Computer Networking - How It Works

Computer networking is a process of sharing data and shared resources between two or more connected computers. The shared resources can include printer, Fax modem, Hard disk, CD - DVD Rom, Database and the data files. A computer network can be divided into a small or local area network, a networking between computers in a building of a office (LAN), medium sized network (MAN), a network between two offices in a city and Wide network (WAN) a network between the computers, one is locally and the other can be thousands of miles away in any other country of the world.

WAN connectivity is achieved by a network device known as “Router”. The internet is the world’s largest WAN network, where millions of computers from all over the globe and connected with each other.

Networking is the practice of linking two or more computers or devices with each other. The connectivity can be wired or wireless. A computer network can be categorized in different ways, depends on the geographical area as mentioned above.

There are two main types of the computer network client-server and peer to peer. In the client server computing, a computer plays a major role known as server, where the files, data in the form of web pages, docs or spread sheet files, video, database & resources are placed.

All the other computers in the client/server network are called clients and they get the data from the server. In the peer to peer network all the computers play the same role and no computer act as a centralized server. In the major businesses around the world client-server network model is in major use.

A network topology defines the structure, design or layout of a network. There are different topologies like bus, ring, star, mesh, hybrid etc. The star topology is most commonly used network topology. In the star topology, all the computers in the network are connected with a centralized device such as hub or switch. Thus forms a star like structure. If the hubs/switch fails to work for any reason then all the connectivity and communication between the computers of a network will be halted.

In the network, a common communication language is used by the computers and the network devices and this language is known as protocols. The most commonly used and popular protocols on the internet and in the home and other networks is called TCP/IP. TCP/IP is not a singleprotocol but it is a suite of several protocols.

A network can be a wired or wireless and TCP/IP protocol can work both in types of network.

A data flow in a computer network can be divided into seven logical layers called OSI layersmodel that was developed by Intel and Xerox Corporation and was standardized by ISO.

1. Application layer
2. Presentation layer
3. Session layer
4. Transport layer
5. Network layer
6. Data Link layer

a. Media access control sub-layer

b. Logical link control sub-layer
7. Physical layer.

A network can be divided into different scales and ranges and it depends on the requirement of the network and the geographical location. Computer Network can be divided into Local Area Network, Personal Area Network, Campus Area Network, Wireless Local Area Network,Metropolitan Area Network and Wide Area Network.

There are several network connection methods like HomePNA, Power line communication, Ethernet and Wifi connection method.A network can also be categorized into several different types based on the services it provides like Server farms, Storage area networks, Value control networks, Value-Added networks,SOHO network, Wireless network and Jungle networks.

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.

 

Networking For LAN

Wiring up a LAN (local area network) can be very easy, or it can be very difficult – it all depends on the size of your network, and how you’re trying to go about it.

For a very small home network, you can get by without using any special equipment except the wires. If you want to use a network to share Internet access or a printer, just plug an Ethernet cable into the computers you want to network, and then use the simple networking features that are built into Windows, such as Internet Connection Sharing. This approach has many downsides, though – you’ll need an extra Ethernet card in each computer for every extra computer you connect to the network, for one.

Instead of connecting each computer to the next, it is better to simply connect all the computers to a central router. This is a very efficient way of connecting computers together, as the data you send will be quickly and easily routed to its destination: the data goes to the router, which knows which wire to send it down for it to reach the destination address, and simply sends it that way. This also allows you to turn on and off computers as you please with no ill effects, as the router is always-on.

If you want to connect more devices to the network than the four or five ports on a router will allow, then you need to get a network switch. This allows you to create a separate sector of your network especially for one group of devices. For example, you might have your computer and your printer both plugged into a switch. The computer and the printer can then communicate between themselves without the data needing to travel out onto the wider network – but if they want to send to or receive from the wider network, they can do that too.

John Gibb is the owner of ethernet resources For more information on ethernet check out http://www.ethernet-intelligence.info

CSI* - Computer Forensics Files: Real Cases from Burgess Forensics #12

Computers,Law

The Case of the Computer That Got Lost

The stories are true; the names and places have been changed to protect the potentially guilty.

