Ever since the Windows 8 release date has been uncovered, so has the cloud of rumors. Most users and computer experts expect a late 2011 / early 2012 release of the operating system, and hopefully again, that will be a beta or so, cause we don’t want a half-assed OS (just look at Vista ). I also found some information online  about a recently leaked Windows 8 product cycle chart that provides the answers needed to determine the release date of the next Windows OS by Microsoft.

Please notice that I do not host this image, but you can take a look at the direct image here, but I suggest you do, so you’ll know what the hell I’m talking about. Looking at the chart, you can tell that it lists the planning, development and readiness product cycle of Windows 8 and related Microsoft products such as Internet Explorer 9, Windows Live Wave 4, Windows Live Wave 5 and Windows 7. It also lists all the major events.

There have also been a lot of talks and some events and products have already been held / released and it is possible to pinpoint the release date of Windows 8 by making the remaining calculations. From the image link above, it shows Forum I and Forum II have been major events, the former held in December 2009, most likely at the Professional Developers Conference, the latter in April 2010. The listing lists four additional events, Forum III to Forum VI and the next two events fall into the development phase of Windows 8, the remaining two into the readiness phase.

First of all, I hope everyone knows the first rule in basic security (and I mean really basic) such as always staying up to date with your Antivirus Definitions as well as your program patches that are needed, unfortunately this means the dreadful long process Windows Updates too, and always staying in touch with your common sense, that if something doesn’t feel right, it probably isn’t, it could range from a simple program file to a website, meaning to get online street-smart to protect yourself into being tricked by phishing websites or downloading trojan horses.

Now sure, you might do everything above and a little more, this goes for the non-technical people as we all know, that people like myself (the geeks), can well protect ourselves online, but what happens when you still feel insecure even staying up to date with everything? Well with a move from basic security tips to advanced security tips, you will be able to protect yourself better online with of course, please remember, that security is all about trade-offs. With most of these tips, what you gain in security, you lose in convenience, and believe me when I say that.

Knowing What Programs You Still Use, and Verify That They’re Up to Date

When I say know what programs you use, this means everyday use to once or twice a week, what ends up happening when you install and a program and forget about it, you forget not only that you have it but that program you downloaded will stay there and after a few years it may be nothing more than a security hole today. If you don’t use a program, uninstall it from your PC! To remove unwanted apps, visit the Windows Install/Uninstall section of the Control Panel. Bottom line, if you’re not using a program, lose it. From a security perspective, every program, especially popular applications, is just another path that hackers can use to break into your system. A useful security tool is the Secunia Online Software Inspector, which scans your PC for out-of-date software. Really useful for the less technical users.
This goes the same for browsers, if you notice that your browser is acting slow, you might want to consider removing plugins, and also updating plugins all the time since they are the most vulnerable when surfing the net.

Brute Force Passwords

Stronger Passwords!

Okay When I say brute force, I simply mean creating and using stronger passwords, I seriously doubt that the password “ballon12″ would do the trick, Hackers will be more than happy to use that against you, Often they steal a person’s password and user name, most likely via a phishing attack, they try that combination on other popular services–Facebook, Gmail, PayPal, Yahoo, to see if it works there, too.
How do you protect youself? Luckily there are free and simple password management tools, such as KeePass Password Safe, that are available to manage your passwords for you. But a note, using this is a bit more work, you may tire of constantly jumping between a password manager and your browser every time you want to log into a Website, but remember that security always involves trade-offs.
Consider using stronger passwords that use a symbol or upper and lowercase characters. And make one that YOU can REMEMBER, don’t make one that’s “!DF)xJSsl@” and hard to remember later on.

Back Out of Rogue Antivirus Offers

Rogue Antivirus

There’s about several popular antiviruses out there, but sometimes they might disguise themselves or act like an antivirus, it’s good to have a sharp eye into paying attention to the small details. Far too many users have had this experience recently when you’re surfing the net on a totally legitimate site when a scary-looking warning message pops up suddenly and alerts you that your computer is infected. You try to get rid of it, but more windows keep popping up, urging you to scan your computer.

If you do allow the website to do this, the scan always finds security problems and offers to sell you software that will take care of the problem. This is an example of 100%  rogue antivirus software. The only thing the software does is put money into the pockets of criminals.

