Computer Maniakz

Google 10th Anniversary

2008-09-27T18:35:00.002+07:00

To celebrate its 10th birthday, Google publish a new logo today. There is a birthday cake and a present. Happy birthday, Google!!!

Google Logo - Olympic 2008 (Last)

2008-08-24T10:38:00.004+07:00

Here are the last series of olympic-related Google logo:
15 Aug - Tiger in badminton

16 Aug - Horse in soccer

17 Aug - Sheep, and someone else that I can barely see, in rowing

18 Aug - Dragon in pingpong (table tennis)

19 Aug - Snake in swimming

20 Aug - Horse and Rabbit in trackfield

21 Aug - Rabbit in high jump

22 Aug - Rooster in baseball

23 Aug - Tiger in martial arts

24 Aug - Closing ceremony (hey, Dragon is the champion ^^)

Google Logo - Olympic 2008 Basketball

2008-08-14T10:13:00.004+07:00

The dragon at last! My Chinese astrology animal is playing basketball in this logo, trying to do a dunk with a mouse trying to block it.

Here are the previous logo that I have not posted.
Aug 11 - Boar in diving sport

Aug 12 - Ox in gymnastics rhythmic

Aug 13 - Monkey in gymnastics artistic

Google Logo - Olympic 2008 Weightlifting

2008-08-10T11:28:00.004+07:00

Just as I predicted, today Google change its logo again to another Olympic-related logo. Today, the sport is weightlifting and the athlete is a rat. Thanks to the rat, now I understand why did Google use a sheep yesterday. Sheep and rat are two of twelve animals that are used as symbols of the Chinese astrology. The other ten are ox, tiger, rabbit, dragon, snake, horse, monkey, rooster, dog, and boar.

My Chinese astrology is dragon. Can't wait to know which sport I'm participated in...

Google Logo - Olympic 2008 Cycling

2008-08-09T20:49:00.005+07:00

After yesterday's new logo which is related to the opening of Beijing Olympic 2008, today Google publish another Olympic-related logo. The logo is about cycling, one of many summer sports that take place on this year Olympic (38 sports in total, if I'm not mistaken). The thing that I can't understand is why does the athlete pictured as a sheep. If there is any of you who understand, please give some comment.

Since Google has published two new logo back to back (the opening on August 8 and cycling on the next day), I figured that Google will change its logo with another Olympic-related logo everyday during this year Olympic (until August 24).

Google Logo - The Opening of Olympic 2008

2008-08-08T10:18:00.003+07:00

Another unique logo from Google. This logo is published to commemorate the opening of Olympic 2008 at Beijing, China. The interesting thing is the date, 8 August 2008 (08-08-08). It's triple 8, which is believed by the Chinese people as a lucky number.

In the logo, you can see a flag with the Olympic logo on it, which represents the double 'O' of Google and an athlete bringing a fire torch.

del.icio.us Changes Its Name

2008-08-03T21:37:00.004+07:00

One of the most famous social bookmarking site, del.icio.us, has rebuilt its website. Not just its appearance, but its name and address too. The brand new name is simply Delicious and its new address is delicious.com. However, you can still visit del.icio.us but you'll be redirected automatically to delicious.com.

The new Delicious is just like the old del.icio.us, only faster, easier to learn, and more delightful to use and to look at. Here are the main changes (according to Delicious itself):

Speed: We’ve moved to a new infrastructure that makes every page faster. This new platform will enable us to keep up with traffic growth while ensuring Delicious is responsive and reliable. You may not have noticed, but the old back-end was getting creaky under the load of five million users.

Search: We’ve completely overhauled our search engine to make it faster and more powerful. Searches used to take ages to return results; now they’re very quick. The new search engine is also smarter, and more social: you can search within one of your tags, another user’s public bookmarks, or your social network. Now it’s easier to take advantage of the expertise and interests of your friends, not to mention the Delicious community at large.

Design: Finally, we’ve updated the user interface to improve usability and add a few often-requested features (such as selectable detail levels and alphabetical sorting of bookmarks). Our goal has been to keep the new design similar in spirit to the old one, so all of you veterans should be able to jump in without any confusion. At the same time, we’re hoping that newcomers to Delicious will find it easier to learn.

Source: blog.delicious.com

Cuil - New Search Engine From Google's Ex-Employees

2008-07-30T14:59:00.003+07:00

Some of Google's ex-employee developed a new search engine called Cuil (pronounced as 'cool'). According to one of its developer, Anna Patterson, this search engine has indexed 121,617,892,992 web pages, about 3 times as many as Google has indexed.

Anna worked at Google until 2006. She and her team, which two of them were Google's employee too, are supported with $33 million of venture capital for developing this site. You can try to search via Cuil starting from today.

However, it seems that this search engine has not indexed my blog, while Google has. Try it here.

The Quantum Computing Is Getting Closer

2008-07-20T18:23:00.002+07:00

In reality, quite a bit of time has passed since we've heard of the next great leap in the (seemingly) never-ending journey towards quantum computing, but we're incredibly relieved to learn that at least someone is still out there, somewhere, pressing on.

An international team of researchers have reportedly shown that they can "control the quantum state of a single electron in a silicon transistor, even putting the electron in two places at once." Essentially, the team is using tiny semiconductor transistors to "control the state of a quantum system," but there is still a long ways to go before any of this is meaningful. The crew managed to discover a few things by chance, yet to create a quantum computer, they would need to "position atoms of arsenic (or some other material) in the transistors more reliably." Read more...

Taken from: engadget.com

2008-07-20T15:11:00.002+07:00

About a month ago, I posted that Intel has launched new processor named Atom, a very small processor that consumes a very low power. To counter that, AMD, the competitor of Intel, has prepared a brand new processor too.

The code name for the processor is 'Bobcat', a single-core, 64-bit processor designed for low-cost laptops and small, cheap computers. AMD's fresh CEO, Dirk Meyer, said that Bobcat will have a 1 GHz clock speed, 128 KB of L1 cache and 256 KB of L2 cache, together with an on-board memory controller for 400 MHz DDR2 RAM. The whole thing is set to consume no more than 8W and sit inside an 812-pin, 27mm² BGA package. 8W is more than the Atom N270's 2.5W, but then the Atom has to be accompanied by a big old northbridge that consumes up to 6W.

Speaking after the announcement that AMD's made a $1.19 billion loss and ousted the previous CEO, Hector Ruiz, Meyer mentioned the new chip, though not by name. He said the company will say more in November. So, we still have to wait.

Intermezzo - Techno Humor

2008-07-18T00:18:00.003+07:00

Today, when I was browsing techno.okezone.com, one of many IT websites in Indonesia, I accidentally read a title of its humor article. The title sounds like this "Letter from Banta Singh to Bill Gates". Since there is Bill Gates name in there, I got a bit interested and I clicked it right away. I think this joke is really funny, trust me! Read this letter until the end, it's just getting better and better.
---
Subject: Problems with my new computer

Dear Mr Bill Gates,
We have bought a computer for our home and we have found some problems, which I want to bring to your notice

1. There is a button 'start' but there is no 'stop' button. We request you to check this.

2. We find there is 'Run' in the menu. We request you to change that to 'sit', so that we can click that by sitting.

3. One doubt is whether any 're-scooter' is available in system? I find only 're-cycle', but I own a scooter at home.

4. There is 'Find' button but it is not working properly. My wife lost the door key and we tried a lot trace the key with this ' find' button, but was unable to trace. Please rectify this problem.

5. My child learnt 'Microsoft word' now he wants to learn 'Microsoft sentence', so when you will provide that?

6. I bought computer, CPU, mouse and keyboard, but there is only one icon which shows 'My Computer'; when you will provide the remaining items?

7. It is surprising that windows says 'My Pictures' but there is not even a single photo of mine. So when will you keep my photo in that.

