Stupid things you do with a smartphone and how to fix them..!!

Your smartphone can be your second brain, but it can also turn you into a person with no sense of direction, poor social skills and next to no privacy. Fixing these problems is easy, but first you need to know about them. Here are all stupid things you’re doing with your smartphone.

Stupid Thing #1: You’re overreliant on your smartphone, causing you to forget important numbers and directions
A lot of people think your smartphone is making you stupid. That’s not true, but you may occasionally rely on it to a fault — or at least to the detriment of self-sufficiency. Rely too much on turn-by-turn GPS and you’ll never learn how to get anywhere yourself. You probably can’t recall more than a few of your contacts’ phone numbers, which is fine until your phone’s dead and it’s an emergency. While you can’t be expected to recall every little bit of data that crosses your path, you can benefit a lot by storing certain things directly in your gray matter. If you want to use your smartphone intelligently, it needs to be a supplement — not a replacement — for the tasks you should be able to complete on your own.

To fix this problem, it may be time to reprogram your memory. You’re not used to retaining information your smartphone can provide, so you have to start taking the time to remember the information you request. When you receive driving directions, look through them a few times, repeat them aloud and remember them as you make your trip. You can always reference them again at a stoplight if you forget a turn or two, but making the effort to remember is the important thing. This way you’ll be able to make the same trip again without the need to look up directions at all. After enough trips in the same city, you’ll just know where you are without the aid of your phone.

When it comes to your to-do lists and phone numbers, don’t just store them in your phone. Write them down on paper, with an actual writing implement. The act of writing can actually improve your ability to learn, so you’ll get more out of the process. On top of that, look at phone numbers before you dial them and say them as you dial to help you remember them. An easy fix is simply replacing your favorite contacts’ names with their numbers. Thoroughly look at your to-do list at the top of each day so you know what you need to get done, rather than just referencing the list whenever you need a new task. Having your tasks in your memory will help make you more productive because you’ll be able to plan what you want to do and when quite a bit better. There’s nothing wrong with having this information in your phone, but a good chunk of it ought to be in your brain as well.

Stupid Thing #2: You won’t pay $1 for a great app
There are a ton of great, free apps for smartphones, but sometimes there’s a better app for a small price — a price many won’t pay. TakeSparrow for example. You get a free mail client with your iPhone, and it’s not half bad. Sparrow, on the other hand, is amazing — especially if you’re a Gmail user. It’s currently priced at $2, and that’s a barrier to entry for many people in spite of high praise from friends and people all over the web. When Apple started their app store, and Google followed with theirs, we entered a world where software became very inexpensive. It’s not unusual to want to avoid paying for it because we know there are so many great options available for free. But sometimes, it’s worth it.

Look at it this way: sometimes you’ll pay $15 for a meal you could make yourself for $5. You do this because the $15 meal is going to taste better and you won’t have to spend time making it. The same goes for apps:sometimes you should spend a few dollars to get something awesome that will save you time and effort — or that’s just really fun. If you’re concerned about overspending, set a monthly app budget. Not only will you have a better, more functional smartphone, but you’ll be supporting the developers who work hard to bring you great things. It’s a win-win.

 

Stupid Thing #3: Your phone notifies you about everything
Your phone’s notification system is like a dog trainer and you are, unfortunately, the dog. When you’re notified all the time, you become accustomed to constantly pulling out your phone to see what just happened. It’s gotten so bad for some people that people feel their phone vibrating when it’s not. If you’ve ever checked your phone because you thought it vibrated but it turned out nothing happened at all, you’ve probably enabled too many notifications.

I’ve set my phone to silent most of the time and simply check it periodically to see if there’s anything new I need to know about. This works well for me. I’ve yet to miss anything urgent. That said, it’s not a solution for everybody. Chances are you either need notifications as they happen for work, or you simply prefer to be more up-to-date. In that case, you just need to prune your notifications so you receive the stuff you consider important and ignore the stuff you can look at later. For the most part, this means editing each app’s notification settings and keeping them on if they’re important, turn off vibration if they’re unimportant, and turn them off if they’re useless. This will minimize your daily distractions and help you avoid checking your phone every second of the day.

Stupid Thing #4: You’re distracted by your smartphone while driving
Texting while driving is more dangerous than driving drunk. You’ve no doubt heard that before, and you probably still send text messages from your car — or at least check out that last notification — while it’s rolling down the road. Chances are you know this is bad, but the desire to send that text overrides your better judgment in the moment. While you’d most likely be better off not using your smartphone at all, it is possible to drive safely while using your phone — at least in small ways. The key is to keep your eyes — and your focus — on the road.

