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Thursday, June 4, 2009

ඔවුහු යදින්නේ ජීවිතයයි!



උතුරේ යුධ මුක්ත කලාපයේ සිට පැමිණ කන්තලේ මූලික රෝහලේ ප්‍රතිකාර ලබන සහෝදර ජනතාව විශාල සංඛ්‍යාවකට ඔවුන්ගේ මූලික අවශ්‍යතා සපුරාගැනීම පිණිස එම රෝහලෙන් දන්වා එවූ අත්‍යාවශ්‍ය ද්‍රව්‍ය ලැයිස්තුවක් මේ.

රෝහලෙන් දන්වා එවන ලද ද්‍රව්‍ය ලැයිස්තුව-

Dust Bin (Large) - 20
Rubber slippers (Size 4 - 10) (Size 5 - 10)
Combs (large) - 100
Lactogen 1 (dark blue packs) - 10
Anchor Full Cream Milk Powder - 50 packets
Shampoo packets (Sashay) - 150
Hair oil - 50 bottles
Ordinary colongue - 10 bottles
Sanitary pads - 50 packets
Coconut oil - 2 bottles
Bed Jackets (large) - 10
Skirts and blouses - 50
Baby dresses (under 12) - 25
Sarongs - 100
Shirts - 100
Bed sheets - 290
Underwear (S,M & L) - As much as possible
Tooth paste - 200
Tooth brushes - 270
Lifebouy Soap - 300
Baby Soap - 40
Nestomalt 400g - 12

නෙක දුක් ගැහැට මැද යුද ගින්නෙන් දැවුණු මේ මිනිසුන් වෙනුවෙන් ඔබට කළ හැකි අවම උපකාරයක් හෝ වේ නම් කරුණාකර හැකි ඉක්මනින් අප අමතන්න.

දුර ඇමතුම්- 071 2424709 (සංඛ)

McAfee's new family shield

On the heels of Symantec's OnlineFamily.Norton released earlier this year, security stalwart McAfee jumps into the family protection game with a new home-oriented protection program. Called McAfee Family Protection, the program offers many familiar tools to parents in the hopes of fostering conversation while protecting children from harm.

McAfee Family Protection protects children based on multiple levels of technology.

(Credit: McAfee)

McAfee Family Protection offers blocking, monitoring, and parental notifications for most computer-based activities. The program allows for up to 10 users on three different machines, utilizing several layers of algorithms to monitor behavior. Parents can outright block or merely monitor Web sites, social-networking behavior, and instant messaging including Facebook IM and multi-protocol chat clients, according to Javed Hasan, vice president of McAfee Product Management.

In addition to blanket blocks for subject matter and specific Web site blocks, parents can customize rules so that they can block all of YouTube, or just YouTube videos that have specific tags. Web sites protected by secure protocol, https, can also be blocked. They can also set up roadblocks that prevent specific applications from opening, such as peer-to-peer clients or media players, and parents can receive brief SMS notifications alongside more detailed e-mail reports.

The program also can restrict computer usage based on cumulative time used or by time of day. It uses a server-based clock, so tampering with the local system-based clock shouldn't affect this feature.

McAfee says that Family Protection uses about 20 MB of RAM when idle and can run on systems with as little as 128 MB of RAM. It's available as a 30-day trial, after which a three-computer license costs $39.99.

Intel gets official with new Core i7, mobile chips


Intel has updated its price list with new processors, including new Core i7 chips and a bevy of mobile models.

HP m9600T features the top-of-the-line Core i7 975

(Credit: Hewlett-Packard)

Many gamers have been waiting for the update of the "Nehalem" Core i7, which was introduced last November. Intel's update Tuesday includes the newly minted i7-975 (8M L3 cache, 4 cores, 8 threads, 3.33GHz, 6.4 GT/s QPI). This is priced at $999.

For the uninitiated, threads effectively double the number of tasks a processor can do, GT/s stands for giga transfers per second, and QPI is Intel's new Quick Path Interconnect technology.

But there's more. The i7-950 boasts identical specifications except for a lower 3.06GHz clock speed and 4.8 GT/s. It is priced at $562.

