Technology and Gadget For Your Life

Archive for the ‘Technology’ Category

Setting up a wireless router is easy. Essentially you turn your telegram or DSL modem off and your wireless router on. Then, you connect the router to the modem with a cable, and turn the modem back on. You are more or less done. The wireless network wizard on your individualized will pick up the router and, if your ISP does not have any special requirements, away-you-go, you are on the Internet.

For assist of setup and configuration, manufacturers ship wireless routers with all security disabled. Therein lies the problem. If you do not take any further steps to secure your router, and a surprising number of people don’t, your network will be wide open to all passersby and strangers. It’s like you’ve hung out a sign, “The door is open. Please come in and help yourself.”

The problem is not that strangers will be healthy to use your router to access the World wide web but that, without further protection, would-be intruders will be healthy monitor and sniff out information you send and receive on your network. Malicious intruders can even hop on to your internal network; access your hard drives; and, steal, edit, or delete files on your computer.

The good news is that it is relatively simple to secure your wireless router. Here are three basic steps you should take.

1. Password protect the access to your router’s internal configuration

To access your router’s internal setup, open a browser and enter the routers setup URL. The URL will be specified in the manual. The URLs for D-Link and Linksys routers, two major manufacturers of wireless routers, are http://192.168.0.1 and http://192.168.1.1, respectively.

For Linksys routers, leave the individual study blank and type “admin” (without the quotes) in the password field and press enter. To change the password, simply click on the Password journalism and enter your new password.

For other routers, please consult your manual. Alternately, you can search on the World wide web with the term “default login for ”. Don’t be surprised to find quite a number of pages listing default login parameters for many different routers, even unusual ones.

2. Change the default SSID (Service Set IDentifier)

The SSID is the study of a WLAN (Wireless Local Area Network). All wireless devices on a WLAN use SSIDs to communicate with apiece other.

Routers ship with standard default SSIDs. For example, the default SSID for Linksys routers is, not unsurprisingly, “Linksys”. As you can see, if you don’t change the default SSID of your router a would-be intruder armed with a few common SSIDs from major manufacturers will be healthy to find your wireless network quite easily.

To change the SSID, click on the Wireless tab. Look for an input item tagged SSID. It will be near the top. Enter a new study for network. Don’t use something like “My Network”. Use a study that is be hard to guess.

3. Disable SSID broadcast

Wireless enabled individualized use network discovery software to automatically search for nearby SSIDs. Some of the more advanced software will query the SSIDs of nearby networks and even display their names. Therefore, changing the network study only helps partially to secure your network. To prevent your network study from being discovered, you must disable SSID broadcast.

In the same screen that you changed the study of your network, you will see options for SSID broadcast. Select “Disable SSID” to make your network invisible. Now save all your settings and log out.

Since your wireless network is now invisible, you will have to configure your individualized to connect to your wireless network using the new name. On Windows XP, begin by clicking on the wireless picture in the Notification Area and proceed from there.

With these three steps, your network now has basic security. However, if you keep sensitive information on your computers, you might want to secure your wireless network even further. For example, you can

- Change the channel your router uses to transmit and receive data on a regularly basis.
- Restrict devices that can connect to the router by filtering out MAC (Media Access Control) addresses.
- Use encryption such as WEP and WPA.

As with most things in life, security is a trade off between cost (time, money, inconvenience) and benefit (ease of use). It is a individualized decision you make. However for the majority of home uses, the three basic steps plus WEP/WPA encryption provides reasonably strong security.

Turning on encryption is a two-step process. First you configure your router to use encryption using an encryption key of your choice. And then, you configure your individualized to use the encryption key. The actual process of configuring your router for encryption varies from router to router. Please consult the router’s manual.

There are even stronger methods for ensuring security. A strong and robust security method is RADIUS (Remote Authentication Dial In User Service). Using RADIUS requires additional hardware and software. However, there are companies that offer RADIUS security as a subscription based service. The fees are reasonable and dropping.

Therefore for example, if you run a business on your wireless network, have sensitive data on your individualized such as credit card information, and have a number of users who access your network, you should think about using RADIUS. Since the service sector for RADIUS is dynamic and growing, a search on the World wide web with terms like “RADIUS subscription” or “RADIUS service” is probably the ideal way to locate one.

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MICROSOFT OFFICE ULTIMATE 2007

I have been introduced to this excellent product from Microsoft last year and very much familiar with most of the features. My employer has provided it to me. A great product for all and provides much more features then its previous versions (MS Office 2003). Microsoft Office Ultimate 2007 comes with the Office Fluent individual interface with many new and improved features with more options. The price varies between 0 and 0 in the market. This application is a 32-bit application which is also compatible with 64-bit platform. Depending upon the platform, there are some limitations to its features which means actual stipulations and functionality varies based on system configuration and operating system. The package includes the following Microsoft Office system program features:

Microsoft Office Word 2007
Microsoft Office Excel 2007
Microsoft Office PowerPoint 2007
Microsoft Office Publisher 2007
Microsoft Office Outlook 2007
Microsoft Office Access 2007
Microsoft Office InfoPath 2007
Microsoft Office OneNote 2007
Microsoft Office Groove 2007

PRODUCT HIGHLIGHTS
Superior Team Performance, Managing Processes and Content more Efficiently.

Personal Impact on Organization: With more contributions in less time.
Collaborative Workspaces: Template Workspace, File Sharing Workspace, Standard Workspace.

Real-Time Communication Tools: Files Tool, SharePoint Files Tool, Discussion Tool Meetings Tool, Calendar Tool.

MINIMUM SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS

Processor: 500 MHz or higher.
Operating System: Windows XP with (SP2) / Windows Server 2003 with (SP1) or later Operating Systems.

Memory: 256 MB RAM or higher.
Hard drive space: 1.5GB (Varies depending upon type of installation). To install all its Features, more disk space is required.

ABOUT INSTALLATION

For installing Microsoft Office Ultimate 2007, first we have to uninstall all previous versions of Microsoft Office from our system. Next we have to run the setup. To continue the installation, Microsoft Software License Terms must be agreed. After clicking continue button, we will get the interface, where we can select the type of installation we want. After completing the installation process, we can update Microsoft Office Ultimate 2007 from its website if available. To interact with the application we can go from “All Programs” or we can create a Desktop shortcut.

