The Management Consulting Group

Do you recall when laptops for gaming were a specialist breed? As I remember they were never the best selling laptops but as they were the most costly they were the greatest profit generating ones. The most sought after laptops were the ones that were too costly to think of purchasing. Simply they were the best laptop computers available for purchase. I think they would provide us with a taste of what’s to come but nobody would really buy laptop computers for gaming back then. As the international computer manufacturers spot the potential profits in gaming laptops, the industry is evolving.

They know there is cash to be made here. They can direct the market. These manufacturers have probably been losing some money on standard units so this should be an attractive opportunity. Why would people buy laptop computers like this? Well big manufacturers have the marketing budgets to teach them that. This is a giant threat to smaller specialist companies. Clearly what I see taking place here is that the multinational manufacturers reducing prices initially to remove the competition from smaller companies. I think buying from a well know brand also gives the perception of greater value for money.

Astonishingly, the notebook computers they’re manufacturing are a couple of the best laptop computers to date. This is no doubt the core competitive edge that remains for the smaller players. The configurability service is an enormous benefit to the consumer. People of this type are normally highly knowledgeable with regards to the technology at hand, and hence are able to do like for like evaluations. Consumers like these are on occasions more worried about the gaming capabilities of a computer than they are in it’s looks.

This is all excellent from the publics position. One method that the littler resellers may utilise is to trim margins in to shift more units. Things alter so fast in this industry that I can’t specifically make any confident statements. Prices will most likely stay consistently high as there are constantly new notebooks being launched. As the gaming notebook division becomes packed up with big manufacturers, many will utilise a wait and see strategy.

I reckon this company (http://www.rizeon.com/gaming_laptops/page.php) are rather good value for the laptops they are offering.

There’s been no slow down in the laptop market. Those looking for the new montevina offerings could be kept waiting as manufacturers have given warning of possible delivery shortages. Many have forcasted laptops to be popular but its phenomenal that theres been no slip. The technology loops are so minute too which makes it all the more harder.

An increasing number of consumers are purchasing laptops for gaming these days. With prices falling and new technology being released rather fast it means that customers are getting more roi. I play games on my laptop on a frequent basis and must say I’m surprised how playable some of the demanding games are. Performance aside, also worth a mention is the drastically slim case designs we are seeing these days. Ok so there still is a gap in speed no matter how better gaming laptops have become but that should always exist. The advancement of gaming laptops implies that they will get sleeker and weightless in the near future.

There are always going to be a few people that require a laptop custom built because they want to use it for specialised work. Usually branded components go into these notebooks. You can usually save cash on parts you do not need by specifying the system to your requirements. The notebooks found in the highstreet are usually configured based standard, mass market customers and well not everyone is standard now are they? You get over this by buying a laptop built to . I like that fact that there are numerous of small sized brands offering good customer care for custom laptops. To a few buyers this is very important.

I’m honestly awaiting to see what laptop computers hit the market next. The tiny $500 laptops are shifting like crazy at present. This market is already seeing tough competition and is getting overloaded. People would prefer to see large screen umpc’s if that makes sense. No doubt that companies already have their designs made up. I can think its not too long before we begin seeing gaming laptops that weigh nothing. New concepts are seen every year and I’m certain the next year already holds a lot of promise for us techies.

I have found what I think are the best laptop computers.

Here is a list of useful tips on how to improve multitasking performance and overall computer performance on your Windows based PC. Please backup your system before doing changes, to make sure you can get it back working should anything go wrong for you.

1. Get a multitasking capable motherboard and CPU. An Intel CPU with HyperThreading would be great, dual core would be awesome, if you can afford something like that. HyperThreading improves multitasking by dividing a single processor into two logical processors so 2 different tasks can be executed at once. Needless to say, dual core improves this much more as there are 2 physical processors and 4 resulting logical processors through using HyperThreading on top of that.

2. Use dual-channel memory modules, and in general use RAM modules as fast as possible for your motherboard.

3. Use modern hard drives like S-ATA hard drives for example. Make sure your hard drive has plenty of cache (8MB would be minimal recommended) and also look for low access times and fast throughput. Use 10,000 RPM drives if possible - or in any case, as fast as possible. Use hard disk fans for such units - they usually heat up a lot so extra cooling is needed to keep them running well.

