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15 Hidden Firefox Tricks You Must Know

<div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6m-I8D26md1ZjZN0R60RFnBGV5viKyiacEbNA4UD3YjG3SJ0kyha13aZJC7SmuCYvpJwa_v1wEWqqnaO0OUF9l_LnBCAR3U1mt7ZrX6Gi3xyZwA2BwmrvYVgrL1W1WFSmfLrM32n6Ty8/s1600/20070306-firefox.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6m-I8D26md1ZjZN0R60RFnBGV5viKyiacEbNA4UD3YjG3SJ0kyha13aZJC7SmuCYvpJwa_v1wEWqqnaO0OUF9l_LnBCAR3U1mt7ZrX6Gi3xyZwA2BwmrvYVgrL1W1WFSmfLrM32n6Ty8/s1600/20070306-firefox.jpg" /></a></div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">On the other hand Firefox has already been <a href="http://blog.mozilla.com/blog/2008/06/18/over-8-million-way-to-go/" target="_blank">downloaded 8.3 million times</a>  in a single day. To help out the millions of users find useful  information in one place, I have created some list of tips and  tricks for Firefox written by talented bloggers from around the  blogosphere.</span></div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong><br /></strong></span></div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong> 1) More screen space.</strong> Make your icons small. Go to View – Toolbars – Customize and check the “Use small icons” box.</span></div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong> 2) <a href="http://www.mozilla.org/products/firefox/smart-keywords.html">Smart keywords</a>.</strong>  If there’s a search you use a lot (let’s say IMDB.com’s people search),  this is an awesome tool that not many people use. Right-click on the  search box, select “Add a Keyword for this search”, give the keyword a  name and an easy-to-type and easy-to-remember shortcut name (let’s say  “actor”) and save it. Now, when you want to do an actor search, go to  Firefox’s address bar, type “actor” and the name of the actor and press  return. Instant search! You can do this with any search box.</span></div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong>3) Keyboard shortcuts.</strong>  This is where you become a real Jedi. It just takes a little while to  learn these, but once you do, your browsing will be super fast. Here are  some of the most common (and my personal favs):</span></div><ul style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><li><span style="font-size: small;"> Spacebar (page down)</span></li><li><span style="font-size: small;"> Shift-Spacebar (page up)</span></li><li><span style="font-size: small;"> Ctrl+F (find)</span></li><li><span style="font-size: small;"> Alt-N (find next)</span></li><li><span style="font-size: small;"> Ctrl+D (bookmark page)</span></li><li><span style="font-size: small;">Ctrl+T (new tab)</span></li><li><span style="font-size: small;"> Ctrl+K (go to search box)</span></li><li><span style="font-size: small;"> Ctrl+L (go to address bar)</span></li><li><span style="font-size: small;"> Ctrl+= (increase text size)</span></li><li><span style="font-size: small;"> Ctrl+- (decrease text size)</span></li><li><span style="font-size: small;"> Ctrl-W (close tab)</span></li><li><span style="font-size: small;"> F5 (reload)</span></li><li><span style="font-size: small;"> Alt-Home (go to home page)</span></li></ul><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong>4) Auto-complete.</strong>  This is another keyboard shortcut, but it’s not commonly known and very  useful. Go to the address bar (Control-L) and type the name of the site  without the “www” or the “.com”. Let’s say “google”. Then press  Control-Enter, and it will automatically fill in the “www” and the  “.com” and take you there – like magic! For .net addresses, press  Shift-Enter, and for .org addresses, press Control-Shift-Enter.</span></div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong> 5) Tab navigation. </strong>Instead of using the mouse to select different tabs that you have open, use the keyboard. Here are the shortcuts:</span></div><ul style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><li><span style="font-size: small;"> Ctrl+Tab (rotate forward among tabs)</span></li><li><span style="font-size: small;"> Ctrl+Shft+Tab (rotate to the previous tab)</span></li><li><span style="font-size: small;"> Ctrl+1-9 (choose a number to jump to a specific tab)</span></li></ul><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong> 6) Mouse shortcuts.</strong>  Sometimes you’re already using your mouse and it’s easier to use a  mouse shortcut than to go back to the keyboard. Master these cool ones:</span></div><ul style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><li><span style="font-size: small;">Middle click on link (opens in new tab)</span></li><li><span style="font-size: small;">Shift-scroll down (previous page)</span></li><li><span style="font-size: small;">Shift-scroll up (next page)</span></li><li><span style="font-size: small;">Ctrl-scroll up (decrease text size)</span></li><li><span style="font-size: small;">Ctrl-scroll down (increase text size)</span></li><li><span style="font-size: small;">Middle click on a tab (closes tab)</span></li></ul><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong>7) Delete items from address bar history</strong>.  Firefox’s ability to automatically show previous URLs you’ve visited,  as you type, in the address bar’s drop-down history menu is very cool.  But sometimes you just don’t want those URLs to show up (I won’t ask  why). Go to the address bar (Ctrl-L), start typing an address, and the  drop-down menu will appear with the URLs of pages you’ve visited with  those letters in them. Use the down-arrow to go down to an address you  want to delete, and press the Delete key to make it disappear.</span></div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong>8) User chrome.</strong>  If you really want to trick out your Firefox, you’ll want to create a  UserChrome.css file and customize your browser. It’s a bit complicated  to get into here, but <a href="http://www.supernova00.biz/userchrome.html">check out this tutorial</a>.</span></div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong>9) Create a user.js file.</strong>  Another way to customize Firefox, creating a user.js file can really  speed up your browsing. You’ll need to create a text file named user.js  in your profile folder (see <a href="http://www.mozilla.org/support/firefox/edit">this</a> to find out where the profile folder is) and see <a href="http://users.tns.net/%7Eskingery/weblog/user.js">this example user.js file</a><a href="http://www.techlifeweb.com/">techlifeweb.com</a>, this example explains some of the things you can do in its comments.</span> that you can modify. Created by </div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong> 10) about:config</strong>.  The true power user’s tool, about.config isn’t something to mess with  if you don’t know what a setting does. You can get to the main  configuration screen by putting about:config in the browser’s address  bar. See Mozillazine’s <a href="http://mozillazine.org/misc/about:config/">about:config tips and screenshots</a>.<br /><strong><br />11) Add a keyword for a bookmark</strong></span> <span style="font-size: small;">.  Go to your bookmarks much faster by giving them keywords. Right-click  the bookmark and then select Properties. Put a short keyword in the  keyword field, save it, and now you can type that keyword in the address  bar and it will go to that bookmark.</span></div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong>12) Speed up Firefox</strong>.  If you have a broadband connection (and most of us do), you can use  pipelining to speed up your page loads. This allows Firefox to load  multiple things on a page at once, instead of one at a time (by default,  it’s optimized for dialup connections). Here’s how:</span></div><ul style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><li><span style="font-size: small;">Type  “about:config” into the address bar and hit return. Type “network.http”  in the filter field, and change the following settings (double-click on  them to change them):</span></li><li><span style="font-size: small;">Set “network.http.pipelining” to “true”</span></li><li><span style="font-size: small;">Set “network.http.proxy.pipelining” to “true”</span></li><li><span style="font-size: small;">Set “network.http.pipelining.maxrequests” to a number like 30. This will allow it to make 30 requests at once.</span></li><li><span style="font-size: small;">Also,  right-click anywhere and select New-> Integer. Name it  “nglayout.initialpaint.delay” and set its value to “0″. This value is  the amount of time the browser waits before it acts on information it  receives.</span></li></ul><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong> 13) Limit RAM usage</strong>. If Firefox  takes up too much memory on your computer, you can limit the amount of  RAM it is allowed to us. Again, go to about:config, filter  “browser.cache” and select “browser.cache.disk.capacity”. It’s set to  50000, but you can lower it, depending on how much memory you have. Try  15000 if you have between 512MB and 1GB ram.</span></div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong> 14) Reduce RAM usage further for when Firefox is minimized</strong>.  This setting will move Firefox to your hard drive when you minimize it,  taking up much less memory. And there is no noticeable difference in  speed when you restore Firefox, so it’s definitely worth a go. Again, go  to about:config, right-click anywhere and select New-> Boolean. Name  it “config.trim_on_minimize” and set it to TRUE. You have to restart  Firefox for these settings to take effect.</span></div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong> 15) Move or remove the close tab button</strong>.  Do you accidentally click on the close button of Firefox’s tabs? You  can move them or remove them, again through about:config. Edit the  preference for “browser.tabs.closeButtons”. Here are the meanings of  each value:</span></div><ul style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><li><span style="font-size: small;"> 0: Display a close button on the active tab only</span></li><li><span style="font-size: small;"> 1:(Default) Display close buttons on all tabs</span></li><li><span style="font-size: small;"> 2:Don’t display any close buttons</span></li><li><span style="font-size: small;"> 3:Display a single close button at the end of the tab bar (Firefox 1.x behavior)</span></li></ul><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong>Got any favorite Firefox tips or tricks of your own? Let us know in the comments.</strong></span></div>

15 Hidden Firefox Tricks You Must Know

On the other hand Firefox has already been downloaded 8.3 million times in a single day. To help out the millions of users find useful in...

