Changing your display Picture on Facebook

You can easily change your display Picture on Facebook

 Step 1 : Go to your profile page and Click On Change Picture

Step 2 : Click Choose

 Step 3 :  and choose your picture and press O.k

Step 4 : and waiting for upload

Step 5 : and you're done :)

If you enjoyed this post, make sure you Like Download Computer Software Page

Google Page Speed to check the performance of your wesbsite

Google Page Speed is a popular tool from Google that analyzes website performance, and gives improvement suggestions. 

You can improve your website performance and make it faster.

 ---" How To Use It "--- 

1 - Just enter the URL of the website or web page for which you analyze performance, and click on “Analyze Performance” button.

2 - The results first shows an overall page score out of 100. This blog got a score of 85. Nice :) 

It will show improvement suggestions. The improvement suggestions are divided into high priority, medium priority, and low priority. You should start by implementing the suggestions under High priority list, as that will give most performance improvement. After that, you can move over to medium priority, and low priority.

Google Page Speed is really helpful, and handy. Check it out :)

Try It Now ( It's free )

Add “Hide File Names” Option in “View” Menu in Windows Vista

     Names Option in View Menu in your Windows Vista ...... this trick works only with Windows Vista.

1. Open a folder, in which you want to add this option. If you want to add this option in all folders, then open the parent folder. e.g. if you want to add the option in every folder of E: drive, then open E: drive.

2. Right-click on a blank area in the folder and select “Customize This Folder". You can also get this option from “View -> Customize This Folder.

3. It’ll open “Customize” tab. Now select “Pictures and Videos” option from “Template” drop-down box.

NOTE: If you want to add the option “Hide File Names” to a particular folder then make sure to un-check the option “Also apply this template to all subfolders“, otherwise enable this option.

4. Now Apply it and see the magic.

Now you’ll get an extra option “Hide File Names” in “View“. Which can hide file/folder names in that particular folder.Actually in Windows XP we can hide file/folder names by pressing key and selecting “View -> Thumbnails“. Since they hv removed “Thumbnails” option from “View” menu, I think thats why this option was added to folders having their templates as “Pictures and Videos”.

History Internet Protocol

     The Internet Protocol Suite resulted from work done by Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) in the early 1970s. After building the pioneering ARPANET in 1969, DARPA started work on a number of other data transmission technologies. In 1972, Robert E. Kahn was hired at the DARPA Information Processing Technology Office, where he worked on both satellite packet networks and ground-based radio packet networks, and recognized the value of being able to communicate across them. In the spring of 1973, Vinton Cerf, the developer of the existing ARPANET Network Control Program (NCP) protocol, joined Kahn to work on open-architecture interconnection models with the goal of designing the next protocol generation for the ARPANET.

     By the summer of 1973, Kahn and Cerf had worked out a fundamental reformulation, where the differences between network protocols were hidden by using a common internetwork protocol, and instead of the network being responsible for reliability, as in the ARPANET, the hosts became responsible. Cerf credits Hubert Zimmerman and Louis Pouzin, designer of the CYCLADES network, with important influences on this design.

With the role of the network reduced to the bare minimum, it became possible to join almost any networks together, no matter what their characteristics were, thereby solving Kahn's initial problem. One popular saying has it that TCP/IP, the eventual product of Cerf and Kahn's work, will run over "two tin cans and a string." There is even an implementation designed to run using homing pigeons, IP over Avian Carriers, documented in RFC 1149.

    A computer called a router (a name changed from gateway to avoid confusion with other types of gateways) is provided with an interface to each network, and forwards packets back and forth between them. Requirements for routers are defined in (Request for Comments 1812).

      The idea was worked out in more detailed form by Cerf's networking research group at Stanford in the 1973–74 period, resulting in the first TCP specification (Request for Comments 675) [6] (The early networking work at Xerox PARC, which produced the PARC Universal Packet protocol suite, much of which existed around the same period of time (i.e. contemporaneous), was also a significant technical influence; people moved between the two).

     DARPA then contracted with BBN Technologies, Stanford University, and the University College London to develop operational versions of the protocol on different hardware platforms. Four versions were developed: TCP v1, TCP v2, a split into TCP v3 and IP v3 in the spring of 1978, and then stability with TCP/IP v4 — the standard protocol still in use on the Internet today.

