Make a Super Hidden Folder in Windows Without any Extra Software

Make a Super Hidden Folder in Windows Without any Extra Software

Almost anyone knows how to make a “hidden” folder in Windows, but then again almost anyone knows how to make explorer show hidden folders. Let’s take a look at how to make a folder so hidden, only you will know its there.
Anyone that has used Windows for a while knows that they can right-click on a file or folder and edit its properties, more so its attributes to make it a so called “hidden” file or folder. The problem is that just as many people know you can show files and folders that have the “hidden” attribute by simply changing a radio button under the folder view options. The easiest way to make a real hidden file or folder is to mark it as an important operating system file, that way Windows won’t display it even if explorer is set to display hidden files and folders.
To do this we need to launch a command prompt, so press the Win + R key combination and type cmd then hit the enter button.

Now we are going to use the attrib command, so go ahead and type a command similar to the following (you’ll need to substitute the path to your own folder here).

attrib +s +h “C:\Users\Taylor Gibb\Desktop\Top Secret”

You will need to replace the stuff in quotes to an absolute path of a folder or file on your system  that you want to make hidden.

Now if I go look for the Top Secret folder on my Desktop it is gone, even with explorer set to show hidden files and folders.

To unhide the file or folder you can run the same command, except this time use “-“ instead of the “+” signs.

attrib -s -h “C:\Users\Taylor Gibb\Desktop\Top Secret”

Like magic, my folder appeared again.

How to Buy a Digital Camera: Complete Guide

It’s not difficult to get lost in a sea of digital camera choices. Certain digital cameras are meant for professional photography while the rest are sufficient for capturing still life no matter where you’re at. We have brought the main digital cameras to your screen for viewing which would best suit your needs or work well as a gift.

Photos of distant galaxies like this are made possible due to the latest developments in the camera industry.

Digital SLR Cameras
Should you have a limitless budget and have the desire for professional grade photos, the SLR cameras are perfect for you. They have the look of old-school 35mm cameras, the power to snap photos from afar with perfect definition and offer the option to remove the lens giving you the ability to use multiple lenses with different focal lengths and light sensitivity. They primarily come with 18mm or 36mm sensors for high-grade low light performance. These are definitely top-notch and not for the faint of heart. They are best for professional photographers, photophiles, paparazzi or trips to the mountains.

Point And Shoot Digital Cameras
Most current digital cameras will fall under this main category, although many types do exist. Point and shoot devices are small, compact and have megapixel ranges from 4MP all the way up to 12MP with some brands ranging higher. Below are the main types of point and shoot cameras that you could potentially choose from:

1. Compact digital cameras: These cameras are meant for normal use, such as toting along to birthday parties or taking Christmas pictures. Kodak, Canon and Sony have excellent compact digital camera selections with variances in megapixel sizes ranging from 5.0MP to as high as 18MP. Compact cameras range in size from 20mm thick down to a credit card sized device.
2. Bridge Cameras: With a close resemblance to a digital SLR camera, these are slightly larger than your compact models of point and shoot cameras. They have live previews to show you what you’ll be snapping, autofocus using a contrast detection mechanism, and offer long-range camera shots in a range somewhere between the SLR and compact digital camera.
3. Super Zoom: These cameras are strikingly similar to their compact digital brothers yet come with 10x optical zoom options which allow far away shots to become extremely close. Some can control the inevitable camera shake through image stabilization software pre-installed.

What To Look For When Digital Camera Hunting

When shopping for digital cameras with foreign verbiage that tends to fluster us all, stick with the simple questions and follow this layman’s guide to seeking your next camera within your budget. Don’t try to understand what the salesman is saying about words you’ve never heard of and just tell him you’re looking for the following traits in your camera:

Image Quality
Most people are fooled into thinking the larger the megapixel of camera, the better off your images will be. ‘Megapixels’ (MP) are a measurement of amount of data captured and have little to nothing to do with image quality. Therefore, keep this simple rule of thumb when trying to ascertain what image quality is: 3-4MP cameras are perfect for 8 x 10 photos and 8MP cameras are great for 10 x 12 pictures. The quality will be lifelike should you stick with this rule. If you just want to send your buddy a funny picture through email every now and then, 2MP will work just fine.

