Web Site Promotion – Google Chrome Operating System

What will be the effect of Google’s new Chrome Operating system on web site promotion efforts ? The simple answer to this question is that it probably will have little or no effect. Google’s search engine rules and methods will not change appreciably under a new operating system. What will be the impact of a new Chrome Operating System on the computing world ? It may significantly affect the type of computer you buy in the future. It may also have a significant affect on Microsoft, and this is why.

We have yet to see really low-cost netbooks hit the market, but it is quite possible that we will see sub $ 200.00 netboooks in the very near future. We already see cell phones with multi-function capability, namely Internet and e-mail capability, and this trend will likely continue. We probably will also see hybrid types of devices that are not quite a computer, but more than a cell phone.

In order to keep the price of netbooks and hybrid devices as low as possible, it will necessary to eliminate the cost of software. The only practical way to do this is to use Open Source software with this type of appliance computer. It is quite impossible to bundle any of Microsoft’s operating systems, or Office Productivity software in at such a low price. Windows plus any other piece of software is already more than $ 200.00 retail, even in OEM versions.

Linux is an alternative, but it doesn’t quite measure up to Windows in terms of usability and user-friendliness. It has been around for quite a while, and although servers run Linux quite effectively, Linux has not really shown it’s strength as a personal computer operating system in the way it has as a network operating system. Google Chrome actually sits on top of a Linux kernel, but it is not Linux itself, but something new.

If you think for a moment about how many computers are used mainly to access the Internet, read e-mail, and for some kind of simple office-related task; that accounts for a very large number of computers, easily fifty percent, or more, of the PC’s in use right now. Microsoft products dominate this market today, but 5 or 10 years from now, there may be a much different looking landscape in the world of personal computers. There are computers in libraries, schools, second and third family computers at home, Internet cafes, and guest computers in offices, that really have no compelling reason to run Windows or other Microsoft software. (Sorry Microsoft, but that’s the way I see it).

It is these types of shared computers, that would benefit the most from a Google Chrome Operating System. Especially if this kind of computer could be made to access the Internet faster, start nearly immediately on boot-up, and run on-line applications faster than the equivalent software running under Windows, wouldn’t that be rather obvious choice to opt for the free, (and faster), alternative ?

The keys to the success of this new operating system are threefold.

1) It must run an Internet browser and Internet applications faster than Windows.

2) It must be more stable than Windows. This means it must have bullet-proof security. This is a tall order for any operating system, but it should have built-in protection against viruses, spyware, and other type of intrusions. This could easily be the key differentiation between Windows and Chrome. since Windows has had, (and continues to have), so many security vulnerabilities. It should be a top priority for Chrome.

3) It should run the widest possible array of software programs. Google has done a good job of providing internet applications up until now, but there needs to be a Chrome, (or online) application to match, or nearly match most of the software that currently runs on Windows. Chrome will not go head-to-head with Windows across the software spectrum, but the wider the choice of Internet-based software available, the more success Chrome will enjoy. It it not intended to be a network server operating system in the same way that Windows server is, but just the operating system of choice for computers connected to the Internet.

Google is probably the only company in the world today with the resources to be able to develop and maintain an operating system like Chrome. On the other hand, since it is open source, Google may be content to manage from the sidelines and eventually let the Open Source community take it over. Note: At least that way Google may not be tempted to have sponsored links pop up on your screen as you work. (lol – Sorry Google)

It is true that Google as a company cares little how you access the Internet. In other words, they are computer hardware and operating system neutral. Of course, I’m sure Google’s management and software engineers will be smiling ear to ear if they are able to compete head to head with Microsoft, (Google’s main search rival), on Microsoft’s home turf of the PC operating system. Nothing would be sweeter for Google than to have Google Chrome enjoy a resounding success in the marketplace. Google has everything to gain, the more computers there are on the Internet, and nothing to lose.

We will have to wait until the second half of 2010 to see Google Chrome, according the Official Google Blog. It is possible that the most significant beneficiaries of Google Chrome will be thirld world computer users. The dream of a $ 100.00 computer is not yet a reality, and remember that 75 % of the world’s population does not yet have e-mail.

The availability of free computer operating systems and software is essential to begin to close the gap between have’s and have not’s in this world. This author, for one, hopes that Google Chrome becomes the operating system of choice for many of the world’s PC’s, and helps to hasten the day when the vast majority of the word’s people have access to computers and the Internet.

Good Luck in all your web site promotion efforts.

