How to fix USB device not recognized in Windows

Are you getting a “USB device not recognized” error whenever you plug in a USB mouse, keyboard, or other USB device? I love USB and have 5 ports on my computer so that I can connect my mouse, keyboard, camera, phone, and printer to it all at once!

However, last weekend, my computer stopped recognizing my USB devices! The strange thing about it was that the USB ports were not bad because all of my devices were still getting power to them. I could still charge my cell phone without a problem!

So I started with the normal fixing methods, including uninstalling the drivers for my devices and reinstalling them. That didn’t work! Next I tried System Restore thinking that maybe I had installed something and it caused a conflict with the USB system drivers. That didn’t work!

I read online that in order to fix this problem I should go to Device Manager and uninstall all of the devices under USB Controllers. Restarted the computer, reinstalled the USB drivers, but the problem STILL did not go away!

You may also see in Device Manager that the device shows up as an “Unknown Device”.

So how did I finally fix the problem? Well, apparently it’s a super simple solution! No need to edit the registry, uninstall drivers, or anything of that sort.

Simply UNPLUG YOUR COMPUTER FROM THE POWER SUPPLY. Yes that’s it! Note that this does not mean just turning off your computer because modern computers don’t really turn off when you press the power button as the motherboard still gets power.

First to explain, the motherboard is where all of hardware of the computer is connected to, including the USB ports. Sometimes the motherboard needs to be “rebooted” also because something can go wrong, i.e. all your USB ports suddenly stop working. The small microprocessor on the motherboard will reload the drivers and your USB ports should be back to recognizing all devices!

So first turn off your computer using Shut Down or pressing the power button and then UNPLUG it from the wall outlet. Let it sit for about a minute and then plug it back in.

Hope this helps someone fix that pesky “USB device not recognized” Windowserror!

Read More

Online Places to keep Backup of Photos on Digital Cameras, Mobile Phones, Computers

Here we are discussing 8 online places to keep backup of photos residing on memory card of Digital Cameras, Smartphones and Hard Disk of computers. There are so many popular clouding services to keep photos for lifetime without spending so much.

These days almost every mobile phone is coming with either 2MP (mega pixel), 3MP, 5MP or even 12MP camera and we do take some snaps with that. And the market is also populated to cheaperdigital cameras with 4GB or more memory card. We use these easily available cameras in daily life to take lot many pictures and after certain period, we take the memory card (SD card) out of them and connect that with computer to transfer the snaps to hard disk. Thru memory card on Smartphones, we do share pictures directly on social networking sites like Facebook, Twitter, Orkut etc. and then just forget about other snaps.

After certain period, while cleaning the hard disk, we delete some snaps (intentionally or unintentionally) as well. To avoid such situation or to organize your memories, you should take backup of your digital life so that after 15 – 20 years, you can recall the moment by just going thru them. There are some awesome places to keep your photos safely. But before listing the benefits of these places, I would suggest you a way to keep your photos on web for lifetime.

How to take backup of Photos to keep them for lifetime

There are lot many services available on web to keep the backup of files like pictures, videos etc. But I want one place to have all my data so that after few years, I don’t need to remember so many IDs, passwords of different places where I used to keep them. That’s why, here I have explained a simple way to move these files on one place.

First of all I would like to tell you that the single place in this case is Amazon S3 which is the most reliable, cheap and fast web clouding service. Now you can install Flickr, Dropbox, Mozy on your computer or Smartphones and then upload the pictures of smartphone’s camera to these places wherever you want. Now connect them to your computer and then upload the pictures (photos) to Amazon S3 account. Here is the process to upload the pictures and video files to Amazon S3 account. Now this way, you have your important pictures on Flickr, Facebook, Picasa and then you also have some snaps on Dropbox account i.e. even on your PC synched with Smartphone. And finally you have everything on one place as well i.e. Amazon S3.

Here are some details about online backup services for photos, videos, and other files.

1. Flickr

This is a photo, video sharing platform by Yahoo. You can use Flickr free account to share pictures of total 100 MB per month. There is a limit of 2 videos per month of 90 seconds max of 150 MB each.