Light-Friendly
The brighter the LCD screen is on your camera, the better it will appear in bright sunlight or other bright lighting scenarios. LCD Screen at the back of the camera should also have a decent size so that you can properly view photos before taking them.

Computer Connectivity
If you find a camera that doesn’t have the proper USB port or cable to connect your camera to the computer for adding them to Facebook or an online album, run. Any decent digital camera should have at the very least, the standard USB port and, for moving many large pictures at once, look on the box for USB 2.0 which simply means it’s a better cable with faster transfer rates.

Other Great Perks To Find

Along with having great lenses and thin sizes, people who aren’t acclimated to digital cameras should stick with the basics as stated above. Along with those, the following perks are nice for the beginner to novice user:

1. Find the digital camera that has instructions in paper form. Kind of hard to put a CD in while out in the wilderness, no?
2. For those who get easily flustered, find a camera that has the minimal number of large buttons so you can focus and shoot quickly without finding a tiny button between two other buttons.
3. Internal memory storage would be great – most cameras come with Micro SD cards which hold 2-4GB worth of pictures (about 4000 large ones in total) with the ability to buy larger ones for relatively low prices. Simply take the SD card out, hand to a Walgreens or Wal-Mart associate and get your pictures developed.
4. A digital camera that comes with Ni-Cad batteries and a charger is a treat; most will come with standard AAA batteries which can be upgraded to Energizer Max or the likes.

Cost is relative to the features you want. Obviously, the more bells and whistles you require, the higher the price tag. Simply gauge what you and your family need for regular use, bring this guide with you to find the best value for your money and you’ll be well on your way to snapping pictures right out of the box with brilliant results.

Like and Share:

Why a hard drive has less storage space than promised?

It has happened to most of us. We buy a new hard drive (or maybe a flash drive) with mind boggling storage capacity only to find that it has less space than what was mentioned on the box. Angered, we start cursing the manufacturer and our dealer for false marketing thinking that they should be sued for doing this. Hey, but have you ever wondered how they continue to do this again and again without getting into legal trouble?

The answer is that they are not marketing it falsely at all. Surprised? I'll explain.

A manufacturer considers 1 Megabyte to be 1000 Kilobytes, 1 Gigabyte to be 1000 Megabytes, 1 Terabyte to be 1000 Gigabytes and so on. This is correct considering that kilo means 1000 and mega means 1000000 (10^6). However, computers calculate on base 2 and to them, 1 MB is actually 1024 kilobytes, 1GB is 1024MB and 1 TB is 1024GB. This difference in the method of computation is responsible for this "missing space."

Lets take an example of a 500 GB hard disk.

From a manufacturer's point of view, the 500GB will have 500*1000*1000*1000 = 500000000000 bytes.

From a computer's point of view, 500GB is actually 500*1024*1024*1024 = 536870912000 bytes.

So, a hard drive that promises to have 500 GB storage space will actually display 465.66GB, 536870912000-500000000000 = 36870912000 bytes (34.34GB) less storage space when connected to a computer.

Space Promised	Displayed on a computer	Difference
100GB	93.13GB	6.87GB
250GB	232.83GB	17.17GB
500GB	465.66GB	34.34GB
1TB	931.32GB	92.68GB
2TB	1862.64GB	185.36GB

Take a look at the table given above to see how much space is "lost" due to computers working on a base 2 system. As you can see, with the increase in capacity of the storage device, there is an increase in the missing space.

Like and Share:

Connect a Laptop or Desktop Computer to a TV Easily

Suppose you wish to watch a movie or share a slide-show of pictures with your family on your PC but have a screen that leaves much to be desired. In such a situation, you can connect your computer to a television screen to allow your entire family to enjoy comfortably.

