i-ZONE

Sony CyberShot DSC-S3000 Review/ Sample Pictures

2011-06-11T23:21:00.014+05:30

Let's set the expectations straight at the beginning of this review. This camera is not a DSLR, its a budget point and shoot camera, with all that a point and shoot camera should have. So while making this review I will review its quality keeping the benchmark of a point and shoot camera.

First of all the camera's price...The camera comes at a cool price of INR 4800 (as of May 2011). The package contains:-

Camera

2 Non- Rechargable AA battery
Carry Case (Special offer)
2 Rechargable AA battery (Special offer)
Battery charger (Special offer)
4GB Mini SD Card (Special offer)
CD/ Manual/ Docs

Now coming to the review. The image stabilization is great. Picture in bright light comes very good, but in low light without flash it comes with noise. That is expected from a point and shoot camera. The ISO levels vary from 100 to 3200. Sure there is scope to tinker with the ISO levels for better low light pictures. If flash is used low light photos come great, but you loose the low light effect. Image quality can be modified from 10MP to 2MP, with wide angle shot at 7MP. Wide angle is great for viewing in HD TV and widescreen notebooks. Smile and face detection are two good features that comes as a surprise in camera of this range. There is also a sweep panorama mode which lets you shoot super wide panoramic shots.

For novice photographers, Sony has incorporated EASY mode, which brings down the manual settings to bare minimum. Only image size can be changed in this mode, rest is all detected automatically. This simplistic approach is great considering the target population for the camera.

All in all this is a good camera to have for those small occasional party or holiday. Only con I would say is the color saturation is bit low. Unedited Sample pictures follow:-

Low light ISO 400, No Flash, 10 MP

ISO 100, With Flash, Low Light, 10 MP

ISO 100, 10MP

ISO 100, 16:9, 7MP, wide shot

ISO 100, 10 MP, White balance 1

ISO 100, 10 MP, White balance automatic

Sweep Panorama

Other recommended cameras in this category are:-

FujiFilm AV200
Nikon CoolPix L23

Debut at EDEN

2011-04-23T16:39:00.002+05:30

The Build UP:

It was yesterday 22nd April 2011 that I debuted at EDEN. Not that I have taken to playing cricket, but as a spectator. I always waited for a chance to get to EDEN. Now, for call of duty have shifted base to Kolkata and was waiting for that opportunity. Was all pumped up for the INDIA vs ENGLAND match of World Cup 2011 but it was moved out of EDEN due to unsatisfactory stadium condition (as mentioned by ICC).

Then came IPL 2011, and got tickets for the Kolkata Knight Riders vs Royal Challengers Bangalore match. On the D-Day we had some rain scare, was hoping that my first match at Eden doesn´t get washed out. It didn´t but some other kind of storm had come, that I will come to later.

The JOURNEY:
After getting down from Esplanade metro with my friends the walk towards Eden was splendid. The first thing I could notice was the amount of alternate branding (duplicate maal) that was there right from the time I came out of the metro. Be it KKR jersey, head gear, flags, hooters, you name it they had it at dirt cheap price. It was good to see the amount of indirect business that is generated through a single match and gives the youth a chance to earn a day´s livelihood. We continued the walk in the sea of crowd toward EDEN (its strange how it feels we are not part of the crowd until we look back). You never needed to look for direction, the crowd´s push will take you towards your destination.

The giant flood lights were visible right from the time we got out, but slowly the mammoth structure of EDEN was getting visible. What to say about the new look EDEN, she looks stunning. Ours was Gate No.10, F Block. We reached Gate 10, after ticket checks and frisking we were allowed in. We got ourselves bags full of water pouches and began our walk towards the stands. My heart started pounding, the Korbo Lorbo Jeetbo song was pumping the stadium with joy and adrenaline.

The First Look:

As I walked into the stadium and got the first sight of the greens, what a feeling it was. A lush green designer trimmed outfield, with stands embracing the field in it´s lap. Purple and gold was the theme of the stadium with green and blue seats adding to the glory. The towering floodlights were bowing their heads giving a warm welcome to a first timer into Eden.