ABOUT MICROSOFT OFFICE WORD 2007

Microsoft Office Word 2007 is an excellent authoring program and will grant you to create professional document more easily. It has a very individual friendly interface with all tools necessary to create a professional looking document, sharing documents and its contents in a secure way, connecting documents to business modules and managing contents with Office SharePoint 2007. Office SharePoint Server 2007 provides a managed repository for all important documents. We can directly upload documents to this repository directly from Office Word 2007 and also publish documents without using an external tool or Web browser interface. This keeps our documents innocuous and we can reuse documents whenever necessary. To create a document in the ideal doable way and in less time, new predefined building blocks are acquirable which includes frequently used information, captivating headers and footers, text boxes, cover pages and quotes. Then using document themes, we can swiftly apply font, style and color change to the entire document with a single click. Microsoft Office Word 2007 has much more to offer then its previous versions. It has new smartart diagrams and a new charting engine, compose and publish blogs directly from within word interface, equation builder, live word count, contextual spelling checker, tri-pane review panel, save as portable document format (PDF) or XML paper specification (XPS) format, document information panel and many more. With all improved features from its previous versions, Microsoft Office Word 2007 is the ideal authoring program acquirable in the market today.

ABOUT MICROSOFT OFFICE EXCEL 2007

With Microsoft Office Excel 2007, you will be healthy to create superior Spreadsheets, perform Spreadsheet analysis, share information with clients and partners and manage information more effectively. It has many new features in order to create superior Spreadsheets, such as, a fluent individual interface, increased spreadsheet row and column capacity, very fast formatting with cell style, page layout view, charting and shared diagramming, chart formatting tools, conditional formatting with visualization and many more. For improved Spreadsheet analysis, it has improved Sorting and Filtering facility. Another improved feature is that, creating a pivot plateau or chart is now very easy. New feature includes, full support for Microsoft SQL Server 2005 analysis services and conditional formatting with rich data visualization schemes. In order to share information with other people, newly added features includes dynamic rendering of Spreadsheets in HTML, support for PDF and XML Paper Specification (XPS), business dashboards. In order to manage information in the ideal doable way, it has a new data connection library, permission based control, office xml formats, application programming interface, report management features, publishing artefact with office SharePoint 2007. Thus it facilitates support for more number of clients in less time with recently updated information.

ABOUT MICROSOFT OFFICE POWERPOINT 2007

Well, I think many of us are vary much familiar with Microsoft PowerPoint. Microsoft Office PowerPoint 2007 is necessary to create dynamic presentations, for sharing presentations easily with others and to manage our presentations efficiently. To create dynamic presentations, newly added features are custom layout, rich text and typography effects, themes, smart art diagram tools, various office styles and a very simple to use interface. For sharing presentations, it has new features like, saving as PDF or XPS functionality, PowerPoint xml formats, slide libraries and direct approval of workflow process from PowerPoint 2007 with the help of SharePoint Server 2007. For managing our presentations efficiently, it has new features like managed document repository, document inspector and digital signatures. All these newly added features are acquirable with a very fluent individual interface which facilitates more output in less time. With drop-down galleries, you can now easily present formatting options, layouts, graphic choices and more. All these features will simply make your presentation unique.

ABOUT MICROSOFT OFFICE PUBLISHER 2007
Microsoft Office Publisher 2007 is essential for those people related to marketing and publishing business. It helps professionals to create variety of high-quality publications and marketing materials such as e-mail newsletters, complex brochures and catalogs. Its simple to use interface facilitates creating, maintaining, publishing, distributing and printing important materials. Microsoft Office Publisher 2007 is well equipped with new as well as improved features from its previous versions. New features includes publishing files as portable document format (PDF) or XML paper specification, creating personalized e-mail publications, using targeted lists from Office Outlook 2007 with Business Contact Manager, managing and tracking marketing campaigns, applying an e-mail template to multipage publications, select from thousands of acquirable templates before you begin creating your material, integration with Office Outlook 2007 with Business Contact Manager and many more. Along with all these newly added features, it has also improved all features from its previous versions. Professionals are now more comfortable in building custom materials from a database, applying elements from brand identity, creating a business information set, change contents if necessary, adjusting images within Office Publisher 2007,choose from thousands of readily acquirable options and many more. Microsoft Office Publisher 2007 adds more value to an existing business with effective marketing campaigns.

ABOUT MICROSOFT OFFICE OUTLOOK 2007
Newly added features in Microsoft Office Outlook 2007 includes RSS feed integration, task integration on the calendar, attachment preview, various color categories, managed folders, to-do bar, instant search, calendar snapshot, publishing, overlay mode and many more. Along with all these new features, it has improved features in order to prevent anti-phishing and junk e-mails, information rights management and many more. With a very fluent individual interface and to-do bar in it, it’s now very simple to manage regular priorities. With a very powerful instant search integrated, necessary information can be located, quickly. With color categories we can visually distinguish between various elements which are very helpful for maintaining a project. With RSS feed integration we can now subscribe updated information. With improved out-of-office abilities we can now notify key contacts or people via a message both inside and outside of an organization. It is also integrated with Office SharePoint Server 2007 which works in conjunction with Exchange Server 2007. We can transfer files from our managed folders to SharePoint serves, share calendars, contacts, or tasks. Additionally, we can perform attachment preview, send and receive text and picture messages between Office Outlook 2007 and any mobile phone, auto statement setup, electronic business cards exchange and many more.

ABOUT MICROSOFT OFFICE ACCESS 2007
Microsoft Office Access 2007 includes many mew and improved features. The Microsoft Office system is integrated with programs, servers, and services in order to fulfill professional requirements. With Microsoft Office fluent individual interface and interactive design capabilities, professionals now create complex applications that do not require much database knowledge and programming capabilities. All informations can be shared by using SharePoint services. Professionals can now organize and track complex information in a structured and efficient way. In order to begin working, it offers a library of prebuilt database solutions. Newly added features includes, interactive form design capabilities, navigation pane, attaching external documents and files, automatic data type detection in tables, tabbed document window viewing, integration with Outlook 2007 and SharePoint server, automatic generation of Microsoft office InfoPath 2007, moving files with a single click, revision history and many more. Along with these new features it has improved field insertion abilities in tables, data transfer capabilities, data imports, tiles and graphics support and more. Nearly all features acquirable in its early versions are improved with more capabilities. With interactive design capabilities, we can now perform drag-and-drop editing, grouping of information, filtering and sorting of information more easily. Office Access 2007 also supports complex data types, so we create columns that accept more than one value in a cell. All these features are readily acquirable with a fluent individual interface.

