Google buys browser-based malware scanner VirusTotal

 

Google has acquired Web-based  URL scanner VirusTotal in what may be an effort to improve browser security.

VirusTotal's service is pretty simple: Just visit the Website and either select a file to scan or paste in a URL. Also available are a Windows desktop application and browser extensions for Chrome, Firefox, and Internet Explorer.

In a blog post, VirusTotal says it will operate independently from Google and will keep its partnerships with other antivirus companies and security experts. The company says Google can help improve the service and “ensure that our tools are always ready, right when you need them.”

Google told TechCrunch in a statement that it can provide VirusTotal with “the infrastructure they need to ensure that their service continues to improve.” The terms of the deal weren't disclosed.

Enter a URL, and VirusTotal will report any security hazards.

As with so many tech company acquisitions, Google isn't saying what it hopes to get out of the service, but since VirusTotal isn't the only link scanner around, the service itself may not be what Google's after.

This is just speculation, but the value in VirusTotal may be in its partnerships with antivirus companies and the dataset it creates for all scans. Google already screens search results for unsafe Websites, warns Chrome users about potentially malicious sites, and scans e-mail attachments for viruses. The search giant may improve its existing security services using VirusTotal's data, so it'd make sense for Google to keep the service alive and let its dataset grow.

Even if the acquisition never becomes a tangible product for users, it seems like good news for safer Web browsing.

How to store your data forever

Whether you're a photographer, engineer, businessman, or just a casual computer user, chances are that you have images, blueprints, or important legal documents that you want archived for a good part of your life. Unfortunately, the storage industry in general is concerned more about data density and cost per MB than putting any amount of effort in maintaining data integrity over longer periods of time.

What not to use
Before we get to the ideal long-term storage medium, let's take a look at which archival solutions to avoid and why. Flash drives, for starters, use tiny capacitors to store a miniscule amount of electrical charge. This charge tends to get dissipated over time, which rules out this ubiquitous USB storage device. Did I mention that flash drives have a ridiculously high cost per MB? Hard drives aren't guaranteed to work beyond three years for very good reasons. This magnetic storage medium has way too many moving parts, with incredibly low tolerance for error to work reliably on a long-term basis. The process of having to spin them up to test them every few months and replacing the drives after every three years is quite cumbersome and prohibitively expensive.

There are numerous online file hosting services as well, but none can really promise they'll be around forever. In fact, distributed online storage services (Cloud storage) have fallen prey to data loss in the past. Moreover, large Hollywood studios will continue to take down online storage websites in their quest to wrest Internet freedom away from us through laws such as PIPA, SOPA, ACTA et al. In a nutshell, so far we have realised that hard drives are useless, flash drives are expensive and useless, and online storage has been rendered useless due to corporate greed. Things aren't looking too great for long-term storage then.

A highly collimated ray of hope
Don't lose heart, because the best way to store data for a really long time is ironically the cheapest and the most widely available. Optical media such as CD, DVD, and Blu-ray discs happen to offer the most ideal long-term storage solution. Not only does this medium provide better resistance against loss of data integrity, it also strikes an ideal balance between cost and ease of storage/retrieval. However, which one of these should you use?

The ubiquitous DVD strikes an ideal balance between cost and ease of storage/retrieval

For starters, CDs are best avoided for two main reasons. Firstly, if you want to archive a substantial amount of data, they end up being more expensive than either DVD or Blu-ray blanks. Secondly, the construction quality is considerably inferior to its successors, which makes them more susceptible to damage caused by mishandling and environmental factors. DVD and Blu-ray blanks, however, have the all-important recording and reflective layer sandwiched between two polycarbonate substrates. Unlike with CDs, an extra helping of plastic layer found in a DVD/Blu-ray makes it nearly impossible to scratch or oxidise the fragile, yet crucial reflective layer. That's one less way to ruin a disc.

Blu-ray or DVD?
The choice between DVD and Blu-ray entirely depends upon the volume of data that needs to be backed up. Apart from the obvious advantage of considerably higher data density, Blu-ray drives are significantly more scratch-resistant than DVDs, thanks to a special hard coating. However, Blu-ray blanks aren't exactly cheap, since they sell for anywhere between Rs 250 and 300 a pop. You're better off using DVDs for long term storage, if you simply want to stash and forget a few GB worth of data away for a long time.

Now that we know which medium to opt for, it's time to delve into the specifics. The unfortunate fact is that user-recordable DVD media will never possess the same longevity of retail-stamped DVDs, which use a significantly more durable metallic recording layer. This is solely due to the fact that DVD-Rs use organic dyes as the recording layer. Like all things organic, this cyanine-based dye tends to deteriorate due to environmental factors. However, higher quality DVD blanks from brands such as Verbatim and Taiyo Yuden employ proprietary Azo-based dyes that are more resistant to chemical degradation. In fact, the former brand can be found relatively easily on the street.

Blu-rays, however, trump DVDs in this department by incorporating a much more stable metallic recording layer. Having said that, one must also know that most modern Blu-ray blank media tend to use cheaper organic dyes to save manufacturing costs. So do your homework well before selecting blank optical media.

Optimising optical media for long-term storage
The most important factor deciding data integrity is the speed at which you burn optical discs. To burn an optical disc at higher speeds, the recording layers needs to have a thinner sputtering of organic dye. This translates into a recording surface that's fragile and more susceptible to degradation. It is therefore important to opt for blanks rated to burn at lower speeds, and write them at the lowest speed possible.

