reaches the server that contains the matching name and IP address. The IP address (response) then flows back the chain in the reverse order to your computer.

In rare cases where none of the lower level DNS servers contain the record for a given domain name, the DNS query eventually reaches one of the root name server to obtain the response.

FAQs about Domain Name System:

Here is a list of some of the FAQs about DNS:

How does a “root name server” obtain the information about new domains?

Whenever a new domain name is created or an existing one is updated, it is the responsibility of the domain registrar to publish the details and register it with the root name server. Only after this, the information can move down the DNS hierarchy and get updated on the lower level DNS servers.

What is DNS propagation?

Whenever a new domain name is registered or an existing one is updated, the information about the domain must get updated on all the major DNS servers so that the domain can be reached from all parts of the globe. This is called DNS propagation and the whole process can take anywhere from 24 to 72 hours to get completed.

How often the DNS servers are updated to refresh the cache?

There is no specific rule that defines the rate at which DNS servers should be updated. It usually depends on the organization such as the ISP that maintains the server. Most DNS servers are updated on an hourly basis while some may update their databases on a daily basis.

I hope you have now understood the working of DNS in a very convincing manner. Pass your comments and share your opinion
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