6 Best Sites to View Maps of Airline Flight Paths + Bonus Mobile Apps

If you have ever waited anxiously for a family member or friend to arrive at your airport after a long flight you will understand the need to receive reliable, up to date information about where a plane currently is located and when they are estimated to arrive. <br /><br />The way I see it, you have two reasons to need to view maps of an airline flight path: You are waiting for a family member or friend to arrive at the airport safely – let’s call this informational only, or you are waiting at the airport/driving in to pick up that person. These are two totally separate uses and a website does not do you much good if all you have is a smartphone or even just a regular phone. The sites below are reviewed based on these two parameters: informational sites for casual viewing and must-have information for those traveling to the airport for pickups.<br /><br /><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://www.flightstats.com/go/Home/home.do">FlightStats</a></span><br /><br /><a href="http://www.flightstats.com/go/Home/home.do">FlightStats</a> is my favorite website for tracking flight information on the web. It provides comprehensive flight information for all flights originating in the United States and also fairly comprehensive coverage for overseas flights in Europe. For other countries, the data you receive is hit or miss.<br /><br />The content it provides (on US flights) is comprehensive. You can see the flight path on a variety of maps, all powered by Google Maps. You can also overlay radar which is a nice feature that the other flight tracking sites do not provide.<br /><br />Flightstats.com does not have a free iPhone app; however there are some paid ones if you are interested in that (I list some great free alternatives below). They do have a suite of Android apps; including <a href="http://www.flightstats.com/go/Mobile/android.do#flightstatsForAndroidLite">FlightStats for Android Lite</a> which is free.<br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgieCHJCBZDlG2BzS05cveWc_iEGrq9bDo6z87FTpQNxlDc-9DhUsu036wGIFx7KOe_jrcBtWH5zJ7-V78vJoWGfg4pBEVOOcAEJC58DapvgrgvRZH9T9Y9LT7cdocs481_MHjkvJAAwWs/s1600/flightstats-alerts.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgieCHJCBZDlG2BzS05cveWc_iEGrq9bDo6z87FTpQNxlDc-9DhUsu036wGIFx7KOe_jrcBtWH5zJ7-V78vJoWGfg4pBEVOOcAEJC58DapvgrgvRZH9T9Y9LT7cdocs481_MHjkvJAAwWs/s1600/flightstats-alerts.png" /></a></div><br /> Finally, the killer feature that is unique to Flightstats is automatic notification via cell phone text or email when a flight is delayed or its status is updated at all (for example, when it arrives at the gate). This allows someone picking up a flyer to know when they get there without relying on a call; it also provides gate information.<br /><br /><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://www.flightview.com/"><b>Flightview</b></a></span><br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyGusVEwEqRONPKjo8e9XqLCKKm3NPFFjujcm_FrWZQ9zHRYJbJuT92L2bFXMl2-NarOn_qdhmgmc3OEPzr633lcxp858az2Tq6ExsfB0KhW0iz0G2Y1IdyFdIGHFdZak_vJTkLSJvfC4/s1600/flightview-sample.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyGusVEwEqRONPKjo8e9XqLCKKm3NPFFjujcm_FrWZQ9zHRYJbJuT92L2bFXMl2-NarOn_qdhmgmc3OEPzr633lcxp858az2Tq6ExsfB0KhW0iz0G2Y1IdyFdIGHFdZak_vJTkLSJvfC4/s1600/flightview-sample.png" /></a></div><br /><br /><a href="http://www.flightview.com/">Flightview</a> offers much of the same information as Flightstats above. You get a live map (although not as pretty as Flightstats) time and delay information, and more. The website isn’t quite as polished but it is still very informative for the flight traveller.<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiM5GpBs92btz-7G8WIggVAXp4kFn3Bdrd57FhVoF7Tmd5zWMQup6E4bFk83VS9_rR3M9nZkka4bDGEcpR5W0J6CtOzRNHXOI2cETVCgx9JQiE3a6ChD7LcA9GK2ZzEjciKWpfbBnW_YuQ/s1600/flightview-mobile.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiM5GpBs92btz-7G8WIggVAXp4kFn3Bdrd57FhVoF7Tmd5zWMQup6E4bFk83VS9_rR3M9nZkka4bDGEcpR5W0J6CtOzRNHXOI2cETVCgx9JQiE3a6ChD7LcA9GK2ZzEjciKWpfbBnW_YuQ/s1600/flightview-mobile.jpg" /></a></div><br />The one area where Flightview really shines is mobile apps. They offer free mobile flight tracking apps for <a href="http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/flightview-free-real-time/id399057337?mt=8">iPhone</a> [iTunes link], <a href="http://www.flightview.com/corporate/products/flightview-mobile-android.aspx">Android</a>, Blackberry and <a href="http://www.flightview.com/corporate/products/flightview-mobile-apps.aspx">other platforms</a>. Their mobile app for flight tracking is one of the highest rated in the iTunes app store and it is easy to see why: flights are easy to find, gate information and a maps at your fingertips.<br /><br /><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://flightwise.com/">Flightwise</a></span><br /><br /><a href="http://flightwise.com/">Flightwise</a>, formerly our favorite named fboweb, has some compelling features you might want to look at. They are geared more towards the technical information about a flight so if you are an aviation enthusiast you might want to choose them over the other sites. They have a free iPhone app, but information like the arrival Gate is left out for the paid versions.<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjq4Yj45YAKE6OBVx3CoR9hnM7kbNFKSFKkQyriYhMNWemNEYSaITbAKeAMtJrE2dVIT38cIFbhXescxtx5_fKp6Blz6Ntgo7YNmO2rEeDuiV6UMjJAk4AsOnVuo2YXNeWeIYvN_izCIrI/s1600/flightwise-googleearth.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjq4Yj45YAKE6OBVx3CoR9hnM7kbNFKSFKkQyriYhMNWemNEYSaITbAKeAMtJrE2dVIT38cIFbhXescxtx5_fKp6Blz6Ntgo7YNmO2rEeDuiV6UMjJAk4AsOnVuo2YXNeWeIYvN_izCIrI/s1600/flightwise-googleearth.png" /></a></div><br /><br /><br />Flightwise offers one of the coolest visualizations of a flight on a map. One click and you can see the flight you are interested in, and nearby flights, in near-realtime 3D.<br /><br />This visualization is both interesting from a “cool” factor and also from an educational viewpoint. Elevation, speed and location are all mapped onto the earth in real-time, it doesn’t get much cooler than that!<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flightarrivals.com/">FlightArrivals</a><br /><br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgi_XVuK9k6F9K52Kl3-Kh_ZRpfjxrRTwtt43qeeYx6f63RYIXMofHprJxOIX4WW7kD2DekE6z3KdcpG-JKzKddoah5S-bmMb077KrvbNMHhGY06PY3h6xJmIXndPAQ_uaugYuWwNz7ZaA/s1600/flightarrivals.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgi_XVuK9k6F9K52Kl3-Kh_ZRpfjxrRTwtt43qeeYx6f63RYIXMofHprJxOIX4WW7kD2DekE6z3KdcpG-JKzKddoah5S-bmMb077KrvbNMHhGY06PY3h6xJmIXndPAQ_uaugYuWwNz7ZaA/s1600/flightarrivals.png" /></a></div><br /><a href="http://www.flightarrivals.com/">FlightArrivals</a> has the information listed above, but also adds some interesting other <a href="http://www.flightarrivals.com/cgi-bin/WebObjects/Flights.woa/wo/4.17.1.1.1.1.1">visualizations of airlines</a>. You can select an airport and see all of the flights out of that airport to other cities and countries.<br /><br /><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://flightaware.com/">Flightaware</a></span><br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGJMYFT39U0g4RUCWGbVLfj4NCG7-gYKdyNCfIVVGK-UYvneA_bgc86xsNQv0C5bippjqMF06Q5FaZbL3AbUv4mvEJTpdlgvfYW3KIBJG-b_HY2EC_CyFfSk3P2QfyGrrSptr58aQuEX0/s1600/flightaware.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGJMYFT39U0g4RUCWGbVLfj4NCG7-gYKdyNCfIVVGK-UYvneA_bgc86xsNQv0C5bippjqMF06Q5FaZbL3AbUv4mvEJTpdlgvfYW3KIBJG-b_HY2EC_CyFfSk3P2QfyGrrSptr58aQuEX0/s1600/flightaware.png" /></a></div><br /><br /><a href="http://flightaware.com/">Flightaware</a> has another neat visualization to add to the list above. In addition to receiving specific flight tracking for a commercial or private pilot flight, it also has a <a href="http://flightaware.com/live/livemap.rvt">real-time map of US flights</a>. Although it doesn’t display specific information for all of the flights, you can get a general idea as to the activity of the current airspace. They have historical information which is pretty neat to look at and watch.<br /><br />Flightaware also has a <a href="http://flightaware.com/iphone/?v2">free iPhone app</a> that will help you track and store flights.<br /><br /><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://www.helloflight.com/">HelloFlight</a></span><br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLhh85ZbrY3WjS7uSxLmyMOvO65aP2Dtd7HrLLDtOGC1Pds8jyN8jbYElt5ezzh1nuZoW5gQoyl8o4aXvv5TU7yk2cMjpxP9wJYQYULbPiH5GpiyN9pH1Pdeig5xxtJsvGq9BDIrXVKiE/s1600/helloflight.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLhh85ZbrY3WjS7uSxLmyMOvO65aP2Dtd7HrLLDtOGC1Pds8jyN8jbYElt5ezzh1nuZoW5gQoyl8o4aXvv5TU7yk2cMjpxP9wJYQYULbPiH5GpiyN9pH1Pdeig5xxtJsvGq9BDIrXVKiE/s1600/helloflight.png" /></a></div><br /><br /><a href="http://www.helloflight.com/">HelloFlight</a> offers some interesting maps of airline flight paths. On their site they show all current positions of SouthWest airplanes in flight, as well as providing tracking information for any other commercial US flight.<br /><br />They have a mobile site up at <a href="http://m.helloflight.com/">http://m.helloflight.com/</a> which would be handy if you are mobile and need to retrieve flight information.<br /><br />Whichever site you choose to use, you can get some really cool visualizations whether at home or on the go. Flight paths are available both for commercial airlines and private pilot trips (depending on if they are travelling IFR or VFR) and this information is both useful and fun.<br /><br />Many of the sites mentioned above have a “Show a random flight” link, if you don’t know of any current flight numbers try those to get a sample of what they have to offer, that way when you do need to use the sites you will know which one will work the best for you. Happy travels!

6 Best Sites to View Maps of Airline Flight Paths + Bonus Mobile Apps

If you have ever waited anxiously for a family member or friend to arrive at your airport after a long flight you will understand the need t...