It was 3.10 PM by my watch. Toss was still 20 minutes to go. The green fields had nets up and KKR and RCB were having their practice drills. Started spotting the cricketing heroes whom I have been seeing in my drawing room all these years. The atmosphere was electric, with DJ belting out one hit after another and the crowd going berserk seeing Yusuf Pathan hitting long shots in practice session. There was a deep feeling it was a day of KKR. I was absorbing as much as I could, seeing all round with awe and admiration. I was finally sitting inside the mecca of cricket with 65,000 other fans.

The Match:

I could see Pommy MBangwa facing the camera with the two captains in the middle of the pitch, yes it was toss time. RCB won the toss and elected to field first. The crowd roared in anticipation of KKR' s batting. We were going to have a treat at hand. The match started with Jack Kallis on fire and hit Zaheer Khan all round the park. I shouted along with the crowd and almost lost my voice in the first over, but at the same time was feeling bad for Zaheer after all he is our India´ s pride. I was having tough time switching my loyalties from country heroes to club heroes.

The crowd was cheering each and every run and was sporting enough to appreciate the good fielding effort that RCB put in. I took part in a mexican wave that was going round the stadium, it was a delight to watch. The towering sixes and fours were a treat to the eye with the DJ pumping out superb bets after each and every four or six.

The flood light was slowly coming to force, the intensity of the light made the stadium look a bit foggy. The ambiance was even better now, the knight´s golden pads were shinning more (knights in shining armour). The KKR innings finished for 171, looking in a comfortable position to win.

The Storm:

The 2nd Innings started and a storm came. It was Gayle Storm, he was at his fluent best. He scored a hundred punctuating them with sixes and fours. I was simply awestruck to see the powerhouse he was. He was hitting at will, and defending with the same ease. He could have played at least one innings like this while he was in KKR. His inconsistency in the last three season left him unsold in the player auction this year. He came in as a replacement of Dirk Nannes and what a replacement he has proven to be. I must say RCB was very lucky, since these kind of innings doesn´t happen very often but when they happen it devastates the opposition. Watching the sixes fly into the crowd was superb and if I had not been a KKR supporter would have enjoyed it more.

All said and done, it was a great day out and a wonderful experience in Eden. Winning and losing are part of the game. Being a gracious fan of a losing side. I would say Well Played Gayle, Well Played RCB. All in all a total value for money (Paisa Vasool).

Chrome(10.0.648.151) vs Firefox 4

2011-03-23T23:41:00.006+05:30

With all the hype surrounding Firefox 4, I thought of giving it a try. Downloaded it in Ubuntu first but was not impressed. Came back to Windose and installed it. At the first look I must admit that it looks very refreshing and sleek. As I am a Google Chrome user for a long time. Thought of running a performance test using http://ie.microsoft.com/testdrive/Performance/FlyingImages/ . The results were quite towards chrome I must say. One point to note that Firefox 4's hardware acceleration feature was disabled, since my configuration doesn't support it. On the other side Chrome too ran without it. See the results below:-

Firefox 4:

Chrome 10.0.648.151:

Looks like Chrome is a clear winner with 39fps vs Firefox's 21fps. Way to go Google. Someone tried out with hardware accelerator on? Let me know your comments.

MRTG in Ubuntu for monitoring bandwidth

2011-03-22T23:31:00.001+05:30

Wondering how to measure your average bandwidth over a period of year, month, week or even day? MRTG (Multi Router Traffic Grapher) is the answer for you. As the name suggests its basically designed for greater purpose, but here I will be elaborating how to monitor a simple ppp connection using MRTG. Again many of you may be knowing about MRTG but aren't able to configure it. MRTG configuration is a bit cumbersome but not difficult (the key is the conf file). Below I will be presenting the points how to configure MRTG on ubuntu.

Pre-requisites: A httpd server needs to be installed in your system. If you don't have one please get one installed (will be using Apache httpd server in this example).