These type of issues, especially rouge antiviruses have become one of the most annoying security threats in todays internet. Every time you try to close those websites, another popup appears. So next time that does happen or before it does, here are a few tips:
First of all, never buy the rogue antivirus software. It will never work and more than often it will trash your system. If the website keeps on nagging at you, either press Alt-F4 to close your browser directly or press Ctrl-Alt-Delete to open your system’s task manager and shut the browser down from there. Closing the browser generally puts an end to the pop-up problem.
Another way to steer clear of these attacks is to be careful when reading a popular story. Often hackers follow Google Trends and Twitter’s Trending topics, and they can quickly promote one of their malicious Web pages to the top of Google search results.

Avoid Scripting

You might ask yourself what avoid scripting is, let alone what scripting itself is. This piece will be the most important because mainly JavaScript is what hackers use to target and load malicious software onto your computer, so steer clear of JavaScript, especially the ones from websites you don’t trust.

For those who don’t know, JavaScript is very popular, and for good reason because it works in almost all browsers, and it makes the internet a lot more dynamic. But like I said, the bad comes with the good. JavaScript can also enables bad guys to trick your browser more easily into doing something that it shouldn’t. The deception could be something as simple as telling the browser to load an element from another Web page. Or it could involve something more complicated, like a cross-site scripting attack, which gives the attacker a way to fool the victim on a legitimate Web page.

This is a tough security threat to dodge since JavaScipt attacks are everywhere. For example, if you use Facebook, you may have seen one of the latest ways that scammers use to lure in users. Scammers have set up fake Facebook pages offering things like a free $500 gift card if you cut and paste some code into your browser’s address bar, this is a big no-no. That code that they want you to insert is JavaScript, and you should never add it to your browser. Scammers are currently using this technique to open up unwanted surveys, fill your social networking profiles with spam or even to send you to phishing pages.

And it gets worse, even though a site might be popular or known, hackers can add JavaScript to hacked or malicious Web pages, too. To avoid attacks there, you can use a free Firefox plugin called NoScript that lets you control which Websites can and cannot run JavaScript in the browser. NoScript goes a long way toward preventing rogue antivirus programs or online attacks from popping up when you visit a new Website.
And better yet, by blocking scripting everywhere and then using NoScript to build a whitelist of trusted sites, you can eliminate most of the so-called Web drive-by attacks that currently plague the Internet.

If you don’t use Firefox, you still have some options for disabling scripting. Just like Firefox users, Google Chrome users can disable JavaScript universally and then build a whitelist of sites where it’s permitted.
Unfortunately, neither Internet Explorer nor Safari has a NoScript equivalent (aww how sad), but IE users can adjust their Internet Zones security settings to require prompts before scripting. And IE 8 includes new cross-site scripting protection to protect you from some attacks.

Bottom line, some of these tips might seem somewhat a little of out place for some non-technical users, but this can save you a lot, and make you  immune to some new attacks not known out there. Stay stay, surf safe!

Windows 7 GodMode

For the Windows 7 users out there, if you don’t know by now, there are many hidden features in Windows 7, was it Microsoft’s way to make it easier on us? Although the name already gives you a few ideas of what its purpose is. Windows 7 God Mode allows users to access all of the operating system’s control panels and capabilities from within a single folder.

By first, how do you even access this tool? Its simple and its more like creating than accessing. By creating a new folder in Windows 7 and renaming it with a specific text string as its name, users are then able to control everything from a single folder that could change from changing the look of the mouse pointer to making a new hard-drive partition.

Other Windows enthusiasts also said that this trick works in Windows Vista as well, but be careful, although same say it works in the 32-bit version of Windows Vista, it can cause 64-bit versions to crash.

So now to create it and try it out! To enter “GodMode,” one need only create a new folder and then rename the folder to the following:

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

Upon entering the string as the folder’s name, the folder’s icon will change to resemble a control panel and will contain dozens of control options and features. Just be careful with God Mod, only administrators and users who know what they’re doing should use that to its fullest capability.