 

Realistically, you’re always going to have distractions in the car that are going to hurt your focus. Keeping those distractions to a minimum will help you drive more safely. This means using voice control to change a song or send a text message while operating a moving vehicle, and both iOS and Android have comprehensive voice control features. If you’re on an older iPhone without Siri, Vokul can bridge the gap. If you’re an Android user who wants a personal assistant like Siri, you have plenty of options. Voice control is a much better way to control your smartphone without taking your eyes or your focus off the road, but it still qualifies as a distraction. Your best bet, if you just have to change that song or send a text message, is to do it at a stoplight. Because you’re using voice control you’ll be able to keep an eye on the light to know when it changes, but you won’t need your full attention because the vehicle isn’t moving. If you live by those rules, you’ll have a lot less to worry about.

Stupid Thing #5: You don’t monitor your privacy settings
Your smartphone retains a lot of personal data, and this points to two privacy issues. First, if your phone is stolen, the thief has easy access to your data. Second, apps on your phone may be tracking a little more information than you want. Both problems are very simple to fix.

 

To resolve the stolen phone problem, secure your smartphone with a password and enable remote wipe. This way no one can easily access your personal data, and you can destroy that data remotely if you’ve got something particularly sensitive.

To keep your phone from tracking you in unwanted ways, schedule a regular privacy audit once a month. (You should do this on the web and on your computers, too, by the way.) This is easy (albeit a bit limited) on the iPhone, as you can just open the Settings app and tap Location Services to enable or disable app access. (In iOS 6, these settings will be in a new Privacy tab that will allow you to toggle various types of information an app can access.)

Managing your privacy on Android is a little more complicated, but you also have greater control. First, you’ll want to make sure your phone isn’t running Carrier IQ—a program that’s capable of tracking and reporting a massive amount of data without your knowledge. Second, an app called Privacy Blocker can perform that privacy audit for you. It’ll take a look at the apps installed on your Android and give you an overview of the data they’re collecting. If an app is overreaching, delete it.

Stupid Thing #6: You neglect other people in favor of your smartphone
Social media may be intended to bring us together, but it’s equally skilled at keeping us apart. When spending time with other people, you can’t exactly interact with them when you’re using your smartphone — it’s that pesky multitasking myth. Your phone’s a device intended to keep you connected to people you care about. When you’re with them, it’s best to put the smartphone away. Solving the problem is often that simple.

 

If you’re easily distracted, however, turn off alerts and notifications. If other people you’re with are constantly checking their phones, politely ask them to save it for later. Technology is awesome, but it’s often addictive. It’s always with you, unlike people. So separate your smartphone and your human time. It’s a better way to stay connected.

Facebook,LinkedIn boost privacy drive – watchdog

Technology groups Facebook and LinkedIn have agreed to beef up their international privacy and compliance teams in response to demands from the Irish regulator, the deputy Data Protection Commissioner told Reuters. Recent high-profile data lapses, such as LinkedIns security breach that exposed millions of user passwords, have highlighted the difficulties for web giants and regulators alike of protecting consumer data. Some of the worlds major tech players, including Google , have moved to set up their international or European headquarters in business-friendly Ireland in recent years. Facebooks Ireland office, with approximately 400 employees, handles all its users outside the United States and Canada. The group has over 900 million users, most of them outside of North America. Facebook, the worlds largest social network, agreed at the end of December to overhaul privacy protection for users outside North America after the Irish regulator found its policies were overly complex and lacked transparency. ‘Theyre beefing up their privacy functions in Ireland by bringing in people whove taken a lead in the U.S.,’ Gary Davies, Deputy Data Protection Commissioner (DPC), told Reuters.

LinkedIn, an employment and professional networking site with more than 160 million members, said it is bulking out its privacy team, with the appointment of a key executive at its Dublin headquarters. ‘We are putting additional privacy resources in Ireland and moving one of our key directors to our International HQ in Dublin,’ a spokeswoman at LinkedIn told Reuters via email. Davies confirmed that the DPC is currently investigating the LinkedIn security breach. The Irish regulator will revisit Facebooks offices on July 10 to re-audit and will publish its report in September or October, said Davies. Facebook, whose shares slid after its recent $16 billion IPO, said it had agreed to a six-month progress review in July. ‘Facebook has cooperated with the DPC throughout the review process and we look forward to updating them fully over the coming weeks,’ a spokesman at Facebook said, declining to comment on the enlargement of its privacy team. DATA BLUNDER Data protection laws are under review in Europe amid rapid change in how people use the Internet and as services such as cloud computing – allowing data to be stored on distant servers to be accessed anywhere – become mainstream for business. Google was scheduled to meet with Frances data protection watchdog in June to answer questions about its new user privacy policy as part of a Europe-wide investigation being led by the French regulator. As most large U.S. tech companies have a substantial or lead European presence in Ireland, other tech companies such as Apple , Microsoft , and Twitter can also be expected to be examining designating Ireland as their European data protection regulator, said Davies. The number of investigations opened by the Irish regulator in 2011 was double what it had been five years previously. LinkedIn will be subject to a routine audit over the next 12 months to check compliance with European Union data protection law, said Davies.