4. Purchase 2 hard identical drives and place them in Raid 0 mode. This doubles the hard disk transfer speed due to the fact that 2 hard disks are being queried at once. It would be good to also purchase a 3rd spare hard disk of the same model, should one of these ever malfunction, but make sure you use the spare hard disk from time to time, because if you keep it unused for many months it may get defective.

5. Use lots and lots of RAM. 2GB would be recommended (or more if you can), 1GB would be minimal. The more RAM you have, the better your system will perform.

6. Use the FAT32 file system instead of NTFS. This advice may come as a surprise for some readers, yet it has proven very effective in practice. Although FAT32 is simpler and less-featured, it is also more effective for multitasking due to the smaller CPU and disk access requirements that come from this simplicity.

7. Use a dedicated swap partition. Our tests shown that this partition should not be that big. Other sources recommend using a swapfile of 3x the amount of physical RAM memory; we found in practice that using a swapfile of 2x the amount of RAM would perform best in terms of speed. If possible, use the FAT16 file system for the dedicated swap partition; please note that the maximal size of a FAT16 partition is 2 GB. It is recommended to place the operating system on the first partition on the first hard drive, and it is highly recommended (!) to place the swap file partition as the first partition on a second hard drive, if possible - meaning on a separate hard drive than the one where your operating system is installed. This is the configuration that works best in most cases.

8. If you have large amounts of RAM, like 2GB or 4GB for example, you may try disabling the swap file completely. This may significantly improve performance, if your applications fit well inside available physical memory.

9. Optimize your Windows Operating system visual aspect, for speed. In Control Panel - System - Advanced - Performance Settings, select ‘Adjust for best performance’ and then retain only a few minimal options if you want to improve aspect, like ‘Use visual styles on windows and buttons’ for example. The Windows XP graphical interface consumes a lot of CPU and results in significantly lowering overall computer performance.

10. Get the fastest video card that you can afford. Read reviews on the internet about them. Some cards and drivers are less stable than others for a given performance level.

11. Periodically defragment your hard drives, especially if you copy and delete a lot of data. From time to time it is good to reformat the hard disk completely; in this case, you would have to backup your files on a different partition, format partition then copy files back after formatting. A fragmentation of 4-5% already means a significant computer speed reduction. Use defragmenting tools like Diskeeper for this purpose.

12. If you are using the FAT32 file system, do not make any partitions exceeding 32 GB. If your hard drive is large and you need a lot of partitions, please note that you can use up to 3 primary partitions (although the common usage is to have just one) and an extended partition, and then within the extended partition you can set any amount of partitions needed, up to the number of available drive letters which is of 26 in total.

13. Use operating systems like Windows XP and Windows Server 2003 which have proven to be indeed faster and more reliable when compared with older Windows 98 or Windows ME operating systems. If needed, upgrade your operating system.

14. Do not mix operating systems like Windows 98 and Windows 2000 - Windows 2003 - Windows XP on a local network. Network transfers between Win 9X and 2k/XP based operating systems are a real pain. Generally, if you are still using Win9X, it would be best to upgrade to a newer operating system.

15. Make sure you have properly configured your computer BIOS. Since BIOS works directly with your motherboard and drivers and preconfigures your system hardware before the operating system is loaded, these settings are vital for your computer performance. You may want to play with CPU caching options, set memory timings to optimal values (test if necessary) and ensure that hard disk controllers are configured for maximal speed. Disable Bios Caching and Video Caching, these are not useful for modern operating systems, they were rather needed for older MS-DOS compatible operating systems like Win9x. Turn off IDE auto detection and set them manually, whenever possible. Also, enable ‘fast boot’, ’silent boot’, ‘quick boot’ or similar option.

