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Well, fairly speaking its not an idea that struck my mind. I was surfing through archive of one of the programmer’s blog, and found this post. According to that post,

It’s unbelievable to me that a company would pay a developer $60-$100k in salary, yet cripple him or her with terrible working conditions and crusty hand-me-down hardware. This makes no business sense whatsoever. And yet I see it all the time. It’s shocking how many companies still don’t provide software developers with the essential things they need to succeed.

So true. I personally calculated myself, the cost of increasing infrastructure quality (read, better system, and better facilities) can be recovered in just a month, provided that it efficiently increases one’s productivity by atleast 10%. And then, the fact that better infrastructure leads to better state of mind, which means better productivity again. Not just me or other developers think this way, but whole gaming industry is running according to these principles. And no one can deny the fact that it is the fastest growing sector in IT industry.  I know it sounds ridiculous according to the managerial concept that those HR guys learn in their IIM classes. But sometimes you just have to think outta box to make sure you are the leader.

Anyways, to adhere to this bill, is totally a matter of choice of the HR. We can just hope for the same. By the time, we should just make a list of what changes can seriously affect the productivity and hence should be included in this bill.

P.S. - Few of them are my own thoughts and few are from other developers all across the world.

So, here is the list.

• Every programmer shall have a bigger workspace :- Well, easily this is one thing that can radically change the time required to search for a pad or pencil, while you are busy discussing the issues with your clients. It happened to me a lot of times. Dropping the pad, while looking for a whiteboard marker is not something that’s rare.
• Every programmer shall have two monitors :- Although increasing the number of monitors, reduces the amount of free space available on your desk. But it really helps to open multiple windows at times, and thus can save the time used for switching to help window every now and then, and coming back to code window. Also, it helps decreasing the frustration of accidentally closing a window while minimizing it.
• Every programmer should have better PC :- Programmers deserve the rights to work on best in class hardware, as they are the persons using computers for half of their life. And other point is that no one loves to wait for a program to compile or for a application to load, looking at those silly progress bar or status bar.
• Every programmer should have comfortable chair :- I should say I personally prefers bean bag, but if chair is comfortable, that’s good enough. After all, we have to sit on that chair for too long, and I don’t think your brain will work, if you are feeling pain in your arse.
• Every programmer should get enough of coffee and snacks :- Every other day, a programmer works for more than usual time schedule. So, enough of coffee, and snacks can always help him keep going for hours. Oh yeah, if s/he is a smoker, providing enough of smokes can be a good option too.
• Every programmer should get better mouse and keyboard :- At work, I just like most of the programmers, use a sticky keyboard, and a scroll mouse, and I really feel this is an important point for consideration.
• Every programmer deserves his own space :- What if some one keep on nitpicking on your just-a-draft webpage, saying that it doesn’t look cool? No one likes it, right. So, does the programmer. But, sadly managers just don’t understand. They keep on asking you to tell them how much percentage of task you have done to complete the homepage structure of the website. It simply hurts.
• Every programmer should have fast Internet connection :- In case, you don’t have offline help, its very important. I can still remember those days, when I was stuck on some stupid syntax error, and googling for same, took 15 minutes of my time, thanks to that silly 54kbps connection I have got at my desk. Just by increasing the speed to 256kbps, this time could have reduced to 5 minutes. And if you consider the fact that you encounter same situation every hour, that accounts for 15% of your productivity.
• Every programmer should have rights to ask “Why?” :- How many times you have felt as a programmer that something you are working on is not properly justified? That the spacing between two textboxes can be decreased by 10% to make the page look better and to fit more information? I felt it almost every day when working on a enhancements project. And then, you have got no right to ask why you just can’t do it. Is it because, some stupid jerk called Business Analyst didn’t thought of it first. I know it sounds crazy. People who have got no idea about coding, defines the way we should code, and we can’t even argue on that.
• Every programmer should have access to all the documentation, books and Google :- Why does the managers think that being a programmer, you should know every thing about your programming language, and environment used? Why can’t I just use Google to look for an answer, when I am stuck?  And do you know about any manager who have crammed every single management principles,he learnt from the business school?
• Every programmer should be given full right to wear any outfit :- I am never able to understand how can one’s outfit affect his work. One reason is that I have to wear professional outfits for those daily meetings, I may attend. But then, if I am supposed to attend those meetings, why the hell we need those managers for?