There are many ways in which you can connect your laptop/ computer to a television. However, the overall video quality will be different for different methods. You can choose which one to use based on the quality or the availability of hardware. The first step is to know what type of ports and connections your TV and computer have. If you already know the type of ports and connections available on your hardware, you can directly jump to Step 2. If not, then the different types of ports are explained in detail below:-

Different types of PC to TV connection ports

1) RCA/Composite: The oldest and the lowest quality connection available. They are the Yellow, Red and White connections most of us are familiar with. Yellow is used for composite video, white for left analog audio and red for right analog audio.

2) S-Video: S-Video or Super Video offers slightly better quality than Composite connections. As it is one of the oldest type of connections available, most televisions and computers have it. There are two types of S-Video ports, one containing 4 pins and the other containing 7 pins. This type of connection is used only for video. So you will need to connect an audio cable from your computer's headphone jack to the red and white audio inputs on your TV if you want audio to work.

3) VGA(Video Graphics Array): Most computers and televisions have a VGA port. It offers much better quality than S-Video and should be preferred if you have a HDTV. Older CRT TVs however, will not have a VGA port and will require a PC to Television converter. Just like S-Video, VGA also does not support audio and will require an additional audio cable.

Different types of connecting cables to connect computers to TVs

4) DVI: Digital Video Interface offers much better quality than VGA connections. Most laptop computers and HD TVs will have these connections. Just as the name suggest, this type of connection can be used only with digital TVs. Also like the previous two, DVI connections also require the use of an audio cable for audio to work.

5) HDMI: The highest quality connections available. Most HD TVs will have this connection, however, chances are that your computer would not. If your computer happens to have a HDMI connection port, this should be preferably used. If your computer doesn't, you can use an HDMI to DVI adapter to convert HDMI to DVI.

Step 2: Once a common type of port between the two devices is recognized, you will need the right connector cable to physically connect them. The different types of connector cables are pictured above. If you do not find two matching types of connection ports, you will need an adapter to make the connections type match.

Step 3: After connecting the two devices, on your TV, select the external input with which your TV is connected to the computer. It may be HDMI1 or AV1 depending on how you have made the connection. This is much similar to how you select input from your DVD player.

If you have followed the steps correctly, your TV should now be displaying your computer's screen.

Important: If your computer is not recognizing the external display, you must connect the TV before starting your computer. If the picture appears distorted, you will need to change the screen resolution of your TV by altering the display settings from your computer. Most older TVs will support only one display resolution while newer TVs will support plenty of them.

Virtual Private Servers Or Dedicated Servers?

When you first set up your website, you'll need to choose a server to host the pages. Though shared servers are typically the most economical choice, more businesses are choosing to use virtual private servers or dedicated servers because they offer greater protection and more speed. To determine which server is best for your website, it's important to understand the benefits and features you'll receive with each type.

Virtual Private Servers

A typical web server

A virtual private server offers many of the same benefits as a dedicated server for a lower cost. If your website is hosted on a virtual private server, you are technically sharing the server space with other users. However, your site is partitioned off onto its own portion of the server so that you have greater privacy and security. Because the server is shared, you'll pay less than you would for a fully dedicated server.

Virtual private servers generally place greater restrictions on users. Though you'll have freedom to install most software programs, you might encounter strict limitations on the amount of disk space and RAM you can use. They also have slower processing times, which can affect the speed at which your website loads.

Dedicated Servers

By choosing a dedicated server, you'll enjoy full control over every aspect of your hosting. Many dedicated servers are not managed, which means that you will be responsible for updating and installing programs on the system. However, most hosting providers offer management services for those who are not technically-inclined. With a dedicated server, you'll have greater flexibility, extensive storage space and quick processing times.

Dedicated Server Infrastructure

Of course, dedicated servers are more expensive than virtual private servers because you receive so many additional features. A dedicated server costs more to run, particularly if you have to pay an additional fee to have it managed each month. If your physical server is stored at your business and managed by someone from within your company, you'll also need to account for the maintenance costs associated with keeping it on the premises.

Choosing the Best Server for Your Website

To determine which server is best for your website, outline what you need from your server and what you're willing to pay for those features. Dedicated servers are typically best suited for large companies or for businesses who need extreme security and control from their servers. Virtual private servers are a smart option for businesses on a budget, as they offer an option between costly dedicated servers and unreliable shared hosting. Whether you choose a virtual private server or a dedicated server, your business will benefit from the greater storage space and security.