Browser Wars: Chrome vs Firefox

If you have a hard time choosing the right web browser for you, here we will discuss two of the most popular ones in the market today – straight to the point, without unnecessary adjectives, adverbs, modifiers and whatnots. Everything you read after this sentence will strictly rely on facts. Note: The line preceding this notification apparently lacks enthusiasm thus it is lame and definitely pregnable. 

Enjoy the read!

 

CHROME VS FIREFOX

Chrome is a web browser based on Google’s open source Chromium project, whereas Firefox is an open source web browser developed by Mozilla.

The Google-authored portion of Chromium released under the permissive BSD license. Other portions of the source code are subject to a variety of open source licenses.

Mozilla Foundation started and now continues to support Firefox as a free and open source browser.

 

Chrome vs Firefox – Performance

According to Google’s benchmarks, Chrome has the highest JavaScript performance of all web browsers released to the public due to its V8 JavaScript engine. It has a great rendering engine in WebKit rendering, which Google may have considered when choosing it over the Gecko rendering engine from Mozilla for the groundwork of Chrome, alongside licensing conditions.

Even though Chrome 1 & 2 are faster than Firefox 3.0, Mozilla fixed this in Firefox 3.5 with JavaScript, which is equal to Chrome 20 on account of JavaScript engine SpiderMonkey. The latest benchmarks reveal that Chrome 20 leads Firefox 14 on three standard benchmarks.

Light web browser users, who open from one to five tabs only and reuse open tabs instead of opening/closing tabs on a regular basis or normally open/close tabs multiple times daily, usually comment that Firefox increases speed with every new release. These user reviews show a mental picture that current development stages follow each new stable release are faster as opposed to its predecessors.

However, heavy users who open/close several tabs in a session and leave browser windows open for days or weeks report the exact opposite: all major releases display a notable wearing away in performance. Firefox 3.0 will start to stutter or experience slow hover and click response within interface elements and pages after reaching 800+ tabs, and other related problems. A similar behavior happens in Firefox 3.6 when reaching 300+ tabs, and 90+ tabs on Firefox 4.0.

Chrome vs Firefox – Interface

To save space, the user interface of Chrome hides an empty title bar in fullscreen mode, but shows the omnibox (both for opening URLs and for web search), a new tab bar, a navigation bar, extension icons and a settings button.

Firefox has a title bar (orange app menu button), a navigation bar with buttons, a tab bar, a search box and an address box.

Chrome and Firefox both have status bars at the bottom that hides automatically after the page finishes loading.

Chrome, however, will not allow users to make changes on the layout. Firefox gives users the ability to customize the placement and presence of each UI element. It also includes CSS styles for users to modify altogether each element’s visual aspect.

 

Chrome vs Firefox – Security

Chrome offers several features uncommon to its rivals that could help increase security, which include:

• an easier phishing attack detection via a default feature that makes gray non-host portions of the URL in the address bar
• webpage process segregation for multiple tabs to provide the groundwork for fuller sandboxing as opposed to other web browsers
• an impregnable privilege separation model that Google says will have advanced sandboxing features not only for webpages in multiple tabs, but also for in-page scripts and plugins
• an “incognito” browsing mode that conceals user identity and automatically deletes browsing history

Firefox can copy how some of Chrome features behave, which include the presentation of URL to highlight the presence of phishing attacks and a private browsing mode for Firefox 3.5 and up, which is similar to Chrome’s “incognito” browsing mode and several other features.

Many advocacy groups question the security linked with Google Chrome, with some speculations revolving around the inclusion of unadvertised data gathering to aid Google in more accurate target marketing. The company’s open-and-shut answer about this is that Chromium’s open source codebase will permit a confirmable “clean” installation of the web browser from source or via more trustworthy distributors. Binary distributions (distros) from Google could be suspects.

Firefox has the upper hand since it comes with a more mature codebase. Its core functionality already received extensive and loose tests in the wild. With the help and support of its open source community, finding vulnerabilities and securing fixes is faster on Firefox than for Chromium’s open source codebase. The former’s password management is more highly-developed and likely better at securing against unauthorized entry, at least at the moment. Tailor-made handling of cookies in Firefox, broadly speaking, is more intelligent and easier to tweak or fine-tune regardless of its poor ability to search for cookie policy exceptions.

