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There must have been some instance in your life when during a power cut, after a long and desperate search, having found the flashlight you realize that the bulb is long dead. Well, technology will help you get rid of any such problems in the future. LED technology uses a "bulb" that will not stop working for at least a thousand odd hours.

LEDs or Light Emitting Diodes provide you with a better and more dependable alternative to traditional light bulbs. For years, LEDs have been used in cheap key chains and electronic gadgets but now they are here to revolutionize the way we understand flashlights. The only shortcoming till recently was the fact that LEDs were available in all colors except for white. Colored light is not too great for the eye if one wants to read. Some scientists though, have developed light which produce white light using LED.

A number of the LED flashlights manufactured are water resistant. Yet, one must realize that when the manufacturers say "water resistant" they don't mean they are entirely submergible. They might continue working under a sink full of water or water which is four feet deep, but it is sure to give up if it is kept in a pool for too long.

While buying LED flashlights, you will also find companies selling LED flashlights that are shockproof. A number of tests have shown that most high quality shock resistant LED flashlights actually continue working even after being dropped from a height of six feet. Whether it be military flashlights or the usual flashlights that people keep at home or take with them to outdoor expeditions, LED flashlights is a hot favorite with all.

Flashlights provides detailed information on Flashlight Bulbs, Flashlight Reviews, Flashlights, Key Chain Flashlights and more. Flashlights is affiliated with Cell Phone Batteries.

Hard Drives: ATA versus SATA

The performance of computer systems has been steadily increasing as faster processors, memory, and video cards are continuously being developed. The one key component that is often neglected when looking at improving the performance of a computer system is the hard drive. Hard drive manufacturers have been constantly evolving the basic hard drive used in modern computer systems for the last 25 years, and the last few years have seen some exciting developments from faster spindle speeds, larger caches, better reliability, and increased data transmission speeds.

The drive type used most in consumer grade computers is the hearty ATA type drive (commonly called an IDE drive). The ATA standard dates back to 1986 and is based on a 16-bit parallel interface has undergone many evolutions since its introduction to increase the speed and size of the drives that it can support. The latest standard is ATA-7 (first introduced in 2001 by the T13 Technical Committee (the group responsible for the ATA standard)) which supports data transfer rates up to 133MB/sec. This is expected to be the last update for the parallel ATA standard.

As long ago as 2000 it was seen that the parallel ATA standard was maxing out its limitations as to what it could handle. With data rates hitting the 133MB/sec mark on a parallel cable, you are inviting all sorts of problems because of signal timing, EMI (electromagnetic interference) and other data integrity issues; thus industry leaders got together and came up with a new standard known as serial ATA (SATA). SATA has only been around a few years, but is destined to become the standard due to several benefits to be addressed in this Tech Tip.

The two technologies that we will be looking at are: ATA (Advanced technology Attachment) a 16-bit parallel interface used for controlling computer drives. Introduced in 1986, it has undergone many evolutions in the last 18+ years, with the latest version being called ATA-7. Wherever an item is referred to as being an ATA device, it is commonly a Parallel ATA device. ATA devices are also commonly called IDE, EIDE, Ultra-ATA, Ultra-DMA, ATAPI, PATA, etc. (each of these acronyms actually do refer to very specific items, but are commonly interchanged) SATA (Serial Advanced technology Attachment) a 1-bit serial evolution of the Parallel ATA physical storage interface.

Basic Features & Connections

SATA drives are easy to distinguish from their ATA cousins by the different data and power connections found on the back of the drives. A side-by-side comparison of the two interfaces can be seen in this PDF from Maxtor, and the following covers many of the differences

Standard ATA drives, such as this 200GB western Digital model, have somewhat bulky, two inch wide ribbon cable with 40-pin data connections and receive the 5V necessary to power them from the familiar 4-pin connection. The basic data cables for these drives have looked the same for years. A change was made with the introduction of the ATA-5 standard to better improve the signal quality by making an 80 wire cable used on the 40-pin connector (these are commonly called 40-pin/80-wire cables). To improve airflow within the computer system some manufacturers resorted to literally folding over the ribbon cable and taping it into that position. Another recent physical change also came with the advent of rounded cables. The performance of the rounded cables is equal to that of the flat ribbon, but many prefer the improved system air flow afforded, ease of wire management, and cooler appearance that come with them.

