Facebook chat.. Will MSN have competition?
Facebook had announced about a in-built chat for a couple of weeks officially on their blog. About 3 days it appeared on my home page but since it wasn’t a feature for most of my friends I couldn’t really utilize it.
Today morning I used it to chat with my friend Reagan the copy editor at the Bombay Times and the chat feature has a host of problems from what I noticed.
For starters unlike chat on Gmail the app took time sending messages to the other user. Most times the chat bar would disspear showing me an error message. Felt wierd as my wireless internet connection at home is stable and I didnt notice any disturbance on the P2P app.
So will this new feature by Facebook take away the steam from MSN (Windows Live) or Gtalk or even Yahoo messenger for that matter? I seriously dont think so. Why do I say that?
Chat messages on Gtalk and Windows Messenger are saved. Features most chat users prefer having so they can go back to check what they said a few weeks back when they had one too many drinks.
Facebook doesn’t incorporate features like calling and or file transfers.
Chat on Facebook is a cumbersome feature with small icons and even smaller fonts.
Will I start chatting with my friends on facebook rather than MSN or Gtalk ( my chat app of choice). Atleast in the near future the answer would be a bold NO.
I hope Facebook cleans up its act and gets some improvements into facebook chat.
Life after Vista SP1
I Installed Window’s Vista SP1 on my Dell Inspiron 1520 with Vista Home Premium and the installation was without any issue though it took the better part of my morning for almost a 75 minutes. Thankfully I haven’t experienced any serious problems like BSoD or the computer hanging as has been reported by many who installed it. Though I haven’t been able to see any noticeable changes as yet.
I have had one small problem though…. I keep getting disconnected from my household wireless network. I know for a fact this is not a problem with my router or internet connection as the other computer’s at home do not get disconnected. Any idea’s what the problem could be? ?
I have not yet re installed the driver’s and also yet to report the problem to Dell customer support.
So if you do have an idea of what the problem could be do leave back a reply.
How to remain safe on P2P networks
Look before you P2P!
Sharing is caring, but on the internet, you could also be sharing viruses, spyware and trojans. Here’s how to avoid all of these dangers
- BERGES Y MALU
Almost everyone these days use’s P2P file-sharing applications for downloading music or getting video and other digital content to share what you have and get what you want. Well for those who don’t know what’s a P2P network, well a peer-to-peer network allows computer hardware and software to function without the need for special server devices. P2P is an alternative to client-server network design. The concept is great sharing what you have and borrowing from others what you don’t. Though the concept of sharing is great with so many viruses, spy-ware and worms all over the place its not long before your infected. So here are a few tips in helping to protect you from security hazards while still being able to download via P2P sites.
Don’t use P2P over corporate networks, ever!
Using P2P file-sharing applications over your corporate network can cause a variety of problems from eating your company bandwidth to unknowingly sharing office files and documents which may be sensitive. Also if a virus infects your PC it could also infect your whole corporate network.
Protect your folders
Most users inadvertently share their entire drive C without realising this could be dangerous as personal photo’s financial details even credit card details could be compromised on. Its basically like leaving your entire PC open to outsiders waiting to be hacked as files are left open and can be easily modified with malicious code. Instead specify a certain folder where files can be downloaded and only those files can be shared with other users.
Scan all downloads
Whenever you download anything of the internet one golden rule is never to open any files without scanning it. It’s best to scan those files with an up-to-date anti-virus software especially .exe file types that could potentially be carrying anything from Viruses to Trojans. Avast Free is a good free antivirus program as it scans files being downloaded over P2P networks in real time. Also periodically scan your pc with a anti-spy-ware program such spy-ware doctor which is a free download from any good search engine. Chances of programs executing malicious code after being scanned are quite low. You don’t want your PC behaving like a zombie do you?
Use only known P2P programs
Most P2P programs are not fully developed and can be full of bugs that could cause your PC to crash or make your PC work irregularly. Instead use only fully developed clients like Frostwire or Ares. It’s much safer downloading such apps from sites like sourceforge or Cnet since files stored on such servers are free of any type of spyware or malicious code.
Get yourself a good firewall
A firewall generally protects you from network attacks against your Pc. It also prevents unknown sites or programs from connecting to the internet. Peer-guardian is a good firewall software and since it protects your privacy. It also blocks traffic from unknown or suspicious IP addresses.
Empty your shared folder regularly
Sharing copyrighted material is a crime in most countries. Downloading copyrighted material is fine but sharing it is bigger offence to prevent yourself from getting into trouble transfer files downloaded over P2P networks to other folders which are not being shared.
THE ARTICLE APPEARED IN THE BOMBAY TIMES ON 2nd FEB 2008
(You are free to link or copy this article elsewhere but please remember to add my byline and also a trackback to my blog.)
Iraq and now Pakistan….. is Extremism taking over the middle east????
The year 2007 has brought about some great strides in technology….. been one of the more joyful years and less tragic events for once no bomb blast occurred in Mumbai which is so thankful ! But while India is doing so well Economically…and other spheres of life…… what is happening to our neighboring countries and others in Asia?
Iraq! It was believed that with a “Regime Change” and Saddam Hussien’s removal from power a new beggining would occur in Iraq… but what has happened is something terribly wrong ! I recently came across this awesome picture/audio presentation by the New York Times which shows the medical problems in the country. This is just a needle in the haystack of problems that Iraq today faces. I wonder how people can inflict so much damage on other fellow human beings… Would God ever want us to do that to our fellow humans??? I don’t think so. However evil a person may be causing such damage and killing others is not the answer for that matter giving judgements isnt our job !
Pakistan : The country is completely unstable even small issues now involve the military there is no such term as a civilian police or any type civilian goverement people are randomly killed or beaten up. Extremism is at it’s root here.Pervez Musharraf seems to be two timing the world at one point telling the U.S Govt and India among other countries that it is doing its best to fight terrorism but a recent NY Times proves how money provided by the U.S Govt is being used to promote extremism against India ! ! How a majority of that amount was used in purchasing F 15 Aircraft which can hardly be used to fight terrorism.
Will this lead to a major problem among the asian countries??? Tough to say
The future for Pakistan ??? In one word—-> Bleak !
Hope the new year brings in Peace and Prosperity for the people of these two war and terror ravaged countries and may the terrorist or extremist or whatever they like being call get some divine intervention and realize that killing people is not the solution 
