Tips for Creating a Strong Password

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Choose a password that is at least eight to 10 characters long. This should be long enough to prevent brute force attacks, which consist of trying every possible combination of a password until the right one is found.

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Make sure your password is difficult for someone to guess. Do not use names of any kind, including your login name, family member's name or a pet's name. Also avoid using personal information such as a phone number, birthday or place of birth.

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Avoid words that can be found in the dictionary. With the availability of online dictionaries, it is easy for someone to write a program to test all of the words until they find the right one.

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Stay away from repeated characters or easy to guess sequences. For example: 77777, 12345, or abcde.

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Choose a password that is a mixture of numbers, letters and special characters. The more complex and random it is, the harder it will be for a malicious person to crack.

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Use fragments of words that will not be found in a dictionary. Break the word in half and put a special character in the middle.

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Choose different and unique passwords for each account.

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Change your passwords often. Even if someone cracks the system password file, the password they obtain is not likely to last long.

By: Muhammad Iqbal Akhtar

10 Hot New Tech Gadgets

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The Logitech Wireless Solar Keyboard K750 makes battery hassles a thing of the past, even indoors. The keyboard connects automatically via a 2.4GHz wireless unifying receiver, and the solar battery will stay charged for up to 3 months, even in total darkness.

Cost: $79.99

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Making the perfect external storage companion to the Apple® Macbook®, MacBook™ Pro or Macbook Air™, the new Hitachi G-DRIVE™ slim external hard drive gives users 320GB of storage and ubiquitous USB 2.0 connectivity in an amazingly slim form. Formatted for Macs with simple plug n’ play connectivity, the G-DRIVE slim is Time Machine® ready for added backup protection, and it’s USB-powered, so there is no need to carry around an extra power cord.

Cost: $99.99

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The Crux360™ is a clamshell-keyboard case that allows you to use the iPad® in a multitude of positions. All iPad ports and buttons remain accessible while using the case.

It features a full bluetooth® keyboard, and features four modes:

1. Laptop Mode — allows use of the keyboard.
2. Movie Mode — great for watching videos, playing games, or just surfing the Internet.
3. Tablet Mode — great for reading books or magazines.
4. Carry Mode — closes up and protects your iPad’s® screen from nicks and scratches.

Cost: $149

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The Livescribe Echo Smartpen allows you to record audio while you’re taking notes, and then play them back later. You can save and share interactive notes to your computer, iPad or iPhone via a micro-USB connector that also allows you to recharge your pen. The memory storage holds 400 or 800 hours of recorded audio, depending on the model, and includes an OLED display that makes it easy to navigate smartpen apps.

Cost: Starting at $169.95

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The iLuv iMM747 Audio Cube is a fully-dedicated iPad stereo docking station. The Audio Cube provides two speaker channels, each with iLuv’s enhanced jAura Soundcell Technology. The iMM747 features easy docking via an adjustable, sliding docking wall, which provides secure iPad vertical support and a flexible 30 pin connector that automatically adjusts to dock your iPhone 4 or iPod as well.

Cost: $149.99

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The LaCie Hub4 USB 3.0 gives you enormous flexibility to connect your peripherals, wherever you go. With four USB 3.0 ports, it's easy to get the fastest USB 3.0 speeds—up to 5Gb/s. It's even USB 2.0 compatible, so it works with almost all computers, laptops, and even netbooks.

Cost: $59.99

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The iFusion is an integrated communications docking station for the Apple iPhone. Combining the capabilities of many top-selling iPhone accessories into a single device, the iFusion utilizes built-in Bluetooth technology, a full duplex speaker phone and a patented ergonomic design to deliver superior voice quality that meets the requirements of today's home and business consumer.

The cradle design of the iFusion supports the iPhone 3G, 3GS and 4, providing a means to securely dock the phone while supplying power, battery charging and data synchronization via an integrated USB cable. With support for A2DP Bluetooth streaming, users are able to enjoy their favorite iPhone music over the internal speakerphone.

Cost: $169

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Maximize your brightness during presentations with the NEC P420X, an entry-grade professional installation projector loaded with eco-friendly and advanced technologies. Ideal for corporate boardrooms, higher education classrooms and government training rooms, this model delivers remarkable brightness (4200 lumens) and features built-in wall color correction, automatic keystone correction, wired and wireless networking, closed captioning and up to 3500 hours of lamp life (in ECO ModeTM). The P420X touts an active lens cover, which hides content, mutes audio and lowers lamp brightness to 25%, allowing you to maximize the effectiveness of your presentations.