But Flickr is also having a Pro account which is really good. They charge $24.95 per year and let you upload unlimited photos (20 MB per photo), Unlimited videos of max 90 seconds, Ad-free browsing etc. and much more. Flickr images are easy to browse and share.

2. Google Picasa

Well, Google’s Picasa is a flickr like service to upload images for free. In Picasa you can upload up to 1 GB of photos for free. To get more space, you will have to purchase pro account thru which you can expand the storage space up to 1 TB.

3. Dropbox

For synching files, photos between different computer devices, mobile devices i.e. smartphones like iPhone, Android phones, BlackBerry etc., you should chooseDropbox. There are apps available for different mobile devices. For example, if you have an iPhone, you just take picture from the camera on your phone and then send that to Dropbox. Now the picture will be available to access from anywhere and even that will be stored on your computer synched with Dropbox account.

As Dropbox provides free storage up to 2 GB, so you can move photos from mobile phone to Dropbox and once you will turn on your computer, you can move files to Amazon S3 account.

4. Mozy

This is another online backup service for photos. also provides 2 GB storage for free and then onwards, you will have to pay $5 per month for unlimited storage.

5. LogMeIn Backup

LogMeIn is a popular remote desktop support service thru which you can access computers located remotely and provide support. Now LogMeIn also provide backup service thru which you can take backup of the remote computer. LogMeIn backup service is a paid service, so you will have to pay for taking backup of another system. Backup will be stored on web clouding platform owned by LogMeIn.

6. Amazon S3

For backing up files, photos, videos and avoid hot linking, you should use Amazon S3 service. This is the most reliable and dependable service to keep files for lifetime. Pricing for this service is cheapest in the market. To know more about latest pricing drop in Amazon S3, read this article.

7. Facebook Albums

In today’s 3G world, people upload their latest photos directly to Facebook account and share them with their friends and circle. Some people says that there is a limit for uploading number of photos on facebook per album. I think the limit is around 200 photos in an album. Still the numbers are not confirmed but there is some sort of limit in uploading pictures per account.

8. Microsoft SkyDrive

Windows Live service by Microsoft is providing 25 GB of online storage for free to each live account. That storage is known as SkyDrive which is accessible on Windows Live page of Microsoft. You can even access the SkyDrive storage directly from the Office 2010. But I think the storage provided by SkyDrive is more useful for files like PDF, Word documents, presentations, spreadsheets etc. 

You can use any of the above listed service for taking backup of your photo collections. There are lot many other services also available on web which are not listed in this post, but always trust some reliable services only.

Which is your favorite place for keeping digital life on web? Share your thoughts about the above list.

Read More

Better SEO hearts through bad blogging

Internet Search Engines are by far the most popular method of researching information.  Unfortunately, discovering in depth information is becoming harder. Information produced by experts is becoming convoluted (in the Search Engine results) with opinion based blog postings.  The reason this is occurring is that search engines reward websites that produce volumes of content around any given topic.  Companies and Websites must churn out information (regardless of quality) to rank well for their industry terms.  This reward system hurts internet users (consumers of information) and weakens the search engine results in general.

Blog Accuracy, Uniqueness, Sensibility or lack thereof

Blogging is a great concept, but the reward of higher rankings regardless of a post’s accuracy, efficacy, uniqueness, or sensibility runs counter to the intent of the search. In truth it’s all about where the key words and phrases appear … and how often.  Google, Yahoo and Bing all try to uncover fresh information in a search, but they can’t tell if it’s primarily information or just the same information worded in a slightly different (or less useful) way.  There are even automated tools that simply mix up the words and sentences of an article so that they can be reposted and appear like new content, thus improving the sites rankings … “Content Regurgitation”.

Example: Recently I decided to try to improve the search engine ranking for my software developmentcompany.  I probably reviewed 200 different websites to discover the best methods (and I still might not have the answers).  This information could have been consolidated into 10 postings. Here are some generalized findings, based on my research:

• There is a tremendous amount of repetitive content within websites and blogs, making it more difficult to find detailed useful information
• Some information is inaccurate or out of date
• Some sites give no information at all. They just throw around keywords to improve their own SEO, without ever offering solid information.
• Everyone feels they are true experts. However, most SEO authors do not appear at the top of their search rankings.  (Crazy, right?)
• There is no easy way to validate the accuracy of information.
• The most useful content might be in position #732.

