Is Your Laptop Battery a Fire Hazard?

TWO RECORD-SETTING HIGHLIGHT THE RISK OF LITHIUM ION TECHNOLOGY.
When Pictures of flaming laptops blaze across the Internet, and Dell and Apple recall nearly 6 million lithium ion batteries, it's natural to wonder whether we can trust our portable devices. Billions of these batteries power everything from cell phones to cameras and the push is invariably to pack more power into less space, increasing the severity of the damage in a worst-case scenario.

INCIDENTS ARE RARE
All 4.1 Million Dell lithium ion batteries and 1.8 million Apple batteries in the recalls contained cells made by Sony Energy Devices of Japan. A manufacturing defect (see the diagram) led to rare instances where batteries over heated and even caught fire (Dell reported six confirmed cases, and Apple nine).
If you're looking askance at your portable device, relax. Experts say the batteries, which can generate two to three times as much continuous power as other rechargeable battery types, are not unsafe. The battery packs incorporate multiple layers of internal safety monitoring that rely on CPUs and sensors, along with control technologies such as vents and chemical fuses. Normally, a problem battery will power down automatically when a short circuit occurs before any serious over heating or fire can develop.
Of course, if these precautions worked perfectly, Dell wouldn't have undertaken what the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission says was the largest consumer electronic device recall in history (Apple's was the second largest). sony says other batteries including some in Sony VAIO notebooks, use the defective cells too but safety measures present in those batteries eliminate the risk, it says, and no further recalls are planned. Though any battery carries some inherent dangers Sony has changed its manufacturing process to fix the defect.

THE ODDS AGAINST
Will your LAPTOP explode? the odds against are extremely high. Even if 50 times more incidents (or 300 total) happend than were reported to Dell or the CPSC, that would translate into only about a 1-in-1000 chance that any Dell laptop battery shipped during the recall period (not just the ones being recalled) would overheat. Dell calculates that it shipped a total of 24.9 million batteries during the recall period (from April 2004 to july 2006). Apple's problem batteries Shipped between october 2003 and august 2006.
Given the sheer numbers of lithium ion batteries being cranked out every day, future recalls seem inevitable, despite manufactures' work on safer designs and technologies. But if you follow basic safety precautions (see box), you can probably leave the fire extinguisher at home.

TIPS
PORTABLE POWER SAFE GUARDS

• To see if your laptop is affected, go to www.dellbatteryprogram.com/Default.aspx
  
• Cheap third-party batteries may skimp on safety, so be careful where you buy. A laptop's manufacture is normally the best choice.
• Use only the type of charger designed for your specific battery.
• Don't leave your device or battery in the hot sun or some other toasty spot. High ambient heat can increase the risk of overheating.
• Impact and pressure are bad too. A faulty latch that could damage the battery if the laptop were drooped prompted a recent (but much smaller) Panasonic battery recall.
• Never carry a battery pack-whether it's charged or dead in a bag that contains loose change, car keys, or other metallic items, doing this could result in a short between the battery's terminals. Instead, put the battery in its own bag or other container first.

Automatic Updates

THE PROCESS OF AUTOMATIC SOFTWARE UPDATES CAN BE EXPLOITED BY INGENIOUS HACKERS TO TAKE OVER YOUR MACHINE

Have You Updated Your computer's antivirus software today?have you configured your desktop to automatically download and install its security updates? Presumably your answer to these question is yes. But there is a problem with many updating systems,as a recent paper by three researches at the University of Massachusetts makes alarmingly clear. many Update systems, it seems, are themselves riddled with security vulnerabilities. In the paper, professor Kevin Fu shows that Update systems in popular software packages like McAfee Virus Scan and Mozilla Firefox can actually be used to take over a computer that's trying to update itself!
The so-called secure update problem is twofold, say the researchers. First and foremost, programs need to have some way of authenticating their updates to establish their legitimacy. But it is also critically important that programs have an authenticated connection to the update server.

