How to manage the compatibility issues of Office 2007 to earlier office versions?

By default all Microsoft Office 2007 applications use the different files extensions than the earlier versions. All earlier Office applications used the file extensions as .doc, .xls and .ppt for Word, Excel and PowerPoint respectively, but now Office 2007 applications uses the .docx, xlsx and .pptx file extensions for Word, Excel and PowerPoint respectively. These all new file extensions are not compatible with all previous versions of Office applications, that is why Office 2002 and Office 2003 applications cannot open and read the .docx, xlsx and .pptx file extensions.
However, you have an option in Office 2007 to save the files with in older files extensions, But if you are frequently using the older versions of the file and also if the files created by you are to be shared on other computers which have earlier versions of Office, you may want to save all your new documents in the older format, but that would create duplicate files.

There is better option in Office 2007 applications to change the default saving file format to the older format and then the new file format in Office 2007 will be changed to .doc, .xls and .ppt for Word, Excel and PowerPoint respectively.

Today we will set the older file format for Word 2007 and other applications will be discussed in the next tips. Follow the given steps to set the default older file format for Word 2007:

First click on Start button, go to Program then click on Microsoft Word 2007 to run the word application.

Now click on File menu in the top left corner then click on Word Options button to change the default word options.

In the left side panel, click on Save option, and now “Customized how documents are saved” option will appear in right side panel.

Here find the “Save File in this format” option and click on drop down box to select the different format. Now you will find many options here, select the Word 97-2003 Document (*doc) option.

Now click on Ok button to save the settings and all new Word files will be created in the format you set as default.

How to Highlight Text permanently in a PDF Document?

Adobe Acrobat is a very useful tool to preserves the formatting of the original document, for example layout of the document and particularly for large documents, or those containing the images. While reading the PDF file, you can enjoy the advance feature of Highlight Tool in latest Adobe Acrobat profession 6.0 versions. You can easily highlight the text in PDF file with different colors just as you would in a hard copy document.

Follow the given steps to highlight the PDF files using Adobe Acrobat:

First click on Start button, go to Program then click on “Adobe Acrobat 6.0 professional” to run this application.

Now go to File menu and click on Open option to open any PDF file. Here a small dialog will appear with title "Open".

Here click on Tools and go to Commenting > Highlighting then Highlighter Tools, now you mouse pointer will display into a cursor shape.

Now simply select the text that you want to highlight and your required text is highlighted.

Here you can find different types of colors to highlight the text. To change the highlighter color, select the text, click right and select Properties from the shortcut menu.

Click on Color button and select the color from color drop-down menu.

At the end, click on Close button to finish the process and your selected highlight color is applied to the text.

How to Highlight Text permanently in a PDF Document?

Adobe Acrobat is a very useful tool to preserves the formatting of the original document, for example layout of the document and particularly for large documents, or those containing the images. While reading the PDF file, you can enjoy the advance feature of Highlight Tool in latest Adobe Acrobat profession 6.0 versions. You can easily highlight the text in PDF file with different colors just as you would in a hard copy document.

Follow the given steps to highlight the PDF files using Adobe Acrobat:

First click on Start button, go to Program then click on “Adobe Acrobat 6.0 professional” to run this application.

Now go to File menu and click on Open option to open any PDF file. Here a small dialog will appear with title "Open".

Here click on Tools and go to Commenting > Highlighting then Highlighter Tools, now you mouse pointer will display into a cursor shape.

Now simply select the text that you want to highlight and your required text is highlighted.

Here you can find different types of colors to highlight the text. To change the highlighter color, select the text, click right and select Properties from the shortcut menu.

Click on Color button and select the color from color drop-down menu.

At the end, click on Close button to finish the process and your selected highlight color is applied to the text.

How to take full advantage of recently opened documents history?

Today tip will help you to increase the list of recently used documents in start menu. By default windows XP display the history of last fifteen programs on recent documents list in start menu but you can increase this list according to your need. However this tip is very useful for all new computer users because they can easily access their required documents from last visited documents history. This trick will work in nearly all of the windows versions like windows 2000, XP and 2003.

Follow the given steps for configuration to increase the list of recently opened documents:

1. To edit the computer registry, first you should log onto your computer with administrative rights.
2. Click Start button and type regedit in Run option then press Enter for next.
3. Go to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies
4. Now in left side panel, click right to create a new Key value with the name Explorer under "Policies" area.
5. Now explore the full path like:
6. Go to [HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\Explorer
7. Now in right side panel, click right to create a new DWORD value with the name MaxRecentDocs and then set values with your required input value.
8. In this case, we are trying to set input value to 30 and press Ok button.
9. But next time, if you want to disable this functionality then simply change the value of data box to 15 or delete the MaxRecentDocs DWORD item.
10. Now close the registry editor and restart your computer after any changes to go into effect.

Web Development And The Big Time Out

One of the great debilitators in online business is simply the perceived (or real) lack of time. Business owners are used to moving forward. An online web presence can make them feel tied to an office chair learning skills they aren’t sure they want to know.

It’s not uncommon for those who deal in full time web design to have individuals contact them for a site design, but have absolutely no idea what they want. Furthermore when the designer questions them the response might be, “I don’t know, just make it look nice.”

Let’s not forget the core values or mission of the business. Many business owners have no idea how to answer those kinds of questions. They may stare blankly for a moment or two and there’s no more time for further deep thought so they go back to action – without answers.

In many cases it is possible to answer some of the questions needed, but it may require taking time away from a familiar setting. It may also require more time than you think you want to give.

If you can get to a place of concentrated contemplation you are likely to find yourself stripping ideas to their core to find out what your business is trying to accomplish and what your ultimate goals might be.

As with almost any project you can turn frustration around if you will just take the time to come to terms with your vision.

Sometimes we spend so much time ‘doing’ we never stop to ask the question, “Why?”

This process can be a bit like taking a bus that drives around the park. You keep looking at the flowers and the park bench and long to sit in the quiet shade of a tree and just absorb the calming atmosphere. You know they will have a positive effect on you, but for some reason you just can’t seem to find the energy to get off the bus.

It seems to me there are some sites that are misguided or rarely guided that could benefit from the process of self-evaluation. These sites may look nice, but there is a sense of disconnection that may not be easy to identify, but it’s fairly obvious to visitors.

Creative energy is at a minimum while business owners simply tackle what seem to be the most urgent details.

As more people gravitate to online business there needs to be a shift in the thinking of how one goes about doing business online. In many ways it can’t be approached in the same way a traditional business is developed, yet that is typically the way many new web commerce ventures choose to tackle the subject.

You may discover your business will be more successful if you take some time for rigorous reflection. The time set aside can be a bit like an architect that takes the time to develop plans for a new building. You wouldn’t expect the architect to simply tell a construction crew to, “Go out there and build – something.”

Work at ‘building’ your online business in a comprehensive way. Your effort can develop a firm foundation for long-term success.

About The Author
Scott Lindsay is a web developer and entrepreneur. Make your own website in just 5 minutes with HighPowerSites at: http://www.highpowersites.com or Build A Website at: http://www.buildagreatsite.com. Start your own ebook business with BooksWealth at: http://www.bookswealth.com

How to send a voice mail to your friend using Windows XP?

E-mail is a most popular and effective way to communicate with others through the internet. You can send documents, pictures and other types of files to any destination but the interesting thing is that you can send also your voice in a mail by attaching the file with e-mail. In windows XP, you can record your voice using Sound Recorder and a microphone options.

Follow the given steps to record your voice in windows XP:

1. To use this feature, you will need to be logged into your computer with administrative rights.
2. To start recording process, first make sure you have attached a microphone to your computer.
3. First click on Start button> All programs> Accessories> click Entertainment and then click on Sound Recorder option.
4. Now a small "Sound - Sound Recorder" will appear, go to File menu and click on New to start a new file for recording.
5. Click on Record button to start recording process and start talking then click on Stop button to stop the recording.
6. Now again click on File menu to save this file with .wav extension to a folder of your choice.
7. Now send this voice file as an attachment via e-mail message to your friends.

