1 Dropbox - For all your online storage needs

Online storage plays a big role in our daily lives nowadays. We all have files that we have to carry around, we have files that we want to share with our friends and family, we have many things that we need instant access to when we need it. For all your online storage needs, I present you Dropbox.

Dropbox, in simple words, is an online storage service which allows you to upload files on a server which you can access on any computer you like later on. There are many services which provide online storage, but the reason I chose Dropbox is the fact that it outperforms other services in every single way.

First things first, we all love free stuff, don't we? (at least I do!) Well, good news for all the free stuff lovers, because Dropbox offers 2 gigabytes of online storage space for every single person who makes an account. 

If you are interested in a bigger storage place, Dropbox also offers 100, 250, and 500 gigabytes of spaces with the price of 10$, 20$, and 50$ a month respectively. They also offer online storage services up to 5 terabytes for businesses.

Now that we got the price part straight, it's time to learn to use Dropbox! It's probably the simplest piece of software you will ever stumble upon. All you need to do is installing the software, and making an account. (just follow the steps) After that, you will have a Dropbox folder in a place of your choice, where everything you put in the Dropbox folder will be uploaded to Dropbox online storage servers. When the upload is complete, the file will have a small green check mark instead of the arrows. 

To access your files, you are simply supposed to go to Dropbox website, and sign in! You can view photos directly if you wish, or download them to your computer. You can also make different folders to organize your stuff, and you don't even have to be on your main computer to delete or change stuff. You have access to everything via the web panel which you can access on any computer.

You can also share folders with your other friends who also have Dropbox by right clicking a folder and "inviting them" to your folder by typing their name or e-mail address. This way, they will have access to all the contents in the folder. It's a great way of sharing your pictures with your friends!

Dropbox also gives you the option of sharing files with people who don't have a Dropbox account. All you have to do is to move the file you wish to share in your Public folder, and then generate a public link by right clicking the file you wish to share in your Public folder.

That would be all features of Dropbox. It provides all you expect from an online storage and more. The best part is the fact that not all of the files are publicly accessible even if the link is leaked out, unless many other free online storage services. It also saves you from the trouble of going to a website to upload things to the storage.

I think Dropbox is one of the best software I've ever used and I can't see myself living without it! Hope you enjoyed the read, see you next time!

1 Windows 8 tablets to be 600-800$

I must say I'm quite shocked about the price range of Windows 8 tablets! 600$-800$ for a Windows 8 tablet with an Atom processor, a processor which is used in netbooks, which will cost you hundreds less to have one if you decide to buy a netbook instead of a Windows 8 tablet, and use Windows 8 on the netbook.

Fun fact, these tablets also come with keyboards which actually, in my eyes, make them no different than a usual laptop/netbook with the exception of having a worse processor, limited things you can do compared to an usual laptop, and high price. Of course we can't just say netbooks are the same as tablets just because they share the same processor, but the price difference is too great to choose a tablet just for the sake of mobility.

The only good side of having a Windows 8 tablet is the fact that it has Windows as an operating system, which makes your life easier compared to the other tablets if you are using Windows in general. Then again, you can remotely access your home computer on a cheaper Android tablet and get your work done. If this isn't an alternative for you, you can always use cloud services such as Google Docs to get your work done.

Now that we are done comparing the Windows 8 tablets to netbooks which have similar processors with the fact netbooks costing less, let's make a quick comparison between different tablets this time and see if it's worth it this way. (prices are without keyboard, extra ~200$ for keyboard)

Asus Vivo Tab - 600$ (Windows 8)

Lenovo ThinkPad Tablet 2 - 600$ (Windows 8)

Microsoft Surface - 800$ (Windows 8)

Acer Iconia - 700$ (Windows 8)

iPad 64GB Wifi & Cellular - 830$ (iOS)

I didn't mention any Android tablets since they are in a lower price range (Nexus 7 for instance, around 300$~), but I think I made my point. In a world where everyone either buys iOS or Android based products for their mobile needs, it will be impossible for Windows 8 tablets to enter the scene with such high prices.

I'm definitely not the biggest fan of Apple, but Apple has a really big community, and given that Windows 8 tablets have nearly the same price as the iPads, there's no chance for Windows 8 tablets to get attention from the Apple base.

As an Android user, I would really love to have a Windows 8 tablet since I believe that it's the most complete operating system for a tablet so far. It's really superior compared to the iOS and Android operating systems, but it's just not worth to spend that money when it's the same price as an iPad.

All in all, I'm not saying that Windows 8 is a bad operating system, but the things it offers for its price just doesn't cut the mustard. Guess I will have to stick to my Nexus 7 for a longer time!

