Tales from the fantastic mind of a twerp
Just a compilation of the articles I wrote...

Wednesday, February 01, 2006

Serving in Ping Pong: Tips for You to Win Games

One of the most important shots in the game of ping pong is the serve. I am a hundred percent sure that that’s what any high level player will reply if you will ask him. However, the serve is a much ignored part of the lower level players – those who prefer to practice their rallying skills when training and those who love to talk about the best technique for a forehand loop. In this article, I will be concentrating on that neglected stroke, the serve. So, here are some of the general aspects that apply to all types of serves.

The Importance of Serve

As mentioned earlier, the serve is the most important strokes in ping pong. But, what really makes it such an important stroke? Let’s find out.

Control

One of the major reasons that sets serve as important in the ping pong game is control. It is often said that serve is the only stroke that you could make where you have total control of the ball. This means with the absence of any interference or influence from your opponent. Therefore, with serve, you should be able to do exactly what you want with the ball.

Frequency

I know that most of you are aware that every point in the ping pong game starts with a serve. Considering that the average rally length, particularly at higher levels, is often only 3 to 5 strokes, it is understandable then that the serve makes up a pretty high proportion of shots played during a ping pong match.

Setup

Experts say that the good use of serves brings a strong influence on the stroke played by the receiver. This therefore allows a good server to expect the return of the stroke and then play more of his desired third and fifth ball patterns.

Pressure

Pressure is but another reason why the serve is important in ping pong. It stemmed from the idea that a player who knows his opponent has better serves than he does will feel under pressure right from the start of the match. On the other hand, a player with better serves than his opponent will typically feel a bit more relaxed, knowing that he has an edge every time he serves the ball.

Knowledge

It is often said that the better you are at serving yourself, the more you understand about how certain serves work. If this kind of knowledge is within you, you surely know and understand the best ways to determine the serves and return them.

Factors Involved in Serving

There are actually a number of necessary factors involved in serving. All of these factors work together in different amounts to make a good serve or bad serve, depending on the situation. Now if you want to know them, then consider the following:

Double-Bounce Serve

Double-bounce serve basically involves the concept of frequently employing a “double-bounce serve”, where the ball would bounce twice on the opponent’s side if left alone. This has been considered as one of the most important factors in serving the ping pong ball. Also, this is what most of the ping pong pros often tried to do on their own serves, knowing how powerful it is. However, for an amateur player, it should be noted that the second bounce of the ball should be somewhere close to within six inches of the end line. The idea here is not to serve short or with more bounces as they will only ruin your tactic.

Here are other reasons for the popularity of double-bounce serve:

• It is hard to attack with a powerful return. If the ball is not going over the end of the table, it is difficult for your opponent to employ his natural loop stroke to attack. There is a possibility then that he will use a modified stroke that barely brushes the ball in order for it to topspin. However, this will have a lot less power than a normal loop. And, more often, your opponent will be forced to push or flick the return from over the table.
• Since most of the returns played by your opponent are executed from over the table, the double-bounce serve makes him do it from as far away from the net as possible. Experts noted that this has the effect of maximizing the time you have to recover from your serve and react to his return and increasing the gap he has to play the ball in order to obtain it over the net, which makes more difficult for him to drop the ball short. Note that such effect gives you more chances of getting a return that goes over your end line, thus making it easier for you to apply your normal attack stroke.

Long Serves

Long serves are usually characterized by those that bounce once on the opponent’s side of the table, typically within six inches or so of his end line. Note that the main focus of this serve is on surprise and speed, which in turn force weaker returns from your opponent, which can then be counterattacked. However, it is important to use long serves with care for the reason that if your opponent is not caught off-guard, there is a great chance that you may be getting a very strong attack coming back at you.

Ball Placement

Another important factor that determines a good or bad serve is the placement of the ball when served to the opponent. It is worth noting that what really makes for good or bad placement will depend largely on your opponent, as each player has its own way of serving. Different players in fact stand in different positions when receiving serves and also hold their paddles differently in preparation for their ball receive. Of course, they will also have different strengths and weaknesses in returning the serve. Some will be better at flicking than pushing, while others might be good at looping long balls on the forehand. There are also others that are weaker at long balls on the backhand.

Now, here are some things to be considered in terms of ball placement:

• Avoid serving half-long serves. The half-long serves are those serves that bounce once around the middle of the opponent’s side, and then go over the end line. Note that if you are playing with good opponent, he or she may loop pr drive this back at you, putting you under pressure right from the start.
• Don’t serve half-long serves to the opponent’s power zones, that is, where he can hit a forehand or backhand loop or drive without having to move sideways at all. It is often suggested that if you do half-long serve, it should avoid the power zone to at least make the opponent move and hit, which is tougher to do.

Perhaps the good option to consider here is to cross over or go into the opponent’s applying elbow, which is also called the point of indecision in ping pong. For the shakehanders and reverse penhold backhand penholders, this is basically the point where the opponent must form a decision between returning with a forehand or backhand. But, for those standard penholders, the point of indecision is the spot where they must decide between a forehand side hit and a backhand side push or block or hit. It is by forcing your opponent to make more decisions and use footwork that increases the chance of him making the wrong decision while trying to move and hit the ball.

Deception

For long years, the concept of deception has always been an important part of serving. However, with the recent ping pong rule changes designed to end the practice of hiding the ball during the service, the deception in serving has changed as well. Today, the players of ping pong only focus on deceiving their opponent by the type of spin, amount of spin, the placement, faking, and sidespin.

• Type of Spin: In ping pong, it is usual for players to use serves that look similar to each other, but actually have slightly different spin. Oftentimes, this can be a serve that looks like light backspin and sidespin, but actually has only sidespin. In return, an innocent opponent will play the ball expecting backspin, and will return the stroke high enough to allow the server to attack.
• Amount of Spin: This is also commonly employed to deceive the opponent. Here, the server attempts to deceive the receiver about how much spin is on the ball. For example, the server tries to make the serve look like it is light backspin and sidespin, but actually he places a lot of backspin on the ball. In return, the receiver will treat the serve as a light backspin, putting the ball in the net.
• Placement: In terms of placement, the server makes it obvious that he is serving in one direction, but at the last split-seconds he turns his bat a fraction to change the direction of the ball. Usually, this tends to be used more on long and fast serves, where the receiver does not have much time to adjust to the change in direction.
• Faking: This technique is more typical for the advanced servers who can swings their bat back and forth near the time of contact, making it very tough to see just when the ball was contacted. Faking is not an easy technique to master, but this is very effective.
• Sidespin: As you may know, this is often incorporated into almost every serve, particularly by many good players of ping pong. The idea here is, using sidespin provides the opponent one more thing to worry about, and it helps to make it harder to tell what amount of backspin or topspin has been placed on the ball. It is just important to note that using different amounts of sidespin is much better.

Follow-Up

Ping pong pros highly suggest using serves that be likely to complement your best third ball and fifth ball attacks. If you are good at opening your attack from a backspin ball, you could employ the double-bounce serves with heavy backspin and sidespin. These are difficult to flick and often encourage a push return. However, if you are best in counterattacking, you would be justified in using more long serves with different spin and placement, permitting your opponent to attack but make it hard for him to attack so well. With this, you can make a very robust counterattack on your third ball.

Practice

Practice makes perfect! So, knowing how important the serve is, it is then necessary to practice it. But, how often and for how long? Most of the experts recommend 10 minutes of serve practice for every hour spent training. Also, try to find some time where you can just serve with bucket of ping pong balls and without opponent.

It is further recommended that you make a point of having a working knowledge of all the ping pong serves, but you actually don’t have to master one straight away. All you need to know is the theory of how to deliver the powerful serves. This will greatly assist you when it comes time for you to return someone else’s serves.

Playing Ping Pong with Long Pimples

Long pimpled rubber is commonly used in the game of ping pong. Many players have already tried using it during their match, and many of them have succeeded in beating their opponents. But, it is important to note that the success of the game does not depend on the long pimpled rubber, but on the greatness of the player. If the player knows exactly how to properly use it and has knowledge of all the important aspects of the game, then there is no doubt that he will win.

Now, if you are thinking about using long pimples in the future, then you must read the following:

Which Players Should Be Using Long Pimples?

There are a lot of qualifications to mention for players who will be using long pimples. For those who will answer “yes” to the following questions should give long pimple a serious consideration.

• Are you naturally a retriever of the ball who likes to takes whatever his opponent can throw at him and keep putting the ball back on the table?
• Have you got a natural affinity for chopping and wish to maximize your chances of winning the ping pong game?
• Do you enjoy the battle of wits with your opponent as you fight for every point?
• Are you a natural showman and like nothing better than having the crowd watching your match and cheering you on?
• Do you find injury or age preventing you from getting around the court like you used to, and opponents are taking advantage of this?
• Do you want to stay competitive although your reflexes are slowing down as you get older?

Which Players Should Not Be Using Long Pimples?

Here are few questions for you to consider before you use long pimples for your ping pong match. If your reason for using this equipment is listed below, you are probably using them for the wrong reason.

• Do you read spin poorly and hoping to cover it up?
• Are you too unfit to move around the court?
• Are you hoping that you will win easy points because your opponents won’t be able to play against your long pimples?
• Have you got a flaw in your playing technique that you are hoping to conceal?

General Tactics for Playing With Long Pimples

Now that you have read and decided whether the long pimples is right for you or not, it’s now time for you to look at some of the recommended tactics for playing ping pong with the long pimpled rubber. Note that the following tactics are general in nature and will apply to almost any style to some degree. Try to consider these tips and see which works better for you and which don’t. After all, knowing what is the best way of using them for your own individual style is a large part of the art of playing ping pong.

Tip #1: Know Yourself and Your Own Style

The most important idea to consider for mastering the use of long pimples for your ping pong match is to know yourself and your own style. If possible, use your practice sessions to find out just what you are capable of doing with your long pimples. Although there is a possibility that you will improve over time, it is still very necessary to know what you can do at present. However, try not to exceed from your limitations when you are playing any ping pong matches.

Tip #2: Know Your Opponent

One particular truth about the ping pong game is that, every player has its own style of playing, and handles long pimples differently. To obtain great chances of winning, take note of which strokes give your opponent trouble and which they can handle easily. Know this observing the players you play frequently. However, if you are playing against new players, try to test them out with the full range of shots early in the match, so that when the pressure is on, you have some edge strokes to apply.

Tip #3: Recognize Your Rubber

In playing ping pong, it is typical for every player to have that want of knowing exactly what their rubber can do and what it can’t. So, in your case, don’t try to push the capabilities of your rubber further than it can go. Always remember that a very long pimpled rubber like the famous Feint II is never going to be as easy to counterattack with a medium pips like the Curl P-2. The Curl is on the other hand never going to provide as heavy as backspin from a loop stroke as the Feint. Experts often said that a glassy type long pimpled rubber will do spin reversal easily, but will always be tougher to hit with than a grippy long pimples.

Tip #4: Understand Your Level

It is worth noting that the way in which long pimples is efficient at winning points changes extremely as the player progresses in level, from the beginner to intermediate and to advanced. Typically, at the beginner level, the long pimpled rubber has the capability to win several points outright perhaps due to the inability of your opponent to cope with the way the rubber behaves. As you enter the intermediate level, your opponent will still make few errors in returning your strokes as well as in judging the behavior of the long pimples, but this time, twiddling of the bat can give you the edge. However, in the advanced level as well as beyond, the occasional point will be won through your opponent’s mistakes against the long pimples or twiddling. Here, the concept of deception enter and becomes the name of the game. The long pimples then can be used with deceptive contact in order to force errors and weak returns from your opponent.

Tip #5: Don’t Go Beyond the Limits of Your Twiddling

It is important to note that the twiddle is often enough to keep you on top in the game against your opponent up to the advanced level. Thus, never give him any more chances necessary for him to get used to your twiddling.

Tip #6: Copy the Best Moves

Most of today’s famous ping pong players copied their moves from the other pros, although some have been using their own. Of course, there is nothing bad with copying the pros moves, as long you know how to handle it. There are live matches and videos of the top ping pong players that you can watch. Watch the matches of the players who play closes to your style, and try to analyze the strategies they are using. You may find out in the end that most of these strategies will work for you as well.

Tip #7: Backhand Makes It Better

Although most of the top players of ping pong can hit harder with the forehand, the backhand is said to be a more effective weapon for the intermediate players. A particular support for this is the notion that the bat can be twiddled and the backhand loop or hit completed with very little time for the opponent to react, whereas the duration of the forehand attack provides the opponent more time to prepare. However, at the advanced level, the forehand is used more often perhaps due to the extra power that can be produced. What’s more, the reactions of the pros are so fast that the extra speed obtained in producing the backhand attack is often quashed.

