When we think of adware, what comes to mind are those annoying and pesky ads that pop up out of nowhere whenever we are surfing the net. Anybody who has surfed through the net has encountered those irritating pop-up adwares advertising everything from computer software down to Viagra. Adwares are some of the most derided objects in the web alongside viruses, spyware and other malicious softwares and programs. Although adwares are alleged to be the most benign form of spyware, most web users hate the blatant and bothersome way of advertising. Most are often tricked into clicking on such adwares and end up unintentionally downloading something far more serious.

What are adwares, anyway? Adware or advertising-supported software is defined as any computer program or software package in which advertising and other marketing material are included with or automatically loaded by the software. Adwares are usually played back after installation. Some malicious adwares upload information about the computer or its user’s activities even without the consent of its user. Adwares most often take the form of banner ads that appear on pop up windows or anywhere on the computer screen.

Software applications display these advertising banners whenever a program is opened or through some other triggering mechanism. Most adwares are integrated into a free application. This is a way for the developers to recover the costs of creating such software. A prominent example of this is the Opera browser software, which is a free application but comes with a banner ad. The adware can only be removed once the user purchases and registers his copy of the software. It is also a revenue-generating mechanism. A company can sponsor adwares to capture more visitors and potential customers. Adware as a marketing strategy is just one of the many techniques used by websites to attract more traffic.

However, some adwares are more than just pesky and garish ads. In many cases, adwares accompany a more malicious program, which uploads information about the user collected without permission. The users surfing habits are then tracked; in some cases, the browser home page is altered or redirected to the adware company’s sponsoring site. These types of adwares are dangerous since they may jeopardize the computer system’s health. Aside from installing malicious software, they may also become an avenue for viruses to invade the system.

Adwares have come under fire not only because of their annoying presence in the form of pop ups and banners but also in the way they invade the privacy of the user. Trackware and Spyware are just two of the “evil” forms that adware can take. That is why most computer users make an effort to get rid of these adwares. Because of the annoying nature of pop-up adware, most browsers now employ an adware blocking system through the form of a pop-up blocker or adware blocker. Browsers such as Microsoft’s Internet Explorer and Mozilla’s Firefox all use pop-up blockers, which instantly block or close any window that is triggered by adware in the sites that the user visits. These steps have significantly reduced the number of irritating adware that pop up every time a site is opened.

Most antivirus programs and utilities now feature an adware search and removal system. These programs indexes known adwares and spywares in the internet universe and searches for it in the user’s computers system then subsequently quarantines or deletes the malicious files. Nevertheless, despite the numerous efforts against adwares, they continue to plague web surfers with their showy ads and banners as well as the nasty programs they introduce into the computer system. As the sage of the annoying adware continues, web surfers are also equipped with the best tools and utilities to combat them.

There are many websites online that offer free screensavers for download. The question remains though, are those screensavers safe? By downloading and installing these so called free screensavers will any harm come to your computer? This is a legitimate concern, which needs to be addressed before any user even thinks about installing a free screensaver.

There are several malicious programs which can come bundled with a free screensaver. These will mainly be viruses, spyware, adware, and toolbars. There are a few variations within these programs, but in the main they are considered undesirable, unless the user specifically requests them. And out of that list, the only one that you would even consider installing would be a friendly toolbar. But more on that later.

Below is a brief run-down of each type of malicious programs that you would want to avoid:

Viruses: These must be avoided at all costs as they can detrimentally harm your computer, often to the point of losing unrecoverable data. If you are afraid of being infected with viruses, only download software from trusted sites where programs are verified and tested, such as at Download.com. Download.com also host their own files, which means that software cannot be altered at a later date to include any viruses.
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Applicant tracking systems are either an human resource manager best friend or worst enemy. Either a company’s applicant tracking systems identify the best prospects BEFORE they join another company or not. Effective applicant tracking systems like time in a bottle enable HR managers to interview the best candidates. Ineffective applicant tracking systems cause a “bottleneck” that lets excellent job candidates slip through the system.

Hosted Solution – Applicant Tracking Systems
Applicant tracking systems and hosted solutions are a logical combination. While a company may install, debug, upgrade and program its own applicant tracking systems, the question is why? For companies in a niche employment market, it may make sense because the cost per employee of their applicant tracking systems is low. For example, a company reviewing say twenty resumes per hire. The cost of missing the one in a thousand employee of course is HUGE. Hosted applicant tracking systems are more likely to uncover the one in a thousand employee as well better average workers than as company’s own applicant tracking systems.

Search & Data Mining – Applicant Tracking Systems
A day late and a dollar short in the HR department can cost a company dearly. In some companies, just a few people review job applicants. Then there are holding companies in which many people mine the HR database for positions with related divisions in the group. The economy of scale offered by the joint applicant tracking systems reduces the overall employee acquisition cost for individual companies and the holding group.
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Microsoft’s next-generation operating system is coming in early 2007, offering improvements that are both impressive and unprecedented in the Windows world. On Apple’s side of the world, Tiger, the 5th incarnation of Apple’s legendary OS X operating system is still up to challenge as to what Vista has to offer, even if it’s already two years old.

