Monthly Archives: May 2016

Got Synergy

Synergy is an application that allows you to share a mouse, keyboard, screensaver and clipboard between multiple computers.

If you have more than one computer, each with its own monitor, you can install synergy as a server on one computer and as a client on the others. After a simple configuration you’ll be able to move your mouse to the edge of one monitor and it will enter the monitor of another computer. You can then use your keyboard as well as copy and paste text between the computers. The screensavers for all computers will also activate together. If you have a password set to unlock the screensaver you only need enter the password on one computer to unlock the screen on all of them. Synergy runs on several variants of Unix, Windows 95 through XP and Mac OS X. Best of all, it is distributed under the GNU GENERAL PUBLIC LICENSE and available as a free download.

Enso Launcher

Enso is a desktop application for Windows XP that enables fast and easy access to a wide variety of functionality, making computing both more efficient and more fun.

In its simplest form, Enso is a very handy program launcher/switcher that lets you manage large numbers of programs without breaking a sweat. The user interface is simple: the CAPS LOCK button, bane of typists everywhere, is disabled, and when pressed instead calls up an unobtrusive command interface to the top of the screen. Here, you can type a command like ‘open …’, where the ellipses would be the name of a program in your Start menu that you wanted to run. No more digging through several layers of menus for that application you constantly use!

Another helpful command for those of us (I know I’m guilty) who keep huge numbers of windows open while we work is ‘go …’. The Go command works like a simpler ALT+TAB keypress, letting you pick exactly which of the 15 windows open you want to go to. This command even works in your web browser on the tabs in each window! Not everyone will appreciate the value of this one immediately, but when you are working quickly with a lot of different things, it can be a life-saver. These options are extremely useful, and would be reason enough to use Enso on their own, but there are many more!

There are more options included in the basic package, but you can download more to plug into Enso. Enso Words provides you with a spellchecker, dictionary, and thesaurus via the Enso interface, shattering the old limitations of many programs that don’t have these tools built-in. There are even Beta versions of packages to control your media, search the web, and translate text from one language to another, all at the touch of a few buttons. Enso may sound hard to use or learn, but once you see it in action and start getting used to using it in, you’ll wonder how you ever did without it.

nHancer

I ran into a problem recently when trying to play some of my old games on my new Vista PC. Luckily, I was able to find a fantastic solution which I thought I would pass along to you guys.

The game is Medal of Honor Allied Assault (MOHAA). The problem was not with the main game, which worked fine. The problem was with the two expansion packs that were sold and manufactured afterwards, Breakthrough and Spearhead. For some reason there was a problem with the way the code was written on these two expansion pack games. They would not run correctly in Vista with a new video card. There were actually two problems, the new video cards couldn’t handle the old code without a forced command line, and there were not any old video drivers that worked with the new OS – Vista. In addition Vista required you to run the game as an administrator, which was not the normally accepted instance when running the game under normal circumstances.

To correct the problem I found a program called Nhancer. The program runs with Nvidia but is not an Nvidia application. The program is essentially an interface that streamlines the Nvidia controls that are available to all users, but tucked so far into the registry files and command files that any normal person would not have the technical skills to process the commands needed to make any corrections. Nhancer worked wonders, all you had to do was run the application, select the game that you wanted to force a code for, and enter the code. To my delight, MOHAA – Breakthrough and Spearhead, must have had so many problems that the code was already hard coded when I selected the games. So all I had to do was select my games, select allow changes, and then save the changes. After that the administrator portion was an easy fix. You do a right click on the icon for the game, and select “run as administrator”, and it worked fine, no problems. It is nice to know that there is software out there that works for the end users and further simplifies the already complex enough technology world. One would think that when you’re paying top dollar for a system they would work out all the problems for you before selling it to you. Instead we have to rely on people that offer freeware to fix the problems of “expensiveware”.

Information Security Management

In today’s knowledge driven economy, information is a key to the success of any business.

For example, the patents owned by a telecom company drive its growth. If this information were available freely, anyone would be able to duplicate that technology and compete with the creator. Imagine what it would do the business of Microsoft if its Vista source code were available in public domain. Since information is so critical, its security becomes an important concern for any business or organization. Information Security is the process of protecting data from unauthorized access.

It is based on the following four pillars:
1. Confidentiality – Privacy of information must be maintained
2. Integrity – Information available should be updated and correct. Any modifications to the information must be recorded.
3. Accessibility – Information should be easily available to people who are supposed to have access to it.
4. Authenticity – Information should be reliable and its source identifiable.

There are many standards available to implement information security in an organization These include: BS7799, ISO, etc. An organization wanting to have a proper information security process can get certified for any of these. Once certified, a customized security policy is put in place, which goes a long way in guaranteeing information security technologies like data encryption, digital signatures, biometric identification, vulnerability analysis, etc are being used to protect information. Software tools like scanners, firewalls, packet snuffers, encryption programs, anti-virus programs, are becoming very popular and go a long way in defending against unauthorized access to information.