USB Port Concept

In a classic case of "why didn't we think of this first," Chinese design student Gonglue Jiang has shown us a new way for overcoming the limitations imposed by the scarcity of USB ports on some computers. Instead of forcing you to constantly hot swap devices into that one port, Gonglue's Infinite USB plugs keep all your cables connected, thereby facilitating those smartphone syncs, spy camera recharges, and -- for the ultimate irony -- maybe even a USB hub. If you're thinking this would be brought down by a bout of bandwidth starvation once you start some USB multitasking, you're probably right, but power shortages shouldn't be an issue as the author has also come up with an external power connector that joins into his Infinite chain of connectivity. If only this wasn't just a concept.

Site: http://jianggonglue.com/DesignUSB.html

via Engadget

[Reader Article] 7 Dependable Free Software To Protect Laptops

7 Dependable Free Software To Protect Laptops

Good security does not necessarily cost you money. Here are 7 easy to use, dependable and free software that will help keep your laptop and its contents safe.

1. Encryption. TrueCrypt is a trustworthy encryption program. www.truecrypt.org

2. Backup. Cobin Backup is reliable backup software. www.educ.umu.se/~cobian/cobianbackup.htm. A more user friendly alternative is Mozy, which is an online based backup software. www.mozy.com

3. Antivirus. AVG free edition provides protection againt viruses, spyware and other malware.free.avg.com/ww-en/download-free. A light weight alternative is Avira free edition.

4. Firewall. Windows firewall (built-in) is easy to use and does decent job.

5. Tracking. Prey is open source laptop tracking software designed to track stolen laptops.www.preyproject.com

6. Alarm. LAlarm is like a car alarm for your laptop. Also it can recover and destroy data in case of laptop theft and more. www.lalarm.com

7. File shredder. Eraser deletes files irrecoverably. It is useful for regular cleanup as well as occasional cleanup before taking your laptop to an airport or a repair shop, and selling it to others. eraser.heidi.ie

This month's reader submitted article was submitted by: Eric L.

Updated Apple Store

Apple has brought back the store, and with it, they bring some new, unannounced additions:

• White plastic MacBook. Redesigned, starting at $999
• iMac with an incredible new display
• Mac Mini with more memory and a faster processor
• Magic Mouse – “The world’s first multi-touch mouse”

Pictures and link are after the break.

UPDATE: There is also a new redesigned Apple Remote, and updated Time Capsule and Airport Extreme stations. (As predicted – Also after the break!)

Click the images for a link to the website.

Macbook:

iMac:

Mac Mini:

Magic Mouse:

New Apple Remote:

Links for:

Updated Time Capsule (Faster Auto backup, and simultaneous Dual Band)

Updated Airport Extreme

[Reader Article] Cool Use For an Old Flash Drive

Co Cool Use For Old Flash Drives

Don't throw your old USB flash drive away. Instead, you can use an old flash drive to prevent your laptop from being stolen. Here is how.

1. Install free software on your laptop. www.lalarm.com/LaptopAlarm. (free for personal use)
2. Fasten a neck strap to your old USB flash drive.
3. Fasten the other end of the strap to a table.
4. Plug in the USB flash drive into a USB port of a laptop.
5. Lock the laptop by pressing the Windows logo key and L key together.

When a thief removes the laptop from the table, the USB flash drive will be disconnected from the laptop and then a loud siren sound will be emitted. (See photos: www.lalarm.com/arm2) In addition to sounding an alarm, the software sends an alert to your mobile phone. This tip is also useful if you worry about identity theft. The free software destroys data in case of laptop theft.

This was a reader submitted article by James Lee

Get Windows 7 Free

Get Windows 7 Ultimate for free... by throwing a party

Dying to throw a party where everyone goes home alone? Microsoft's got you covered. Redmond's looking for Windows 7 fans to throw launch parties from October 22-29, and if you're chosen, you'll get a free "Signature Edition" of Windows 7 Ultimate, free party favors, and a chance to win a PC valued at $750. Sure, you'll have to suck up your pride and invite your friends to a party with a theme like "setting up with ease" or "family friendly fun," but if you're willing to throw a party where everyone is apparently supposed to sit around a laptop and then go out and buy something, well, we're guessing you don't have too much pride to begin with.