In many cases the layman’s writings often appear higher in the rankings than that of the experts.  The qualifications of the author and/or the real value of the information presented have nothing to do with the rankings found in search engines.

Quality of Information on the internet is slowly deteriorating

My thinking is that the practice of rewarding the sheer “volume of content” rather than the “quality of content” is flawed.  Content should be evaluated based on its informational merit and the writer’s credentials … and somehow be quantified within Search Engine Results so a level of applicability can be determined.  It should in all cases be categorically separated from social and/or opinion pieces.  “Quality of information” should be rewarded with improved rankings, but only when it is actually helpful and authoritative (rather than the current word/phrase search parameters).

Concepts like voting on blog postings are currently being utilized within individual sites.  But a universal system needs to be established that will apply equally to all indexed websites.  Search engines need real data analysis capabilities rather than simple word search tools.

The best method is clear.  Information that satisfies user interest should rise to the top.  Consumers need real information … not just “Digital Graffiti”.

Read More

Ultimate List of Tips and Tricks for Google Chrome

Google Chrome has just been released and people are already blogging about it like wildfire. There are several things that has already written about Google Chrome in addition to what you have read here. So instead of duplicating things, we have created a ultimate list of Google Chrome Tips and Tricks and reviews for your easy viewing.

The list will be similar to the Ultimate List of Tips and Tricks for Firefox 3 and will be a non-exhaustive list, so you can bookmark this post to find the latest tips and tricks for Google Chrome in one place.

Power User’s Guide to Google Chrome

As always Gina Trapani from Lifehacker, has written a power user’s guide for Google Chrome, a definite must read if you want to get the full benefits of using the latest browser.

Google Chrome Tips and Pointers

Google Blogscoped has a extensive list of tips and pointers for both users as well as developers, the article is worth a read.

How to run Google Chrome in Ubuntu / Linux?

Adam Pash from Lifehacker has a tutorial which shows how you can run Google Chrome in Ubuntu / Linux based machines with WINE.

Google Chrome Features That Are Missing in your Favorite Web Browser

Amit from Digital inspiration talks about the latest features in Google Chrome and those that are missing from your favorite browser.

Google Chrome Tips that are hard to find

Google Operating System has a article on the not-so-obvious things you can do in Google Chrome, the tips are really interesting and a must read.

How to Create Separate Profiles For Your Family Members / Other Users in Google Chrome?

Amit gives a in-depth tutorial on creating multiple profiles for different users of the same PC.

In-depth Review of Google Chrome

Adam Pash from Lifehacker takes a in-depth look at the working of Google Chrome. Check the post out as it details each and every thing you should know about the new browser.

How to Use Multiple Google Accounts in Google Chrome?

Google Operating System has a neat trick that will allow you to open browse multiple Gmail accounts in Google Chrome.

How to Change the Default Theme in Google Chrome?

Our tutorial showing you how you can change the default theme in Google Chrome. Google has its own theme repository at Free Chrome Themes which is not active yet.

How to Open Links in Google Chrome From Firefox?

Amit from Digital Inspiration has released a Firefox add-on that will help you open links in Google Chrome while you are using Firefox. It works much like the IE-Lite plugin, but in this case a new window is opened instead of embedding chrome into Firefox.

How to Display Only Icons In The Bookmarks Bar for Google Chrome?

Tech Recipes has a interesting post which describes, how you display only icons in the bookmarks bar, saves a lot of space and allows you to easily add more websites to the bookmarks bar.

30 Google Chrome Tips, Tricks and Shortcuts

Tech Radar talks about 30 tips, tricks and shortcuts for Google Chrome, check it out as it contains lots of interesting information.

Google Chrome Browser Shortcut List

BlogsDNA has a post which details all the shortcut keys available in Google Chrome, the list covers pretty much every shortcut you would want to know about.

How to Run Java applets including Yahoo Games and Yahoo Chat in Google Chrome?

Our own post on how you can run java applets in Yahoo Games with the latest Java Runtime.

How to Install the Latest Flash Plugin in Google Chrome?

