The purpose of an Internet security firewall is simple and straightforward. A firewall is required for system protection and maintenance of user privacy. Read on to find out benefits of firewall

Online Viruses and Spyware

The biggest source of viruses is internet through which the most destructive viruses try to enter the system. A firewall prevents this attempt and ensures that only permitted users are allowed to access the system and the files it contains. A firewall not only blocks unwanted access bus also highlights the source to the user.

Enhanced User Privacy

Computer users are very conscious about their privacy. In particular, online privacy carries a much higher level of privacy as compared to offline privacy. The reason being that through online communication, the chances of user details being leaked are greater. Cautious users delete their system history when they are done using the computer. However some details can be sufficient for access to the system. This information is termed as finger and contains login information and communication details. The login information provides complete details about the web pages that have been accessed by a user

Controlled Website Access

A firewall prevents the browser from opening the websites which can transfer malicious contents into the system. A user can set his preferences and customize the system firewall according to his requirements. For instance, if all the computer users in a house are above 18 then the list of accessed websites will be of a certain nature. However in a situation where children are using the computer, a greater number of websites will be blocked.

Pop Up Blockage

When we open a website, pop ups are the biggest source of irritation. They promote various products and online schemes. Some times several pop ups open with a single click and the required web-page gets hidden. Pop ups are also a source of transferring viruses. However with the help of a firewall, all the pop ups can be disabled. As a result, pop up windows do not appear.

These were the benefits of firewall. An Internet security firewall comes in form of software as well as hardware. Read about the difference between the both, here.

Find here the most useful Skype commands that you will need anytime.

1. Remotely log out Skype

May be you left your Skype signed in at your friend's or at your office and worried that someone might use your account and see your contacts.

It's not a problem any more. Now you can log out Skype, where ever you have assigned, remotely.  

Enter the following command in any chat window in Skype to remotely log out from all the computer/mobile phones where you are currently assigned

/remotelogout

2. Find out where you are currently signed in

If you want to see that on which computers or smartphones you are currently signed in, enter the following command in any Skype chat window:

/showplaces

3. Change Skype Password from Skype window

You dont need to sign into Skype.com to change your Skype password. You can change it from Skype window itself. Just enter the following command:

/set password [your password]  e.g /set password Food123

4. Add a text after your name.

There is a way to add any text in front of your name by using this command:

 /me [text]   e.g /me working from my home   Example output: Adam 'working from my home'

5. Find a specific text in your chat.

Sometimes you need to find a specific word or sentence in your chat but the chat is too long to find something in it. Use the following command to find any text in your chat:

/find [text]  e.g /find Evan   This will highlight Evan in the entire chat

6. Disable message notifications

Sometimes you don't want to receive new message notification so use this command to disable new message notifications:

/alertsoff

7. Kick someone out from a group call

Enter command /kick to have the person removed from the group call or chat

8. See list of group member names

If you want to see names of Skype group chat members, just enter command /showmembers to see their names.

Whatsapp has become the hot favorite of masses who use Android Apps for text chatting. No wonder, it is convenient and simple to use, free for the first year of usage and helps sending videos, audio files, text messages and images. Whatsapp does not provide the facility of password protection; it could be seen as the downside by many. But many smart Apps have been created that assist in providing privacy for Whatsapp.

Lock for WhatsApp: Keep Privacy

This app is one of the best Apps that provide protection for WhatsApp; this App provides all the facilities for maintaining privacy and is a creative design as well. After setting up the password, you would need to enter the 4 digit PIN to access WhatsApp. One can set up the time limit after which WhatsApp will be automatically locked. The protection could be disabled as well.

The most interesting feature of this App is that if a wrong PIN is entered, the camera automatically captures the image of instigator. Of course, this feature will work only with the phones that feature front cameras.

Easy App Lock

Easy App Lock is another App that provides pattern lock in place of a plain password. Hence, anyone who does not rely on PINs or passwords could deploy this App. Pattern locks are definitely harder to break in.

Lock For WhatsApp

This App provides both, the custom password and pattern lock. Once bored, you could toggle between the available kinds of locks. Hence, it provides more flexibility of choice.

Once protected by the password, Whatsapp becomes just the perfect choice for chatting through internet. It should be kept in mind that the files received go into folders in the memory and won't be protected by these locks. These locks only secure the access into the Application. Take proper measures to protect your files received through Whatsapp!

If you ever try to install Windows from a USB/pen drive and get error "A required CD/DVD drive device driver is missing", do not worry.  There are many solutions offered on the Internet but they require long tasks to be performed or perhaps require you to have technical expertise.

The solution the problem I am going to present here works absolutely perfectly and quickest and easiest to implement:

1. Restart your computer and go to the computer BIOS screen. As soon as computer begins to restart, press either Esc key, F2, F1 or F12 key - it varies with different computer brands.

2. In the BIOS setup screen, find and enable this option "USB 3.0 Configuration in Pre-OS"

3. Save and Exit the BIOS set up screen. Now try to run the Windows set up from your USB drive again. You will no longer see the error message and Windows installation will continue as normal. Enjoy!