SATA drives, such as this 120GB western Digital model, have a half inch wide, 7 blade and beam data connection, which results in a much thinner and easier to manage data cable. These cables take the convenience of the ATA rounded cables to the next level by being even narrower, more flexible and capable of being longer without fear of data loss. SATA cables have a maximum length of 1 meter (39.37 inches), which is much greater than the recommended 18 inch cable for ATA drives. The reduced footprint of SATA data connections frees up space on motherboards, potentially allowing for more convenient layouts and room for more onboard features!

A 15-pin power connection delivers the 250mV of necessary power to SATA drives. 15-pins for a SATA device sounds like it would require a much larger power cable than a 4-pin ATA device, but in reality the two power connectors are just about the same height. For the time being, many SATA drives are also coming with a legacy 4-pin power connector for convenience.

Many modern motherboards, such as this Chaintech motherboard, come with SATA drive connections onboard (many also including the ATA connectors as well for legacy drive compatibility), and new power supplies, such as this Ultra X-Connect, generally feature a few of the necessary 15-pin power connections, making it easy to use these drives on new systems. Older systems can easily be upgraded to support SATA drives by use of adapters, such as this pci slot SATA controller and this 4-pin to 15-pin SATA power adapter.

optical drives are also becoming more readily available with SATA connections. Drives such as the Plextor PX-712SA take advantage of the new interface, although the performance will not be any greater than a comparable optical drive with an ATA connection.

Performance

In addition to being more convenient to install and drawing less power, SATA drives have performance benefits that really set them apart from ATA drives.

The most interesting performance feature of SATA is the maximum bandwidth possible. As we have noted, the evolution of ATA drives has seen the data transfer rate reach its maximum at 133 MB/second, where the current SATA standard provides data transfers of up to 150 MB/second. The overall performance increase of SATA over ATA can currently be expected to be up to 5% (according to Seagate), but improvements in SATA technology will surely improve on that.

The future of SATA holds great things for those wanting even more speed, as drives with 300 MB/second transfer rates (SATA II) will be readily available in 2005, and by 2008 speeds of up to 600 MB/second can be expected. Those speeds are incredible, and are hard to imagine at this point.

Another performance benefit found on SATA drives is their built-in hot-swap capabilities. SATA drives can be brought on and offline without shutting down the computer system, providing a serious benefit to those who cant afford downtime, or who want to move drives in and out of operation quickly. The higher number of wires in the power connection is partially explained by this, as six of the fifteen wires are dedicated to allowing the hot-swap feature.

Price

Comparing ATA drives to SATA drives can be tricky given all of the variables, but in general it is the case that SATA drives will still cost just a bit more than a comparable ATA drive. The gap is closing rapidly though, and as SATA drives gain in popularity and availability a distinct shift in prices can be expected. Considering the benefits of SATA over ATA, the potential difference of a few dollars can easily be justified when considering an upgrade. Computer Geeks currently has a limited selection of SATA drives, but several technical sites, such as The Tech Zone and The Tech Lounge, offer real time price guides to see how comparable drives stack up.

Final Words

The current SATA standard provides significant benefits over ATA in terms of convenience, power consumption and, most importantly, performance. The main thing ATA has going for it right now is history, as it has been the standard for so long that it will not likely disappear any time soon. The future of SATA will be even more interesting as speed increases will help hard drive development keep pace with other key system components.

Jason Kohrs Computer Geeks tech tips and computer advice

One of the major concerns in the world today is depletion of energy. As concerned citizens all of us must make a concerted effort to be conscious citizens and save electricity. Electricity has become integral to life but imagine having to live without power.

Conservation of electricity benefits you personally as you will pay lower bills. Consider:

1.Doing an energy audit. This will tell you how and when you use energy and where the wastage lies. You will be able to make an energy savings plan by pinpointing exactly how you can cut back on energy consumption. Some ideas may be as simple as dont leave the coffee machine on at all times.

2.Think about resetting the thermostat ten degrees lower during the night. If you can do this for say approximately eight hours a day you will save 10% on electricity without sacrificing comfort. Insulate the home in winter by drawing shut the drapes.

3.Check all insulation in the house. If you increase attic insulation to around 12 inches the electricity consumption will reduce by 20 percent.

4.Plant more trees around the house these will cool the house in summer and insulate the house in winter. Studies show that a green cover benefits in many ways.

5.Have all electricity wires and outlets checked for leakage. Check all fuses and appliances.

