Articles, Reviews & Product Reports at enort.com

As a Kansas City computer repair specialist, I have the privilege of seeing a vast array of computers, configurations and setups across the city. It continues to be surprising how many computer owners still leave there computers unprotected.

The world is changing fast and the foreign computer attackers are growing at a swift pace. Some of the foreign attackers make the average domestic attacker seem relatively harmless. I say relatively because the domestic malware creator can still produce threats that will render your computer unusable.

The most recent threat types such as the "bot" bring a whole new paradigm of intrusion to the computer landscape. "A bot typically runs hidden and complies with the RFC 1459 (IRC) standard. Generally, the perpetrator of the botnet has compromised a series of systems using various tools (exploits, buffer overflows, as well as others; see also RPC).

Newer bots can automatically scan their environment and propagate themselves using vulnerabilities and weak passwords. Generally, the more vulnerabilities a bot can scan and propagate through, the more valuable it becomes to a botnet controller community. The process of stealing computing resources as a result of a system being joined to a "botnet" is sometimes referred to as ‘scrumping.'" - Wikipedia.

Overlooking the technical terminology above, you can see that bots are very sophisticated in their approach and very dangerous to the well-being to all who are involved.

In the malware removal category, software like pc tools spyware doctor is a solid tool to help combat some of these bots such as the VBBot. Spyware Doctor can even remove Conficker which is a worm that is really part of a botnet that is extremely hard to counter.

If you wish to have specific botnet protection, take a look at Norton Antibot as a viable solution.

Norton Antibot is software licensed from Sana Security (update: purchased by AVG in Jan 2009- Norton Antibot discontinued) that detects bots, spyware, adware and other malware based on their behavior. It does not need a signature database to operate because it detects suspect behaviors.

The Norton 360 product now implements SONAR technology which is used to combat botnets. Therefore, look at Norton 360 as the alternative to Norton Antibot.

I was all set to go shopping and ready to buy a Dell laptop.

The instant I recognized I absolutely didn't understand a thing involved with choosing a mobile computing device. I asked my mate Mark who is an amazing computing wizard for suggestions. I received certainly sound advice and I'm preparing to pass it on to you right now.

The initial tip was to never buy a laptop at a big box store. I know you may believe you need the hand holding of an appliance establishment employee but you definitely don't. In reality the employees they have attending to you at those locations understand almost nothing about laptops. You would be better off with no portable computer help.

Your best decision is to buy a laptop computer online. You probably will get the best money savings and the best selection with Internet laptop computer shopping.

Following that I was asked to decide whether or not I was concerned about the weight and dimensions of my laptop. If it is only being left at your house and not going on trips with you there is no reason to shell out the extra dollars for an ultralight or ultraslim computer. A heavier and larger laptop should meet your needs.

If it is solely being left at home or in the office will do the job you can get a lot more computing power for your cash. A bulky and power hungry notebook is frequently labeled a desktop replacement.

However, if you expect to do heavy traveling with your mobile computing device size is a definite thing to consider. You do not need to be stuck dragging around a dozen pounds of powerful computer everywhere you go. There are a variety of thin and easy on the back mobile computers to choose from in a wide range of prices.

You just need to make a decision on the model and the style you desire as well as the amount of computing power you want in the portable computer.

You can now find a lot of great best techno at JonLeger.com. In case you're interested in creating music yourself, here's how he does it:

FL Studio

His primary tool for creating electronic music is FL Studio. FL Studio has it all: a mixer, a sequencer, loads of special effects and filters. Truly fantastic. He strongly suggests you purchase a copy! It takes a while to get used to using it, but it really makes music-making a digital breeze.

MAGIX Music Editor 2.0

When Jon needs to modify, cut and paste the sounds he uses in his songs, he uses MAGIX. It was cheap -- he got it at Best Buy for $30. It's very handy for the wave-editing that FL Studio can't do. He looked at their site (magix.com), but I couldn't find it. Maybe they don't sell it anymore?

Bink Video's RAD Video Tools

He's started making songs based on movies and TV shows that he likes, and sometimes it's useful to extract sounds from the movie trailers and movie clips that are available online. To accomplish this he uses the RAD Video Tools from Bink Video. They're donationware, so be sure to give them a few bucks if you find their stuff useful (he did).

Loops and Samples

Jon has purchased thousands of loops, samples and instruments for use in FL Studio. Two of the places he's gotten the sounds from are PlatinumLoops.com and PeaceLoveProductions.com. Both have a large selection at reasonable prices.

Hardware

He uses an audio-technica studio microphone for vocals (AT3035), and an Edirol UA-25 USB Audio Capture device to record from the microphone. He loves the Edirol because it's very small (perfect for my desk) and supports two studio microphones and has a digital output for headphones.

