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Explore your family tree with FTAnalyzer 5

Publié: juillet 28, 2015, 12:10pm CEST par Mike Williams

Genealogy sites like Ancestry are great for presenting family trees, taking all that raw data and presenting it in a straightforward graphical form.

But if you want to really understand your tree, to spot problems, links, patterns you might have missed, then you’ll need to delve a little deeper.

FTAnalyzer is an open source tool for Windows which imports your data in the form of a GEDCOM file, then analyzes it across a host of useful reports, providing details you might not have uncovered any other way.

If you don’t already have your tree in GEDCOM format then you’ll need to create that first. On Ancestry, go to Tree Pages > Tree Settings > Export Tree; in applications, look for a relevant Save or Export option. Open that file in FTAnalyzer and you’re ready to go.

The program’s tabbed interface starts with tables of data, listing individuals, families, surnames, locations, occupations and more. While this sounds basic, just being able to see all this data at once can be helpful, especially as you’re able to sort it by any field. Just click the column header and you can sort a list by birth location, say, maybe surname, perhaps helping you spot new links.

If your tree has thousands of people then this might not help you much, but more detailed reports are also on hand. The "Data Errors" tab looks for possible mistakes in the data (birth date after the mother’s death, married before the age of 13, and 20+ others), while the "Duplicates" report intelligently checks your tree for people who appear more than once.

The "Census" tab takes this a step further with a choice of 16 reports highlighting issues with US, UK, Canadian, Irish and other census data. To take a single example, one click will show you everyone you’ve not located for a given census year, very helpful in understanding where to research next. (If your ancestor wasn’t where they should have been in 1880, then finding their actual location could tell you a lot.)

All this focus on tables of raw text can be tiring, but FTAnalyzer does have some excellent graphical touches. The Maps feature takes your GEDCOM locations, geocodes them, and presents the results on Google-sourced maps. The Timeline tool highlights your ancestor’s locations on a map, for instance, then graphically shows how they’ve moved around over the years. It’s an excellent feature which justifies the download all on its own.

The "Color Reports" module is another plus, using color coding to highlight the census data you have (or don’t have) on an individual. But this isn’t just about passive reviews. If you spot a red ("no information entered") year, then double-clicking it will open a browser window with the results of an Ancestry search (as long as you’re an Ancestry member, anyway).

And there’s much, much more. Treetops reports, World War analysis. An "On This Day" page which lists family tree and world events for any given day. Options to export various parts of your tree to CSV files.

FTAnalyzer is being very actively developed, too, with new features arriving all the time. If you have -- or can get -- your family tree in GEDCOM form then go grab a copy immediately, find out what the program can do for you.
Malware writers turn back the clock as MS Office macro attacks resurface

Publié: juillet 28, 2015, 11:32am CEST par Ian Barker

When Microsoft turned off default execution of macros in Office their popularity as a means of delivering malware declined. But thanks to the use of social engineering techniques to get people to turn them on, macro attacks are making a comeback.

This is one of the findings of the latest mid-year security report from networking specialist Cisco. In two recent campaigns Dridex Trojans were delivered as attachments to emails -- each sent to specific recipients -- purporting to deliver invoices or other important documents.

Other findings in the report are the continued popularity of the Angler exploit kit thanks to its authors' recent concentration on, and quick work to take advantage of, vulnerabilities in Adobe Flash. Cisco reports that, on average, 40 percent of users who encounter an Angler exploit kit landing page on the web are compromised.

Ransomware continues to be a problem too. Cryptocurrencies like bitcoin and anonymization networks such as Tor are making it even easier for miscreants to enter the malware market and quickly begin generating revenue. To become even more profitable while continuing to avoid detection, operators of crimeware, like ransomware, are even hiring and funding their own professional development teams to create new variants and tactics.

"Ransomware exists on its reputation," says Craig Williams, Security Outreach Manager at Cisco. "Users pay up to get their data back, so they finance new generations of the malware".

Typically a ransom of between $300 and $500 is demanded, not so high that a user won't pay it or, worse, that it will motivate the user to contact law enforcement. Instead, the ransom is more of a nuisance fee. And users are paying up. Cisco reports that nearly all ransomware-related transactions are carried out through the anonymous web network Tor. This allows adversaries to keep the risk of detection low and profitability high.