A few years ago, Debby Johnson, an attorney from a large firm based in Kansas City, contacted me about a relatively simple matter. I was to travel to offices in Sacramento from my San Francisco-area labs, copy a computer's disk drive, and locate emails sent by the plaintiff to his brothers and sisters, of which he had nine. The case was a product liability lawsuit for an amount in the tens of millions of dollars. The plaintiff claimed that his health had been damaged by an international firm's defective product, although he was symptom-free at the moment. What was the product? Let's say it was coffee.

From the cool Bay Area in summer, I traveled to downtown Sacramento, where it was a balmy 106 degrees. I knew I was sweating, but inside I was cool. I wondered if someone else would be in hot water soon.

It is not unusual for me to never meet my client, for computers can be shipped to me at my lab, but Debby was there in the law offices of the plaintiff's attorney. In an oak-paneled conference room we met with counsel for "the other side" and with the plaintiff himself. He sat smugly with his shiny computer on the conference table, friendly enough in spite of his contention that I would never find the offending emails he had allegedly sent years before. My client believed that this fellow had sent emails to his siblings that would disprove his contention - that would show him to be making up a case to snag a cool few ten millions.

I removed the hard disk from our man's system to make a forensic copy to work with and analyze. I was surprised to find that the hard disk was 100GB in size. A drive of that capacity was fairly new and unusual to see in a case this soon after it had come on the market. I was prepared for a much smaller disk drive, as I had been told I'd be seeing one about 20% the size. Fortunately, there was an electronics superstore nearby, so I doffed my suit jacket, cranked up the air conditioning on my minivan / lab wagon (that beauty just turned over 200,000 miles on the day I'm writing this), and headed on over for a bit of new gear. Forty-five minutes and a bit of melted rubber later I arrived back at the scene to forensically clean the new disk drive by writing zeroes to every sector..

Once cleared to my satisfaction, I set up the copy process. In those days, while I was partial to Diskology's Disk Jockey, the version I had then didn't seem to be able to handle what was such a large drive for the time. I probably used Byte Back on a forensic Intel box I had brought just in case. I began the copy process and it went without a hitch. But while the copy was proceeding, I began to wonder - wasn't this a pretty big drive to have been around at the time of the alleged emails? And for that matter, wasn't this computer pretty fast for its age. And did Windows XP really come on the market before these emails were to have been written? I was beginning to suspect that the game was rigged, and that I never would find the plaintiff's deleted emails on that computer.

I discussed the matter with Debby. I guessed that the plaintiff was right about the task being futile - because I guessed that the offending emails were never on this computer. I said I'd be willing to look for them, but I didn't want to waste my client's cash. Debby asked me to look into the matter of the components' age when I got back to HQ. A few inquiries with the manufacturer and a couple of Google searches later, I was pretty well convinced that the fellow had never written those emails on this computer. Windows XP was almost too new, the disk drive was a couple of weeks too modern, and the computer was a month or two younger than those emails.

Debby called opposing counsel - who had no idea why this might not be the original system…until he checked with his man. Turns out he had "set it on the curb for trash pickup" because it "wasn't working." The attorneys weren't happy. The court wasn't happy. The only solution was for me to go to the nine brothers and sisters in four states to copy their personal computers and sift through those for the offending emails.

Do you think they were happy to hear from me? Would you be if your brother put you on the spot like that? Each of them had to agree that a perfect stranger - one who was working against their beloved brother - could come into their homes and look through everything on their personal computers. The most telling example of their displeasure was from one brother, a former Viet Name-era Green Beret, who - in response to my phone call asking when would be a good time to show up - said "I didn't spend two years marching up and down the God**m Ho Chi Minh Trail for this s**t!" I understood.

It turns out that opposing counsel had never gotten around to telling this group that a computer forensics guy would be calling them and they needed to cooperate. I found that out when I told Debby of the righteous resistance I had come up against. She straightened it out with counsel and the next set of phone calls I made to the sibs was a lot more congenial.