Moreover, disc rot, which is caused by the oxidation of the metallic reflective layer, tends to begin along the outer rim of the disc. It is therefore a bad idea to fill DVD or Blu-ray blanks up to the brim. Temperature and humidity also greatly affect disc integrity. It's good practice to keep discs in a dark, cool environment that's free from excess humidity levels. It pays to keep a few silica gel bags nearby to absorb moisture.

Sensitivity to UV light is another important factor to consider. Keeping recorded discs exposed to sunlight in transparent containers is a very bad idea. Make sure you stash them away in high quality CD sleeves or preferably in individual jewel cases. The discs should be kept upright to negate any chances of physical deformation under gravity. If you absolutely must use spindles for storage, stick to the smaller 10-disc ones. However, using airtight containers to hold these sleeves/jewel cases will do wonders for the longevity of your precious data.

DVD/Blu-ray manufacturers tend to claim anywhere between 30-100 years of life for their products, but that's best taken with a pinch of salt. That may be true in hermetically sealed labs, but it's best to err on the side of caution and replicate the data onto newer blank discs after every five years. This shouldn't be much of a problem since blank media is relatively cheap. It also makes sense to have three copies of your data (preferably using blanks from different brands), with at least one copy being stored somewhere safe and offsite, such as a fireproof bank locker.

New Lumia smartphones come packed with exclusive apps

At the Nokia World 2012 event, the brand took the opportunity to announce a broad range of new, innovative apps for its latest Lumia smartphones that aim to provide consumers app experiences which are unique, differentiated and unavailable on other platforms.

Commenting on these apps, which are exclusive to the recently launched Lumia handsets, Marco Argenti, SVP, Nokia Developer Experience said, “It’s great to see more and more partners creating their best, most innovative apps for Nokia Lumia consumers. The ecosystem has achieved exponential growth over the past 18 months, and Nokia has been working closely with developers to create unique and innovative apps, while helping them connect with consumers all over the world. With new opportunities to innovate around features such as PureView camera technology, NFC and the integration of Nokia Maps, we look forward to developers creating their next generation app experiences, and partnering with Nokia to achieve success locally and globally.”

A range of new apps for the new Lumia handsets

These apps cater to different needs and span various horizons such as sports, imaging, gaming and many others. The new apps that are available for the new Lumia smartphones include:

Sports – The World of Red Bull app
The app delivers all the latest news from over 400 Red Bull Athletes around the world and lets users pin their favourite athletes to the homescreen for live news updates. Coming to the Nokia Lumia 920 and Nokia Lumia 820, the enhanced app experience will include the option of small, medium and large Live Tiles, plus Nokia Maps integration and Voice Commands. This app is exclusive to Nokia Lumia for 9 months and comes loaded with a variety of other features from Red Bull events

Imaging - Vimeo app
The Vimeo app coming to the Nokia Lumia 920 and Nokia Lumia 820  will enable imaging fans to capture HD video using Nokia’s camera optics and PureView technology. Offering the highest quality video playback experience, the app will allow users to share videos using NFC tap-to-share technology, claims Nokia. The enhanced Vimeo app introduces HD video support, features an easy to use design interface with live tiles and enables consumers to purchase Vimeo Plus subscriptions through the app. Nokia Lumia owners will get a 3-month trial membership of Vimeo Plus.

Gaming – Angry Birds Roost
Launching on the Nokia Lumia 920 and Nokia Lumia 820, the new and exclusive Angry Birds Roost experience for Nokia Lumia will enable fans to dive into the world of Angry Birds, with access to hundreds of walk-through videos, news, ringtones and more brought together in one unique and original hub experience. A first for Rovio and the Windows Phone platform, the Angry Birds Roost will offer fans an exclusive ‘Bird Cam’ feature. Users can take a picture on their Nokia Lumia, add their favourite Angry Birds characters to the picture and then share it on Facebook, Twitter, MMS or send it via email. Additionally, Angry Birds Roost will have tons of wallpapers and wide Live Tiles on the Lumia start screen. Angry Birds Roost will be exclusive to Nokia Lumia for 3 months.

Business and Finance – Bloomberg Hub
The new Bloomberg app for Nokia Lumia Windows Phone, launching in the coming days, offers consumers a one-stop hub for all business and finance news, market data and portfolio tracking tools. In addition to today’s launch, Bloomberg will be enhancing the Bloomberg Hub experience for the Nokia Lumia 920 and Nokia Lumia 820 with added features that will utilise new Live Tile customisations. This app will be exclusive to Nokia Lumia handsets for 3 months

Lifestyle – StyleSaint
StyleSaint is an exclusive app for fashion fans that will be launched by mid-September on Nokia Lumia smartphones. the app enables users to capture their favourite inspirational fashion images and transform them into personalised mobile fashion magazines to be shared with the world. The app is exclusive to Lumia handsets till the end of this year.

Groupon with Augmented Reality
The Groupon app for Windows Phone features deals on the best stuff to do, see, eat, and buy at discounts of between 50 and 90 percent. Using the principles of collective buying, Groupon aims to negotiate discounts with the best merchants in local communities. Enhanced features launching with the Nokia Lumia 920 and Nokia Lumia 820 will include Wallet integration enabling quick access to purchased Groupons, wallpapers and multiple-size Live Tiles for notifications to the start screen. Groupon with Augmented Reality is exclusive to Nokia Lumia for 6 months.

