IPTV – 10 Important Facts and Advantages

Is IPTV technology everything it’s cracked up to be, or is it here today and gone tomorrow?

Check out these 10 facts and advantages about IPTV technology and decide whether or not you want to join the IPTV revolution.

1. Internet protocol television or IPTV, is an increasingly popular technology for the transportation of data information and Audio and Video (AV), across an IP based digital network. This could include Ethernet, WAN, LAN or internet. Add a set top box (STB) to the equation and AV sources can be streamed across existing networks to PCs or TVs. IPTV can be one to one (Unicast) or one to many (Multicast).

2. Latest research figures show that at present 15.5 million people subscribe to IPTV services – 8.4 million of these subscribers are from Europe.

3. Crucially IPTV systems avoidinterruptionof critical networks by utilising a separate video LAN.

4. IPTV requires broadband Internet connectivity due to the high bandwidth requirements of digital video. Far more control over television programming and the ability to customize it to individual user preferences are possible due to the improved performance that high speed internet allows.

5. The ever popular Free-view channels are delivered without Terrestrial or SAT receivers being a requirement.

6. Local content, films and sport can be added for additional revenue in hotels, or offered free to a student campus.

7. Predictions are that compared to the current 3.3 million IPTV subscribers in the United States now, there will be around 12.7 million IPTV users by 2012.

8. The addition of set top boxes (STB) allow AV sources to be streamed across existing networks to PCs or TVs.

9. Problems that are common in analogue systems such as noise, ghosting, harmonics, reflections, cross modulation etc, are practically invisible in IPTV based networks.

10. Due to its storage facility, IPTV systems allow all programs to be later retrieved from the IPTV network.

A Novel Use of IPTV Technology

A classic example of how IPTV technology is being used in an increasingly ingenious number of ways, is with a luxurious, IP enabled bathroom television. These televisions are the ultimate in bathroom luxury, allowing the viewer safely to watch TV whilst soaking in a bath full of bubbles, or even taking a shower.

These waterproof TVs offer a first class solution to hotels across the world who are embracing IPTV technology with the installation of digital IPTV networks across their properties. Hiding an STB in the void behind the bathroom or shower wall and running a separate IR receiver will no longer be required, but instead simply feeding an Ethernet cable into the back of the screen to deliver TV, Radio, VOD and other services will be all that is needed.

How about that for technology put to great use!

Data Loss Problems Find an Easy Solution

Human error accounts for 32% of computer data loss. If you are part of this statistic and have inadvertently deleted files in your computer which you would still need after all, don’t push the panic button just yet. There are still ways to recovering from everyday data loss problems.

Deleted Email Recovery

If you’ve accidently deleted an email, this is one of the simplest examples of data retrieval. They are probably still there where you can open them with a click of the mouse, in a Deleted file. This folder is standard on most email programs and it is the first destination of any email that you delete. This means that the moment you click delete, the file transfers there – and by opening that Delete folder, you can click on the email to get it back again. It couldn’t be simpler! Some email programs have a time limit on the contents of a Delete folder however so make sure you periodically check your folder to make sure there’s nothing in there that shouldn’t be!

So if the item in question is no longer in the Deleted Folder, then your problem may just have gotten more complicated, albeit not totally hopeless. With the use of email recovery software, you can get back your lost items in no time at all.

How to retrieve items removed from the recycle bin.

Whether you’re a PC user with a Recycle Bin, or a Linux user with a Wastebin, you have a computer tool that acts as a dumping zone for any files you delete from other folders on your computer. Most people don’t think about this and so it’s only emptied when the computer wants to free up space, or you are procrastinating about doing something else and so empty it. As long as it’s still in there, if you need it then there’s no problem returning it to your work area again. If you’ve empied the Recycle/Wastebin, then things are more difficult, but not (as your computer manual may tell you) impossible. If you need a file that you deleted, then you’ll need to find a good piece of file recovery software that will quickly and reliably restore your file to an accessible part of your computer.

Recovering Digital Images and Music

If you have a good file recovery software program then this should include finding your lost digital photographs and other multi-media such as music and videos. One really good feature of this software is that you can often select which files you want restored so you have a chance of weeding out things that you don’t want to keep but which are taking up disk space.