Hypernation has a handy tutorial about installing the latest Flash version in Google Chrome, so if you want to upgrade the flash for Google Chrome check out the article.

Seven Hidden Configuration Pages of Google Chrome Browser

BlogsDNA tells users about the hidden configurations available in Google Chrome including about:memory, about:stats and more.

Google Chrome about:internets Easter Egg

Lifehacker talks about a easter egg hidden inside Google Chrome when you type about:internets in the browser address bar.

How to Fix “Aw Snap” Error in Google Chrome?

Our post about fixing the “Aw Snap, something went wrong” error, when you try to run Google Chrome.

How to Backup your Google Chrome Profile?

Blogote talks about a simple tool to backup your Google Chrome Profile, do check it out.

Save a Extra Click While Pasting URLs in Google Chrome

Our article about how you can use the “Paste and Go” functionality to save that extra click, while pasting URLs from the clipboard.

Google Chrome omni bar – What is it?

Download Squad talks about the new omni bar feature in Google Chrome and how you can use it to search quickly from the address bar.

How to Browse Privately in Google Chrome?

Our article about the ways in which you can start incognito (a private session) that does not track your browsing history.

How to import bookmarks/favorites, passwords, history and search engines from IE and Firefox to Google Chrome?

Our article about importing your bookmarks and settings from Firefox and Internet Explorer to Google Chrome.

How top Open All Your Favorite Sites at Chrome Startup?

Nirmal from Life Rocks talks about how you can open all your favorite sites when you start Chrome.

Get the Portable Edition of Google Chrome

Sizlopedia tells us about the portable edition of Google Chrome, which is available for Download. This version can be run on your pen/flash drive.

How to Increase the default search results in Google Chrome Omnibox?

The How-To Geek tells us about a undocumented trick for Google Chrome, where you can increase the search results shown in Google Chrome Omnibox from the default 5 to any number.

How to setup Application Shortcuts in Chrome?

Nirmal once again tells us how you can create Application Shortcuts in Chrome, that will allow you to launch web applications as a standalone window in Chrome.

Using Chrome’s Task Manager to Kill Problematic Tabs

Tech Recipes has a tutorial which shows you how to kill problematic tabs that use huge memory or CPU with Chrome’s Task Manager.

7 Awesome things about Google Chrome

Mashable talks about seven awesome things you will find in Google Chrome

How to Change the Default Search Engine in Google Chrome?

Blogote talks about a simple way in which you can add and change search engines in Google Chrome.

How to Download Google Chrome in Windows 2000?

TecknoBites talks about a trick that will allow you to download Google Chrome on a Windows 2000 PC.

How to Disable Auto Suggestions in Google Chrome Omnibox?

Are you concerned about privacy with Google Chrome Omnibox? Lifehacker shows you how to disable the auto suggest feature in Omnibox.

How to Clear History and Browsing Data in Google Chrome?

Tech Recipes talks about deleting the browsing data and history in Google Chrome, specially useful when you are using a PC accessed by more than one person.

How to put the Home Button in Google Chrome Toolbar?

Tech Recipe shows a simple way in which you can put the Home button on the Google Chrome Toolbar.

Stumble Websites without a Toolbar in Google Chrome

Blogote has a nice tutorial which tells us how to stumble sites in Google Chrome, without a the StumbleUpon toolbar.

How to Add a Print Button to Bookmarks Bar?

Tech Recipes has a interesting tutorial about adding a print button to the Bookmarks Bar in Google Chrome.

Change the Default Download Location in Google Chrome?

Tech Recipes shows you how to change the default download location of Google Chrome.

How to Access Cache in Google Chrome?

The WWW Blog tells you how you can access the cache files in Google Chrome.

How to Backup Preferences in Google Chrome?

Sizzled Core shows you, how you can backup your preferences in Google Chrome.

Fix for application failed to initialize (0xc0000005):Google chrome

Techblissonline talks about a error that has been nagging many users who cannot install and run chrome, do check it out to see how you can workaround the issue.

This list is non-exhaustive and newer tips and tricks will be added to the list as and when we find them, if you want to include your own tips and tricks, please leave a comment here and we will add it.

Read More