Hewlett-Packard's m9600T tower can be configured with the i7-975 and a 1GB Nvidia GeForce GTS 250 graphics card for just over $1,900.

Other vendors such as Falcon Northwest offer decked-out systems at a big price. The Falcon Northwest Mach V is priced at more than $4,000 with 6GB of memory, 1GB Nvidia GeForce GTS 250 graphics card, and a 256GB solid-state drive.

Equally anticipated are the new Intel ULV (ultra-low-voltage) processors. Though some of these were were listed at the end of March (such as the 5-watt, single-core SU3500 and 10-watt, dual-core SU9600), the 10-watt Pentium architecture-based SU2700 (1 core, 2M Cache, 1.30 GHz, 800MHz front-side bus) is new. Intel is not listing this chip, nor is it publishing a price. Though notebooks with this chip are expected to go as low as $499, according to Intel.

Laptops using the ULV chips include the ultra-thin Asus UX30, which will feature the 1.6GHz SU9600, among other chips, and the MSI X340 X-Slim, which sports the SU3500.

Intel also listed new mainstream mobile processors, including the 35-watt T9900 (6M L2 cache, 2 cores, 2 threads, 3.06GHz, 1066MHz FSB). This goes for $530.

Also listed as new is the 28-watt P9700 (6M L2 cache, 2 cores, 2 threads, 2.80GHz, 1066MHz FSB). This lists for $348. The existing T9600 (2.8GHz) fell in price 40 percent to $316 from $530.


Future of Netbooks, laptops unfolds at Computex




While many eyes are on E3, Taiwan's Computex conference is more quietly generating some interesting news on the future of Netbooks and laptops that will eventually make their way stateside. For a peek into the crystal ball of mobile computing, let's take a look at what's been announced in Taipei, Taiwan, this week.

Mobile-phone-based Netbooks are growing: "Smartbooks," as they're being called by companies like Qualcomm, seem to be this year's Netbook. It's mostly a naming convention shift: ARM processors based on smartphone chips, like Qualcomm's Snapdragon, were demoed on Asus Eee PC Netbooks--running Android, no less. While Snapdragon competitor Freescale Semiconductor, who makes an ARM-based iMX515 processor, predicts hybrid Smartbooks that will look like tablets, others see them being even more portable Netbooks.

Regardless of the processor, companies are finally announcing the release of honest-to-goodness Android Netbooks, running a laptop-based version of the Google-created smartphone OS, later this year. Acer took the leap by confirming their release of Android Netbooks by the third quarter of this year, suddenly accelerating the "Android on Netbooks" argument we've been having on CNET. Is Android really a better OS solution? The point may be moot for laptop manufacturers such as Acer who are also entering the smartphone space, and are mostly likely interested in targeting Google for an across-the-board mobile OS option on their future devices. According to Acer, "a majority" of their Netbooks will run Android as an alternative to Windows.

Where does this leave Linux, then? In a tough place. Linux's relatively brandless environment has been a challenge in an app-store world, although this week's RealNetworks' announcement of RealPlayer being preinstalled on Linux Netbooks and Instant-On OS platformsUbuntu Moblin Remix, the next graphical interface evolution beyond Ubuntu and a possible candidate for an OS specifically geared towards ultramobile PCs such as Netbooks. is a big step for Ubuntu being able to keep up with the easy media-playing capability of Netbook machines, and adds some brand recognition and codec consolidation. Shown at Computex were several Moblin Linux-based Netbook prototypes, as well the announcement of

Future technology for screens, touch pads: Regardless of whether Apple gets into the Netbook space, Windows Netbooks are heading toward MacBook-like touch pad interfaces. Synaptics' ClickPad version of their next multitouchpad was shown off this week, being targeted mainly at future Netbooks with smaller keyboard areas. Finding a way to fit buttons into small Netbook frames has been a challenge, and going button-free would also allow the touch pad to be made even larger. Whether Windows 7 supports the ClickPad as well as Apple supports their MacBook single-button multitouchpad remains to be seen. And, taking a page from the easy-to-read reflective e-ink screens of e-readers, Pixel Qi demonstrated a highly reflective LCD screen on an Acer Netbook that can be used in daylight with no backlighting. The hybrid screen can switch between e-readeresque and full-colored brightly backlit states for battery conservation.

