HOWETechnical

Opera launches Opera Unite, brings the power of a web server to the Opera browser

// June 18th, 2009 // 1 Comment » // Software, Tech, Videos

Earlier this month, Opera launched Opera 10 Beta, which brought email, RSS, and torrent tracking to the browser, and today they released Opera Unite, which brings the power of a web server to the Opera Browser. What does this mean? Well, if you download and install Opera Unite Alpha for Windows, Linux, or OS X from Opera Labs, you can host a chat room on your local computer, serve up a website from your computer, share photos, share media, and do basic file sharing all via the Opera browser. People connecting to all these services do so through a publicly available URL and they don’t have to have Opera installed on their machines. The services work through any modern browser, although you can only host your own Opera Unite services via your own Opera Browser running on your machine.

Another interesting bit about this technology is that you can install other Opera Unite “applications” within your browser to expand the functionality of this server. In order to get up and running, you have to sign up for a free Opera account. This seems to provide the handshake between remote users trying to access your Opera Unite applications and the applications themselves which are hosted in your browser on your local machine.

So far, I’ve been testing the file sharing and the chat. It’s definitely cool and I can see the future power of this, but it is also clearly in Alpha stage with a few bugs. Also, when accessing the shared files folder, clicking on the file names themselves works for opening or downloading the files, but clicking the actual download link consistently failed for me. It appears that the .png files that I was sharing from a folder on my computer were trying to download as .png.html files when using the download link, and therefore failed.

Make sure you visit Opera’s site dedicated to Opera Unite to see some instructional videos further explaining what it means to have a server in your browser. Here’s one of those videos that is a sort of commercial for the philosophy behind Opera Unite:

Bing - Microsoft’s New Decision Engine Done Right!

// May 30th, 2009 // 15 Comments » // Software, Tech, Videos

Let’s face it, in the recent years of search engine wars, Microsoft’s Live Search has fallen dramatically short of the “most used engine” prize against search giant Google, as well as even Yahoo!, despite the company’s steep decline in market share and credibility. Despite numerous promotions giving those who would switch to Live Search discounts on Ebay purchases, rewards products based on how many searches in a day you performed, and even double cash back rewards for participating sponsors (ex: Foot Locker and Lenovo), Live Search has been unable to make a dent in Google’s majority market share. Not for long, though. In an attempt to increase their presence in the online search engine business, Microsoft has developed an amazing new mashup-style engine that will not only give you intuitive search results, but also provide you with competitive rates on airfare, lodging, retail products, and more…all without leaving their site. This “decision engine”, as Microsoft calls it, has been named Bing, and I for one believe it will give Google a real run for it’s money, allowing that Microsoft improves their search algorithm to something greater than what Live Search has. Additionally, Microsoft has stated that it will not force Bing on anybody. Naturally it will be the default IE search engine in new Windows based computers starting this Christmas, however the default engine can be easily changed to that of an alternate engine, should the user prefer. Given the details at hand, I for one am proud of Microsoft for changing their methodologies of gaining market share from that of statistical manipulation and what would otherwise be unfair practices (if they were to succeed, that is, which they didn’t with Live Search), to more of a business oriented values based playing field.

Take a look at the below video to see more of what Bing promises to achieve.
Official Site: Microsoft Bing

The Internet: A 1993 Perspective

// May 21st, 2009 // No Comments » // Tech, Videos

Surfing for Seniors

// May 15th, 2009 // No Comments » // Tech, Videos

Remember, “If it isn’t on the internet, you won’t be able to find it on the internet.”

Intel: We Are Rockstars!

// May 11th, 2009 // No Comments » // Tech, Videos

Advertisers have finally picked up on what we’ve known all along: nerds are the modern day rock stars.

The Real Hustle - Cash Machine Hustle

// May 6th, 2009 // No Comments » // Security, Tech, Videos

It is reported that hundreds of millions of dollars are stolen each and every year as a result of ATM machine fraud and hustling. Among the techniques used for such crimes is that of an unobtrusive device attached to the card reader of an ATM machine, gas pump card reader, or any other device that requires a card to be inserted, that reads and stores ATM card information for later retrieval. Additionally, these devices may be outfitted with a miniature surveillance camera to capture the video of a victim entering their personal identification number (PIN). This device in turn allows the perpetrator(s) to instantly produce a mimic of the victims ATM card (even on a hotel room card) and then withdraw the remaining finances available in the account.

The following video gives a real-world example of what to look for in order to avoid becoming a victim yourself. As a common practice, you should always try to jiggle the card reader slot (if protruding) to verify that it is securely attached to the machine.

Microsoft: Windows 7 Free for 1 Year!

// May 5th, 2009 // No Comments » // OS, Videos

As the title implies, it seems our corporate friends (and sometimes enemies) in Redmond, WA, have exercised a practice rarely demonstrated by the software giant; Windows 7 (RC) will be provided free of charge until May 1, 2010. Windows 7 is the successor to Windows Vista, and as simple as the title may sound, it is an omen of how simple the operating system is to use and install, as reported by Microsoft and beta testers of the operating system. Some even go as far as to say it is what Windows Vista should have been, lacking in complications and problematic driver support, and additionally providing for a viable competition to Apple’s OS X. There is one thing to be understood, though; this free version of Windows 7 is not the final product, but rather the release candidate that Microsoft expects will be final version when officially released in retail stores. So even with as much praise as Microsoft’s new operating system is receiving from the world of developers and software engineers, it is safe to “expect for the best” but “prepare for the worst”, as the saying goes. In light of this, Microsoft does not recommend that the release candidate be used as your primary operating system, but rather a test bed on a partitioned hard drive or alternate, non-primary machine.

Microsoft Windows 7 (RC) Download:
http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/evalcenter/dd353205.aspx

Apple’s New Laptop - Brilliant!

// May 3rd, 2009 // No Comments » // Videos

Go ahead, take a gander at Apple’s revolutionary new laptop (as presented by TheOnion.org).