Firefox’s system for extensions has gathered a substantial amount of handy security additions not yet found on Chrome, which include blocking capabilities for unwanted media, automatic proxy management for the likes of The Onion Router (TOR), the distributed HTTPS certificate verification system Perspectives, and other handy protections.

 

Chrome vs Firefox – Extensions

The Chrome extension system has more inhibitory capabilities to developers compared to that of Firefox’s extension system. Conjectures hint that such restrictions are there for architectural, performance, and security purposes. Several issues arise from these limitations, including:

• discrepant use of custom keybindings, for extensions that offer effective keyboard-based interfaces like Vimium, which is the counterpart of Pentadactyl and Vimperator for Firefox
• leakage of data in HTTP-to-HTTPS redirection, for extensions that copy HTTPS Everywhere on Firefox, which ironically brings in severe vulnerability in such security extensions

Firefox provides the most accessible extension system of all web browsers today, and an organized central extension repository handled by the Mozilla Foundation. The add-on library sparked the growth of the world’s largest extension base for a single web browser.

 

Chrome vs Firefox – Stability

Chrome currently offers a stable release for regular users, a beta release for testers, a dev build for developers, and a Canary build, which is the similar to the dev build. For stability, Google added a new technology that allows each tab in Chrome to run its own process. This feature gives tabs more independence from other tabs, which could come in handy if one tab crashes, improves performance for systems with multiple processors and consumes lower memory for web apps. Until now, this technology separates Chrome as a web browser from its rivals. However, there have also been Denial of Service (DoS) vulnerabilities against Chrome, including jailbreaks in the sandbox.

Firefox is highly regarded as stable in its latest release, but it experienced stability issues over its run as the world’s most popular open source browser, which includes periodic DoS vulnerabilities that could crash the browser.

 

Chrome vs Firefox – Memory

Chrome relatively is more of a memory hog than Firefox for fresh starts with multiple tabs left open, likely because of Google’s implementation to separate each tab process. Firefox also has a downside, as it takes more time to release memory, even though tabs have closed already. After long periods of using the web browser, Firefox increasingly eats up bulks of memory that it never frees up – a condition that we call “the Firefox memory leak”. Mozilla, however, remarked that this problem is due to memory fragmentation, which demonstrates almost similar resource consumption and performance degradation indicators as a memory leak. Web browser users who oftentimes open/close tabs will take advantage of Chrome’s fast memory release for each closed tab.

Mozilla started to fix Firefox’s memory consumption issue since Firefox 4, and opened a dedicated page for measuring its current memory usage.

 

Chrome vs Firefox – Start-up

Chrome cold start-up time is faster than Firefox. Among several reasons, Firefox has built-in features that require more resources than Chrome’s clean and simple interface. Evidently, Firefox’s support for more extensions could cause performance degradations if a user installs and simultaneously enables many extensions. Many extensions mean more task executions at a time.

 

Chrome vs Firefox – Enterprises

Google offers Chrome in an MSI installer and it has ramped up efforts in a bid to replace Microsoft’s Internet Explorer in enterprises.

The Mozilla Foundation has started to work with support for Firefox in enterprises. However, the project has been open for quite a while now and the organization has still no definite release schedule. As of February 2012, Mozilla is still unprepared for a serious discussion on an enterprise release.

 

Chrome vs Firefox – Popularity

May 2012 Web Browser Market. Image: W3Counter Global Web Stats

According to W3Counter’s May 2012 Global Web Stats, Google Chrome leads Mozilla Firefox with 26.4 percent and 23.3 percent, respectively. Microsoft Internet Explorer still leads the web browser market at 28.8 percent. That same month, Chrome topped Internet Explorer for more than two weeks.

Firefox achieved a milestone for setting a Guinness World Record for most software downloads in 24 hours, where 8,002,530 people worldwide downloaded Firefox 3 in the span of one day.

 

Chrome vs Firefox – Platforms

Chrome is a web browser developed and owned by Google that runs on the Microsoft Windows, Apple Mac OS X and Linux-based systems. The open source Chromium project – from where Chrome materialized – runs on Linux-based systems, FreeBSD and OpenBSD. The FreeBSD port went through a change in maintainer and will undergo project restructuring for it to be up-to-date with the core codebase.

Firefox supports a wide range of operating system platforms, such as (but not limited to): Apple Mac OS X, Linux-based systems and Microsoft Windows.