How to enable or disable cookies

When you are browsing your internet, the web server placed some text files on your computer as cookies. The main purpose of cookies to save your preferences that you specify for future reference. You can enable or disable your computer web browser cookies, but it is important for you if you disable your browser cookies, may be some website will not work properly.

If you are using Internet Explorer 6.x and later then follow the given steps to enable or disable cookies.

Open Internet Explorer, click on the Tools then Internet Options.

Click on Privacy tab from the left top of dialog box and click on Advanced button.

To enable the cookies, select the Accept option and for disable check the option Override automatic cookies handling then click on block.

Now restart the browser to execute changes.

Can Data Breaches Be Expected From Bankrupt Mortgage Lenders? PART II

Is there a better way to protect oneself? Whole disk encryption is a way to ensure that such problems do not occur: One can just reformat the encrypted drive itself to install a new OS; the original data remains encrypted, so there's no way to extract the data. Plus, the added benefit is that the data is protected in the event that a computer gets lost or stolen. However, commonsense dictates that encryption is something ongoing concerns sign up for, not businesses about to go bankrupt. My guess is that sooner or later we'll find instances of data breaches originating from equipment being traced back to bankrupt mortgage dealers.

The stock market is in a tumult. Actually, it has been for about a year, ever since the subprime fiasco (anyone take a look at Moody's performance over the past year?) Now that that particular issue has been beaten to death, other mortgagerelated issues are cropping up. Most of the stuff covered in the media is financial in nature, but some of those mortgagerelated issues do concern information security.

It's no secret that there are plenty of companies in the US that discard sensitive documents by dumping them unceremoniously: leave it by the curb, drive it to a dumpster, heave it over the walls of abandoned property, and other assorted mindboggling insecure practices. In fact, MSNBC has an article on this issue, and names numerous bankrupt mortgage companies whose borrowers' records were found in dumpsters and recycling centers. The information on those documents include credit card numbers and SSNs, as well as addresses, names, and other information needed to secure a mortgage.

Since the companies have filed for bankruptcy and are no more, the potential victims involved have no legal recourse, and are left to fend for themselves. In a way, it makes sense that companies that have filed for bankruptcy are behaving this way. (Not that I'm saying this is proper procedure.) For starters, if a company does wrong, one goes after the company; however, the company has filed for bankruptcy, it is no more, so there's no one to "go after." In light of the company status, this means that the actual person remaining behind to dispose of things, be they desks or credit applications, can opt to do whatever he feels like. He could shred the applications. He could dump them nearby. He could walk away and let the building's owner take care of them. What does he care? It's not as if he's gonna get fired.

Also, proper disposal requires either time, money, or both. A bankrupt company doesn't have money. It may have time, assuming people are going to stick around, but chances are their shredder has been seized by creditors. People are not going to stick around to shred things by hand, literally.

Aren't there any laws regulating this? Apparently, such issues are covered by FACTA, the Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act, and although its guidelines require that "businesses to dispose of sensitive financial documents in a way that protects against 'unauthorized access to or use of the information'" [msnbc.com], it stops short of requiring the physical destruction of data. I'm not a lawyer, but perhaps there's enough leeway in the language for one to go around dropping sensitive documents in dumpsters?

Like I mentioned before, inappropriate disposal of sensitive documents has been going on forever; I'm pretty sure this has been a problem since the very first mortgage was issued. My personal belief is that most companies would act responsibly and try to properly dispose of such information. But, this may prove to be a point of concern as well because of widespread misconceptions of what it means to protect data against unauthorized access.

What happens if a company that files for bankruptcy decides to sell their company computers to pay off creditors? Most people would delete the information found in the computer, and that's that-end of story. Except, it's not. When files are deleted, the actual data still resides in the hard disks; it's just that the computer's operating system doesn't have a way to find the information anymore. Indeed, this is how retail data restoration applications such as Norton are able to recover accidentally deleted files.

Some may be aware of this and decide to format the entire computer before sending it off to the new owners. The problem with this approach is the same as deleting files: data recovery is a cinch with the right software. Some of them retail for $30 or less-as in free. So, the sensitive data that's supposed to be deleted can be recovered, if not easily, at least cheaply-perhaps by people with criminal interests.

Am I being paranoid? I don't think so. I've been tracking fraud for years now, and I can't help but conclude that the criminal underworld has plenty of people looking to be niche operators, not to mention that there are infinitesimal ways of defrauding people (look up "salad oil" and "American Express," for an example). An identification theft ring looking to collect sensitive information from bankrupt mortgage dealers wouldn't surprise me, especially in an environment where such companies are dropping left and right.

The economics behind it make sense as well. A used computer will retail anywhere from $100 to $500. The information in it, if not wiped correctly, will average many times more even if you factor in the purchase of data recovery software. Criminals have different ways of capitalizing on personal data, ranging from selling the information outright to engaging in something with better returns.

Is there a better way to protect oneself? Whole disk encryption is a way to ensure that such problems do not occur: One can just reformat the encrypted drive itself to install a new OS; the original data remains encrypted, so there's no way to extract the data. Plus, the added benefit is that the data is protected in the event that a computer gets lost or stolen. However, commonsense dictates that encryption is something ongoing concerns sign up for, not businesses about to go bankrupt. My guess is that sooner or later we'll find instances of data breaches originating from equipment being traced back to bankrupt mortgage dealers.

About The Author

Timothy Maliyil is CEO and founder of Data Guard Systems, Inc., a leading developer and marketer of endpoint managed security services and online business management software, based in New York City. Data Guard Systems is an Application Service Provider (ASP) and offers intuitive business management software to various industries. Data Guard's flagship product is the AlertBoot data security managed service. AlertBoot offers full disk encryption and a comprehensive suite of disk security solutions as a centralized, managed service. Deployment times and support are significantly reduced, thus resulting in a lower overall total cost of ownership for an organization. Prior to founding Data Guard Systems, Mr. Maliyil served as the Director of IT at HarborTech, a privately-held supply chain house for the semiconductor industry. He also held various positions at Netegrity (now Computer Associates). Mr. Maliyil holds a B.S. in Computer Science from Tufts University.

For more information on full disk encryption go to http://www.alertboot.com/

Can Data Breaches Be Expected From Bankrupt Mortgage Lenders? PART I

The stock market is in a tumult. Actually, it has been for about a year, ever since the subprime fiasco (anyone take a look at Moody's performance over the past year?) Now that that particular issue has been beaten to death, other mortgage related issues are cropping up. Most of the stuff covered in the media is financial in nature, but some of those mortgage related issues do concern information security.

It's no secret that there are plenty of companies in the US that discard sensitive documents by dumping them unceremoniously: leave it by the curb, drive it to a dumpster, heave it over the walls of abandoned property, and other assorted mind boggling insecure practices. In fact, MSNBC has an article on this issue, and names numerous bankrupt mortgage companies whose borrowers' records were found in dumpsters and recycling centers. The information on those documents include credit card numbers and SSNs, as well as addresses, names, and other information needed to secure a mortgage.

Since the companies have filed for bankruptcy and are no more, the potential victims involved have no legal recourse, and are left to fend for themselves. In a way, it makes sense that companies that have filed for bankruptcy are behaving this way. (Not that I'm saying this is proper procedure.) For starters, if a company does wrong, one goes after the company; however, the company has filed for bankruptcy, it is no more, so there's no one to "go after." In light of the company status, this means that the actual person remaining behind to dispose of things, be they desks or credit applications, can opt to do whatever he feels like. He could shred the applications. He could dump them nearby. He could walk away and let the building's owner take care of them. What does he care? It's not as if he's gonna get fired.

Also, proper disposal requires either time, money, or both. A bankrupt company doesn't have money. It may have time, assuming people are going to stick around, but chances are their shredder has been seized by creditors. People are not going to stick around to shred things by hand, literally.

Aren't there any laws regulating this? Apparently, such issues are covered by FACTA, the Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act, and although its guidelines require that "businesses to dispose of sensitive financial documents in a way that protects against 'unauthorized access to or use of the information'" [msnbc.com], it stops short of requiring the physical destruction of data. I'm not a lawyer, but perhaps there's enough leeway in the language for one to go around dropping sensitive documents in dumpsters?

