What is an IP address/IP Address Classes/

What is an IP address

IP stands for Internet Protocol. An IP address is a logical identifier that is used to distinguish network devices. Much like a phone number identifies a telephone, an IP address identifies a network device. An IP address consists of four octets that are represented in decimal form and are separated by a period. For example, 10.1.20.145.

What Does an IP Address Do?

One of the most powerful features of modern computers is that they are able to communicate i] !E (0@  Uk Ucation between devices allows people to share information such as this web page. The IP address is used to identify which machine is to be accessed.

Despite rarely seeing an IP address, computer users utilize IP addresses every time that they access information or an applications that are not hosted on the local machine. IP addresses are masked by DNS (Domain Name Service) names which make the service legible. Without DNS users would have to type IP addresses into the Internet Explorer address bar. 

There are three types of IP addresses

Unicast – The most popular form of transmission. This type of address is used for 1 to 1 communication between two hosts. When an IP device sends its traffic directly to another IP device this type of traffic is known as unicast traffic. For example, a computer requests a web page from a web server (such as the web page you are currently reading!). The requests are sent directly from the computer to the web server and in return the web server replies directly to the requester.

Multicast – This type of address is used as an efficient way of sending the same data from one sender to many receivers.

Broadcast – 

This type of address is used as a discovery mechanism. IP broadcasts are used when there is one sender and all other devices on the network are the intended recipients.

Because IP is a logical address defined in Layer 3 of the OSI (Open Systems Interconnection) model, packets are encapsulated with Layer 2 headers. Not all Layer 2 technologies support broadcasts, frame relay is one such example. 

The most popular layer 2 technology in the world, Ethernet, does support broadcasts. When Ethernet encapsulates an IP broadcast it generally sets the destination to the special MAC address FF:FF:FF:FF:FF:FF.

Unicast addresses are either Private or Public

Private – 

Private addresses are not usable on any public networks such as the Internet. 

Private IP addresses are defined by RFC 1918.

Private address ranges include 10.0.0.0/8, 172.16.0.0/12 and 192.168.0.0/16

Public – 

Public addresses are used by public networks such as the internet. The Internet Assigned Numbers Authority is responsible for the global coordination of public address allocation.

IP Address Classes

Class A - 

Any network where the first octet is between 0 - 126. 

The classful boundary is N.H.H.H

For example 10.25.105.3

Class B - Any network where the first octet is between 128 - 191. 

The classful boundary is N.N.H.H

For example 172.16.200.109

Class C - 

Any network where the first octet is between 192 - 223. 

The classful boundary is N.N.N.H

For example 202.3.126.178

Class D -

Reserved for Multicast Traffic. The first octet is between 224 - 239.

For example 224.1.1.1

Class E -

 Experimental - used for research. The first octet is between 240 - 254.

Network Diagram Basics/network Key Icons and Shapes

Network Diagram Basics

Network diagrams can represent a number of different aspects about a network so it is important prior to starting to understand what the diagram will be used for. The best diagrams speak for themselves and require very little explanation. Some common uses include:

• Document physical equipment and connections

• Show routing path or switching path 

• Show logical connections or logical relationships between systems

• Document carrier or third party connections

Key Icons and Shapes

Using high quality icons is essential for developing professional looking network diagrams. If you need network icons here are some sites that provide good free resources:

Router Icon - Represented by a circle with four arrows engraved on top. This icon is used to represent Layer 3 routing devices only. 

Router Icon - Represented by a circle with four arrows engraved on top. This icon is used to represent Layer 3 routing devices only. 

Switch Icon - Represented by a rectange with four arrows engraved on top. This icon is used to represent Layer 2 switching devices.

Multilayer Switch Icon - Multilayer switches are a hybrid between routers and switches. In other words they are switches that have routing capabilities.

Dedicated Firewall - Used to represent devices that have the sole function of acting as a firewall.

Switch with Firewall Module - Some high end switches are able to run firewall modules allowing the device to double as a switch and a firewall. 

Key Connectors

Most connection points are represented using lines. You may vary the width of the line to represent greater or lesser bandwidth accross the link if required.

 

Link -  Network connections are represented by lines connecting to each device.

Etherchannel - A number of links grouped together into a single logical link. Negotiated ethercannels  use the LACP or PAGP protocols.

Cloud - Clouds represent any third party network not under your direct administrative control. The internet, for example, may be represented using a cloud.

