lan

Tue

Aug

Explained: Do I need a VPN on a Public Network?

by Dennis Faas on August, 27 2019 at 03:08PM EDT

Infopackets Reader Neil W. writes: " Dear Dennis, Thanks for your interesting article on whether a VPN is safe for online banking . However, one question I can't seem to find the answer to is: do I need VPN on a public network? Do I need a VPN on a ... private network? What about a VPN on a shared network? An example might include a student doing banking at a university shared network. What do you think? " My response: Short answer: A VPN, or virtual private network is useful in a few cases - for example: hiding your tracks online (to some extent, but with major limitations) or accessing geo- ... (view more)

Fri

Apr

How to: Access Windows Shares using an Android Device

by Dennis Faas on April, 15 2016 at 12:04PM EDT

Infopackets Reader Sonja S. writes: " Dear Dennis, I have a very perplexing question that has been bothering me for the last little while. For the longest time, I have been using an app called ES File Explorer for my Android smartphone, which allows ... me to connect to a shared Windows folder on my Windows PC using my WiFi connection. However, it appears that ES File Explorer now contains a bunch of bloatware and is constantly scanning my SD Card, and alerting me of programs 'requesting sensitive information'. I was wondering if you can tell me if there is another Android app I can use to share ... (view more)

Mon

May

How to fix: Screensaver Won't Start

by Dennis Faas on May, 11 2015 at 10:05AM EDT

Infopackets Reader 'Tibby' writes: " Dear Dennis, For a few days now my screensaver won't start anymore on either my Windows 7 desktop and laptop. I suspect a recent Windows update may have caused my screensaver to stop working, but I can't ... substantiate that. I have reset the screensaver settings on both machines but my screensaver won't start. Have you heard of such an incidence? Any idea how to fix my screensaver? I have learned quite a bit form your questions and answers. Good work, and thanks in advance. " My response: This is a very common problem with Windows XP, Vista, 7, and 8. ... (view more)

Fri

May

How do I Change my IP Address (IP Banned)?

by Dennis Faas on May, 1 2015 at 11:05AM EDT

Infopackets Reader Elaine Y. writes: " Dear Dennis, How can I change my IP address? I ask because every now and again I try and email my friend (with a yahoo email address), but Thunderbird keeps telling me that my IP address is being blocked and ... can't send my email. Any ideas why I'm being blocked? Better yet, any idea on how I can change my IP address so I'm not blocked? " My response: This is a good question and the situation (at least for me) comes up often enough, so it's worth explaining. Also, I couldn't seem to find a single article on the Internet that explains how this happens (at ... (view more)

Tue

Sep

'Eject USB', and 'Wake On LAN'

by Brandon Dimmel on September, 8 2009 at 08:09AM EDT

Eject USB Eject USB is designed to close all programs running from a specified USB drive and then attempt a 'safe remove' of the drive if specified. Extended functionality includes flushing the file cache, closing Explorer windows, and removing ... registry entries and recent document shortcuts referencing the specified drive or folder. http://www.pocketappreview.com Wake On LAN This program wakes a user's computer via LAN. You need only to enter the appropriate MAC address of the computer you would like to wake and the program takes care of the rest. http://www.nyxbull.com Today's fresh software ... (view more)

Fri

Jul

'Readability', and 'Video Lan'

by Brandon Dimmel on July, 10 2009 at 08:07AM EDT

Readability A lovely and useful tool. If you read many articles on the net, you need it. Readability removes all the clutter surrounding the article, presenting it as clean as the page of a book. Some compare the service to Amazon's Kindle. ... http://lab.arc90.com Video Lan Video Lan is the latest version of one of the best video and multimedia players available. If you're tired of Windows Media Player and Nero (or something like it) just ain't doing the job, check out this one. http://www.videolan.org Today's fresh software picks were provided courtesy of Bob Helmer at Shell Extension City. ... (view more)

Wed

May

'Six Dumbest Ways To Secure A Wireless Lan', and 'Input Director'

by Bob Helmer on May, 28 2008 at 08:05AM EDT

Six Dumbest Ways To Secure A Wireless LAN Many so called security experts propagated these myths through speaking engagements and publications and many continue to this day. One would think that the fact that none of these schemes made it in to the ... official IEEE 802.11i security standard would give a clue to their ineffectiveness, but time and time again that theory is proven wrong. http://blogs.zdnet.com/Ou/index.php?p=43 Input Director Input Director is a Windows application that lets you control multiple Windows systems using the keyboard/mouse attached to one computer. It is designed for ... (view more)

Wed

Nov

Using a software firewall and hardware firewall in tandem

by Dennis Faas on November, 6 2002 at 08:11AM EST

Almost a month ago we were knee-deep in discussion with respect to tracking down a hacker. In short, our ongoing discussion probed possibilities and known methods which might be used to track down a hacker, if one ever attempted to hack into *your* ... computer system. RE: Can I track down a Hacker?, Part 1 , and Can I track down a Hacker?, Part 2 . Shortly after Part 2 was released, I received an email from Dan Daily (editor / webmaster) of Danny's Daily . Dan's comments focused on a proposed supposition, which was sent in from John B. in Part 2 of our Discussion . To recap: John suggested to ... (view more)

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