8. There is 'Microsoft Office' what about 'Microsoft Home'? since I use the PC at home only.

9. You provided 'My Recent Documents'. When you will provide 'My Past Documents'?

10. You provide 'My Network Places'. For God Sake! Please do not provide 'My Secret Places'. I do not want to let my wife know where I go after my office hours.

Regards,
Banta Singh

Last one to Mr Bill Gates :
Sir, how is it that your name is Gates but you are selling WINDOWS?

Five Best Windows Maintenance Tools

2008-07-17T14:10:00.004+07:00

Everyday we create, delete, and move countless number of files in our PC. All of those action might leave some unused files in our computer which is going to slow down its performance. That's why Microsoft enclose System Tools like Disk Defragmenter and Disk Cleanup in their Windows products. Those tools are meant to help the PC users to keep their files, especially the system files, organized.

However, if you think that those default tools are not enough, maybe you can consider these five tools which is recommended by the visitors of lifehacker.com via polls.

1. CCleaner

This tool works almost like Windows' Disk Cleanup. The difference is, this one is much better in every way. It will thoroughly clean out your web browser, Recycle Bin, temporary files, registry, and any unnecessary third-party application trashes. Running CCleaner on your system promises to free up space, keep your computer running smoothly, and protect your privacy. And unlike Disk Cleanup which took forever to scan and clean, this one is very fast and very easy to use.
Download it here.

2. Revo Uninstaller

Revo Uninstaller is a feature-rich replacement for the Windows default Add or Remove Programs feature (or Uninstall Programs in Vista). Why use Revo Uninstaller instead? Because not only does it just uninstall a program—it also removes all traces of the program from your system where the basic uninstaller may not. Revo also boasts a Hunter Mode for uninstalling apps by dragging a cross-hair onto the app you want to uninstall, whether it's the app's system tray icon or just a shortcut. It even helps manage your startup applications. With this tool, you can uninstall any unwanted programs without leaving any traces.
Download it here.

3. Auslogics Disk Defrag

For the substitution of Disk Defragmenter, there is Auslogics Disk Defrag. It's a fast, effective, and easy to use disk defragmenter. Auslogics DD provides a nicely formatted report of the latest defrag, including a motivating "Defragmentation has increased this computer performance by X%" message.
Download it here.

4. JkDefrag

JkDefrag is an open-source disk defragmenting tool. Unlike Auslogics DD, JkDefrag boasts command line support to allow you to set up your disk defrags on a schedule. Perhaps even better, JkDefrag has an installable screensaver that will automatically start defragging your hard drive whenever the screensaver is launched—it even displays the defrag process. Out of the box JkDefrag isn't the most attractive application you'll ever use, but when teamed with the JkDefrag GUI, it's just as attractive and easy to use as any defragger you'll find.
Download it here.

5. Spybot - Search & Destroy

Even if you're using one of the best antivirus applications available, you may still end up with some form of malware on your computer. Spybot-S&D will ensure that it isn't there for long. Apart from removing spyware, adware, dialers, keyloggers, and trojans, Spyware-S&D can also cover your usage tracks—like browsing or file history—to give you enhanced privacy on your computer.
Download it here.

Firefox vs IE, Which One Is More Secure?

2008-07-09T23:14:00.004+07:00

The popularity of Internet Explorer is cannot be doubted, and so is Mozilla Firefox's. They are two of the big three browsers in the world. However, which one is better in term of security?

The fact is, the users of Firefox is claimed to be much more secure than any other browser users. That's the result of a research done by The Swiss Federal Institute of Technology, Google, and IBM's Internet Security Services.

From that research, it was known that Firefox users update their browsers more frequently compared to other browsers users, especially IE users. Unlike IE which has to be updated via Windows Update, Firefox has an auto-update mechanism. This mechanism is the one that enable users to always have the latest version of Firefox.

The research also discovered that about 83% of Firefox users have the latest version of their browser, Safari users are 65%, and IE 48%. However, it doesn't mean that Firefox is an almighty browser. Because, just a few hours after Firefox 3 was launched, researcher has found security holes in that browser.

Despite of its flaws, Mozilla Firefox is still the best browser until now. Even I use this browser too everytime. What about you?

Source: detikinet.com

Google Logo - Marc Chagall

2008-07-07T12:02:00.002+07:00

7 July 1887 was the day when a boy named Moishe Shagal, born to this world. And today, 121 years after that, Google celebrate the birthday of the man who is better known as Marc Chagall.

He was a Russian-Belarusian-French painter of Jewish origin who was born in Belarus. He first studied painting on 1906, and on the next year, he joined the school of "Society of Art Supporters." On 1911, he painted I and the Village, one of his famous oil painting.

Chagall's artworks are difficult to categorize. Working in the pre-World War I Paris art world, he was involved with avant-garde currents, however, his work was consistently on the fringes of popular art movements and emerging trends, including Cubism and Fauvism, among others. He was closely associated with the Paris School and its exponents, including Amedeo Modigliani.

To appreciate his artworks, Google took some parts of his various paintings and combine it as one logo. For example, the 'oo' phrase is taken from I and the Village, and the second 'g' letter is taken from The Blue Violinist or also known as Violoniste Bleu.

Here is the logo:

And this is I and the Village painting:

Independence Day At Yahoo

2008-07-04T21:07:00.003+07:00

Today, every Americans celebrate their country's 232th Independence Day, and so is Yahoo. Yahoo celebrates the Independence Day of America by changing their logo at their website. It seems that the logo is a Flash. When you hover your mouse on top of it, it'll start playing. The 'Yahoo' text will be brushed with the US national flag and there are some fireworks burst too.

Here is the screenshot:

Mozilla Firefox 3.0

2008-06-18T10:56:00.003+07:00

Mozilla has released the latest version of Firefox, version 3.0, on June 17. This version is focused on better performance, stability and security with the addition of anti-malware features. And on that very day, Mozilla has break the world record for most downloaded software in 24 hours. Firefox 3.0 has been downloaded for more than 8 million times, far beyond their target, 5 million. And the number is still increasing even as we speak (however it's not recorded anymore because it has past 24 hours already).

Download Firefox 3.0 here.

An Agreement Between Google and Yahoo!

2008-06-13T16:06:00.004+07:00

Today, June 12, Yahoo and Google have announced a non-exclusive advertising agreement. In that agreement, it's stated that Google will provide Yahoo! with access to their AdSense for search and AdSense for content advertising programs on Yahoo's U.S. and Canadian web properties. Since it's non-exclusive, Yahoo will be able to run Google ads alongside Yahoo ads or other ad providers.

Read Google's official blog for more information.

Nec Flask - Fuel Cell-Powered

2008-06-13T09:54:00.005+07:00

Solar Power seems to be the wave of the future of powering gadgets or homes. But what about liquid? The NEC Flask, which will be released sometime later in this year, is powered by a liquid fuel cell that disappears as the power is drained away. The phone will also feature a touchscreen display and will have a unique sexiness written all over it.

NEC is set to begin pushing fuel cell-powered handsets if the pic we see here can be believed. Color choices are vary, and it appears that the liquid provides the color. There's no word on any specs, pricing, networks, or anything, so until we get that bit of detail sorted, enjoy the pretty pictures.

Firefox 3 Download Day 2008

2008-06-11T15:49:00.003+07:00

Mozilla Firefox is pledging to set a Guinness World Record for the most software downloads in 24 hours. You can participate too by subscribing yourself to spreadfirefox.com. All you have to do is get Firefox 3 during Download Day to help set the record. The official date for the launch of Firefox 3 will be posted at that site.
Let's participate!!!