If you're interested in creating your own music, he wants to tell you this: it's a lot easier (and cheaper) than you might think. You don't need a studio (even for vocals). He records vocals in his office at home. All of the software and equipment costs came to around $1,250 (including the loops). The equipment all fits on my desk, and the software runs on my home PC.

FL Studio needs a good bit of memory, so Jon suggests you don't have less than 1GB of RAM (that's how much he has and it works fine).

Has your Xbox 360 given up on you? I can feel your pain since I had exactly the same problem. But, instead of sending the Xbox 360 in for repairs I took the matter into my own hands and found the fix.

You see, there is a flaw within the Xbox 360 which causes this error and it is very easy to fix. Microsoft can fix it, but you may have to wait weeks to get your system back. Your local electronics shop can fix it (maybe), but they might want to charge you and arm and a leg.

Since I really didn't want to wait or pay through the nose, I searched the web until I found someone who had put together the complete fix in a step by step guide. And, the best part is they guarantee you will be playing your games again by this evening!!

What's more is they included two fixes within the guide and one of them does not even involve taking the Xbox 360 apart. If you're handy, with this info you could make $$$'s just buying broken Xbox 360's and repairing them in about 1 hour.

Sound neat? Here's where you can get more information... Xbox360 Three Red Lights Fix

If you've been putting off getting your Xbox 360 fixed because you are out of warranty or because you thought it was too hard, time-consuming, and so on; Xbox 360 3 Red Lights Repair Guide will show you exactly how to fix it. Don't suffer with this problem any longer get the complete Xbox 360 3 Red Lights Repair Guide today.

Because you can fix the problem - easily! - with the Xbox 360 Rings of Death Repair Guide.

Pregnancy is one of the most amazing experiences one can imagine.

It literally absorbs your life and becomes YOU.

So, if you have an iPhone or iPod touch, of course you will want add pregnancy related apps to your collection.

For instance...

You might be on your way to pregnancy massage appointment and have a baby name idea... there is an app for that, you know.

Your girlfriends may call you about what unique baby shower gifts you've registered for... is there an app for that?

You may want to chat with other mommies-to-be in a pregnancy forum... you can make an app for that!

iPhone Apps for Mommies-To-Be

App #1 - Best Pregnancy Calendar

My choice is iPregnancy from Dr. Gregory P. Moore. It will help you keep track of your pregnancy right along with your doctor!

Once your due date is established and entered, the program will keep track of your current progress in pregnancy including your:

• Current gestational age in weeks and days (like doctors use)
• Current gestational age in lunar months
• Progress bar that will show you how far you have progressed
• Current Trimester Time remaining until your due date (in weeks and days)
• And more...

App #2 - Best Baby Game App

I really like playing with the app called Babyface. It is a "baby appearance predictor". Meaning, it creates a full color graphic of what your baby may look like.

Now, this is for fun so don't be surprised if it isn't accurate. The app has an amazingly scientific explanation behind the technology which is supposed to generate the babyface... despite that mumbojumbo, it is a lot of fun.

App #3 - Best Baby Naming App

NameShake is an app I really love. It has over 19,000 names and, the coolest part, you just set a few parameters, shake your iPhone and, voila, out pops a cool baby name you never would have thought of.

My husband loves it too. We bought a few baby name books but this app is really all we needed.

Obviously, there are lots of apps on iTunes. These are just the 3 I played with the most.

I hope you like them too!

Backdoor.ProRat is a remote administrative trojan. It allows an attacker to take full control of a compromised computer. It also logs all keystrokes to a text file which can be accessed by the attacker. It also hides itself from task manager and process monitors.

Remote Administrative Trojans (RATs) allow a hacker to obtain unrestricted access to another individual’s PC whenever that person is connected to the Internet. The hacker can then perform such operations as transfer files, add, edit or delete files, and even control the mouse and keyboard.

Most Trojans are usually distributed as email attachments or integratedpackaged with another software application. It appears that Backdoor ProRat is not just RAT but also a keylogger. Specifically is it a Remote Access Keylogger. These are local computer software keyloggers coded with an additional facility to transmit recorded data out of the infected computer and transfer the data to the monitor machine at a remote location. Remote communication is supported by one of four ways:

• Data is uploaded to another website or an ftp site.
• Data is periodically emailed to a predetermined email address.
• Data is wirelessly transmitted through the use attached hardware facility.
• It allows the monitor to log into the local machine by way of the internet or LAN/WAN and access the logs stored on the infected computer.

This RAT/RAK is known by PC Tools and can be removed by spyware doctor. If you do not have a firewall you might be interested in looking at the PC Tools Internet Security product which has a firewall, antivirus and antispyware in one product.