Author: John Lombaerde
Article Source: EzineArticles.com
Provided by: Mobile device news

Many companies, especially the large ones, have their very own websites. Why do they have websites? That is because there are many advantages of having a website for a business. One advantage is that many people can browse your latest products and services easily. Consumers can also communicate with you faster if your website can provide contact information. You can give any information a customer would need from your company to help them decide to avail of the products and services that your company offers. A website truly is an important part of businesses these days.

So if you are planning to have a website, then the first thing that you should do is to look for a web hosting company. The web hosting company that you choose must be reliable. It must have an almost perfect uptime so that your website will be accessible anytime. You need to carefully search for a good web hosting company that can offer you the features that you need and can secure your data from hackers.

While you search for a hosting company, you might find some offering Windows Hosting and Linux Hosting. For many people, there really is not much of a difference between these two. While it is true that the performance and features that the two offer are almost the same, the question is the security. Many people are asking, “Is Linux web hosting secure?” As you probably already know, there are many malwares on the Windows Platform. Malware such as viruses, Trojan, worms and spyware threaten a system. A web server using Windows is open to these threats. A good Windows Hosting can protect their servers from this. What about Linux?

With so many people asking the question “is Linux web hosting secure?” many people have began to doubt Linux web hosting. The Linux platform is also open to different malwares, but there are only a few malwares that can harm Linux. Still, these malware can potentially harm a server hosting your website, which will lead to downtime. If you do not want this to happen, then you must know the answer to the question, “Is Linux web hosting secure?”

So when the developers of Linux was asked the same question, they answered by showing all the security features of Linux web hosting. What are these features? Here are some:

IP (Internet Protocol) Addresses – IP addresses of the visitors of the website are logged. This is used to identify the problems of the server and to prevent fraud.

Data Integrity – Linux ensures that the information on the websites of the customers remains accurate. Their hosting service can prevent unauthorized access, guarantee the correct use of information and preserve data accuracy.

Data Security – Linux also protects the information collected from their customers. They use industry-standard security measures like the SSL (Secure Socket Layer) and Encryption of vital information using Hosting VentureOS web sites.

Data Access – Linux also offers a 24/7 customer support. With it, customers can have access to identifiable information and correct errors regarding this information. Linux takes steps to identify the customer before giving access to the said information.

With all these features, you should now know the answer to the question, “Is Linux web hosting secure?” Looking at all these features, you can say that Linux can do an excellent job at not only providing you with an accessible website, but also one that is secured enough to protect information from leaking out as well as other cyber crimes that can threaten your business. So if you asked me the question, “Is Linux web hosting secure?”, then I shall answer it with a “Yes.”

Author: Mark Andrews S
Article Source: EzineArticles.com
Provided by: Credit card currency-exchange fees

Computers started making their way into homes, en masse, 15 years ago. After 15 years, computer users should not be afraid of using their computer.

This case study tells the story about a customer of mine, Wanda, who happens to be in her 70s. Like most computer users she used a Windows based computer. In her case, it was a system put together by her grandson in 2002 or 2003 and has a 1.8ghz processor, 256mb of RAM and the XP Home version of Windows.

When I first met Wanda a few years ago, she had typical Windows user problems; slow computer, slow Internet, couldn’t open some attachments, virus and spyware problems. She used dialup Juno for Internet and Norton Antivirus on her system. I couldn’t talk her into getting a DSL or cable connection, but I did change her security from Norton to AVG and optimized the startup and running of the system. However, with dialup and Juno, she continued to have problems that cropped up every 3-4 months.

In April of 2008, I talked with her in detail about computer usage. She stated that she really only needed to do three or four things with her computer:

1. Email
2. Word Processing
3. Solitaire
4. Very light Internet browsing

We talked about the cost of a new computer and a high speed connection. And then we talked about taking Windows off her system, installing a different system (Ubuntu and Linux didn’t mean anything to her) that would be virtually trouble free and no cost to acquire besides my install and configuration time. She liked the sound of that, but I informed her that I could not install Ubuntu unless she was agreeable to getting a DSL connection for the Internet. She agreed.

I installed Ubuntu for her and configured her desktop with shortcuts to her email, the web, solitaire, and her word processor. Again, that was April of 2008. Prior to that I received at least one call from her every month, and visited her for cleanup and troubleshooting appointments at least 3-5 times per year.

Today, Wanda called me for the first time since I installed Ubuntu on her system 14 months ago. She asked two questions:

1. Why can’t I get email from my daughter?
2. My printer stopped printing, do I need a new one?

Knowing that it would be a quick visit, I stopped by her house in between two other appointments. To my delight, the computer desktop looked exactly the same as I left it the prior year except for a few saved PowerPoint slideshows she saved from email to it.