Quad-Core AMD Opteron

2008-06-11T14:47:00.004+07:00

AMD has launched 4 Quad-Core AMD Opteron processors on June 10, 2008. They are 2360 SE (2.5 GHz), 2358 SE (2.4 GHz), 8360 SE (2.5 GHz), dan 8358 SE (2,4 GHz). Those processors are claimed to be able to help the IT managers to maintain their data centers much easier than before. This could be achieved because those processors enable stable, long-term server, and workstation solutions with industry-leading performance and energy efficiency.

The specific features are:
1. Independent Dynamic Core Technology -- can reduce processor energy consumption by adjusting core frequencies to match workloads.
2. Dual Dynamic Power Management -- helps lower processor power consumption by enabling power management at a granular level.
3. AMD CoolCore Technology -- helps minimize energy consumption by turning off processor parts when not in use.
4. Direct Connect Architecture -- enables greater efficiency on memory intensive workloads in virtualized environments and helps host more virtual machines.
5. AMD Virtualization (AMD-V) With Rapid Virtualization Indexing -- handles multiple virtual workloads with ease, creating a high-performance IT environment.
6. AMD Balanced Smart Cache -- improves core efficiency for better support of multi-threaded virtualized environments.
7. Common Core Strategy -- helps preserve your IT software image to ease transitions and reduce upgrade costs with fewer disruptions.
8. Same Socket Infrastructure -- enables seamless hardware upgrades with consistent thermal and electrical envelopes that span multiple CPU generations.
9. AMD Memory Optimizer Technology -- for memory throughput-designed for quad-core operation and multi-threaded software environments.
10. AMD Wide Floating-Point Accelerator -- can double computational capabilities to greatly impove performance on HPC and scientific workloads, helping reduce job times.

Intel Atom

2008-06-10T22:56:00.004+07:00

Intel has published its brand new processor which was named Atom. Intel Atom, code named Silverthorne and Diamondville, is a very small processor that consumes a very low power.

This processor is designed specifically for mobile internet devices (MIDs). The design also includes support for multiple threads for better performance and increased system responsiveness. All of this on a chip that measures less than 25 mm².

In addition to the MID opportunity, Intel believes the demand for a new category of low-cost, Internet-centric mobile computing devices dubbed "netbooks" and basic Internet-centric desktop PCs dubbed "nettops," will grow substantially over the next several years. The Intel Atom processor is perfectly suited to meet these new market segments.

Below is an image showing the sizes of Intel Atom for those three different devices.

iPhone 3G

2008-06-10T11:36:00.002+07:00

Apple has released the second generation of iPhone which supports 3G and HSDPA (High Speed Downlink Packet Access). This iPhone is also a built-in GPS navigation with location based services. Steve Jobs, the CEO and founder of Apple, said that by using 3G, iPhone can download files from internet three times faster than the first generation iPhone.

With so much features, it won't be a surprise if the price is expensive. However, you can bring this iPhone home with only US$299 for 16GB memory or US$199 for 8GB memory, much cheaper than the first generation which was sold at US$599.

ZAC Browser For Autistic Children

2008-06-10T10:51:00.004+07:00

An old grandpa has successfully invented a browser. John LeSieur, the old grandpa's name, was encouraged to create this browser because of his grandson.

His grandson, Zackary (6 years old), is an autistic child who feels difficult when using a conventional browser like Opera, Firefox, or Internet Explorer. He's often frustrated and threw his mouse away.

That's why John is motivated to create a special browser which is easier to be used, because some of the conventional browser's features are deprecated. This ZAC Browser can automatically block any websites that contains harassment or sexual contents. Beside that, this browser also has much bigger icons with interesting and attractive images. Print screen feature and right-click are also deprecated because it is confusing for children.

You can download this browser for free at here. And, don't forget to visit ZAC Browser homepage too.

USB 3.0

2008-06-09T22:29:00.004+07:00

I'm sure that we're familiar already with USB (Universal Serial Bus). Nowadays, this serial bus is very much used for transfering data from a flashdisk, or to connect your computer with printer and many other peripherals. Most used USB in these days are version 2.0, with transfer speed up to 480 Mbps (megabits per second).

Now, the new version of USB is coming near. The latest version is said to be ten times faster than before. To be precise, the speed was said to be at least 4.8 Gbps (gigabits per second). With a speed like that, we can transfer 27 GB of high-definition movie into the hard disk in just 70 seconds.

The USB 3.0 specification is planned to be released in the first half of 2008, and commercial products are expected to arrive in 2009 or 2010. USB 3.0 is also designed to be backwards-compatible with USB 2.0 and USB 1.1 and employs more efficient protocols to conserve power.

Below is the comparison between USB 2.0 and 3.0. Click the image to enlarge.

YouTube Video Annotation

2008-06-09T21:39:00.003+07:00

YouTube has added a new feature to its website, called Video Annotation (it's still beta, though). With this feature, user can add interactive explanations to his/her videos.

YouTube said that you can use this feature to:

Add background information about the video.
Create stories with multiple possibilities (viewers click to choose the next scene).
Link to related YouTube videos, channels, or search results from within a video.

You can control what the annotations say, where they appear on the video, and when they appear and disappear. Annotations, once published, are shown by default. You can turn them off while watching a video through the player menu. Just click the button on the bottom right of the video player.

Lenovo Ranked #1 in Technology Business Review

2008-06-09T21:13:00.002+07:00

On June 5, Lenovo announced that it had been recognized as the #1 PC manufacturer in Technology Business Research's "1Q2008 Notebook IT Buying Behavior and Customer Satisfaction Study." The results, garnered from more than 600 medium and large business customers in the U.S. and Canada, show Lenovo as the overall leading notebook PC-maker.

TBR recognized Lenovo for its improvement in services and support. In 1Q2008, Lenovo led its rivals in terms of phone support, parts availability and repair time and made significant improvements in delivery time.

Click here to read more.

Speed Up Your Copying Process

2008-06-09T20:44:00.003+07:00

Not satisfied enough with your Microsoft Windows performance when copying files? Feeling like it takes too long? If you said yes and yes, then maybe you should consider using Copy Handler.

Copy Handler program is a small tool designed for copy/move files and folders between different storage medias (hard disks, floppy disks, local networks, CD-ROMs and many other). With this program, you can increase your transfer speed up to 6-7 times faster than standard MS Windows copying (when copying data from one partiton to another on the same physical hard disk). And, it allows full-control over the copying/moving process by its pause, resume, restart, and cancel features.

This program is open source. Download it here. The latest version is 1.30.

Save Yourself From MySpace With AmIOnMySpace

2008-06-09T20:28:00.003+07:00

I found this Firefox add-on by clicking the top-most digg on my own digg widget. The title was "Best Firefox Addon Ever?". The way it sounds make me curious so I click it. And, on the next page, I found this absolutely ridiculous add-on.

What does this add-on do? This add-on will alert you if you accidently stumble onto MySpace.com, and take you back to the site you came from. I don't think if this is really useful at all.

Anyway, click here if you want this Firefox add-on.

Introducing Sub-40 nm NAND Flash by Intel-Micron

2008-06-09T20:10:00.004+07:00

On May 29, 2008, Intel Corporation and Micron Technology, Inc. introduced the industry's first sub-40 nanometer (nm) NAND memory device, unveiling a 34nm 32 gigabit (Gb) multi-level cell chip. Its called sub-40 nm because it's even smaller than 40 nm.

This process technology was jointly developed by Intel and Micron and manufactured by the companies' NAND flash joint venture, IM Flash Technologies (IMFT). It is the smallest NAND process geometry on the market. The 32 Gb NAND chip is the only monolithic device at this density that fits into a standard 48-lead thin small-outline package (TSOP), providing a cost-effective path to higher densities in existing applications. Shipments of customer samples begin in June and mass production is expected during the second half of this year calendar.

The 34nm 32 Gb chips will be manufactured on 300 millimeter wafers, each producing approximately 1.6 terabytes of NAND. Measuring just 172mm², less than the size of a thumbnail, the 34nm 32 Gb chip will cost-effectively enable high-density solid-state storage in small form factor applications.

