This is the first time, as a long-time PC user, that I am at close encounters with a Apple product. Though the user interface was relatively easy to use, there was still a learning curve for me. I had to learn new navigation skills like “swipe to the right to delete”, tap four times to select a paragraph, press and hold to bring up a magnifying glass so that you can place the cursor at a specific place. Till now, I only know how to select one word, the entire paragraph, or select everything. I still don’t know how to select a specific set of words, or phrases within a paragraph at will… Let me correct myself. I just learnt (hot off the oven) how to select a specific set of words or phrases by checking with Google search.

After a while, I got used to the poking, holding and swiping techniques of the iPad. What do I like about the iPad? It has a beautiful display, great sound and minimal buttons. Though it’s still a tad too heavy to hold for long in one hand, it’s still a great device to carry around for reading and for web surfing with minimal requirements for data inputs.

Although I am quite a fast typist on a physical keyboard, using the iPad’s virtual keyboard does pose some challenges for me. For one, I can’t feel the “buttons” on the keyboard and the spacing of each letter on the iPad’s virtual keyboard is a little too wide for all my fingers to be placed correctly. Nevertheless, I could still type using six fingers occasionally. However, it can be quite tiring if you have a lot of content to type in.

What was the first iPad application that I used? The iPad App Store.

What was the second iPad application that I used? The Angry Birds game. It’s no wonder the number one game for iPhone and iPad.

I had tried numerous apps from the iPad App Store and here are the apps that I had found useful. Some of these apps are free while others have to be paid for.

1. Outliner – a basic app that allows you to create content in the form of a outline. This is useful for task lists, check lists, simple project management, outline-based note taking, and basically anything that you can put your mind to. You can also do searches of your content within Outliner.
2. MoesNotepad – This is a multi-media note capturing app. It allows storage of text, images, audio recordings and video clips for a single topic. Quite useful when the iPad is essentially not a effective typing device. It also allows for keyword tagging to facilitate search.
3. Pages – The iPad word processor. It’s not as powerful as Microsoft Word, but it’s probably one of the better word processor for iPad.
4. Numbers – The iPad spreadsheet. What I like about Numbers was it’s ability to convert a spreadsheet table into a form for data entry easily. Pretty good if you don’t want to develop an application to simple data content. It also has cell features like a check box and a five-star scale which is useful in data entry forms for surveys.
5. Keynote – The iPad presentation app. Haven’t really dabbled with this app yet so can’t comment too much. Having tried the tutorial, it seemed to be quite friendly to use.
6. Database – The iPad database app. A little buggy but still usable most of the time. If you are familiar with using databases, then this app can help you create databases that can store most common data types.
7. All Stuck Up – A sticky note app. What I like about this app is that it allows me to maintain separate pages of sticky notes that can group together by colors and also literally stick together. The only regret I have for this app is that I can only have 5 color groups per page.
8. Idea Sketch – A simple flow charting / mind-mapping tool. Great for those who needed to draw simple flow charts or do mind mapping.

To conclude, I have still much to explore on the capabilities of the iPad. My current wishes would be that iPad could properly support java and flash so that I can use them for more serious web apps that required authentication. This is yet to be seen.

Such requests usually contain phrases like

“by the way, can you help since …”

“while you are at this, can you also do …”

Most people would just oblige if it’s a small matter. But if the request would eat into your productivity and add to your existing heavy workload, you’ll have to do something about it. Here’s a tip on how to turn down a request while still appearing to be helpful:

1. Tell the requester you’ll be glad to help if you had the spare time to.
2. Offer the requester any contact or channel that you know can assist with the request.
3. If you know that the request could be done by the requester himself, direct him to the necessary resources so that he can follow up himself.

There is no need to be rude when you turn down a request. You can use phrases like:

“I’d like to help you if I’m not rushing out this thing… perhaps you can approach so-and-so. I believe so-and-so would be able to assist you.”