For all these data loss solutions presented, there is a catch though. You would need a good amount of time, money, and effort to get your files back. Data recovery software usually costs just under $100 for a single computer license but if you would need to try more than one solution to fully recover all your data, then the process could set you back much more than that.

Slow Computer for Windows XP – Get the Performance Back With This Easy Tip

If you have noticed a degrading in the performance of your computer, be it on start up or just generally running programs or browsing the Internet, then one reason may be that the registry is corrupted in some way. This only applies to computers that use windows operating systems, such as Windows XP or Vista. By fixing the corruption you could get the performance back.

Poor performance is often related to the age of a computer. It will inevitably become slower as it gets filled up with more data and programs. Not only will the performance be slowed because it has to process through more data before it can find what it needs or want to run, but it may be sent to redundant links depending on the state of the registry.

The registry is a database file that is used by Windows XP machines as a yellow pages for all the stuff that is stored on your computer. Whenever you issue a command by clicking on an icon or pressing some keys, the chances are that windows XP will go to the registry for some lookup information to complete this task. If the registry is jam packed with information this can take time or the information could simply be wrong or out of date. this will result in the computer slowing down or even freezing.

So many people recommend cleaning the registry ever once in a while. This is a bit like updating the yellow pages each year to clear out data that is not relevant or out of date. You can do this manually if you know what you are doing. Simply run the program regedit (registry edit)

There is much debate about the improvements that cleaning the registry can make, but if you subscribe to the view that it does make a difference, then the most efficient way to clean it is using software rather than manually.

Software is the easier option and can make a job that takes hours last only a few minutes. It will return any registry errors and let you make the call on whether it should fix them. Once it has run the fix, you could see your computer restored to it’s own self again, running programs quicker or starting up faster.

Get your computer back to full speed using a registry cleaner fixer. It couldn’t be easier and you could have your computer back to normal in minutes. no more frustration and waiting ages to do things on your computer anymore.

Paint on internet.

There are many beautiful illustrations, pictures and 3D graphics uploaded by the users on the internet as the plain design software become more powerful than before. People can make good pieces easily.

However, you need more money to by more powerful software. What’s more you need is that you should possess high level technique to put to use the software.

Maybe painter in Windows is a good tool to help you produce excellent paints. Nevertheless, you like to publish your paints on the internet, I recommend you to use Pencake.

You can use Pencake without paying any money. It provides tools which allow you to make your own ecards and share it to your friends through Facebook. You can draw your picture with pencil tool, airbrush tools, line tool, circle tool and tools. I think everyone can learn how to use them very quickly.

Sending out blessing is the other things you can do with Pencake aside from sharing your drawing. A unique ecard together with a message from dear friends is the best gift on birthday and in festivals. What’s more, it is long lasting, totally environmental friendly and it can be received by your friends immediately though they are living at the end of the earth.

There is a list of top artists and active member. You will be one of them if you draw and publish your works on the web site. The users in the entire internet can take a look at your works. May be you can be the next famous artist on the internet.

There is a replay function in Pencake. You can watch the steps you take to draw the paint again and again. You can replay other artists’ pieces, too. You are able to learn the skills to make a fabulous paint from the replay. Artists can exchange their experience and express praise to each other through leaving comments.

By and large, if drawing is your favorite hobby, I think you must like Pencake. Let’s find the artworks you like and friends who have same hobby as you there.

Internet Privacy and Security- User Misuse.

Without a doubt, internet privacy and internet security are big issues today, and the concern deepens knowing that millions are being added daily to the World Wide Web. In fact, all personal internet sites require a log-in with a classified password, and some even display a little lock to indicate that the user is logged into a secure site. But despite all the precautions, the risk factor remains and the internet privacy goes into a direct conflict with the end users. The question is, are there lapses with all the privacy and security measures placed within the sites, or is the user too casual to allow the bastion to be breached and then holler ‘foul’.

The internet today is not just about the personal keeping in touch, but has a huge bearing on the various portals that conduct B2B or B2C business, and is thereby rightly considered the engine of economic growth. In fact, online business transactions, including personal banking or bill payments, is growing in popularity with the people. Ask these people why use the internet and the prompt answer is convenience. Ask them about the allying fear and it is invariably the threat of privacy intrusion and security lapse.

