Client side implementation of the bit torrent client is rather straight forward in 99.9% of the situations. You are basically going to a website where you can download a bit torrent client, download and install it and that’s it. However, there are some issues that may come up when dealing with the client side implementation of a bit torrent client.

First and foremost is a firewall. In general, most people’s firewall is set-up to automatically create rules that will allow a bit torrent client to gain access to a port of its or your choosing. However, this is not always the case as some people have their firewalls set-up to make no exceptions. If this is the case, the best way, and of course the easiest, is to change your firewall settings before installing the bit torrent client. If not, chances are, you will have to manually make an exception.

The bit torrent clients need access to a port in your computer. This is not a visual port, but rather a computer generated one. In many instances, you may already be utilizing some of your available ports. For example, if you access the internet to get your bit torrent client, you are connecting to another computer’s port 80.

It is these ports that allow simultaneous connections to the world. If you are in a network, and you have a router in your home or office, most likely you will have to access your router’s configuration and add the bit torrent client to create an exception. What this does, is it actually forwards any incoming connections that are asking for a particular port, directly to your computer. Otherwise, the incoming connection will not be allowed. Sometimes your ISP may be using a router of some type and therefore you may not be able to get them to forward a port request. Do not feel bad if this is the case, you can still download, but it may not be as fast. The reason it may be slow, is instead of another computer connecting to you, their computer will send a request to someone you have already been connected to you, which in turn, that request will be forwarded to you. This is known as pushing UDP, all that it does, is tells your bit torrent client to connect with them instead of them connecting to you. This is sometimes called a handshake as well.

You may notice if you ever check your stats with your bit torrent client that you only made X number of incoming connections, but you had X² “Handshakes.” These are instances where you connected to another computer instead of that computer connecting to you. It all works out in the long run as long as you download the file you wanted.

Popularity: 12% [?]

Recently there has been a lot of talk about people hacking the iPhone and the new iPod Touch, it came as a surprise to some that there are people brave enough to do this but its really not a new endeavor. Well before the iPod touch there was the original iPod, which was also hacked to many degrees. Any iPod, ranging from the very first version up to the 5.5th generation iPod video could be hacked multiple ways. There were, and still are, two major hacks that can easily run on these iPods. Those hacks aren’t actually hacks but rather unofficial firmware for your iPod. The two main firmware systems are: iPod Linux, and Rockbox.

We’ll begin with iPod Linux, which functions nearly the same as Linux would on a computer, but is designed specifically to run on the iPod. Through iPod Linux users are capable of the same video and audio playback they expect from their iPod, but with added support for different encoding types. Another popular addition through iPod Linux is the ability to play games such as Doom and Doom II as well as Gameboy and even NES games. iPod Linux is only compatible with 1st-5th generation iPods as well as the iPod Mini, iPod Photo, and the first iPod Nano. Installation is fairly easy, simply connect the iPod to your computer and run the iPod Linux installer. It will install all the files necessary and properly configure everything on your iPod.

Rockbox is another of the most popular iPod firmware hacks. Unlike iPod Linux, Rockbox was created for many different types of mp3 players. Rockbox was created to add playback support as well as make many mp3 players more customizable. Rockbox adds the ability to play many different formats of music, and thus takes away some restrictions put on mp3 players by their manufacturers. Rockbox works on the same iPods as iPod Linux, but it will also run on various iriver, SanDisk, and other media players. The primary goal of Rockbox is to give the user more choices in display, and through the use of thousands of user created themes nearly any look can be achieved. Custom themes are easy to install or create, so everyone can have their own style iPod. Installing Rockbox is also quite simple, all you do is either run the install file, or copy and paste a set of files onto your media player. The rest of the setup is automated!

Both of these firmware hacks provide their own benefits and downfalls, such as battery life but thousands of people still use them. The ability to change what the iPod display looks like is one of the biggest reasons for these firmware hacks. Probably the biggest downfall is product safety. It is nearly impossible to damage or destroy an iPod with these hacks, but it can happen and if it does your warranty is most likely void. So next time you see a story about hacking the newest iPod, don’t feel left out because odds are you can hack your older iPod too!

Popularity: 2% [?]

A wireless network is great way to provide essential services such as internet access and file sharing in installations that previously had no options for connectivity. Many locations and homes just did not have the infrastructure or capabilities to allow for regular internet cabling. The most common limitation being that no wiring was ever installed.

Present network cabling technologies still require proper planning, and still pose installation limitations. CAT5 network cabling has to be run and installed properly in order to maintain proper throughput and communication speeds. One example - you cannot bend CAT5 cable in any sort of loop and expect to reach the 100 megabit speeds consistently. As you may now realize, installing any sort of wiring does have inherent problems and associated limitations. This is not to say that wireless networking is without any limitations - because it is not, however in comparison, Wifi is much more convenient and less expensive.

Wireless networking limitations start with distance, interference and security. The distance between the wireless router and the wireless client (your computer) can be several feet to several doze, anything more than that will require additional equipment to boost the signal strength. There are three standards for wireless communication between computers. 802.1 A, 802.1 B and 802.1 G are the most common, with 802.1 G being the standard of today. Wireless devices and metal objects such as ventilation systems, and cordless telephones can greatly diminish your wireless distance and signal strength.