Like I mentioned before, inappropriate disposal of sensitive documents has been going on forever; I'm pretty sure this has been a problem since the very first mortgage was issued. My personal belief is that most companies would act responsibly and try to properly dispose of such information. But, this may prove to be a point of concern as well because of widespread misconceptions of what it means to protect data against unauthorized access.

What happens if a company that files for bankruptcy decides to sell their company computers to pay off creditors? Most people would delete the information found in the computer, and that's that-end of story. Except, it's not. When files are deleted, the actual data still resides in the hard disks; it's just that the computer's operating system doesn't have a way to find the information anymore. Indeed, this is how retail data restoration applications such as Norton are able to recover accidentally deleted files.

Some may be aware of this and decide to format the entire computer before sending it off to the new owners. The problem with this approach is the same as deleting files: data recovery is a cinch with the right software. Some of them retail for $30 or less-as in free. So, the sensitive data that's supposed to be deleted can be recovered, if not easily, at least cheaply-perhaps by people with criminal interests.

Am I being paranoid? I don't think so. I've been tracking fraud for years now, and I can't help but conclude that the criminal underworld has plenty of people looking to be niche operators, not to mention that there are infinitesimal ways of defrauding people (look up "salad oil" and "American Express," for an example). An identification theft ring looking to collect sensitive information from bankrupt mortgage dealers wouldn't surprise me, especially in an environment where such companies are dropping left and right.

The economics behind it make sense as well. A used computer will retail anywhere from $100 to $500. The information in it, if not wiped correctly, will average many times more even if you factor in the purchase of data recovery software. Criminals have different ways of capitalizing on personal data, ranging from selling the information outright to engaging in something with better returns.

About The Author

Timothy Maliyil is CEO and founder of Data Guard Systems, Inc., a leading developer and marketer of endpoint managed security services and online business management software, based in New York City. Data Guard Systems is an Application Service Provider (ASP) and offers intuitive business management software to various industries. Data Guard's flagship product is the AlertBoot data security managed service. AlertBoot offers full disk encryption and a comprehensive suite of disk security solutions as a centralized, managed service. Deployment times and support are significantly reduced, thus resulting in a lower overall total cost of ownership for an organization. Prior to founding Data Guard Systems, Mr. Maliyil served as the Director of IT at HarborTech, a privately-held supply chain house for the semiconductor industry. He also held various positions at Netegrity (now Computer Associates). Mr. Maliyil holds a B.S. in Computer Science from Tufts University.

For more information on full disk encryption go to http://www.alertboot.com/

How to disable the right click functionality on the desktop?

Today tip is very useful particularly for home users who want to protect their system default settings against unwanted changes that other users can make. For example changes in system desktop appearance, themes, and screen saver as well as other display settings. Using registry editor, you can disable the right click functionality on desktop to access the "Display Properties" dialog box and this will also prevent users to access windows explorer.

Follow the given steps to disable the right click functionality on desktop:

To use this feature, you will need to be logged into your computer with administrative rights.

Click Start button and type regedit in Run option then press Enter for next.

Here locate the location to:

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\Explorer

Here in right side panel, right click to create a new DWORD value with the name NoViewContextMenu (it is case sensitive), then assign number 1 in value data box.

Now close the registry editor and restart your computer after any changes to go into effect.
But next time, if you want to enable right click functionality on desktop then simply change the value of data box or delete the NoViewContextMenu DWORD item.

Symantec Norton Antibot The Latest In Norton Computer Protection Software

It seems like every other month a new “program” comes along to make our lives that much easier. For example, first we could bookmark favorites, and then RSS feed them, and then came widgets and now “bots” which are robots that do a lot of our computer work for us in the background. Examples of friendly bots are weather bots, game playing bots, instant messaging and my favorites are those on AOL Instant Messenger which do all kinds of functions for me like shop, find movie times and even give updates on the Wall Street Journal.

Unfortunately not all bots were created “equal.” Some are friendly and some are not. The ones that are not friendly can be a form of malware that allows control of your computer to be released, providing hackers with the opportunity to access your information and spread harmful bots to others. This type of computer virus can then be used to spread spam and commit various types of identity theft and other online fraud.

So with new threats to our computers and information, new methods of protection are required. One of the oldest and most well known software protection designers has recently released a new protection program, Symantec Norton AntiBot. This is a software product designed to prevent the hijacking of one’s personal computer by bots and uses the bots on design programs against them, to located and destroy them.

Many people already employ some form of protection on their personal computer, such as increasing the protection level from internet information to “high.” But these cannot detect some of the most recent bot programs and may not be the most efficient means of information protection, especially with the Internet being used more and more frequently for online shopping, ticket purchases, travel and other “high risk” activities.

A more effective method of detecting and eliminating threats caused by bots is to install software designed specifically to detect, destroy and prevent bots from having access to your computer. With Symantec Norton AntiBot software, protection against bots is enhanced several times and the threat of bot attack is greatly diminished. It’s program protects against bots by blocking bots from entering your computer through downloads and e-mail attachments (two of the common ways bots enter a personal computer), checking for any unusual behavior on your personal computer and eliminating it, and detecting malicious bot software at all levels; keeping your personal, financial and credit card information safe and stopping identify theft before it can occur.

Because bots operate in the background and are not detectable by antivirus or antispyware programs, many computer users are completely unaware that their personal computer has become infected. Many problems caused by bots go undetected until it is too late. Warning signs that your computer may have been accessed include: slowness of computer speed and unusual or irrelevant error messages. However, many times com these symptoms are sporadic and computer users will take little notice. Many people will continue to use their personal computer, unaware that bots have hijacked their personal computer and are slowly at work; looking for credit card numbers, passwords, and logon information which can be used for identity theft and in committing other types of online crime. This program scans your personal computer on a continuous basis, closing the gaps that could allow bots to infect your personal computer and better ensuring that bots do not invade and gain control.

The use of Symantec Norton AntiBot to determine what a harmful or useful bot and allows you to continue using those bots you love and have come to depend on for information and services. It can be used in addition to several other antivirus and antispyware programs. Its compatibility is not limited to only Norton products.

The cost of this software is $29.95 for one year of service. It was awarded PC Magazine’s Editor’s Choice Award (2007) and underwent rigorous testing which included using AntiBot on computers with existing threats as well as allowing threats to try to access the computer after installation.

With the growing threat of identity theft and credit card fraud Symantec Norton AntiBot offers an additional level of protection needed to combat the threat of bots and prevent them from turning one’s personal computer into a robotic that turns into an instrument of destruction to both your personal and financial well-being.


About The Author

Lisa Carey is a contributing author for http://www.IdentityTheftSecrets.com. You can get tips on Identity theft protection, software, and monitoring your credit, as well as learn more about the secrets used by identity thieves at http://www.IdentityTheftSecrets.com

Web Development And The Big Time Out

One of the great debilitators in online business is simply the perceived (or real) lack of time. Business owners are used to moving forward. An online web presence can make them feel tied to an office chair learning skills they aren’t sure they want to know.

It’s not uncommon for those who deal in full time web design to have individuals contact them for a site design, but have absolutely no idea what they want. Furthermore when the designer questions them the response might be, “I don’t know, just make it look nice.”

Let’s not forget the core values or mission of the business. Many business owners have no idea how to answer those kinds of questions. They may stare blankly for a moment or two and there’s no more time for further deep thought so they go back to action – without answers.

In many cases it is possible to answer some of the questions needed, but it may require taking time away from a familiar setting. It may also require more time than you think you want to give.

If you can get to a place of concentrated contemplation you are likely to find yourself stripping ideas to their core to find out what your business is trying to accomplish and what your ultimate goals might be.

As with almost any project you can turn frustration around if you will just take the time to come to terms with your vision.

Sometimes we spend so much time ‘doing’ we never stop to ask the question, “Why?”