 

Sample Physical Connections Diagram

This diagram shows the physical connection points in a small network. The diagram shows interface assignments, speed, router hostnames and management addresses.

 

Sample Routing Diagram

This diagram shows routing parameters in this small network. OSPF Area 0 is configured on the Fa0/2 interfaces of Router 1 and Router 2. OSPF Area 1, configured as a stub area is applied to Fa0/1 of Router 1 and Router 3. Router 3 redistributes its directly connected networks into OSPF. The OSPF router roles are also shown as well as non-OSPF routing functions such as directly connected routes and the trunk port to the switch.

If a network engineer was given the task of configuring routing on this network this diagram would give him/her the necessary information to apply a complete routing configuration on every device.

 

Third Party Connections 

Third party managed networks such as an Internet connection can be shown as a cloud. In this instance a layer 3 switch with a Firewall module connects this small office to the Internet. 

 

How to Keep Your Kids Safe Online

How to Keep Your Kids Safe Online

Even a five year old kid today knows what Google is and what social networking means. However, there are a lot of rogues out there - people as well as websites. How to protect your kids from the world wide web? Learn as you read on...

Internet is no longer a privilege - it is a necessity. It is something we have heavily come to depend on. Sometimes it is hard to believe that till just about a few decades ago, completing a project meant take the time out to go to a library, armed with a notebook and all kinds of drawing and writing materials, and going through piles of books to compile decent amount of information, which would then go into a project. Gone are the days when an assignment meant creating working models. Everybody has become tech-savvy, so that now we would rather prefer animation to working models, power-point presentations to actual flow-charts. As with everything in the world, this has several pros and cons (personally, more cons, I think). However, one inevitable outcome of all this is - everybody is on the internet. However, the immediate concern that arises in the mind is, everything on the internet is accessible to everyone! How then, can you protect your child and ensure his/her safety online?

5 Point Plan to Ensure Your Child's Online Safety

Here are five very basic and easy to implement ways in which you can protect your child from bad influences on the internet.

Internet Hours

Fix up a time in the day when you child can access the internet. Do not let your child access the internet during any other times of the day. However, be fair when you are doing this. The child should not feel like you are bossing on him/her or are being unreasonable or rude. It should be a fair game. The main reason behind this is - if you child develops a rebellious attitude, he/she is going to want to break the rules! This may in turn, fuel a situation to arise where things go out of control. Also, decide on a time when you will be in the house. You need not pull up a chair and sit behind your child and monitor each and every page he/she visits. But the fact that you are around will prevent your child from being naughty. Also insist on leaving the door to your child's room ajar, if not completely open. Do not let him/her bolt the doors from inside the room.

 Passwords

Make sure you computer is well protected. Put passwords on programs that you think are harmful for your child. You can even store games within password protected folders. Make sure you create a secure password. Passwords are a good way to keep your children out of stuff that you think is inappropriate for them. However, if you do create a password, make sure you know how to recover your data from an event of password hacking. Kids nowadays, know more than we can imagine! So keep yourself updated on the various hacking software, and make sure your child does not lay hands on any of them.

 Parental Control

Block access to all those websites that may contain content - including the actual content on the website as well as advertisements of products and services - that you think is inappropriate for your child. Also, never edit the settings when you want to use the computer. You can access all the websites you want in other ways. Create different user profiles for the computer with different internet settings. Again, remember to protect the user profiles with suitable password.

 Limit Purchases

Online shopping makes life a lot easy - with books, clothes and all sorts of things available online. You may want to purchase a few goods for your kids; a limited edition book, or a special edition CD or DVD of a movie, etc. Make all these purchases yourself. Do not reveal your PayPal details and credit card details to your kids. You will hence be able to keep a tab on what your kids buy online. Allowing you child to make individual purchases online could be twice as dangerous. Firstly, you do not know what they are purchasing and whether it is alright for them to purchase it or not. Second, you will not have any control over how much money your child spends online! This will include membership fees to websites, actual purchases, and a lot of other things.

Inculcate Responsibility

The best way to restrict your kids online is to make them responsible and to make them understand WHY they should not do certain things online. Gain their confidence. Do not simply lay down rules - make them understand why you are doing what you are doing. Kids nowadays, belong to the Y Generation - they always want to know why. This is not a part of being audacious or rebellious. This is just the way kids are coming to be now. But most of the times, parents do not know how to deal with this constant questioning, and this is when they bring in the whole authority issue. Understand this, and act accordingly.

