Kashif's Blog

Speed Up Downloads

2009-09-09T08:04:00.002+06:00

Download Accelerator Plus
Free ($39.95 for Premium edition)
SpeedBit

Key Benefits:
• Accelerated downloads of one or more files
• Organizational aids to help manage downloads

If you are frequently frustrated while downloading large or multiple files or you would like help managing your downloads, give DAP (Download Accelerator Plus) a spin.

DAP replaces your default download manager automatically, and when you initiate a download, it pops up. The program scans for the fastest download site and can initiate multiple download streams to speed things up. It supports simultaneous downloads in a tabbed interface. DAP also lets you schedule downloads, tag downloads for organizational purposes, and select the destination folder.

DAP miscategorized our Internet connection, so we had to open the Options interface (right-click the icon in your System Tray). You’ll want to visit Options, anyway; many default settings don’t give you a lot of flexibility. From this interface, for example, you can adjust the download settings, instruct DAP to run files through your antivirus software (if you don’t have built-in download scanning or it isn’t enabled), and more.

DAP Premium brings even more benefits and eliminates the ads that support the free version (which aren’t intrusive). With DAP Premium, you get even faster downloads and can password-protect, hide, preview, and auto-extract downloaded files. We think the free version will suffice for most users.

Web-Based Invoicing

2009-09-09T07:47:00.003+06:00

Billing Manager

Free (fee-based enhancements available)
Intuit
(650) 944-6000
www.billingmanager.com

From the makers of QuickBooks, Quicken, and TurboTax comes Billing Manager, a basic but functional Web-based invoicing system. Users need only create a password, select one of the provided templates, and enter business, client, and billing data to create invoices.

Once the account owner creates an invoice, Billing Manager can send an invoice link to the customer via an email (with boilerplate or custom text) or display the invoice for printing. Billing Manager keeps tabs on provided payment data and can generate reminders for unpaid invoices. Those who want to create estimates or set up recurring invoicing can opt for an enhanced version and pay a $9.95 monthly fee. Users who want to accept credit card or electronic check payments can purchase the QuickBooks Merchant Services add-on for $14.95 per month plus a small fee for credit card payments. (Both services offer a 30-day free trial.)

It is disappointing that Billing Manager cannot interact with Intuit's other financial products, banks, or even Excel and other spreadsheet formats. However, a company representative says the product targets those with limited billing needs. We see this benefiting solo business owners with an urgent need to generate invoices or accept payments while they are away from their office computers

Cell Phone Towers Causing Cancer ?

2009-09-02T23:45:00.001+06:00

All of us are aware that cell phones transmit radiation which is harmful, you may have also experienced some symptoms like irritation or a headache when you talk on your cell phone for long periods of time.

But when it comes to cell phone towers or masts the radiation levels emitted are much more, considering that they are transferring and emitting to multiple cell phones simultaneously lets take a look at what kind of problems they have led to in the UK, which definitely has a more robust system as compared to ours when it comes to identifying the harmful effects of these towers.

Seven clusters of cancer and other serious illnesses have been discovered around mobile phone masts, studies of the sites show high incidences of cancer, brain hemorrhages and high blood pressure within a radius of 1200 feet of mobile phone masts. But thats not as bad as one of their studies that showed a cluster of 31 cancers around a single street in Warwickshire.

A quarter of the 30 staff at a special school within sight of the 90ft high mast have developed tumours since 2000, while another quarter have suffered significant health problems.

Eileen O Conner Blames Cell Phone tower radiation for her breast cancerEileen O'Connor, who is suffering from breast cancer blames it on the phone mast that was erected in their hometown, Wishaw, ten years ago. Along with it a variety of health complaints from many local residents ranging from nosebleeds, headaches and cancer.

But the Department of Health and the Mobile Operators Association insist that their masts conform to international safety standards and there has be no research that has proved these towers are linked to cancer.

Wishaw radiations bring down the phone mast that they blame causes diseaseFinally the residents in Wishaw decided to take matters in their own hands and brought down the cell phone tower on their own. They brought it down and straight away people started reporting that their headaches had stopped, the dizziness stopped and rashes cleared up.

Alright enough from the UK, the situation in Bombay is worse, out here telephone operators do not find the space to set up a tower, so they end up paying buildings to put a cell phone mast on it. The residents are more than happy as their monthly outgoings drop down a certain percentage with the rent they receive from the telephone operators.

But at what cost, not only do they and the surrounding buildings are exposed to this radiation, in Mumbai the mobile phone tower radiation is ten times more than the permissible limit.

Loss of appetite, irritation, fatigue, difficulty in concentrating, headaches, problems in vision, infertility and deformity of foetus are the most common problems associated with cell phone radiations.

Health Institutions In Pakistan

2009-08-29T11:36:00.002+06:00

Islamabad Capital Territory Public institutions
------------------------------------------------------------
Dar-ul-Shifa Hospital, Islamabad
Federal Government Services Hospital, Islamabad
Glora Welfare Hospital (Ghosia-Mahria Trust), Islamabad
Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS), Islamabad
PAEC Hospital, Islamabad
Nescom Hospital, Islamabad
KRL Hospital, Islamabad
{Aslam Memorial Medicare Hospital (ISLAMABAD)
National Institute of Health, Islamabad

Islamabad Capital TerritoryPrivate institutions
-------------------------------------------------------------
Islamic International Medical Complex, Islamabad
Shifa International Hospital, Islamabad
Ali Hospital F-8, Islamabad

Azad Kashmir
------------------------
Riaz Hospital, Mirpur
Jinnah Hospital, Mirpur

Balochistan Public institutions
-----------------------------------------
Akram Hospital, Quetta
Children Hospital Quetta, Quetta
Sardar Bahadur Khan TB Sanatorium, Quetta

FATA
---------------
DHQ Hospital - FATA

NWFP Public institutions
----------------------------------
Lady Reading Hospital
Khyber Teaching Hospital
Hayatabad Medical Complex
Ayub Medical Complex
Mardan Medical Complex
Saidu Group Hospitals, Swat
Tank Christian Hospital, Tank, Dera Ismail Khan

NWFP Private institutions
------------------------------------
Al-Khidmat Hospital, Peshawar
Naseer Teaching Hospital, Peshawar. Gandhara University
Al Ishaq Hospital, Abbottabad
Gulshanara Maternity Clinic, Kohat
Health Care Centre, Peshawar
Captain Ali Children Hospital, Saidu Sharif, Swat
Hira General Hospital, Abbottabad
Khattak Medical Centre And Hospital, Peshawar
Mardan Surgical Hospital, Mardan
Medicare Hospital And Maternity Home, Kohat
Orthopedics & Surgical Hosp, Peshawar
Rehman Medical Institute, Peshawar[2]
Rang Mahal Welfare Hospital & Education Center, Swat
salim Medical centre Dherai swat

Northern Areas
--------------------------

Dherai Welfare centre

Punjab Public institutions(government owned and operated)
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Children's Hospital, Lahore
Data Darbar Hospital, Lahore
District Headquarters Hospital, Rawalpindi
Lahore General Hospital, Lahore
Gulaab Devi Hospital, Lahore
Holy Family Hospital, Rawalpindi
HOPE Rehabilitation Center for disabled, Lahore
Jinnah Hospital, Lahore
Lady Aitchison Hospital, Lahore
Lady Willingdon Hospital, Lahore
Mayo Hospital, Lahore
Nisthar Hospital, Multan
Punjab Institute of Cardiology(PICS), Lahore
Psychiatric hospital, Lahore
Railway Cairns Hospital, Lahore
Rawalpindi General Hospital, Rawalpindi
Services Hospital, Lahore
Sheikh Zayed Hospital, Lahore
Sir Ganga Ram Hospital, Lahore
D.H.Q HOSPITAL, MUZAFFAR GARH

Punjab Private institutions(privately owned and operated)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
Nanotech Neurology Center, 56-e WAPDA TOWN Lahore
Malik Surgical Hospital & Shazia Maternity Home, Lahore
Bakhtawar Amin Memorial Trust Hospital, Multan
Muazzam Shaheed Welfare Hospital, Jhelum
Mumtaz Bakhtawar Memorial Trust Hospital,Wahdat road, Lahore
National Hospital, Lahore
Ihsan Mumtaz Hospital,Shaukat Ali Road, Jahor Town Lahore
Iqraa Medical Complex, Lahore
Ittefaq Hospital (Trust), Lahore
Jaanki Devi Hospital, Lahore
Shalimar Hospital, Lahore
Shaukat Khanum Memorial Cancer Hospital & Research Centre, Lahore
Margalla Welfare Hospital, Rawalpindi
Hearts International Hospital, Rawalpindi
Masood Hospital,Gardentown, Lahore
Memorial Christian Hospital, Paris Road, Sialkot
[[{Heart and city ScanHospital]] Thokkar Niaz Baig Road
Surgimed Hospital, Zafar Ali Road, Lahore
United Christian Hospital, Lahore
Umer Hospital, Wah
Gulberg Hospital, Lahore
Doctor's Hospital, Lahore
Family Hospital, Lahore
Fatima Memorial, Lahore
Aadil Hospital, Lahore
Ali Hospital, Lahore
Ammar Medical Complex, Lahore
Cardex Clinic Jail Road, Lahore
Masood Children's Clinic, Lahore
Al-Shifa Trust Eye Hospital, Rawalpindi
Aziz Bhatti Hospital, Gujrat
Bahawal Victoria Hospital, Bahawalpur
Fatima Medical Centre, Multan
Fazal Hospital, Jhelum
Fauji Foundation Hospital, Rawalpindi
Fauji Foundation Hospital, Lahore
Hameed Latif Hospital, Lahore
Healers Centre (Pvt.) Ltd., Rawalpindi
Maryam Memorial Hospital, Rawalpindi
Medicare Hospital , Multan
Mian Muhammad Trust Hospital, Faisalabad
National Hospital, Faisalabad
Rasheed Hospital , Lahore
Razzaq Hospital, Lahore
Saahil Hospital, Faisalabad
Sadiq Hospital, Sargodha
Salamat Hospital, Gujranwala
Sharif Meidcal City Hospital, Lahore
Valley Clinic (Pvt) Limited, Rawalpindi
WAPDA hosital, Lahore
Mubarik Nursing Home,Rawalpindi
Mekki Hospital,Faisalabad
Bait-ul-Shifa Trust, Township, Lahore
faisal hospital,khanewal road, multan
ali general hospital,khanewal road, multan
khan surgecal center,ali pur road, MUZAFFAR GARH

Sindh Public institutions
-----------------------------------
Abbasi Shaheed Hospital, Karachi
Civil Hospital, Karachi
Civil Hospital, Sukkur
Civil Hospital - Burns Centre, Karachi
Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre Karachi
Karachi Institute of Heart Diseases, Karachi
Kunri Christian Hospital, Umarkot
Lady Dufferin Hospital, Karachi
Leprosy Hospital, Karachi
Liaqat University of Health Sciences, Hyderabad
Lyari General Hospital, Karachi
National Institute of Cardiovascular Diseases, Karachi
National Institute of Child Health, Karachi
PNS Shifa, Karachi
Police Hospital, Karachi
Sindh Government Qatar Hospital, Karachi
Sindh Government Hospital New Karachi, Karachi
Sindh Institute of Skin Diseases, Karachi
Sindh Institute of Urology and Transplantation (SIUT), Karachi
Sindh Institute of Skin Diseases, Karachi
Sir Cowasjee Jehangir Institute of Psychiatry, Hyderabad
Sobhraj Maternity Home, Karachi
Spencer Eye Hospital, Karachi

Sindh Private institutions
-------------------------------------
ABM Hospital, Hyderabad
Aga Khan Hospital, Hyderabad
Aga Khan University Hospital, Karachi
Bismillah Taqee Institute of Health Sciences & Blood Diseases Centre, Karachi
Bantwa Memon Hospital, Karachi
Burhani Hospital, Karachi
Children Cancer Hospital, Karachi
CityCare Hospital, Hyderabad
Dar-ul-Sehat Hospital, (Liaquat Medical & Dental College) Karachi
Hamdard University Hospital, Karachi
Health Care Hospital, Karachi
Hilal-e-Ahmar Hospital, Hyderabad
Holy Family Hospital, Karachi
Al-Ibrahim Eye Hospital, Karachi
Ibne-Sina (Avicenna) Hospital, Karachi
Imam Clinic and General Hospital, Karachi
Isra University Hospital, Hyderabad
Jinnah Medical College Hospital, Karachi
Karachi Adventist Hospital, Karachi
Kharadar General Hospital, Karachi
Kidney Centre Post Graduate Training Institute, Karachi
Kiran Hospital for Nuclear Medicine, Karachi
Kutiana Memon Hospital, Karachi
Layton Rahmatulla Benevolent Trust Eye Hospital, (LRBT) Karachi
Liaquat National Hospital, Karachi
Majee Hospital, Hyderabad
Marie Adelaide Leprosy Centre (MALC), Karachi
Al-Mehrab Tibbi Imdad, Karachi
Masoomeen Hospital, Karachi
MidEast Hospital, Karachi
Murshid Hospital and Health Care Center, Karachi
OMI Hospital, Karachi
Patel Hospital, Karachi
PIMS Hospital, Rawalpindi
Safee Hospital, Karachi
Shilokh Mission Hospital, Jalapur Jattan, Gujrat
South City Hospital, Karachi
Tabba Heart Institute, Karachi
Usman Memorial Hospital, Karachi
Wapda Hospital, Hyderabad
Zainab Punjwani Memorial Hospital, Karachi
Dr Ziauddin Hospital, Karachi

Mohenjo-daro

2009-08-27T13:30:00.002+06:00

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Moenjo-daro (Mound of the Dead, Sindhi: موئن جو دڙو ) was one of the largest city-settlements of theIndus Valley Civilization of south Asia situated in the province of Sind, Pakistan. Built around 2600 BCE, the city was one of the early urban settlements in the world, existing at the same time as the civilizations of ancient Egypt, Mesopotamia, and Crete. The archaeological ruins of the city are designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site. It is sometimes referred to as "An Ancient Indus Valley Metropolis"^[1].

Rediscovery and excavation

Moenjo-daro was built around 2600 BCE and abandoned around 1900 BCE. It was rediscovered in 1922 by Rakhaldas Bandyopadhyay [1], an officer of the Archaeological Survey of India. He was led to the mound by a Buddhist monk, who believed it to be a stupa. In the 1930s, massive excavations were conducted under the leadership of John Marshall, K. N. Dikshit, Ernest Mackay, and others.^[2]John Marshall's car, which was used by the site directors, is still in the Mohenjo-daro museum, showing their struggle and dedication to Mohenjo-daro. Further excavations were carried out in 1945 by Ahmad Hasan Dani and Mortimer Wheeler.

The last major excavation of Mohenjo-daro was conducted in 1964-65 by Dr. G. F. Dales. After this date, excavations were banned due to damage done to the exposed structures by weathering. Since 1965, the only projects allowed at the site have been salvage excavation, surface surveys and conservation projects. Despite the ban on major archaeological projects, in the 1980s, teams of German and Italian survey groups, led by Dr. Michael Jansen and Dr. Maurizio Tosi, combined techniques such as architectural documentation, surface surveys, surface scraping and probing, to determine further clues about the ancient civilization.^[3]

Background

Mohenjo Daro was created as a very well planned out city, its original purpose was to serve as a major trading spot and for farming.

Location of Indus Valley.

Location

Mohenjo-daro is located in the Sindh province on a Pleistocene ridge in the middle of the flood plain of the Indus River. The ridge is now buried by the flooding of the plains, but was prominent during the time of the Indus Valley Civilization. The ridge allowed the city to stand out above the surrounding plain and be elevated. The site is situated in a central position between the Indus river valley on the west and the Ghaggar-Hakra on the east. In the modern day, the Indus still flows to the east of the site, but the Ghaggar-Hakra riverbed is dry. ^[4]

Anthropogenic construction over the years precipitated the need for expansion. To accommodate this, the ridge was expanded via giant mud brick platforms. Ultimately, the settlement grew to such proportions that some buildings reached 12 meters above the modern plain level, and probably much higher above the ancient plain.^[5]

Significance

Mohenjo-daro in ancient times was most likely one of the administrative centers of the ancientIndus Valley Civilization. ^[6] It was the most developed and advanced city in South Asia, and perhaps the world, during its peak. The planning and engineering showed the importance of the city to the people of the Indus valley.^[7]

The Indus Valley Civilization (c. 3300–1700 BC, flowered 2600–1900 BC), abbreviated IVC, was an ancient riverine civilization that flourished in the Indus river valley in ancient India (now Pakistan and the present north-west India). Another name for this civilization is the "Harappan Civilization."

The Indus culture blossomed over the centuries and gave rise to the Indus Valley Civilization around 3000 BCE. The civilization spanned much of what is now Pakistan and North India, but suddenly went into decline around 1900 BCE. Indus Civilization settlements spread as far south as the Arabian Sea coast of India in Gujarat, as far west as the Iranian border, with an outpost in Bactria. Among the settlements were the major urban centers of Harappa and Mohenjo-daro, as well as Lothal.

The Mohenjo-daro ruins were one of the major centres of this ancient society. At its peak, some archaeologists opine that the Indus Civilization may have had a population of well over five million.

To date, over a thousand cities and settlements have been found, mainly in the Indus River valley in Pakistan and northwestern India.

Architecture and urban infrastructure

Mohenjo-daro is a remarkable construction, considering its antiquity. It has a planned layout based on a grid of streets, which were laid out in perfect patterns. At its height the city probably had around 35,000 residents. The buildings of the city were particularly advanced, with structures constructed of same-sized sun dried bricks of baked mud and burned wood.

The public buildings of these cities also suggest a high degree of social organization. The so-called great granary at Mohenjo-daro as interpreted by Sir Mortimer Wheeler in 1950 is designed with bays to receive carts delivering crops from the countryside, and there are ducts for air to circulate beneath the stored grain to dry it. However, Jonathan Mark Kenoyer has noted though, that no record of grain exists at the "granary." Thus Kenoyer suggests that a more appropriate title would be "Great Hall."^[8]

Close to the granary, there is a building similarly civic in nature - a great public bath, with steps down to a brick-lined pool in a colonnaded courtyard. The elaborate bath area was very well built, with a layer of natural tar to keep it from leaking, and in the centre was the pool. Measuring 12m x 7m, with a depth of 2.4m, it may have been used for religious or spiritual ceremonies.

