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Samsung Galaxy Note 8 2017

2017-02-13T08:20:00.001+02:00

The Samsung Galaxy Note 8 release date WILL happen in 2017. Here we detail the Galaxy Note 8's rumoured specs, hardware and release date

The Samsung Galaxy Note 7 is as dead as 2016. But Samsung will return in 2017 with a follow-up device that, finger’s crossed, will not explode.

Samsung is now taking the precaution of sourcing its battery cells from a new supplier; reports state the firm will bring in fellow Korean OEM LG, or at least its subsidiary, LG Chem, to produce battery cells for the Galaxy Note 8. As far as we are aware, LG hasn't produced an exploding battery smartphone to date, so this SHOULD mean the Galaxy Note 8 will be a safe device for consumers.

The whole Galaxy Note 7 debacle has been an unpleasant thing to watch; we like Samsung's products, we like the Galaxy Note series, so to see the whole thing fall apart at the seams isn't exactly great. However, one of the more distressing aspects of the whole crisis was the idea of the lasting impact on Samsung; whether or not Samsung could recover from such a massive PR disaster and how badly it might affect the firm's earnings - make no mistake, this is the kind of thing that can put a permanent dent in a company's reputation and cash flow if not handled properly.

Samsung has now concluded its investigations into what was wrong with the Galaxy Note 7’s battery, officially ending months of speculation.

Samsung published a 50-minute video detailing exactly what happened and what caused the handsets to overheat and explode, as well as humble apology for the issues it caused its customers.

First of all, I deeply apologize to all of our customers, carriers, retail, and distribution partners. [...] We believe that, as a first step to regain your trust, it is important to provide you with a thorough understanding of the cause behind the Galaxy Note 7 incidents and to implement a comprehensive plan to take preventative measures."

The extent of the investigations was enormous; Samsung built a new building for the express purpose of a thorough investigation. It also commissioned three independent reports and had 700 of its own engineers hard at work on the case.

Samsung Galaxy Note 8 Release Date & Specs: Launch & Release Date

Latest rumours suggest the Samsung Galaxy Note 8 will get a release inside the second half of 2017.

This gives Samsung enough time to market and sell a bunch of Galaxy S8 handsets before it brings its next-generation Note, arguably the more interesting release, to market.

iPhone 8 2017

2017-02-13T08:08:00.000+02:00

2017 will mark the 10th anniversary of the iPhone and Apple has something major planned to celebrate the occasion. We're more than a year away from the launch of the iPhone 8, but because of Apple's ambitious plans for the device, there are already an abundance of rumors hinting at the impressive features coming in the 2017 iPhone.

Apple is rumored to be testing more than 10 prototype iPhone models, so it's not entirely clear what we're going to see, and because there are so many test devices in play, rumors are also conflicting and murky at this time.

Rumors suggest it's going to be a radical redesign, with an edge-to-edge display that does away with the top and bottom bezels where features like the Touch ID fingerprint sensor and the front-facing camera are housed. Instead, Touch ID and the camera may be built directly into the display, meaning there will be no Home button. Jony Ive has wanted to introduce an iPhone that looks like a single sheet of glass for several years, and glass is also necessary if Apple wants to introduce wireless charging.

With an edge-to-edge design, the display would take up the entire front of the iPhone, but it isn't clear if the display will grow to fit the iPhone or the iPhone will be shrunken down to fit the display (rumors suggest Apple will use a 5.5-inch or larger display). The display itself is said to be flexible plastic OLED rather than an LCD, allowing Apple to introduce a thinner device that consumes less power and offers a better display with higher contrast ratio and more true to life colors. It may also feature edges that are curved on both sides like the Samsung Galaxy S7, but rumors are unclear on this point. Should the display have curved edges, the edges could respond to touch gestures.

As for the body, rumors suggest Apple is finally going to move away from the aluminum used in the iPhone 5, 5s, 6, 6s, and SE, instead re-adopting a glass body that's similar to the body that was used in the iPhone 4. At least one iPhone model coming in 2017 will use a glass body, according to Apple supplier Catcher Technology, and according to analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, the glass will be built around an aluminum or stainless steel frame. ike the iPhone 7, the iPhone 8 is expected to be water resistant, but it may have an improved IP68 water resistance rating. It will continue to be able to hold up to rain, splashes, and brief submersion in water.

Inside, the iPhone 8 is expected to have a 10-nanometer A11 chip that will be both faster and more efficient, plus rumors suggest it could also include features like wireless charging and biometric additions like iris, facial, or gesture recognition. In higher-end models with a dual-lens camera, both lenses are expected to feature optical image stabilization.

Apple is said to be planning to position the OLED iPhone 8 as a ~5-inch "premium" model that will perhaps be sold alongside standard 4.7 and 5.5-inch iPhone models with traditional LCD screens.

All three models may include glass bodies and wireless charging, but it is unclear if the two LCD models will feature the same curved edge-to-edge display rumored for the higher-end device and what differentiating features will be included. Rumors suggest the OLED iPhone is going to be pricy, with multiple rumors referring to it as "premium" and one rumor suggesting it could sell for upwards of $1,000, which is a good deal more expensive than previous iPhones.

The iPhone 8 is still under development and will likely launch in the fall of 2017, and in the months ahead of its launch, we'll undoubtedly learn more about the specs of the device.

ISTANBUL TRAVEL GUIDE

2014-09-07T14:17:00.000+03:00

Plan Your Istanbul Vacation

The only city in the world that can lay claim to straddling two continents,

Istanbul—once known as Constantinople, capital of the Byzantine and then the Ottoman Empire—has for centuries been a bustling metropolis with one foot in Europe and the other in Asia. Istanbul embraces this enviable position with both a certain chaos and inventiveness, ever evolving as one of the world’s most cosmopolitan crossroads.

Top Reasons to Go to Istanbul

Change continents: Spend the morning in Europe and the afternoon in Asia, with just a ferry ride in between; how cosmopolitan is that?

Cruise the Bosphorus: Taking a boat ride up the strait, past scenic waterfront neighborhoods and forested slopes topped with fortresses, is quintessentially Istanbul.

Haggle in the bazaars: Bargain like the locals do as you make your way through the Grand Bazaar and Spice Bazaar—it may be a bit touristy, but it’s fun.

Marvel at ancient domes: From the stunning Aya Sofya to the graceful Süleymaniye Mosque, the city’s greatest works of imperial architecture never cease to impress, especially from the inside as you look up.

Ogle at opulence: With their sumptuous decor and fascinating harem quarters, the Topkapı and Dolmabahçe palaces offer a glimpse of the splendor of the Ottoman Empire.

History in Architecture

Byzantium was already 1,000 years old when, in AD 326, Emperor Constantine the Great began to rebuild it as the new capital of the Roman Empire. On May 11, 330, the city was officially renamed "New Rome," though it soon became known as Constantinople, the city of Constantine. Constantine's successors expanded the city and gave it new walls, aqueducts, and churches.

Under the emperor Justinian (ruled 527–65) Constantine's capital reached its apogee, with the construction of the magnificent Hagia Sophia, or Church of the Holy Wisdom (known as Aya Sofya in Turkish) on the site of a church originally built for Constantine. This awe-inspiring architectural wonder still dominates Istanbul's skyline. Constantinople became the largest, wealthiest metropolis the Western world had ever seen.

The Byzantine Empire began to decline toward the end of the 11th century and a devastating blow came in 1204, when the Western Europeans of the Fourth Crusade, who were supposed to be on their way to recapture Jerusalem, decided that instead of going another thousand miles to fight a load of Muslims, they'd instead sack and occupy the Eastern Orthodox Christian city of Constantinople. The members of the Byzantine dynasty were forced to flee to Trabzon on the Black Sea coast, and although they eventually regained control of Constantinople, in 1261, neither the city nor the Byzantine Empire recovered.

Constantinople in the late Byzantine period was more a collection of villages set among ruins than a city. Byzantine artists set to work, however, to restore and redecorate the damaged churches, and in their work in the mosaics and frescoes of the Church of the Holy Savior in Chora, we can see the first breath of the Renaissance that would later be carried west to Italy by artists and intellectuals fleeing the arrival of the Turks.

The Ottoman sultan Mehmet II, known as Fatih (the Conqueror), conquered the much-diminished Constantinople in 1453, rebuilt it, and made the city once again the capital of an empire. The Turks named the new city Konstantiniyye, but in time Constantinople seems to have been shortened to "Stanbul" by the Greeks and Westerners, and to "Istanbul" by the Turks. Another explanation says the name Istanbul is derived from the Greek eis tin polin, meaning "in the city" or "to the city"—for the Byzantines, "The City" was truly one and only.

In 1459 Mehmet II began building a palace on the hill at the tip of land where the Golden Horn meets the Bosphorus. Later sultans embellished and extended the complex until it grew into the fabulous Topkapı Palace. Most of
the finest Ottoman buildings in Istanbul, however, date from the time of Süleyman the Magnificent (ruled 1520–66), who led the Ottoman Empire to its highest achievements in art and architecture, literature, and law. Süleyman and his court commissioned the architect Sinan (circa 1491–1588) to design buildings that are now recognized as some of the greatest examples of Islamic architecture in the world, including the magnificent Süleymaniye Mosque, the intimate Sokollu Mehmet Paşa Mosque, and the exquisitely tiled Rüstem Paşa Mosque

iPhone 6

2014-09-07T13:22:00.001+03:00

Apple's new iPhone 6 will be introduced at a September 9 media event at the Flint Center, the same location where Apple debuted the original Mac 30 years ago. An overwhelming number of iPhone 6 rumors and part leaks have given us a near-complete look at the device ahead of its launch.

With the iPhone 5, Apple increased the screen size of the device from 3.5 inches to 4 inches, and with the iPhone 6, the phone's display is going to grow even larger. Though Apple experimented with a range of screen sizes, the company settled on 4.7 inches and 5.5 inches for its two devices, which will bring the next iPhone in line with competing Android and Windows phones that have adopted larger displays.

Over the course of the last several years, consumer preference has shifted towards bigger screens, and Apple is now prepared to meet consumer demand for larger devices.

Along with a larger screen, both models of the iPhone 6 are expected to adopt design elements from the iPad and the iPod touch. Alleged iPhone 6 schematics and part leaks have suggested the iPhone 6 will be considerably thinner than the current iPhone 5s, which is 7.6 mm. The final version of the 4.7-inch iPhone 6 is said to be 6.9 mm thick, 138 mm long, and 66 mm wide. The 5.5-inch iPhone 6 is said to be 7.1 mm thick, 158 mm long, and 78 mm wide.

The phones will also include rounded iPad-style corners, pill-shaped volume buttons, thick antenna bands, a rounded True Tone dual-LED flash, an embedded Apple logo, and a power button located on the right side of the device.

Rumors have suggested at least some models of the iPhone 6 might feature a durable sapphire display and both the 4.7 and 5.5-inch iPhone 6 are expected to see camera improvements. The larger 5.5-inch iPhone 6 might incorporate Optical Image Stabilization as a differentiating feature from the 4.7-inch iPhone 6, and it is also possible that the larger iPhone 6 will be the only model with a 128GB storage capacity, which has been mentioned in rumors and seen in leaked schematics. As a result, the larger phone might have a higher price tag.

Images of a completed logic board have suggested the 4.7-inch iPhone 6 will continue to offer 16GB of storage space at the low end, along with 1GB of RAM, support for NFC, and a Qualcomm MDM9625M LTE Modem that supports speeds of up to 150 Mbps. Specifications for the larger 5.5-inch iPhone remain unknown, but the device will likely include many of the same components.

New iPad 3: all the latest details

2012-03-07T21:52:00.002+02:00

The new iPad launch kicked off at 10am PT/6pm GMT on Wednesday 7 March.

Browse back through our new iPad launch liveblog - or read on for a roundup of all the new iPad announcements.

Before talking about the new iPad, Apple's Tim Cook unveiled anupdated Apple TV box, bringing 1080p video streaming to the device which has a release date of 16 March and a price of $99. We've got the lowdown in our Apple TV: what you need to know post.

But it's the new iPad that grabbed the headlines:

New iPad announced
Apple has announced the new iPad to the world, featuring a raft of new tech over the previous version including a super high-res screen.
Read New iPad announced: Retina display confirmed for the full details.

Apple slates Samsung in new iPad keynote
Apple had a bit of a pop at Samsung at the launch of the new iPad with Tim Cook dissing the look of the apps on a Samsung Galaxy Tab when compared with apps on an iPad.
Read Apple slates Samsung in new iPad keynote to see what Cook said.

New iPad release date revealed
The new iPad release date is 16 March, with pre-orders starting from today. New iPad prices are as follows: 32GB is $599 and 64GB for $699.
For more details and additional prices, read New iPad release date revealed

New iPad: everything you need to know
OK, we now have all the details of Apple's new iPad which comes complete with the new iOS 5.1.
Read New iPad: everything you need to know for, well, everything you need to know.

New iPad: where can I get it?
The new iPad has been announced, and we've been in contact with all the UK networks to see who is stocking it.
Hit New iPad: where can I get it? if you're itching to buy one.