I believe this has given you some hope about your child's safety online. Educating yourself and your kids about internet safety should be the top most thing on your list when you are introducing the world wide web to your child. Making your child grow up to be a responsible individual of the society will take care of most problems regarding safety in all sense - even on the internet. Do not use force - it will only drive your child further in the direction of misbehaving and overthrowing your authority. Instead, stress more on using logic and convince your kids about your points of view. All the best!

Internet and its Uses in Our Daily Life

Internet and its Uses in Our Daily Life

The impact of the Internet on our life is obvious and cannot be sidelined. It has use in almost each and every domain of business. The popular uses of the Internet have been discussed in detail in the following article.

How difficult our life would have been if there was no Internet. Think about it. To find some information, we all have acquired the habit of 'Googling' it on the web; within a few seconds the screen displays the desired information. You want to book tickets for a movie night with friends, you can book them at the click of a button, again through the Internet media. Many of us cannot imagine life without the social networking sites. The Internet has indeed made the world a small place and living life easier. And the rapid progress of technology has made it possible to access the Internet from anywhere through plenty of means. It has such a plethora of uses in our daily life that we use it for one purpose or the other almost daily. The routine uses and some positive effects of the Internet in various sectors have been discussed in detail below.

The Uses of the Internet in Daily Life

For Information:

For a layman, Internet is nothing but a collection of websites. And there are innumerable websites that serve a variety of purposes. There are news websites, social networking websites, websites that provide information and websites of various businesses and organizations. These websites are updated frequently to provide information to the user. You can find everything of anything on the web just by browsing through a few websites. You can also use emails, blogs, IM chat, social networking websites and communication software for sharing your information with the world. The Internet has made access to information cheaper and easier and this is its most common use in daily life.

Business & Advertising:

Almost all the businesses these days have websites, through which they promote and advertise themselves. This medium these days has been used extensively for promotional campaigns. Not only promoting your business but you can also effectively advertise your event or any cause on this medium. There are many businesses that depend on the Internet for their survival like stocks and call centers, to name a few. It has promoted faster access to necessary information which strengthens the business processes.

Education:

Internet also is a popular medium used by students. Many students use it for educational purposes, like for finding study material or for applying to some college or university. It is now a virtual world and all the applications are done online through the website of the concerned educational body. Students use websites for these and many other purposes like checking exam results, exam schedule, application procedure to any course, etc. Students also take the help of the Internet for project help and for obtaining the required images. Everything on the Internet is a click away from us.

Communication & Networking:

The use of the Internet for networking is very popular among all age groups. There are many good social networking websites that are used by people for communication. These websites provide an effective and easy platform that facilitates interaction. In daily life, it is widely used as a means of communication through means like networking websites, chat websites, blogs, etc. Through these websites you can also share your photographs with your near and dear ones. The Internet is widely used by job seekers for job applications and job searching. Facilities like video conferencing has made it possible to conduct interviews online.

Entertainment:

Another popular use of the Internet in daily life is for entertainment. Facilities like listening to online music, downloading music and movies provides a platform for entertainment. There are plenty of other ways through which you can entertain yourselves on the Internet. You can play online games, view sports matches, or watch videos of your choice. It is a trusted means of entertainment for these kinds of purposes and is extensively used for the same.

Other Popular Uses:

It is popularly used for banking. Almost all the banking transactions are possible through this medium. Apart from these common uses, it can also be used for shopping. Online shopping is very popular among masses and on the Internet you can buy any thing and get it delivered at home. There are also many people who use it to work from home.

These were some of the chief common uses of the Internet in our daily life. It is a boon for us and has made our life easy by facilitating so many uses. But it is also prone to attacks of many kinds that threaten safety over the Internet. To protect the Internet from these attacks we should all use it carefully and also protect ourselves from various privacy intrusions. The Internet as a tool for communication will always remain its most powerful use. The array of uses of the Internet is vast and with the progress of technology new uses will get added to the list of uses continuously.

latest vacancy/jobs click here

www.orbittutorials.com provide jobs from all newspapers in pakistan like: All Paper Jobs, Paper PK Jobs, Jang newspaper jobs, Dawan newspaper jobs, express newspaper jobs and nawaiwaqt newspaper jobs. The basic reason of this site is to provide daily published jobs from all newspaper at one place to all job seekers. 

http://orbittutorials.com/jobs/index.html

Gold forecast to beat $2,000 in the next year 2012-2015

Gold forecast to beat $2,000 in the next year

The gold market is revving up to reach new record highs in excess of $2,000 an ounce in the next year, according to the average forecast of bankers, traders and investors at the gold industry’s largest annual gathering.