16. Get the latest drivers for your hardware, especially for video and SCSI devices. Visit your website manufacturers and download the latest drivers they have for your hardware. Subscribe to a driver download notification emailing list, if they have one. In general, drivers coming with your Windows Install CD may work but they are usually obsolete. Some newer drivers can be found through Windows Update, but in most cases it is best to download new drivers directly from the manufacturer of your hardware device.

17. Buy only quality, brand hardware. Cheap hardware will never work properly; cheap motherboards and computer cards are unstable, have improperly written drivers and tend to easily get defective. If possible, buy a preconfigured computer of quality brand. Serious manufacturers usually test their components for compatibility and therefore such machines are real stable and have excellent performance for their hardware class.

18. Use Windows Update to keep your computer files updated with the latest versions.

19. Connect different IDE drives using separate IDE cables. Put your primary hard disk on the first interface (IDE 0) and the CD-ROM/DVD unit(s) on the second interface (IDE 1) using a second IDE cable. Having another drive on the same cable can significantly decrease your primary hard disk performance.

20. Use the latest DirectX version as this will improve gaming performance. Needless to say also, the best video card you can get, the best would be your 3D gaming performance. In some cases, you may want to reduce screen color depth to 16-bit (65536 colors), especially on some older video cards - this may improve performance for such video cards, if you can’t get a newer card which would however be the best option.

21. Make sure you enable DMA transfers on IDE slave drives, which is not enabled by default. Go to Control Panel - System - Device Manager, jump to your IDE controller, and in the ‘Primary IDE Channel’ - Advanced Settings, configure it to use DMA instead of default PIO (programmatic I/O) modes.

22. Make sure you enable Write caching for SCSI drives - you can do this from Device Manager by going to SCSI devices.

23. Close any application that you do not use. If you cannot close them, at least minimize them as when they run in background mode, they consume less CPU.

24. Disable unneeded programs that auto-run at startup. These can really bog down your system. Use a startup manager program to make your life easier. You can use the built-in startup manager in Windows XP by going to Start - Run, type ‘MSCONFIG’ and hit Enter.

25. Disable Messengers that you do not use (Windows comes with MSN Messenger by default).

26. Disable all unnecessary services. Depending on configuration, you may want to disable File and Print, FTP, World Wide Web, Routing and Remote Access, IIS Admin Service, Telnet, Smart Card and Smart Card Helper, Terminal Services, Uninterruptible Power Supply. Also make sure you disable Indexing Service, as this usually significantly slows down your system.

27. If there are programs that you do not use, uninstall them - this frees disk space as well as remove some unneeded dll’s from memory.

28. Reinstall your operating system from time to time, when you can. Some programs, even if uninstalled, leave unnecessary dll files inside your computer. Since it is difficult to manage them, a fresh reinstall would be a good option.

29. When you have just reinstalled and activated your copy of windows, backup your system on DVD and keep it safe, using a disk backup or disk clone tool. Whenever you may need to have a fresh system you can use the disk to get a fresh installed operating system on your computer. Norton Ghost can be such an useful disk clone program. Some computers come with such tools preinstalled, so use them when you just received your computer to make a backup of the system.

30. Empty temporary files from C:WindowsTEMP, C:Temp folders. Empty Temporary internet files periodically. Use Disk Cleanup to get rid of all this waste on your computer.

31. Reduce the size of your System Restore folders at lower percentages, for example like 8% . You may want to disable System Restore on partitions where they are not needed, where there is no OS stuff or programs installed but just your stored files and data.

32. Remove any unneeded Fonts. Fonts can really bog down your computer. Removing them will save a lot of memory and significantly improve performance.

33. Remove unneeded network protocols like IPX and NetBEUI.

Hopefully, this list will prove useful to readers, in obtaining the most out of their Windows based computer and increasing speed and multitasking performance in all daily operations. Please note that these advices come with no guarantees - you are on your own, and in any case you should better know what you are doing. Good luck - and enjoy your improved computer performance!

By Emil Sasu - For more articles and tips, visit our website at http://www.comp.ro - computer troubleshooting website, where you can find additional in-depth computer technical information, tips and advices.