It is not uncommon to have poor wireless signal strength with the computer and wireless router in the same room, obviously, something would be interfering with the signals.

Wireless networking equipment can be purchased from any computer retailer. It is best to purchase the same brand router and transmitter. Look for 802.1G protocols, with the highest bandwidth, 54mbits would be considered standard, with 110 mbits being newer. These of course are not guaranteed transmission rates, however under optimal conditions, you can expect these speeds.

Wireless routers have the option to use a wireless connection as well as a physical wired connection. Usually up to 4 clients may use the router simultaneously. This is a combination of wired and wireless. Installing the router will also involve setting up a secure password to disable others to access your network and internet connection without your knowledge. This is called WEP (Wireless Encryption Protocol)

The router itself will have a setup wizard to take you through the process.

Popularity: 3% [?]

Even before warming up to your latest Operating System (OS), Windows Vista, from Microsoft, the multinational company has immediately started a new project that was dubbed as version “7″ within closed circuits. Rumor has it that this Windows 7 OS will veer completely away from the usual norm of the Microsoft Windows, though, no one can really say how it will operate or look like.

Intelligent assumptions from technology analysts include the use of touch screen as a User Interface, similar to what is being used in the iPhone from Apple. There is also the use of hypervisor technology, in which, multiple OS are run on a single host computer simultaneously. Other than these two technologies, the Windows 7 will be an upgrade to the new features introduced in the Windows Vista such as the desktop search. Analysts say that the desktop search will be tweaked to include searching for server files aside from desktop files only.

Because of this, enterprises are reportedly sticking it out with their Windows XP OS to wait for the Windows 7 instead of upgrading to the Windows Vista OS, which reportedly has its own issues in price and performance. Technology analysts, however, warn enterprises that if ever the project does push through, expect that there will be a delay of the Windows 7 release because of the track record of Microsoft. This means that enterprises who choose not to upgrade to Windows Vista must find ways to maximize their existing Windows XP system.

It will take more than additional memory to speed-up a Windows XP system. Disabling unwanted programs during start-up and uninstalling programs that are no longer needed will free-up memory and space. The daily routine of cleaning the Internet cookies, history and other files will also improve system memory. Furthermore, running the disk clean-up and disk defragmenter utilities will result to faster processing. Adjusting the visual effects of the computer and enabling the Direct Memory Access (DMA) will also help in making the system more compact, performance-wise.

On the other hand, Bill Gates confirmed that the Windows 7 will be more user-focused. This will not be limited to the interface but will also include mobility. The so-called Live Services and parallel computing technologies will be available that are not present in Windows XP or in Windows Vista OS systems. Whatever is in store for loyal Microsoft users, the hype on Windows 7 is proof that users are still looking for more functionalities not present in the current OS. Microsoft, on the other hand, is more than happy to search for new designs of computing that will make life more convenient by 2010.

Popularity: 2% [?]

When dealing with desktop computers and laptops, Microsoft Windows is usually the choice that many people make. However, one major player in the field has been working on an Operating System for the average user. Ubuntu’s Linux, the operating system that has been known to be fairly complex, is now working on a product for the average computer user that will be just the same, if not better as easier, than Microsoft Windows. But whether it has really proved itself to be a consumer desktop operating system favorite remains to be seen. As with previous
versions of the Ubuntu Linux system, some aspects can be downright tricky! But nevertheless, there are some very distinct differences among Windows and Linux, even though Ubuntu has tried to level the playing field a bit.

Installing both Operating Systems

When it comes to installing Windows Vista and Ubuntu’s Linux operating system, the process is very much the same. All you need to do is load the CD into the drive, reboot the computer, and voila! Most of the setup is self-explanatory, but not many people usually deal with installing their operating systems anyway, considering that most of the time they are bundled with the computer and are pre-loaded. However, one edge that Ubuntu does have over Microsoft is the fact that Linux can be installed on top of a Windows operating system for free in order to users to try it out for as long as they want, however, there are some obvious Linux operating system issues that trial-runs will not be able to take advantage of. Microsoft does allow Vista to run as a free trial, but a user’s limit is only 30 days.

Dealing with Hardware Devices

As with all of Microsoft Windows’ operating systems, detecting hardware and installing them is usually as easy as 1-2-3. However, the process remains the same with Windows Vista. Users are able to manage their hardware pieces in the Device Manager application and see everything that their computer has. Also, Plug-n-play devices, such as digital cameras and printers are easily detectable. However, Ubuntu makes these processes a little bit more difficult than Microsoft does for Windows users. Linux does not have a device manager where you can edit and make changes to the hardware’s drivers and such, but users need to manually edit each configuration file if they want to change something. Also, Plug-n-play devices are not universally and automatically recognized, but the Removable Drives and Media Preferences application will allow you to manage these devices.

Word Processing Applications

Ubuntu users will be happy about this aspect of the Linux operating system, but Linux includes the OpenOffice suite program with their operating system, making it very easy for users to take advantage of the useful tools. Even though OpenOffice can be added quickly to the Vista operating system, it is not installed for instant use.

All in all, Ubuntu’s Linux operating system has made several changes to their program and is definitely able to compete with Microsoft when it comes to Windows Vista. Even though previous versions of the Linux program may have been terribly difficult, Ubuntu has definitely made positive changes for their operating system users.

Popularity: 11% [?]