A single 32 Gb chip could store more than 2,000 high-resolution digital photos or hold up to 1,000 songs on a personal music player. And, two 8-die stacked packages would realize 64 gigabytes (GBs) of storage, enough for recording anywhere from 8 to 40 hours of high-definition video in a digital camcorder.

The 34nm 32Gb chip was designed with solid-state drives in mind. The product will enable more cost-effective SSDs, instantly doubling the current storage volume of these devices and driving capacities to beyond 256 GBs in today's standard, smaller 1.8-inch form factor. SSDs are becoming the new storage medium for notebook computers, providing lower power, faster boot-up time, increased reliability, improved performance and reduced noise than hard disk drives. With the innovations in NAND process technology, such as with the 34nm NAND process, SSDs now offer a significant range of capacities to meet market requirements.

Based on the 34nm architecture, Intel and Micron also plan to introduce lower density multi-level cell products including single-level cell products, by the end of this year.

Taken from: intel.com

Bluetrek Headset - The World's Thinnest Bluetooth Gadget

2008-06-09T13:37:00.004+07:00

ModeLabs is perhaps best known for designing phones branded by a diverse array of international retailers, including Christian Dior, Hummer, Tag Heuer, and Levi's. But like many phone manufacturers, it has fallen under the spell of trying to tout the smallest of something or another.

In this case, it has partnered with Bluetrek to offer the "Metal" headset, a Bluetooth gadget that is claimed to be the world's thinnest at just 0.16 inches thick, according to Gizmodo. Despite its tiny stature, the companies say the Europe-bound headset will still get five hours of talk time and seven days on standby.

Bluetrek has already made something of a reputation for experimenting with various features and forms, whether it be a built-in touch screen or wrap-around earbuds. So it should be noted that, as impressively thin as the Metal may be, it's still no spork.

Taken from: cnet.com

Google's New Favicon

2008-06-08T21:24:00.004+07:00

Favicon, also known as a page icon or an urlicon, is the small icon that you can see in your browser next to the URL or in your bookmarks list. And Google has changed this icon of its.

Actually, I've noticed this for a week or so, but I'm not so sure of myself. And then, I found some confirmations about this in some other sites which make me certain (especially the one from Google's official blog).

It's been so long since Google last changed its favicon. To be exact, it has been 8.5 years. Google said that the reason that they changed it is because they wanted to develop a set of icons that would scale better to some new platforms like the iPhone and other mobile devices.

So, the new icon that you see on your browser is just one of them. There are still many other logo-based icons that Google has develop. Here's the full set:

For more information, click here.

Google Sites - Create Your Own Site

2008-06-06T10:20:00.004+07:00

Google Sites is another free service from Google for all of its loyal visitors. With this feature, you can create your own site easily. Even if you don't understand HTML at all, you won't be confused because Google Site is using a WYSIWYG (what you see is what you get) HTML editor. So, you won't meet any confusing HTML tags or codes. Most importantly, this service is absolutely free!

Here are some explanations about Google Sites from Google itself:
Google Sites is an online application that makes creating a team web site as easy as editing a document. With Google Sites, people can quickly gather a variety of information in one place -- including videos, calendars, presentations, attachments, and text -- and easily share it for viewing or editing with a small group, their entire organization, or the world. Get started with Google Sites at http://sites.google.com/site. Key product features:

Customize your site's interface to resemble your group or project's look and feel
Create a new sub-page with the click of a button
Choose from a growing list of page types: webpage, announcements, file cabinet
Centralize shared information: Embed rich content (video, Google Docs documents, spreadsheets, presentations, Picasa photo slide shows, iGoogle gadgets) into any page, and upload file attachments
Manage permissions settings to keep your site as private or widely editable and viewable as you'd like
Search across your Google Sites content with Google search technology

Diego Velázquez - Google Logo

2008-06-06T09:58:00.003+07:00

Today (6th of June) is the birthday of Diego Velázquez, a famous Spanish painter in the beginning of 17th century. As his 'birthday present', Google change its logo once again. Below are short descriptions about Diego, taken from Wikipedia.

Diego Rodríguez de Silva y Velázquez (June 6, 1599 – August 6, 1660), commonly referred to as Diego Velázquez, was a Spanish painter who was the leading artist in the court of King Philip IV. He was an individualistic artist of the contemporary baroque period, important as a portrait artist. In addition to numerous renditions of scenes of historical and cultural significance, he painted scores of portraits of the Spanish royal family, other notable European figures, and commoners, culminating in the production of his masterpiece Las Meninas (1656).

From the first quarter of the nineteenth century, Velázquez's artwork was a model for the realist and impressionist painters, in particular Édouard Manet. Since that time, more modern artists, including Spain's Pablo Picasso and Salvador Dalí, as well as the Anglo-Irish painter Francis Bacon, have paid tribute to Velázquez by recreating several of his most famous works.

Microsoft Expression Web - Frontpage's Successor

2008-06-05T20:06:00.005+07:00

Microsoft Expression Web, code-named Quartz, is a WYSIWYG (what you see is what you get) HTML editor and general web design program by Microsoft, replacing Microsoft FrontPage. However, beginner users will find that this software is a bit difficult to be used, especially with its poor documentation and help.

Microsoft released the first public preview version of Expression Web on May 14, 2006. Then the first Beta version was released on September 5, 2006. And the last version was released on May 1, 2008.

I believe that Dreamweaver users can adapt with Expression Web easier than Frontpage users. Because, Expression Web interface is similar to Dreamweaver's. You can find Microsoft Expression Web on its homepage.

First Hot Air Balloon Flight

2008-06-04T11:23:00.003+07:00

That's the alternate text for today's Google logo. The logo's meant to commemorate the first public demonstration of hot air balloon by the two brothers, Joseph-Michel Montgolfier and Jacques-Étienne Montgolfier, on 4th June 1783.

Everest's Climb Record

2008-05-30T17:31:00.003+07:00

Google is honoring Sir Edmund Hillary's ascent of Mount Everest with a special logo on its site on May 29. This logo is to mark the 55th anniversary of the record-breaking climb made by Sir Ed, who died in January, and Sherpa Tenzing Norgay.

Windows Se7en - Future OS

2008-05-22T14:18:00.007+07:00

A brand new operating system is being developed by Microsoft. This operating system is planned as the sucessor of Windows Vista, which was released in early 2007. Its name is Windows Se7en. This operating system was also known as Blackcomb and Vienna. Windows Se7en is expected to be released sometime in 2010.

Here are some of Windows Se7en's screenshots:

And, the best picture is yet to come...

Translated from: disitu.com

Opera Mini 4.1

2008-05-21T19:18:00.003+07:00

Opera Mini is a browser for your mobile phone. With this mini browser, you can surf the internet anywhere at anytime.

The latest version is 4.1. Opera claimed that this latest version is much better than its older version. Some of the upgrades are:
1. This version is claimed to be 50% faster. They said that Opera Mini is built for speed.
2. Search function. A new feature that can help you to search a keyword within a web page. So, it's like using Find (Ctrl + F) in common browsers for PC.
3. Opera Mini 4.1 supports direct address input. So, when you type a URL in the address field, it'll give you some choices like in browsers for PC.
4. You can directly download and upload files from Opera Mini 4.1.
5. You also can save a web page that you desire. And you can open it again later with Opera Mini 4.1, even when you're offline (like Save Page As).

Read more about Opera Mini features at here. And if you want to download Opera Mini 4.1 to your PC, you can use its wizard at here.

How To Extend The Lifespan Of Notebook's Battery

2008-05-20T11:58:00.003+07:00

Before, I have posted some ways to prevent your notebook from overheating. Now, I'll post a similar topic. Its about notebook's battery.