Since she was using Hotmail, I could almost guarantee that she had blocked her daughter’s email address (Microsoft places the spam / junk mail button dangerously close to the delete button). Sure enough, a trip to the blocked senders settings revealed what I suspected. Her daughter’s email address and a dear friend were blocked. I rectified that in a few clicks.

Next, her printer problem turned out to be a paper jam. After clearing it, the computer was happily printing again. I left her home in under 15 minutes after correcting the problems that had nothing to do with Ubuntu, and she was beaming like a kid in a candy shop.

MORAL OF THE STORY
Properly setup and customized for an individual’s computing needs, Ubuntu Linux can be used successfully and easily by anyone of any age and computing ability. AND, the problems associated with computing under the Windows environment disappear.

My only regret is that I did not start looking into and learning about Linux prior to 2006.

Author: Rick Castellini
Article Source: EzineArticles.com
Provided by: Latest trends in mobile phone

As we started the project of the electronic auction PoloMercantil, we knew that the proprietary software costs would be too high for our financial resources. Our only option then was to make use of Open Source Code softwares.

However, within the Open Source Code there are lots of softwares to choose from, and it´s up to the system analyst/programmer to pick the ones that best suit the project goals.

In our case, we picked Linux as our operating system. However we faced a big question: Which Linux distribution ? There are dozens of linux distributions, each one with specific advantages, sometimes with or without paid services.

We chose linux Slackware because we thought that it would suit better our needs, in terms of stability and reliability. Slackware is a conservative distribution, meaning that it only offers in its distribution package kernel versions and third party libraries, once it´s been proved to be stable and reliable. As a result, Slackware is one the most stable Linux operating system on the market. If the user wishes the most recent Linux kernel and libraries, we recommend to look for a different distribution.

Another reason for us picking Slackware, was because of its text interface, which at the beginning may become a bit difficult, in the long run however it offers a better understanding of the Linux environment. This way most of Slackware configurations are done thru text scripts.

Once it was set the operating system, we picked Apache as our web server. Apache is one of the most popular web server in the internet. For server programming language, we chose PHP. Also, a very popular programming language. Our experience with Apache/PHP proves that this setup is very reliable, working extremely well in our production environment. For workstation programming language, we chose javascript, which besides of having a simple syntax, it offers lots of resources.

Apache web server is really a complete web server. Also, it can become very complex with many configuration setups.

For our database, we picked Postgresql. This database has been made available to the public for more than 15 years, and besides of being well debugged, it offers so many resources that it has become one of the best database options from Open Source Code softwares. Extremely reliable, Postgresql has reported cases where there have been databases in production with over 4 terabytes. Besides all of that, Postresql is not the most popular Open Source Code database. A matter of marketing ? Probably.

As for the programming language PHP, we had to use an object oriented application structure. There are many PHP application structures being offered with Open Source Code license. Object oriented application is very important, because it makes programming very easy and scalable up to the point where the system may grow without many problems. Also, it helps to keep PHP code separated from HTML, with the help of some specific libraries, such as Smarty. We make use of Smarty library and we believe that it is a very important resource, which can even make web pages faster thru the use of its cache functions.

Also a very important set of libraries worth mentioning for PHP systems, is the PEAR libraries. In PEAR web site, among the many libraries being offered, there are the database interface DB and the MAIL_QUEUE, which sends emails thru the use of database.

As we came to the end of our project, we had to use some sort of real time database replication. For that we chose the DRBD and Heartbeat libraries. The use of database replication is very important and should not be postponed. Just after 3 months our system got into production, our server hard disk became bad. Thru the use of DRBD/Heartbeat we were able to put the system back into production within seconds, without loosing any data. DRBD/Heartbeat replication is done thru the use of a lan network between the server and slave nodes.

Our project also makes use of ImageMagick (enlarge and reduce images), Iptables (firewall), Tsearch2(text search in portgresql) and Mon (linux monitoring tasks).

Also a very important library worth mentioning is the pseudo APC compiler for PHP. Speed is always a critical factor for internet sites.

Our web site is already in production and based upon our experience we can say that the Open Source Code softwares we picked, proved to be extremely reliable and stable. Open Source Code softwares can certainly be an excellent option for developing web sites.

Roberto SedyciasIT Consultant

This article is under GNU FDL license and can be distributed without any previous authorization from the author. However the author´s name and all the URL´s (links) mentioned in the article & biography must be kept.

One of the things I like my most about my T-Mobile G1  is that I can tether the mobile phone to my laptop and use my mobile phone’s Internet connection to browse the web.  Tethering isn’t anything new, but most cell phone carriers simply won’t allow it.  They want you to go buy their expensive AIR cards and then pay an additional $50 – $75 per month for service.

Graham Stewart, from Boulder, Colorado created a very nice little Android app to tether the G1 to a laptop (or any computer for that matter).

