Core Networking

Core Networking

OPTICAL CHARACTERISTICS OF LEDS

The radiation from an LED can be characterized by radiometric and spectroradiometric
quantities. If the LED emits visible radiation, then photometric and colorimetric quantities
are also required to quantify its effect on the human eye. Note that for every radiometric
quantity there is a photometric analog. The only difference is that, for radiometric quantities
the radiation is evaluated in energy units, while for photometric quantities the radiation is
weighted against the photopic response of the human eye.

3.1 Spectral Properties of Light Emitting Diodes

The spectral distribution of the optical radiation emitted by LEDs distinguish them from
typical element sources. The radiant power is neither monochromatic (as emitted by lasers),
nor broadband (as found with incandescent lamps), but rather something between the two.
The light output of a typical LED has a narrowband spectral bandwidth between 20nm and
50nm and a peak wavelength somewhere in the near UV, the visible, or near infrared regions
of the spectrum.

Sample LED Spectral Distributions

The spectral properties of an LED are important to aid
manufacturers in their design efforts and process control.
End-users use these values in determining the correct LED
for their application. An overview of the spectral parameters
of an LED is listed below:
Peak Wavelength λp:
Wavelength at the maximum spectral power . The peak wavelength has little significance for
practical purposes since two LEDs may have the same peak
wavelength but different color perception.
Full Width Half Max (FWHM):
The spectral bandwidth at half peak λ 0.5 is calculated from
the two wavelengths λ'0.5 and λ''0.5 on either side of λp.
λ 0.5 = λ'0.5 - λ''0.5 (Reference Figure 3.0).
Center Wavelength λ m:
The center wavelength is the wavelength halfway between the half-wavelengths λ'0.5 - λ''0.5.
Centroid Wavelength λc:
The centroid wavelength is the center of moment or the mean of the spectral power
distribution.
Dominant Wavelength:
The dominant wavelength is determined from drawing a straight line through the color
coordinates of the reference illuminant (usually arbitrarily chosen as illuminant E) and
the measured chromaticity coordinates of the LED in the International Commission on
Illumination (CIE) 1931 chromaticity diagram. The intersection of this straight line on
the boundary of the chromaticity diagram gives the dominant wavelength. It is a measure
of the hue sensation produced in the human eye by the LED.
Purity:
Purity is defined as the ratio of the distance from reference illuminant (usually arbitrarily
chosen as Illuminant E) to the measured chromaticity coordinates and the distance from
reference illuminant to the intersection with the boundary of the chromaticity diagram.
Most LEDs are narrow band radiators, with a purity of nearly 100%, i.e. the color cannot
be distinguished from a monochromatic beam. Polychromatic sources have low purity
approaching zero.
Full Width Half Max Angle , Viewing Angle or Beam Angle:
The total cone apex angle in degrees encompassing the central, high luminous intensity
portion of a directional beam, from the on-axis peak out to the off-axis angles in both
directions at which the source's relative intensity is 1/2.
Half-Angle:
The included angle in degrees between the peak and the point on one side of the beam
axis at which the luminous intensity is 50% of maximum or half of the beam angle.
Note: Peak Wavelength, Full Width Half Max, Center Wavelength, and Centroid
Wavelength are all plotted on a scale of (power / λ) vs. (λ).
0.5
(2θ1/2)
4

Theoretical V(λ) function, relative
spectral flux output of a blue LED,
relative spectral distribution of a
typical tungsten incandescent lamp,
typical response of photopic detector
with f1’ response of 4%.
3.2 Comparison of Photometers and Spectroradiometers
Photometers use a broadband detector in conjunction with an optical filter in an effort to
simulate the spectral luminous efficiency curve of the human eye, V(λ), which is referenced
using CIE 15.2 Colorimetry. The detection process involves a change in the
characteristics of the detector caused by the absorption of visible photons. The electrical
signal generated by the detector is a response to the visible radiation incident on the detector
active area. For example, a photometer designed to measure illuminance may be calibrated
in photocurrent per lux.
Spectroradiometers can be calibrated to measure the radiant energy or radiant flux from an
LED as a function of wavelength. These instruments separate or disperse polychromatic light
into its constituent monochromatic components usually by means of prisms or gratings. The
photometric value may then be computed (usually by software) from this measured spectrum.
This basic difference between spectroradiometers and photometers is extremely important in
LED metrology.
A disadvantage of a photometer is the difficulty in designing a filter that, when combined
with a detector, fits the spectral luminous efficiency curve of the eye exactly. Because of
available filter materials, a mismatch is particularly prevalent in the blue portion of the
spectrum. Though corrections can be applied, these corrections require knowledge of the
LED spectral distribution and are usually approximations. Figure 3.1 shows the theoretical
V(λ) function, the relative spectral flux output of a blue LED, the relative spectral distribution
of a typical tungsten incandescent lamp, and the typical response of a photopic detector.
A typical photopic detector with an f1' response of 4% can have a spectral mismatch as great
as a factor of 2 at 470nm between the V(λ) function and the response of a photopic detector.
If an incandescent source or a source similar in spectral content is measured, the correction
for the slopes of the photopic detector to the V(λ) curve is minimal since the light is
continuous and there is relatively little light in the
blue portion of the spectrum in relation to the
higher wavelengths. A mismatch in the response
curves results in only a slight error of the measured
photometric value.
LEDs, however, have a completely different spectral
power distribution, which tends to be narrowband
Gaussian with a specific peak and a FWHM of a
couple of tens of nanometers. The relatively poor
match of the photopic detector to the V(λ) function,
can result in large deviations in the measured photometric
quantities. This is particularly true for blue
and red LEDs. Errors exceeding a hundred percent
are not unusual for blue LEDs. Spectroradiometers
avoid these errors because the photometric quantities
are calculated from the spectral data and defined CIE
functions. It should be noted that photometers can
be used to compare sources having identical spectral
distribution, or to measure illumination of the same spectral distribution as that of the source
with which it was calibrated. LEDs can have so much variation from one to another, spectroradiometers
or photometers fabricated with specially designed filtering should be used for
LED metrology.
5
3.3 Color and Dominant Wavelength
Often used for determining the color of an LED, dominant wavelength is actually a
measure of the hue sensation produced in the human eye. Hue designates the basic color
being referenced; such as, red, yellow or blue-green. The hue refers to the color impression
that a sample makes. Two LEDs can have the same hue, but it is possible for one to appear
washed out. For example, one can look red and one can look pink.
In order to guarantee a match in color from one LED to another both dominant wavelength
and purity should be referenced. Purity is a characteristic of chroma (also referred to as
saturation), which is the degree of color saturation, or the amount of pure color added to
obtain the sample. The purer colors of a particular hue sample are placed nearer to the
boundary of the chromaticity diagram.
In order to calculate the color properties of an LED, the spectral properties of the LED
must be known. Therefore, a photometer cannot be used. In choosing a spectroradiometer
with which to calculate these values, it should be noted that the optical bandwidth of a
spectroradiometer artificially broadens the spectral shape of any source. For LEDs, this
can introduce errors, especially in the calculated chromaticity coordinates and dominant
wavelength. A 10nm bandwidth spectroradiometer, measuring 20nm full width half max
LEDs, can cause errors as high as:
0.005 in x
0.007 in y
2nm in λd
On the other hand, error contributions on color for spectroradiometers with bandwidths
of 5nm have been documented to be less than about 0.002 in x,y (0.001 in u',v') and 0.2nm
in dominant wavelength. Bandwidths of 1nm or less have no appreciable error contribution.
In choosing a spectroradiometer one should be aware of these errors. Spectroradiometers
with bandwidths of 5nm or less are accepted for most practical measurements of LEDs
of all colors.
3.4 Influence of Temperature on Radiation
Initial Light-up:
The light output of an LED is a function of Vf and If,
where the LED junction temperature under constant current
operation heavily influences Vf. At constant current.
the forward voltage of an LED stabilizes as the junction
temperature (Tj) stabilizes. The junction temperature of
the LED is determined by Tj =Ta + Pd * Rth (j-a). Where
Ta is ambient temperature, Pd is power dissipation (Vf *I f)
and Rth(j-a) is the thermal resistance (junction to ambient
temperature). During initial light-up, the temperature of
the junction increases due to electrical power consumed
by the LED chip and then stabilizes at a temperature
value > Ta. Because of this effect, the emitted light is not
stabilized until thermal equilibrium has been reached.
After thermal equilibrium, the junction value is governed
by the heat transfer to the surroundings, which takes
place through the leads of the LED. As a consequence,
the thermal properties of the electrical contacts used to
supply the LED, the length of the wires between the chip, and when used the heat sink can
significantly affect the output. Figure 3.2 shows the stabilization over time of a green LED.
The relative spectral flux and the forward voltage is measured every 5 seconds with a constant
current of 20ma flowing through the LED, until a near constant forward voltage is achieved. The stabilization procedure can take several minutes and will be
influenced by the properties of the specific LED measured. Depending on the LED type,
spectral distribution effects from junction temperature, as presented in the graph, can create
6 shifts in dominant wavelength

