[How-To] Find Suspicious Activity In Your Gmail Account

Gmail is the popular mail service that is being used by huge number of users worldwide.Google (Gmail) always warns users about keeping a stronger password for their Google account, since if the hijacker manages to get your Gmail password, he can virtually access all the Google services associated to that account.

The point to make note here is that the mail services are the most hugely attacked services by the Hijackers/ hackers around the internet.So it is all our responsibility to ensure more safety to it by setting up a stronger password and not revealing this password anywhere else and to anyone else.

But sometimes, your account gets hijacked even without your notice and all your private data gets exposed.Well, they always say “Prevention is better than cure” which aptly sits here.

If your account gets hacked, there won’t be much details available so as to find who the real culprit is.However, Gmail team has come up with an option to display though which agent your account has been accessed (ex: browser), along with the country from where it was accessed (IP address with country name).

To see from where your Gmail account has been accessed in the recent few days, go to bottom of your Gmail inbox, where you can find “Last account activity” section.Click on the “Details” link to see IP addresses of the computers from where your account has been accessed.

gmail last access details

If Gmail finds any unusual/suspicious activity in your account (meaning that somebody is illegally accessing your account possibly accessing from a country where you have never been !!) it warns you change your password immediately (see the screenshots below).

gmail suspicious activity warning

So if you are at anytime concerned over your Gmail account being hijacked by someone, probably this is the first thing you should do : Open the recent activity details accessible from the bottom of your Gmail page and check out for any suspicious access of your account.

How many of you have seen “Suspicious activity” alerts in your Gmail ? Let us know through comments..

Adding Your Feed Subscriptions Windows 7 Feed Headlines Sidebar Gadget

If you are using either Windows 7 or Windows Vista, you might be knowing about a desktop sidebar widget called “Feed Headlines”.By default this gadget will show pre-loaded RSS feeds from various popular news and other websites like MSN, CNN etc.,.But have you ever thought about controlling these feeds adding your own feed subscriptions from your favorite RSS feed reader instead ??

That would be great, right? Here we are going to show how to setup your “Feed Headlines” gadget to show feeds from your feed subscriptions (using OPML file) :

Pre-requisite: An OPML file exported from your RSS feed reader

Step 1: Open your Internet Explorer (possibly Internet explorer 8), find a button called “Favorites” and click on it to expand its options.

favorites button in internet explorer

Step 2:  As shown in the following screen shot, find “Import and Export” option from the menu.

import export favorites in internet explorer

Step 3: Choose the option “Import from a file” in the next window.

import export favorites settings in internet explorer

Step 4:  In the next step, you will be asked “What would you like to import? ”, select the option “Feeds”.

Import/Export settings in Favorites settings

Step 5:   Now locate the “OPML” file that you have got from your favorite feed reader.(Read the guide to export as OPML from feed readers).

importing_feeds_internet_explorer_favorites

Step 6: Select a destination folder for your imported feeds and click “Next”.

selecting destination folder for feeds import ie favorites

Step 7: Now you have successfully imported your feed subscriptions from a feed reader.

feeds successfully imported to internet explorer favorites

Step 8: Go to your Feed Headlines gadget and choose the feed subscriptions folders from which you want your gadget to display feeds.

Feed Headlines gadget choose feed folders

That’s it from the settings side, now go check your feed headlines gadget, which is supposed to show feeds as shown here in the following screen shot.

Feed Headlines Sidebar gadget

This is a simple and straight forward process.However if you face any difficulties while doing this, let me know through your comments.

[How-To] Exporting Your RSS Reader[Google Reader & Other] Feed Subscriptions As OPML File

OPML logo

This isn’t our conventional ‘How-To’ article, but still some readers who are just beginners of RSS feed readers/ aggregators may want to know these little things about importing/ exporting feeds in OPML format.

OPML stands for Outline Processor Markup Language.This is now being used for exchanging list of web feeds between various web feed aggregators.In this small tutorial, we are going to explain how exactly this importing and exporting via OPML is done.

Importing / exporting feeds in Google Reader:

Login to your Google reader account.Click on “Reader settings” on the top right corner of your window.

reader settings

Navigate to “Import/Export” tab under settings

export reader subscriptions OPML file

save_as_opml_file

Now here you can find options to export your subscriptions as an OPML file or import your existing subscriptions OPML file.Isn’t it simple ??

FeedDemon & RSS Bandit :

FeedDemon is the popular RSS feed aggregator for desktops which supports synchronization with Google Reader.

Importing and exporting feed subscriptions as OPML files is a lot easier in these readers.You can directly access “Import Feeds/ Export Feeds” options under “File” menu.

feeddemon feed import export OPML file

Similarly in Rss Bandit, you can Import Feed or Export feeds from the “File” menu,or suing shortcuts Ctrl + I or Ctrl + E.
Rss Bandit feeds import export

Is your operating system is Windows 7/Windows Vista? If so, you can use “Feed Headlines” gadget show feeds from your feed subscriptions.Stay tuned to this blog to know how to do it.