Productivity – YouSendIt
YouSendIt's mobile app delivers powerful file sharing capabilities for Nokia Lumia users, including NFC file transfer. This app allows users to access, sync and share content stored in the cloud. Users can even sign documents using their Nokia Lumia touchscreen and securely send them from anywhere. YouSendIt simplifies syncing and sharing of large files such as video and photo. This app will be exclusive to Lumia handsets for 3 months.

Travel – Michelin
Using NFC technology, food fans will be able to share restaurant information by tapping devices, and also receive specific information about places to eat by tapping their Lumia on a MICHELIN 2013 NFC-enabled restaurant window sticker. Augmented Reality technology will enable the user to view restaurants near them on the screen. In addition, the app delivers search, details, calling and reservations. This app is exclusive for these new Lumia handsets for 6 months.

Messaging – Whatsapp
WhatsApp Messenger is a cross-platform mobile messaging app, which allows you to exchange messages without having to pay for SMS, will be available on these handsets.

For more information on all the apps, click here.

Android Ice Cream Sandwich 4.0 Complete Walkthrough (Galaxy Nexus)

10 reasons why the Galaxy Nexus is THE phone to buy

There’s absolutely no lack of Android phones and as you can imagine, it’s not easy trying to find which one’s the right one for you. You could just go out and buy the most expensive one out there, but then you don’t want to waste so much money on it either. If you’re looking to spend somewhere between Rs. 18,000 and Rs. 27,000 on an Android phone, we feel that you should blindly go out and buy a Samsung Galaxy Nexus. No, it’s not ‘officially’ available in the market, but drop in at your local, buzzing mobile store and you’ll probably find it there for somewhere between Rs. 23,000 and Rs. 25,000, depending on where you are. No, you won’t get a warranty on it most likely but that’s a risk you have to take. Now, let’s look at why it’s THE Android phone to buy.

Jelly Bean available... right now

No waiting for Jelly Bean

Everyone’s talking about Jelly Bean and how their brand new Rs. 40,000 smartphone is going to get it really soon. If you’re as excited about it, you’ll be happy to know that the Galaxy Nexus already has it. Of course, if you have one, and haven’t received the update, here are some quick instructions on how to get it.

It’s Google’s iPhone!

Apple’s got the iPhone and if there’s one phone that can be called Google’s own phone, it’s this. While Samsung makes the device, the Galaxy Nexus most certainly is Google’s latest official phone, at least, at the moment. If you’ve always wanted to have the pure Google Android experience, without any third party interfaces and apps, this is the best device to have. All future updates that Google puts out will come to this phone before almost any other phone in the market.

720p screen

The screen on the Galaxy Nexus spans 4.65 inches, almost identical to the Galaxy S III and the HTC One X. Very few phones in this price range have such a large screen, that too at 720p. The screen may not be as vibrant as the ones on more expensive smartphones in the market, but it’s certainly way better than other phones in its price range. It’s a Super AMOLED display, so there’s decent detail and reasonably good colour reproduction as well—a joy when you’re viewing HD content on it.

Dual-core CPU performance

More cores means more performance, at least theoretically. The Galaxy Nexus comes with a rather speedy 1.2GHz processor, which means very good, smooth performance. Google’s Project Butter on Jelly Bean only makes the experience better.

Decent camera, with full HD video recording

Panorama shooting takes seconds

The camera on the Galaxy Nexus might only be 5MP as compared to some of the other phones, but in broad daylight, it’s able to click some very impressive photos. The camera lets you choose panorama by simply moving the phone from side to side. The phone not only lets you view full HD 1080p content on it, but even record it.

1 GB of memory

For most of us, the processor is the most important part of the phone but the amount of memory is what lets you run multiple applications simultaneously with negligible drop in performance. The Galaxy Nexus comes with 1GB of RAM. When it comes to storage, the phone doesn’t have any microSD slot, but there’s 16GB of internal memory.

NFC support

NFC can be very convenient

NFC used to be advertised as one of the biggest changes to come to mobile phones. In the case of the Galaxy Nexus, you don’t pay a premium for it. Although NFC isn’t widespread in India yet, it’s still a neat little feature that lets you quickly share apps, Youtube videos, links and contacts by simply touching the phone to the back of another NFC-enabled device.

It looks great

Simple, solid attractive design will attract eyeballs

While most mainstream devices have a boring design, Samsung and Google have ensured that the Galaxy Nexus is an attractive phone to hold in your hand. The front has no buttons on it and all the basic controls are carried out through the screen itself. The only physical controls are the power and volume control buttons. The back has a thin textured grip that only makes the device look even slicker.

It’s exclusive

People love bragging rights, and owning the Galaxy Nexus means that it’s not like the Galaxy Note or the S III; phones that every other person on the street has. The Galaxy Nexus isn’t as popular as it should have been here in India. If you own it, you’re one of the few people to have one. Hurry, because it’s one of the few phones also to run Jelly Bean as of now.

It’s pretty darn good value for money

Price is a key part of any purchase and it’s no different for the Galaxy Nexus. Rs. 23,000 might seem like a lot of money, but in fact, this phone offers way better value money than the more expensive options. For all practical purposes, superphones such as the HTC One X and the Samsung Galaxy S III only have a faster processor and a slightly better quality screen. For the money you’ve spent on them, you still don’t get the latest Android updates. Take any other phone priced around the Rs. 23,000 mark and you’ll begin to appreciate the kind of hardware you get for the price. Most of the phones in this price range come with a single core processor and won’t have a screen with this resolution, let alone its several other extras.

