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<channel>
	<title>Alternative Technologies</title>
	<atom:link href="http://www.ratepayersunited.org/feed" rel="self" type="application/rss+xml" />
	<link>http://www.ratepayersunited.org</link>
	<description></description>
	<lastBuildDate>Sat, 18 Feb 2012 08:23:00 +0000</lastBuildDate>
	<language>en</language>
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		<title>Advantages and disadvantages of using home wind turbine</title>
		<link>http://www.ratepayersunited.org/advantages-and-disadvantages-of-using-home-wind-turbine.html</link>
		<comments>http://www.ratepayersunited.org/advantages-and-disadvantages-of-using-home-wind-turbine.html#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Sat, 18 Feb 2012 08:23:00 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>admin</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[information]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[innovation]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[home wind turbine]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[wind]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.ratepayersunited.org/?p=131</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[The main source of electricity energy in this world is coal and fossil energy. However, we need to know that those kinds of energy are hard to be renewed. If the supplies for those energies are depleted, we are doomed. To avoid this, wind turbine is invented. Instead of using coal and fossil energy to [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p style="text-align: justify;">The main source of electricity energy in this world is coal and fossil energy. However, we need to know that those kinds of energy are hard to be renewed. If the supplies for those energies are depleted, we are doomed. To avoid this, <a href="http://www.windturbinestar.com/">wind turbine</a> is invented. Instead of using coal and fossil energy to create electricity energy, wind turbine, as the name it is called is using wind energy to create electricity. There are so many advantages of using this kind of energy source. However, some people also say that this kind of energy source has some negative effect or disadvantages too.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">The first advantage that we can get by using the wind turbine is that we can actually create our source of energy. By this, it means that we do not need to pay our electricity bills. What you need to do is to prepare some money to maintain the <a href="http://www.windturbinestar.com/">home wind turbine</a> to keep spinning and working. However, some people who have been using wind turbine said that the maintaining cost for wind turbine is pretty expensive even though when they calculate it, it is a bit cheaper than when we need to pay for the electricity bill. The second advantage is that we can buy <a href="http://www.windturbinestar.com/">small wind turbine</a> if we have small house.</p>
]]></content:encoded>
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		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Affordable Actuator to Be Purchased Online</title>
		<link>http://www.ratepayersunited.org/affordable-actuator-to-be-purchased-online.html</link>
		<comments>http://www.ratepayersunited.org/affordable-actuator-to-be-purchased-online.html#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 10 Feb 2012 11:04:20 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>admin</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[information]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Actuator]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[types of actuators]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.ratepayersunited.org/?p=125</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Many people have to be capable of gaining what they need. Moreover, internet as one of the beneficial medium can support people to reach what they need because internet offers many web sites to be visited in which they offer many products that can be purchase online. For completing your automation need for various items, [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p style="text-align: justify;">Many people have to be capable of gaining what they need. Moreover, internet as one of the beneficial medium can support people to reach what they need because internet offers many web sites to be visited in which they offer many products that can be purchase online. For completing your automation need for various items, you can use actuator product.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">On the internet, many web sites offer their products of actuator that can be reached very easily. From a lot of offers for actuators, you can go visiting Progressiveautomations.com. In the web, there will be various types of <a href="http://progressiveautomations.com/" target="_blank">actuators</a> for various needs of product. You can see that the products are varied and complete so that you can easily get what you need. Furthermore, the company also gives great service for the customers in which there will be friendly service from the workers. And fast response. From the company you will get full satisfaction.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">Besides, the company also gives another benefit in the prices of the actuator. The prices of the products that the company provides are very affordable. You can buy the products with out high amount of money. Even you can get saving from it. To buy the actuator, easily you can go to the web and order the product online.</p>