The report notes that so far 2015 has seen unprecedented speed in the innovation, resiliency, and evasiveness of attacks. "Attackers have no barriers to rolling out new technology," says Williams. "While users are not as agile in moving to new versions to stop attacks".

The full Cisco 2015 Midyear Security Report is available to download from the Cisco website.

Photo Credit: Balefire / Shutterstock
Windows 10 launch site launches

Publié: juillet 28, 2015, 11:00am CEST par Mark Wilson

We're just 24 hours away from the launch of Windows 10 (actually, we don’t yet know what time the operating system will be unleashed tomorrow). If the stream of videos coming out the Microsoft camp hasn't whetted your appetite, maybe the new Windows 10 portal will do the job.

Microsoft has launched a new site encouraging people to #UpgradeYourWorld and providing everything a would-be upgrader might want to know about Windows 10. For Microsoft, this is much more than just another software launch; the company is pinning a great deal on the success of Windows 10, and the marketing machine is now going into overdrive.

The Windows 10 launch site is socially-powered as well as housing information from Microsoft. A live map displays tweets from around the world as Twitter users talk about Windows 10 -- just use the hashtag #UpgradeYourWorld or mention Windows 10 to get involved if you want. If you've managed to miss all of the hype so far, the site serves as a place to catch up with everything -- including Microsoft's "10 reasons to upgrade to Windows 10" (see ours here).

If you want to familiarize yourself with the OS ahead of its arrival on your computer, there is a quick-start guide -- which is the same as the one that leaked yesterday. For the completist, there are also all of the videos and screenshots you could possibly want. Hit the Windows 10 launch site to see what Microsoft has in store for you.
OnePlus 2, the '2016 flagship killer' launches

Publié: juillet 28, 2015, 4:21am CEST par Manish Singh

One of the year's most anticipated smartphones, the One Plus 2, is finally here. Chinese smartphone manufacturer OnePlus announces today that it is releasing its new flagship. Successor to the "2014 flagship killer", the new phone has fans perking up their ears.

Much like its predecessor, the OnePlus 2 isn't a slouch when it comes to specifications. It sports a 5.5-inch display of FHD (1,920 x 1,080) screen resolution. The company says that anything beyond FHD display on a phone "adds nothing to the user experience". The device is powered by a second generation Snapdragon 810 processor, coupled with 4GB of LPDDR4 RAM and 64GB internal storage.

Other features include a Type-C power inlet and a fingerprint sensor. Regarding the camera, the device comes equipped with a 13-megapixel sensor with sensor pixel size of 1.3 (35% larger than standard smartphone cameras) at the back, and a 5-megapixel shooter placed on the front. The company says that the primary camera can take shots in less than 0.3 seconds. It can also be used to record videos at 120 fps. On the software side, the phone runs the Android Lollipop-powered Oxygen OS.

There's also a fingerprint scanner placed on the home-button. It can store prints of up to 5 unique fingers, OnePlus says.

While the phone does come paired with the controversial Snapdragon 810 chipset, OnePlus reassures users that it worked with Qualcomm to sort out the overheating issues. In fact, the new comes paired with a new improved version of the processor. The phone is powered by a 3,300 mAh battery.

The OnePlus 2 will become available for purchase starting August 11 in US, Canada, India, EU, and China regions. The 16GB variant of the OnePlus 2 is priced at $329, while the 64GB edition will sell for $389.
Woman celebrates 100th Birthday on Skype, dies shortly thereafter

Publié: juillet 28, 2015, 3:58am CEST par Brian Fagioli

They say Americans are living longer nowadays, but dang, I am not sure how long that can last. Everywhere I look, I see more overweight people -- myself included. As Americans eat more junk food and spend more time on their butts, heart disease and diabetes are on the rise, cutting the lifespans of many. Reaching 100 years old is becoming much harder to achieve.

Recently, however, a woman named Amor Macias (aka "Mama Moy") did just that -- she celebrated her 100th Birthday! Unfortunately, some of the family was unable to participate in the festivities -- not in person, at least. Instead, the family used Skype to communicate with the non-present family members with great results.