This process can be a bit like taking a bus that drives around the park. You keep looking at the flowers and the park bench and long to sit in the quiet shade of a tree and just absorb the calming atmosphere. You know they will have a positive effect on you, but for some reason you just can’t seem to find the energy to get off the bus.

It seems to me there are some sites that are misguided or rarely guided that could benefit from the process of self-evaluation. These sites may look nice, but there is a sense of disconnection that may not be easy to identify, but it’s fairly obvious to visitors.

Creative energy is at a minimum while business owners simply tackle what seem to be the most urgent details.

As more people gravitate to online business there needs to be a shift in the thinking of how one goes about doing business online. In many ways it can’t be approached in the same way a traditional business is developed, yet that is typically the way many new web commerce ventures choose to tackle the subject.

You may discover your business will be more successful if you take some time for rigorous reflection. The time set aside can be a bit like an architect that takes the time to develop plans for a new building. You wouldn’t expect the architect to simply tell a construction crew to, “Go out there and build – something.”

Work at ‘building’ your online business in a comprehensive way. Your effort can develop a firm foundation for long-term success.



About The Author

Scott Lindsay is a web developer and entrepreneur. Make your own website in just 5 minutes with HighPowerSites at: http://www.highpowersites.com or Build A Website at: http://www.buildagreatsite.com. Start your own ebook business with BooksWealth at: http://www.bookswealth.com

How to Import (restore) excel file to outlook contacts?

Today tip will help you to restore the import (restore) excel file to outlook contacts. By default Outlook is integrated into Microsoft Office XP, 2003, 2007 and Microsoft Exchange Server. Outlook is complete e-mail manager by which you e-mail, calendaring, and contact management. Outlook enables you to filter and organize e-mail messages, integrate and manage e-mail from multiple e-mail accounts, personal and group calendars, contacts, folders, and tasks.

Follow the given steps to restore a backup of outlook contacts:

• First click on Start button, go to Program then click on Outlook to run the outlook application.
• Now go to File menu and click on Import and Export option. Here select Import from another file program of file then click Next.
• Select Microsoft Excel and click Next.
• Choose the Excel file by clicking on Browse and select the file where to want to import the contacts from. You have an option where to Replace, Allow or do not import duplicate contact.
• Select the contact folder where you want to imported contact to be stored. This folder typically is "Contacts" Then Click Next.
• Click Finish to start the importing procedure. Time of this procedure depends on contacts size.

How to create One-Click Restart icon on your desktop?

Today tip will help you to enjoy the quicker restart of your computer with a single click on desktop Restart icon. You can set the time when your computer will start the restart process. A single click on Restart icon will close the all running applications and start the restart properly after predefined time. This tip is very useful to save power and time as well. After the execution of this command, a small window will appear to start count time of system restart.

Follow the given steps to create the shutdown icon:

To create a new shortcut, right click on any empty area of your desktop and go to New then Shortcut.

Now a small windows dialog box will appear with the title “Create Windows”. In the “Create Shortcut” window, type the following command.

SHUTDOWN -r -t 30

Here t 30 means time in second, for example if you want your computer will restart automatically after half minute then the command will be shutdown -r -t 30. But if you want your computer will restart without any countdown then type command as shutdown -r -t 00.

Click Next button to type the name of this shortcut and press Finish to close it.

This command starts a 30-second countdown for restart, which permits you to abort it (with a shutdown -a command).

At the end, when you click on restart icon, a windows dialog box will appear with the information” This system is shutting down. Please save all work in progress and log off. Any unsaved changes will be lost. This shutdown was initiated by administrator”.

AT&T might lock rates to win BellSouth OK

AT&T Inc. thinks it should be able to buy BellSouth Corp. with no conditions, but it’s willing to compromise if necessary.

In meetings with the U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC), the company has discussed not raising rates charged to other carriers to use its facilities, as well as locking in prices for business leased lines, according to a Friday letter from AT&T to the agency.

The FCC is the last body that has to sign off on the US$67 billion acquisition, which was approved by the U.S. Department of Justice and state and foreign agencies without conditions. The deal would fold the incumbent carrier for most of the Southeastern U.S. into the nation’s largest service provider.

Consumer groups and competitive carriers have voiced alarm over the deal in the wake of recent consolidation in the industry, saying it will reduce choice for businesses and consumers. On Friday, a divided FCC delayed a decision on the deal and opened a public comment period. It is now set to vote on Nov. 3.

Among other proposed conditions, the merged carrier would agree to keep offering competitors access to its network and not seek higher state-approved rates for that access. It also would not raise rates for DS-1 and DS-3 leased lines in its territory, nor would it increase its interstate tariffs. AT&T/BellSouth also would do business in line with the principles of an FCC policy statement on network neutrality issued last September. Most of the conditions would stay in effect for 30 months from the close of the deal.

Other steps that have been discussed give a glimpse into AT&T’s possible plans. One proposal would have AT&T provide broadband — though defined only as Internet access over 200K bps (bits per second) — to all residences in the BellSouth territory by the end of 2007. Only 85 percent of that would be wired broadband, while the remainder would use alternatives including satellite and WiMax. Another point discusses AT&T initiating 10 new trials of wireless broadband, including at least five in BellSouth’s territory, by the end of 2007.

The Computer & Communications Industry Association dismissed the proposed conditions, saying AT&T is already bound by such rules from its merger last year with SBC Communications Inc.

“It’s kind of a restatement and a slight extension of those,” said Catherine Sloan, vice president of government relations for the group.

The group, made up of companies including Google Inc., Microsoft Corp., Red Hat Inc. and Verizon Communications Inc., has called the proposed acquisition a step backward. It wants strong network neutrality rules, consumer privacy protection, divestiture of wireless spectrum and other conditions imposed on the company.

For consumers, worries about reduced competition among telecommunications carriers are backward-looking, because the next great showdown will be between phone companies and cable operators, said telecom industry analyst Jeff Kagan. However, he acknowledged that coming battle doesn’t yet benefit enterprises because cable companies are largely ignoring businesses for now.

Source: http://fastcreators.com/article

How to enable password and compression feature in windows XP?

You can store your data on hard disk using less space than normal size in windows XP. There is no need to install any third party software to compress or decompress your data, you can use windows built-in data compression or decompression feature to manage disk space issue.

I think many users are worried about the security of their file and folder also, so another benefit of this feature, you can protect your compressed file and folders with password.

Follow the given steps to implement the compression and password feature to mange data:

First double click on "My Computer" and locate the disk where you want to create compressed (zipped) folder. For example, if you want to create this compressed (zipped) folder on C drive, then open C drive.

Here open the "File" menu, go to "New" then click on "Compressed (zipped) Folder" option.

Rename this folder according to data information and press "Enter" button.

Now you can move (drag and drop or copy and paste) your files and folders to this compressed (zipped) folder then compression feature will implement automatically on that data.

When you want to open these compressed files, simple right click on compressed folder and click on Extract All. This extract wizard will automatically extract all these files to location you choose.

Now if you want to protect this compressed folder with password, simply open the compressed folder and go to "File" menu then here click on "Add a Password" option.

A small dialog box will appear with title "Add Password", type password in "Password" box and confirm password also then press Ok button.

Now when you will try to open your compressed files, system will prompt you a dialog box to enter password to open this file.

How to connect your home computer from Remote location?

Using the Remote Desktop feature, you can connect your home computer (host) from any other remote computer (client) and can access all computer resources (installed programs, data and any network resources). You can run any computer application on the remote computer as you were running actually sitting in front of home computer.

Follow the given steps to configure your computer to connect remote computer:

1. To use this feature, you will need to be logged into your computer with administrative rights.
   
2. To perform this task, first make sure your both computers are connected to the internet.
   
3. First you have to configure the host computer that allows the users to connect it remotely. On the host computer, right click on "My computer" and click on Properties option.
   
4. Under the Remote tab, select the option "Allow users to connect remotely to this computer" and click Ok button.
   
5. Now get the IP address of host computer (type the "ipconfig /all" on the command prompt of host computer to find IP address).
   
