Universal Helper

Choosing a Commercial Web Host

2010-05-28T09:25:00.000-07:00

1. Reliability and speed of access
Not only should the web host be reliable and fast, it should guarantee its uptime (the time when it is functional). Look for a minimum uptime of 99%. In fact, even 99% is actually too low - it really should be 99.5% or higher. The host should provide some sort of refund (eg prorated refund or discount) if it falls below that figure. Note though that guarantees are often hard to enforce from your end - the host usually requires all sorts of documentation. However, without that guarantee, the web host will have little incentive to ensure that its servers are running all the time.

2. Data Transfer (Traffic/Bandwidth)
Data transfer (sometimes loosely referred to as "traffic" or "bandwidth") is the amount of bytes transferred from your site to visitors when they browse your site.
Don't believe any commercial web host that advertises "unlimited bandwidth". The host has to pay for the bandwidth, and if you consume a lot of it, they will not silently bear your costs. Many high bandwidth websites have found this out the hard way when they suddenly receive an exhorbitant bill for having "exceeded" the "unlimited bandwidth". Always look for details on how much traffic the package allows. I personally always stay clear of any host that advertises "unlimited transfer", even if the exact amount is specified somewhere else (sometimes buried in their policy statements). Usually you will find that they redefine "unlimited" to be limited in some way.

In addition, while bandwidth provided is something you should always check, do not be unduly swayed by promises of incredibly huge amounts of bandwidth. Chances are that your website will never be able to use that amount because it will hit other limits, namely resource limits.
To give you a rough idea of the typical traffic requirements of a website, most new sites that are not software archives or the like use less than 3 GB of bandwidth per month. Your traffic requirements will grow over time, as your site becomes more well-known (and well-linked), so you will need to also check their policy for overages: is there a published charge per GB over the allowed bandwidth? Is the charge made according to actual usage or are you expected to pre-pay for a potential overage? It is better not to go for hosts that expect you to prepay for overages, since it is very hard to forsee when your site will exceed its bandwidth and by how much.

3. Disk space
For the same reason as bandwidth, watch out also for those "unlimited disk space" schemes. Most sites need less than 10 MB of web space, so even if you are provided with a host that tempts you with 200 MB or 500 MB (or "unlimited space"), be aware that you are unlikely to use that space, so don't let the 500 MB space be too big a factor in your consideration when comparing with other web hosts. The hosting company is also aware of that, which is why they feel free to offer you that as a means of enticing you to host there. As a rough gauge, thefreecountry.com, which had about 150 pages when this article was first written, used less than 5 MB for its pages and associated files.

4. Technical support
Does its technical support function 24 hours a day, 7 days a week (often abbreviated 24/7), all year around? Note that I will not accept a host which does not have staff working on weekends or public holidays. You will be surprised at how often things go wrong at the most inconvenient of times. Incidentally, just because a host advertises that it has 24/7 support does not necessarily mean that it really has that kind of support. Test them out by emailing at midnight and on Saturday nights, Sunday mornings, etc. Check out how long they take to respond. Besides speed of responses, check to see if they are technically competent. You wouldn't want to sign up for a host that is run by a bunch of salesmen who only know how to sell and not fix problems.

5. FTP, PHP, Perl, SSI, .htaccess, telnet, SSH, MySQL, crontabs
If you are paying for a site, you really should make sure you have all of these.
Note that some commercial hosts do not allow you to install PHP or Perl scripts ("What is PHP and Perl?") without their approval. This is not desirable since it means that you have to wait for them before you can implement a feature on your site. ".htaccess" is needed if you are to do things like customize your error pages (pages that display when, say, a user requests for a non-existent page on your site) or to protect your site in various ways (such as to prevent bandwidth theft and hotlinking, etc).
Telnet or SSH access is useful for certain things, including testing certain scripts (programs), maintaining databases, etc. MySQL ("What is MySQL?") is needed if you want to run a blog or a content management system. Cron is a type of program scheduler that lets you run programs at certain times of the day (eg, once a day). Check to see if these facilities are provided.

6. SSL (secure server), Shopping Cart
If you are planning on doing any sort of business through your website, you might want to look out to see if the host provides these facilities. These facilities normally involve a higher priced package or additional charges. The main thing is to check to see if they are available at all before you commit to the host. You will definitely need SSL if you want to collect credit card payments on your site.

7. Email, Autoresponders, POP3, Mail Forwarding
If you have your own site, you would probably want to have email addresses at your own domain, like sales@yourdomain.com, etc. Does the host provide this with the package? Does it allow you to have a catch-all email account that causes any email address at your domain to be routed to you? Can you set an email address to automatically reply to the sender with a preset message (called an autoresponder)? Can you retrieve your mail with your email software? Can it be automatically forwarded to your current email address?

8. Control Panel
This is called various names by different hosts, but essentially, they all allow you to manage different aspects of your web account yourself. Typically, and at the very minimum, it should allow you to do things like add, delete, and manage your email addresses, and change passwords for your account. I would not go for a host where I have to go through their technical support each time I want to change a password or add/delete an email account. Such chores are common maintenance chores that every webmaster performs time and time again, and it would be a great hassle if you had to wait for their technical support to make the changes for you.

9. Multiple Domain Hosting and Subdomains
For those who are thinking of selling web space or having multiple domains or subdomains hosted in your account, you should look to see if they provide this, and the amount extra that they charge for this (whether it is a one-time or monthly charge, etc).

10. Server
Is the type of operating system and server important? Whether you think so or not on the theoretical level, there are a few practical reasons for looking out for the type of server.
In general, if you want to use things like write/use ASP programs, you have no choice but to look for a Windows server.
Otherwise my preference is to sign up for accounts using the often cheaper, more stable and feature-laden Unix systems running the Apache server. In fact, if dynamically generated pages that can access databases (etc) is what you want, you can always use the more portable (and popular) PHP instead of tying yourself down to ASP. Another reason to prefer Unix-based web hosts (which include web hosts using systems like Linux, FreeBSD, OpenBSD, Solaris, etc) using the Apache web server is that these servers allow you to configure a lot of facilities that you typically need on your site (error pages, protecting your images, blocking email harvesters, blocking IP addresses, etc) without having to ask your web host to implement them. Knowledge about configuring Apache servers is also widely available, and can be found on thesitewizard.com's Configuring Apache and .htaccess pages as well.

11. Price
I was actually hesitant to list this, but I guess it's futile not to. However, I would caution that while price is always a factor, you should realise that you often get what you pay for, although it's not necessarily true that the most expensive hosts are the best.

12. Monthly/Quarterly/Annual Payment Plans
Most web hosts allow you to select an annual payment plan that gives you a cheaper rate than if you were to pay monthly. My current personal preference is to pay monthly with all new web hosts until I'm assured of their reliability and honesty. Paying monthly allows me to switch web hosts quickly when I find that the current host does not meet my requirements: this way, I'm not tied down to a bad web host because I have prepaid for an entire year. I do this even if the new web host guarantees that they will refund the balance if I'm dissatisfied, since at the point I sign up, I have no assurance that they will honour their guarantee. Later (usually after many months or even more than a year), when I'm satisfied with the host, I often change payment plans to the discounted annual plans.

13. Resellers?
Not all hosting companies own or lease their own web servers. Some of them are actually resellers for some other hosting company. The disadvantage of using a reseller is the possibility that you are dealing with people who don't know much about the system they are selling and who take longer to help you (they have to transmit your technical support request to the actual hosting company for it to be acted upon). However, this also depends on both the reseller and the underlying hosting company. It is thus wise not to rule out all resellers; there are a number of reliable and fast ones who are actually quite good and cheap. In fact, a number of resellers sell the same packages cheaper than their original hosting company. If you find out that a particular company is a reseller, you will need to investigate both the reseller and the real hosting company.

14. International
If you don't stay in the USA, you have the option of hosting your site with some local provider. The advantage here is the ease of dealing with them (they are after all easily accessible by phone call or a visit), your familiarity with the local laws and easy recourse to those laws should it be necessary. It should be your choice if your target audience is local (eg a local fast food delivery service). On the other hand, hosting it in USA has the advantage of faster access for what is probably the largest number of your overseas visitors (particularly if you have an English-speaking audience). You also have a large number of hosting companies to choose from, and as a result, cheaper prices too.