<p><img src="http://tinyurl.com/7g5j7rr" alt="" /></p>
]]></content:encoded>
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		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Keep Your Computer Healthy Using Registry Cleaner</title>
		<link>http://www.ratepayersunited.org/keep-your-computer-healthy-using-registry-cleaner.html</link>
		<comments>http://www.ratepayersunited.org/keep-your-computer-healthy-using-registry-cleaner.html#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Wed, 01 Feb 2012 10:54:50 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>admin</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[information]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[security barricades]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Windows]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.ratepayersunited.org/?p=120</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Windows registry is one of the most important core components of your Windows operated computer. Your registry stores all necessary information that makes sure that your computer will always run properly and healthily. Unfortunately, Windows registry is highly prone to alteration. Its manual modification is so easy that you don’t actually have to enter any [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p style="text-align: justify;">Windows registry is one of the most important core components of your Windows operated computer. Your registry stores all necessary information that makes sure that your computer will always run properly and healthily. Unfortunately, Windows registry is highly prone to alteration. Its manual modification is so easy that you don’t actually have to enter any passwords or to pass any other security barricades to get unlimited access to the registry editor. Once you are operating the editor, you can easily add or remove values and keys stored in your registry. In addition to being prone to manual alteration, your registry is also prone to alterations harmful to your computer that are performed by certain malwares, such as viruses, worms, Trojan horses, and spywares. When such alteration causes sickness to your computer system, you can effectively remedy such sickness using registry cleaning applications, such as regcure, that you can download from such antimalware developer websites as <a href="http://www.paretologic.com/products/regcure/index.aspx" target="_blank">http://www.paretologic.com/</a>.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">There is another advantage that you can get if you use this application to clean your registry and cure any ailments that it contains. In addition to curing your registry from any ailments caused by malwares, this application can also be used to enhance your computer’s performance. Because any unwanted alterations present in your registry will burden it very much, if your registry is lumbered by a lot of unneeded keys and values, your computer’s performance will be severely deteriorated. When the registry cure application is employed to clean your registry, your computer’s performance will be improved and it thus will work much more efficiently and effectively.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">This application can be used in all versions of Windows operating system, including the 32-bit and 64-bit one. Therefore, you can always rely on this application no matter which version of Windows that you install on your computer.</p>
]]></content:encoded>
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		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Bubble Gum Aka Gumball</title>
		<link>http://www.ratepayersunited.org/bubble-gum-aka-gumball.html</link>
		<comments>http://www.ratepayersunited.org/bubble-gum-aka-gumball.html#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Sat, 28 Jan 2012 17:54:45 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>admin</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[information]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[gum balls]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[something]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.ratepayersunited.org/?p=116</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[There is one effective alternative to stop being nervous: chewing bubble gum. Believe it or not, chewing bubble gum decreases your anxiety and helps you to be calm. Why is that possible? Perhaps because when chewing something the muscle on your face (around mouth and cheek) encourages you to be relax. It is the same [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p style="text-align: justify;">There is one effective alternative to stop being nervous: chewing bubble gum. Believe it or not, chewing bubble gum decreases your anxiety and helps you to be calm. Why is that possible? Perhaps because when chewing something the muscle on your face (around mouth and cheek) encourages you to be relax. It is the same theory with laughing issue.