Although Vista and Tiger are almost playing in the same field in terms of features and technology, there’s a major difference in the strategy that the two companies made in delivering their next-generation operating systems. Microsoft wanted to bring everything new and shiny to the table all in one big package, while Apple slowly built and perfected a world-class operating system by frequent, less dramatic, major upgrades. This explains why while Windows XP stayed for 5 years without a major upgrade, OS X had 3 major upgrades to its original incarnation in roughly the same time frame.

User Interface

The most noticeable improvements happen here, and rightfully so, since improvements in the user interface are the ones that affect the users first and foremost. Vista seems to have taken many pages from the Tiger book of slick features but also has some features of its own that’s missing from the Apple operating system. I think it’s fair to say that some similarities are really just inevitable end results of improving the current state of the UI in both platforms.

Vista’s icons are now as slick as its Tiger counterparts, supporting icon sizes of up to 256 by 256 pixels. Tiger on the other hand, currently supports only up to 128 by 128 pixel icons. But Vista takes it even further, using what is called as live icons. A live icon visually resembles the actual contents of the document it represent so that a folder’s live icon is shown as a folder icon padded with the thumbnails of the actual files that you’ll see inside the folder. This is very helpful in skimming through your files and folders without opening them. Tiger can only show previews of graphic files.

In Vista, the “My” way of naming user folders such as My Documents, My Music, etc. has been dropped. Now you will only have user folders named Documents, Music and Pictures. Not unlike what Tiger has.

Aero, the user interface of Vista brings to the Windows world lots of transparencies. Application windows in Vista show a translucent border that lets you see through it. This is a feature that OS X once had, but was taken out in Tiger.

Expose, which is perhaps the most innovative UI feature of Tiger, elegantly addressed the window-management problem most users had, especially those who work with lots of windows open. At the touch of a button or at a flick of the mouse, all your windows are miniaturized and smartly tiled across the screen. Vista offers its own take, with a feature called Flip 3D. In Vista’s version, windows are miniaturized and stacked on top of each other, and angled such that you can see enough of each window’s content distinctively, and you use the scroll wheel to go through all the stacked windows. Tiger’s implementation is more usable and convenient than its Vista counterpart.

Widgets vs Gadgets

In Tiger, the days of opening full-blown applications for simple, specific tasks have long been gone. Thanks to Dashboard. With Dashboard, you can install and run mini-applications called widgets that are specially designed (using a relatively easy language) for certain tasks. Widgets include calculator, stocks, dictionary, yellow pages and many others. At the touch of a button, all these can auto-magically appear when you need them, and as quickly, disappear to let you go back to what you’re doing.

Vista sports the same feature, only the mini-applications are called Gadgets, and the Vista version promises more integration with Microsoft’s online service http://Live.com.
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Many computer users adopt the ‘it will never happen to me’ policy, but there are a number of computer viruses out there just waiting to infect and destroy the information contained on their hard-drive. This is why companies invented anti-virus software, which is a program that automatically helps to detect the presence of viruses on a computer or in a file before it is opened.

Anyone who spends a considerable amount of time surfing the internet, visiting unfamiliar websites or downloading photographs is at a higher risk for computer viruses than those who do not. Computer viruses are typically attached to word processing documents, computer programs and images which, if downloaded, may instantly affect the computer’s performance.

If a computer virus infects a computer, the owner may immediately lose everything in their computer and may be forced to use the factory restore disk. This CD, which is accompanied by most new computers, will restore the computer to it’s original factory settings.
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Spyware has become the most prominent computer security problem. How do you choose a good spyware removal tool? Beware of antispyware software which installs spyware/adware to your computer.

Spyware is a hidden software program. It is often used to monitor the browsing and shopping habits of computer users. Spyware can also be a remote control program that steals confidential banking and personal information.

Spyware has quickly become the most prominent internet security problem. According to the National Cyber Security Alliance, spyware infects more than 90% of home PCs. Recent survey shows that spyware is also sneaking into the network of corporate computers.

Spyware is often coupled with free downloads, such as free music, game and software downloads. Spyware may slow down computer, hijack homepage and create uncontrolled pop-up advertisements. Some spyware programs can remain unnoticed, secretly gathering information from the computer. Once installed, spyware is difficult to remove without the help of dedicated antispyware software.

Due to the rise of spyware activity, antispyware programs are in great demand these days. But are these spyware removal tools the same? Do they provide the security consumers need?

There are many reports that some antispyware programs installed their own spyware and adware to the computer. One consumer was quoted saying: “It’s a rip-off. I downloaded the free trial of an antispyware program, only to find out that it added its own adware to my computer.” Other consumers have complained that the antispyware program they use cannot detect all spyware programs. Some even slow down the computer and create pop-up advertisements.
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