15. Others' Reviews
You should make it a point to check out what others have to say about the web host. Some of the places you can do this include:
o The newsgroup news:alt.www.webmaster. As you should always do when reading reviews (of anything), read the reviews posted here with a pinch of salt. Some glowing reviews may come from people working for the web host itself, disguised as multiple satisfied customers. Likewise, negative reviews of a particular host can sometimes come from unscrupulous competitors of that host.
o thesitewizard.com's review, "Which Web Host Would You Recommend? (FAQ)", found at http://www.thesitewizard.com/archive/webhosting.shtml
Don't skip this step, or you might find yourself being suckered by a host that everyone else is steering clear of.

The Myth of the Perfect Commercial Host
In general, I doubt that there are any "perfect" web hosting companies around. Note that even if you are prepared to pay a huge price for your hosting needs, it does not guarantee that your host is any good. This is an interesting industry where a high price does not necessarily yield quality hosting and support.

On the other hand, one thing you can probably be sure of is that you will not get top-notched support if you only pay (say) $5 a month. At that price, which company can afford to hire enough good help to cater to all its users?

Dedicated hosting service

2010-05-28T09:22:00.004-07:00

A dedicated hosting service, dedicated server, or managed hosting service is a type of Internet hosting in which the client leases an entire server not shared with anyone. This is more flexible than shared hosting, as organizations have full control over the server(s), including choice of operating system, hardware, etc. Server administration can usually be provided by the hosting company as an add-on service. In some cases a dedicated server can offer less overhead and a larger return on investment. Dedicated servers are most often housed in data centers, similar to colocation facilities, providing redundant power sources and HVAC systems. In contrast to colocation, the server hardware is owned by the provider and in some cases they will provide support for your operating system or applications.

Operating system support
Availability, price and employee familiarity often determines which operating systems are offered on dedicated servers. Variations of Linux and Unix (open source operating systems) are often included at no charge to the customer. Commercial operating systems include Microsoft Windows Server, provided through a special program called Microsoft SPLA. Red Hat Enterprise is a commercial version of Linux offered to hosting providers on a monthly fee basis. The monthly fee provides OS updates through the Red Hat Network using an application called yum. Other operating systems are available from the open source community at no charge. These include CentOS, Fedora Core, Debian, and many other Linux distributions or BSD systems FreeBSD, NetBSD, OpenBSD.

Support for any of these operating systems typically depends on the level of management offered with a particular dedicated server plan. Operating system support may include updates to the core system in order to acquire the latest security fixes, patches, and system-wide vulnerability resolutions. Updates to core operating systems include kernel upgrades, service packs, application updates, and security patches that keep server secure and safe. Operating system updates and support relieves the burden of server management from the dedicated server owner.

Bandwidth and connectivity
Bandwidth refers to the data transfer rate or the amount of data that can be carried from one point to another in a given time period (usually a second) and is often represented in bits (of data) per second (bit/s). For example, visitors to your server, web site, or applications utilize bandwidth as the traffic moves from your server to the Internet and vice versa. Connectivity refers to the “access providers” that supply bandwidth, or data transfer rate, through various connection points across a network or footprint to one or multiple data centers where dedicated servers are housed.
Bandwidth measurements are defined (per telecom standards) as the following:
• First – 95th (measured using average bits and speed of transfer)
• Second – Unmetered (measured in speed or bits)
• Third – Total Transfer (measured in bytes transferred)

95th Method: line speed, billed on the 95th percentile, average or peak usage, refers to the speed in which data flows from the server or device. Line speed is measured in bits per second (or kilobits per second, megabits per second or gigabits per second).
Unmetered Method: The second bandwidth measurement is unmetered service where providers cap or control the “top line” speed for a server. Top line speed in unmetered bandwidth is the total Mbit/s allocated to the server and configured on the switch level. For example, if you purchase 10 Mbit/s unmetered bandwidth, the top line speed would be 10 Mbit/s. 10 Mbit/s would result in the provider controlling the speed transfers take place while providing the ability for the dedicated server owner to not be charged with bandwidth overages. Unmetered bandwidth services usually incur an additional charge.
Total Transfer Method: Some providers will calculate the Total Transfer, the measurement of actual data leaving and arriving, measured in bytes. Measurement between providers varies, though it is either the total traffic in, the total traffic out, whichever is the greater or the sum of the two.

One of the reasons for choosing to outsource dedicated servers is the availability of high powered networks from multiple providers. As dedicated server providers utilize massive amounts of bandwidth, they are able to secure lower volume based pricing to include a multi-provider blend of bandwidth. To achieve the same type of network without a multi-provider blend of bandwidth, a large investment in core routers, long term contracts, and expensive monthly bills would need to be in place. The expenses needed to develop a network without a multi-provider blend of bandwidth does not make sense economically for hosting providers.

Many dedicated server providers include a service level agreement based on network uptime. Some dedicated server hosting providers offer a 100% uptime guarantee on their network. By securing multiple vendors for connectivity and using redundant hardware, providers are able to guarantee higher uptimes; usually between 99-100% uptime if they are a higher quality provider. One aspect of higher quality providers is they are most likely to be multi-homed across multiple quality uplink providers, which in turn, provides significant redundancy in the event one goes down in addition to potentially improved routes to destinations.

Bandwidth consumption over the last several years has shifted from a per megabit usage model to a per gigabyte usage model. Bandwidth was traditionally measured in line speed access that included the ability to purchase needed megabits at a given monthly cost. As the shared hosting model developed, the trend towards gigabyte or total bytes transferred, replaced the megabit line speed model so dedicated server providers started offering per gigabyte.

Prominent players in the dedicated server market offer large amounts of bandwidth ranging from 500 gigabytes to 3000 gigabytes using the “overselling” model. It is not uncommon for major players to provide dedicated servers with 1Terabyte (TB) of bandwidth or higher. Usage models based on the byte level measurement usually include a given amount of bandwidth with each server and a price per gigabyte after a certain threshold has been reached. Expect to pay additional fees for bandwidth overage usage. For example, if a dedicated server has been given 3000 gigabytes of bandwidth per month and the customer uses 5000 gigabytes of bandwidth within the billing period, the additional 2000 gigabytes of bandwidth will be invoiced as bandwidth overage. Each provider has a different model for billing. As of yet, no industry standards have been set.

Management
To date, no industry standards have been set to clearly define the management role of dedicated server providers. What this means is that each provider will use industry standard terms, but each provider will define them differently. For some dedicated server providers, fully managed is defined as having a web based control panel while other providers define it as having dedicated system engineers readily available to handle all server and network related functions of the dedicated server provider.
Server management can include some or all of the following:
• Operating system updates
• Application updates
• Server monitoring
• SNMP hardware monitoring
• Application monitoring
• Application management
• Technical support
• Firewall services
• Antivirus updates
• Security audits
• DDoS protection and mitigation
• Intrusion detection
• Backups and restoration
• Disaster recovery
• DNS hosting service
• Load balancing
• Database administration
• Performance tuning
• Software installation and configuration
• User management
• Programming consultation

Dedicated hosting server providers define their level of management based on the services they provide. In comparison, fully managed could equal self managed from provider to provider.
Administrative maintenance of the operating system, often including upgrades, security patches, and sometimes even daemon updates are included. Differing levels of management may include adding users, domains, daemon configuration, or even custom programming.

Dedicated server hosting providers may provide the following types of server managed support:
• Fully Managed - Includes monitoring, software updates, reboots, security patches and operating system upgrades. Customers are completely hands-off.
• Managed - Includes medium level of management, monitoring, updates, and a limited amount of support. Customers may perform specific tasks.
• Self Managed - Includes regular monitoring and some maintenance. Customers provide most operations and tasks on dedicated server.
• Unmanaged - Little to no involvement from service provider. Customers provide all maintenance, upgrades, patches, and security.
Note: The provider will continue to maintain security on the network regardless of support level.

Security
Dedicated hosting server providers utilize extreme security measures to ensure the safety of data stored on their network of servers. Providers will often deploy various software programs for scanning systems and networks for obtrusive invaders, spammers, hackers, and other harmful problems such as Trojans, worms, eggdrops and crashers (Sending multiple connections). Linux and Windows use different software for security protection.

Software
Providers often bill for dedicated servers on a fixed monthly price to include specific software packages. Over the years, software vendors realized the significant market opportunity to bundle their software with dedicated servers. They have since started introducing pricing models that allow dedicated hosting providers the ability to purchase and resell software based on reduced monthly fees.