The problem is to determine who actually creates either. Offhand, we can confidently state that a majority of the people do not even bother to read the ‘privacy policy’ of any site, and blindly click the ‘read’ just to move on to next step. In fact, the persons concerned about the privacy policy or the security threat will gladly pass on personal information on a free offer caption or on a consumer promo site. Some would gladly barter their email id and birth date even to a lottery or a sweepstakes vendor.

No doubts there are some who guard their privacy fiercely but then these are the ones who don’t scream either. The vociferous ones are in reality the apathetics, who do very little to safeguard their interest. Ask if these users would be willing to pay a little extra to safeguard their security and privacy fears, and their incredulous response will be ‘on the free-way’?

Technically, it’s the internet activists, who are concerned about privacy and security, and to get them they demand it from the one they do internet transactions, or just move on. They are the careful ones at all times irrespective of the site. In step contrast are the mainstream majority who may skip the minimal interest to safeguard themselves and demand that the government draft some ‘internet protection policy’.

In all honesty, even companies do care about consumer privacy and spend a lot to safeguard the interest in the hope of furthering their business bond. But when the majority consumer is not concerned, the companies too lose interest as it is a losing investment. If we have to view this whole angle of privacy and security with a positive and fair perspective, then we have to accept that the bigger onus lies with the user in using the safety features or avoiding sites that have no privacy policy. But it will not resolve any matter or make thing easier by merely drafting some regulations. There is every possibility they won’t be read either.

Is ‘Internet Privacy’ A Myth?

This is quite a contradictory question, almost a Catch-22. After all, we place all our personal information on the internet and then want to know whether it is safe. Most of us lead two lives, the reality and the virtual, and we tend to keep them as two distinct identities. But there are sites that require authentic data to process the official requirements, or you may as well be working in the paper, stapler and snail mail era.

So even if we wanted to avoid, we are compelled to place something authentic about ourselves in some official site, and not necessarily the various Social Sites. Now, if you have taken the trouble of demarcating Dr. Jekyll from Mr. Hyde even in the confines of the virtual world, where and how do they converge to take on a singular identity? Good question, but to understand it real deep, you need to be a techie or a geek. From a lay-mans point of view, which would be ours too, let us understand this in the simplified language of the complicated cyber world.

Let us know that the moment we create an email identity, and we log into the internet thorough our safe password within the confines of our home on the very personal computer, we are still not alone. No, we are not talking of the Twilight Zone; we are talking of something worse called Microsoft, Google and Yahoo. Between these three CCS or Cloud Computing Service providers, nothing much is really ‘hidden’, so the internet privacy does become a myth.

Presuming you have a yahoo email account, a gmail, or even a hotmail account. Know that any of these is controlled by one of the CCS, and somewhere down the line, there is an overlap that allows the exchange and filtration of data. For example, you can create any false identity on a social site, but Google knows your real name, when and for what you use the search engine, your mails and chats and from whom including their email id, access to friends and communities on Orkut, pictures stored in Picasa album, who you have been tracing via Geolocation.

Google knows every Blog, your birthday, your appointments through Alerts, your music preference through YouTube. These are just examples of some of the Google features in regular use, and there are many more. Similarly, Microsoft has features like Windows Mail, Messenger, Live Spaces, Live Searches, Windows Zune, Live Skydrive, Live Maps, Soapbox, and the list goes on. It’s too technical, but somewhere down the line, there is an info-share or just a trespass that does occur, and it becomes easy to segregate the chaff from the rice, surfacing the ‘hidden’ you.

But let us be realistic and ask ourselves, ‘why do we need to hide from ourselves?’ If we just be our transparent selves, we won’t need to worry much about our identity. Yes, keeping important and very personal data is another thing, but then no one advises you to place that on the internet. The privacy on the internet is a myth, but that myth is safe as long as you are within the limits of the law.

Parental Anxieties Of The Internet

The parental anxiety of the internet, its vast applications and information, are in equal measures a bane and a boon. From the positive angle and especially in today’s context, parents would want their child to be able to manage a computer. While most children may have no interest in the various computer languages or be overly concerned with the vast applications, they would certainly know how to create their email id and access the internet.

This too is good as it gives the child the power of connectivity and a link that can provide a huge data of information to help them with their assignments. In fact, the internet has ’shrunk’ the world to a level that they can even learn about other countries and cultures seated at their desk, something that the earlier generation used to glean from the National Geographic magazine, not even the television. Unfortunately, this free information and net connectivity is not minus the misuse, which are the main cause of parental anxiety of the internet.