The bullish prediction, if correct, suggests that the gold bull market remains intact, despite the price of the metal having already gained almost 30 per cent this year and 600 per cent over the past decade.

Central banks return as gold buyers

The widespread optimism at the London Bullion Market Association conference in Montreal, the largest gathering of the gold industry, comes as the gold market has been transformed from a backwater dominated by jewellery demand to one of the hottest investment assets.

The conference, which enjoyed a record attendence in excess of 500, predicted that gold would be trading at $2,019 a troy ounce at the time of next year’s meeting in November 2012. That would mark a fresh nominal record for gold, although it is still below the inflation-adjusted peak touched in 1980, which translates to more than $2,400 in today’s money.

The delegates at the LBMA conference have a strong record of predicting the trajectory of the gold price, although their forecasts have traditionally been overcautious. Last year, with gold trading at $1,298 an ounce, the conference predicted a price of $1,450. On Tuesday, bullion was trading at $1,805.70, down from a record peak of $1,920 in early September.

The forecasts, if accurate, bode well for hedge fund managers such as John Paulson of Paulson & Co and David Einhorn of Greenlight Capital, who bought gold in the financial crisis as a means of betting that governments and central banks would fail to safeguard their economies from the market turmoil.

Many hedge fund investors believe a sharp appreciation in the gold price is likely as they expect the eurozone debt crisis to deepen.

Despite the optimistic price predictions, traders were wary of growing volatility in the gold market, which has experienced some of the sharpest swings on record in recent weeks. Asked whether the market was in a bubble, 39 per cent of the traditionally bullish audience replied that it was. A growing number expect the market to accelerate in the next year or two and peak above $2,500.

“We expect to see $2,500 some time in the next 12 months,” said Som Seif, chief executive of Claymore Investments, a Canadian asset manager.

The most bullish forecast came from Pierre Lassonde, chairman of Franco-Nevada, who predicted that gold would reach parity with the Dow Jones Industrial Average index, at present trading at 11,400, within the next four to six years. “This bull market is far from over,” said Mr Lassonde, whose predictions are optimistic even by the standards of market bulls.

A drop below $1,600 an ounce could mark the end of the rally for the next few months, traders believe – although many expect demand from Asian investors and central banks to prop up prices above that level.

Mr Lassonde said: “I think there’s going to be a strong correction at some point and it’s going to set up the last phase that will take the market to numbers that few people can imagine.”

The bullish sentiment has been underpinned by the strength of demand for coins and small bars from retail investors from Germany to China.

Steven Nathan, marketing director at the Rand Refinery in South Africa, said that sales of the popular gold krugerrand coin were at a record level: “Demand is insatiable. It’s the strongest period ever right now.”

A comparable surge in demand was reported by other mints, refiners and coin dealers. “I just can’t see the price coming down,” said one senior precious metals banker. “Physical demand is incredibly strong.”

It may be tempting to push the analysis even further and question if gold is a safe haven from market volatility and fears, or it’s just a popular buy among Chinese and Indians worried about inflation. 

The reasoning for this is that gold’s rally this year has been driven primarily by retail investors in China and India, as well as central bank buying. 

And it may well be Chinese and Indian consumers are enough to rescue gold from falling off the same cliff that oil did after the 2008 crude bubble popped in spectacular fashion in the last global financial crisis. 

Of course, there has been more to gold’s rally in 2011 than Asian buyers with some additional demand from so-called sophisticated investors in the form of paper gold futures and exchange-traded funds, but this pales when compared to the buying in the form of jewellery and bars and coins.

Gold surged 35 percent from the start of the year to the Sept 6 peak, before slumping as the dollar gained when investors sought the ultimate safety of US Treasuries amid fears of a new global recession. 

Gold has dropped some 14 percent so far this September, its worst monthly performance in almost three years. Of course, part of this is just the recent strength of the US dollar. In euro terms, gold is down about 1.6 percent since its recent peak on Sept.9 and in Australian dollar terms it’s down 6 percent since the recent peak on Aug 22. 

Bullish gold bets on COMEX were cut by almost 14 percent to 160,322 contracts last week as hedge funds and other speculators rushed for the exits, their haste being aided by an increase in the margin requirements to hold gold lots. 