Microsoft offers software licenses through a program called the Service Provider License Agreement. The SPLA model provides use of Microsoft products through a monthly user or processor based fee. SPLA software includes the Windows Operating System, Microsoft SQL Server, Microsoft Exchange Server, Microsoft SharePoint and shoutcast hosting, and many other server based products.

Dedicated Server Providers usually offer the ability to select the software you want installed on a dedicated server. Depending on the overall usage of the server, this will include your choice of operating system, database, and specific applications. Servers can be customized and tailored specific to the customer’s needs and requirements.
Other software applications available are specialized web hosting specific programs called control panels. Control panel software is an all inclusive set of software applications, server applications, and automation tools that can be installed on a dedicated server. Control panels include integration into web servers, database applications, programming languages, application deployment, server administration tasks, and include the ability to automate tasks via a web based front end.

Most dedicated servers are packaged with a control panel. Control panels are often confused with management tools, but these control panels are actually web based automation tools created to help automate the process of web site creation and server management. Control panels should not be confused with a full server management solution by a dedicated hosting provider.

Limitations
Many providers do not allow IRC (bots, clients or daemons). This is due to rogue IRC users triggering DDoS attacks against the provider, which may overwhelm their networks, lowering service quality for all customers.

• Adult content is disallowed by many providers as it may either be of questionable legality or consume large amounts of bandwidth.
• Copyright violation Hosting copyrighted material of which you do not own the copyright to is against the terms of service of most hosting companies.

How to Choose a Web Host

2010-05-28T09:22:00.003-07:00

Choosing a Free Web Host

1. Advertising
Most free web hosts impose advertising on your website. This is done to cover the costs of providing your site the free web space and associated services. Some hosts require you to place a banner on your pages, others display a window that pops up everytime a page on your site loads, while still others impose an advertising frame on your site. There is really no hard and fast rule which is to be preferred: some people hate a pop-up window, other webmasters dislike having to stuff banner codes onto their pages, and many people cannot stand an advertising frame (which may cause problems when you submit your website to search engines). Whichever method is used, check that you're comfortable with the method.

Note that free web hosts without forced advertisements aren't necessarily good news. Without a viable means to recover the costs of running their server, many of them close with alarming frequency.

2. Amount of web space
Does it have enough space for your needs? If you envisage that you will expand your site eventually, you might want to cater for future expansion. Most sites use less than 5MB of web space. Indeed, at one time, one of my other web sites, thefreecountry.com, used less than 5MB of space although it had about 150 pages on the site. Your needs will vary, depending on how many pictures your pages use, whether you need sound files, video clips, etc.

3. FTP access
Some free hosting providers only allow you to design your page with their online builder. While this is useful for beginners, do you have the option to expand later when you become experienced and their online page builder does not have the facility you need? FTP access, or at the very least, the ability to upload your pages by email or browser, is needed. Personally, I feel FTP access is mandatory, except for the most trivial site.

4. File type and size limitations
Watch out for these. Some free hosts impose a maximum size on each of the files you upload (including one with a low of 200KB). Other sites restrict the file types you can upload to HTML and GIF/JPG files. If your needs are different, eg, if you want to distribute your own programs on your pages, you will have to look elsewhere.

5. Reliability and speed of access
This is extremely important. A site that is frequently down will lose a lot of visitors. If someone finds your site on the search engine, and he tries to access it but find that it is down, he'll simply go down the list to find another site. Slow access is also very frustrating for visitors (and for you too, when you upload your site). How do you know if a host is reliable or fast? If you can't get feedback from anyone, one way is to try it out yourself over a period of time, both during peak as well as non-peak hours. After all, it is free, so you can always experiment with it.

6. Perl and PHP
This is not particularly crucial nowadays for a free web host, since there are so many free script hosting services available that provide counters, search engines, forms, polls, mailing lists, etc, without requiring you to dabble with Perl or PHP scripts.
However if you really want to do it yourself, with the minimum of advertising banners from these free providers, you will need either PHP or Perl access. Note that it is not enough to know they provide PHP or Perl access: you need to know the kind of environment your scripts run under: is it so restrictive that they are of no earthly use? For PHP scripts, does your web host allow you to use the mail() function? For Perl scripts, do you have access to sendmail or its workalike?

7. Bandwidth allotment
Nowadays, many free web hosts impose a limit on the amount of traffic your website can use per day and per month. This means that if the pages (and graphic images) on your site is loaded by visitors beyond a certain number of times per day (or per month), the web host will disable your web site (or perhaps send you a bill). It is difficult to recommend a specific minimum amount of bandwidth, since it depends on how you design your site, your target audience, and the number of visitors you're able to attract to your site. In general, 100MB traffic per month is too little for anything other than your personal home page and 1-3GB traffic per month is usually adequate for a simple site just starting out. Your mileage, however, will vary.

Windows vs. Linux Web Hosting - Pros/Cons

2010-05-28T09:22:00.002-07:00

One of the choices many users have to make when choosing web hosting provider they're going to stay within the years to come is about the Web hosting operating system. While there are tons of operating systems a web hosting company could run internally on, or as a platform for their clients' sites, usually the choice of operating systems boils down to Linux and Windows.

Linux and Windows are the two major Web hosting operating systems. Traditionally Linux was the first operating system to be used in Web hosting but Windows is catching on quickly. Both operating systems have their pros and cons and as you have probably guessed, in some cases one of them is the better choice, and in other cases it is just the opposite.

The choice between Linux and Windows is strongly affected by personal preferences of the one making the choice. Linux and Windows are two major operating systems - one of them (Linux) is open source, while the other (Windows) doesn't share its source code with the world. Both camps have their supporters and to some extent it is true to say that the discussion if Windows or Linux web hosting is better is a "religious" debate about open source vs proprietary software in general. In a sense, the dispute Windows vs Linux web hosting is like the brunettes versus blondes dispute - both contenders have pros and cons and it is largely a matter of personal preferences.

Anyway, in order to help you make an informed decision about Linux and Windows web hosting, we'll try to summarize some of the main points to have in mind before you make the decision:

• Do your applications demand OS or the other? One of the most important issues to consider when choosing Windows or Linux web hosting is what applications you will run on your server. Many applications can be run on both Windows and Linux and some applications are only made for one of the platforms and ported for the other. Still there are cases, when the applications you plan to run are a limitation and they force you choose Linux or Windows.

Even if your applications are ported from the other operating system, generally these applications work best in their native environment - i.e. Apache on Linux, .NET on Windows, so if you are tied to a technology, actually your choice (fortunately or unfortunately) has already been made. In any case, you need to make sure in advance which operating system your applications demand because migrating a site later is not fun.

• Is security vital for you? There is hardly a web master, who will say that he or she doesn't care about security. However, in some cases security is especially vital and you can't afford to make compromises with that. Generally speaking, Linux is considered to be more secure (especially the security-enhanced distros) but Windows can also be secured well, if the administrators know their job. So, in terms of security there is no clear winner - you can have Linux and a poor administrator and this is more of a security risk than Windows and a real pro to administer it.

• Price. As a rule, hosting packages that use Linux are cheaper and this is not at the expense of quality! Linux hosting packages are cheaper because Linux is free, while Windows costs money and your hosting provider has to charge you a few cents/dollars more because of the licensing fee he or she has paid for Windows. However, all equal, in most cases the difference in price due to the operating system used is quite negligible and it is hardly a critical factor.

• Training. Another thing to take into consideration is the ease of use. In the case of Windows vs. Linux web hosting, the difference is also negligible. Whatever you choose, the learning curve for you won't be much different. If you are using Windows as your desktop operating system, don't panic about if you choose Linux, that you will have to learn tons of new things - more often than not you will be using Web-based applications to access your site, so whatever operating system you pick, these applications are more or less the same (actually, chances are that you will be using mainly a web browser and/or a FTP client to access your site).

• Your test server. Another limitation you might have in your choice between Linux and Windows web hosting comes from the operating system of your test server. It is really wise to have a test server, where you deploy your changes and test them prior to uploading them to your live site. If for some reasons you can't get a test server with the operating system of your choice (for instance, your company regulations dictate that you only use Windows), then this is also a limitation. However, unlike applications tied to one operating system, it is easier to find a workaround to this problem - if nothing else is possible, you could set a test server with the operating system of your choice at home and connect remotely to it to test your changes.

• Your personal preferences. Finally, one more pro/con you need to take into account, are your personal preferences. We have already mentioned that the dispute if Windows or Linux is better as a web hosting operating system is not exactly a rational one (except for the applications/technologies, which run only on one of these operating systems), so your personal preferences could be the strongest pro/con in the decision-making process.