New iPad 'better than Xbox 360 and PS3'
Whoah. The new iPad has a better screen resolution and more memory than both the Xbox 360 and the PS3? But those aren't exactly new consoles, are they?
More: New iPad 'better than Xbox 360 and PS3'

Garageband, iMovie and iPhoto land on new iPad
Garageband and other iLife for OS apps have been shown off at Apple's new iPad event.
More: Garageband, iMovie and iPhoto land on new iPad

Below are the rumours that we reported on before the new iPad was revealed.

The web was teeming with rumours about the new iPad 3 / iPad HD processor, cameras and display, so we gathered together as many details as we can on its possible specifications ahead of the launch.

Of course, some of these can be taken with a pinch of salt, but there's definite patterns occurring and we'd say the final iPad 3 release won't be that far removed from many of these rumours.

It's time to place your bets, what do you think the iPad 3 / iPad HD will bring? But wait, what's this - Sky Bet has pulled its iPad 3 betting after certain trends occurred: "If the money is correct, then the new hardware will definitely not have a new carbon fibre casing, will not be called the iPad 2S and will have 128GB of storage!".

Steam Power – Water Cycle In Boilers

2012-03-05T22:06:00.002+02:00

Steam power - water cycle In steam boilers

Steam boiler at a power plant

High purity water for steam boilers
Power generation plants vary widely in size but most power plants share the same requirements for pure water. Raw water enters the power generation plant and is purified through several stages of filtration and demineralization.

This continuous stream of purified waterbecomes the steam boiler feed water. The boiler generates steam that drives the turbines to generate electricity. Some of the steam is also used to preheat the high purity boiler feed water. Ultimately, the steam is collected as condensate, mixed with pure make-up water, preheated and recirculated as steam boiler feed water.

Unfortunately, high purity water is corrosive to steam boiler and condensate systems. In addition, leaks in the system can add unwanted chemicals that increase corrosion potential. For example, in the condenser, raw cooling water can leak into pure water.

To counter these effects, trace level corrosion inhibitors and oxygen scavengers are typically added to the steam boiler feed water to reduce these risks. Effective chemical treatment of the boiler feed water is critical to maintaining the steam boiler and condensate systems and protecting the capital investment of the power generation facility.

Rather than determining corrosion occurrence over a period of time using an outdated technique, corrosion can now be monitored like any other process variable (i.e., pressure, flow, level, temperature, pH) by the power plant operator.

Steam condensate reclamation Steam is used in almost all industrial boilers. Steam generated in the boiler plant is transferred to the various facilities in different pressure ranges. As energy is consumed from the steam, condensate is formed, and returned to the steam boiler plant for reuse. Steam in the boiler plant is produced from water of very high purity.

Steam condensate application challenge
Steam condenstate is collected and returned back to the boiler. It needs to be re-treated as it often acquires particulates that will cause scaling, pitting, or corrosion of the boiler tubes. Unless this condition is corrected, the steam boiler will need to be rebuilt, with extensive downtime and high costs.

Steam condensate application solution
Depending on the size and type of steam boiler, CorrTran MV corrosion monitoringshould be installed in a location that is most susceptible to corrosion. CorrTran MV evaluates both general and localized (pitting) corrosion, as well as conductivity, in the same industrialized transmitter housing.

The use of aspirin

2012-03-04T12:18:00.005+02:00

Aspirin is one of the most common drugs in use today. It has been in use since the 1890’s and has proven to be a drug of many uses in that time.

What is aspirin?

Aspirin is the general name for acetylsalicylic acid (ASA); it is also the trademark of the drug produced by Bayer in Germany. In eighty countries, aspirin is a registered trademark, but in other places the term aspirin refers to ASA by itself or as an ingredient in other drugs.

The synthetic drug was developed as an analgesic (painkiller) and this is still the main purpose of the drug in most people’s minds. It was the first NSAID (nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug), and probably still the most effective.

Two complete families of drugs have been developed from ASA in the years since 1897.

How does it work?

When you are injured, your body produces prostaglandins which are complex fatty acids that act like hormones within body tissues. Prostaglandins act by stimulating the dilation (getting bigger) of blood vessels and muscle contraction; they are also the start of you feeling pain.

Aspirin appears to stop the production of prostaglandins by attaching to an enzyme, and thus stops the pain message reaching your brain. By reducing the production of a prostaglandin called thromboxane, aspirin can also prevent blood clotting and acts as an anticoagulant. This is an important clinical use in heart patients.

As aspirin is absorbed into the blood stream, it can travel to all parts of the body; prostaglandin production is high only in injured areas so aspirin is only effective in those areas and thus relieves the pain wherever it is felt.

By preventing prostaglandin production, aspirin is also reducing some necessary body functions. A single tablet every so often won’t have much impact on these functions, but care must be taken in regular users. Taking aspirin for pain relief for a wound can actually slow healing as platelets can’t clot to form scabs. Drugs based on aspirin, such as ibuprofen, naproxen and acetaminophen (Tylenol,) have been developed to avoid some of these adverse effects.

What is it used for?

During its history, aspirin has been found to have a number of uses besides pain relief. Many experiments have been carried out to test aspirin’s abilities in various areas and potential side effects, and some areas are still under investigation.

Current uses of aspirin include:

v Over-the-counter pain relief, especially for headaches

v Reduction of swelling and inflammation in arthritis and injuries

v Anti-coagulant given to sufferers of heart attack, mini-stroke and unstable angina

v Can reduce severity of heart attack if taken at first symptoms

v Recovery after cardiovascular surgery (eg bypass operation)

v Treatment of rheumatoid arthritis, osteoarthritis and other rheumatoid diseases

Possible benefits of aspirin are being researched in:

v Migraine treatment

v Improving circulation in the gums

v Fighting ovarian, breast and colon cancer

v Prevention of cataracts

v Controlling pre-eclampsia

v Improving brain function, especially memory

v Reducing colorectal cancer repeating

v Prevention of adult leukaemia

v Prevention of HIV replicating

v Reduce prostrate cancer risk

v Increasing success rates of IVF programs

Is it suitable for everyone to use?

In short, no it isn’t.

Aspirin isn’t advised for the following groups without medical advice:

v Children under 16

v Asthmatics

v Women in last trimester of pregnancy (can bring on labour & harm baby)

v Anyone under 20 with a fever

v People with bleeding disorders

v Anyone with an ulcer or persistent stomach problems

v Diabetics on medication

v Breastfeeding mothers

v Heavy alcohol drinkers

v Healthy people for more than ten days

v G6P deficiency diseases

v Reduced kidney function or liver disease

v People on low sodium diets (buffered aspirin tablets contain sodium)

Are there any side effects?

Like all drugs, there are some risks of side effects from aspirin. Many are uncommon enough to be considered an acceptable risk for most patients, but there are some significant risks attached. Healthy people using aspirin occasionally as directed are unlikely to develop serious side effects.

The use of aspirin in children and teenagers with a fever, especially after a viral infection, has been associated with the development of a potentially fatal condition called Reye Syndrome. For that reason, it is recommended to NEVER GIVE ASPIRIN TO ANYONE UNDER THE AGE OF 16 or to anyone under 20 who has a fever.

Overdoses with aspirin are quite common and it is essential to keep them out of reach of children.

Aspirin can irritate the stomach, leading to nausea and vomiting, so it is best taken with or just after food. Other problems may be ringing in the ears, excessive bleeding, heartburn, indigestion and allergic reactions.

Analgesics like aspirin are excreted via the kidneys, and thus have the power to damage the kidneys and long term, low dose usage reduces renal function. Certain medical conditions and heavy drinking increase the risk of kidney damage.

Note: NEVER take aspirin if it has a vinegary smell as this means it is “off”.

Aspirin is an effective, useful drug when taken as directed and/or under medical supervision; however, it needs to be treated with respect.

Antibiotics

2012-03-04T12:18:00.002+02:00

It is unlikely that you have never used any antibiotics, and virtually impossible that you haven’t heard of them.

Antibiotics are drugs that can only be obtained through a pharmacy by prescription. There is a wide range of antibiotics available and the Doctor will choose the one best suited t the time and in the appropriate does.

Sometimes people don’t understand why they did or didn’t get an antibiotic prescription, or why theirs was different to someone else’s. Some basic knowledge about antibiotics may help reduce such confusion.

What are Antibiotics?

In simple terms, antibiotics are chemicals that kill bacteria. There are other chemicals that can kill bacteria; the difference is that antibiotics are naturally produced, rather than invented by humans.

The first antibiotic, penicillin, was extracted and used in clinical trials in the 1940s and made a huge difference to the capabilities of medical personnel, especially during WWII. A more refined version of penicillin is still the most effective antibiotic available for general use.

Penicillin is naturally occurring in the mould you see on oranges, but many antibiotics prescribed today are synthetic and commercially produced. There are many antibiotics produced naturally, but many are either toxic to humans or of no greater effect than existing ones; some antibiotics are used in other ways.

Research continues to refine different antibiotics to maximise their effectiveness with minimal side effects.

Interesting Note: Penicillin is actually toxic to Guinea Pigs. If the trials of this antibiotic had been conducted on guinea pigs, the drug may never have left the labs.

How do antibiotics work?

There are different classes of antibiotics and each works in a different way.

All antibiotics work by destroying part of the bacteria or its life cycle; some weaken the cell walls, some prevent replication and others inhibit enzyme activity. Some highly effective antibiotics aren’t used because they do the same damage to human cells; antibiotic action needs to be selective in some way to be useful.

It is by identifying which bacteria is causing a problem in the patient that a Doctor is able to select the most appropriate antibiotic to use in each case; each bacteria is more susceptible to one class of antibiotic than others.

Antibiotics can kill bacteria other than those which are targeted; naturally occurring bacteria in the body may be killed along with the invading bacteria causing illness. The death of these useful bacteria can have a number of affects on your body: normal processes such as digestion may be interrupted; your body has less resistance to a subsequent attack; and various systems will be out of balance.

Eating yoghurt containing live bacteria such as lactobacilli helps replace some of the beneficial bacteria inadvertently killed.

Antibiotics can NOT kill viruses and thus are useless in fighting colds, flu, chicken pox and other viral diseases. Disease causing viruses are much harder to destroy as they are embedded within the human cells, so destroying one also destroys the other.

Why finish the packet?

Many antibiotics have a quick effect as they kill off the bulk of bacteria rapidly and you begin to feel better. At this stage, people often think they are better and stop taking their antibiotics.

However, as antibiotics work on the replication process in many cases, there may be new cells not killed so quickly. If you continue taking the antibiotics, all new cells developing will be killed as well; antibiotic prescriptions are timed to be appropriate for how that particular antibiotic works.

Think of it this way: a child being toilet trained will need reminders and assistance even after a couple of successes. The training goes beyond an apparent finish until there is a real achievement.

Taking part of the prescribed amount instead of all of it is likely to result in a flare up shortly afterwards.

Antibiotics have saved many, many lives and give us security in our daily lives. As long as we respect their power and use them wisely, antibiotics will serve us well for many years to come.

Neural Tube Defects

2012-03-04T12:17:00.002+02:00

Within the first four weeks of pregnancy, the embryo forms and closes a neural tube. This tube becomes the spine and brain of the developing child. If the tube doesn’t close correctly, the baby is said to have a neural tube defect (NTD).

There are two main types of NTD – spina bifida, where the spinal cord isn’t closed properly, and anencephaly, where the brain isn’t closed off. Spina bifida children are paralysed to varying degrees and usually have learning difficulties as well; anencephaly children die during pregnancy or soon afterwards.

NTDs can be tested for at about 16 – 18 weeks of pregnancy, and they catch most cases if they use ultrasound and the triple test.

Who has NTD babies?

Unfortunately, NTD babies can happen to anyone – 95% of cases are in families without a previous history of NTDs.

However, there are some factors that make it more likely for the woman to conceive a NTD baby:

Having had a NTD baby in a previous pregnancy makes it twenty times more likely subsequent children will have one, too
Being obese – as defined by a doctor, not just being overweight
Experiencing high body temperatures in early pregnancy. This could be due to a fever or sitting in a hot spa or sauna (not recommended for pregnant women anyway.)
Taking some anti-seizure drugs. If you are epilectic or require these drugs for other reasons, discuss whether you need to change medication before getting pregnant.
Having insulin dependant diabetes
Hispanic people have a higher rate of NTD

Prevention

As NTDs develop in the first 4 to 6 weeks of pregnancy, they often happen before the woman is even aware of being pregnant so prevention needs to occur before pregnancy.

Obviously, anything that takes you out of the risk groups listed above will cut down the chances of having a NTD baby.

The biggest means of reducing the risk, however, is by simply taking 400 micrograms of folate (or folic acid.)

Daily doses of folic acid in the month before conception and for at least three months after conception reduce the risk of NTD by 70%. That means, that for every 10 children who would have developed a NTD, 7 of them can be prevented with folate.

Considering that about half of all pregnancies are unplanned and that folate is needed so early in pregnancy, it is important that women who may become pregnant take folate daily. Research is also showing other health benefits from taking folate daily so it is in everyone’s interests for this to happen.

Unfortunately, only about one third of women are getting enough folate in their diets. Many foods are now fortified with folate; some cereals actually have the daily requirements in each serve.

25 Interview Questions

2012-03-04T12:16:00.002+02:00

Whether it’s your first interview for your first job or another interview after years of working, going to an interview is nerve wrecking.