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">So now if you are about to have a presentation, interviewing, test, examination, or something like that, you can go to <a href="http://www.gumballs.com/gumball-machines.html" target="_blank">Gumball machine</a> and get some gums. The machine is strong yet sweet and affordable; you even can get for your own. As you know the trade mark has been known as the best bubble gum manufacture; the quality (color, size, flavor, and price) are undoubted. Don’t hesitate to buy more, just for prevention in case your thing goes longer.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">With 19 years of experiences the company leaves you with nothing but satisfaction. If that is not enough, get to <a href="http://www.gumballs.com/supplies.html" target="_blank">Bubble gum balls</a> section and pick as many as you can. More than 60 flavors are there with huge number of size variants. The question about brand is not necessary. What do you need? <a href="http://www.gumballs.com/dubble-bubble-gum-balls.html" target="_blank">Double Bubble</a> gumball? Well, it surely is there. Accidentally created in 1928, the brand now is world known.</p>
]]></content:encoded>
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		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>How to Get Rid of Adware Quickly</title>
		<link>http://www.ratepayersunited.org/how-to-get-rid-of-adware-quickly.html</link>
		<comments>http://www.ratepayersunited.org/how-to-get-rid-of-adware-quickly.html#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Sat, 21 Jan 2012 16:25:43 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>admin</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[information]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[computer]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[how to get rid of adware]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.ratepayersunited.org/?p=114</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[You have to be aware that adware can enter your computer without your knowledge. This is why it helps that you know how to get rid of adware. Adware is a term for advertising software and sounds like an innocent and harmless program. In reality, however, it can do the reverse and cause much damage [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<div id="article-content" style="text-align: justify;">
<p>You have to be aware that adware can enter your computer without  your knowledge. This is why it helps that you know how to get rid of  adware. Adware is a term for advertising software and sounds like an  innocent and harmless program. In reality, however, it can do the  reverse and cause much damage to your computer and privacy. Most of the  adware programs go beyond their original purposes with malicious intent.</p>
<p>Today,  adware becomes a type of spyware programs sleuthing on the browsing  habits of internet users. The purpose and intent is to not only bombard  your computer with ad displays, but also to steal your private  information and identity. It is a good thing you can get rid of adware  programs in your computer without having to spend for it. Here is how.</p>
<ol>
<li>The first step in getting rid of adware is to disconnect your  computer from the internet. Unplug the Ethernet cable (usually a yellow  cable) that connects your computer to the modem or router. Disconnecting  your computer from the internet will prevent the adware to contact  their home site to block your attempt of ridding them.</li>
<li>Next, from your control panel, access the list of programs installed  in your computer. Check the programs and uninstall any that appears  strange to you or does not have anything to do with the programs and  applications your computer needs. These are most likely adware programs  that have entered your computer. Restart your computer following the  uninstall process.</li>
<li>Adware can be very stubborn and hard to remove. Therefore, a crucial  step on how to get rid of adware is to verify successful removal of  adware on your list of programs. After restarting your computer, access  your programs one more time. Repeat the uninstall process until the list  is completely free of adware. After every necessary uninstall, always  restart your computer.</li>
<li>Benefit from the free built-in protection tool Microsoft provides  such as the Windows Defender. Using this tool will prevent adware  programs to harm your computer and your privacy. Run Windows Defender  regularly to scan potential adware and spyware. You can do a quick scan  or a full scan of your computer.</li>
<li>Alternatively, you can choose to install another free protection  tool from Microsoft. It offers more comprehensive protection against  malicious programs like adware and spyware programs than Windows  Defender does.</li>
<li>You can download the Microsoft Security Essentials online to shield  your computer from the rogues ready to prey on your computer and invade  your private world.</li>
<li>It is your option to install legitimate other anti-malicious  software programs. You just have to remember that some of these programs  may require you to deactivate Microsoft Security Essentials to function  properly.</li>
</ol>