Are you confused regarding which one that is the better choice? Don't be - there is no clear answer to this question! Actually, in most cases it doesn't matter if you choose Windows or Linux as your web hosting platform - what matters more is that you choose a reliable provider with little or no downtime, good bandwidth, and affordable (which doesn't necessarily mean low) prices. If your applications/technologies don't force you to choose Linux or Windows, whatever you pick, is a good choice!

Shared web hosting service

2010-05-28T09:22:00.001-07:00

A shared web hosting service or virtual hosting service or derive host refers to a web hosting service where many websites reside on one web server connected to the Internet. Each site "sits" on its own partition, or section/place on the server to keep it separate from other sites. This is generally the most economical option for hosting, as many people share the overall cost of server maintenance.

Description
The hosting service must include system administration since it is shared by many users; this is a benefit for users who do not want to deal with it, but a hindrance to power users who want more control. In general shared hosting will be inappropriate for users who require extensive software development outside what the hosting provider supports. Almost all applications intended to be on a standard web server work fine with a shared web hosting service. But on the other hand, shared hosting is cheaper than other types of hosting such as dedicated server hosting. Shared hosting usually has usage limits and most hosting providers have extensive reliability features in place.

Shared hosting typically uses a web-based control panel system, such as cPanel, Ensim, DirectAdmin, Plesk, InterWorx, H-Sphere or one of many other control panel products. Most of the large hosting companies use their own custom developed control panel. Control panels and web interfaces can cause controversy however, since web hosting companies sometimes sell the right to use their control panel system to others. Attempting to recreate the functionality of a specific control panel is common, which leads to many lawsuits over patent infringement.

In shared hosting, the provider is generally responsible for managing servers, installing server software, security updates, technical support, and other aspects of the service. Most servers are based on the Linux operating system and LAMP (software bundle), which is driven by the low cost of open source software. But some providers offer Microsoft Windows-based or FreeBSD-based solutions. For example, the Plesk and Ensim control panels are both available for two operating systems, Linux and Windows. Versions for either OS have very similar interfaces and functionality, with the exception of OS-specific differences (for example: ASP.NET, SQL Server and Access support under Windows; MySQL under Linux).

There are thousands of shared hosting providers in the United States alone. They range from mom-and-pop shops and small design firms to multi-million-dollar providers with hundreds of thousands of customers. A large portion of the shared web hosting market is driven through pay per click (PPC) advertising or Affiliate programs.

Shared web hosting can also be done privately by sharing the cost of running a server in a colocation centre; this is called cooperative hosting.

Implementation
Shared web hosting can be accomplished in two ways: name-based and IP-based, although some control panels allow a mix of name-based and IP-based on the one server.

Name-based
In name-based virtual hosting, also called shared IP hosting, the virtual hosts serve multiple hostnames on a single machine with a single IP address.
When a web browser requests a resource from a web server using HTTP/1.1 it includes the requested hostname as part of the request. The server uses this information to determine which web site to show the user.

IP-based
In IP-based virtual hosting, also called dedicated IP hosting, each virtual host has a different IP address. The web server is configured with multiple physical network interfaces, or virtual network interfaces on the same physical interface. The web server software uses the IP address the client connects to in order to determine which web site to show the user. The primary reason for a site to use a dedicated IP is to be able to use its own SSL certificate rather than a shared certificate.

Disadvantages
Name-based virtual hosts have some disadvantages:
• They do not properly support secure websites (HTTPS). All name-based virtual hosts using the same IP address must share the same digital certificate. This is because the SSL/TLS handshake takes place before the hostname is sent to the server. Thus the server doesn't know which encryption key to use when the connection is made. An extension to the TLS protocol, part of RFC 3546 - Transport Layer Security (TLS) Extensions, specifies a way for the client to provide the requested host name as part of the handshake, but it is not yet widely implemented. Some of the shared hosting providers require their customers to get Unique IP in order to properly set up HTTPS.
• If the Domain Name System is malfunctioning, it is harder to use a name-based virtually-hosted website. Ordinarily, in this case, the user could fall back to using the IP address to contact the system, as in http://192.0.2.0/ (invalid IP for example only). However, the web browser doesn't know what hostname to send to the server, but a name-based virtual host requires it. In this case, the default web host is sent back to the browser for that IP address. Therefore most hosters offer an alternative access method like http://192.0.2.0/~virtualhostname to provide access in such cases.
• They will not work with browsers that do not send the hostname as part of requests. This is true for older HTTP/1.0 browsers that have not retrofitted the host field feature from the HTTP/1.1 protocol. (The "Host" header that distinguishes between various DNS names sharing a single IP address was optional in HTTP/1.0; it is mandatory in HTTP/1.1, issued in 1999 as RFC 2616.) Since nearly every webbrowser that is currently used supports the HTTP/1.1 protocol and thus also virtual hosting, this is not a real issue.
• Improperly configured file permissions with shared file systems might give other (compromised) users or processes system-wide access to these files, such as credential files for database access or modification of existing files.

Web hosting service

2010-05-28T09:22:00.000-07:00

A webhosting service is a type of Internet hosting service that allows individuals and organizations to make their own website accessible via the World Wide Web. Web hosts are companies that provide space on a server they own or lease for use by their clients as well as providing Internet connectivity, typically in a data center. Web hosts can also provide data center space and connectivity to the Internet for servers they do not own to be located in their data center, called colocation.

The scope of hosting services varies widely. The most basic is web page and small-scale file hosting, where files can be uploaded via File Transfer Protocol (FTP) or a Web interface. The files are usually delivered to the Web "as is" or with little processing. Many Internet service providers (ISPs) offer this service free to their subscribers. People can also obtain Web page hosting from other, alternative service providers. Personal web site hosting is typically free, advertisement-sponsored, or inexpensive. Business web site hosting often has a higher expense.
Single page hosting is generally sufficient only for personal web pages. A complex site calls for a more comprehensive package that provides database support and application development platforms (e.g. PHP, Java, Ruby on Rails, ColdFusion, and ASP.NET). These facilities allow the customers to write or install scripts for applications like forums and content management. For e-commerce, SSL is also highly recommended.

The host may also provide an interface or control panel for managing the Web server and installing scripts as well as other services like e-mail. Some hosts specialize in certain software or services (e.g. e-commerce). They are commonly used by larger companies to outsource network infrastructure to a hosting company.

Hosting reliability and uptime
Hosting uptime refers to the percentage of time the host is accessible via the internet. Many providers state that they aim for at least 99.9% uptime (roughly equivalent to 45 minutes of downtime a month, or less), but there may be server restarts and planned (or unplanned) maintenance in any hosting environment, which may or may not be considered part of the official uptime promise.

Many providers tie uptime and accessibility into their own service level agreement (SLA). SLAs sometimes include refunds or reduced costs if performance goals are not met.