Example of LED
Stabilization Over Time
as great as 0.7nm and decreases in luminous flux as great as
3.5%. Since the dominant wavelength is dependent upon
the intersection on the spectrum locus of the 1931 CIE
chromaticity diagram, small spectral distribution changes
in "red" and "blue" LEDs can create relatively large changes
in dominant wavelength.
Thermal Equilibrium:
Once thermal equilibrium has been reached, the spectral
distribution of an LED is dependent upon the ambient
temperature surrounding the chip. For a typical LED as the
power is stabilized and the ambient temperature rises, there
will be a slight change in the shape of the spectrum, and the
peak wavelength will shift about 0.1 to 0.3nm/K. For blue
LEDs, the shift in most cases is towards shorter wavelengths.
For other LEDs, the whole distribution will shift in the
direction of longer wavelengths. The luminous efficacy and color of LEDs can be changed by
relatively small ambient temperature changes, making it difficult to achieve constant photometric
or radiometric measurement results. Figure 3.3 depicts the spectral radiant flux output
of a "green" LED run at 23°C and 30°C. For this example, a 1.1nm shift in peak wavelength
resulted in a 0.2nm change in dominant wavelength. As previously described, shifts in the
spectra of red and blue LEDs, because of their location on the color curve, will create greater
changes in dominant wavelength. Since the spectral distribution of an LED depends on both
the junction temperature of the chip and stabilization of current, temperature offers the best
way of controlling the operating conditions and maintaining a constant spectral distribution.
READ MORE - OPTICAL CHARACTERISTICS OF LEDS

STRUCTURED CABLES IN TELECOMMUNICATION

Cable is the highway used to deliver all of you organization's information. A system that is poorly designed, ineffectively installed, or out of date hinders the performance, profitability and client satisfaction in your organization

TNSI has the experience and capability to tie your cabling needs together for maximum efficiency in a cost effective manner, in your building or in a campus environment.

Voice: Structured wiring for voice, modem, terminal, fax and other applications.

Data: Structured wiring systems for local area networks, host terminal, data collection, factory automation. Category 5 and 6 copper twisted pair, patch panels, ladder and system racks, network services access, building connection, and many other applications.

Fiber Optics: Backbone and workstation cable systems using single or mutimode fiber. We offer a variety of fiber optic systems for unique applications.

High Speed Internet Access: Access the information Super Highway using a high speed internet connection.

READ MORE - STRUCTURED CABLES IN TELECOMMUNICATION

AIRTEL Success Story

Airtel’s solutions provider, Bharti Telesoft, designed a unique televoting application that uses Short Messages as the media for polling votes. The application was developed on open standards. Televoting effectively enables Airtel’s mobile subscribers to participate in various SMS contests aired on both KBC & Indian Idol. The system handles tremendous peak loads of mobile-originated (MO) messages generated by subscribers and processes it according to a pre-configured format specified by the two TV programs. The application caters to subscriber traffic across millions of users in seven different Airtel Circles over a pre-defined short code (646).

“When we first decided to evaluate Linux, apprehensions were raised immediately. People began to say that the system would choke and not be able to handle the load,” explains Vatsal.

“But in our simulations, Linux proved its detractors completely wrong. The pilot Enterprise Linux server could handle a peak load of 1000 TPS with superb ease. People soon began to realize that Linux is in fact ideally suited for high throughputs. Since our transactions needed to be recorded into a log file on-the-fly, Linux, with its high performance, was the perfect fit,” he adds.

Security was also another critical factor that swung the decision in the favor of Enterprise Linux. “Microsoft Windows is prone to viruses that affect its filesystem easily, whereas Linux remains unaffected,” he adds. In fact, Windows was never on the selection radar at all. “We didn’t even evaluate it for our server requirements,” adds Vatsal.

At Airtel, Enterprise Linux runs on low cost, dual Intel Xeon servers. The servers run both the Televoting application and a MySQL database at each of the seven different locations across the country. A central server, again powered by Red Hat Enterprise Linux, functions as a host. “The central server generates MIS reports and also acts as an FTP server for the other seven distributed machines,” explains Uttam Kumar, Project Head, Airtel.

READ MORE - AIRTEL Success Story

Wireless Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA)

Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) is a radically new concept in wireless communications. It has gained widespread international acceptance by cellular radio system operators as an upgrade that will dramatically increase both their system capacity and the service quality. It has likewise been chosen for deployment by the majority of the winners of the United States Personal Communications System spectrum auctions. It may seem, however, mysterious for those who aren't familiar with it. This site is provided in an effort to dispel some of the mystery and to disseminate at least a basic level of knowledge about the technology.

CDMA is a form of spread-spectrum , a family of digital communication techniques that have been used in military applications for many years. The core principle of spread spectrum is the use of noise-like carrier waves, and, as the name implies, bandwidths much wider than that required for simple point-to-point communication at the same data rate. Originally there were two motivations: either to resist enemy efforts to jam the communications (anti-jam, or AJ), or to hide the fact that communication was even taking place, sometimes called low probability of intercept (LPI). It has a history that goes back to the early days of World War II.

The use of CDMA for civilian mobile radio applications is novel. It was proposed theoretically in the late 1940's, but the practical application in the civilian marketplace did not take place until 40 years later. Commercial applications became possible because of two evolutionary developments. One was the availability of very low cost, high density digital integrated circuits, which reduce the size, weight, and cost of the subscriber stations to an acceptably low level. The other was the realization that optimal multiple access communication requires that all user stations regulate their transmitter powers to the lowest that will achieve adequate signal quality.

CDMA changes the nature of the subscriber station from a predominately analog device to a predominately digital device. Old-fashioned radio receivers separate stations or channels by filtering in the frequency domain. CDMA receivers do not eliminate analog processing entirely, but they separate communication channels by means of a pseudo-random modulation that is applied and removed in the digital domain, not on the basis of frequency. Multiple users occupy the same frequency band. This universal frequency reuse is not fortuitous. On the contrary, it is crucial to the very high spectral efficiency that is the hallmark of CDMA. Other discussions in these pages show why this is true.

CDMA is altering the face of cellular and PCS communication by:

  • Dramatically improving the telephone traffic capacity

  • Dramatically improving the voice quality and eliminating the audible effects of multipath fading

  • Reducing the incidence of dropped calls due to handoff failures

  • Providing reliable transport mechanism for data communications, such as facsimile and internet traffic

  • Reducing the number of sites needed to support any given amount of traffic

  • Simplifying site selection

  • Reducing deployment and operating costs because fewer cell sites are needed

  • Reducing average transmitted power

  • Reducing interference to other electronic devices

  • Reducing potential health risks

Commercially introduced in 1995, CDMA quickly became one of the world's fastest-growing wireless technologies. In 1999, the International Telecommunications Union selected CDMA as the industry standard for new "third-generation" (3G) wireless systems. Many leading wireless carriers are now building or upgrading to 3G CDMA networks in order to provide more capacity for voice traffic, along with high-speed data capabilities.