If you have asked your friends and family if they are on Twitter, they may or may not know what you are talking about. While everyone and their mother seems to know about MySpace and Facebook, many people seem to finally be learning what is Twitter.

The thing is though, Twitter, while some compare it to the other social network sites, is more geared towards professional adults then anything else. While some young people may sign up for an account, they generally do not last long on there.

This is probably because you cannot post pretty graphics, write blogs that are ten pages long, and stalk the lives of other people through the millions of pictures they are posting of themselves. With all of that taken into consideration, Twitter is the place to be for the working adult that is professional and looking to expand their business through connection and customer relations. There are in fact seven popular ways people use Twitter

#1 Expand Your Circle Of Friends

With the help of Twitter you can follow people who are of like mind. Those who are in the same field as you or who have the same interests are often the people that you will find yourself following. These people will generally follow your Twitter account as well since you all have so much in common.

The people you follow through Twitter may never come to be anything more then an Internet friendship, but that does not mean that it is not a friendship that has its place and its value in your life.

#2 Learn About Those You Admire

Whether you are following an actor, a singer, or your favorite businessperson, you are able to follow their account. Their comments may give you an insight into who they really are and how they run business.

A lot can be learned through watching people that you admire. You may also learn a few tips and tricks from them without even realizing it. By making some sort of connection with the people you admire you are able to see what it is that you want to be.

#3 Keep Your Family Informed

If your mother wants to know every time your new baby does something cute or special, you may find that you are tired of placing twenty phone calls a day. But, you want to make sure that your relatives are not missing out on the important or special things that are taking place throughout your day or week.

By placing easy to type messages or comments on Twitter, your family can see everything that is happening and feel as though they are really being kept in the loop.

#4 Become Famous In Your Own Right

Many people find that they need a fast, efficient, and cheap way to advertise themselves. Maybe you are staring in a new local play or an article you wrote just became published in a magazine. By placing a simple and sweet comment on your Twitter page, those following you will know about your recent accomplishments and will want to check them out.

#5 Learn How To Open Up

Those that find they have a hard time opening up to people, even with the simplest thing, find that Twitter helps them overcome those obstacles. By placing a comment or two a day you can open up to those following you and see the wonderful responses that come from such an act.

#6 Teach Others About Your Work Or Faith

When you reach out to others, there is something wonderful being felt by those who have been taught and those doing the teaching. Many people find that they can touch the lives of many by simply posting a comment or two each day about something inspirational. You have the ability to make someone laugh with your wit or make someone think deep with the use of your wisdom.

#7 Generate Traffic And Make Money

Even though you are not selling anything directly from the Twitter site, you can make use of it as a way to bring in more people. You can generate more traffic to a site of yours, gain more associates, and most importantly make more money.

Use it as much or as little as you would like. You will see that with enough dedication you will be able to earn a good bit of money by using the tools available to you, such as Twitter.

Registry cleaners are a necessity for Windows PC owners. If you're not cleaning your computer's registry from time to time, it's somewhat comparable to owning a vehicle without ever changing the oil - eventually you're going to run into some problems.

However, in your quest to find the best registry cleaning program out there, you're presented with two different types: free and paid. There are obvious reasons why somebody would choose a free registry cleaner, but are the benefits for the paid programs worth the minimal one-time investment?

That's what we're going to explore today - an honest assessment of the differences between free registry cleaners and paid registry cleaning software.

Free registry cleaner pros:

• They do not cost anything
• There are several available today
• They may have community support if the vendor cannot support the product
• You can install free software on as many computers as you have without any issues

Free registry cleaner cons:

• They may have limited-to-no support
• The software may be out-of-date or become ou-of-date due to lack of updates
• The feature list may be minimal, and as some features are imperative in order for a registry cleaning software to be safe - the free software could actually be dangerous
• Obscure, yet free registry cleaners are more likely to contain malware or viruses than well-established, low-cost registry cleaning software
• There is less incentive for the creator of the registry cleaning program to offer updates or support. In fact, many cannot support their programs due to the lack of funding.

Paid registry cleaner pros:

• Usually paid software is better supported than free
• These are less likely to contain malware, viruses, or other unfavorable programs
• They generally include free future updates, and the chances of receiving updates as you upgrade your computer system over the years is better than with free software.
• These generally come with a number of features not found with free software. While some features are for convenience only, other features, such as automatic backups, and in some cases - setting a system restore point, are safety features and really help to protect your system.
• Paid programs are generally better-supported on a larger number of operating system platforms. For instance, some registry cleaners only work with Windows XP and Vista, but paid programs are more likely to work with older and newer versions of Windows operating systems like Windows 98, Windows 98, Windows ME, and Windows 7.
• Many registry cleaners offer free trials for their software - you can download, and at least view how a particular product will benefit you.