Cost: $1,999.00

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myDitto Key enables SoHo business professionals to access their myDitto Servers remotely, through an easy-to-use, lightweight USB key. From owners who frequently travel on business trips to telecommuting employees, users simply insert their myDitto Key into a laptop or PC and — through a direct peer-to-peer connection — safely access any critical file from their office network server no matter where they are.

Cost: Starting at $145

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The WOWee ONE SLIM is a compact portable speaker unit which provides a full range frequency response. It is intended for use as both a fixed and portable solution for all iPod, iPad, mp3, mp4, mobile phone and computer applications. It uses the same hybrid technology as the WOWee ONE and produces an incredible bass sound with a 40Hz - 20kHz sound range.

The unit is powered by an internal rechargeable battery and can deliver up to 10 hours of playtime per charge. It can be recharged via computer USB or a 5V USB power adapter using a plug. There is also a built in LED low battery indicator.

Cost: Coming Soon

Seven Tips to Improve the Longevity of Your Laptop

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A common mistake is unplugging a laptop when using it, connecting it back to the AC only when the charge in the battery is running out. The thinking behind this move is to prevent overcharging. However, built-in protection against overcharging means that this move only serves to dramatically shorten the serviceable life of the batteries, as there is a finite number of charge-discharge cycles that a rechargeable battery can handle.

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If you hear a loud, buzzing or whining sound emanating from your laptop, do send it for servicing at your earliest convenience. In a nutshell, waiting for the newly developed sounds to go away is just asking for trouble, as the sounds are likely emanating from either the built-in ventilation fans or failing hard disk drive.

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The keyboard sees the heaviest physical wear and tear on the laptop. While designed for heavy use, it’s usually not replaceable if damaged and is a usability nightmare if not properly maintained. One way to protect against the introduction of foreign objects is to get a keyboard protector for your laptop. To reduce the wear on the keys and touchpad, Paul Mah advocates the use of a separate keyboard and mouse when at your desk.

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Due to how a computer file system works, performance of hard disk drives will unavoidably decrease over months or years of usage. As such, it is a good idea to perform a defragmentation of your data from time to time. The same is not true of solid-state disks (SSD), however, which work differently. Doing so will shorten their usable lifespan.

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The hard disk head hovers at microscopic distances from the furiously spinning disk surface. As such, it’s generally a good habit not to subject laptops with hard disk drives to excessive shock or swinging around when powered on.

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One way to quickly shorten the life or even kill your laptop would be to stuff it into your bag when it is still switched on. Damage to hardware is known to happen when applications or the Windows operating system itself hang during the shutdown process, leaving the laptop running in the confines of a bag. Check to make sure your laptop’s really powered off first.

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It’s always a good idea to let your service help desk, or someone who is tech-savvy, take a look at your laptop in order to make a preliminary diagnosis. This will allow new problems that are introduced as a result of the service call to be more easily isolated and identified should they surface after the repair.

Enjoy Using Laptop......

By: Muhammad Iqbal Akhtar

Ten Reasons to Upgrade to Windows 7

Improved Boot Performance

11 seconds from loading Windows to a fully usable laptop without the benefit of Windows 7 optimized drivers is nothing to scoff at.

Redesigned Taskbar

With Windows 7, getting an application icon onto the taskbar is as simple as right-clicking on the icon and selecting "Pin to Taskbar." Voila, it magically appears on the Taskbar.

Aero Snap

With just about every laptop being sold now having a widescreen display, have you ever needed to position two documents side-by-side? Rather than tearing your hair out in frustration, Aero Snap offers a quick and easy way to "snap" windows into the left or right half of your screen simply by dragging Windows to the edges. (You can also snap windows vertically.)

Jump List

A Jump List is what you'll see when you right-click on a program icon on the Windows 7 taskbar (or Start menu). What appears depends on the specific application, but typically contains a list of frequently or last-viewed files, as well as quick access to common commands.

Aero Peek

To quickly peer past all open windows to look straight at the Windows 7 desktop, simply point to the right edge of the taskbar. All open windows will instantly turn transparent, making it possible to see what's on the desktop.