In most of cases, an overheated notebook is caused by its battery. In this post, I'll try to share with you a few ways to extend the lifespan of notebook's battery:
1. Optimize your Power Settings
Display on your screen and hard disk are the biggest two that consume your battery's power the most. Make sure that you choose "Max Power" as your setting to save energy. Usually, this setting is set as default.

2. Lessen the brightness of your screen
The brighter your screen, the greater its energy consumption. If can't work with a dark screen, than set your notebook to automatically lessen its brightness when its not used. To put it simply, use a black wallpaper.

3. Get rid of external peripherals
For example, shut down your USB devices when it's not used.

4. Turn off WiFi and Bluetooth
WiFi and Bluetooth are another two things that consume your energy the most. Turn it off immediately when not used.

5. Avoid using CD/DVD drive too much
Hard disk consumes a lot of energy, but CD/DVD drive consumes even more! Try to store your files on your hard disk instead of CD/DVD.

6. Hibernate, not Stand By
Stand By will lessen your energy consumption but not as much as Hibernate, which will reduce your energy consumption to zero when your notebook is not used.

7. Multitasking, bad practice
When you are using battery, multitasking is a very bad practice. The more tasks you run, the faster your battery's energy running low. Try to finish one task at a time.

8. Close unused programs
If you run a lot of programs simultaneously, your energy consumption will increase. Close every single unused programs, like iTunes, messenger, etc.

9. Turn off Scheduled Task
If you use Scheduled Task to run programs, make sure that those programs won't run while you're low on battery.

10. No playing game, no watching movie
When you don't have any job to do, don't use your notebook for either playing games or watching movies. Those two activities are nightmares for your notebook. Use a desktop computer instead.

11. Condition your battery
When you first bought your notebook, you have to condition your battery first. Battery conditioning can be done by charging it full and then waste it until it's absolutely empty. Repeat that process for about three to five times.

12. Use your battery
Don't leave your fully charged battery unused for a long time. Try to use it at least once a month so it won't lost its capacity.

13. Clean the metal part regularly
To increase the electricity transfer efficiency, clean the metal part of the battery. The metal part is the part that directly connected to your notebook (its color is golden). However, make sure to keep it dry.

14. Keep it cool
Like I said before, most of overheated notebook cases are caused by its battery. That's why you have to keep it always cool. Try to use a cooling pad.

15. Avoid extreme temperature
To keep it cool, avoid to store it in a hot places. It's obvious I think. Don't let it directly exposed to sunlight, too.

16. Disk Defragmenter
One of the System Tools. Run this tool at least once a month to make sure your files are stored at its right place. This tool can help you to increase access speed (and sometimes increase the amount of usable space).

17. Increase your RAM (memory)
By increasing your memory, the dependency of your system to virtual memory will decrease. Indirectly, this will lessen the energy consumption.

18. Prepare a spare
Always have a spare battery, so when you're in an emergency you'll have a back up energy.

Translated from: disitu.com

Search Musics and Videos via Google

2008-05-20T11:40:00.003+07:00

Are you desperate to find your favorite music or video on the internet? When you want to search for something, there's one good place to start from, Google! But, how can I search a music or video from Google? Easy, use a query like this:

-inurl:htm -inurl:html intitle:"index of/" mp3 "celine dion"

How does that query work? -inurl:htm and -inurl:html will tell Google to search a non-HTML pages, while intitle:"index of/" will tell Google to search a file directories on the internet with the music file type is mp3. And Celine Dion is the artist name.
For searching videos, use this:

-inurl:htm -inurl:html -inurl:php intitle:"index of/" (mpg|mov|avi|wmv) "Star Wars"

For videos, you must add -inurl:php because there's a possibility that the video is embedded as an object of a PHP page.

Microsoft Touch Wall

2008-05-20T11:09:00.003+07:00

After releasing Microsoft Surface, a multitouch gadget, on May 2007, Microsoft was releasing another multitouch gadget. Its name is Microsoft Touch Wall. This gadget is very similar to Surface. In fact, you can say that Microsoft Touch Wall is a 'standing' Microsoft Surface. This Touch Wall was first launched in Microsoft CEO Summit 2008 on May 14.

Just as its name represent, Touch Wall is a multitouch computer screen with dimensions as big as a wall. To be precise, its dimensions are 4 x 6 feet, a little bigger than Microsoft Surface.

Microsoft Touch Wall consist of a PC, a giant screen made from plexiglass, rear projector,infrared camera, and three infrared lasers. As its operating system, Touch Wall uses Windows Vista plus a special operating system called Plex.

The three infrared lasers will do a scanning process to the surface of Touch Wall. And when there is something in the laser projection's way, the camera will automatically detect it. In advance, the information retrieved by the camera will be transmitted to Plex and processed.

It was said that the production cost of Microsoft Touch Wall is cheaper than Microsoft Surface, which expends about $10,000. While Touch Wall only expends a few hundreds of dollars.

Powerset - Searching Wikipedia Articles

2008-05-19T20:06:00.004+07:00

Powerset’s first product is a search and discovery experience for Wikipedia, launched in May 2008. Powerset’s technology improves the entire search process. In the search box, you can express yourself in keywords, phrases, or simple questions. On the search results page, Powerset gives more accurate results, often answering questions directly, and aggregates information from across multiple articles. Finally, Powerset’s technology follows you into enhanced Wikipedia articles, giving you a better way to quickly digest and navigate content.

Powerset focuses on natural language processing. In other words, Powerset will not search based simply on keywords alone, but will try to understand the search phrase as a whole. The goal of the product is to make searching more “natural and intuitive.”

Click here to visit Powerset.

Google Advanced Search Operators

2008-05-19T13:34:00.005+07:00

There are a lot of specific keywords that can be used to help your searching with Google. Here are some of them:

define:phrase
Show a list of definitions for phrase

cache:www.example.com
Google's cache of example.com

link:www.example.com
List of websites that link to example.com

related:www.example.com
List webpages similar to example.com

info:www.example.com
Show information that Google has about example.com

site:www.example.com
List all webpages hosted at example.com

allintitle:query
Restrict the results to those with all of the query words in the title

intitle:query
Restrict the results to documents with some or all of the query words in the title

allinurl:query
Restrict the results to those with all of the query words in the URL

inurl:query
Restrict the results to documents with some or all of the query words in the URL

apple * sauce
The words apple and sauce separated by exactly one word

Nokia phone $100...300
Search within a range of numbers for a Nokia phone between $100...300

safesearch:sex education
Search for sex education material without returning adult sites

Laser Logo

2008-05-16T08:26:00.002+07:00

To celebrate the invention of the first laser by Theodore Maiman, Google publish a logo that looks like laser. The first laser was operate on 16th May 1960. So, this year is its 48th anniversary.

Norman Malware Cleaner 2008.04.17

2008-05-15T11:07:00.000+07:00

Norman Malware Cleaner is a Norman program utility that may be used to detect and remove specific malicious software (malware). Note that it should not be used as a substitute for running normal proactive antivirus protection, but rather as a reactive tool to handle systems that are already infected.

By downloading and running the program below it will clean an infected system completely:

kill running processes that are infected
remove infections from disk (including ActiveX components and browser helper objects)
reveal and remove rootkits
restore correct registry values
remove references created by malware in hosts file
remove windows firewall rules for malicious programs

Download: Norman Malware Cleaner 2008.04.1

Worldwide Telescope

2008-05-13T16:40:00.003+07:00

After trying to attack Google from the internet advertising sector by approaching Yahoo, Microsoft tries another move to oppose his rival. Today, May 13, 2008, Microsoft released his Worldwide Telescope, an online service to explore the outer space. This online software is similar to Google Sky which was released in 2007.