     In 1975, a two-network TCP/IP communications test was performed between Stanford and University College London (UCL). In November, 1977, a three-network TCP/IP test was conducted between the U.S., UK, and Norway. Between 1978 and 1983, several other TCP/IP prototypes were developed at multiple research centers. A full switchover to TCP/IP on the ARPANET took place January 1, 1983.

     In March 1982, the US Department of Defense made TCP/IP the standard for all military computer networking. In 1985, the Internet Architecture Board held a three day workshop on TCP/IP for the computer industry, attended by 250 vendor representatives, helping popularize the protocol and leading to its increasing commercial use.

      On November 9, 2005 Kahn and Cerf were presented with the Presidential Medal of Freedom for their contribution to American culture.

How to crack WPA wireless networks

     WPA is an encryption algorithm that takes care of a lot of the vunerablities inherent in WEP. WEP is, by design, flawed. No matter how good or crappy, long or short, your WEP key is, it can be cracked. WPA is different. A WPA key can be made good enough to make cracking it unfeasible. WPA is also a little more cracker friendly. By capturing the right type of packets, you can do your cracking offline. This means you only have to be near the AP for a matter of seconds to get what you need. Advantages and disadvantages.

WPA Flavours

WPA basically comes in two flavours RADIUS or PSK. PSK is crackable, RADIUS is not so much.

PSK uses a user defined password to initialize the TKIP, temporal key integrity protocol. There is a password and the user is involved, for the most part that means it is flawed. The TKIP is not really crackable as it is a per-packet key but upon the initialization of the TKIP, like during an authentication, we get the password (well the PMK anyways). A robust dictionary attack will take care of a lot of consumer passwords.

Radius involves physical transferring of the key and encrypted channels blah blah blah, look it up to learn more about it but 90% of commerical APs do not support it, it is more of an enterprise solution then a consumer one.

The Handshake

The WPA handshake was designed to occur over insecure channels and in plaintext so the password is not actually sent across. There are some fancy dancy algorithms in the background that turn it into a primary master key, PMK, and the like but none of that really matters cause the PMK is enough to connect to the network.

The only step we need to do is capture a full authenication handshake from a real client and the AP. This can prove tricky without some packet injection, but if you are lucky to capture a full handshake, then you can leave and do the rest of the cracking at home.

We can force an authenication handshake by launching a Deauthentication Attack, but only if there is a real client already connected (you can tell in airodump). If there are no connected clients, you’re outta luck.

Like for WEP, we want to know the channel the WPA is sitting on, but the airodump command is slightly different. We don’t want just IVs so we don’t specify an IV flag. This will produce “lucid.cap” instead of “lucid.ivs”. Assume WPA is on channel 6 and wireless interface is ath0.

./airodump ath0 lucid 6

Dictionary Brute Force

The most important part of brute forcing a WPA password is a good dictionary. Check out http://www.openwall.com/wordlists/ for a ‘really’ good one. It costs money, but it’s the biggest and best I’ve ever seen (40 Million words, no duplicates, one .txt file). There is also a free reduced version from the same site but i’m sure resourceful people can figure out where to get a good dictionary from.

When you have a good dictionary the crack is a simple brute force attack:

./aircrack -a 2 -b 00:23:1F:55:04:BC -w /path/to/wordlist

Either you’ll get it or you won’t… depends on the strength of the password and if a dictionary attack can crack it.

Source : http://www.cbcomputer.blogspot.com

AppGet 0.6.9 Download

     An update is available for installed Applications, it will be shown in Appget!

     Brothersoft Editor/ Appget is a version-control-program. Appget will show you a list of your installed Applications.When an update is available for one of them, it will be shown in Appget.

     There you can update the specific applications in seconds. When appget starts, it will create a list all your installed applications and their corresponding version numbers. The collected data will (anonymously) be submitted and compared to the online Appget database.

License: Freeware Free
OS: Windows Vista, XP, 2000
Requirements: No special requirements
Publisher: Josha van Praag More Products
Homepage: http://www.app-get.com/

Download : Here

Tweak your mouse sensitivity in Windows virtual machines

     I doubt a lot of virtualization fans is having this issue on most of the virtualization platform. This is not a major issue, but it is quite annoying and it will lower down your mouse pointer sensitivity. It is very hard for you to do testing or manage the Windows virtual machine if you cannot move your mouse pointer smoothly. Recently I just realized how to solve it from a friend of mine. Before this I would like to share this post with my friend, Wayne Lee King Lek. Thanks for him to share this knowledge with me.