6. Now make a connection on remote or client computer, click on Start button, go to All Programs> Accessories, and Communications, then click on Remote Desktop Connection, option. A Remote Desktop Connection, dialog box will appear.
   
7. Click on Options button for detail configuration, under the General tab, type the IP address of host computer in the Computer box and also type username and password of host computer then click on Connect button to make a connection to remote computer.

If your username and password is correct then a remote desktop windows will appear.

How to translate a word or phrase into other languages?

Dear friends before this tip I have brought many useful and interesting tips for you. Today tips will help you to translate a single word or phrase of one language to other language using MS Word.
Sometimes you have problems to translate any word or a phrase into foreign languages. But when you read this tip then you don't need to be a linguist expert to translate a word or phrase into other languages or vice versa. You should thanks to Microsoft Word for its surprising Translate feature because MS Word can translate one language phrase to others language automatically.
MS Word can translate a word more rapidly than any third party language translator. You can translate a word or short phrase very easily using this option but if you are going for a long phrase then the MS Word translation skills are not much better than any translation software.
Follow the given steps to use built-in MS Word translation feature:

• First of all open your word document that you want to translate then go to Tools menu and then click on Translate option.
• Now a translate pane will appear on the right side of your document.
• Here type any new text or choose Current selection or Entire document options to translate your opened word document content into other language. Now under the "Look up in dictionary" area,
• Choose that language in which you want to translate that word e.g. English into French. Here click on Go and then result of translation will appear in Result box.
  

A Guide to RSS Aggregators

One of the most popular features of Internet portals, websites, pages and even emails is a frame that features an organized list of news headlines and periodic updates from other web sources. Really Simple Syndication, formerly “Rich Site Summary” or simply, RSS makes this possible.

Most users visit a lot of websites whose content continually change, such as news sites, community organization or professional association information pages, medical websites, product support pages, and blogs. As Internet surfing became an intrinsic part of business and leisure, it became important to get rid of the very tedious task of repeatedly returning to each website to see updated content.

RSS easily distributes information from different websites to a wider number of Internet users. RSS aggregators are programs that use RSS to source these updates, and then organize those lists of headlines, content and notices for easy reading. It allows computers to automatically retrieve and read the content that users want, then track changes and personalize lists of headlines that interests them.

The specially made computer programs called “RSS aggregators” were created to automatically find and retrieve the RSS feeds of pre-selected internet sites on behalf of the user and organize the results accordingly. (RSS feeds and aggregators are also sometimes referred to as "RSS Channels" and "RSS Readers".)

The RSS aggregator is like a web browser for RSS content. HTML presents information directly to users, and RSS automatically lets computers communicate with one another. While users use browsers to surf the web then load and view each page of interest, RSS aggregators keeps track of changes to many websites. The titles or descriptions are links themselves and can be used to load the web page the user wants.

RSS starts with an original Web site that has content made available by the administrator. The website creates an RSS document and registers this content with an RSS publisher that will allow other websites to syndicate the documents. The Web site also produces an RSS feed, or channel, which is available together with all other resources or documents on the particular Web server. The website will register the feed as an RSS document, with a listed directory of appropriate RSS publishers.

An RSS feed is composed of website content listed from newest to oldest. Each item usually consists of a simple title describing the item along with a more complete description and a link to a web page with the actual content being described. In some instances, the short description or title line is the all the updated information that a user wants to read (for example, final games scores in sports, weblogs post, or stock updates). Therefore, it is not even necessary to have a web page associated with the content or update items listed -- sometimes all the needed information that users need would be in the titles and short summaries themselves.

The RSS content is located in a single file on a webpage in a manner not very different from typical web pages. The difference is that the information is written in the XML computer code for use by an RSS aggregator and not by a web user like a normal HTML page.

There are 2 main parts that are involved in RSS syndication, namely: the source end and the client end.

The client end of RSS publishing makes up part of the system that gathers and uses the RSS feed. For example, Mozilla FireFox browser is typically at the client end of the RSS transaction. A user’s desktop RSS aggregator program also belongs to the client end.

Once the URL of an RSS feed is known, a user can give that address to an RSS aggregator program and have the aggregator monitor the RSS feed for changes. Numerous RSS aggregators are already preconfigured with a ready list of RSS feed URLs for popular news or information websites that a user can simply choose from.

There are many RSS aggregators that can be used by all Internet users. Some can be accessed through the Internet, some are already incorporated into email applications, and others run as a standalone program inside the personal computer.

RSS feeds have evolved into many uses. Some uses gaining popularity are:

•For online store or retail establishments: Notification of new product arrivals
•For organization or association newsletters: title listings and notification of new issues, including email newsletters
•Weather Updates and other alerts of changing geographic conditions
•Database management: Notification of new items added, or new registered members to a club or interest group.

The uses of feeds will continue to grow, because RSS aggregators make access to any information that individual users like more convenient and fun.

In the mean time, Good Luck on your journey to success…

OR if you would like to succeed immediately to create financial freedom working only 4 hours a week, check out http://www.Secrets2InternetFortunes.com.

AND for a Limited Time, you will also receive a FREE copy of a limited number of the amazing 60 page eBook “52 Highly Profitable Instant Online Business Ideas That You Can Steal As Your Own And Start Today On A Very Tight Budget!”, which is jam packed with so many ideas you can use to instantly create an automated income for life! That’s my GIFT to You as a way of saying thank you for reading my articles.


About The Author
Terry Leslie is a very successful and world renowned authority figure in both on and off line marketing, and rapid business creation. A much sought after global speaker in the areas of internet marketing, business development, self-improvement and human peak potential training.

For more Secrets to Internet Business success, check out http://www.secrets2internetfortunes.com

The Battle of the Browsers – The History and the Future of Internet Browsers

With Internet Explorer 8 now available, can Microsoft hope to retain market dominance over fierce open source rivals such as Mozilla's Firefox or the feature packed Opera web browser. Can history give us a clue to what the future of web browsers/browsing might hold? How did Netscape Navigator go from having a dominant 89.36% market share of all web browsers in 1996 and yet only 3.76% by mid 1999?

Let us take a journey that will begin long before even the intellectual conception of Internet Explorer, that will glance at its long defeated rivals, examine the current browsers available and will end with a prediction of what the future of browsing will offer us – and which browser(s) will still be around to offer it.

People often think that Internet Explorer has been the dominant web browser since the golden age of the internet began. Well for a very long time now it has indeed been the most popular browser and at times been almost totally unrivalled. This was mainly a result of it being packaged free with Microsoft Windows, in what some would later call a brutal monopolisation attempt by Microsoft. The last few years however have heralded the arrival of new, possibly superior browsers. Mozilla's Firefox has been particularly successful at chipping away at Explorers market dominance. So where did it all begin, and why were Microsoft ever allowed to have a hundred percent market dominance?

Origins

The truth is they never did have total dominance, but at times they have come very close. Microsoft actually entered the Browser Battle quite late on. Infact a man named Neil Larson is credited to be one of the originators of internet browsers, when in 1977 he created a program – The TRS-80 - that allowed browsing between “sites” via hypertext jumps. This was a DOS program and the basis of much to come. Slowly other browsers powered by DOS and inspired by the TRS 80 were developed. Unfortunately they were often constricted by the limitations of the still fairly young internet itself.

In 1988, Peter Scott and Earle Fogel created a simple, fast browser called Hytelnet, which by 1990 offered users instant logon and access to the online catalogues of over five thousand libraries around the world – an exhilarating taste of what the internet, and web browsers, would soon be able to offer.

In 1989 the original World Wide Web was born. Using a NeXTcube computer, Tim Berners-Lee created a web browser that would change how people used the internet forever. He called his browser the WorldWideWeb(http://www., which is still likely to sound familiar to internet users today. It was a windowed browser capable of displaying simple style sheet, capable of editing sites and able to download and open any file type supported by the NeXTcube.