The next several days, traveling from state to state, town to town, brother to sister to brother and on and on to copy the private data of nine innocent family members had its challenges. But that's a story unto itself…I'll spare you most of the details. Upon my return, the protocol called for me to search all of the data for any correspondence from - let's call him "The Brother" that referenced his struggles with … we're calling it Coffee. I was then to print out the references I found, and send a copy both to the judge and to opposing counsel for privilege and relevance review. Debby and her firm were not to get a look at the data until anything either private or irrelevant had been picked out, and only the remainder produced.

What did I find? Around the time of the alleged emails, lo and behold, I found actual emails. The whole family was talking about The Brother's struggle with Coffee, their individual investigations into Coffee, and the upcoming lawsuit about Coffee. At one point, one email pointed out that this guy Burgess was going to be looking into everyone's email, and wouldn't it make sense not to talk about Coffee? They agreed. They now spoke only of … "the C-Word."

What else did I find when I performed my electronic discovery and digital forensic analysis? Well, for the most part, I just can't talk about it. There are some things on your computer you wouldn't want me talking about, I'm sure. There are things on my computer I wouldn't want me talking about either! E-discovery often has to be a pretty private process.

But there was one particularly interesting finding. When I called the Green Beret Brother (GBB) from his sister's place across town, and asked for permission to head on over to make the copy of his computer, he obligingly told me it was okay. When I got there, he first asked me to read and sign a statement that I wouldn't hold him liable for any damage to me or my equipment - unintentional or otherwise. Well that was a little scary coming from a guy trained in the arts of stealth, war, and undoubtedly the garrote. But as the paper didn't seem like a legal document, I signed it, if that was what would get me in to do my work. He was pleasant enough, the music he had on was good, and the copy went without a hitch. And I left alive and undamaged - a plus, indeed!

Once in my lab, I discovered the last thing that had happened on his computer. About one minute after my phone call for permission to go over, GBB had sent himself an email and then immediately deleted it. The subject, all in caps, was "COFFEE!" No "C-Word" fooling around for him. The message in the body was simple and succinct: "If you find this email, F*** YOU!!!!!" It's nice when a person knows how he feels and is able to express it freely. There was also a deleted photograph attached to the deleted email. Upon recovering same, it turned out to be a very recent photo of an extended middle finger - presumably GBB's finger. Visual aids are always helpful in understanding the subject matter, don't you think?

In the end, I produced about 75 pages of documentation I thought relevant. Of course, I had to include GBB's missive. As expected opposing counsel called everything irrelevant or privileged. Also as expected, the judge allowed all of the documents I had produced - with a number of lines redacted - to be delivered to my client. Everyone's favorite was the literate bit produced by GBB.

As for The Brother - the court decided that not only was he not very honest, due to the destruction of the most important data in the case - his original computer - but the evidence and the relevant emails showed him to be apparently undamaged by the Coffee. The case went to defeat, Debby and her firm were happy, and GBB became a legend.

This is just one of the many "CSI* - Computer Forensics Files: Real Cases from Burgess Forensics". Stay tuned for more stories of deceit uncovered by computer forensics.

*The Free Dictionary lists more than 160 definitions for CSI at acronyms.thefreedictionary.com. We choose Computer Scene Investigation.

Steve Burgess is a freelance technology writer, a practicing computer forensics specialist as the principal of Burgess Forensics, a highly regarded expert witness, and a contributor to the just-released Scientific Evidence in Civil and Criminal Cases, 5th Edition by Moenssens, et al. Mr. Burgess may be reached at http://www.burgessforensics.com - email: steve@burgessforensics.com



Related Articles - computer forensics, electronic discovery, deleted email, data recovery, law, digital discovery,

Police on terror alert over theft of top secret records on computer database[UK]

Daily Mail ^ | 11 Aug 2007 | CHRISTOPHER LEAKE

Posted on 08/13/2007 8:53:12 AM PDT by BGHater

A major security alert has been sparked after the theft of a computer database containing thousands of top secret telephone records from police investigations into terrorism and organised crime.

Worried police chiefs throughout the UK launched a massive inquiry into the removal of the sophisticated computer and other IT equipment from a private firm specialising in gathering evidence from mobile phone calls made by suspects.

SO15, Scotland Yard's elite Counter Terrorism Command, was immediately alerted.