Google.cn Is Over, Redirects To Google.com.hk (Hong Kong)

This is breaking news coming right from the G-folks : Google has decided to redirect Google’s Chinese web users of Google.cn to its Hong Kong site Google.com.hk starting from today.

This has been posted in Google’s official blog.

earlier today we stopped censoring our search services—Google Search, Google News, and Google Images—on Google.cn. Users visiting Google.cn are now being redirected to Google.com.hk, where we are offering uncensored search in simplified Chinese, specifically designed for users in mainland China and delivered via our servers in Hong Kong.

This is the Google.cn’s cached page as seen from Bing’s cache.

Google.cn china bing cached version

This is the new Google.com.hk site where the Google.cn users being redirected:

Google.com.hk hong kong site

Also Google is predicting that at any moment, the Chinese government may stop access to its services.

We very much hope that the Chinese government respects our decision, though we are well aware that it could at any time block access to our services.

Hence to keep its users notified about any blockage of Google’s services, it has set up a new web page (China service availability), where one can see the status report of various Google’s app services.

Google china service availability

Google is also worrying about the safety of its employees in China, which is clear fro this statement:

Finally, we would like to make clear that all these decisions have been driven and implemented by our executives in the United States, and that none of our employees in China can, or should, be held responsible for them.

Airtel’s Free Speed Upgrade Dhamaka For Broadband Users

Airtel Logo

Airtel, one of the India’s top broadband ISP has taken revolutionary step to provide a minimum internet browsing speeds of 512 Kbps to all the  broadband customers in India.

This could change the face of whole internet in India if other broadband service providers take this seriously and come up with similar steps to provide Hi Speed internet at affordable price.

In a press announcement released today by Airtel, the company announces that it will upgrade the speeds of all the existing customers to 512 Kbps by June 2010 notably at “no extra cost”.Also customers with 512 Kbps and 1 Mbps plans would get double speed upgrade to 1 Mbps and 2 Mbps respectively.

Bharti Airtel, one of Asia’s leading integrated telecom service providers, in an unprecedented move is upgrading speeds of all its existing customers (on 64, 128, 256 Kbps) to a minimum of 512 Kbps. Further, customers currently on 512 Kbps plans and 1mbps plans will have their speeds doubled to 1Mbps and 2Mbps respectively.

Airtel has also announced the launch of ‘Impatience Plans’ offering internet browsing speeds of 4 Mbps starting from as low as Rs. 899.

Airtel Impatience Plans Tariff  (4 Mbps):

Plan Name

Impatience 899

Impatience 1099

Impatience 1399

Impatience 1799

Speed

4 Mbps

4 Mbps

4 Mbps

4 Mbps

Rental (Rs.)

899

1099

1399

1799

High Speed Download (in GB)

6

12

25

50

Option 1: Unlimited Data Transfer Plan

Post Hi Speed download continue browsing @ 256 Kbps

Option 2: Continuous High Speed Plan

Continue at 4 Mbps @ 10 paise/MB per additional MB (Post High Speed download)

Kudos to Airtel for this wonderful speed upgrade, we hope this could help in taking broadband in India to a next level.

If you don’t know yet, Airtel is also offering Unlimited mobile internet (GPRS) at Rs.98 apart from offering free unlimited national and local SMS.

Update: Well, we have yet another free broadband speed upgrade, this time from Hyderabad based Beam Telecom, read Beam Tele free speed upgrade report.

Nokia Ovi Magazine – A Guide To Ovi From Nokia

Nokia logo

All right folks ,  Nokia Ovi Magazine is now online.If you still haven’t spotted it, check out the direct link that I’ve added at the bottom of this post.The 44-pages Ovi magazine (titled “Your guide to Ovi Nokia”) offers all that info that you may want to know about Ovi services, apps, music, games, maps and lot more interesting stuff.

nokia ovi magazine

Link : Ovi Magazine (Online)

Download Tip : You need to register yourself at issuu.com to get a download link.

[Video] How Google Search Works ?

how Google search works

how search works matt cutts

Learn what happens when you do a Google web search :

Here comes a great video from Google (by Matt Cutts), explaining broadly how the Google search works.According to Matt Cutts, when you do a Google search, you aren’t actually searching the web, you are searching only Google’s index of the web which may not include each and every web page from the internet.

Watch this video to learn more:

How Search Works

If you are curious about knowing how stuff works at Google, like how the Google search works or how search ads work or how Google Apps work, you may want to visit this how Google works page.

