Tag: WIRELESS

HP is holding a big webOS shindig tomorrow, and we're hoping that means the release of webOS 2 for the original Pre, Pre Plus and Pixi is imminent. Why? Because it means all webOS users will get to enjoy some slick, new apps like Crosstalk. Designed for the new OS, Crosstalk enables users to share files from their webOS devices with nearby friends (who also happen to be using a webOS 2 device). ...

Want a nice, simple way to access files on your Android smartphone over a wireless network? Check out Samba Filesharing, an easy-to-configure app which lets you browse your SD card contents in your favorite desktop file manager. After you install the app, launch it and create a password -- the default username is SDCARD, though you can change that if you wish. Once your changes have been made, ...

This week we're running a series of posts that tackle common Windows networking issues, and some tips and tricks that might speed up or improve your network stability. You can find more tech tips in our Tips index. One small Windows XP feature I used to lean on frequently was "Connect To" -- it provided easy access to a computer's network connections right from the Start Menu. I also like ...

Getting hooked up to your hotel's 'browser login' wireless signal is easy enough if you're on a laptop, but connecting with a smartphone when you want to save mobile data dollars can be a bit trickier. For Android users, a free app called Wifi Browser Login (WBL) makes the process a little bit smoother. Once installed, just jump into the WBL settings and set your preferred options. To connect, ...

Most people rarely think about this, but your Wi-Fi hot-spot is actually broadcasting its signal on something called a channel. In North America, you can pick one of 11 channels; in most of the world you can pick one of 13. Still, most routers and access points come with a pre-set default (that appears to be 11, at least for the routers around me). When you have several routers broadcasting on ...

The geek community has been buzzing about Firesheep, a Firefox add-on that grabs Facebook and Twitter login cookies from any public Wi-Fi network, and uses them to log into others' accounts. Not everyone at the local coffee shop will have heard about Firesheep, though ... and that's where Idiocy comes in. Idiocy is a bit of code you can run that will use Firesheep to automatically break into any ...

The last couple of days have seen the launch and explosive proliferation of a Firefox add-on called Firesheep. It's an incredibly simple program that snoops unsecured Wi-Fi packets to grant you one-click masquerading of other users: if you log into Facebook at the local coffee shop, someone can use Firesheep to become you. Seriously, you can go along to any location with an unsecured Wi-Fi network ...

The Wi-Fi Alliance has begun certification of Wi-Fi devices that can communicate directly with other wireless devices, without the need for a central hotspot or router. Wi-Fi Direct finally provides an alternative to Bluetooth, the current leader in device-to-device networks. In fact, other than increased range (and power consumption!) Wi-Fi Direct doesn't really bring anything to the table ...

Well, geez, color me embarrassed. If you've read my original post about Google's net neutrality proposal, you probably know I got hoodwinked by Google's promises of an FCC-regulated, perfectly neutral wired internet, which turned out to be nothing more than a sleight-of-hand distraction from its suspicious lack of promises of neutrality on wireless networks and future technologies. Yeah, wires ...

Apple and Google are jockeying for position when it comes to cloud-based music apps. Google has fired the opening salvo by announcing its cloud-based Google Music service, due to launch this fall, but Apple is poised to fight back with the acquisition of streaming music service Lala. New rumors from Boy Genius Report outline a pretty plausible cloud strategy for Apple that is centered around ...

If you're an IT Administrator (or even a developer who's lucky enough to "own" the server your apps run on), you've seen this go down before - you're out and about, having a great time when the phone rings. Something is horribly broken and needs your magic touch right away. Surely it's as simple as bouncing a system process - 2 minutes tops! Unfortunately, you're nowhere near a PC to type in ...

There are plenty of rumors about a camera -- or maybe even a camera on each side! -- for future versions of the iPad. Well, you can get the camera of the future right now, as long as you happen to have an iPhone 3GS, too. I know, that's a lot of pricey Apple gadgets. Fortunately, setting up your iPhone as a wireless iPad camera only costs a buck. You just need two apps: Camera A and Camera B. ...

If you use your Mac in a crowded office or coffee shop, you know it's a pain to lock and unlock it when you have to step away for a minute. Airlock automates the process, allowing your Mac to auto-lock when you leave, and then automatically unlock again when you come back. How is this neat trick possible? Well, Airlock uses the Bluetooth signal from your iPhone or iPod Touch to detect your ...

Starting mid-January 2010, McDonalds will be offering free wireless Internet access at 11,000 of its 14,000 fast-food joints. Whether it will be 'gated' via some kind of time code on your receipt, or really free remains to be seen. This opens a scarily interesting kettle of filet-o-fish: is this service going to be firewalled? Will usage be monitored? If the service is totally free -- as in, ...

It's hardly news now, but it hasn't been a great year so far for the Nintendo Wii. For two years it completely blew its over-priced competitors out of the water -- but it seems the tide has finally changed. 2009 hasn't been good to the Wii (though it is doing very well in the run-up to Christmas.) Basically, without getting all geeky, the problem is this: there's a lack of good games. Many of us ...