Paid registry cleaning software cons:

• They are not free - you actually have to pay for them.
• In some cases, paid programs can offer a false sense of security - not all software vendors are ethical. While this is hardly prevalent problem, you cannot let your guard down just because you are paying for a product in lieu of using a free version.
• Not all paid registry cleaners are the same - while one may offer a huge number of timesaving and security-enhancing features, another may offer the same features as a free product.
• Some programs may limit the software to a pre-determined number of PCs on installations. This isn't the norm, but if you have multiple computers, this is something to watch out for.

Overall, while free registry cleaning software does have some notable benefits, we feel that you are going to get a better overall value, and better security, by using a paid registry cleaning program.

Sure, there are costs involved, but there's a good chance that you probably want to keep your computer for a while, so in our opinions - the minimal, one-time investment is definitely worth what you're getting out of it.

If and when your computer decelerates, it can be very aggravating.  When you are accustomed to new pc's with lightning quick speeds, being slowed back to dial-up speeds can be a real drag on your bright mood.

It does not have to stay that way, however, if you make up one's mind to improve your pc functioning by utilizing a registry cleaner software.  But, as you will shortly learn when you browse online, there are many registry cleaners available for you.  How do you commence to sort through all of the programs to figure out which is the best registry cleaner for your computer?  There is a quicker route, and they are registry cleaner reviews.

Composed by pc gurus, they pass on advice on selecting a good registry cleaner, and even tips about unique cleaners and what they can offer.  A registry fix review can save you a great deal of time and hassle when you want to improve your pc functioning levels promptly.

As a beginning place in your pursuit for the best registry cleaner, you will want to determine that the cleaner you are thinking about is sufficient enough to provide a report prior to executing any changes to your Windows registry, and permits you to pick out the alterations that you would like made from a list of all potential alterations.

This is essential to bare in mind when you require your computer to speed up.  PC computers all have Windows registries.  This is the area in the pc where all of the information from the control panel is stored.  What can happen that causes your computer to slow down is those tiny pieces of information that cannot be accessed by your pc are left on the Windows registry.  This can easily come about if you install and then uninstall a lot of software and/or hardware.

If you are a gamer or use a great deal of various software and hardware that you routinely switch out of, this can quite easily take place.  It is very easy to leave small portions of computer software programs still installed in your pc's registry, even if you discard the majority of the software.  When this occurs, these data fragments merely get in the way of your computer when it  searches for data, slowing it down enormously.

The best registry cleaner will only remove the selective information that the computer can no longer get at, and thus can enhance pc functioning.  By reading registry cleaner reviews you will get info on how every program you are thinking about actually operates, and you can discover if it offers a report before removing needed information on your computer.

That is one of the downfalls to using not highly rated registry cleaner package, and one that a registry cleaner comparison can help prevent.  The best registry cleaner will not delete your important information without your authorization first.  Registry cleaner reviews can help you choose user-friendly software that does what you want it to.

Though at a snails pace, the music industry is moving away from physical media like casettes and CD's and towards a purely digital distribution system.

It makes sense - if you have a decent Internet connection you can listen to music right in your web browser. No need to travel to the corner shop and spend your money on a physical recording. And if you really want a local, offline copy, you usually find and download a MP3.

The above paragraph sounds enticing, no doubt, but how does it work in practice? In this article I'll show you several ways to listen to music online. And don't worry - you won't need to download files and bother with converting them to a format that your PC will understand (e.g. converting .flac files). The majority of music sites don't even ask you to sign up.

First up : Pandora.com. Pandora is a US-only Internet radio service. It uses something similar to a genetic algorithm to find out what your band/style preferences are and supplies the audio stream via an easy-to-use, flash-based player.

You will need to register to start listening to Pandora, but registration is free. The only major downsides are that it won't work for anyone outside of USA and you don't have direct control over what tracks are played.

Deezer.zom is another free Internet radio/audio search portal. This time you don't even need to sign up - just enter an artist or song title in a search field and start listening. Deezer also includes many social community features (these require registration), a news section and the ability to easily buy the playing track should you want to peruse it when your connection is down.

The download functions is aimed mainly at iTunes users, but you can usually convert the iTunes format to .mp3 without much hassle if you want to use it with other players.

Lastly, Last.fm is my personal favorite. It's another "smart" online radio that will automatically construct a playlist based on songs you like. Unlike Pandora, it has no country restrictions. You can also install a stand-alone Last.fm player which means you don't need to keep your browser open to listen to music online.

Last.fm also includes numerous social networking features. For example, it automatically finds users with similar music tastes and lets you add them as friends.

Well, that concludes this short overview of online music portals. There are a lot more similar sites out there, but these three should be enough to get you started.