The raid at the high-security head office of Forensic Telecommunication Services Ltd (FTS) at Sevenoaks, Kent, raised fears that vital evidence from undercover investigations may have been lost or have fallen into the wrong hands.

The theft of such sensitive data will reopen the debate about whether private companies should be employed to carry out crucial security or Government work under contract.

The stolen computer server - a metal box the size of a large DVD player - contained details of who made calls on mobiles, their exact location and precisely when the calls were made.

Evidence from phone taps is one of the most important tools in the war on terrorism and in major police investigations into organised crime, murder, kidnap, armed robbery, tax evasion and illegal immigration.

The computer server itself is of little or no monetary value. The value of the raiders' haul is the huge amount of data stored inside the equipment.

Possible markets for the stolen computer could be terrorist groups or organised gangs willing to pay large sums to discover whether people have enough evidence to arrest or convict them and if their calls have been monitored.

The break-in last Monday night is said to have caused 'deep anxiety' among police forces in England and Wales, many of whom use the worldwide expertise of FTS in mobile phone analysis.

Clients include Scotland Yard, the Police Service of Northern Ireland, HM Revenue and Customs and the Crown Prosecution Service.

The firm, which employs 90 people, was founded in 2000 by managing director Jonathan Clark, an independent UK Government adviser on the use of data for law enforcement.

So secretive is FTS that it does not publish the location of its offices in Kent, four other UK locations, Canada, the US, Europe, South Korea and the Middle East.

Its experts include ex-police officers, telecommunications specialists and former military personnel who extract evidence from mobile phone calls, text messages and data from hand-held devices such as the Blackberry to confirm suspects' movements and place them at the scene of an alleged crime.

FTS said in a statement to The Mail on Sunday last night: "We can confirm that the company was recently the victim of a break-in at one of our premises in Kent.

"As a result, some IT equipment, including a server, were stolen.

"The server, which is security protected, contained administrative data and details of some case files in relation to FTS's forensic work.

"In the unlikely event that the server was accessed, none of the data stored on the server in any way compromises ongoing police operations.

"The information is made up of either old cases that have passed through the judicial process, or cases that are already in the judicial system and so subject to full disclosure to both defence and prosecution teams.

"All the data was restored within 24 hours due to FTS's business continuity measures. As a result of this incident FTS is undertaking a full and comprehensive review of security across the whole company.

"FTS are working closely with the police and assisting with their investigations.

"As with many other similar forensic service providers who are contracted by the police, FTS will not discuss the nature of our workload."

Shadow Home Secretary David Davis said last night: "This is extremely serious. Terror investigations are extremely complex and depend on vital intelligence and evidence based on phone records.

"While we have to let the police get on with their investigation, it is essential that the Government take every possible step to protect this information and leave absolutely nothing to chance."

Kent Assistant Chief Constable Adrian Leppard said: "We are keeping an open mind at this stage as to the motive behind the burglary.

"However, we and the company have informed other police forces. Our understanding is that almost all information on the stolen computer equipment relates to cases where the evidence has already been disclosed to defence solicitors.

"No evidence has been lost, as the company keeps back-ups."

FTS has been picking up contracts from police forces for the past six years to gather forensic evidence from mobile phones and their SIM cards.

Ten years ago, police forces used BT to assemble mobile phone evidence against crooks.

But in recent years, the increased number of competing phone companies plus huge developments in mobile phone technology have meant specialist firms have been drafted in by many forces to help investigators fighting crime and terrorism.

FTS describes itself as a "world leader" in recovering data from mobile phones, hand-held devices and telecommunications equipment.

It provides expert witnesses in court, trains telecommunications investigators, attends scenes of crime and carries out forensic computer investigations.

FTS has developed specialist techniques and computer programs which are regularly used in serious crime investigations.
TOPICS: Crime/Corruption; Foreign Affairs; United Kingdom; War on Terror
KEYWORDS: database; police; uk; wot

Computer Repair: Get the Job Done Quick by Robert M. Palmer

If you use a computer on a regular basis, it is safe to say that you want it to work efficiently time and time again. Unfortunately, computers can break down and cause you more problems than you ever thought possible. Hopefully this will never happen to you, but the fact of the matter is that you never know. Finding that something is wrong with your computer can be quite disheartening. After all, this will put you in a bad position no matter if you are using your computer for fun or wok. Luckily, there are some fixes that will allow you to get back on track in no time at all.