Tip #8: Crop up and Lock Them Up

There are instances when playing ping pong that you want to generate an attack from an easy topspin ball, or have your opponent hit his return off the end of the table. If this occurs, take advantage of your opponent’s heavy backspin ball and apply a near vertical push stroke with your long pimples. By doing this, the ball will have to topspin rather than go chop, giving your opponent chances to either push it up high for your return or topspin it off the end of the table.

Tip #9: Play With the Noise

If you are dreaming about playing the ping pong game with your fans cheering at you, then practice playing the game when the surrounds are noisy. It does not only boost your confidence, but it makes it harder for your opponent to hear the different sound that the pimples make.

Tip #10: Keep It Clean

Many experts suggest not playing on a dirty ping pong table as the dust and grease lessen the effect of the spin variation. So, if possible, try to make the table and everything clean. Make sure that both sides of the table are free from any dirt in order for you to obtain the maximum effect from your changes in spin.

Tip #11: New Balls is Best

Always note that playing ping pong with brand new balls can be a plus. It is for the reason that the newer balls tend to bite on the table, making the variation of your spin more effective. However, the dirty balls can also be good since the trademark on the ball is harder for your opponent to see; making him uncertain if the ball is spinning or floating. Don’t just use old clean balls if you can help it.

Tip #12: Deceive Your Opponent, Not Yourself

As mentioned earlier, it is important that know and understand the capabilities of your long pimples. So, if you are using grippy long pimples, you should be applying them to vary the spin by way of floating or brushing the ball by varying amounts at contact. But, if you are using smooth and glassy type of long pimples, note that you won’t be able to vary the spin as much, but you can still deceive your opponent by way of changing your strokes to make him think that you have varied the spin, when in fact you haven’t. It’s nice to be tricky at times.


So those are the necessary pointers to consider when playing ping pong with your long pimples. It is just somehow necessary to note first if the long pimples are right for you or not, as they could also be tougher to use, especially if you are not acquainted to them. If you are using long pimples that are not suited to your style, you might want to give serious thought to changing the rubber that could suit you better. And, if you want to win the game in the future, then don’t get tired of practicing.

Playing Ping Pong with Anti-Spin: Defeat Your Defensive Opponents

Are you a ping pong junkie? Is the line, “Anti-spin and long pimples, yuck! They should be banned! Everyone should have to use normal rubbers” sounds familiar to you? Well, I guess all of you have heard a fellow ping pong player say this at one time or another. Enough to say that anti-spin as well as the long pimples don’t look like disappearing in the scene soon and even though there may not be many ping pong players in the world using anti-spin or long pimples, I bet that you are not in such elite society either or else you probably wouldn’t be reading this article as I am about to tell you the ways on how to play ping pong with these junk rubbers, many people considered as “yucky”.

Okay, I’ll start about the nature of anti-spin, followed by the other important aspects that you should know. Take a deep breath and read on.

What is Anti-Spin Rubber?

Generally, anti-spin rubber is identified as a smooth sandwich rubber with little or no grip on the surface of the rubber. You can handle a ping pong ball in your fingers and rub it along the surface and you will find out that the ball will just slide along the surface with very little friction when compared to a normal smooth rubber. However, not every anti-spin plays exactly the same because of the variation in the amount of grip. This does not mean however that they won’t have much less grip than a normal rubber, because that’s what they will all have.

The Anti-Spin’s Function

Although the anti-spin has been considered as not the ultimate solution to all the ping pong problems, it is nice to know that it has been designed and manufactured to fill very specific requirements of the game. When the anti-spin is used for those purposes, it does a very excellent job. The problems only start when the player start trying to use it for what it is not created for or perhaps equipped to do.

The Good Points of Anti-Spin

Essentially, the anti-spin is used by many ping pong players of a variety of styles, but to tell you honestly, there are a lot of things that can be considered as “good points” when it comes to anti-spin. Included in the list are the following:

• The anti-spin reacts greatly different from that of the normal rubber, causing the opponent to make mistakes. This even allows an increase in the control for the user.
• There is a possible difference in speed compared to normal rubber, which can also lead the opponents to commit mistakes perhaps due to the change of pace. It is often noted that if the speed is slower, the softer sponge must be used.
• There is also a possible closer match in speed to normal rubber that can be more difficult for the opponent to determine which side has been employed until it is too late. In this case, the faster or speed-glued sponge is commonly used.
• Aside from speed, there is also a closer match when it comes to sound and visual appearance to normal rubber. This can also deceive the opponent and can possibly cause him to incorrectly decide on which side of the paddle has been used to strike the ball, hopefully causing an error.
• Anti-spin can also be intimidating for ping pong players who do not know and understand how the anti-spin works. This may lead them to give up prior to the start of the match.
• The anti-spin allows the older players, especially those who have slower reflexes or other physical limitations, to slow down the pace of the game, which in turn allows them to compete a more equal footing. Along with this advantage, the anti-spin provides them the chance to employ their experience in playing tactical game that increases the assets that they do possess, while minimizing their liabilities such as slowing reflexes, slower footwork, less power, less agile and less stamina. Speaking of assets, I’m referring to their experience, reading of spin and use of strategies.

The Limitations of Anti-Spin

Now that you have learned about the advantages of anti-spin, I guess it is fair that you also look at the limitations of these junk rubbers. These limitations are actually the major reasons why you don’t see every person out there playing with anti-spin despite all those mentioned pluses. Here are some of the anti-spin limitations:

• When it comes to generating spin, it is always harder for the player to do it using anti-spin. This can be a severe limitation when it comes to making powerful attacks. In relation to that, the safety margin provided by hitting with heavy topspin is greatly lessened when using anti-spin.
• It is difficult to produce variations of the spin when using anti-spin. But, this somehow depends to some extent on the brand used. And, when compared to normal rubber and even long pimples, it could be more difficult for the player to kill or change the spin to any significant degree with the use of anti-spin.
• The player is much more dependent on what spin is placed on the ball by his opponent. This is particularly true when choosing the player’s own strokes.
• Finally, it can be difficult for the player to avoid getting pinned down on the anti-spin side by a good opponent, unless the player is a competent twiddler.

Tips and Tactics When Using Anti-Spin

Okay, enough for all those pluses and limitations of anti-spin. Let us now look at what you can do with your anti-spin. Here are the tactics that you must consider:

Know Your Opponent

Before the match begin, it is best to study your future opponent carefully if you get the chance. You can even do this during the match if you really have to. You can look for point such as:

• His being good or bad at noticing when his opponent twiddles.
• His knowledge on how the anti-spin works.
• The mistakes he committed or his being hesitant when playing against the anti-spin.
• Find out if he is aggressive or safe when playing against the anti-spin and if it does work well.
• If he returns the anti-spin balls with little spin, heavy or varied.
• If he plays better against the anti-spin when you chop with it, or hit. Or, if he is equally good or bad at both.

Dealing with Suspended Balls

Most of the ping pong players who are not using anti-spin try to nullify the anti-spin by way of hitting no-spin balls to it, so that there is no spin to reverse, helping then to have less problem in reading the spin. There are also others who use a no-spin return when playing the ping pong game, hoping that the anti-spin user will crop the ball up high when attempting a normal chop with the side of the anti-spin. Well, I have some tips for you to deal with those floated balls to your anti-spin:

• Experts often say that the bread and butter shot that you apply should be a stroke that is mainly from up to down and with only a little bit of forward motion. IN terms of angle, note that the angle of the paddle must be slightly open, as this allows the ball to lift only a little, resulting in a return from the anti-spin that will stay low over the net. If this is generated, it will be tough for your opponent to attack. Also, the use of the more forward motion technique while keeping the amount of up to down motion similar will actually result in an attack that is low and fast. It is just somehow necessary for you to be aware that there is a certain restriction to how fast you can do this kind of shot, since there is a minimal amount of topspin on the ball. To put it simply, you are just mainly depending on the gravity to pull the ball on to the table so to much forward motion will push the ball too far off the end before the gravity can perform its role.
• You can also do a chop return with the anti-spin. This can be made occasionally, but never overdo it. It is important to know that there are actually two important things to note here: one is the swing must be reasonable fast, and the other is the ball must be brushed with the paddle sliding under the ball.
• Hit the ball with a stroke that looks like topspin. In this case, the paddle should be slightly open since you will need to lift the ball a little in order for it to clear the net. It is just necessary to note that there will be very little or no topspin on the ball, so you will be relying greatly on the gravity to bring the ball down on the table. This attacking stroke however cannot be made at high speed, unless the ball is above the level of the net, in which it can be hit directly onto the table. The bottom line is, the higher the ball, the harder it can be hit.
Dealing with Topspin Balls

Imagine that you are playing fairly close to the table because it is difficult to use anti-spin to counterhit or topspin balls back from 2 to 3 meters away from the end line. Also pretend that you are using the standard chop, which is used more often from a distance.

So, here is what you should do when returning a topspin ball from close to the table:

• Counterhit the ball back. This is actually a viable option, but it is important that you do not overhit as there will typically be a fair bit of pace on the ball from your opponent’s shot. Also, you actually won’t be able to hit too hard and still get the ball on the table, since you won’t be able to perform any meaningful topspin with your anti-spin.
• Also very useful is blocking or push/blocking. The key here is to possess soft hands or a looser grip on the blade. According to some experts, this helps absorb some of the power of the attack. Along with this, you may also need to tilt the paddle a little bit forward to adjust for the tendency of the ball to jump higher.

Dealing with Spinny Pushed/Chopped Balls

In the game of ping pong, it is quite often that your opponent will start with float balls to your anti-spin and see how you handle them. The main reason here is that the float return is the easiest and safest for him to apply. So, once you have shown him that you can handle the float ball without any problems, the more advanced opponent will often try to use heavily spun pushes to the anti-spin in the hopes that he can make you put the ball in the net.

Here are the techniques you can apply.

• In this case, the up to down stroke with only a little forward motion needs a lot more forward movement. Typically, the backspin that your opponent had made will be turned into topspin, causing the ball to drop a lot faster. So, if you don’t hit more forward the ball will go into the bottom of the net. Thus, it is important for you not to change the amount of up to down movement. Just add a bit more forward motion and you will find out in the end that you have produced a quite fast push or block that drops quickly onto the opponent’s side of the table.
• The chop return can also be applied more often now. Note that the fast chop stroke coupled with brushing of the ball assists you to return the attack with a little topspin, although it looks like a chop. You should just find the innocent opponent popping up his return for you to hit with your normal side.
• Finally, hitting the ball becomes a much more valuable option. The backspin of your opponent will then be turned to topspin and will help bring the ball down onto the table faster. This means that you can hit the backspin ball with a lot more power than the float ball. However, you should be aware that you will need to hit the ball harder forwards while still hitting it a little bit up with a slightly open paddle in order for you to obtain the lift necessary for clearing the net.

So those are the most recommended techniques for using the anti-spin in playing the popular sport of ping pong. What is best to remember now is that the anti-spin is not generally designed to power the ball through your opponent. Unless you are very good at handling the anti-spin, you should stick to playing safe and sure by way of moving the ball around the table and changing your strokes for variation. If you are prone to temptation of trying to hit winners with the anti-spin, resist it. Just let him get the ball on and let your opponent commit errors in reading the spin and pace.

Left Handers’ Secrets, Revealed!

A lot of the past and today’s professional players of ping pong are left handers. For that, I prefer to present a number of valuable tips on how to play ping pong with the strength of your left hand. Note that your being left handed brings certain effects on the performance of the game, most of them are bad, but it doesn’t mean that you can’t win. As long as you know about yourself, your opponent, and the rules of the game, there is a possibility that you will attain victory in the end.

In particular, I will discuss with you some tips and tactics regarding the left hand serve, the third ball and the fifth ball tactics. So just relax and read on.

Serving Options

There is one common question when it comes to ping pong serve – What should be your bread and butter serves? Well, experts often say that when considering serving in ping pong, you should be choosing serves that will allow you to obtain and apply your best stroke in as often as you can. Since you are a left hander, you may want serves that will help force your opponent to play down his left hand side of the table, towards your backhand. This will allow you to use your powerful forehand loop from the backhand side.

Here are the valuable serve options:

• Forehand Pendulum Double Bounce Serve

This option has long been considered as the weapon of choice. It has been noted that the sidespin produced on this serve will help the user obtain more returns to his backhand side. However, it is important to take certain caution with the placement. What you can possibly do is to go down the line to the backhand of your opponent and you could be faced with highly angled return to your wide forehand instead. So better stick your position to the middle as well as forehand side of the table. This will accordingly encourage your opponent to go back to your backhand. There is also a possibility that your opponent will be hesitant to place the return straight down his right hand line into what he recognizes as the danger zone for your forehand.