With this Worldwide Telescope, you can see hundreds of high resolution image from Hubble Space Telescope, Chandra X-Ray Observatory Center, Sloan Digital Sky Survey, and many more. You can operate this software from your desktop by using a browser. Just visit its site here.

The question now is who will be the winner, Google Sky or Worldwide Telescope? Hmm, can't wait to see.

Happy Mothers Day 2008

2008-05-11T08:18:00.000+07:00

Google publish a new logo to commemorate another special holiday. This time, it's Mother Day on May 11. Look at the logo, such a lovely mom. It's so sweet, isn't it?

Your Own Search Engine

2008-05-06T10:30:00.003+07:00

Google is the largest search engine in the world. Google's trademark is its white background and unique logo. If you're bored with the logo, you can create your own search engine with your own logo. How? Keep reading:
1. Open www.funnylogo.info.
2. On Step 1, type your desired name (this name will be displayed as your logo).
3. On Step 2, choose the style that you liked the most. There are many choices, not just Google style, e.g. Lord of the Rings, Star Wars, Matrix, Yahoo!, Mickey Mouse. You can click More Logo Styles and Colors to view even more choices.
4. Last, click Create My Search Engine.
5. Voila!!! You have got your own search engine.

You can set this search engine as your browser's homepage.
For Internet explorer:
1. Click Tools | Internet Options.
2. Open the General tab. Paste your search engine's URL at the Home Page field.

For Mozilla Firefox:
1. Click Tools | Options
2. On the Main tab, paste your search engine's URL at the Home Page field.
3. At When Firefox Starts combobox, choose Show my home page.

See my search engine here. I inputed Computer Maniakz as the name and the style is Google style.

10 Firefox Add-Ons To Prevent Phishing

2008-05-04T10:45:00.011+07:00

According to Wikipedia.org, phishing is an attempt to criminally and fraudulently acquire sensitive informations, such as usernames, passwords and credit card details, by masquerading as a trustworthy entity in an electronic communication. eBay, PayPal and online banks are common targets. Phishing is typically carried out by email or instant messaging, and often directs users to enter details at a website, although phone contact has also been used.

How could we prevent such malicious acts? If you're a Mozilla Firefox browser user, then you can make use of Firefox's add-ons. Add-ons are Firefox extra components that can be installed to your browser to increase its capability in many ways. For detailed informations about Firefox add-ons, you can visit its homepage here.

However, I've listed top 10 Firefox add-ons to prevent phishing while you're browsing. Here is the list, sorted from the best one first:
1. PhishTank SiteChecker

PhishTank SiteChecker gives Firefox users a way to bring the community judgment of PhishTank into their favorite browser, for extra protection against phishing. Visits to known phishing sites are blocked; the user has the option to continue. SiteChecker comes in English, Swedish, Dutch, Chinese (simplified and traditional), Italian, Spanish, French, German, Croatian, Japanese, Korean, Swedish, Norwegian, Brazilian and more translations all the time.
Works with Firefox 1.0 – 3.0b2.
Get this add-on here.

2. Google Safe Browsing

Google Safe Browsing is an extension to Firefox that alerts you if a web page that you visit appears to be asking for your personal or financial information under false pretences. This type of attack, known as phishing or spoofing, is becoming more sophisticated, widespread and dangerous. That's why it's important to browse safely with Google Safe Browsing. By combining advanced algorithms with reports about misleading pages from a number of sources, Safe Browsing is often able to automatically warn you when you encounter a page that's trying to trick you into disclosing personal information.
Works with Internet Explorer 6.0+ and Firefox 1.5+.
Get this add-on here.

3. WOT

With the free WOT browser add-on, you can easily see the reliability of companies and websites. WOT will warn you and save your computer before you interact with a harmful site.
WOT, Web of Trust, is an online community for reputation rating that lets Internet users share their knowledge of websites, helping you stay in control when surfing the Web. Besides its users, WOT uses hundreds of trusted sources such as phishing site listings to keep you protected against rapidly spreading online threats.
As you search with Google, you will see a tiny icon next to the Web link: green to go, yellow to slow down, red to stop. You can easily customize the protection level to your way of surfing the Web. WOT has information on 18 million websites. WOT ratings are shown also on Yahoo!, Gmail, Wikipedia, and other sites.
Works with Firefox ver. 1.5 – 3.0pre.
Get this add-on here.

4. Verisign EV Green Bar
This add-on turns the address bar green and displays certificate owner and CA issuer information when the browser receives a VeriSign, thawte and/or GeoTrust EV certificate. Additional information is available when the certificate label in the address bar is clicked. When an official Firefox version with EV support is released, VeriSign recommends that users update to that version of the browser.
Works with Firefox 1.5 – 2.0.0.*.
Get this add-on here.

5. iTrustPage

An anti-phishing tool that prevents users from filling out suspicious Web forms, and suggests the corresponding legitimate form. When encountering an unvalidated form, iTrustPage asks the user to describe the page they intend to access, by entering keywords into a search engine. If the form is found in the top search results, the form is validated and the user can proceed. Otherwise, the user is presented with visual previews of the top search results matching the entered description. Users can either choose one of these more “established” Web pages or refine the search terms.
Works with Firefox:1.5 – 2.0.0.*.
Get this add-on here.

6. Finjan SecureBrowsing

Finjan SecureBrowsing is a free service that proactively alerts you to potential malicious content hiding behind links of search results, ads and other selected web pages. Finjan SecureBrowsing accesses each of the URLs in its current form on the web, and scans the relevant pages in real time using Finjan's patented behavior-based technology. Finjan SecureBrowsing then displays a safety rating next to each link it has scanned.
Works with Firefox 1.5 – 2.0.0.*
Get this add-on here.

7. FirePhish

FirePhish is an Anti-Phishing Toolbar which utilizes the Open Phishing Database to provide the user with information and tools to protect against phishing.
Works with Firefox 1.5 – 2.0.0.*.
Get this add-on here.

8. CallingID Link Advisor

CallingID Link Advisor verifies the links you see in Firefox and Thunderbird are safe before you follow them. When the mouse is placed over any link a risk assessment and the full details of the site owner are displayed, helping you evaluate the site before visiting it. If the site is assessed as high risk or its owner is located in a 'problematic' country, you will be notified and advised to ignore the link.
Works with Firefox 1.5 – 3.0a1.
Get this add-on here.

9. SpoofStick

A simple way to detect spoofed websites. It'll only display information about valid and relevant information.
Works with Firefox 0.8 – 1.0.
Get this add-on here.

10. TrustBar

It is both a web spoofing protector and a site credentials supplier. The TrustBar notifies the user about protected sites and allows him to specify a text or a logo descrbing the site and its 'Identified by' authority. In any time later the can modify the either the text or the logo attached to the site. He can also modify the logos by right clicking the mouse. Works with Firefox 1.0+.
Get this add-on here.

Author: Lukman, member of detikINET Forum
Translated and edited by: computermaniakz, based on the original article from: detikinet.com

Rejected Google Logos

2008-05-03T15:30:00.005+07:00

Usually, Google made a new logo to celebrate some commemorations. Last one is the logo to celebrate Earth Day (you can see the post along with the screenshot here). However, not all of them were published. Here are some of the logos that never used by google:

Supposed to be celebrating: 20th Anniversary of the Nintendo Entertainment System.
Reason for rejection: Severe complaints by the Pet Duck Association.

Supposed to be celebrating: The 65th Birthday of Googol, a 1 with 100 zeroes.
Reason for rejection: Too geeky.

Supposed to be celebrating: This was one of two drafts to honor M.C. Escher.
Reason for rejection: Too creepy.

Supposed to be celebrating: Two decades of the JPEG image compression algorithm.
Reason for rejection: Compression too lossy.

Supposed to be celebrating: 150 Years of Cigarettes.
Reason for rejection: Too politically incorrect.

