How to over-clock your computer

Are you looking to get more performance out of your computer? Over-clocking is the solution. Over-clocking basically means to raise the rate at which your computer calculates certain information, thus increasing the performance of your machine. However, Over-Clocking can have its consequences and improper settings may damage your system, and in the worst case, a complete system failure.

While over-clocking was once a risky art reserved for those with expert knowledge of computing, today it has become a mainstream tool enabling the average user to get more performance out of their computer.

The first thing to note is that not all computers can overclock. Over-clocking will require a motherboard (as the name suggests, this is the main board on the computer onto which other components are placed such as the graphics card, processor and computer memory) which allows for it.

The simplest way to know if you're able to over-clock is to enter your BIOS and search for an option that enables you to change either the CPU clock or the CPU ratio. If you cannot find these options then you are not able to over-clock your computer using the motherboard that you currently have. Motherboards that support this facility will often explicitly state this in their advertising, but as a general rule you should be looking at motherboards in excess of $100 if you are really interested in this option, as pretty much all motherboards in excess of this price will have this option available.

Step by Step Instruction to Over-Clock your computer

Over-clocking the processor is performed in the BIOS (Basic Input/output System) of the computer, which is basically the firmware by which the motherboard controls the components on the computer. By modifying settings in the BIOS, we can adjust parameters which control the speed at which components on the motherboard operate namely the RAM and the processor.

In order to access the BIOS, we will first need to turn off the computer. Restart the computer and immediately tap the 'delete' key on your keyboard several times (note that for some motherboards this will often be a different key, but the key to access the BIOS will be explicitly displayed upon while starting the computer).

After a short period the computer will open up the BIOS interface, and you will be greeted by a blue screen with several options (don't worry, this isn't one of the nasty Blue Screens of Death you may have heard about!).

As there are many different motherboards on the market, the options will vary, but will all be fairly self-explanatory.

Then look for an 'Advanced' section, or 'Tweaker' menu where you can find the CPU clock speed or the clock ratio.

The overall CPU speed (for example, 3 GHz) is calculated by this relationship - the clock speed x the clock ratio. So to adjust to overall speed of the processor we want to change one of these settings.

Usually, the best option is to adjust the clock ratio, but many processors do not allow for this option. In any case, the important thing is to increase these options in SMALL increments at a time and test the stability with a program such as Prime 95 - which will show up instabilities in the functioning of the processor. If any errors appear as a result of over-clocking - don't worry, this is only temporary and will revert if the clock speed is reduced again or the voltage supply to the processor is increased, something which we will now look at. Note that before you exit the BIOS, save your settings by pressing F10 and selecting save.

After increasing the clock speed/clock ratio of the processor several times in small increments, once Prime 95 shows a fault, we want to modify the voltage of the processor, as instabilities often occur as a result of insufficient voltage supply to accommodate the overall speed of the processor (as the overall speed increases, so too does the voltage requirement).

In order to do this, we want to head back into our BIOS by restarting the computer and tapping delete (or other such appropriate key) and again finding the advanced tab/tweaking menu. We are now looking for a tab suggestive of voltage settings. Once you find it, select the VCore (or CPU Core Voltage or similar) option and increase this in a TINY increment, save your settings pressing F10 and again load up Prime 95 in Windows and stress test the CPU again looking for abnormalities. If Prime 95 finds any, head back into the BIOS and apply a slightly increased voltage and repeat. If Prime 95 does not find any problems, you can increase the CPU speed again and repeat the whole process as required. 

If your computer fails to start after you've saved your settings in the BIOS screen, it will usually revert back to stock settings automatically with current motherboard technology, HOWEVER if it does not you should open up your computer case and locate the battery (which is used to enable the motherboard to save the settings you put in) for 15 minutes and then place it back in. An example is pictured below:

To recap:

1. Restart your computer and tap delete (or other relevant key as displayed upon start-up) repeatedly to enter the BIOS screen.

2. Find the 'advanced' or 'tweaking' section of your motherboard.

3. Increase either the CPU clock or CPU ratio in a small increment.

4. Save and restart your machine and load up into Windows.

5. Run the program Prime 95 while using Core Temp at the same time to make sure the temperature of the processor does not exceed 80-90c.