• Backhand Tomahawk Double Bounce Serve

In the history of ping pong game, Kong Linghui, a Chinese ping pong star, is the only player noted for having an excellent version of this serve. His principle is basically similar to that of the forehand version of the tomahawk; however it was done from the backhand side in order to get the sidespin that will kick the ball back to your backhand. As you may know, it’s difficult to get the heavy topspin version going, but the backspin or sidespin of varying degrees can be potent solution to this kind of situation. Both the backspin and sidespin can be used quite easily if you will just place some efforts on practicing. Also, to get your best game, go more often to the middle and forehand of your opponent.

Many experts also recommend using your serve variations in order to keep your opponent on his toes and as uncomfortable as possible. Consider blending in the occasional forehand reverse pendulum serve and look to force a wide return attack to your forehand that you are expecting and put away. As often said, this will help make the main pattern of forcing returns to your backhand work that much better. Always note that serving similar serve over and over again will lessen the effectiveness of your pattern.

The Third Ball Attacks and Its Magic Five Principles

Want to make your best third ball attacks? If so, then you probably want serves that can get your opponent to return balls that meet as many of the following categories as you can:

1. High – This means well above the net. With this, you can hit the ball down towards the side of your opponent.
2. Mid Table – refers to the bouncing of the ball only once on the table, but not too short or too deep.
3. Slow – is also necessary as this allows you to have plenty of time to generate your powerful swing.
4. Less Spinny and with Obvious Spin – This allows you to hit the ball easily.
5. Easy to Pick the Direction – so you don’t get caught going the wrong way.

As you get familiar with these points, you will find out in the end that some of these will be more valuable to you than others. This will even leave a great impact on the type of your serves to set up better third ball attacks against your opponent.

I have here below a sample scenario that can help you think of the possible ways you can make to generate your best third ball attacks.

Let us assume that you have a faster footwork as well as a quick swing with good recovery, but is not too good at reading variations in the spin or hitting the backspin balls. In this situation, you may want serves that will encourage your opponent to flick or flip, topspin, or float the ball to you, rather than backspin it. You may also want to cut down the amount of spin on your own serve, making it easier for you to decide how much spin your opponent has placed on the ball. Just note however that the more you spin it, the harder it is to identify how much the opponent has affected the spin. Therefore, you also need to take into consideration the spin you placed on the ball as well.

Since you possess a faster footwork and a quick swing, forcing your opponent to hit in a particular direction is not at all necessary. You should also be quite happy to allow your opponent to hit drives or say, less powerful loops at you, for the reason that you have that confidence that you can move and swing fast enough to attack these aggressively.

In this particular case, these are what you can do that will allow you to generate better third ball attacks:

• You can do both short and long serves coupled with less spin variation and primarily sidespin or sidespin and topspin. Just remember that the use of sidespin combined with a variation in the amount of topspin can help bring higher returns from your opponent, which are easier to third ball.
• Encourage your opponent to flick or flip and make it more difficult for him to push it back tight by way of serving shorter serves slightly higher than normal.
• Use longer serves with a variation of pace and placement over the entire table as this can help to prevent your opponent from hitting too powerful an attack, although you don’t mind where he hits it.
• Occasionally, the backspin serves must be used to keep your opponent on his toes. However, this must be generated with some sidespin in order to make reading harder for the opponent. Also, blend these with disguised float serves or pure sidespin serves that look like they have some backspin. You should also be able to force a few more pop up returns that can be third balled.
• Avoid heavy backspin balls, unless they can be disguised as well. Otherwise, they trigger your opponent to push short returns which may be more difficult for you to third ball.

The Fifth Ball Attacks

It is important to note in the first place that the fifth ball attacks are not just for when the third ball attacks fail. These attacks can be arrived via two different ways:

• The first is when you have been searching for a third ball attack, but have been unable to generate a good third ball attack. So instead, you quickly turn to changing the techniques or tactics you have applied and employ your third ball to try to set up a fifth ball attack.
• And, the second way is when you have planned for a fifth ball attack all along. In this way, the serve as well as the third ball were carefully selected in order for you to set up a strong fifth ball.

Remember that both of the mentioned approaches are valid ways to obtain a fifth ball, with the main difference being that a planned fifth ball should grant you to create a slightly powerful attack than a fifth ball after a failed third ball. The main reason behind this idea is that because you have been intending to fifth ball attack all along, your serve as well as the third ball must be readied in advance according to a maintained pattern that you want to play. If you notice that if it all goes smoothly, then a good fifth ball attack should go after.

In both cases, there is a particular instance that you want a fourth ball return from your opponent that encounters as many of the magic five principles for third ball attacks stressed above.

Considering Plan B

It is often said that the best of both worlds is but trying to generate third ball, but at the same time having a back up plan in case the third ball fails. Well, as you may know, this is not always easy to do, but it doesn’t mean that this is not possible. It is possible, for sure! This is actually where the use of patterns when training can aid you in reacting faster to the situation.

One concrete example of this pattern is, in a ping pong training you serve a forehand double bounce serve which can be flicked or flipped, drop shotted or pushed fast and deep by your opponent. This flick return as well as any poor drop shots or fast pushes should be third balled. The good drop shots on the other hand should be flicked or pushed by you in order to set up a fifth ball, while the good fast pushed should be relooped with heavy spin as this forces a block return that is high and can be fifth balled.

Considering an intensive practice of such mentioned pattern should assist you build up the ability to plan a third ball attack, perform it well if all goes easily, or change plans to go for a fifth ball if needed. To some degree, it is difficult, but remember that these are actually the kinds of things that the star ping pong players are capable of doing. If others can do it, then you had better be able to do it too if you really want to keep up with the best.

Final Thoughts on Positioning

Many people often asked if being left handed have any effect in positioning during the ping pong match. Well, the experts usually answer this with both Yes and No. Yes for the reason that being left handed means that you will position yourself at the other side of the table to where a right hander would stand, and No for the fact that regardless of whether you are a left hander or right hander, every player should always try to be central to the line of the play. This is often true as your reach is better on the forehand than the backhand.

Having said all these, it is now clear for us to view that where to stand in a ping pong match doesn’t change. However, being left handed makes the ideal place for a left hander different to that of a right hander.

Now, are you still with me? If so, then congratulations!

Base Positioning For the Best Ping Pong Game

Are you a table tennis or ping pong player? Have you been playing the game for long years? So, you’ve already mastered the basic techniques of the sport, do you? If so, then you should know that there are a lot of other things that you must learn further. This article is written for those who have mastered the basic techniques of ping pong as well as those who are looking for other areas in which to enhance their gaming skills.

In particular, I’m going to discuss about one of the most important concepts in the world of ping pong – the base positioning. This is basically about how to position yourself on the ping pong court during a match so that you can pay your best game.

Why Consider Base Positioning?

Base positioning may sound a bit strange. To some degree, it is. However, in ping pong, the concept of base positioning must be known as it is the place on the court which provides you that great opportunity of coping with your opponent’s upcoming stroke. It is also the place from which you can move as needed for you to be able to reach the returned ball. Now, think about a simple base-camp which is often used in some expeditions or mountain climbing for instance. A base camp is like the concept of base positioning in ping pong. It is used as a safe starting point from which the climbers or the explorers proceed to more dodgy zones.

The Basics of Base Positioning

Stay Neutral

Experts often say that if you want to play your best ping pong game, think about being neutral. The word “neutral” here refers to the idea of adopting a ready position and stance that allows you to play both with your forehand and backhand, with ease. Now, here’s what you should do:

• For the righthanders, you should keep your feet either square to the line of the play or the right foot a little bit behind the left foot.
• Keep the feet wide apart, typically a fair bit wider than the width of your shoulder. If possible, check out the ping pong pros in action for instance of just how wide they go.
• You should also be crouching forward a little, and your elbows will be roughly shoulder width apart, with the tip of the paddle pointing forward.

From this position, it should be easy for you to hit both forehand and backhand. In particular, you can hit the forehand by simply turning your shoulders to the right, and the backhand by simply rotating your forearm 90 degrees towards your torso.

The Importance of Angle

As often said, every ping pong player has got an angle. Note that this is not only true in the game of ping pong, but also in life, thus knowing what your angle is is worth considering.

Angle of Play: Strong Forehand and Backhand

Before anything else, it is important to note that the term “angle of play” refers to the overall area available to an opponent to make a normal stroke. Okay! Let’s imagine a right-handed player with an equally strong forehand and backhand. Experts suggest that in this case, the player should stand in the middle of the range of angles which are available to his opponent, that is, the angle of play. However, since he can reach a little further with his forehand than his backhand, there is a possibility that he should stand a half-step or so to his left in order to take advantage of this fact. Note that players with strong forehands and backhands, like the popular Schlager and Waldner, prefer to stand in this area.

Angle of Play: Stronger Forehand than Backhand

What about a player whose forehand is a bit powerful than his backhand? Well, in this case, he might want to stand a little further to his left. This makes his opponent a much harder to get at his weaker backhand, and to allow the player to use his better forehand more often. However, there is a particular downside to this technique, that is, he needs faster footwork to compensate for all the extra distance he is trying to cover with his stronger forehand. If he doesn’t possess a faster footwork than the player with equally strong forehand and backhand, there is a possibility that he is going to get caught out wide to the forehand more often.

Angle of Play: Much Stronger Forehand than Backhand

Here’s another situation: What if the player has a much stronger forehand than backhand? In this case, there is a tendency for the player to stand even further over to the backhand side. This is done to cover more of the angle of play with his very strong forehand and in turn reduce the amount covered by his comparatively weaker backhand.

Angle of Play: Stronger Backhand than Forehand

Ping pong players with slightly stronger backhands than forehands will tend to stand a little more to the right. This is also considered to cover the angle of play with their strong backhand.

So, you’ve learned about the base positioning as well as the angle of play. Now take a look at the relative strength of your forehand and backhand strokes. If you’ve discovered their strengths and weaknesses, position yourself accordingly. It is somehow important to note that if you enhance one side without enhancing the other, your base position should change as well. If your forehand is twice as good as your backhand, then don’t still be standing in the middle of the angle of play.

Face the Ball, Not the End Line

One of the common errors that beginners of ping pong often commit is always standing square to the end line of the ping pong table. It is often said that the only period that this position is correct is when the ball is coming from the direction of the center of your opponent’s table. The rest of the period must be concentrated in facing in the direction that the ball is coming from. If you sketched an imaginary line between the ball and yourself, this would represent the line of play. And, speaking of this line, you should always do something to be square-on to this line. This is very important in ping pong.

There is a particular concrete reason of why facing the ball is important in playing ping pong. This reason becomes obvious when shown visually. If you always face the end line of the table, there will be times when you will not be in the best position to hit a forehand or backhand. Therefore, by adjusting your position to face the direction of the ball, you should always be in the optimum position to hit both the forehand and backhand strokes.

Pointing Your Paddle at the Ball? Avoid it!

Let’s pretend that you are right handed. In this case, your paddle should actually be pointing somewhere between one foot to one and a half feet to the right of the ball, not straight at the ball? So, why is this? The primary reason is that, if you are facing the ball, your paddle is actually one to one and a half feet to the right of your body, especially when you are positioning ready and keeping yourself able to go to the forehand or backhand equally easily and quickly. So, if you point your paddle directly at the ball, it means that you will be in a slightly backhand waiting position. Never do it!

Advanced Concepts: Factors That Affect Your Base Position

During a ping pong match or rally, it is usual that your base position will change a number of times. The factors responsible for this are the stroke that you are about to play, the stroke you just played, the position of the ball on the table, the angle you hit the ball from, and the shot that your opponent is likely to play. As you may notice, only one of these factors actually associates to your opponent. So, it means that you have a lot of control over where your base position will be.

Let’s take a look at these factors one by one.

The Stroke You Are About to Play

Mostly, the strokes are played from pretty much similar position relative to the player’s body, a little to the side. Well, this is so typical on the forehand side, but on the backhand, the position can be different. The main idea is that the backhand pushes and counters close to the table are typically best executed directly in front of your torso. So, as you move back from the table, the backhand drives, loops and chops tend to be better especially if you take them a little more to the side of your body. This movement can and will affect where your base position should be. And, this has a great impact in terms of sideways positioning.

The Stroke You Have Just Played

As maintained, the stroke you have just played will affect your positioning, but in a more up and back manner. If for instance, you have created a strong attack or tight push or chop, there is a probability that you will want to come closer to the table, or remain in your position. And, if you have made a weak shot, you may wish to retreat from the table a little.

The Position of the Ball on the Table

In terms of where you put the ball on the table, a two way-effect is possible. First, it will help you determine what particular distance away from the table your opponent hits the ball, which in turn can affect whether you should be coming closer to the table or move back. Secondly, if you can place the ball in place that is tougher for your opponent, like as wide angles or into his crossover point, there is possibility that you will obtain a weak return. As such, you tend to come close to the table or hold your position, searching for another powerful follow-up return.