Here is the step by step how to encounter the issue mentioned above:

1. At your Windows VM desktop, right click your mouse, and then go to Properties.
2. Browse to Settings tab, and then click on Advanced button at the right bottom.
3. Click on the Troubleshoot tab, adjust the Hardware acceleration to Full.

Thats all for this small trick. Hope this post will help you all.

Change Your IP Address Without Any Software!

     How do I change my IP address?

     “How do I change my IP address?” and “Can I change my IP address?” are probably the most commonly asked questions. Please attempt the following then, if that does not work, visit the Change IP Address forum.

     Before trying any other methods to change your IP address, try turning off (or unplugging the power of) your Cable/DSL modem for five minutes. In many cases this will change your IP address. However, if that does not change your IP address, repeat the process for 8 hours (overnight works well) instead of 5 minutes. Hopefully this will result in an IP change.

     If the above does not result in your IP address changing, please look through the below for the situation that best matches yours and attempt to change your IP address that way. Unfor tunately you are not able to get your IP address to change in all cases, as it is ultimate determined by your ISP’s DHCP configuration (when you’ve got a dynamically assigned IP address, that is.)

Windows - (FIRST OPTION) Computer connected directly to the modem

1. Get to a command prompt. (START, run, cmd).Start Menu Run Box

2. Type “ipconfig /release” (without the quotes, on the command line by itself).

3. Type “ipconfig /renew” (without the quotes, on the command line by itself).

Windows (SECOND OPTION) - Computer connected directly to the modem

1. Get to a command prompt. (START, run, cmd).

2. Type “ipconfig /release” (without the quotes).

3. Shut down computer.

4. Turn off computer.

5. Turn off all ethernet hubs/switches.

6. Turn off cable/DSL modem.

7. Leave off overnight.

8. Turn everything back on.

Network with Router (THIRD OPTION)

1. Log into the router’s admin console. (Often http://192.168.1.1/)

2. Release the IP address. (Method varies by router manufacturer)

3. Turn off router, ethernet hubs/switches, and the cable/DSL modem.

4. Leave off overnight.

5. Turn everything back on.

     If you are using a cable/DSL modem and a router, you may wish to connect your computer directly to the cable/DSL modem. Please note that this could significantly impact your system security. This allows your ISP’s DHCP to issue you a new (hopefully changed) IP address based of the (hardware) MAC address of your computer’s ethernet card.

If all the above has not worked to change your IP address and you have a router, check and see if there is a “Clone MAC Address” option. Using it should change your IP address; however, you’ll only be able to do it once (in most cases).

     These will not work in all cases. If all else fails contact your internet service provider (ISP) and ask them if they are able to change your IP address or how long your connection needs to be off for your IP address to change.

Installing an "Old" Printer in Vista

      I have a couple of questions for you today! Have you ever tried connecting your old printer to your new Windows Vista computer? Ever had to face a "PCL6 Driver Not Compatible" error message in Vista? If so, read on, because I have some good news for you!

When installing your still functional legacy printer (like the NEC SuperScript 1450, for example) onto your new computer system with Windows Vista, immediately, you'll be struck with an incompatibility issue. An error message like this will probably pop up on your screen: “PCL6 driver was not compatible with a policy enabled on your computer.” After getting that error message, you're basically unable to use your old printer. But, like I said before, there's a quick relief. Here's what you can do:

      The error message clearly says there's a problem with the policy. Hence, when the same policy is changed, you'll be able to get your printer up and running. All you have to do is this:

1. Go to Start.
2. Type in “gpedit.msc” (without the quotes) and then hit Enter. That will launch the Group Policy Object Editor.
3. Under the Computer Configuration section, double click on Administrative Templates and then select Printers.
   
4. In the right pane, find the policy named "Disallow Installation of Printers Using Kernel-mode Drivers" and double click on it.
   
5. Set its status to Disabled.

      By disabling the disallow policy, you enable the use of kernel-mode drivers, which is what you need to be able to use your old printer. When you're finished, click OK to close the Group Policy Editor. You'll then need to reboot your computer for everything to take effect. That's all you have to do. Now, you can enjoy your favorite printer with your new Windows Vista computer. Yes!

