September 03 2010

Deciding Between a Custom-built and Pre-built Computer

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In the Computer Stone Age – say, 25 years ago or so – just about every computer was custom built. Before the big computer makers turned PCs into commodities, you would order a certain motherboard, a certain CPU, a certain amount of RAM (at up to $400 a megabyte in the mid-1980s) and even specify the wattage of your power supply. Then the marketing people took over from the entrepreneurs, and pre-built computers started to rule the roost.

Today, computer components have become so powerful and so relatively inexpensive, and manufacturing processes so sophisticated, that it is a simple thing for the “majors” – Dell, H-P/Compaq, IBM, Gateway – to offer custom-built computers as well as pre-built ones. How do you decide what is best for you?

What’cha gonna do?

The most important consideration is what you are going to use your computer for. If you are going to do some word processing, web surfing, music playing and a little photo work, an off-the-shelf pre-built computer is the way to go. Unless you have some high-octane processing to do, such as high-end game playing or professional video editing, you don’t need anything more than a company’s entry-level model. You could probably even make do with two- to five-year-old technology, even, if you don’t mind buying used or refurbished PCs without warranties.

On the other hand, if you are going to make more demands on your computer, you need more horsepower. For gamers, it is not just the CPU (Central Processing Unit, or “main brain”) strength that matters. Today’s computer games also require a great deal of graphics processing, meaning more powerful graphics subsystems. The lower-end computers have less powerful graphics chips “integrated” on the main circuit board, while higher-end machines have separate graphics “cards.”

More money vs. more smarts

If you need more power, for games or video or what-have-you, and Read More

September 03 2010

?/etc/init.d/rc exited outside the expected code flow? Linux Error

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The final step of Linux boot process is init process, which starts a system process defined in /etc/ initab file. init config file then directs the init process and the shell script /etc/rc.d/rc.sysinit runs. Linux distros put some startup scripts in rc subdirectories, particularly at /etc/rc.d to take control of the services required to be started at boot. But sometimes, you find errors while this process and your system fails to boot. In such situations, you might need to reformat and reinstall the system. Consequently, you require your recent data backup to restore missing information. But if backup exists in unclean state or is currently not present, use of Linux Data Recovery applications can get your lost data back.

You might receive the similar error message while trying to boot your Linux based system:

“/etc/init.d/rc exited outside the expected code flow.

init:rcS main process <number> terminated with status <status>”

You cannot boot the system after this error message.

Cause

Init scripts are located at /etc/init.d/ directory. The above error message occurs if these scripts fail to load and start. It might occur if some of the init.d scripts are corrupted or damaged. As a result, services don’t start and your system fails to boot.

Solution

To solve the existing issue, you should try any of these methods:

• You can boot the system using Live CD and recreate the damaged files using gedit. gedit is the text editor developed for GNOME desktop environment. It is a UTF-8 compatible text editor.

• Try booting the system with Live CD and replacing the damaged script file

• If the above measures fail to correct the problem, you should reformat and reinstall the operating system. After this, you need to use your recent data backup to restore lost information.

While restoring data from backup, if you find any errors or it proves to be Read More

September 03 2010

The Reseller Privileges and Package Features of Linux Host Elven

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A shared host plan is offered by different hosting companies, one of which is The Magic Host. Other than this plan, this web hosting company also provides other types of hosting services. These are dedicated hosting and VPS hosting. Among the three, the most common is shared hosting since you will be able to avail of affordable packages when you go for this. This specific web hosting service allows a huge number of websites within a single server connected to the Internet. Each website within that server has its own IP address, bandwidth, and disk space which separate it from the other websites. Shared hosting is very cost-efficient since all of the individuals sharing that same server also share the whole cost for the maintenance.

The Web Hosting Plans of The Magic Host

There are various types of web host plans and services offered by The Magic Host. The hosting plans of this company include the following:

• Solaris

• Oracle

• Windows

• FreeBSD

• Linux

Among these operating systems, the most well-known is Linux. When you go for the Linux hosting plans of The Magic Host, you have four options to choose from. The first plan is the Dwarf which has 50GB for its disk space and 200GB for its bandwidth. If you require more disk space and bandwidth, all you have to do is upgrade your Linux Host Dwarf to Linux Host Hobbit. With the latter, your disk space and bandwidth are upgraded to 200GB and 2000GB respectively. On the other hand, you can also upgrade the Hobbit to another budget host when you want to have more bandwidth and space. This is possible through the Linux Host Elven, which has a disk space of 300GB and a bandwidth of 3000GB. The Elven can be upgraded to the Wizard which has 400 GB disk space and 4000GB bandwidth.

The Advantages of Linux

The Linux is an Read More

September 02 2010

Reiserfs File System Corruption and Linux Recovery

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ReiserFS is the Journaled file system used for the Linux operating system. For the various features of this file system like metadata- only journaling, tail packing and online resizing, it is well adopted by the users who rely on it as the repository of data references.

So the reliance indicates that how critical it is that the integrity of the file system may remain maintained and depart from any corruption issues. But on the contrary of the ideal scenario, the corruption in this file system may occur, which can force you to think about Linux data recovery solution, as all the references of the stored data get wiped out with the corruption of the file system.