The steps required are as follows:-

-Download and install Apache HTTPD server from http://httpd.apache.org/download.cgi

-Download the MRTG package from http://oss.oetiker.ch/mrtg/download.en.html

-Install it by following the ReadME

-Create the following script @ /usr/local/sbin/mrtgstats-net.sh (Source)

#!/bin/sh

awk '

/'$1':/ {

$0=substr($0,index($0,":")+1);

print $1;print $9

}

' /proc/net/dev

-Create the following config file /etc/mrtg.cfg

######################################################################
# Multi Router Traffic Grapher -- Sample Configuration File
######################################################################
# This file is for use with mrtg-2.5.4c

# Global configuration
WorkDir: /usr/local/apache2/htdocs/mrtg/
WriteExpires: Yes

Title[^]: Traffic Analysis for

#Target[leased]: 1:public@router.localnet
#MaxBytes[leased]: 16000

Target[ppp0]: `/usr/local/sbin/mrtgstats-net.sh ppp0`
Title[ppp0]: Internet Traffic
MaxBytes[ppp0]: 406323
PageTop[ppp0]:Internet Traffic
Options[ppp0]: growright,bits,noinfo

Note: Here ppp0 is my interface name

-Fire mkdir /usr/local/apache2/htdocs/mrtg

-Start the apache httpd server

/usr/local/apache2/bin/apachectl -f /usr/local/apache2/conf/httpd.conf

-Goto your web-browser and type http://127.0.0.1/mrtg and open the file ppp0.html

That concludes the MRTG setup part. MRTG is automatically added to your crontab it will refresh data every 5 minutes.

Acer Aspire One 532h-2Bh Partitioning and Ubuntu 10.10

2011-03-15T00:03:00.000+05:30

Last night I tried installing Ubuntu on my Acer Aspire One 532h- 2Bh netbook but couldn't. The problems faced were:-

THE PROBLEM:

Full Install: Installation of Ubuntu started fine, all looked cool but suddenly while partitioning using Ubuntu 10.10 's native partitioning software I was stuck. The problem was the resize option was disabled and without it there was no way to claim space for Ubuntu.
Wubi Install: Then I tried the WUBI way (btw WUBI is a tool to install UBUNTU as a native application in windows). Again the installation went fine, and was told to restart. Then was given the error "No Root Filesystem is defined, please correct from partitioning menu". This kept coming.

THE ROOT CAUSE:

The root cause to this is the EISA partition present for system recovery in windows based Acer netbook. This UBUNTU was not able to process, and hence, one night's sleep wasted :)

THE SOLUTION:

The solution that came to my mind was fairly straight forward, if UBUNTU can't human can. So thought of resizing manually using third party software. I stumbled across mini tool partition wizard, this is a superb free partitioning software. Highly recommended. Using it I resized my partition to squeeze out 30Gigs of space.

Then ran the Ubuntu bootable pen drive. Used the unallocated 30Gigs(between / and swap) and the installation succeeded.

PS: This post has been written from UBUNTU :) Trust me it works...

Speed up your internet connection

2011-02-19T18:36:00.000+05:30

People stuck in slow speed internet connection I have a solution for you. It won't make your speed lightning fast but will at least make it a tad better. The answer is Google Public DNS. Using it the DNS lookup time reduces considerably. The page starts loading as soon as the request is fired (instead of the usual connecting...).
The settings are:-

Google Public DNS: Configure your DNS to 8.8.8.8 and/or 8.8.4.4

The process for configuring DNS in a typical Windows XP based computer:

Control Panel >> Network Connections >> Right Click on the connection you are using and select properties >> In the General Tab Double click on Internet Protocol (TCP/IP) >> Bingo you will get the place to enter DNS settings.

For more info visit http://code.google.com/speed/public-dns/

Best budget 3G enabled Android Phones in India

2011-01-15T23:03:00.001+05:30

Presenting a list of feature rich android phones which are cool to have but won't burn a hole in your pocket. The minimum criterion for making it to the list is:-

a) It should be sporting the Google Android Mobile OS.
b) It should be 3G enabled.
c) It should have at least a 3MP camera.
d) Other connectivity features a must.
e) It should be less than INR 15,000.