So if you’re willing to sacrifice the warranty and are looking for a good value for money Android phone, then look no further. The Galaxy Nexus is THE phone for you.

Pictures of Nokia Lumia 820 and Lumia 920 leaked on Twitter

Nokia has been staying on everyone’s radar these days with the Nokia Phi device rumoured to be announced at the Nokia and Microsoft joint press event later this month. Now, pictures of what seems to be Nokia’s next phones – the Lumia 920 and the Lumia 820 – have been leaked on the twitter account @evleaks.

These phones may be showcased at the upcoming Nokia and Microsoft press event, where the companies are presumably presenting Nokia’s first lineup of phones that will be running the anticipated Windows Phone 8 operating system. The Nokia Lumia 920 seems to have a 4.5-inch screen and may be the rumoured and highly anticipated device that has been codenamed the Nokia Phi. Both the phones also have Nokia’s PureView technology, according to evleaks.

The Lumia 820 with a 4.3-inch screen

Here is a look at some of the rumoured features of the Nokia Phi:

• It has the same curved screen but bigger display size than the Lumia 800.
• It has the same form factor, i.e, polycarbonate unibody with irreplaceable battery as the Lumia 800
• No physical buttons on the front
• 4 physical buttons on the right side: up/down vol keys, power button and camera
• It will run on a Qualcomm Dual Core CPU (First Nokia Dual Core WP8 phone)
• It will have external SD card slot
• NFC chip on board.
• LTE enabled

The Lumia 920 with a 4.5-inch screen

Microsoft had officially raised the curtain on Windows Phone 8 at an event in San Francisco earlier this year and claimed that it is the most advanced mobile OS Microsoft has ever made. Here is a look at some of the highlighted features available on Windows Phone 8:

• Multi-core processor support: Windows Phone was a slick OS that ran smoothly on handsets with a single processor. The latest OS now features multi-core support with Belfoire claiming that they’re ready for whatever hardware makers dream up.
• Bigger, sharper screens: Windows Phone 8 supports two new screen resolutions — 1280 x 768 and 1280 x 720, making it compatible with new handsets that will feature high-definition 720p displays.
• More flexible storage: Windows Phone 8 supports removable microSD cards, so users can stuff their phone with extra photos, music and whatever else is important and then easily move it all onto their PC.
• NFC wireless sharing: In Windows Phone 8, NFC helps make sharing photos, Office docs, and contact info easier. One can achieve this by tapping their phone on another NFC-equipped device.
• Internet Explorer 10: The next version of Windows Phone comes with the same web browsing engine that’s headed for Window 8 PCs and tablets. Microsoft claims that IE10 is faster and more secure, with advanced anti-phishing features like SmartScreen Filter to block dangerous websites and malware.
• Internet Explorer 10: The next version of Windows Phone comes with the same web browsing engine that’s headed for Window 8 PCs and tablets. Microsoft claims that IE10 is faster and more secure, with advanced anti-phishing features like SmartScreen Filter to block dangerous websites and malware.
• Better maps and directions: Windows Phone 8 builds in Nokia mapping as part of the platform. This partnership will provide more detailed maps and turn-by-turn directions in many countries, plus the ability to store maps offline on your phone so you can work with maps without a data connection.
• Improved apps and games: Microsoft states that basing Windows Phone 8 on the Windows core will unleash a new wave of amazing apps and especially games.

Samsung ATIV S, the first of many amazing Windows Phone 8 devices coming this year

Today at IFA in Berlin, Samsung lifted the curtain on its first Windows Phone 8 device, the ATIV S. This is just the first in a big lineup of new hardware that’s coming with Windows Phone 8, but it’s a seriously impressive opening salvo. Samsung built the ATIV S with the latest and greatest technology, especially for anyone who want a superphone that’s equal parts powerhouse and head turner.

Specs

Inside the crazy-thin 8.7mm brushed aluminum chassis is a huge 4.8” HD Super AMOLED display made from Corning Gorilla Glass 2 (read: tough to break, but still light)and a rundown of killer specs: 1.5Ghz dual-core processor, 1GB of onboard RAM, and an 8MP autofocus rear camera and 1.9MP front-facing camera. You’ll have the choice of two storage capacities – 16GB or 32GB – and both models have a MicroSD slot for expanded storage. Backing all of this up is a massive 2300mAh battery to keep you rocking all day.

Look & Feel

Samsung did a heck of a job packing the latest and greatest tech into the ATIV S, but what’s even more impressive is how great the phone feels when you pick it up. Despite having a 4.8” display, which makes the ATIV S one of the bigger phones on the market, it doesn’t feel that big. I attribute that to three things. The first is that the ATIV S is impossibly thin – obvious, yes - but still important. The second is more subtle; Samsung made the bezel of the ATIV S an oblong hemisphere (hello, Art History degree, I missed you). In English that means that the bezel actually bulges out slightly, then tapers more acutely to the back. This makes the ATIV extremely comfortable to hold and keeps your fingers off the screen when it’s in your hand (smart!).