Actual Picture of My Tower

I just recently finished custom building a computer for myself, and upon ordering some new parts, I decided to try out the most highly anticipated tower, the Cooler Master HAF 932 Full Tower that everyone loves, not only because its economical, saves money, is a full tower, or has a sleek design, mainly because of the high air flow it gives to cool even you most hottest parts (hence the HAF in the name). Some of the specifications are:

Feature

• The HAF932 features a fully-rugged appearance and is housed in a tough casing to offer outstanding protection.
• A rugged HAF932 comes equipped to operate with unparalleled thermal performance.
• Patented finger-press buttons for quickly maintaining or upgrading 5.25 inch drive devices.
• Removable HDD racks and cable management system for better cable routing and neatness.

Specs:

• Compatible Motherboards: ATX, Micro ATX, Extended ATX
• Material: Plastic, Steel
• External 5.25″ Drive Bays: 6
• Internal 3.5″ Drive Bays: 5
• Expansion Slots: 7
• Front USB Ports: 4
• Front FireWire Ports: 1
• 140mm Fan Ports: 1
• Depth: 22.7″
• Width: 9.0″
• Height: 21.5″

Actual Side Picture

Upon using it for the first days of summer, despite the 90+F weather here in Alhambra, CA, this tower stays cool no matter what. When you purchase this tower, it already comes with 3 bigass fans, which is good and really useful, but in other words, I doubt you’ll need more air power then that, they are extremely quiet and powerful. If you looking into getting a full tower for the first time I’d recommend this tower since it has everything for you to play with, plus the look is just beautiful!

For the price of $139.99. It was a steal! If you looking to get the Cooler Master HAF 932 High Air Flow ATX Full Tower Case.. Get it while its still here!

Another online scam has been found that is known as an appraisal scam into making you think that they are interested in your domain, but first they want to “appraise” your domain to see its worth. This is all just a scam to get you to pay an appraisal server that the scammer mostly owns or works with to make profit. Heres and example of one of the most recent ones:

Hello,

I’ve seen your domain for sale. Then I’ve found your email via WHO IS to
contact you direct. Please email your price.

If you have a list of other domains for sale, please send the list with
prices in plain text. We prefer “dot coms” and easy-to-remember names.

Regards,

Daniel Sullivan

Vice President

Web Hosting & Mail Guide and Services
================================================== ======
NOTICE – This communication may contain confidential and privileged
information that is for the sole use of the intended recipient. Any
viewing, copying or distribution of, or reliance on this message by
unintended recipients is strictly prohibited. If you have received this
message in error, please notify us immediately by replying to the message
and deleting it from your computer.
================================================== ======

Be wary on what type of people contact you, always use search engines to figure out if they’re scammers! A number of these letters have been found with different emails, names, and sometimes websites. If you’ve fallen for a scam like this, consult into a dispute with your CC company or even if you used Paypal. Stay safe!

With so much hype about the iPhone 4, setting aside its issues, the marketing effort Apple’s been airing commercials are no longer to show off its sleek design or its features, but for the first time, it emotionally shows what the iphone 4 can do in usefulness such as:

The first one features a grandfather seeing his first grandbaby for the first time—over the iPhone 4, of course.

There’s a lot more where that came from, see some of the cutesy commercials airing:

Such as the guy looking at his girlfriends new shorter haircut:

And the dad trying to get his teenage daughter to smile so he can see her new braces:

Apple’s way of putting real world emotions into their ads is really something, I wouldn’t be surprised if they could make some people cry over their commercials. Hopefully they don’t get too cutesy….

Despite the fact that everyone has been somewhat scared to use Windows 7 because of the last OS before that, Windows Vista, in which I do agree that it did come out a P-o-S operating system, I was really hesitant to use the new Windows 7 back when it came out. Testing out Vista, it went terribly wrong for me, Many of the computer’s I’ve fixed locally, some of the clients wanted to downgrade to Windows XP. Now of course I recommend otherwise ever since I upgraded to Windows 7. At first I though the system would be just the same as Vista, but Windows 7 has proved me wrong.