Any parent knows that full access of the internet will open the windows platform, but also opens doors of concern. For instance, the pornographic sites leave a lasting impression on the impressionable minds, and this cannot be erased overnight. The urge then is to know more, and a contrary cycle is set into motion. But for this, it just would not be fair to deprive the child of the internet entirely, and parents would be wiser in trying to counseling rather than in exercising a ban. Tell them about the rules they violate unknowingly, and tell them the truth about why they should avoid.

While we understand that parents would like to protect the purity of thought and the innocence of childhood, this is the best recourse left to the parents to defer their anxiety level. This is necessary too as some unscrupulous sites actually lure children towards porno-sites in the guise of URLs titled with the information that they would normally seek. The larger anxiety of parents is of their children falling pray to cyber stalkers, paedophiles, sex maniacs, who can entice and lure children on chat lines.

For restraining part of the parental anxiety of internet, it is well said that arming the children is equivalent to teaching them. Therefore, instead of relying on a gadget that only blocks certain sites, open their mind with a vast array of your talks, aligning and spelling out all your fears for them. Place it on the children as a ’shared parent child responsibility’ instead of relying on cyber laws that are applicable only after the damage is done.

Parents should understand that even counter-technology is just a tool, and not some magic wand. However, their anxiety today of the internet can be at ease knowing that the tech-savvy children no longer consider it a new world, but just an alternate environment that ties them to the real world. So real in fact, that the parents should also be prepared to accept that their children have already read this article.

Photo Scanning Recommendations

If you’re not going to enlarge your digital scans then don’t pay to have them scanned at a higher resolution than 300 dpi. Even if you will be enlarging them you are probably wasting your money. 600 and 1200 dpi scanning services do not mean better scans, but they do mean higher prices. For your typical photographs 300 dpi is the wisest choice.

Most people have not thought about the fact that a photograph’s surface was not designed to reproduce an image like a negative is. So scanning a negative to enlarge a photograph makes sense, but a photo’s surface does not have enough resolution.

Wasting money is not the only reason to scan at 300 dpi. Photo scanning beyond 300 dpi produces huge files that slow down just about any use of your scans. Editing, viewing, and working with your files will be slower, and possibly much slower. And you will probably have to change the size of your scan smaller to use it for just about anything.

Top notch photographers don’t need to be coached on scanning practices as they already understand the issues. But if you are trying to gather some information to use for your own scanning project or to purchase scanning services, I recommend the relatively extensive discussion of scanning practices by Wayne Fulton at www.scantips.com

Make sure that your scanned photos are saved as a high quality jpeg. Photos saved in a jpeg format are compressed to lower the file size. High compression causes the jpeg to loose bits of information that are gone forever. High quality jpegs have very low compression and lose very little.

Whether you rotate your own photos after scanning or the scanning service does it make sure that you dont rotate the original scans. Most photo scanners require that your photos be in a stack when you send them in without regard to their orientation. Because your photos are recompressed during the rotation process you may loose bits of information and that can reduce your image quality. So keep your master scans untouched and use a copy to rotate or manipulate.

Some photo scanning services offer automatic photo enhancement. What you need to know is enhancement, or any manipulation, can cause jpeg files to be re-compressed and cause some quality loss. Make sure your scanning service provides you with a complete set of master scans and then a copy of them for the enhancements. Don’t ever use the originals to make changes. Always use a copy. You may find that you want to work on special photos yourself. When you do, always start with a fresh copy of the master scan.

There are all kinds of software both manual and automatic available to edit your photo scans. The manual editing software offers you complete control and unlimited do-overs. The automatic versions do a lot of good to most of your images and some good to the rest. Manual enhancement should probably only be used for those very special photographs otherwise you will be bored silly. Trying to choose an automatic enhancement software can be tricky because it takes some experimentation to discover which ones actually work. If your photo scanning service provides economical automatic enhancement that may be your best bet.

How to Protect your Computer from Viruses

With computers in almost every home and business, there is now an increased risk of acquiring computer viruses. A computer virus is a program that makes duplicates of itself and infects a users computer files. These viruses can spread from computer to computer infecting files and programs. Computer viruses are such a hazard because they can erase stored information and permanently damage files.