 

The third, and in my opinion most important, is weight and balance. When designing a handheld device engineers walk a fine line – too light and the device feels cheap, too heavy and it’s cumbersome. Samsung’s ATIV S walks this tightrope with ease; it’s solid but not heavy, and it’s perfectly balanced so your hand doesn’t get fatigued. I’ve been using mine for a few days and not once did I have to do to the “I-need-to-put-this-thing-down-and-shake-out-my-hand-because-my-fingers-are-going-numb” thing.

Final thoughts

The ATIV S is flat-out beautiful, and it has the guts to match. But what’s impressed me most about the ATIV S is Samsung’s attention to detail. To get to your Start screen, you hit a raised physical Windows button, not a capacitive one. The speaker bar on the front and the back, as well as all of the buttons, are aluminum, not plastic. And the display glass has just the slightest of rounded edges. It all adds up to a device that looks great, feels great, and performs great.

More photos of the ATIV S below, including a few of the new device next to Samsung’s Windows Phone 7 family.  Let us know what you think!

Oh, one last thing before I go….be sure to check out Blogging Windows on Friday, August 31st for a look at the rest of the cool new devices being announced at IFA this week.

Top of the ATIV S. The big circle is the 1.9MP camera

Back of the ATIV S. I love the giant flash on this phone.

The entire family of Samsung Windows Phones (minus the Focus Flash, which I accidentally forgot to include!). From left to right, the original Focus, the Focus S, Focus 2, and the new ATIV S.

Same set of phones in profile. The ATIV S is the super thin one on the right.

Firefox Tabs response slow ? Suspend Background Tabs can help

 

When you have too many tabs open in Firefox, its possible that overall browser experience is not smooth. There is a couple of reasons for that of which one is Background tasks. Just to clarify that background tasks are those which takes place at a certain interval of time and not always. So if you are downloading a file, it is not a background process but the email account which polls for new email every few minutes is a background process.

It’s quite possible that you might have one or few such background process that is taking place on one of the tabs and due to which you might not be able to switch tabs at all, or the other tabs are not closing, or just the whole thing is not working. This kind of processs are sometimes taken care by the browser itself by notifying but when it is not, you need an extension named as Suspend Background Tabs.

Features :

Suspend Background Tabs is an experimental extension for Firefox which tries to make Firefox more responsive by suspending such tabs and hence saving CPU Time. SO now any program which uses Javascript or Ajax to pull information, will not work. To test, load Facebook on one of the tabs and switch to another tab. You would notice that you will not see any new notification unless you switch and wait for few seconds.

Now many of you might prefer to have background process working for some of the websites. So for such websites, you can pin them by making a right click over the tab and then choose Option of Pin as App Tab. Then under Extension Option, you can choose to enable background process for such tabs.

What is not suspended :

Tabs which are downloading a file or have videos which you are buffering, remain unaffected by this extension.

Suggestions :

• A white list of websites which the extension can skip automatically.
• Allow user to choose if they want to buffer videos or suspend that too.

Overall my experience using this was pretty smooth. I have loads of tabs open all the time, for which, I prefer using all three browsers but with this at least one can be skipped. However I have to be smart enough to always remember that I dont forget to pin websites which I need the background task to work.

Download

Download the extension from here via TechDows <  GHacks

Textme lets you send Text, Image, Links and Images to any mobile from your browser

Textme lets you send Text, Image, Links and Images to any mobile from your browser

 Sharing the same stuff which you are reading on your desktop to a mobile phone is one of the features that many of us hope becomes an integral part of the browser but until then we have some awesome third part apps which can do it for us. One of the posts we discussed how you can send it using the QR Code but today we have even a better service, Textme which lets you send anything on your browser to a mobile phone via SMS.

 

 

 All you need is visit the website, and install the extension for your browser ( Supported for FireFox, Chrome, Safari, Opera and IE ),  Once installed, you can signup with them with your phone number and then just visit a page, right click and share to a number you want.

So its basically a SMS sending service but has certain advantages. When you share a link of any web page, the user gets to see a mobile optimized website instead of a web page which is made for  desktop. Second you not only send just whatever is on a web page but also a text from your email or a custom message. Lastly, all the messages which is sent using this service is listed on your account and can be accessed via the extension interface.

From the point of view of the user who receives it, the biggest advantage is that he does not receive any kind of spam along with it. Also if he wants to quit getting SMS from Textme i.e. To opt-out of Textme, SMS ‘TEXTME STOP’ to 575758. However this should be told to the users in at least one of the SMS, otherwise he or she has no way to know about it.

Textme also comes with a widget or button which publishers can add it to their websites, so users can share the webpage to anybody on mobile, right from there and without having the extension installed.

Check out TextMe

 

 

Get notified when a place physically changes on Google Maps

If you been tracking places on earth for any physical changes, like construction of building or if the lake is getting dried up using Google Maps, Follow Your World App can let know you when it actually changes. Yes now you need not to spend time checking every few hours a day to find it.

With Follow Your World App you can pin point a location on any place on earth and next time there is an update in the Google Maps satellite and aerial imagery, it will send you can email. You can have multiple points like this which is available under dashboard. Make sure you read the FAQ for complete understanding.

Update :

After almost a year, I got an email back from Follow Your World which notified me that above marked place was changed. Totally awesome. You can see in the image below, how Follow Your World spotted a difference when it saw change in colours. This happened because of recent renovation at the stadium.

You also get a Dashboard which lists down all the places you are tracking with details on when you where notified last, Status one click to unsubscribe from it. The only drawback is there is no way to edit once you have submitted it. So if you want to change, unsubscribe and create new point.