So, here is the list of points what developers think, should be included in their rights. I would definitely love to hear about other points that you think, should be a part of this bill. Well, till that time, I am off to file a petition to the programmer’s union about this bill. Oops, i forgot, i don’t even know about any union as such. Do you??? Do you even care about your rights????

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For many first time laptop buyers deciding how to go about buying a laptop is indeed a very tricky process. ReadersZone comes to the rescue of many such harried buyers by providing them with a detailed and easy to understand description of the various important specifications

Processor: Sometimes referred to as CPU or central processing unit of your laptop. This is the most important part of your laptop It’s always better to go with the fastest processor that you can afford. AMD’s mobile processors are usually more affordable than Intel’s.

Memory: Always look for laptops that have easy-to-access memory slots because memory is the first thing that a user would generally want to upgrade. Having more main memory is vital for system performance and more main memory lets you run more applications simultaneously.

Display Size: Unlike the desktop computer laptops are shipped with thin LCD screens. Wide-screen notebooks, which have an aspect ratio of 16:9, offer larger, sharper, and all-round better image than their 4:3 standard-screen cousins. 17-inch wide-screen laptop is a nice luxury if you’re not planning on traveling with it.

Hard Drive: Hard drive provides you the space for storing your personal data on magnetic disk. Generally a 160GB hard drive is good unless and until you are planning to store a huge amount of multimedia content like songs and movies. Hard Drive capacity alone does not make a good hard drive. The hard disk’s rotational speed also makes a big difference; a 7,200rpm laptop disk delivers significantly faster performance than a 5,400rpm model. The faster the disk spins, the better your notebook will perform overall, though a faster disk will also shorten your laptop’s battery life.

PC Cards and Express Cards: PC Card can plug into a slot on your notebook and can provide you with a number of connection types including modems, USB connections and wireless WAN radios which are all available in PC Card form. PC Cards are handy because they’re easy to upgrade and because you can buy third-party PC Card solutions after you purchase your notebooks. It’s always better to look for a laptop that has more number of PC Card slots. PC Cards and slots come in three sizes: Type I, II, and III. Type I cards are normally used for memory, Type II for input/output devices, and Type III for mass storage and firewalls. Express cards are the successor of PC Cards. Express Cards are smaller then the PC Cards and provides the twice the data transfer rate as compared to PC Cards.

Networking Options: Wireless networking has now become an essential part of any laptop. Most notebooks ship with a choice of 802.11b or 802.11b/G. Capable of data throughput of 11Mbps, 802.11b is fine for ordinary use. Public hotspots typically use 802.11b or 802.11g.

Video RAM: If you are not planning to play 3D games or do some graphics work then shared video memory is best suited for you otherwise if you are high end graphics user then go for a graphics chipset that at least share 64MB of system Memory.

Battery Life: If you do a lot of traveling with your laptop then it’s always good to have a battery that has the longest battery life available in all your models. Look for Battery capacity (measured in milliamp hours, or mAh), and the number of cells. Typical batteries have a mAh rating between 2,000mAh and 6,000mAh; higher the better. Cells are the actual compartments where power is produced and can range from four to 12; the more the better.

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Microsoft Windows XP is still preferred operating system, instead of the fact that it has a number of security loop holes. When Microsoft started building Vista, there primary goal is to make an operating that can address most of security issues that are addressed in Windows XP. Windows Vista comes with a number of security improvements. It’s important for end user to understand how to use these new security features.

