There currently is a new transcription software out there called Dragon Naturally Speaking. What can Dragon Naturally Speaking do? It has the potential to be able to use your computer verbally, rather than using keystrokes or the mouse. All you do is open the text program, dictate your words entry, copy and paste and voila! It even open’s your web browser or open your other computer programs. And it is Mac compatible. If you need a little more convincing, kindly watch:

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There are times when I need to get my thoughts in writing but sitting down and typing what my thoughts are impossible. If you need someone to type the way you talk, you can truly rely on Dragon’s typing speed test! In fact, it’s like hiring a personal typist to do the typing job for you. You can create documents, reports and emails faster than most people type — with up to 99% accuracy. I have not tried out the software but the company claims this program can capture and transcribe a voice at 150 words per minute. Check out the video demos embedded above for your reference.

Macintosh users they also have a version called MacSpeech Dictate.

So, if you are a Mac user, they also powers Mac Speech Dictate so kindly check out Dragon Naturally Speaking at their website called Nuance.com. Visit their website right now!

Popularity: 2% [?]

Due to the fact that the various bit torrent client software have to rely on ports and IP addresses to make connections, this creates a large security vulnerability for most people. Too often, rather than creating the exceptions for their bit torrent client software in their firewall, people will actually disable their firewall prevention. When a person uses a bit torrent client software, their IP addresses are made public to others on the network. Just because you may no longer be downloading a particular file, also does not mean that your IP address is no longer available. The trackers keep tabs on this to maintain connections even long after you have downloaded a file.

A dubious person can very easily look up these IP addresses and possibly even hack them and leave a virus or a worm behind them. Most of this of course can be prevented by simply added the exception to the firewall, and never turning it off. This does not mean that you are still free from possible hacks, as hackers can still access your computer through the ports that you have left open for the software. Special care must be taken, especially when downloading. If you are downloading a questionable torrent, chances are, someone may bee looking for your computer by using the torrent for this purpose.

There is also many forms of limitations imposed by the bit torrent client software. Although offering an incentive is no where on the docket, the network can still punish you. For example, if you download a torrent, there is no incentive for you to seed, or in return share that file with others, so many times people just do not do it at all and delete their logs in an attempt to not be lecher punished. The various bit torrent indexing websites may or may not also maintain IP information on who has downloaded what and what their share ratio is. This leeching is a form of punishment. If you are not sharing, the software can simply slow down you downloads until you share. But you can always clear out your logs to prevent this. But now-a-days, many of the indexing sites are doing the same. These you can not simply clear out, you have to share or you cannot download.

Unfortunately, many people today still share an IP address and since the indexing websites and their torrents go by IP address, it is completely possible for you to be leech punished for someone else’s failure to share. This becomes an even greater issue in some 3rd world and developing countries where a ISP may have you sharing an IP with sometimes over 1,000 other clients.

Popularity: 11% [?]

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% [?]

One of the most unique peer to peer file sharing networks, is one that breaks all the rules in file sharing protocols. The network is known as a friend to friend file sharing network in which two users will connect directly utilizing passwords and digital signatures to verify the connection before a file can be shared.

Although it is possible to request or send a file to another without actually knowing who you are transferring with, you can not however, make connections with any users out side of your network.

It was Dan Bricklin who first used the name back in 2000, in which a peer to peer file sharing client can connect to another client in the same network, but requires a crypto key which is usually transferred via a more personal means like face to face. Many peer to peer file sharing clients are capable of friend to friend file sharing. These programs include Turtle, WASTE, Galet, GNUnet as well as Freenet.

Once connections are made and assuming that ones friends have static IP addresses, one could use their firewall to block any connection attempts by anyone whose IP address is unknown. The use of link connection and the small file sharing network also get rid of the need for and end to end encryption as each node can fully control who can use their client to transfer or forward files and queries.

Although a instant messenger may sound like a friend to friend file sharing network, it is nit unfortunately. This is due to the simple fact that instant messaging utilizes a public server whereas a friend to friend is a direct tunnel connection between friends who act as their own nodes on the network.

Any type of communication which uses a publicly available server, or even a server which is not directly on a node cannot be considered a friend to friend network which also includes a private direct connection hub as communications go through the hub at first.

The most common term today for a friend to friend file sharing network has become known as a darknet. What this means, is that in order to join a friend to friend file sharing network, you have to be trusted by one of the members in the network. While you can always start your own, you can also join a larger friend to friend network.

Friend to friend networks are more or less built on trust of the other members, and therefore any user is less likely to receive viruses or maleware since one can usually know who the file originated from and therefore stop the availability before full infection of the friend to friend network occurs.

Popularity: 47% [?]

I am entering the Renuzit TriScents $20,000 home makeover contest. Voting on the best entries starts on May 8th, so if interested send your entry in now and there is a second prize of $3,000 and third of $2,000. The scented air freshener is the best way to breathe some fresh air into your home. There are so many things in our home that can be made over. From walls to carpet to anything in between why would you not want to give your home a makeover? My house could really use it and it would make a huge difference in my life. All you need to do to Enter to Win this great makeover is enter a contest sponsored by TriScents which requires some proof that your home does need to be made over this includes a 2 minute video, some photos, and a short 250 word limited essay about your house. See Official Rules here, and if you think you need a $20,000 makeover (your house, not you!), then go ahead and enter to win. Be sure you print out the coupon available to save you money on one of these scented oil air fresheners. It is real easy to download and print your money saving coupons for the Renuzit TriScents.

Popularity: 28% [?]