Top 10 Best & Most Popular Torrent Sites of 2012

 

Last year I posted the best p2p software clients and here again I've listed the world's most popular BitTorrent sites. At the start of 2012 The Pirate Bay continues to pull in the most visitors, followed by Torrentz and KickassTorrents.

This list is based on traffic rank and reports from Compete and Alexa, though we are all aware that Alexa isn't perfect and that Compete has plenty of flaws, but putting the two services to use at the same time on similar niche proved worthwhile.

So here we are, a compiled list of the 10 most-visited torrent sites at the start of the new year.

1. The Pirate Bay

The Pirate Bay (commonly abbreviated TPB) is a Swedish website that hosts magnet links, which allow users to share electronic files, including music, computer games and software, via BitTorrent. The Pirate Bay bills itself as "The world's most resilient BitTorrent site" (as of 2012, "The galaxy's most resilient...") The Pirate Bay is currently ranked as the 78th most visited website in the world and 20th in Sweden by Alexa Internet, has over 5.5 million registered users and, as of February 2012, hosts more than 4 million torrent files. According to the Los Angeles Times, The Pirate Bay is "one of the world's largest facilitators of illegal downloading" and "the most visible member of a burgeoning international anti-copyright or pro-piracy movement".

2. Torrentz

Torrentz is a Finland-based[2] meta-search engine for BitTorrent that is run by an individual known as Flippy. It indexes torrents from various major torrent sites such as yourBittorrent and offers compilations of various trackers per torrent that are not necessarily present in the default .torrent file, so that when a tracker is down, other trackers can do the work. It was the second most popular torrent website after The Pirate Bay in 2010[3], and it currently has a traffic rank of 145 on Alexa.

3. KickassTorrents

Founded in 2009, KickassTorrents is one of the youngest sites in the list, and this year it moved up to the top 3. Responding to the increasing worries about domain seizures, the site moved from its kickasstorrents.com domain to kat.ph a few months ago. The site continues to innovate and release new features every other week, and it currently ranks 257 on Alexa.

4. IsoHunt

IsoHunt is a BitTorrent index with over 1.7 million torrents in its database and 20 million peers from indexed torrents. With 7.4 million unique visitors as of May 2006, isoHunt is one of the most popular BitTorrent search engines. Thousands of torrents are added to and deleted from it every day. Users of isoHunt perform over 40 million unique searches per month. On October 19, 2008, isoHunt passed the 1 petabyte mark for torrents indexed globally. The site is the third most popular BitTorrent site as of 2008. According to isoHunt, the total amount of shared content was more than 13.44 petabytes as of September 29, 2011.

5. BTjunkie

BTJunkie was a BitTorrent search engine operating between 2005 and 2012. It used a web crawler (similar to Google) to search for torrent files from other torrent sites and store them on its database. It had nearly 4,000,000 active torrents and about 4,200 torrents added daily (compared to runner-up Torrent Portal with 1,500), making it the largest torrent site indexer on the web. During 2011, BTJunkie was the 5th most popular BitTorrent site.

6. ExtraTorrent

ExtraTorrent is one of those robust torrent indexes that doesn’t make the news very often. Compared to last year the site has moved up a spot and is now the 6th most popular torrent venue.

7. Demonoid

Demonoid is a website and BitTorrent tracker created by an anonymous programmer (supposedly of Serbian origin) known only by the pseudonyms "Deimos" and "Zajson". The website indexes torrents uploaded by its members. Demonoid.com was ranked the 538th most popular website overall in December 2010, according to Alexa. Demonoid's torrent tracker had an estimated three million peers in September 2007. The site had over 252,427 torrents indexed as of May 3, 2009 (torrents uploaded prior to August 4, 2005 were removed to free server resources).

8. EZTV

Unlike the other sites in the top 10, TV-torrent distribution group EZTV is a niche site specializing in TV content only. Despite its fair share of downtime this year, EZTV has managed to get a spot in the top 10 for the first time in its six year existence.

9. Bitsnoop

BitSnoop is another newcomer that gained a large audience this year. This didn’t go unnoticed by the RIAA, who filed a complaint at the U.S. District Court of Columbia and obtained a subpoena to reveal the identity of BitSnoop’s owner a few months ago.

10. 1337x

1337x is also new to the top 10, and focuses more on the community aspect than some competitors. The site’s owners say they started 1337x to “fill an apparent void where it seemed there was a lack of quality conscience ad free torrent sites with public trackers.” Its 10th place this year proves that they’re getting the success formula right.

10 things you don't know about NOKIA

 

1) The ringtone "Nokia tune" is actually based on a 19th century guitar work named "Gran Vals" by Spanish musician Francisco Tárrega. The Nokia Tune was originally named "Grande Valse" on Nokia phones but was changed to "Nokia Tune" around 1998 when it became so well known that people referred to it as the "Nokia Tune."

2) The world's first commercial GSM call was made in 1991 in Helsinki over a Nokia-supplied network, by Prime Minister of Finland Harri Holkeri, using a Nokia phone.

3) Nokia is currently the world's largest digital camera manufacturer, as the sales of its camera-equipped mobile phones have exceeded those of any conventional camera manufacturer.

4) The "Special" tone available to users of Nokia phones when receiving SMS (text messages) is actually Morse code for "SMS". Similarly, the "Ascending" SMS tone is Morse code for "Connecting People," Nokia's slogan. The "Standard" SMS tone is Morse code for "M" (Message).