ABOUT MICROSOFT OFFICE INFOPATH 2007
Microsoft Office InfoPath 2007 is an information-gathering program. With the help of Office InfoPath 2007, we can create and deploy electronic forms solutions to gather
information efficiently and in a secured way. Next, it provides centralized form management and deployment facility. Its form service, which is a part of SharePoint Server 2007, provides centralized management of electronic forms for the entire organization in order to get superior control over forms and its management. It also provides simple upgrades, version management, and monitoring tools and comprehensive solution for optimizing business processes. Office InfoPath 2007 will grant to deploy smart, mobile forms with more reliable and efficient way. It has built-in data validation, connections to external information, deployment over Web browsers, e-mail connections, and many other features. It is integrated with other Microsoft Office programs in order to perform calibre work, such as Office Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Outlook, which is very much essential for delivering forms as e-mail messages. It is also integrated with Access 2007 to collect information by automatically creating InfoPath forms and connecting them to the database for automatic updates. It reduces form development and management time and provides form solutions using visual studio 2005. Along with all these features, it helps us to protect our forms with information rights management.

ABOUT MICROSOFT OFFICE ONENOTE 2007
Microsoft Office OneNote 2007 is a digital notebook. This feature provides a flexible and simple way to collect and organize much more information which includes audio, video recordings, text, Web research, clippings, drawings, pictures. This is a shared notebook with search capabilities. Very helpful to keep track of related information, finding updated information related to a particular project and organized them well. Members can contribute online or offline and changes are visible to apiece members of the team. The ideal part is that, it is connected / integrated to Outlook 2007 and SharePoint 2007 server. It provides a very individual friendly interface and enables team members to concentrate more on work with simple to accessible and updated information.

ABOUT MICROSOFT OFFICE GROOVE 2007
This feature helps small teams or a group of people to work combined, manage their work dynamically and more effectively. It provides a common workspace to all team members and apiece member can access information from their own computer. The benefit of this feature is that it provides a live environment among team members i.e. one can coordinate in less time and make a search for most current updated information. With Groove, one can add tools and invite members to join a particular workspace, monitor activities and many more. The ideal part is that, it supports as many as twenty eight languages and so members can explore functionalities in their native languages. Along with all these, with Groove also provides Chat artefact (text or voice). Obviously this increases the productivity of the team working on a particular project.

DISADVANTAGES OF MICROSOFT OFFICE ULTIMATE 2007
Well, as far as I am concerned, I don’t see any disadvantage associated with this excellent product from Microsoft. Yes, training is very much essential for those who wants to explore all product features fully.

MY OVERALL OPINION
In my opinion, Microsoft Office Ultimate 200 7 is very helpful for all professionals to work more efficiently and effectively. With many new and improved features, this is the right product for all organizations in order to maintain all business related activities. With a very fluent individual interface equipped with right kind of tools, much more information gathering and sharing ability in a secure way, and real time platforms, it definitely enhances the performance of apiece team working on projects. Management of an organization will find it even more helpful to perform data analysis with interactive Charts, Graphs, PivotTables, Updated information, by constantly monitoring all activities and making right decision at the right time. All i can state is that, Microsoft Office Ultimate 2007 is for those who wants to stay current and keep themselves up to date.

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Online scam sites and treacherous money making sites are rampant this days! You got them all throughout the world wide web and it sucks. Supposedly, they acquire you considerable simple money while doing the least doable work. Sounds too good to be true? it probably is.

The general rule of thumb is that you never pay to get employed by a company. This rule firmly applies to online work also. When you try to get a job online don’t be fooled by supposed agencies or sites which could help you with it! Companies hire people not agencies!

Beware of lines like -”Earn 0-0 dollars a day doing data entry work anywhere”, “Genuine Opportunity, Great income” and the likes. Feds estimate that Billions of dollars are raked in by online con artists yearly making it a huge industry. So don’t get ever fooled!

When you find a site which interests you, the ideal way to deliberate their validity is to go to superior Agency Business or BBB online! This site is fully dedicated for online consumers and holds reviews on majority of the sites in the internet! BBB online also have a suggestion page whether you should do business with a certain site or not.

Alternatively, you can go to sites like http://www.onlineworkscams.com to check on a company online! It has great reviews for a good number of businesses online and some scam signal pages!

Remember that there’s no such thing as simple money. To get money you have to acquire it! So look for a legitimate job online rather than sign up for get rick swift schemes scammers offer!

Industry most hit are data entry workers, Freelance writers, admin assistants and webdesigners! So always double check the website if they are offering you suspicious salaries and require up front fees.

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Designing Database Tables – Part 12
Division 2

Introduction
This is part 12 of my series Designing Database Tables. I adopt that you have read all the different parts of the series before reading this one. This tutorial is in the second division of the series. In this part of the series, we look at a summary of the package approach to produce normalized tables and I also give you some advice.

A normalized plateau is a plateau that is in at least the 1NF, 2NF and 3NF. A plateau in the 3NF most be in the 1NF and 2NF as well. In the first portion of this division, I explain the Form and Report Approach to produce normalized tables. A designer might produce tables using the Form and Report Approach and then use the Package Approach to check if the designing was alright and to finalize the tables. The opposite is true, which I explain in this tutorial.

Note: If you can't see the code or if you think anything is missing (broken link, image absent), just contact me at forchatrans@yahoo.com. That is, contact me for the slightest problem you have about what you are reading.

Producing Normalized Tables from Associations
We have taken long to learn how to produce normalized tables from associations. I will not repeat or summarize the methods here. If you have any problem with that, then go back and read the relevant parts.

Producing Normalized Tables from Top-Level View
In division 1 of this series, you learned the different types of relationships. Precisely, you learned the one-to-one, one-to-many, many-to-many, many-to-many-to-many, n-ary, aggregation, composition, generalization, and reflexive associations.