6. If errors appear, head back into your BIOS, find the advanced/tweaking section once more and find the VCore or CPU Core Voltage or similar and increase it slightly. Test again. If no errors appear repeat steps 1-6. When you reach the limit and cannot go any further despite how much more voltage you apply, reduce the CPU clock/CPU ratio slightly and you're done!

7. If your computer fails to start after you've saved your settings in the BIOS screen, it will usually revert back to stock settings automatically with current motherboard technology, HOWEVER if it does not you should open up your computer case and locate the battery (which is used to enable the motherboard to save the settings you put in) for 15 minutes and then place it back in.

Congratulations! You have successfully over clocked your CPU!

Pros and Cons to over-clocking:

Pros:

1. Enables you to get the maximum performance out of your computer.

2. Improves productivity in work environments.

3. Improves performance in games, often allowing you to play games you may previously have not been able to play on your computer.

Cons:

1. Can be time consuming!

Note: Before you start, you must understand about Over-clocking and is to be done with your own risk. We will not be responsible for any damage caused.

You will want to run Prime 95 (http://files.extremeoverclocking.com/file.php?f=103) for at least an hour and in conjunction with CoreTemp (http://www.alcpu.com/CoreTemp/) (a program which monitors the temperature of the processor), the reason being that as CPU speed/voltage increases, so too does the temperature of the processor, and this can be harmful if it exceeds manufacturer specifications (usually about 80-90C while running a program like Prime 95) and actually cause instabilities in itself. This is where better cooling comes in handy, and where those big water-cooling systems play their role!

Written by Michael Kelly for www.phoenixmachines.co.uk

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How to fix the cursor jumping problem with Laptop?

Did you come across the problem where mouse cursor automatically jumps to a different location when you type some text?  It doesn’t matter where you are typing, you might be typing in word or any other documents. If you search about this problem on internet, you can find there are many people facing the same problem while using a laptop with touchpad.  

In the first place, most of the users may think that their hands are touching the touchpad accidentally when they type texts in document but it is not. If you look at the Internet, you can see that the problem is reported by laptop users, so it is definitely a problem with some laptops which they are using high sensitive touchpad.

I found a freeware which can cure this problem for you. It has been suggested by lots of people in many forums and community.

TouchFreeze is a freeware which disables the touchpad of your laptop when you start typing. Since the touchpad is disabled, the cursor will not jump automatically while typing. It is very simple to install and use as it does not required any other configuration. You can download it from http://code.google.com/p/touchfreeze/.

If you are facing this problem, just give a try this program and write your feedback on comments. Also you can share if there is any other solution for this annoying and irritating problem.

Note: There is some setting in touchpad driver program to adjust the sensitivity of touchpad. Before you try the third party application, just check those settings in your Laptop.

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Five years of Facebook [ Infographic ]

LONO Creative designed visual treat of the past 5 years of Facebook with consolidated their milestones, achievements and the process of their evolution. This infographic expresses the significant and rapid growth of Facebook. Just have a look at it...

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Dynamic Host Control Protocol (DHCP)

Introduction to DHCP

Dynamic Host Control Protocol (DHCP) is responsible for assign TCP/IP network configuration to workstation on a private network. The server on a network becomes DHCP server when you install and configure this protocol.  So once you installed the DHCP service, the server will be responsible for providing network configuration to the client machines or devices.

When you enable "Obtain an IP address automatically" in the TCP/IP configuration on the workstation, the DHCP Server takes over the responsibility of assigning the TCP/IP parameters. So you may think what if there is no DHCP server on a network?

A Windows-based computer that is configured to use DHCP can automatically assign IP address to itself  if a DHCP server is not available or does not exist on the network. It is called APIPA (Automatic Private IP Addressing). This feature can be used in small Local Area Network without any difficulty. The Internet Assigned Numbers Authority (IANA) has reserved 169.254.0.0-169.254.255.255 for Automatic Private IP Addressing. As a result, APIPA provides an address that is guaranteed not to conflict with routable addresses.

What is the need of DHCP server on a Private network?

The DHCP server is commonly used in a domain network and the overall purpose of DHCP is to reduce the amount of time required to configure and administer a network.

Assign static IP address is not difficult if your network is limited with 5 or 10 computers but imagine if you have network with more than 100 computers. It will be very hard and also there is chance to have address conflicts. Here DHCP prevents possible address conflicts and human errors. The DHCP Server automatically provides each LAN client with an IP address, a default gateway (router) and DNS server IP addresses

How Does DHCP Work?