Intel, Microsoft ready to leave Netbooks behind? As Intel continues supporting their Core 2 Duo-equivalent CULV energy-efficient mobile processors, the focus on Atom seems to be waning. That's not the case, according to Intel, especially with new Atom processors on the horizon, but the market's getting crowded fast. Microsoft has also said that they'd rather not use the Netbook name anymore, choosing "low cost small notebook PC" instead. As ULV and CULV processors take over the mobile Centrino space to create lower-cost, thinner laptops, and smartphone-evolved ARM processors begin to chip away at the Atom-based Netbook category, the days of Netbooks as we knew them may already be numbered.

We have our wish list of what we'd like to see in future Netbooks, and some of those already seem to be coming true.




Wednesday, June 3, 2009

Top 15 Ways to Extend Your Laptop’s Battery Life



Laptops tend to lose their charm quickly when you’re constantly looking for the nearest power outlet to charge up. How do you keep your battery going for as long as possible? Here are 15 easy ways to do so.

1. Defrag regularly - The faster your hard drive does its work - less demand you are going to put on the hard drive and your battery. Make your hard drive as efficient as possible by defragging it regularly. (but not while it’s on battery of course!) Mac OSX is better built to handle fragmentation so it may not be very applicable for Apple systems.

2. Dim your screen - Most laptops come with the ability to dim your laptop screen. Some even come with ways to modify CPU and cooling performance. Cut them down to the lowest level you can tolerate to squeeze out some extra battery juice.

3. Cut down on programs running in the background. Itunes, Desktop Search, etc. All these add to the CPU load and cut down battery life. Shut down everything that isn’t crucial when you’re on battery.

4. Cut down external devices - USB devices (including your mouse) & WiFi drain down your laptop battery. Remove or shut them down when not in use. It goes without saying that charging other devices (like your iPod) with your laptop when on battery is a surefire way of quickly wiping out the charge on your laptop battery.

5. Add more RAM - This will allow you to process more with the memory your laptop has, rather than relying on virtual memory. Virtual memory results in hard drive use, and is much less power efficient. Note that adding more RAM will consume more energy, so this is most applicable if you do need to run memory intensive programs which actually require heavy usage of virtual memory.

dvd

6. Run off a hard drive rather than CD/DVD - As power consuming as hard drives are, CD and DVD drives are worse. Even having one in the drive can be power consuming. They spin, taking power, even when they?re not actively being used. Wherever possible, try to run on virtual drives using programs like Alcohol 120% rather than optical ones.

7. Keep the battery contacts clean: Clean your battery’s metal contacts every couple of months with a cloth moistened with rubbing alcohol. This keeps the transfer of power from your battery more efficient.

8. Take care of your battery - Exercise the Battery. Do not leave a charged battery dormant for long periods of time. Once charged, you should at least use the battery at least once every two to three weeks. Also, do not let a Li-On battery completely discharge. (Discharing is only for older batteries with memory effects)

9. Hibernate not standby - Although placing a laptop in standby mode saves some power and you can instantly resume where you left off, it doesn’t save anywhere as much power as the hibernate function does. Hibernating a PC will actually save your PC’s state as it is, and completely shut itself down.

temp

10. Keep operating temperature down - Your laptop operates more efficiently when it’s cooler. Clean out your air vents with a cloth or keyboard cleaner, or refer to some extra tips by LapTopMag.com.

11. Set up and optimize your power options - Go to ‘Power Options’ in your windows control panel and set it up so that power usage is optimized (Select the ‘max battery’ for maximum effect).

12. Don’t multitask - Do one thing at a time when you’re on battery. Rather than working on a spreadsheet, letting your email client run in the background and listening to your latest set of MP3’s, set your mind to one thing only. If you don’t you’ll only drain out your batteries before anything gets completed!

13. Go easy on the PC demands - The more you demand from your PC. Passive activities like email and word processing consume much less power than gaming or playing a DVD. If you’ve got a single battery charge - pick your priorities wisely.