Verdict

Chrome wins our comparative review for not compromising too much features with its clean and simple interface. With better memory usage, separate-process-per-tab technology and faster start-up times, Chrome is an easier choice for light web browser users. Firefox, even with its flaws, is still useful for having the world’s largest repository of add-ons. Heavy users who open and close tabs multiple times will notice that it consumes more memory than Chrome, but combine all the latter’s processes and it actually is more of a memory hog than Firefox. The advantage is that in Chrome, once one tab crashes, it does not compromise other tabs, which is the exact opposite for Firefox. For this review, the winning edge goes to Chrome.Note: This review pitted just two of the most popular web browsers today. Real-time experience between the browsers depends on the user and how light or heavy they are used.

Dell XPS 14 (Summer 2012)

The new Dell XPS 14 (Summer 2012) ($1,499 direct) is approximately the same size and a bit heavier than its mainstream laptop predecessor, the Dell XPS 14z ($1,299 direct, 4 stars). Along the way the system has improved its looks, lost an optical drive, and gained some battery capability with some extra weight. This time the XPS 14 has joined the ultrabook ranks, and must be judged along those lines. It’s still a system made for people who need just a bit more computing power than the average laptop. Ultimately, it’s a hefty performance ultrabook that has appeal, but only to a more niche audience, rather than the general population.

Design and features

Dell has improved the XPS 14’s design, making it sleeker and less clunky looking than the previous Dell XPS 14z, which had large speaker grilles flanking and clashing with the contrasting silver-colored keyboard. The new system’s chiclet-style black keyboard with concave keys matches the dark grey surrounding bezel better. An aluminum ring surrounds the system, highlighting its I/O ports. The new touchpad is now made of a glass surface, with integrated left and right mouse buttons. Using the new touchpad with two-finger swipes to scroll was smooth and not “grabby” like it is on some touchpads. The keyboard is backlit, as you would expect on a $1,499 system. The XPS 14’s arrow keys are half convex (up and down) and half concave (left and right). This matches other Dell ultrabooks like the Dell Inspiron 14z ($799 direct, 4 stars). Basically, the system looks like a big brother to the Dell XPS 13 ($999.99 direct, 4 stars). The XPS 14’s lid is silver colored aluminum, but if you order the WWAN-equipped model you’ll get black leather on the lid. All XPS 14 models share the silicone-covered aluminum base and dark grey magnesium palm rest with “soft touch paint.”

The XPS 14 comes with a 14-inch widescreen LED backlit panel, as its name suggests. The display comes with a seamless piece of Gorilla Glass protecting it. While it’s not a 1,920 by 1,080 true 1080p HD panel, the screen’s 1,600 by 900 resolution is better than most other 13 and 14 inch panels. Most of those come in a 1,366 by 768 resolution, which is sufficient for 720p HD. Using the XPS 14 will allow you to see more on a website or let you blow up a picture more clearly than on a system with a lower resolution screen.

The system’s I/O ports punch through the XPS 14’s machined aluminum ring surround. The ports are plentiful for an ultrabook or other ultraportable. The system comes with two USB 3.0 ports (one of which is a PowerShare charging port), a HDMI port, mini-DisplayPort, Ethernet, Kensington lock port, 3-in-1 card reader, and a headset/headphone jack. This trounces the XPS 13, which lacks HDMI, card reader, and Ethernet. The XPS 14 is 0.8 by 13.2 by 9.2 inches (HWD), so it’s larger in all dimensions compared to the Editors’ Choice for ultrabooks, the HP Folio 13-1020us ($899.99 list, 4 stars). Strangely enough, it’s very close to the dimensions of the Dell XPS 14z (0.9 by 13.19 by 9.21 inches, HWD), though the new model still looks better.

Like the previous model, the new XPS 14 supports WiDi using its built-in Intel 802.11 a/b/g/n Wi-Fi and WiDi software. It’s up to you to get a compatible WiDi adapter for your TV. The new XPS 14 doesn’t have an optical drive, though the older XPS 14z had one in the same size package. Optical drives may be less important these days, but it’s disappointing that Dell couldn’t make the system even thinner without the drive.

The XPS 14 weights a portly 4.7 pounds by itself, and 5.6 pounds with the AC adapter. It’s not heinous, but it’s more than a pound heavier than the 3.3-pound HP Folio 13-1020US and over two pounds heavier than the 2.5 pound Toshiba Portege Z835-P370 ($1,049.99 list, 4 stars). Granted, the Toshiba Z835—P370 felt flimsier due to its lower weight and ultra thin chassis. You’ll definitely feel the extra heft of the XPS 14 whether you’re traveling across the room or across the country.