<p>You can still increase your protection to prevent adware  programs to invade your computer. This will mean adjusting your browsing  habits and behavior. For instance, you should start to be very  conservative in downloading free software programs from the internet.  Unless it comes from trusted sources and the publisher is verifiable, it  is best to refrain from the download.</p>
<p>Your internet browser  should have the right security settings corresponding to your browsing  habits, needs and requirements. Disable your browser from automatically  downloading programs online. Additionally, make sure that your computer  does not automatically run programs or applications.</p>
<p>Run Windows  updates regularly and install necessary and critical updates as  recommended. Most of these updates are patches to fix any loopholes in  the system. Set your system to run the updates automatically. Always see  to it that whatever program or application you install in your  computer, they are legitimate and free from adware. This way, you will  never have to worry about how to get rid of adware.</p>
</div>
]]></content:encoded>
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		</item>
		<item>
		<title>What to Look for in Colocation Services Providers</title>
		<link>http://www.ratepayersunited.org/what-to-look-for-in-colocation-services-providers.html</link>
		<comments>http://www.ratepayersunited.org/what-to-look-for-in-colocation-services-providers.html#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 20 Jan 2012 16:22:39 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>admin</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[repairing]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Software]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Colocation]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[impressive internet presence]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.ratepayersunited.org/?p=112</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Colocation services can be an affordable way for a business to maintain an impressive Internet presence. These services allow a business to concentrate on their business without worrying about the upkeep and maintenance of Internet servers. There are several points that should be considered before choosing a colocation provider. How long has the provider been [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<div id="article-content" style="text-align: justify;">
<p>Colocation services can be an affordable way for a business to  maintain an impressive Internet presence. These services allow a  business to concentrate on their business without worrying about the  upkeep and maintenance of Internet servers. There are several points  that should be considered before choosing a colocation provider.</p>
<p>How  long has the provider been in business? There is something to be said  for giving newcomers a chance. However, if your business depends on the  stability and dependability of your servers, you should choose a  provider that has established themselves in the industry. Along these  same lines, consider the main purpose for the colocation provider. If  the provider is primarily in some other industry and just sells  colocation services on the side, they might not be as stable as a  business that specializes in colocation.</p>
<p>Are there a lot of extra  fees? Some providers will charge extra for every extra feature. Others  include many needed features in the basic packages. There are plenty of  providers that offer services like remote hands, cross connects and IP  addresses for free. There is no reason to pay extra for these services.</p>
<p>How  much security is available? The physical location should provide an  element of security against criminal activity, as well as plans for  natural disasters. Backups should be routine. Finally, consider the  amount of security that is available for the actual connection. How safe  is the data from people outside the building?</p>
<p>Are quality  services provided? Make sure the colocation provider has fast  connections and high quality network services. Nothing can be more  frustrating than staring at a screen, waiting for a page to load. How  many networks is the provider connected to? Make sure that this provider  is able to offer the size of connection that your business will need.</p>
<p>Are  there backup plans for emergencies? If the provider uses generators for  backup power, make sure they are the type of generators that can run as  long as needed. Some generators can only run for four hours. All  systems should be redundant. The servers must stay cool. Is there a plan  for the failure of air conditioning? Each section of the building  should have redundant air conditioning to make sure the servers are able  to stay cool at all times.</p>
<p>Consider these points before selecting  a provider of colocation services for your business. These points will  help you to make an education decision that can improve the quality of  your business.</p>
</div>
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		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Why Choose Microfiber to Clean Your Electronics?</title>
		<link>http://www.ratepayersunited.org/why-choose-microfiber-to-clean-your-electronics.html</link>