To have been given an interview, you either presented well in your resume or have been recommended to the position. In both cases, you can take some confidence from the fact that you were short listed from potentially hundreds of applicants.

In order to give yourself the best presentation, considering what will be discussed at the interview can help. Even better is to do some role playing with a friend playing the role of an interviewer.

Take the time to really consider the following questions and how you could answer them to best effect. Even if they don’t come up in your interview, maybe you will learn some thing useful for yourself!

What is your greatest strength?
What is your greatest weakness?
How do you organise yourself?
What are the important elements of customer service? (and don’t ignore this question just because you aren’t going to be a salesperson)
Give an example of when you had to negotiate with a difficult customer
Can you do {insert relevant skill}? Practise this question for a skill you can’t do …
Where do you expect to be in five years time?
Why did you leave your last position? (keep it positive)
What was best about your previous job(s)?
What did you least like about your previous job?
What salary are you after?
What appeals to you about this job? Or Why are you applying for this job?
Tell us about yourself
What were you doing during this gap in your resume?
You changed careers; why?
How do you handle stress and deadlines?
How do you go about making serious decisions?
What is your biggest achievement in life?
How do you manage multiple tasks at once?
Why did you decide on this career/industry?
What is your ideal job?
Show an example of working with a colleague you didn’t like
How do you characterise your working (or supervisory) style?
What professional organizations do you belong to? How actively do you participate in them?
Are you computer literate? How competent are you in (software type)?

Some of those questions need to be answered carefully so that you are remaining positive and constructive.

For instance, an accountant I know answers that his greatest weakness is being too pedantic about details; of course, employers want an accountant to be details conscious so this puts him in a good light.

With thought and planning, you can turn hard questions to your advantage.

Top Ten Tips to resume writing for professionals

2012-03-04T12:15:00.002+02:00

Unless you are going for a job through a contact, you are likely to require a resume. Of course, the prospective employer will receive many resumes for each job vacancy and towards the end of each school year.

The job of a resume is to get you into an interview; it will not get you the position, so you don’t need to include every detail as you will be able to expand on the resume in the interview.

So, you need your resume to say all the right things about you.

Above all else, consider the basics: it must be typed, on decent paper, in order, spelt correctly and up-to-date. This all applies to the cover letter as well. Avoid anything that may be offensive or considered unprofessional or tacky; this is not the time to showcase your sense of humour or talent at cartoons.

Ensure your contact details are permanent and present professionally; for instance, choose an email address that is simple rather than cute or funny. Use the address of your parents or friends if you don’t have a stable home for the next few weeks.

Set it out clearly and logically. Let each section lead onto the next and have headings to separate sections. Have space around and between the sections so it is easy to read and scan.

Never assume knowledge in the reader, so include the details. Instead of writing “worked as an engineer for 6 months” write “worked at XYZ Company as an electrical engineer between 1/1/03 and 30/6/03.” Make it easy to understand and trust your information.

Keep it relevant.Sure you may have worked as a supermarket cleaner as a teenager, but that won’t help you win a job as Accounting Supervisor as a thirty year old. Of course, new graduates may need to list such part time jobs until they gain more relevant experience.

If all qualified widget makers belong automatically to the widget guild, you needn’t mention it. However, if only selected widget makers are admitted, then it is worth mentioning – assuming widget making is related to the position you are applying for!

Make it as short as possible – nobody wants to, or is likely to, read a long resume. If you can’t shorten it, consider a summary page with all contact details and a timeline of experience and qualifications. Alternatively or jointly, make sure the resume has clear sub headings so that the overall pattern can be seen and the detailed bits can be read if desired.

Present the resume professionally. That is, avoid the use of:

Ø fancy fonts that are hard to read

Ø a mixture of fonts

Ø italics and underlining, except for document titles

Ø pretty graphics – unless you are a graphic artist after a graphics position

Ø chatty and casual sentences

Describe the major tasks from each work experience listed, but do so briefly and in formal tones. For instance, “Assisted in research and analytical reports for mechanical engineering department” or “Lead a team of eight in a two year project to develop a new in-house software program.”

Make your headings and job titles tell a story and then you’ll need less description. Describe your past experience as “Computerised Account Recorder” or “Sales and Service Manager for State X”, rather than “account clerk” or “Sales representative.”

Qualify your tasks where this enhances your appeal. National Coordinator tells more than coordinator, as does “managed accounts for 1,000 suppliers” compared to “managed supplier accounts.”

List your skills in terms of the benefit to an employer. Would you choose the person who has “worked on quality assurance issues” or who has “reduced costs by 20% in the human relations department”? Think about how your skills can benefit the employer and tell him or her!

Ideally, your resume should be rewritten for each position you apply for. Thus, you can highlight the relevant parts for that employer – reorganise points so the most important is first and bold certain elements to stand out.

Analyse each ad or company and tailor the resume and cover letter accordingly. Each employer has specific wants and needs for the position, so your resume must assure them that you can fill their criteria, and more.

What is Networking?

2012-03-04T12:10:00.002+02:00

Funny how one little word can cause so many to cringe and others to be confused, and yet be such a useful tool for successful businesses.

Maybe you dread it because of a bad experience, or you’ve heard bad reports or maybe you think you are too shy for it; perhaps you don’t really know what networking is.

What is networking, really?

If you want to catch fish, you would not use long pieces of string individually; a single string won’t help you. However, when a number of strings are tied together as a net, they can catch many fish.

Essentially, business networking is the same; by interconnecting with other businesses, each one increases its ability to catch prospective clients.

The Concise Oxford Dictionary defines it as a ‘chain of interconnected persons’ which really describes most of your everyday life; business networking is simply recognising a normal process as a useful tool.

Why should I network?

The best networks are built on relationships between the people who own and run businesses.

The obvious impact of networking relationships is that people trust you and may use your service or product at some time. In this sense, networking is useful but has limited scope unless you spend a lot of time talking to other business owners.

Beyond this, networking can do much more for your business. Within a networking relationship, trust and knowledge is built between business people. By learning about other businesses, you are able to refer them to your clients who want something you can’t offer.

On a purely business level, the advantages to you of promoting another’s business are:

☺ You earn goodwill from that business, thus increasing your chance of serving them at some point

☺ Your customers will be happy to find what they are after easily and with a recommendation – this is called value adding and will build customer loyalty

☺ Providing more to customers increase the likelihood of them praising you to others

☺ Your networking partner(s) will also be promoting you at appropriate times

Whenever your business is recommended to another person, this is called word of mouth advertising and it is the most powerful form of advertising there is.

By networking, you are also increasing the range of people who can hear about your business. You may be able to tell three people a week about your business; a group of ten people may each tell one person a week about your business. That has already increased your exposure by about three times!

On a different level, by networking you are exposing yourself to new people and new ideas, and potentially gaining support and resources for your own business. Belonging to a good networking group can be a major factor in business growth.

How do I network?

Every time you speak to someone about your business you may well be networking. Networking is all about talking to people and spreading the word about your business.

You can limit your networking to casual conversations with friends, acquaintances and local business owners, or you can take a more formal approach.

There is a wide variety of networking options available:

☺ Join an online business community – either a general business site or one related to your particular area

☺ Join a formal networking group – these groups meet regularly and limit membership to one of each business type

☺ Attend networking functions – such functions are run by various bodies, including formal and online networking communities, and often include a guest speaker. Some are members only and most incur a charge.

☺ Join a community group of business people working in the community – this is not a business network as such but is a great opportunity to contribute as well as meet people with common interests

☺ Arrange some cross promotions with complementary businesses – perhaps have some of each others’ business cards available for clients or share some ad space in an expensive magazine.

Thus, networking is of great benefit to a business and can provide support as well; it can even be fun! And you don’t have to be an outgoing person for it to be effective; honesty and an interest in others are all you need to succeed.

Being a Professional

2012-03-04T12:09:00.003+02:00

It doesn’t matter if you work for yourself or a boss, there are expectations that you will be professional in the course of business.

But what is professional behaviour?

Most people would probably find it easier to tell you what being unprofessional is, giving examples of unprofessional people they have dealt with in the past. However, it is much easier and more positive to know what to do than not to do.

Thus, some major aspects of professional behaviour are listed below:

Respect for Others

Showing others respect is the basis of all professional behaviour. It includes:

Being courteous and having good manners
Being punctual
Keeping confidential details confidential
Being fair in all dealings
Keeping personal opinions of people private
Doing what needs to be done, not leaving it for others to do
Acceptance of constructive criticism
Being fair and gentle when giving feedback
Dealing with sensitive issues privately
Make allowances for other’s mistakes
Listen to others
Apologise for any errors or misunderstandings
Speak clearly and in language others can easily understand

Responsibility and Integrity

This is where you must take care of yourself and present yourself in order to gain others’ trust and respect.

All professionals need to take responsibility for themselves and their work. They need to consider consequences and the impact on others.

Honesty is crucial – avoid even the smallest of lies at all costs
If you commit to something, then follow through with it
If you are delayed, let the other person know as soon as possible
Always be respectful about competing businesses/people – point out your benefits rather than their faults
Be prepared before meetings and when presenting reports and the like
Ensure you have made yourself clear to avoid any miscommunication
Avoid conflicts of interest
Be impartial – keep personal bias and intolerances out of the business world
Be reliable and dependable
Take appropriate actions, rather than trying to hurt someone or their business when you feel wronged
Ensure you present yourself pleasantly with good hygiene and appropriate dress codes.
Pay for services and products promptly, whatever the cost to yourself
Demonstrate self-control and avoid public arguments and disagreements

Commitment to Quality

A professional always aims to give the best they can. Whether it is putting together a product that will last and be safe to use or providing a service of value, you need to do give the customer more than they expect.

Never give out work you are not proud to have your name on and always do your best work, and the results will reflect these attitudes.

Commitment beyond yourself

A professional can see beyond him or herself and is willing to share.

Some ways to give to others in a professional capacity are as follows:

Take on an apprentice or student
Participate in professional organizations you belong to
Volunteer services to a worthy community or charity group
Encourage conservation within your work place
Join networking groups and help the members
Have referral systems in place with competitors for busy periods and complementary services

Essentially, being professional is about seeing beyond the immediate needs. By thinking about the long term perceptions of you and your business, rather than a quick dollar or score, you are likely to behave professionally.

Business Bank Account

2012-03-04T12:08:00.002+02:00

Most new businesses are run on a tight budget, and everyone knows that having an extra bank account will cost more in fees. So how should a new business deal with its money?

Why Have a Business Account?

Having a separate account for your business and personal finances makes accounting much simpler. Your business records will (hopefully!) tally exactly with the bank records if the account is solely for business use. This helps you keep track of where your business is, financially, and be easier to prepare reports, tax returns and BAS statements.

Assuming that at least some of your income will be gathered in the form of cheques, a business account also simplifies deposits. A cheque made out to Business DEF can’t be accepted into your personal account; your invoices must clearly state “please make all cheques out to R Smith” and even then you may get DEF cheques that you can’t easily deposit.

As a sole trader, cheques made out to the business name and your personal name can be accepted into your business account.

Don’t forget that all bank fees in your business account can be claimed as expenses in your tax returns, too.

Which Business Account do I need?

Each bank and credit union will have its own business account, or accounts, for you to look at. All have a different fee structure to those in personal accounts; you are likely to have to pay a fee for each deposit, withdrawal and cheque.

It is best to look at a number of accounts and compare them in terms of your own business. For instance, if your business will receive many cheques and pay out money infrequently, an account with low deposit fees will suit you better; a business receiving direct deposits or few and large payments may not worry about low deposit fees if the monthly fee is low.

Before looking at potential accounts too closely, plan out the types of transactions you anticipate in each month. Having this guide will allow you to make realistic comparisons between accounts.

Some factors to consider in choosing your business account are:

v Monthly fees

v Deposit fees, including additional charges for depositing cheques

v Access modes (eg will you get an ATM card?)

v Is there a credit option? Either credit card or overdraft facility

v Withdrawal fees – including for bpay, direct debits, over counter and cheques

v Convenience – where is the nearest branch? Nearest ATM? Is it easy to transfer to/from your personal account?

v Can you access net banking? Phone banking?

v Costs for money conversions if you have/expect many overseas transactions

v Does it pay interest? Note many business accounts don’t pay interest, or at least not on small balances

Note ALL cheque accounts incur a tax on every withdrawal. This is a government tax and will be the same for all financial institutions.

How do I get a Business Account?

Once you have selected your account, you will need to visit the bank and set it up. Some of the set up may be possible online, depending on the bank, but there is paper work to be handled that must be done in a branch.

All business accounts require a Business Name Search before it can be fully operational. This is to check that it is a legitimate business and that you have the right to set up the account. Most places charge you $40 to $50 for this, which is mostly a statutory charge for the actual search.

To open an account you will need:

v Copy of Business Name Certificate (some places want this, others don’t)

v Copy of ABN confirmation

v Personal identification (100 points worth as per opening any account. Some examples for this are your licence, passport, existing bank account details, Medicare card, utility bill and a birth certificate.)

v Money for an initial deposit. The money required will be at least $50 to cover the name search; each bank will have a different minimum amount depending on the account features.

v A completed application form with the name, address, contact details and birth date of each account holder included.