The Angle You Have Hit the Ball From

It is a fact that every player of ping pong has a series of angles that he is most comfortable hitting within. Experts note that as he faces in different directions, this angle tends to move with the way he is facing.

So, the angle you have hit the ball from will have an effect to the way that your opponent is facing. With this, different parts of the table will be within his comfortable range of angles. Note that the comfortable range of angles is simply the spot that your opponent will find it physically easiest to hit the ball. Most of the ping pong players are more likely to place the ball in this range. Now, to make win the game, plan your base position according to this knowledge.

The Shot Your Opponent is Likely to Play

In the game of ping pong, it is important that you know that the stroke your opponent is likely to play is in part influenced by his own positioning, weaknesses and strengths. But, also part of that is influenced by the return you have given him as well as your own positioning during the match. It is said that the best place to put yourself will alter depending on how these different factors interact.

For instance, if you are playing with an opponent who has a strong forehand loop crosscourt, but is not great enough ay hitting down the line, you could adjust this tactic by way of standing a little further to your right, knowing that he is not as likely to hit down the line during the match. Or, if he is strong at looping off pushes, but tends to block topspin returns, you may wish to move back a little when pushing, then come forward when you reloop his first attack. Always note that an opponent who prefers to run around his backhand to hit off-forehands to your backhand may need you to move to your left when he runs around his backhand to attack, but in turn move back to the right if you can survive his first attack and then place it wide to his forehand, providing you an opportunity to pin him down on his backhand side.

Perhaps another great point to note here is that if you can force your opponent to play a particular stroke or a particular direction consistently, you can change your base position accordingly. For instance, if you have a good deep sidespin serve to your opponent’s backhand that he find it difficult to return down the line, you can stand further to your left when waiting for his return of service. By way of cutting down his available options, there is a great possibility for you to get away with standing in a position that would be suicidal if your opponent is flipping the ball down the line easily.


As presented above, your best base position will be changing from stroke to stroke during a ping pong match. So, what is important here is that you always make it a goal to be moving towards this best spot once you have made your stroke. You should know fairly well where the ball is going to at the time you hit the ball, as well as with what pace and spin. It is also important that you have a good idea of where your opponent is and what his likely responses are. All of these will give you a wide base location to start with and as you move forward to your victory, learning all the strokes your opponent is going to play and where he is likely to put it, including the direction, depth and power of his stroke, a final small base location will be available to you that could give you the best chance of making a good return of your choice. Don’t just stop and wait unless you believe that you are already in the right place.

Wednesday, January 25, 2006

Ways to Share Internet Connection through a Cable or DSL Modem

Introduction

Have more than one computer in the house? If so, you will most likely want to share the Internet connection. The advantage of sharing is even better especially if the connection is though a cable or DSL modem. The main reason is that, there is actually enough bandwidth to share, but obviously you need to work your personal computer to do this because that alone will not do it.

First-Hand Problems

There are actually problems to consider before anything else regarding the sharing of the connection happen. Part of the problem is that most of the modem service providers these days only offer you with one IP address with the cable modem service. What normally happens is that, they want you to pay more to obtain more IP addresses, or they may actually have a rule against owning multiple IP addresses in the service agreement.

Another delicate part of the problem is the fact that a number of cable modems these days are just plain bridges, that is, with no any routing capabilities. In this case, the user needs to obtain some address translation in order to employ more than one IP address on the local area network (LAN). An example of this could be the NAT.

Whatever the case may be, there are still some ways left out there that could help you share internet connection with your cable modem or DSL. These probable ways are mentioned just here, so read on.

Easy and Cheap Internet Sharing

Here, I will mainly explain a very simple setup that can be employed for sharing internet connection, files, and printer with only a single IP address. However, note that you will need to use MS Windows 98 SE (Second Edition), and whatever configuration that will be presented does not provide optimum security, but this is a lot favorable than the standard Win98 SE install. Just a clue: This should be sufficient for the casual user.

This is what you need:

• Cable or DSL modem
• One personal computer with two Ethernet cards
• A few PC’s with one Ethernet card
• A hub and enough Ethernet cables to tie it all together
• The printer is optional

First things first: Install and bind NetBEUI for File and Printer Sharing on the client computers on the local network. Then, in Windows 9x Control Panel -> Network, follow these steps:

Step 1: Ensure that both the TCP/IP and NetBEUI are installed. Just note that typically, there is no need to install IPX/SPX. You can usually remove it unless you are running Novell.

Step 2: Many people want local networking, so if this pops up into your mind, make sure that you have installed the Client for Microsoft Networks, as well as the Printer and File Sharing for Microsoft Networks.

Step 3: Double click on the “TCP/IP -> [your network adapter]”, and then Bindings. Also make sure that both Client for Microsoft Networks and the Printer and File Sharing for Microsoft Networks are unmarked. Simply click “NO” in case you obtain a dialog box warning you about no bindings.

Step 4: Double click on “NetBEUI -> [your network adapter]” and then Bindings. Here, make sure that the Client for Microsoft Networks, and Printer and File Sharing for Microsoft Networks are marked or checked.

Following such basic steps will greatly ensure that your computer applies TCP/IP only for access to the Internet and that all local networking will employ only NetBEUI. Speaking of NetBEUI, it is worth noting that the NetBEUI is actually not a routable protocol. As such, none of your local traffic will go out over the Internet and nobody on the Internet will be able to access services available on your local network.

As mentioned earlier, this is probably sufficient for the typical casual user. Thus, those who are more serious should consider a firewall simply because there are other possible ways that you can be attacked. The common examples for this is the Trojan horse that usually gets installed like a virus, as well as the IP spoofing and denial of service attack.

Note that the cable modem can connect to the gateway machine by way of employing either USB or Ethernet. And, to the OS, both options look like network connections.

Improving the Security

In terms of security, the NAT, Firewall and Proxy software are now available for installation. They are usually installed on the gateway machine, and for long years they have been considered as potent software for securely sharing an Internet connection with only one IP address through a cable or DSL modem.

In the first place, the Network Address Translation (NAT) or a proxy server has the capability to let you share an IP address between more than one machines. Note that this does not necessary imply any form of security. It is commonly said that if your gateway device is using NAT or a proxy, it doesn’t mean that the gateway is anymore secure than it would be if those services were not installed. What it usually mean is, the network behind is harder to obtain or attack. But, that is not always true as many experts have claimed.

Now, let us look at the mentioned software one by one.

Network Address Translation (NAT)

Generally, a NAT is easier to set up and use than a proxy server. A support for this claim could be the fact that with the NAT, you simply install it on the computer that is directly attached to the cable modem, while with proxy server generally require settings for every client computer on the local network.

Also, all the personal computer NAT items do address/ port mapping. They even keep state information that prevents any incoming connections. This means that it provides similar protection as stateful packet filtering.

Also worthy to note is that a NAT product must substitute the TCP/IP stack on the PPC/NIC adapter with its own IP stack. Ensuring this thing helps protect the gateway machine, including the computers on the local network. As many experts have claimed, product documentation should indicate this, but in some instances it is not clearly described or specified. The possible behind this could be that attempt to keep things simple for the amateur buyers.

A NAT makes the machines on the local network behind the gateway machine more secure basically for the reason that the client computers on the local network employ IP addresses that are reserved for use only on internal networks. With this, the IP addresses then will not be visible on the Internet.

Proxy Server

The Proxy Servers are commonly used when you want more rigid control of what the client machines are allowed to perform. They can also be used when you have a number of client machines in use. On its fundamental nature, the proxy server lightens the load on the cable or DSL modem. This is done by caching web pages that are downloaded. So, imagining that the users on the local network tend to surf the same pages, the performance then can be greatly improved. This is what sets the proxy apart from the NAT as with the latter, every request needs retrieval through the cable modem. Caching is not needed.

Firewall

When considering firewall for security, note that you are often addressing two main problems. One is mapping your network into a limited number of public IP addresses, and the other is providing security itself.

The first problem is often addressed by the NAT and is generally used when you are using a packet filtering firewall to promote security. But, if both the NAT and the packet filtering firewall are used, both problems can be solved. Also, the proxy server is potent enough to solve both of the problems.

What is interesting to know is that most of the commercial gateway firewall products available these days are a combination of all of these. The proxy servers can be highly secure and it will allow you to dig into the application data of the packets. Thus, you can do things such as rewriting the mail headers, blocking the URLs and a lot more. Nevertheless, they can be somewhat restricting mainly because writing an intelligent and at the same time secure proxy for every protocol or application is more than anyone can handle. Also, most of the firewalls employ either packet filtering as well as NAT, or there are some times that they employ packet filtering and a generic proxy to cover the portions where they do not have a good proxy written. Finally, packet filtering and NAT tend to have less overhead than the proxy servers.

Employing a Dedicated NAT/Firewall Box for Internet Sharing

A new breakthrough in the field of high speed internet sharing is the use of dedicated NAT/Firewall box. Well, here I will discuss mainly the ways to set up a home network by using the said tool. Naturally, the highlights of a separate box are about the same as what the software solutions offer, which was described above on the NAT, proxy server and firewall section. At the same time, that the two main reasons for having these functions: sharing one IP address and providing security.

Anyway, this is what you need:

• Cable or DSL modem
• A NAT/Firewall box
• A few PCs with Ethernet cards
• Enough Ethernet cables to tie it all together
• The printer is optional

The primary benefit of this approach over running the NAT/Firewall functions as software on a gateway machine is basically the notion that no gateway machine needs to be on in order to access the Internet from the other machines. What need to be on are only the NAT/Firewall box and the cable modem.

However, if the printer is attached to one of the client personal computers, this somehow curtails the advantage. To be able to share the printer, the computer connected to it will have to be on. Simply put, the way around this problem is to add a printer-server box.

Unlike the previous requirements, here is what you will need in this case:

• Cable or DSL modem
• A NAT/Firewall box
• A printer server box
• A few PCs with Ethernet cards
• Enough Ethernet cards to tie it all together

Perhaps one thing to note about this configuration is that, it allows you to turn any client personal computer on the local LAN on or off as required. In turn, the boxes that you should leave on always are the cable or DSL modem, the NAT/Firewall box, the printer, and the printer server box. That’s it!

Some Specific Products to Consider for Internet Sharing

Here is a list of the available software products that you can use in solving all or part of the internet sharing dilemmas described above.

• ICS – is the usual NAT service applicable for Windows 98 Second Edition. But, this is also most likely to work on the Windows 2000.
• WinProxy v3.0 – This is a firewall and a proxy capable of blocking ports that get opened by the operating system. The firewall actually ensures that the users don’t have unwanted intruders invading their system or bombarding them with several requests that cause the so-called “denial of service” attacks. Perhaps what is best about this software is that, it offers five levels of built-in security that can be customized to the users needs and it even includes pre-configured firewall settings to accommodate applications like MSN, NetMeeting, AOL as well as some of the more famous games that can be troublesome for NAT or proxies.
• WinGate – is another very well-known proxy type Internet sharing software that functions with both dial up and cable or xDSL connections.
• SyShield, Conseal and AtGuard – are all PC Firewall products intended to improve the security of one host by adding a packet filter.
• BlackICE Defender – This products fits under the firewall category, but this somehow belongs to a new category, which is “intrusion detection system”. Basically, this works to analyze the traffic, even that allowed through the firewall, proxied, or translated.

Conclusion

Sharing an Internet connection through a cable or DSL modem can indeed be performed in different ways. Simply put, there is always a possible solution for every possible internet sharing problem. Perhaps the best thing to consider now is to note the very necessary points and apply them for your own advantage.

However, there is actually no issue that I’m aware of, from a security perspective, where you’d preferentially choose a NAT instead of a proxy server or vice versa. As presented, a proxy allows the administrator with more control over what is or isn’t permitted into the computer on the local network, while a NAT usually offers easier set up. Also, to some extent, both the NAT and proxy act as firewalls, but this is only true behind the NAT or proxy server. The gateway machine running the NAT or proxy is not actually protected. But, there are some products, as mentioned above, that could combine the functions of those mentioned software.

Cable Modem vs. DSL: The High-Speed Big Guns Face Off

Introduction

In today’s high speed Internet access market, the cable modem and DSL are the dominant technologies. They are highly popular throughout the United States and the world as two of the powerful high speed services for Internet connections. However, like any other service, the cable modem and DSL have practical differences, and most of them will be tackled just here.