The extra heft doesn’t apply to the XPS 14’s software load; that’s fairly light. The system comes with Skype pre-loaded as well as a 30-day trial version of McAfee SecurityCenter. The other pre-loaded software like Office Starter, Adobe Reader X, and WebCam Central are useful additions. The 1.3-Megapixel webcam comes with dual array microphones for easy Web conferencing (via Skype or the messaging client of your choice). The system’s 500GB hard drive is supplemented by a 32GB mSATA SSD, for the Intel Smart Response Technology aspect of ultrabook certification. Dell offers a 512GB SSD-only option for $1,999.

Performance

The XPS 14’s third-generation Intel Core i7-3517U processor, 8GB of DDR2 memory, and Nvidia GeForce GT 630M help contribute to speedy multimedia benchmark results. The system took only 1 minute 48 seconds to complete the Handbrake video encode test and 4:05 for the Photoshop CS5 test. These are much faster than the times for the second-generation Intel Core i5-2467M-powered HP Folio 13-1020us (which scored 2:29 in Handbrake, 5:24 in CS5) as well as the third-generation Intel Core i5-3317U-powered Dell Inpiron 14z (which scored 1:58 in Handbrake, 4:35 in CS5) and Sony VAIO T13 (SVT13112FXS) ($799 direct, 4 stars) (which scored 2:03 in Handbrake, 4:40 in CS5). In addition to a higher base clock speed, the i7-3517U can use Turbo Boost to run at up to 3.0 GHz for a short period of time. The XPS 14 is one of the systems you should look at if you’re trying to complete photo or video hobby projects quickly.

Now, check train status on your mobile phone..!!

 Knowing the exact location of a train was never so easy as one can now track it on a mobile phone.

A joint team of railways and IIT-Kanpur has developed a technology – the real-time train running information system – which enables a mobile user to access information about the exact location of a train.

One has to type the train number and SMS it to 09415139139 or 09664139139 for knowing the exact location of a train on real-time basis, a Railway Ministry official said.

The service is currently available for 36 pairs of premier trains, including Rajdhani, Shatabdi and Duronto.

“Not all premier trains are covered yet. Some of the trains covered under the project included Mumbai Rajdhani, Howrah Rajdhani, Dibrugarh Rajdhani, Sealdah Duronto and Shatabdi trains for Bhopal, Kanpur and Amritsar,” the official said.

The facility would be extended to all major trains in the next 18 months and the railways has allocated Rs 121 crore for the project, he said.

“It will cost about Rs 50,000 to install a receiver on the locomotive for making the system operational. There will be a centre at New Delhi for receiving data from across the country. We are hopeful that by the end of 2013, all mail and express trains will have the system as the trial run for the pilot project is complete now,” the official said.

Railways had obtained permission from ISRO to operate the system through satellite for the pilot project.

“We have sought fresh permission from the ISRO to use the satellite for other trains,” the official said, adding that besides satellite, GPS is also being used for the system.

CRIS, the technology arm of Railways, will sign an MoU with IIT-Kanpur shortly to execute the project.

Besides mobile phones, the facility provides the precise location of trains through interactive mode on laptops, thereby eliminating the need for a telephonic enquiry.

Railways is also working towards providing broadband-based internet and multimedia facilities and high quality train information displays and information boards at stations to improve the quality of passenger service.

Intel launches 3rd Generation Core Processor..!!

ISLAMABAD: Intel has launched world’s most advanced 22nm 3-D tri-gate transistors Ultrabook, powered by 3rd generation Intel Core processors in Pakistan. The new technology is capable to personalise and establish a trusted relation between payments processors, banks, online merchant, social media site or gaming site and Ultrabook, through its user’s identification security system. The new chips also offer increased media and graphics performance, long battery life and more choice in stylish designs.

Source : Daily times

Linux gaming on the rise: EA arrives on Ubuntu and Valve plans Steam port

Ubuntu’s built-in Software Center, which allows users of the popular Linux distribution to purchase software, is attracting game developers. A recent partnership with the backers of the Humble Indie Bundle proved successful. Mainstream publishers like EA are also starting to take an interest. The Linux desktop may finally be achieving credibility as a target for commercial games.

The Humble Indie Bundle is a popular promotion that allows users to pay what they want for a selection of computer games created by independent developers. The games are cross-platform compatible and distributed without any DRM. The fifth bundle, which recently launched, attracted a considerable audience on the Linux desktop.

The organizers of the bundle partnered with Canonical to make the games easily available to participating Ubuntu users through the Ubuntu Software Center. According to an entry on the official Ubuntu application developer blog, the Ubuntu Software Center served the bundle to nearly 10,000 buyers within the first 72 hours after it launched.