Within the city, individual homes or groups of homes obtained water from wells. Some of the houses included rooms that appear to have been set aside for bathing, waste water was directed to covered drains, which lined the major streets. Houses opened only to inner courtyards and smaller lanes. A variety of buildings were up to two stories high.

Being an agricultural city, it also featured a large well, and central marketplace. It also had a building with an underground furnace (hypocaust), possibly for heated bathing.

Mohenjo-daro was a well fortified city. Lacking actual city walls, it did have towers to the west of the main settlement, and defensive fortifications to the south. Considering these fortifications and the structure of other major Indus valley cities like Harappa, lead to the question of whether Mohenjo-daro was an administrative centre. Both Harappa and Mohenjo-daro share relatively the same architectural layout, and were generally not heavily fortified like other Indus Valley sites. It is obvious from the identical city layouts of all Indus sites, that there was some kind of political or administrative centrality, however the extent and functioning of an administrative centre remains unclear.

Mohenjo-daro was successively destroyed and rebuilt at least seven times. Each time, the new cities were built directly on top of the old ones. Flooding by the Indus is thought to have been the cause of destruction.

The city was divided into two parts, the so-called Citadel and the Lower City. Most of the Lower City is yet to be uncovered, but the Citadel is known to have the public bath, a large residential structure designed to house 5,000 citizens and two large assembly halls.

Mohenjo-daro, Harappa and their civilization, vanished without trace from history until discovered in the 1920s. It was extensively excavated in the 1920s, but no in-depth excavations have been carried out since the 1960s.

Artifacts

he "Dancing girl" found in Mohenjo-daro is an artifact that is some 4500 years old. The 10.8 cm long bronze statue of the dancing girl was found in 1926 from a house in Mohenjo-daro. She was British archaeologist Mortimer Wheeler's favourite statuette, as he said in this quote from a 1973 television program:

"There is her little Baluchi-style face with pouting lips and insolent look in the eyes. She's about fifteen years old I should think, not more, but she stands there with bangles all the way up her arm and nothing else on. A girl perfectly, for the moment, perfectly confident of herself and the world. There's nothing like her, I think, in the world."

John Marshall, one of the excavators at Mohenjo-daro, described her as a vivid impression of the young ... girl, her hand on her hip in a half-impudent posture, and legs slightly forward as she beats time to the music with her legs and feet.^[9]

The artistry of this statuette is recognizable today and tells of a strange, but at least fleetingly recognizable past. As the archaeologist Gregory Possehl says, "We may not be certain that she was a dancer, but she was good at what she did and she knew it". The statue could well be of some queen or other important woman of the Indus Valley Civilization judging from the authority the figure commands.

Seated male sculpture, the so-called "Priest King" (even though there is no evidence that either priests or kings ruled the city). This 17.5 cm tall statue is another artifact which has become a symbol for the Indus valley civilization. Archaeologists discovered the sculpture in Lower town at Mohenjo-daro in 1927. It was found in an unusual house with ornamental brickwork and a wall niche and was lying between brick foundation walls which once held up a floor.

This bearded sculpture wears a fillet around the head, an armband, and a cloak decorated with trefoil patterns that were originally filled with red pigment.

The two ends of the fillet fall along the back and though the hair is carefully combed towards the back of the head, no bun is present. The flat back of the head may have held a separately carved bun as is traditional on the other seated figures, or it could have held a more elaborate horn and plumed headdress.

Two holes beneath the highly stylized ears suggest that a necklace or other head ornament was attached to the sculpture. The left shoulder is covered with a cloak decorated with trefoil, double circle and single circle designs that were originally filled with red pigment. Drill holes in the centre of each circle indicate they were made with a specialized drill and then touched up with a chisel. Eyes are deeply incised and may have held inlay. The upper lip is shaved and a short combed beard frames the face. The large crack in the face is the result of weathering or it may be due to original firing of this object.

Current UNESCO status

Preservation work for Mohenjo-daro was suspended in December 1996 after funding from the government and international organisations stopped. However, in April 1997 the U. N. Educational, Scientific and Culture Organization (UNESCO) funded a $10 million project to be conducted over two decades to protect the standing structures and the site from flooding.

Nokia-5530-XpressMusic

2009-08-26T13:11:00.002+06:00

New Nokia 5530 XpressMusic Edition - Play, touch, Listen and admire. A full touch music phone that lets you discover, manage, and enjoy your favourite sounds. Nokia 5530 XpressMusic, touch music phone puts your closest friends and favourite music at your fingertips. With Nokia 5530 XpressMusic stay in touch with music, discover and play. The thin, attractive design of Nokia 5530 XpressMusic mobile phone is framed by a durable stainless steel front cover for a solid feel and lasting beauty. Nokia 5530 XpressMusic - a pleasure phone

Dimension 104 x 49 x 13 mm, 68 cc

Connectivity Bluetooth v2.0 with A2DP, USB, GPRS Class 32, HSCSD, EDGE Class 32, WLAN (Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g)

Weight 107 g (OS Symbian OS v9.4, Series 60 rel. 5 )

Battery Talk time Up to 4 h 54 min, Stand-by Up to 336 h, Music play Up to 27 h

Memory 70MB built-in+ 4GB Card includ

Display Size 360 x 640 pixels, 2.9 inches (Accelerometer sensor, Proximity sensor for auto turn-off)

Display Colour TFT resistive touchscreen, 16M colors Processor ARM 11 434 MHz + 128 MB SDRAM

Band GSM 850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900

Entertainment Stereo FM radio with RDS, 3.5 mm audio jack, MP3/WMA/WAV/RA/AAC/M4A music player, WMV/RV/MP4/3GP video player, Games (built-in + Java downloadable) - Speakerphone with 3D Surround stereo speakers, Photo editor, Document viewer (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, PDF), Voice command/dial

Camera 3.15 MP, 2048x1536 pixels, autofocus, LED flash, Video (220 x 176, 15ps)

Tones Downloadable polyphonic, MP3, Video ring tones

Messaging SMS, MMS, Email, Instant Messaging

Nokia-5730-XpressMusic

2009-08-26T13:08:00.002+06:00

New Nokia 5730 XpressMusic Phone Play. Share & Chat. Play music, play games, share media, Nokia 5730 XpressMusic has everything you need for music, sharing and messaging on the go. Nokia 5730 XpressMusic includes a high quality camera, dedicated music keys and a full side-slide keyboard. Enjoy a rich music experience with Nokia 5730 XpressMusic mobile through any headphones using 3.5 mm AV plug, or get a big sound from the built-in speaker. Take on multiple players in the N-Gage Arena. Then follow up your games & share your media on social networking sites. Nokia 5730 XpressMusic

Dimension 112 x 51 x 15.4 mm

Connectivity Bluetooth v2.0 with A2DP, GPRS Class 32, HSCSD, EDGE Class 32 (296 / 178.8 kbits), 3G (HSDPA 3.6 Mbps), WLAN (Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g, UPnP)

Weight 135 g - (OS : Symbian OS, S60 rel. 3.2 ) + 128 MB RAM

Battery Talk time Up to 5 h, Stand-by Up to 300 h, Music play Up to 25 h

Memory 100MB Built-in + 8GB Card incl

Display Size 240 x 320 pixels, 2.4 inches (Full QWERTY keyboard + Accelerometer sensor )

Display Colour TFT, 16M colors (3D engine)

Band GSM 850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900 (HSDPA 900 / 1900 / 2100)

Entertainment Stereo FM radio with RDS, Nokia Say and Play (voice control to music player), 3.5 mm audio jack, MP3/WMA/WAV/RA/AAC/M4A music player, WMV/RV/MP4/3GP video player, Games (N-gage + downloadable) - GPS + A-GPS support, Nokia Maps, Dedicated music keys, Speakerphone,

Camera 3.15 MP, 2048x1536 pixels, Carl Zeiss optics, autofocus, 8x digital zoom, LED flash, Video (VGA 30fps), 2ndary videocall camera

Tones Downloadable polyphonic, MP3

Messaging SMS, MMS, Email

Nokia-2700-classic

2009-08-26T12:53:00.002+06:00

Nokia 2700 classic Phone with multiple uses Connect with Nokia 2700 Classic. Discover a reliable, user-friendly phone, perfect for sharing your day with friends. Nokia 2700 Classic is a practical mobile phone with handy features to keep you entertained & connected throughout the day. With Nokia 2700 Classic Store your favourite tracks, pictures, & other content on microSD card up to 2 GB. Nokia 2700 Classic - take your content with you, stay entertained on the go & share your stories.

Dimension 109.2 x 46 x 14 mm, 62 cc

Connectivity Bluetooth v2.0, USB, GPRS Class 32, HSCSD, EDGE Class 32

Weight 85 g (OS : Nokia Series 40 )

Battery Talk time Up to 6 h, Stand-by Up to 288 h, Music play Up to 12 h

Memory 32MB Built-in + Extendable mic

Display Size 240 x 320 pixels, 2.0 inches (5-way navigation key)

Display Colour TFT, 256K colors

Band GSM 850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900

Entertainment Stereo FM radio with RDS, MP3/MPEG4 player, 3.5 mm audio jack, Games (Rally Star, Soduko, Snake III, Diamond Rush) - Speakerphone, Voice Dial / memo, Organizer

Camera 2 MP, 1600x1200 pixels, 4x digital zoom, Video (CIF 15fps)

Tones Downloadable polyphonic, MP3, video tones

Messaging SMS, EMS, MMS, Email

Sony-Ericsson-C903

2009-08-26T12:50:00.002+06:00

Sony Ericsson C903 Cyber-shotâ„¢ Phone Great images need to be Seen The slim, stylish Sony Ericsson C903 Cyber-shotâ„¢ slider has dedicated camera keys & 5 megapixels to play with. Just slide the lens cover down & snap away. With Sony Ericsson C903 mobile phone view & show off your images on the crystal-clear, auto-rotating 2.4" screen. Or use the TV-out function on Sony Ericsson C903 & watch them on your TV screen. The Sony Ericsson C903 is made for taking memorable pictures.

Dimension

97 x 49 x 16 mm

Connectivity

Bluetooth v2.0 with A2DP, USB, GPRS Class 10 (48 kbps), HSCSD, EDGE Class 10 (236.8 kbps), 3G (HSDPA, HSUPA)

Weight

96 g

Battery

Talk time Up to 10 h , Stand-by Up to 400 h

Memory

105MB Built-in + Memory Stick

Display Size

240 x 320 pixels, 2.4 inches (Scratch-resistant surface, Accelerometer sensor)

Display Colour

TFT, 256K colors

Band GSM 850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900 (HSDPA 1900 / 2100)

Entertainment Stereo FM radio with RDS, Media Goâ„¢, MP3/AAC/MPEG4 player, YouTube application, TrackID music recognition, TV-out, Picture editor/blogging, Games (built-in + downloadable) - GPS + A-GPS support, Wayfinder Navigator 7, Speakerphone, Voice memo/dial

Camera 5 MP, 2592 x 1944 pixels, autofocus, LED flash, Video, Geo-tagging, face & smile detection, image stabilization

Tones Downloadable polyphonic, MP3, AAC

Messaging SMS (threaded view), MMS, Email, Push Email, IM

Sony-Ericsson-W995

2009-08-26T12:33:00.003+06:00

Sony-Ericsson-W995 Specifications & Features ::.

Sony Ericsson W995 - On your new Sony Ericsson W995, Play & organise your fun stuff the easy way with Media Go & view the latest YouTube videos in perfect resolution. Get it all on Sony Ericsson W995, its 8.1 megapixels give you big pictures - store them on the 8 GB memory card. Sony Ericsson W995 gives you Complete clarity, Catch the action on the bright, clear 2.6â€ screen. Want to share with friends? use the built-in stand and stereo speakers of Sony Ericsson W995 .

Dimension

97 x 49 x 15 mm

Connectivity Bluetooth v2.0 with A2DP, USB, GPRS Class 10 (48 kbps), HSCSD, EDGE Class 10 (236.8 kbps), 3G (HSDPA 7.2 Mbps, HSUPA 2 Mbps), WLAN (Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g, DLNA) Weight

113 g

Battery

Talk time Up to 9 h, Stand-by Up to 370 h

Memory

118 MB built-in + 8GB Memory S

Display Size

240 x 320 pixels, 2.6 inches (Accelerometer sensor)

Display Colour

TFT, 256K colors

Band

GSM 850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900 (HSDPA 900 / 2100)

Entertainment

Stereo FM radio with RDS, Media Goâ„¢, MP3/AAC/MPEG4 player, Walkman 4.0 player, TrackID music recognition, YouTube application, 3.5 mm audio jack, Shake control, Games (incl. motion-based + downloadable) - GPS + A-GPS support, Wayfinder navigator, Stereo speakers, Kickstand, SensMe, Voice memo/dial

Camera

8.1 MP, 3264x2448 pixels, autofocus, LED flash, Video (WQVGA@30fps), Geo-tagging, face detection, image stabilizer (2ndary Videocall Camera)

Tones

Downloadable polyphonic, MP3, AAC

Messaging

SMS, MMS, Email, IM

Badshahi Mosque, Lahore

2009-08-21T18:06:00.005+06:00

The Badshahi Mosque (بادشاھی مسجد) or "Emperor's Mosque" was built in 1673 by the Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb in Lahore, Pakistan. It is one of the city's best known landmarks and a major tourist attraction epitomising the beauty and grandeur of the Mughal era.

Capable of accommodating over 55,000 worshippers, Badshahi is the second largest mosque in Pakistan, after the Faisal Mosque in Islamabad. The design of the Badshahi Masjid is closely related to the Jama Masjid in Delhi, India, which was built in 1648 by Aurangzeb's father, Emperor Shah Jahan.

Badshahi Masjid is one of the famous locations where Qari Basit (1927-88), a widely acclaimed Egyptian Qur'anic Recitor, recited the Qur'an.

History

The mosque was built under the patronage of the sixth Mughal Emperor, Aurangzeb Alamgir. It was completed in 1673 under the supervision of Aurangzeb's foster brother Muzaffar Hussain (also known as Fidaie Khan Koka) who was appointed governor of Lahore in May 1671 and held this post until 1675. He was also Master of Ordnance to the emperor.

The construction of the mosque took about two years, from May 1671 to April 1673. The mosque was built opposite the Lahore Fort, illustrating its stature in the Mughal Empire. In conjunction with the building of the mosque, a new gate was built at the fort, named Alamgiri Gate after the Emperor.

From 1852 onwards, piecemeal repairs were carried out under the supervision of the Badshahi Mosque Authority. Extensive repairs were carried out from 1939 to 1960 at a cost of about 4.8 million rupees, which brought the mosque to its original shape and condition. The blueprint for the repairs was prepared by the late architect Nawab Zen Yar Jang Bahadur.

In 2000, the repair work of marble inlay in the main vault was repaired under the supervision of Saleem Anjum Qureshi. On the occasion of the second Islamic Summit held at Lahore on February 22, 1974, thirty-nine heads of Muslim states offered their Friday prayers in the Badshahi Masjid, led by Maulana Abdul Qadir Azad, the 'Khatib' of the mosque.

Recently a small museum has also been added to the mosque complex, which contains relics of Muhammad, his cousin, and his daughter, Hazrat Fatima Zahra.

What to See

Like the character of its founder, the mosque is bold, vast and majestic in its expression. It was the largest mosque in the world for a long time. The interior has rich embellishment in stucco tracery (Manbatkari) and panelling with a fresco touch, all in bold relief, as well as marble inlay.

The exterior is decorated with stone carving as well as marble inlay on red sandstone, specially of loti form motifs in bold relief. The embellishment has Indo-Greek, Central Asian and Indian architectural influence both in technique and motifs.

The skyline is furnished by beautiful ornamental merlons inlaid with marble lining adding grace to the perimeter of the mosque. In its various architectural features like the vast square courtyard, the side aisles (dalans), the four corner minarets, the projecting central transept of the prayer chamber and the grand entrance gate, is summed up the history of development of mosque architecture of the Muslim world over the thousand years prior to its construction in 1673.

The north enclosure wall of the mosque was laid close to the Ravi River bank, so a majestic gateway could not be provided on that side and, to keep the symmetry the gate had to be omitted on the south wall as well. Thus a four aiwan plan like the earlier Delhi Jamia Masjid could not be adopted here. The walls were built with small kiln-burnt bricks laid in kankar, lime mortar (a kind of hydraulic lime) but have a veneer of red sandstone.

The steps leading to the prayer chamber and its plinth are in variegated marble. The prayer chamber is very deep and is divided into seven compartments by rich engraved arches carried on very heavy piers.

Out of the seven compartments, three double domes finished in marble have superb curvature, whilst the rest have curvilinear domes with a central rib in their interior and flat roof above.

In the eastern front aisle, the ceiling of the compartment is flat (Qalamdani) with a curved border (ghalatan) at the cornice level. The original floor of the courtyard was laid with small kiln-burnt bricks laid in the Mussalah pattern.

The present red sandstone flooring was laid during the last thorough repairs (1939-60). Similarly, the original floor of the prayer chamber was in cut and dressed bricks with marble and Sang-i-Abri lining forming Mussalah and was also replaced by marble Mussalah during the last repairs. There are only two inscriptions in the mosque: one on the gateway and another of Kalimah in the prayer chamber under the main high vault.