5) The Nokia corporate font (typeface) is the AgfaMonotype Nokia Sans font, originally designed by Eric Spiekermann. Its mobile phone User's Guides Nokia mostly used the Agfa Rotis Sans font.

6) In Asia, the digit 4 never appears in any Nokia handset model number, because 4 is considered unlucky in many parts of Southeast/East Asia.

7) Nokia was listed as the 20th most admirable company worldwide in Fortune's list of 2006 (1st in network communications, 4th non-US company).

8. Unlike other modern day handsets, Nokia phones do not automatically start the call timer when the call is connected, but start it when the call is initiated. (Except for Series 60 based handsets like the Nokia 6600)

9) Nokia is sometimes called aikon (Nokia backwards) by non-Nokia mobile phone users and by mobile software developers, because "aikon" is used in various SDK software packages, including Nokia's own Symbian S60 SDK.

10) The name of the town of Nokia originated from the river which flowed through the town. The river itself, Nokianvirta, was named after the old Finnish word originally meaning sable, later pine marten. A species of this small, black-furred predatory animal was once found in the region, but it is now extinct.

Top 10 unknown Google tricks

Below is a list of our top ten Google tricks many people who use Google don't know about.

Definitions

Pull up the definition of the word by typing define followed by the word you want the definition for. For example, typing: define bravura would display the definition of that word.

Local search

Visit Google Local enter the area you want to search and the keyword of the place you want to find. For example, typing: restaurant at the above link would display local restaurants.

Phone number lookup

Enter a full phone number with area code to display the name and address associated with that phone number.

Find weather and movies

Type "weather" or "movies" followed by a zip code or city and state to display current weather conditions or movie theaters in your area. For example, typing weather 84101 gives you the current weather conditions for Salt Lake City, UT and the next four days. Typing movies 84101 would give you a link for showtimes for movies in that area.

Track airline flight and packages

Enter the airline and flight number to display the status of an airline flight and it's arrival time. For example, type: delta 123 to display this flight information if available.

Google can also give a direct link to package tracking information if you enter a UPS, FedEx or USPS tracking number.

Translate

Translate text, a full web page, or search by using the Google Language Tools.

Pages linked to you

See what other web pages are linking to your website or blog by typing link: followed by your URL. For example, typing link:http://www.computerhope.com displays all pages linking to Computer Hope.

Find PDF results only

Add filetype: to your search to display results that only match a certain file type. For example, if you wanted to display PDF results only type: "dell xps" filetype:pdf -- this is a great way to find online manuals.

Calculator

Use the Google Search engine as a calculator by typing a math problem in the search. For example, typing: 100 + 200 would display results as 300.

Stocks

Quickly get to a stock quote price, chart, and related links by typing the stock symbol in Google. For example, typing: msft will display the stock information for Microsoft.

Enabling Windows GodMode

 

Microsoft Windows Vista (32-bit version) introduced a new hidden feature called GodMode that allows you to view and adjust all settings within Windows. To create a shortcut to the GodMode in Windows Vista (32-bit) or any version of Windows 7 follow the below steps.

1. Anywhere on your computer create a new folder.
2. After the folder has been created, copy the below text, rename that folder, and paste the text as the file name.

GodMode.{ED7BA470-8E54-465E-825C-99712043E01C}

Once the above steps have been completed a new shortcut entitled GodMode will be visible. Opening this shortcut will display a Window similar to the below example.

Top 10 Facebook tips

 

Below is a listing of our top 10 tips for the popular social networking website Facebook.

Hide users, games, polls, etc.

It quickly gets annoying seeing some users posts, game invites, polls, etc. Hovering your mouse to the right of the post and clicking the Hide button as shown below can hide any post. Once this button is pressed you'll be prompted with the option to hide that user or in the case of a Facebook application the option to hide that application from ever showing up on your profile.

To unhide someone or unblock an application click the Edit Options link in the bottom right corner of the news feed as shown below.

Greasemonkey and FB Purity

Although Facebook does not allow the ability to hide friends getting new friends messages, friends becoming fans of something, and some application messages they can still be hidden with browser add-ons. If you're running Mozilla Firefox, Chrome, Opera, or Safari we suggest installing the Facebook Purity add-on.

Update your privacy settings

Click Account in the top right corner of the Facebook window and then click Privacy settings to adjust who is capable of seeing what on your Facebook profile. We highly recommend going through all the privacy settings to verify your privacy is properly protected.

Anything that is not set to friends only or friends of friends can be seen by anyone searching on the Internet. Below is a few things we recommend for most users.

1. Under Search in Privacy settings uncheck Public Search Results. This will prevent users from finding your account and profile picture in search results such as Google
2. Under Application settings, make sure you're only allowing applications you want to have access to your information. Applications that you grant rights to can have access to your Facebook profile information.

• If you're curious to see how a program or web page connect to the Facebook API can see your profile see Tip135.

Use the Facebook top bar for navigation

Knowing how to properly navigate is vital if you want to get the most out of Facebook. Below is a brief description of each of the available options in the top bar as shown above.

 

Home (facebook logo) - Clicking this logo will take you to your wall (News Feed) that shows all friends recent posts.

 

Friend requests - If any friend requests are waiting to be approved this icon will show a notification of how many friends are waiting for approval. This icon can also be clicked when you want to view any friend recommendations or search for friends on Facebook.

 

Messages - This section allows you to send and receive private messages between one or more people you're friends with.