THE CODE'S SOURCE
AN AUTHENTICATED UPDATE means that there is some way for the software doing the update to assure itself that the update is an authentic version from the intended source. Without authentication, a Clever attacker can arrange for the program doing the update to download and run an exploit instead.
IN PRACTICE, UPDATES should be authenticated with a digital signature they should should be signed with a private key. The matching public key should be embedded inside the application doing the update. Before the update is run, the application should verify the digital signature. If the signature doesn't verify, the update should be deleted.
The UMass researchers discovered that many programs don't authenticate their updates. That may not be so surprising-lots of software has security vulnerabilities, after all. But what is surprising is that among the products that didn't have digitally signed updates were McAfee Virus Scan and McAfee Virex, two antivirus, anti-malware programs. Exploiting the flaw is actually a lot easier than you might think. Most of these unsecured update systems simply go to a Web of FTP server, check the time stamp on the most recent file and download the file if it's new enough.
The address of the Server is usually hard-coded into the program doing the update, although occasionally it is stored in a configuration file. To exploit the flaw, all the attacker needs to do is send the program doing the update to a server that's run by the attacker. One way to send the program to the wrong website is with a DNS-based attack. Though signing updates with a digital signature doesn't prevent the hostile code from being downloaded, but it does prevent the code from being run. Unfortunately, this is only half the battle. Even if updates are signed, an attacker capable of intercepting DNS requests or diverting Internet traffic can still use an update service to take over an unsuspecting victim's computer.
Another way that an attacker can subvert the update process is to run an update server that always responds, "No updates today!" Clients will then connect, find no update and disconnect-and never know that they have been deceived. A well -placed attacker could prevent an entire organization from installing security updates for a period of time, then attack all vulnerable machines.

CONNECTION CHECK
TO DETECT SUCH attacks, the Client needs to authenticate not just the update itself but also the connection to the update server.

One way to do this is by having the client connect to the server using SSL; this assures the authenticity of the server's DNS name, assuming that the SSL client's built-in certificate authority certificates haven't been corrupted. A slightly more clever way to authenticate the server is to have it publish a signed message on a daily or hourly basis that reports the date of the most recent update.
The advantage of this approach is that the updates don't need to be downloaded with SSL and don't depend upon the public-key infrastructure. Updates could even be mirrored on unsecured public FTP servers.
Of course, an attacker who controls the Internet connection can simply prevent the client from reaching its update server entirely.
but in this case, the client will at least know that something is wrong. It might then notify its human operator or shut down refuse to operate until it can verify for sure that there are no new updates available.
The U Mass paper evaluated the update systems built into Apple's Mac OS, Microsoft Windows, Adobe Acrobat, Microsoft Office on the Mac, Mozilla Firefox, Fungu McAfee Virus Scan, McAfee Virex and Debian Linux.
None of the systems properly authenticated the connection between the update client and the update server at the time that the study was performed, although Windows Update and Mozilla Firefox made some attempt. The Problem here is that updates are becoming a more and more vital part of our information infrastructure. An increasing number of computers with embedded software including those in navigation systems., cell phones, and even implanted medical devices require regular software updates.
Indeed, a system that doesn't have provisions for taking software updates but potentially takes data from the outside world, risks catastrophic failure, for there is no way to fix a security vulnerability if one should be discovered. It would be far better if secure updates were a service provided by the operating systems on servers, desktops and cell phones.
Just as these platforms provided SSL and secure storage, they could also give developers a way to register for automatic version tracking and updating of their applications.

Intel Desktop Board DX58S0

The Intel Desktop Board Designed to unleash the power of all new Intel Core i7 Processor. It Supports LAN. It has Dual Inline Memory Module (DIMM).
Audio 10-channel (7.1) Dolby home theater.