Definition of a Cable Modem and DSL

A cable modem, on one hand, is commonly used to connect a computer to a cable TV service that provides Internet access. It can dramatically increase the amount of bandwidth between the user’s personal computer and the internet service provider, and this is usually possible in the downlink, that is, from ISP to the user. Unlike the analog modems which take time to dial a number, the cable modems connect to the computer through an Ethernet port. As you may know, this Ethernet port is an “always on” connection. Also, the Ethernet is a shared medium and the individual user’s speed will be determined depending on the number of customers who are sending or receiving data on that particular segment of the cable at the same time.

On the other hand, the DSL is the acronym for Digital Subscriber Line or Digital Subscriber Loop, often referred to as xDSL. There are a number of types of DSL, and the two main categories are the ADSL and SDSL. However, there are also the High-data-rate DSL (HDSL) and Very high DSL (VDSL). All of these DSL technologies use sophisticated modulation systems to pack data into copper wires. Because of this, they are sometimes referred to as last-mile technologies and also for the reason that they are employed only for connections from a telephone switching station to a home or office, and not between switching stations.

As you may notice, the primary difference between a cable modem and DSL lies on the nature of their connection. A cable modem is highly dependent on your cable TV provider offering such a service, while the DSL is dependent on the distance from you to the central office.

Cable Modem and DSL Performance

When it comes to performance, the access speed is a very important factor to consider. It is here where you can see which of the two services is the faster, or are DSL and cable modem any faster than each other. Well, to know everything about the DSL and cable modem speed, just follow along as I explain the speed difference between these technologies.

The Bottom Line

A number of technical trials have revealed that the cable modem Internet services on average promise higher levels of bandwidth than the DSL Internet services. Note that it is this bandwidth that roughly translates to raw speed. Nevertheless, while it is claimed that cable modem Internet will theoretically perform faster than DSL, there are still some other technical and business reasons that can lessen or even eliminate this particular advantage.

The Raw Speed

When it comes to the theoretical peak performance, it is often said that the cable modem runs faster than the DSL. A major support for this is the finding which says that the cable modem technology has the capability to back up approximately 30 Mbps of bandwidth, whereas most of the DSL aren’t able to reach even only 10 Mbps.

However, it is interesting to know that there is what they call as VDSL, a well-known type of DSL Internet service that can match the cable modem’s performance. Thus, VDSL can also support up to 30 Mbps. But, most of the internet service providers these days exempt VDSL from their offers. They rather offer the cheaper and slower types of DSL: the ADSL or SDSL services.

The Real-World Speed

There are a lot of reasons to support the notion that the cable modem’s speed advantage over DSL is much less than the theoretical numbers suggest. Here are the findings:

• Most of the cable modem services can slow down significantly especially if a lot of people in the neighborhood access the Internet simultaneously.
• As found out, both the cable modem and DSL performance greatly vary from one minute to the next. This variation highly depends on the pattern of use, as well as on the traffic congestion on the Internet itself.
• Many experts have said that DSL and cable Internet service providers often execute the so-called “speed caps” that generally limit the amount of bandwidth of their services.
• Finally, some of the home networks failed to match the speed of the Internet connection, thus lowering your performance.

The Speed Caps

Typically, both the cable modem and DSL Internet service providers use bandwidth or speed caps for those residential users. It is basically the bandwidth caps which place an artificial boundary on the maximum speed that a user can receive. This is done by way of monitoring the individual traffic flow, other than throttling network packets if necessary. Just note that the speed or bandwidth caps can lessen a 30 Mbps service down to 3 Mbps or even lower than that.

But, what really motivates the service providers for imposing speed caps?

The truth is, there are a lot of factors that may motivate the service providers to impose speed or bandwidth caps. One of those could be their concern regarding the capacity limits of their network. By considering this a speed cap, they can accommodate customers.

Another could be the notion that the vast majority of customers do not actually need any more bandwidth than that permitted under the speed cap. Also, service providers may want to form a fair and equal distribution of bandwidth of customers. If a cap is absent, for instance, some of the DSL subscribers would enjoy much higher levels of bandwidth than others in the same neighborhood, which is not fair. Lastly, most of the service providers typically want to charge higher or lower rates for greater or lesser levels of bandwidth.

Cable Modem and DSL Security

Cable modem and DSL, in practice, apply different network security models. The question here is if both of these technologies secure enough? Or, is one really any safer than the other?

The network security is in the first place one of the most controversial items commonly mentioned in most cable modem and DSL comparison resources. This is always the subject every time a debate regarding the relative merits of cable modem and DSL service are being raised. Well, many experts in the field have found out that at first glance, it appears that one particular service clearly wins the security battle over the other. But the question is, does this commonly-maintained opinion stand up to closer scrutiny? I guess it does. Just read on.

Cable’s Network Neighborhood

Technically, cable modem services employ a share cable line to offer service to an entire neighborhood. With this, all the cable customers in the region belong to the same local area network or LAN. However, since most of the services have no security measures in place, anybody in the neighborhood might technically be able to click on their Windows Network Neighborhood icon and actually view the names and addresses of the computers as well as their neighbors on the service. Thus, if a cable user enables file sharing on any drives, there is a great possibility that neighbors could even download copies of their data without the other knowing.

Well, such is one of the most commonly encountered dilemmas in the past. Thanks to some techniques today that this problem was minimized. The technique usually involves bundling security features in the cable modem hardware. Specifically, the basic network firewall capabilities prevent the files from being downloaded or viewed. Aside from that, most of the cable modems today execute the Data Over Cable Service Interface Specification (DOCSIS), which involves support for cable network security features covering packet filtering and authentication.
DSL’s Leg Up

Many have claimed that DSL service inherently offers better security than the cable modem service. But, note that some of the proponents of this notion are also DSL providers. Thus, there is a great possibility that one might reveal such claim as a sort of sales gimmick. Yet, one finds the same sentiment among many non-commercial organizations as well. Perhaps the foundation for this claim is the fact that DSL service uses dedicated rather than shared cabling. Aside from this, the DSL users in a given neighborhood do not actually appear as nodes on a local area network (LAN).

No matter their origins, the claims of better security for DSL generally relate more to a perceived pitfall in the security of cable modem than to any distinct benefit that the DSL might hold.

Considerations for Both Technologies

Perhaps one thing to note when it comes to DSL and cable modem security is that both of these technologies provide always-on connection capability. Both can stay logged into the net without letting up if they prefer. However, this feature sometimes creates a security risk. The so-called “law of averages” may matter, which means simply being online longer raises the likelihood of attack proportionately. But more importantly, such feature means the customer will be using the same network address for the duration of their online session.

Speaking of network address or static IP addresses, it is interesting to know that these provide network attackers with a fixed target. A number of DSL and cable modem service providers these days offer DHCP address assignment that triggers the users’ address to change each time they sign on. The bad thing is, this feature helps only slightly if the address stays the same throughout the days or weeks one remains online.

Also, many of the users of DSL and cable modem prefer to buy routers to protect their internal schemes. Well, this is worth considering as the router has the capability to enhance the functionality of the basic modem with security features, like the popular network address translation (NAT) and packet filtering. With the use of router, the user can actually create an equivalent security system with the basic modem and proxy software installed on the computer which is directly connected to the modem. Today, there are some broadband routers that simply offer a convenient and operating system-independent packaging of security highlights.

Pros and Cons of Cable Modem vs. DSL

To clearly figure out which of the two technologies is better, let’s take a look at the advantages and disadvantages of cable modem versus DSL. I have outlined below the pros and cons of each technology.

Cable Modem Service
Pros

• Speeds are not dependent on distance from central office.
• Faster maximum speeds (2 Mbps+) than DSL.
• Sometimes cheaper than DSL. This is true especially when bundled with TV service.

Cons

• The installation is not easy and the help of the professional is highly needed.
• The line is shared with others in the neighborhood and the speeds may vary.
• May place restrictions on data downloads as well as uploads.

DSL Service

Pros

• High-speed downloads of up to 1.5 Mbps.
• Business-level DSL service offers guaranteed data rates.
• Allows you to surf the Net and converse on the same line at the same time.

Cons

• Not every phone line will work and there is no easy way to find out if your line does.
• Speed drops as you forward further from phone company central office.
• Not as widely available as the cable modem.

Conclusion

Both cable modem and DSL provide reasonable safe Internet access as long as one heeds reasonable security precautions. The customers of both technologies can select from a number of possible precautions, including the use of a broadband router, firewall software, or perhaps proxy server software. And, as possible, one should consider disabling network file sharing on the internet LAN. It is often suggested that if one signs up for a new Internet service, or switches providers, vulnerable tests must be performed. After all, there are a lot of different security testing tools for popular operating systems available.

Also, when opting for a cable modem service providers, the technology they offer must be considered. Two particular questions to raise could be, “Does their modem implement DOCSIS?”, and if so, “What security alternatives have been enabled?” And, I guess it is better to examine the service agreement first and in the end find out if they are prohibited.

Cable Modem Speed Tweaks for Total Speed Freak

When it comes to online speed, over and above is never enough. Although a lot has been done, many people are strongly convinced that some program, some uncapping, some tweaking process must unlock a cable modem’s true power and allow connections at momentum speed.

Practically, there are a lot of things that you can do to raise your high-speed connection. However, different people acquire different results. Some will see dramatic improvements on their system, while others might observe just small gains, and few of them see their modem performance worsen.

This article is not written to teach you how to uncap your cable modem. Uncapping in the first place is illegal. It is often referred as “theft of service”, thus I highly discourage you from doing it. So here, I will mention some ways on how to speed up your modem connection through speed tweaks, which is legally accepted.

Much has actually been written about how you can tweak your Windows registry to enhance the performance of your TCP/IP connection on a cable modem or xDSL modem. As many experts commonly held, what you benefit from this is really quite limited, but it works either.

The following is a quick guide for those who like to do things themselves:

Step 1: Current Speed Testing

Testing your current speed is by far one of the most essential moves to consider for speed tweaking. Accordingly, this allows you to have some hard data to compare before and after. However, do not assume that you can feel the difference. Yes, you may be able to do that, but it is usually too easy to forget the so-called “before feel”.

Rather than assuming in the first place, testing the speed by doing a pure FTP download from a server which is located at the CMTS head-end is the best way to consider. Note that by employing a server at the head-end, there is a great possibility that the speed test will not be depending on too many internet bottlenecks. Along with this, you will need to locate an appropriate server as well as a good file for the test. And, for optimum result, make sure that you are free from any tricks that are usually occurring along the way while caching. Just download the file for a couple of times and note and compare the download times.

Step 2: Backup the Registry

Note in the first place that the registry is where a Windows computer stores user and system configuration data. Editing it can give you a lot of power over your system; however, there are some possibilities that will create terrible problems. So, be careful when editing your registry and always consider a back up.

Now, how to back up your registry?

From the Start menu, select Run and enter regedit. The Registry Editor will then appear. After which, pull down the Registry menu and choose Export registry File. Name your file and save it on an external floppy disk. Note that the Registry Editor also keeps its own backup, which you can load by way of typing scanreg/restore from a command line. But, don’t rely on it though because this backup is usually overwritten after five editing sessions.

After doing those moves, you are now ready to mess with your registry. If anything unfavorable happens, just follow the above steps again, but now select the Import Registry File and then load the original registry settings from your floppy. These moves actually involve the formation of new key values in the registry. If you have already employed a particular program to speed up your connection, try to check the existing values against the ones recommended here.

To proceed, use the window on the left like Windows Explorer until you get to the folder you want. Note that every folder is a key and contains a number of values. From there, form a value by using the Edit menu if needed. And, click on the value you want to modify, and then proceed to Edit menu or right click to change the settings.

Step 3: Tweak the Registry

Now that you are comfortable enough with the Registry Editor and have a backup, be ready to start tweaking your computer.

Windows 98 Registry Settings

Start Setting the MTU.

Go to the Start menu and select Run. Enter regedit. Unlock the keys (the folders) as if you were using Windows Explorer. Then, go to: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE → System → Current Controller Set → Services → Class → NetTrans.

Look for the number of keys beginning with 000 and click on them looking for a key containing the value name DriverDesc. The value data is TCP/IP. Note that you will be adding a new value to this key. How to do it? Follow these steps:

• Ensure that you have the correct key chosen.
• Use the Edit pull down and choose Edit → New String Value.
• New Value #1 will appear in the key.
• The new value should be highlighted for you to name it. Or, select Edit → Rename. Make the name of this value “MaxMTU”.
• Finally, double click MaxMTU and enter 1500 in the value data box.

Setting the Receive Window.

Open the following keys: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE → System → CurrentControlSet → Services → VxD → MSTCP. As in the previously mentioned step, you will need to give the value names and values for the MSTCP key. These are the values you will typically be defining:

DefaultRcvWindow="64240" Type: String Value

The string value must be a multiple of MSS and has a maximum of 1Gigabit in Windows 98. Try the setting in this order: 64240, 46720, 32120, 17520, 11680.