• Network Access Protection (NAP): Network Access Protection (NAP) is one of the most desired and highly anticipated features of Windows Server 2008. NAP is a new platform and solution that controls access to network resources based on a client computer’s identity and compliance with corporate governance policy. NAP allows network administrators to define granular levels of network access based on who a client is, the groups to which the client belongs, and the degree to which that client is compliant with corporate governance policy. If a client is not compliant, NAP provides a mechanism to automatically bring the client back into compliance and then dynamically increase its level of network access. Network Access Protection is complicated to setup but I think it’s a good idea to setup Network Access Protection. Step by step guide: How to Set up Network Access Protection.

• Turn on Phishing Filter: Make sure that Phishing Filter is turned on for all your desktop computers. The Phishing Filter combines a local (client side) system scanning for suspicious website characteristics with an online service. Phishing Filter checks website characteristics to common Phishing websites, warn if it finds any fraudulent and legitimate website.
  The Phishing Filter is not enabled by default—you must actively enable the feature the first time you use the browser after installation. You can enable and disable the Phishing Filter with just a single click at any time using the browser menus.
• Use Network Profiles: Windows Vista does not treat all network connections equally as compare to previous version of Windows operating system. Vista’s Network and Sharing center designate a networks as public, private or a domain network. Vista treats domain networks automatically when computer is used to login into a domain. It’s very important to select proper network network profile because vista implements various security features based on network type.
• Use Vista 64-Bit Version: Windows Vista’s 64-Bit version is more secure as compare to 32-Bit version. Vista 64bit version offers Data Execution Prevention feature. DEP is a security feature that can help prevent damage to your computer from viruses and other security threats. DEP can help protect your computer by monitoring programs to make sure they use system memory safely. If a program tries running (also known as executing) code from memory in an incorrect way, DEP closes the program.

This Post is created reading  a number of Microsoft Technet Articles.

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Cell phones and PDAs are now become the integral part of our life. Before buying to any Cell phone or PDA devices these can be deciding factors while choosing your favorite Cell phone or PDA.

Size and Weight : Cell phones and PDA’s are meant for mobile users and they must fit into your pocket. Business users need a full keyboard otherwise most users need a device that is small and fit into their hands.

Performance: If you are using your Cell phone or PDA for downloading and running application the you need a phone that had a good processing power. Performance is key factor in PDA’s because they run multiple applications. Phones come with 500Mhz processor are good enough for most mobile applications.

Operating System: Currently Windows Mobile and Symbian are the most widely available operating system in mobile devices, apart from these two operating system different manufacturers using different operating system and their are some proprietary mobile operating systems are also present in the market. The cost of Mobile phone is also depends upon’s the  type of operating system like Microsoft charge $12 to $14 for per mobile while Symbian charge only $4 to $6 per mobile phone.

Connectivity: A mobile device capable of connecting other devices or computers using Bluetooth and WiFi is good for sharing and synchronizing mobile device with other devices. Bluetooth or WiFi can also be used to connect to Internet. Bluetooth is widely used protocol not only for connecting devices as well as accessories. WiFi is not popular as compare to Bluetooth, WiFi can be used to stream audio and video files. WiFi is very useful when you don’t have GPRS connection at that your WiFi enabled devices can surf you internet in WiFi zone.

Input: Touch screen may not be as useful as keyboard. When it comes to playing games keyboard gives better experience as compare to touch screen mobile phones. While buying a keyboard enabled mobile phone make sure that all keyboard buttons have right feel.

Batteries: Battery with larger capacity is always good for mobile phones because it will keep your mobile phone powered for longer period of time. You can also look for batteries that can be charged through USB devices. Also check the battery claimed life and battery talk time.

Memory: Most mobile phones gives support for additional memory support. SD is the most cheapest and widely available kind of memory. Some mobile phone manufactures only support their own proprietary type of memory. These memory can be costlier then SD memory.

Signal Quality: Mobile phone should have a good reception because mobile phones are used for making and receiving phone calls. Check the phone signal performance inside a building as well as in outdoors. very few people check the signal quality of mobile phones.