The Most Important Basic Hacking Skills You Should Know First

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi82gGTjLBHaFJQ5AXne0VayBg_PXiaBd7BTC8n9l3LLI-36nXvaTdQFQK3e-t-NN-mMuURweYhU-xPtWXPlIbNf2JFjGhLW4N0djAhS-8xec3xfuFfcklwcva4KwC1NZyGM-t08LD3oi4/s1600/6Algebra.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="308" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi82gGTjLBHaFJQ5AXne0VayBg_PXiaBd7BTC8n9l3LLI-36nXvaTdQFQK3e-t-NN-mMuURweYhU-xPtWXPlIbNf2JFjGhLW4N0djAhS-8xec3xfuFfcklwcva4KwC1NZyGM-t08LD3oi4/s320/6Algebra.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">The hacker attitude is vital, but skills are even more vital. Attitude is no substitute for competence, and there's a certain basic toolkit of skills which you have to have before any hacker will dream of calling you one.</span></div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">This toolkit changes slowly over time as technology creates new skills and makes old ones obsolete.  For example, it used to include programming in machine language, and didn't until recently involve HTML.  But right now it pretty clearly includes the following:</span></div><div class="sect2" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;" title="1. Learn how to program."><div class="titlepage"><div><div><h3 class="title"><span style="font-size: small;">1. Learn how to program.</span></h3></div></div></div><span style="font-size: small;">This, of course, is the fundamental hacking skill.  If you don't know any computer languages, I recommend starting with Python.  It is cleanly designed, well documented, and relatively kind to beginners. Despite being a good first language, it is not just a toy; it is very powerful and flexible and well suited for large projects.  Good <a class="ulink" href="http://docs.python.org/tut/tut.html" target="_top"> tutorials</a> are available at the <a class="ulink" href="http://docs.python.org/tutorial/" target="_top">Python web site</a>.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-size: small;">I used to recommend Java as a good language to learn early, but <a class="ulink" href="http://www.stsc.hill.af.mil/CrossTalk/2008/01/0801DewarSchonberg.html" target="_top">this critique</a> has changed my mind (search for <span class="quote">“<span class="quote">The Pitfalls of Java as a First Programming Language</span>”</span> within it).  A hacker cannot, as they devastatingly put it <span class="quote">“<span class="quote">approach problem-solving like a plumber in a hardware store</span>”</span>; you have to know what the components actually <span class="emphasis"><em>do</em></span>.  Now I think it is probably best to learn C and Lisp first, then Java.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-size: small;">There is perhaps a more general point here.  If a language does too much for you, it may be simultaneously a good tool for production and a bad one for learning.  It's not only languages that have this problem; web application frameworks like RubyOnRails, CakePHP, Django may make it too easy to reach a superficial sort of understanding that will leave you without resources when you have to tackle a hard problem, or even just debug the solution to an easy one.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-size: small;">If you get into serious programming, you will have to learn C, the core language of Unix.  C++ is very closely related to C; if you know one, learning the other will not be difficult.  Neither language is a good one to try learning as your first, however.  And, actually, the more you can avoid programming in C the more productive you will be.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-size: small;">C is very efficient, and very sparing of your machine's resources.  Unfortunately, C gets that efficiency by requiring you to do a lot of low-level management of resources (like memory) by hand. All that low-level code is complex and bug-prone, and will soak up huge amounts of your time on debugging. With today's machines as powerful as they are, this is usually a bad tradeoff — it's smarter to use a language that uses the machine's time less efficiently, but your time much <span class="emphasis"><em>more</em></span> efficiently.  Thus, Python.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-size: small;">Other languages of particular importance to hackers include <a class="ulink" href="http://www.perl.com/" target="_top">Perl</a> and <a class="ulink" href="http://www.lisp.org/" target="_top">LISP</a>.  Perl is worth learning for practical reasons; it's very widely used for active web pages and system administration, so that even if you never write Perl you should learn to read it.  Many people use Perl in the way I  suggest you should use Python, to avoid C programming on jobs that don't require C's machine efficiency.  You will need to be able to understand their code.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-size: small;">LISP is worth learning for a different reason — the profound enlightenment experience you will have when you finally get it.  That experience will make you a better programmer for the rest of your days, even if you never actually use LISP itself a lot.  (You can get some beginning experience with LISP fairly easily by writing and modifying editing modes for the Emacs text editor, or Script-Fu plugins for the GIMP.)</span><br /><br /><span style="font-size: small;">It's best, actually, to learn all five of Python, C/C++, Java, Perl, and LISP.  Besides being the most important hacking languages, they represent very different approaches to programming, and each will educate you in valuable ways.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-size: small;">But be aware that you won't reach the skill level of a hacker or even merely a programmer simply by accumulating languages — you need to learn how to think about programming problems in a general way, independent of any one language.  To be a real hacker, you need to get to the point where you can learn a new language in days by relating what's in the manual to what you already know.  This means you should learn several very different languages.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-size: small;">I can't give complete instructions on how to learn to program here — it's a complex skill.  But I can tell you that books and courses won't do it — many, maybe <span class="emphasis"><em>most</em></span> of the best hackers are self-taught.  You can learn language features — bits of knowledge — from books, but the mind-set that makes that knowledge into living skill can be learned only by practice and apprenticeship. What will do it is (a) <span class="emphasis"><em>reading code</em></span> and (b) <span class="emphasis"><em>writing code</em></span>.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-size: small;">Peter Norvig, who is one of Google's top hackers and the co-author of the most widely used textbook on AI, has written an excellent essay called <a class="ulink" href="http://norvig.com/21-days.html" target="_top">Teach Yourself Programming in Ten Years</a>.  His "recipe for programming success" is worth careful attention.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-size: small;">Learning to program is like learning to write good natural language. The best way to do it is to read some stuff written by masters of the form, write some things yourself, read a lot more, write a little more, read a lot more, write some more ... and repeat until your writing begins to develop the kind of strength and economy you see in your models.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-size: small;">Finding good code to read used to be hard, because there were few large programs available in source for fledgeling hackers to read and tinker with.  This has changed dramatically; open-source software, programming tools, and operating systems (all built by hackers) are now widely available. Which brings me neatly to our next topic...</span></div><div class="sect2" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;" title="2. Get one of the open-source Unixes and learn to use and run it."><div class="titlepage"><div><div><h3 class="title"><span style="font-size: small;">2. Get one of the open-source Unixes and learn to use and run it.</span></h3></div></div></div><span style="font-size: small;">I'll assume you have a personal computer or can get access to one.  (Take a moment to appreciate how much that means.  The hacker culture originally evolved back when computers were so expensive that individuals could not own them.)  The single most important step any newbie can take toward acquiring hacker skills is to get a copy of Linux or one of the BSD-Unixes or OpenSolaris, install it on a personal machine, and run it.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-size: small;">Yes, there are other operating systems in the world besides Unix.  But they're distributed in binary — you can't read the code, and you can't modify it.  Trying to learn to hack on a Microsoft Windows machine or under any other closed-source system is like trying to learn to dance while wearing a body cast.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-size: small;">Under Mac OS X it's possible, but only part of the system is open source — you're likely to hit a lot of walls, and you have to be careful not to develop the bad habit of depending on Apple's proprietary code.  If you concentrate on the Unix under the hood you can learn some useful things.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-size: small;">Unix is the operating system of the Internet.  While you can learn to use the Internet without knowing Unix, you can't be an Internet hacker without understanding Unix.  For this reason, the hacker culture today is pretty strongly Unix-centered. (This wasn't always true, and some old-time hackers still aren't happy about it, but the symbiosis between Unix and the Internet has become strong enough that even Microsoft's muscle doesn't seem able to seriously dent it.)</span><br /><br /><span style="font-size: small;">So, bring up a Unix — I like Linux myself but there are other ways (and yes, you <span class="emphasis"><em>can</em></span> run both Linux and Microsoft Windows on the same machine).  Learn it.  Run it.  Tinker with it. Talk to the Internet with it.  Read the code.  Modify the code. You'll get better programming tools (including C, LISP, Python, and Perl) than any Microsoft operating system can dream of hosting, you'll have fun, and you'll soak up more knowledge than you realize you're learning until you look back on it as a master hacker.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-size: small;">For more about learning Unix, see <a class="ulink" href="http://catb.org/%7Eesr/faqs/loginataka.html" target="_top">The Loginataka</a>. You might also want to have a look at <a class="ulink" href="http://catb.org/%7Eesr/writings/taoup/" target="_top">The Art Of Unix Programming</a>.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-size: small;">To get your hands on a Linux, see the <a class="ulink" href="http://www.linux.org/" target="_top">Linux Online!</a> site; you can download from there or (better idea) find a local Linux user group to help you with installation.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-size: small;">During the first ten years of this HOWTO's life, I reported that from a new user's point of view, all Linux distributions are almost equivalent.  But in 2006-2007, an actual best choice emerged: <a class="ulink" href="http://www.ubuntu.com/" target="_top">Ubuntu</a>. While other distros have their own areas of strength, Ubuntu is far and away the most accessible to Linux newbies.</span><br /><span style="font-size: small;">You can find BSD Unix help and resources at <a class="ulink" href="http://www.bsd.org/" target="_top">www.bsd.org</a>.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-size: small;">A good way to dip your toes in the water is to boot up what Linux fans call a <a class="ulink" href="http://www.livecdnews.com/" target="_top">live CD</a>, a distribution that runs entirely off a CD without having to modify your hard disk.  This will be slow, because CDs are slow, but it's a way to get a look at the possibilities without having to do anything drastic.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-size: small;">I have written a primer on the <a class="ulink" href="http://en.tldp.org/HOWTO/Unix-and-Internet-Fundamentals-HOWTO/index.html" target="_top">basics of Unix and the Internet</a>.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-size: small;">I used to recommend against installing either Linux or BSD as a solo project if you're a newbie.  Nowadays the installers have gotten good enough that doing it entirely on your own is possible, even for a newbie.  Nevertheless, I still recommend making contact with your local Linux user's group and asking for help. It can't hurt, and may smooth the process.</span></div><div class="sect2" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;" title="3. Learn how to use the World Wide Web and write HTML."><div class="titlepage"><div><div><h3 class="title"><span style="font-size: small;">3. Learn how to use the World Wide Web and write HTML.</span></h3></div></div></div><span style="font-size: small;">Most of the things the hacker culture has built do their work out of sight, helping run factories and offices and universities without any obvious impact on how non-hackers live.  The Web is the one big exception, the huge shiny hacker toy that even <span class="emphasis"><em>politicians</em></span> admit has changed the world.  For this reason alone (and a lot of other good ones as well) you need to learn how to work the Web.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-size: small;">This doesn't just mean learning how to drive a browser (anyone can do that), but learning how to write HTML, the Web's markup language. If you don't know how to program, writing HTML will teach you some mental habits that will help you learn. So build a home page. Try to stick to XHTML, which is a cleaner language than classic HTML. (There are good beginner tutorials on the Web; <a class="ulink" href="http://htmldog.com/" target="_top">here's one</a>.)</span><br /><br /><span style="font-size: small;">But just having a home page isn't anywhere near good enough to make you a hacker.  The Web is full of home pages.  Most of them are pointless, zero-content sludge — very snazzy-looking sludge, mind you, but sludge all the same (for more on this see <a class="ulink" href="http://catb.org/%7Eesr/html-hell.html" target="_top">The HTML Hell Page</a>).</span><br /><br /><span style="font-size: small;">To be worthwhile, your page must have <span class="emphasis"><em>content</em></span> — it must be interesting and/or useful to other hackers.  And that brings us to the next topic...</span></div><div class="titlepage" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><div><div><h3 class="title"><span style="font-size: small;">4. If you don't have functional English, learn it.</span></h3></div></div></div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">As an American and native English-speaker myself, I have previously been reluctant to suggest this, lest it be taken as a sort of cultural imperialism.  But several native speakers of other languages have urged me to point out that English is the working language of the hacker culture and the Internet, and that you  will need to know it to function in the hacker community.</span></div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Back around 1991 I learned that many hackers who have English as a second language use it in technical discussions even when they share a birth tongue; it was reported to me at the time that English has a richer technical vocabulary than any other language and is therefore simply a better tool for the job.  For similar reasons, translations of technical books written in English are often unsatisfactory (when they get done at all).</span></div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Linus Torvalds, a Finn, comments his code in English (it apparently never occurred to him to do otherwise).  His fluency in English has been an important factor in his ability to recruit a worldwide community of developers for Linux.  It's an example worth following.</span></div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Being a native English-speaker does not guarantee that you have language skills good enough to function as a hacker.  If your writing is semi-literate, ungrammatical, and riddled with misspellings, many hackers (including myself) will tend to ignore you.  While sloppy writing does not invariably mean sloppy thinking, we've generally found the correlation to be strong — and we have no use for sloppy thinkers.  If you can't yet write competently, learn to.</span></div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">And if you still have some good suggestions please do use the comment box below. </span></div>

The Most Important Basic Hacking Skills You Should Know First

The hacker attitude is vital, but skills are even more vital. Attitude is no substitute for competence, and there's a certain basic tool...