PMTUDiscovery="1" Type: String Value

Note that this value is a Boolean or true or false option. For your computer to go as fast as possible, you might want to set this to 1.

TCP1323Opts="3" Type: DWORD Decimal Variable

This value refers to windowscaling and timestamp options. It is typically employed when transferring data to a computer with a buffer greater than 64k. Also note that for this value, a setting of 3 enables both, a value of 1 turns off timestamping, and a value of 0 turns off both settings. So, set it at 3 and click on the Decimal value and not the Hexidecimal.

SACKOpts="1" Type: String Value

This is but another Boolean value and has controls over how your computer resends similar data if packets are lost. Turn SACK on by setting this to 1.

There is a another key we need to alter – the HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE → System → CurrentControlSet → Services → VxD → MSTCP → Parameters. This key requires one more value, which is:

MaxDupAcks="3" Type: DWORD Decimal Variable

This controls how fast your computer sends new information if packets are lost. This can be set at 2 or more.

After doing all of these, go back and check your work for spelling and proper types. Rebooting and testing your speed using any of the speed tools available follow.

Windows NT and 2000 Registry Settings

In case you are using Windows 2000, just follow the same guidelines as if you are employing Windows NT. But, before anything else, it is necessary to know that tweaking a Windows NT/2000 system will produce less dramatic outputs than on the Windows 98 system. Perhaps this is due to the fact that Windows NT/2000 is already optimized for networking purposes.

Now, to begin, open regedit and go to: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE → System → CurrentControlSet → Services → TCP/IP → Parameters. Note that you will be adding a new value to this key. To do it, follow these steps:

• Ensure that you have the key selected. Use the Edit pull down and choose Edit → New DWORD Value.
• New Value #1 will appear as the name of this value.
• Highlight it for you to name it. Otherwise, choose Edit → Rename. Name the value “TcpWindowSize”.
• Double click TcpWindowSize and enter 64240 in the shown value data box. Click on the Decimal value to note that the value is a DWORD decimal variable type.

With the same method, you need to set the following values:

EnablePMTUDiscovery="1" Type: DWORD Decimal Variable

This is a Boolean value. Set it to True(1) for maximum throughput and a setting of False(0) will send fixed packets of 1500 as set by the MTU. Make sure you click on Decimal value and not hexadecimal.

EnablePMTUBHDetect="1" Type: DWORD Decimal Variable

Another Boolean value. Set it to True(1) if you set EnablePMTUDiscovery+1 above. Decimal value must be clicked.

The next key refers to a certain network device. To set this, you need first to know the modem of your internet adapter. Then, go to: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE → System → CurrentControlSet → Services → Adapter Name → Parameters → TCP/IP.

MTU="1500" Type: DWORD Decimal Variable

Note that MTU is a DWORD Decimal Variable. As such, avoid setting up values larger than the default for the underlying network because as they will default to the network MTU. The Decimal value must be clicked.

Macs and Linux Tweaking

Macintosh OS

The Macintosh OS doesn’t have a registry actually. It main function is to control the communications through the Open Transport layer. It comes preset to carry dial up modems and Ethernet connections, which sets it similar to Windows machine. Also, neither of these settings takes advantage of a high-speed modem’s distinct capabilities.

So, to tweak the Open Transport layer of the MacOS, a product named “OT Advanced Tuner” is highly recommended as it shows up as a control panel in the Macintosh, and can modify more than 30 communication parameters.

Linux version 2.1.1 and greater

For tuning the parameters in Linux, messing up with anything like a Windows Registry is unnecessary. However, a text editor like Vi or Emacs is needed. Also, there is no sysctl application for the values, but somehow editing the values in the following files will alter the values in the kernel:
/proc/sys/net/core/rmem_default : default receive window
/proc/sys/net/core/rmem_max : maximum receive window
/proc/sys/net/core/wmem_default : default send window
/proc/sys/net/core/wmem_max : maximum send window
For better and secure processing, a professional is needed.

Step 4: Testing the New Speed

Now that you’ve done all those tweakings, use the same method as mentioned in step 1. You can use this as a verification of the modem installation. If in the end, you’ve got an improvement in the speed, then great! But, if the speed remains the same, no need to worry because nothing is actually broken. And, if the speed becomes lower now, then you must consider undoing the tweaks. This is done by way of importing the backup copy made during step 2.

Note also that you should try doing the checking under the same load conditions, that is, same time of the day. And, ensure that are you are free from any tricks along the way.

Uncapping a Cable Modem: A Theft of Service?

Introduction

“Uncapping” is one of the most commonly heard concepts on the high speed Internet access market. This has been pulling interest from the consumers as many believe that uncapping boosts speed of their cable modem. Well, the term “uncapping” in the first place refers to the concept of somehow lifting the bandwidth cap that many of the cable modem service providers impose. A number of cable modem users are tempted to do this because of the notion that uncapping improves the speed of their cable modem. The truth is, uncapping is apparently theft of service. This may even have seriously unfavorable consequences.

In this article, I will give you a sort of snapshot of the world of uncapping the DOCSIS 1.0 cable modem as it appears in the early 2002. Well, this is actually written to discourage the cable modem users from stealing bandwidth. And, I somehow suggest that the modem service providers as well as the vendors must proactively and constantly improve security as it is very necessary.

The Conventions of Uncapping

Many people believed that there are some ways to uncap the cable modem. One of those is by using the so-called FUCKUPC program. In one of the forums covered by the Cable-Modems.Org, one particular commenter reported that there once was a hack for the Lancity cable modems. A disgruntled client of Chello Netherlands formed a program to get rid of the upstream limitation. So, instead of 16 Kb/s, he had more than 300 Kb/s upstream. Well, according to other sources, that creepy-crawly was already fixed years ago. But, if such really happened, the Lancity modem is actually not covered under the DOCSIS standards, but it is employing a propriety protocol. So, if you have a DOCSIS cable modem, such program would fail as it never worked for any DOCSIS modem.

There is also what they call as “easyspeed.exe”. This actually pops up once in a while, and it has been considered as one of the most sophisticated Trojan horses, that is, full backdoor and IRC controlled. Also, this type of program is frequently labeled as a cable modem “uncapper” or dial up modem speed increase, and this is recognized by the anti virus software. Today, you may find this software using P2P software just like the Limewire or KAZAA.

Finally, many believed that adjusting the Windows registry settings, specifically the TCP Receive Window will help improve speed. Note that this is not what we mean by “uncapping”. Speed Tweaks, as it is commonly called, is absolutely lawful and it is used merely a way for fixing or improving the overall performance of the network in a specific OS. And, speed tweaks are usually employed by many cable modem technicians during the cable modem installation. Speed Tweaks and Uncapping are but two different concepts.

The Truths about Uncapping

In the first place, the DOCSIS standard highly spells out how the cable modems are supposed to function in each and every detail. It is commonly maintained that the order of the boot is fairly complicated; however it could be understood if a proper examination of the version is considered. Here is a short version of it:

• Offline
• Scan for downstream channel
• Welcome Upstream Channel Descriptor (UCD)
• Ranging to find tx level as well as symbol timing
• DHCP to obtain cable modem IP address and gateway
• Employ TFTP to obtain configuration file
• Initialize Baseline Privacy (BPI)
• Receive Time of Day (ToD)
• Online

Note that all of these could happen on the side interface of the cable modem, usually before the personal computer of the individual user is performing anything.

Also, it is important to note that the DOCSIS configuration file usually contains cable modem setting for most parameters. The parameters could include downstream channel identification, Class of Service settings, Baseline Privacy settings, General operational settings, network management information, software upgrade fields, filters, and vendor specific settings.

The configuration data is basically a binary file contained in a well specified format which can be edited or altered by way of employing a special configuration file editor. Note however that this software is not designed with the intention of giving it to the general public for use, but it does not contain any secrets either. Today, there is an open source project mounting a DOCSIS configuration file editor. Being “open”, anyone wanting to edit the configuration files can easily do so.

The Techniques Involved

After years of technical trials, several techniques were being rumored and proposed by many sources on the Internet. Most of them are anonymous. Well, let’s take a look at those proposed schemes one by one.

TFTP

As you may know, one of the proposed schemes in the field of high speed internet access is the idea of setting up a modified DOCSIS configuration file on a TFTP server, which is attached to the Ethernet side of the cable modem. Tricking of the TFTP server allows you to read the configuration file from the Ethernet side instead of the cable side. However, a cable modem is not actually permitted to perform this by the DOCSIS specifications. But, there are some unrelated anonymous sources who joined the forums mentioning the possibility of such operation. They said that it is possible on some of the very famous Motorola modems because of what must be distinguished as a bug.

There is a common question regarding this matter: Is this likely to be possible? The answer is YES. As many experts have maintained, during the development of the cable modem firmware, it is very enticing to grant the cable modem to boot with the absent of cable side connection. This allows debugging in cases that are otherwise not probable or practical in the laboratory. Many have guessed that all cable modems at some point in their growth cycle may have the capability to boot, as well as read the configuration file from the Ethernet side. For some, this is apparently not a highlight designed for the shipping version of the firmware.

Furthermore, there are a number of fundamental ways to switch between the debug version and the shipping version of the firmware. One famous approach involves having the debug features always present in the cable modem, but just blocking access to them in some way for the shipping cable modem. Note that this can be a special worth in a non-volatile memory, a short on the computer board or some other proprietary systems. Another approach commonly employed is to have two dissimilar versions of the firmware. This allows the shipping firmware not to cover the debug features. Often, the two versions would be compiled from the similar source code set using varying build time switches.

It has been noted that if a user manages to switch on the debug portion of the firmware, or perhaps trigger some bugs to the same effect, this uncapping technique is very likely possible on most cable modems.

Bogus MAC’s

Another famous way of uncapping is by changing the cable side MAC address to that of another user and this is possible for someone paying for premium service. The user will in turn be able to effectively steal that user’s service. However, two cable modems online with similar MAC is not possible for an extended period of time, and will be logged at the CMTS. This is where the bogus or fake MAC comes in.

One can change the cable side MAC by using a debug shell-enabled cable modem, or by removing the non-volatile memory on the PC board holding the MAC address and reprogram it. This operation does not actually require special equipment, but in some instances, an electronics hobbyist can easily do this. Note that most modems will have a means to program the MAC address during the manufacturing process. This may involve utilizing the In-Circuit Tester (ICT) with a bed-of-nails fixture for the particular modem, which may be through the debug shell or some other techniques.

Well, the major key to remember here is, that the number of devices to look for is fairly small. Locating the MAC in the content of the storage device may also be fairly simple, as the MAC address is usually shown on a sticker at the back of the modem.
Shell-Enabled Cable Modems

One thing to remember is that, most cable modems have a shell for debug purposes. This is a simple command line interface that you can connect to using either telnet or a serial terminal. Most of the cable modems offer an http server to grant a web browser to access some parameters.

Usually, there are two or three versions of the shell. One is web-based and is designed for the end users. It was found out that the cable techs may have access to a more informative shell to obtain more details so to assist during the installation. However, they may still fail to modify any of the DOCSIS settings. Also, during the firmware development, the engineers typically have control over all types of restrictions that are internet to the cable modem through the shell. While the shipping version of the firmware is not allowed to welcome commands that affect the DOCSIS parameters, the debug that these engineers use in the laboratory can do all of that however.

So when it comes to uncapping, the technique used to exploit this feature is to obtain a shell-enabled cable modem and use the shell commands to modify the parameters. For some, this may be the class-of-service, the modem serial number and MAC address, and blocking of the automatic firmware upgrades.

Well, there is a lack of information regarding how users are able to obtain a shell-enabled cable modem, but several methods actually exist. One of those is the notion that the debug shell may be enabled in some modems by the same mechanisms as described for the TFTP hack (mentioned above). To do this, information leaked from individuals working for one of the vendors is most likely required in order, and the leak could be a binary for flashing into the modem.

Also, the cable modem is not permitted to welcome upgrades from the Ethernet side, however this could be present during the development, thus it may be possible to perform this on some shipping modems. As many experts have said, given the right equipment, a flash device can be detached from the PCB of the modem, read out, reprogrammed and put back in.

Accumulation of IPs

The main idea here is that most of the cable ISPs do not validate IPs at the router and look to limit bandwidth on a per IP basis. Therefore, if the user finds a ser of unused IPs, they can use their IP, forget about DHCP and pool bandwidth that way. Also, the normal way of imposing a cap on the bandwidth of individual users is by setting this in the configuration file. This actually makes the cable modem rate to limit its own upstream bandwidth.

The users can also employ a service aggregation device, which is capable of limiting the bandwidth at the router. This technique is usually done by defining tunnels for every modem through the router, and then applying a bandwidth cap on every individual tunnel. However, this uncapping tactic only functions for the modem service providers that employ the router approach for limiting the bandwidth.