There aren’t many negatives to the Apple iPod, merely one complaint often is oftentimes brought up by iPod owners is the lack of ability to transfer iPod music from their iPod to a different pc. Although iPod has no trouble uploading songs from your PC to iPod from iTunes, the opposite is forbidden. If you don’t use iPod Copy Software, you will not be able to move your iPod data to another personal computer. This subject often comes up when people get a new computer or have to restart the operating system on their existing computer. Apple prevents this action because it does not want unauthorized sharing of bought videos and music from the iTunes shop. Even So, there are many reasonable situations that iPod users want the power to transfer from iPod to personal computer. If a personal computer goes down and you need to reinstall the operating system, you could need iPod to PC copy software to get your valuable data. Otherwise, the clean installation of iTunes will wipe out your iPod, possibly costing you $1,000’s of dollars in deleted files. Yet another common situation individuals necessitate these types of programs is when they buy a new personal computer and want to put their existing database of iPod content on the new PC. Again, if you don’t have this type of software, you might potentially lose your worthful data. There are a lot of companies that offer computer programs to fulfill this project. A quick visit to software download websites will reveal a lot of options. You could also just key the phrase ‘iPod to machine transferring software’ into Google.

Usage of the Internet is becoming more common due to rapid advancement of technology and the power of globalization. Societies are becoming more inter-connected. Thoughts from different cultures are shared through the use of Internet chat rooms and web postings. Study results also track the most popular uses of the Internet: “this year’s study shows that e-mail is the top task conducted online, followed by general surfing, reading News, shopping, and seeking entertainment News.” (Chang Joshua (2005)) It can be summarized that the Internet is now being used for common, everyday tasks that would have normally taken more time to complete.

Internet shopping is becoming popular amongst users in developed nations, as it is more efficient to ’shop on the Internet’ than to go physically into the stores. The Internet provides a virtual environment where consumers’ demands are met with supplies. For example, research has shown that shopping on the Internet can result in lower search costs and better product selections. This is because the shopper has the ability to analyze prices from various stores without having to travel distances. The shopper can now shop online for goods that are for sale in a foreign nation, and rather than having to travel to the country to receive the goods, the consumer can order online and get it delivered efficiently. According to the Ernst and Young Survey (’Internet Shopping’ 1998), prospective shoppers viewed price savings and selection as more important benefits than convenience, which was ranked third. However, using the Internet we have the capacity to achieve both, having the ability to offer shoppers convenience as well as better prices.

Not only has the Internet achieved a more equitable trading environment for consumers, it also gives us the potential to communicate more effectively and efficiently. For example, the cost of sending an email is generally cheaper than posting a letter in the mail, especially for people wishing to communicate internationally. Furthermore, an email can be sent immediately after it is written, and does not need to go through official procedures such as the Post Office and a mail box. The recipient of the email is able to access it from anywhere, as it is a virtual communication tool, as opposed to having a physical mail box where the letters are delivered. Thus, clearly, an Internet communication tool such as the Internet is extremely valuable, especially for travelers who need to be able to be interconnected with their ‘old’ lifestyle whilst journeying to experience foreign cultures.

The power of the Internet not only extends to people who need the convenience of shopping, and to be able to easily communicate with associates and friends, but the Internet also provides an environment for News sharing and encourages people to be updated with the News. Unfortunately, as there currently isn’t any appropriate ‘virtual filtering system’ software out there, although there are many News articles available, they are from the perspective of international media institutions. However, the Internet is constantly changing and is becoming more accommodating to the individual as opposed to just catering to international corporations. Many academics believe that the Internet is a form of communication for people who want to express their own opinions and who don’t want to be repressed by the wealthy, whom are often seen as domineering as they hold too much power in a capitalist society.

Furthermore, many teenagers would also confirm that they have had many positive experiences with the Internet as they believe it is a place for them to ‘escape’ from the pressures of reality and enjoy the entertainment that this system has the ability to provide. Computer games, although some would argue that they actually distract people from reality, provide the opportunity for individuals to express creativity and challenge themselves. Interactive computer games provide an environment where individuals are allowed to explore foreign surroundings and take risks that will result in no harm to the game player. The Internet appeals to the younger generation not only because of entertainment purposes, but young academics have also agreed that the Internet creates convenience to research and university students. This is because many different articles can be found on a specific topic, and not only is the opinions of academics read, but people with unique experiences and in different professions are also heard and critically analyzed. Being an academic myself, I strongly believe that the Internet provides a great environment where people are allowed to share their thoughts and beliefs whilst remaining anonymous.