0 What is a FTP Server & How to make one

A File Transfer Protocol server, or FTP server is a protocol which allows you to transfer files between computers over the internet. In order to do this, the server administrator should upload/enable files to his FTP server, and other users can connect this server in order to download files. It's a really good way to keep your files in your hand wherever you go, since as long as your computer is open and connected to the internet, you will be able to access your server. It's also a great way of sharing files with your friends, your family, and your co-workers at will.

There are many ways to access a FTP server, and accessing one can be as easy as typing its URL to your browser. (for example ftp.computerrepository.com) Even though it's easy to connect to a FTP server with a browser, the recommended way is to use a software such as WinSCP (assuming that you're running Windows). The more uncommon/outdated way would be using the ftp command at the command line prompt.

Now we know what a FTP server is, and we know how to access one, let's learn how to make our own FTP server!

With Serv-U

First of all, we will need a software which is called Serv-U FTP Server. You can download the software here. After you download and install the software, you will see this screen.

Simply click yes to proceed. It will ask you to name your domain and put a description for it. Fill the boxes in and click next. Note that the domain box should be either filled with your IP address or an IP redirect. In the next menu you will see ports in boxes. You can leave this as it is since they're default and proceed. In the next window, the software will ask you for your IP, which will later be used to access the server. Just keep the IPv4 one checked and leave it blank.

After we are done with this setup, it's time to configure how secure our server will be. The default setting is just fine for simple purposes, so we can leave it at that. When that's done, we are done with setting our domain up.

Now it's time to create users!. The software will ask you to fill in a Login ID, which will be the username for logging on the server, and a password afterwards. Next up, you're supposed to set where that specific user will be redirected to when he/she accesses the FTP server. For this example, I used "/C:" which is root.

Finally, we are going to decide if this user is going to have Read Only Access, or Full Access. A Full Access user can delete/move/rename/access files while a Read Only Access user can only access the files. 

Afterwards, you will see the user screen. Click the user you made and click Edit. Go to the Directory Access tab and add the locations where the user is permitted to access. You can see my example right below.

All done! You can simply type ftp://youripaddress to your browser (or use your preferred FTP client) and try to login with your username and password. You can create more users with different permissions and access to different paths according to who you will be sharing the user with. If you want to share the FTP server with lots of people, you can make groups with certain permissions and put the users in the groups. The customization part is totally up to you!

Note that the Serv-U software should be up and running in your tray in order to keep your server up. Your server won't be running if the service is stopped or closed.

This is the simplest and most straight forward way to make your own home FTP server. I hope you enjoyed the read!

0 Advantages and disadvantages of using Antivirus Software

Nowadays, nearly every computer user is using an antivirus software. The usage of antivirus software is going up day by day as internet keeps becoming less safe compared to before. Compared to past years, there are more viruses, spywares, worms, trojans and all kinds of harmful stuff going around the internet which you -soon or late- might be a victim of. There are many advantages of using an antivirus software since it makes up for your mistakes, (for example a file which you shouldn't have executed, or a website which you shouldn't have clicked) keeps your computer clean and so on. Antivirus software, like anything else, come with disadvantages as well. The main reason I'm writing this article is actually to show the disadvantages of using an antivirus software, since many users seem to ignore the fact.

To list the advantages in a detailed way:

1) Virus Protection: It will protect your computer from being infected by viruses and many other harmful malware. An antivirus software may save your operating system from crashing, your data from being corrupted or deleted, your computer performing poorly in general and other things.

2) Personal Information Protection: There are hackers out there who want to make quick money by taking your credit card information, or your bank information. This is even more of a serious blow compared to your computer crashing since it could end up with you losing all the money in your credit card or your bank account. Many antivirus software come with an integrated firewall which will protect you from being target of such attacks.

3) System Information: If you think there's something wrong with your computer at any point, you can run a scan with an antivirus software to check if a virus is causing the problems which you're experiencing to be on the safe side. Without one, it will be hard to know if a virus is the source of your performance problems or something else.

And now, the time has come for my favorite part, the disadvantages:

1) Cost: It will cost you a lot of money to buy. You will also be required to pay a monthly or yearly fee to use it which is icing on the cake.

2) CPU & Memory Hogging: Nearly all antivirus software will hog your computer's resources, which means that it will be using unneeded memory and processor speed even though it's not doing anything. The reason behind that could be either the fact that the software is coded badly, or the company has the intention to show their software is "working", even though it isn't.

3) Failure Chance: There's always the chance of antivirus software failing to delete or disable a certain virus. If all viruses were successfully deleted, then noone would be bothering to code new viruses all the time. If you go on a software forum with a virus deletion board, you will see lots of threads with people complaining about their antivirus software not being able to delete a certain virus.