		<comments>http://www.ratepayersunited.org/why-choose-microfiber-to-clean-your-electronics.html#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 19 Jan 2012 16:17:42 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>admin</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[computer]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[gadgets]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[cotton]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[negative electrostatic charge]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.ratepayersunited.org/?p=109</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[How are microfiber and cotton different when it comes to cleaning mobile and touch screen technology like the iPad 2? What properties make microfiber a superior electronic device cleaner? Bottom line&#8230; it is far superior at picking up dust, dirt, fingerprints, and bacteria than ordinary cotton and other materials. How can this be you say? [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<div id="article-content" style="text-align: justify;">
<p>How are microfiber and cotton different when it comes to cleaning  mobile and touch screen technology like the iPad 2? What properties  make microfiber a superior electronic device cleaner?</p>
<p>Bottom  line&#8230; it is far superior at picking up dust, dirt, fingerprints, and  bacteria than ordinary cotton and other materials. How can this be you  say? Well, here is a quick comparison between cotton and microfiber:</p>
<p>Microfiber</p>
<ul>
<li>Smaller than 1/100th or.1-.2 of a denier of single strand of human hair</li>
<li>Split ended technology = negative electrostatic charge (actually attracts dust and dirt)</li>
<li>Same surface area as a cotton cloth 4x its size</li>
<li>Able to pull debris away rather than rub them around on surfaces.</li>
<li>Polyamide allows for the absorption of fingerprint and facial oils</li>
</ul>
<p>Cotton</p>
<ul>
<li>At least 40 times larger than a microfiber fiber</li>
<li>Soap/chemicals needed to attract and hold debris and foreign matter</li>
<li>Not as absorbent; smears oils</li>
</ul>
<p>Microfiber is made using a  couple different materials. The first is polyester; this material is  what gives microfiber its strength and durability. The second material  is polyamide, and this is what makes this fabric so absorbent and able  to clean fingerprint and facial oils from touch screens so well. It is  well know that microfiber is made using split-ended technology, which  not only increases the surface area of microfiber but is also what gives  this type of material such great cleaning abilities. Microfiber can  actually hold 7 times its weight in water and hold it without dripping.  It is also positively charged so it actually attracts dirt and dust  which hold a negative charge. Tests have also shown microfiber to be 99%  effective at removing bacteria from surfaces and shown to not promote  bacterial growth.</p>
<p>This material is also re-usable and easy to care  for. The only thing to remember when washing this material is that you  should not use bleach, fabric softener or dryer sheets. Doing so results  in less absorbability of foreign materials and oils and affects the  negative charge of the fabric. Other precautions to take when washing  and drying microfiber is to not let temperatures exceed 140 degrees  Fahrenheit and to wash with like materials.</p>
<p>Using microfiber to  clean such things as iPads, iPhones, tablets, kindles, smartphones,  laptops, and other touch screen devices and screens is a great choice  and the results will be easily seen. If you&#8217;re tired of getting so so  results when using your t-shirt or the nearest napkin to clean your  electronics opt for a microfiber cleaning cloth. You will find that  microfiber, for the most part is easy to find and fairly inexpensive. Do  of course pay attention to the quality and watch out for microfiber  imitations. Happy cleaning!</p>
</div>
]]></content:encoded>
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		</item>
		<item>
		<title>What Is Apple Doing Right in the PC Market?</title>
		<link>http://www.ratepayersunited.org/what-is-apple-doing-right-in-the-pc-market.html</link>
		<comments>http://www.ratepayersunited.org/what-is-apple-doing-right-in-the-pc-market.html#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Wed, 18 Jan 2012 16:10:14 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>admin</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[computer]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[gadgets]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[apple computer sales]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[market]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.ratepayersunited.org/?p=106</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Apple computer sales grow faster than PC sales for five years &#8211; but why? For the past 20 quarters, sales of Apple Macs &#8211; remember them? &#8211; have grown faster than the PC market, an analyst points out. But why do consumers, businesses and government want them? What is Apple doing right in the PC [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<div id="article-content" style="text-align: justify;">
<p>Apple computer sales grow faster than PC sales for five years &#8211;  but why? For the past 20 quarters, sales of Apple Macs &#8211; remember them? &#8211;  have grown faster than the PC market, an analyst points out. But why do  consumers, businesses and government want them?</p>