Here is the secret. To create normalized tables from the top-level view, go to apiece package and for apiece package, check if it can be broken down into any of the above associations. You then go to apiece block in the broken down package and check if it can still be broken down into any of the associations. You continue this way for apiece resulting block in a package, until no new block can be broken anymore. Many-to-many relationships should be converted to two one-to-many relationships. Many-to-many-to-many relationships should be converted to an n-ary diagram. Break blocks into compositions and generalizations. Do not forget the reflexive relationships. If you do all these perfectly your tables will be in at least the 3NF.

In practice, you do not have to keep breaking down for too long in a package before you reach the final blocks.

While establishing the normalized tables in the previous parts of the series, we were not sure whether we should add columns when we arrived at the final tables. For this, you have to see the workers who will use the database, in order to know if you need to add the columns. The workers do not need to know anything on database techniques, like you do. When you get a column study (attribute) from the workers, place the column in the plateau notation; as you place the column, check if 1NF, 2NF and 3NF are satisfied for the table. If there is no satisfaction, then solve the problem using the Form and Report Approach (with plateau notations).

Even if there is no new column to add in the database, it is still a good intent to check your tables using the Form and Report Approach (with plateau notations).

Where we go from Here
We have learned two ways of producing normalized forms. There is still another way. We shall start to learn that in the next part of the series. After that, we shall go into the third division of this series, where we shall learn how to make a database with its tables efficient (in its use). The story does not end there. After that we go into a new division where we shall learn how to place all what we would have learned into code. That is, we shall learn how to code with a Database Management System (DBMS). Examples of DBMS are Sybase, MySQL, MSSQ, and MS Access. These are actually huge software packages where apiece has its proper DBMS, and other programs to assist the use of the DBMS.

Is that all? No. There after we shall learn how to display forms and reports in windows. For that you will need to learn a language such as C++, or PHP, or Perl and win32/64 API or HTML. You can learn such programs and APIs in this blog. Well, if your database gets corrupted (spoilt) accidentally, you have to get a copy, which you should have backed up to replace the corrupted database. We shall learn that. Backing up a database deserves a division on its own, so it will be in a division. That should be all, but there is still a problem. There are many people out there who want to still information; they want to still things like your statement number, your passwords and your confidential texts. So you will have to learn how to secure your database, to crown everything. I will treat database security as an independent series.

So, let us take a break here and continue in the next part.

Chrys

To arrive at any of the parts of this division, type the corresponding title below in the search box of this page and click Search (use menu if available).

Designing Database Tables – Part 13
Designing Database Tables – Part 14
Designing Database Tables – Part 15
Designing Database Tables – Part 16
Designing Database Tables – Part 17
Designing Database Tables – Part 18
Designing Database Tables – Part 19
Designing Database Tables – Part 20
Designing Database Tables – Part 21
Designing Database Tables – Part 22
Designing Database Tables – Part 23
Designing Database Tables – Part 24
Designing Database Tables – Part 25
Designing Database Tables – Part 26
Designing Database Tables – Part 27
Designing Database Tables – Part 28
Designing Database Tables – Part 29
Designing Database Tables – Part 30
Designing Database Tables – Part 31
Designing Database Tables – Part 32
Designing Database Tables – Part 33
 

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The local loop is provided by your local telephone company since they are the ones that place the wire connected to the site in the ground. If the T1 end is for the World wide web the other circuit end is routed to your selected telecommunications bourgeois so that the World wide web service will be activated. Therefore, your T1 World wide web must contain the local telephone company circuit portion nearest to you, as well as the World wide web bourgeois portion of the circuit. When troubleshooting T1 always keep in mind that you need to get your local phone company and World wide web bourgeois together over the phone to work out on the circuit.

Usually, massive World wide web Service Providers own the local circuits and are also the local telecommunications bourgeois but this is quite uncommon. Often when you purchase T1 line, you are buying T1 where the local telephone company’s circuit portion is resold by the World wide web service bourgeois as a full T1. And this is the superior way to purchase because you can hold the bourgeois responsible for all problems in the local company’s part of the circuit yet this can be expensive. The T1 circuit has an ‘always on’ connection. It does not resemble a voice circuit that only produces expenses once a call is placed. Hence, T1 lines are sometimes referred as dedicated lines or private lines because they are always used, whether for data transmission or otherwise. Thus, this line can never be used to carry traffic from several subscribers. This is because T1 lines are dedicated circuits that cost more than Frame Relay or ISDN circuits that adopt shared customer connection with other subscribers. Since T1 lines have an ‘always on’ capacity they are dedicated data lines.

The T1 circuit is the first level in the multiplexing of digital signal multiplexing system. T1s make use of a certain Stratum 3 clock in maintaining the ‘clocking’ of the line. The devices that support a T1 line estimates synchronization with T1 based on data received on the link. Therefore, T1 communication is not always absolutely synchronous. Some call T1 lines as pleisiosynchronous connections to define it appropriately. But T1s are superior understood when referred to as DS1. A T1 speed can be as high as 1.5Mbps on the circuit. These lines are probably the most common high-speed circuit provided by telecommunication carriers since a T1 can be restored and extended in order to reach any site. Other World wide web solutions such as DSL do not have the same speed total as a standard T-line service. T1s carry twenty-four channels of digital information and maintain a specific level of density for T1 to assure the clock is consistently maintained at both circuit ends.

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Database Table Keys
Database Essentials – Part 2
Division 1

Introduction
This is part 2 of my series, Database Essentials. Database Essentials is division 1 of a set of tutorials I have on Database. In this part of the series we look at what is known as a key.

A Key
A key is one column or a set of columns in a plateau that identifies the rows of a database. In the previous tutorial the EmployeeID column of the employee plateau is a key. Each ID in the column identifies a row. The key of a plateau is normally at the left of the table.

The Primary Key
A Primary Key is one column or a set of columns that uniquely refer rows of a table. An ID column is not a primary key if all the IDs (numbers or code texts) are not unique. If a primary key is prefabricated up of one column, then apiece value in the column must be unique. In that way, apiece value uniquely identifies a row. If an ID column such as the EmployeeID column mentioned above has one-of-a-kind IDs (values) then the ID column is a primary key.