Just a small disclaimer the prices are just for indicative purpose only, you might get it lot cheaper in the street. Go on and use your bargaining skills.

Here goes the list in ascending order of price.

1) Micromax A60 #Price ~INR 6,400

2) Dell XCD28 #Price~INR 7,400

3) LG GT540 Optimus #Price ~INR 10,700

4) Motorola Quench xt502 (5MP cam) #Price ~INR 12,000

5) Sony Ericsson Xperia X10 Mini (5MP cam) #Price ~INR 12,000

6) LG Optimus One P500 #Price ~INR 12,300

7) HTC WildFire (5MP cam) #Price ~INR 13,500 *Highly recommended

8) Sony Ericsson Xperia X10 Mini Pro (5MP cam) #Price ~INR 13,600

Go on get street smart and app ready. Happy Droiding!!!

Teradata Sequence

2010-07-16T19:25:00.004+05:30

Here I will give a Teradata work around for sequence (oracle users). This is not a DDL based solution. It will generate values on the fly using query. Find the example below:-

SEL
ROW_NUMBER() OVER (PARTITION BY 'A' ORDER BY COL1) AS SEQ,
COL1,
COL2
FROM
(
SEL
COL1,
COL2
FROM MYTABLE
)TMP;

The explanation is when you partion by a constant value (in this case 'A'), full table becomes one partition. As a result row number is assigned on the basis of the ordered columns. For any doubts leave a comment.

Export for bulk change in Informatica

2010-05-14T17:10:00.007+05:30

For all those who face sudden voluminous redundant change of code in Informatica:
What do you do when you have to change certain redundant things at lot of places in a informatica Workflow? Open every session, every task and change it? No, just Export the objects as XML, do a find and replace, finally import it back.

When informatica asks for conflict resolution just use replace strategy. Simple but very convenient method. Feel free to comment in case of issues.

Virus Kill for ark53.tmp

2009-03-09T15:05:00.004+05:30

Recently one of my friend detected a virus named ark53.tmp. It was detected by Avira Antivir. It the best free antivirus I have ever used. I recommend and rate it highly. It also has a paid edition with enhanced features.

Now, coming to the point of ark53.tmp. After detecting the virus, I instructed the antivirus to delete it. It got deleted but in the next scan ark54.tmp was detected. The pattern went on increasing to ark55.tmp, ark56.tmp and so on.

The quick fix solution to it is:-

Turn Off System Restore. (Start -> All Programs -> Accessories -> System tools -> System Restore. Click the settings and turn of system restore on all drives)
Perform full scan using Avira again.
Restart the computer.
Turn on System Restore.

Done!!! The computer is free from ark53.tmp. If anyone as any experience handling this virus or if you have any problem please feel free to shoot a comment.

How to create folders in Gmail?

2009-03-07T15:04:00.002+05:30

As such there is no option for creating folders in Gmail but with a minor tweek you can get the essence of folders in gmail. It can be done in three simple steps:-

Create a label.
Apply the label to the mail.
Archive the e-mail.

These steps will move your mail from the inbox and give you a feeling that the label link is your personalized folder. Visit this link for managing labels.

Inno Setup to the rescue

2009-03-06T16:54:00.004+05:30

Recently I developed a software but was having some problem packaging it. I used VB6 for development and its package and deployment wizard to package. The packaging completed successfully but when I started Setup.exe it gave the error "Setup Bootstrap for Visual Basic Setup Toolkit has encountered a problem and needs to close. We are sorry for the inconvenience".

I tried few workarounds but none gave results . I also tried it in other computers, but the setup.exe just won't work. So the search for an alternative setup generator for Visual Basic 6.0 began. I got Inno Setup, which is an independent setup generator. It's usage is a bit cumbersome but it saved my day.

