HotPot News » Photography

How to protect your Wi-Fi network

hoaihung — Mon, 02 Jun 2008 17:47:23 +0000

Reader Joshua writes: I have searched all over the net for detailed instructions on how to protect my Wi-Fi network, and I just can’t seem to find them. I would appreciate some help.

Most vendors provide an installation CD with their routers, and if you use this CD (you never have to, by the way), you’ll be walked through setting up security on your router, step by step.

Personally I find these programs cumbersome, and since I tend to swap out routers every couple of months, I never install them to avoid having multiple management applications which correspond to nothing on my network.

So, without further ado, here’s how to set up security on your router without using a custom application.

1) Type in the IP address of the router in your browser. This is how you get to the management system. You will need to check your router’s manual for the IP address (it’s probably 192.168.0.1 or something close to that) and the default password for the router. Now every router’s management interface is different, and I don’t have every brand here to work with, so I’m just going to point you toward the areas you need to tweak. This isn’t complicated, but it might take a little trial and error on your part. Just poke around until you find the appropriate section to manage. It’s usually quite simple.

2) Set a new administrator password. Always a good first step so you don’t forget it later. This is often not under the Security section, so don’t forget to look under the Utilities or System Settings area. Once you find it, change the password here like you would with any user account.

3) Turn on encryption. Look under Wireless Security or a similarly tagged section. You want to turn on encryption here: Use WPA (or WPA-PSK) if all devices on your network support it. Otherwise use 128-bit WEP. Type in the key you’d like (or use a passphrase to generate the key if you’re using WEP). Note the passphrase you’re using so you can type that password into your client machines.

4) Change the SSID. Nothing says “hack me” like a default SSID (essentially, the name of your router) like “linksys” or “belkin.” Change it to something menacing, not “janesrouter.” One router I can see from my office is named “virustrap.” I can’t imagine anyone willingly trying to hack into that network. Remember you’ll need this SSID when you browse available wireless networks from your client machines. You’ll find this setting under a menu called Channel or SSID, something like that.

After that, you’ve covered the basics of security. You’ll probably have to reboot your router multiple times during this procedure (so it’s best to use a cable to do the configuration), and don’t forget to hit “Apply Changes” or “Save Changes” after every tweak you make.

You can continue to make more advanced wireless security changes if you’d like, but I think they’re overkill. Still, if you’re paranoid, you can turn off SSID broadcasting (so you have to type in the network name manually; it doesn’t show up in the Windows scan). You can also turn on MAC address filtering, which limits access to your network to a list of clients that you specifically approve. If anyone really wants information about how to configure MAC filtering, email me or post a comment below and I’ll whip up a blog post down the road.

source from tech.yahoo.com

How to Take a Macro Image

qskulls — Mon, 05 May 2008 15:45:10 +0000

A macro image is simply a close up photograph of any object. Such images capture vivid details of a subject and present many challenges to the photographer. All that is needed to take macro pictures (any lens will do) is a keen eye for composition and detail. Learn the basics of macro photography by reading the steps below.

Instructions

Step1

Find the right subject. Begin experimenting in your garden or backyard. Such an area offers a myriad of subjects (bugs, trees, grass, leaves, flowers, rocks) that are perfect for macro photography. In addition, the natural lighting will eliminate the complication of adjusting for lighting.

Step2

Think about your composition. There are generally two choices when deciding the composition of a macro image. You could crop the image, tightly highlighting certain features (textures, colors, details) or pull back slightly showing the subject in its context. Choosing either method will determine the techniques used during your shoot.

Step3

Get the right depth. The more an object is magnified, the less depth of field it has. This makes it difficult to get the entire image in focus. To remedy the problem, try rotating the subject (or camera) until it presents its shallowest profile towards the lens. If this does not work, you must decide which parts of the subject to focus on.

Step4

Watch for movement. Shooting close up makes it tough to stay focused (or centered) on moving objects. In addition, any movement of the camera will cause you to drift your focus away from the object. Try using a tripod if handling becomes a problem.

Step5

Consider the background. Check carefully for distracting objects in the background that may take the focus away from your subject. One solution is to take an out of focus picture (with the background totally blurred) to eliminate any distracting background details.

Step6

Use a macroflash. Due to inadequate positioning, hot-shoe and built-in flashes offer poor lighting options for macro images. In contrast, macroflash set ups allow the photographer to position their light wherever it is needed.

By eHow Electronics Editor

How to Take a Good Picture

qskulls — Sat, 03 May 2008 10:53:08 +0000

This article will tell you how to take, edit and finish a good picture with Clarity, color and balance.

Steps

Get a good digital camera with 5-6 + mega pixels.
Get Google’s Picasa2 software; it is a great and free piece of software to help beginning photographers touch up their photos without being too complicated.
Take some time to read the camera’s manual in order to benefit as much as possible from it.
Practice your first shots. Once you have read the manual, go outside in the evening or morning and take several normal ‘point and shoot’ pictures. You will get a different idea of the lighting from being outside at different times of the day and night.
Pay attention to what is around you. Before you take each picture pay attention to the background. Try to find a simple background, a white wall, green grass, clean sand, blue sky, anything uncluttered.
Connect your camera (or just the card) to your computer.
Double click each picture and click the ‘I’m Feeling Lucky’ button and if you don’t like the changes, just click ‘Undo’ and edit the picture yourself using the brightness adjuster, etc.
Export your pictures to a new folder and admire them.

Tips

Always use a good, simple camera.
Read the manual. If it is a simple camera it should come with a one page quick-read poster so you know how to use it.
Turn off the flash and keep your hand as steady as possible.
Learn how to take a picture using the manual setting.
Learn how to focus the camera. As simple as this seems, many people fail to do it. You do not need to focus most cameras. They come with “autofocus”.
Buy a quality tripod. You do not need to buy a tripod, but if you do, your pictures will be sharper.
When buying a digital camera, make sure it has “Image Stabilization”. It will eliminate about 80% of the blurry pictures caused by not pressing the shutter smoothly or when zooming.
If the camera has a neck strap, use it! hold the camera out so that that the neck strap is pulled as far as a can, this will prevent shaky pics

Warnings

Always use a lanyard or hand strap! This will stop you from dropping the camera.

Things You’ll Need

Digital Camera with PC connection; optionally, a memory card reader will import your pictures a lot quicker.
Camera Memory Card

source from: wikiHow

Sky Blue

hoaihung — Fri, 02 May 2008 19:08:52 +0000

Photographer by hoaihung

Sai Gon on Memory

hoaihung — Fri, 02 May 2008 19:03:37 +0000

Photographer by hoaihung

Sunset on Sài Gòn - Việt Nam

hoaihung — Fri, 02 May 2008 17:53:15 +0000

Photographer by hoaihung