Bing iPhone App Crosses Million Downloads And Gets Updated

Bing app has been getting a huge response from all the iPhone / iPod users according to the update released by Bing forum in which they claim that Bing iPhone app has crossed over a million downloads.

Bing had released it’s app for Apple iPhone and iPod in November 2009 and since then there have been many updates to the app, and now here comes another update (Version 1.1).The new update has added some important features to the app:

  • Bookmarks and improved web browsing
  • Sharing
  • Copy and paste URLs
  • Parental control on search settings
  • Search history and private search
  • Explicit location setting
  • Tighter integration of contacts in directions
  • Support for 1st generation iPod touch devices

Bing apple iphone application Bing app for iPhone m

Download Bing for iPhone, iPod touch, & iPad (via iTunes App Store)

Airtel Offering Unlimited Mobile Internet (Via GPRS) With RC 98

Airtel Logo

It’s offers time for Airtel users in India.Few days back we have blogged about Airtel launching unlimited national & local SMS offer.Now Airtel is also offering unlimited internet via GPRS for its mobile users.

Launch of many of these unlimited plans can be attributed to the on-going Indian Premier League (IPL) 2010.Airtel thought this would be the big opportunity introduce some offers and get the attention of the users, for that matter targeting mainly youth section of the users.We need to recall that Airtel once used to offer unlimited (virtually) GPRS internet in the forms daily pack and monthly pack.And now as Aircel and Tata Docomo are offering similar plans which are attracting the younger generation, Airtel had no option left but to come out with such unlimited offers.

airtel unlimted internet gprs

We can see Airtel promoting unlimited SMS offer, Unlimited GPRS internet offer and reduced night calling rates offer through Sharman Joshi of  “3 Idiots” Bollywood movie fame.

Unlimited Internet Plan Tariff:

Prepaid:

May vary depending on your circle.For most circles you have to do a recharge for MRP Rs. 98 /- (RC 98) in order to activate this offer which is valid for one month from the date of activation.You can also dail #567 from your Airtel mobile if you have balance more than Rs. 110+ and opt not to go for a separate recharge.

Postpaid:

Postpaid users can avail this offer for a monthly rental of Rs. 98.SMS “INTERNET” to 121 to activate this pack.

For more information, visit Airtel mobile internet offers page.

Note:

This unlimited plan is not truly ‘unlimited’, as it has a limit for data usage up to 2 GB, beyond this limit, the data usage will be charged 30paise/50KB.

The free usage includes data browsed only through Mobile Office (MO) settings.Be careful here, of you activate this pack but still use browsing using Airtel Live settings, you’ll be charged for that.

To get Mobile Office internet settings, SMS “MO” to 543210 (Toll Free)

You can use this pack even while roaming in India, however it doesn’t apply to international roaming.

Update: You may also want checkout Uninor’s unlimited mobile internet plan Rs.90

Realtek High Definition Audio Codec R2.44 For Windows

Realtek audio driver logo

RealTek High Definition (HD) Audio Codec R2.44 has been released a few days back by the Realtek semiconductors.

These are ALC882 series 7.1+2 Channel High Definition Audio codec coming with UAA – Universal  Audio Architecture that has five 24-bit stereo DACs (

Digital to Analog Converters), and three 20-bit stereo ADCs (Analog to Digital Converters) for delivering high performance for multimedia PCs.

Important Features:

  • 7.1+2 channel multi-streaming enables concurrent gaming/VoIP
  • Microphone Acoustic Echo Cancellation (AEC), Noise Suppression (NS), and Beam Forming (BF) technology for voice application
  • Compatible with: Microsoft WindowsXP, Widnows2000, Windows Server 2003, Vista, Windows Server 2008, Windows7 – x86/x64
  • 3D direct sound compatible

Download Realtek 7.1 HD Audio Driver R2.44

————————–

File Size: Windows 7/ Vista (32/64 bits) –Zip file- 53.65 MB

Windows XP/ 2003 (32/64 bits) – ZIP file – 29.90 MB

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File includes : Driver setup program, WDM driver, Realtek Soundman, Realtek Sound Effect Manager.

Instructions for Updating Driver

Updating Driver:

Windows 2000 , XP :

Step 1. Run the setup.exe program to start the installation.
Step 2. Click on [Next] to continue the procedure. If the Windows popup
"Digital Signature Not Found" message, press [Yes] to continue the
installation.
Step 3. Finally, select to restart the system and press [Finish] to complete
the installation.

Windows Vista, Windows7 :
Step 1. Run setup.exe, it will remove the original driver in your system.
Step 2. Click "Next" to remove the original audio driver in your system.
Step 3. Once after the original driver removed , reboot the computer.
Step 4. Please go back to the new driver package after computer restarted.
Step 5. Run setup.exe, it will install the new audio driver then.