Types of hosting
Internet hosting services can run Web servers; see Internet hosting services.
Hosting services limited to the Web:
Many large companies who are not internet service providers also need a computer permanently connected to the web so they can send email, files, etc. to other sites. They may also use the computer as a website host so they can provide details of their goods and services to anyone interested. Additionally these people may decide to place online orders.
• Free web hosting service: offered by different companies with limited services, sometimes supported by advertisements, and often limited when compared to paid hosting.
• Shared web hosting service: one's website is placed on the same server as many other sites, ranging from a few to hundreds or thousands. Typically, all domains may share a common pool of server resources, such as RAM and the CPU. The features available with this type of service can be quite extensive. A shared website may be hosted with a reseller.
• Reseller web hosting: allows clients to become web hosts themselves. Resellers could function, for individual domains, under any combination of these listed types of hosting, depending on who they are affiliated with as a provider. Resellers' accounts may vary tremendously in size: they may have their own virtual dedicated server to a collocated server. Many resellers provide a nearly identical service to their provider's shared hosting plan and provide the technical support themselves.
• Virtual Dedicated Server: also known as a Virtual Private Server (VPS), divides server resources into virtual servers, where resources can be allocated in a way that does not directly reflect the underlying hardware. VPS will often be allocated resources based on a one server to many VPSs relationship, however virtualisation may be done for a number of reasons, including the ability to move a VPS container between servers. The users may have root access to their own virtual space. Customers are sometimes responsible for patching and maintaining the server.
• Dedicated hosting service: the user gets his or her own Web server and gains full control over it (root access for Linux/administrator access for Windows); however, the user typically does not own the server. Another type of Dedicated hosting is Self-Managed or Unmanaged. This is usually the least expensive for Dedicated plans. The user has full administrative access to the box, which means the client is responsible for the security and maintenance of his own dedicated box.
• Managed hosting service: the user gets his or her own Web server but is not allowed full control over it (root access for Linux/administrator access for Windows); however, they are allowed to manage their data via FTP or other remote management tools. The user is disallowed full control so that the provider can guarantee quality of service by not allowing the user to modify the server or potentially create configuration problems. The user typically does not own the server. The server is leased to the client.
• Colocation web hosting service: similar to the dedicated web hosting service, but the user owns the colo server; the hosting company provides physical space that the server takes up and takes care of the server. This is the most powerful and expensive type of web hosting service. In most cases, the colocation provider may provide little to no support directly for their client's machine, providing only the electrical, Internet access, and storage facilities for the server. In most cases for colo, the client would have his own administrator visit the data center on site to do any hardware upgrades or changes.
• Cloud Hosting: is a new type of hosting platform that allows customers powerful, scalable and reliable hosting based on clustered load-balanced servers and utility billing. Removing single-point of failures and allowing customers to pay for only what they use versus what they could use.
• Clustered hosting: having multiple servers hosting the same content for better resource utilization. Clustered Servers are a perfect solution for high-availability dedicated hosting, or creating a scalable web hosting solution. A cluster may separate web serving from database hosting capability.
• Grid hosting: this form of distributed hosting is when a server cluster acts like a grid and is composed of multiple nodes.
• Home server: usually a single machine placed in a private residence can be used to host one or more web sites from a usually consumer-grade broadband connection. These can be purpose-built machines or more commonly old PCs. Some ISPs actively attempt to block home servers by disallowing incoming requests to TCP port 80 of the user's connection and by refusing to provide static IP addresses. A common way to attain a reliable DNS hostname is by creating an account with a dynamic DNS service. A dynamic DNS service will automatically change the IP address that a URL points to when the IP address changes.

Some specific types of hosting provided by web host service providers:
• File hosting service: hosts files, not web pages
• Image hosting service
• Video hosting service
• Blog hosting service
• One-click hosting
• Pastebin Hosts text snippets
• Shopping cart software
• E-mail hosting service

Obtaining hosting
Web hosting is often provided as part of a general Internet access plan; there are many free and paid providers offering these services.
A customer needs to evaluate the requirements of the application to choose what kind of hosting to use. Such considerations include database server software, scripting software, and operating system. Most hosting providers provide Linux-based web hosting which offers a wide range of different software. A typical configuration for a Linux server is the LAMP platform: Linux, Apache, MySQL, and PHP/Perl/Python. The webhosting client may want to have other services, such as email for their business domain, databases or multi-media services for streaming media. A customer may also choose Windows as the hosting platform. The customer still can choose from PHP, Perl, and Python but may also use ASP .Net or Classic ASP. Web hosting packages often include a Web Content Management System, so the end-user doesn't have to worry about the more technical aspects.

3 Steps in Publishing Your Website

2010-05-28T09:21:00.000-07:00

You want to know how to publish your website onto the web. This article has broken it down to three steps in which you will 1: - Create a website 2: - Get a hosting plan (including a domain name) for it and ultimately 3: - Publishing it using a recommended FTP client. Take these three steps and you will have a website published at www.yourwebsite.com in no time.
The three essential steps to publish your website onto the web are:

1. Creating your website
First you have to create a website. Depending on your level on knowledge in web development you have the following options. Either you can create the site yourself through manual programming in an editor program like Dreamweaver, Edit Plus or Notepad. Otherwise there are a number of open source alternatives available without any requirement of prior programming knowledge.

Using Wordpress
Wordpress.org is one free content management system that is used by millions of blogging laymen. With it comes a whole system that makes it easy to add new content to your site and already made web design themes for you to choose between. If interested, learn more about how to create your own Wordpress theme.

Other alternatives
Joomla is another free CMS software which basically creates the site for you and eases the task of content administration. The only thing you have to do is to install it properly. In addition to this, you are also normally granted free access to site-building tools when you sign up for a hosting plan.

2. Get a hosting plan
Next step is to find somewhere online to put your website files and assign an address to that somewhere. Any given hosting plan include storage space on a web server and a domain name registration. Depending on what size your website has and potential traffic volume it's going to generate, you get a hosting plan based on three factors - storage space, bandwidth and CPU. Nowadays, there are many qualitative and cheap webhosting plans to choose between.
For all of you into blogging, there are also many great Wordpress webhosts offering cheap hosting that is tailored to support this CMS.

3. Upload your files/Publish your website
Upload your files to the root directory of your purchased web hosting server space. You can do this either by using your hosting account's inhouse file manager, but those are often slow and manage large file volume poorly. Our recomendation is to get your hands on a FTP client. More specifically, a FireFox add-on by the name FireFTP. It will allow you to access your hosting account directly in the web browser and transfer website files with ease.

Assuming that are new to site building and all that web developments entiles, for you to get a website up and running sooner rather than later, we suggest you follow the steps above. Use open source and the blessing of freeware. Get a hosting plan that matches your needs and publish your files through a FTP client like FireFtp. There will be things to rememeber and learn along the way, but if you follow this path, or these guidelines, creating a website will not seem so impossible.

All About Internationalized Domain Names

2010-05-28T09:18:00.000-07:00

Thanks to Internationalized Domain Names (IDNs), the Internet is becoming truly global. IDNs were long waited for and even though there are some concerns in relation to them, there is no doubt that IDNs will move the Internet one step further.

What Is So Special About IDNs?

If the only language you use is English, you will hardly fully appreciate IDNs, but for billions of people all over the world, who are bilingual, or who don't use English at all, Internationalized Domain Names are a remarkable step in the development of Internet. According to the definition of ICANN, "Internationalized Domain Names (IDNs) are domain names represented by local language characters. Such domain names could contain letters or characters from non-ASCII scripts (for example, Arabic or Chinese). "

However, IDNs are not limited to languages with only non-Latin alphabets, such as Arabic or Chinese. Many languages, which use a Latin-based alphabet, such as Spanish, German, French, or to some extent Russian, will also benefit from IDNs because now it will be possible to write domain names in these languages exactly like the words are supposed to be spelled rather than transcribing them into English. For instance, if you wanted to have a German domain such as Bucher.com (Books.com), you couldn’t use the umlaut symbol and you had to write it either as Bucher.com, or transcribe it using “ue” notation for umlaut (i.e., Buecher.com). For a German speaker both workaround variants were readable but still they were workaround, not a solution. Now, with IDNs, these issues are history.

Unlike domain names up to here, which used only ASCII symbols, IDNs use Punycode. It was this ASCII limitation that didn't allow for non-ASCII symbols in URLs and domain names. This limitation wasn't in vain because the whole Domain Name System (DNS) was designed to work only with ASCII symbols. A modification to the Domain Name System was required in order to make IDNs happen. In other words, it was necessary to find an acceptable way to translate non-ASCII domain names into ASCII symbols, which then can be resolved into an IP address. After decades of hard work, finally a solution was reached and at the end of 2009, IDNs became a reality.

Internationalized Domain Names Are a Step Towards the True Internationalization of the Web
IDNs were long waited for and it is not an exaggeration to say that their role in the development of the Internet is similar to a revolution. IDNs will have many positive impacts, some of which are:

1. The Internet is becoming really global. English might be the most popular language in the world but there are so many people who don't use it, or who use other languages together with it. Until now these billions of people were deprived of the possibility to have domain names and URLs in their own language. Now, when this is history, it can be presumed that the Internet will reach many more people, who previously were either completely offline, or who used the Internet only in a limited way.

2. More user-friendly. Even people who are fluent in English will be glad when they can write a domain name or an URL exactly the way it is supposed to be written - i.e. without substituting the special symbols in Latin-based languages, or without transcribing non-Latin languages into English.

3. More domains will be available. Good domain names are hard to find because it seems that all of them, especially the .com TLDs, are already taken. Now, when more symbols can be used in a domain name, there are many more domains available. If you add plurals and other derivatives to that, the number of potential domains almost seems endless.

4. A new business niche for domain registrars. IDNs are still categorized as news but there are already domain name registrars, who offer registration for different Internationalized Domain Names. IDNs will become a hot business niche in the next years, especially for registrars from countries where non-Latin languages are native.