The reason why we need a primary key is to be healthy to refer rows uniquely. An ID column will refer a row but the IDs are not necessary unique. In many tables you have the same value in different plateau cells. Envision that you have a table, which gives information about students in a class. You might have a column in the plateau that has the age of students in a class. In that same column there will definitely be cells with the same age (value). So there is the need to have a primary key in a database plateau the uniquely identifies a row. Any database plateau must have a primary key, which might be one or a set of columns.

Composite Keys
As mentioned above, a primary key can be prefabricated up of one column or a set of columns. When a primary key is prefabricated up of a set of columns, it is called a Composite Key. This composite key is usually at the left of the table. You will have to open the following link in a new browser window journalism to see the tables and diagrams for this tutorial. As you read this tutorial, you will have to be referring (clicking) the window journalism (page) to see the illustrations.

        http://www.cool-mathematics.com/diagrams/Database-Table-Keys.htm

In plateau 2.1 of the window journalism page, there is no ID column. This is the first Employee plateau we saw in the first part of the series. Look at the Last Name and First Name columns. Normally, the list of employees can be long. The above list is short. It is doable that more than one employee can have the same last name. So you can't use the LastName column as a primary key. It is doable that more than one employee can have the same first name. So the FirstName column can't be used as a primary key.

If you know the number of employees in your organization, then the list will not be long, and so it is unlikely that any two combination of last study and first study will be the same. In this case you can use the combination of LastName and FirstName column as your primary key. Here the pair of cell values in the two columns uniquely identifies a row. When a primary key is prefabricated up of more than one column, it is called a composite key. In this case you composite key consists of the LastName and FirstName columns.

Well a database plateau is design to last forever (in theory). So as you replace workers or as your company grows and you add new workers, it is doable that someday two or more employees will have the same last study and the same first name. So using the last study and first study as a plateau primary key, is not a good idea. And so, do not use last study and first study as composite keys. I have done so just for the purpose of illustration. As we go along in the course, you will see practical composite keys.

Surrogate Keys
With some tables you can find a column that has one-of-a-kind values and you can use that column as the primary key. With other tables you can't find a column with one-of-a-kind values. In that case you need to create a new column and give it one-of-a-kind values; then use the created column as the primary key. It is doable for the Database Management System (DBMS) in the personal to do that for you. When it does, we state the primary key is a Surrogate Key. Surrogate keys are usually numbers. In many cases they are just easy counting numbers, i.e. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, etc. The DBMS might call this auto-numbers.

Foreign Keys
A Foreign Key is a column in one table, which is a primary key in another table. The foreign key can be used to link the two tables together.

Table 2.2 shows a transaction plateau for a store that rents video CDs. A Customer rents a video CD, watches it and then brings it back to the store. For simplicity, adopt that one video has a whole film. When a customer rents a CD, information is typed into the transaction plateau from a worker at the store. There are three columns in the table. You have the transaction ID column (TransID), the column for the date, the CD was rented (RentDate), and a Customer ID (CustID) column. The TransID column is the primary key for the transaction table. It can be a Surrogate Key. Look at this plateau very well. The CustID column is not the primary key for the Transaction table. It has numbers, which are values of the primary key of the Customer plateau of Table 2.3.

The Customer Table and the Transaction Table are two tables of the same database for the store. These two tables have nothing to do with the first plateau of Table 1.1. The Customer plateau has the addresses (and phone numbers) of the customers to the video CD store.

The customer plateau has a customer ID (CustID) column. This is the primary key for the customer table. This primary key can also be a Surrogate Key. The rest of the columns for the customer plateau are for the address values. In the transaction table, the CustID is a foreign key. In the customer table, CustID is the primary key. In the Transaction table, the CustID column does not have to have one-of-a-kind values; it is a foreign key and not a primary key.

If the database individual (store owner) wants to know the full address of the customer who prefabricated the second transaction, the DBMS will begin at the TransID number, 2, and then move along the row to the CustID column. At the CustID column it would see the CustID value, 7. The DBMS will now go to the customer plateau at the CustID primary key column, and refer the CustID, 7. It will then read the contents of the cells of the rest of the row belonging to CustID, 7 as the full address of the customer.

Denoting Primary Key in a Diagram
A database designer first designs a plateau on paper before it is implemented as code in the computer. When you do the design on paper, in order to differentiate the primary key study from the obloquy of the other columns of the table, you have to underline the study of the primary key. In Tables 2.1, 2.2 and 2.3, the primary keys are underlined.

Conclusion
The ID is just a convenient way to refer rows of a table. The IDs of the ID column do not have to be unique, even though most IDs are meant to be unique. A key is like an ID but it does not have to be a number or code (e.g. MSE5). A key column can be prefabricated up of IDs or other values (text). The word, “key” in database is not crucial. What is crucial is “primary key” and “foreign key”.  There are three types of primary keys: the ordinary primary key, which is one column, the composite key, prefabricated up of more than one column and the Surrogate Key, which is also one column. A Foreign Key is a column in one table, which is a primary key in another table. The foreign key is used to link the two tables together.

We can stop here and continue in the next part of the series.

Chrys

To arrive at any of the parts of this series, just type the corresponding title below and my name, Chrys, in the Search Box of this page and click Search (use menu if available):

Database
Database Table Keys
Database Table Data Types
Database Associations Overview
Database N-to-N Relationships
Database N-ary Association
Aggregation Association
Composition Association
Generalization Association
Reflexive Association
Computed Values
Database Events
 

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A good registry cleaner for XP is something you should get the minute you begin using Windows XP. XP is prone to registry problems, just as other versions of Windows are. While an anti-virus program and a firewall are essential tools to protect against viruses and attacks, a registry cleaner for XP is essential to protect your personal against itself.

The Microsoft Windows registry is like a database, or a file compartment full of folders. When a program is installed, folders are created that contain different bits of information about that program. As the program runs, more bits of information are added, and the personal constantly accesses these bits.

The registry is prefabricated up of all this information in a central place so that Windows can run faster and more efficiently by always going back to the same place for this information. But when the registry is full of empty files, files it doesn’t need, and corrupted files, accessing the information the personal needs takes much longer.