In 1993 the first popular graphical browser was released. Its name was Mosaic and it was created by Marc Andreessen and Eric Bina. Mosaic could be run on both Unix, and very importantly, on the highly popular Microsoft Windows operating system (incidentally it could also be used on Amiga and Apple computers). It was the first browser on Windows that could display graphics/pictures on a page where there was also textual content. It is often cited as being responsible for triggering the internet boom due to it making the internet bearable for the masses. (It should be noted that the web browser Cello was the first browser to be used on Windows – but it was non graphical and made very little impact compared to Mosaic).

The Browser Wars - Netscape Navigator versus Internet Explorer

Mosaic's decline began almost as soon as Netscape Navigator was released (1994). Netscape Navigator was a browser created by Marc Andreessen, one of the men behind Mosaic and co-founder of Netscape Communications Corporation. Netscape was unrivalled in terms of features and usability at the time. For example, one major change from previous browsers was that it allowed surfers to see parts of a website before the whole site was downloaded. This meant that people did not have to wait for minutes simply to see if the site they were loading was the actual one the were after, whilst also allowing them to read information on the site as the rest of it downloaded. By 1996 Netscape had almost 90% market dominance, as shown below.

Market Share Comparisons of Netscape Navigator and Internet Explorer from 1996 to 1998

....................Netscape.......IE
October 1998..........64%.........32.2%
April 1998............70%.........22.7%
October 1997..........59.67%......15.13%
April 1997............81.13%......12.13%
October 1996..........80.45%......12.18%
April 1996............89.36%.......3.76%

In these two years Netscape clearly dominated the internet browser market, but a new browser named Internet Explorer was quickly gaining ground on it.

Microsoft released their own browser (ironically based on the earlier Mosaic browser which was created by one of the men now running Netscape), clearly worried about Netscape's dominance. It was not so much the worry that it would have a 100% market share of internet browsers on their Windows operating system, but more the worry that browsers would soon be capable of running all types programs on them. That would mean foregoing the need for an actual operating system, or at the most only a very basic one would be needed. This in turn would mean Netscape would soon be able to dictate terms to Microsoft, and Microsoft were not going to let that happen easily. Thus in August 1995, Internet Explorer was released.

By 1999 Internet explorer had captured an 89.03% market share, whilst Netscape was down to 10.47%. How could Internet Explorer make this much ground in just two years? Well this was down to two things really. The first, and by far the most important was that Microsoft bundled Internet Explorer in with every new copy of Windows, and as Windows was used by about 90% of the computer using population it clearly gave them a huge advantage. Internet Explorer had one other ace it held over Netscape – it was much better. Netscape Navigator was stagnant and had been for some time. The only new features it ever seemed to introduce were often perceived by the public as beneficial for Netscape's parent company rather than Netscape's user base. (i.e., features that would help it monopolise the market). Explorer, on the other hand, was given much attention by Microsoft. Regular updates and excellent usability plus a hundred million dollar investment would prove too much for Netscape Explorer.

2000 – 2005

These years were fairly quiet in the Battle of the Browsers. It seemed as if Internet Explorer had won the war and that nobody could even hope to compete with it. In 2002/2003 it had attained about 95% of the market share – about the time of IE 5/6. With over 1000 people working on it and millions of dollars being poured in, few people had the resources to compete. Then again, who wanted to compete? It was clearly a volatile market, and besides that everybody was content with Internet Explorer. Or were they? Some people saw faults with IE – security issues, incompatibility issues or simply bad programming. Not only that, it was being shoved down peoples throats. There was almost no competition to keep it in line or to turn to as an alternative. Something had to change. The only people with the ability and the power to compete with Microsoft took matters into their own hands.

Netscape was now supported by AOL. A few years prior, just after they had lost the Browser Wars to Microsoft, they had released the coding for Netscape into the public domain. This meant anybody could develop their own browser using the Netscape skeleton. And people did. Epiphany, Galeon and Camino, amongst others, were born out of Netscape's ashes. However the two most popular newcomers were called Mozilla and Firefox.

Mozilla was originally an open sourced project aimed to improve the Netscape browser. Eventually it was released as Netscape Navigator 7 and then 8. Later it was released as Mozilla 1.0.

Mozilla was almost an early version on another open source browser, Firefox. With it being an open source the public were able to contribute to it - adding in what features it needed, the programming it required and the support it deserved. The problems people saw in Internet Explorer were being fixed by members of the open sourced browser community via Firefox. For instance, the many security issues IE 6 had were almost entirely fixed in the very first release of Firefox. Microsoft had another fight on their hands.

2005 – Present

Firefox was the browser that grew and grew in these years. Every year capturing an even larger market share percentage than before. More user friendly than most of its rivals along with high security levels and arguably more intelligent programming helped its popularity. With such a large programming community behind it, updates have always been regular and add on programs/features are often released. It prides itself on being the peoples browser. It currently has a 28.38% market share.

Apple computers have had their own browser since the mid 1990's – Safari - complete with its own problems, such as (until recently) the inability to run Java scripts. However most Apple users seemed happy with it and a version capable of running on Windows has been released. It has had no major competitor on Apple Macs, and as such has largely been out of the Browser Wars. It currently holds a 2.54% market share and is slowly increasing.

Internet Explorer's market share has dropped from over 90% to around 75%, and is falling. It will be interesting to see what Microsoft will attempt to regain such a high market share.

Opera currently holds 1.07%.

Mozilla itself only has a 0.6% market share these days.

The Future of Web Browsing

Web browsers come and go. It is the nature of technology (if such a term can be used), to supplant inferior software in very short periods of time. It is almost impossible for a single company to stay ahead of the competition for long. Microsoft have the advantage of being able to release IE with any Windows using PC. That covers over 90% of the market. They also have the advantage of unprecedented resources. They can compete how they wish for as long as they wish. So there is no counting IE out of the future of web browsing.

Safari is in a similar position, being easily the most popular Mac web browser. Its long term survival is dependant upon Apple and the sale of their computers.

These are the only two browsers that are almost guaranteed another five years of life, at least. Firefox may seem like another candidate, but the public is fickle, and one bad release, or if it seriously lags behind the new Internet Explorer 8 for long, could easily see its popularity quickly descend into virtual oblivion.

However, it seems likely community driven browsers, such as Mozilla and Firefox, will be the only types of browser capable of competing with the wealthy internet arm of Microsoft in the near future.

As for web browsing itself, will it change any time soon? Well it already has for some online communities. For example, if you want to buy clothes you could try entering an online 'world' creating an online virtual You to go from 'shop to shop' with, looking at products and trying/buying what you see. Some 'worlds' allow you to recreate yourself accurately including weight and height and then try on things apparel such as jeans to give you an idea of how you would look in that particular item.

Will 'worlds' like this destroy normal web browsers such as IE ? - It seems unlikely. Traditional web browsers provide such freedom and ease of access that it is hard to see any other alternative taking over. However they are part of the new, 'thinking out of the box' wave of alternatives that some people will find attractive, and really who knows what the future will bring.


About The Author

Nicholas C Smith is the project manager at Breakfrom Limited, who specialise in affordable ecommerce solutions and general web design knowledge and advice.

For more information and advice visit http://www.breakfrom.com

Back to Back User Agents for Telecommunications

Today’s telecommunications networks are a delicate blend of clients and servers that together offer virtually endless possibilities when it comes to services and applications. For every new client developed, there seems to be a score more on the way — from mobile handsets, PDAs, terminals, telephones, video phones, IP set-top-boxes, and so on.

There are essentially two types of servers that connect between clients on large networks: Proxy servers and Back-to-Back User Agent (B2BUA) servers. The more prevalent Proxy servers feature predictable behavior — simply connecting between clients. Effectively, B2BUA servers are much stronger and intelligent entities that perform actions which Proxy servers cannot. Moreover, B2BUA servers provide a flexible solution for a wide range of applications and services and are becoming the primary engine for more and more SIP servers in NGN and IMS networks.

The difference between Proxy servers and B2BUA servers is sometimes not fully understood. In this article, we will explore what makes B2BUA servers such an appealing alternative to standard Proxy servers. Better understanding of B2BUA servers can help managers understand the value, and the tradeoffs, of choosing a B2BUA server, as well as the frameworks needed to develop a wide range of SIP applications and SIP services using it.