Administrator creates pools of addresses and other configurations (Gateway, DNS server etc…) in sever and the DHCP server dynamically assigns IP address and these configurations to the client on demand with lease time. The server can reassign address after lease expires or client can extend lease time dynamically.

When DHCP client boot, it broadcasts DISCOVER packet on local subnet and DHCP servers send OFFER packet with lease information.  DHCP client selects lease and broadcasts REQUEST packet and selected DHCP server sends ACKNOLEDGMENT packet. This is how client obtain IP address other configuration from the DHCP server. This process simply called DORA.

Preparing for DHCP

Before you going to implement DHCP server, you must need to plan your network or else it will put you in trouble. While planning the network, make sure that the DHCP Server always remains accessible for the DHCP clients or provide a backup DHCP Server for times when the primary DHCP Server cannot be reached

You should be aware of below terms when you install DHCP server

Scope: - Scope is a valid range of IP addresses which are available for assignments or lease to client computers on a particular subnet. In a DHCP server, you configure a scope to determine the address pool of IPs which the server can provide to DHCP clients.

Super Scope: - A super scope is an administrative feature of DHCP servers that you can you can group multiple scopes as a single administrative entity. With this feature, a DHCP server can support DHCP clients on a single physical network segment (such as a single Ethernet LAN segment) where multiple logical IP networks are used. When more than one logical IP network is used on each physical subnet or network, such configurations are often called multinets.

Split scope: - This added feature in Windows server 2008 to provide a load balance or create a backup DHCP server.

Address Pool: - An address pool is a list of IP addresses which are available to the network clients. Each IP pool is defined by a starting IP address and an ending IP address. For an example starting IP address of 192.168.0.10 and the ending IP address of 192.168.0.20 represents 11 IP addresses.

Address Leases: - The DHCP lease is the length of time that the DHCP Server allows the client to use a particular assigned IP address.  When the client determines that it is about to expire, it sends a request to the server asking to increase the lease time. The server extends the lease if the DHCP policy allows it. If server not allowed or did not respond to the request, the client must restart the discovery process.

Reservations: Reservations are permanent lease assignments that are used to ensure that a specified client on a subnet can always use the same IP address.

Server options: - Options configured at the server level are applied to all DHCP clients, irrespective of the subnet on which they reside. Any options that you want to apply to all DHCP clients should be configured at this level, eg: if you wanted to configure all clients on the network to use the same DNS server, you would configure this option at server level.

Scope options: - If you want to configure DHCP options to apply only to DHCP clients on a specific subnet, you should configure the options at the scope level, eg: the IP address of the default gateway for a subnet should be configured at the scope level. 

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The Pros and Cons of Private Browsing

What we get up to on the internet is something that most people consider  fairly private matter, it’s a little like asking peoples what they like in the bedroom. For years now, we’ve gotten used to deleting our internet histories, browsing carefully and making sure that we don’t leave tabs open for other people to find (you know what I’m talking about), but you’ve probably heard about private browsing options in your browser and wondered what they actually do. Most modern browsers now offer a private browsing option for users to select, though their implementation varies from program to program, but what are the broad pros and cons?

Pro #1 - Your History Isn't Saved

This is a big one for many people - when you’re in a private browsing window, whatever website you go on will be forgotten as soon as you close the tab itself, meaning that anybody who goes snooping through your history will not see any activity you don’t want them to see. This can prove incredibly useful for buying Christmas, birthday or anniversary gifts without other people finding out what you’ve been looking at. It’s also pretty useful for a number of adult pursuits, which I shan't go into great length about, but needless to say, it can prove a lifesaver in keeping your privacy to yourself.

Pro #2 - You Don’t Need To Download Anything

Way back when, there used to be special browsers made with the specific purpose of not saving your search and browsing history. Sadly, having these installed on your computer looked suspect in and of itself, let alone what you were using it for. All modern browsers now come with this functionality built in, whether it’s called private browsing or incognito mode (Chrome), this mode is usually hidden from sight and won’t cause any suspicion.

Con #1 - You Can Still Be Tracked

Private browsing modes are useful for some things, but what they do not do is stop websites from tracking you across the internet. Many services do this, but it’s mostly advertisers who follow you around from site to site, gathering information which will help them display more relevant advertising to you. They do this through planting tracking cookies in your browser, but there are many anti-tracking extensions and add-ons you can download for your browser to stop this practice from taking place.