IDNs are a great step towards the true internationalization of the Web. It might seem as if this step should have been taken many years ago but the technical, as well as some other concerns, that prevented it from happening are too serious to be neglected. Some of these concerns are still not resolved but nevertheless, we can congratulate ourselves for welcoming IDNs.

IDN Concerns
As we just mentioned, IDNs were not implemented earlier not because ICANN didn't want to but because of technical, as well as some other, issues. Fortunately, the main technical issues have been solved but this doesn't mean that there are no outstanding ones. IDNs pose a lot of concerns and some of them are:

1. Scams are easier because different domains look exactly the same. The major concern is that now, when symbols from different alphabets can be used, this will make it easier for scammers to fake legitimate domains. For instance, all these three domains look exactly the same: webhostingsearch.com, webhostingsearch.com, and webhostingsearch.com. However, only the first one is the actual webhostingsearch.com domain because in the other two only one letter (the first "E" in the first domain name and the second "E" in the second domain name) is actually the Cyrillic letter "E", which looks exactly the same as the Latin letter "E" but it is a different Punycode symbol and as a result it is a totally different domain. For an end user this subtle difference is quite unnoticeable and it is really easy to fool him or her with a domain name, which looks so much exactly like a legitimate domain but is a phish.

2. Multiple spellings of the same name. In addition to different domain names that look exactly the same, another concern is that in some languages it is possible to spell a domain name in many ways (all of which are correct). For instance, in Hebrew it is common to omit vowels, so actually you can end with 3-4 alternative spellings for the same word. The situation in Chinese is even worse. Well, this doesn't mean that you need to register domains with all the alternative spellings but if you don't do it, your competitors can take advantage of that and register the free alternative spellings of your domain name.

3. A language barrier. An IDN domain name poses a language barrier for everybody who doesn't know the language. It is possible that you have a domain name in Chinese and texts in English (or at least an English version of your site) and in this case a foreigner, who doesn't know Chinese can arrive at your site only by following a hyperlink and not by typing the URL in the browser. IDNs are great only if a site doesn't have international users but for a site with a large international audience they are a language barrier.

4. Browser support/DNS issues. Though all the major browsers say that they do support IDNs (or that they plan to do it in the near future), surprises can be expected. However, the conversion from Punycode to ASCII can cause DNS problems and in any case it might increase the implementation and deployment costs for applications. Additionally, many applications need to be rewritten in order to work with IDNs, which is also an issue.

Some of these IDN concerns are pretty serious and when IDNs become widely used, there might be serious problems. However, in many aspects IDNs were inevitable, so no matter if they pose difficulties or not, they needed to be accepted. With all the revolutionary benefits IDNs have, we just need to put up with the disadvantages and try to find painless solutions to them.

How to put videos on your ipod touch?

2010-05-28T09:13:00.000-07:00

Instructions
1. Step 1
Connect your iPod Touch to the computer with the iPod computer/USB connector cable.
2. Step 2
Open iTunes on your computer. Usually iTunes will open automatically, but if it does not you can manually open it.
3. Step 3
Look at the left of the iTunes screen and click on the name of your iPod Touch in the source pane column.
4. Step 4
Click on the "Summary" tab in the top of the iTunes window that opens on the right. At the bottom, under "Options," check the box that tells the computer to open iTunes when your iPod is connected, and also check the bottom box that says you want to manage your music and videos to your iPod manually. Check "Apply."
5. Step 5
Click on the "Movies" tab at the top of the iTunes window. Here you will individually select the videos that you want to add to your iPod Touch. Once you have made your selections, select "Sync." You are now ready to go with watching videos on your iPod Touch.

Note: -If you already downloaded videos, without using itunes, all you need to do it convert them. I found this programme called:

Videora iPOD converter

its free - no charge or subscription. Download this, select the videos you want and it will convert them for you.

Then it will save in a folder. After, go to itunes and sync from the video section.

www.videora.com/en-us/Converter/iPod/

5 steps to help protect your new computer before you go online

2010-05-26T11:04:00.000-07:00

The most important aspect of setting up a new computer is to ensure your system has the latest updates and security software installed.

Make sure these are downloaded and installed to help defend against viruses and other potential threats before you connect to the Internet.

And once you're connected, it's equally important to update the operating system and antivirus software on a regular basis.

The following steps will help you set up your new computer with the latest security tools available.

Step 1: Verify firewall

If you're running Windows Vista or Windows XP Service Pack 2 (SP2), you should already have Windows Firewall running, and you can proceed to Step 2.

To see what operating system your computer is running, click Start, My Computer, and then click View system information to open the System Properties window. This information is listed on the General tab under System.

System Properties window

Tip: With Windows Vista or Windows XP SP2 installed, you can manage Windows Firewall and other security settings in one place to help protect your computer. If you don't have SP2 installed or do not wish to install it, see How to Enable Internet Connection Firewall in Windows XP.

Step 2: Get software updates

•	Turn on Automatic Updates.
•	Plug in your modem or network cable for Internet access.
•	Click Start and point to Control Panel. Select Network Connections in the Control Panel.
•	Choose Create a new connection to start the Network Connection Wizard.
•	After you're connected, allow Microsoft Update to install the latest security and software updates.

After all updates are installed and your settings are defined, you're ready to surf the Internet.

Just remember that it's important to be diligent with computer security technologies, so run Microsoft Update regularly, check the latest downloads and product updates, keep Automatic Updates turned on, and be aware of the latest security threats.

Step 3: Download antivirus software

Review the inventory or packing list that came with your computer to make sure the hard disk has all the listed software installed and the original installation CDs are there. This bundle typically includes security software from a recognized computer security company.

In most cases, a trial version of this software should have been preinstalled on the computer or included on a disk. If it wasn't, contact the computer manufacturer for a replacement.

If security software wasn't included with the original order, you should obtain and install antivirus software before continuing.

Microsoft offers Windows Live OneCare, a comprehensive service that helps protect your computer from many different kinds of threats, inlcuding viruses.

Step 4: Download antispyware software

After you've confirmed that you have antivirus software, you should confirm that you have antispyware software. To find out why you need both, see What's the difference between spyware and a virus?

Microsoft offers Windows Defender to help protect against spyware and other unwanted software. If your computer is running Windows Vista, you already have Windows Defender. If your computer is running Windows XP, you can download Windows Defender for free.

Step 5: Record system information

It's a good idea to record your computer's system information in case a technician needs it later. To do so:

•	Click Start, then Run, and type "msinfo32" in the text field. Click OK to open the System Information window.

System Information window

•

In the window, on theFile menu, click Export.

•

Name the file and save it to an external storage device such as a blank CD or thumb drive, and store it in a safe place.

Note: Windows Live OneCare also offers easy file backup and restore.

You should also keep the Windows installation CDs and related product key handy.

Source: MICROSOFT OFFICIAL WEBSITE

How to set up Ubuntu Linux on a Windows PC

2009-09-21T11:06:00.000-07:00

Netbooks have soared in popularity over the past year, offering consumers portable PCs for word processing and Web browsing at rock-bottom prices. Such mini laptops use inexpensive processors that consume a minimal amount of power and thus offer a far longer battery life than most portables.

But there's one problem: Windows Vista is a resource-hungry operating system, and it will run painfully slow unless your system has plenty of memory and processing power. Installing Windows on a netbook also adds a significant amount to the machine's overall cost.

To get around this, netbook manufacturers tend to favor Windows XP, Microsoft's older, cheaper and less resource-hogging operating system. But you may find that Linux, which runs perfectly well on just 512MB of RAM, is a better alternative.

Linux will be unfamiliar to most users, but it's a far more attractive proposition than it used to be. While most of us are put off by our lack of knowledge of the operating system, the addition of graphical user interfaces to its various distros and the widespread availability of free Microsoft-compatible applications, such as OpenOffice.org, mean you no longer have to compromise on usability.

With this article, we aim to demystify Linux. It's not just netbook owners who will benefit from using this alternative to Windows; as a free, open-source operating system, Linux is also a great option if you want to breathe life into an elderly machine.

You can install Ubuntu alongside your existing operating system, too, so if you don't want to dump Vista entirely, you can keep it as a secondary option. You'll find it's faster than Vista Home Premium and less restricted than Vista Basic.

If you've tried Linux before and were put off by the setup process, fear not. If Windows is already installed on your PC, adding Linux is a simple, two-step process, with no drive partitioning required.

