Windows 8 considered safer but few desire to buy a new Windows 8 PC

This past weekend, Microsoft splashed TV advertising for it’s new Windows 8 operating system during college football games in the U.S. and on TVs in 42 other countries. Despite the initial thrust, an AP survey of 1,200 adults in the U.S. showed over half hadn’t heard of the new OS, and those that had some knowledge of it showed little interest in buying a new laptop or desktop computer running on Windows 8.
We did our own survey of over 350,000 computer users across seven languages (English, French, German, Portuguese, Italian, Polish, and Czech) before the launch and found that most expect the new Microsoft Windows 8 operating system to be safer, but only 8% of respondents said they will buy a new computer any sooner because of it.

• Two thirds of survey respondents were running Windows 7, yet despite highly publicized security vulnerabilities in older operating systems (OS) such as Windows XP and Windows Vista, a full 30% of respondents are still taking chances with the two latter OS.
• Microsoft has done a very good job in publicizing the new Windows 8 OS, as the majority respondents were aware of its pending arrival.
• Nearly two out of three Windows users believes that Microsoft has gotten better at improving the security of its OS offerings over the years.
• While almost half believe that the new Windows 8 would be even more secure, 14% were skeptical.
• Despite such high belief in its higher security value over Windows 7 and older OS, at least 78% answered that they do not intend to purchase a new computer sooner just to have Windows 8.
• More than a quarter of respondents in fact do not plan to buy a Windows-based PC at all, instead intending to go with an iPad or Mac.

Q1: Which Operating System does your computer have?











Q2: Are you aware that the new Windows 8 will soon be released?











Q3: Do you think that Windows has actually gotten safer over the years?











Q4: Do you think Windows 8 will be safer than previous Windows OS?










Q5: Do you plan to get a new computer sooner to have the new Windows 8?











Q6: Do you plan to get a new computer soon? If yes, what will it be?

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Categories: General Tags: avast, Microsoft, operating system, OS, Windows 8

12 ways to boost your router’s security

With the increasing number of network security breaches, we need to improve awareness regarding the security of your home network.
 
We simply need to follow some rules to control and prevent system penetration and also bandwidth theft (and losing money!). Safeguard your valuable information available through your home wireless connection and do not be easy target for hackers!
Here are 12 ways to boost your router’s security:
1. Install your router in a safe place where the wireless signal is available only inside your own house. Avoid placing it near to a window.

2. Turn off WPS, the automated network configuration method that makes your wireless password more vulnerable to hacker attacks.Turn on WPA2 encryption and, if you can, protect it with a strong password.

3. Change the default admin username and password to a strong password. Do not use default passwords because they’re generated from well-known algorithms that makes hacker attacks even easier. Do not use your name, date of birth, home address or any personal information as the password.

4. Upgrade your router firmware to fix known vulnerabilities of the router.

5. Don’t forget to log out after managing the router, avoiding abuse of the authenticated browser sessions.

6. Disable remote management of the router over the internet. In a business environment, if you need this management, it will be safer to use NAT rules allowing SSH or VPN access only.

7. To prevent CSRF attacks, don’t use the default IP ranges. Change the defaults 192.168.1.1 to something different like 10.8.9.7.

8. To prevent ROM-0 abuse of your router (i.e., access to the secret data stored in your router: your ADSL login/password combination and WiFi password), forward port 80 on the router to and non-used IP address on your network. Check how-to here.

9. Set your router DNS servers to automatic mode (or DHCP) or for a static value that you manually set exactly according to your ISP.

10. Disable IPv6 on the router or, if you really need IPv6 services, replace the router with a IPv6 certified one.

11. You can save bandwidth and allow only specific computers or devices to access your WiFi even if they have the security key to enter. Find the computer MAC address (the “physical address” listed with the command line ipconfig/all at a cmd window). Into your router settings, you should look for the Mac filtering settings to add this identifier there.

12. Use a secure VPN in open/public WiFi hotspots. You can read more on how Avast SecureLine can protect PC, Mac and Android devices in these situations. If you cannot avoid using public WiFi, then try not to log in or enter your credentials (specially banking or credit card ones), but also your email and phone number. If you really need it, always prefer the secure protocol HTTPS (check the browser address bar).

लैपटॉप नहीं, अब लैपटैब का जमाना

माइक्रोमैक्स ने आखिरकार कैनवस लैपटैब लॉन्च कर दिया है। यह लैपटॉप- टैबलेट हाइब्रिड डिवाइस ऐमजॉन पर 6 मई से बेचा जाएगा। इस डिवाइस में विंडोज पावर्ड टैबलेट और एक डॉकेबल कीबोर्ड है। इस लैपटैब में 10.1 इंची डब्ल्यूएक्सजीए (1280x800 पिक्सल) आईपीएस टच-डिस्प्ले है। इसमें 1.83 गीगाहर्ट्‍ज इंटेल एटम Z3735F क्वाड-कोर प्रोसेसर और 2 GB रैम है। इस डिवाइस में 32 जीबी स्टोरेज और एक माइक्रो एसडी कार्ड स्लॉट है।

यह डिवाइस विंडोज 8.1 पर रन करता है और क्लाउड स्टोरेज स्पेस में 1 टीबी क्लाउड स्टोरेज ऑफर करता है। इसके साथ ऑफिस 365 का एक साल का सब्स्क्रिप्शन भी मिलता है। इसके टैबलेट पार्ट में 2 मेगापिक्सल प्राइमरी कैमरा और 2 मेगापिक्सल फ्रंट कैमरा है। इसमें 7700 एमएएच बैटरी है। यह डिवाइस वाई-फाई, ब्लूटूथ 4.0, 2G और 3G को सपोर्ट करता है। इसमें सिम कार्ड स्लॉट और 2.0 यूएसबी पोर्ट भी है। इस कीबोर्ड में 82 कीज़ और एक ट्रैकपैड है। इसकी कीमत करीब 14 999 रुपए है। 