The measurements of Badshahi, as provided by a sign at the mosque, are:

Courtyard: 528'-8" x 528'-4" (Area: 278,784 ft2), divided into upper and lower levels
Prayer Chamber: 275'-8" x 83'-7" x 50'-6" high, with its main vault 37'-3" x 59'-4" high and a total area of 22,825 sq ft
Corner Minarets: 67' in circumference, 176'-4" high are in four stages and have a contained staircase with 204 steps.
Central Dome: Diameter 65' at bottom (at bulging 70'-6"); height 49'; pinnacle 24 ft and neck 15 ft high.
Side Domes: Diameter 51'-6" (at bulging 54'-2"); height 32 ft; pinnacle 19 ft; neck 9'-6" high.
Gateway: 66'-7" x 62'-10" x 65 high including domelets; vault 21'-6" x 32'-6" high. Its three sided approach steps are 22 in number.
Side aisles (Dalans): 80 in number. Height above floor 23'-9"; plinth 2'-7".
Central Tank: 50' x 50' x 3' deep (Area: 2,500 sq ft)

Quick Facts

Names:	بادشاھی مسجد; Badshahi Mosque; Shah Badshahi Masjid; Emperor's Mosque; King's Mosque
Type of site:	Mosques
Dates:	1673
Location:	Lahore, Pakistan

Effects of Educational Technology

2009-08-18T13:48:00.002+06:00

Effects of Educational Technology

In a 1994 Software Publisher's Association (SPA) study, research found that:

Educational technology has a significant positive impact on achievement in all subject areas, across all levels of school, and in regular classrooms as well as those for special-needs students.
Educational technology has positive effects on student attitudes.
The degree of effectiveness is influenced by the student population, the instructional design, the teacher’s role, how students are grouped, and the levels of student access to technology.
Technology makes instruction more student-centered, encourages cooperative learning, and stimulated increased teacher/student interaction.
Positive changes in the learning environment evolve over time and do not occur quickly.

Information Superhighway

"America’s Children and the Information Superhighway: A Briefing Book and National Action Agenda" Wendy Lazarus and Laurie Lipper, Directors, The Children’s Partnership, 1994

A five-year report (1987-1992) by the Sacramento School District in California found that students using multimedia and telecommunications showed improved attitudes toward reading, social studies and science, and became more active and independent in learning. Some also showed improved reading scores.
A survey of 550 teachers who use telecommunications technology in the classroom reported that "inquiry-based analytical skills - like critical thinking, data analysis, problem solving, and independent thinking - develop when students use a technology that supports research, communication, and analysis. However, telecommunications does not directly help their performances on state- or city- mandated tests.

Multiple Intelligences and Multi-media

Howard Gardner, Professor of Harvard University and author of Frames of Mind (New York: Basic Books, 1983) from Multimedia Book, ITTE wrote that:

Seven or more "multiple intelligences" that are of equal importance in human beings and develop at different times and in different ways in different individuals.
Multi-media can go along way to addressing these intelligences, much more than traditional teaching methods.
Below is a list of the intelligences and the technology tools that can be used to teach to them

Verbal/Linguistic intelligence: The ability to think, communicate, and create through words both in speech and in writing.

Computer software which allows young children to write and illustrate their own stories before their fine motor skills are developed enough to allow them to do so by hand.
Word processing software stimulates learners to interact more closely with their work.
Audio and video recording can give students instant feedback on their story-telling skills and can help them develop them further.
Multimedia software helps students produce multimedia reports.
Telecommunications programs link students who correspond in writing.

Logical/mathematical intelligences: Memorize and perform mathematical operations, ability to think mathematically, logically, and analytically and to apply that understanding to problem solving.

Multimedia products that graphically illustrate physics concepts.
- Providing challenging visual/spatial tasks which develop mathematical and logical thinking .
- Develop higher-order mathematical thinking by making abstract ideas concrete.

Visual/spatial intelligence: The ability to understand the world through what we see and imagine and to express ideas through the graphic arts.

"Paint" programs that allow students who are unskilled with paper and brush create art on computer screens.
Databases of art work.
Desktop publishing.
Camcorders to create documentaries.
Internet links to museums and virtual tours.

Bodily/kinesthetic intelligence: The ability to learn through physical coordination and dexterity and the ability to express oneself through physical activities.

Educational games which challenge fine motor coordination while developing logical thinking skills and mastery over abstractions.
Construction of lego robots and program their movement through the computer.
Electronic fieldtrips - programs that allow students to interact electronically with a scientist who is exploring the depths of the Mediterranean or the inside of a volcano.

Musical intelligence: The ability to understand, appreciate, perform, and create music by voice or instruments or dance.

Students can hum into a synthesizer and make it sound like any instrument they want.
Musical Instrument Digital Interface (MIDI) makes it possible to make music on an electronic keyboard, which can be made to sound like any instrument and then can be orchestrated electronically.
Interactive presentations of renowned classical music let students understand music on many different levels; listening to it, seeing the score as it is played, hearing individual instruments played alone, reviewing biographical material about the composer and learning about the music’s historical and cultural backgrounds.

Interpersonal intelligence: The ability to work cooperatively with other people and to apply a variety of skills to communicate with and understand others.

Clusters of students working together on computers learn more than individual students working alone.
Electronic networks linking students with their peers within the community and around the world.
Lumaphones allow students to see a picture of the person with whom they are speaking.

Intrapersonal intelligence: The ability to understand, bring to consciousness, and express one’s own inner world of thoughts and emotions.

Multimedia gives teachers the tools to turn the classroom into centers of student-directed inquiry.
Technology offers tools for thinking more deeply, pursuing curiosity, and exploring and expanding intelligence as students build "mental models" with which they can visualize connections between ideas on any topic.
Individual growth plans, developed jointly by the student, parents and teacher can encourage the development of intrapersonal intelligence. Technology supports such plans with electronic records, videotaped interviews, and multimedia portfolios of student work.

Education In Pakistan

2009-08-18T13:08:00.002+06:00

Pakistan has very varied scenery from coastal beaches, lagoons and mangrove swamps in the south to sandy deserts, desolate plateaus, fertile plains, dissected upland in the middle and high mountains with beautiful valleys, snow-covered peaks and eternal glaciers in the north.

The variety of landscape divides Pakistan into six major regions the North High Mountainous Region, the Western Low Mountainous Region, the Balochistan Plateau, the Potohar Uplands, the Punjab and the Sindh Plains High Mountain Region.

Pakistan, officially Islamic Republic of Pakistan, republic in south Asia, bordered on the north and north-west by Afghanistan, on the north-east by Jammu and Kashmir, on the east and south-east by India, on the south by the Arabian Sea, and on the west by Iran. The status of Jammu and Kashmir is a matter of dispute between India and Pakistan. Pakistan became an independent state in 1947. Until December 1971 it included the province of East Pakistan (previously East Bengal), which, after its secession from Pakistan, assumed the name Bangladesh. The area of Pakistan is 796,095 sq km (307,293 sq mi), excluding the section of Jammu and Kashmir under its control. The capital of Pakistan is Islamabad; Karachi is the largest city.

Population 129,808,000 (1995 estimate) Population Density 163 people/sq km (422 people/sq mi) (1996 estimate) Urban/Rural Breakdown 32%Urban 68%Rural Largest Cities Karachi5,103,000 Lahore2,922,000 Faisalabad1,092,000 (1981 census) Ethnic Groups 48%Punjabi 13%Pashto 12%Sindhi 10%Saraiki 8%Urdu 9%Other including Baluchis and Afghans Languages Official Language English National Language Urdu Other Languages Punjabi, English, Pashto, Sindhi, Saraiki, Baluchi Religions 97%Islam 3%Other including Christianity, Hinduism, and Buddhism

Only 65 percent of adult Pakistanis are literate. The constitution prescribes free primary education. While enrollment rate in primary school is high for boys, less than one-half of girls attend school. Five years has been established as the period of primary school attendance. In the 1996 school year 81 percent of primary school-aged children were enrolled in school, while only 30 percent of secondary school-aged children attended. In the early 1990s, 336,600 students attended institutions of higher education. Among Pakistan’s leading universities are the University of Karachi (1951), the University of the Punjab (1882), in Lahore; the University of Peshawar (1950); the University of Sind (1947), in Dadu; and the University of Agriculture (1909), in Faisalabad.

Alpha Five Version 8

2009-08-17T15:41:00.002+06:00

Alpha Five Version 8
$199.99 for the Desktop version, $249.99 for the Professional version
Alpha Software
CPUs: 4

Have you ever wanted to build your own database with user-defined functions or write a database application for your Web site but didn’t have the programming knowledge to make it happen? Alpha Five Version 8 features genies (wizard-like selection processes) that let you create custom database applications without writing any code. And for those of you blessed with programming skills, Alpha Five lets you create custom program scripts in the XBasic language to let you add other functions into Alpha Five databases.

When Alpha Five opens, the application offers several genies to get you started, including genies to import your data from Microsoft Excel or Microsoft Access, to enter data into a premade template, or to create your own new database. Once you get your database set up, you can control the data with several field rules, including validations, conditional expressions, and custom input masks. There are enough templates and adjustable settings to create professional-looking databases for both small business and Web designers.

If you regularly deal with large databases, you’ll appreciate the Query Genie, which lets you create search criteria from a series of drop-down menus. For instance, we created a catalog of the songs on our computer, and the Query Genie made it easy for other users to narrow down the list. For viewing convenience, you can add custom toolbars, menus, and help buttons, among other options. Alpha Five Version 8 also provides plenty of ways for you to transfer data into reports, form letters, and labels. You can access a Web Projects Control Panel to design a custom database for your Web site.

If you’re serious about the appearance and usability of your database information, Alpha Five Version 8 offers you plenty of tools to create the application you need. It took us a little while to get used to the program, but Alpha Software provides excellent tutorials on the Web site, so you can always go online for some quick lessons. You can download a free 30-day trial to evaluate Alpha Five Version 8, and the application is offered in Desktop, Professional, and Enterprise versions.

I'm in Touch Remote Access Software 6.0

2009-08-17T15:37:00.003+06:00

I’m InTouch Remote Access Software 6.0
$10 per month or $100 for one year (one PC)
01 Communique
CPUs: 4

There are a variety of remote access services available, but not many services are offered for less than I’m InTouch Remote Access Software’s $10 per month. And we found that I’m InTouch offers many of the features included in more costly remote access software, including control of pocket PC devices, the ability to share your Desktop with up to 10 people for remote presentations, stealth mode operation, and Web cam access.

Like most other remote access software, you don’t have to register your IP address or delve through your LAN settings to set up the I’m InTouch client. Instead, configuration consists of creating a computer name, login name, and password. To remotely access your always-on PC, open your Internet browser (either from another PC or a mobile phone). Type the appropriate computer name, and then enter the login name and password. For security, the login name and password are only stored on the remote PC and behind SSL 128-bit encryption.

The I’m InTouch Web applet offers convenient My Desktop, My Outlook, My Files, and My Webcam(s) buttons to let you quickly perform specific tasks on your remote PC. The My Outlook feature offers a Web mail interface that’s nearly identical to your Outlook or Outlook Express interface, and you can configure the I’m InTouch client to notify you of new emails. The My Files feature took a little getting used to, but we liked the drag-and-drop functionality. The My Desktop feature allows you to view your Desktop in 8-bit color for slower data connections or up to 32-bit color, ideal for remote presentations. In our tests, there was a little lag with graphics-intensive applications, but nothing that would significantly slow down your remote viewing.

You can also configure I’m InTouch to work in stealth mode, so you can monitor activity on the computer without any indication on the remote PC. I'm In-Touch is available in a Standard version—$5 a month for access only from mobile devices—or a Deluxe version for access from PCs and mobile phones.

New Processor Technology

2009-08-17T15:24:00.001+06:00

Do you know what is inside your computer? Maybe you peeked when the service technician was installing something for you. When you first open up the CPU and look inside, a computer is a very threatening machine. But once you know about the different parts that make up a complete computer it gets a lot easier. Today's computers consist of around eight main components; some of the advanced computers might have a few more components. What are these eight main components and what are they used for? We will start with beginner level details to get you started.

First is the Power Supply. The power supply is used to provide electricity to all of the components in your computer. It is usually a rectangular box and is usually positioned in one of the corners of the computer. To find it for sure, look to see where the power cable plugs into the back of the computer and you have found the power supply. Most power supplies today are calculated in wattage and come in 50 watt increments (500 watt, 550, 600, etc

Second is the Motherboard. All of the components are connected into the motherboard; it doesn't mean that it is the brain of the computer. Yes it holds the brain and helps it act together with all the other components of the machine.

The third and a very important component of a computer is the CPU (Central Processing Unit), Known as the brain of the computer and nothing is going to happen without it. All major calculation performed by a computer are carried out inside its CPU. It is also responsible for activating and controlling the operations of other units of the system. The faster the CPU can do these calculations and give the correct answers, the faster the computer runs for the user. CPUs are now measured in gigahertz (Ghz) and they are at present up to our 3.8GHz or faster

A fourth component is the RAM (Random Access Memory). RAM is used as momentary working storage for the computer. We have different types of RAM memory with different speed, but it should match with your motherboard so that it can work properly. The more RAM you have in your computer, the better your computer will work.

The fifth component is the Hard drive. This is where you can store everything. Our material on the hard drive includes the operating system (Windows XP, etc), games, and different types of software, etc. over the year the capacity of the hard drive is continuously improving and in the interval of few years its capacity have gone from around 20MB to over 500GB and more. So you can store a lot more information on your computer such as games, pictures, videos, applications, and more.

Sixth component is Cooling fans. Often most computers come with one cooling fan or it might have several. Its help to cool down the heat generated by others components, Such as power supply, the CPU, and some high-end video cards. The work of all of your cooling fans is to get this heat out of the case so that nothing overheats and breaks. While most of the noise you hear coming from a computer can be credited to the cooling fans, remember to be tolerant. The cooling fan is your friend!

Our Seventh and final component is the mixture of several different devices. These are the Cd-rom, DVD drives, floppy Drive and Backup devices such as external hard drive.

Latest compute processor

Latest computer processor provides high speed processing, great performance, effortless multitasking and a dramatic increase in your productivity. Get the most out of it with a new PC. Today's desktops and notebooks offer greater performance, quality and reliability than ever before. These computers have 2X faster performance, less waiting, sleek designs and keep you productive, entertained and informed. New technology gives you the performance you need in the design you desire. Lets take a look on Next Generation processor.

NEW
Dual-Core processor

Core™2 Duo Processor

Quad-Core processor

Education as a Necessity of Life

2009-08-15T13:44:00.004+06:00

1. Renewal of Life by Transmission.

The most notable distinction between living and inanimate things is that the former maintain themselves by renewal. A stone when struck resists. If its resistance is greater than the force of the blow struck, it remains outwardly unchanged. Otherwise, it is shattered into smaller bits. Never does the stone attempt to react in such a way that it may maintain itself against the blow, much less so as to render the blow a contributing factor to its own continued action. While the living thing may easily be crushed by superior force, it none the less tries to turn the energies which act upon it into means of its own further existence. If it cannot do so, it does not just split into smaller pieces (at least in the higher forms of life), but loses its identity as a living thing.

As long as it endures, it struggles to use surrounding energies in its own behalf. It uses light, air, moisture, and the material of soil. To say that it uses them is to say that it turns them into means of its own conservation. As long as it is growing, the energy it expends in thus turning the environment to account is more than compensated for by the return it gets: it grows. Understanding the word "control" in this sense, it may be said that a living being is one that subjugates and controls for its own continued activity the energies that would otherwise use it up. Life is a self-renewing process through action upon the environment.

In all the higher forms this process cannot be kept up indefinitely. After a while they succumb; they die. The creature is not equal to the task of indefinite self-renewal. But continuity of the life process is not dependent upon the prolongation of the existence of any one individual. Reproduction of other forms of life goes on in continuous sequence. And though, as the geological record shows, not merely individuals but also species die out, the life process continues in increasingly complex forms. As some species die out, forms better adapted to utilize the obstacles against which they struggled in vain come into being. Continuity of life means continual readaptation of the environment to the needs of living organisms.

We have been speaking of life in its lowest terms -- as a physical thing. But we use the word "Life" to denote the whole range of experience, individual and racial. When we see a book called the Life of Lincoln we do not expect to find within its covers a treatise on physiology. We look for an account of social antecedents; a description of early surroundings, of the conditions and occupation of the family; of the chief episodes in the development of character; of signal struggles and achievements; of the individual's hopes, tastes, joys and sufferings. In precisely similar fashion we speak of the life of a savage tribe, of the Athenian people, of the American nation. "Life" covers customs, institutions, beliefs, victories and defeats, recreations and occupations.

We employ the word "experience" in the same pregnant sense. And to it, as well as to life in the bare physiological sense, the principle of continuity through renewal applies. With the renewal of physical existence goes, in the case of human beings, the recreation of beliefs, ideals, hopes, happiness, misery, and practices. The continuity of any experience, through renewing of the social group, is a literal fact. Education, in its broadest sense, is the means of this social continuity of life. Every one of the constituent elements of a social group, in a modern city as in a savage tribe, is born immature, helpless, without language, beliefs, ideas, or social standards. Each individual, each unit who is the carrier of the life-experience of his group, in time passes away. Yet the life of the group goes on.

The primary ineluctable facts of the birth and death of each one of the constituent members in a social group determine the necessity of education. On one hand, there is the contrast between the immaturity of the new-born members of the group -- its future sole representatives -- and the maturity of the adult members who possess the knowledge and customs of the group. On the other hand, there is the necessity that these immature members be not merely physically preserved in adequate numbers, but that they be initiated into the interests, purposes, information, skill, and practices of the mature members: otherwise the group will cease its characteristic life. Even in a savage tribe, the achievements of adults are far beyond what the immature members would be capable of if left to themselves. With the growth of civilization, the gap between the original capacities of the immature and the standards and customs of the elders increases. Mere physical growing up, mere mastery of the bare necessities of subsistence will not suffice to reproduce the life of the group. Deliberate effort and the taking of thoughtful pains are required. Beings who are born not only unaware of, but quite indifferent to, the aims and habits of the social group have to be rendered cognizant of them and actively interested. Education, and education alone, spans the gap.

Society exists through a process of transmission quite as much as biological life. This transmission occurs by means of communication of habits of doing, thinking, and feeling from the older to the younger. Without this communication of ideals, hopes, expectations, standards, opinions, from those members of society who are passing out of the group life to those who are coming into it, social life could not survive. If the members who compose a society lived on continuously, they might educate the new-born members, but it would be a task directed by personal interest rather than social need. Now it is a work of necessity.