14. Get yourself a more efficient laptop - Laptops are getting more and more efficient in nature to the point where some manufacturers are talking about all day long batteries. Picking up a newer more efficient laptop to replace an aging one is usually a quick fix.

15. Prevent the Memory Effect - If you’re using a very old laptop, you’ll want to prevent the ‘memory effect’ - Keep the battery healthy by fully charging and then fully discharging it at least once every two to three weeks. Exceptions to the rule are Li-Ion batteries (which most laptops have) which do not suffer from the memory effect.



Folder Lock 6.2.4



Folder Lock is a fast file encryption software that can also password protect folders, lock files and protect USB Drives and lock CD/DVDs. Folder Lock creates encrypted storages called 'Lockers'. You can keep as many of your private files and folders in your Locker and password protect it with a single click. You can transfer, secure and backup these Lockers. Lockers are portable, you can keep them in USB Drives, CD/DVD, & notebooks or transfer them via email or upload. These Lockers are undeletable on the computer where Folder Lock is installed. You can create as many Lockers as you want. Different users can create different Lockers with different passwords as well. With Folder Lock, you can choose either to encrypt using 256-bit AES on-the-fly encryption or lock files, folders and drives anywhere on your computer. Each Locker can contain your encrypted files as well as your personal list of locked items. Furthermore, Folder Lock's options like hack monitoring, stealth mode, data shredding, history cleaning, auto protection, portable USB autoplay feature & virtual keyboard can enhance file locking and encryption beyond anything ever achieved. In addition, a locker's delete, move and rename are password protected to prevent data loss.

Version 6.2.4 is the most stable version released by the company, comes with support for all 32-bit and 64-bit Windows platforms with full functionality.

MacBook Air review


It fits in a manila folder, you can slide it under a door, and if you threw it hard enough you could probably chop someone in half with the thing. It's the thinnest, and if we may say so, sexiest laptop around today: the MacBook Air. But looks aren't everything to everyone, and despite all the rhetoric about being a no-compromises ultraportable, Apple did leave plenty on the cutting-room floor in its quest to make an absurdly thin ultraportable that doesn't skimp on a full size keyboard or roomier 13-inch display. But, as many potential buyers have been asking themselves since last week, is the Air right to be your next machine? Read on, we'll tell you what we think.


Hardware
It's hard to take lightly (har) the purposeful design that went into the Air, it's simply and without a doubt the most beautiful laptop we've seen in a while. Sure, there have been thinner, lighter laptops that take up fewer cubic centimeters -- but that's not really on trial. The goal of the Air was clear: create a Mac that frequent fliers wouldn't be ashamed of, or in physical pain to lug around. But therein lies the rub. The Air simply doesn't have the power to be many users' primary machine, while also lacking many of the features considered necessity by business travelers. More on that in a minute, though.



There are a lot of things that the Air gets right, and a decent amount of horsepower is one of 'em. Apple didn't take the easy route and go with an etiolated Ultra Low Voltage (read: ultra low performance) chip, they actually pushed Intel to repackage a slower version of its full-on Core 2 Duo processor. We were a little disappointed when Steve announced this wasn't the new power-efficient, lower-heat 45nm Penryn chip design, but in the time we've played with the Air, it's still rarely managed to output enough heat to raise an eyebrow. This is actually a laptop that belongs on your lap -- without any fear of sterility. Of course, as our Mac-on-Mac benchmarks showed, the 1.6GHz chip is still a little on the slow side, but the Air is by no means unusable. It's not really one of Steve's "screamers" -- but ultraportables aren't really intended to be.


The 13-inch LED backlit screen not only sips power where larger CCFL backlit displays guzzle, it also looks amazing: crisp, bright, and vibrant. Where other small laptops use 8-11-inch screens that are nigh-unreadable by many a squinty Engadget editor, for a laptop of this size the Air gives plenty of screen real estate to get things done. Unfortunately, Apple only offers this display with a glossy finish, so if you're fond of the matte or work outside or near a window, be forewarned. The bezel around the display is a little thick for our tastes, and the lid might not tilt back as far as we'd like due to the physical constraints of the joint design, but these are relatively minor complaints.