The unexpected system shutdown, virus attack like problems may craft this scenario of data loss. At the time of corruption, the popped up screen may suggest you to use ‘reiserfsck-rebuild-tree’, but one should be aware of the fact that at the point of file system corruption, attempting to rebuild the tree may corrupt the existing file more harshly and thus creating the critical obstacles for Linux recovery. New entries may be introduced with the gibberish contents.

Some of the other error messages may indicate that something is going fishy with the file system and thus the proper fix is needed to be deployed. After this, the data remains inaccessible as all the entries of the data gets removed, giving you a hard drive which appears particularly empty, which in reality is not.

For data recovery Linux, only the proper mechanism is required. The data is still there on the hard drive and can be fetched out with the suitable algorithms. The Linux data recovery software can well perform this from their targeted scanning algorithms.

In case of file system corruption, the Read More

September 02 2010

Difference Between Computer Rental and Computer Leasing

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If you have a need for a computer for your home or business, but cannot afford to buy one outright, you have two basic options: you can rent a computer or you can lease one. While these two options may seem very similar, there are actually major differences between renting and leasing. Both are convenient, but for different situations. Understanding these differences will help you choose the best option for your needs.

What Is Renting a Computer

Renting a computer is a lot like renting a car. This is usually done for a temporary and short need for a computer. You pay a fee, which is far less than the cost of actually buying a computer, and are given a computer to use. This can be just one computer or it can be a complete network, depending on your needs, but you will only be using the equipment for a short period of time, ranging from a few days to a few months.

When Renting a Computer Works Well

When would you want to rent a computer? There are many situations when it might be convenient. Consider these options:

? School – Do you want to offer a short computer training program at your school or college setting? Renting a setup would save you money, and you could charge an additional fee to your students who wish to take the class. When the training period is over, you simply return the equipment.

? Conventions – When you present at a convention, you may wish to have specialized equipment to use to display your PowerPoint presentation. Instead of lugging your own equipment with you, dealing with it at the airport, and setting it up once you arrive at your location, you can rent the gear, have it set up for you when you arrive, and simply bring your presentation on a disk or drive.

? Travel – In general, traveling is a time when carrying your computer is difficult, particularly if you do not have a laptop. When you rent a computer, you can have it ready, Read More

September 02 2010

Linux Certification: Defined

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The Linux certification is one of those certifications, which can boost up and which add to the credibility of a certain professional and which give proof that someone possess a good technical skill. This certification which are provided by some institute are taken very seriously by the well-known and leading companies and organizations of the IT sector and thus, the professional is said to be good in his field. Being a Linux certified at one or more levels has a great advantage to the IT professionals, because it pave way to employment opportunities especially this time we are living in the technological world. Employers are too particular whether the one they are going to hire are Linux certified because employees who are Linux certified benefits the employers as well as the company because they can assure that their Linux operating systems and networks will function and run slowly but smoothly. Just like other courses, one must pass an examination in order to become a Linux certified, and among these exams is the Red Hat or Novell exam. Ones a person passed this examination he or she shows that they are ready to take it on as they exist in the world of employment and work. If you want to land a good job, be a Linux certified.

Though it takes much effort and patience in passing the examination, yet right after passing the exam you can see how Linux certification will benefit you. You will be known as an IT professional being expert in your field through the Linux certification. In order to have the Linux certification one must pass the examination, thus rigid training and review of the lessons are to be considered in order to be certified. It is a long way to go if you will not take it by heart. You must put all your passion and having a positive outlook that you are going to pass the exam and be certified. Once you grab the said certification, the real world of business awaits you to be with them. If we try to look at it, you will be search by the Read More

September 01 2010

Computer Franchise Ownership: Is It Right For You?

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Are you starting an IT consulting business and wondering if computer franchise ownership is right for you?

As a computer consultant, you have some options when it comes to which type of business you should start. Not every type of computer business works well for every consultant. So you have to think carefully as you are making important business model decisions. There are many ways to approach computer franchise ownership and quite a few pros and cons associated with being part of franchise organizations.

The following 5 computer franchise ownership secrets can help you decide which type of business will be best for your goals and aspirations. 

1. Know The Advantages of Computer Franchises. You get the reputation of a larger, established company. You get a built-in peer support network (usually, but not always helpful). You get a variety of pre-established tools and resources. You get ongoing support and some basic initial hand holding.

2. Know The Disadvantages of Computer Franchises. A substantial capital investment is required to buy into a computer franchise. You will have to pay a percentage of your revenue or profit each month as a royalty to the franchiser, which will cut into your bottom line. You will have to conform to restrictions when it comes to how you do business. You will have to adapt to geographic territory restrictions.

3. Computer Franchise Ownership Requires a Lot More Startup Capital Funds Than Other Types of Computer Consulting Businesses. When you start a computer consulting business from scratch, you can expect a relatively low initial investment. A new computer consulting company is more time intensive than capital intensive. This means you can take anywhere from three to six months (or more) to develop enough contacts, prospects and project opportunities in your sales funnel to be booked up to a 50-60 percent utilization rate. With computer Read More