"When it dawned on her that she could hear and that they could have an actual conversation, her eyes lit up and she clapped with joy, it was incredible! Being hard of hearing, having that visual connection was huge for her", explains Nicole Pirshafiey, Skype user and Amor Macias' granddaughter.

The Skype Team explains, "it was at this moment that the whole family realized just how much technological advancement Mama Moy had seen during her 100 years. From having no electricity in the house as a child, to seeing the introduction of television, phones and the Internet -- Mama Moy used Skype to connect with her oldest grand-daughter and Nicole's stepdad for the first time in a century. Needless to say it made for an incredibly emotional day".

Sadly, the woman referred to as "Mama Moy" died shortly thereafter. A mere six days after experiencing the power of Skype, she was taken away. While this is sad, it is also beautiful that she was able to reach the age of 100 and celebrate it with her family. Microsoft deserves major kudos for developing a product that made this magical moment happen.

Do you use Skype to communicate with older family members? Tell me about it in the comments.
VeriFyle reveals Cellucrypt, a new multi-layer encryption key management technology

Publié: juillet 28, 2015, 2:16am CEST par Mark Wilson

VeriFyle, the company headed by Hotmail inventor and co-founder Jack Smith, has a new encryption key management technology which it believes will "re-invent how the world thinks about secure sharing and messaging". The major difference is that any object that is shared to the cloud using the system is encrypted for individual users rather than in bulk.

Cellucrypt offers such a high level of security that VeriFyle believes that it "makes illicit bulk-access to customer data virtually impossible." It's a bold claim, but Cellucrypt builds on the traditional public-key system with the addition of password-derived keys.

The encryption technique will be used by VeriFyle's messaging and file-sharing services when it launches later in the year. Cellucrypt has been patented by VeriFyle and will be made available to customers free of charge. Introducing the new encryption technique VeriFyle says:

The patented Cellucrypt technology assigns each data object (e.g. document, note or conversation) a unique encryption key, which is itself encrypted uniquely each time a user shares that object. By encrypting each data object individually for users, Cellucrypt makes illicit bulk-access to customer data virtually impossible.

CEO Jack Smith has high hopes for his company's new technology:

Key management should be invisible to the end-user and it should maximize users' security and peace of mind without burdening them with extra steps and add-on products. VeriFyle is the first all-in-one product that combines advanced key management technology with cloud sharing and messaging. The result is a significantly more secure way to share data.

Photo credit: m00osfoto / Shutterstock
Toshiba Portégé R30-A200SMB 13.3 inch business laptop [Review]

Publié: juillet 28, 2015, 1:28am CEST par Brian Fagioli
One size does not fit all when it comes to laptops. Sure, everyone loves a super-thin and sexy notebook, but business users in particular have much greater needs. For instance, an optical drive is much less popular with consumers nowadays, but many business workstations still have the need. Many consumers have moved on to HDMI and DisplayPort, but businesses still have older monitors and projectors that are VGA only, so a VGA port on a laptop is needed.

While Toshiba makes great consumer-grade computers, its business-class machines are where it truly shines. The 13.3 inch Portégé R30, a small and medium business laptop I have been testing lately, is no exception.

Specifications
- Operating System: Microsoft Windows 7 Professional (Windows 8.1 upgrade media included)
- Processor: Intel Core i5 (4th Gen) 4210M Dual-Core, 2.6 GHz Max Turbo Speed, 3.2 GHz
- Video: HD Graphics 4600
- RAM: 4 GB (1 x 4GB) 1600 MHz
- Storage: 500 GB HDD / 5400 rpm
- Display: 13.3 inch 1366 x 768
- Optical Drive: DVDRW (R DL) / DVD-RAM Read Speed: 24x (CD) / 8x (DVD) Write Speed: 24x (CD) / 8x (DVDR) / 6x (DVDR DL)
- Wi-Fi: 802.11ac
- Battery: 6-cell lithium ion
Video Overview

Impressions

The Portégé R30 comes in many configurations, but my test unit is rather meager. The Intel Core i5 4210m is very powerful, but the computer only has 4GB of RAM and a 500GB 5400RPM HDD. This is totally acceptable for my needs, and probably the average office worker's needs too, but you can always configure with more memory, an SSD and even a Core i7.