The following is a list of the many methods a user can implement to protect their computer from harmful viruses:

Make back-up copies of important documents and files and store them on a separate disk or external hard drive. By doing this, you will still have a copy of your files if your information is erased or the computer suffers other damage.

Use a quality anti-virus program that will scan files, programs, and software. Make sure you keep the anti-virus software up-to-date and scan your computer often. You can download anti-virus software from the web or purchase it from a store.

Do not share commercial software with anyone. It is an easy way to spread viruses. Make sure the software comes from a well-known and established source.

When you download files from the internet, make sure you scan them for viruses before opening and running them.

Watch out for spyware and hackers. Spyware programs are usually entwined with a download and will install itself onto a computer. The programs will monitor your search patters and relay the information back to the person who sent it. They can even acquire any stored financial information. Make sure you have a trusted firewall. A firewall is a program or hardware device that filters information coming through the Internet connection into your computer system. If incoming information is flagged by the filters, it will not be allowed through to your computer. It is also recommended that you expand your anti-virus protection to include anti-spyware, anti-hacker-tools (prevents hijackers from accessing your computer,) anti-key-loggers (protects your passwords,) and anti-worms. A worm is a small piece of software that uses computer networks and security holes to replicate itself and cause damage.

Block porn and spam using a spam filter program. These programs identify any suspicious emails and delete them before you open it. Some programs will even send an email back to the spammer saying your address is invalid.

Most viruses are triggered by opening an attachment. Don’t open any attachments in an email unless you know the sender or the attachment has been scanned. If you are not sure about the attachment, delete it. A file with an extension like EXE, COM or VBS, is an executable program file. Once opened, it can run and do all sorts of damage to your computer. The best protection is to never open these executables that arrive in your e-mail.

If your computer is infected with a virus, use an anti-virus program to remove the virus and quickly get rid of all copies of the virus. If you need help, turn your computer off and take it to a professional who knows how to remove viruses.

It is important to remember that most viruses can be removed without permanently damaging your computer system. As well, most virus infections can be prevented. With proper anti virus protocols, you can protect you computer from harmful viruses.

A Review Of The Different Internet Browsers Available

There are many internet browsers and each person has a favorite. However the most popular internet browser is Internet Explorer or IE. This comes pre-installed along with the Windows package on the computer.

Internet Explorer

IE is an excellent browser, but the problem one has always faced with IE is that it was vulnerable to hackers who used this as a platform to release nasty viruses and spyware. These days’ people are simply switching to others. The reason of course is that users want to surf the net, without the fear in their minds that their computer will not be hacked into

Firefox

The main competitor of Internet Explorer is Firefox. It is a much faster browser. It has always been the favorite of many who love tabbed browsing. It has many other features that are user friendly and not given with IE

The design is simple, the browsing is fast and it is safe. This internet browser blocks pop ups, and protects against viruses and other nasties that trawl the internet. Moreover Firefox does not get hijacked. Problems that arise are quickly solved as patches are released. Since it blocks spyware, your computer runs faster and smoother. Firefox, has other neat features like live bookmarks, automatic software updates, and you can even customize your browser.

The only downside is that certain web pages can not be opened since Firefox does not have ActiveX

Opera

Opera is one of the more popular browsers. It offers faster uploads, and so it is preferred by people who are still working on dial up connections. This makes browsing faster and smoother. Internet Explorer’s slow speed makes web surfing test the patience of a saint! Opera is sleek and comes with lots of features like tabbed browsing and a pop up blocker. You can choose whether you want to run Java applets or not. For faster browsing you can turn these off. It does disable certain JavaScript functions but it’s a small sacrifice for that valuable internet speed. If you want fast browsing, you must go with Opera. Now Opera is free and that is a big plus. Another thing is that it has never been breached, so you can feel safe. However opera may not be able to display certain web pages.

Google Chrome

Again this internet browser offers a huge improvement in speed and browsing. It has a huge screen and the tabs are arranged so as to save space. It comes with a pop up blocker, you can surf in an incognito mode. The time saving idea of showing snap shots of pages you visit whenever you open a new tab is great. It also has a integrated search bar. It is a winner in terms of speed and versatile too.

Safari

Safari comes with the Mac. It has tabbed browsing and a Google search box, and an automatic pop up blocker. It is sleek and fast.

These days the demand is for faster browsing experience and these alternative internet browsers offer a more satisfying browsing experience.