Supposed to be celebrating: 50th Anniversary of Product Placement.
Reason for rejection: Starbucks didn’t pay enough.

Supposed to be celebrating: 5 Years of Google motto “Don’t be evil.”
Reason for rejection: Too self-obsessed.

Supposed to be celebrating: 130th Birthday of Mondrian.
Reason for rejection: Too abstract.

Supposed to be celebrating: 90th Anniversary of the Copyright Act.
Reason for rejection: Potential trademark infringement for using the © symbol.

Supposed to be celebrating: Children’s Day 2003.
Reason for rejection: Too childish.

Taken from: http://blogoscoped.com/archive/2006-01-05-n11.html

How To Prevent Your Notebook From Overheating

2008-05-01T14:10:00.003+07:00

Your notebook or laptop might explode if it overheats. To prevent it, you can try this (NOT 100% guaranteed) :
1. Clean your notebook's ventilation system regularly. You can use a compressor to do it.
2. Don't you ever place your notebook on soft surface like blanket, bed, or wool. It can hamper your notebook's air circulation which will increase the chance of overheating.
3. Turn off your notebook before you store it in its bag. If you don't want to turn it off, you can simply hibernate it.
4. Install a monitoring software, like SpeedFan, to help you monitor the temperature of your processor, hard drive, and other components. It's free of charge. (If the link that I provide doesn't work, you can visit http://www.almico.com/speedfan.php)
5. Manage your setting power to keep your components, like screen and hard drive, cool. Decrease the power immediately if it's not necessary.
6. You can use an extra notebook cooling fan. It looks like a pad, so you can place your notebook on the top of it. It only cost you about 10 to 20 bucks, depends on the quantity of fan that it has.
7. If your warranty still valid, you might want to report your problems. It's free after all.
8. If you plan to buy a new notebook, search for extra information about the notebook first. Find informations about which notebook types are easy to overheat. You don't want to regret your action in the future since you do a wrong buy.

Translated from: http://www.detikinet.com/

Windows XP's Visual Effects

2008-05-01T00:30:00.003+07:00

You can manage your Windows XP's visual effects manually if you want. By eliminating unneeded effects, you can make your computer runs a bit faster.
1. Right click on your My Computer icon, then choose Properties (or you can simply hit Windows+Pause on your keyboard).
2. Open Advanced tab, then click the Settings button inside the Performance groupbox.
3. On the Visual Effects tab, you can check/uncheck the desired effects.
4. You can simply choose the Adjust For Best Performance radiobutton to make your computer runs faster.
5. Once you're done, click the OK button.

I'm Feeling Lucky

2008-04-24T15:17:00.004+07:00

A little something about Google:
1. Type 'googoth', without the apostrophes, as your keyword and click I'm Feeling Lucky button. You will be automatically directed to gothic version of Google.
2. Type 'ewmew fudd', without the apostrophes, as your keyword and click I'm Feeling Lucky button. You will be automatically directed to Google with its text changed to Elmer Fudd's version from Warner Bros.
3. Type 'xx-klingon', without the apostrophes, as your keyword and click I'm Feeling Lucky button. You will be automatically directed to Google with the Klingon tribe's language.
4. Type 'google bsd', without the apostrophes, as your keyword and click I'm Feeling Lucky button. Pay attention to the Google's logo.
5. Type 'google linux', without the apostrophes, as your keyword and click I'm Feeling Lucky button. Pay attention to the Google's logo, there's a Linux's logo, too.
6. Type 'google easter egg', without the apostrophes, as your keyword and click I'm Feeling Lucky button. You'll get a Google with a "Catching Easter Eggs" game. In this game, you control a rabbit.

Note: When you click I'm Feeling Lucky, you'll be directed to the number one site in the search result.

Google Commemorate Earth Day

2008-04-22T15:03:00.000+07:00

Today, April 22, Google's face is different. In commemoration of Earth Day, Google's logo has been changed. Its new logo is composed from stones, plants, and water. Here is the screenshot:

Top Recommended Freeware for Windows

2008-04-22T11:05:00.000+07:00

Nowadays, there are a lot of freewares on the internet. Because of that, we're confused to choose which one is the best. Here are list of top freewares for Windows user.

Antivirus
* Avira AntiVir Personal Edition - This is a good free antivirus. It can detect most of viruses.
* AVG Free Edition - One of the best antivirus in 2007. Its setting management is better than Avira's. Personally, I use this.

Compression
Are you still using the trial version of WinZip or WinRAR? You might want to try some of this:
* 7-zip - Its interface is very simple, so it won't consume a lot of memory. However, it can only detect a few compression format. If you love simplicity, then this is for you.
* IZarc - This freeware can detect more compression format than 7-zip. Its interface is similar to WinZip and WinRAR, too.
* Universal Extractor - It can extract almost all kinds of archive files, including program installer.

Office
* OpenOffice - The best open source office application. Microsoft Office's users won't be confused with this, because it really looks like Microsoft Office. This freeware is produced by Sun Microsystems. The newest version is 2.4.
* AbiWord - If you only need a word processor, then this is the best option that you have.

PDF Reader
* Adobe Acrobat Reader - To open and read a PDF file, Acrobat Reader is the best compared to other freewares. The newest version is Acrobat Reader 8.0, but I think version 7 is better because it's faster.
* FoxIt Reader - If you don't like Acrobat Reader, this can be your alternative.
* SumatraPDF - If you want speed, then choose this one. However, its interface is very simple, so is its features.

PDF Creator
* PDF Creator - Create your own PDF file with this freeware. Easy to use.
* CutePDF Writer - As your alternative.

Multimedia Player (Music and Video)
* K-Lite Mega Codec Pack - Simple interface (using Windows Media Player Classic), great performance. It can play almost all music and video file types. I use this, too. The newest version is 3.9.0.
* VLC Media Player - Good, but not better than K-Lite. Maybe equal.
* Winamp - I think this is the most famous player in the world. Good performance, good interface, bad memory usage. Might slow down your computer. However, you can choose the classic template to save the memory usage. Best for playing musics, not videos.
* Audacity - This freeware is for audio editing. Cool enough.

Graphics (Image Viewer and Editor)
If you only want to open Windows' standard image files, then Picture and Fax Viewer from Windows is enough. Need more? Then read more.
* Picassa - A good freeware from Google. You can use this to organize your images. Its indexing process is fast enough and nice interface.
* XNView - If you need an image viewer that can support a lot of image file types, then this is for you. With this, you can edit your images, too.
* IrvanView - Simple interface. However, it can support a lot of image file types.
* Gimp - Standard image editor in Linux operating systems. Available, too, for Windows.
* GimpShop - An extension of Gimp. Does its name remind you of something? Yes, this one looks like Adobe Photoshop.
* Paint.NET - Compared to Gimp, this freeware is easier to be used. Its size only 2 MB (even less). The drawback is you must install Microsoft .NET Framework 2.0 (this is free, too).

Browser
Internet Explorer is the standard browser from Windows. However, its security is not too good. You might consider this:
* Mozilla Firefox - Can be installed with so many add-ons.
* Opera - Great for downloading, since you can resume your download at another time. Something which Firefox can't do.
* Maxthon - Not too great.

Download Tools
Download your big sized file from the internet faster with this kind of tools. You can even schedule your download. The drawback is your browsing speed will be greatly reduced.
* FlashGet - Download a lot of files simultaneously with high download speed.
* Free Download Manager - Like FlashGet.
* HTTrack - For downloading a website.

Other Utilities
Useful software for increasing your Windows performance, detecting virus, watching CPU and memory usage, and so on.
* Autoruns - To see which programs is running once your computer finished the booting process.
* Process Explorer - Looks like Task Manager with more features. You can see what processes are running on your computer and you can stop it, too. Very useful for handling viruses.
* Registrar Lite - You can use this as a substitution of Windows' Registry Editor. Usually, if your computer is infected by viruses, your Registry Editor will be disabled. Use this instead to delete unwanted registry.
* WinDirStat - To view your hard disk usage statistics. Very detail.