In conclusion, popular uses of the Internet have largely contributed to the advancement of society. More people are now turning to this phenomenon in order to have an efficient lifestyle where the maximum number of tasks can be achieved everyday. Although some would argue that people are becoming too reliant on the Internet, others would argue that it is a freedom of choice and it is the individuals’ choice to be able to choose how much they should be using the Internet per day, and on how dependent they want to be. Ultimately, the Internet is a tool that is effective when used appropriately and effectively and it is at the discretion of the individual. As quoted by Schipper, “the Internet is a tool that has both good and bad sides; let’s weed out the bad ones.”

Bibliography:

Ernst and Young (2000) ‘Global Online Retailing’ survey, Stores, Section 2, January

Chang Joshua (2005) ‘Online Shopping: Advantages over the offline alternative.’ [Online] http://www.arraydev.com/commerce/JIBC/0311-07.htm

Schipper George (2005) ‘WI on Globalization’ [Online]
http://www.wupperinst.org/globalisation/html/lit_global.html

By Bernice Ly

http://www.m6.net
Bernice Ly is a technical writer working at M6.Net: ‘The web-hosting company for humans.’ M6.Net is working hard to help humanity experience the power and freedom to develop their own part of the Internet, to share their information and connect with anyone, anywhere, anytime.

Are you a computer-worm? Do you thrive on a computer 24/7? A “computer-worm” is analogous to “book-worm” - a person who spends most of the time working on a computer. Do you expend most of your time reading or writing emails, chatting with friends, watching movies, listening to music, cyber-window-shopping, etc? Do you relegate your important tasks of completing a school assignment, working on a contingency project, etc to realize later that you spent the prime-time idly? In this article, you would discover few ways of improving your cyber-life - how to make your working on a computer more useful and much more effective.

Technology revolution has supplemented the ease and increase of computer usage. The overall at-home global active internet use for a number of selected countries grew by two-thirds of a percentage point from February 2004 to March 2004 (Nielsen//NetRatings). Switzerland exhibited the largest growth rate at over 3 percent, while U.S. added the most active Internet users over the month. With this enormous increase in internet usage you have to keep the following 5 ideas in mind that would help increase the efficiency of work that you do while on your computer off-work.

1) Chat or email kills your time-

Avoid opening a chatting application, or an email application as your first window. When you find one of your friends on the chatting window (or email from one of your friends), you inadvertently start conversing with the person. On the other hand, if you do not find any friend, you search for a new chat-buddy. In both the cases you deviate yourself from important tasks. This hinders you from working on essential activities that you intended to do when you started the session.

Instead, make a habit of completing tasks that you planned before opening a chat window or an email window. Treat yourself with a chatting session (or an email session) for completing the daily (important) tasks.

2) Audio speakers add to your entertainment-

Turn on your pair of audio speakers, if you have one. Listen to online news, success stories, motivational speeches or jokes while working on your important tasks.

Online news is becoming common day after day. You can view and listen to news on many websites. You would find it easy to access online news channels if you have a “superpass” with Real Networks (http://www.real.com/superpass/). Nevertheless, websites like MSN (http://msnvideo.msn.com/), ABC News (http://abcnews.go.com/) offer feeds to news and other interesting stories available for free download.

3) Do smart-browsing not the hard-browsing-

When you read on the internet, do it intelligently. One way of intelligent reading is to increase your vocabulary. Look up difficult words in the dictionary when you read documents on the web. You can use innovative internet tools like XemanteX (http://www.xemantex.com) that provide an online-running-dictionary. You can read through the document with a built-in dictionary. Just double click the word to get the meaning on the same screen.