<p>What is Apple doing right in the PC market? And what, exactly, did it do wrong in the first quarter of 2006?</p>
<p>Those  are the two questions that occur in looking at some of the numbers  pushed out by Charles Wolf, an analyst at Needham. He&#8217;s posted an  investment note on Apple which points out that Apple&#8217;s Mac shipments  have grown faster than the PC market for the past 20 quarters (that&#8217;s  five years in normal money).</p>
<p>OK, but what&#8217;s behind it? Why are all  these home users, business users, government users getting Macs? One  argument is that with Apple, you&#8217;re starting from a small base, so any  increase is going to look dramatic. And yet something is going on. My  analysis of Apple&#8217;s sales figures and the numbers from Gartner and IDC  shows that in the second quarter of 2010, Apple hit 4% of the whole PC  market for the first time in more than ten years; it hasn&#8217;t happened  since 1998, and I can&#8217;t find the time before that when it was true.</p>
<p>In  fact, my own analysis shows that if it hadn&#8217;t been for a stumble in the  first quarter of 2006, that figure would be 26 quarters, going all the  way back to the fourth calendar quarter of 2004, when Apple emerged from  10 straight quarters in which it grew less fast than the market &#8211; or in  other words, its market share of all computers shipped shrank.</p>
<p>Yes, but why?</p>
<p>According  to Wolf, &#8220;shipment growth has resulted solely from an outward shift in  the demand curve rather than from a relative reduction in Mac prices.&#8221;  We translate from analyst-ese: people aren&#8217;t buying them because they&#8217;re  cheap, because (relatively) they&#8217;re not: you can get cheaper computers,  as pretty much anyone knows, and as Microsoft harped on about with its  &#8220;Laptop hunter&#8221; adverts in March 2009 &#8211; which, if you&#8217;ve forgotten, were  about people trying to get value for money in buying a laptop. Much  good those did, by the way &#8211; Apple&#8217;s share of the computer market, where  three-quarters of its sales are laptops, kept growing from 3.35% to  break through that 4% barrier.</p>
<p>OK, so what&#8217;s Wolf think is doing it?</p>
<p>&#8220;The  key drivers of the growth in Mac shipments over the past five years  have been the halo effects emanating from the iPod and iPhone,&#8221; Wolf  says. &#8220;The Apple Stores have played an important supporting role in  providing convenient destinations and support resources for Windows  users new to the Mac.&#8221;</p>
<p>This is what has also been called &#8220;the halo effect&#8221;, where one Apple product purchase leads on to others.</p>
<p>And  he thinks that will get bigger: &#8220;The iPhone is competing in the mobile  phone market, one measured in billions of units rather than the portable  music player market, one measured in millions of units. Of course, the  iPad is waiting in the wings.&#8221;</p>
<p>You might have thought that the iPad had already been quite busy, having been on sale for more than a year, but perhaps not.</p>
<p>Is  it that simple, though? It seems odd if the &#8220;halo effect&#8221; from iPhones  and iPods is feeding through to business and government sales as well &#8211;  the latter is notoriously indifferent to those outside trivia.</p>
<p>One  argument is that the increase in Mac sales (in the last quarter, at  just under 5m, a level it has been nudging for the past three quarters)  is due to governments and businesses getting interested in developing  apps for those iPhones, so they&#8217;re buying one to be able to run the  iPhone Software Development Kit. And home users? Quite probably they are  the ones who are trading up (or as Wolf puts it, exerting an outward  shift in the demand curve).</p>
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		<title>Bluetooth in Brief</title>
		<link>http://www.ratepayersunited.org/bluetooth-in-brief.html</link>
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		<pubDate>Tue, 17 Jan 2012 15:59:48 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>admin</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[computer]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[mobile]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[notebook]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[quadrature phase shift]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.ratepayersunited.org/?p=103</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Bluetooth is a radio or wireless technology designed for short range data communications in the Industrial, Scientific and Medical (ISM) band. The frequency range is from 2.402Ghz to 2.480Ghz, with the available frequency spectrum being broken up into 79 x 1Mhz wide bands. Bluetooth was designed by Ericsson as a short range wireless connectivity solution [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<div id="article-content" style="text-align: justify;">
<p>Bluetooth is a radio or wireless technology designed for short  range data communications in the Industrial, Scientific and Medical  (ISM) band. The frequency range is from 2.402Ghz to 2.480Ghz, with the  available frequency spectrum being broken up into 79 x 1Mhz wide bands.</p>