Support for SSD

Microsoft has done a lot of re-engineering to Windows 7 since Windows Vista to improve its SSD read and write speeds; the use of ATA commands and support for the TRIM command further increases write speeds.

BitLocker To Go

BitLocker To Go (as with BitLocker) is found only on the Enterprise edition of Windows 7. For enterprise users, it allows them to protect the data stored on portable drives by encrypting them on-the-fly. Set up is extremely easy and recovery keys can be managed via policy-configured Active Directory Domain Services integration.

Enhanced Stability

I've been using various editions of Windows 7 for more than half a year now, and its stability is bliss compared with Windows Vista or even Windows XP. While I would be lying to say that it never crashes, it does so infrequently and is otherwise rock stable.

Windows XP Mode

Need to run Windows XP due to some legacy OS or to run some potentially dangerous software without any risk to your PC? You can make use of Windows XP Mode to run, well, Windows XP as a virtual machine.

Network Virtualization

Ok, this isn't technically something that would qualify as an official feature in Windows 7. However, the folks over at Connectify found that the Windows team did some unfinished work to virtualize the network plumbing in Windows 7. Using it, they managed to build a GUI and an interface that transforms your Windows 7 workstation into a full-fledged AP for other Wi-Fi devices - while it is connected to an AP!

By: Muhammad Iqbal Akhtar

How to Check if Windows 7 is Genuine?

So you have a computer with Windows 7 installed, but you’re not sure if you are running a genuine version of the OS. You may have this issue if you downloaded a copy of Windows 7 or if someone installed it for you.
Either way, there are a couple of different ways to check and make sure that your Windows 7 copy is genuine.

Method 1 – Activate Windows Dialog

The first way to validate that Windows 7 is genuine is to click on Start, then type inactivate windows in the search box.

If your copy of Windows 7 is activated and genuine, you will ge t a message that says “Activation was successful” and you will see the Microsoft Genuine software logo on the right hand side.

Method 2 – Validate Online

The second way to determine if you have a valid copy of Windows 7 is to use the validation tool on the Microsoft website.

If you ever tried to download updates from Microsoft, you’ve probably noticed that sometimes your copy of Windows has to be validated before it allows you to start the download.

Well, you can use that tool independently of downloading an update by going to the following address:

http://www.microsoft.com/genuine/validate

Then click on the Validate link at the top. Make sure that you visit the site while in Internet Explorer, otherwise it will ask you do download a small program onto your computer in order to validate.

Method 3 – Control Panel

The third way to check for genuine Windows 7 is to go to the Control Panel. Click onStart, then Control Panel, then click on System and Security, and finally click onSystem.

Then scroll all the way down to the bottom and you should see a section called Windows activation, which says “Windows is activated” and gives you the Product ID. It also includes the genuine Microsoft software logo.

So, in conclusion, if you have bought a copy of Windows 7 from a shady local computer dealer or off eBay for a reduced price, you may want to check and make sure the product key is actually valid and not counterfeit!
If you have any other questions about whether your copy of Windows 7 is valid, post a comment here and I will try to help. Enjoy!

BY: Muhammad Iqbal Akhtar
Source:http://helpdeskgeek.com/windows-7/check-if-windows-7-is-genuine/

How To Change Keyboard Input Language In Windows 7

In this article I will show you how to change keyboard input language in Windows 7.

Changing the keyboard language (input language) allows you type texts in other language with the keyboard.  For example, you can change your keyboard language from the default English to Arabic or Chinese or Tamil with a few clicks.

Here is how to change the keyboard language in Windows 7:

1. Open Region and Language by typing the same in start menu search box and hitting enter.

2. In the region and language dialog-box, switch to Keyboards and Languages tab. Under Keyboards and other input languages, click Change keyboards button to open Text Services and Input Languages dialog-box.

3. Here, under Installed services, click Add button to see list of languages available to choose from.

4. Select your language, expand the tree (click + button to expand) and check the box. Click Ok button to revert to Text Services ad Input Languages button.

5. Under Default input language, select the installed input language in the drop down list and click Apply button.

6. You are done! Open Notepad or any other text editor to start typing in your language.

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By: Muhammad Iqbal Akhtar