Here are the instructions to get everything set up:

To get on the Internet, you’ll need to do a few things.

1. Open a cmd prompt (Press the windows icon and type cmd in the search bar). You need to navigate to the directory that contains the adb.exe file.  In my case, I just downloaded the ADB utility (see above) and not the entire Android SDK platform.  I unzipped the ADB utility into a folder called “Android” on my C: drive.  Now in the cmd prompt you’ll type cd C:Android

Now you need to type: adb forward tcp:1080 tcp:1080

If all goes well you should receive something that says “Daemon started successfully” (and then the window will appear to close).  The program is still running in the background so whenever you’re done using the Internet you should close it.  Press Ctrl+Shft+Esc to open the Task Manager.  Under the Processes tab, close the file called adb.exe to exit the program.

Tip: I created a simple shortcut on my desktop (right click on your desktop and select New Shortcut) to skip having to open the cmd prompt and enter the forwarding command each time.    If your adb.exe file is located in a different folder than mine below, just change the path to match yours. Here is what my shortcut looks like.

C:Androidadb.exe forward tcp:1080 tcp:1080

I also changed the icon of the shortcut to a cell phone because I’m cool like that.

2. Using Firefox is the best way to browse the web using this tethering app.  You can use Internet Explorer but I’m not making a tutorial for installing the proxy program with IE.  IE is scary.

Anyways, using Firefox, go to http://www.foxyproxy.com and download the plugin for Firefox.  Firefox should install it and then restart.  Once Firefox has restarted you should see something in the bottom right corner that says “FoxyProxy: Disabled.”  Right click on that and select Options.  Click on the Global Settings tab and then select “Use Socks Proxy for DNS Lookups”.  It will make you restart Firefox again… do so.

Now left click on the “FoxyProxy: Disabled” in the bottom right corner once.  Click on the tab that says Proxies.  On the right, click on Add New Proxy.  Make sure Enabled is checked and then give it a name. I named my connection “G1? but you can name yours whatever you’d like.  Now click the tab at the top that says Proxy Details.  Select Manual Proxy Configuration and enter the host name (which is localhost) and the port (which is 1080).  Check the SOCKS proxy box and then choose Socks v5.  Click OK at the bottom of the window.

You’re so freakin’ close now!

Now that you have TetherBot installed on your phone, you’ve added the adb utility to your laptop and you’ve configured FoxyProxy in Firefox you should be able to give this thing a whirl.

These are the steps you’ll need to take each time you launch TetherBot

The port bouncer will let you connect to a single port on a remote host. This works well if you need to establish an SSH tunnel to your home machine.

This should work for TCP only vpns (openvpn can be configured in this mode) but it wont work for Microsoft PPTP (because it’s GRE based) or most typical openvpn setups (because they are UDP based).

and you should be routed through to the server in question.

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Linux is an operating system, like Microsoft Windows, Maces, or UNIX. It was created as a hobby by Lines Tornados, a student at the University of Helsinki in Finland. What most people don’t know about Linux is that its source code is available to anyone. The Linux source code is called the kernel and it is the base of the Linux operating system. Because the source code or kernel is free, it has enabled hundreds of companies and individuals to release their own operating systems based on the Linux system. These operating systems or formats are often referred to as Linux distributions.

Each distribution has its own set of features and functionality that makes it unique. While Linux is generally considered free-ware and people associate that with no cost, that is not always the case. Some distributions are available for download for free and others are available on CD or floppy disk and have a small charge associated with them. You can find a list of distributions at www.viral-toolbar-builder.com and a list of applications at

because if the adaptability of Linux it has been embraced and supported by a number of operating systems and software programs. For example, IBM, Hewlett-Packard and other giants of the computing world have embraced Linux and support its ongoing development and openoffice.org and Mozilla run on Linux. US retailing giant Wal-Mart began selling Linux systems back in 2002 – if Wal-Mart isn’t mainstream, nothing is.

What are the benefits of Linux?

Many people fear that Linux is going to be difficult to work with or that it will be difficult to find software that will run on Linux however Linux is a very standard operating system, compatible with just about any software you need.

Beyond being a standard operating system, Linux supports open source software which makes it a very economical operating system, especially if you program your own software. It offers many free or low cost applications which include, basic desktop applications like web browsers, email programs, word processing programs, spreadsheets, graphics programs, and file managers.

Linux can easily operate as a central server for your business. With Linux, you can serve your own web pages up for public consumption and handle your own email.

Linux doesn’t require top of the line hardware though many recommend you have at least 256 MB of RAM and at least 4 GB of space in your hard drive.