Also the compiled setup file's interface is far better than the dated package and deployement wizard's interface. Visit the link for more details:-

INNO

A note for Visual Basic 6.0 users. Visit these two links also:-

1) For OCX Files

2) For VB System Files

Once you get the hang of this tool it's a joy to work. I am loving generating setup files with Inno. If you need any help regarding use of Inno with Visual Basic just shoot a comment. I will be glad to help you out.

Education Loan Solutions

2009-03-02T19:22:00.004+05:30

Here is a software which will solve your education loan calculation blues. Question can arise that why an education loan software?? This is because education loan is taken in a very different manner than house loans, car loans or for the matter other loans. It is very seldom taken at a go, rather it is taken when the fees have to be paid.

This software will help you calculate your EMI you have to pay after you complete your studies. The marquee part of this software is that it will generate a statement for you. You have to just enter the rate, the amounts you have taken at different times during your education. Once you click the magical 'Generate' button it will show you your statement for the desired number of months.

The software is created very hastily. So please take caution while entering data. Bug checks has not been implemented. It will be done in due course of time. Here is the link:-

CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD

If you feel it is not good voice it, if you feel it helped you also voice it. I would love to hear from you.

Google Chrome offline install and online update

2008-11-17T17:37:00.006+05:30

Problem:

Since, I have a slow internet connection I brought chrome offline installer from a internet cafe and installed it. Suddenly I realised that it wouldn't be a bad idea to update it online. Update failed saying Update server not available( error: 3). Here is a fast solution.

Solution:

Read patiently I won't tell u to install chrome again in full. I will show a fast method to this solution using the online installer but not installing it in full. Download chrome online installer. Now open the taskmanager (ctrl + alt + del), and keep a watch on the processes tab. Start the ChromeSetup.exe file which you just downloaded. As soon as you see a process called Googleupdate.exe in the processes tab exit the installation. That's it, this will install the Googleupdate.exe. Now goto google chrome and try update. It won't show error:3 anymore.

Cuil Launch: Will it really kill Google? Naaaaaaa

2008-08-02T21:44:00.003+05:30

Cuil launched itself. It was tipped as the 'Google killer'. It failed in the most basic search. Try out the key word 'cuil launch' in cuil and google. Google passed the result, but Cuil couldn't come up with a relevant search in the first page. So Google lives longer ;) Isn't it?

Is Google going the Microsoft way??

2008-05-30T21:57:00.005+05:30

Today I noticed Google has changed it's favicon (it is the icon which we see beside the website name in our internet browser, it is circled in red in the picture below) for most of its product website. It seems that Google is concentrating on looks also. Maybe the future has begun where Google will belt out products with flashy and glassy finish. Now the $1million question is "Is Google going the Microsoft way??"

Gmail's new loading interface

2008-05-17T23:31:00.004+05:30

Today while logging on to gmail, I pleasantly found that the 'loading..' page has changed quite a bit. Now a progress bar is there and most importantly a link at the bottom to switch to the basic HTML view. This feature is great considering the fact that whenever I went to slow internet cafes to check my gmail, very few times did I succeed. Kudos to Google for putting so much thought behind their work. My fondness for Google seems to grow everytime.

Donate for Myanmar (Burma)

2008-05-10T23:47:00.002+05:30

Myanmar has been hit by a cyclone disaster. Please donate generously for disaster relief. Google has started a wonderful initiative. If someone donates through the link below, Google will donate the same amount (upto $1million). Please follow the link below and donate generously. Those can spare a penny please contribute. Myanmar needs you.

http://www.google.com/myanmarcyclone/

Complete Free Security Suite

2008-04-14T23:19:00.003+05:30

Here I am presenting a wonderful mix of security softwares (free!! :)) to protect your windows based PC.

AntiVirus: Avira Antivir Personal Edition Classic
Firewall: Sunbelt Personal Firewall
Anti Spyware: Spybot
Sandbox Software: A sandbox software runs all programs you want in a virtual box and prevents malicious programs being downloaded on the fly. I will recommend SandBoxie. Try to run your browser and all IM applications sandboxed.