CDMA is a form of Direct Sequence Spread Spectrum communications. In general, Spread Spectrum communications is distinguished by three key elements:

1. The signal occupies a bandwidth much greater than that which is necessary to send the information. This results in many benefits, such as immunity to interference and jamming and multi-user access, which we'll discuss later on.

2. The bandwidth is spread by means of a code which is independent of the data. The independence of the code distinguishes this from standard modulation schemes in which the data modulation will always spread the spectrum somewhat.

3. The receiver synchronizes to the code to recover the data. The use of an independent code and synchronous reception allows multiple users to access the same frequency band at the same time.

In order to protect the signal, the code used is pseudo-random. It appears random, but is actually deterministic, so that the receiver can reconstruct the code for synchronous detection. This pseudo-random code is also called pseudo-noise (PN).

There are three ways to spread the bandwidth of the signal:

  • Frequency hopping. The signal is rapidly switched between different frequencies within the hopping bandwidth pseudo-randomly, and the receiver knows before hand where to find the signal at any given time.

  • Time hopping. The signal is transmitted in short bursts pseudo-randomly, and the receiver knows beforehand when to expect the burst.

  • Direct sequence. The digital data is directly coded at a much higher frequency. The code is generated pseudo-randomly, the receiver knows how to generate the same code, and correlates the received signal with that code to extract the data.

How spread spectrum works:

Spread Spectrum uses wide band, noise-like signals. Because Spread Spectrum signals are noise-like, they are hard to detect. Spread Spectrum signals are also hard to Intercept or demodulate. Further, Spread Spectrum signals are harder to jam (interfere with) than narrowband signals. These Low Probability of Intercept (LPI) and anti-jam (AJ) features are why the military has used Spread Spectrum for so many years. Spread signals are intentionally made to be much wider band than the information they are carrying to make them more noise-like.

Spread Spectrum signals use fast codes that run many times the information bandwidth or data rate. These special "Spreading" codes are called "Pseudo Random" or "Pseudo Noise" codes. They are called "Pseudo" because they are not real gaussian noise.

Spread Spectrum transmitters use similar transmit power levels to narrow band transmitters. Because Spread Spectrum signals are so wide, they transmit at a much lower spectral power density, measured in Watts per Hertz, than narrowband transmitters. This lower transmitted power density characteristic gives spread signals a big plus. Spread and narrow band signals can occupy the same band, with little or no interference. This capability is the main reason for all the interest in Spread Spectrum today.

READ MORE - Wireless Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA)

BSNL DATAONE broadband disconnect problem

Hello
folks....Internet now spreading its roots deep n further deep inside
the Indian households.BSNL has come up with Broadband service Dataone
with really awesome price plans 500 bucks for 1 GB thing....sounds
koool...no???
But many of us are facing problems with Dataone
service that the Green Light of DSL in broadband modem switches off
time to time rendering you off the net for long time afterwards.
So im giving you a solution here which is a by-mistake discovery by in-house research team:-) and its 100% working:
When ever your DSL light goes off...
pick
up the phone co-attached to your modem and dial any number and the DSL
light will switch ON[blinking]...that moment only you drop back the
phone reciever.And reconnect the Broadband connection.Simple!!!
NOTE: DSL light may not switch on in one Dial attempt only..so try 2-3 times and it will work...
READ MORE - BSNL DATAONE broadband disconnect problem

Setting Priorities for Next-Generation Web Apps - MICROSOFT

Through the use of new development environments, combined with Web services and an emerging set of collaboration technologies, Web applications are matching and threatening to exceed the capabilities of their shrink-wrapped antecedents. It's safe to say that the days of classical offline desktop applications and simple informational Web sites are rapidly drawing to a close. It's also safe to say that while the next generation of Web applications will combine both the richness of the desktop and the networking of the Internet, there are still a number of concerns that need to be addressed around security, transition costs, and other factors.

For this report, InformationWeek Analytics polled both technical decision makers (TDMs) and business decision makers (BDMs) for their interest in, and concerns about, next-generation Web applications in three areas: advancements in user interface; the integration of business intelligence and event processing with collaboration tools; and their interest in hosting some application functions in the cloud. One result of the survey that shouldn't surprise anyone is the popularity of "eye candy" rich Internet applications (RIAs) with both TDMs and BDMs.The consensus of our survey of 415 business technology professionals indicates that RIAs are widely accepted and are now the technology of choice for many new Web development projects.

Although not as far along as most corporate RIA initiatives, there is similar interest in the use of combined business intelligence, event processing, and collaboration tools to kick off complex tasks, such as bringing appropriate teams together to make critical decisions and alerting stake holders of key developments.While there is some interest among smaller companies and startups for hosting applications in the cloud—as a way to add robust IT infrastructure at minimal cost, for example—enterprise decision makers by and large are much more skeptical about cloud computing, citing issues such as security, governance, privacy, and control.That skepticism is reflected in the 50% negative response from both TDMs and BDMs who said they do not expect to host any application functions in the cloud over the next 24 months.

This point was made more vociferously by Scott Wentzka, a senior architect with Paisley Consulting, a Minnesota provider of governance, risk, and compliance software. "Cloud computing is an over-priced fraud," says Wentzka. "If you actually figure out the real TCO, it's about four times as expensive as internally hosted applications. On the other hand, RIA technology is the real deal—faster, more interactive, and less painful to develop than the ancient kludge that is HTML and JavaScript."

READ MORE - Setting Priorities for Next-Generation Web Apps - MICROSOFT

Social Network Services

Social network services allow people to come together online around shared interests, hobbies, or causes. For example, some sites provide dating services where users post personal profiles, locations, ages, gender, etc, and are able to search for a partner. Other services enable business networking (Ryze, XING, and LinkedIn) and social event meetups (Meetup).

Some large wikis effectively become social network services by encouraging user pages and portals.

Anyone can create their own social networking service using hosted offerings like Ning or rSitez, or more flexible, installable software like Elgg.



Social network search engines::

Social network search engines are a class of search engines that use social networks to organize, prioritize, or filter search results. There are two subclasses of social network search engines: those that use explicit social networks, and those that use implicit social networks:
Explicit social network search engines allow people to find each other according to explicitly stated social relationships such as XFN social relationships. XHTML Friends Network, for example, allows people to share their relationships on their own sites, thus forming a decentralized/distributed online social network, in contrast to centralized social network services listed in the previous section.
Implicit social network search engines allow people to filter search results based upon classes of social networks they trust, such as a shared political viewpoint. This was called an epistemic filter in a United Nations University report from 1993 which predicted that this would become the dominant means of search for most users.

Lacking trustworthy explicit information about such viewpoints, this type of social network search engine mines the web to infer the topology of online social networks. For example, the NewsTrove search engine infers social networks from content - sites, blogs, pods, and feeds - by examining, among other things, subject matter, link relationships, and grammatical features to infer social networks.



Deliberative social networks

Deliberative social networks are webs of discussion and debate for decision-making purposes. They are built for the purpose of establishing sustained relationships between individuals and their government. They rely upon informed opinion and advice that is given with a clear expectation of outcomes.


Commercial social networks

Commercial social networks are designed to support business transaction and to build a trust between an individual and a brand, which relies on opinion of product, ideas to make the product better, enabling customers to participate with the brands in promoting development, service delivery, and a better customer experience.[citation needed]. an example of these networks is Dell IdeaStorm.


Social guides

A social guide recommending places to visit or contains information about places in the real world such as coffee shops, restaurants, and wifi hotspots, etc. One such application is WikiTravel.


Social bookmarking
Main article: Social bookmarking

Some Web sites allow users to post their list of bookmarks or favorites websites for others to search and view them. These sites can also be used to meet others sharing common interests. Examples include digg, del.icio.us, StumbleUpon, reddit, Netvouz, and furl.