If a plague carried off the members of a society all at once, it is obvious that the group would be permanently done for. Yet the death of each of its constituent members is as certain as if an epidemic took them all at once. But the graded difference in age, the fact that some are born as some die, makes possible through transmission of ideas and practices the constant reweaving of the social fabric. Yet this renewal is not automatic. Unless pains are taken to see that genuine and thorough transmission takes place, the most civilized group will relapse into barbarism and then into savagery. In fact, the human young are so immature that if they were left to themselves without the guidance and succor of others, they could not acquire the rudimentary abilities necessary for physical existence. The young of human beings compare so poorly in original efficiency with the young of many of the lower animals, that even the powers needed for physical sustentation have to be acquired under tuition. How much more, then, is this the case with respect to all the technological, artistic, scientific, and moral achievements of humanity!

2. Education and Communication.

So obvious, indeed, is the necessity of teaching and learning for the continued existence of a society that we may seem to be dwelling unduly on a truism. But justification is found in the fact that such emphasis is a means of getting us away from an unduly scholastic and formal notion of education. Schools are, indeed, one important method of the transmission which forms the dispositions of the immature; but it is only one means, and, compared with other agencies, a relatively superficial means. Only as we have grasped the necessity of more fundamental and persistent modes of tuition can we make sure of placing the scholastic methods in their true context.

Society not only continues to exist by transmission, by communication, but it may fairly be said to exist in transmission, in communication. There is more than a verbal tie between the words common, community, and communication. Men live in a community in virtue of the things which they have in common; and communication is the way in which they come to possess things in common. What they must have in common in order to form a community or society are aims, beliefs, aspirations, knowledge--a common understanding -- like-mindedness as the sociologists say. Such things cannot be passed physically from one to another, like bricks; they cannot be shared as persons would share a pie by dividing it into physical pieces. The communication which insures participation in a common understanding is one which secures similar emotional and intellectual dispositions -- like ways of responding to expectations and requirements.

Persons do not become a society by living in physical proximity, any more than a man ceases to be socially influenced by being so many feet or miles removed from others. A book or a letter may institute a more intimate association between human beings separated thousands of miles from each other than exists between dwellers under the same roof. Individuals do not even compose a social group because they all work for a common end. The parts of a machine work with a maximum of cooperativeness for a common result, but they do not form a community. If, however, they were all cognizant of the common end and all interested in it so that they regulated their specific activity in view of it, then they would form a community. But this would involve communication. Each would have to know what the other was about and would have to have some way of keeping the other informed as to his own purpose and progress. Consensus demands communication.

We are thus compelled to recognize that within even the most social group there are many relations which are not as yet social. A large number of human relationships in any social group are still upon the machine-like plane. Individuals use one another so as to get desired results, without reference to the emotional and intellectual disposition and consent of those used. Such uses express physical superiority, or superiority of position, skill, technical ability, and command of tools, mechanical or fiscal. So far as the relations of parent and child, teacher and pupil, employer and employee, governor and governed, remain upon this level, they form no true social group, no matter how closely their respective activities touch one another. Giving and taking of orders modifies action and results, but does not of itself effect a sharing of purposes, a communication of interests.

Not only is social life identical with communication, but all communication (and hence all genuine social life) is educative. To be a recipient of a communication is to have an enlarged and changed experience. One shares in what another has thought and felt and in so far, meagerly or amply, has his own attitude modified. Nor is the one who communicates left unaffected. Try the experiment of communicating, with fullness and accuracy, some experience to another, especially if it be somewhat complicated, and you will find your own attitude toward your experience changing; otherwise you resort to expletives and ejaculations. The experience has to be formulated in order to be communicated. To formulate requires getting outside of it, seeing it as another would see it, considering what points of contact it has with the life of another so that it may be got into such form that he can appreciate its meaning. Except in dealing with commonplaces and catch phrases one has to assimilate, imaginatively, something of another's experience in order to tell him intelligently of one's own experience. All communication is like art. It may fairly be said, therefore, that any social arrangement that remains vitally social, or vitally shared, is educative to those who participate in it. Only when it becomes cast in a mold and runs in a routine way does it lose its educative power.

In final account, then, not only does social life demand teaching and learning for its own permanence, but the very process of living together educates. It enlarges and enlightens experience; it stimulates and enriches imagination; it creates responsibility for accuracy and vividness of statement and thought. A man really living alone (alone mentally as well as physically) would have little or no occasion to reflect upon his past experience to extract its net meaning. The inequality of achievement between the mature and the immature not only necessitates teaching the young, but the necessity of this teaching gives an immense stimulus to reducing experience to that order and form which will render it most easily communicable and hence most usable.

3. The Place of Formal Education.

There is, accordingly, a marked difference between the education which every one gets from living with others, as long as he really lives instead of just continuing to subsist, and the deliberate educating of the young. In the former case the education is incidental; it is natural and important, but it is not the express reason of the association. While it may be said, without exaggeration, that the measure of the worth of any social institution, economic, domestic, political, legal, religious, is its effect in enlarging and improving experience; yet this effect is not a part of its original motive, which is limited and more immediately practical. Religious associations began, for example, in the desire to secure the favor of overruling powers and to ward off evil influences; family life in the desire to gratify appetites and secure family perpetuity; systematic labor, for the most part, because of enslavement to others, etc. Only gradually was the by-product of the institution, its effect upon the quality and extent of conscious life, noted, and only more gradually still was this effect considered as a directive factor in the conduct of the institution. Even today, in our industrial life, apart from certain values of industriousness and thrift, the intellectual and emotional reaction of the forms of human association under which the world's work is carried on receives little attention as compared with physical output.

But in dealing with the young, the fact of association itself as an immediate human fact, gains in importance. While it is easy to ignore in our contact with them the effect of our acts upon their disposition, or to subordinate that educative effect to some external and tangible result, it is not so easy as in dealing with adults. The need of training is too evident; the pressure to accomplish a change in their attitude and habits is too urgent to leave these consequences wholly out of account. Since our chief business with them is to enable them to share in a common life we cannot help considering whether or no we are forming the powers which will secure this ability. If humanity has made some headway in realizing that the ultimate value of every institution is its distinctively human effect -- its effect upon conscious experience -- we may well believe that this lesson has been learned largely through dealings with the young.

We are thus led to distinguish, within the broad educational process which we have been so far considering, a more formal kind of education -- that of direct tuition or schooling. In undeveloped social groups, we find very little formal teaching and training. Savage groups mainly rely for instilling needed dispositions into the young upon the same sort of association which keeps adults loyal to their group. They have no special devices, material, or institutions for teaching save in connection with initiation ceremonies by which the youth are inducted into full social membership. For the most part, they depend upon children learning the customs of the adults, acquiring their emotional set and stock of ideas, by sharing in what the elders are doing. In part, this sharing is direct, taking part in the occupations of adults and thus serving an apprenticeship; in part, it is indirect, through the dramatic plays in which children reproduce the actions of grown-ups and thus learn to know what they are like. To savages it would seem preposterous to seek out a place where nothing but learning was going on in order that one might learn.

But as civilization advances, the gap between the capacities of the young and the concerns of adults widens. Learning by direct sharing in the pursuits of grown-ups becomes increasingly difficult except in the case of the less advanced occupations. Much of what adults do is so remote in space and in meaning that playful imitation is less and less adequate to reproduce its spirit. Ability to share effectively in adult activities thus depends upon a prior training given with this end in view. Intentional agencies -- schools--and explicit material -- studies -- are devised. The task of teaching certain things is delegated to a special group of persons.

Without such formal education, it is not possible to transmit all the resources and achievements of a complex society. It also opens a way to a kind of experience which would not be accessible to the young, if they were left to pick up their training in informal association with others, since books and the symbols of knowledge are mastered.

But there are conspicuous dangers attendant upon the transition from indirect to formal education. Sharing in actual pursuit, whether directly or vicariously in play, is at least personal and vital. These qualities compensate, in some measure, for the narrowness of available opportunities. Formal instruction, on the contrary, easily becomes remote and dead -- abstract and bookish, to use the ordinary words of depreciation. What accumulated knowledge exists in low grade societies is at least put into practice; it is transmuted into character; it exists with the depth of meaning that attaches to its coming within urgent daily interests.

But in an advanced culture much which has to be learned is stored in symbols. It is far from translation into familiar acts and objects. Such material is relatively technical and superficial. Taking the ordinary standard of reality as a measure, it is artificial. For this measure is connection with practical concerns. Such material exists in a world by itself, unassimilated to ordinary customs of thought and expression. There is the standing danger that the material of formal instruction will be merely the subject matter of the schools, isolated from the subject matter of life- experience. The permanent social interests are likely to be lost from view. Those which have not been carried over into the structure of social life, but which remain largely matters of technical information expressed in symbols, are made conspicuous in schools. Thus we reach the ordinary notion of education: the notion which ignores its social necessity and its identity with all human association that affects conscious life, and which identifies it with imparting information about remote matters and the conveying of learning through verbal signs: the acquisition of literacy.

Hence one of the weightiest problems with which the philosophy of education has to cope is the method of keeping a proper balance between the informal and the formal, the incidental and the intentional, modes of education. When the acquiring of information and of technical intellectual skill do not influence the formation of a social disposition, ordinary vital experience fails to gain in meaning, while schooling, in so far, creates only "sharps" in learning -- that is, egoistic specialists. To avoid a split between what men consciously know because they are aware of having learned it by a specific job of learning, and what they unconsciously know because they have absorbed it in the formation of their characters by intercourse with others, becomes an increasingly delicate task with every development of special schooling.

Summary.

It is the very nature of life to strive to continue in being. Since this continuance can be secured only by constant renewals, life is a self-renewing process. What nutrition and reproduction are to physiological life, education is to social life. This education consists primarily in transmission through communication. Communication is a process of sharing experience till it becomes a common possession. It modifies the disposition of both the parties who partake in it. That the ulterior significance of every mode of human association lies in the contribution which it makes to the improvement of the quality of experience is a fact most easily recognized in dealing with the immature. That is to say, while every social arrangement is educative in effect, the educative effect first becomes an important part of the purpose of the association in connection with the association of the older with the younger. As societies become more complex in structure and resources, the need of formal or intentional teaching and learning increases. As formal teaching and training grow in extent, there is the danger of creating an undesirable split between the experience gained in more direct associations and what is acquired in school. This danger was never greater than at the present time, on account of the rapid growth in the last few centuries of knowledge and technical modes of skill.

Colleges, Universities and Research Institutions in Pakistan

2009-08-15T13:16:00.003+06:00

Azad Jammu and Kashmir

* Ali Ahmed Shah, University College of Engineering & Technology, Mirpur
* Mohi-ud-Din Islamic University
* University of Azad Jammu & Kashmir
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Baluchistan

* Baluchistan University of Engineering & Technology, Khuzdar
* Bolan Medical College (Quetta)
* Command and Staff College, Quetta
* University of Baluchistan
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Islamabad

* Allama Iqbal Open University
* Bahria Institute Of Management And Computer Sciences
* COMSATS Institute of Information Technology
* Fauji Foundation Institute of Manegment and Computer Sciences (FFIMCS)
* International Islamic University, Islamabad
* International Management Development Center
* Margalla Institute of Health Sciences (Islamabad)
* Mohammad Ali Jinnah University
* National University of Computer & Emerging Sciences (Islamabad)
* Pakistan Institute of Development Economics
* Quaid-e-Azam University
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NWFP

* Asian Management Institute - Iqra University -Peshawar Campus
* Ayub Medical College
* Cadet College Kohat
* CECOS University of IT & Emerging Sciences
* City University of Science & Information Technology
* Ghulam Ishaq Khan Institute of Science and Technology
* Gandhara University
* Gomal University
* Khyber Medical College
* National University of Computer & Emerging Sciences (Peshawar)
* Northern University
* NWFP Agricultural University
* NWFP University of Engineering and Technology (Peshawar)
* Pakistan Air Force Academy (Risalpur) Un
* Pakistan Military Academy (Kakul)
* University of Peshawar
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Punjab

* Aitchison College
* Allama Iqbal Medical College
* Al-Mawrid Institute of Islamic Sciences
* Army Medical College (Rawalpindi)
* Askari College of Business Administration and Computer Science (Lahore)
* Bahauddin Zakariya University
* Beaconhouse Informatics
* Dept. of Neurosurgery Lahore General Hospital
* Cadet College Hasan Abdal
* Cadet College Murree
* College of Business Administration (Lahore)
* College of Information Technology
* College of Veterinary Sciences Lahore
* Fatima Jinnah Women University
* Fitama Jinnah Medical College
* GIFT University, Gujranwala
* Government College Lahore
* Hailey College of Commerce, University of Punjab
* Institute of Administrative Sciences
* Institute of Management and Technology
* Islamia University Bahawalpur
* Islamic International Engineering College
* Islamic International Medical College
* King Edward Medical College
* Lahore Medical and Dental College
* Lahore School of Economics
* Lahore University of Management Sciences
* Military College Jhelum
* National College of Arts
* National College of Business Administration & Economics
* National Institute for Biotechnology and Genetic Engineering, Faisalabad
* National Textile University (Faisalabad)
* National University of Computer & Emerging Sciences (Lahore)
* National University of Science and Technology
* Nishtar Medical College (Multan)
* OPSTEC Overseas Pakistanis Science and Technology City
* Punjab College of Business Administration
* Punjab Institute of Computer Sciences
* Punjab Medical College
* Punjab University
* Punjab University College of Information Technology
* Quaid-e-Azam Medical College (Bahawalpur)
* Rawalpindi Medical College
* Shaukat Khanum Memorial Cancer Hospital and Research Center
* The Pak-American Institute of Management Sciences
* The University of Lahore
* University of Agriculture, Faisalabad
* University of Arid Agriculture, Rawalpindi
* University Of Central Punjab
* University of Engineering and Technology (Lahore)
* University of Engineering and Technology (Taxila)
* Virtual University of Pakistan
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Sindh

* Asia Pacific Institute Of Information Technology
* Asian Management Institute
* Aga Khan University
* Baqai Medical University
* Bahria University
* Cadet College Petaro
* College of Accounting and Management Sciences
* College of Business Management
* College of Physicians and Surgeons Pakistan
* Commecs Institute of Business Education
* Dawood College Of Engineering & Technology
* D.J. Sindh Government Science College
* Dow Medical College
* Hamdard University
* H. E. J. Research Institute Of Chemistry
* Indus Valley School of Art and Architecture
* Institute of Business Administration (Karachi)
* Institute of Chartered Accountants of Pakistan
* Institute of Cost and Management Accountants of Pakistan
* Institute of Industrial Electronics Engneering
* Institute of Islamic Studies and Research
* Isra University (Hyderabad)
* Jinnah University for Women, Karachi
* Karachi Institute of Information Technology
* Karachi Medical and Dental College
* Karachi University
* KASBIT
* Liaquat University of Medical & Health Sciences, Jamshoro
* Mehran University of Engineering and Technology (Jamshoro)
* Mohammad Ali Jinnah University
* National University of Computer & Emerging Sciences (Karachi)
* NED University of Engineering and Technology
* PAF-Karachi Institute of Economics & Technology
* Pakistan Institute of Management
* Pakistan Marine Academy
* Pakistan Naval Academy (Manorra)
* Pakistan Navy Engineering College (NUST)
* Pakistan Steel cadet College
* Petroman Training Institute
* Shah Abdul Latif University Khairpur
* Sind Agricultural University
* Sind Medical College
* Sind University
* Sir Syed University of Engineering and Technology
* S.M.Govt. Law College
* SZABIST
* Textile Institute of Pakistan (Karachi)
* Usman Institute of Technology
* Ziauddin Medical University
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Pages

2009-08-14T14:14:00.002+06:00

Education as a Necessity of Life
Colleges, Universities and Research Institutions in Pakistan

Education In Pakistan

Effects of Educational Technology

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2009-07-28T10:19:00.010+06:00

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Tips and Tricks to Remove Depression

2009-07-25T16:14:00.005+06:00

Top 10 Ways to Kick Depression

First trick:

Get out of your head and into your feet.
The body craves movement. Exercise really works. Let's not think of it as exercise though. Nothing is gnarlier to the depressed person than imagining him/herself at the gym in ill fitting sweats, panting on the stair master while svelte athletes are bopping around in all directions.
As Woody Allen says, 90% of success is showing up. Once we've got our walking shoes on, once we get endorphins cooking, the doldrums have less power to penetrate .

Second Trick:

Turn on music! Now!
I recommend that my clients have an arsenal of inspiring and fun music at their fingertips.
I have even been known to make CD's for my clients. When we're depressed, the smallest task feels overwhelming. . If I can kick-start someone's joy, then I am thrilled.

Third Trick:

Turn on the light and sit in the sun.
Many of us work in windowless cubicles or offices, and wonder why we feel blue.
This time of year, when the sun sets earlier, we must 's dark out in autumn and winter, get a light, get some sun, get some more sun. And if there is no sun in your world, then buy a full-spectrum light. Get one cheap on E-bay.

Fourth Trick:

Hang out with 4-leggeds. (Unless of course, you're allergic)
Having an animal companion near can instantly release oxytocin, that magical hormone that we secrete when we fall in love, give birth, or are nursing. It releases a feeling of goodwill, or trust in the world.
OK, so not all of all are blessed to be in love all the time, or be breast feeding, so I recommend my clients find other ways to bring on the joy chemical. Read on.

Fifth Trick:

Change your thoughts. Right now.
We have around 60,000.00 thoughts per day. 87% of them are negative and are the same thoughts we had yesterday.
Experiencing joy is a deliberate choice. Joy takes practice. Joy is hardcore.
I use realistic affirmations, which, at times are posted all over my room. Notice I said realistic.
We must remember that affirmations don't make something happen, they make something welcome.
People tell me, "I put an affirmation up on my bedroom wall, saying:" I am ready to meet a gorgeous, successful, charming man who will adore and worship me." It's been 3 months. Where is he?" I tell them; "You have made yourself more open to meeting this human. Finding him is another story. Sorry."