The ETFs fared better, with the largest, the SPDR Gold Trust, remaining relatively stable with 1,252 tonnes of the yellow metal at the end of last week. 

This is down from the Aug. 8 peak of 1,309 tonnes and from the 1,280 that the fund started the year holding. 

The COMEX Gold Trust, which has been taking market share from the SPDR, ended last week with about 168 tonnes of gold, up from 117 tonnes at the start of the year. 

WHAT IS Wireless Fidelity Wi-Fi

Wireless Fidelity Wi-Fi

A typical Wi-Fi setup contains one or more Access Points (APs) and one or more clients. An AP broadcasts its SSID (Service Set Identifier, "Network name") via packets that are called beacons, which are usually broadcast every 100 ms. The beacons are transmitted at 1 Mbit/s, and are of relatively short duration and therefore do not have a significant effect on performance. Since 1 Mbit/s is the lowest rate of Wi-Fi it assures that the client who receives the beacon can communicate at least 1 Mbit/s. Based on the settings (e.g. the SSID), the client may decide whether to connect to an AP. If two APs of the same SSID are in range of the client, the client firmware might use signal strength to decide which of the two APs to make a connection to.

The Wi-Fi standard leaves connection criteria and roaming totally open to the client. This is a strength of Wi-Fi, but also means that one wireless adapter may perform substantially better than the other. Since Wi-Fi transmits in the air, it has the same properties as a non-switched ethernet network.

 

Wi-Fi Devices

Wireless Access Point (WAP)

A wireless access point (AP) connects a group of wireless stations to an adjacent wired local area network (LAN). An access point is similar to an ethernet hub or switch, but instead of relaying LAN data only to other LAN stations, an access point can relay wireless data to all other compatible wireless devices as well as to a single (usually) connected LAN device, in most cases an ethernet hub or switch, allowing wireless devices to communicate with any other device on the LAN.

 

Wireless Routers

A wireless router integrates a wireless access point with an IP router and an ethernet switch . The integrated switch connects the integrated access point and the integrated ethernet router internally, and allows for external wired ethernet LAN devices to be connected as well as a (usually) single WAN device such as cable modem or DSL modem . A wireless router advantageously allows all three devices (mainly the access point and router) to be configured through one central configuration utility, usually through an integrated web server .

Wireless Ethernet Bridge

A wireless Ethernet bridge connects a wired network to a wireless network. This is different from an access point in the sense that an access point connects wireless devices to a wired network at the data-link layer . Two wireless bridges may be used to connect two wired networks over a wireless link, useful in situations where a wired connection may be unavailable, such as between two separate homes.

 

Advantages of Wi-Fi

• Allows LANs to be deployed without cabling, typically reducing the costs of network deployment and expansion. Spaces where cables cannot be run, such as outdoor areas and historical buildings, can host wireless LANs.

• Wi-Fi silicon pricing continues to come down, making Wi-Fi a very economical networking option and driving inclusion of Wi-Fi in an ever-widening array of devices.

• Wi-Fi products are widely available in the market. Different brands of access points and client network interfaces are interoperable at a basic level of service. Products designated as Wi-Fi CERTIFIED by the Wi-Fi Alliance are interoperable and include WPA2 security.

• Wi-Fi networks support roaming, in which a mobile client station such as a laptop computer can move from one access point to another as the user moves around a building or area.

• Wi-Fi networks support roaming, in which a mobile client station such as a laptop computer can move from one access point to another as the user moves around a building or area.

• Wi-Fi is a global set of standards. Unlike cellular carriers, the same Wi-Fi client works in different countries around the world.

 

Disadvantages of Wi-Fi

• Wi-Fi can be interrupted by other devices, notably 2.4 GHz cordless phones and microwave ovens.

• Power consumption is fairly high compared to some other standards, making battery life and heat a concern.

• The most common wireless encryption standard, Wired Equivalent Privacy or WEP, has been shown to be breakable even when correctly configured.

• Wi-Fi Access Points typically default to an open ( encryption -free) mode. Novice users benefit from a zero configuration device that works out of the box but might not intend to provide open wireless access to their LAN.