Figure 1 - Architectural difference between Proxy servers and B2BUA servers

B2BUA Server Defined
B2BUA servers are used to provide value added features for point-to-point calls and manage multi-point calls. The power behind a B2BUA server is derived mostly from the fact that it has a very generic definition, which gives it almost unlimited power. However, this same characteristic is the root of the controversy surrounding it.

IETF standard (RFC 3261) defines a back-to-back user agent as “a logical entity that receives a request and processes it as a user agent server (UAS). In order to determine how the request should be answered, it acts as a user agent client (UAC) and generates requests. Unlike a Proxy server, it maintains a dialogue state and must participate in all requests sent on the dialogues it has established.”

B2BUA servers have capabilities that far exceed those of other types of SIP servers, and answer the need for developing sophisticated value added SIP applications that cannot be implemented as Proxy applications.

Some of these capabilities, which are unique to B2BUA servers, are outlined below:

3rd Party Call Control (3PCC) Features
3rd Party Call Control (3PCC) is the ability of an entity (usually a controller) to set up and manage communication between two or more parties. 3PCC is often used for operator services and conferencing.

3PCC actions are important capabilities, exclusive to B2BUA servers since “passive” non call-stateful elements, such as Proxy servers, cannot initiate these types of activities. Some examples of 3PCC services are online billing, QoS, resource prioritization, call transfer, click-to-dial, mid-call announcement and more.

3PCC actions can be initiated automatically by B2BUA server applications, like disconnecting a call following credit expiration in an online-billing system. Or they can be initiated by remote administrative control (OSS), e.g. invite parties to a multi-point conferencing session.

Figure 2 - Schematic outline of B2BUA server offering 3PCC functionality

Inter-working Function (IWF) for Interoperability

SIP was designed as a highly flexible and extendible protocol. The very strength of this flexibility is also an inherent weakness, since the vast array of client types in the market still need to connect.

B2BUA Inter-working Functions (IWF) defines a wide range of powerful SIP servers that connect SIP clients that “speak” in different protocol dialects, or support different capabilities. This Inter-working function is very important in enabling connectivity between clients with different capabilities and/or protocol dialects. Or even between clients and networks – where the B2BUA server actually acts as an access device.

Examples of what IWF can do include:

• Connecting SIP clients to IMS networks by adding and removing IMS SIP protocol extensions (AKA P-Headers) that are essential for connecting to the IMS network
• Connecting clients with different Session Timers settings
• Connecting clients with different media capabilities and with distinct Session Description Protocol (SDP) messages by relaying between the two types of control sessions
• Connecting to different types of networks (e.g. IPv4, IPv6) and support for different transport types, such as TCP/UDP/SCTP/TLS

Figure 3 - Schematic outline of a B2BUA Inter-Working Function

Multi-point Call Management

B2BUA servers an also implement multi-point call scenarios where multiple CPE devices connect to the B2BUA, and the B2BUA provides services to all CPE.

Due to these unique capabilities, B2BUA servers are widely used in the communications industry. A few examples are listed below:

• Online-billing/prepaid functions
• Servers supporting Resource Prioritization (RP) and/or Quality of Service (QoS) features
• Multi Point Conferencing servers
• IVR servers
• PBX Applications and Softswitches
• Application Layer Gateways (ALG)
• FW/NAT Traversal applications
• Privacy servers
• 3rd-Party Call Control Applications (3PCC)
• Service Creation Environment (SCE) runtime engines
• Session Boarder Controller (SBC)
• IMS S-CSCF, P-CSCF, I-CSCF
• SIP Inter-work Function (IWF) Gateway
• Security Gateway (SEG)
• Voice Call Continuity (VCC) servers

In addition, B2BUA servers play an important role in emerging IMS networks. Recent releases of 3GPP IMS specifications (3GPP TS 24.229 V8.0.0) indicate that an increasing number of IMS network element servers, such as P-CSCF, IBCF,SBC etc., are B2BUA servers. The reason for this is that value added services are usually session stateful, and feature capabilities that go beyond basic call proxying. Applications written on top of B2BUA Application servers fulfill several roles, such as SIP User Agents, SIP Proxy servers and SIP Registrars.

B2BUA Server Challenges

B2BUA application developers face many challenges, such as achieving rapid time-to-market, conformance and interoperability, offering customization for proprietary services and support for High Availability (HA) and redundancy. A comprehensive B2BUA framework can help developers overcome these challenges.

A solid B2BUA framework should have modular application building block architecture for increased flexibility, abstraction and short delivery time. Traditional architecture, which features a single configurable state machine, is not flexible enough. Also, a B2BUA framework should facilitate developing B2BUA applications by flexibly linking “pluggable” high-level Modular Application Building Blocks (MABB). Developers should have the ability to combine these MABBs and they should be designed in a way that allows developers to further customize their behavior if needed. This type of architecture complies with contemporary Service Oriented Architecture (SOA) concepts, and is suitable for powering flexible business communication platforms. This modular architecture can save months of work. With a set of MABBs in hand, developing the application is a matter of combining existing MABBs to produce the required business logic. In addition, this architecture enhances efficiency; development of new MABBs can be done concurrently.

A B2BUA framework should facilitate developing applications that fully conform to standards and are interoperable; without restricting developers from customizing protocol behavior for special cases. Moreover, it should conform for non-standard implementations, as well as to mediate between two versions of the same standard. This type of framework allows developers to focus on their proprietary application with the confidence that their final application will be fully interoperable.

And finally, a B2BUA framework should provide the ability to configure, amend and replace application building blocks to create proprietary features. With this ability, developers can maximize existing code – significantly reducing development time, shortening testing cycles, and reducing overall time-to-market.

Figure 4 - Traditional architecture of a B2BUA framework

RADVISION’s B2BUA Application Framework http://www.radvision.com/Products/Developer/SIPServer delivers these capabilities and more. The B2BUA Application Framework module is a part of the RADVISION SIP server Platform, a software framework that offers the essential building blocks for the development of a wide variety of high performance SIP and IMS servers. The rich set of components and modules can be flexibly combined to match customers’ requirements for developing SIP servers that offer both standard and advanced SIP services.

Applications written on top of RADVISION’s B2BUA framework are developed by combining customizable modular application building blocks. This is effectively large chunks of functionality that can be strung together to form ad-hoc applications, enabling developers to focus on the high-level business logic and use building blocks that hide low-level details.

As one of the most popular IM applications, Yahoo! Messenger was the first large consumer player that adopted B2B UA. Yahoo! Messenger combined its backend scalable platform with RADVISION’s B2B UA to serve millions of monthly unique messaging users around the world. Yahoo selected RADVISION’s B2BUA due to its robust performance and scalability features.

Figure 5 - The architecture of RADVISION B2BUA Application Framework

RADVISION also offers automatic High Availability (HA) and Redundancy support. The B2BUA framework automatically replicates the run-time state of the different Services and B2BUA framework core. In the event of a server outage, a redundant server takes over seamlessly and provides uninterrupted service continuity.

B2BUA framework benefits in a nutshell

• Significantly reduces time to market developing proprietary B2B applications and services.
• Allows adding advanced services easily to retain competitive advantage and evolve to meet growing customer demands.
• Focuses on the business logic and hides low level operator communication intricacies.
• Delivers off-the-shelf conformance and interoperability.
• Enables rapid development of applications that can interoperate with different vendors.
• Enables adding high-availability features easily.

Click here http://www.radvision.com/Resources/WhitePapers/b2bua.htm for more extensive information on B2BUA Servers.

By Danny Loeb, RADVISION http://www.radvision.com Product Manager

About The Author
Danny Loeb is a seasoned Product Manager at RADVISION, leading RADVISION’s SIP Server Platform and Server Solutions product family. With over ten years of experience Danny has vast multidisciplinary knowledge in product management, system architecture, integration and development of servers for data communication and voice communication networks. Prior to joining RADVISION, he served as System Integration Manager and System Architect at Charlotte’s Web Networks, a developer of core-IP Terabit Routers, where he lead the foundation of the company’s Remote Presence Solutions Division. Previously, Mr. Loeb served in several positions at Microsoft as part of the Internet Security and Acceleration Development Team.