Sixth Trick:

Follow a joyous lifestyle. Choose joyous entertainment.
Find a class, a workout, anything that gets you in your body, preferably sweating a bit.

Seventh Trick:

Affirm joy with words.
Rudyard Kipling said "I am by calling a dealer in words.. And words are by far the most powerful drug in the world". It may seem trite, but changing the way we speak can be extremely influential in changing our moods.

Eighth Trick:

Grab hold of a goal.
Make it a do-able one. Happiness and joy come from goals. We mustn't put off our lives.

Ninth Trick:

Cultivate a relationship with the divine.
We are whom our higher self wanted to experience.
There is some truth to the pithy phrase: There's no aetheists in foxholes.
Have a smidgens of faith and the world can be a gentler space..

Tenth Trick:

Choose joyous companions.
When we are depressed, we take our bored, sluggish selves wherever we go. We need distractions. We need company. We need intimacy. It is very important to be around authentic people. We need someone who believes in us. No nay-sayers!

Useful Home Remedies

2009-07-22T15:10:00.001+06:00

ACNE, BLACKHEADS, AND PIMPLES:

Dab a small amount of toothpaste (paste, not gel) on pimples before bed; this helps dry out the pimples.
Mix equal amounts of lemon juice and rose water, apply to face with a cotton ball, and allow to sit for 30 minutes before rinsing. 15-20 days of this application helps cure pimples and also helps to remove blemishes and scars.
Apply fresh lemon juice on the affected area overnight. Wash off with warm water next morning.
For acne that hasn't seemed to respond to anything, steep 2-3 tsp. dried basil leaves in 1 cup boiling water for 10-20 minutes, cool, and apply to affected area with a cotton ball.

ANEMIA:

Avoid drinking tea (regular, not herbal varieties) and coffee immediately after meals, as the tannin present in these interferes in the absorption of iron from the food.
Drink a cup of herbal tea mixed with 1/4 cup blackstrap molasses each day. This provides 80% of the iron needed in one day.
Foods high in iron: lean beef, lean pork, skinned poultry, shellfish, fish, liver, organ meats, egg yolks, pinto, kidney, lima, navy, chick peas, black-eyed peas, lentils, split peas, green peas, spinach, kale, collards, beet greens, chard, broccoli, raisins, prunes, figs, dates, dried peaches, dried apricots, nuts, peanut butter, whole grain breads.
Your body absorbs iron from meats easier than fruits and vegetables. To aid in the absorption of iron from fruits and vegetables, eat them with a good source of vitamin C.

ARTHRITIS:

A daily serving of fresh fish or fish oil capsules helps to give relief of arthritis and other joint pains.
3-4 walnuts eaten daily, on an empty stomach, will help.

ASTHMA:

Mix 1 tsp. honey with 1/2 tsp. cinnamon and take it at night before going to bed.
Avoid taking aspirin, as this may invoke an asthma attack.

BAD BREATH:

Boil some cinnamon bark in a cup of water. Store it in a clean bottle in your bathroom. Use it as a mouthwash frequently.
Parsley leaves are rich in chlorophyll, nature's own deodorizer. Chew some leaves regularly and your breath will remain fresh.
You can chew some cardamom seeds to sweeten your breath.

BLADDER INFECTION: Take a bag of fresh or frozen cranberries and boil them in water (they will fall apart). Cool and drink. Don't add sugar! This remedy is also useful for people with kidney problems.

BLADDER STONES: Boil 2 figs in 1 cup of water. Drink daily for a month.

BRUISES: Slice a raw onion and place over the bruise. Do not apply this to broken skin.

COLD AND FLU: Here is a delicious recipe for a cold and flu soup: Sauté 6 crushed cloves of garlic in 1 tsp.. vegetable oil until golden. Pour in a quart of beef or chicken stock and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and whisk in 2 egg whites. Beat together 2 egg yolks and 2 Tbls. distilled white vinegar; pour this mixture into the soup.. Season with salt and pepper and top with croutons, if desired.

CONSTIPATION (IN ADULTS):

Eat a few black licorice sticks.
Take apple pectin.
Make sure you're getting enough Folic Acid in your diet.
Drinking ginger tea will help start a bowel movement..

CONSTIPATION (IN SMALL CHILDREN): Soak 6-8 raisins in hot water. When cool, crush well and strain. When given routinely even to little infants, it helps to regulate bowel movement.

COUGHS AND ASTHMA: Steep 3-4 cloves of garlic in a cool, dark place for 2 weeks. Use several drops at a time, several times a day for coughs or asthma. Garlic is an exceptional cleanser for the body and has antimicrobial action similar to other antibiotics.

DAMAGED, DRY HAIR: A nourishing conditioner for dry or damaged hair which can be used for all hair types: Separate the white of an egg from the yolk, whip it to a peak. Add 1 Tbls. water to the yolk and blend until the mixture is creamy. Then mix the white and yolk together. Wet your hair with warm water, remove the excess moisture, and apply the mixture to your scalp with your fingertips. Massage gently until the froth is worked into your scalp, then rinse the hair with cool water. Keep applying the mixture until it is used up and then rinsed until all of the egg is washed away.

DANDRUFF: Pour distilled white vinegar onto the hair, as close to the scalp as you can manage; massage into the scalp; and allow to dry for several minutes before washing as usual. Repeat daily until the dandruff disappears, usually within a few days.

DARK CIRCLES AROUND EYES: Make a paste out of 1 tsp. tomato juice, 1/2 tsp.. lemon juice, a pinch of turmeric powder, and 1 tsp. of flour. Apply around eyes. Leave on for 10 minutes before rinsing.

DEPRESSION: 3/4 cup of cooked spinach a day is enough to give dramatic relief from depression if you are deficient in B vitamins.

DIARRHEA: Eat boiled sweet potatoes seasoned with salt and pepper before bedtime to cure chronic diarrhea.

DRY SKIN: Combine 1 cup oatmeal, 1 cup warm water, 1 Tbls. vanilla extract, and 1/2 cup baking soda in a blender or food processor until you have a smooth paste. Pour this paste under the running water while drawing the bath.. Very soothing to dry, itchy skin..

EARACHE: Steep 1-2 tsp. chamomile flowers in boiling water for 10-15 minutes. Strain out the water, and apply the hot flowers in a cloth for alleviation of the earache.

ECZEMA: Rub a whole nutmeg against a smooth stone slab with a little water and make a paste. Apply on affected parts. (Note: It is believed by some rural, old fashioned practitioners that instead of water, one's own early morning saliva can be used for better results.)

ENERGIZER: Simmer 1 cup honey and 3 cup water together slowly. Allow 1 cup of the water to evaporate. Strain off the top surface, and put the remaining liquid into a stoneware crock or dark bottle. Put a towel over it so it can breathe, yet be free of dirt. Place in a cool place. You can add cinnamon, clove, or the juice of 2 lemons, if you like.

EYE PROBLEMS: Simmer 1 cup water and 1 tsp. honey for 5 minutes. Dip a cloth in the liquid and apply to the closed eye.

FACIAL CLEANSER: Mix 2 Tbls. cornstarch, 2 Tbls. glycerin, and 1/2 cup water until smooth. Heat in a small pan placed in a water bath inside another pan. Heat until thick and clear; it will have the consistency of pudding. Do not boil. Cool completely, Use in place of soap to cleanse your skin. (If mixture is too thick, you may thin it by adding a little water, 1 Tbls. at a time, until you reach the desired consistency. )

FATIGUE: Take a glass of grapefruit and lemon juice in equal parts to dispel fatigue and general tiredness after a day's work.

GUM IN HAIR: Soak the gum-coated hair in Coke® and it should wipe out easily.

HAIR LIGHTENER: To lighten hair, use 1/4 cup chopped fresh rhubarb to 2 cups boiling water. Cool, strain, and apply as a rinse.

HANG-OVER: Eat honey on crackers. The fructose in the honey will help to flush out the alcohol in your system..

HAY FEVER: Steep 1 tsp. fenugreek seed in 1 cup water, covered, for 10 minutes. Drink 1 cup a day to help hay fever symptoms.

HEADACHE: Eat 10-12 almonds, the equivalent of two aspirins, for a migraine headache. Almonds are far less likely to upset the stomach.

HICCUPS: Only 2 remedies have I ever know to actually work. The first listed makes the most sense, since a hiccough is simply a spasm of the diaphragm, and you need to disrupt this spasm. The second offers no rhyme or reason, but works nonetheless.

Breath in as deeply as you can, then exhale as hard as you can; repeat 10 times; when exhaling the last time, keep the air pushed out, not taking another breath for as long as you can stand. This normally works the first try, but repeat if necessary. Be sure to sit down when doing this.
This is a remedy only feasible when sitting at a bar.. Have the bartender fill a small glass with club soda. Light a match and drop it, then drink the water quickly (being careful not to drink the match).. It works, but I don't know why!
Drink 1/2 glass water, slowly.
Keep a tsp. of sugar in your month and suck slowly.
Suck 2-3 small pieces of fresh ginger.
Take a large mouthful of water with out swallowing, plug both ears, and slowly begin to swallow the water. Unplug your ears and you're hiccup free! (Submitted by Mrs T. Falkmann)
Eat a heaping teaspoon of peanut butter all at once. (Submitted by Tracy Pletcher)

HICKEY:

Coat area liberally with lotion. Rub with the back of a cold spoon vigorously for as long as you can stand to, changing out spoon for new cold one every 10 minutes. Recommended time for this treatment is 45-60 minutes. Why it works: a hickey is a bruise; the discoloration of a bruise is caused by blood accumulating under the skin from broken capillaries; this remedy breaks up the old blood so it can be reabsorbed by the body more quickly, therefore diminished the discoloration.
Rub white toothpaste over the hickey, allow to dry, and later, wipe it off with a warm facecloth. After a few applications, the hickey will be faded. Do not use gel toothpaste. (Submitted by Hot Rod Anne.)

INSECT BITES: Mix water with cornstarch into a paste and apply. This is effective in drawing out the poisons of most insect bites and is also an effective remedy for diaper rash.

MORNING SICKNESS: Mix 1 tsp. each fresh juice of mint and lime, and 1 Tbls. honey. Take 3 times a day.

MOSQUITO BITES: Apply lime juice diluted with water on bites with cotton ball.

MUCUS IN COUGH: Pour 1 cup boiling water over 1/2 tsp. each of ginger, ground cloves, and cinnamon. Filter.. Sweeten with 1 tsp. honey and drink.

MUSCLE CRAMPS: Apply clove oil on the affected body parts.

NAUSEA: Boil 1/2 cup of rice in 1 cup of water for about 10-20 minutes. After it is boiled, drain the water into a cup and sip at the rice water until symptoms are gone.

OBESITY:

Mix lime juice with honey and water; drink a glass of this every morning.
Mix 3 tsp. lime juice, 1/4 tsp. black pepper, 1 tsp. honey, and 1 cup water; drink a glass a day for 3 months.
Mix 1 tsp. lime juice with 1 cup water and drink each morning.
Eat a tomato before breakfast.

OILY SKIN: For oily skin, mix 1/2 cup cooked oatmeal, 1 egg white, 1 Tbls. lemon juice, and 1/2 cup mashed apple into a smooth paste. Apply to face and leave on 15 minutes. Rinse.

OVERWEIGHT: Effective at getting rid of fat, drink up to 3 cups of green tea daily. Regular tea can also be used with a lesser effect.

PAIN RELIEVER: Mix 3 Tbls. of honey in boiled water and drink. Honey has natural pain-relieving powers.

SMELLY FEET: Soak feet in strong tea for 20 minutes every day until the smell disappears. To prepare your footbath, brew two tea bags in 2 1/2 cups of water for 15 minutes and pour the tea into a basin containing two liters of cool water.

SMOKING HABIT: Lick a little salt with the tip of your tongue whenever you feel the urge to smoke. This is said to break the habit within 1 month.

SORE THROAT: Mix 1 tsp. lime juice and 1 Tbls. honey. Swallow tiny amounts slowly 2-3 times a day.

SPLINTERS:

Lay scotch tape over the splinter and pull off.
Soak the area in vegetable oil for a few minutes before removing with tweezers.

STOMACH ACHE: A simple cure for a stomachache is to dissolve 1 1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon in 1 cup warm water, cover and let sit for 15 minutes, then drink it like tea. This remedy can also ease diarrhea and flatulence.

STOMACH ACIDITY:

Drink coconut water 3-4 times a day.
Have a plateful of watermelon and/or cucumber every hour.

SUNBURN: Mix 2 tsp. tomato juice and 1/4 cup buttermilk. Apply to affected area. Rinse after 1/2 hour.

TOOTHACHE & MOUTH PAIN: To ease toothache or other mouth pain, make a tea by boiling 1 Tbls. fresh peppermint in 1 cup water and adding a little salt. Peppermint is an antiseptic and contains menthol, which relieves pain when applied to skin surfaces.

VARICOSE VEINS: Take 2-3 tsp. black strap molasses orally daily. This also treats all kinds of circulatory ailments.

VOMITING AND NAUSEA:

Sucking a piece of ice controls vomiting.
Eat 1/2 tsp. ground cumin seeds.
Cinnamon and sliced ginger work by interrupting nausea signals sent from the stomach to the brain. If you are an herbal tea drinker, simply sprinkle cinnamon on the tea and drink. To make ginger tea, simmer a few slices of ginger in hot tea water.

WARTS: Try taping a slice of garlic to the wart. Be sure to first protect the surrounding skin with petroleum jelly.

WEAK NAILS: To strengthen and shine nails, combine 2 tsp. salt, 2 tsp. castor oil, and 1 tsp. wheat germ oil and mix thoroughly. Pour into bottle. Shake before using. To use, rub a small amount into your nails. Leave on 3-5 minutes and tissue off. Follow up with more plain castor oil, if desired.

WRINKLES & SKIN FRESHENER:

Combine 2 Tbls. vodka, 1 Tbls. fennel seeds, and 1 1/2 tsp. honey. Stir well and allow to sit for 3 days. Strain mixture. Use full strength or add 2 Tbls. water to dilute. Use a cotton ball to apply to face as a toner.
Apply coconut oil on the portions of skin and face where wrinkles set in and gently massage every night at bed time.

YELLOW TEETH: Mix salt with finely powdered rind of lime. Use this as toothpowder frequently.

Loans For Homeowners: Is Equity Required?

2009-07-21T19:23:00.000+06:00

Loans for homeowners are increasingly popular due to the advantages that they feature over loans for tenants or non homeowners. And even though it is not required to use the property as collateral for the loan, we receive more and more consults regarding whether it is necessary to have equity left on the property or properties in order to get approved for these loans.

This is a complex issue because though it is true that the property is not necessarily used as collateral for the loans, it is still a surety for the lender. Then it is not crazy to analyze whether equity is part or not of that guarantee. The answer would be yes but it is important to point out that it is not the only factor involved and thus, we should be able to measure how important it is in the overall qualification process.

How Equity Boosts Approval

The fact that there is equity available on a property provides tranquility to a lender even if the property is not used as collateral because the lender knows that in the event of default, even though the mortgage lender has privileges over the property, he can still collect from the remaining amount produced by the sell of the property if the balance on the secured loan does not exceed the value of the property.

In this sense, equity is important because it reduces the risk involved in the transaction consequently reducing the cost of it. Thus, someone with equity left on his property will most certainly be able to obtain the benefits that homeowners usually get when applying for loans whether they are secured or unsecured.

So, Is It Strictly Required?

Not really, being a homeowner does not necessarily imply that you have equity left on your property since you may have just acquired it or you may have obtained an equity loan for other purpose. However, the fact that you own a property implies that you have certain responsibilities that you cope with and that you are more reliable than those who do not own a property (at least at a first glance).

Therefore, a homeowner can get a loan with advantageous terms without having equity left on the property at all. Of course the most common scenario would be applying for an unsecured personal loan and getting better terms due to being a homeowner. Yet, there are home equity loans that offer up to 125% of the property’s value which implies that even without enough equity; you can still obtain a home equity loan especially if the loan will be used for making home improvements.

Other Requirements Are Still Mandatory

Of course, this does not imply that by being a homeowner you will not be required to meet the usual conditions for approval. Actually, you will still be required to show proof of income and meet the credit requirements to qualify. Yet, if you are a homeowner, the requirements for approval will be less harsh as the lender is running a lower risk by lending to you than by lending to a tenant.

Market matrix

2009-07-21T19:22:00.000+06:00

The Ansoff Growth matrix is a tool that helps businesses decide their product and market growth strategy.

Ansoff’s product/market growth matrix suggests that a business’ attempts to grow depend on whether it markets new or existing products in new or existing markets.

The output from the Ansoff product/market matrix is a series of suggested growth strategies that set the direction for the business strategy. These are described below:

Market penetration

Market penetration is the name given to a growth strategy where the business focuses on selling existing products into existing markets.

Market penetration seeks to achieve four main objectives:

• Maintain or increase the market share of current products – this can be achieved by a combination of competitive pricing strategies, advertising, sales promotion and perhaps more resources dedicated to personal selling

• Secure dominance of growth markets

• Restructure a mature market by driving out competitors; this would require a much more aggressive promotional campaign, supported by a pricing strategy designed to make the market unattractive for competitors

• Increase usage by existing customers – for example by introducing loyalty schemes
A market penetration marketing strategy is very much about “business as usual”. The business is focusing on markets and products it knows well. It is likely to have good information on competitors and on customer needs. It is unlikely, therefore, that this strategy will require much investment in new market research.

Market development

Market development is the name given to a growth strategy where the business seeks to sell its existing products into new markets.

There are many possible ways of approaching this strategy, including:

• New geographical markets; for example exporting the product to a new country

• New product dimensions or packaging: for example

• New distribution channels

• Different pricing policies to attract different customers or create new market segments

Product development

Product development is the name given to a growth strategy where a business aims to introduce new products into existing markets. This strategy may require the development of new competencies and requires the business to develop modified products which can appeal to existing markets.