FEATURES

• Form factor : ATX (12.00 inches by 9.60 inches [304.80 millimeters by 243.84 millimeters].
• Memory : Forum 240-pin DDR3 SDRAM Dual Inline Memory Module (DIMM) Sockets.
• Audio : Intel high Definition audio subsystem in the following configuration:- 10- Channel (7.1 Dolby home theater, Audio subsystem with 5 analog audio outputs & 2 S/PDIF digital audio outputs (coaxial and optical) using the Realtek ALC889 Audio Codes.
• Video : Nvidia SLI* and ATI crossfire* multi-GPU platform support enable two graphics cards to work together for ultimate 3D gaming performance and Visual quality.
• Chipset : Intel X58 Express Chipset.

i-Tech Virtual Bluetooth Wireless Laser Keyboard for PDA/Smartphone

i-Tech Virtual Bluetooth Wireless Laser Keyboard for PDA/Smartphone with Good Battery Capacity,it's Size is like small cellular phone. we can kept in pocket.The Virtual Keyboard Provides a Practical way to do e-mail. Controllable Virtual Keyboard Sound Effects. Intensity of the projected Virtual Keyboard.

Example Uses Of It :-

• Personal Digital Assistants (PDA's).
• Clean Rooms.
  
• Test Equipment.
• Industrial Environments.
• Sterile & Medical Environments.
• Transport.
• Laptops (MAC compatible), etc.

FEATURES

• BT Specification V1.1 Class 2 supports BT HID & SPP Profiles.
• Detection rate of up to 400 Characters per minute.
• Full Size Wire-Free QWERTY Keyboard Projection at the touch of a button.
• Battery Capacity up to 120 minutes continuous typing.
  

KINGSTON PENDRIVE 32GB

Kingston Data Traveller having 32GB High Capacity Storage with 2.0 Flash Drive DT150/32GB


FEATURES

• High Capacity data storage 32GB.
• Simple Just Plug & play into a USB port.
• Convenient Pocked-sized for easy transportability.
• Compliant Designed to Hi-Speed USB 2.0 Speciafications.
• Pratical Stores Cap securely on end of device to prevent loss of cap.

TECHNICAL DETAILS

• Type : Flash Drive.

SiliconDrive lll

SiliconDriuve III products having faster read/write speeds, It increases capacities. Enabled a wide range of markets & applications to benefit from WD's advanced solid state storage technology.

• High Performance.
• High Reliability.
• High Endurance.
• True drop-in hard drive replacement.
• Mechanical Scalability with no performance compromises.

SONY VAIO P-VGN-P25G/N

VAIO P in radiant pyrite, Gold looks both serene & Luxurious. it is light weight & compact with a wide 8.0 (20.3 cm) LCD Screen and isolation key board for comfortable operation on the go.Optional Long Battery, TFT Colour Display. Noise-cancelling headphone let you listen in comfort as well.Flash Memory, Graphics Accelerator,This Laptop looks very Nice.



FEATURES

• Instant Mode.
• Genuine Windows Vista Home Premium (32-bit).
• 8.0 (20.3 cm) wide (UWXGA:1600 x 768).
• 64 GB (Serial ATA) Solid State Drive.
• Bundled Noise Cancelling Headphones.
• Integrated Wireless LAN IEEE 802.11b/g/Draftn.

SPECIFICATIONS

ARCHITECTURE

• Processor 1*2* : Intel ATOM Processor, HT Technology.
• Chipset :Intel System Controller Hub US15W.
• Processor system Bus : 533 MHz.
• Memory Bus : 533 MHz.
  
• Cache Memory : 512 KB.

MAIN MEMORY

• Pre-installed/max : 2GB DDR2 SDRAM.

FLASH MEMORY

• Flash Memory : 64 GB*5 (Serial ATA).

GRAPHICS

• Graphics Accelerator :Intel Graphics Media Accelerator 500.

AUDIO

• Sound Chip : Intel High Definition Audio Compatible.
• Speaker : Built-in Stereo Speakers.
  
• Microphone : Built-in monaural Microphone.

TECHNOLOGY

Windows Vista


Intel Graphics Media
Accelerator 500




Bluetooth


ACCESSORIES

• Battery & Adaptor.
• Case & Pouch.
• Mouse.