There are, of course, a few differences between the Ubuntu Linux distro we've installed here and the Windows interface, but you can get to grips with most features very quickly. We'll show you how to set up Ubuntu and get started with the most common apps.

Installing Ubuntu Linux

1. Ubuntu is available in server, desktop and netbook editions. The easiest way to get the latest version is to use Wubi. This installs Ubuntu as a standard Windows application. Simply indicate the drive where you want to load the operating system, then click the Install button.

2. Ubuntu will appear as an option in your boot menu; select this and log on. The operating system's Gnome interface is similar to that of both Windows and Mac OS X. At the top left you'll find menus to access Applications, Places (folders and drives) and System (tools and settings). To turn off your PC, click the symbol at the top right.

3. To modify the interface, go to System, Preferences, Appearance. The resulting dialog box contains separate tabs for Theme, Background, Fonts, Interface and Visual Effects. The last of these lets you alter visual settings, whether for aesthetic reasons or to speed up performance on a low-powered system.

4. Because Linux mounts drives before you can access files, no disk drives are displayed on the desktop when you first log on. Files, folders and drives are accessed via the Places menu at the top of the screen. For some of these you'll need to provide your password before you can access the contents.

5. To set up a Web connection, go to System, Administration, Network Connections. In the resulting dialog box, click either Wired or Wireless and hit Add. Enter your setup details in the next window. Click the Security tab and select the encryption type. Enter the key that you need to get online, then click Close.

6. To customize Ubuntu's Applications, Places or System menu, right-click it and select Edit Menus. From here you can select icons and choose which apps should appear in the menu by ticking the box next to them. To add a new entry, go to File, New Entry, enter a name and browse to the command that launches it.

Get to grips with Ubuntu Linux

7. Much like Windows' Toolbar, Ubuntu's panel allows you to load applets for helpful tasks such as keeping an eye on the weather or storing "sticky" notes. You can run multiple panels on one screen. To add an applet, right-click the panel and select Add to Panel. Select an applet and click Add.

8. Several applications come preinstalled with Ubuntu. The Firefox Web browser is accessible via an icon next to the System menu; Pidgin instant messaging and the Evolution e-mail client can be accessed via Applications, Internet. To use Evolution you'll need to enter a username, password and details of your e-mail server.

9. OpenOffice.org is another application that's preinstalled with Ubuntu. To use this productivity suite, go to Applications, Office and select Writer, Calc or Presentation. OpenOffice.org is compatible with Microsoft Word and has a similar interface. Those migrating from Windows should find it extremely easy to use.

10. Ubuntu also preinstalls The Gimp, a highly capable image editor that gives Adobe Photoshop a run for its money. Go to Applications, Graphics to launch it. As well as offering the basics for cropping, drawing, painting and adding text to images, The Gimp includes a number of filters and support for multiple layers.

11. To add new programs, right-click the Applications menu and select Add/Remove Applications. The Application Manager displays applications that are guaranteed to work with Ubuntu. Tick the box next to any you wish to install and then click Apply Changes. The app will be downloaded and automatically installed.

12. To access Ubuntu's multimedia options, go to Applications, Sound & Video. Brasero Disc Burner creates discs for data, audio or DVD; Rhythmbox is a fantastic audio player that supports Internet radio; and Totem is a fairly versatile video player. If you wish to play DVDs on your PC, follow the instructions at help.ubuntu.com.

13. Like Windows, Ubuntu requires regular updates. To check whether any updates are available for your PC, go to System, Administration, Update Manager, then click Check. Select the updates you want, then hit Install Updates. Click the Settings button if you'd prefer for your PC to be updated automatically.

14. To share your desktop with other Linux PCs on your network, go to System, Preferences, Remote Desktop and tick "Allow other users to view your desktop." To access your desktop from another machine, go to Applications, Accessories, Terminal. Enter the command vncviewer -fullscreen and the IP address provided.

Kinza.exe Removal

2009-05-25T10:54:00.000-07:00

Information
i. It make Computer too Slow.
ii. It makes stop response or restrict TaskManager, Regedit,

CMD, Msconfig, Group
iii. Policies.Some Windows tools like Like TaskManager,

Regedit suddenly gets closed or open for few second Like

TaskManager, Regedit, etc.
iv. FolderOptions is Disable from Windows Explorer
v. It hide the hidden files.
vi. It extract itself and create lot of exe, dll, boot.vbs

files
Precaution
1. Dont run in COMMAND.COM, It only run cmd.com
2. It only work on windows XP or latest Version

Source
i. Main source is Internet.
ii. Pen Drive which have Kinza.exe infected.
iii. CD which have Kinza.exe infected.

and Extract it.
ii. Turn off the System Restore point.
iii. Restart the computer the computer in Safemode.
iv. double click Remover.bat
iv. Delete temp file and internet temp file.
v. Restart the computer.
Now your PC is free from kinza.exe

Disabling or enabling Windows XP System Restore

2009-05-17T12:06:00.000-07:00

I Want to Turn off Windows XP System Restore

Click Start.
Right-click My Computer, and then click Properties.
On the System Restore tab, check Turn off System Restore or Turn off System Restore on all drives. If you do not see the System Restore tab, you are not logged on to Windows as an Administrator.
Click Apply.
When you see the confirmation message, click Yes.
Click OK.

I Want to Turn on Windows XP System Restore

Click Start.
Right-click My Computer, and then click Properties.
On the System Restore tab, uncheck Turn off System Restore or Turn off System Restore on all drives. If you do not see the System Restore tab, you are not logged on to Windows as an Administrator.
Click Apply.
When you see the confirmation message, click Yes.
Click OK.

The above steps are shown in the images below:

Disabling or enabling Windows Me System Restore

2009-05-17T11:58:00.000-07:00

I Want To Turn off Windows Me System Restore

Note: Turning off System Restore deletes all previous restore points. You must create new restore points once you turn System Restore back on.

Click Start > Settings > Control Panel.
Double-click System.If the System icon is not visible, click View all Control Panel options.
On the Performance tab, click File System.
On the Troubleshooting tab, check Disable System Restore.
Click OK.
When you are asked to restart Windows, click Yes.

I Want to Turn on Windows Me System Restore

Click Start > Settings > Control Panel.
Double-click System.If the System icon is not visible, click View all Control Panel options.
On the Performance tab, click File System.
On the Troubleshooting tab, uncheck Disable System Restore.
Click OK.
When you are asked to restart Windows, click Yes.

W32.Downadup Removal

2009-05-17T11:46:00.001-07:00

Firstly if you have Symantec Antivirus than update its virus definition and have a full scan of the computer to remove the virus if it doesnot work than follow below steps.

You can get virus definition download at
http://www.symantec.com/business/security_response/definitions/download/detail.jsp?gid=n95

Important:

If you are on a network or have a full-time connection to the Internet, such as a DSL or cable modem, disconnect the computer from the network and Internet. Disable or password-protect file sharing, or set the shared files to Read Only, before reconnecting the computers to the network or to the Internet. Because this worm spreads by using shared folders on networked computers, to ensure that the worm does not reinfect the computer after it has been removed, Symantec suggests sharing with Read Only access or by using password protection.

For instructions on how to do this, refer to your Windows documentation, or the document: How to configure shared Windows folders for maximum network protection.

For further information on the vulnerability and patches to resolve it please refer to the following document:
Microsoft Windows Server Service RPC Handling Remote Code Execution Vulnerability
If you are removing an infection from a network, first make sure that all the shares are disabled or set to Read Only.
This tool is not designed to run on Novell NetWare servers. To remove this threat from a NetWare server, first make sure that you have the current virus definitions, and then run a full system scan with the Symantec antivirus product.

How to download and run the tool

Important: You must have administrative rights to run this tool on Windows NT 4.0, Windows 2000, or Windows XP.

Note for network administrators: If you are running MS Exchange 2000 Server, we recommend that you exclude the M drive from the scan by running the tool from a command line, with the Exclude switch. For more information, read the Microsoft knowledge base article: XADM: Do Not Back Up or Scan Exchange 2000 Drive M (Article 298924).

Follow these steps to download and run the tool:

Download the D.exe file from: http://www.symantec.com/content/en/us/global/removal_tool/threat_writeups/D.exe.
Save the file to a convenient location, such as your Windows desktop.
Optional: To check the authenticity of the digital signature, refer to the "Digital signature" section later in this writeup.