• Wi-Fi networks have limited range. A typical Wi-Fi home router using 802.11b or 802.11g with a stock antenna might have a range of 45 m (150 ft) indoors and 90 m (300 ft) outdoors. Range also varies with frequency band, as Wi-Fi is no exception to the physics of radio wave propagation. Wi-Fi in the 2.4 GHz frequency block has better range than Wi-Fi in the 5 GHz frequency block, and less range than the oldest Wi-Fi (and pre-Wi-Fi) 900 MHz block. Outdoor range with improved antennas can be several kilometres or more with line-of-sight.

• Wi-Fi networks can be monitored and used to read and copy data (including personal information) transmitted over the network when no encryption such as VPN is used. 

HOW TO BLOCKED PORN SITES WITHOUT ANY SOFTWARE

How to block websites

Well many of you wants you wants to block any webiste from your computer either for children saftey or for blocking any software from getting black-listed, then here are simple and few steps to do it:Before continuing let me tell how it works, well Microsoft Windows uses HOSTS file located in [%systemdrive%/windows/system32/drivers/etc] to maintain a personal list of web addresses. Any time a request is made for a URL, the HOSTS file will be checked first. If a corresponding address is found you will be directed to that IP without first consulting a DNS Server. The original intent of this file was to define where sites exist; we will use it in this context to define where they don’t exist.

STEPS:

Open “Run” from the start menu (or press WinKey + r). Just copy paste the following path and hit ENTER.

Alternately, go to C:\Windows\System32\Drivers\Etc and find the file “hosts”. Open that file in Notepad.

Type [C:WINDOWSsystem32driversetc] in your adress bar and press enter key, you will be directed to home directory of HOSTS file

Right Click and open the “hosts file” with notepad. By default your host file will look like the screen-shot below.

Now in the screenshot below, 192.168.15.1 is the default address of my router, when the user/application will try to access the blocked site, it will be redirected to this IP rather than going to the original website. Note that IP [192.168.15.1] is followed by the name of the website you want to block. Here i blocked the official website of Internet Download Manager, so that IDM may not able to blacklist my key. [Obviously its valid if you are using a pirated fake key].

Well here you go, you can add as many websited you want to block in the list like above.

Save the file and exit.

So, here you go. Restart your browser if it is opened and changes will take place immediately.

The good thing is that no message, no pop ups nothing will be displayed when someone tries to open a blocked website. Your browser will just fail to open those websites without any error messages.

General keyboard shortcuts

CTRL+C                     (Copy)

CTRL+X                     (Cut)

CTRL+V                     (Paste)

CTRL+Z                     (Undo)

DELETE                     (Delete)

SHIFT+DELETE       (Delete the selected item permanently without placing the item in                                       the Recycle Bin)

CTRL                          while dragging an item (Copy the selected item)

CTRL+SHIFT             while dragging an item (Create a shortcut to the selected item)

F2 key                         (Rename the selected item)

CTRL+RIGHT ARROW (Move the insertion point to the beginning of the next word)

CTRL+LEFT ARROW (Move the insertion point to the beginning of the previous word)

CTRL+DOWN ARROW (Move the insertion point to the beginning of the next paragraph)

CTRL+UP ARROW (Move the insertion point to the beginning of the previous paragraph)

CTRL+SHIFT with any of the arrow keys (Highlight a block of text)

SHIFT with any of the arrow keys (Select more than one item in a window or on the desktop, or select text in a document)

CTRL+A (Select all)

F3 key (Search for a file or a folder)

ALT+ENTER (View the properties for the selected item)

ALT+F4 (Close the active item, or quit the active program)

ALT+ENTER (Display the properties of the selected object)

ALT+SPACEBAR (Open the shortcut menu for the active window)

CTRL+F4 (Close the active document)

ALT+TAB (Switch between the open items)

ALT+ESC (Cycle through items in the order that they had been opened)

F6 key (Cycle through the screen elements in a window or on the desktop)

F4 key (Display the Address bar list in My Computer or Windows Explorer)

SHIFT+F10 (Display the shortcut menu for the selected item)

ALT+SPACEBAR (Display the System menu for the active window)

CTRL+ESC (Display the Start menu)

ALT+Underlined letter in a menu name (Display the corresponding menu)

Underlined letter in a command name on an open menu (Perform the corresponding command)

F10 key (Activate the menu bar in the active program)

RIGHT ARROW (Open the next menu to the right, or open a submenu)

LEFT ARROW (Open the next menu to the left, or close a submenu)

F5 key (Update the active window)

BACKSPACE (View the folder one level up in My Computer or Windows Explorer)

ESC (Cancel the current task)

SHIFT when you insert a CD-ROM into the CD-ROM drive (Prevent the CD-ROM from automatically playing)

CTRL+SHIFT+ESC (Open Task Manager)

Dialog box keyboard shortcuts

If you press SHIFT+F8 in extended selection list boxes, you enable extended selection mode. In this mode, you can use an arrow key to move a cursor without changing the selection. You can press CTRL+SPACEBAR or SHIFT+SPACEBAR to adjust the selection. To cancel extended selection mode, press SHIFT+F8 again. Extended selection mode cancels itself when you move the focus to another control.