Five Principles of the Hackers Mindset

<div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Hackers solve problems and build things, and they believe in freedom and voluntary mutual help. To be accepted as a hacker, you have to behave as though you have this kind of attitude yourself. And to behave as though you have the attitude, you have to really believe the attitude.<br /><br />But if you think of cultivating hacker attitudes as just a way to gain acceptance in the culture, you'll miss the point. Becoming the kind of person who believes these things is important for you — for helping you learn and keeping you motivated. As with all creative arts, the most effective way to become a master is to imitate the mind-set of masters — not just intellectually but emotionally as well.<br /><br />Or, as the following modern Zen poem has it:<br /><br />    To follow the path:<br />    look to the master,<br />    follow the master,<br />    walk with the master,<br />    see through the master,<br />    become the master.<br /><br />So, if you want to be a hacker, repeat the following things until you believe them:</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmnR3tIHOgT9-Ey-TDjBPRY_vp1bYLGYzWCUReIB5cQdjzbogonlKqVmLubDRmwb92bhFfq1pvU8QzNFwIVifSwxx-mC7GLASTazZTnOWVqwMmdkLhJeGwrtYGu_uB6SKJX5o4lzEa0is/s1600/hackers-mindset.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="253" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmnR3tIHOgT9-Ey-TDjBPRY_vp1bYLGYzWCUReIB5cQdjzbogonlKqVmLubDRmwb92bhFfq1pvU8QzNFwIVifSwxx-mC7GLASTazZTnOWVqwMmdkLhJeGwrtYGu_uB6SKJX5o4lzEa0is/s320/hackers-mindset.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><b><br />1. The world is full of fascinating problems waiting to be solved.</b><br /><br />Being a hacker is lots of fun, but it's a kind of fun that takes lots of effort. The effort takes motivation. Successful athletes get their motivation from a kind of physical delight in making their bodies perform, in pushing themselves past their own physical limits. Similarly, to be a hacker you have to get a basic thrill from solving problems, sharpening your skills, and exercising your intelligence.<br /><br />If you aren't the kind of person that feels this way naturally, you'll need to become one in order to make it as a hacker. Otherwise you'll find your hacking energy is sapped by distractions like sex, money, and social approval.<br /><br />(You also have to develop a kind of faith in your own learning capacity — a belief that even though you may not know all of what you need to solve a problem, if you tackle just a piece of it and learn from that, you'll learn enough to solve the next piece — and so on, until you're done.)</span></div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><b><br />2. No problem should ever have to be solved twice.</b><br /><br />Creative brains are a valuable, limited resource. They shouldn't be wasted on re-inventing the wheel when there are so many fascinating new problems waiting out there.<br /><br />To behave like a hacker, you have to believe that the thinking time of other hackers is precious — so much so that it's almost a moral duty for you to share information, solve problems and then give the solutions away just so other hackers can solve new problems instead of having to perpetually re-address old ones.<br /><br />Note, however, that "No problem should ever have to be solved twice." does not imply that you have to consider all existing solutions sacred, or that there is only one right solution to any given problem. Often, we learn a lot about the problem that we didn't know before by studying the first cut at a solution. It's OK, and often necessary, to decide that we can do better. What's not OK is artificial technical, legal, or institutional barriers (like closed-source code) that prevent a good solution from being re-used and force people to re-invent wheels.<br /><br />(You don't have to believe that you're obligated to give all your creative product away, though the hackers that do are the ones that get most respect from other hackers. It's consistent with hacker values to sell enough of it to keep you in food and rent and computers. It's fine to use your hacking skills to support a family or even get rich, as long as you don't forget your loyalty to your art and your fellow hackers while doing it.)</span></div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /><b>3. Boredom and drudgery are evil.</b><br /><br />Hackers (and creative people in general) should never be bored or have to drudge at stupid repetitive work, because when this happens it means they aren't doing what only they can do — solve new problems. This wastefulness hurts everybody. Therefore boredom and drudgery are not just unpleasant but actually evil.<br /><br />To behave like a hacker, you have to believe this enough to want to automate away the boring bits as much as possible, not just for yourself but for everybody else (especially other hackers).<br /><br />(There is one apparent exception to this. Hackers will sometimes do things that may seem repetitive or boring to an observer as a mind-clearing exercise, or in order to acquire a skill or have some particular kind of experience you can't have otherwise. But this is by choice — nobody who can think should ever be forced into a situation that bores them.)</span></div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /><b>4. Freedom is good.</b><br /><br />Hackers are naturally anti-authoritarian. Anyone who can give you orders can stop you from solving whatever problem you're being fascinated by — and, given the way authoritarian minds work, will generally find some appallingly stupid reason to do so. So the authoritarian attitude has to be fought wherever you find it, lest it smother you and other hackers.<br /><br />(This isn't the same as fighting all authority. Children need to be guided and criminals restrained. A hacker may agree to accept some kinds of authority in order to get something he wants more than the time he spends following orders. But that's a limited, conscious bargain; the kind of personal surrender authoritarians want is not on offer.)<br /><br />Authoritarians thrive on censorship and secrecy. And they distrust voluntary cooperation and information-sharing — they only like ‘cooperation’ that they control. So to behave like a hacker, you have to develop an instinctive hostility to censorship, secrecy, and the use of force or deception to compel responsible adults. And you have to be willing to act on that belief.</span></div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><b><br />5. Attitude is no substitute for competence.</b><br /><br />To be a hacker, you have to develop some of these attitudes. But copping an attitude alone won't make you a hacker, any more than it will make you a champion athlete or a rock star. Becoming a hacker will take intelligence, practice, dedication, and hard work.<br /><br />Therefore, you have to learn to distrust attitude and respect competence of every kind. Hackers won't let posers waste their time, but they worship competence — especially competence at hacking, but competence at anything is valued. Competence at demanding skills that few can master is especially good, and competence at demanding skills that involve mental acuteness, craft, and concentration is best.<br /><br />If you revere competence, you'll enjoy developing it in yourself — the hard work and dedication will become a kind of intense play rather than drudgery. That attitude is vital to becoming a hacker.</span></div>

Five Principles of the Hackers Mindset

Hackers solve problems and build things, and they believe in freedom and voluntary mutual help. To be accepted as a hacker, you have to beha...

Step by Step Guide on Connecting to a Wi-Fi Network Using Windows

<div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Wireless Internet (Wi-Fi) zones are convenient, easy to access, and available to any device with a wireless adapter. Finding open wireless Internet is usually no problem in populated areas. In fact, airports, libraries, and cafés often advertise free Wi-Fi hotspots.<br /><br />When you find an open Wi-Fi zone, you'll need to take a few simple steps in Windows 7 or Windows Vista to connect safely. Note that public Wi-Fi networks are typically unsecured, meaning that a determined attacker can follow everything you do while siphoning off your private information. While we recommend avoiding unsecured networks whenever possible, sometimes you just need to use one. Whether your network is secured or unsecured, follow these steps to connect:</span></div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /><b>Step by Step: In Windows 7</b><br /><br /><b>1. </b>Click the network icon in the notification area to open the list of available networks. Alternatively, click the Windows Start button and open Control Panel; click Network and Internet; and then click Connect to a network (under Network and Sharing Center) to open the list of available networks.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5LeLVnUBFiF5EI5YJxK4vzpDOPkiBQh7GHL6GF4AMd4CZybEfw0JhsEc6dex7sEXXdn5jLXmaRbFhEx2vXiTVeXyNhLdB-QeCKs_t7m4-6jdPADKXMB_RFmXP8BA0Zj8Ar_GjHT6uVOE/s1600/209536-win7-1-1_original.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5LeLVnUBFiF5EI5YJxK4vzpDOPkiBQh7GHL6GF4AMd4CZybEfw0JhsEc6dex7sEXXdn5jLXmaRbFhEx2vXiTVeXyNhLdB-QeCKs_t7m4-6jdPADKXMB_RFmXP8BA0Zj8Ar_GjHT6uVOE/s320/209536-win7-1-1_original.png" width="227" /></a></div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong>2.</strong> Click the network to which you would like to connect.</span></div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">   </div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong>3.</strong> Click the <em>Connect</em> button. If the network is security-enabled, you'll need to enter a security key obtained from the network administrator.</span></div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">If this is the first time you are connecting to the network, you'll  be prompted to choose a network location. A network location is a  profile Windows uses to determine appropriate security settings. Always  choose the Public network location when connecting to public Wi-Fi  networks. You can change the location of any network you connect to by  clicking <em>Start, Control Panel, Network and Internet, Network and Sharing Center.</em> Change the network location by clicking the network location below the network name.</span></div><h2 class="articleBodyContentSubHed" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Step by Step: In Windows Vista</span></h2><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong>1.</strong> Click the Windows <em>Start</em> button, then click <em>Connect to.</em> Alternatively, click <em>Start, Control Panel, Network and Internet, Connect to a network</em> (under Network and Sharing Center).</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEQmHHpKh09UVvXgyQBoz8LokW17RZWcF2mIGxtwkqdl22ilsZxzx3uT4BXTrZg6_cB5R-ZZulJXgaKoNgN5Se4XG7bDRKYvkKlXWiBbx64DDjGzGDXWJeF2svZ6gK4rJSliczEwwd8hY/s1600/209536-vista-2_original.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="237" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEQmHHpKh09UVvXgyQBoz8LokW17RZWcF2mIGxtwkqdl22ilsZxzx3uT4BXTrZg6_cB5R-ZZulJXgaKoNgN5Se4XG7bDRKYvkKlXWiBbx64DDjGzGDXWJeF2svZ6gK4rJSliczEwwd8hY/s320/209536-vista-2_original.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">   </div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong>2.</strong> In the list of available networks, click the network to which you would like to connect.</span></div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong>3.</strong> Click the <em>Connect</em> button. If the network is security-enabled, you'll need to enter a security key (obtained from the network administrator).</span></div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><b><i>Remember:</i></b> Unsecured wireless networks--which many public Wi-Fi  hotspots are--carry greater risk than secured (password-protected)  wireless networks. Do not work with sensitive information while surfing  on an open public network.</span></div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><br /></div>

Step by Step Guide on Connecting to a Wi-Fi Network Using Windows

Wireless Internet (Wi-Fi) zones are convenient, easy to access, and available to any device with a wireless adapter. Finding open wireless I...