How to Make Vista Run Faster

2012-02-27T22:50:00.002+02:00

1. Introduction

‘The Wow starts Now’, was the catch-cry at Vista’s lavish launch early in 2007. The campaign was slick and glossy, but it didn’t take long for users to complain in droves that Vista was as slow as a wet week, a resource hog and painful to work with. The cool aero-glass look wasn’t enough to offset the pain. The verdict: Vista was a cane toad in fancy drag.

Microsoft’s infrequent responses reflected, with crystal clarity, the company’s arrogance. ‘Frankly, the world wasn't 100 percent ready for Windows Vista,’ was how one spokesperson put it. Mostly, Microsoft ignored the howls of protest because it knew that Vista would sell up a storm regardless, because it gets installed on almost every new PC sold.

By mid-year, the rousing chorus chanting that the Wow had become a mere whisper stung Microsoft into action. A new campaign was launched: ‘100 Reasons You’ll be Speechless.’ The marketing hype took enormous liberties with the truth and failed to mention the heavy slug of the Vista upgrade price or the cost of the extra hardware needed to run it.

By the end of 2007, most of the early wrinkles - including missing drivers - had been ironed out via various updates, but Vista’s poor performance remained. Those who hope for Service Pack 1 to improve things will be out of luck, as the tests at this site show. Service Pack 3 for Windows XP, on the other hand, showed a 10% improvement.

Reality bites

Vista’s advantages over XP are largely cosmetic, despite what Microsoft says, while some of its drawbacks are very real. For a light-hearted take on this comparison, check this story which uses reality inversion to great effect by introducing XP as the successor to Vista and going on and on about the many improvements XP introduces.

Bottom Line: If you have a well-working XP set-up on your PC, keep it. There’s little you can achieve with Vista that you can’t do faster with XP. If you run professional graphics applications, the lack of support for the OpenGL graphics library under Windows Vista is an extra handicap. The same applies to CPU-intensive applications like video transcoding, where Vista lags a long way behind XP.

The old XP theme doesn’t look too bad if you change the blue borders for silver ones (Control

Panel>Display>Themes) and replace the green lawn with a pretty picture (right-click on picture>set as desktop background). If you’re still hankering after Vista’s eye-candy, there’s plenty of it and it’s mostly free.

Vista Style is a popular choice. Vista transformation pack is another. Be warned that some of these transformations can have unintended effects on system stability.

If you still have your heart set on Vista, the best way to avoid the steep upgrade price is to buy it with a new PC. My Vista Business edition came with a bargain Compaq Presario laptop I bought on sale (twin AMD Turion cpus, 1gb of RAM, nVidia go 6100 graphics).

"Vista makes using your PC a breeze"

This is one of the first of the ‘100 Reasons you’ll be speechless’. It did that alright because, fresh out of the box, Vista Business took many minutes to reveal its full glory, the long periods of darkness relieved occasionally by the mouse pointer appearing with the circle spinning like a top.

About performance, the 100 reasons list says this: ‘New technology in Windows Vista makes your PC significantly more responsive while you are performing everyday tasks. Improved start-up and sleep behavior helps both desktop and mobile PCs get up and running more quickly ...’

Don’t believe a word of it - Vista runs many more services than XP and uses far more resources as it looks after itself. That’s no surprise, since new Windows releases have always been heftier than previous versions, and Microsoft’s architects have always relied on Intel to restore performance. Put another way, ‘whatever Intel giveth, Microsoft taketh away.’

"It’s the Safest Version of Windows Ever"

This is the third reason in Microsoft’s 100 reasons campaign. With Microsoft’s poor track record in security, that’s not saying much. Vista’s User Account Control, the great new security feature here, is about as well-thought out as Bush’s invasion of Iraq.

What is the point of forcing a user (who is also the administrator) to re-enter the same password she started the system with, over and over again, and going all dark on her every time she wants to do something? It’s worse than the constant pop-ups in XP that warn us not to open files from un-trusted sources (including those from Microsoft). At least that made you stop and think. UAC just makes you mad.

And Vista still needs the same old security software to keep it protected, despite Microsoft’s assurances to the contrary. More of that further down.

2. Optimize Windows Vista for better performance

That’s the title of one of the articles Microsoft has dribbled out of late to address the issue. It shows clearly that Microsoft is still in denial, preferring to blame the user: ‘That state-of-the-art PC you bought last year might not feel like such a screamer after you install a dozen programs, load it with anti-spyware and anti-virus tools, and download untold amounts of junk from the Internet.’

That’s adding serious insult to grave injury, but the court jesters at Redmond aren’t done yet: ‘Sometimes changing your computing behavior can have a big impact on your PC's performance. If you’re the type of computer user who likes to keep eight programs and a dozen browser windows open at once—all while instant messaging your friends—don’t be surprised if your PC bogs down.’

There you have it, you pitiful dumb users. The final insult for this user who bought a brand-new laptop with Vista Business installed is this piece of advice: ‘If your PC is rated lower than 2 or 3 [on the Vista Experience Scale], it might be time to consider a new PC ...’

The Vista Experience Index

In the Control Panel, clicking on ‘Performance Information’ leads to a panel where Vista offers to rate the Presario's performance. Taking up that option produces an ‘Experience Index’, which holds up numbers like those sullen judges who rate Olympic ice skaters.

You’d assume that the score is on a scale of 5 but it turns out to be out of 5.9, a number only the King's architects could conjure up, isolated as they are in their tall towers at Redmond. They say it's the nVIDIA GeForce Go 6150 integrated graphics chip that's letting the side down, which I’m not ready to accept. For one, the Presario handles Ubuntu’s Emerald’s aero-glass and compiz-fusion 3D with no dramas of any kind.

When you explore 'learn how to improve your computer's performance', you’ll find that Vista's first suggestion is turning off the aero-glass. Microsoft’s article makes the same suggestion, but why would you turn off the WOW already? Isn’t that why you bought Vista in the first place?

Getting rid of excess baggage

Let’s move on. Our tweaks are for simple users with a working knowledge of Windows. Most involve turning off various services Vista starts automatically, whether you need them or not. To follow the simple instructions here, please choose ‘Classic View’ on the left hand side of the Control Panel.

We’re not going near the Windows Registry, where one wrong move could stop Vista dead in its tracks - we’ll keep it nice and simple.

The first candidate for deletion is the Vista Welcome screen. This is an easy checkbox at the bottom left of the screen.

Vista’s Sidebar is also on by default. I like a sidebar but Vista’s gadgets are on the garish side and ill-matched. You can turn the Sidebar off by right-clicking the Windows Sidebar icon in the system tray> Properties>Uncheck the Start Sidebar when Windows starts box.

User Account Control is the next item on our list: Control Panel>User Accounts>Turn User Account Control on or off. Uncheck the box that says ‘Use User Account Control to protect your computer ...’

Stop auto-start applications

The simplest way to do this is to run Windows Defender>Tools>Software Explorer. Go down the list and disable the start-up services you don’t need. This is one of the few useful suggestions made in the Microsoft piece.

If you’ve already installed a security suite that includes spyware protection, you may want to turn Windows Defender off as well. Bring up Windows Defender from the main menu, click on Tools>Options, scroll to the bottom of the long panel until you see the ‘Administrator Options’, uncheck the ‘Use Windows Defender’ box and click SAVE. Confirm in the pop-up panel that you mean it, click Close, and you're all set.

If your security suite includes a firewall, you should turn Vista’s firewall off. Some security suites do this for you – check Control Panel>Windows Firewall.

Other candidates

Microsoft’s article suggests uninstalling programs that are no longer needed, and getting rid of excess files. That’s like saying that washing your car will make it go faster. The advice to restart you PC at least once a week hints at users who’ve grown tired of waiting for Vista to boot up and shut down.

User Account Control is a pain and a drain on resources. UAC’s primary purpose is to stop users from doing dumb things, like downloading suspect files or programs from unsavory sources. If you use common sense, download files only from reliable sources and have decent security software on board, there’s no need for Vista’s heavy chastity belt.

Vista has a new search feature which replaces that useless puppy of old, but it indexes your files in the background to make searches more snappy.

If you use Google or Copernic desktop search, you can turn this feature off. The easiest way is to open the Control Panel>Programs and Features>Turn Windows features on or off.

Google desktop offers a sidebar as well. Right-click on the Google Search icon in the notification area (bottom right of screen), tick the sidebar option and choose your gadgets. If you choose carefully, they’ll look neater than Vista’s garish collection.

Vista’s built-in disk defrag utility is enabled and set to keep your files tidy in the background. This is overhead and overkill, and Vista’s defragger does a pretty poor job anyway. You can turn it off this way: Control Panel>Performance information and tools>Advanced Tools>Open Disk Defragmenter. Uncheck ‘Run on a schedule’.

Automatic backup is another candidate for deletion. It works in the background to back up files as you work. It’s a nice idea but you may not have an external drive, or you don’t have it connected all the time, or you’re running Vista on a laptop and backup your work when you get home. Most likely, you already have your favourite backup and defrag programs sorted out.

Antivirus Software can bog a PC down faster than a mud slide. Norton, McAfee and Trend Micro used to be the worst offenders but Zone Alarm Internet Security Suite is the new champ. The suites that have the lightest footprint and interfere the least are ESET NOD32/ESS, Avira/Antivir and AVG. The first two also provide the best malware protection currently available.

Laptop Users have found that Vista sucks battery juice like a Hummer guzzles gas. So much for Vista smarter power management capabilities. I said that Aero-glass wasn’t a big drain on performance but it is a drain on batteries because the video is doing the work, and the video card consumes power.

When you want to get the most out of your batteries, turn off the aero-gloss. You’d assume that you do this under Personalization but Microsoft likes to play hide-and-seek with us as usual – go to Performance Information>Adjust Visual Settings>Visual Effects and select the radio button next to ‘Adjust for best performance. That turns Vista Business into Vista Home Basic but it conserves precious juice.

Tuning for Performance

The easiest option on a PC with 1gb of RAM is to double it. A simpler and cheaper way to raise performance is Vista’s Ready Boost feature, which uses the flash memory of a USB stick as additional RAM. Simply plug the USB flash drive in and select My Computer, right-click on the USB drive, select the Ready Boost tab, choose ‘Use this device’ and select as much space as you can. 2gb is optimal for 1gb of RAM.

It makes a small difference to overall response, which will vary from PC to PC. I ran a simple benchmark often used by PC mags called PCMark05. Without the USB stick, PCMark05 came up with 2431. With a 2gb Cruzer flash drive, the number was 2741 – a 13% improvement. Not bad, but it doesn’t feel that much faster.

Bear in mind that flash drives vary dramatically in read/write speed, even the newer USB2 types. The Cruzer is among the faster ones but a Lexar Lightning might’ve come up with a slightly better number.

Disk Performance can be optimized for SATA disks, which are the norm these days. Here you can enable write-caching and advanced performance.

This will speed up disk access but it has a downside: if you lose power suddenly, you’ll loose whatever data was sitting in the cache at the time. If you’re running Vista on a laptop as I am, that’s okay since the batteries take over when the power cuts out.

To enable better hard disk performance, right-click on your hard drive in ‘My Computer’ and go to Hardware>Properties>Policies where you’ll find the check boxes we’re looking for.

Superfetch is a new Vista feature that learns your habits and pre-loads the apps you use most often and keeps them on stand-by after you close them. It makes start-up a little slower but speeds up launching programs. The experts say that superfetch needs 2gb of RAM to show a benefit, or at least a USB drive on Ready Boost. With systems running 1gb of RAM, the advice is to turn it off.

I tried both settings - Start>Run> type ‘services.msc’> scroll down to superfetch >right-click>properties>change startup type to disabled and status to stopped. Turning it off produced no improvement in speed of any kind. Against the odds, the Presario seems to run better with superfetch left on.

This is one of those things that comes down to individual set-ups: by the time I got this far down the list, I’d cut the number of running services down from over 70 to 45 (see below) and Vista was using just over 500mb of RAM instead of over 700 at idle. That meant I had some spare RAM left for superfetch to work on. On systems with less available RAM, it may slow things down – there’s only one way to find out.

The Page File is a small part of the hard disk Windows uses as ‘virtual memory’. In XP or Vista, you can adjust the size of the page file but just how much difference it makes is a hotly debated topic. Bring up the Control panel, choose System>Advanced System Settings. Choose Settings in the ‘Performance’ panel and then ‘Advanced’ in the Performance Options panel. Now you see a page file size, set to a minimum of 1500 here (if you have 1gb of RAM). Click on ‘Change’ and set the maximum number to 2500, then click ‘Set’ and ‘Apply’ and close the panels with OK. The common advice is to make the upper number 2.5 times the actual RAM.

That’s about it for the easy tweaks. By now you should have a Vista setup that works reasonably well. The next section explores an area that is more tedious but it may help to improve performance by another 10%. It’s the law of diminishing returns.

Serious Tweaks for Serious Types

Unless you’re a competent user, you might want to skip this section. When you turn on your system, Vista starts up a host of background services for applications you may never use – Network Printing or FAX and Smartcard services, for example, and offline files and tablet PC and blue tooth stuff. Most of Vista’s services are much more obtuse, and you’ll need a reliable guide to help you decide whether you do or don’t need them.