The Humble Indie Bundle website, which publishes average purchase prices for users on each platform, indicates that Linux users voluntarily paid more than Mac and Windows users. According to the current statistics, the Linux average is $12.50 compared to the $7.97 average for Windows users.

These results aren’t unexpected—the Linux audience has shown similar generosity in previous iterations of the Humble Indie Bundle. Wolfire Games, which distributed its title Lugaru in the first bundle, found that Linux users contributed twice as much as Windows users on average. Almost a quarter of Wolfire’s revenue from the bundle came from Linux users.

There is clearly a healthy audience for commercial games on the Linux desktop, but the relatively small number of total users and the lack of an effective distribution channel for reaching them has historically deterred mainstream game developers from treating the platform as a first-class citizen.

Canonical’s efforts to turn the Ubuntu Software Center into a retail platform are helping to remedy this issue. Games like Braid, Oil Rush, and World of Goo have reportedly seen strong sales on Ubuntu and rank among the most popular paid applications in the Ubuntu Software Center. That success is helping to attract bigger publishers, such as EA, which recently added several of its HTML-based games to the Ubuntu Software Center lineup.

Linux gaming could soon get another major boost in the form of Steam support. Valve denied plansto bring Steam to Linux in 2010 when evidence surfaced that suggested the possibility of a port. Valve later embraced the opportunity that Linux presents, finally confirming to Linux hardware news site Phoronix in April that the Steam client and Source Engine are on the way. The latest newssuggests that Steam could possibly even arrive this year.

Linux gamers have traditionally had to use Wine and similar binary compatibility layers to run Windows versions of games on the Linux operating system. The growing availability of native ports is welcome news for Linux enthusiasts who have hoped for acceptance from mainstream game publishers.

The popularity of these games also serves to illustrate the potential value of Canonical’s Software Center as a catalyst for attracting third-party commercial developers to the Linux platform. It’s not clear yet whether this success can be translated to other kinds of software, but it’s a promising sign that developers are starting to take notice of the Linux audience.

Microsoft’s Windows 8 for mobile: A look at the key features…

Microsoft is trying hard to catch up with Apple and Google in the tablet and mobile operating software race. The software giant took a big-step earlier this week by announcing that it would be manufacturing its own tablet, the Surface running on Windows 8 OS.

Today it announced a newer version for its mobile OS,  Windows 8, which will succeed, Windows 7  for mobile. Window 8 for mobiles will be release in October this year. So what are the key features of Microsoft’s new OS? Here’s a quick look:

Support for dual core and multi-core processors: Its a step that Microsoft had to take since the Windows 7 phone did not support phones with multi-processors. With rivals like Samsung,  HTC, Apple releasing phones with quad-core processor, it makes very bad consumer choice to go for a Windows phone which won’t support a faster processor.

But is Microsoft too late in the multi-core processor race?  Will Windows 8 be much faster? It remains to be seen.

Will support bigger screens:  It seems that  Windows Phone 8 will support two new screen resolutions—1280×768 and 1280×720, thus catching up with all those high-res smartphones already available in the market.

NFC wireless sharing: Near-Field communication technology is being used by all major mobile manufacturers for their flagship devices. Samsung’s Galaxy SIII to HTC’s One X, they all have NFC capabilities. Finally Windows 8 phones t00 shall support this capability.

Internet Explorer 10: Android’s Explorer and Opera mini might be popular for mobile browsing but Microsoft’s Windows 8 for mobile will have the latest IE10. Nothing remotely interesting here.

Wallet: Microsoft is hoping to capitalise its mobile venture, by launching the digital wallet feature. It will keep debit,credit cards, coupons, boarding passes and other important information of users. It can be used to pay for mobile purchases. But will this be better than Google’s failed Wallet?

Nokia Maps: Microsoft is collaborating with Nokia to bring Nokia’s Ovi maps for users of Windows 8. With Google and Apple both planning to launch 3-D maps, will Nokia’s maps stand a chance against them?

Apps: This is one department where Microsoft really lags behind its competitors. App developers still prefer Apple’s iOS or Google’s Android. With Windows 8, Microsoft is trying to lure developers. With Nokia promising to help launch Zynga’s popular Draw Something and Words with Friends on Windows phones later this year, things could start to look up. The app store for Windows 8, Marketplace, will also support app downloads in over 180 countries.

Windows Phone 8 will also support a total of 50 languages.

Renunciation of my Project (core JAVA) idea,’ANTI THEFT’..!!