Social cataloging

In Social cataloging much like social bookmarking, this software is aimed towards academics, and allows the user to post a citation for an article found on the internet or a website, online database like Academic Search Premier or LexisNexis Academic University, a book found in a library catalog, and so on. These citations can be organized into predefined categories or a new category defined by the user through the use of tags. This allows academics researching or interested in similar areas to connect and share resources. Examples for those services include CiteULike, Connotea, BibSonomy and refbase.


Social libraries

This applications allows visitors to keep track of their collectibles, books, records, and DVDs. Users can share their collections. Recommendations can be generated based on user ratings, using statistical computation and network theory. Some sites offer a buddy system, as well as virtual "check outs" of items for borrowing among friends. Folksonomy or tagging is implemented on most of these sites. Examples include discogs.com, imdb.com and LibraryThing.


Virtual worlds
Main article: Virtual world

Virtual Worlds are services where it is possible to meet and interact with other people in a virtual environment reminiscent of the real world. Thus the term virtual reality. Typically, the user manipulates an avatar through the world, interacting with others using chat or voice chat.


Massively Multiplayer Online Games (MMOGs)
Main article: Massively Multiplayer Online Games

MMOGs are virtual worlds that add various sorts of point systems, levels, competition, and winners and losers to virtual world simulation. Commercial MMOGs (or, more accurately, massively multiplayer online role-playing games or MMORPGs,) include Everquest and World of Warcraft. The Dotsoul Cyberpark is one of the more innovative non-commercial worlds, with the look and feel of Second Life and Active Worlds, but an adamantly anti-corporate stance. Other open-source and experimental examples include Planeshift, Croquet project, VOS and Solipsis.


Non-game worlds

Another development are the worlds that are less game-like, or not games at all. Games have points, winners, and losers. Instead, some virtual worlds are more like social networking services like MySpace and Facebook, but with 3D simulation features. Examples include Second Life, ActiveWorlds, The Sims Online, and There.


Economies

Very often a real economy emerges in these worlds, extending the non-physical service economy within the world to service providers in the real world. Experts can design dresses or hairstyles for characters, go on routine missions for them, and so on, and be paid in game money to do so. This emergence has resulted in expanding social possibility and also in increased incentives to cheat. In the case of Second Life, the in-world economy is one of the primary features of the world.


Other specialized social applications

There are many other applications with social software characteristics that facilitate human connection and collaboration in specific contexts. Project management and e-learning applications are among these.




Emerging technologies

Emerging technological capabilities to more widely distribute hosting and support much higher bandwidth in real time are bypassing central content arbiters in some cases.


Peer-to-peer social networks

A hybrid of web-based social networks, instant messaging technologies and peer-to-peer connectivity and file sharing, peer-to-peer social networks generally allow users to share blogs, files (especially photographs) and instant messages. Some examples are imeem, SpinXpress, Bouillon, Wirehog, and Soulseek. Also, Groove, WiredReach and Kerika have similar functionality, but with more of a work-based, collaboration bias.


Virtual presence

Widely viewed, virtual presence means being present via intermediate technologies, usually radio, telephone, television, or the internet. In addition, it can denote apparent physical appearance, such as voice, face, and body language.

More narrowly, the term virtual presence denotes presence on World Wide Web locations which identified by URLs. People who are browsing a web site are considered to be virtually present at web locations. Virtual presence is a social software in the sense that people meet on the web by chance or intentionally. The ubiquitous(in the web space) communication transfers behavior patterns from the real world and virtual worlds to the web. Research has demonstrated effects of online indicators
READ MORE - Social Network Services

CCTV IP camera

IP cameras are Closed-circuit television (CCTV) cameras that utilize Internet Protocol to transmit image data and control signals over an Fast Ethernet link. As such, IP cameras are also commonly referred to as network cameras. IP cameras are primarily used for surveillance in the same manner as analog closed-circuit_television. A number of IP cameras are normally deployed together with a digital video recorder (DVR) or a network video recorder (NVR) to form a video surveillance system.

The terms IP camera and network camera are most commonly used to refer to surveillance cameras with a Fast Ethernet interface. In this context, the term IP camera does not include GigE_Vision camera, which is a machine vision camera with a Gigabit Ethernet interface.
READ MORE - CCTV IP camera

Is Your Networking Caught A Virus?

Caught A Virus?

If you've let your guard down--or even if you haven't--it can be hard to tell if your PC is infected. Here's what to do if you suspect the worst.


Heard this one before? You must run antivirus software and keep it up to date or else your PC will get infected, you'll lose all your data, and you'll incur the wrath of every e-mail buddy you unknowingly infect because of your carelessness.

You know they're right. Yet for one reason or another, you're not running antivirus software, or you are but it's not up to date. Maybe you turned off your virus scanner because it conflicted with another program. Maybe you got tired of upgrading after you bought Norton Antivirus 2001, 2002, and 2003. Or maybe your annual subscription of virus definitions recently expired, and you've put off renewing.

It happens. It's nothing to be ashamed of. But chances are, either you're infected right now, as we speak, or you will be very soon.

For a few days in late January, the Netsky.p worm was infecting about 2,500 PCs a day. Meanwhile the MySQL bot infected approximately 100 systems a minute (albeit not necessarily desktop PCs). As David Perry, global director of education for security software provider Trend Micro, puts it, "an unprotected [Windows] computer will become owned by a bot within 14 minutes."

Today's viruses, worms, and so-called bots--which turn your PC into a zombie that does the hacker's bidding (such as mass-mailing spam)--aren't going to announce their presence. Real viruses aren't like the ones in Hollywood movies that melt down whole networks in seconds and destroy alien spacecraft. They operate in the background, quietly altering data, stealing private operations, or using your PC for their own illegal ends. This makes them hard to spot if you're not well protected.

Is Your PC "Owned?"

I should start by saying that not every system oddity is due to a virus, worm, or bot. Is your system slowing down? Is your hard drive filling up rapidly? Are programs crashing without warning? These symptoms are more likely caused by Windows, or badly written legitimate programs, rather than malware. After all, people who write malware want to hide their program's presence. People who write commercial software put icons all over your desktop. Who's going to work harder to go unnoticed?

Other indicators that may, in fact, indicate that there's nothing that you need to worry about, include:

* An automated e-mail telling you that you're sending out infected mail. E-mail viruses and worms typically come from faked addresses.
* A frantic note from a friend saying they've been infected, and therefore so have you. This is likely a hoax. It's especially suspicious if the note tells you the virus can't be detected but you can get rid of it by deleting one simple file. Don't be fooled--and don't delete that file.

I'm not saying that you should ignore such warnings. Copy the subject line or a snippet from the body of the e-mail and plug it into your favorite search engine to see if other people have received the same note. A security site may have already pegged it as a hoax.

Sniffing Out an Infection

There are signs that indicate that your PC is actually infected. A lot of network activity coming from your system (when you're not actually using Internet) can be a good indicator that something is amiss. A good software firewall, such as ZoneAlarm, will ask your permission before letting anything leave your PC, and will give you enough information to help you judge if the outgoing data is legitimate. By the way, the firewall that comes with Windows, even the improved version in XP Service Pack 2, lacks this capability.

To put a network status light in your system tray, follow these steps: In Windows XP, choose Start, Control Panel, Network Connections, right-click the network connection you want to monitor, choose Properties, check "Show icon in notification area when connected," and click OK.

If you're interested in being a PC detective, you can sniff around further for malware. By hitting Ctrl-Alt-Delete in Windows, you'll bring up the Task Manager, which will show you the various processes your system is running. Most, if not all, are legit, but if you see a file name that looks suspicious, type it into a search engine and find out what it is.

Want another place to look? In Windows XP, click Start, Run, type "services.msc" in the box, and press Enter. You'll see detailed descriptions of the services Windows is running. Something look weird? Check with your search engine.

Finally, you can do more detective work by selecting Start, Run, and typing "msconfig" in the box. With this tool you not only see the services running, but also the programs that your system is launching at startup. Again, check for anything weird.

If any of these tools won't run--or if your security software won't run--that in itself is a good sign your computer is infected. Some viruses intentionally disable such programs as a way to protect themselves.

What to Do Next

Once you're fairly sure your system is infected, don't panic. There are steps you can take to assess the damage, depending on your current level of protection.