CTRL+TAB (Move forward through the tabs)

CTRL+SHIFT+TAB (Move backward through the tabs)

TAB (Move forward through the options)

SHIFT+TAB (Move backward through the options)

ALT+Underlined letter (Perform the corresponding command or select the corresponding option)

ENTER (Perform the command for the active option or button)

SPACEBAR (Select or clear the check box if the active option is a check box)

Arrow keys (Select a button if the active option is a group of option buttons)

F1 key (Display Help)

F4 key (Display the items in the active list)

BACKSPACE (Open a folder one level up if a folder is selected in the Save As or Open dialog box)

Microsoft natural keyboard shortcuts

Windows Logo                       (Display or hide the Start menu)

Windows Logo+BREAK       (Display the System Properties dialog box)

Windows Logo+D                  (Display the desktop)

Windows Logo+M                 (Minimize all of the windows)

Windows Logo+SHIFT+M    (Restore the minimized windows)

Windows Logo+E                  (Open My Computer)

Windows Logo+F                   (Search for a file or a folder)

CTRL+Windows Logo+F      (Search for computers)

Windows Logo+F1                 (Display Windows Help)

Windows Logo+ L                 (Lock the keyboard)

Windows Logo+R                  (Open the Run dialog box)

Windows Logo+U                  (Open Utility Manager)

Accessibility keyboard shortcuts

Right SHIFT for eight seconds (Switch FilterKeys either on or off)

Left ALT+left SHIFT+PRINT SCREEN (Switch High Contrast either on or off)

Left ALT+left SHIFT+NUM LOCK (Switch the MouseKeys either on or off)

SHIFT five times (Switch the StickyKeys either on or off)

NUM LOCK for five seconds (Switch the ToggleKeys either on or off)

Windows Logo +U (Open Utility Manager)

Windows Explorer keyboard shortcuts

END (Display the bottom of the active window)

HOME (Display the top of the active window)

NUM LOCK+Asterisk sign (*) (Display all of the subfolders that are under the selected folder)

NUM LOCK+Plus sign (+) (Display the contents of the selected folder)

NUM LOCK+Minus sign (-) (Collapse the selected folder)

LEFT ARROW (Collapse the current selection if it is expanded, or select the parent folder)

RIGHT ARROW (Display the current selection if it is collapsed, or select the first subfolder)

Shortcut keys for Character Map

 After you double-click a character on the grid of characters, you can move through the grid by using the keyboard shortcuts:

RIGHT ARROW (Move to the right or to the beginning of the next line)

LEFT ARROW (Move to the left or to the end of the previous line)

UP ARROW (Move up one row)

DOWN ARROW (Move down one row)

PAGE UP (Move up one screen at a time)

PAGE DOWN (Move down one screen at a time)

HOME (Move to the beginning of the line)

END (Move to the end of the line)

CTRL+HOME (Move to the first character)

CTRL+END (Move to the last character)

SPACEBAR (Switch between Enlarged and Normal mode when a character is selected)

COMPUTER SCIENCE ARTICLES AND SOLUTION

Top 10 Ways to Speed Up Your Computer’s Boot Time

If there's one thing everyone dreads, it's rebooting their computer. It may only take a minute or two, but it can seem like forever. Here are our top 10 tweaks that'll make your computer boot a little faster.

This is a pretty controversial topic, as there are a lot of startup-tweaking myths out there. So, we took to the streets (of the internet) and searched for as many easy, well-supported tips as we could find. There may be others, some of which are controversial, but these 10 things are almost sure to get you a faster-booting machine.