You should consider software that is designed and developed specifically for PC repair and protection. As you can imagine, when you have this software at your disposal, you will never have to worry about many problems that you cannot fix. To make this even better, there are many software programs available that are free of cost. All you have to do is download the software, and from there you will have the ability to protect your computer while also repairing any problems that you may be having.

There are two benefits of using computer repair software. First off, if you can find a free version, you will save a lot of money in the long run. After all, it is always better to get software for free; paid versions can be quite costly. Another great benefit is the way that you can do everything on your own. You will never again have to call a computer repair person, or take your unit back to the store.

All in all, you can repair and protect your computer in no time at all with the proper software. Every computer owner should have one of these programs to rely on.

Watch TV on Computer- What's the Catch? by Robert Muhoho

A lot of things have been said about watching TV on computer. The best pc satellite software offer multi channels from around the world and also air local channels. Look at the number of channels, the price of the satellite for pc software, number of countries its accessible in, the TV in different languages like Italian, French, Spanish, Urdu, Chinese, German, English etc. First of all, this new technology has created such a large market that has inevitably led people to make bogus software. These are then passed on as genuine ones on the internet and you will be scammed if you can't tell the difference.

PC 2007 Elite Edition Reviews

The satellite TV software on sale offer a wide range of TV channels in may countries around the world. Some of the good ones offer over 2,000 TV channels and 1000 music channels. There are also other better computer satellite softwares that offer local channels on your pc. Choosing the one you want is therefore a matter of preferences and depends exactly on what you are looking for. The downside is that unless you have enough information on the type of software you are buying, you may waste a lot of money buying this and that software. Most people are usually disappointed after buying online TV software only to find that it doesn't offer what they were looking for.

One of the good satellite pc software's I have used is the PC 2007 Elite Edition. The software is sold at a low one time price of $ 49.95 start up fee. I was abit careful when buying the software but after getting some good recommendations and testimonials from online forums, I decided to try it out.

The Elite edition website indicates that it offers over 3000 TV channels from across the world and may music channels. It has compiled a range of TV channels in many languages including Italian TV, German TV, Spanish TV, Arabic TV, French TV, Russian and Chinese TV. You will be able to watch international TV from Spain, Italy, German, France, UK, Canada, Russia, Cuba, Japan, Egypt, Israel, Vietnam, Iran, Iraq, China, India, Sweden, Norway, Brazil, Portugal, and Ireland among many others.

The PC 2007 Elite Edition can be watched all over the world through the internet and broadcasts TV channels in more than 70 countries. After making my download, I was watching live TV on computer in 2 minutes flat. Just as they said in their website. The website is also a well laid out site that shows these guys must know what they are up to. A small screen on the website runs automatic new movie trailers that you can sample latest releases. So you actually get to sample the movies you will be watching once you download the pc satellite software.

There are several advantages of hooking up you computer to satellite TV with PC 2007 Elite. The software is also easy to use and not complicated to manage. They said that the software enables you to watch your favorite shows on computer and TV on ESPN, Eurosport, classic movies, oldies and Goldie's movies, music channels among others. You are also able to watch TV channels that you can't get any where else in the U.S.A. It is also a potable software that enables you to watch world TV from anywhere in the world with an internet connection.

What attracted me with this software as the fact that by buying it, I would be able to save the thousands of dollars that I had paid over many years paying for cable and satellite television bills. The software was also available to me at an instant download and gave me immediate access to satellite TV in 2 minutes. Now im able to watch all kinds of TV movies including French movies, Indian movies, Chinese movies, Norwegian, German, Italian movies, Swedish movies on pc and Dutch.

Robert has worked for a satellite TV Company for many years. He writes reviews on satellite TV for pc software that helps to make easy the choice in purchasing, installation, use and upgrade of satellite to pc softwares. Please visit his website at: http://www.satellitepcTV.wordpress.com

Search Engine Rank: Google Page Rank Misconceptions - 2

by: Peter Nisbet



Improved search engine rank is difficult enough to obtain without you having to trawl through all that has been written about Google Page Rank in order to find the truth. There are many misconceptions about Page Rank, and Part 2 of this article dispels the most common of them, the first being that Yahoo and MSN have their own version.