* If you don't have any antivirus software on your system (shame on you), or if the software has stopped working, stay online and go for a free scan at one of several Web sites. There's McAfee FreeScan, Symantec Security Check, and Trend Micro's HouseCall. If one doesn't find anything, try two. In fact, running a free online virus scan is a good way to double-check the work of your own local antivirus program. When you're done, buy or download a real antivirus program.
* If you have antivirus software, but it isn't active, get offline, unplug wires-- whatever it takes to stop your computer from communicating via the Internet. Then, promptly perform a scan with the installed software.
* If nothing seems to be working, do more research on the Web. There are several online virus libraries where you can find out about known viruses. These sites often provide instructions for removing viruses--if manual removal is possible--or a free removal tool if it isn't. Check out GriSOFT's Virus Encyclopedia, Eset's Virus Descriptions, McAffee's Virus Glossary, Symantec's Virus Encyclopedia, or Trend Micro's Virus Encyclopedia.

A Microgram of Prevention

Assuming your system is now clean, you need to make sure it stays that way. Preventing a breach of your computer's security is far more effective than cleaning up the mess afterwards. Start with a good security program, such Trend Micro's PC-Cillin, which you can buy for $50.

Don't want to shell out any money? You can cobble together security through free downloads, such as AVG Anti-Virus Free Edition, ZoneAlarm (a personal firewall), and Ad-Aware SE (an antispyware tool).

Just make sure you keep all security software up to date. The bad guys constantly try out new ways to fool security programs. Any security tool without regular, easy (if not automatic) updates isn't worth your money or your time.

Speaking of updating, the same goes for Windows. Use Windows Update (it's right there on your Start Menu) to make sure you're getting all of the high priority updates. If you run Windows XP, make sure to get the Service Pack 2 update. To find out if you already have it, right-click My Computer, and select Properties. Under the General tab, under System, it should say "Service Pack 2."

Here are a few more pointers for a virus-free life:

* Be careful with e-mail. Set your e-mail software security settings to high. Don't open messages with generic-sounding subjects that don't apply specifically to you from people you don't know. Don't open an attachment unless you're expecting it.
* If you have broadband Internet access, such as DSL or cable, get a router, even if you only have one PC. A router adds an extra layer of protection because your PC is not connecting directly with the Internet.
* Check your Internet ports. These doorways between your computer and the Internet can be open, in which case your PC is very vulnerable; closed, but still somewhat vulnerable; or stealthed (or hidden), which is safest. Visit Gibson Research's Web site and run the free ShieldsUP test to see your ports' status. If some ports show up as closed--or worse yet, open--check your router's documentation to find out how to hide them.
READ MORE - Is Your Networking Caught A Virus?

Apple 3G iPhone Improving Networking


General

2G Network GSM 850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900
3G Network HSDPA 850 / 1900 / 2100
Announced 2008, June
Status Available. Released 2008, July

Size

Dimensions 115.5 x 62.1 x 12.3 mm
Weight 133 g
Display Type Capacitive touchscreen, 16M colors
Size 320 x 480 pixels, 3.5 inches
- Multi-touch input method
- Accelerometer sensor for auto-rotate
- Proximity sensor for auto turn-off
- Scratch-resistant surface
- Ambient light sensor

Ringtones

Type Polyphonic, MP3
Customization Download
Vibration Yes
- 3.5 mm headset jack

Memory

Phonebook Practically unlimited entries and fields, Photocall
Call records 100 received, dialed and missed calls
Internal 8 GB/ 16 GB
Card slot No

Data

GPRS Yes
HSCSD No
EDGE Yes
3G HSDPA
WLAN Wi-Fi 802.11b/g
Bluetooth Yes, v2.0, headset support only
Infrared port No
USB Yes, v2.0


Camera

Primary 2 MP, 1600x1200 pixels
Video No
Secondary No

Features

OS Mac OS X v10.4.10
Messaging SMS (threaded view), Email
Browser HTML (Safari)
Radio No
Games Downloadable
Colors Black(8/16 GB), White (16 GB)
GPS Yes, with A-GPS support
Java No
- Google Maps
- Audio/video player
- TV-out
- Photo browser
- Voice memo
- Integrated handsfree


Battery Standard battery, Li-Ion

Stand-by Up to 300 h

Talk time Up to 10 h
READ MORE - Apple 3G iPhone Improving Networking

Analysis (Insertion and deletion operation)

The best possible case in insertion operation is when the item is inserted at the last position. In this case, no movement of elements is required. The worst case occurs when the element has to be inserted at the beginning of the list. In this case, we have to move all the elements down the list. Therefore, the while loop executes n times, each moving one element down. Thus complexity of insertin operation is O(n), i.e linear time.

.The best case in deletion occurs when the element to be deleted is the last element of the array. In this case, no element is moved up. The worst case occurs when element is deleted from the first position. In this case, all (n-1) elements are moved up. The while loop executes n-1 times, each time moving one element down. Thus complexity of deletion operation is also O(n) i.e linear time.
READ MORE - Analysis (Insertion and deletion operation)

Spyware affecting Networking

There are a lot of PC users that know little about "Spyware", "Mal-ware", "hijackers", "Dialers" & many more. This will help you avoid pop-ups, spammers and all those baddies.

What is spy-ware?
Spy-ware is Internet jargon for Advertising Supported software (Ad-ware). It is a way for shareware authors to make money from a product, other than by selling it to the users. There are several large media companies that offer them to place banner ads in their products in exchange for a portion of the revenue from banner sales. This way, you don't have to pay for the software and the developers are still getting paid. If you find the banners annoying, there is usually an option to remove them, by paying the regular licensing fee.

Known spywares
There are thousands out there, new ones are added to the list everyday. But here are a few:
Alexa, Aureate/Radiate, BargainBuddy, ClickTillUWin, Conducent Timesink, Cydoor, Comet Cursor, eZula/KaZaa Toptext, Flashpoint/Flashtrack, Flyswat, Gator, GoHip, Hotbar, ISTbar, Lions Pride Enterprises/Blazing Logic/Trek Blue, Lop (C2Media), Mattel Brodcast, Morpheus, NewDotNet, Realplayer, Songspy, Xupiter, Web3000, WebHancer, Windows Messenger Service.

How to check if a program has spyware?
The is this Little site that keeps a database of programs that are known to install spyware.

Check Here: http://www.spywareguide.com/product_search.php

If you would like to block pop-ups (IE Pop-ups).
There tons of different types out there, but these are the 2 best, i think.

Try: Google Toolbar (http://toolbar.google.com/) This program is Free
Try: AdMuncher (http://www.admuncher.com) This program is Shareware

If you want to remove the "spyware" try these.
Try: Lavasoft Ad-Aware (http://www.lavasoftusa.com/) This program is Free
Info: Ad-aware is a multi spyware removal utility, that scans your memory, registry and hard drives for known spyware components and lets you remove them. The included backup-manager lets you reinstall a backup, offers and multi language support.

Try: Spybot-S&D (http://www.safer-networking.org/) This program is Free
Info: Detects and removes spyware of different kinds (dialers, loggers, trojans, user tracks) from your computer. Blocks ActiveX downloads, tracking cookies and other threats. Over 10,000 detection files and entries. Provides detailed information about found problems.

Try: BPS Spyware and Adware Remover (http://www.bulletproofsoft.com/spyware-remover.html) This program is Shareware
Info: Adware, spyware, trackware and big brotherware removal utility with multi-language support. It scans your memory, registry and drives for known spyware and lets you remove them. Displays a list and lets you select the items you'd like to remove.

Try: Spy Sweeper v2.2 (http://www.webroot.com/wb/products/spysweeper/index.php) This program is Shareware
Info: Detects and removes spyware of different kinds (dialers, loggers, trojans, user tracks) from your computer.
The best scanner out there, and updated all the time.

Try: HijackThis 1.97.7 (http://www.spywareinfo.com/~merijn/downloads.html) This program is Freeware
Info: HijackThis is a tool, that lists all installed browser add-on, buttons, startup items and allows you to inspect them, and optionally remove selected items.