Setting Up VPN in Windows 7 for Dummies

<div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">VPN (Virtual Private Network) technology lets a computer using a public Internet connection join a private network by way of a secure "tunnel" between that machine and the network. The most common case is a business allowing its employees to connect to its work network from home or from the road.<br /><br />There are two principal ways to configure VPN. The first and more-common scenario, called outgoing, is setting up a remote computer to call into the office network. The second scenario, called incoming, occurs on the network side, where a computer allows secure connections from other computers. Windows 7 comes preloaded with the Agile VPN client, which makes setting up either kind of connection relatively easy.<br />Step by Step: Connecting to a VPN (Outgoing)<br /><br /><b>Step 1</b> Click the Start button. In the search bar, type VPN and then select Set up a virtual private network (VPN) connection.<br /><br /><b>Step 2</b> Enter the IP address or domain name of the server to which you want to connect. If you're connecting to a work network, your IT administrator can provide the best address.<br /><br /><b>Step 3</b> If you want to set up the connection, but not connnect, select Don't connect now; otherwise, leave it blank and click Next.<br /><br /><b>Step 4 </b>On this next screen, you can either put in your username and password, or leave it blank. You'll be prompted for it again on the actual connection. Click Connect.<br /><br /><b>Step 5 </b>To connect, click on the Windows network logo on the lower-right part of your screen; then select Connect under VPN Connection.<br /><b><br />Step 6 </b>In the Connect VPN Connection box, enter the appropriate domain and your log-in credentials; then click Connect.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpPuwvh75i-fR-W7XMRRGFZ1_HXsZmIfs50EHXm8hCL5H8Kj9aKo10q-rXe8zVQlU1JcnL3_8YZXYm-CGRzRoqmfP1YWp4bfir6BvHf2YM_loVcySbuBoN7v6jU5C1P53WqvDvs4VqtvY/s1600/210562-out-step6_original.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpPuwvh75i-fR-W7XMRRGFZ1_HXsZmIfs50EHXm8hCL5H8Kj9aKo10q-rXe8zVQlU1JcnL3_8YZXYm-CGRzRoqmfP1YWp4bfir6BvHf2YM_loVcySbuBoN7v6jU5C1P53WqvDvs4VqtvY/s320/210562-out-step6_original.gif" width="283" /></a></span></div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><b>Step 7</b> If you can't connect, the problem could be due to the server configuration. (There are different types of VPN.) Check with your network administrator to see what kind is in use--such as PPTP--then, on the Connect VPN Connection screen, select Properties.<br /><b><br />Step 8</b> Navigate to the Security tab and select the specific Type of VPN from the drop-down list. You may also have to unselect Include Windows logon domain under the Options tab. Then click OK and Connect.</span></div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><b><br />Step by Step: Building a VPN (Incoming)</b><br /><br /><b>Step 1</b> Click the Start button, and, in the search bar, type Network and Sharing.<br /><br /><b>Step 2 </b>Click Change Adapter Settings in the left-hand menu.<br /><br /><b>Step 3 </b>Click File, and then New Incoming Connection.<br /><br /><b>Step 4 </b>Select the users you'd like to give access to and click Next.<br /><br /><b>Step 5 </b>Click Through the Internet and select Next.<br /><b><br />Step 6 </b>Select the Internet Protocol you'd like to use. (The default TCP/IPv4--the line highlighted in the screenshot below--will work fine.)</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibZDRILUsFiih9SImf9klh390X6eXybywANUESngSvsVoZ663_fMFU91SGPJ-Ys4pPHpAOu9qI5XWPIjhj7a75u83rUp_R7uuvmhlVaTEIPYTsmxTgdKgWlRxJ8Uu1EUeQF2WWXniCeAM/s1600/210562-in-step6_606_original.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="188" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibZDRILUsFiih9SImf9klh390X6eXybywANUESngSvsVoZ663_fMFU91SGPJ-Ys4pPHpAOu9qI5XWPIjhj7a75u83rUp_R7uuvmhlVaTEIPYTsmxTgdKgWlRxJ8Uu1EUeQF2WWXniCeAM/s320/210562-in-step6_606_original.gif" width="320" /></a></span></div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong>Step 7</strong> Finally, click <em>Allow access</em>; you've now set up an incoming VPN connection.</span><span style="font-size: small;"></span></div>

Setting Up VPN in Windows 7 for Dummies

VPN (Virtual Private Network) technology lets a computer using a public Internet connection join a private network by way of a secure "...

Learn how to Print your Twitter Feed

<div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">You can probably think of some good reasons to archive your Twitter messages (or someone else's). Printing a Twitter feed is an effective way to do it. Whether you want to have a hard copy of useful or entertaining tweets, or whether you worry about the possibility of Twitter losing part or all of your message history, read on to discover the most effective ways to save Twitter timelines in print.<br /><br />Twitter's Web interface does not provide an option to print a feed, so you have several options to consider. I'll outline the pros and cons of each below.<br />Printing From Your Browser<br /><br />Pull up the Twitter feed you want to preserve, and print it using your browser's Print command. You can also select, copy, and paste the information you want into a word processor and print from there.<br /><br /><b>Pros: </b>Fast and simple.<br /><br /><b>Cons:</b> Typically you'll lose or distort the formatting when you print this way. As a result, the printed output will probably be more challenging to read. If you choose to print all of the images and the background, you will rapidly deplete your ink supply. To see and print more than the first page of the feed, you need to spend time clicking the More button at the bottom of the screen.<br /><br /><b>Best use:</b> Printing the most recent posts of any Twitter timeline, in a quick-and-dirty way.<br />Using Searchtastic<br /><br />Searchtastic is a service that allows you to search and export tweets by user or by keyword. To export a complete Twitter feed, visit the <a href="http://www.searchtastic.com/">Searchtastic </a>site. Enter any Twitter account's login name into the top box, and click the Search button. On the next page, click Excel Export, enter the number you're given to start the download, and save the file to your computer. You can now open and print the file from Excel.<br /><br /><b>Pros: </b>The process is fast, and the output is organized and complete. You don't need to have a Twitter account to use it. And it's free.<br /><br /><b>Cons:</b> Retweets are not included in the output. Twitter's formatting is removed. Some very long Twitter feeds are truncated after the first few thousand results.<br /><b><br />Best use:</b> Archiving all the necessary details of a feed quickly and anonymously.</span></div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmlIhWGPJqIqq4Q0Pimb6M67BZw-6T5FpBgYwbqYqJzq376EbUt482pxqsARvtUtNHOM8msSuYbx2quvPHeMRTitDoGficZ9MiKHlS-ul_bteBV7CU88bKbKLO6BkbltW1zEUJ0ly4DZw/s1600/papap.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="221" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmlIhWGPJqIqq4Q0Pimb6M67BZw-6T5FpBgYwbqYqJzq376EbUt482pxqsARvtUtNHOM8msSuYbx2quvPHeMRTitDoGficZ9MiKHlS-ul_bteBV7CU88bKbKLO6BkbltW1zEUJ0ly4DZw/s400/papap.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><b>Using an OAuth Application</b><br /><br />The Open Authorization (OAuth) protocol allows you to grant an application access to your Twitter account without revealing your password to that application. Granting OAuth access means that an application can find, pull, and organize information from your Twitter account just as you can (but much more quickly).<br /><br /><b>Some examples to try: </b>Tweetake exports and prints your tweets in CSV format. TweetBackup exports and prints your tweets in a variety of formats. TweetScan Backup exports and prints your timeline in TiddlyWiki format. TwitPrint prints your tweets and those of your friends, including pictures. TwDocs exports and prints timelines in many formats.<br /><br />None of these options allow you to view protected accounts to which you don't have access, however. I suggest trying Searchtastic first, because it doesn't require any of your credentials to function. If you need more than it can provide, try another application.<br /><br /><b>Pros:</b> Many OAuth applications can update the archive of a feed constantly, so your printed output will always be up-to-date. OAuth applications offer many export format options that are all printable. The process is free, fast, and simple.<br /><br /><b>Cons: </b>You must allow an application access to your data. Most applications permit you to back up only your own feed. Some applications require that you follow them on Twitter in order to use the service.<br /><br /><b>Best use: </b>Generating output with more options than an anonymous service provides.</span></div>

Learn how to Print your Twitter Feed

You can probably think of some good reasons to archive your Twitter messages (or someone else's). Printing a Twitter feed is an effectiv...