Wish you all a safe and clean PC. Also Free software is great!!!

Best Free Anti Virus and Firewall

2008-03-26T23:17:00.002+05:30

I have come across a wonderful free antivirus, it has got a high detection rate. Also it's resident guard is very effective. It has a rootkit scanner also. You will find it in this link.

The firewall I will recommend is Sunbelt Personal Firewall. Even the free edition provides good security. Follow this link for download

UNIX was a Hoax

2008-03-17T23:21:00.003+05:30

Here are a couple of funny links on UNIX. Thanks to my brother Sayantan Mukherjee for digging these links:-

Platform Independent File Search

2008-03-10T23:10:00.006+05:30

I have been working on a platform independent hard disk search software for the past two days. Finally it has taken shape. Also it passed the initial testing successfully. Let me share my journey till now and also how Netbeans saved my day.

Screenshot 1

Screenshot 2

Motivation:

The motivation of this project was to tap the potential of Java's platform independence. Also I wanted to create a fast search program, which would be light weight and with a simple interface. I think I have achieved my goals relatively well.

Logic:

The logic behind the search engine is a combination of DFS(Depth First Search) and BFS(Breadth First Search). To penetrate each path DFS is used and inside each path BFS is used to locate the file. A new thread has been used for the search process, which runs parallel to the user interface thread.

Versions:

Initially I had created the project as a command line one. Then I thought of implementing it as a GUI. The final version is a GUI, with command line logging taking place simultaneously. With the implementation of the GUI I faced a huge hindrance of managing the interface layout. It is very cumbersome to manage the layout by simple coding.

NetBeans to the rescue:

After wasting more than an hour putting the layout in place. I decided to download NetBeans. My computer is quite an old machine (PIII 750Mhz, 256MB RAM), so didn't install NetBeans before. After installing NetBeans the speed was good considering my machine configuration. I started the NetBeans GUI Builder(formerly Matisse) and my layout was up and running in 8mins sharp. Wow! Kudos to NetBeans for saving my day. I won't say it was a breeze working with NetBeans, rather it was tornado.

NetBeans GUI Builder at work

Download:

Coming soon! Keep watching this space.

Undroid and Android SDK m5

2008-03-10T01:08:00.005+05:30

With the release of Android SDK m5-rc15, NetBeans' unofficial plugin Undroid is not working. Google has made some changes in its design which has brought up this bug. I am providing a manual workaround for it:-

Go to Netbeans_ project_folder\your_android_application\ and open the file AndroidManifest.xml

Now make the following changes:-

The class= parameter throughout the AndroidManifest.xml file has been renamed, replace all instances of class= with android:name=.
The android:value= parameters used throughout the AndroidManifest.xml file have been renamed, replace all android:value= occurrences with android:name=.
The android:id= parameters used throughout the AndroidManifest.xml file have been renamed, replace all android:id= occurrences with android:name=.
In intent-filter, the previous type, scheme, authority and path tags are now replaced with a single data tag and uses attributes android:mimeType, android:scheme, android:host and android:path to replace those tags respectively. A new attribute: android:port has been added as well. Without these changes, intent-filters will not work correctly.

For more changes refer to android upgrading page.

After all the changes has been made, re- build your application in NetBeans. Now, it should work.

JDBC Connection to MySQL

2008-02-29T23:33:00.012+05:30

Now that Sun has acquired MySQL, the combination of java and MySQL is going to be the next big thing in the market. Today I will present a small tutorial on how you can connect to MySQL using JDBC. This procedure is tested under windows platform with jdk 1.6.
Pre-requisites:-

JDK- download
MySQL- download
JDBC connector - link given below.