If you would like to prevent "spyware" being install.
Try: SpywareBlaster 2.6.1 (http://www.wilderssecurity.net/spywareblaster.html) This program is Free
Info: SpywareBlaster doesn`t scan and clean for so-called spyware, but prevents it from being installed in the first place. It achieves this by disabling the CLSIDs of popular spyware ActiveX controls, and also prevents the installation of any of them via a webpage.

Try: SpywareGuard 2.2 (http://www.wilderssecurity.net/spywareguard.html) This program is Free
Info: SpywareGuard provides a real-time protection solution against so-called spyware. It works similar to an anti-virus program, by scanning EXE and CAB files on access and alerting you if known spyware is detected.

Try: XP-AntiSpy (http://www.xp-antispy.org/) This program is Free
Info: XP-AntiSpy is a small utility to quickly disable some built-in update and authentication features in WindowsXP that may rise security or privacy concerns in some people.

Try: SpySites (http://camtech2000.net/Pages/SpySites_Prog...ml#SpySitesFree) This program is Free
Info: SpySites allows you to manage the Internet Explorer Restricted Zone settings and easily add entries from a database of 1500+ sites that are known to use advertising tracking methods or attempt to install third party software.

If you would like more Information about "spyware".
Check these sites.
http://www.spychecker.com/
http://www.spywareguide.com/
http://www.cexx.org/adware.htm
http://www.theinfomaniac.net/infomaniac/co...rsSpyware.shtml
http://www.thiefware.com/links/
http://simplythebest.net/info/spyware.html

Usefull tools...
Try: Stop Windows Messenger Spam 1.10 (http://www.jester2k.pwp.blueyonder.co.uk/j...r2ksoftware.htm) This program is Free
Info: "Stop Windows Messenger Spam" stops this Service from running and halts the spammers ability to send you these messages.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------
All these softwares will help remove and prevent evil spammers and spywares attacking your PC. I myself recommend getting "spyblaster" "s&d spybot" "spy sweeper" & "admuncher" to protect your PC. A weekly scan is also recommended

Free Virus Scan
Scan for spyware, malware and keyloggers in addition to viruses, worms and trojans. New threats and annoyances are created faster than any individual can keep up with.
http://defender.veloz.com// - 15k


Finding . is a Click Away at 2020Search.com
Having trouble finding what you re looking for on: .? 2020Search will instantly provide you with the result you re looking for by drawing on some of the best search engines the Internet has to offer. Your result is a click away!
http://www.2020search.com// - 43k


Download the BrowserVillage Toolbar.
Customize your Browser! Eliminate Pop-up ads before they start, Quick and easy access to the Web, and much more. Click Here to Install Now!
http://www.browservillage.com/ - 36k
READ MORE - Spyware affecting Networking

CTT6800+ -JPEG 2000 Compressed Transport Transceiver

The CTT6800+ is ideal for applications requiring compressed transport of video, audio and data signals. Utilizing an advanced JPEG 2000 compression codec, the CTT6800+ can encode and decode baseband media to/from a 270 Mb/s DVB ASI transport stream. The CTT6800+ supports the following signal formats:

# SDI (270 Mb/S SMPTE 259M or 1.5 Gb/s SMPTE 292M)
# Four AES audio pairs
# LTC
# GPI
# Dolby Metadata
-->
FEATURES

* The CTT6800+ is configurable as either a JPEG2000 encoder or decoder. This allows switching of two CTT6800+s, operating as an encode/decode pair, to transport content in either direction
* Compression of baseband media utilizing advanced JPEG2000 codec, including 270 Mb/s or 1.5 Mb/s SDI, AES and embedded audio, LTC, GPI and serial Dolby metadata with encoding onto a 270 Mb/s DVB-ASI Transport stream
* Encoding and decoding of up to four lines of user-selectable ancilliary data
* Automatic or user-selectable video compression data rates of up to 200 Mb/s
* On-screen display for simplified setup and configuration
* Supports QSEE thumbnail and alarm monitoring
* Remote control and monitoring via CCS or SNMP
READ MORE - CTT6800+ -JPEG 2000 Compressed Transport Transceiver

Cisco VTP: VLAN Trunking Protocol

VLAN Trunking Protocol (VTP) is a Cisco Layer 2 messaging protocol that manages the
addition, deletion, and renaming of VLANs on a network-wide basis. Virtual Local Area
Network (VLAN) Trunk Protocol (VTP) reduces administration in a switched network.
When you configure a new VLAN on one VTP server, the VLAN is distributed through
all switches in the domain. This reduces the need to configure the same VLAN
everywhere. VTP is a Cisco-proprietary protocol that is available on most of the Cisco
Catalyst Family products.
VTP ensures that all switches in the VTP domain are aware of all VLANs. There are
occasions, however, when VTP can create unnecessary traffic. All unknown unicasts and
broadcasts in a VLAN are flooded over the entire VLAN. All switches in the network
receive all broadcasts, even in situations where few users are connected in that VLAN.
VTP pruning is a feature used to eliminate (or prune) this unnecessary traffic.
By default, all Cisco Catalyst switches are configured to be VTP servers. This is suitable
for small-scale networks where the size of the VLAN information is small and easily
stored in all switches (in NVRAM). In a large network, a judgment call must be made at
some point when the NVRAM storage needed is wasted, because it is duplicated on every
switch. At this point, the network administrator should choose a few well-equipped
switches and keep them as VTP servers. Everything else participating in VTP can be
turned into a client. The number of VTP servers should be chosen so as to provide the
degree of redundancy desired in the network.
Modes of Operation
Server
In VTP server mode, you can create, modify, and delete VLANs and specify other
configuration parameters (such as VTP version and VTP pruning) for the entire VTP
domain. VTP servers advertise their VLAN configuration to other switches in the same
VTP domain and synchronize their VLAN configuration with other switches based on
advertisements received over trunk links. VTP server is the default mode.
Transparent
VTP transparent switches do not participate in VTP. A VTP transparent switch does not
advertise its VLAN configuration and does not synchronize its VLAN configuration
based on received advertisements. However, in VTP version 2, transparent switches do
forward VTP advertisements that they receive out their trunk ports.
Client
VTP clients behave the same way as VTP servers, but you cannot create, change, or
delete VLANs on a VTP client.
Advertisements
Summary Advertisements
When the switch receives a summary advertisement packet, it compares the VTP domain
name to its own VTP domain name. If the name is different, the switch simply ignores
the packet. If the name is the same, the switch then compares the configuration revision
to its own revision. If its own configuration revision is higher or equal, the packet is
ignored. If it is lower, an advertisement request is sent.
Subset Advertisements
When you add, delete, or change a VLAN in a switch, the server switch where the
changes were made increments the configuration revision and issues a summary
advertisement, followed by one or several subset advertisements. A subset advertisement
contains a list of VLAN information. If there are several VLANS, more than one subset
advertisement may be required in order to advertise them all.
Advertisement Requests
A switch needs a VTP advertisement request in the following situations:
• The switch has been reset.
• The VTP domain name has been changed.
• The switch has received a VTP summary advertisement with a higher
configuration revision than its own.
Upon receipt of an advertisement request, a VTP device sends a summary advertisement,
followed by one or more subset advertisements.
Configuration
To configure an IOS based switch to be a VTP server, issue the following commands:
SwitchA# vlan database
SwitchA(vlan)# vtp domain vtpdom
SwitchA(vlan)# vtp server
SwitchA(vlan)# exit
These commands configure the switch to be a VTP server in the VTP domain vtpdom.
The changes are saved and the revision number is incremented when the exit command is
issued.
To configure a VTP client, run the following commands:
SwitchB# vlan database
SwitchB(vlan)# vtp domain vtpdom
SwitchB(vlan)# vtp client
SwitchB(vlan)# exit
To disable VTP, set the vtp mode to transparent as such:
SwitchC# vlan database
SwitchC(vlan)# vtp transparent
SwitchC(vlan)# exit
To monitor the VTP operation and status, use either:
SwitchA# show vtp status
SwitchA# show vtp counters

READ MORE - Cisco VTP: VLAN Trunking Protocol

Features of the Web(Core Networking)

A valuable feature of HTTP is the Uniform Resource Locator (URL). A URL is a way of addressing
just about any form of information on the Internet. From ordinary files in a file system, to FTP archives,
gopher sites (a text-based precursor to the Web), Usenet newsgroups, etc. URL addresses allow the Web
to function as a unifying interface to these diverse resources on the Internet.
The URL for a Web resource begins with http://, an FTP site with ftp://, a news group with news://, etc.
An unofficial convention for addressing Web servers is http://www.server_name.domain e.g.,
http://www.uwaterloo.ca, which is an alias for the actual host name running the server application.