There can be some other points also consider before buying the Mobile phone.

• Camera.

• GPS

• Sound Quality

• Design and Style

• Audio Playback, FM Support and Music Support

• Third Part software support

• Warranty

Technorati Tags: Mobile Phone,PDA

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Google is no 1 search engine and people use Google’s AdWords program to promote their business. Google Adword can help publishers to get a good traffic as well as good business but not using it properly you may also loose your money. If you are planning to start a campaign with Google AdWords please try to avoid these mistakes.

Turn Off the Content Network Option

By default “Content Network” option is enabled in Google AdWords.  This option helps Google to put your ads on websites like About.com, New York Times and many other content rich websites. Advertisers see a high impression and some times high CTR also, but visitors coming from these websites won’t help you to increase your business they are just wasting your money.

Not using Proper Keywords

People often think that using to many keywords helps them to get more number of visitors as well as more business but this is not the case. Targeting a particular set of audience is key to Adword campaign success. Try to use more specific key words instead of general keywords.

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The Fundamental Computer Investigation Guide for Windows Solution Accelerator is intended for IT professionals who need to effectively conduct investigations of Microsoft(R) Windows(R)–based computers in their organizations. It provides a computer investigation model as well as process and best practice information. The guide also provides a fictitious example of an investigation that involves unauthorized access to confidential information. This investigation uses the provided guidance and demonstrates the use of numerous tools. Information is also included about how to configure a lab to create the example scenario. An appendix provides information about how to prepare for computer investigations, sample worksheets, contact information for reporting different types of computer-related crimes to appropriate law enforcement agencies, and lists of useful tools.

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Most Computer manufactures don’t give you the Windows Vista installation DVD, instead of this they provide a partition called as “Recovery Disc”, that users can use to install,repair or reinstall Windows Vista. Windows Vista DVD has one “Recovery Center” that can be used to recovering your computer via automatic recovery (it also fix the problems, while recovering the system),rolling-back to a system restore point, recovering a full PC backup, or accessing a command-line recovery console for advanced recovery purposes.

Microsoft has work towards this problem and made a recovery dick for this purpose. This Windows Vista recovery disc can’t be use to install or reinstall Windows Vista, but main purpose of this disc is that, it servers as Windows PE interface to recover Windows Vista. More advanced user can also use Microsoft WAIK kit to perform unattended Windows installations, capture Windows images with ImageX, and create Windows PE images.

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Currently around 80% of computers connected to internet are infected with spyware. For working securely on internet you must know the symptoms of spyware and how to remove spyware from your computer. If your computer starts to behave strangely or displays any of the symptoms listed below, you may have spyware or other unwanted software installed on your computer.

Computer is Slow: If your computer is working slowly as compare to its normal speed then there may be chances that your computer is infected with spyware. If some programs are crashing to frequently then it might be the chance that your computer is infected with spyware.

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Backup is just a copy of data stored in some other media including disk or tape drive. This stored data can to used to prevent from loss or stolen of data. An online backup is also one of the types of data backup but here you find software that will be used to store all your computer data to remote computer. The process of data backup is carried out over the secure network. There are a number of backup services available and each service provider provides a different set of services in online backup. While reading some white paper on online data backup I find out some useful features that you can look, while choosing your online backup service

Accessibility: Accessing data stored on your online backup service provider requires client software or you can access data from service provider’s website. Choosing accessibility feature depends upon the type of user you are, if you are a mobile user then choose a provider that will provide you a website to access data. For home users client software is better choice.

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Taking backup is very good practice but it can’t always protect your data. Think about thieves stole your backup drives, fire or flood or tsunami that can completely destroy your valuable data. The better choice is go for online data backup services. Online data backup services encrypt your data before sending to the remote server. Online data backup services can start processing and uploading files automatically on a schedule or in the background when there are enough free cycles available. Online data backup services are inexpensive and they won’t slow down your computer as well as your Internet browsing experience (after the initial large file uploads).

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