Linux is considered to be extremely stable and doesn’t need to be rebooted periodically to maintain performance levels. Think about the last time you sat at your computer and it froze. Not fun, right? That doesn’t happen with Linux if it is configured correctly.

Linux isn’t going to be replaced anytime soon and when bugs are found in the system, a developer are quickly on the job and often times a solution is offered within a matter of hours, not months or years like many other operating systems.

Linux is also fast and can handle a number of tasks at the same time.

Linux also claims to be one of the most secure operating systems isn’t plagued with the viruses that other operating systems generally deal with.

Linux is free from having to upgrade it or deal with proprietary file formats and licensing fees. You don’t have to register it due to its open source format.

You can have both Linux and windows on your computer. (You’ll have to partition them on your hard drive and you can only boot them one at a time.)

Drawbacks of Linux

There is no 1800 customer service number to call. However, most distributions offer a support number or email to call if you find a bug. They also generally come with installation instructions.

You cannot run applications for MS windows on Linux. However, there are Linux emulators or applications that enable you to run some windows applications on your Linux system. They operate like a translator. Some of these a translation or emulator products are free and others are available for a price.

Linux is not able to run some advanced financial applications or reproduce some proprietary multimedia formats.

Tips and Advice:

Choose a popular distribution has a large developer community. A large developer community means that You’ll find the programs that you need easily and you will be able to install them with the same ease. The more well-known distributions have prepared programs in ‘packages’ that are easy to install. On top of this, there are tools designed especially for a particular distribution to manage these packages to make sure that programs run correctly right away or for more helps go to www.scripts-to-sell.com. The website Distrowatch.com maintains a comprehensive list of the most popular distributions.

Get the latest version of your chosen distribution. The newer the Linux distribution version, the better the hardware support. The number of glitches You’ll get in the installation process decreases with the newness of the version of Linux you choose.

Consider paying for your Linux distribution. It is true that you can get a full-featured Linux operating system free of charge by downloading it from any number of sources. This is an excellent alternative to an operating system like Windows, which either comes pre-loaded with a newly purchased computer (which gets figured into the cost), is bought separately or copied ‘illegally’. In most people’s experience, the popular Linux distributions are easy to install. However, if you do run into some glitch (normally hardware related), you may have a frustrating experience. Although there are a number of excellent Linux support forums out there, personalized advice on your particular problem may be hard to find.

Use an appropriate computer. if you want to use Linux to do the same things that you would with Windows XP or Mac OS X, then you’ll need the newest computer you can get your hands on. Avoiding ‘elite’ video cards and new, exotic hardware will also work in your favor because you don’t have to deal with hardware support which may be inferior to hardware support from other operating systems.

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Tips For Converting Windows User to Linux

A survey reveals that many businesses, governmental agencies, educational institutions and other big organizations are switching over to Linux. What could be the cause of converting Windows user to Linux? These organizations are also switching over to free software for their application programs from the traditional commercial software. Here are some of the plausible reasons for this conversion at such a fast pace.

The foremost reason could be that Linux is available under a free software license and that it is available free of cost. One can easily download it from the Internet and that too for free. Moreover, one can also buy at minimal cost in the form of a disk or box. Another good thing about this operating system is that you can use one copy on as many computers, without any limitation. On other hand Microsoft Windows comes at a good sum of money.

Secondly, Linux is built from open source and free software, which gives its user the freedom to modify it. Even the source can be modified in any way. This again is in contrast with Microsoft Windows that does not permit for the modification of the software. Many organizations prefer Linux because of the freedom given to modify the source code without revealing it to any outsider.

Thirdly, you can easily find high quality support for this operating system on the Internet – for free! Many newsgroups and other forums provide this help. And for commercial needs, you can purchase Linux support at reasonable rates. With this operating system you do not need patches to cope with security threats or to fix bugs

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Linux is a Unix-like computer operating system that is based on the Linux Kernel. Linus Torvalds is the official founder of this operating system; however, a lot has gone into its making. The records reveal that Windows dominates the personal computer market with 90 percent of the share, the server market with 66 percent of the share. Also, Linux is recorded to have powered 85 percent of the globe’s most powerful supercomputers, where the figure has reached just 1.4 percent for Windows. Here is a brief introduction to this mystic operating system called Linux.

The name of this operating has been derived from the Linux kernel, which Linus Torvalds wrote in 1991. The GNU operating systems, originated by Richard Stallman in 1983, is the basis of the rest of the system, comprising libraries and utilities. The GNU contribution also forms the basis for GNU/Linux that is the preferred name of the Free Software Foundation. Recently enough, because of the emergence of the netbooks and the Ubuntu distribution, Linux is being installed on both desktops and laptops. Otherwise, it is used for servers, computer hardware, embedded devices, mobile phones and supercomputers.