In fact this is not so. Yahoo had a beta version of a ‘Web Rank’ visible for a while, ranking complete websites, but it is now offline. MSN has no equivalent as far I can ascertain. The term ‘PageRank’ is a trade mark of Google, which is why I refer to it as Page Rank and not PageRank. A small difference, but a significant one.

If you are one of those that believe that the more links you can get to your website the better, then you are wrong. When Google started the Page Rank frenzy by putting that little green bar on their toolbar, they didn’t realize the consequences of what they were doing. People fought to get as many links to their website as possible, irrespective of the nature of the websites to which they were linking.

That is misconception Number 2. You do not link to websites, you link to web pages, or should I say, you get links back from web pages, not websites. It is, after all, the link back that counts isn’t it? The link away from your site doesn’t count. Wrong! Misconception Number 3. The link to your web page counts no more than the link away from your web page. In fact, it could count less. You could lose out in the reciprocal linking stakes if your web page is worth more than the other person’s.

Let’s dispel that misconception right now. When you receive a link from a web page (not web site) you get a proportion of the Google Page Rank of that web page that depends on the total number of links leaving that page. When you provide a link to another web page, you give away a proportion of your Page Rank that depends on the number of other links leaving your web page.

The Page Rank of the website you get a link from is irrelevant, since that is generally the rank of the Home Page. You will likely find that all these great links you think you have from PR 7 or 8 websites are from a links page that has a PR of ZERO! So you get zilch for the deal. If you are providing them with a link from a page on your site even of PR 1, then you lose! Most people fail to understand that.

No incoming link can have a negative effect on your PR. It can have a zero effect, but not negative. However, if you have an incoming link with zero effect, and an outgoing reciprocal link with a positive effect to the target page, then you will effectively lose PR through the deal. Every web page starts with a PR of 1, and so has that single PR to share amongst other pages to which it is linked. The more incoming links it has, the higher PR it can have to share out.

If your page has a PR of 4 and has three links leaving it, each gets twice the number of PR votes than if 6 links leave it. Your page with a PR of 4 has to get a similar number of PR votes incoming as it gives away to retain its PR. In simple terms, if your PR 4 page is getting links from a PR 8 page with 20 links leaving it, you lose out big time! It’s simple maths.

No page ever gives away all of its PR. There is a factor in Google’s calculation that reduces this to below 100% of the total PR of any page. However, that is roughly how it works. You don’t get a proportion of the whole website ranking; you only get part of the ranking of the page on which your link is placed. Since most ‘Links Pages’ tend to be full of other outgoing links, then you won’t get much, and will likely get zero.

That is why automated reciprocal linking software is often a waste of time. If you want to make the best of linking arrangements, then agree with the other webmaster that you will provide each other with a link from equally ranked pages. That way both of you will gain, and neither loses. Some software allows you to make these arrangements.

Another misconception is that only links from external web pages count. In fact, links between your own web pages can be arranged to provide one page with most of the page rank available. Every page has a start PR of 1, so the more pages you have on your site then the more PR you have to play with and distribute to pages on your website of your choice.

Search engine rank can be improved by intelligent use of links, both external and internal, but Google Page Rank does not have the profound effect on your search engine listing that many have led you to believe. Good onsite SEO usually wins so keep that in mind when designing your website.

High Speed Internet Connection

by: Toh Poh

Internet has almost become a lifeline for the new generation. Many businesses now depend entirely on the Internet. People residing in different parts of world are able to talk to each other via the medium of Internet. Video conferencing is a live example of it. Many marriages are also made with the help of the Internet. The list of benefits that Internet provides is limitless.

But, what would you do when you have a slow speed internet connection that takes a lot of time? That internet connection would simply be useless to you.