You need to download the driver Connector/J zip from MySQL website. Here is the download link.
Extract the zip file.
After extracting you will find a JAR file inside the unzipped directory.
Copy the JAR file to "jre path"\lib\ext
Now take the help of the following example to proceed.

import java.sql.*;
public class jdbc_mysql
{
public static void main(String args[])
{
PreparedStatement stmt = null;
ResultSet rs = null;
Connection conn=null;
try
{
Class.forName("com.mysql.jdbc.Driver").newInstance();
conn = DriverManager.getConnection("jdbc:mysql://localhost/dbname?"+
"user=user_name&password=your_password");
stmt=conn.prepareStatement("select * from student where name=?");
stmt.setString(1,args[0]);
rs=stmt.executeQuery();
if(rs.next()==false)
System.out.println("Record not found!!!");
else
{
String s=rs.getString(2);
System.out.println(s);
}
}
catch(Exception e)
{
System.err.println("Exception: " + e.getMessage());
}
}
}

Sorry for the clumsy indentation. It got deformed when I pasted my code in the blogger editor. If you have any further queries please feel free to leave a comment. I will address your query as soon as possible.

Hibernation in Windows XP

2008-02-25T22:52:00.004+05:30

Hibernate is a very handy tool. It speeds up your start up and shutdown time. Starting after hibernation brings the computer back to exactly the same state where you left at the time of hibernation.

To hibernate just select Start->Turn off computer. Now a menu will come showing Stand By, Turn Off, Restart. Press shift, the "Stand by" will change to "Hibernate". Now click the button, then sit back and watch your computer go to hibernation.

Automatically redirect to HTTPS (SSL) Page in Tomcat 6

2008-02-06T22:42:00.000+05:30

To redirect pages to https always you need to paste the following code to "tomcat_home"\webapps\ROOT\WEB-INF\web.xml
Now restart tomcat. From now on all pages will be redirected to https.

Configuring Tomcat 6 For https (SSL) Page

2008-02-06T21:45:00.000+05:30

Prerequisites:-
1. JDK
2. Tomcat

For any https (SSL) page a certificate is very necessary. First we will learn generating a keystore, which will contain a certificate chain. We will use the keytool command from JDK.

1. Goto the command prompt.

2. Type keytool -genkey -alias tomcat -keyalg RSA (if your path is not set to the java bin directory, please go there and type the command).

3. Now you will prompted for a keystore password give it as changeit (you can give it different but you will have to make some changes later).

4. Enter the details needed.

5. Now alias password will be aksed. It must be same as keystore password.

6. After the end of it a keystore will be generated in "drive":\Documents and Settings\"username"\.keystore

Now configure "tomcat_home"\conf\server.xml, add the following code:-

You are done with your configuration. Save the server.xml file. Restart your tomcat. Now type https://localhost:8443

This should show you the same tomcat homepage but in secured format.

Internet slow? Blame Mediterranean cable.

2008-01-31T22:45:00.000+05:30

Many internet users in India are facing slow Internet connection for the past few days. This time it may be the case that your ISP is not cheating on you. Its is due to a under sea Mediterranean cable snag. The area lies between Egypt and Greece. The worst hit country has been Egypt. Indian ISPs are routing the traffic through alternative routes which has led to congestion. India's 50% bandwidth capacity has been hit. It might take 15-20 days to restore services back to normal.

Reset Security Code of Your Nokia Phones

2008-01-26T22:23:00.001+05:30

I am removing the link to the website which has the software. I feel this might be wrongly used by stolen mobile users. I regret for the genuine users, but can't help.

Formatting Nokia 6670

2008-01-26T22:05:00.000+05:30

Before following any of the steps please backup your phone data (including your contacts, messages etc) using Nokia PCSuite. For all those people who are formatting to get rid of viruses please don't make a full backup. Just take backup of (contacts, messages, etc) otherwise the virus will roll back once you restore your backup. The procedure below will restore your mobile to factory settings. You will loose all your data in phone and memory card(if inserted). You should have reasonable charge in your phone before you proceed.

To perform the format key in *#7370# just like you enter phone numbers. Now the phone will prompt "Restore all original phone settings? Phone will restart". Select Yes. The phone will prompt for the lock code and then restart. Now wait patiently for it to switch itself on. Don't get impatient.