The basic design of the Linux operating system is derived mainly from the principles established in Unix, back in the 1970s and 1980s. It uses a monolithic kernel known as the Linux kernel that is responsible for handling control, file system access, peripheral and networking. Additional device drivers are incorporated with these kernels. The higher-lever functionalities of the system are catered by separate projects that interface with the kernel.

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A Linux distribution is also known as the GNU/Linux distribution by some. It is basically a family member of the Unix-like software distributions and these distributions are called “distros”. Linux kernel lies as the basis of these distributions. They contain a number of software applications comprising database applications, media players, spreadsheets and word processors. The Linux operating system consists of the Linux kernel along with a set of utilities and libraries from the GNU and the X Window System for graphic support.

Some Linux distributions may be optimized for size and may not come with X. These use compact alternatives to the GNU utilities, which may include dietlibc, uclibc or busybox. At present, there are more than 300 Linux distributions and many of them are in the active mode. This means that these distributions are being constantly studied, and revised to be improved. The Linux distributions are available in different forms because most of the kernels and supporting packages used are combination of open source and free software. They may take the form of a fully featured desktop or server operating system or can also be used in minimal environments. This is the reason why they are widely used in embedded systems and for things like booting from a floppy disk.

Actually, leaving aside the custom software aspect, the word distribution here simply means a specific assortment of some applications that are installed on top of a set of libraries, along with a version of the kernel. This is created in such a manner that the “out-of-the-box” capabilities are met with most of the requirements of its specific end-user base.

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Let’s be honest: managing multiple instant messaging accounts on different services can be a pain in the neck, especially when you need a different program for each account. That’s not fun, even if your dream is to have your system tray touch your Start menu (or your System menu, GNOME folks!). Ignoring that fact, IM programs tend to be buggy, slow, and bogged down with advertising. Plus, most multi-protocol clients tend to cost money. I don’t have money. But I do have a solution. Read on, kind person who reads thy articles.

Everyone, meet Pidgin. Pidgin is an open-source instant messaging client that allows users to connect to a wide variety of Instant Messaging clients. Don’t believe me? I don’t blame you, so here’s the supported list:

In this article we examine some programming languages used to build dynamic websites that interact with databases. These server-based languages are a major step up from traditional web page development languages such as HTML which run on the client computers. The Open Source product is PHP (which stands for Hypertext Preprocessor). The Microsoft competitors are ASP (Active Server Pages) and ASP.NET (Active Server Pages in the Microsoft .NET environment.) ASP.NET is more expensive, more complicated, and more powerful than its sibling. For simplicity’s sake we refer to Microsoft’s offerings as ASP.

As you know PHP is free. ASP is also free but to run it you may need Microsoft’s IIS (Internet Information Server) which is not free. Uploading, downloading files, encrypting passwords, and sending emails from web pages will probably cost you much more money with ASP than with PHP. As discussed in our previous article (Reason 5 Linux, Apache, and MySQL) LAMP’s database management system is either free or quite inexpensive when used with massive databases. In contrast Microsoft’s SQL Server is pricey. I should let you know that my Internet Service Provider usually charges for MySQL accessibility. When available SQL Server access will you cost more. We have been through the monetary issues before. Let’s compare some other aspects of these two web programming languages.

Perhaps not surprisingly ASP resembles Microsoft’s popular Visual Basic programming language. PHP is based on the C++ programming language, a much more professional solution than Visual Basic. For technical reasons PHP programs tend to run faster than their ASP counterparts, even if the latter requires more powerful hardware. Because it is open source, PHP has access to a wider range of individuals who increase its functionality. PHP talks to a wide range of databases, but focuses on MySQL databases. In contrast ASP works best with SQL Server. While you can mix and match you are usually best off to combine components on the same side of the LAMP/Microsoft fence. After all, they were built to work together.

Despite Microsoft’s unbelievable clout, PHP is the most popular web programming language. Some reasons for its success are speed, increased security, and ease of programming. Once again in my opinion, whenever there is a real contest Microsoft comes up short. An ever-increasing number of computer specialists agree with me.

Maybe you are not interested in learning three or four products. (Who can blame you?) What you really would like to get the most out of an old computer that’s collecting dust in the basement. Here Linux really wallops Windows as seen in our next article.

When it comes to business, the costs play an important role in determining your profits. If we talk about similar products or services, the higher the costs are, the higher the price will be and less people will be interested in what you have to offer.

It is the same in the internet world. If you want to be noticed by a large number of people, the internet is the only way you can go to market your business. The question is how you can do that without any preparation or training. We’ll try to put some light on this subject.