With much of work developing and coding, Windows XP run pretty smooth but never really used my hardware to its fullest, even though everything was compatible and ran great without any issues, when I went to test it out with Vista, it was a nightmare! With Windows 7 I see that my hardware is being used to its fullest capacity so that I can have the best experience on my desktop. Some of the things that I wanted to point out on Windows 7 is:

1) Speed & Realibility

The speed on my computer is really smooth, even my games run better because Windows 7 could use my SLI video cards more efficiently  than XP or Vista, plus the Aero Interface doesn’t even get in the way with the FPS of my games. The 32-bit version of Windows 7 I’m using can still read my 4GB of RAM compared to the 2.5GB RAM that Windows XP only read. My work has also been smoother and easier to work with some neat Windows 7 features such as Pin Lists, Sticky notes, and a lot more. And with this speed, I’m glad that there hasn’t been a crash on Windows 7 which makes it so much easier to work with, unlike Vista.

2) Organization

My desktop would still be cluttered with folders and files I work on, but with some new features such as Libraries which allow you to store your files in a more organizable way and also Pin Lists which allow you to open recent documents as well as “Pin” files to a specific program, so to access it will be faster and way more easier. Plus the sticky notes that Windows 7 has is very useful for remembering minor things to even major issues (such as someones birthday) right on your desktop, and the neat thing is, when you turn off your computer it is still there, it doesn’t delete unless you delete them yourself.

3) Aero Interface

Now I wasn’t too much of a fan for graphics, I mean, just take a look at Windows XP, anyways, with the better thumbnail previews that  has been fixed from Vista (finally!), and the ability to see transparently through windows when you have a bunch of windows open is very useful for finding specific files of windows you have open faster. Running SLI video cards, this is flawlessly brought to anyone’s desktop.

Despite all the good things, there are some flaws that is still happening on Windows 7, for example, my wireless PCI card from Netgear sometimes doesn’t want to run, even with the drivers installed (of course), but it runs sometimes and sometimes it doesn’t want to run, but I think the biggest issue is compatibility with Windows 7, It will take sometime for older software we depended to run on Windows XP to run on Windows 7, even using the Compatibility mode for each program, but also Microsoft introduced Windows XP Mode for Windows 7 which allows you to run Windows XP virtually on your desktop, but I will hold off on that now.

Well overall, Windows 7 first impression on me was really great, but I want to hear from  some regular users home users! Are you running Windows 7? What do you think of windows 7 and its features?

Let’s face it, technology surrounds us, one of the newest Apple products that came out was the Apple iPad, now being a Linux User and not a fan of both PC and Apple products, I would have to say that the hype of the iPad is well overrated. Now this is just a personal opinion, but I gotta say that some features are pretty neat of the iPad. Reading some reviews online of those who got their hands on the Ipad notice some things on the iPad:

1.) Speed

Users of the iPad report that the speed is amazing and fast, while the iPad is considered a computer (which I highly disagree with seeing that it does online some functions of a computer and works more like a big-ass version of the iPhone), the web surfing and applications are extremely faster than the ones on the iphone.

2.) Communication

Some reviews I’ve read include that with a little help from Skype, the iPad can make calls and also chat using the 3G service (if you purchased the 3G version). The iPad also has great coverage on its 3G coverage and seems to keep connected all the time, hopefully it keeps that way.

3.) Touch Technology

Apple using the touch technology on the iPad is very smooth, with ditching the physical qwerty keyboards and using only touch, it improves somewhat the typing for some one us, while some say that the auto correction helps a lot, but some users recommend to hold the iPad with one hand while typing with the other hand. And if you don’t feel comfortable enough with the iPad’s touch keyboard you can also purchase Apple’s Keyboard Dock for $79 and also purchase the $39 Apple Case to prop the iPad at a good typing angle.

The list could go on and on, but there are also some flaws to the iPad such as the glare with it hits direct sunlight or light. This is nothing more than a combination of the Kindle (except with the color) and a bigger version of the iPhone. If i was to buy this, I would hold off on this or just end up buying a tablet PC instead.

Overall, why do you think about the iPad, there are mixed reviews about the iPad, do you see any use in it?

One of the most interesting things I barely saw today, this video below was released over a year ago, this video has made me think hard on making a custom case, the time, the effort, as well as the creativity!! This is one of the best, if not THE BEST case mod I have seen a human create. This case mod just blows my mind away when I first saw the video, not to mention its dual screens that makes it very nice as well as it hidden compartment for its wireless mouse and keyboard. I urge you to take a look:

Cinematograph HD Video Work log from Will Urbina on Vimeo.

All I gotta say it nice work Will Urbina, can’t wait to see more of your work…..