4) Online games as concentration tools-

Play online games. Games not only give you entertainment but also help you increase your concentration. There are many websites that offer free subscription to the games on their website. Perform a Google search on “free online games” that would bring up thousands of resources. Enjoy playing a game, improving your personal skills at the same time.

5) Help your mind concentrate-

Split your entire sitting into various sessions. You would be able to give out more every session. Take a coffee or tea break every 45 to 60 minutes. This would help your mind free up its resources and get back on track after the break. Moreover, this would help you avoid narrow thinking. One gets to think through a narrow channel when deep concentration.

Okay, I told you 5 simple and common ways to make your off-work computer life easy. Try them out and feel the difference. You would be happier and feel more accomplished. As you know internet has redefined human’s life. Computer, which was used only by intellectuals and elite a few years ago, is a basic requirement for a common man now. To add fuel to the fire, internet has supplemented its power transforming them the best communication tool. Instant messaging, emailing, electronic news, etc allow for fast and easy communication among the internet users. Very soon, computers would be indelible parts of our life. You should realize that the tremendous power that this internet has can only be harnessed when it is put to use in the most efficient way.

Prasad Kopanati is the Vice President of XemanteX Inc. (http://www.xemantex.com), an internet company offering language related services as dictionary tool displaying meanings for words appearing in the text on the internet web pages. You can reach him via email at team@xemantex.com.

Before making a decison on which anti-spyware program to
purchase, it is a good idea to make four important steps which
are sure to harden the life for spyware developers.

First, a PC connected to Internet should have a firewall
installed and adequately configured. Default options are good
most times, but not efficient enough against smart spyware
(which is smart by its nature). Leave only those ports open
which are used by applications you run. It is good to make sure
that if an application doesn’t require incoming connections,
than it is not allowed to receive ANY data from Internet.

Second, an advanced PC user always takes precautions when
installing any free software (which very often includes spyware
stuff); to possibly avoid future troubles, it is advisable to
check the setup file with an anti-virus (supplied with latest
signature updates).

Third, when surfing, be careful about ActiveX Controls trying to
install themselves. ActiveX is a well-known and extremely
widespread way of distributing spyware and viruses. Before
installing any ActiveX component, make sure it is signed by
software developer you trust (say, Microsoft or Adobe, if you
trust them). Software giants are unlikely to push spyware onto
your hard drive.

Finally, try to avoid websites with warez-related content, they
are notorious for secretly installing tons of spyware modules on
computers. Sure, these steps are NOT enough to stay safe and
secure. They are very helpful, but they do not armour your PC
against unwanted guests.

New DefensePro Inline Security Solution Extends Network
Protection from the Data Center to Regional and Branch Offices

Extending security best practices beyond corporate headquarters
to safeguard regional and branch locations, Radware (NASDAQ:
RDWR) the leading provider of Intelligent Application Switching
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Product line. Unveiling DefensePro 100, Radware now delivers
unprecedented end-to-end security from the network core, through
the corporate gateway to the branch and regional offices. With
signature matching, regular updates, anomaly detection and
DoS/DDoS mitigation, DefensePro protects distributed networks
with an unparalleled family of href="http://www.radware.com/content/products/apsolute_os/default
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“There is an increasing number of application level attacks
targeting data centers, network edges, and even LANs. Threats
come from all directions - internal, external, or other
corporate locations,” said Charles Kolodgy, research director of
Security Product at IDC. “As a result, enterprises and carriers
must protect applications with proactive Denial of Service and
Intrusion Prevention systems that mitigate attacks along the
whole network infrastructure.”

Hackers target not only corporate headquarters, but remote
locations which often have less security devices deployed. To
safeguard against this growing trend, DefensePro 100 leverages
all of the Intrusion Prevention capabilities found at
headquarters and optimizes them for regional and branch
deployments. With the expanded product line, Radware prevents
hackers from penetrating the branch and infiltrating through the
corporate private network or VPN to headquarters by blocking
worms before they hit any point in the network.