How to Combat Uncapping

Both the service providers and vendors of cable modems have responsibilities to fight back the illegal and unfair attempts at uncapping. For your information, there are actually a lot of things that providers and vendors can do, but may not be doing for certain reasons. Here are the possible ways:

• Examining the MIC – The CMTS can actually enable MIC or Message Integrity Check, which is a feature intended to authenticate the configuration file in the cable modem via a strong encryption techniques using a shared secret. Although this is under the EuroDOCSIS specifications, the same mechanisms actually exist in plain DOCSIS systems. Also, this would prevent the TFTP technique of uncapping.
• Checking the MAC/IP – Note that the router can check of the IP addresses match the MAC addresses that were assigned to the CPE (end user PC) during DHCP. This is commonly considered knowing that this would prevent the accumulation of IPs attach, which is described above.
• DOCSIS 1.1. – If the BPI+ of DOCSIS 1.1 is enabled, the Bogus MAC technique would be barred.
• Other Checks – Several other ways of combating uncapping can be made by the service providers and vendors as part of their network monitoring. As commonly maintained, this may be logging anomalies in traffic patterns and similar schemes. Note that some of the providers use special traffic analysis software to check for NAT, which is not allowed by some service contracts.

Conclusion

As presented, uncapping is very likely possible in several cases. The best way to deal with it is perhaps to get it out in the open, so the cable modem service providers as well as the vendors can tighten up the security. As mentioned, the service providers and vendors can do a lot to improve the situation, and letting the case open will help the majority of users. This will promote fair and equal access in the end.

Tuesday, January 10, 2006

Basic Answers for People New to Cable Modem

Introduction

As you may know, the cable modem is by far the latest fad to hit the consumer side of the United States' computing market. The idea first stemmed from the notion that as television brings news, entertainment and educational programs into millions of people's homes, cable modems can help people to obtain high-speed connection to the Internet from their cable provider.

Although much had been said and written about cable modems, many have noticed that the subject is technically somewhat more complex than may be immediately apparent. For some, the promise of the cable modem lies in the ability to deliver Ethernet like speeds to the household for cable television like prices. But, as the technology matures, cable modem is continually viewed as the way to go for adding high speed Internet connection.

Cable Modem: A Definition

A cable modem is commonly defined as a device that allows high speed data access, like the Internet, through a cable TV network. Typically, a cable modem is composed of two connections: one to the cable wall outlet and the other is to a personal computer. Also, it is interesting to know that cable modems are generally external devices that connect to the personal computer through a standard 10Base-T Ethernet card as well as twisted-pair wiring. But, an External Universal Serial Bus (USB) modems and internal PCI modem cards can be used for connection as well.

The Access Speed

A cable modem is designed to provide high speed Internet performance. However, the speed of cable modems varies, and it typically depends on the cable modem system itself, cable network architecture, as well as the traffic load. It is usually noted that in the downstream direction, that is, from the network to the computer, the network speeds can reach up to 30 Mbps, which is an aggregate measure of bandwidth that is shared by the cable modem users. It is just somehow important to note that only few computers will be capable of connecting at such level of speed. Thus, a more realistic number is 1 to 3 Mbps. Nevertheless, with the further advancement in the field, most producers of cable modems have chosen a more optimum speed, which is typically between 500 Kbps and 2.5 Mbps. There are also some services providers who limit upstream access speed to 256 Kbps or less than this amount of bandwidth.

It is further worth noting that an asymmetric cable modem system is most typical. It is often specified in the DOCSIS and EuroDOCSIS standards. It has been said that the downstream channel of the cable modem has a much higher amount of bandwidth allocation, which means faster data rate, than the upstream. Perhaps this is due to the fact that the Internet applications oftentimes tend to be asymmetric in essence. Having said all these, it is then somehow understandable that activities such as the World Wide Wev navigating or simply "web surfing", as well as newsgroups reading send much more information down to the computer than to the network. URL requests or mouse clicks and email messages are not bandwidth intensive in the upstream direction, while image files and streaming media, like audio and video, are very bandwidth intensive in the downstream direction.

The Operation Involved

Many people find the word "modem" a bit misleading as ut somehow invokes images of a typical telephone dial-up modem. Well, a typical telephone dial up modem is a modem in the true sense of the word for thefact that it MOdulates and DEModulates signals. However, the similarity ends there as cable modems are practically an arrangement of magnitude that is more complex than their telephone dial up counterparts. It is necessary to note that cable modems can be part mode, part tuner, part encryption or decryption device, part bridge, part router, pary network interface card, part SNMP agent and part Ethernet hub.

Having said all these, a cable modem then works to send and receive data in two slightly different ways. As you may have known, the digital data is modulated in the downstream direction and then placed on a typical 6 MHz television channel, somewhere between 50 MHz and 750 MHz. Currently, the 64 QAM downstream modulation techniques are commonly preferred, giving out up to 27 Mbps per 6 MHz channel. Many experts have said that this can be placed in a 6 MHz channel adjacent to the television signals on either side with the absence of any disturbance on the part of the cable television video signals.

On the other hand, many have found out that the upstream channel is trickier than the downstream channel. Perhaps this is for the reason that in a two-way activated cable network, the upstream, also known by many as the reverse path, is typically transmitted between 5 to 42 MHz. Well, this tends to be a noisy environment, with the radio frequency interference and impulse noise. But, speaking of interference, it can easily be introduced in the home because of the loose connectors or poor cabling. Also, it is worth noting that since cable networks are tree and branch networks, all these interferences get added together as the signals move upstream, combining and intensifying.

Such condition is but a problem in the system. Because of this, most manufacturers of cable modems highly employ QPSK or an analogous modulation system in the upstream direction. This is for the reason that QPSK is a stronger system than the higher order modulation approaches in a noisy environment. To put it simply, the drawback is that QPSK is "slower" than QAM.

Services Offered with a Cable Modem Connection

When it comes to the available services, the dominant service is actually high speed Internet access, which allows the typical order of Internet services to be delivered at speeds far quicker than those given by dial up telephone modems. There are also some other services that include access to streaming audio and video, local content which is community information and services, and CD-ROM servers. And, as further development has been conducted on the system, new service ideas are being expected everyday.

The Cost of a Cable Modem Service

In North America where cable modem is widely applied, most of the cable operators are packaging high speed data services much like they do basic cable television service. Typically, the MSOs charge $40 to $60 per month for an Internet service package alone. But, somehow it is worth spending as the package includes software, unlimited Internet access, rental of a cable modem and specialized content.

At low end of this pricing rate, a very strong Internet services is usually made available to the consumer and the amount is much like the cost of a dial up account with a local Internet service provider, as well as a second telephone line.

Cable Modem Availability

Reports have actually revealed that cable companies started deploying standard based DOCSIS cable modems in late 1998. These cable modems are now being sold at retail in most United States markets, so there is a great possibility that you can find your best choice at retail outlets.

Supporting Internet Access for Multiple PCs

In terms of supporting Internet access for multiple personal computers, the cable modesm can greatly do it, assuming that they are connected through a local area network or LAN. Just note that cable modems typically have an Ethernet output, making it capable for connecting to the local area network with a standard Ethernet hub or router. However, every personal computer must have an assigned Internet Protocol (IP) address, which the cable ISP typically sells at a premium of about $5 to $10 a month per computer.

Alternatives to Cable Modems

Despite a number of advantages written and said about cabkle modems, they are not the sole way for adding high speed Internet connection. There are other options to consider, and some of them are mentioned below:

Conclusion

Cable modems, along with its potent alternatives, has been dominating the high speed internet access market in the United States and the world. In fact, it became a threat to the established telecommunications providers, particularly to the supposedly "fast" services like the ISDN. Also, as it matures, it is becoming a potential threat to the voiceband modem industry, which is constrained in throughput performance by the slow medium which they are tried to. Properly implemented, it's no wonder that the cable modem industry is able to blow a fatal hole in the long established and comfortable monopoly on the delivery of domestic, and possibly on the commercial digital communications.

Wednesday, November 16, 2005

Global Positioning System (GPS)

Introduction

Most of us, especially when we spend some time in other unfamiliar places, sometimes worry and wonder for what specific part of the planet are we into and where in the end are we going. This is so typical in almost every situation and many people find this as a big dilemma. So, to solve this problem, many companies that cater services related to navigation and technology were encouraged to design devices that would be of great help to those adventure trekkers. They came up with the development of GPS systems to help the people find their way to and back home.

What is GPS?

GPS actually stands for Global Positioning System. It is commonly defined as a satellite based navigation system providing accuracy valuable for side scan sonar surveys on a worldwide basis. A GPS device then is associated with a system of 24 satellites that revolve the earth and constantly measuring their positions. It is a machine that transmits and receives signals to and from the satellites for the device to recognize the original and current position of the satellites.

If you haven't heard about the GPS device before, for your information, these devices were long applied by water vessels and airplanes. However, the GPS devices have become so affordable that many of the people nowadays already owned some of the GPS devices for their personal uses.

What are the Functions of GPS?

According to some researches, the GPS devices are really useful in finding your exact location and destination. Many of its users claimed that with a GPS device in hand, you can definitely stand in the middle of nowhere. What's more, with the power of the GPS device, you will surely know the latitude and longitude coordinates and even the altitude provided that the device has enough satellites tracked.

As a powerful instrument, the GPS device can obtain and store your concrete location for you to refer to it later or if needed. So if you have some points of interest that you are not really familiar with, then have a GPS device of your own for you to find the right location without much efforts and with speed.

Nevertheless, it is worth noting that for the GPS device to locate the way, you need to enter to your preferred location and if such happens the GPS device will surely point the way. Most of the GPS devices have the ability to put to date the information needed every second.

What is GPS Mapping System?

It is a fact that the conventional paper maps which is used by most people since the dawn of man was then replaced by the introduction of the GPS mapping system which are generally digital and dynamic. However, many people are still not aware of why the GPS mapping system is introduced and how the GPS mapping system really works.

So for that issue, the GPS mapping system is generally devised for the people especially those who are into some adventures to have secure, safe and fun navigations. As such, the GPS mapping system then serve as a special device for the adventure enthusiasts to find their right destination and find their way back home quickly and easily.

Accordingly, the GPS mapping system was actually directed from the GPS satellites that compute exact and concise ground coordinates. It is in fact noted that through the introduction of the GPS mapping system, many people particularly those sportsmen interact with each other geographically just by describing the popular interesting areas for adventure with the use of the GPS mapping system and other GPS coordinates.

The GPS mapping system, in addition to the above mentioned details, was also designed for some applications that require a higher level of accuracy. As such, the GPS mapping system indeed show you the right location and route with clarity and accuracy. It is interesting to consider that according to some experts the GPS mapping system can typically reach the level of three feet or better accuracy.

Undoubtedly, the GPS mapping system uses the fundamental technology to analyze the positions on the Earth's surface. It is always considered that the GPS mapping system is ofetn differentiated to some recreational GPS in the line of their performance. Many noted that an advanced GPS mapping system has a capability to achieve higher level of accuracy in terms of the data given for the advanced GPS mapping system has better antennas and with that alone, the advanced GPS mapping system can correct data against unfamiliar positions. Besides, the advanced GPS mapping system unlike the recreational ones has a number of control measures and supports that are built into to the track mapping software. So as such, the GPS mapping system were much provided with better antennas to deliver accurate and clear information to the users.

Is there Special Software for GPS Mapping?

Several GPS mapping software are offered these days by a number of GPS companies out there in the physical and even virtual world. Some of them are given free of charge, while others are offered for purchase.

Here are the most well-known GPS mapping software available in the market these days:

Topo Fusion: Among those free GPS mapping software, Topo Fusion stands out as one of the best. This particular software is a fully featured GPS mapping software package that maps both the United States Geological Survey topographical and aerial image for the entire country.

GPS Interface: Another notable free GPS mapping software is the GPS Interface which is an interface for NMEA GPS devices based on the WGS84 ellipsoid. This software has a source code.

Download Expert GPS: There is also the Download Expert GPS, which is a GPS mapping software that has a fully highlighted copy that particularly aid you in inspecting and evaluating the Expert GPS.

The Waypoint+: This is another important and notable free GPS mapping software that is commonly used and applied with Garmin GPS units and CartaLinx. Accordingly, this free software is an elegant product that comes in package. It was developed by Brent Hildebrand for particular use with Garmin GPS receivers. It is as well important to note that this software grants the user to quickly and easily download and correct the GPS information.

GPS Point: The GPS Point is another GPS mapping software offered by the GIS Development Company, one of the most well-known companies for navigation and technology devices. They are all designed to help you achieve an enjoyable, safe, and easy adventure.

What about GPS for Mobile Security?