The usual steps to achieve a presence over the internet are basically the same. Build a website, then choose a web hosting service to make that website available to people around the world. The available choices are a windows and a Linux host. Which is better?

When it comes to computers, Microsoft is the first thing that pops in the mind of any user. Because of this, every businessman has the tendency to choose a windows host over a Linux host. But your choice should depend on more than just a name.

While a windows host supports more applications, all the technologies used, like asp.net, Access, Sharepoint and others are used to create huge websites with a very complex structure. They provide high class services, but they come at a price. None of these come for free, and if you choose them, the costs to put up a website will go through the roof.

That is why a Linux host can also be named a budget host. Linux is free software that gives people the choice to modify its underlying code and redistribute it as they wish. And if you think you are making compromises about the structure of your website, guess again.

Choosing a budget host that operates on Linux allows you to build your website using technologies like PHP, MySQL and others all of which are free. This will help cut down costs and still be present on the World Wide Web with a well structured website.

But where can you find a reliable Linux host that fits in your budget? If you visit the website themagichost.com you will receive services of the highest quality at prices lower than you could ever imagine. Because the team at The Magic Host listens carefully to the needs of every client, everything you want can be achieved with a simple visit to their website.

Backup has always been a problem with everyone that has a website. Many web hosting services will nod their heads if people start asking questions about the lost data. That happens because it is a common belief that the customer should make his or her own backup. Apart from a budget host, the website mentioned afore provides a solution for this problem.

Choosing this budget host will give you the benefit of triple backup. Your data will be saved on a daily basis at a second hard drive and kept there for a week. Once a week, the backup data will be transferred to a second and third remote location, thus providing a full proof plan so you do not lose anything.

Many people find that Damn Small Linux is an excellent tool for mastering Linux commands and running the Linux operating system. But what if you have no interest in becoming a computer nerd; can this software still be useful to regular people? The answer is a resounding yes. You can use this tiny operating system whether or not you want to learn the sometimes gruesome details of operating systems. This article presents several free games that are immediately available once you have downloaded and installed Damn Small Linux.
To access these games either click on the DSL button in the lower-left hand corner or on the Apps icon toward the top of the screen. Then open the Games: there are eleven; Canfield, Freecell, Golf, Mastermind, Minesweeper, Pegged, Slide_Puzzle, Solitaire, Taipei, Thornq, and Xtris and Taiedit which is not a game, but a game editor. This article looks at the first six games; a companion article examines the rest of them. As with any gaming systems, be careful not to get addicted.
Canfield is a relatively complicated single-deck solitaire card game. If you are not familiar with this game you’ll have to go to a source such as Google to find out how to play it. There is no help function. And sometimes the cards move fast, too fast to learn what is happening if you don’t know the game.
Freecell is a relatively complicated single-deck solitaire card game. I think that it’s easier to win than Canfield but maybe that’s because I am an ex-semi-Freecell-addict. It’s a lot easier to get addicted to the Window’s version of Freecell because it includes a seed number that lets you replay the same game. There is no such seed number in this version of Freecell.
In spite of its name, Golf is yet another card game one that is fairly well known. For more information about this game access http://www.delorie.com/store/ace/docs/golf.html.
Mastermind is a game in which you use a mouse to drag colors from the palette (on the left) to the empty cells in the guess row. When the four cells in the guess row are full, right-click on the right of the screen to see how you did. There will be one black peg for each cell that is the correct color, and one white for a color that is not in the correct sequence. Keep going and sooner or later you can figure out all the colors in the row. If that’s your thing.
Some people will remember Minesweeper from the days of Windows 3.1. The goal is to clear a field of mines by clicking on a square that has no mines and right-clicking on a mined square to deactivate it. The screen indicates how many mines are adjacent to a square that has been deactivated or clicked on. One false move and you lose. When you start the game you can choose from four levels by enter 1 (the easiest), 2, 3, or 4. I vaguely recall that Windows 3.1 gave me additional options, but still Damn Small Linux’s Minesweeper is a good time waster.
Pegged is a field of thirty penguins and thirty-one spaces. Initially one space is empty. A move consists of one Penguin jumping over another generating an additional empty space. You win if at the end of the game there is a single penguin. You really win if the solitary penguin is in the center square. Some would say that you really, really win if you close the Games menu and get back to work.