Optimize Performance on your Portable PCs | Laptop Gaming

<div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><i><b>Most mainstream laptops have modest CPUs and weak graphics cards. Here's how to tune your games for the best laptop gaming.</b></i><br /><br />Sales of laptop PCs are outpacing those of desktop systems, even as PC gaming has undergone something of a revival in the past couple of years. So it's natural that laptop owners would be playing games on their mobile PCs. Gamers want to have their favorites on the go, whether those titles are casual games such as Plants vs. Zombies, strategy games such Civilization V or Starcraft 2, or first-person shooters like the Call of Duty franchise.<br /><br />The problem is that mainstream laptops simply aren't built for high-end gaming. Sure, you can buy one of those 10-pound monsters that claim to be "gaming laptops," but they're really laptops in name only. For our purposes here, I'm defining a laptop as a portable that offers a 16-inch or smaller screen and weighs 7 pounds or less--something you might reasonably carry on a business trip or a long vacation.<br /><br />How do you get robust gaming from current-generation laptops of reasonable size? It's actually pretty straightforward, with a little knowledge and the willingness to give up a few features that you'll never really notice on the small screen.</span></div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0VY0ICOUDzUKZxA8cxhjfLErD2NJsUCcIQgNp4DIcMz0F06tp6dhly14WVYaipL4X_oTWQ6vvSyWSkGeuBmpG3x4ZgpHEdxCclS7qlU5qA0Ux-oeGDxpNP5RZos0QpU1SBgGEcrpwjbI/s1600/209815-intel_vsync_original.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="292" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0VY0ICOUDzUKZxA8cxhjfLErD2NJsUCcIQgNp4DIcMz0F06tp6dhly14WVYaipL4X_oTWQ6vvSyWSkGeuBmpG3x4ZgpHEdxCclS7qlU5qA0Ux-oeGDxpNP5RZos0QpU1SBgGEcrpwjbI/s320/209815-intel_vsync_original.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"> <b>Laptop Gaming: Understanding the Limitations</b><br /><br />First, it's worth exploring the limitations you need to live with. As it turns out, those limitations seem more severe than they really are.<br /><b><br />Processor, Memory, and Storage</b><br /><br />Most small and midsize laptops ship with dual-core CPUs. A few models have quad-core processors, but those don't have the impact on gaming that you might suspect. For one thing, mobile quad-core processors often run at clock speeds substantially lower than their dual-core cousins. Take Intel's Core i7 820QM: Intel advertises it as a 1.73GHz CPU with a turbo-boost speed of 3.06GHz. What that actually means is that one of the four cores may run as fast as 3.06GHz when needed--but the other cores are relatively inactive.<br /><br />On the other hand, the Core i5 540M is a dual-core CPU that runs at 2.53GHz--but also supports a turbo-boost of 3.06GHz. Performance under many games will be very similar for these two CPUs, but you'll pay a premium for the 820QM. Those extra cores become useful if you're heavily into photo or video editing, but they don't add much to the performance of many games, particularly at the lower clock speed.<br /><br />Memory is another factor. You really want 4GB of RAM, especially if you're running the 64-bit version of Windows 7 or Windows Vista. For games, however, more memory isn't all that useful beyond 4GB.<br /><br />Whether you have a dual-core CPU or a quad-core one, the processor isn't the biggest player in holding back gaming performance--the graphics component is.<br /><br /><b>Graphics and Audio Hardware</b><br /><br />Perhaps the biggest roadblocks to robust gaming on a laptop are limitations in graphics hardware. Integrated graphics--3D hardware built into either the chipset or the processor itself--is particularly limiting.<br /><br />Even if your laptop has "discrete graphics"--a separate chip built into the system just for accelerating 3D graphics and video--it's likely to be a cut-down version of what's available for desktop PCs. The number of computational units (often called shader units or shader cores) may be smaller than on even midrange desktop graphics cards. Similarly, clock speeds and memory bandwidth may be lower. So while these chips can technically support the latest and greatest graphical features of modern games, in practice the performance trade-offs are too great.<br /><br />What users often don't realize is that giving up a little graphics eye candy can help game performance improve substantially. Remember, you're playing on a small screen--as small as 11 or 13 inches in some cases. Even a 15- or 16-inch laptop screen isn't large when compared with affordable 22- to 27-inch desktop displays. If you dial back some of the intense graphics settings on smaller laptop LCDs, you may not notice much difference.<br /><br />Audio hardware isn't as limiting a factor as graphics hardware is, but the tiny speakers built into most laptops won't generate the powerful sound effects that many games can produce. If you want immersive game audio, what you should really get is a good set of in-ear or over-the-ear headphones.<br /><br /><b>Point and Shoot!</b><br /><br />Touchpads and eraserheads have always been problematic as pointing devices, but they're particularly bad for gaming. Some newer laptops come equipped with touchscreens, but for the most part PC games don't support touch. You'll find a few exceptions: The excellent real-time strategy game R.U.S.E. works great with a multitouch screen. With most modern games, though, you'll want a mouse. For mobility, it's best to leave the big gaming mice at home; a cordless mouse designed for laptops will work fine, as long as it has a scrollwheel button and a couple of side buttons.<br /><br />Although carrying a small, cordless mouse isn't too onerous, lugging around a keyboard is usually out of the question. While the keyboards built into many laptops are somewhat cramped, many games often allow you to reconfigure keyboard controls. Reconfiguring allows you to use keys that may be more suitable: If the arrow keys are too tiny, for instance, reconfigure their action to the PgDn key or a function key.<br /> </span></div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><b>Rules of Thumb: Hardware Driver Configuration</b><br /><br />Now that you have a basic understanding of the hardware limitations, let's talk configuration. First, you need to configure your hardware. You do that through driver configuration--in most cases, graphics drivers. The discussion below applies to AMD, nVidia, and Intel driver control panels. In truth, you can make only limited changes to driver controls, and those tweaks will have only small effects on performance; most of the real gains will be in game configuration. But every little bit helps.<br /><br />The various graphics drivers have similar options; some have more than others, but you can generally ignore the more esoteric ones.<br /><br />One key item is vsync. This feature is a throwback to the era of CRT monitors, when games would try to synchronize the display of a frame of animation to coincide with the refresh rate of the monitor. Most LCDs, however, set the refresh rate to 60Hz--if vsync is on, your game will never run faster than 60 frames per second.<br /><br />When you disable vsync, the game can paint the frames as fast as they're rendered. The downside: If the frame rate is lower than the vertical refresh rate, you may see visible tearing in the image. But the trade-off may be worthwhile to get an acceptable frame rate.</span></div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">The other setting that can have some impact on performance is the texture quality setting. Lowering this setting may affect overall image quality--but if you have a particularly small display, it may not matter. Texture quality will likely affect performance only by a slim margin.<br /><br /><b>Disabling Crapware</b><br /><br />It's amazing how much performance-sucking junk comes preloaded into retail laptops. Going through your notebook and uninstalling anything that may affect performance might be worth your time. Some apps, such as OS X-like menu bars, don't really eat into performance, but they do take up memory. Look through your system tray and use the system configuration utility to minimize the number of apps your laptop runs in the background.<br /><br />You can launch the system configuration utility by clicking Start, Run and typing msconfig in the field. It's best to leave all the Microsoft apps running, as well as any antivirus programs. But try disabling some of the others, such as iTunes, Adobe updaters, and so on.</span></div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"> </span></div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><b>Rules of Thumb: Game Settings</b><br /><br />The games themselves are where you have the most control over both graphics quality and performance. Here are some key settings that are worth considering when you're playing on a laptop.</span></div><ul style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNq7k5lIp14VbvUzvL_jvF1FGQ8aTMn3q5FJ88nHHrYTIFbhEMN0yIxBPcvwkil4fAN4j9kTd2Ri13AFULtGwIOGaKUZn7bgbmttHqCAeV8YEF-T8KMPJX-KNt1nIxOWFOq9FeU4F7Xco/s1600/209815-civ5_config_original.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"></a><li><span style="font-size: small;">If the game gives you the option of choosing which version of DirectX to use, go for the lower-numbered version. Performance will almost certainly be better, and image quality won't substantially degrade.</span></li><li><span style="font-size: small;">Look for a global setting in the game's graphics configuration screen. It may allow you to choose settings such as 'optimal', 'medium', or 'low'. Experiment with different global settings to see if one will work best for your laptop.</span></li><li><span style="font-size: small;">Some games enable antialiasing by default, no matter what hardware the game detects. On laptops it's a good idea to turn off antialiasing, as it's a tremendous graphics-performance hog.</span></li><li><span style="font-size: small;">Shadows are another significant drain on performance, particularly at higher settings. Turning shadow settings off will make the game look less realistic, but you can typically get by with setting this feature to 'low' without much of a performance hit. On lower-end hardware, or on systems with integrated graphics, disabling shadows entirely may be best.</span></li><li><span style="font-size: small;">If you have the option of setting the view distance (how far into the virtual world you can see objects), reduce it to a visually acceptable level. Push it too low, and objects may pop out in a jarring way.</span></li><li><span style="font-size: small;">Set postprocessing effects to a minimum. The game may have no specific setting for postprocessing, however; instead, you may see features such as depth-of-field and motion blur. If the result looks similar to a film effect, it's probably postprocessing. Specialized water and flame effects may also fall under this category.</span></li><li><span style="font-size: small;">Try starting with lower resolutions, such as 1280 by 720, and then pushing up the resolution gradually. On smaller LCDs, though, it's better to turn up features first, and then the resolution.</span></li></ul><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNq7k5lIp14VbvUzvL_jvF1FGQ8aTMn3q5FJ88nHHrYTIFbhEMN0yIxBPcvwkil4fAN4j9kTd2Ri13AFULtGwIOGaKUZn7bgbmttHqCAeV8YEF-T8KMPJX-KNt1nIxOWFOq9FeU4F7Xco/s1600/209815-civ5_config_original.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="219" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNq7k5lIp14VbvUzvL_jvF1FGQ8aTMn3q5FJ88nHHrYTIFbhEMN0yIxBPcvwkil4fAN4j9kTd2Ri13AFULtGwIOGaKUZn7bgbmttHqCAeV8YEF-T8KMPJX-KNt1nIxOWFOq9FeU4F7Xco/s320/209815-civ5_config_original.jpg" width="320" /></a><span style="font-size: small;">As an example, here's a look at Sid Meier's Civilization V, the latest in the long-running Civilization franchise. It's a turn-based game, which means that you can play at your own pace. By the same token, it's a demanding game graphically, taking advantage of the latest DirectX 11 graphics technology built into Windows 7.<br /><br />This game gives you two options: DirectX 9 and DirectX 10 & 11. If you want to maximize performance, choose the DirectX 9 option and then set most of the in-game settings to low, as shown below. You still get fairly attractive graphics while playing the game.</span></div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">This is a good general rule of thumb with any game: If the title gives you the option of dropping down to an older version of DirectX, do it. You probably won't notice any image-quality difference unless you look very closely, and performance will be better--in some games, the difference is 50 percent or more.<br /><br /><b>Choose Your Games Wisely: Picks for Different Laptops</b><br /><br />What laptop hardware you carry around may be the deciding factor as to what games you play. A netbook won't be able to handle the heavy demands of a modern first-person shooter, but it might be quite capable of playing casual or older titles.<br /><br />A 6-pound thin-and-light laptop with modest discrete graphics, on the other hand, may prove surprisingly capable. Here are a few games that would be playable at low-to-medium settings on each class of system.<br /><br /><b>Netbook Gaming</b><br /><br />We're definitely in low-end territory here. Casual games such as Peggle, Puzzle Quest, and Plants vs. Zombies are playable on netbooks. The latter two titles even have strong appeal to more serious gamers. You'll also find certain classes of games that attract hard-core gamers but have low-quality graphics or even old-school ASCII text, making them very playable on laptops; examples of these games include Dwarf Fortress and Minecraft.<br /><br /><b>Thin-and-Light, Integrated Graphics</b><br /><br />Your game repertoire can expand a bit here, even if you have fairly entry-level Intel integrated graphics hardware such as that built into Core i5 processors. Most strategy games are playable, although you'll have to tweak the settings somewhat in certain more-demanding real-time strategy games. Some shooters, like those in the Call of Duty line and Valve titles such as Team Fortress 2, are quite playable if you're willing to dial down the settings to medium-low or low quality and set your resolution to something more modest, along the lines of 1280 by 720.<br /><br /><b>Thin-and-Light, Discrete Graphics</b><br /><br />Now the choices expand even more. A few games, such as the very demanding Metro 2033 first-person shooter, may be only marginally playable, even at lower settings. But most games are playable if you're willing to sacrifice resolution and graphics settings.<br /><br />The problem here is the variance in products. Thin-and-light laptops can have everything from the fairly high-end AMD Radeon HD 5850 Mobile or nVidia GeForce GT 445M to the entry-level nVidia GeForce GT 325M or AMD Radeon HD 5450 Mobile.<br />Case Studies: Looking at Two Laptops<br /><br />Now it's time to turn to a couple of real-world examples. The first--the Toshiba Satellite T235, which ships with a 1.5GHz AMD Turion II Neo CPU--is an ultraportable, which offers better performance than a netbook, but not by a wide margin. The second is a mainstream thin-and-light laptop, the Asus N82j, a 14-inch unit with a Core i5 540M and a discrete nVidia GeForce GT 335M GPU.<br /><br />What applies to the Toshiba is also likely to apply to netbooks, except that the Toshiba's integrated AMD graphics hardware offers higher performance for 3D.<br /><br /><b>Toshiba Satellite T235</b><br /><br />No matter what I tried, I couldn't get decent first-person shooter performance out of the T235. Even relatively forgiving titles such as Portal and Team Fortress 2 were only marginally playable.<br /><br />Civilization V ran fine in DirectX 9 mode, with most graphics features turned down. Animations were a little ragged; since this game is turn-based, that isn't a big deal. However, you should definitely keep map sizes smaller--a large or huge map with many AI players means long waits as turns are executing.<br /><br />Games like Puzzle Quest ran well. The oddly fun side-scrolling shooter Blade Kitten also offered reasonable performance.<br /><br /><b>Asus N82j</b><br /><br />The N82j is one of a new breed of laptops that support nVidia's Optimus technology. The system runs with integrated Intel graphics in normal use--office apps and Web surfing, for instance--but when you launch a game, the discrete nVidia GeForce GT 335M graphics kick in.<br /><br />Even so, the GT 335M is a midrange mobile 3D part, which would be entry-level on a desktop system. So I had to make some sacrifices. Although I had to set the combat flight simulator Tom Clancy's HAWX to DX9 mode with mostly low settings, the game ran above 30 frames per second, which is acceptable for this class of game.<br /><br />Far Cry 2 ran at about 30 fps in DX9 mode, too, but with most graphics features set to 'low' and the resolution at 1280 by 720. Civilization V performance, even on a large game, was reasonably good, though the game ran with DirectX 9 graphics at medium settings.<br />Game On<br /><br />If you're mostly a mobile PC user, as are an increasing number of people, you can still get your gaming fix. All you need is a little knowledge, a desire to experiment, and a willingness to run your games at more modest graphics settings. Not every game will run on every laptop well, but you should be able to find excellent titles that will tickle your gaming fancy, whatever your hardware budget.<br /></span></div>

Optimize Performance on your Portable PCs | Laptop Gaming

Most mainstream laptops have modest CPUs and weak graphics cards. Here's how to tune your games for the best laptop gaming. Sales of lap...

You would have probably asked? How Did My Protected PC Get Infected?