Note: If you are sure that you are downloading this tool from the Security Response Web site, you can skip this step. If you are not sure, or are a network administrator and need to authenticate the files before deployment, follow the steps in the "Digital signature" section before proceeding with step 4.
Close all the running programs.
If you are on a network or if you have a full-time connection to the Internet, disconnect the computer from the network and the Internet.
If you are running Windows Me or XP, turn off System Restore. For instructions on how to turn off System Restore, read your Windows documentation, or one of the following articles:

How To Disable or Enable Windows ME System Restore
How To Turn Off or Turn on Windows XP System Restore
Locate the file that you just downloaded.
Double-click the D.exe file to start the removal tool.
Click Start to begin the process, and then allow the tool to run.

NOTE: If you have any problems when you run the tool, or it does nor appear to remove the threat, restart the computer in Safe mode and run the tool again.
Restart the computer.
Run the removal tool again to ensure that the system is clean.
If you are running Windows Me/XP, then reenable System Restore.
If you are on a network or if you have a full-time connection to the Internet, reconnect the computer to the network or to the Internet connection.
Run LiveUpdate to make sure that you are using the most current virus definitions.

When the tool has finished running, you will see a message indicating whether the threat has infected the computer. The tool displays results similar to the following:

Total number of the scanned files
Number of deleted files
Number of repaired files
Number of terminated viral processes
Number of fixed registry entries

What the tool does
The Removal Tool does the following:

Terminates the associated processes
Deletes the associated files
Deletes the registry values added by the threat

Switches
The following switches are designed for use by network administrators:
/HELP, /H, /?
Displays the help message.
/NOFIXREG
Disables the registry repair (We do not recommend using this switch).
/SILENT, /S
Enables the silent mode.
/LOG=[PATH NAME]
Creates a log file where [PATH NAME] is the location in which to store the tool's output. By default, this switch creates the log file, FixDwndp.log, in the same folder from which the removal tool was executed.
/MAPPED
Scans the mapped network drives. (We do not recommend using this switch. See the following Note.)
/START
Forces the tool to immediately start scanning.
/EXCLUDE=[PATH]
Excludes the specified [PATH] from scanning. (We do not recommend using this switch. See the following Note.)
/NOCANCEL
Disables the cancel feature of the removal tool.
/NOFILESCAN
Prevents the scanning of the file system.
/NOVULNCHECK
Disables checking for unpatched files.

Important: Using the /MAPPED switch does not ensure the complete removal of the virus on the remote computer, because:

The scanning of mapped drives scans only the mapped folders. This may not include all the folders on the remote computer, which can lead to missed detections.
If a viral file is detected on the mapped drive, the removal will fail if a program on the remote computer uses this file.

Therefore, you should run the tool on every computer.

The /EXCLUDE switch will only work with one path, not multiple. An alternative is the /NOFILESCAN switch followed by a manual scan with AntiVirus. This will let the tool alter the registry. Then, scan the computer with AntiVirus with current virus definitions. With these steps, you should be able to clean the file system.

The following is an example command line that can be used to exclude a single drive:

"C:\Documents and Settings\user1\Desktop\D.exe" /EXCLUDE=M:\ /LOG=c:\FixDwndp.txt

Alternatively, the command line below will skip scanning the file system, but will repair the registry modifications. Then, run a regular scan of the system with proper exclusions:

"C:\Documents and Settings\user1\Desktop\D.exe" /NOFILESCAN /LOG=c:\FixDwndp.txt

Note: You can give the log file any name and save it to any location.

POP Yahoo! Mail Plus with Microsoft Outlook Express

2009-05-17T11:37:00.000-07:00

Here's how to "POP" mail from Yahoo! Mail Plus into your Outlook Express:

From the Tools menu, choose "Accounts."
Select the "Mail" tab.
Click the "Add" button.
From the Add menu, click "Mail."
In the text box labeled Display Name, type your name and click "Next."
In the Email Address box, type your Yahoo! Mail address (be sure to include "@yahoo.com") and click "Next."
Under "My incoming mail server is a…" select "POP3."
Type "plus.pop.mail.yahoo.com" in the Incoming Mail (POP3, IMAP, or HTTP) Server box.
Type "plus.smtp.mail.yahoo.com" in the Outgoing Mail (SMTP) Server box.
Click "Next."
In the Account Name box, type your Yahoo! Mail ID (your email address without the "@yahoo.com").
In the Password box, type your Yahoo! Mail password.
If you want Outlook Express to remember your password, check the "Remember password" box.
Do not check the boxes labeled "Log on using Secure…"
Click "Next."
Click "Finish."
Select 'plus.pop.mail.yahoo.com' under 'Account,' and click 'Properties.'
Click the “Servers” tab.
Under “Outgoing Mail Server” check the box next to “My server requires authentication”
Click the 'Advanced' tab.
Under “Outgoing mail Server (SMTP)”, check the box next to “This server requires a secure connection (SSL). Enter port number “465” in the “Outgoing mail (SMTP)” field.
Under “Incoming mail (POP3)”, check the box next to “This server requires a secure connection (SSL)". The port number in the “Incoming mail (POP3)" field should automatically change from 110 to 995. If it doesn’t, make sure the port number is set to 995.

Troubleshooting instructions.

If you followed the above configuration steps, you should be all set. However, if you cannot send or receive mail with your email client, try the following tips.

The Yahoo! Mail SMTP server requires authentication. Make sure you have enabled SMTP authentication. To turn this setting on:

From the Tools menu, choose "Accounts."
Select the "Mail" tab.
Double-click the account labeled "plus.pop.mail.yahoo.com."
Select the "Servers" tab.
Check the box next to "My Server Requires Authentication."
Click "OK."

To control deletion of messages from the Yahoo! Mail Server:

From the Tools menu, choose "Accounts."
Select the "Mail" tab.
Double-click the account labeled "plus.pop.mail.yahoo.com."
Select the "Advanced" tab.
In the Delivery section at the bottom of the window, check "Leave a copy of messages on server" if you want to save your Yahoo! Mail messages on the Yahoo! Mail server as well as on your local computer. Do not check this box if you want your messages to be deleted from the Yahoo! Mail server once you have received them in Outlook Express.

We strongly recommend that you enable SSL for both POP and SMTP, as detailed in the above instructions. This will ensure that your Yahoo! ID, password and email messages are transmitted securely between your mail client and the Yahoo! servers. However, if you choose to not use SSL for SMTP, your email client will likely default the SMTP port to 25. If your ISP blocks port 25 or if you're unable to send email, then you will need to use port 587 when sending via Yahoo!'s SMTP server. To make this change, please follow the directions below:

From the "Tools" menu, select "Accounts"
Select your Yahoo! POP account and click on the "Properties" button
Click on the "Advanced" tab
Next to "Outgoing server (SMTP), change port 25 to 587
Click "Apply", then click "OK" and "Close"

I Forgot My Password and Yahoo ID?

2009-05-17T10:27:00.000-07:00

Forgot Password Or ID

( if you do not sign in the account for 4 months the account will be deleted and none of the info can be recovered )

Forgot Password Or ID
Click Here
https://edit.yahoo.com/forgot?login
OR
http://edit.yahoo.com/config/eval_forgot...

Forgot Password Or Don"t Know Your ID Info

http://help.yahoo.com/l/us/yahoo/edit/id...

http://help.yahoo.com/l/us/yahoo/mail/ya...

http://help.yahoo.com/l/uk/yahoo/mail/or...

( If The Above Links Don"t Help Contact Yahoo )

you WILL NEED the account info that you gave when you signed up
to prove who you are you may have to send them a copy of your drivers license or your credit card, birth certificate etc
email them so they can give you full details then they may ask you to fax or email it to them

Account Services Help Form

http://help.yahoo.com/l/us/yahoo/edit/al...

Email Account Security

account-security-help@cc.yahoo-inc.com

Email Customer Care

cc-advoc@yahoo-inc.com

Yahoo Philippines - Asia Contact Info

http://asia.docs.yahoo.com/info/support/...
http://asia.docs.yahoo.com/info/support/
http://asia.docs.yahoo.com/info/address/

UK Customer Care

http://help.yahoo.com/fast/help/uk/mail/...

Yahoo! Customer Care

Usa: 1-866-562-7219 --- 1-800-318-0631
Uk 020 7131 1000
Canada: 1-877-722 3755
Direct Number: 1-408-349-1572
Fax Number: 1-408-349-3301