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Protect your Huge Business Network Through Windows Vista Updates

Admin — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 05:50:41 +0000

You have probably heard about Windows updates and the benefits that it has to offer you. This is an issue which has earned a lot of arguments from both the positive and negative sides. There are some Windows users who think that keeping their operating system updated is very important to keep it protected from viruses. On the other hand, there are some individuals who think that this issue has been put with so much emphasis, which is not essential at all. The real importance of this matter actually depends on what the user wants and prefers. The best advice of the developers of these updates can give is that you should opt for it if your large business depends greatly on your computer system.

During its first release, Windows is not that perfect yet. In order to improve this operating system, Microsoft comes up with Windows updates. It aims to revise each Windows version to make it more advanced. These updates are created by the engineers of the company in order to keep your computer from viruses and other problems. With the popularity of individuals hacking into large computer systems, you should know that Windows Vista updates are essential if your business relies on computer data. Despite the complexity of your network, it takes a single virus to penetrate into your system and destroy all your files. Whether you have issues with the security of your OS or you are dealing with Internet engineering backdoors, the updates of Windows can fix these.

If you only have one desktop which you are using at home, there is no need for vista updates. As long as you are not keeping private files, you have no reason to worry about hackers. When it comes to viruses, spyware, and other computer problems, there are simple protection programs which you can use to keep your files safe. Simple firewall protection will be able to do the job and prevent potential threats. You will only be able to see the importance of updates if you are protecting important computer files and data for your huge network. By updating your system, you will be able to get rid of viruses, hackers, and other threats that might bring your business down.

If you want to gain more information regarding the importance of Windows Vista updates, you can check out Windows Update Guide. This is an online site which also provides news on the current programs of this operating system. When you log on to the site, you will be able to read information regarding Windows Vista drivers, wallpapers, tweaks, and Vista Service Pack 1. Aside from these, you will also get to gain more info about the updates of Microsoft Office and Windows XP. You are not charged for obtaining information and news from Windows Update Guide. Its services are offered for free to anyone who wants to learn more about the updates of Windows. You are allowed to browse the site without paying a single cent.

You have probably heard about Windows updates and the benefits that it has to offer you. If you want to gain more information regarding the importance of Windows Vista updates , you can check out Windows Update Guide.

μTorrent v2.0 to add ‘game changing’ μTP protocol

Admin — Sun, 01 Nov 2009 05:57:01 +0000

Earlier this month, BitTorrent, the company behind the popular torrent clients μTorrent and BitTorrent posted that they were getting ready to “change the game” with the introduction of a new protocol dubbed μTP (micro-Transport Protocol).

The protocol will be available with the launch of uTorrent 2.0 and BitTorrent 7.0.

Says the post:

“The fact is that our BitTorrent clients have become incredibly popular with users downloading large files over the internet. So much so that some observers claim that BitTorrent traffic accounts for 30%, 50%, or even more of all Internet traffic. Regardless of the actual numbers (which we have no way of knowing), it is clear that the popularity of BitTorrent is putting such a burden on ISP networks that they sometimes react by slowing down or interfering with that traffic.

Now there is a whole “net neutrality” debate, partly about whether ISPs should be allowed to interfere with internet traffic from one particular app simply because it is “too popular” – some argue that perhaps ISPs could invest more so that supply meets demand – but this debate is not the focus here. At BitTorrent we like to be a bit more pragmatic, to assert that there is responsibility on the part of both the ISPs and authors of popular applications like BitTorrent to make sure that the internet scales smoothly to meet demand.

Which brings us back to μTP:

News of μTP started to leak to the public late last year with some wild and totally untrue reporting that we were trying to make BitTorrent more greedy and were somehow “declaring war” on users of other applications. In fact completely the opposite is true, as was subsequently acknowledged by the initial author’s follow-up article.

μTP is a completely new implementation of the BitTorrent protocol with a major new design objective – μTP is designed to be network friendly – to not swamp network connections when there are other apps trying to send and receive – and to resolve the key problem that ISPs use to justify interference with BitTorrent traffic.

If BitTorrent traffic volume is so great that it overwhelms end-users’ connections (leading to service calls from consumers whose internet doesn’t work), then μTP eliminates this problem by being better at only using bandwidth when there is no other traffic competing, and automatically slowing or stopping BitTorrent transfers before network connections seize up.