<div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><i>Avira found three Trojans on my friends PC. he asked me how this could happen when his PC is protected.</i></div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><i> </i><span style="font-size: small;"> </span></div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">There's no such thing as perfect protection. Even if you have the  best firewall and antivirus software available, and keep it up to date,  something might get through. But knowing how they'll get through can  help you block them.</span></div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"> </span>   </div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">First, do you really have the best security software? Windows' own  firewall, for instance, doesn't protect as well as a good, third-party  firewall. I currently use Comodo's free firewall (there's a separate x64 version).  It's an annoying product, constantly interrupting my work to ask if I  should allow something or other to get through, but the security is  worth it.</span></div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1iVCb-jXskAMMpyaJ2b5bYadhtvva_x6PiXiTm97qVZMgIKI1vT-uBHIQdGqUGjUlTf9nZnW8OrXOemwOvSDB0nctLXK9RfaXo1INtF7JRjNFO67iMJFjwZoDYh0FqfVoCpprYFkjNJU/s1600/202771-0816comodo_original.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1iVCb-jXskAMMpyaJ2b5bYadhtvva_x6PiXiTm97qVZMgIKI1vT-uBHIQdGqUGjUlTf9nZnW8OrXOemwOvSDB0nctLXK9RfaXo1INtF7JRjNFO67iMJFjwZoDYh0FqfVoCpprYFkjNJU/s320/202771-0816comodo_original.jpg" width="301" /></a></div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">But just because you like a firewall doesn't mean you should go with  the same company's antivirus software. For that job, I prefer another  free program, Avira AntiVir Personal.</span></div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"></div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Of course, you shouldn't just take my word for it. Check out our list of the <a href="http://prohackingtricks.blogspot.com/2010/11/list-of-best-free-antivirus.html">world most powerful and sophisticated free Anti-virus</a> for more information.</span></div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Whatever software you use, keep it up-to-date. It should do this  itself automatically, but every so often, check it yourself. Avira pops  up a notice every day when it's done updating. You can turn that off,  but I choose not to. I like that regular reassurance.</span></div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaVTVIfiBauXjH6J9LX9gAMMUvAlmxHN94HomKYfTiE8zqEoCJ9i5XIHywlrXJFFn89o7If1tWGS2LZbdnrLkosduMcqMbXnE9DL5WcAyGHWs4QKSBB6A-TVjkdr0zCBdQclIxm_Jbh_8/s1600/202771-0816antivir_original.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaVTVIfiBauXjH6J9LX9gAMMUvAlmxHN94HomKYfTiE8zqEoCJ9i5XIHywlrXJFFn89o7If1tWGS2LZbdnrLkosduMcqMbXnE9DL5WcAyGHWs4QKSBB6A-TVjkdr0zCBdQclIxm_Jbh_8/s1600/202771-0816antivir_original.jpg" /></a></div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">And back up more than just your security software. Other programs,  especially browsers, can let malware slip by in such a way that your  protection never sees it. So keep your operating system and browser  up-to-date.</span></div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"></div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Be suspicious. Don't click on a link in an email that might not be  kosher. If a program you didn't install and launch tells you your PC is  infected, assume it's about to infect your PC. Only download software  from reputable sites. And every week or so, scan your hard drive with <a href="http://www.pcworld.com/article/189245/one_or_two_antimalware_programs.html">an alternative anti-malware program</a> to get a second opinion.</span></div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">You probably won't get hit if you do everything properly, but you might. New malware appears in the wild every day, and <i>somebody</i> will get infected with it before their software updates itself. That someone might be you.</span></div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Finally, if a scan finds something malicious, keep in mind the  possibility of a false positive. I've seen it, where a program that had  been sitting on my PC unchanged for years suddenly turned up as  containing a brand-new, quite evil Trojan. It turned out to be innocent.</span></div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"></div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">If you have other tech questions, email them to me at dollaraxis@gmail.com</span></div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><br /></div>

You would have probably asked? How Did My Protected PC Get Infected?

Avira found three Trojans on my friends PC. he asked me how this could happen when his PC is protected. There's no such thing as perf...