I used two guides to help me: this one from Black Viper's well known website, and another a stumbled on. The two guides don’t agree, which adds some drama to the tedious exercise. If in doubt, go with Black Viper’s ‘Safe’ settings, and don’t let the name put you off.

The second list is a bit more radical and best left alone unless you’re looking to trim every bit of excess fat from Vista’s bulk. If in doubt, don’t disable a service but set it to manual. That way, a program or service that depends on it can prod it into action.

To find the list of services you can use RUN and key in "services.msc", but a program like Starter from Codestuff is a better option.

Starter makes the job a little easier with one click descriptions of running programs, services and processes. Just double click on the service you highlight and a panel pops up telling you what it is. Starter also has a section where you can easily check the services that keep ingratiating themselves in the start-up process.

Unexpected Rewards

After hours of fiddling, we've got the number of start-up processes down to 45, and the RAM that Vista chews up just idling is down to 500mb. Another reboot produces a big surprise: the login panel pops up in about 40 seconds, and it takes another 50 to get ESET’s signature database updated, the icons on the desktop settled down and Google’s sidebar up and working. Google desktop/sidebar runs 3 processes and uses over 20mb of RAM so it has an impact on performance.

Still, programs are fast to launch and files quick to open, and I'm beginning to like using Vista rather than just admiring the show. What we have now is close to optimized XP performance, which is hard to believe after reading so many stories about Vista, the slug.

Most of it was easy. Just what difference disabling the extra services made is hard to measure but it gives Vista much-needed elbow room on a machine with 1GB of RAM.

Keeping the Edge

Windows tends to get clogged up over time, and Vista is no exception. It’s worth cleaning out temporary files, the gunk that builds up in applications and in Windows, but registry cleaners that boast of restoring your PC to as-new performance aren’t worth the money. The only software that boosts performance is a good disk defrag utility, and that doesn’t involve the risk of breaking the fine china in Windows’ special cabinet – the registry.

The experts say that the best way to rejuvenate Windows is to re-install it from scratch. For most of us, that’s about as much fun as doing tax returns. And it takes longer, given the time it takes to restore all your data and your programs, and to update Vista.

An easier way to do this is to take a snapshot of our trim, taut and terrific Vista installation with disk imaging software like Acronis True Image (or the free version of Seagate Disk Wizard, if one of your HDs is a Seagate or Maxtor drive).

My Presario didn’t come with a Vista install DVD – just a restore partition – so a disk image is essential. Now I have an easy and complete emergency option that restores my last optimized configuration, not the one HP put on the restore partition a year ago.

And remember, it’s not the stuff you pile on your hard drive that adds the performance-strangling bulk, it’s Windows. Just take a look at this chart I found on WikiPedia

The table doesn’t tell the whole truth, though: the specs given for XP above have increased dramatically over the last five years, after many updates and major revisions like Service pack 1 and 2. In fact, at the time of Vista’s release, Windows XP takes as much hardware to run well as is listed for Vista in the table above.

The old PC I’m writing this on reflects this trend perfectly: it started life back in 2002 with a 600mHz CPU, 128mb of RAM and a 20GB hard disk, which seemed overkill at the time. Several upgrades later, it runs a 2.4gHz CPU, 1GB of RAM, and a 320GB hard disk. The original 20GB HDD – a Seagate Barracuda that is still doing duty for file backups – is now just big enough to hold Windows XP (including restore, page file, hibernation file and trash can).

If this trend continues with Vista, and there’s no reason to assume it won’t, by 2012 the new OS will need a CPU 5 times more powerful than current issue, 8GB of RAM and 150GB of disk space. So be prepared for the occasional hardware upgrade.

The Top 5 Video Streaming Websites

2012-02-27T22:49:00.002+02:00

Online web streaming is one of the most popular Internet activities. Whether you want to watch video from across the world, news recaps, TV shows, tutorials, or funny videos, you're guaranteed to find something you like at one of the top five video streaming websites.

1. Youtube.com

The most popular video streaming website, YouTube has thousands of videos on nearly every topic imaginable, all user submitted and free to watch. The videos are currently offered in widescreen format, though most videos upload retain the original 4:3 aspect ratio. In addition to widescreen, videos can now be uploaded and viewed in high quality.

Videos on Youtube are often short homemade movies, but many record labels are now releasing low-quality versions of their most popular music videos on the website. If you're looking for a recap of the latest sports game, news cast, or speech, Youtube is your best option.

Pros: Youtube offers 16:9 aspect ratio, high quality video playback, support for nearly every video format, a large audience for your videos, the ability to embed videos on a blog or website, video reply feature, customizable personal video page, the ability to limit video access.

Cons: While the website is wildly popular, it does have a few problems. There is an excess of spam comments, a video limit of 100MB, and only standard-quality videos can be embedded on blogs or websites.

2. Vimeo.com

Vimeo is a sophisticated, free video sharing website. Basic users are allowed to upload up to 500MB of video content per week, or pay for an account to upload more. Vimeo attracts a wide array of video artists, and is often used to upload short movies, skits, and portfolios. The website supports full HD streaming and widescreen format, as well as a wide array of video codec support, making it the ideal location to watch and share high-quality and HD personal videos.

Pros: Vimeo has an easy-to-navigate interface, the ability to create and moderate video groups, high definition video support, up to 1GB video uploads for premium accounts, community forums, and an artistic user base.

Cons: Because Vimeo is so frequently used to upload large movie files, it can take over an hour to convert a single video.

3. Metacafe.com

Metacafe rocketed to popularity with their page view money earning system. Many videos on the website are duplicates from YouTube, but in addition to that content, there is a wide array of video tutorials on many subjects, including DIY hacks, magic, and science experiments. If you're interested in making money off your video's page views, Metacafe is the ideal website to use.

Pros: Metacafe has a popular pageview payment system, which allows users to be compensated for their videos. In addition, videos can be downloaded with a link under the video or embedded on blogs or websites. The website has many high-quality tutorials.

Cons: Metacafe increased it's video resolution, and many of the videos are now pixelated due to up-sampling. Many videos are clones from Youtube.

4. Hulu.com

The first website to legally offer a wide array of free TV shows, Hulu was founded by NBC and offers dozens of free TV series, both current and off-air broadcasts. Some of the TV shows offered includes: The Simpsons, Family Guy, It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia, Bones, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, and The Office. Unfortunately, Fox and some other broadcasters have pulled some free shows from the list forcing you to upgrade to a paid version.

In addition to offering TV shows, Hulu also has a catalog of movies available to watch, including such popular shows as: Spy Game, Liar Liar, Ghostbusters, Men in Black, and The Karate Kid.

Pros: Hulu videos can be viewed in 360p for slower Internet connections. Popular clips are available for recent and popular TV shows and movies. New series are available, with new episodes appearing up to a week after aired on cable. The website is completely free. Videos can be purchased and downloaded. A personal queue can be created for favorite content.

Cons: Videos can no longer be embedded in blogs and on websites, high definition video streaming is not available for most videos, and ads are displayed three or more times per video. Website is available to US residents only.

5. Veoh.com

Veoh is a video content website, but has made a name for itself by partnering with different companies to offer TV shows for free. Offering TV shows not available from Hulu, you can watch popular shows such as: The Big Bang Theory, Friends, According to Jim, CSI, and Everwood.

In addition to a large supply of free TV shows, Veoh also offers user submitted content, including animations, home videos, and funny clips.

Pros: Videos stream in higher quality resolution. The original video files can be downloaded and saved to a hard drive for later viewing. User submitted content can be embedded in blogs and websites, shared directly with friends, and saved to a personal favorites list.

Cons: Commercial videos are only available for users located within the US.

More Streaming Site Options

For completeness here's a list I put together of over 40 additional streaming sites. If you can't find something you like here, you are not really trying :>)

ABC.com: ABC, like NBC, now offers a wide array of streaming videos, including full episodes of their most popular TV shows.
Archaeologychannel.com: The Archeology Channel offers hours of free streaming video based on culture, humans, and archeology.
Archive.org: The National Archives streams footage of past events and old documentaries, including space documentaries from the 70's.
BigContact.com: Big Contact allows users to create their own channels, and offers several professional streaming channels for anyone to watch.
Blinkx.com: Boasting over 32 million hours of video footage.
Break.com: This video website is marketed towards men, and has a list of daily video picks on their homepage. The videos are outrageous, funny, and short.
BroadbandSports.com: Sports videos on all types can be found on Broadband Sports, including recaps, highlights, athlete videos, and personal sports videos.
Clipshack.com: This website features sort clips, recaps, and small videos of random content
CollegeHumor.com : Their version of videos focuses mainly on the humorous end and focused toward the college demographic.
Comcast Xfinity: Comcast's fancast has been renamed to Comcast XFinity Videos. This shows a variety of free tv shows along with much content you have to be a subscriber to watch.
Crackle.com: More of an Indy/off beat TV shows and movie website, you can watch webshows and other shows you can't find on TV.
Current.com: Currently in Beta, this website has a wide array of modern video content, and is very similar to YouTube.
Dailymotion.com: Dailymotion is similar to Current TV, and offers a wide range of random video content.
DevilDucky.com: This website features favorite videos grabbed from many different sources and aggregated together. The website contains small videos, TV shows, movie trailers, news recaps, fan videos, and more.
DocumentaryStorm. "DocumentaryStorm is a website dedicated to free full-length documentaries gathered from all over the net. The main objective is to spread knowledge, index the thousands of educational videos on the internet and an all around freedom to investigate human ingenuity". With thanks to anonymous poster Harry for this suggestion :)
Flukiest.com: Flukiest is a social networking website, and has an impression video collection
Ifilm.com: A standard video streaming website.
Megavideo.com: Mega Video is the video streaming service for Megaupload.
Museum.tv: Docufest is an online video archive website with access to theater reenactments, historic video and radio streams, and interviews.
NBC.com: NBC now streams dozens of episodes for free, including Heroes, According to Jim, and the Biggest Loser.
Newgrounds.com: An awesome and high quality website featuring user submitted satire, animation, and humor videos.
Open-Video.org: This website is a 'shared digital video collection', and has lecture, documentary, educational, and historical videos, as well as others, for free streaming.
Ourmedia.org: Our Media lacks a professional site, but has dozens of channels to search.
Phanfare.com: Phanfare is a unique video sharing website, as it is meant to be used with an iPhone, and makes uploading, sharing, and viewing mobile videos easier than ever.
Revver.com: You'll find a wide array of content on Revver, most of it high quality and serious. There video base includes interviews, skits, product reviews, movie reviews, animations, and tutorials
Sevenload.com: Sevenload is a sleek, professional-looking video streaming website with categories such as Music, DIY, Arts, and Politics.
SpeedyTV: User uploaded streaming videos and movies as well as sorted videos from other locations.
Starz Play: Starz Play is offered from Verizon, and allows users to stream hundreds of blockbuster movies and the Starz TV channel for $10 per month.
Stickam.com. Stickam is a twist on the modern video streaming site - you can browse hundreds of live streaming video feeds and interact with the other viewers via a chat box.
StreetFire.net: This website has thousands of videos, most of them dealing with cars in some way
StupidVideos.com - As the name of the website suggests, don't expect to find enlightening videos here. However, if you're looking for some good laughs, there's nowhere better than Stupid Videos.
ThatVideoSite.com: This website pulls the most popular videos from a wide range of websites and lists them all on the homepage for your viewing pleasure.
The News Hour The PBS News Hour. Miss an important news speak, coverage, or documentary? The News Hour has regular updates of free, streaming news coverage.
Trueveo.com: Trueveo streams content from dozens of different sites, including Hulu, Lifetime, and GQ.
TVDuck: Provides links to other internet sources streaming movies and TV shows.
UStream.tv: UStream TV is another live streaming website, allowing users to chat with each other while watching and participating in live video streams.
Videoart.net: This website only has about 2000 videos, but they are all artist in merit - animations, documentaries, galleries, narrative, etc.
VideoBomb.com: The website is a basic, bland video streaming site with random videos.
Videosift.com: Video Sift works very similar to the popular website Digg. Users add videos, and other users 'sift' through them, pushing the good ones to the top, while the poor ones fall to the bottom.
vids.Myspace.com: Myspace TV offers a wide array of video content, including personal videos, vlogs, and TV recaps.

Best Free PDF Writer

2012-02-27T22:48:00.002+02:00

Introduction

All of the PDF writers in this review are programs that function by creating a pseudo printer on your system. When you want to create a PDF document from pretty much any application you just choose to print it to the PDF printer and it creates a PDF document. The thing that distinguishes one product from another is the number of options and flexibility available. The one problem with this approach is that you need to have a program that will open the file on your system. If someone sends you a file created with a program you do not have and you can't open the file then you can't print it and if you can't print it then you can't convert it to a pdf using a pseudo printer technique. The two online products do not suffer from this problem but are limited only by the file formats recognized by the online vendor.

After eliminating those PDF Writers suggested by readers that were not free, were limited time trials, and basically adware (the product was free but forced the user to endure various ads as a punishment for using it), I've selected some best free products in this review. These are Bullzip PDF Printer, PDF24, PDFCreator, doPDF and CutePDF Writer.