Legacy BitTorrent traffic uses the standard internet “TCP” protocol to govern when it tries to go faster or slow down. The problem with TCP is that it can only detect a problem by waiting to see if packets are dropped. Unfortunately, by the time packets are being lost, the problem is already acute and the consumers connection has already drastically slowed or stopped. TCP is a lot like trying to drive with your eyes closed. You only notice something’s wrong when you hit something.

μTP is like driving with your eyes *open* – μTP is able to see problems coming and make much more modest adjustments to ensure the problems don’t cause a car wreck. It does this by being able to detect congestion on a network based on how long a packet takes to be sent from one peer to the next. If things start to take longer, then μTP adjusts the rate of sending accordingly.

As it happens, this trick has required some very deep engineering work – the way the client talks to other clients has had to be completely re-built. As a side effect, because the new protocol so different, it is practically invisible to some of the nasty traffic shaping techniques that some ISPs have been using. We doubt whether this happy result will last for long, and nor is it the point of the technology. The point is to reduce the need for such gear rather than to evade it.

Overall, when we get μTP stable, we’re excited about the potential benefits that this could bring to ISPs by reducing the effective burdens on their networks. Although we stand to gain nothing financially from them for implementing it, we hope to maintain the lead enjoyed by μTorrent and BitTorrent Mainline software as the most popular BitTorrent clients, and hopefully demonstrate how innovation from responsible stakeholders on a neutral internet can lead to winning outcomes all-around.”

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Switching to Linux: Why Dual-booting is Best

Admin — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 20:53:12 +0000

With the user-friendly Linux distribution Ubuntu gaining popularity at an astounding rate, you may be considering making the move from Windows to Linux. If you are, then you will have wondered how you will work and play without the applications and games you use every day in Windows.

Windows applications can be run in Linux, just not natively. You have two main options: Emulation and Virtualization. Neither are as effective as dual-booting but I will explain them here and their drawbacks.

Emulation allows you to run Windows applications through a “translation layer” which tricks the applications into thinking they are running on Windows. Although great advances have been made by the WINE Project and commercial offshoot, Cedega, many applications are still unsupported. Support for certain applications may even vary depending on your hardware configuration.

Virtualization takes running Windows applications on Linux a step further and is capable of running an entire Windows (or any other) operating system straight from your Linux desktop. With the free application VirtualBox, you can create a ?virtual machine? and install any version of Windows you wish onto it.

A virtual machine is switched on and off exactly like a normal PC, except the entire operating system runs inside a window on your Linux desktop. You may then install any Windows applications you wish into the virtual machine and use them as you normally would.

Running applications natively in Windows, via a virtual machine, is far more reliable than running them through a translation layer, but virtualization has its drawbacks too.

When you run Windows in a virtual machine you are effectively running two operating systems, simultaneously, on one computer. This has obvious performance drawbacks. Although most office-type applications could be run this way, if your office insists on a particular piece of Windows-specific software, performance issues and lack of DirectX support severely hampers game applications.

The only way to successfully run all your Windows applications at their full capacity is to install Windows and Linux as dual-boot operating systems.

Dual-booting is the process of installing two operating systems side-by-side, to be run independently. By this method you will be presented with a menu listing your operating systems when you switch on your computer. this allows you to choose the OS most suitable for the tasks at hand, be it work or gaming.

I personally run Ubuntu 7.04 and Windows XP as a dual-boot system. I mostly use Ubuntu for day-to-day tasks and run Windows XP purely for gaming. This way, dual-booting grants me access to the best features of both operating systems and allows me to use my computer to its full potential.

Dan R provides tech support to the Green Bay area via Green Bay Tech Support

Ridding the Web of the XSS Scourge

Admin — Mon, 19 Oct 2009 13:00:00 +0000

Cross-site scripting/SQL injection attacks have been blamed for numerous data breaches, perhaps most notably the nightmare of the Heartland Payment Systems data breach. This type of attack has been around for at least a decade. However, the growing popularity of Web 2.0 applications and the tendency for programmers to continue with old, insecure code writing techniques make XSS one of the most deadly methods for hackers. Cross-site scripting/SQL injection attacks are all about getting reasonable people to click on a compromised site.