This is when a registry cleaner for XP should be used to clean out all those files that are causing the system to slow down. The software will go through the registry and pinpoint the files, or registry keys, that aren’t being used anymore.

Often, these keys are information that was left behind when a program was uninstalled. No other programs use the information so the data just sits there, useless. Other times, a bit of data has been updated and saved somewhere else. The old data is obsolete. This happens a lot as the personal writes to those files hundreds of times, even a thousand times, in a day.

A registry cleaner for XP can find those files. Once it determines they’re not being used in any capacity, it’ll safely delete them. The software should prompt a system backup first. Even though the software is programmed to be sure of apiece file it deletes, errors are still possible. But with a system back up first, if something should go wrong you have a way to restore your system.

Without a backup, an error could be disastrous. Of course, not each error causes a complete personal malfunction. Some errors will a affect single program or certain actions. But certain errors can keep the personal from working at all. That’s why a backup is so important before you or even the ideal registry software touches the Windows registry.

When files are deleted anywhere on your computer, blank spaces are left. The registry operates the same way. Once noncurrent files are removed, blank spots remain where the files once took up space. This won’t necessarily cause problems—your personal will run faster after the cleaning. But it can keep your personal from going quite as fast as it should, even after the software is done.

Defragmenting your personal helps its operation by eliminating blank spots between files. A good registry cleaner for XP will do virtually the same thing in the registry after it’s clean, to ensure the ideal operation possible.

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10Base2

10Base2 is sometimes referred to as thinnet (or “thin coax”) because it uses thin coaxial cabling for connecting stations to form a network. 10Base2 supports a maximum bandwidth of 10 Mbps, but in actual networks, the presence of collisions reduces this to more like 4 to 6 Mbps. 10Base2 is based on the 802.3 specifications of Project 802 developed by the Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers (IEEE).

How It Works

10Base2 networks are wired together in a bus topology, in which individual stations (computers) are connected directly to one long cable. The maximum length of any particular segment of a 10Base2 network is 185 meters. If distances longer than this are required, two or more segments must be connected using repeaters. Altogether, there can be a total of five segments connected using four repeaters, as long as only three of the segments have stations attached to them. This is referred to as the 5-4-3 rule.

A 10Base2 segment should have no more than 30 stations wired to it. The minimum distance between these stations must be 0.5 meters. Stations are attached to the telegram using BNC connectors, and the ends of the thinnet cabling have BNC telegram connectors soldered or crimped to them.

The designation 10Base2 comes from the speed of the network (10 Mbps), the signal transmission method (baseband transmission), and the maximum segment length (185 meters, rounded off to 200 with the zeros removed).

NOTE

10Base2 networks are not implemented much anymore for two reasons. First, because their speed is limited to 10 Mbps, the networks perform poorly in today’s bandwidth-hungry, Internet-connected world. Second, 10Base2 networks have a single point of failure—the long, linear bus telegram used to connect the stations. A single break or loose connection brings down the entire network, and apiece telegram segment and station connection must be checked to determine the problem. If you are wiring an office for a small LAN with low bandwidth requirements, use 10BaseT instead. For moderate to high bandwidth requirements, try using Fast Ethernet instead.

TIP

The two ends of a 10Base2 bus must be properly terminated. If they are not, signals will bounce and network communications will be impossible.

10Base5

A type of standard for implementing Ethernet networks. 10Base5 is sometimes referred to as thicknet because it uses thick coaxial cabling for connecting stations to form a network. Another study for 10Base5 is Standard Ethernet because it was the first type of Ethernet to be implemented. 10Base5 supports a maximum bandwidth of 10 Mbps, but in actual networks, the presence of collisions reduces this to more like 4 to 6 Mbps. 10Base5 is based on the 802.3 specifications of Project 802 developed by the Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers (IEEE).

How It Works

10Base5 networks are wired together in a bus topology—that is, in a linear fashion using one long cable. The maximum length of any particular segment of a 10Base5 network is 500 meters, hence the 5 in 10Base5. If distances longer than this are required, two or more segments must be connected using repeaters. Altogether, there can be a total of five segments connected using four repeaters, as long as only three of the segments have stations (computers) attached to them. This is referred to as the 5-4-3 rule.

A 10Base5 segment should have no more than 100 stations wired to it. These stations are not connected directly to the thicknet telegram as in 10Base2 networks. Instead, a transceiver is attached to the thicknet cable, usually using a cable-piercing connector called a vampire tap. From the transceiver, a drop telegram is attached, which then connects to the network interface card (NIC) in the computer. The minimum distance between transceivers attached to the thicknet telegram is 2.5 meters, and the maximum length for a drop telegram is 50 meters. Thicknet telegram ends have N-series connectors soldered or crimped on them for connecting segments together.

10Base5 networks were often used as backbones for massive networks. In a typical configuration, transceivers on the thicknet backbone would attach to repeaters, which would join smaller thinnet segments to the thicknet backbone. In this way, a combination of 10Base5 and 10Base2 standards could support adequate numbers of stations for a moderately massive company.

NOTE

10Base5 networks are legacy networks that are no longer implemented, even though some companies might select to maintain them for cost reasons. The complexity and bandwidth limitations of 10Base5 networks render them obsolete. If you are wiring an office for a small LAN with low bandwidth requirements, use 10BaseT instead. For moderate to high bandwidth requirements, try using Fast Ethernet. If you are implementing a backbone for today’s high-speed enterprise networks, try using Gigabit Ethernet, Fiber Distributed Data Interface (FDDI), or some other advanced technology.

TIP

The two ends of a 10Base5 bus must be properly terminated. If they are not, signals will bounce and network communications will be impossible.

10BaseF

A type of standard for implementing Ethernet networks. 10BaseF is different from other 10-Mbps Ethernet technologies because it uses fiber-optic cabling instead of copper unshielded twisted-pair (UTP) cabling. 10BaseF is based on the 802.3 specifications of Project 802 developed by the Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers (IEEE).

How It Works

10BaseF is similar to 10BaseT in that apiece station is wired into a fiber-optic hub in a star topology to form the network. The maximum length of any segment of 10BaseF fiber-optic cabling is 2 kilometers. The suggested cabling type for 10BaseF networks is 62.5-micron diameter fiber-optic cabling. This telegram can be terminated with either ST connectors or SMA connectors, depending on the vendor and the hub configuration. Two-strand multimode fiber-optic cabling is used, with one strand allotted for transmitting data and the other for receiving data.