Learn how Pro Uses Google Search for Better Results

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLb2PJYJZqaJuXxXXEl04y-GyQrhHzwD4Vtk655CIfx_S8W02RIy84ipCIqSNuKgpOIjUS7YMAfXbh4RdNd8S2CmhBKRStEXuSMxsO1v6TS-4HFu8flHJsF_I-kTP9XcVLNDlgisMd5oM/s1600/google_hack1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLb2PJYJZqaJuXxXXEl04y-GyQrhHzwD4Vtk655CIfx_S8W02RIy84ipCIqSNuKgpOIjUS7YMAfXbh4RdNd8S2CmhBKRStEXuSMxsO1v6TS-4HFu8flHJsF_I-kTP9XcVLNDlgisMd5oM/s320/google_hack1.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Google is the biggest search provider for years now and it will  remain the same for the upcoming decade as well. Google Search Engine  contains so many resources that one can only imagine to exploit each and  every one.</span></div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span id="more-7839"></span></span></div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">For this purpose we  have gathered some of the best google search tricks from the web,  although we have covered almost all aspects in this post but i am sure  there will be number of other things which may not be mentioned here.  Let’s dive into the golden search tricks to make a good use of this huge  search provider.</span></div><h3 style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong>Advanced Search</strong></span></h3><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">When you’re <span class="IL_AD" id="IL_AD11">searching</span> for specific material, use <a href="http://www.google.com/advanced_search?hl=en">Advanced Search</a> to plug in qualifiers that will narrow down your search. Here are more  Advanced Search tricks to learn.</span></div><ol style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><li><span style="font-size: small;"><strong><a href="http://www.google.com/advanced_search?hl=en">Search  within a domain</a></strong>: Only let Google bring up .edu or .gov  sites, for example, if you want primary sources or authoritative  information.</span></li><li><span style="font-size: small;"><strong>Select file type</strong>:  This very handy qualifier is useful when you need to quickly find  certain types of data or information for a presentation. You can choose  to limit <span class="IL_AD" id="IL_AD3">results</span></span> to .pdf, .xls, Google Earth, .doc, .rtf, and more.</li><li><span style="font-size: small;"><strong></strong>: If you’re looking to use  <span class="IL_AD" id="IL_AD1">open source</span> material or unlicensed material, this is a good trick to  make sure you’re on track.</span></li><li><span style="font-size: small;"><strong><a href="http://www.google.com/support/websearch/bin/answer.py?answer=136861">Exclude  terms</a></strong>: Use a minus sign right before a word (-example) to  eliminate it from your search results.</span></li><li><span style="font-size: small;"><strong>Wildcard search</strong>:  The * key acts as a wildcard in Google search that can be helpful with  early stages of research. Google gives the example [Obama voted * on the  * bill] to learn about Obama’s votes on several different bills.</span></li><li><span style="font-size: small;"><strong><a href="http://www.google.com/search?q=health%20care&hl=en&tbo=1&tbs=blg:1&ei=SoPhS7raKpHQ8wTpwpz0Ag&sa=X&oi=tool&resnum=4&ct=tlink&ved=0CB0QpwU">Blogs</a></strong>:  After conducting a search, click on the “Blogs” button under “Show  Options” to view only <span class="IL_AD" id="IL_AD9">blog posts</span> on the subject.</span></li><li><span style="font-size: small;"><strong><a href="http://www.google.com/support/websearch/bin/answer.py?answer=136861">Limit  synonyms</a></strong>: Did you know that Google sometimes finds results  that don’t match your search exactly, but that use synonyms instead?  Type in the + sign before a search to eliminate synonyms and use your  words only.</span></li><li><span style="font-size: small;"><strong><a href="http://www.google.com/advanced_search?hl=en">Language</a></strong>:  For foreign language or international business or policy classes, or if  you just have to have a primary source, use this selector to change  language settings.</span></li><li><span style="font-size: small;"><strong><a href="http://www.google.com/advanced_search?hl=en">Where  your keywords show up</a></strong>:  When you’re looking for very specific information or for a specific  kind of source, you can use this feature to limit where the keywords  show up in your search: the URL, title of the article, in links to the  page, or just anywhere in the page.</span></li><li><span style="font-size: small;"><strong><a href="http://www.google.com/advanced_search?hl=en">Find  pages that link to the page</a></strong>: Use this feature when you want to do a little more digging. You’ll stumble across blog posts, journal articles and news <span class="IL_AD" id="IL_AD5">stories</span> that offer more in-depth commentary.</span></li><li><span style="font-size: small;"><strong><a href="http://google.about.com/od/searchingtheweb/ss/useefectivesbs_3.htm">Quotation  marks</a></strong>: Put quotation marks around a phrase to let Google  know you want that exact phrase in that order.</span></li></ol><h3 style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong>Scholar Search</strong></span></h3><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://scholar.google.com/intl/en/scholar/about.html">Google  Scholar</a>  is an excellent resource for undergraduate and graduate students who  want a quick way to connect to authoritative information from journals  and scholarly publications. Use these tips to search Scholar.</span></div><ol style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><li><span style="font-size: small;"><strong><a href="http://scholar.google.com/intl/en/scholar/help.html">Search by  author</a></strong>: Scholar recommends using the author’s initials, or  at least first initial and last name, to increase your results.</span></li><li><span style="font-size: small;"><strong><a href="http://scholar.google.com/advanced_scholar_search?hl=en&as_sdt=10000000000000">Search  by journal</a></strong>: Used Scholar’s Advanced Search to find  articles published in a specific journal or publication.</span></li><li><span style="font-size: small;"><strong><a href="http://scholar.google.com/intl/en/scholar/help.html">Find articles  and pieces that reference that article</a></strong>: By typing in the  name of an article in quotation marks, you’ll find that paper plus other  papers that reference it.</span></li><li><span style="font-size: small;"><strong><a href="http://scholar.google.com/advanced_scholar_search?hl=en&as_sdt=10000000000000">Limit  by date</a></strong>: Make sure you’re citing the most updated research  by limiting your returns by date.</span></li><li><span style="font-size: small;"><strong><a href="http://scholar.google.com/advanced_scholar_search?hl=en&as_sdt=10000000000000">Find  court opinions</a></strong>: If you’re searching  for court opinions, you can search by state, choose only U.S. federal  court opinions, or expand your search to all journals and opinions.</span></li><li><span style="font-size: small;"><strong><a href="http://scholar.google.com/advanced_scholar_search?hl=en&as_sdt=10000000000000">Select  collections</a></strong>:  Also in Advanced Search is the option to select collections like  Chemistry and Materials Science or Social Sciences, Arts, and  Humanities.</span></li><li><span style="font-size: small;"><strong><a href="http://scholar.google.com/scholar_preferences?hl=en&as_sdt=10000000000000">Search  Library Links</a></strong>: Under Google Scholar Preferences, you’ll  find the option to find library access links.</span></li><li><span style="font-size: small;"><strong><a href="http://scholar.google.com/intl/en/scholar/help.html">Start with  citations, then move offline</a></strong>:  Sometimes Google will pull up  a citation but not the whole piece  because it hasn’t found it online.  If it looks like a good match for  your research, copy it down and bring  it to your librarian for help  locating it.</span></li><li><span style="font-size: small;"><strong><a href="http://scholar.google.com/scholar_preferences?hl=en&as_sdt=10000000000000">Find  foreign language journals</a></strong>:  Look for primary materials from foreign language journals in Chinese,  Dutch, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Polish, Spanish and more.</span></li><li><span style="font-size: small;"><strong><a href="http://scholar.google.com/intl/en/scholar/help.html">Bibliography  Manager</a></strong>:  Bibliography Manager is a Scholar feature that lets you add citations  in various formats like RefWorks, RefMan, EndNote, and BibTeX. This is  found in the Preferences section.</span></li></ol><h3 style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong>Reference Tools and Tips</strong></span></h3><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Google  is full of tricks for pulling up statistics, basic facts and reference  material. Check here for great shortcuts for finding definitions and  more.</span></div><ol style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><li><span style="font-size: small;"><strong><a href="http://www.google.com/landing/searchtips/#dictionary">Dictionary</a></strong>:  Type the word “define” before the word you want to look up in the  <span class="IL_AD" id="IL_AD8">Google search bar</span>.</span></li><li><span style="font-size: small;"><strong><a href="http://www.google.com/landing/searchtips/#calculator">Calculator</a></strong>:   Just type in an equation with the = sign to use Google’s calculator   feature. You can find more calculator operators and symbols <a href="http://www.googleguide.com/advanced_operators_reference.html">here</a>.</span></li><li><span style="font-size: small;"><strong><a href="http://www.google.com/search?q=health%20care&hl=en&tbo=1&tbs=bks:1&ei=TYPhS-_PMpOw9QTF4tiSAw&sa=X&oi=tool&resnum=6&ct=tlink&ved=0CBQQpwU">Books</a></strong>:  Click on the “Books” option under “Shop Options” after entering your  search. You’ll find Google books on the subject, and can quickly add  them to your library or preview them.</span></li><li><span style="font-size: small;"><strong><a href="http://www.google.com/landing/searchtips/#unitconversion">Unit  conversion</a></strong>: Let Google complete unit conversions for you  when you type in a problem, like “4 lbs in kg.”</span></li><li><span style="font-size: small;"><strong><a href="http://www.google.com/landing/searchtips/#cookingconversion">Cooking  conversions</a></strong>: When you’re trying out mom’s recipes at  school, use this feature to solve cooking conversions.</span></li><li><span style="font-size: small;"><strong><a href="http://blog.hubspot.com/blog/tabid/6307/bid/1264/12-Quick-Tips-To-Search-Google-Like-An-Expert.aspx">Numeric  ranges</a></strong>:  If you want to know who was president during a certain timeframe, type  in “president 1940…1950″ for example. You can also use this feature to  find results that contain certain dollar amounts or other numerical ranges.</span></li><li><span style="font-size: small;"><strong><a href="http://www.google.com/landing/searchtips/#stockquotes">Stock  Quotes</a></strong>:  For business classes, you can use the Stock Quotes search by typing in  the ticker symbol. Google will bring up current stock quotes.</span></li><li><span style="font-size: small;"><strong><a href="http://www.googleguide.com/advanced_operators_reference.html">Glossary</a></strong>:  Type in a word followed by ~glossary to find glossaries, term lists and  dictionary entries for that word.</span></li><li><span style="font-size: small;"><strong><a href="http://www.google.com/landing/searchtips/#packagetracking">Package  tracking</a></strong>: Find out when your next <span class="IL_AD" id="IL_AD6">care package</span> arrives  when you use this feature.</span></li><li><span style="font-size: small;"><strong><a href="http://www.google.com/landing/searchtips/#publicdata">Public data</a></strong>:  Look up public data by typing in keywords and a location, like  “population california.”</span></li><li><span style="font-size: small;"><strong><a href="http://www.google.com/landing/searchtips/#areacodes">Area Code  Lookup</a></strong>: This feature should be useful when applying for  jobs or looking for places to visit in your area for research.</span></li><li><span style="font-size: small;"><strong><a href="http://www.google.com/products">Froogle</a></strong>:  Whether you’re shopping for the best deal or are conducting market  research for a project, use Google’s product search tool, Froogle.</span></li></ol><h3 style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong>Notes and Organization</strong></span></h3><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Keep your research <span class="IL_AD" id="IL_AD4">organized</span> with these tricks.</span></div><ol style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><li><span style="font-size: small;"><strong><a href="http://www.google.com/support/websearch/bin/answer.py?answer=136861">Search  within a site</a></strong>: Type “example search term site: example <span class="IL_AD" id="IL_AD10">website</span>” to search a keyword or search term within that site only, if you need to use a particular source.</span></li><li><span style="font-size: small;"><strong><a href="http://www.google.com/support/websearch/bin/answer.py?answer=115764&cbid=-4hy47y6hgjmd&src=cb&lev=answer">SearchWiki</a></strong>:  Use SearchWiki to star and edit your favorite results, even hidden  ones.</span></li><li><span style="font-size: small;"><strong><a href="http://www.mapelli.info/tips/ultimate-google-search-tips-guide">info:</a></strong>:  Find information about a website if you need to verify it or collect  data for a citation.</span></li><li><span style="font-size: small;"><strong><a href="http://www.google.com/cse/manage/create">Custom  Search Engine</a></strong>: Create your own <span class="IL_AD" id="IL_AD7">custom search engine</span> with Google. You can name it, pick the language, and select only certain sites to be searched.</span></li><li><span style="font-size: small;"><strong><a href="http://docs.google.com/present/view?id=dfvwdtqp_2cmt22hfv">Learn  how to assess credibility</a></strong>:  This slide explains how to check a page’s “about” section, find a date  and author, and verify the author’s credentials on Google.</span></li><li><span style="font-size: small;"><strong><a href="http://www.google.com/toolbar/ff/index.html">Google  Toolbar</a></strong>: Great for study groups, this toolbar lets you  share websites with friends and translate web pages.</span></li><li><span style="font-size: small;"><strong><a href="http://google.about.com/od/searchingtheweb/ss/useefectivesbs_7.htm">Pay  attention to Google’s indents</a></strong>: Google indents results when  they’re from the same website as the <span class="IL_AD" id="IL_AD2">result</span> above it.</span></li></ol><h3 style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong>Social and New Media Search</strong></span></h3><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Google  is a great tool for finding images, toying around with new media, and  locating and connecting with people online. Here are some Google tips to  help you maximize Google’s cutting edge potential.</span></div><ol style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><li><span style="font-size: small;"><strong><a href="http://maps.google.com/maps?hl=en&q=%24150..%24300&um=1&ie=UTF-8&sa=N&tab=wl">Google  Maps eye-level perspective</a></strong>:  Once you’ve searched for a  particular map, drag the little person icon  (located at the top of the  zoom in/zoom out bar) anywhere on the map  to get an eye-level  perspective.</span></li><li><span style="font-size: small;"><strong><a href="http://www.googleguide.com/advanced_operators_reference.html">Google  Groups</a></strong>:  When you want to pull up information from Google Groups only, you can  type in the author’s name, group name or insubject: and the subject  keyword.</span></li><li><span style="font-size: small;"><strong><a href="http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&tbo=1&tbs=mbl%3A1&q=Obama&aq=f&aqi=g5g-z1g2g-z1g1&aql=&oq=&gs_rfai=">Updates</a></strong>:  After conducting a search, click on the “Updates” button under “Show  Options.” You’ll get a steady stream of the most updated social media  comments about that topic. Clicking “Discussions” will take you to  forums Q&A pages.</span></li><li><span style="font-size: small;"><strong><a href="http://lifehacker.com/339474/top-10-obscure-google-search-tricks">Google  Image Search</a></strong>:  You probably know how to use image search, but did you know it’s a  useful way to ID people and look up foreign language definitions?</span></li><li><span style="font-size: small;"><strong><a href="http://knol.google.com/k">Knol</a></strong>:  While it may not be the most authoritative search tool, Knol can help  you start your research and find out how others around the world are  reacting to current events and popular discussion topics.</span></li><li><span style="font-size: small;"><strong><a href="http://lifehacker.com/339474/top-10-obscure-google-search-tricks">Recognize  faces</a></strong>: Follow this link for instructions on how to get Google to recognize faces, and not bring up other image results when you type in someone’s name.</span></li></ol><h3 style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong>Shortcuts</strong></span></h3><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Use these shortcuts to make your Google searches even faster.</span></div><ol style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><li><span style="font-size: small;"><strong><a href="http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&source=hp&q=&btnI=I%27m+Feeling+Lucky&aq=f&aqi=&aql=&oq=&gs_rfai=">I’m  Feeling Lucky</a></strong>:  If you’re an expert searcher, use this button on the Google search page  to get automatically directed to the first web page that would normally  show up in a list in a general search.</span></li><li><span style="font-size: small;"><strong><a href="http://lifehacker.com/339474/top-10-obscure-google-search-tricks">“Better  than” and “reminds me of”</a></strong>:  This weird little tip will help you find comparisons. Just type in  either search term and then a keyword, all enclosed in quotation marks.</span></li><li><span style="font-size: small;"><strong><a href="http://www.mapelli.info/tips/ultimate-google-search-tips-guide">cache:</a></strong>:  Use this shortcut to show a web page in its cached version.</span></li><li><span style="font-size: small;"><strong><a href="http://www.googleguide.com/advanced_operators_reference.html">related:</a></strong>:  Type in a website after related: to find related sites.</span></li><li><span style="font-size: small;"><strong><a href="http://www.nytimes.com/external/gigaom/2010/04/02/02gigaom-10-simple-google-search-tricks-58674.html?src=me&ref=general">Shortcut  for spellcheck</a></strong>:  Don’t bother going to a dictionary website to see if you spelled  something correctly: just enter it into Google’s search bar, and the  “did you mean…” suggestion will pop up with the correct spelling.</span></li><li><span style="font-size: small;"><strong><a href="http://blogsearch.google.com/">Google Blog Search</a></strong>:  Blog Search is another quick way to jump to blog posts only.</span></li><li><span style="font-size: small;"><strong><a href="http://www.google.com/ig">Set up iGoogle</a></strong>:  Personalize your Google homepage so that it contains links to your  favorite feeds and research pages.</span></li></ol><h3 style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong>Miscellaneous</strong></span></h3><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">From looking for jobs to understanding case sensitivity, here are  more Google tricks for students.</span></div><ol style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><li><span style="font-size: small;"><strong><a href="http://www.google.com/Top/Business/Employment/Job_Search/">Google  Job Directory</a></strong>: Use this tool to look for job opportunities,  including seasonal jobs and job fairs.</span></li><li><span style="font-size: small;"><strong><a href="http://www.google.com/support/websearch/bin/answer.py?hl=en&answer=465">Delete  search history</a></strong>: You can clear your address bar history,  Google Toolbar history, and Google search box history here.</span></li><li><span style="font-size: small;"><strong><a href="http://www.mapelli.info/tips/ultimate-google-search-tips-guide">Search  operators are case sensitive</a></strong>: Google isn’t case sensitive  when it reads your keywords, but operators like OR are.</span></li></ol>

Learn how Pro Uses Google Search for Better Results

Google is the biggest search provider for years now and it will remain the same for the upcoming decade as well. Google Search Engine cont...