10. Tweak Your BIOS

When you first set up your computer, your BIOS is set up to make things a bit more convenient for you, but once you're all set up, those things can be disabled. If you hold the DEL key when you start up your computer (or whatever key your BIOS tells you to enter setup), you can turn on the "Quick Boot" option and move your hard disk to the top of the boot priority list. The Quick Boot setting will turn off the tests your computer runs when it first turns on, and the boot priority tweak will tell your computer not to look for CDs, thumb drives, or other media when it first starts, which will get you booted into your OS quicker. If you ever need to boot from CD though, you'll have to go back into the BIOS and change this again before you do.

9. Clean Out Programs that Launch at Startup

One of the most tried and true ways to speed up your boot process is to keep unnecessary programs from starting up with your computer. You can do this by running msconfig from the Start Menu's search box, and going to the Startup tab. This applications list will tell you what each of those applications does, so you know which ones you can disable and which ones you don't want to. Previously mentioned Soluto is also a fantastic way to clean up these programs, and these days it's got a bunch of other handy features that make it worth a download.

8. Delay Windows Services That Run at Startup

Many people argue that disabling Services from msconfig will also speed up your boot time, but we've found that this is more problematic than anything. However, you can delay certain startup services so that your computer boots quickly and then worries about them later—after all, you don't need all those services the minute you start up your machine.

7. Change Your Boot Menu's Timeout Values

If you're dual-booting your machine, then your boot menu probably has a "timeout value", meaning the amount of time it waits for you to make a selection before it just boots into the default OS. On Windows, this timeout value is often 30 seconds, which is a long time to wait if you aren't looking directly at your screen. To change this timeout value, head to msconfig and click on the BOOT.INI tab, and change the number in the timeout box to something lower. If you're dual-booting with Linux, you're probably running the GRUB boot menu, and you can change the timeout on that too.

6. Disable Unused Hardware

Your computer loads a lot of drivers when it first starts up, some of which you might not even use. Head into the Device Manager from the Start Menu's search box, and look for anything you aren't using—Bluetooth controllers, modems, and virtual Wi-Fi adapters are common culprits. Right-click on the entry you want to disable and hit "Disable". Remember to only do this with things you don't actually use—if you use Wireless Hosted Networks, you'll need to keep those virtual Wi-Fi adapters enabled. It's also worth mentioning here that keeping all your drivers up to date will help this portion of the startup time, too (which you can do with the help of a program like previously mentioned Device Doctor).

5. Keep Your Antivirus Running and Up to Date

This should go without saying, but we'll say it anyway: install some antivirus software, keep it up to date, and run a regular scan. This is more of a preventative measure than an actual boot-speeding tip, but if you ever do get malware, it's sure to slow your computer's boot time. With a good antivirus around like Microsoft Security Essentials, you'll be more protected against that happening. Don't like MSE? There are some great ones out there too, so there's no reason not to have one around.

4. Remove Unnecessary Fonts

Since the dawn of time, Windows has loaded fonts at startup and slowed down the boot time. This is less of a problem than it used to be, but it can still slow you down a bit. Windows 7 loads over 200 fonts at startup; even more if you've installed Microsoft Office. Chances are, you use very few of those fonts, so you can hide them to speed up that process. In Windows 7, open up the Fonts folder from the Start Menu's search box, and check off all the fonts you don't need. Then click the "Hide" button in the toolbar. This way, if you ever want them, you can bring them back, but Windows won't load them at startup. Note that just removing a few fonts probably isn't going to make a noticeable difference—you'll probably need to get rid of a few hundred. That said, you might have hundreds more fonts installed than you realized, so that isn't as ridiculous as it sounds.

3. Upgrade Your RAM

Installing more RAM has always been an effective way of speeding up your computer, and that hasn't changed. RAM is pretty cheap these days, so if you're running low, there's no reason not to stock up and make your computer run a little smoother. We've gone over how to replace it in both a desktop and a laptop, and even for the inexperienced, it's a pretty simple procedure.

2. Give Your Computer a Static IP

When you first start up your computer, it spends a significant amount of time asking the network for an IP address. You can get rid of this process altogether by giving your computer a static IP address that never changes. Not only does this make your network easier to manage (since each computer will always have the same IP address), but it can shave a bit more time off your startup. Here's how to do it in different versions of Windows.

1. Install a Solid State Drive

These days, your hard drive is probably the biggest bottleneck in your machine. One of the best upgrades you can make to your computer is to install a solid state drive, which has super-fast read times that can speed up your startup considerably. They're certainly not a cheap upgrade, nor are they without their own maintenance requirements, but if you want to speed up your computer and its boot time, you can't go wrong by installing an SSD. The difference will be shocking.