The speed at which you are connected to the Internet plays a very important role in enjoying the advantages offered by it. For example, suppose one of your relatives who is residing overseas, has sent you a holiday clip. Now, if your Internet speed is slow then first of all it would take a long time to load the mail website. Then you would enter your user name and password. It would again take extra time to verify it. Also, downloading the clip would be very slow, even if its size is very small. Overall, you can say that having a low speed Internet connection (dial-up connection) is not a good thing.

There are many choices available for a high speed Internet connection. DSL, Cable and Satellite are some of them. You can select the best one from them. Here are some of the common benefits that all these high speed Internet connections provide.

* Viewing of streamlining clips or videos is very easy and fast in these connections. Dial-up connections may not even allow their access. * You can upload web pages and download any kind of information or software with more than twice the speed of dial-up connection. * Downloading of images and huge e-mail files can be done almost promptly. * High speed Internet connection has proven to be a boon for all businessmen. They can now access the world wide web within a few seconds. Their businesses have been highly benefited through efficient and quick video conferencing which would have been impossible in a slow dial-up connection. * For those people who work from home, a high speed Internet connection can assist them in increasing their overall work efficiency and output. * On a long term basis, the high speed Internet connection can prove to be highly economical.

DSL: The best choice for high speed internet connection Now-a-days, DSL has become the leading choice for a high speed Internet connection. DSL works on existing telephone lines. With a DSL connection you can browse the web and talk on the phone at the same time. Generally, a DSL connection requires a DSL router, a dedicated phone line and a network card or a modem for each system. The installation of DSL at your location is the responsibility of the service provider. Last but not the least, this high speed Internet connection is offered at very affordable prices.

The Art of Playing Jazz Guitar - A True Preparation Primer Part 1

I'm not going to kid you; playing Jazz Guitar is extremely difficult at best and almost downright impossible at worst. However there are things you can do to improve your improvisation skills and feeling and we'll discuss them throughout this multi part series so look for additional parts in the near future.

Practice

What can I say about practice? Just do it and do it often! Do it everyday. When you think you have done enough do it again.

I am not just talking about picking up the guitar and playing a few songs I am talking about real practicing for the environment that you will eventually be playing in which is, of course, in an ensemble with other musicians who we hope will always be better than you.

Here are the basics...

When practicing always use a metronome!

If I didn't make that part clear perhaps this may help: ALWAYS USE A METRONOME!

If you feel that you don't need a metronome stop reading this article, stop practicing and go get some ice cream because you will get the same or even better results and you certainly will enjoy yourself a whole lot more in the process if you do. If you are committed read on.

Still with me?

When using your metronome try to feel your timing on different clicks. For instance for a swing feel have your metronome click on beats 2 and 4 rather than 1 and 3. This will give you an instant swing feel and also take away that nasty crutch so you are forced to know where beat 1 really is.

We never, ever, want to rely on our drummer, who may be in the middle of a complex experimental improvisation just when you need him/her the most, to tell us where beat 1 is. How many times have you been in that situation?

Sound simple? It is!

Sound easy? Try it for a month and you let me know how it goes.

Let's delve into this a little. When practicing using this technique of displacing metronome clicks for beats try these: practice a 3/4 tune using the metronome clicking once per measure and only on beat 2. Then switch to only on beats 3. See how the feeling changes. Practice it, learn it, feel it and then you can start to own it.

If you want to get fancy place the metronome to click every fifth beat while you play a tune in 3. This will shift the accents and feeling from bar to bar and will also allow your brain to break free from it's learned behavior which is designed to make you not want to think.

What did you say?

That's right! More times than not the human brain is your biggest enemy. It always seeks comfort and practicing in the fashion described above is not at all comfortable for your brain. In these cases I recommend telling your brain what my son often likes to say, "To bad..., so sad!"

We as musicians need to experience and comprehend the natural tendencies of the brain's normal behavior so we can learn to truly challenge ourselves to open up our minds to the gargantuan creative possibilities that await us when we do. This doesn't happen by accident nor does it happen by itself nor will it come easy. It takes an extreme effort on our parts.

Whether you have your instrument with you or not you can practice your timing. If you get a small battery operated metronome, which I recommend, you can bring it with you when you are driving back and forth to work. Practice the above examples in your car while singing. Don't worry if you can't sing you are trying to own these feelings and if you can't articulate these feelings with your voice you will never truly own them.

