My DigitalZone

Today, I will talk about how to put an icon to url. The tiny image is typically called a “favicon” and it’s in an ico format, which means a typical file name is favicon.ico. Its size is usually 16×16 but I usually make a 48×48 gif file in Photoshop. To convert it to an ico format, you can download a free Photoshop plugin from telegraphics.com.au and use Photoshop. But an easier way is to create it online from dynamicdrive.com.

So here’s the step to put the tiny image next to your website’s url.

1. Create a 16×16 or 48×48 image file and save it as a gif file.
2. Go to dynamicdrive.com and click “Create Icon.”
3. Download the created file (favicon.ico) to your PC.
4. Upload the icon to the root directory of your website.
5. Add the following line to your header… in between < head > and < / head >
   
< link rel="shortcut icon" href="favicon.ico" >< /link >

Note: You need to remove spaces from the example html tags shown above.

Another note: favicon may not show up immediately. It takes some time. If you change your favicon image, clear the browser chache and refresh the page and wait.

Kindle 2: Amazon’s New Wireless Reading Device (Latest Generation)

The New York Times is reporting today that amazon.com is working on a Kindle with a larger screen. The current version is version 2 and it’s slim and compact. According to the New York Times article, amazon may release the new version of Kindle as early as this week.

As we all know by now, most of the print media have been struggling financially because of diminishing readership and advertisement revenue, due mostly to the rise of internet media. The New York Times reports that the new device from amazon may save by offering a convenient method for the traditional newspaper and magazine publishers.

It is an interesting development. For me, Kindle, with its price tag of $359, is a bit too pricey even though its convenience of purchasing a book (at a very low price) on the spot is very tempting. I have a friend who bought Kindle and she loves it.

I encountered a problem when I tried to do a screen capture with my new Compaq laptop with Vista Premium on it. The normal method, which is pressing ALT+Prt SC or CTRL+ALT+Prt SC didn’t work. Then, I figured out that pushing “FN” (function, a key on the lower-left corner) and Prt SC (the same as “home” key on the upper-right corner) does the work. As is most of the computers these days, this laptop doesn’t come with a hardcopy of Users’ Manual, so I needed to do some internet searches to figure this out.

All right. I bought myself a new laptop. It’s Compaq Presario Laptop with AMD Athlon X2 QL-62 Dual-Core Processor. As you can see in this post, my laptop (Toshiba Satellite) crashed and I restored the factory default. Toshiba worked fine but it was about time to be replaced. So, I did a quick search on the internet and picked this one. Ideally, I wanted to get one with Windows XP but all new laptops seem to be loaded with Vista. The specs of Presario seem to fit my needs at this time. When I bought Toshiba, I was traveling regularly, so the size and the weight were my major factors. But not now. I wanted an affordable laptop that’s reliable and more RAM and disk space. My Compaq Presario comes with:

• AMD Athlon™ X2 QL-62* dual-core processor
• 2GB DDR2 memory (expandable to 4GB)
• Multiformat DVD±RW/CD-RW drive with double-layer support
• 15.6″ WXGA widescreen display with BrightView technology
• 250GB SATA hard drive (5400 rpm)
• NVIDIA GeForce 8200M graphics
• Integrated microphone
• 5-in-1 media reader
• 3 high-speed USB 2.0 ports
• Built-in high-speed wireless LAN (802.11b/g)
• Built-in 10/100Base-T Ethernet LAN
• Weighs 6.5 lbs. and measures just 1.7″ thin
• Good battery life of up to 2 hours and 30 minutes
• Microsoft Windows Vista Home Premium Edition with Service Pack 1 (SP1) preinstalled

So far so good. It’s not sluggish as I was afraid. The screen is wide and bright. I need to test the battery life, though. Overall, I am very pleased with this purchase as it was only $429.00 at BestBuy.

Considering I paid over $1,100 for my old Toshiba, it was a good deal.

One thing to note is that this laptop comes with 32bit version of Windows Vista. I have a friend who bought a higher-end Compaq Presario with 64bit Vista, and she’ been having problems installing her old software. So far, all the software I have got installed without problems on my new laptop.

When you lose an USB flash drive, what makes you worry is probably the data stored on the drive. The contents of the drive are priceless for some, depending on how they use the flash drive. There are two ways to secure the drive. One is to buy a flash drive with built-in security mechanism and the other is to use software to encrypt the content of the drive.

USB Flash Drives with Security Mechanism

• SanDisk 4GB Cruzer Micro USB Flash Drive with U3 This drive is getting excellent reviews. It features include:
  1. 4 GB capacity
  2. Retractable USB connector
  3. Brilliant amber LED
  4. U3 smart enabled
  5. Loaded with the following U3 programs: CruzerSync synchronization software, SignupShield password manager, SKYPE, and AVAST antivirus software
  6. Dimensions: 7.94mm x 20.6mm x 57.15mm (D x W x L)
  7. Hi-Speed USB 2.0 certified (backwards compatible with all USB 1.1 ports)
  8. Compatible with Windows 2000, SP4 and XP

  Even though the amazon site says “U3 functionality only supported on Windows 2000 (SP4 and later) & XP,” one reviewer says it works with Vista. It is very affordable as amazon.com sells it for $12.49.

• IronKey 4 GB Secure Hardware-Encrypted USB 2.0 Flash Drive This drive seems to be the one that’s built for security. It uses a hardware encrypted, military grade encryption to protect the data. The reviews are pretty good and the only drawback I see is it price, $127.47.
• Secure USB Memory Device by Fujitsu
  This is a new product developed by Fujitsu and I’m not sure if it’s in the market yet. According to the press release by Fujitsu on April 17, 2009,

  Fujitsu Laboratories Limited and Fujitsu Laboratories of America, Inc. today announced the development of two new technologies designed to prevent the unwanted disclosure of data from lost universal serial bus (USB) memory devices and prevent uploads to file-sharing networks: a USB memory device technology that after a fixed period of time automatically erases data stored on the USB memory, and a file redirect technology⁽¹⁾ which ensures that the data from the USB memory device can only be stored on a specified server. This creates a secure environment that protects confidential information and allows USB memory devices to be used as a convenient way to safely carry customer data back to one’s own company to manage the data.

  This sounds neat. This may not be for home/casual users but I can see that the corporate IT department may be interested in the product.

  • Encryption Software
    • TrueCrypt TrueCrypt is open source software that is popular to secure USB drives. It offers various encryption methods as you can see from this photo.