Twitter SEO: How to Use Twitter to Get Higher Rankings?

here was a time when Twitter wasn't a popular form of social media. Quite a few people would have had a Twitter account prior to it being popular, and perhaps they too never used it. Its popularity these days as a form of social media has seen more users than ever before jump on the Twitter bandwagon.

Twitter is excellent because it allows you to give short and sharp pieces of information to potential customers. In this day and age, when our attention spans are extremely short when it comes to looking at things on the Internet, Twitter is perfect, and whether you are new to Twitter or a seasoned pro, there are plenty of benefits to be had for your business.

Tweets are a form of linking, and despite links on Twitter being nofollowed, they can still affect your SEO campaign. If your account is new and you manage to get followed by a popular user, you will see an increase in your Twitter profile's visibility in search results. If more people having authoritative accounts start to re-tweet your updates, search engines will start seeing your account as an authority as well. Tweeting links from your website from this account will help search engines trust your website more and will definitely contribute towards increasing its search rankings.

To help your account be seen as an authority, you need to make sure that you:-

Offer quality, not quantity when it comes to Tweets
With only a small number of characters available to you per tweet, it's important to think about what you want to get across, and to include all the information necessary. Again, short and sharp pieces of information that remain in your follower's mind are recommended. Your tweets should keep your followers curious and leave them wanting more.

Keep your Twitter account updated frequently
People like to see something new. If there hasn't been a tweet for a month, then your followers and profile visitors could just assume that you are not active anymore and they will stop following or visiting your Twitter account. To overcome this and keep visitors coming back, make sure you have an interesting profile page that is constantly updated, as visitors will want to find out what will be on your profile next.

Re-tweet someone else's tweet
By interacting with others in the Twitter-verse, you will not only be able to build brand awareness but also a loyal following that will stand by you. It will change how you are perceived online and your followers will also be able to trust you more. If people start recognizing that you and your website provide excellent content, they would sub-consciously not hesitate to re-tweet your stuff. Once, they start doing that, becoming an authority will not take much time.

Ultimately, Twitter is beneficial not because of the SEO advantages it provides but because it helps in building relations with people and increasing brand awareness. In the long run, both these things combined will help your website more than higher search engine rankings.

Watch ASCII Star Wars in Windows XP, Vista, 7 and 8

Every one of us has watched Star Wars on television, computer or in a theater. It is the same movie with aliens fighting each other for galaxies and such stuff. There is nothing new in it. But wait, have you watched an ASCII (American Standard Code for Information Interchange) version of Star Wars and that too in Windows using telnet? A network protocol known only to computer wizards. Well if you have not, then you must do it now!

There is a complete copy of Star Wars done entirely in ASCII characters that you can watch in the Windows operating system (or any OS that supports telnet). The only thing required to watch it is an internet connection; speed does not matter.

To watch it on Windows XP, Mac OS X and Linux

1. Go to Start, Run. (Only for Windows users)
2. Now type "telnet towel.blinkenlights.nl" without the quotes and press Enter. Users of Mac OS X and Linux can directly execute this code in the terminal window.
   

On Windows 8, Windows 8.1, Windows 7 and Windows Vista

Telnet is turned off by default in the latest versions of Windows. So, in order to watch star wars, you must first enable telnet by going to Control Panel › Programs › Turn Windows Feature On or Off and ticking both the telnet check boxes. After doing that, follow the steps given below:-

1. Go to Start, Search in Windows Vista and Windows 7. On Windows 8 and Windows 8.1, open the main Start page.
2. Type telnet and press Enter.
3. In the following command prompt window, type "o" without quotes and press Enter.
4. Now type "towel.blinkenlights.nl" without the quotes and press Enter.

If you do not need telnet anymore, you can turn it off.

A command prompt window like the one in the image will open with the movie being played in it. See the movie yourself. Did you enjoy watching this new version of Star Wars? Well, I did and know it for sure that you would have too.