4) Conflicts: Your antivirus software may conflict with another software, or with your drivers, which will mostly end up with your antivirus software not working until you remove that particular software, or vice versa. In some cases you can expect your operating system not to boot.

As you can see, it comes with many disadvantages along with the advantages it brings. When we take a close look at the advantages and disadvantages, the first thing which comes to my mind is the fact that with a little bit of awareness, nothing will happen to your computer or you even if you don't use it.

To be infected by a virus on the internet, you actually have to click something which will harm your computer. None of the really harmful viruses which will crash your computer or slow it down will come to you just by going around the internet. You might end up picking little spywares about advertisements and stuff, but that'd be all. Then again, you can clean your computer from spywares by using a spyware cleaner, which is mostly free and won't hog your resources.

Personally, I have never been a fan of using an antivirus software, and I never used it in my life. My accounts never got hacked, my OS never got crashed beyond repair, and my computer was never slowed down to the point where I can't use it anymore. I can say that I've never been infected with a serious virus.

I believe that if you look out for yourself and be careful on the internet, there's a really rare chance that you will be infected with anything serious. (it's not hard, really) Even Windows has an integrated firewall now which will at least protect you from hacker attacks and all the personal information stealing I've talked about earlier.

Many people say that using an antivirus software is good and necessary for a home user, but advanced users mostly find it unnecessary to use it. I say that every user who is just a little bit careful while surfing the internet won't need anything to protect themselves from harmful viruses. Don't click dodgy websites, don't open dodgy files, and if you're in doubt (happens to best of us), use an online file scanner, use a Virtual Machine, be creative. Don't let commercial software take your money and your computer resources!

0 Online Backup Advantages & Disadvantages

Hello everyone! In my last post, I talked about making a hard drive backup locally, which means backing your files up on something you have physical access on, such as an external hard drive or a secondary hard drive. Today, I will be talking about online backup and its advantages & disadvantages compared to a local backup.

Online backup (which also goes by the name cloud backup) is a service provided by many companies nowadays, which allows you to copy your files over to their servers in order to backup your files. But why would you pay for online backup when you can simply backup your files on your own?

Let's see the advantages of making an online backup.

1) Online backup provides a 256-bit encryption, which means noone can touch your files unless they use the encryption key for your files, and you should be the only one who has the encryption key.

2) You have online access to your files anytime and anywhere. If you need to use your files in a regular basis, instead of carrying an external hard drive around, you can simply access your files via the file server whenever you want to.

3) The data is usually compressed when you backup your files to an online servers, which means they will be less in size overall. That saves you from buying more backup space, and also allows you to download your files in a faster fashion.

4) After the initial backup, the online backup method is actually faster than local backup unless you own an expensive software, since many companies use a method where only the changes in a file is uploaded to the server rather than the whole file itself every time. So if you have a file of 100MB, and you increased it to 120, only the 20MB part will be copied to the server, saving you time.

5) Scared of your electricity going off or something? You can choose to have real-time backup, which sure drains your computer's resources more than a scheduled backup, but this way, your files will be copied to the server as soon as you have made a change to them, preventing you from losing anything at all.

Of course, with all the good things we listed, there are some disadvantages to online backup.

1) Since the only way you can restore your data is over the internet, if you are in a situation where your download speed is slow, you have bandwidth issues, or you have issues connecting to internet in general, then there's no way you can access your backup at that particular time. (Some companies offer to send you a disk with your backup in it.)

2) If you lose your encryption password, your files are gone forever. There's no way that you will access your files without your encryption password, except if your backup company provides managed backup. In that case, losing the password shouldn't be a problem.

3) If you have too many files you have to copy, and a slow upload line, then it will take you limitless amounts of time to back your files up. So, if you are planning to store terrabytes of files on a cloud server, maybe you should think about going back to local backup.

4) There's always the risk of the company being in a downtime, which means you might not be able to access your files in a critical time of need.

In my opinion, if you have a good internet line with high upload/download speeds, then the advantages of online backup outweigh the disadvantages of it. In the disadvantages I've listed above, the biggest one would be the upload or the download process taking too long because of a slow internet line.

All in all, I would prefer online backup compared to local backup any day of the year, especially because of the fact that I can reach my files anywhere I want, and I'm sure this is the biggest advantage of this method for anyone. Real-time backup is also another good feature, especially for someone like me who experiences lots of power outages.

I hope you enjoyed the read!

0 How to make a hard drive backup

Hello there! After a long time, I will be talking about making a hard drive backup, which is essential for many people, (including myself) as everyone knows how bad it would be to lose your important work files or anything important in that sense. Backing your hard drive is up is a simple thing and it can be done in many ways with many different softwares. I will show you a few methods to walk through this simple process.

First things first, you will need another hard drive that you can store the backup on, since the whole point of making a hard drive backup is the fact that if your primary hard drive is unreachable, you can access your files via the second hard drive.