6.Fluorescent light bulbs are energy efficient. They use 75% less energy than ordinary light bulbs. These have a longer life and contribute to great savings.

7.Use energy efficient appliances. These use less energy and believe it or not a high efficiency refrigerator uses less electricity than a light bulb.

8.When you are away even for a few hours or days you should turn off and unplug all electrical appliances and turn settings on the thermostat, water heater, and refrigerator to the lowest setting.

9.Ensure that you use a water-saving shower head. Water heating costs for a family can be lowered by at least US$ 250 a year.

10.Weatherize your home. This helps reduce heating bills by 20% and cooling by at least 10 percent. Even when building a home or decorating it use weather friendly materialsthose that are not good conductors of heat and cold. Install windows and glass panes in the roof in such away that you use sunlight to light up the rooms during day light hours. Make an effort to switch off lights and fans when leaving a room. Ensure that the filters in air conditioners and heaters are always cleaned and free of clog and dust.

If you live an energy efficient lifestyle you will see the numbers on the energy bill actually reducing. The power to cut energy costs is well within your control. It is as simple as only washing full loads and that to in cold water. Use the hot wash option only for very dirty clothes. Cook food only just before you are ready to eat that way you can save reheating costs as well as refrigerating costs of storing the food. Turn the thermostat of the refrigerator to minimum in cold or cool weather. Switch off freezers if they are not in use. Small contributions can all add up to significant amounts of power saved. And, power saved means money in the bank.

Paul Wilson is a freelance writer for http://www.1888Discuss.com/home-improvement/, the premier REVENUE SHARING discussion forum for Home Improvement including topics on exterior home improvement, gardening, decorating, buying and selling, electrical home improvement and more. He also freelances for the premier Mortgage site http://www.1888Mortgages.com

Sitemap generator programs can be downloaded from various sources on the internet. Sitemap generator programs have two fundamental purposes. Sitemap generator programs help surfers navigate a site effectively. At the same time, a sitemap generator program encourages search engine spiders. Google offers one of the most popular sitemap generator programs ever to hit the internet.

The sitemap generator of google makes it possible for a website to get listed and get updated by the google search engine. Setting up the sitemap generator helps speed up the addition of the web pages of a site to the google listing. The sitemap generator also makes it easier for a site to get noticed by online surfers. In addition, any changes made to a website that has a sitemap generator is immediately picked up by google. The sitemap generator also helps keep online information fresh and up-to-date for users.

Visibility is key to sitemap generator

Visibility is a major concern when using a sitemap generator. A website that is completely indexed has better chances of getting top search engine placement in page results. Many of the popular browsers used by searchers and that support java recognize sitemap generator programs. These include firefox and internet explorer.

An online consumer that searches for a specific content on the web can immediately be directed to any one of the web pages of a particular site. The sitemap generator makes it easier for a search engine to provide accurate results from web pages they are familiar with.

Who can benefit from a sitemap generator?

A sitemap generator is highly recommended for websites that often do repeated modification of their web pages. A sitemap generator can be used for websites of any size, regardless of the number of web pages a site may contain.

Although using a sitemap generator is not a guarantee of increased site rankings, it does however provide a website a better opportunity of getting listed on a search engine.

Working with a sitemap generator

Most of the available sitemap generator programs available on the web make use of extensible markup language or XML. Similar to hypertext markup language or HTML, XML is used widely in blogs and syndicated feeds on the internet. Each line of a XML code for a sitemap generator has a specific purpose.

The location or identifies the name of the web page of a website. The line indicates when the web page was last modified. The format for can either be dd.mm.yyyy, dd.mm.yyyy hh:mm, dd/mm/yyyy or dd/mm/yyyy hh:mm. Shortcuts can also be used to simply the assignment of dates to the cell.

advises the search engine of a specific time frame when the web page is regularly updated. This can either be done on an hourly, daily, weekly, monthly or yearly basis. For web pages that are not updated, the value 'never' is used. indicates the level of priority that a search engine should give a particular web page of a website. These levels range from 0.0 for least priority to 1.0 for high priority.

Creating a dynamic sitemap generator

Creating a dynamic sitemap generator is useful for websites containing various web pages. The google search engine makes it easy for users to adapt their google sitemap with the help of a python script.

The python script generates a sitemap using sitemap protocol. This creates a sitemap from either access logs, URL lists or from web server directories.