<p>Bluetooth  was designed by Ericsson as a short range wireless connectivity  solution and is used to build Personal Area Networks, or PANs as they  are known so that devices in close proximity can pass information.  Typical examples being a mobile phone downloading data to a Personal  Computer or a mobile phone earpiece communicating with the phone itself.</p>
<p>The  technology behind Bluetooth is known as FHSS (Frequency Hopped Spread  Spectrum), where the datastream is broken up into small pieces, each  containing several binary bits of data which are transmitted in a pseudo  random sequence over a series of up to 79 frequency bands. As Bluetooth  has developed and matured, a number of data modulation schemes have  been used to modulate the data onto the radio carriers including GFSK  (Gaussian Frequency Shift Keying), DQPSK (Differential Quadrature Phase  Shift Keying) and 8DPSK (8-ary Differential Phase Shift Keying). The  development and use of the different modulation schemes were an attempt  to increase the data rates of the system.</p>
<p>So how does Bluetooth operate?</p>
<p>Two  or more Bluetooth devices that establish a connection (and share a  channel) form a small wireless network known as a Piconet, with up to  eight devices, forming the piconet. One device becomes the Master  station, can join a Bluetooth piconet. Normally the device which  initiates the connection will be the Master and other devices joining  the PAN will be slaves. The master passes a Frequency Hopping  Synchronisation (FHS) packet to any slaves containing its address and  clock. The address of the Master Bluetooth device is used to determine  the hop sequence and all slaves use the Master Clock to determine which  frequency to transmit or receive on at any given time.</p>
<p>A group of  piconets are referred to as a Scatternet, with each individual piconet  having a unique hopping sequence, determined by it&#8217;s Master&#8217;s address.  If a collision occurs where two devices transmit on the same frequency, a  device will just retransmit the data on the next frequency hop.  Although this can ultimately affect the performance and data rate of the  transmission, it is the accepted method, just like collisions are a way  of life in a shared Ethernet network when a hub is in use.</p>
<p>Devices  can be a member of multiple piconets by using each Master address to  determine the hopping sequence for each network, but can only be the  Master for one piconet. The access method used by Bluetooth devices is  known as TDD (Time-Division Duplex) where each device (Master and Slave)  share the same frequency and are allocated a timeslot during which to  transmit. A master will normally use even-numbered time slots and the  slave will use odd numbered timeslots.</p>
<p>There are two types of  transmission links normally supported by Bluetooth, known as SCO  (Synchronous Connection-Orientated) and ACL (Asynchronous Connectionless  Link). General Bluetooth operation uses ACL, where the packet and  payload length will determine how many timeslots are required. Because  ACL is Connection-Orientated, packets that are not acknowledged will be  automatically retransmitted, abeit on a different timeslot or timeslots.  Forward error correction can be employed as an option and although the  data delivery may be more reliable, the data rate will reduce  accordingly depending on how error prone the environment is at the time.</p>
<p>Voice  over Bluetooth normally used an SCO link, where the voice data is sent  over a number of reserved timeslots within an already established ACL  link. Retransmissions do not occur on an SCO link as this could cause a  number of problems, least of all latency and jitter. However, forward  error correction can be used to provide a degree of reliability. There  is an Enhanced version of SCO that can employ retransmission in some  circumstances.</p>
<p>The latest version of Bluetooth, version 4 and all  previous versions of Bluetooth have been designed to be backward  compatible with previous versions, so no worry about using older devices  with the newer Bluetooth devices.</p>
<p>The Bluetooth technologies have allowed us to provide fast data communications  between devices that are in close proximity (within a few metres)  without the need for a cable running RS-232 protocol for example and so  have provided us with mobility free from the constraints imposed with  the use of copper wiring.</p>
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		<title>Social Engineering, Email Harvesting</title>
		<link>http://www.ratepayersunited.org/social-engineering-email-harvesting.html</link>
		<comments>http://www.ratepayersunited.org/social-engineering-email-harvesting.html#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Mon, 16 Jan 2012 15:57:29 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>admin</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[gadgets]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[internet]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[confidence trick]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[information]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.ratepayersunited.org/?p=101</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Social engineering is commonly understood to mean the art of manipulating people into performing actions or divulging confidential information. While it is similar to a confidence trick or simple fraud, the term typically applies to trickery or deception for the purpose of information gathering, fraud, or computer system access; in most cases the attacker never [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<div id="article-content" style="text-align: justify;">