Dealing with customers of all types.

     If you're thinking of starting or are just starting a computer repair or other tech related business, you need to be able to deal with customers of all types. Each day is a new adventure, and just when you think you've seen it all, something new comes along. There are many types of customers you need to watch out for.

     Before I decided to go full time with my repair business, I spent a few years in customer service dealing with all kinds of people everyday. If you're typically known as the “nice guy” you may have to change your train of thought to keep from getting run over by your customers. If you have not had the benefit of gaining any type customer service experience, you should ask yourself, Can I deal with:

-The customer who “knows” what the problem is and wants to talk about it.

These aren't that bad, just annoying.

-The customer who wants to look over your shoulder while you work.

Personally I hate this. I don't get nervous, but I can't stand to have anyone looking over my shoulder in any situation.

-Same as above but wants an explanation of every single thing you do.

Grrrr

-The customer who wants to negotiate the price.

These guys are bad especially if you're working out of your home.

-The customer doesn't give you the whole story or “forgets” to tell you something relevant.

This can determine whether you work 10 minutes or two hours.

-The older customer who doesn't have a clue what you're saying even when you break it down into elementary English.

Not that bad really, just another annoyance. On the plus side, if you can make a “connection” with this customer, they'll come back every time.

-The customer who “since you're already working on it” wants you to fix something else for the same price.

Be firm, don't do anything for free. Let them know that it will be $x.xx more for you to do that.

-The customer who wants to blame you for something that was wrong with the computer before they dropped it off.

Most of these are premeditated. They come in knowing they're going to try and get one over on you.

     These are the types I run into the most but there are other types and variations. You have to remember that this is your business. You no longer have to clock in and answer to anyone else. You're the boss and you can run your business as you see fit.

     If you're the type to get nervous when someone looks over your shoulder, post on a sign that if a job is estimated to take more than 30 minutes (your discretion) then it is recommended that drop off and come back.

     Be firm with your prices, you're not running a stand at a flea market. You're prices are set,. Don't cave no matter how persistent that are. If they want cheap service they can look elsewhere. You can stand strong with these types of people. If you give in, they will be back every week wanting you to do something cheap.

     Be sure to inspect whatever the customer drops off in front of them. Make a note of any defects you find, and have them sign off on it.

     You can stand by your convictions without coming across as a jerk. It's all in the way that you do it.

Spartanburg Computer Repair

Removing Antivirus

     AntiVirus 2009, is counterfeit anti spy-ware designed to look like an actual anti virus program. AntiVirus 2009 is a clone of the infamous AntiVirus 2008 that gave computers users a fit back in....you guessed it, 2008. One of the most common ways you can get AntiVirus 2009 after installing a video codec infected with a trojan, mal-ware or other virus. AntiVirus 2009 generates fake yet authentic system messages tricking users into purchasing AntiVirus 2009. 

     In order to completely remove AntiVirus 2009, you have to remove all of it's components and all the malware and trojans that might have come with it such as zlob.trojan, trojan.vundo and Trojan.Downloader.

     If you're experienced enough, here are the tips for manually removing AntiVirus 2009

Unregister Antivirus 2009 DLL Files:
shlwapi.dll
wininet.dll

Stop Antivirus 2009 Processes:
av2009.exe
Antivirus 2009.lnk
Uninstall Antivirus.lnk
Antivirus2009.exe

Find and Delete these Antivirus 2009:
av2009.exe
Antivirus2009.exe
shlwapi.dll
wininet.dll
Antivirus 2009.lnk
Uninstall Antivirus 2009.lnk

Remove Antivirus 2009 Registry Values:
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Antivirus
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Antivirus
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run\”Antivirus” = “%ProgramFiles%\Antivirus 2009\Antvrs.exe”

If you're in the Spartanburg, SC area and do not feel comfortable performing these steps or need help, contact me @ B-TECH Computer Repair

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Keeping Windows running trouble free.

     With the increasing number of security threats, the task of maintaining computer safety becomes quite an overwhelming activity. To help you with this, outlined below are some important tips that you can follow to ensure that your computer is safe

     Malicious programs, such as Virus, Trojans, Mal-Ware, Spy ware, Ad-Ware and Worms are a major cause of concern for Windows users. These programs can:

-Perform regular anti virus scans

-Clutter your disk with many unwanted, malicious files.