Tips for using a sitemap generator from google

As one of more popular search engines offering a sitemap generator for websites on the internet, google offers a few tips for its loyal users. Using the google sitemap url encoder/decoder is helpful for submitting sitemaps to google. For websites that have numerous web pages, creating a sitemap can be a tremendous task. For this situation it is best to click on the column title in order to make it easier for a URL list to get sorted.

The google sitemap generator allows users to save their settings after creating a sitemap. Users can use these saved settings as a guideline for succeeding sitemap generator updates. The sitemap generator also recognizes the use of robots.txt files.

Using a sitemap generator is a positive move in getting top ranking on the Internet's top search engines as well as high visibility among online users.

Mr. Christian Kameir is the CEO of http://www.colizer.com His web site can be found at http://www.kameir.com.

Computer networking or data communication is a most important part of the information technology. Today every business in the world needs a computer network for smooth operations, flexibly, instant communication and data access. Just imagine if there is no network communication in the university campuses, hospitals, multinational organizations and educational institutes then how difficult are to communicate with each other. In this article you will learn the basic overview of a computer network. The targeted audience of this article is the people who want to know about the network communication system, network standards and types.

A computer network is comprised of connectivity devices and components. To share data and resources between two or more computers is known as networking. There are different types of a computer network such as LAN, MAN, WAN and wireless network. The key devices involved that make the infrastructure of a computer network are Hub, switch, router, modem, Access point, LAN card and network cables.

LAN stands for local area network and a network in a room, in a building or a network over small distance is known as a LAN. MAN stands for Metropolitan area network and it covers the networking between two offices within the city. WAN stands for wide area network and it cover the networking between two or more computers between two cities, two countries or two continents.

There are different topologies of a computer network. A topology defines the physical layout or a design of a network. These topologies are star topology, bus topology, mesh topology, star bus topology etc. In a star topology each computer in a network is directly connected with a centralized device known as hub or switch. If any computer gets problematic in star topology then it does not affect the other computers in a network.

There are different standards and devices in computer network. The most commonly used standard for a local area network is ethernet. Key devices in a computer network are hub, switch, router, modem and access point etc. A router is used to connect two logically and physical different networks. All the communication on the internet is based on the router. Hub/Switch is used to connect the computers in local area network.

Hopefully, in this article you may have learnt that what a computer network is, how important it is in our lives, what are different network devices, standards, topologies and communication types.

B. Bashir manages this website Networking Tutorials and regularly writes articles on various topics such as Computer Networking, Network Troubleshooting Tips wireless Networking, Computer Hardware, Certifications, How Tos, Network Security Guide and computer tips.

Philosophers have a question that they ask and it goes like this.

"If a tree falls in the forest and there is no one there to hear it, does it make a noise?"

It's the same thing with your home security system. If the alarm goes off, and there's nobody listening for it, are you really protected?

Clearly, home security system monitoring is crucial. Here are some benefits of having your system monitored 24/7:

• studies show that your home is three to four times less likely to be broken into, if your system is being monitored.
• You can save up to 20% on your homeowners insurance if your home security system is monitored.
• Home security system monitoring never sleeps -- it goes around the clock. It never takes a day off. And you are always protected whether your home or not.

Now, be aware that if you have home security system monitoring, you want to make sure that it is always working. So you need to test the system periodically. test your system at least once a month, if not more. Some experts recommend checking out once a week. What's involved in testing your system? Simply turn it on.

And don't forget: Make sure your monitoring system is on at night -- even (especially!) when you are inside -- and also when you leave your house during the day.

Another good idea is to spread the word that your home security system is being monitored. Tell your neighbors; tell your friends; tell people who know about your habits, such as when you are away. Tell as many people as you can. Word gets around. By doing this, you will reduce the chances of burglary by someone who knows someone who knows you.

conclusion

Relax and enjoy your vacation. When you hire someone to monitor your home security system, your home and your possessions -- and maybe even your family -- are protected.

P.S. You can also have your home security system monitored for fires and medical emergencies as well.

For more info on home security system monitoring, visit Ara Rubyan's Home Security Systems.

Ara Rubyan is not a part of the home security system industry, nor does he sell home security systems, nor does he pretend to be a guru of any kind. Instead, he is like you: a consumer, a business owner, and someone who has been researching the industry so that he could make an informed decision about the best home security system for his needs. Now, he's put all his research (so far) in one convenient location and he's sharing it with you, no strings attached.