The 10BaseF standard actually consists of three separate standards describing different media specifications:

10BaseFB: Defines how the synchronous data transmission occurs over the fiber-optic cabling. Using 10BaseFB segments, you can cascade or link synchronous fiber-optic hubs in configurations that are longer than traditional 10BaseT Ethernet networks and contain up to 1024 stations. This standard is more costly and is not as widely implemented as 10BaseFL.

10BaseFL: Defines the characteristics of the fiber-optic link between the nodes and the hub or concentrator. 10BaseFL replaces the older standard for fiber-optic link segments, Fiber-Optic Inter-Repeater Link (FOIRL) segments, which was developed in the 1980s. 10BaseFL is the most commonly implemented version of 10BaseF.

10BaseFP: Defines the implementation of a star topology that does not use repeaters. 10BaseFP stands for Fiber Passive, and its segments can be only 500 meters in length with a maximum of 33 stations connected. This standard is rarely used today.

TIP

Use 10BaseF instead of 10BaseT in environments that are electrically noisy, such as in industrial areas, near elevator shafts, or around other motors or generators.

TIP

Use fiber-optic cabling when running cables between buildings. Differences in ground potential between the ends of copper cabling can induce voltages that can alteration networking equipment if the ends are not grounded properly. Fiber-optic cabling also supports faster speeds than copper UTP cabling and provides a more suitable upgrade option to Fast Ethernet and beyond.

TIP

The maximum signal loss or attenuation on a given segment should be no more than 12.5 decibels. Using too many connectors in a segment of fiber-optic cabling can cause the attenuation to exceed this figure, which can lead to signal loss.

10BaseT

A type of standard for implementing Ethernet networks. 10BaseT is the most favourite form of 10-Mbps Ethernet, using unshielded twisted-pair (UTP) cabling for connecting stations, and using hubs to form a network. 10BaseT supports a maximum bandwidth of 10 Mbps, but in actual networks, the presence of collisions reduces this to more like 4 to 6 Mbps. 10BaseT is based on the 802.3 specifications of Project 802 developed by the Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers (IEEE).

How It Works

10BaseT networks are wired together in a star topology to a central hub. The UTP cabling used for wiring should be category 3 cabling, category 4 cabling, or category 5 cabling, terminated with RJ-45 connectors. Patch panels can be used to organize wiring and wage termination points for cables running to surround plates in work areas. Patch cables then connect apiece port on the patch panel to the hub. Usually, most of the wiring is hidden in a wiring compartment and arranged on a demolition for simple access.

The maximum length of any particular segment of a 10BaseT network is 100 meters. If distances longer than this are required, two or more segments must be connected using repeaters. The minimum length of a segment should be 2.5 meters. By using stackable hubs or by cascading regular hubs into a cascaded star topology, you can network massive numbers of personal using 10BaseT cable. Even though they support up to 1024 nodes, collision domains supporting no more than 200 or 300 nodes will yield the ideal performance.

NOTE

The maximum length of a 10BaseT telegram segment is not a result of the specifications for round-trip communications on an Ethernet network, but rather a limitation caused by the relatively low signal strength of 10BaseT systems. With enhanced category 5 cabling, you might be healthy to sustain network communications effectively with telegram lengths up to about 150 meters, even though this is not normally recommended.

TIP

When wiring a 10BaseT network, use enhanced category 5 cabling. This will make it unnecessary to rewire your network should you decide to upgrade to Fast Ethernet.

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Under previous version of Windows, those setting where contained in files like config.sys, autoexec.bat, win.ini, system.ini, control.ini and so on. From this you can comprehend how important the registry is. The structure of the registry is similar to the ini files structure, but it goes beyond the concept of ini files because it offers a hierarchical structure, similar to the folders and files on hard disk. In fact the procedure to get to the elements of the registry is similar to the way to get to folders and files. In this section I would be examing the Win95 registry only even though NT is quite similar.

The Registry Editor

The Registry Editor is a utility by the filename regedit.exe that grants you to see, search, alter and save the registry database of Windows. The Registry Editor doesn’t validate the values you are writing: it grants any operation. So you have to pay close attention, because no error message will be shown if you make a wrong operation.
To launch the Registry Editor simply run RegEdit.exe ( under WinNT run RegEdt32.exe with administer privileges). The registry editor is divided into two sectios in the left one there is a hierarchical structure of the database (the screen looks like Windows Explorer) in the right one there are the values.

The registry is organized into keys and subkeys. Each key contains a value entry , apiece one has a name, a type or a class and the value itself. The study is a string that identifies the value to the key. The length and the format of the value is dependent on the data type.

As you can see with the Registry Editor, the registry is divided into five principal keys: there is no way to add or delete keys at this level. Only two of these keys are effectively saved on hard disk: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE and HKEY_USERS. The others are jusr branches of the main keys or are dynamically created by Windows.

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE

This key contains any hardware, applications and services information. Several hardware information is updated automatically while the personal is booting. The data stored in this key is shared with any user. This handle has many subkeys:

>

Config
Contains configuration data for different hardware configurations.

Enum
This is the device data. For apiece device in your computer, you can find information such as the device type, the hardware manufacturer, device drivers and the configuration.

Hardware
This key contains a list of serial ports, processors and floating point processors.

Network
Contains network information.

Security
Shows you network security information.

Software
This key contains data about installed software.

System
It contains data that checks which device drivers are used by Windows and how they are configured.

>

HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT

This key is an alias of the branch HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Classes and contains OLE, drag’n'drop, shortcut and file association information.

HKEY_CURRENT_CONFIG

This key is also an alias. It contains a copy of the branch HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Config, with the current personal configuration.

HKEY_DYN_DATA

Some information stored in the registry changes frequently, so Windows maintains part of the registry in memory instead of on the hard disk. For example it stores PnP information and personal performance. This key has two sub keys

>

Config Manager
This key contains all hardware information problem codes, with their status. There is also the sub key HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Enum, but written in a different way.