Diversification

Diversification is the name given to the growth strategy where a business markets new products in new markets.

This is an inherently more risk strategy because the business is moving into markets in which it has little or no experience.

For a business to adopt a diversification strategy, therefore, it must have a clear idea about what it expects to gain from the strategy and an honest assessment of the risks.

Sports Pages

2009-07-16T12:10:00.000+06:00

Travel Pages

2009-07-15T12:26:00.004+06:00

Badshahi Mosque, Lahore

Mohenjo-daro

Opera Mobile V9.7 beta for Windows Mobile

2009-07-10T11:50:00.002+06:00

If there's a single application that can massively improve the life of any Window Mobile user, it's the Opera web browser. Microsoft's Internet Explorer Mobile may have been impressive when it first appeared, but it has gradually fallen further and further behind the competition to the extent that using it now is the digital equivalent of Chinese water torture. Thankfully Opera quickly realised there was a gap in the market and launched it's browser on the Windows Mobile platform in 2003. Since then it's been the browser of choice for the discerning Windows Mobile user.

However, with a big update for IE Mobile on its way and competitors like Iris and Skyfirz snapping at its heels Opera needs to keep innovating if it's to stay ahead of the pack. The arrival of the version 9.7 beta at least shows that the company isn't standing still, but is it worth upgrading to this latest beta if the 9.5 Beta is running fine on your phone? Unfortunately for most people the answer will be 'no', but this doesn't mean that the 9.7 beta doesn't introduce some interesting new features.

The main reason for this release is to show off the new turbo mode. Turbo is Opera's system for speeding up the browsing experience when you're stuck with a slow connection. It uses a combination of compression and proxy servers to reduce the amount of data that needs to be sent to your phone for it to display web pages. The idea behind the system is not exactly new. In fact, Opera has used it before on its Opera Mini browser that's aimed at less advanced handsets. It's also similar to the technology used in the Skyfire browser.

Windows 7 Multiple Licence 'Family Packs' Leak

2009-07-10T10:31:00.002+06:00

If there is one downer on the generally excellent Windows 7 pricing and promotions it is Microsoft's frustrating insistence on only selling the public single licences. Until now...

Digging on the Interweb has found a clause in the Microsoft 'Software Licence Terms' which references a "Family Pack" edition of Windows 7 Home Premium that covers up to three computers. The section reads:

2. INSTALLATION AND USE RIGHTS.
a. One Copy per Computer. Except as allowed in Section 2 (b) below, you may install one copy of the software on one computer. That computer is the "licensed computer."
b. Family Pack. If you are a "Qualified Family Pack User", you may install one copy of the software marked as "Family Pack" on three computers in your household for use by people who reside there. Those computers are the "licensed computers" and are subject to these license terms. If you do not know whether you are a Qualified Family Pack User, visit go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?Linkid=141399 or contact the Microsoft affiliate serving your country.

The clause is missing from both Windows 7 Professional and Ultimate editions which suggests this is squarely aimed at the mass market. Naturally no reference to pricing is made or whether Europe will be exempt following the Windows 7 E fiasco but it certainly looks like a breakthrough for common sense...

2009-07-09T12:17:00.001+06:00

Market matrix
Loans For Homeowners

Pages

2009-07-05T16:18:00.000+06:00

Rules of Coupon Shopping

2009-07-02T09:55:00.001+06:00

Maximizing your savings by shopping with coupons can be a fantastic way to save money. It can also be a little overwhelming at first to understand the rules of each different store, the different places you can find coupons, and the different ways to organize your trips.

There are a couple of hard and fast rules that I suggest every new coupon shopper learn and follow.

First, when you start out using coupons there is a tendency to use coupons to buy things you won't use or don't need. I suggest avoiding this impulse as much as possible unless you are getting the item for free and you can donate it to an organization or individual in need. Women's shelters, food banks, and homeless shelters are always in need of items.

For maximum savings, combine a coupon with a store sale or clearance. This is how most coupon shopping pros are able to save so much money on their grocery bill every month. Using your coupons on a sale or clearance item is coupon shopping gold!

In some stores you can use a store coupon and a manufacturer's coupon on the same item. This is another technique the coupon shopping pros use to really maximize their savings. This is up to each store manager. Most people don't know that this is allowable - and it's the only time you can use two coupons on one item. You cannot use two manufacturer's coupons to purchase one item.

While some stores have hard and fast rules about coupon acceptance, many of them provide general guidelines to their stores and leave the specific decisions up to the store management. This can sometimes make coupon shopping a bit frustrating, but there are ways to handle it. Get to know the store manager. Ask them what they will and won't allow as far as coupons go. If you ask them specific questions and are friendly in the stores, they will be much easier to work with. If you have a problem with a cashier while you are checking out and have previously discussed it with the store manager, you will be in a better position to calmly explain your understanding of the store's coupon policy to the cashier.

There are lots of tips, hints, and techniques for shopping with coupons effectively and saving yourself a great deal of money on the things you use every day.

MEGA FORMULA ABOUT APPEARANCES

2009-07-02T09:42:00.002+06:00

We've definitely changed our grocery shopping habits in our household. We used to drive down to the neighborhood grocery store several times a week, plus go to Sams every week or two, but we've been trying to limit grocery shopping trips and really strategize.

As it stands, we alternate which stores we go to so that we get fresh produce coming every week to two weeks, but can also stock up on other items where they're cheapest (and even alternate the fresh produce a bit). When our garden has more edible things in it, I hope we can cut back further, but I try to eat a lot of fresh produce despite the cost (though I have nothing against supplementing with wild food when I can get it).

So for example, we still go to Sams Club every few weeks. There we get berries, spinach, tomatoes, bananas, onions, etc. When needed, we also stock up there on paper products and nuts.

In between Sams Club trips, we also go to a local grocery store that has a lot of more exotic choices, as well as great deals on dry food in bins like couscous and sushi rice. The produce there is also cheap. Sams has cheaper per unit on what produce they carry, but this store has more selection and I can just buy one piece at a time. They also have real treats like honey wine and Dagoba chocolate, so I really look forward to the trip as it's my time to splurge a little. They even have veggie plants for sale, so I take some back with me to my garden. My husband loves the meat there, which is also priced great for the quality (which is best in town as far as we've seen).

Then, if there's anything else we need, we may stop on the way home at our neighborhood grocery store. It's a good store, the prices are actually quite good and the overall selection is great, however the prices for the things that I actually eat in quantity just aren't as good as at the other stores and they don't carry some of the things that I really like such as Dagoba chocolate and non-grape wines. However, it's close by enough that we can go there if we did forget something -- though I make a point not to make a trip there in the car if that's the only place I need to go. I either combine trips or walk. It's not far to walk, but most of the time my husband has to go out for something work-related anyhow so we just wait for him to go out.

Nokia N97

2009-07-01T14:13:00.001+06:00

Specs & Features

Whats New? Nokia N97 - A True Mobile Computer
Desktop to the laptop & now to your pocket, the Nokia N97 is the most powerful, multi-sensory mobile computer in existence. Nokia N97 mobile phone features touch screen, full QWERTY keyboard, GPS, 32 GB memory, games, video, camera, widgets, Ovi Store including much more. With Nokia N97, Personalise your homescreen, add more content & fully customise your layout with your favourite live feeds, mini views & services. Nokia N95 is the Monster Machine.

Dimension : 117.2 x 55.3 x 15.9 mm, 88 cc

Weight: 150 g

Battery : Talk time Up to 9 h 30 min, Stand-by Up to 432 h

OS: Symbian OS v9.4, Series 60 rel. 5

Memory: 32 GB Built-in + microSD Card (supports up to 16GB)

Processor: ARM 11 434 MHz

Connectivity: Bluetooth v2.0 with A2DP, USB, GPRS Class 32, HSCSD, EDGE Class 32, WLAN (Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g UPnP technology), 3G (HSDPA 3.6 Mbps)

Display Size: 360 x 640 pixels, 3.5 inches (Proximity sensor for auto turn-off, Accelerometer sensor for auto-rotate)

Display Colour: TFT resistive touchscreen, 16M colors

Operating
Frequency / Band: GSM 850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900 (HSDPA 900 / 1900 / 2100)

Browser : WAP 2.0/xHTML, HTML, RSS feeds

Colors: White, Black

Entertainment : Stereo FM radio with RDS (built-in Transmitter), Visual radio, MP3/WMA/WAV/eAAC+/MP4/M4V player, 3.5 mm audio jack, Stereo Speakers, MPEG4/WMV/3gp/Flash video player, TV-out, Video and photo editor, Games

Camera : 5MP, 2592x1944 pixels, Carl Zeiss optics, autofocus, LED flash, Video (VGA 30fps), video light, (2ndary camera)

Other Features: GPS + A-GPS support, Digital compass, Full QWERTY keyboard, Handwriting recognition, Pocket Office (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, PDF viewer), Flash Lite 3,

Ring Tones : Downloadable, MP3

Messaging : SMS, MMS, Email, Push Email, IM

MEDA MP3 Splitter

2009-07-01T10:46:00.000+06:00

MP3 Cutter with a Big Waveform Display

The next program that caught our attention was MEDA MP3 Splitter.

Installing goes smoothly. We can’t avoid creating a start group, which is a bit upsetting, but otherwise the setup is OK. It also suggests to run the program when finished.

MEDA MP3 Splitter welcomes us with a registration reminder window. However, no restrictions of the trial version are listed here (and they do exist), which is again a bit upsetting. We click "Continue" to get the trial version started.

The first thing that we see is a large black area and a plenty of scissors on the toolbar. Well, no file is loaded, we could have guessed it. The "Open" icon on the toolbar is clearly recognizable, so we click it.

The program offers a usual "Open" dialog, exactly as the previous one. Here we learn that the program supports MP3 and APE files.

We open our MP3 album. It takes quite a while, but then we get the following:

Very nice. The waveform is big and looks pretty. Even better, there is a smaller waveform above the main one, it shows the whole file. We also notice that there are red vertical lines that coincide with start/end time of songs in the album. It seems like the program has automatically set split points.

Well, then let’s do the splitting. We suppose that the button with multiple diskettes next to the "Open" button will do the trick.

MEDA MP3 Splitter offers to enter a key. As we press "Cancel", it informs us that only 3 parts can be saved in the trial version. Then a wizard starts:

Hmm, we didn’t expect that splitting the file will require five steps. Is there any way to avoid clicking "Next" five times?

Alas, no. We click the button over and over again and finally get to the screen where the program offers to unselect parts that we don’t want to save. We notice that there are some parts in the list that are only 1 or 2 seconds long. Obviously, they are pauses between songs, so we don’t really need them. We unselect them and click "Next" once again.

The program saves files (pretty quick, it seems that, like the previous program, MEDA MP3 Splitter doesn’t re-encode files). Then it offers to open the output folder, what we agree to do.

Oops. Instead of 3 parts (the trial’s limit) it has extracted only two. Obviously, the pause between the first and the second song that we unselected also counted.

We explore menus to see if there are other features and find import from a cue file. We clear the automatically set cut points and use our CUE file. OK, it works, but the program completely ignores ID3 information from the CUE file.

Remembering the problem with showing the complete file on the waveform from Visual MP3 Splitter & Joiner, we try to zoom out… but don’t find the feature. MEDA MP3 Splitter allows scrolling, but not zooming in and out. Very unfortunate, as the big display would allow more precise editing even with larger parts of the file.

At last, we press F1.

MEDA MP3 Splitter reports: "Failed to launch help". Hmm, we didn’t expect this. No help at all? Wait, there is a button with the question mark on the toolbar. What about it?

Aha, the button works.

The help is scarce and somehow uninformative (for example, in the introduction we read: "MEDA MP3 Splitter is a powerful tool."). We did find more by exploring menus than by browsing the help.

So, let’s summarize:

Interface: big nice looking waveform display, pretty intuitive to open and save files. However: auto-parsing makes the program slower when opening a file. If we want to set cut points manually or load them from a CUE file, we should delete automatically set cut points. No way to load CUE file without loading MP3 file first (and so letting the program set cut points automatically). Very annoying wizard on saving parts. Not every feature is obvious, some of the features are discovered in menus. Error when trying to launch help by pressing F1. No text labels on the toolbar. 7
Features: splitter and joiner in one program, silence detection, CUE sheet support (but MEDA MP3 Splitter can’t create CUE files). MP3 and APE support. Big waveform, but no zooming. ID3 can be set in the saving wizard, but no information is taken from the source file, or from the CUE file, all tags should be entered manually. Can split MP3 to the given number of parts, but no equal duration and file size. Cannot extract intersecting parts. Can convert MP3 to WAV. No re-encoding when splitting files (good). Built-in player. 8
Documentation: poor. 3
Compatibility: ran on Windows 2000, Windows XP, Windows Vista 32 bit, Windows Vista 64 bit. No issues. 10

Power MP3 Cutter Joiner

2009-07-01T10:32:00.000+06:00

Simple MP3 Splitter

Power MP3 Cutter Joiner is yet another MP3 splitter that we intend to test. The name suggests that the program has powerful features. Well, let’s try it.

The setup is OK. It doesn’t ask if we want to create a Start menu entry and desktop icon (it creates them silently), but neither we expect that much. At least it doesn’t create quick start entries automatically.

When starting, the program informs us that the trial version allows converting only 19 files. Well, converting means that Power MP3 Cutter Joiner re-encodes our files when splitting. This leads to quality losses and is slower than direct MP3 splitting.

We choose to continue with the trial, and the program opens its main window:

We see an empty list. Obviously, we should click "+" on the toolbar to add files for splitting.

The "Open" dialog is pretty conventional. We notice that the program supports WAV, MP3, WMA, and OGG files. We open our MP3 album.

Our file is added to the list.

We notice the "Start time", "End time", and "Current time" bars on the right. By changing start/end time we can select a part of our file, but how to add it to the split list?

Inspecting the help confirms our suspicion: the program can extract only one part of MP3 file a time. So, we select a random part and extract it just for testing. Searching and extracting songs would take too much time.

Summary:

Interface: clean and simple, the features are obvious. 10
Features: splitter and joiner, built-in player, supports WMA, WAV, MP3, OGG. No CUE sheet support, no waveform, no splitting by silence, equal parts/size. Re-encoding. Cannot extract multiple parts, only one part a time. 3
Documentation: poor, only basic instructions. 4
Compatibility: ran on Windows 2000, Windows XP, Windows Vista 32 bit, Windows Vista 64 bit. No issues. 10

Shpping Techniques

2009-07-01T09:38:00.002+06:00

MEGA FORMULA ABOUT APPEARANCES

Rules of Coupon Shopping

2010 BMW 750i / 750Li xDrive

2009-06-30T10:25:00.000+06:00

Among folks fortunate enough to live outside of the Snow Belt, all-wheel drive is usually only brought up in conjunction with pickup trucks and Jeep Wranglers. For those of us that have to deal with snow and freezing conditions for months every year, though, an all-wheel-drive car can be the difference between getting to work and getting stuck at the end of your driveway. Indeed, here in Michigan, just about every luxury ride on the road wears an “x” or “4Matic” or “Quattro” badge on its rump, signifying four-wheel power, with the BMW 7-series being one of the only cars in its competitive set not to offer all-wheel drive. Until now.

Fitting all-wheel drive to a big, rear-drive car, however, can run the risk of upsetting driving dynamics. Take the current BMW 535i xDrive. With its power distribution tightly set at 40 percent front and 60 percent rear, it understeers like a baseball player barreling headfirst into home plate. Now imagine if the 7-series, which in short-wheelbase form has over seven inches more between the axles and at least 600 pounds on the 535i xDrive, was fitted with the same system. Dynamic disaster. So the engineers at BMW took that previous version of xDrive—currently used in the 3-series as well as the 5-series—and reengineered it in such a way that the all-wheel-drive 7er handles just as well, if not better, than its rear-drive sibling.

Big and Agile

Throw even the extended-wheelbase 750Li xDrive into a corner and you’d think you were driving something the size of a 335i, with nicely weighted steering that gets a bit heavier as you go through a corner and the front wheels pull you through. Gone is the fun-killing understeer that was exhibited in the 535i xDrive, replaced by more neutral behavior.

Among the systems that help the xDrive 7 dance is Performance Control, a torque-vectoring system already featured on the two-wheel-drive 7 that applies light braking to the inside rear wheel while simultaneously adding power to the outside rear wheel, correcting for understeer without the driver even knowing. Additionally, the 7-series is fitted with active front and rear anti-roll bars that adjust to keep the pitch of the big sedan going in its intended direction. Remember the 535i xDrive’s fixed power split and the resulting push? Perhaps the most important characteristic of the new 7-series version of xDrive is that can variably adjust from the normal 40/60 front/rear torque split to, say, 20/80 when cornering or 0/100 when parking (to avoid binding). Up to 100 percent of available power can be sent fore or aft should one set of wheels completely lose traction, too. The front-to-rear power ratios are not fixed, which allows the car’s computer to adjust back to the normal 40/60 torque split as it deems necessary. The result is, as we said, one seriously fine-handling luxo-barge, although it must be noted that only eight-cylinder 7-series customers will be able to opt for xDrive. It will not be offered on the forthcoming 12-cylinder 760i and 760Li.

The xDrive system adds just 187 pounds over a standard 750i, with the car’s overall heft redistributed in such a way that only one additional percent of the car’s weight sits over the front axle, which assists the car in its handling prowess. The xDrive 7 will command a $2300 premium when it goes on sale this October—which is just in time to help us Snow Belters escape our snowy driveways.