“I’d like to help you if I’m not rushing to meet this deadline. Tell you what, you can go to this place and check out the … It may help you with your problem.”

To conclude, always remain in a neutral tone so that your requester would not feel offended when you turn down his request.

Its offerings included Japanese sashimi and sushi, tempura and satay, chilli crab and  on-the-spot stir-fried vegetables, chinese cuisine, indian cuisine, teochew porridge, tim-sum, dessert and fruits.

The sashimi was fresh and yummy. The chilli crab was average. The indian basmati rice with murgh korma (chicken in korma curry) and masala prawn was delicious.  The bamboo clam was awful though… however it’s worth to come back another time to test it as it could be an isolated case.

The Teochew porridge dishes were welcoming but I was already quite filled after trying a little of everything.

All in all, the restaurant had quite a nice ambience for relaxation and I’ve mixed feelings for the food. Nevertheless, I’d probably come again to give it another try.

Nuance, creator of PDF Converter, had just launched the free PDF Reader, which enables users to do much more than just view PDF files. It takes up less disk space, is more secure than Adobe® Reader®, and works with virtually any PDF file. Best of all, it’s absolutely free, proving that you really can get a whole lot of something for nothing. 

What sets Nuance PDF Reader apart from other free PDF software? It’s the only free PDF reader that includes features typically found in premium products. Consider these advantages:

• Convert PDF files to Word, Excel, or RTF!
• Fill and save PDF forms
• Use less disk space
• Annotate PDFs
• Keep your documents safe
• Enjoy 100% compatibility with Adobe® Acrobat®
• Work with PDF portfolios

Get your free PDF reader right away!

Besides this new feature, ATI also has a function that protects the system while allowing to try out new softwares. In the event that you decided not to use the software testing, you can easily restore the previous state of your computer without having to perform a full uninstall, which usually leaves unnecessary registry entries that we rather not have.

Finally, it can create a bootable media ( on CD or thumbdrive ) that can be used to boot up the computer and perform a restore from external hard drive back to your system drive.

Just read that Acronis is having a special offer now that I feel you just cannot miss so I’ve made it available here for your easy access and reference.

What is your opinion on this?

1. Fake Facebook “friend” messages
2. Fake admin messages
3. Fear mongering messages
4. Account cancellation scams
5. Bogus holiday cards
6. Phantom packages
7. Threats from the Government
8. Census survey says…
9. In Microsoft (or Apple or Dell or HP) we trust
10. You’re a winner!

Majestic Restaurant along Bukit Pasoh

Had a great lunch with a colleague today at the Majestic Restaurant (Da Hua) located in New Majestic Hotel along Bukit Pasoh Road. It was a fine dining experience in a small restaurant environment. But the food tastes great. Would let the pictures speak for themselves instead of writing too much…

Appetizer: Peking Duck, Foie Gras, Wasabi Prawn on a watermelon slice

Appetizer: Peking Duck, Foie Gras, Wasabi PrawnPeking Duck, Foie GrasWasabi Prawn

Main dishes: Shark Fin & Cartilage Soup, Beef slice, Lobster and Noodle (forgot to take this picture, sigh…)

Shark Fin and Cartilage Soup

Beef

Dessert: White Fungus with pear and papaya

White Fungus Dessert

Throughout the last couple of years, scareware (a.k.a. fake security software), emerged quickly as the single most profitable money-making strategy for cybercriminals to leverage on. Due to aggressive advertising practices used by the cybercrime syndicates, thousands of users fall victim to the scam on a daily basis, with the syndicates themselves earning loads of dollars in the process.

What is a Scareware?

Scareware, also known as rogueware or fake security software, is a legitimately looking application that is delivered to the end user through the internet traffic derived from compromised web sites, malicious advertising, or keywords hijacking in order to serve scareware. It’s objective is to trick the user into believing that their computer is already infected with malware, and that by purchasing the application will help them get rid of it.