When i started off with my project selection,the only thing in my mind was to make something innovative  or  hatke. After a research and discussion of about 4 days,i decided to make a software ‘ANTI THEFT‘ implementing J2SE using mysql as its back end.This software would basically work as follows:

Anti theft application is used to track out the details of a mobile device if it is stolen.The user can set the initial simdetails ,and also set 3 personal security numbers.

Whenever the device is stolen,and the person who gets it inserts a new SIM,the application sends SMS to the preset numbers,along with the device IMEI number,the current SIM details,etc.

I started surfing the web to get an outlook for the the same.Initially i dint know the  procedure to track a phone using IMEI,hence i had to study about IMEI first.
what i found was :

The International Mobile Equipment Identity or IMEI ( /aɪˈmiː/) is a number, usually unique,[1][2] to identify GSM, WCDMA, and iDEN mobile phones, as well as some satellite phones. It is usually found printed inside the battery compartment of the phone. It can also be displayed on the screen of the phone by entering *#06# into the keypad on most phones.

The IMEI number is used by a GSM network to identify valid devices and therefore can be used for stopping a stolen phone from accessing that network. For example, if a mobile phone is stolen, the owner can call his or her network provider and instruct them to “blacklist” the phone using its IMEI number. This renders the phone useless on that network and sometimes other networks too, whether or not the phone’s SIM is changed.

The IMEI is only used for identifying the device and has no permanent or semi-permanent relation to the subscriber. Instead, the subscriber is identified by transmission of an IMSInumber, which is stored on a SIM card that can (in theory) be transferred to any handset. However, many network and security features are enabled by knowing the current device being used by a subscriber.

After Studying IMEI, my next step was to have a look at a similar project so as to get an idea how to get started.I found a project serving the same purpose,named ‘Mobile Tracking‘.Its abstract is as follows:

“MOBILE TRACKING” is based on J2ME and PHP. In today’s fast world, mobile has become one of the important commodities of a human being. It has become a necessity rather than a luxurious commodity. The Mobile Tracking helps to track the current location of the mobile. It is a web application. This application tracks the mobile location in every 5 seconds in connection with the central tower. The Mobile Tracking application will be deployed in Symbian supporting mobile phones. This system sends the following information to the server.
 Mobile ID
 Location
 Time at which the device was present on the above location The users of the mobile application can get the shop details of a place by providing
the location. The application will fetch the shop information on that location and display the details on the mobile screen. In the proposed system we have created
an application by means of which we can track the movement of the mobile phone of the desired user. Each mobile phone has a unique Id and it is this ID that sets
apart a mobile phone from other mobile phones. By means of this ID can identify each mobile and track the mobile phone anywhere we want. The web application is create using PHP with MySQL as database. This serves as the Admin panel. Admin can log in using his credentials Admin has the following functionalities
o Add new shop details
o Update and delete the shop details
o Get the history of the mobile by tracking the location and the time
The project consist of two major components
 Mobile Tracking Software deployed in the device
 Web application which serves as the Admin Panel
This application has two users
 Mobiles users
 Admin

The above project includes the following files.These are mostly .php files with some .html ones too

But unfortunately,i  neither have PHP knowledge nor do i know J2ME,so this could not help me the way i thought it would.After consulting some more projects i landed on a conclusion that says Mobile tracking kind of projects need J2ME knowledge since you have to track a mobile phone atlast.Even my project guidelines restricts me to a Computer application only.So all these things brought me to a sordid fact that i have to renounce my idea of making an ‘ANTI THEFT’ software in J2SE…!!

Now m looking for some more 😀

SANDISK LAUNCHES EXTREME USB 3.0 PEN DRIVE WITH 190MB/S DATA TRANSFER SPEED

Sandisk is known name in the market especially for its wide range of portable data storage offering. The company has now launched new USB 3.0 capable Pen Drive in the market and dubbed it as Sandisk ‘Extreme’ USB Pen Drive.

This new offering from Sandisk promises up to 190MB/s data transfer speed and comes in sizes starting from 16GB and going up to 64GB.  The pricing for these ranges from $65 and goes as high as $160.

Additionally Sandisk has also launched updated version of its Cruzer and Glide line-up with storagecapability going as high as 128GB. The Glide will be available sometime later in Q3 2012 and will be priced at $249.99 while the smaller 4GB variant will can be purchased for just $19.99.

The Facet USB Flash drive which comes in a stainless steel body as well as the Cruzer Pop series which is available in a few color options starts from $32.99 for 8GB and goes up to $84.99 for 32GB of storage space.

All these USB drives are equipped with Sandisk’s SecureAccess software for encryption and security and it comes pre-loaded on the devices.