<p>Social engineering is commonly understood to mean the art of  manipulating people into performing actions or divulging confidential  information. While it is similar to a confidence trick or simple fraud,  the term typically applies to trickery or deception for the purpose of  information gathering, fraud, or computer system access; in most cases  the attacker never comes face-to-face with the victims.</p>
<p>I am going to talk about a skim used by spammers to <strong>harvest</strong> for legitimate email address from your contact list. There are plenty  of ways used to harvest emails, but the one I am focusing on is &#8220;Email  forwarding&#8221;</p>
<p>Normally when you create an email account, you will  start building contact list, containing email addresses of your friends,  relatives, co-workers, etc. Over time, you will have a substantial  number of contacts in your contact book.</p>
<p><strong>Email forwarding</strong></p>
<p>&#8220;Forward&#8221;  is a very handy function available in almost all email clients, this  allows one to pass over the email to some other recipient. But something  to note is; the forwarded mail includes the email address of the  original sender and any other forwarded addresses of the same instance.</p>
<p><strong>Email harvesting scenario</strong></p>
<p>Say  you are a GoodGuy with your email and 50 contacts on your mail account.  The BadGuy sends you a mail with a very emotional religious message, or  a very nice joke, or an irresistible offer to something that you are  likely to fall for, and guilt&#8217;s you into forwarding to at least 10  friends <strong><em>including the BadGuy</em></strong>. And you end up  doing that, with good faith. Now 10 friends from your contact will  receive your humbled mail message, with the instructions to do the same,  &#8220;<strong><em>forward to at least 10 friends&#8221;</em></strong>. At the same time the BadGuy receives a copy of any forward from the recursive senders.</p>
<p>Simply  put, if you forward the mail to 10 contacts, and they do the same in  good faith and the third circle does the same. &#8220;Roughly something like  this happens&#8221;</p>
<p><strong>1 + 10^1 + 10^2 + 10^3</strong> approximately 1000 email contacts will have been harvested in just three  circles, now this will keep growing depending on the number of forwards  to the amount of contacts forwarded to. And then you and your friends  start receiving some commercial mails from services that you never even  visited or heard of. And you wonder how on earth they did they get my  email. Well, you gave it to them; you actually helped them get even some  of your friend&#8217;s emails.</p>
<p>This is the effect of social  engineering, the mail will play with your psychological consciousness,  and you will think you are doing a good thing to respond; in return you  are falling for somebodies social engineering scam.</p>
<p><strong>Solution</strong></p>
<p>There  is no software to fight social engineering attacks, because it is you  that you will end up giving up information, or executing some processes,  or allowing some application to do something on your private sensitive  information. The important thing is to build awareness, change the  culture of the way we operate and disclose sensitive information.</p>
<p>To avoid becoming a victim of a social engineering attack:</p>
<ul>
<li>Be suspicious of unsolicited contacted from individuals seeking internal organizational data or personal information.</li>
<li>Do not provide personal information or passwords over email or on the phone.</li>
<li>Do not provide information about your organization.</li>
<li>Pay attention to website URLs that use a variation in spelling or a different domain (e.g.,.com vs..net).</li>
<li>Verify a request&#8217;s authenticity by contacting the company directly.</li>
<li>Install and maintain anti-virus software, firewalls, and email filters.</li>
</ul>
<p>If you think you are a victim of a social engineering attack:</p>
<ul>
<li>Report the incident immediately.</li>
<li>Contact your financial institution and monitor your account activity.</li>
<li>Immediately change all of your passwords.</li>
<li>Report the attack to the police, and file a report with the authority.</li>
</ul>
</div>
<div id="article-resource" style="text-align: justify;">
<p>I am Phesto Enock Mwakyusa, Owner and founder of Qusaz  intelligent solutions Ltd. I am a software engineer by profession,  currently working in Helsinki. I love what I do. I also do professional  training on different ICT related subjects on demand, I like adventures  road trips, exploring the beauty of Gods creation. I love music,  listening and playing. It has great emotional power in me, and lifts my  spirit high. Easy going and I like reading about new technology, impacts  and also write my opinions and thoughts through my blogs and article  databases like this.</p>
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