Hurray now the phone is back from factory again :)

Disable Session Restore in Firefox

2008-01-24T02:05:00.000+05:30

I find the session restore feature in firefox very handy. One of my friend pointed me out it's flaw. It's flaw lies when we use a public computer and a improper system shutdown occurs. Next time your session gets exposed to a new user. Here is the solution to the problem:-

In the address bar of firefox type about:config
In the filter section type browser.sessionstore
Set the value of browser.sessionstore.enabled to false
Set the value of browser.sessionstore.resume_from_crash to false

Huraaah, you are done. Now restart the browser and surf tension free.

Boost up Windows XP with Flash Drive

2008-01-21T22:17:00.000+05:30

Computers running Microsoft Windows XP can be boosted up by using flash drive as a page file medium. Before carrying on make sure that USB 2.0 port is there in your computer. Right click on My Computer and select properties. Next follow the circle in the pictures below :-

After reaching the third window, select your flash drive and choose custom size. Then set the value you want to allocate for page to the flash drive. This procedure emulates the Microsoft Windows Vista ReadyBoost feature. Now enjoy a faster XP.

Time For a Safer and Faster Internet Experience

2008-01-21T21:29:00.000+05:30

Today I will recommend a DNS service which will make your internet experience safer and faster. Whether you are a home user or an organization it will come handy to keep your internet clean. The best part is it's absolutely free.

Features include phishing protection, domain blocking, adult site blocking, web proxy blocking and domain whitelisting. It works with dynamic ip holders also. Visit OpenDNS for this wonderful experience.

Sun to acquire MySQL

2008-01-19T21:39:00.000+05:30

Sun Microsystems has announced that it is going to acquire open source database giant MySQL AB.

Make Your Windows Faster and Cleaner

2008-01-19T01:36:00.000+05:30

I will recommend a wonderful software to make windows run faster. It makes windows fast by removing junk entries from the registry. It not only makes windows faster but also keeps you safe from spywares and adwares. The best part is that it removes already present spyware from you system. It has features like Spyware Removal, Security Defense, Registry Fix, System Optimization, Startup Manage, Privacy Sweep and Junk Files Clean. The name of the software is Advanced Windows Care 2 Personal. It's a 100% freeware.

Firefox Indic bug stays

2008-01-18T21:57:00.000+05:30

The indic font bug I mentioned in my previous post has been carried on to Firefox 3 Beta 2. I have given a feedback , let's see if the final release has the bug fixed or not.

Firefox Indic Font Bug

2008-01-18T03:09:00.000+05:30

Last two days I was working on setting up one of my friend's bengali blog. Blogger doesn't support bengali as a language. So had to manipulate a bit to get bengali written. After everything was complete, it was testing time. IE passed the test, when Firefox's turn came it failed. I was disappointed at my favorite browser's failure. I searched the net throughly to find that Firefox has this bug since eternity. Firefox has problem displaying Indic fonts. The matra of Indian text in Firefox tends to be out of place. The bosses know it but they have postponed the fix until the Firefox 3 series releases. The 3 series is in the beta stage. I will download it and post whether they have fixed the bug or not.

World's Thinnest Laptop

2008-01-18T00:25:00.000+05:30

The world's thinnest laptop is here. It's maximum thickness at a point is 0.76 inches. So it's as light as air. Yes, that's the name Apple has given to it. Here comes the newest innovation from Apple , MacBook Air. Steve Jobs (ceo, Apple) unveiled it at the Apple MacWorld Conference in San Francisco. This was the most anticipated release from Apple after the
iphone.

World's Cheapest Car

2008-01-18T00:15:00.000+05:30

The world's cheapest car Tata Nano was launched a few days ago. The best part is that it's made in India. People never imagined that such a product can be possible at an on road price of approx $3000. Yes, Mr. Ratan Tata has delivered it and how. There may be many takers of the car but some are contemplating a traffic coagulation, some are tensed about the pollution. All these notions has been countered by Mr. Tata but only time will tell whether a promise is a promise or not.

"A promise is a promise" - Ratan Tata