Which one of these is best? That really depends on the options you need.

Discussion

Recommending the best product for all users is not always easy due to differing user requirements. For example, most of the recommended writers have many options and while this is a plus for advanced users it is a minus for those who only want a simple PDF writer. Presently, I am most taken withBullZip and PDF24 but all of these programs have their strengths

BullZip is a very strong program that has been time proven to be a top performer. However files created by Bullzip PDF Printer may not be searchable. While it created a searchable pdf from word processing programs it did not from other programs like Excel. All the other candidates produced a searchable document from Excel and other non-word-processing software.

Key features of Bullzip PDF Printer include the ability to:

Password protect your pdf files (only PDFCreator also had this ability)
Use either 40 or 128 bit encryption on the file (only PDFCreator also had this ability)
Add a watermark (PDFCreator had a limited ability to add watermarks)
Append or prepend files (PDFCreator also had this ability)
Choose different levels of output quality (All but CutePDF had this ability)
Add or change metadata (PDFCreator also had this ability)

PDFCreator in its latest version is another strong choice and has all the features of Bullzip with the exception of a 64 bit version and more limited watermark abilities. The help files are available only in English, French and German. However it does have one unique feature among these products. It comes with both a standalone install and a server install. In a company setting this gives you the ability to install the printer driver on a server and make it available to all the workstations on the network without doing an install on each one of them. This may make it a preferred choice in business situations if you don't need the other options that products like Bullzip offer. Version 0.9.8 of PDF Creator did a great job printing a web page to pdf.

doPDF is comparable to TinyPDF in terms of features. It provides a minimal feature set but does have the ability to choose different levels of output quality which the other two do not. I can see no reason not to prefer it over the other two unless you often print graphical documents to pdf.

Among the very basic pdf Writers is CutePDF. This provides only the most minimal functions and creates the pdf file with no options for password, encryption, metadata, or most other optional functions. On the other hand, it is among the smallest of the downloads.

The most commonly asked question by readers has been about the size of the output file. Using a large test file without graphics, doPDF created the smallest files at 1.4 megs, CutePDF and PDFCreator came in at 1.8 megs, and Bullzip came in at 1.9 megabytes. While CutePDF, PDFCreator and Bullzip were larger they were also set at 600 dpi while the other two did not have the ability to change output and appeared to be 300dpi. This was not a sufficient difference in output file size to make it an important factor for deciding on one over the other. However, when a substantial amount of graphics were included doPDF produced a much larger file than the others. CutePDF came in at 3.5 megs (at 300dpi), Bullzip both came in at 7.8 megs (at 600dpi) and doPDF came in at a whopping 13.3 megs (at 600dpi). PDFCreator failed to correctly render the page and created failure errors each time it was tried.

The most requested missing feature in all of these free products is the ability to delete or reorder PDF pages, but you can easily accomplish this task by using some useful tools reviewed in this article Best Free PDF Tools.

Online Solution

Although PrimoPDF was not recommended for the best pdf writer it does have a free online version athttp://online.primopdf.com/ that allows you to upload a file and receive it back as a PDF via email. If you need a pdf conversion only on rare occasion or you are on a computer that does not allow you to install software, or you don't have a program that can read the file, then this is a reasonable option. Of course there is no opportunity to add passwords, encrypt, or add any of the other features you may need. It is just a straight pdf file.

HP also offers a free online service called CloudPrint. It is designed to give you the ability to print from a cell phone or PDA. If you check your email from a cell phone and need to print an attachment you can just send it to this service, which will convert it to a PDF file and send a SMS message to your cell phone with a reference ID. When you get to a computer with an Internet interface you can login to the CloudPrint service and print the document. It will also convert and print pictures taken with your cell phone. While I don't see a need for this service personally, some swear by it, especially those who are constantly on the road seeing clients or between multiple offices. This was not considered as one of the best PDF Writers only because it does not produce a file that you can save and keep as a PDF on your local drive. It converts to PDF on the web server and allows you to print it from there. On the other hand, it does allow you to print documents without having the original program that produced the file.

Other PDF Writers

These are a number of other free PDF writers which were brought up in comments here or noted from other sources. As they are not rated in this review, I am listing them here with brief descriptions and links to their sites for ease of reference.

PrimoPDF, a lag of several seconds from the time I selected the printer until the screen with the Primo interface opened. On my fast computer it worked reasonably well but still much slower than all other products.
NitroPDF Printer has both writer and reader capabilities, supports annotation, text extraction, but full features set only found in the paid version.
PDF Redirect has both writer and reader capabilities, can merge PDFs, offers encryption, multi-language support, no adware, but a full feature set is only available in the paid version.
PDFill PDF and Image Writer, many options and stable. Downloads from Cnet (Download.com) require the use of a proprietary installer. This can install additional components you might not want.
WinPDF Writer is for basic PDF writing, small and simple, requires Ghostscript to install if not available on your computer.
PDF XChange comes in with a tabbed interface and zoom-in feature, supports notes, annotations and export options. It has several restrictions, ads supported and installs the ASK toolbar unless you opt-out during setup.

Best Free Firewall

2012-02-27T22:47:00.002+02:00

Introduction

Firewalls help monitor your system's communication between your network and the Internet to help stop intrusions and attacks. They are particularly useful for controlling the activities of Internet facing applications.

No other freeware product has more of a reputation for causing user angst than a firewall. To find a suitable product may involve a process of trial and error. A firewall should protect while not being too intrusive or too complicated to handle. This article gives you a selection of the best free firewalls available.

Firewalls come in two flavours; software based and hardware based. To avoid potential conflicts only install one (third-party) software firewall. You can improve protection, however, by using a hardware "firewall" (such as a router) and a software firewall in conjunction. Modern routers usually have a built-in firewall; consult your router documentation for more details.

Basic firewall protection is critical for securing your PC. Simple firewalls (like the default Windows firewall) limit access to your system and personal information, and silently protect you from inbound threats. We review basic third-party firewalls that have marginally better security than the Windows firewall, such as simpler features for monitoring programs that request outgoing Internet connections (we call this "outbound protection"). The default Windows firewall has only limited outbound protection.

Proactive firewalls have the most extended protection, including HIPS or program monitoring (HIPS Explained), and watch for malicious behavior before malware gets a chance to take control of your PC or turn it into a botnet drone. They seek to achieve stronger "2-way" protection, preventing programs from broadcasting your personal information to the Internet.

Some kinds of malware are best detected by their behavior, so a proactive firewall (or firewall/HIPS combo) is a solid second layer of protection next to your antivirus program. It's an excellent option for high risk users (check out our Security Wizard to see if this includes you). However, it's plausible to argue that a good resident antivirus will stop some malicious threats before they get a chance to make it to the Internet anyway. Many of the top antivirus programs are starting to provide behavioral blocking and extended scanning of network activity.

It's important to use basic or proactive firewall protection, antivirus software for active protection, and safe practices from our "most important advice of all" (Security Wizard).

You can "upgrade" your security by reading the documentation and learning about proactive firewalls or HIPS programs, or using other protection like least-privileged user accounts or Sandboxie or GeSWall.

Review Index

Additional Tips

Before installing new resident security products, including antivirus and firewall programs, you may want to make a full drive image. Windows Vista (Ultimate) and Windows 7 have a built in "Complete PC Backup and Restore" feature, or you can use a free drive imaging program. Everyone's system is unique and may have old, latent drivers that are incompatible with whatever you are installing. Not only does drive imaging allow you to recover from unintentional conflicts but also from severe malware infections.
To cleanly uninstall your (third-party) firewall before installing a new one, you can use ZSoft Uninstaller to analyze before and after the installation. If you haven't used it on your current firewall, try Revo Uninstaller (or other vendor or Windows uninstaller), check for leftover services and drivers with Autoruns, and restart your computer.

Basic Firewalls

Discussion

The built-in Windows firewall is a common choice since it passes all inbound tests (both stealth and open port) and doesn't have many popup alerts. It doesn't require installation, so it's not likely to conflict with your other programs. And many average users may not reliably handle the popup alerts of the best firewalls on the market (especially at their max settings).

If you scan clean for malware and you don't want/need the additional features of a third-party firewall, then the Windows firewall is a practical and useful solution.

You can replace the Windows firewall with a basic third-party firewall for easier control of outbound protection and additional features. Most simple two-way firewalls ask you to allow or deny Internet access for unknown programs. Many automatically allow trustworthy apps and remember your decisions to become silent over time.

First, you can convert a proactive firewall into a basic two-way firewall, making some of the best free firewalls behave with similar silence and protection as ZoneAlarm. Select the following one-click configurations to set them (see the proactive section for more on them):

Online Armor Free: Right-click its tray icon > uncheck the "Program Guard". It's a user friendly option for this configuration if it doesn't conflict with your other software.
Comodo Internet Security: Right-click its tray icon > set "Defense+" to "disabled". Or select the "Firewall only" configuration during installation. Make sure to enable rule creation in 'firewall behavior settings' (so you can modify program rules later).

Second, additional third-party firewalls behave similar to the basic configurations of proactive firewalls above. ZoneAlarm, for example, has made a comeback with fewer popups and lighter resource use.

Basic Firewall Reviews

ZoneAlarm Free Firewall 2010 is an excellent inbound/outbound OS firewall solution suited for users of every level of experience. ZoneAlarm protects systems from intrusions as well as program access to the web. ZoneAlarm features an easy-to-understand user interface. Users can adjust security settings for their needs to allow for file/printer sharing, public networks, and even turn off the firewall if ever needed. Simple controls in the form of visual slide bars make setting up this firewall a snap. ZoneAlarm offers to help users setup initial program access with a first-run scan of installed software and allows/denies accordingly. This first scan does not always offer accurate access to programs.

Users will have to interact with this firewall for a time after installation to make sure programs needing LAN or internet access are granted proper permissions. Popups are very simple in format offering Deny, Accept, and a checkbox a user can check to make ZoneAlarm remember the decision. Novice users should be able to easily identify the name of the program asking for web access so they can make the appropriate decision.

The Program Control will allow users to set ZoneAlarm for Low, which is a learning mode and no OS firewall protection and limited popups. Or users can choose Medium, which will make programs ask for permission to access the trusted and internet zones. The high setting is not offered in the Free version of ZoneAlarm. The Smart Defense Advisor will help reduce popups by offering settings for programs asking for access, based on the decisions made by other users worldwide. Users can choose whether or not to participate in ZoneAlarm's community defense program. Users can set programs access manually at anytime by going to ZoneAlarm's Program Control and selecting Programs.

Internet Zone controls are divided into the Trusted Zone, used for the local network to share files, printers, etc., and the Internet Zone for communication to/from the web. A simple 3-position format allows users to choose from "No protection" (firewall is off), Medium (Allows file/printer sharing), and High (will allow users to connect to a network but will not allow anyone else to connect to your system). The medium setting is recommended for home networks with more than one system, and for users whose modem requires this setting. The high setting is most recommended for single-system web access (only one computer at home and modem does not require a home network setting), and for public areas such as cafes, restaurants, and hotels (etc.) with wifi.

ZoneAlarm Free offers basic two-way defense, stealth mode, and anti-phishing protection. However, it lacks HIPS or program-to-program protection.

Windows 7 Firewall Control is a good choice for those intending on using the Windows built-in Firewall. Despite its name, the program is compatible with Windows XP and higher. In a nutshell, Windows7FirewallControl allows the user to configure the Windows firewall to block or allow applications from connecting to the internet; it adds better outbound protection configuration to the built-in Firewall. It is based on the Windows Filtering Platform (which is what the built-in firewall is also based on), so unlike most other firewalls it does not install any third party drivers. The user interface is clean and simple, reflecting what this program does (ie. block or allow application access - nothing more).

There are three modes a user can choose from; Normal, DisableAll, or EnableAll. DisableAll disables all applications regardless of program settings, while EnableAll allows all application access (essentially equivalent to switching off the firewall completely). Unless needing to test something specifically, the Normal Mode is the recommended one - applications/programs are allowed or denied access depending on the rules set.

Under the Normal Mode, when a program tries to access the internet for the first time (upon installation of W7 Firewall Control) a window pop-ups with information on what the application is, the publisher, etc (assuming default program settings). You can then allow or disallow access, either permanently or as a one-time basis. Selecting the former option will add the settings permanently to the Programs list, while with the latter option you will have to deal with the pop-up window again on the next launch.

In addition to the window pop-up for new programs, activities that take place (ie. blocked/allowed traffic, etc) are logged and shows up in the bottom right corner of your screen. Both the pop-up window and log activity notification dialogue can be turned on or off at the user's discretion.

That's basically all there is to it. It may get a bit annoying when you first starting using it, since you will have to define the initial rules for all your applications (ie. allow or disallow them); this includes everything from Internet Explorer to your antivirus program. Nevertheless, Windows7FirewallControl allows much greater and easier control over the built-in firewall than what the operating system offers.

Firewalls with Strong HIPS Protection

Discussion

The following personal firewalls provide excellent network and HIPS protection. Each firewall comes with default settings and shouldn't require much adjustment except for the needs of advanced users.