How to enable the Hibernation feature in windows XP?

In windows environment, the hibernation is a built-in feature used to increases your work performance and also minimizes the windows startup time. For example, if you have to keep open a lot of files and windows applications then you can leave you system in hibernate mode without closing the open programs. When you restart computer after hibernation, all the running files and applications will be restore as you have left them. Windows store the all hibernated information in the Hiberfil.sys file using system root folder. The size of this file is roughly equal to the RAM of your system.

Follow the given steps to activate the hibernation in windows XP:

To use this feature, you will need to be logged into your computer with administrative rights.

First click on Start button> Control Panel, click on Performance and Maintenance then click on Power Options.

A new "Power Options Properties" dialog box will appear, select Hibernate tab and then select the "Enable hibernation" check box to enable the hibernate feature.

If you system does not support the hibernation feature then the hibernation tab will not available there.

Now click on Apply button to implement the changes then click on Ok button to end the configuration process.

After enabling the hibernation feature click on Start button then click on "Turn off Computer". In the "Turn off Computer" dialog box, press the "Shift" for some time and click on Hibernate button. Your system will take some time to complete the hibernation process.

Broadband Bullfight Heats Up

Competition is (slowly) bringing down bandwidth costs in South Africa
Recently South African cyberspace was given an area code (O87), the country's first report on wireless broadband offerings was released and the cheapest asymmetric digital subscriber line (ADSL) connection was announced.

The suffix 087 was allocated for Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) numbers by the Independent Communications Authority of South Africa (Icasa), effectively allowing calls routed through the Internet to connect with the traditional tele-coms infrastructure.

It would allow users to dial a 087 number much like a cellphone number and connect to someone who also uses a VoIP system instead of Telkom or a cellular network. The call would be routed through a data system, but be answered using a normal telephone or computer, depending on how it is set up by the service provider.

However, like most other telecoms issues, it is already contentious, with one service provider, Storm, saying Telkom believes it is illegal for Storm to provide voice services and to interconnect with it. Telkom spokesperson Lulu Let-lape explains, "According to Section 14 of the Telecommunications Act, value-added network services (Vans) providers are not permitted to carry voice until the communications minister gazettes a change. According to Telkom, that hasn't changed, that Act still stands".

Ironically, the 087 number range was used for the notorious value-added lines 11 years ago which featured mostly sex chatlines. It is common knowledge that Telkom suffered huge losses when subscribers refused to pay or operators defrauded them by skipping payment.

"Telkom lost a lot of money in the past; could lose a lot of money in the future," says Storm's business development director David Gale. He went on to say that Internet service providers (ISP) and other telecoms providers could form their own interconnect arrangement, and added that the upcoming Convergence Bill would make a challenge to Telkom unnecessary.

There is an effort to lessen the cost of bringing bandwidth into the country even as more complaints emerge about the price of telecoms in South Africa.
Globally, the much-publicised purchase of Internet calling service Skype by eBay for about $4-billion was concluded; while BSkyB, the United Kingdom's largest pay-television group was revealed to be interested in entering the broadband market by acquiring ISP Easynet and offering so-called triple-play services, combining voice calls, broadband Internet access and paid-for television.

Meanwhile, M-Web, which is the largest consumer ISP, announced the lowest monthly ADSL package, but one has to use Telkom's entry level 192kps connection and M-Web's monthly fee, which is the same cost as a normal dial-up.

Broadband access and cost has grown into arguably the most contentious issue after Telkom's call prices and the need to allow access to the "local loop". This is the so-called 'last mile" that connects subscribers to the exchange. The largest portion of the monthly cost is a second rental fee Telkom charges for the ADSL line. Icasa slammed these fees as "exorbitant" after hearings earlier this year into the cost of Telkom's broadband access; following a complaint by the MyADSL.co.za website. The website has emerged as one of Telkom's greatest critics as it is a forum for broadband users, many of whom are disgruntled about the service that Telkom is offering.

While most criticism has been about the cost of doing business and how it retards the country's economic growth the NGO, Sangonet pointed out that it hindered development goals too.

"The high cost of access limits the use of the Internet as a civil society tool and stunts the growth of a culture to use technology as an information tool," Sangonet deputy director Fazila Farouk told ITWeb. She told the information technology website that the 'about' 100 000 civil-society organisations in South Africa - most of which are community based - could use the Internet as a tool for fund-raising, advocacy and working with other constituencies to share information and coordinate development priorities, but cannot do so effectively on dial-up.

Meanwhile, the first wireless broadband report, released by Johannesburg University's department of business information technology and the MyADSL website, found that Sentech's MyWireless was the best on offer. Comparing price, speed, reliability, and support through lab and user testing, the report was a comparative analysis of the wireless alternatives to Telkom's ADSL. MyWireless scored 87%; Vodacom's 3G came second with 81%; WBS's iBurst third with 80%; and MTN's 3G was last with 78%. Ironically, MyWireless has received the worst publicity and there have been complaints of bad service and poor speeds.

By: Bronwen Roberts

Author Bio
You've probably already heard that VoIP could cut a substantial chunk off your company's monthly telecoms bill, and that there is more than one provider that offers the service. Both these facts are true. Storm makes it so easy for you to implement VoIP that you'll barely realise it's happened until your vastly reduced phone bill arrives.

Article Source: http://www.ArticleGeek.com

Cell Phone Insurance - Look Before You Buy

Our cell phones are a life line, a work tool, and in some cases, the tie that binds families. To be without a cell phone is unimaginable for many but it is a reality that they are faced with at some time as record numbers of handsets are lost, stolen, or rendered useless each year. However, in a nation that attempts to insure every possession, cell phone insurance is available.

Numerous insurers have popped up in recent years promising to end the turmoil caused by the unexpected absence of these handy devices. These companies reassure us that we won't go more than a matter of hours when a cell phone is stolen as they strive to quickly resolve claims and replace our valuable goods. But is this insurance really cost effective? Does it provide the service that consumers anticipate? Potential buyers need to take the time to seek out the details of a policy before deciding that such insurance is a solution to the issue of a cell phone gone missing or bad.

When reviewing a cell phone insurance policy, buyers should consider a few things:

Consider the cost of the coverage.

This includes the monthly payments times the number of months the owner anticipates having the phone. For instance, a $5/month policy held on a phone that is owned for 3 years would total $180. That is $5 x 36 months = $180. Now the potential buyer must also factor in any deductible. For our example lets say there is a $50 deductible. The new total of $230 represents what the buyer would actually be paying if indeed their phone had to be replaced. Consumers need to compare the cost of a new, equivalent cell phone compared to the cost of the coverage. If they can obtain a new phone on their own for nearly the same amount as the cost of the policy, they are better off forgoing the insurance.

How are cell phones replaced?

Is there a guarantee that the phone will be replaced with a model of equivalent or better value? A guarantee that the phone will be new rather than refurbished? Is there language assuring the time frame in which the phone will be replaced? These types of questions will help determine whether or not the service will meet the needs for immediacy in obtaining a replacement and if the replacement will be inferior or equivalent to the original equipment.

What does the cell phone insurance policy cover?

Does the policy apply to cell phone theft, cell phone loss, and significant damage? It is important to know which situations are covered and which are most likely to occur. If the policy does not cover the situations that a particular buyer is most concerned with, then the policy is useless to them. Many policies will differentiate between loss and theft; sometimes requiring a police report for thefts.

Know what the cellular provider can do in these instances

Some cellular providers are willing to help replace a damaged or missing cell phone that a user has had for more than a year. In some cases, a replacement will be provided or discounted, minimizing the need for the additional protection of cell phone insurance.

Like any type of insurance coverage, cell phone insurance could provide significant assistance in quickly replacing a vital device that an owner can not afford to replace in some circumstances. However, in many instances it is merely an added expense. Consumers need to carefully review the policy to determine whether or not it offers the type of protection they need for their cell phone.

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