Upon taking it out of the box, I was a bit perplexed -- in a good way. You see, it is a rather thick laptop, so your mind expects it to be hefty; not so. Actually, it is impressively light (about 3.4 pounds), making you wonder if there are actually components in the chassis -- don't worry, there are, haha!

The body is made of luxurious magnesium, making it feel very premium. Don't get me wrong, plastic is a perfectly good material, but the magnesium both looks and feels much better.

Toshiba has outfitted the Portégé R30 with plenty of ports -- all of which can be restricted by an administrator. On the right side, there is an SD card slot for importing photos and other files. This side also features a USB 3.0 port, headset jack, Kensington lock hole, and Ethernet port.

Most importantly, however, the right side is home to a DVD burner. While consumers have less need for optical drives, small and medium businesses may still have need. the business may still utilize boxed software that comes on disk, making it an easy way to install without buying external options. Where it can really shine for a small and medium businesses is data backup. DVD is a wonderful media for archiving data to be kept on-premises. It is affordable and fairly durable.

The left side of the Portégé R30 has 2 more USB 3.0 ports, the power port, an HDMI-out port and a VGA-out port. I know what you are thinking -- who the hell still uses VGA? Uh, businesses do. Older projectors in particular are still mounted in conference rooms and feature this port only. Companies probably have perfectly working VGA-only monitors that be used when the machine is docked.

Speaking of being docked, Toshiba has a docking station/port replicator port on the bottom. This makes it easy for the employee to dock while in the office and easily connect to a mouse, keyboard, wired internet and large monitors.

Also on the bottom is something essential for road-warriors -- a removable battery! Yes, you can carry a spare battery or two when traveling and easily swap them. While this used to be the norm on all laptops, the option is slowly being removed. With that said, you may not need to buy any spares -- I can easily get between 7 and 8 hours on a single charge with normal use -- impressive!

The bottom is also how you access the inside for upgrading. As you can see above, by removing 4 screws you can access both the hard drive and RAM. The 500GB 5400RPM is totally fine, but it is nice to know a future upgrade to an SSD will be super-easy. I was pleasantly surprised to see that the 4GB memory was a single stick -- you can buy a matching stick to increase to 8GB if needed. You can also upgrade to 16GB with 2 8GB sticks if ever needed.

Opening the laptop, you are presented with an absolutely fabulous chiclet-style keyboard. The layout is perfect and Toshiba did not do anything funky or annoying as some other manufacturers do, such as relocating common keys. It really is a joy to type on, as the keys are rigid and exact -- not at all spongy.

The trackpad is one of the best I have used on a business laptop. It is a clickable variant, meaning that there are not separate buttons below it. There are however buttons above it, which are designed to be used with the pointing stick in the middle of the keyboard. While I have never been able to adjust to accurately using a pointing stick, some people do prefer it for some reason. I actually found the stick to get in the way of my typing -- sometimes my finger would hit it. Don't worry though, the nub pops right off.

Speakers are surprisingly great, offering very clear and loud sound. The speakers are on the top -- slightly positioned towards the user -- as they should be. Listening to audio is a great experience.

Where some people may be dismayed, however, is the resolution. The non-touch display is merely 1366 x 768 -- low by today's consumer standards. With that said, it is perfectly acceptable in the business world, where it is still very common. When sharing presentations and documents with fellow co-workers, it helps if everyone is on the same resolution, as the creator does not have to worry about how it will scale.

Conclusion

The Toshiba Portégé R30-A200SMB 13.3 inch notebook is a wonderful workstation for both small and medium businesses. The Core i5 and 4GB of RAM offer great performance in Windows 7, and should run Windows 10 equally well if and when you upgrade. All programs and applications, including Microsoft Office, open extremely fast and never experience lag or slowdown. Both you and your employees should be extremely satisfied with this well-built laptop.

Best of all, you do not have to break the bank to obtain this portable workstation as configured. If you shop around, retailers are selling it for between $725-$850. This is a great price, making it a wonderful value. I would suggest buying it from Newegg here.

The Toshiba Portégé R30-A200SMB is very much recommended.