“Radware DefensePro protects our critical applications in the
network core, and we are excited about the new DefensePro 100
which will extend protection to our network endpoints,” said Ken
Myung, IT Manager at Audiovox. “We rely on our network to
generate revenue and provide in-house employees and sales people
in the field with productivity services, including email and
other mission critical applications. DefensePro protection
ensures the continuity and performance of both incoming and
outgoing traffic, while giving us a unified management tool for
attack monitoring and reporting.”

DefensePro features inline security switching and accelerated,
stateful, deep-packet inspection - using Radware’s industry
leading StringMatch Hardware Engine - to bi-directionally scan
and protect all network traffic against application level
attacks. DefensePro intercepts over 1,500 malicious signatures,
hidden worms and viruses, blocking application attacks at an
unmatched speed of 3-Gigabits/Sec. Identifying and mitigating
protocol and traffic anomalies in real-time, DefensePro prevents
DoS/DDoS attacks and SYN floods, safeguarding against all
illicit traffic patterns and hacking. DefensePro isolates
attacks by dynamically managing bandwidth to stop propagation
across users and resources while ensuring the complete
continuity and performance of all secure traffic to proactively
control impact and limit damage. Combining high processing power
with advanced application security services DefensePro secures
mission critical applications across high-speed/high capacity
environments.

“The DefensePro Product line now delivers the most flexible and
comprehensive IPS offering in the market with protection for all
enterprise access points,” said Assaf Ronen, VP R&D, Radware.
“As the number and severity of application vulnerabilities
continues to grow, Radware DefensePro provides an end-to-end
solution security solution that prevents the flow of intrusions,
viruses and worms.”

Radware (NASDAQ:RDWR) is the Global Leader in Intelligent
Application Switching, enabling the full availability, maximum
performance and complete security of all mission critical
networked applications while dramatically cutting operating and
scaling costs.

Radware’s integrated href="http://www.radware.com/content/solutions/application-securi
ty/Default.asp" rel="nofollow"> Application Security , Application
Infrastructure and End-to-End Connectivity solutions are
deployed by over 2,500 enterprises and carriers worldwide.
Radware offers the broadest product line in the industry meeting
application needs at every critical point across the network
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links, Anti-Virus Gateways and Cache.

Whether you’re an advocate of printer manufacturer ink
cartridges or have already tried a compatible brand, the
question will have occured to you: Why do original cartridges
cost so much?

The price of manufacturer branded cartridges can be in many
cases more than twice as much as some alternative brands.

This for many people leads them to conclude that the price
difference is probably justified; and that trying a compatible
brand is likely to be a gamble that will only end with a broken
printer.

Whilst this might be the case in a handfull or cases, as with
many markets there are quality alternatives which offer a real
opportunity to reduce the cost of printing with a virtually
indetectible loss of quality.

The fact is, most of us do not demand that much of our
cartridges, and the results offered by the more reputable of
compatible brands offer all we require.

What also adds to the gulf in price is the profit model employed
by the printer manufacturers. They understand that once the
printer is sold it then becomes a lucrative profit vehicle.
Therefore, the manufacturer sells the printer at a discount in
order to get you to buy into their lucrative ink cartridge
business. With the advent of cheaper compatible cartridges made
by third-parties, they are seeing that business model fail. They
have of course fought back with claims that that the user risks
loss of quality.

While that may be true if you need the absolute best print from
your machine, it’s not if you just want to print out a regular
text document or other standard files. Testing by UK consumer
group Which? has found that some compatible ink cartridges are almost as good as printer
manufacturers’ own and are much cheaper. Indeed there is a
compatible brand Lyson Ink
Cartridges which is prefered over the original brand by many
in the print production and design industry - where high quality
results are imperative.

By choosing one of the best performing compatible ink
cartridges, such as the Phoenix brand (available at www.ink-toner-uk.com) an
average user could save about £100 over three years. Using Epson
ink cartridges would cost a user about £220 over the period
while a supply of generic ink from Print-Rite would cost £50. Of
course the greater your requirement for printing the greater the
gain.

The printer manufacturers’ own cartridges do produce excellent
results on text, graphs and photos, making them all best buys,
but they’re very expensive, Which? said. Generics such as Print
Rite and Ink Again also gain best buy status for a fraction of
the cost. At the other end of the scale, some of the Jet Tec
cartridges used on a Lexmark printer failed during the test,
produced disappointing results and were given ‘Don’t Buy’
status.