-Generate various system errors, fatal errors, and code errors on your PC.

-Add many unwanted registry entries.

-Alter already existing entries within the registry to change how various programs work on the PC.

-Severely damage your system files that may render your computer unbootable, and even cause data loss.

-To prevent these problems, and to prevent your system from virus infections, you must install a reliable and efficient anti virus tool on your system. You must keep your tools updated with the latest definitions and run regular scans to ensure that your PC is safe from harmful virus infected files.

     Spy ware programs are major threats for computer users. These programs basically track your computer and web browsing activity and trade the collected information with various advertising websites.

     Removing browser tool bars and other similar spy ware programs can be quite tedious because these programs stealthily install on your PC and copy numerous files onto your computer and add many entries to the registry. The best way to get rid of them is to regularly scan your system with a reliable and efficient anti spy ware program. Just like your anti virus utility, you must keep your anti spy ware utility updated with the latest definitions to ensure complete PC protection.

Keep Your Registry Free From Malicious Entries

    Mal-ware programs add numerous entries to the Windows registry also. Many times, these entries are not removed even after you have performed a full system scan using your anti virus and anti spy ware tools. Therefore, it is recommended that you also run a regular scan of the registry to ensure that no malicious information has been left behind. You can easily and efficiently scan the registry with the help of a registry cleaner tool. These tools are widely available on the Internet. You can use Google to find and download the one that best meets your requirements and is compatible with your operating system.

Use a Firewall

     A firewall is a hardware or a software program that acts as a gateway between two networks and protects the data and resources of one network from another. For instance, when you are connected to the Internet a firewall will protect your PC from the public network. Therefore, to ensure that your PC is safe from any malicious attacks through the Internet, you should use a Firewall.

Tighten the Security Settings of your Web Browser

     I strongly recommend using Mozilla's Firefox as opposed to Internet Explorer. If you must use IE, change the security settings. To change the settings, click “Tools” and then select the “Options” command. Here, open the “Security” tab and modify the security settings of your IE by moving up the slider in the “Security level for this zone” section.

     Following the tips listed above will help protect your PC from various security hazards. If your computer has already gotten out of hand and you can't fix it yourself, contact B-TECH Computer Repair. If you live in Upstate SC, you won't find better prices. Up to 60% less than the Geek Squad. If you're in another city or state, you can contact me via Yahoo! Messenger: btech_computer_repair

Microsoft looking to release Windows 7 in time for the holidays.

      Microsoft confirmed on Monday that it is planning to release Windows 7 this year, in time for the Christmas shopping season. 

     "We are tracking well to a Windows 7 holiday," Microsoft Senior Vice President Bill Veghte said in an interview. Veghte will be making a statement Monday at Microsoft's TechEd event in Los Angeles. Until recently, Veghte had said publicly that such a release was unsure. Microsoft issued a release candidate for the server operating system last month, alongside an almost final version of Windows 7.

     For some time now, Microsoft's "official" position has been that Windows 7 would ship by January 2010. Now it seems, the software maker has been aiming and planning for a 2009 release the whole time.

     Early feedback (which has been good thus far) from the Windows 7 release candidate that came out late last month, convinced Microsoft it could commit to a 2009 launch, Veghte said.

     Veghte said that Microsoft has seen the number of crashes being experienced with the release candidate drop as opposed to the beta version.

     "You know pretty quickly if you've got any big gotchas," he said. "You can get a pretty good sniff pretty quickly."

     Equally important, Veghte said the company has seen the needed level of partner support. According to him, the first couple of companies have gotten Windows 7 logo certification. Among that first group are some graphics chip vendors. A big "whew" from many of the early Vista adopters that suffered with limited chip support.

     Veghte didn't provide a specific time for launch. He did say that generally the ecosystem needs anywhere from nine to fourteen weeks from the product being declared final to be ready for launch.

     I've been beta testing the RC and it does look promising for Microsoft this time. It's speedy, quite speedy actually. Surely....surely they have learned from past mistakes and will make sure this release is ready instead of rushing it out so it will be on all those new Christmas PCs.

Computer Repair - Spartanburg, SC