I have outlined several examples for displacement of beats. The idea is simple enough so that you can come up with more deviations on your own and you should keep changing them when you practice.

The point here is that true understanding and your eventual ownership of various beats and feelings associated with them do not reside strictly inside those beats and feelings. By looking only inside the beats you are shutting off all creative thinking that is necessary to truly exploit their full potential.

Real understanding resides outside and you must find out what that means. To truly find it you must force yourself and be willing to look everywhere else but the beats themselves. This simple metronome technique will get you started and point you on your journey to achieving that goal. Don't limit yourself to applying this technique only to timing but that statement is for another part of this series.

Have fun, practice and always play your heart out!

About the Author:
John Belthoff is an avid web developer who plays and teaches Jazz Guitar in his spare time. He owns an Asp Web Hosting Company where you can contact him about hosting your guitar website/blog or just to learn more.

Top 10 Questions to Ask When Choosing an Ocarina

You've decided that you are going to buy an ocarina. Now the question is which one to choose. With so many choices, in different shapes and sizes, made of clay or wood or plastic, some with four holes and others with twelve... with so many possibilities choosing the right one can be difficult. Ask yourself the following ten questions. When you can answer them confidently, you are ready to choose your ocarina.

1. What kind of music do you want to play with your ocarina? If you want to play simple, slow melodies then most ocarinas will work. If you want to play fast and technically challenging music, most will not work. Make sure you hear sound samples of the ocarinas you are considering, and make sure they can play the kind of music you want to play.

2. How far (musically) do you want to go with your ocarina? Do you want something to entertain you for a few weeks? Or do you want a serious instrument that will let you progress to advanced levels of musicianship? If you want to go far musically and will put in the practice necessary to get good, get an ocarina that you won't grow out of... that will let you progress to virtuosity.

3. Do you like the way this ocarina sounds? Have you heard this ocarina played live? If not, do you have nice recorded samples to listen to?

4. Do you like the way this ocarina looks? If you think your ocarina is stunning, you will very likely carry it more, show it to family and friends more, play it more, progress farther and faster, and enjoy it much more.

5. Where do you want to play your ocarina? Do you intend on playing for others? In public performances? Do you want to be able to play along with other musicians without microphone amplification? Most ocarinas are quiet and subdued. Some ocarinas have great playing volume and could readily be played in public without amplification.

6. Do you want a clay, wood, metal or plastic ocarina? A few thoughts. Clay is like glass in that it can crack or shatter if dropped. Nice wood ocarinas are gorgeous. Metal ocarinas are rare, but some are stunning. There are tons of cheap plastic ocarinas... toys. However, some plastic ocarinas are top notch instruments that are made of high tech plastics like polycarbonate.

7. What style do I want, transverse or inline? Ocarinas come in two basic styles, transverse and inline. The transverse style (like the sweet potato) is played like a standard Boehm flute where the flute is held at a ninety degree angle to the head. The inline style is played like a clarinet or recorder where you blow into the length of the flute. I find that the inline style is more comfortable to play for extended periods of time.

8. Are you a big time fan of the video game Zelda The Ocarina of Time? If so, then maybe you want an ocarina just like the one Link plays.

9. Where do you want to take your ocarina? would it be nice if your ocarina could fit in your purse or pocket? Will you hang it around your neck? Will you want to take it rock climbing or caving? Will you be careful when carrying your ocarina? As far as portability, not every ocarina was created equal. Clay ocarinas can crack or break. You can't put bulky ocarinas in your pocket. Without a neck cord, you can't wear it around your neck.

10. How much ancillary materials (self-study materials, inspirational music, music books, etc.) are available for the ocarina you are thinking of buying? How much help will you want in learning to play? Remember that ocarinas have limited tonal range. Sheet music and music books must fit into the tonal range of the particular ocarina that you play. If you want options and variety in your music, choose an ocarina that has companion products to support your progress.

Jada Rose is an ocarina enthusiast. She has been playing for over five years. Her favorite ocarina is her chromatic hardwood ocarina in the key of "G" from http://www.mountainocarinas.com/