Image Maps:

An attractive form of user interface is the image map. An image map is an image file which has areas
defined on it to serve as buttons (“hot links”). For example, a campus map could be an image map where
the buildings are buttons that link to their floor maps.

Forms:

Another useful interface tool is the fill-in form. A form allows the subscriber (client) to supply
information to the server to be acted upon. For example a form interface can be used to query a database.

Applets:

Most browsers have built-in virtual machines, programs that can interpret programs downloaded via
HTTP from a Web server. Programs written in Java or ActiveX can be interpreted and run through a
browser.

Common Gateway Interface (CGI) Scripts:

CGI scripts allow the Web server to control other programs on the computer. For example, a form works
by providing the users information to a CGI script written in C, Perl, or some other supported language.
The script is then executed, processing the information provided and interacting with other programs on
the server such as mail, a database, etc.

READ MORE - Features of the Web(Core Networking)

Advanced Shellcoding Techniques

Introduction

This paper assumes a working knowledge of basic shellcoding techniques, and x86 assembly, I will not rehash these in this paper. I hope to teach you some of the lesser known shellcoding techniques that I have picked up, which will allow you to write smaller and better shellcodes. I do not claim to have invented any of these techniques, except for the one that uses the div instruction.

The multiplicity of mul

This technique was originally developed by Sorbo of darkircop.net. The mul instruction may, on the surface, seem mundane, and it's purpose obvious. However, when faced with the difficult challenge of shrinking your shellcode, it proves to be quite useful. First some background information on the mul instruction itself.

mul performs an unsigned multiply of two integers. It takes only one operand, the other is implicitly specified by the %eax register. So, a common mul instruction might look something like this:

movl $0x0a,%eax
mul $0x0a

This would multiply the value stored in %eax by the operand of mul, which in this case would be 10*10. The result is then implicitly stored in EDX:EAX. The result is stored over a span of two registers because it has the potential to be considerably larger than the previous value, possibly exceeding the capacity of a single register(this is also how floating points are stored in some cases, as an interesting sidenote).

So, now comes the ever-important question. How can we use these attributes to our advantage when writing shellcode? Well, let's think for a second, the instruction takes only one operand, therefore, since it is a very common instruction, it will generate only two bytes in our final shellcode. It multiplies whatever is passed to it by the value stored in %eax, and stores the value in both %edx and %eax, completely overwriting the contents of both registers, regardless of whether it is necessary to do so, in order to store the result of the multiplication. Let's put on our mathematician hats for a second, and consider this, what is the only possible result of a multiplication by 0? The answer, as you may have guessed, is 0. I think it's about time for some example code, so here it is:

xorl %ecx,%ecx
mul %ecx

What is this shellcode doing? Well, it 0's out the %ecx register using the xor instruction, so we now know that %ecx is 0. Then it does a mul %ecx, which as we just learned, multiplies it's operand by the value in %eax, and then proceeds to store the result of this multiplication in EDX:EAX. So, regardless of %eax's previous contents, %eax must now be 0. However that's not all, %edx is 0'd now too, because, even though no overflow occurs, it still overwrites the %edx register with the sign bit(left-most bit) of %eax. Using this technique we can zero out three registers in only three bytes, whereas by any other method(that I know of) it would have taken at least six.


The div instruction

Div is very similar to mul, in that it takes only one operand and implicitly divides the operand by the value in %eax. Also like, mul it stores the result of the divide in %eax. Again, we will require the mathematical side of our brains to figure out how we can take advantage of this instruction. But first, let's think about what is normally stored in the %eax register. The %eax register holds the return value of functions and/or syscalls. Most syscalls that are used in shellcoding will return -1(on failure) or a positive value of some kind, only rarely will they return 0(though it does occur). So, if we know that after a syscall is performed, %eax will have a non-zero value, and that the instruction divl %eax will divide %eax by itself, and then store the result in %eax, we can say that executing the divl %eax instruction after a syscall will put the value 1 into %eax. So...how is this applicable to shellcoding? Well, their is another important thing that %eax is used for, and that is to pass the specific syscall that you would like to call to int $0x80. It just so happens that the syscall that corresponds to the value 1 is exit(). Now for an example:

xorl %ebx,%ebx
mul %ebx
push %edx
pushl $0x3268732f
pushl $0x6e69622f
mov %esp, %ebx
push %edx
push %ebx
mov %esp,%ecx
movb $0xb, %al #execve() syscall, doesn't return at all unless it fails, in which case it returns -1
int $0x80

divl %eax # -1 / -1 = 1
int $0x80

Now, we have a 3 byte exit function, where as before it was 5 bytes. However, there is a catch, what if a syscall does return 0? Well in the odd situation in which that could happen, you could do many different things, like inc %eax, dec %eax, not %eax anything that will make %eax non-zero. Some people say that exit's are not important in shellcode, because your code gets executed regardless of whether or not it exits cleanly. They are right too, if you really need to save 3 bytes to fit your shellcode in somewhere, the exit() isn't worth keeping. However, when your code does finish, it will try to execute whatever was after your last instruction, which will most likely produce a SIG ILL(illegal instruction) which is a rather odd error, and will be logged by the system. So, an exit() simply adds an extra layer of stealth to your exploit, so that even if it fails or you can't wipe all the logs, at least this part of your presence will be clear.


Unlocking the power of leal

The leal instruction is an often neglected instruction in shellcode, even though it is quite useful. Consider this short piece of shellcode.

xorl %ecx,%ecx
leal 0x10(%ecx),%eax

This will load the value 17 into eax, and clear all of the extraneous bits of eax. This occurs because the leal instruction loads a variable of the type long into it's desitination operand. In it's normal usage, this would load the address of a variable into a register, thus creating a pointer of sorts. However, since ecx is 0'd and 0+17=17, we load the value 17 into eax instead of any kind of actual address. In a normal shellcode we would do something like this, to accomplish the same thing:

xorl %eax,%eax
movb $0x10,%eax

I can hear you saying, but that shellcode is a byte shorter than the leal one, and you're quite right. However, in a real shellcode you may already have to 0 out a register like ecx(or any other register), so the xorl instruction in the leal shellcode isn't counted. Here's an example:

xorl %eax,%eax
xorl %ebx,%ebx
movb $0x17,%al
int $0x80
xorl %ebx,%ebx
leal 0x17(%ebx),%al
int $0x80

Both of these shellcodes call setuid(0), but one does it in 7 bytes while the other does it in 8. Again, I hear you saying but that's only one byte it doesn't make that much of a difference, and you're right, here it doesn't make much of a difference(except for in shellcode-size pissing contests =p), but when applied to much larger shellcodes, which have many function calls and need to do things like this frequently, it can save quite a bit of space.

Conclusion

I hope you all learned something, and will go out and apply your knowledge to create smaller and better shellcodes. If you know who invented the leal technique, please tell me and I will credit him/her.


READ MORE - Advanced Shellcoding Techniques

Trillium Multi-Core Software

Trillium Multi-Core is the first comprehensive and portable protocol stack software suite customized for a new generation of multi-core and multi-threaded processor architectures. 

Trillium Multi-Core's capabilities and benefits extend across the entire Trillium line of more than 60 standards-based protocol stacks, supporting LTE, 3G HSPA, IMS, and more. 

