Spyware Removal - 10/17/2006

Hidden downloads can slow your computer and blizzard you with pop-ups

Setting Up a Wireless LAN - 04/02/2007

How to setup a wireless LAN network in your office or home

Securing Your Wireless LAN - 10/06/2006

Password-protect your wireless LAN from intruders

Spyware Removal - 09/18/2007

From a user's point of view, it is simpler to have one anti-malware software that handles viruses, adware, spyware, etc. But simplicity doesn't necessarily give all consumers the choices they want. It's a bit like have an integrated stereo system and different components. So while I think we're moving towards integrated malware protection software as the norm, there is a valid technical distinction between the different kinds of threats.

Spyware Removal - 01/19/2007

Some of it has to do with the architecture of Internet Explorer, though I am not certain if IE 7 has more protections against it. Microsoft in the past had placed more emphasis on features such as allowing developers and users to write macros and provide other hooks in their application including IE. Now Microsoft has been pushed to make security the major priority. The other reason Microsoft products, in general, are more the target of spyware, adware, viruses, and security attacks is because of its popularity. Still it's a combination of both flaws in their software and the fact they are the biggest target.

Securing Your Wireless LAN - 12/05/2006

Having stayed at several lodging environments in the past year, I had the impression that they had installed some special front-end software to handle the authentication. By default, you would get to a web page for the motel or hotel, and then you had to enter the login information to access the rest of the Internet. In some cases, there was a single password that perhaps changed daily or frequently. In other cases, if I remember correctly, each room was assigned its own password Ithat probably changed after the guest left).

Setting Up a Wireless LAN - 12/05/2006

You can plug a wireless router into a hub (or router or switch) to allow wireless devices to access your wired network. If you don’t manually assign IP addresses to every device, you have a DHCP server running that assigns addresses dynamically to devices on your network. Most small business LANs also have a single IP address that their ISP provides and use NAT (Network Address Translation) so that each device is assigned a local network address that’s not accessible from outside your network. Most often DHCP is provided in your primary router or the ISP's modem. If you just want the wireless devices to act the same as wired devices, then you want to make sure you DHCP and NAT aren’t enabled. Edit your wireless router’s configuration to disable these Otherwise, everything connecting wireless will be on a subnet which you probably don’t want. If you already have DHCP and NAT running on your network, you could also use a WAP (Wireless Access Point) that lacks DHCP and NAT. However, it is not much difference in price nowadays. As I describe next, one advantage of having a wireless router is that it could act as a backup router for your wired network. It is possible to use your wireless router as the primary router and DHCP and NAT servers. I have done it both ways. For example, you can connect a wireless router to your DSL or cable modem, and then connect a hub, router or switch to the wireless router to extend your network.

Spyware Removal - 10/26/2006

Thanks Scott for the useful additional comments.