Firewall products in this section require more time to learn than basic firewalls (to get the most out of them). Since firewalls are often praised for their security effectiveness at their max settings, users will likely have lower protection than mentioned by independent testing sources like Matousec. All of the product vendors seek to provide user friendly features, sometimes incorporating reduced levels of protection in their default settings (by decreasing some HIPS monitoring).

Proactive Firewall Reviews

Comodo Firewall is the best choice for users seeking a full featured security suite. This latest release is suitable for both lightly-skilled users (still must have knowledge of installed programs) and technically advanced users. Its robust and active HIPS (or application monitoring feature), called "Defense+", matches or exceeds the security performance of pay products. Comodo allows for much control and customization for the curious or the paranoid.

Comodo includes a "memory firewall" (against buffer overflow attacks) and a light sandbox component to limit the way unknown applications and new software installations affect your computer. The use of sandbox protection limits the negative effects of malware. It maintains a lengthy list of known safe applications, but if an unknown application attempts entry through the firewall, Comodo will deny the application and ask the user what to do. The new release contains user friendly features by default while allowing experienced users to maintain control over ports, protocols, and configurations.

During installation the user has three firewall installation options to choose from: Firewall Only, and Firewall with Optimum or Maximum Proactive Defense (ie. the Defense+ feature as mentioned earlier). After installation Comodo automatically selects "Safe Mode", which generates numerous popup alerts for applications not in its trusted vendors list (you can browse this list to see if you trust the vendors: go to the Defense+ tab > "Common Tasks" > "View My Trusted Software Vendors"). When you answer "allow" and "remember your answer" to popup alerts for an application, Comodo creates a custom policy for it. Some of its policies are fairly liberal.

In the more liberal "Clean PC Mode", Defense+ automatically treats all applications on your drive as safe (but if any malware is currently hidden on your drive, it too would be considered safe). Applications still receive some minimal monitoring for Comodo's two protected lists ("my protected registry keys" and "my protected COM interfaces") and for running as an executable, or more/less monitoring depending on their custom policy. And new files get sent to a list of files "waiting for your review" in the "Summary" page. Files listed for review will be considered possibly unsafe and will provoke popup messages, as if in Safe Mode, until their custom policies are made.

Comodo limits the frequency of alerts by automatically treating some programs as safe and allowing some applications to access the Internet. You can additionally automate the behavior of Defense+ by one or more of these methods for treating applications as safe:

Have it "remember your answer" to all popup alerts when an application first runs, which works for some applications (because some custom policies set this way are close to "trusted" status). But if an application still nags you, click "More Options" in the alert and use the drop down box to select "trusted" or "blocked" (etc.), if available, or set an application to trusted manually ("Defense+" > "Advanced" > "Computer Security Policy" > "Edit..." > "Use a Predefined Policy"), which finally ceases popup alerts and most intrusion prevention for that application.
Add files to the lists of "My Own Safe Files" or "My Trusted Software Vendors" in the interface (see the "Defense+" tab), which is most helpful for "Safe Mode" or "Paranoid Mode".
Use the "Clean PC Mode" (right-click the tray icon and select it under the "Defense+ Security Level"). But make sure to scan and remove any malware first.

The following guides may also contain useful information about Comodo's settings: How to Install Comodo, How to Tame Comodo Defense+ Without Disabling It, and MC's Mini Tutorial.

A solid contender is the free version of Online Armor Free. It has outstanding leak-test and HIPS performance (the HIPS feature is mostly in its "Program Guard"). It has a unique feature called "run safer" that allows you to selectively set risky applications (web browsers, office software, readers/viewers, instant messengers, email or news programs, multimedia software, download managers, etc.) to run as if under a limited user account (go to "Programs" tab > uncheck "Hide Trusted" > highlight a program and click "Run Safer"). It minimizes popup alerts over time with its automatic list of safe programs, your on-demand scans with its safety check wizard, and your responses to popup alerts -- especially in cases where you tell it to remember your decisions and have it treat programs as trustworthy.

Run the wizard and have it search your PC for known programs to allow/block/ask. In this case, Online Armor relies on you to respond to alerts for unknown programs. For the curious or paranoid user, it uses excellent popup messages when it automatically allows a program to connect online and, optionally, when it automatically trusts a program/process to run (these alerts don't require user action and they can be enabled/disabled in the interface with "Options" > "Firewall", and "Programs" > "Options"). For example, I noticed a message when it auto trusted a key logger test, but after I set the tester to untrusted, it gave very informative and detailed security alerts (and then it passed the test and logged the tester in the interface under the "Key Logger" tab, but it only logged the key logger after the test was untrusted). You can even close both its tray tools from its right-click context menu. They are not needed for the firewall and HIPS components to continue running and protecting.

Outpost Firewall Free is a good choice for users who want highly flexible protection without sacrificing usability. It was obviously made with average users in mind, judging by the care taken to simplify alert messages and make it easy to adjust intrusion prevention (or HIPS) monitoring. For example, it remembers your responses to popup alerts without the need to set "trusted" rules (like in Comodo/Online Armor), and like Online Armor it notifies you when it automatically allows an application to access the Internet (especially helpful during the learning phase).

The free version lacks many extras of the pay version, however, such as automatic updates and the ability to break active connections. The HIPS component is called "Host Protection" in the interface. It provides four default levels of protection, which can be easily set with a slider and additionally customized item by item by advanced users. The default "optimal" setting only monitors the "most dangerous activities" (such as memory injections, driver loads, and a healthy list of system critical features -- auto starts, shell extensions, and internet settings) instead of all program activities. But these "optimal" settings lack protection from keyloggers, direct disk accessing, DNS API request monitoring, etc. You can check the types of reduced monitoring in "Settings..." > "Host Protection" > "Customize...".

The installation asks whether you want to train the firewall for a week (using its Auto-Learn mode and Rules Wizard). In this mode, it sets rules automatically for known safe applications.

A former commercial product, Private Firewall is now unrestricted freeware. It is a proactive multi-layer security solution, offering behaviour blocking technology alongside standard firewall protection. Using Behavioral-based Monitoring, it features zero-hour virus, spyware, and malware protection, process and application security, and registry protection, just to name a few. It is definitely a feature-packed firewall/HIPS solution.

While there is a decent help file available, the user interface can be a bit confusing and overwhelming. There are many configurable settings, and sorting through them may require some time. To help out with that there is a information menu on the right of each screen which explains what each section is for. Training mode allows all actions within a 180-second interval, which is ideal for installing or running programs for the first time. On the first run after installing however, Private Firewall still managed to disable Panda Cloud Antivirus, the antivirus software on my test system, even with Training mode activated. Adding Panda Cloud Antivirus to the allow list seemed to solve this minor issue.

It is also possible to set different security levels for the Internet and the Network. Various levels of protection (High, Low, and Custom) can be separately specified for Internet Access and Network Security (ie. file and printer sharing). This is useful for, say, when one needs to access the internet via a network they don't quite trust. In addition, there are three profiles you can choose: Home, Office, and Remote. You can set appropriate settings for each one and easily switch between them as needed; this is particulary useful for portable computers which connect to many different networks. Another useful feature is that it is possible to block all outbound email; simply click the 'Block Outbound Email' icon in the main user screen and all outbound email should be blocked.

Overall, Private Firewall is a very effective firewall; it ranks among the top products on Matousec. A number of members at our forum speak highly of the developers of Private Firewall, and the software itself is quite trusted. However, it is slightly tailored for the more advanced users. Beginner computer users may want to consider another firewall instead, but if you are comfortable with the basics of Windows, you should definitely consider Private Firewall.

AVS Firewall differs from other regular ones in that it comes with additional protection modules; namely a registry defender, a banner blocker, and parental control options – it is something like a suite. The firewall itself does not have as many configurable options as some of the firewalls listed on this page, but the standard selections are still there – off, which turns off the firewall; custom, which allows you to set your own connection rules; and high, which blocks all connections.

Each section of the program is displayed clearly; navigation is through the menu on the left. Alerts are generally clear and straightforward, as is configuration.

The registry defender protects the registry from being modified, with the option of only protecting select categories. The parental control limits the list of websites that can be accessed, but you must manually add each website to be trusted, ie. You cannot block specific websites; you can only allow certain websites. The anti-banner component blocks undesirable web page content including ads, flash banners, pop-ups and the like. All three of these additional modules can be disabled independently as desired. AVS Firewall also comes with a monitoring utility so you can check the size of network traffic which is sent and received by each application.

During installation of this firewall, the installer automatically installs the AVS Software Browser; there is no option to opt-out of installing this, but the program can be removed separately after installation with no affect on the actual firewall program. The installer also has a pre-checked option to install AVS Registry Cleaner, and it is recommended that it is unchecked so the installer does not install it.

Despite trying to bundle in a few additional programs by the vendor, AVS Firewall is a decent firewall program. It has some additional features not found in your everyday firewall program, though most of those features can be found in other third party programs.

Best Free Antivirus Software

2012-02-27T22:46:00.002+02:00

ntroduction

Antivirus software provides an essential layer of protection from a multitude of virus, trojan, worm, spyware, adware, dialer, keylogger and rootkit infections. Traditionally antivirus programs just detected viruses and spyware removers just detected spyware but nowadays the boundary between antivirus and spyware removers is unclear. Most current antiviruses have at least reasonably good detection rates of all forms of malware.

Malware includes viruses, trojans, worms, spyware, adware, dialers, keyloggers and rootkit threats that perform malicious activities on a computer. With the huge increase in malware, antivirus software cannot keep up with detecting all of it. But using more than one real-time antivirus uses much more system resources, can cause conflicts and even reduce protection. So I recommend you only choose one antivirus for real-time protection. Instead, you can increase your protection using other security software.

I looked at several free antivirus programs which are vital in protecting your computer from virus threats and other types of malware.

Discussion

Avast! Free Antivirus is my new top pick for the best free antivirus software in light of recent developments. Avast has steadily been improving its detection rates over the past few years and now ranks with the some of the best. Avast has the most features of all the free antivirus with full real-time capabilities including web, e-mail, IM, P2P and network shields, boot-time scanning, and a behavioural blocker. The new version 6 brings even more features including an internet site ratings plugin, script malware protection and a limited (non-configurable) sandboxing feature. Although the sandbox is a very useful semi-automated security feature, the default settings involves a pop up to ask whether a software should be sandboxed for not - for the typical average user this can be slightly confusing though it can set to sandbox the software automatically. Lastly Avast is relatively light on resources.

Microsoft Security Essentials is a favorite of mine withgreat detection rates, particularly for rootkits. Even more impressive is the fact that Microsoft Security Essentials has very few false positives, is light on resources and is good at removal of existing malware. MSE is a great choice for average users because of the minimal user interaction required. It automatically updates and removes threats. No registration is needed, apart from a quick validating of Windows, and there are no nag screens or advertisements.

The main downsides are the slow scan speeds and the lengthy amount of time it takes to quarantine malware, though in my opinion these are rather trivial concerns, as for example a scan just be run overnight. MSE also is not available in certain countries so users there will have to look elsewhere. Note that Microsoft Security Essentials requires a genuine copy of Windows to install.

Panda Cloud Antivirus is Panda's successful attempt to jump on the free antivirus bandwagon. Along with MSE, it is an excellent choice for average users with a simple interface and completely automated features with automatic updating and removal of malware. The detection level is generally very high, but according to the latest test data, detection of zero day threats is slightly lower. PCA uses 'cloud' technology to provide for a much quicker release of updates as all definitions are stored in the cloud and thus the moment Panda updates their blacklist all users of PCA with an internet connection are protected from it.

Panda Cloud Antivirus has a behavioural blocker and web protection, which will certainly increase your security. However as you can simply use one of the other free AV's with a separate behavioural blocker (for further details see our Security Wizard) to achieve possibly even better protection, this is not necessarily an advantage.

One minor reservation I have is that PCA seems to erroneously detect certain browser/system-related applications, for example VideoCacheView, and because of the automatic quarantine this made it a fraction bothersome.

Avira AntiVir Personal Edition is another high quality free antivirus, and formerly the Top Pick. The primary reason I removed it from its status involved the recent controversy of AntiVir including a re-branded Ask toolbar in their installer, and a temporary spate ofadvertisements promoting a possible 'scareware' company. In spite of the negative press though AntiVir is still a top notch antivirus scanner with outstanding detection rates of malware, higher than almost every other antivirus according to tests. AntiVir is still a good choice for a free antivirus scanner, particularly for high risk users.

However, there are some minor reservations. First, AntiVir does not include web or e-mail scanning capabilities; this is only available in the paid version. The lack of an e-mail scanner is not adisadvantage, it just means that AntiVir won't warn you of infected emails before you open them. But should you open an infected email, AntiVir will still spring into action, so it doesn't mean that you're not protected from email-based infections. Also, AntiVir contains a rather intrusive advertisement every time it updates. Although AntiVir had signature updating problems in the past, this issue seems to be fixed now.

AVG Anti-Virus Free Edition is also a decent choice for a free antivirus. Although this venerable antivirus has had some shaky results in detection in the recent past, it now offers a high level of protection. This is probably due to the inclusion of a fully-fledged behavioural blocker that is the "Identity Protection" protection. This provides a very important additional layer of protection, on the other hand though a similar protection level can be achieved by using one of the free antivirus above alongside a separate behavioural blocker. Unfortunately AVG free has grown considerably in size, has very slow scan speeds and also advertisements (but they can be disabled).