Once executed on a computer, some scareware will not only prevent legitimate security software from starting, but it will also prevent it from being updated. This is to ensure that the end user will not be able to get the latest anti-virus updates. To worsen the situation, it will also make its removal a cumbersome process by blocking system tools and third-party applications from executing.

There had also been cases where scareware with elements of ransomware that encrypt an infected user’s files, and demanding a purchase in order to decrypt them.

How to spot Scareware?

As scarewares are usually used by syndicates, they tend to use a standard template for distribution. Hence, scareware sites all share a very common set of deceptive advertising practices, which can easily help you spot them before making a purchase.

For instance, most scareware sites try to make their sales pitch more realistic and credible by using “non-clickable” icons of reputable technology web sites and performance evaluating services, such as PC Magazine Editors’ Choice award, Microsoft Certified Partner, ICSA Labs Certified,  Westcoast Labs Certified, Certified by Softpedia, CNET Editors’ Choice, and ZDNet Reviews. None of the real services are aware of the scareware’s existence.

Another popular social engineering tactic are the fake comparison tables or charts, where the scareware clearly outperforms some of the leading security companies’ software.

Since most end-users won’t really go about double-checking these claims, and with the impulsive buying urge created by a potential warning of data loss, most end-users fall into the trap of installing the fake security software. The attached screenshot shows how three different scareware brands (Virus Shield 2009, Windows Security Suite and Malware Destructor 2009) are all using the same template claiming their superiority over legitimate security software.

The wide range of tactics used leads us to the most common fear-driven social engineering tactic of simulating a real-time antivirus scanning in progress dialog, which in reality is nothing else but a static script pretending to be running a real virus scan.

The scanner’s results are fake and in fact the software had absolutely no access to your hard drive. Therefore the claims that “You’re Infected!; Windows has been infected; Warning: Malware Infections founds; Malware threat detected” should be treated as a fear generating tactic.

Another key trait of a scareware site is the professional site layout, as well as the persistent attempts to rebrand the template and divert the end user’s attention from the previous brand’s increasing bad reputation across the web. When combined, these would result in an efficient social engineering scam that continues entrapping thousands of victims on a daily basis.

What can I do to avoid Scarewares?

1. Use legitimate internet security softwares. TotalVirus.Com is a good website that maintains a list of recognised legitimate security softwares. Never use a security software that you’ve never heard before, regardless of its price or recommendation on the Internet. My personal choice is Norton 360 which you can also get online ( USA version | South Asia or Singapore version ).
2. Always reject an offer from the Internet or email to scan your hard drive for malicious codes or viruses. If you have installed a legitimate security software, you have full control on when you want to do a scan. There is no necessity to accept any offer to have your hard drive scanned.
3. Always make sure your legitimate internet security software has its real-time auto-protect scanning feature turned on. This is one way to ensure stoppage of 99.9% of scareware infections as no one internet security software is perfect.

What can I do if I have been attacked by Scareware?

1. If you managed to realise it at the point of time when the fake security scanning just started, shut down your web browser immediately and unplugged your network cable ( if on wireless, turn the WiFi switch off ). Chances are the infection may not have commence.
2. If you are not able to shut down your web browser, or your apps aren’t responding, you might be infected by the scareware already. Try typing the keys [Alt] (holding the key down) and [F4] together on your web browser. If this doesn’t work, download and unzip this Windows shortcut onto your Windows desktop. It can be a handy tool to force shutdown your Internet Explorer when you suspect an infection in progress.
3. The following free resources can provide tools and advice you will need to attempt removal.
   • Malwarebytes, a very reliable anti-malware company, offers a free version of Malwarebytes’ Anti-Malware, a highly rated anti-malware application which is capable of removing many newer rogue applications.
      
   • 411 Spyware – a site that specializes in malware removal. I highly recommend this site.
      
   • Bleeping Computer – a web site where help is available for many computer related problems, including the removal of rogue software. This is another site I highly recommend.
      
   • SmitFraudFix, available for download at Geekstogo is a free tool that is continuously updated to assist victims of rogue security applications.