For extra references about good and safe freewares, you can open this links:
* The 46 Best-ever Freeware Utilities
* Absolutely Free Software - Best Windows Freeware (rather old)
* TOP 300 Freeware Software
* Top-100 Downloads of Free Software for Windows XP & Vista
* The Best Free Software by PCWorld

Translated from: http://ebsoft.web.id/2008/04/08/top-recommended-freeware-for-windows

How To Keep Our Earth Smiling

2008-04-21T23:59:00.000+07:00

We commemorate Earth Day every 22nd of April. We can celebrate this day by using our computer wisely to save our natural resources and suppress our expenditure at the same time. There are 6 simple things that we can do.

1. Use paper and printer ink efficiently
We can save our paper usage by using both sides of the paper for printing. There are some tricks that you can do to suppress your document's size, e.g. minimize your font size, use multiple column, or minimize the margin and line spacing. You can download GreenPrint World software to streamline your printouts. Absolutely free.

2. Stop excessive usage of CD/DVD
Usually, we use CD/DVD to store a relatively small sized file and spend the leftover capacities. This is completely wrong. Wait until your files are a lot enough, then burn it to a CD/DVD. Or you can use a USB flashdisk instead. It's quite cheap now.

3. Computer power controller
Sometimes, you might forgot to turn off your computer (fall asleep maybe). This will be a waste of energy. That's why you can use a computer power controller. For Windows user, open your Control Panel and choose Power Options. Here, you can set a time limit before your computer will automatically turn off.

4. Just turn it off
Turn off all of your unused peripherals, like sound system, scanner, or printer. You can apply this to other electronic devices.

5. Don't throw away your unused computer
Even if you buy a brand new computer, don't you ever throw away your old computer like a garbage, especially if it's still can work. You can give it to your relatives, friends, or sell it to a computer shop.

6. Use black wallpaper and screen saver
Why? Because a research has proved that black color saves more energy than any other colors. As an addition, you can use Blackle (a black version of Google) instead of the usual Google. I use a black template for my blog is for this reason too.

When Should I Use A Compressing Software

2008-04-17T14:47:00.000+07:00

Sometimes people are confused when should he compress his files. In this post I'll tell you when is the right time to compress your files and when you shouldn't. There are some compressing softwares that you can use, like WinZip, WinRAR, or 7-Zip.

You should not compress your file:
1. If your file type is music (*.mp3, *.wma), image (*.jpg, *.gif, *.png), or video (*.avi, *.wmv, *.flv), because those file types already used a compressing algorithm.

2. If your file is an already compressed file.

You should compress your file:
1. If your file type is text/document, e.g. *.txt, *.doc, *.odt, *.rtf, etc.

2. When you want to transfer a lot files. For example: if you save a web page as complete html then you'll get two files, the .html itself and a folder containing extra informations about the web page (like its images). Usely, this folder will contain a lot of small sized files and if you copy this directly, it'll consume a lot of time. To handle this, you can compress it first which will give you a single file. Since the size of each file is actually small, you can choose Store as your compressing method to fasten your compressing process.

3. If you want to attach a big file as your e-mail attachment. However, simply just compressing it might not help you at all. Because maybe the compressed file still not small enough. To manage this, you can compress and split your file by using compressing software. You can specify the maximum file size of the result, e.g. fit in a floppy disk (1,457,664 - 3.5"), fit in a 700MB CD (700m - CD-700M). Later, you'll only have to extract the part1 file.

4. If you want to secure your files. Some compressing softwares have a security feature, so you can add a password to your compressed file. When someone want to extract your file, he won't be able to, because he must input the password first.

Combining More Than One .mpg Files

2008-04-16T11:02:00.000+07:00

To combine more than one .mpg files, you can use a program for compressing file. In this post I'll use WinRAR. You can download it here.

1. Block all of the .mpg files that you want to combine.

2. Right click on your selected files and choose Add to archive...

3. Once the WinRAR dialog is opened, choose Archive format that you want, RAR or ZIP.

4. Choose Store as your Compression Method. Don't use another Compression Method or your file won't be able to be played.

5. Type the file name with a .mpg extension. Example: fullmovie.mpg
6. Click OK to run.
7. Your combined .mpg file is ready to be played.

Windows Hot Shortcut Keys

2008-04-12T21:16:00.004+07:00

I hope you'll find this is useful. Note: Start means the key with Windows logo on the keyboard. Maybe I'll add some more later.

Start : Open start menu
Start + R : Open Run dialog box
Start + M : Minimize all opened windows/programs
Start + Shift + M : Maximize all opened windows/programs
Start + L : Lock keyboard and take you to the Welcome Screen(in Windows XP)
Start + E : Open Windows Explorer or My Computer
Start + U : Open Utility Manager
Start + F : Open Search file options
Start + Ctrl + F : Open Search computer name options(used in a computer network)
Start + F1 : Open Windows Help and Support Center page
Start + D : View Desktop by minimizing all of your opened windows/programs
Start + Pause : View System Properties dialog
Start + Tab : Move through taskbar program
Alt + Tab : Switch between any opened windows/programs
Alt + F4 : Close active program
Alt + Enter : Open the Properties dialog of selected
Ctrl + Esc : Open Start Menu
Ctrl + Alt + Del : Open Windows Task Manager
Ctrl + Shift + Esc : Open Windows Task Manager (same with previous)
Shift + Del : Permanently delete the selected item(s)

Using 2 YM Accounts Simultaneously

2008-04-11T12:24:00.003+07:00

Usually you can only use one Yahoo! Messenger account on one computer at one time. When you run a new Yahoo! Messenger program again, it'll refer to the first one.

Here is a tips to use 2 or more YM accounts simultaneously:
1. Open your Registry Editor by clicking Start | Run from your start menu (or you can use keyboard shortcut Windows + R). Then type regedit and run it.
2. Go to key HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Yahoo\Pager\Test.
3. Right click on the right panel, and choose New | DWORD value.
4. Type plural for key name.
5. Double click on plural, and type 1 for its value.
6. Close your Registry Editor.
7. Now you should be able to use more than one YM account.

Preventing Malwares Attack

2008-04-10T20:10:00.000+07:00

What is malware? The word malware is derived from the words malicious and software. Wikipedia defined malware as a software designed to infiltrate or damage a computer system without the owner's informed consent. Malware includes computer viruses, worms, trojan horses, spywares, most rootkits, and other malicious programs. However, many peoples consider all of them as virus.

Now, how can we prevent such a dangerous program from our computer? Here are some tips from me:
1. Install an antivirus program to your computer
This will be your first barricade. Installing an antivirus is a must! Nowadays, there are a lot of antivirus on the market. You can choose anyone that you like. In fact, some of them are absolutely free, like AVG (http://www.grisoft.com), McAfee (http://www.mcafee.com), and many others. You can simply search it from a search engine (e.g. Google). Use keyword like free antivirus.

2. Update your antivirus database often
An antivirus will be useles if it's not updated. Everyday, thousands of new viruses are created. To keep up with it, you must update your antivirus everyday too. Usually, you can get your antivirus update from its official website.

3. Careful when you want to run a new unknown program
Scan those file first before you open it!! It might be a virus! Pay attention too to a weird file extension, especially *.exe. Sometimes you'll find a file like this: myfile.doc.exe. That is definitely a virus! Delete it at once!

4. Pay attention to your computer performance
If you're feeling like your computer speed drops drastically, especially when you're doing a read or write process to your disk, you must be suspicious. Maybe your computer has been infected by a virus!

5. Backup your data regularly
This tips will become useful once your system already infected and destroyed by viruses. At least, you won't lost all of your data.