 

Notifications - Any time a friend or Facebook application creates a new post you'll be notified in this section. Clicking this icon will show all recent notifications. If you wish to change what is capable of sending you notifications including any Facebook applications or games click the See All Notifications link at the bottom and check or uncheck what you want to be notified on.

 

Search - Finally, the search box in Facebook can be a powerful tool that can be used to quickly find any current friends or people on Facebook. In addition searching for terms such as a company name, product, sports team, music band, etc. will find fan pages and groups that can be joined.

Modify your account notifications

Keep your e-mail and your cell phone clean by updating or eliminate Facebook notifications or keep more up-to-date by adding new notifications. Facebook notifications can be added and removed by clicking Account link in the top right corner, then Account Settings, and then clicking the Notifications tab.

Top News and Most Recent

By default Facebook will display your wall postings in the News format, which means it only displays posts it believes are most relevant to you. These results are based on your past interaction with your friends. If you want to see every post made by all your friends that are not hidden click the Most recent link in the upper right section of your news feed as shown in the above picture 

example.

If you want to adjust who shows up manually click the Edit Options in the bottom right corner of your news feed.

View High School work friends

If you've added your High School or previous Work locations to your profile, quickly see all classmates and co-workers on Facebook by clicking the link in your Info tab under your profile.

Quickly change profile picture

Your profile picture can be quickly changed to any other picture by visiting your profile, hovering the mouse over your current profile picture, and clicking the Change Picture link that appears in the top right corner of the picture.

Don't post private information on friend's walls on in comments

When you make a post on a friend's wall or in any of their comments realize that any of their friends are going to be able to see that post. If you wish for something to remain only between you and a friend send them a Facebook message instead.

Suggestions and random friend invites

As you get more friends on Facebook it will begin making friend, groups, and fan suggestions. These are suggestions made by Facebook and not your friends. Unless these are something you're interested in they can be ignored.

This same rule can be applied to people who may want to be your friend that you don't know. If you don't know someone don't accept his or her friend invite. Once someone becomes your friend they'll have access to any information your friends are capable of seeing.

Tag your Facebook friends in your photos

Always make sure to tag any of your Facebook friends that are in pictures you upload. However, never tag someone who is not in the picture. When someone is tagged in a photo that picture is automatically added to that persons profile and is a great way to share pictures with all friends.

Top 10 keyboard shortcuts everyone should know

 

Using keyboard shortcuts can greatly increase your productivity, reduce repetitive strain, and help keep you focused. For example, highlighting text with the keyboard and pressing Ctrl + C is much faster than taking your hand from the keyboard, highlighting the text using the mouse, clicking copy from the file menu, and then putting your hand back in place on the keyboard. Below are our top 10 keyboard shortcuts we recommend everyone memorize and use.

Ctrl + C or Ctrl + Insert

Copy the highlighted text or selected item.

Ctrl + V or Shift + Insert

Paste the text or object that's in the clipboard.

Ctrl + Z and Ctrl + Y

Undo any change. For example, if you cut text, pressing this will undo it. This can also often be pressed multiple times to undo multiple changes. Pressing Ctrl + Y would redo the undo.

Ctrl + F

Open the Find in any program. This includes your Internet browser to find text on the current page.

Alt + Tab or Alt + Esc

Quickly switch between open programs moving forward.

 

Tip: Press Ctrl + Tab to switch between tabs in a program.

 

Tip: Adding the Shift key to Alt + Tab or Ctrl + Tab will move backwards. For example, if you are pressing Alt + Tab and pass the program you want to switch to, press Alt + Shift + Tab to move backwards to that program.

 

Tip: Windows Vista and 7 users can also press the Windows Key + Tab to switch through open programs in a full screenshot of the Window.

Ctrl + Back space and Ctrl + Left or Right arrow

Pressing Ctrl + Backspace will delete a full word at a time instead of a single character.

Holding down the Ctrl key while pressing the left or right arrow will move the cursor one word at a time instead of one character at a time. If you wanted to highlight one word at a time you can hold down Ctrl + Shift and then press the left or right arrow key to move one word at a time in that direction while highlighting each word.

Ctrl + S

While working on a document or other file in almost every program pressing Ctrl + S will save that file. This shortcut key should be used frequently anytime you're working on anything important.

Ctrl + Home or Ctrl + End

Move the cursor to the beginning or end of a document.

Ctrl + P

Print the page being viewed. For example, the document in Microsoft Word or the web page in your Internet browser.

Page Up, Space bar, and Page Down

Pressing either the page up or page down key will move that page one page at a time in that direction. When browsing the Internet pressing the space bar will also move the page down one page at a time. If you press Shift and the Space bar the page will go up a page at a time

How to Use a Usb Modem/3g Dongle with Any Sim | No unlocking

 

Guyzz this is very easy trick just follow these simple steps:

1.) Insert Sim in Modem.
2.) No need of ur Modem Software, it will say its invalid sim F**k that & close it:D.
3.)Start NOKIA PC suite.
4)Go to Nokia pc suite connect to internet option.
5.)Go to Configure. Select your data card modem,and make all operator apn setting as like when we use Nokia mobile connectionex: If ur sim is of Docomo then enter Apn as> TATA.DOCOMO.INTERNET

U r Done click on finish.

Now connect to internet through PC suite.
You have succesfully accesses internet thu ur usb modem without Unlocking it TADAA!!!
Enjoy