Specifications

VEHICLE TYPE: front-engine, all-wheel-drive, 4–5-passenger, 4-door sedan

ESTIMATED BASE PRICE: $85,000–$89,000

ENGINE TYPE: twin-turbocharged and intercooled DOHC 32-valve V-8, aluminum block and heads, direct fuel injection

Displacement: 268 cu in, 4395cc
Power (SAE net): 400 bhp @ 5500 rpm
Torque (SAE net): 450 lb-ft @ 1800 rpm

TRANSMISSION: 6-speed automatic with manumatic shifting

DIMENSIONS:
Wheelbase: 120.9–126.4 in Length:199.7–205.3 in Width: 74.9 in Height:58.3 in
Curb weight (C/D est): 4900–5000 lb

PERFORMANCE (C/D EST):
Zero to 60 mph: 5.3–5.4 sec
Standing ¼-mile: 13.8–13.9 sec
Top speed (governor limited): 155 ft

FUEL ECONOMY (C/D EST):
EPA city/highway driving: 13–14/21–22 mpg

2009 Audi A3 2.0T Quattro

2009-06-30T10:17:00.003+06:00

DRIVING DOWN THE ROAD
WITH CAREY RUSS

2009 Audi A3 2.0T Quattro Review

"Compact luxury" is an accepted concept in Europe, but a small niche in the USA, land of super-size. Where "luxury car" has traditionally been synonymous with "land yacht". And if the sedans have gotten smaller since the 1950s, they have been replaced with SUVs even larger.

Still, not everyone who wants premium transportation craves something huge. If sports performance is a requirement, mass is the enemy. And, while there is no shortage of small cars high on performance and low in cost, those little pocket rockets are usually lacking in long-distance comfort, and in cachet.

Enter the Audi A3.

Audi created the premium compact sports category in Europe when it introduced the first-generation A3 there in 1996. A second generation debuted there in 2003, and here in 2005. 2009 sees the first changes since that time. Outside, a subtle styling freshening aligns the A3 with newer high-performance Audis like the S5 and R8, while interior revisions add to its premium nature. Under the hood, things are the same for now, with a choice of a 200-horsepower 2.0-liter direct-injected four-cylinder turbo engine or a 250-hp 3.2-liter V6. But the core-model 2.0T is now offered in all-wheel drive quattro form -- and a turbo-diesel model is coming for model year 2010.

As always, the A3 as sold in the U.S. is a versatile five-door hatchback. Or is it a micro-wagon? Does that matter? I think not. It's a space-efficient car that is small on the outside, and much larger than you might believe on the inside -- it has as much interior space as earlier A4 Avant wagons. The A3 offers all of the usefulness and versatility of a small crossover, with road manners that no crossover can approach. And with quattro now available in the 2.0T, it also offers the all-season competence of a crossover -- although quattro is far more than a system to deal with inclement climate and road conditions. It gives superior traction in all conditions, wet or dry, paved or not.

It has been a few years since I've driven an A3, and it has gained competitors in that time. But after a recent week with a well-equipped 2.0T quattro, I'd still place it at the head of the class. There are larger, smaller, quicker, and better-known competitors, but none combine style and substance, space, performance, and efficiency in the manner of the A3. quattro (the "q" is lower case) all-wheel drive is an added bonus - not only can it help get you to the ski slopes in winter, it's really meant to add traction and therefore performance all of the time. The quattro is quicker in acceleration than its front-wheel drive counterpart, despite a little extra weight. And in corners... let's just say that whenever Audi has competed with quattro in any racing series, its cars have ended up outlawed for the quattro advantage.

Can a prestige-performance luxury car be small? If it's an Audi A3, small is beautiful.

APPEARANCE: Tasteful subtlety is an Audi hallmark, and as applied to the 2009 A3 keeps what might otherwise be an old design fresh. Still a space-efficient five-door hatchback (er, "sportback" in Audi lingo) with long, lean proportions, a seemingly minor restyling has resulted in better definition of its lines, particularly at the front. The grille and front bumper are better-integrated, and , if the optional bi-Xenon lights are specified, LED daytime running lights in the manner of those of larger and more expensive performance Audis add an unmistakeable look. At the rear, fiber-optic rods in the taillights mimic the effect of the front LEDs.

COMFORT: Interior styling and appointment levels in the A3 are unmistakably Audi. TT influence can be seen in the air vents on the dash and the bars at the juncture of the console and center stack, and the instruments and controls have had a minor redesign. Useful space abounds, and the five-door body style and 60/40 split folding rear seat allow excellent access and versatile use of that space. No sedan trunk opening can compare to the rear hatch in size, especially when loading bulky items. Materials used as as high in quality as in other Audis. Leather seating is now standard, and a folding front armrest/console box adds convenient storage. The steering wheel is manually-adjustable for both tilt and reach. With the some option packages, the standard four-spoke design is changed to a three-spoke, with convenient auxiliary audio controls using rolling switches on the horizontal spokes. The front seats provide very good comfort and support, and the rear has adequate space for two real adults. An option in my test car that could interest sky-lovers is the ``Open Sky System'' double sunroof, which allows both front and rear passengers a view of the sky.

SAFETY: Dual-stage front, front seat-mounted side, and side curtain airbags are all standard in the A3. So are four-wheel antilock disc brakes with electronic brake force distribution, the ESP stability control program, and a tire pressure monitoring system.

RIDE AND HANDLING: Despite any functional resemblance to a small crossover, the A3 is a sports car at heart. Add the Sports Package, as in my test car, with "plus one" 18-inch alloy wheels with 225/40 high-speed Y-rated tires, firmer springs and "audi magnetic ride" shocks with electronically-variable (via magneto-rheological viscosity changes) dampers and it's a wonderful high-tech sports car. The fully-independent MacPherson strut/multi-link suspension works well, and quattro all-wheel drive gets the power to the ground better than front- or rear-wheel drive only, for sure grip and excellent drive.

PERFORMANCE: The A3's turbocharged and intercooled twincam 16-valve four-cylinder FSI direct fuel injection engine has been unchanged since the car's debut. No problem there, it's a gem, with both excellent power and fuel economy. Direct fuel injection allows a higher compression ratio without detonation. The 10.03:1 compression ratio is as high as that of many naturally-aspirated engines -- and maximum boost is 1.8 bar, 26 psi, fairly high for a street engine. This explains the torque curve -- with 207 lb-ft available from 1800 through 5000 rpm it's hardly a curve... and horsepower characteristics are similar, with 200 between 5100 and 6000. What this means is that engine revs are of little concern -- power is available right now in any gear, often a gear or two higher than you might think. That's if you use the shift paddles for manual shifting. The S-Tronic gearbox -- which is the only choice in the quattro, used to be called DSG, and is similar to the gearboxes in Audi's championship-winning endurance racers and Formula 1 cars -- is quite capable of shifting itself, and can do so as quickly and smoothly as the best conventional torque-converter automatic. quattro full-time all-wheel drive gets the power to the ground, helping acceleration, braking, and cornering. Fuel economy and performance are often at odds, but not here. The EPA listing is 21 mpg city, 28 highway, and my week with the car showed that to be not only accurate, but slightly pessimistic.

CONCLUSIONS: With the Audi A3 2.0T quattro, small is beautiful.

SPECIFICATIONS
2009 Audi A3 2.0T Quattro

Base Price                                             $ 30,500

Price As Tested                                      $ 41,700

Engine Type                                           dual overhead cam 16-valve turbocharged

                                                             and intercooled  inline 4-cylinder with

                                direct fuel injection

Engine Size                                            2.0 liters / 121 cu. in.

Horsepower                                            200 @ 5100-6000 rpm

Torque (lb-ft)                                           207 @ 1800-5000 rpm

Transmission                                          6-speed S-Tronic automated manual

Wheelbase / Length                 101.5 in. / 169.0 in.

Curb Weight                                           3461 lbs.

Pounds Per Horsepower                          17.3

Fuel Capacity                                         14.5 gal.

Fuel Requirement                    91 octane unleaded premium gasoline for

                                                              best performance,

                                                             unleaded regular permissible with

                                                             reduced performance

Tires                                                      P225/40R18 92Y Bridgestone Potenza

Brakes, front/rear                     vented disc / solid disc, ABS, EBD, ESP standard

Suspension, front/rear                             independent MacPherson strut/

                                                             independent 4-link

Drivetrain                                 transverse front engine,

                                                              full-time all-wheel drive

PERFORMANCE

EPA Fuel Economy - miles per gallon

    city / highway / observed                     21 / 28 / 25

0 to 60 mph                                                           6.7  sec

OPTIONS AND CHARGES

Meteor Gray Pearl paint                                          $   475

Sport Package with audi magnetic ride - includes:

  sport seats, sport suspension with magnetic ride

  shocks, 18" alloy wheels with summer

  performance tires                                  $ 2,550

S-Line package - includes:

   3-spoke multi-function steering wheel,

  brushed aluminum trim, roof spoiler and

  front foglamps, S-Line badges and bumpers,

  storage package and illumination package,

  power front driver seat, Bluetooth® phone

  preparation                                                          $ 2,000

Audi Navigation System with glovebox

  6-CD changer                                                       $ 1,950

Convenience Package - includes:

  auto-dimming interior mirror w/compass,

  rain and light sensor, Xenon-plus headlights

  with LED parking lights, Bose® premium

  sound system                                                      $ 1,800

Open-Sky System                                                  $ 1,100

Cold-Weather Package - includes:

  heated front seats, windshield washer nozzles,

  exterior mirrors                                     $    500

Destination Charge                                  $    825

Latest Auto Reviews

2009-06-30T10:15:00.001+06:00

2010 BMW 750i / 750Li xDrive

2009 Audi A3 2.0T Quattro

Toyota Corolla Review

2009-06-30T09:57:00.000+06:00

The latest Corolla has arrived on the scene which at a first glance seems quite like its predecessor. Closer observations reveal the subtle changes that make this corolla an even hotter buy. The front end sports a new bumper that has fog lights integrated into it. This feature compliments the new grille and in terms of design this is the most strikingly different feature that the new Corolla. The headlamps on the new Corolla are clear and the rear features redesigned tail lamps which add the look of the car.

More significant however are the upgrades on the interior. The fabrics on the seat and trims have been changed and the upgraded version comes with perforated leather. The driver’s side has an adjustable lumbar support which is a new feature. All except the base model feature mock wood paneling. The six CD MP3 players can be controlled with the navigation audio controls on the steering which has been specially designed for this version of the Corolla. Furthermore the car has automatic headlamps that switch off after the sun sets. Plus the car has a key less entry system with a security alarm system.

SentryPC Software 2009

2009-06-29T10:33:00.003+06:00

Latest Review of SentryPC Software

For $40, SentryPC gives full control over who uses your PC and when. Not only can you block undesirable Web sites, you can even stifle online chatting, objectionable words and phrases, unwelcome applications, and more.

SentryPC is a great program that allows you to do whatever you need as far as monitoring and filtering. This program is customizable enough that it will allow you to adjust to each family member need.

SentryPC has extensive filtering capabilities including the ability to allow or disallow programs usage, chat, keystrokes, and Web site usage. Although this program does not attempt to filter pornography from accidentally appearing on the screen, if you monitor activity you will be able to tell that what your child has seen so you can talk with them about it.

Pros

- Customizable

- Can be hidden from the users of the computer (or not)

- Inexpensive for all the features

- Adjustable speed for older, slower computers.

Cons

- Requires multiple computer accounts in order to work

- does not filter pornography from appearing on the computer.

Description - Offers computer time management for each family member. Extensive customizability for filtering including by program and keystrokes. Monitors keystrokes, applications and chats.

SentryPC allowed us to specify the hours and days when the computer and/or specific applications may be used, or limit the number of hours a program can be open each week. SentryPC also provided us with a log of online chats, sites visited, words typed, applications used, and so on. The trial version runs for only an hour at a time, but at least you can try its features before buying.

SentryPC offers time management for each family member. In order to accomplish this you must have each family member have their own account on the computer. You can set computer usage by the time and day of the week or by a weekly total of hours they are allowed to use.

WebWatcher Software 2009

2009-06-29T10:28:00.003+06:00

Latest Review of WebWatcher Software

ParentalSoftware.org reviews the most recent version of WebWatcher Software for the new year.

Webwatcher is really an amazing software product in which every parent should own. We tested out WebWatcher and were not surprised on how it performed.

Instant Message Recording

We had a great time chattin' away whist testing WebWatcher's IM and CHAT monitoring features. WebWatcher IM and chat monitoring recorded both side of the following IM services; AOL Instant Messenger (AIM), MSN Messenger, Windows Messenger and Yahoo Messenger.

IM and chat details recorded were the date of the chat, start & end time, the chat participants, and the entire contents of the chat (instant message) conversation.

When testing with other (less popular) IM software, again, WebWatcher was still able to capture chat information by using their unique Smart Camera monitor.

Webwatcher Advanced Contextual Blocking Feature
WebWatcher's blocking feature is uniquely their own. In addition to allowing you to block certain web sites by URL, contextual blocking allows parent's to block web sites by keyword or key phrase. It was very easy to setup, we simply entered the keyphrases in which we thought were offensive.

Blocking by web site category (pornography, gambling, shopping, etc.) is a great tool since there are many web site which parents are not aware of. No other parental control software features contextual blocking.

Alternatively, WebWatcher lets you block all web site and only allow access to the specific web sites you choose.

Email Recording
We Knew that Webwatcher's email recording technology was powerful, but were we surprised! Webwatcher recorded all emails that were sent and received during our tests.

Adobe Creative Suite 4

2009-06-29T10:22:00.001+06:00

Reviewed by:
Elsa Wenzel
and
Lori Grunin
Reviewed on: 11/26/2008

Adobe offers Creative Suite 4 professional software in five flavors. Among them, the Master Collection offers professionals the most jam-packed digital toolbox. There are applications for concocting and editing digital pixel and vector graphics, print layouts, video, Web pages, and animation, and then repurposing that content for mobile devices. Those who don't need the whole shebang might consider suites that cost less, such as Web Premium or Standard for Web design, Design Premium or Standard with tools for printed media, or Production Premium for film (scroll down for charts with more details).

The release of Adobe Creative Suite 3 in 2007 was the first to incorporate former Macromedia products, such as Flash. With Creative Suite 4, Adobe has unified the interfaces of all the applications for a more seamless experience. The Flash-based panels within CS4 are more nimble than its predecessors, and handy pull-down menus with preset styles enable you to shift among work space layouts quickly.

The Master Collection will set you back about as much as, say, a Volvo from the 1990s: $2,499 for new or $899 to upgrade. It costs $1,599 for users of other CS3 suites to upgrade, or $1,199 for users with two eligible older versions of the suite. Buying all Master Collection applications individually would set you back close to $6,290, or more than $2,000 if upgrading from CS3 versions. The charts below detail the contents of and pricing for this and other CS4 suites; please click on the images of suites and their individual applications to learn what's new inside of each.

Prices for the individual applications haven't changed since CS3, but we wish that Adobe would lower the costs, or perhaps allow mix-and-match pricing for more flexibility. Artists who access this software from their workplace or purchase it at an educational discount might skip more than a few meals to afford it. Those on a budget who don't need so many tools might consider alternatives, such as CorelDraw graphics suite. The five CS4 packages (see chart below) are a relative bargain if you regularly rely on at least three of the included applications. If so, don't make the mistake of paying full price for the applications individually.

Setup and interface
The Web abounds with complaints about Adobe's installer and updater, and most are justified. Every Windows application installer suggests you close any running applications, but you can usually ignore it and 99 percent of the time everything works out fine. Adobe forces you to close your browser and allMicrosoft Office applications, because many of the programs in the suite--primarily Acrobat--spread octopus-like tentacles throughout your working environment. That's pretty appalling in and of itself, but in addition to wasting a large chunk of time installing, you can't do anything else but play Solitaire while it's happening. And as before with the updater, you'll get to relive this delightful close-your-apps-or-else experience on a regular basis. Plus, the installation "progress" bar bears no relation to reality whatsoever, with its two steps forward and one step back movement.

Unfortunately, it took us nearly 2 hours to install the Adobe Master Collection CS4 on Windows Vista and XP machines (we didn't test CS4 thoroughly on aMac). But that's still less time than with CS3. Adobe's custom installation lets you pick and choose which components to embrace or reject, but there's no mechanism for migrating your settings and all your custom tools.

You'll need powerful hardware to run the heavy-duty CS4 applications: Users of Windows XP SP2 or Vista must have a processor of at least 2GHz, or 3.4GHz for working with high-definition video. Photoshop now natively supports 64-bit Vista, while Premiere, After Effects, Soundbooth, Encore, and OnLocation are certified for 64-bit Vista.

A 1,280x900-pixel display with OpenGL 2.0-compatible graphics card is required, and support for Shader Model 3.0 may be needed, particularly for working with video. Mac users need an Intel multicore processor running Mac OS X version 10.4.11 or newer, at least 2GB of RAM, and free hard-disk space of 26.3GB or higher. Installation comes via DVD. More specifics are available at Adobe's Web site.

Features
If you rely on Adobe software for work, then CS4 could be worth the plunge, depending upon your staple tools. We find CS4 a more worthwhile upgrade than CS3 was. There's not much to wow users of Photoshop who don't work with 3D content, but Illustrator finally manages multipage documents. Flash, on the other hand, takes a big leap forward by slashing the steps required to build animation. Premiere can handle batch encoding and manage footage from tapeless cameras, while it and Soundbooth both convert recorded speech into text.

Workflow improvements to CS4 include autofill searches for timelines and projects in AfterEffects. Adobe aimed to improve the options for making round trips among the applications without rebuilding content. For instance, you can export Fireworks designs as CSS and bring them into Dreamweaver. There's greater integration from one application to the next, with support for the latest formats for Web sites and mobile phones, including desktop Adobe AIR applications. Please find links to reviews of individual applications in the chart below.

Service and support
We almost hate to rate Adobe's tech support as excellent due to the extreme expense of live, personalized help from the company. However, the software industry has been moving away from free customized assistance for years. At least Getting Started help for installation issues and other speed bumps lasts for 90 days. Adobe's comprehensive, self-serve options include embedded and online lookups, tutorials, and excellent videos. Also, the company has expanded its help-yourself and peer support online. The new Adobe Support Portal requires an Adobe log-in and password. Newbies would be wise to get up to speed with the interactive tutorials and maybe even third-party books and Web sites. Web-based forums with other users, as well as the Community Support in beta testing, may be the best bargain for getting hands-on advice.