The worst cartridges, however,were Cartridge Save for the
Lexmark Z515 printer, which were so unreliable Which? couldn’t
even complete tests on them. By the way the Z515 printer costs
under £35 but will cost you about £700 in Lexmark branded
cartridges over three years. Which? recommends that customers
get rid of the Lexmark and get a printer with lower running
costs, such as an Epson or a Canon that offer savings on
cartridges with out the compromoise on quality associated with
refilled cartridges.

In a world already full of acronyms and codes, who would have thought that something as simple as color could join in the confusion? Knowing the different color models and how they are used is not only helpful in getting the visual results you want it is critical to staying on budget.

Of the many color models available, there are really only three in which you need any fluency: CMYK, PMS and RGB.

CMYK Color

This acronym stands for cyan, magenta, yellow and black. CMYK is also known as process color, full color, 4 color, and 4c. The colors are versions of the primary colors, blue, red, yellow and black. They create full color images like you would see in a magazine. Choose CMYK when you need life-like, realistic color, more than two colors, have a large press run, or are printing only on your office printer.

What you need to know:

• If you are printing your project on a desktop color printer, look at the ink cartridge. If yours is CMYK, save your files and photos in that format for best output.
• Full color commercial printing is typically more expensive than one or two color. Typically, a press run of 1000 or more is needed to make this format economical.

PMS Color

The Pantone Matching System® (PMS) produces a specific color. It contains hundreds of colors, light to dark, bright to pastel; each designated by a number. PMS colors are typically used in one and two color printing and are also called spot color or flat color.

The PMS model delivers reliable color whenever you print it. It is an excellent choice for giving the impact of color to low budget jobs, and maintaining consistent use of corporate colors.

What you need to know:

• Inkjet and color laser printers are not able to produce PMS colors accurately, however some colors work better than others.
• There is no accurate proofing system for PMS color. The closest match can be shown on a high quality digital proofing system, available from your printer. When choosing PMS colors, have your designer show you a swatch from a PMS book to approve the color choice.
• PMS colors can be “screened,” printed as a lighter value of the color, in effect creating many colors from a single ink with no extra cost.

RGB Color

RGB stands for red, green and blue and makes up onscreen color. The RGB model is used for projects that will only be seen on a screen and not printed. RGB is the right choice for projects like websites, PowerPoint presentations and Acrobat .pdf files. Be advised that different monitors have different screen resolution and that can affect color display.

What you need to know:

• RGB produces vivid colors that look fabulous on-screen, but are difficult to reproduce in other color models. When converted to CMYK, many RGB colors look muddy and dull, and many have no Pantone equivalent at all. If your project will ever be used offline, be sure to select colors in the printing method it will be used in the most.

Color Matching

Have you ever wondered why the proof you are emailed looks different from the color mock-up from your designer, and different still from the printed piece?

What you need to know:

• Forget about this. Nothing ever matches exactly. The PMS or process color swatch book is the closest representation of the color you will get on press.
• Learn to think of your proofs as an approximation, and clearly explain to your designer what you are looking for. Trust your creative team to get the best match possible.
• If you must see exactly what a color will look like “final” you’ll need to display it on the monitor it will be shown, print to the desktop printer you will use, or order a sample printing of the PMS color you want. For process printing, you should be present during printing to approve the final output.

When using color, choosing the wrong format for your project can produce unexpected or unusable results, costing you both in lost time and money. Mastering the terms that specify color will provide valuable savings in every way.

About The Author

Beth Brodovsky is the president and principal of Iris Creative Group, LLC. Brodovsky earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Communication Design from Pratt Institute, New York. Before launching her own firm in 1996, she spent eight years as a corporate Art Director and Graphic Designer, providing a sound foundation in management and organizational standards and structure. Iris Creative specializes in providing marketing and strategic communication services to clients in service industries and small businesses. For more information contact Beth at bsb@iriscreative.com or 610-567-2799.