Damn Small Linux can be an excellent tool for learning Linux commands and running the Linux operating system. But what if you are not interested in becoming a computer nerd; can this software still be useful to regular people? The answer is a resounding yes; you can make use of this tiny operating system whether or not you want to learn the sometimes gruesome details of operating systems. This article presents several free games that are immediately available once you have downloaded and installed Damn Small Linux.
To access these games either click on the DSL button in the lower-left hand corner or on the Apps icon toward the top of the screen. Then open the Games: there are eleven; Canfield, Freecell, Golf, Mastermind, Minesweeper, Pegged, Slide_Puzzle, Solitaire, Taipei, Thornq, and Xtris and Taiedit which is not a game, but a game editor. We will look at the games in order starting with Slide_Puzzle. As with any gaming systems, you must be careful not to get addicted.
Do you remember a hand-held non-electronic game that contained fifteen movable tiles and sixteen squares? By moving the tiles correctly you could reconstitute a series of numbers. Slide_puzzle is similar but even more challenging. First you load an image, a graphics file such as a jpg file. I didn’t have one readily available so I opened Firefox went to google images and downloaded into the /home/dsl directory the first crayfish image that Google offered me. Then I loaded it into the game which chopped it into little pieces to be reassembled. Left-click on a tile to slide it into the adjacent empty space. Right-click to see the original image. If you are really good you won’t have to take a peek at the original image. It helps if you selected an image that’s easy to reconstitute. I don’t recommend crayfish.
Solitaire is the good-old Klondike solitaire card game. While testing it for this article I won twice in a row and even came close the third time. This is the solitaire that I fondly remember as a kid. Watch out, it’s moderately addictive.
Taipei is a very addictive game in which you try to remove pairs of corresponding tiles. Of course whenever one tile is covered by another tile you must first remove the covering tile. To find out if a tile may be removed right-click on it. If it changes colors it may be removed by clicking on its available partner. The partner tile is usually a copy (9 and 9, Heart and Heart) but any of the direction tiles may be paired with any other direction tile, and any color tile may be paired with any color tile.) The numbers in the lower left hand corner of the screen indicate how many tiles remain and how many tiles are presently removable. In one game I started with 144 and 12. By judiciously removing two tiles I went to 142 and 15. I lost that game, like I lose most of the time. If the rules sound a bit complicated, they are. But you can learn by playing. And you can always press the Backspace key to undo your latest tile removal. The last time I played I was blocked, pressed the Backspace key, and went on to win. Some would say beginner’s luck. The instructions claim that every game can be won. I don’t believe it.
Taiedit lets you modify the game of Taipei. Good luck, this application looks moderately sophisticated.
Thornq is yet another solitaire card game. For more information about this game access their website at www.delorie.com/store/ace/docs/thornq.html .
You may not believe me, but I won this game without knowing how to play it. Beginner’s luck. The point is that Damn Small Linux offers a wide variety of solitaire card games. The final game offered with the system is xtris, a version of Tetris, a game in which you arrange falling blocks. This version offers a few controls including the possibility of playing several games at once. One at a time is more than enough for me.

Just to set the record straight, we must tell you that Microsoft Windows comes with plenty of free applications. The most widely used freebie is Internet Explorer. To find most of the others go to Start, All Programs, Accessories, and start clicking. Why don’t you take a look right now? Outside of Internet Explorer how many free Windows applications do you actually use? When you feel like word processing do you fire up Notepad, Word Pad, or Microsoft Word? Guess which two of these word processors are free.

Equipping an office with the standard Windows applications is an expensive activity. Some Microsoft applications make you purchase the software itself and then pay additional licensing fees when you connect your Microsoft client computer to a Microsoft server computer.

Damn Small Linux applications are free. Some of them are included with the initial download while others have to be downloaded and installed subsequently. There are several reasons for this seemingly intricate procedure. Not everybody wants to use the same applications. Furthermore, the very strict selection of the applications in its base package helps the Damn Small Linux distribution to respect the hard to believe 50 Megabyte limit. Once you have installed Damn Small Linux you can download Open Source (free) versions of Office and run them under Linux. Please note that you can download and run these programs under Microsoft Windows as well.

All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy. Well Jack doesn’t have to worry if he’s running Damn Small Linux. It comes with lots of free games. Somehow we have the impresssion that you will not need any tutorials to get the games running.

Some Linux applications are not only free but are actually superior when compared to the corresponding Windows applications. For example, have you ever heard of an e-mail client called Sylpheed? This application is part of the basic Damn Small Linux distribution. It has several advantages over those extremely popular (perhaps we should say unpopular) Microsoft e-mail offerings, Outlook and Outlook Express. Sylpheed handles spam much better than do its Windows counterparts. And Sypheed allows you to process threads of e-mail messages. For example, you correspond with several people about wholesale wine purchases. Sypheed makes it easy to process those messages while ignoring unrelated ones.

Since we’re talking about email, what about it’s cousin the Internet? That will be the subject of our next article in this series.