Also rare for an ultraportable is the Air's full-size keyboard, which adds some (worthy) width to the body. Those fond of the ridgeless, separated key design as found in MacBook and iMac / Mac pro keyboards will feel right at home. We're not too into this design, but unlike almost every ultraportable we've owned, the Air's keyboard feels thoroughly solid and sturdy. The keys are tactile, not at all mushy, and backlit to boot. Typing on the Air is a pleasure, not a chore. The keyboard also happens to be where the MacBook Air emits audio -- beneath right home row keys (k, l, ;, ') is the Air's tinny mono speaker, which seems and sounds more like an afterthought.


The Air's integrated 802.11n worked well with our stock D-Link 802.11n router, and transferred data at about 3-4MBps -- we were certainly satisfied with its wireless performance. The Bluetooth 2.1 + EDR as a standard option is also nice, but it's immediately clear the Air needed some integrated 3G, especially considering its lack of an ExpressCard slot.

Where a lot of other machines might have ports and protrusions along their edges, the Air has none -- it swoops inward from the edge to the base with only two spots for plugs, a new, 90-degree angled MagSafe power connector on the left underside, and a clicky, extremely sturdy-feeling foldable door that is impossible to open while resting on the table, and basically requires picking the entire machine up. This exposes the Air's only three ports: one USB 2.0, one micro-DVI, and one headphone. But here we begin with the design sacrifices, and at the top of the list is the lack of a user replaceable battery.



For some this might be an issue, but for others -- especially those on the road for long periods of time without access to a power outlet -- a deal-breaker. The Air uses a 37 Watt/hour lithium polymer (compared to the MacBook Pro's 60WH lithium-ion), and using our normal tests -- full screen brightness, WiFi and Bluetooth on, no attached peripherals -- under medium usage (light browsing and watching a 1:20 h.264 movie) we got a mere 2 hours and 25 minutes. Under lighter usage (browsing, some audio playback, no movies) we got closer to 3 hours and 35 minutes. Not bad, but still nowhere near the 5 hours Apple promises (under ideal conditions, surely).







Thankfully, the Air's power adapter is as impressively proportioned as the laptop, so taking it with you won't be much of an issue. But users of current generation adapters be warned: the Air's MagSafe implementation won't always work with your current MagSafe adapters simply because the angle and location make it physically impossible to accommodate when used on a table. Hardly a huge issue, we know. But things get worse on the connectivity side. The USB port is recessed enough that, while we're sure it meets USB Implementers Forum's design spec, it realistically won't accommodate most 3G modems without a USB extension cable, and some flash drives, as we learned yesterday. Even the headphone port had a difficult time accommodating our Shure E4C phones. We got stereo audio, but a high pitched hissing from not being fully plugged in and grounded. (This went away when we used a better-fitting audio extension cable.)



The micro-DVI port is also not physically compatible with the mini-DVI port on your MacBook and previous Apple laptops, so it requires some new connection accessories for VGA and DVI out, which are thankfully included in the box. Since the Air doesn't have a powerful (but space and power-consuming) discrete graphics adapter, you'll only be able to drive a 24-inch display, although for many that should probably be sufficient. (Games and movie watching also suffer because of the integrated graphics, since some of that visual load is taken on by the CPU.) Also integrated is the Air's 2GB of RAM, built directly into its insanely small motherboard; processors rarely need to be swapped in laptops, but are you willing to bank on a couple of years' use without having to upgrade your RAM? Perhaps a lot of people are, but we're not.

The Air also uses a slower 80GB 1.8-inch drive, the same kind that powers many portable media players. While probably sturdy enough to withstand normal use, it's nowhere near as fast as your average 2.5-inch laptop drive, and will always be behind in storage should you chose to upgrade later. If you can afford to spring for the 64GB SSD option, we highly suggest it -- your machine's reliability, performance, and battery life will all get a boost (at the expense of 16GB of space and a ton of cash, naturally). Oddly overlooked for inclusion is the Apple Remote; the Air certainly has the necessary sliver of an IR sensor for making use of one, but the remote isn't included, despite being found in the box of just about every other Apple machine. Oh, and for those wondering, the Air's built-in iSight is the VGA variety.