Con #2 - Extensions Can Gather Data

When launching into a private browsing session, make sure you’ve only got the extensions you want turned on because many of these extensions can gather data, or even make use of your history. A little diligence on the part of the user can stop this problem, but for many, it’s an easily forgotten piece of advice that goes in one ear and out the other.

So then, we’ve discovered that private browsing, whilst being a useful addition to a browser and a much safer way to look at sensitive websites, isn’t the impenetrable world of privacy that many would hope it is. As always, we recommend that you take care whilst on the internet, in private browsing or otherwise.

Author: Peter Brown writes for Gimmitech on the very latest and greatest gadgets.

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Best Free Cloud-Sharing Services

It can be very inconvenient when you need important documents or other files and are not able to access your computer. It can also be very inconvenient to transfer those files to an external hard drive or flash drive to be able to have access to them wherever you are. Cloud storage offers a solution that allows you to access your important files from any device without having to remember to transfer them to an external storage device.

There are many paid services available, but if you only need a little storage, there are several free services. Here are some of the best free cloud-sharing services available:

Dropbox :You can get 2 GB of storage for free to store your documents, images, videos, and more on this popular site. There is no limit to upload size, just the overall storage limit. If you want more storage, there are paid options. You can upload through the website, or you can download the desktop app for a quick drag and drop option for transferring files.

Box : Get up to 5 GB of storage with a 250 MB file upload limit with a free account on Box. Not only can you upload documents to the cloud, but you can also edit them through third-party apps, allowing you quick modification without having to download and then re-upload documents. Additional storage is available with a paid account.

Apple iCloud: If you have an Apple device -- such as an iPod, iPhone, or an iPad -- you can sync all your files across your devices with this cloud storage service. You get 5 GB of free space, and you can edit and manipulate documents in the cloud. However, the service is only good for Apple users

.

Google Drive: Like Apple, Google seems to have a product for everything. Google Drive gives you up to 15 GB of free storage (not counting documents that were converted from Google Docs). You can upload documents, spreadsheets and more to access from anywhere you have an Internet connection. The default file size limit is 10 GB

Microsoft OneDrive: Get a whopping 15 GB of free storage from this cloud storage service from Microsoft. You can upload through the web or the desktop application, and there are file limits of 300 MB or 2 GB, respectively. The service also supports Android and iOS, so you can use it on just about any smart phone.

Free cloud storage helps you to get access to your files and documents no matter where you are. These are some of the best cloud storage services, though there are many more available to fit your needs.

What is your favorite cloud-storage service? Share your picks in the comments!

Author: Carmen Brettel is a writer and manager for Studentgrants.org. In her spare time, Carmen enjoys gardening and volunteering at animal shelters.

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Free Quick Start Guide for Office 2013

Microsoft has released the final version of Office 2013 with various new features such as new Start Screen which is similar to Windows 8 Start Screen. It helps you in creating or managing your documents quickly and easily.

If you are new to Office 2013, here is something interesting for you. Microsoft has released Quick Start Guides for Office 2013 to whom finding difficult to use it. It is completely free for download and comes in PDF format.

These guides contain lots of useful tips which will help you in learning new stuff introduced in Office 2013 such as new Start Screen, Ribbon commands, etc. These guides also contain useful keyboard shortcuts to do things quickly and easily. You can download it from following link.

Visit http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/support/office-2013-quick-start-guides-HA103673669.aspx for Free QuickStart Guide for Office 2013

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Copy or Transfer file to the nearby computer using FileDrop

How do you transfer files to nearby computer? There are number of ways to do it like email, copy it a shared drop box folder or configure shared network connection etc… Here I would like share you an app which help you to implement file sharing with drag and drop facility.  

FileDrop is a free app which makes the file transfer process simple and fast. With FileDrop, transferring file is simply a matter of dragging and dropping.

How to use it? 

Download and install FileDrop (http://www.filedropme.com/) on the computers that you want to copy files between. Once installed, launch file dropper on both systems and drop the file on drop area from transfer end. At that time at receiver end a notification will appears and receiver should accept to start the file transferring. That’s it you are done!!!

Files that are accepted on the receiving PC are automatically saved to the Downloads.  The program is available for Windows and Mac OS X systems so that you can not only exchange files between two Windows PCs or two Macs, but also between Windows and Mac systems. 

Note: This app is work only if both computers are on same network. 

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