These free antivirus programs are excellent software that provide a real alternative to the major commercial antivirus products.

I'll just give a quick mention of several excellent on-demand antivirus scanners:

I'll also mention several popular free antivirus programs which I considered but did not include in the review because of low detection rates.

Comodo AntiVirus (part of Comodo Internet Security)
PC Tools AntiVirus Free Edition
Rising Antivirus Free Edition 2010

You can increase your protection if you run on-demand scans with another antivirus. On-demand scans can be run regularly to check for viruses, trojans, worms, spyware, adware, keyloggers, rootkits and other malware that may have been missed by your main antivirus scanner. If you have a good preventive security strategy in place, however the extra protection an on-demand antivirus scanner offers is minimal.

Best Free Remote Access Software

2012-02-27T22:45:00.002+02:00

Introduction

Remote Access Software (RAS) allows a user to remotely administer another computer through a GUI (Graphical User Interface). RAS software usually falls into three categories: attended (someone must be present on the remote machine), unattended, and self-hosted RPC proxy servers (middleware for accessing firewall-protected networks). In this review, we are interested in the first and second categories.

There are also 2 different kinds of packages, those that are downloaded and run without requiring any installation and the other which is installed and either uninstalls at the end of the session or remains for future sessions. Unattended sessions would of course need to have the installed version to allow for connecting at any time in the future. I will explain the pros and cons of each type of session and the two categories.

Discussion

Let's first talk about the two different categories, attended and unattended. Attended is of course when there is a person sitting at the computer that you want to access. This is most likely a one-time session or when helping someone fix a problem where you will not be allowed to access it without the other person being present. This type of access is usually quicker to establish but also comes with fewer capabilities when compared to a fully installed software that runs as a service. Typically the process for establishing an attended session is simple. You ask the other person to download a small application which runs in their user session and has access to everything the user has rights to. From here the situation varies but usually requires that you and the other person exchange a small passcode either auto-generated or set by you. Once they initiate the session you are connected and able to request control of their mouse and keyboard. If the software is simply run and not installed there are typically some limitations like not handling multiple monitors or losing connection and having to start the process over because it doesn't have an auto-reconnect featrure. If the software installs then typically it falls under the 'unattended' category. There are more capabilities with an unattended solution but the trade-off is that the user needs to have authority on their computer to install software. Installed software also leaves behind a footprint although there are some that ask the other person upon completion of the session whether they would like to uninstall the software.

The fastest solution in the 'attended' category is Join.me. It's small 1 mb download and simple security code make it very quick to establish a remote session.

The next solution in this category is TeamViewer which has a larger download but ultimately has more features than Join.me. They also offer a run-only version of TeamViewer that does not require installation if you want to leave no footprint on the remote machine.

The last solution in this category is Mikogo. Mikogo is not the fastest nor is it the most reliable but it offers the most features of any of the solutions in this article. It is a full-featured solution comparable to the commercial Citrix GotoMeeting product with features like presenter switching, remote control, whiteboard sharing, file sharing and session recording.

The first and highest rated product in the 'unattended' category is LogMeIn. This is a web-based service that's extremely easy to set up and use and can be accessed from any PC with a browser. The free version won't allow file transfer or remote printing but is a great solution for accessing your remote data as well as file sharing. Registration is required before using the product. It is really meant to be an install and leave it kind of tool and not for the quick connect to help a friend scenario. I still very much believe that the features and speed of LogMeIn are unmet by any other product and worth the extra hassle if you have access to the other machine(s) or means to connect remotely and install it. It is free for personal and commercial use.

Next is TeamViewer. It is very reliable, allows both attended and unattended control and has great features. There is a portable version of the viewer if you want to use an application or they also have a web-based control site that requires no installation to remotely control computers. The web-based version uses HTML and Flash so it is usable even if the browser or firewall doesn't allow Java or ActiveX. TeamViewer is a commercial product and only allows you to use it for personal use. Any commercial use is prohibited by the TeamViewer use policy.

To sum everything up, you may need different tools to accommodate different situations. In my years of experience helping people solve computer issues remotely I use the best tool for the job. When speaking with a person that has no understanding of their computer and no idea of whether they are allowed or capable of installing software I use an attended, non-installing type of tool. Other times I may choose to get the person to install an unattended tool. Let the situation dictate the best tool but always have both available.

Best Free iPhone Apps

2012-02-27T22:43:00.000+02:00

Welcome to the first addition to my original reviews. I'm Reid J. Thaler, (bio below) the new iPhone App Reviewer. I really want this "Best Free iPhone App" section to be a community space, so if you know of an app that you like and want others to know of too, please let me know! (with iTune links, please). I only have two eyes, but collectively, we have thousands!

So what makes a great iPhone app? Simple elegance in what it does, unique ability to access the net, or utilize and manage your data, and of course, a design that's easy to navigate, visually appealing, and adds ease or joy to your life.

Below are apps that do all or most of those things. After using an iPhone for two years, I've learned that lots of things are just easier to do on the iPhone and it's great always having it near. If you are just starting to use an iPhone, I hope this list gets you up to speed with a lot of really great tools. If you are a seasoned iPhoner, I hope I can share some new apps that make your visit worthwhile. As I said, let me know if you've found a great app. Some (apologetically) may only work in the United States. If that's the case, let me know so I can note it.

So again, I'm trilled and excited to be the editor. Let's have a great time here!

You can easily find the apps you like with the Quick Select Index and use one of the following ways to install the apps from the list.

Quick Access to App Store:

In iPhone's browser, tap a program title below to go the App Store, tap the "FREE" button and then the "INSTALL APP" button. Or
In PC's browser, click a program title below to go to iTunes Preview and click "View in iTunes", then download the program within iTunes and sync to your iPhone.

This plus sign is attached to the logo of an app which is designed for the iPhone and iPod touch, and also runs natively on the larger screen of the iPad. See also Best Free iPad Apps.

Best Free iPhone Apps - Quick Select Index

After clicking a link, use your browser's Back icon to return here.

How to Restore the Run Line to the Start Menu in Windows Vista and Windows 7

2012-02-27T22:41:00.003+02:00

You may have noticed that many of the tips that I give use the Windows Run line. In fact, I use theRun line a lot and sometimes wish that it was back on the Start menu in Windows Vista/7 like it is in Windows XP. Of course, the keyboard shortcut Windows key + r will always bring up the Run box but if you would like to have Run reinstalled on the Start menu, here is how to do it in both Windows Vista and 7:

Right-click on the Start button
Click “Properties” from the context menu
Make sure the tab labeled “Start Menu” is selected
Click the “Customize” button
In the list that opens, scroll down to “Run Command” and place a check by it
Click “OK’ and “OK” again

There you have it. The Run line will be back on the Start menu.

Best Sites for Scripts, Drivers and Fonts

2012-02-27T22:40:00.002+02:00

Scripts, Scripts and ... more Scripts
Looking for ready-made CGI, Perl and JavaScript code for doing commonly-requested features on Web sites such as buttons, validating user input etc? These sites have excellent collections that you can cut and paste.
http://www.scriptsearch.com/
http://javascript.internet.com/
http://www.webreference.com/
http://www.scriptarchive.com/

Free Driver Sites
I'm always getting asked where the best place to find device drivers is. Unfortunately one of the best sites, www.drivershq.com, charges a $29.95 subscription fee but there are some pretty good free alternatives:
http://www.winguides.com/drivers/
http://www.driverguide.com
http://www.driversearch.com
http://drivermagic.co.nz/welcome.asp

Fonts Galore
I never thought I'd live to see it - a free font site without ads. What's more, the site's multi-dimensional font classification system makes it easy to find and select which of the 3700+ fonts you want. Thanks to subscriber Richard Steinitz for letting me know about this one.
http://www.dafont.com/en/

Font of Wisdom
There are many free Windows font sites but many are so loaded with advertising that they are virtually unusable. This one keeps the ads discreet and has a fabulous range of free type styles. I've bookmarked this site and I suggest you do as well.
http://www.fontfreak.com/index2.htm

Free GIFs and other Art
Here's a good collection of GIF based art including some quite excellent animated GIFs, all free provide you link back to their site. This is not the largest site of its kind but at least it's totally free from ads.
http://www.wilsoninfo.com/

NEW ENERGY ASSESSMENT STANDARDS

2012-02-27T21:37:00.000+02:00

ASME will publish four new standards this month that establish requirements for conducting energy assessments at industrial facilities.

Improving the efficiency of industrial systems increases profitability and reliability, and makes better use of assets. Many industrial facilities have the potential to increase the efficiency of their systems, but have difficulty doing so because there is no market definition for energy efficiency assessment services. Lack of a definition creates problems for service providers in establishing market value for their services and for consumers in determining the relative quality of assessment services.

The standards establish procedures for assessments of a facility's entire systems, from energy inputs to the work performed.

The four standards to be published are:

ASME EA-1-2009 Energy Assessment for Process Heating Systems.

ASME EA-2-2009 Energy Assessment for Pumping Systems.

ASME EA-3-2009 Energy Assessment for Steam Systems.

ASME EA-4-2010 Assessment for Compressed Air Systems.

The energy assessment standards are intended to assist plant personnel in identifying cost-effective projects that often have limited capital requirements. They address the topics and requirements for organizing and conducting assessments, analyzing the data collected, and reporting and documentation.

An assessment may also include recommendations for improving resource utilization, reducing per-unit production cost, and improving environmental performance. These recommended practices will be provided in Guidance Documents which ASME expects to publish by mid-2010.

The new standards are a contribution to the framework for assisting U.S. industry to meet the energy intensity improvement criteria of Superior Energy Performance, the program of the U.S. Council for Energy-Efficient Manufacturing, a partnership of U.S. industry, government, and other organizations.

ASME made four Draft Standards for Trial Use available in late 2008 and asked for comments. The systems assessment community offered extensive comments, and revisions were made to the draft standards and Guidance Documents to better reflect current practices, procedures, and improvements. RYAN CRANE

Diesel Turbocharger proper use and maintenance

2012-02-27T19:07:00.000+02:00

Diesel engine is mainly adopts gas turbocharged methods to improve its effective power. The turbocharger offset some of the natural aspirated engines congenital deficiency, not changing the cylinder diesel engine volume of cases greatly improve output power, so many engineering machinery had adopted the same turbocharged diesel enginetechnology to improve the output power, enhancing the quality of engine power than the high performance, realize the machine

1, turbocharger composition and function

Diesel engine cylinder by fuel burning in the energy input by fuel and air inhaled cylinders's limited amount of the power generated by also restricted, if the performance of the diesel engine is already at its best, add the output power can only through compressed more air into the cylinder to increase fuel, increase the combustion doing work ability. In the present technical conditions, turbochargers is the only one who can make the diesel engine in work efficiency under the condition of invariable increase the output power of mechanical device.

Turbocharged diesel turbochargers is the key parts, can increase the diesel engine power output by 20% ~ 30% and reduce fuel consumption, 8%, exhaust 25% ~ 50% FSN reduce the harmful poisonous gas, waste gas content is also significantly decrease. So in engineering machinery for daily use, paying attention to turbocharger proper use and maintenance to reduce the cost, reduce energy consumption and environmental protection to have the important meaning.

Turbochargers is actually a kind of air compressor, through the compressed air to increase the subsystem, and it mainly consists of turbine and compressor two parts. Turbine room inlet and exhaust manifold are linked together, then in the vent exhaust;Compressor with the inlet air filter, vent pipe connected up in intake manifold; Turbine impeller and compressor impeller are installed in turbine room and the supercharger inside, both coaxial rigid connection.

The turbocharger use diesel emissions inertial impact to drive the turbine indoor turbine, turbine and drive coaxial impeller, impeller press send brought by the air filter pipe, air pressurization into cylinder. When diesel engine speed, the waste gas discharge added fast speed and turbine speed increasing quickly, the impeller and synchronization is compressed more air into the cylinder, air pressure and density increases can burn more fuel, a corresponding increase in fuel and adjust the diesel engine speed, then increase the output power of diesel engine.

2, common fault analysis

The turbocharger installed in diesel engine exhaust manifold, at high temperature and high pressure and high speed running work condition, the working environment is very bad, work requirement and is hard, in use prone to failure. After the failure of the general expression for the power diesel drops greatly, and smoke when blue smoke and oil consumption is overmuch, supercharger abnormal voice, large noise. The main cause of fault for bad lubrication, foreign material into the and accumulation, fatigue damage.

(1) bad lubrication

Refers to the supercharger impeller and turbines in turbine compressor rotor shaft bearing not good lubrication, and rotor shaft and bearing damage, the supercharger doesn't work. Bad lubrication mainly by lubricating oil shortage, lubricating oil pipeline leak and caused fluid oil.to. 

(2) foreign material into and accumulation

Refers to the inlet pipe in dirt and exhaust duct microactivity, the accumulation of dust, sundry etc, if intake pipe air filter long-term replacement in the intake manifold, compressor impeller, and other long term not cleaning will produce coke, making intake resistance increases, the same turbine turbine and nozzle ring microactivity, also can produce adverse consequences. In addition, the exhaust system within the leak will also affect the normal work of the supercharger.