First way to do this is a fairly simple, and orthodox way. A copying script will do just fine if you aren't looking for anything fancy, and it works pretty well. All you need to do is to open a Notepad up and copy these lines:


cd X:\
xcopy X: Y:\backupbatch /s /e /t /h /D

Where X: is the hard drive you want to back up from (for ordinary users, usually C:), and Y is the destination hard drive where you will be forming your hard drive backup. Now save the notepad file as a .bat (your file name should be backupbatch according to this example), which will make this a batch file which you can run at will. Whenever you run the batch file, the computer will copy all the files you have from X to Y. You might say the process will take too long to do this every time, but I got good news for you! The /D switch enables the script to only copy the files which have been changed, so it won't copy everything all over if they are untouched. You can even automate this process with a software called Xecutor. What it does is, in simple words, running your script every time before you shut your computer down. You can also use the scheduling software of Windows to customize the timing closer to your liking. (I won't go into detail)

The second way of doing this would be to use a commercial software which are commonly used by most people who want to make a hard drive backup. I would suggest Paragon Backup & Recovery which you can find here, as it is the most complete of the backup programs I've used. The software comes with many features which makes life easy for you when you want to make a hard drive backup.

Using this software is pretty straight forward, all you need to do is to run the program, go to the Backup & Recovery menu, and click Smart Backup. After that, click Disk or Partitions in the menu which comes up, choose the partition(s) you want to back up, select where you will save your back up (local drive is what you should be going for if you have another hard drive), choose where the archive will be saved, and decide the time for the back up to start.

To use the back up file you made, click the restore option this time, and choose the archive you made earlier. Follow the steps and you will have your back up restored in a matter of minutes!

These, in my opinion, are the simplest ways to make a hard drive backup. The sole difference between these two methods are the fact that the first method uses the simple principle of copying and pasting files to another hard drive, while the second method creates an image file where your files are kept in (less chance than first method for your files to be infected in a case of a virus). Also, if you are planning to keep your whole Operating System intact and ready to use, I recommend to use the second method. The first method is only good to keep your important files.


I hope you all enjoyed the read and learnt how to make a hard drive backup successfully! I wouldn't want you to lose your important files by accident and I'm sure that you wouldn't either. Thanks for reading!

1 Solid State Drive and its advantages

Storage devices are very important for a computer system. Usually a hard disk drive is used as the main storage device. Hard Disk Drive is also called as HDD and Solid State Drive as SSD. Both of these storage devices are non-volatile. That means data will be there, even the power is turned off. The solid state drives are comparatively newer than the hard disk drives; hence, they are expensive. Solid state storage have many advantages over the hard drive storage.

It will be helpful for the readers, if the components of the devices are stated here. An HDD has several moving parts including the spindle, which holds flat circular disks, read-write heads, and rotating motors. Here, one motor is used to spin the disks and one motor is used to move the read-write heads. In a solid state drive, there is no moving part. An SSD has three basic components including capacitor, cache, and controller. Almost all the smaller computing devices like smart-phones and tablet computers use solid state storage.

Many of the laptop computers are coming with SSDs. There are also desktop PCs, which are using SSDs. The first advantage of an SSD is that it is lighter than an HDD, as there are no rotating parts like motor, spindle or disks. Another important advantage of a solid state drive over a hard disk drive is that it consumes lesser electricity. An HDD need more power to drive the disks and move the heads. As SSDs do not have any moving parts, virtually they do not produce heat or noise.

Solid state storage is more reliable than hard disk storage. The motions of the heads and disks increase the chances of head crash. This can be happened for these reasons – sudden power failure, electronic failure, wear and tear, physical shock, poorly manufactured heads and platters, or corrosion. SSDs are more reliable for another reason. When an HDD comes close to powerful magnets, it may lose data, but an SSD is out of the risk of magnetic distortion.

A computer with an SSD is faster than a computer with an HDD. According to Intel, SSDs are eight times faster when compared to HDDs. To keep the HDDs in fast performance, defragmentation is needed; otherwise, the speed will slow down. Defragmentation is not needed for an SSD. If you can bear extra prices for SSDs, then you can enjoy all of these advantages. However, in future SSDs will be available at lower prices. Another limitation of solid state drives is their capacity. A 1TB SSD is very expensive and rare, whereas you can get an HDD with the same capacity almost in every computer-shop.

You will achieve more benefits when you will use solid state storage in your computer. Nowadays, there are many online storage services. Hence, you need not a storage device with huge capacity; you just need to maintain the storage device effectively. Use solid state storage in your computer and enjoy faster boot up and noiseless performance. As an SSD has longer life than an HDD, maintenance cost will be lesser if you use an SSD.