एक्सप्लोरर की जगह लेगा ‘एज’

एक्सप्लोरर की जगह लेगा ‘एज’

सेन फ्रांसिस्को। अभी तक गोपनीय ‘प्रोजेक्ट स्पार्टन’ के नेपथ्य में रखने के बाद माइक्रोसॉफ्ट ने अपना नया वेब ब्राउजर एज पेश किया है जो अंतत: इंटरनेट एक्सप्लोरर की जगह लेगा।

माइक्रोसॉफ्ट के अधिकारियों ने कहा कि एज इंटरनेट एक्सप्लोरर की तुलना में हल्का और तेज है और यह एक बिल्ट-इन नोशनल टूल एवं कोरटाना से वेबसाइट सूचना जैसी कई खूबियों से लैस है।

माइक्रोसॉफ्ट में परिचालन प्रणाली समूह के कॉरपोरेट उपाध्यक्ष जोए बेलफियोरे ने कल ‘बिल्ड 2015’ सम्मेलन में कहा कि माइक्रोसाफ्ट एज एक ऐसा ब्राउजर है जो विंडोज 10 के लिए बना है और यह विंडोज 10 की व्यापक रेंज के उत्पादों पर उपलब्ध होगा

The Most Important Keyboard Shortcuts for Finance & Excel files

Benefits of Career Counselling to Students

 

Students are under a lot of pressure – pressure to perform academically, pressure to be popular, pressure to ultimately, make a good life. The one thread that touches upon all these is the choice of one’s career. It is a decision that is often taken under parental or societal duress. However, one must seek proper career counseling and guidance to make the right decision. Career counseling is really beneficial for students, and there are many reasons it is imperative:
1. Spot an Aptitude: Career counseling helps a student realize true aptitude. While at a junior level, most students perform evenly across subjects. Aptitude tests, conducted by counselors, bring out clearly the strong intellectual areas of a particular student. This empowers the student to make an informed decision when choosing future studies and making career choices.
2. An Objective Guide: Many times, students grow up with preconceived notions – “I must become a doctor, since my father is one”. Good counseling can quell these notions, and help the student view himself for the individual that he really is. After all, the doctor’s son can actually be more suited to, and more interested in, being a musician!
3. Evade Confusion: Often, students haven’t developed a clear idea of what they’d want to study by the time they’re due to make those choices. This isn’t necessarily due to any lack of interest; one is simply too young. Seeking career counseling leads to clarity of thought in a student, helps to identify interests, pick the appropriate subjects, and finally, make the choice of the right career.
4. Career Relation to Education: It is also likely that a student has decided on a particular career, but is not sure of how to qualify for it academically. Seeking counseling helps to put things in proper perspective – the student chooses the right higher education for the chosen career, and likewise, is able to land safely on the career track, due the interest, motivational factors and the chosen stream of education.
5. What’s Out There: Perhaps the most important facet of career counseling is to simply know what career options abound today. Say, a student has great flair for writing. It is important that the student or individual is well informed about the prospects of taking writing as a career. Lack of information on the will let the individual or student abandon his talent and intellect.
Sadly, career counseling is often overlooked by students, institutions and parents alike. It is a mistake that can prove costly, for it is sound counseling that leads to well-informed, correct career decisions!

5 Ways To Monitor Your Customer Service

Customer service managers can provide all the training and incentives they want, but if they don’t have an effective method of monitoring their customer service staff, they may see the same mistakes arise in their department over and over again. Monitoring methods ensure consistency in customer service and offer important feedback on problem areas that need to be addressed. We have five effective ways to monitor your customer service to raise the bar on your service level.
Reviewing Written Correspondence
All types of written correspondence, including letters, emails and live chat records, can provide important information about how your CSRs are handling customers. Let your employees know that their interactions could be monitored prior to doing so, which will ensure a better attitude from your staff about the process.
Collect these pieces of correspondence weekly or monthly, and create a chart for results, so you can easily compile relevant data. Use your results to identify potential problem areas and train your employees in more effective service methods.
Monitoring Phone Calls
Everyone has called a business, only to hear, “Your call may be recorded for quality purposes.” This mode of monitoring customer service is a common one that can be highly effective in teaching employees better service techniques. When CSRs actually hear how they sound to customers, they can use that knowledge to make corrections to their service methods in the future.
Asking Customers for Feedback
Some managers find that simply asking customers what they think of the service is an effective way to pinpoint potential problem areas. You can apply this technique casually, chatting with a customer after a transaction is complete. A more formal approach is to call a customer after the fact with a scripted questionnaire, or ask customers to complete a survey form that gives information about the quality of service they received.
Use Mystery Shoppers
Some companies employ mystery shoppers to perform transactions and then report on the level of service they received. The advantage of this monitoring technique over customer feedback is that the mystery shopper knows what to look for the moment he sets foot in the business. These shoppers typically complete a questionnaire right after their transaction that provides specific, measurable information about the transaction.
Looking at the Numbers
Another way to measure service is by looking at the sales numbers – whether you want to measure by first purchases, subsequent visits or cross sales. Keep in mind that while the numbers do provide valuable information about your customer service, they can fail to offer the full picture of service quality that some of the other monitoring techniques provide. However, if you are currently focused on using service to make cross sales or encourage customers to return, these numbers may offer the data you seek.
Measuring customer service is an important part of any business. When employees know their work is monitored, they are more likely to bring the same quality of work to the front counter every day. Monitoring also provides valuable information that can be used to more effectively train customer service employees and teach them to bring their service to the next level.