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Me vs. My Content Filter

Posted by Haslina Ali in Articles

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Many a time have there been office workers who arrive at their workplace in the bleary hours of the morning, fire up their coffee makers, poke blindly at their CPUs until it hits the power button either by sheer luck or accident, opened Internet Explorer and gone, “WTF? When did my company get a content filter?”

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WolframAlpha – Ambitious, But Not Google

Posted by Rich Chuckrey in Articles

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Back in May 2009, Stephen Wolfram launched an ambitious effort that seemed likely to re-carve the landscape of internet search — www.WolframAlpha.com. Stephen’s project provides precise [and sometimes amusing] answers to what seems to be nearly every category under the scientific sun.

With Statistics, Physics, Geography, Medicine and Nutrition to name just a few, WolframAlpha search is unequivocally a stellar scientific tool. Using it though [for everyday search] is like walking into a physics class to find a recipe on how to make meatballs.

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Does U.S. Mobile Carrier AT&T Rule All App Store Applications?

Posted by Scott Jarkoff in Articles, Features

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Earlier this week the internet was abuzz over Apple rejecting the official Google Voice (GV) iPhone app. This story was quickly followed by Apple removing every GV-enabled app already available in the App Store. The official GV app and all previously approved GV-enabled applications appear to have been removed from all international App Stores. Based on many accounts, the culprit behind this dastardly deed is none other than AT&T. Does this mean that AT&T, the U.S. mobile carrier, has veto authority across all U.S. and international App Store applications?

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Being Safe On Social Networks

Posted by Haslina Ali in Articles

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Being safe and smart when using the Internet is an issue that has been around since the rise of chatrooms and the exploitation of naive individuals by social predators. In other words, forever. The emphasis on being safe and not giving away details has always been young children or teenagers, since they’ve always been regarded as more trusting and the natural prey of social predators. It was assumed, of course, that adults would be more practical and less naive. As usual, we took for granted the processing power of the human brain.

While social networks like Facebook can give you access to invitations to parties and special online contests, it also opens you up to other things, such as:

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Security Clearance

Posted by Rich Chuckrey in Articles

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Security clearances are not your sugar-coated M&Ms handed out on Halloween night to neighborhood kids tricking and treating. The United States government takes painstaking steps to determine a person’s [or an agency's] eligibility to access sensitive information and in turn issues a certificate of qualification.

But what have clearances come to stand for? Are they just a showpiece for employment eligibility or power play? Or worse yet, have clearances become an excuse to act inappropriately.

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Navy Federal Credit Union Web Site Operating with Security Issue

Posted by Scott Jarkoff in Articles, Features

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Navy Federal Credit Union Login FormOnline banking users are hopefully aware of the need to login to their banks web-based system using secure means, such as via a web site protected using SSL encryption. Every legitimate bank offers such protection, normally disallowing customers the ability to login via unsecure means. But not every bank appears to be conscious of the myriad of potential security risks associated with their site. Navy Federal Credit Union is plagued by a huge security vulnerability on their web site and is possibly the easiest bank on which to perform a phishing expedition.

Updated – August 12, 2009: Added correspondence from the RSA Anti Fraud Command Centre and SliceHost Support regarding a take-down notice and trademark infringement claim. This little article has apparently generated some interest and visibility by an NFCU “security” contractor.

Updated – August 15, 2009: The saga appears to have come to an end as the RSA AFCC responds to SliceHost after TechMiso stipulates the content was not infringing. The attack dogs are ostensibly caged for now.

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Bring The Sims to Real Life

Posted by Haslina Ali in Articles

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house2I’m a homeowner, and only just recently decided to move into the house that I own. You may wonder what this has to do with TechMiso and why you should care. The answer is pretty simple: technology is all-encompassing and simplifies so many things in life. While I may have said that I’m unlikely to write about interior designing, I will write about the tools available to the average internet user that will simplify designing, decorating and making a dream home reality.

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Chrome OS – Google Gorilla To Eat Microsoft’s Breakfast

Posted by Rich Chuckrey in Articles, Features

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Heads up Balmer, The boys at Google are on the hunt. Larry and Sergey are planning a strategic strike at the heart of Microsoft’s flagship product, Windows.

In a recent announcement on The Official Google Blog, Google says they are ramping up a new hopeful in the OS market — Chrome OS.

If Chrome OS runs with speeds anything like Google Chrome (the browser), then Microsoft is staring up the nose of a 300-pound gorilla.

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Winning In A Competitively Staffed IT Environment

Posted by Rich Chuckrey in Articles, Features

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Have you been at a job where you admired a successful IT colleague of yours? Someone you were amazed by? Maybe even blown away by their level of proficiency?

Did that person seem to complete work effortlessly? Were they ultra-productive in the work environment?

Could you accept this person into your personal realm? Or did you feel threatened? Were you ready to develop this new relationship or did you quickly throw up your defenses?

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Dying For A Job?

Posted by Greg Hill in Articles, Features

Fat BastardI’m not talking about being out of work.  I’m talking about six feet under.  If your job predominately consists of sitting in a chair and moving only your hands all day long, it may just be killing you.

The human body was not designed to be sedentary; it was made to move.  And that is why I say that exercise is the key to good health.  Being thin and trim does not necessarily equate to being healthy.  Studies have shown that overweight, active people are generally healthier than thin, inactive people.  Why is that?  Because our bodies are actually a lot like machines.  If you don’t lubricate it and keep it moving, it will eventually cease to function.  Plain and simple.  Use it or lose it!

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