Don't bother trying to seek extra help without a registered serial number; the days of "borrowing" copies of heavy-duty Adobe software from friends are long gone. Help with a live Adobe representative continues to be expensive. Each year we find the pricing options harder to find on Adobe's Web pages. The Bronze level of support, for five prepurchased incidents, is $175. Unlimited Silver support costs $1,200, three times the price of some applications, like Dreamweaver. Such pricing is clearly set for corporations rather than freelancers.

The good:The dozen applications in the Adobe CS4 Master Collection sport streamlined interfaces and integration for designing and editing images, Web pages, mobile sites, desktop apps, animation, film, and print layouts, and support the latest digital formats.

The bad:These costly, heavy-duty applications take long to install, are hard to learn, and hog resources; personal tech support can exceed the price of some applications; some apps, such as Photoshop, offer few compelling reasons for most users to upgrade.

The bottom line:The CS4 Master Collection contains every application in the Adobe Creative Suite. Although priced for serious professionals, it's a relative bargain compared with buying each ingredient piecemeal.

Specifications:Peripheral / Interface devices: DVD-ROM , Internet connection , OpenGL compatible graphics card ; Min processor type: 2 GHz or faster for DV , 3.4 GHz for HDV , Dual 2.8 GHz for HD (Windows) , Intel Multicore (Mac) ; Min processor speed: 2 GHz

Harry Potter And The Half Blood Prince-Enter the magical world of Hogwarts

2009-06-29T09:49:00.001+06:00

Fans will no doubt be excited about the Harry Potter And The Half Blood Prince movie, and EA have just released this demo of their forthcoming video game version.

In the demo, you control Harry in two events. The Gryffindor Dueling Club and Flying Club. In the first, you are taught how to execute a few spells, and must then duel two of your friends to see who's quickest with their wand. In flying club, you have to fly around a twisting and turning course above a Quidditch course, trying to catch the Golden Snitch. Control in both events is easy, and your are accompanied by schoolboy commentary throughout.

Harry Potter And The Half Blood Prince looks like it will satisfy fans of the books and movies. The gameplay seems to be pitched at younger players, and is a little easy as a result. The graphics are polished enough, but are nothing special in today's high definition world.The demo is a fairly hefty download, for quite a short demo. There's not much replay value in either event unless you lose on your first attempt.

Featuring many of the central elements of the series, Harry Potter And The Half Blood Prince gives you the chance to discover the mystery playing as Harry yourself.

X-Plane 8.63-The world's most comprehensive and powerful flight simulator

2009-06-29T09:45:00.001+06:00

Have you ever wanted to take charge of a commercial airliner and fly around the world? Well X-Plane is about as close to the real thing as you’re ever going to get on your PC. Claiming to be the world’s “most comprehensive, powerful simulator” it’s so accurate that the US and Canadian aviation authorities have given it official approval to train pilots towards their commercial licence.

Of course, those guys are not sat behind a PC in their bedroom - their training is done in a $150,000 simulator - but what they see is exactly what you get on your PC. What’s more, you’re not limited to Earth – you can even fly around Mars!

Firstly, be warned. This is one MASSIVE program. Don’t be fooled by the 1.8MB file size in the game description – that’s just the installer. Once you’ve installed that, a very swanky download dialogue opens to download the other 1.3 gigabytes of the game. All those scenarios, vectored graphics and flight controls take up a lot of hardrive space. Depending on your bandwidth, you will be looking at hours, if not days to download the whole thing.

In this demo, you are limited to just one aircraft and five minutes of flight but in the full version, you can take control of props, jets, single- and multi-engine airplanes, as well as gliders, helicopters and VTOLs such as the V-22 Osprey and AV8-B Harrier. It also offers subsonic and supersonic flight dynamics, sporting aircraft from the Bell 206 Jet-Ranger helicopter and Cessna 172 light plane to the supersonic Concorde and Mach-3 XB-70 Valkyrie. In all, about 40 aircraft spanning the aviation industry (and history) with several hundred more which can be freely downloaded from the internet. There’s even a plane builder option which allows you to build your own model.

You can pretty much fly to any location around the world and choose from over 18,000 airports to test your landing and take-off skills. You can even test your mettle on aircraft carriers, helipads, frigates that pitch and roll in the waves, and oil rigs. It naturally features the whole range of weather conditions you might face and the plane reacts realistically to them. The graphics are vector based so they’re not exactly brilliant but they’re what you’d expect from a simulator .

The biggest problem you’ll have is working out how on earth to get started. The controls are incredibly complex to mirror a real commercial airliner. I spent the best part of 10 minutes just sat on the runway trying to work out how to start the engines whilst Air Traffic Control went crazy at me. You are prompted with a few guidelines at how to get rolling (such as “hit spacebar to release the breaks”) although you’re not told how to start the engines.

There are so many switches and dials in the cockpit that there’s no knowing what to hit without studying the huge flight manual in detail. In the end, the best I managed was to race around the airport before crashing into and destroying a control tower, killing all on board. For those that do have more patience, they need merely move the mouse cursor to the top of the screen where a drop down menu will present access to preferences, instructions, control configuration and many other options.

For those that just want to fly free as a bird and admire the scenery, X-Plane is not for you. For those that want the challenge of mastering a real airliner or are training for a professional licence, it’s the best programme out there and will have you absorbed for hours.

Download X-Plane 8.63

City Racing-A free sandbox racing game

2009-06-29T09:41:00.000+06:00

City Racing is a free sandbox racing game, set in and around an unnamed city.

You begin the game with a destroyed car being taken to a garage, and you are introduced to a mechanic who gives you a little introduction to the game. Like other sandbox racers, you can drive freely around the city, and find various events to win to increase your ranking, and win credits to upgrade your car, or buy a better one.

Visually, City Racer is quite odd. The city is fairly generic, although it's quite big. The vehicles look vaguely futuristic, but not beautiful, and the pedestrians walking the streets are pretty outdated. The gameplay is spoiled by really wooden physics - you feel like you're driving a bumper car, and there is no real sense of speed.

The language in the game will amuse anyone who likes bad English, as the text throughout is very badly translated. The best thing about City Racing is that it's free.

A free sandbox racing game sounds great, but City Racing is a disappointing experience.

Download City Racing

Samsung M8910 Pixon12 preview

2009-06-26T10:54:00.000+06:00

It's only been a day since we went through the review of Nokia N86 8MP - the first cameraphone with a 28mm wide-angle lens. And we already have the Samsung Pixon12 on our hands - the first 12 megapixel cameraphone to ever hit the market and not only that, but also the first 12 megapixel cameraphone with the same luring 28mm wide-angle lens as on the Nokia N86 8MP.

If you've gone through the Nokia N86 8MP review comments like we did, you've probably noticed there are a lot of people out there that consider us... well, biased. We wish we had a dime every time some of you accused us of that.

Lately it seems you find us a bit too harsh on Nokia. The truth however is that we aren't, it's just that once top-of-the-line, Nokia products now come with less and less pioneering spirit.

On the other hand you are more than welcome aboard to see how Samsung have been treating us, regular users, and what they have to offer with the Samsung M8910 Pixon12. And bear in mind that they even have a rumored Samsung M8920 in the works - a 12 megapixel cameraphone with 3x optical zoom. How about that, Nokia? But we digress.

Today's show is all about Samsung M8910 Pixon12. We will most probably have a more detailed preview of the device ready for publishing some time tomorrow, but that stuff is too hot to keep it all to ourselves. So we went out of the box with this one, and we'll be publishing only camera samples today. We're just dying to find out what you make of our impromptu shootout with some quite unusual peers.

Samsung M8910 Pixon12 official photo

The images produced by the Pixon12 managed to impress us and you'll understand us as we were eager to share those with you (let's hope for some better weather tomorrow).

Samsung M8910 Pixon12 at a glance:

General: GSM 850/900/1800/1900 MHz, UMTS 900/2100 MHz, HSDPA 7.2Mbps, HSUPA
Form factor: Touchscreen bar
Dimensions: 108 x 53 x 13.8 mm, 120g
Display: 3.1 inch 16M color WVGA AMOLED resistive touchscreen
Platform: Latest TouchWiz 2.0 UI with Smart unlock
Memory: 150MB integrated memory, hot-swappable microSD card slot (up to 16GB)
Camera: 12 megapixel auto focus camera with Power LED flash and xenon flash, wide-angle 28mm lens, object tracking auto focus, automatic lens cover, geo-tagging, image stabilization, Smart Auto mode, face detection, Beauty Shot, Smile Shot and D1 video recording at 30 fps with auto focus and face detection
Connectivity: Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 2.1 with A2DP, standard microUSB port, GPS receiver with A-GPS, TV out
Misc: Accelerometer for screen auto rotate and turn-to-mute, FM radio with RDS, DivX/XviD video support
Battery: 1000mAh Li-Ion battery

The Samsung M8910 Pixon12 runs the latest TouchWiz UI 2.0 as the Samsung S8000 Jet. It's really fast ticking (much like the final version of the Samsung Jet that we have here), so we guess a similar application processor might also be used. There's no Media Gate 3D (the 3D Cube) or Motion UI, but the Smart unlock and Photo contacts features are both on board. Of course, we'll get into more details about those as we prepare the preview tomorrow.

Samsung M8910 Pixon12 in our office

The Pixon12 is surprisingly compact, smaller than even the LG Arena, but its thickness (same as on the original Pixon) may be a bit too much to our taste. Still, thanks to the other quite compact dimensions, the Pixon12 makes a nice first impression and seems quite pocketable.

Samsung M8910 Pixon12 in hand • Pixon12 next to LG Arena and Viewty Smart, Samsung Jet and S5230

For now, be our guest and jump on to the next page to check out the camera and video samples we have taken today.

Nokia N86 8MP

2009-06-26T10:50:00.000+06:00

You may've thought Nokia lost their touch, you may be out of love with the Nseries but the Nseries are always keeping an eye on you. Their wide-angle, variable aperture eye. On you. Whether the Nokia Nseries are making up the ground lost in the megapixel race or claiming back what they believe is rightfully theirs, they seem to have the right leadership to put them back on the megapixel map.

Nokia N86 8MP official photos

Armed with one of the most advanced cameras in terms of hardware and features you don't just find on every other handset out there, the N86 8MP is keen to take cue from the N85 and shake the Nseries out of their slumber. Now, in case you forgot, it's still the market leader we're talking about here, and that should probably tell why everybody is so worked up.

So, the question as always is whether strong performance will deliver on that awesome promise. And you've got us to help you make a more informed decision about buying Nokia N86 8MP. Given all the comments above, the N86 8MP is more the kind to encourage impulsive spending but you'll choose wisely not to miss our write-up.

Key features

2.6" 16M-color OLED display of QVGA resolution (scratch-resistant surface)
8 megapixel autofocus camera with dual-LED flash and AF assist light
28mm wide camera lens, variable aperture, mechanical shutter, geotagging, time-lapse, camera lens cover, VGA video recording at 30fps
Symbian OS 9.3 with S60 3.2 UI
ARM 11 434 MHz CPU, 128MB RAM
Quad-band GSM support and 3G with HSDPA 3.6Mbps support
Wi-Fi with UPnP technology
Built-in GPS with A-GPS functionality and 3 months of free voice-guided navigation (Ovi Maps)
Dual slide design with dedicated gaming/audio/gallery keys
microSD card slot with microSDHC support
Beefy 8GB internal storage
Built-in accelerometer for UI auto-rotation
3.5mm audio jack doubling as TV out port
Stereo FM Radio with RDS, FM transmitter
Standard microUSB port and stereo Bluetooth v2.0
N-gage support plus you get an N-gage game for free
Digital compass
Web browser has full Flash and Java support
Active kickstand
Nice audio reproduction quality

Main disadvantages

Camera feature set is last year's stuff (and even older)
Image processing isn't very well tuned at this moment
VGA@30fps video is no longer top of the line
No xenon flash
HSDPA only 3.6Mbps, no HSUPA
Poor display sunlight legibility
No DivX or XviD support (can be installed, possibly requiring a purchase)
No smart dialing (can be installed as well, but will probably set you back some cash too)
No office document editing (you upgrade for a fee, while some Eseries phones get that for free)

The Nokia N86 8MP offers advanced camera technologies, combined with the power and maturity of the Symbian OS and the intuitive S60 3rd edition interface. It doesn't get any better than that on paper, and if you aren't all caught up in touchscreen, you're most likely about to check it out.

Nokia N86 8MP reporting for duty

But no matter if the glass is half full or half empty to you, we guess you wouldn't want to miss Nokia's first move in the 8 megapixel game. The Nseries proven all-round skill and the innovative camera features have us eager to explore this promising cameraphone. We're most curious of course to find out if they got the image quality right. But first things first - the handset gets unboxed and ready to roll on the next page.

Sony Ericsson T715

2009-06-26T10:44:00.001+06:00

After dabbling with multimedia and eco phones, Sony Ericsson announced a new addition to its T-series phones - the Sony Ericsson T715. It's a compact, stylish slider that offers 3G connectivity and a 3 MP snapper.

Just like a FashionTV model, the Sony Ericsson T715 relies heavily on looks to impress - the back cover is brushed aluminum and the phone will be available in two colors - Galaxy Silver with piano finish and Rogue Pink with mirror finish. Its size also helps make a statement - 91.5 x 48.0 x 14.9mm and 96g make it quite compact for a slider.

Sony Ericsson T715

The T715 sports a 3.15 megapixel camera with Cell-ID geotagging and a LED flash. Unfortunately, there's no autofocus. Don't get your hopes high for the video recording capabilities as well.

The SE T715 screen is 2.2-inch big with QVGA resolution and, Sony Ericsson claim, good legibility under sunlight. It also offers tried music functionality with TrackID, PlayNow and Bluetooth 2.0 with A2DP, as well as FM radio with RDS.

Many of you will be pleased to hear that the T715 will happily accept microSD cards.

The speedy HSPA of the T715 will be utilized by a NetFront browser and a YouTube application as seen in previous handsets by the company. There's also video calling, though that uses the main (and only) camera.

Some more photos of Sony Ericsson T715

Sony Ericsson T715 will come with some useful Google integration - Google Maps and Google Search, accessible from the homescreen.

Speaking of the homescreen, T715 offers something Sony Ericsson call a "smart desktop feature" - there will be reminders (including special animations for birthdays and global events) and notes on the homescreen to make sure you don't forget something important. We've already seen notes appearing on the home screen in past SE phones, so we'll see exactly what this new feature offers.

Here's the official demo video of the new Sony Ericsson T715:

The phone will come in two versions - T715, which supports 2100MHz HSPA, and T715a, the American version that supports 850/1900/2100MHz HSPA. Both versions have quad-band GSM/GPRS.

Sony Ericsson T715 will be available in select markets in Q3 2009 with expected pricing as usual not mentioned.

Prolink WN2000 Wireless USB Adapter

2009-06-26T10:20:00.000+06:00

The Prolink WN2000 is a teeny Mini Wireless N USB adapter that is small enough to carry anywhere and use at any time. But even with the smaller size and weight, it packs enough “umph” to connect you to a high speed connection that can rival that or a cable line.

Built so that users can easily upgrade the adapter to access high speed network connections and share files and media, the WN200 even allows for video streaming and online gaming, making it a perfect choice for the gamer on the go, weighing in at a mere 2.7g. Where’s the antenna you ask? Most USB adapters carry a chip antenna within it, and the same goes for the WN2000 as it has a 2dBi x 1, 1T1R (one transmitter and one receiver) that functions on IEEE 802.11/b/g/n standards of up to 150Mbps for 802.11n.

If you’re worried about security, the WN2000 has a 64-bit Wired Equivalent Privacy (WEP) and 128-bit shared key encryption as well as WiFi Protected Access (WPA2-PSK, WPA-PSK) to protect your PC from outside invasion.
The accompanying control panel is easy to understand, it prominently displays the signal strengths of available visible network connections and the options to customize your connection details.

Everything in, the included software is easy to use, installation is a snap and connectivity is pretty good, especially considering its size. The Prolink WN2000 is certainly the gadgets for the wireless go-getter.

LG Arena KM900 Mobile Phone Review

2009-06-26T10:19:00.000+06:00

LG is one of the first few mobile phone manufacturers to use capacitive touch sensitive screens and since then, no one looked at touch screen devices in the same way. The LG Arena we have today was launched recently and our review unit came in silver. Wrapped around the 3 inch screen is a chrome frame, giving the Arena a more classic touch. The phone felt a little plasticky in our hand though. There are three touch sensitive buttons below the screen, namely call, end and shortcut keys.

The most interesting part of the phone is LG’s new Cube interface. We’ve seen the interface before in the Prada 2 but that was only either black or white. This time, it’s in a full color and boy it was nice! There are four menus to choose from, Shortcut, Widget, Contacts and Multimedia. By splitting everything into these screens, LG managed to cramp more stuff into the menu yet making it look simple enough to use.

Like all LG higher end mobile devices, the LG Arena is equipped with Schneider Kreuznach optics with a 5.0 megapixel sensor. The camera features were good and it lets you manually configure ISO values, focusing type and more. Picture quality was excellent but the single LED flash light wasn’t really good at lighting up dark areas.

The inch WVGA display is also one of the better ones we’ve used. It’s 480 x 800 resolution was really good for videos and photos. Speaking about photos, you will be able to zoom in and out using the pinching gesture. However, it’s not as smooth as the phone from a certain “fruity” brand. Despite saying that, it is still a huge improvement in terms of multi gesture device.

The Arena has a whopping 8GB internal storage with 2GB NAND Flash and 1GB of RAM. That’s more than enough for an average user. You can also add more storage via its microSD card slot located above the battery as well.

The LG Arena is a great phone with superb display as well as huge storage. The 5.0 megapixel camera with Schneider Kreuznach optics takes great photos as well. If only it uses less plastic, and we suggest you have feel of it before deciding.

Pros : Nice display, Huge internal storage

Cons : A little plasticky

LG Arena KM900 Specifications :

Network Support : 3G, HSDPA, GSM, EDGE

Connectivity : Bluetooth, USB 2.0, Wi-Fi

Others : 5 megapixel camera with Schneider Kreuznach optics, A-GPS

Dimensions : 105.9 x 55.3 x 11.95mm