Info: http://houseparty.com/windows7

Nintendo Wifi USB Hack

I found this tutorial on how your nintendo USB wifi connector into a softap (wifi router) and have had great success with it in creating a wifi network for internet connection sharing, printer and file sharing etc.

To do this you need to have this rar file:
http://www.megaupload.com/?d=S4VLBP9A
or you can get it from here:
RapidShare: Easy Filehosting

Then follow these steps:

1)
Unplug the usb connector and uninstall all the nintendo software then restart.

2)
Plug the usb connector and when asked for the drivers navigate to the where you unrared the downloaded files and inside the Drivers folder you will find modified Buffalo drivers. Install these drivers for the USB Connector. Then install the ASUS software (also in RAR file(eng_2371.zip)). When it prompts you to restart, select No. I have found that there is no need to.

3)
Now in the ASUS EXEs folder of the RAR file, extract the six EXE files in the into the ASUS folder (C:\Program Files\ASUS\WLAN Card Utilities). Make sure you overwrite the existing files.

4)Then run ASUS WLAN Control Center. You will get a dialog asking if you want to use the Windows configuration utility or the ASUS one, select the option that uses ASUS one and disables the Windows one. Then there will be a wizard. Click Cancel to close the wizard.

5)
Now copy the file (C:\Program Files\ASUS\WLAN Card Utilities\Driver\WinXP\AP\rt2500usb.sys) to (C:\WINDOWS\system32\drivers). Make sure you overwrite the existing file.

6)
Right-click on the ASUS software icon in the System Tray (bottom-right corner of screen) and select Wireless Settings. When the settings dialog opens, on the left select Config, then go to the SoftAP tab, and select Soft AP Mode. Then un-tick the Enable ICS checkbox. Then on the left click Apply. You will get a message box asking if you really want to change to SoftAP mode, click Yes. A message will come up saying something like "add the adapter to the network bridge", just ignore it and click OK. If all has gone well, there will be no error messages. Now close the ASUS Wireless Config utility or it will start conflicting when we manually set ICS.

7) Now go to Control Panel -> Network Connections. Right-click on the Network Adapter you are currently accessing your Internet through (or your internet connection icon) and open the properties for that connection. Go to the Advanced tab, and click "Allow other network users to connect through this computer's Internet connection". Then click OK. If you get an error message saying the IP address is already in use, disable the Network adapter you are trying to share then try again - be sure to enable it again afterwards. It can take a long time for ICS to be enabled so wait patiently.

8)
Now right-click on the Wireless Network Connection and click Properties. In the middle of the dialog there will be some protocols, select Internet Protocol (TCP/IP) and then open the properties for that. Windows would have assigned a static IP address if ICS was successfully enabled, check to make sure this IP address does not conflict with other IP addresses on your network. Also, it should be on a different subnet to the Local Area Connection (for example, my computer's IP address is 192.168.0.2, I assigned the wireless network connection the IP address of 192.168.1.1 - which is on a different subnet). If it is on the same subnet, ICS will not work correctly.

9)*****
With that done, open the ASUS Wireless Config utility again. On the left select Config, in the Basic tab set a SSID. In the encryption tab, select Shared for Network Authentication and WEP for Data Encryption. Now enter a WEP key. Go back to the Basic tab, and at the bottom click on Advanced, change the 54g Mode setting to 802.11b only. Click Apply on the left to save the settings.

10)
Now turn on your wii or ds, go to the Nintendo WFC Settings, and select Manual Setup. Enter the SSID and WEP Key (both of these are case-sensitive) you entered to the ASUS Config utility before. Select No to Auto-obtain IP Address. Now give your wii an IP Address (this must be on the same subnet as the USB connector, I gave my wii the IP address: 192.168.1.2). For subnet mask enter 255.255.255.0. For gateway and primary DNS, enter the IP address of the USB connector. Now try and test connection, and if all has gone well the connection should be successful!

11) Optional 

Now with the ASUS Wireless Config utility, hide your SSID, and use MAC Address filtering to improve the security of your wireless access point.

12)
You now have an Official Nintendo Wifi USB Connector that can connect online with any other devices.

You can now search for an access point on other devices such as laptops, iTouch's and psp's or just enter the ssid and wep(if used) of your access point.

this tutorial was made originally by kcajblue of the afterdawn forums