Despite its shortcomings on the hardware and specs side, though, it's hard to say enough about how well made the Air feels -- a particularly important point when you're taking your machine everywhere. Whereas most smaller laptops try to cut weight with inner metal frames and flimsy plastic bodies, the Air bulks up a bit with an all-metal enclosure that looks and feels like it was carved out of a single piece of aluminum. Only time will tell if metal in the Air's wrist rest area will pit out and blacken like MacBook Pros and PowerBooks of years past, but the machine definitely gets extremely high marks for its the physical engineering. And no, we're not at liberty to drop test Apple's review unit, sorry!

Software



Just like every other Apple machine, the Air runs Leopard -- albeit a slightly different build (9B2324). The only changes made have to do with taking advantage of the machine's oversized touchpad, which now supports multi-finger gestures in system prefs. Apple thoughtfully actually includes in-line instructional videos for learning how the gestures work (and how to make them), like the three-finger sweep for backward and forward in Safari, or using two fingers to rotate an image in iPhoto. This is just the beginning of touchpad-based multi-touch, and while it's not always the most practical way to do things (cmd+R or L seems to us an easier way to rotate a photo), it's intuitive and well-integrated.

Apple also hasn't released any information for third party developers on how to integrated touch gestures into their apps, so until they do, only Apple apps will be able to take advantage of the new input methods. It's obvious that, with time, Apple will be rolling out multi-touch on their other machines, but for now they claim that current hardware cannot support this input, so don't expect to see any (official) software updates to enable multi-touch.

Another feature rolled out is Remote Disc, Apple's new system for sharing the optical drives of networked Macs and PCs with the drive-less Air. As we quickly learned, you should be prepared to have as much bandwidth as possible between the Air and your host machine, -- and don't be disappointed when you can't do everything with Remote Disc that you can do with a regular drive. There's no commercial media playback, no HD support, no ripping, no burning -- it's really only meant for installing apps, downloading data, or reinstalling the OS (more on that in a second). On the upshot, it did work seamlessly when we tried it.


Still, we think the Air's external USB SuperDrive (which only works with the Air, mind you) is a necessity. There simply isn't any way to transparently replace all the functionality of an optical drive yet, so we're kind of bummed Apple didn't just include the thing in box. [Also, disclosure: we had a pool running and I bet against a non-bundled optical drive and lost ten bucks. Thanks, Apple!] There's no question that a laptop really doesn't need an optical drive at all times, and we've always been happy to omit them. But having to shell out $99 to buy the drive separately just doesn't sit well with us.

Wrap-up
The Air is a tough call. On the one hand it proposes to be a no-compromises ultraportable, but on the other hand it compromises many (but not all) the things road warriors want. We're all about removing unnecessary frills and drives (we rejoiced the day the original iMac bucked the floppy), but laptops are increasingly becoming many users' primary -- often only -- machines, which is why the Air's price doesn't do it any favors, either. It's hard to justify almost two grand for a second laptop (or a third machine) just for travel needs -- and even then, that's only easily done if all your data lives in the cloud. Given those sacrifices and that higher-end sticker, it's more than likely not going to replace most peoples' current workhorse laptop.

This all might look a bit different if the Air was a little closer to MacBook price range, though. We're thinking $1500 could be a sweet spot, especially if bundled with the wired Ethernet dongle

Given its stripped down, one-piece design, some are calling the Air the iPod of laptops. The point is debatable as to whether this machine could have the same appeal to computer users, but if there is one clear upshot to the Air, it's that Apple's learned to take the next step in miniaturizing their portable computers. While not all Mac users are going to stand in line to get this latest machine, Apple is doubtless welcomed back into the ultraportable laptop market by the technology world. Perhaps the largest side-effect of the Air won't be ditching optical drives, though; for the rest of Apple's consumer base it's now just a matter of time before other Mac laptop lines benefit from the technical and engineering advances that made this thing so thin and light. Give us the lovechild of the MacBook Air and the MacBook Pro, and it's all over.