Trillium Multi-Core consists of standards-based COTS protocol software that implements a flexible and consistent multi-threading architecture.
For Further Details :
www.ccpu.com/learn-about/trillium/index.html?

READ MORE - Trillium Multi-Core Software

Speed UP Your PC in 3 Easy Steps

READ MORE - Speed UP Your PC in 3 Easy Steps

How to Network 2 Computers Without a Hub or Router

READ MORE - How to Network 2 Computers Without a Hub or Router

Sysinternals File and Disk Utilities

Sysinternals File and Disk Utilities are as follow:

  1. AccessChk

    This tool shows you the accesses the user or group you specify has to files, Registry keys or Windows services.

  2. AccessEnum

    This simple yet powerful security tool shows you who has what access to directories, files and Registry keys on your systems. Use it to find holes in your permissions.

  3. CacheSet

    CacheSet is a program that allows you to control the Cache Manager's working set size using functions provided by NT. It's compatible with all versions of NT.

  4. Contig

    Wish you could quickly defragment your frequently used files? Use Contig to optimize individual files, or to create new files that are contiguous.

  5. DiskExt

    Display volume disk-mappings.

  6. DiskMon

    This utility captures all hard disk activity or acts like a software disk activity light in your system tray.

  7. DiskView

    Graphical disk sector utility.

  8. Disk Usage (DU)

    View disk usage by directory.

  9. EFSDump

    View information for encrypted files.

  10. FileMon

    This monitoring tool lets you see all file system activity in real-time.

  11. Junction

    Create Win2K NTFS symbolic links.

  12. LDMDump

    Dump the contents of the Logical Disk Manager"s on-disk database, which describes the partitioning of Windows 2000 Dynamic disks.

  13. MoveFile

    Schedule file rename and delete commands for the next reboot. This can be useful for cleaning stubborn or in-use malware files.

  14. NTFSInfo

    Use NTFSInfo to see detailed information about NTFS volumes, including the size and location of the Master File Table (MFT) and MFT-zone, as well as the sizes of the NTFS meta-data files.

  15. PageDefrag

    Defragment your paging files and Registry hives!

  16. PendMoves

    See what files are scheduled for delete or rename the next time the system boots.

  17. Process Monitor

    Monitor file system, Registry, process, thread and DLL activity in real-time.

  18. PsFile

    See what files are opened remotely.

  19. PsTools

    The PsTools suite includes command-line utilities for listing the processes running on local or remote computers, running processes remotely, rebooting computers, dumping event logs, and more.

  20. SDelete

    Securely overwrite your sensitive files and cleanse your free space of previously deleted files using this DoD-compliant secure delete program.

  21. ShareEnum

    Scan file shares on your network and view their security settings to close security holes.

  22. Sigcheck

    Dump file version information and verify that images on your system are digitally signed.

  23. Streams

    Reveal NTFS alternate streams.

  24. Sync

    Flush cached data to disk.

  25. VolumeID

    Set Volume ID of FAT or NTFS drives.

READ MORE - Sysinternals File and Disk Utilities

Sysinternals Security Utilities

Sysinternals Security Utilities are as follow:

AccessChk
This tool shows you the accesses the user or group you specify has to files, Registry keys or Windows services.

AccessEnum
This simple yet powerful security tool shows you who has what access to directories, files and Registry keys on your systems. Use it to find holes in your permissions.

Autologon
Bypass password screen during logon.

Autoruns
See what programs are configured to startup automatically when your system boots and you login. Autoruns also shows you the full list of Registry and file locations where applications can configure auto-start settings.

LogonSessions
List active logon sessions

NewSID
Learn about the computer SID problem everybody has been talking about and get a free computer SID changer, NewSID.

Process Explorer
Find out what files, registry keys and other objects processes have open, which DLLs they have loaded, and more. This uniquely powerful utility will even show you who owns each process.

PsExec
Execute processes with limited-user rights.

PsLoggedOn
Show users logged on to a system.

PsLogList
Dump event log records.

PsTools
The PsTools suite includes command-line utilities for listing the processes running on local or remote computers, running processes remotely, rebooting computers, dumping event logs, and more.

RootkitRevealer
Scan your system for rootkit-based malware

SDelete
Securely overwrite your sensitive files and cleanse your free space of previously deleted files using this DoD-compliant secure delete program.

ShareEnum
Scan file shares on your network and view their security settings to close security holes.

ShellRunas
Launch programs as a different user via a convenient shell context-menu entry.

Sigcheck
Dump file version information and verify that images on your system are digitally signed.

READ MORE - Sysinternals Security Utilities

Sysinternals Networking Utilities

Sysinternals Networking Utilities are as follow:

AD Explorer
Active Directory Explorer is an advanced Active Directory (AD) viewer and editor.

AD Insight
AD Insight is an LDAP (Light-weight Directory Access Protocol) real-time monitoring tool aimed at troubleshooting Active Directory client applications.

AdRestore
Undelete Server 2003 Active Directory objects.

PsFile
See what files are opened remotely.

PsTools
The PsTools suite includes command-line utilities for listing the processes running on local or remote computers, running processes remotely, rebooting computers, dumping event logs, and more.

ShareEnum
Scan file shares on your network and view their security settings to close security holes.

TCPView
Active socket command-line viewer.

Whois
See who owns an Internet address.
READ MORE - Sysinternals Networking Utilities

How to troubleshoot wireless network connections in Windows XP Service Pack 2

Troubleshooting for wireless networking with Windows XP requires gathering information, checking the drivers, verifying compatible hardware, and configuring wireless settings. Before you begin troubleshooting, make sure that you have answered the following questions:
  • What is the symptom? If it is an error message, note the full error message.
  • What wireless card is used? Note the manufacturer and the model number.
  • What is the driver version for the card? Look in Device Manager or click Configure in the Properties dialog box of the wireless connection.
  • What access point is in use? Note the manufacturer and the model number.
  • Are the wireless settings configured by using Windows or by using a third-party program? If a third-party program is used, what is the program and its version number?
  • Is the Wireless Zero Configuration service running? To determine if the Wireless Zero Configuration service is running, follow these steps:
    1. Click Start, and then click Run.
    2. Open box, type cmd, and then click OK.
    3. Type sc query wzcsvc, and then press ENTER
    4. If the Windows Zero Configuration service is running, the words "STATE : # RUNNING" will appear.
    5. If the problem is in the user interface, collect a screen shot of the issue, if you can. To collect a screen shot, press ALT+PRINT SCRN.
READ MORE - How to troubleshoot wireless network connections in Windows XP Service Pack 2

How to Use a Wireless Network Connection with a Windows XP Portable Computer at Home and Work

As there are several versions of Microsoft Windows, the following steps may be different on your computer. If they are, see your product documentation to complete these steps.
  1. Click Start, point to Connect To, click Show all connections, and then double-click your wireless network adapter.
  2. On the General tab, click Properties.
  3. Click the Wireless Networks tab, click your home network under Preferred Networks, and then click Properties.
  4. Click Data encryption (WEP enabled).
  5. Click the Association tab, and then make sure that the following are not selected:
    • Network Authentication (Shared mode)
    • The key is provided for me automatically
  6. Click the Authentication tab, and then make sure that the following is not selected:
    • Enable IEEE 802.1x authentication for this network
    Note Windows XP SP1 changed the process for authentication with 802.1x-enabled networks. If the 802.1x authentication does not complete properly, the connection is dropped. Because the MN-500 does not support 802.1x authentication, do not select this type of authentication.
  7. Type either a 64-bit or 128-bit network key by using 10 or 26 hexadecimal digits (0-9,A-F), respectively.

    Note Do not use a friendly alphanumeric name.
  8. Write down the wired equivalent privacy (WEP) key that you typed, and then type that same value in the Base Station Wireless Security HTML screen.
For specific information about the settings for the wireless network at your workplace, contact your system administrator.
READ MORE - How to Use a Wireless Network Connection with a Windows XP Portable Computer at Home and Work

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