The easiest way to upgrade to Windows 7 is to install it clean over a new disk partition. The process is quick and easy (around 20 minutes on a relatively new computer) as Windows 7 could support most drivers on a typical computer. However, in my case, I’m installing Windows 7 on a computer that already has Windows Vista Business. I didn’t want to overwrite my Vista immediately, hence I took the steps described below.

I purchased this software “Paragon System Upgrade Utilities 2010” (PSUU) to help me migrate my system in a smooth and safe manner.

Following the instructions closely, I had successfully created a backup image of my C drive and also created the recovery boot media.

I was about to proceed to the next step of creating a new partition to install Windows 7, when I realized that my hard drive already had the maximum allowed number of partitions – 4 partitions. The 4 partitions were as follows:

• Fujitsu recovery partition (1GB)
• C drive
• D drive
• unallocated space (a few MB)

I decided to reduce the number of partitions to 3 partitions, and to resize the C drive to be a little bigger. I used Acronis Disk Director for the job and everything went fine until the ending when the system crashed.

Being quite used to seeing such messages when doing system migrations, I did not start to panic. When I tried to restart the computer, the Fujitsu recovery partition took over and tried unsuccessfully to recover the system. Not giving up so easily (as I was confident that the system was still intact but just unbootable), I used the Paragon Rescue Kit to boot up my computer. Then I selected the Boot Corrector feature and managed to update my master boot record (MBR). I rebooted my computer with my fingers crossed and walah… my windows came back online.

After my windows came back online, I did a check on the status of my C and D drives. The new sizes were reflected. The Windows OS then did its registry updates and prompted me to restart the computer. I restarted the computer and everything was back to normal.

To play safe this round, I used Acronis True Image to create a full disk image of my entire harddrive. This is just a precaution in case of a similar but irrecoverable accident happening to me.

From this paragraph onwards, it’s my third night of my journey to installing Windows 7. I work in the day so I only have time to do the upgrade at night. So let’s go on…

On the second night, all I did was to go through the steps of backing up my entire hard drive this round, instead of just the C drive.

On the third night, I was ready to install Windows 7. I followed the migration steps given by the PSUU user guide and created a new formatted partition for Windows 7 installation. During this process, the PSUU hid all my other partitions (include my data drive… I discovered this soon enough) as it would minimise any potential problems during installation of Windows 7. Anyway, when I booted up with the Windows 7 installation CD and started the installation process, it would not allow me to proceed with installation on my new formatted partition because it doesn’t recognise the version of NTFS. I wasn’t quite perturbed by the message and used the installation CD options to format the partition again. After that, the installation of Windows 7 completed successfully like a breeze.

After I had logged in to Windows 7, I realised that my data drive (D drive) was missing. Then I remembered that the PSUU user guide had mentioned that all primary drives would be hidden to prevent any accidents for Windows 7 installation. Now that Windows 7 is successfully installed, I needed to find a way to get my data drive back.

Fortunately, I had the necessary tools with me. Being a not-so-techie techie, I used Acronis Disk Director’s advanced options to unhide my data drive. Follow that, I reinstalled the PSUU on Windows 7 and easily created a dual-boot environment for my existing Vista and the new Windows 7. Doing this was a breeze and that completed around 80% of my Windows 7 upgrade journey. The remaining 20% work was to re-install my notebook’s specific device drivers and my own  softwares.

The first thing I installed was my Norton 360. After that, I ran updates for Norton 360 and Windows 7. Just imagine, patches immediately after launch… sheesh…

While testing the new Windows 7, I like to fast startup (20 seconds) compared to my existing Vista (40 seconds). I also liked particularly the user interface as it had become more intuitive and friendly to use. It’s not perfect but it’s an improvement.

After testing Windows 7 for stability, I used the PSUU again to remove my vista partition, reclaim all the disk space for Windows 7 and updated the master boot record. And this concludes my Windows 7 upgrade journey.