PerfStats
It contains performance data about system and network

>

HKEY_USERS

This important key contains the sub key .Default and another key for apiece individual that has access to the computer. If there is just one user, only .Default key exists. . Each sub key maintains the preferences of apiece user, like the desktop colors, the fonts used, and also the settings of many programs. If you open a individual subkey you will find five important subkeys:

>

AppEvent
It contains the path of audio files that Windows plays when some events happen.

Control Panel
Here are the settings defined in the Control Panel. They used to be stored in win.ini and control.ini.

Keyboard Layouts
It contains a voice that refer the actual keyboard disposition how it is set into the Control Panel.

Network
This key stores subkeys that describe current and current network shortcuts.

RemoteAccess
The settings of Remote Access are stored here.

Software
Contains all software settings. This data was stored in win.ini and private .ini files.

>

HKEY_CURRENT_USER

It is an alias to current individual of HKEY_USERS. If your personal is not configured for multi-users usage, it points to the subkey .Default of HKEY_USERS.

Description of .reg file

Here I am assuming that you already have a .reg file on your hard disk and want to know more about how it is structured.Now do not double click the .reg file or it’s content will be added to the registry, of course there will be warning message that pops up. Now to view the properties of the .reg file open it in notepad.

To do so first launch notepad by going to Begin > Programs > Accessories > Notepad.
Then through the open menu open the .reg file.
Now the thing that differentiates .reg files from other files is the word REGEDIT4. It is found to be the first word in all .reg files. If this word is not there then the registry editor can't recognize the file to be a .reg file.

Then follows the key declaration which has to be done within square brackets and with the full path.If the key does not exist then it will be created.

After the key declaration you will see a list of values that have to be set in the particular key in the registry. The values look like this:
“value name”=type:value

Value study is in double commas. Type can be absent for string values, dword: for dword values and hex: for binary values and for all other values you have to use the code hex(#): , where # indicate the API code of the type.

Important Note: expand string has API code = 2 and extended string has API code = 7.

As you can see, strings are in double quotes, dword is hexadecimal and binary is a sequence of hexadecimal byte pairs, with a comma between each. If you want to add a back slash into a string remember to repeat it two times, so the value “c:\Windows” will be “c:\Windows”.

Before write a new .reg file, make sure you do this else you will get an error message.

Command Line Registry Arguments

>

FILENAME.REG to merge a .reg file with the registry
/L:SYSTEM to specify the position of SYSTEM.DAT
/R:USER to specify the position of USER.DAT
/e FILENAME.REG [KEY] to export the registry to a file. If the key is specified, the whole branch will be exported.
/c FILENAME.REG to alternative the entire registry with a .reg file
/s to work silently, without prompt information or Warnings.

>

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Before planning a SharePoint upgrade, certain key points carry importance for a successful implementation. First of all, detecting doable issues about the deployment is of core importance in order to meet the upgrade schedule, then how much an organization requires downtime for carrying out day to day operations or is there any need for upgrading farm or server configurations? In addition, sometimes customizations are also required on the SharePoint 2010 farm as well. In this regard, the under mentioned ideal practices if adopted precisely can lead to a smooth upgrade.

Run a Pre-Upgrade Check

Get the position of your SharePoint sites and servers before a SharePoint 2010 upgrade. Server administrator can solve any potential issues for upgrade with a Pre-Upgrade check. Pre-upgrade checker is acquirable with Office SharePoint Server 2007 Service Pack 2(updated version) and October 2009 Cumulative Update for Windows SharePoint Services 3.0 (updated version).

Is Your Environment Fully Functional?

As, upgrade does not resolve any issues that exist in your environment so it is recommended to  un extend your web applications which are not being used in the World wide web Information Services (IIS) beforehand because SharePoint 2010 will try to upgrade the application even if it does not exist which will result in an upgrade failure.

Update Servers to Service Pack 2

If you want to run an in-place or database-attach upgrade you must change your existing environment to Service Pack 2 of Microsoft Office SharePoint Server 2007.Pre-upgrade checker has been improved in the October 2009 Cumulative Update so it will be superior to install for achieving a simplified upgrade.

Upgrade OS to 64-bit Servers

Migrate to 64-bit version of Windows Server 2008 R2 or Windows Server 2008 with SP2 before trying an In-place upgrade. For SQL server users, they should migrate to 64-bit version of Microsoft SQL Server 2008 R2 and SQL Server 2008 with Service Pack 1 (SP1) with Cumulative Update 2. But if, you are using SQL Server 2005, then upgrade to SP3 and Cumulative Update 3. For carrying out an in-place upgrade, your existing system should be running on a supported OS. An important point to think about is not to merge your upgrade process with these operations.

Estimate the Storage Space and Time required for upgrade

You need 64-bit hardware and 64 bit versions of the Operating System as well as Microsoft SQL Server. Either for an in-place or database-attach upgrade process, you need to update to Office SharePoint Server 2007 Service Pack 2 to carry out the upgrade process. It is important to know the storage space required and the time needed for an upgrade process. Conducting a trial upgrade can help estimate the space and time required for any such upgrade.

Perform a Full Backup of the Farm

It is recommended to back up the Microsoft Office SharePoint Server 2007 environment before commencing with the upgrade process. You should also back up all customizations if you have deployed them. You must test these backups so that you will be healthy to recover if there is some kind of hardware failure.

Make Your Environment Effectual

Query throttling on massive lists and changes in limits of site collection per content database are some new changes that have been introduced in SharePoint Server 2010. The new limits on site collections include (5000 warning and 15000 limit to 2000 warning and 5000 limit. Office SharePoint Server 2007 environment must be optimized in order to meet these limits.

Add server to farms either before or after completing the upgrade process

The configuration database is upgraded when SharePoint Products Configuration is run. It contains the list of servers in a farm. Servers added to a farm after running the configuration wizard do not appear in the database so it is recommended to add servers to farms after or before running an upgrade.

Set Databases to READ ONLY mode

While adopting a database attach approach, you might set the original databases to a read only mode to enable users to continue to access their data in a read only form.

Review Upgrade Status page and Upgrade Logs

You can always deal with issues by looking at the Upgrade Status Page and Upgrade Logs. The Upgrade Page shows the details regarding the upgrade process while the upgrade log shows doable warnings or errors.After the completion of upgrade process make sure to test and verify all the sites.

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