As the society continues to evolve and become more advanced, many GPS security systems are being released and launched to provide benefits to the humanity. These systems have wider scope of functions and operations, and they are all proven to be effective for securing vehicles and your families.

Just recently, three notable GPS security systems were launched by the GPS Industry: the Redcare Auto-Txt Bluetooth, Tracker, and WorldPay Genesis.

The Redcare Auto-Txt Bluetooth is a GPS security system that is mainly designed for car tracking. As a car tracking GPS security system, it originated from the BT Technologies in the United Kingdoms and it demands the drivers to enter a PIN code via a bluetooth device for the car to start, and it is noted that upon exiting the car, the GPS security system is automatically armed. One important function of this system is it can remotely track and disable a car which is stolen or tampered with via GPS from a "Secure Operations Center" that is controlled by the authority. With the launching of this GPS security system, many claimed that this will going to make parking lot surfing a whole new level of fun fo anyone.

In line with the solution for tracking stolen vehicles, another GPS security system is launched in the United Kingdom by the name of Tracker. The Tracker is designed for the police to get back the stolen vehicles. This GPS security system is noted as a small electronic homing device that is suited to any car in any number of furtive areas. When this system is activated, a uniquely coded silent tracking signal will be emitted for the police to pick up. And, as a GPS security system, the Tracker will send information on the concrete street location of the vehicle.

The WorldPay Genesis, finally, is considered to be a new GPS security system ever launched. This GPS security system is designed to fix the identity and geographic loctaion of corporate buyers. With such GPS security system, the intrusion into sensitive transactions will be eliminated, and as a GPS security system, the WorldPay Genesis will pinpoint the exact location wherein a transaction is performed.

Conclusion

Knowing where you are and where you are going to is one of the most important things to consider in life. It is not easy to just walk or to engage in an adventure without you knowing where you are heading to. It's a risku decision, right? But still many people love it. And, knowing this fact, the GPS devices were developed. We can't deny the fact that although we are strong and courageous enough to undergo certain adventures, the use of GPS system is necessary to allow us to identify easily and quickly our destination.

Today, with the introduction of GPS security systems, I am sure that the world of e-commerce and transportation will be made secure for the reason that those GPS security systems are generally launched for the insitution's security and integrity.

Tuesday, November 15, 2005

Data Recovery

Introduction

Almost all of us, I think, are familiar with the problem on lost data. At first, it is just easy to think that your data is lost, but sometimes we tend to make another set of information or inputs as a replacement of the lost ones and sometimes we experienced trying to find it again and again having found no hope at all. It is in fact important to engage in data recovery at first attempt, but so as not to encounter much bigger problem, you must trust your data recovery job to reliable data recovery experts.

What is Hard Drive Recovery?

With the advances of computer technology, hard drive failure is still a pulsating reality. And when hard drive failure occurs, hard drive recovery is not far behind.

A hard drive is a collection of spinning aluminum discs which spin at 120 times per second. The discs surfaces are quickly spinning magnets. Hard drive is divided into sectors. Each sector, considered as the smallest physical storage on a disc, is 512 bytes in size. For files more than one sector, the file system has to allocate multiple files. Small interferences to the spinning platter while in usage can damage the disc in one area. When some areas fail, the hard drive is relatively useless. This is where hard drive recovery comes in.

Generally, data recovery, be it a hard drive or not, according to the word sleuths and data recovery experts, is the process of salvaging of deleted or inaccessible data stored on damaged media like magnetic disks and computer hard drives, optical devices, and tape cartridges. A large number of data recovery software and data recovery service is designed to help users retrieve their files at the event of a computer crash or viral infection.

The firts step of the process of hard drive or data recovery usually involves evaluation where the initial analysis of the extent of the data lost is determined. After the prognosis, the data recovery experts and technicians would then proceed in "cloning" or copying the media and queuing it into their systems. The actual data recovery process occurs when the technicians secure and extract the data from the copy of the damaged media.

What Hard Drive Data Recovery Services are Available?

Hard drive failure is in the first place a serious thing. A data recovery service from a data recovery expert might just be what you need. Computer data retrieval is an integral part in today's computer-oriented market. Every computer use knows that numerous threats hound the computer industry causing disruptions to data retrieval. Accidental formats, virus problems, software malfunction, file/directory deletion or sabotage - all of these are potential threat to data retrieval. Experiencing hard drive crash or data loss disaster is not uncommon. This is where data recovery services come in.

Several companies comprised of data recovery experts exist in the market today to offer data recovery services. Some of these data recovery experts offer a complete solution of file data recovery services from software to lost data recovery programs. Others provide data recovery expert information on Data Recovery Services from hard disk drives, tapes, zip disks, CD-Rom, flash cards and other storage media.

Utilizing data recovery services from data recovery experts usually come as a last resort. But they do not come cheap. Data recovery software like, say Symantec's, could cost something line $39.95. A data recovery expert could charge from $250 to $3, 500 on their data recovery services.

Each data recovery services have a unique approach in solving the data recovery problem. But usually, the priority is to get the damaged drive running again. Data recovery service requires unique set of skills from the data recovery experts. A full knowledge of hard drive architecture and electronic circuity are required. Data recovery experts must also have lost of innovation, experience and perseverance most of the time. Data recovery service is often seen as an impossible and risky task my many. That is why, it is necessary to hire data recovery experts only in performing such delicate tasks. One should insist on the best data recovery service.

Are there Hard Drive Recovery Tools?

Several companies specializing on hard drive recovery provide the solution to data loss by offering hard drive recovery services and hard drive recovery software tools.

Some of the hard drive recovery software tools offered by these companies guarantee that hard drive recovery is the answer to such disasters like accidental formats, virus attacks, system failures, and file deletion or corruption. Most of these hard drive recovery programs are designed for all versions of Windows, Mac, Novell, Linux, and Unix Operating Systems.

Most hard drive recovery software tools are non-destructive, that is, they are READ-ONLY hard drive recovery utility. They help you recover all important data lost or corrupted after a virus attack, unintentional formats, and the like. They are easy to use and can readily examine your inaccessible hard disk drive for damages and corruption before starting the hard drive recovery process.

Even if the extent of the damage to your file system is severe, hard drive recovery tools can locate, recover, and restore data that are lost. These programs are efficient hard drive data recovery software, which provide you with the best solution to the problem of data loss.

Runtime Software is one of the premiere companies in the world of computers that offer data recovery software and data recovery service for all Windows file systems and all types of disk and legal utilities. This data recovery software is much acclaimed for successful operations regarding file recovery after accidentally deleting the files and the like.

This data recovery software has all-powerful data recovery tools that are not difficult to apply, while giving you all the authority over your file recovery. Amazing isn't it? It is indeed amazing because this software enables the use to perform his/her own file recovery by informinf him/her through the five comprehensive steps of file recovery. This further gives the user all the probability to muscle in with the file recovery and improve the output by inspecting the scan log, the file system details, file directory information, by choosing the sector range to be scanned, by selecting the excessive search for the file systems or search for lost files.

As much as I know, Runtime data recovery software has all the valuable products for your computer systems. These include data recovery for FAT V2.31, data recovery for NTFS V2.31, Raid reconstructor V2.31, Disk explorer for FAT V2.31, Disk explorer for NTFS V2.31, Remote by mailV1.00, Drive look V1.00, and Captain Nemo V3.31. These products are all devised for everyone to be able to control and revive their lost data.

With Runtime data recovery software, everything is on-the-flow. No matter how hard the situation is, this supreme product of Runtime Data Recovery Software will allow you to recover your data even if the hard drive's partition table, boot record, FAT/MTF or root directory are lost or damaged. Aside from these, it will also perform file recovery even if the file was lost due to a virus attack, the drive was formatted, fdisk has been rin, a power failure has caused a system to crash, file were lost due to software failure, or even if files were accidentally deleted. The data recovery for FAT V2.31 also functions even if the drive is no longer accepted by Windows and even if all the directory information is missing.

These are just among the interesting features of Runtime data recovery software, and data recovery service. All you need to have is to be somewhat technically inclined to use this program effectively though, which is as it should be.

Data Recovery: Protect Your Data

Imagine this scenario: You're working on your computer for a big project. It's due in a few days. But your system locks up. You tried to reboot. But the computer won't even start. Wonder what happened? You got it right. You just suffer a disastrous hard drive failure! Or, maybe you've encountered this situation - you delete some files in your computer only to find out that you've deleted something really important and urgent.

In cases like this you can do three things: panic, use data recovery software or you can go to a data recovery expert. Panic is never productive. Use of data recovery software might, if you know how. What data recovery software does is go through your file system, find all the files that have been marked as deleted and offer to recover them. You should save the recovered files to some place other than your hard drive. Otherwise, you run the risk of overwriting other files you may want to get back. The second option is sound if you just happen to delete important files.

Hard drive recovery may be difficult. Oftentimes, hard drive recovery is expensive and lengthy process. But hard drive recovery is not impossible. Fortunately, there are some gard drive recovery procedures one can do before engaging a hard drive recovery service.

If your computer makes ill-sounding noises then back up data as quickly as possible then purchase and install a new hard drive to facilitate hard drive recovery. More often than not, the cause of hard drive failure is corrupt Master Boot Record (MBR), whose main function is to tell the computer how big the drive is. Corrupt MBR results in non-booting drive. Windows has easy to use tolls that can address this problem. For DOS/3.1/95/98/ME, one can use SCANDISK. NT/XP systems use CHKDSK. Hard Drive error may also be apparent in the initial POST or BIOS startup screen. The following factors could cause the problem: check the CMOS battery, reconnect IDE/SATA cables and Power cable, change IDE channel, swap the IDE Cable and check jumpers.

The following solutions to hard drive recovery are also suggested as a last option if you don't want to resort to expensive hard drive recovery service. These hard drive recovery suggestions may sound a bit outdated but they work just the same.

If the data you lost is very important and cannot be retrieved using the above-mentioned hard drive recovery methods then it is best to use hard drive recovery software or hard drive recovery service before the problem gets any worse.

Conclusion

The one thing to remember in hard drive recovery is that data is never truly lost. If a partition has been deleted by accident, the operating system will read it as blank but this does not mean that it is not there. It only means that the data or partition cannot be accessed by normal means.

To ensure the success of hard drive recovery, the drive may need to be transferred to another computer with the same file system used. This has the dual advantage of preventing the drive from being overwritten and allowing a much quicker hard drive recovery since Windows Explorer may be used to look through file structures.

However, data recovery services cannot perform miracles. A massive head crash in the drive usually mean it's gone for good. That is why, when massive hard disk failure occur - sit back, relax and weigh your options.

Cocout Oil

Introduction

For more than a decade, coconut oil has been used as a vital source of food for health and general well-being. Although once blindly labeled as a "bad fat" because of its saturated contents, many recent researches have found out that coconut oil possesses the nutrients necessary to maintain a well-balanced and nutritious diet. It first gained popularity in traditional communities, particularly those of tropical regions where coconut palm trees thrive best. And, now with a number of benefits it can offer, the coconut oil is now highly considered as the healthiest oil you can consume on earth.

What is Virgin Coconut Oil?

The virgin coconut oil is in the first place a truly unrefined coconut oil. The testing involved is usually done by shredding the fresh coconut meat and then cold-pressed to make a coconut milk. The milk is then fermented usually for 24 to 36 hours, and the virgin coconut oil is separated and filtered from the curds. Since this coconut oil is "virgin" or "unrefined", no chemical or whatever high-heat treatment is used, making the virgin coconut oil free from any trans fatty acids.

What are the Health Benefits of Coconut Oil?

There is a widespread misconception that coconut oil is bad for everyone because it is said to raise blood cholesterol and trigger the onset of heart disease. The truth is, not all saturated fats are bad. Coconut oil possesses a number of benefits that modern researches have just discovered. One of those is the fact that coconut oil boosts its lauric acid content, a nutrient that plays a great role in balancing the body's immune system. It is the lauric acid which acts to destroy the lipid membrane of the enveloped viruses, yeast, fungi, and bacteria in the body. Recent researches even found out that lauric acid, also found in the human breast milk has the potential for treating AIDS and other degenerative disorders.

What is the Normal Dosage of Coconut Oil?

The coconut oil, being considered as the healthiest oil, is now primarily used in cooking purposes and is one of the main ingredients contained in some grocery items like lotions and creams. But generally, experts suggest that for a balanced diet, adults must include coconut oil for about 3.5 tablespoons per day in their diet.

What about Coconut Oil and Thyroid?

One of the most debated issues that surround the health industry today is the coconut oil and thyroid relationship. According to some studies, coconut oil is very good for thyroid health. It plays a great role in treating and preventing thyroid diseases, either hyperthyroidism or hypothyroidism. Well, as far as I have known it, this issue first came out in 2003 when the Woman's World, a tabloid magazine covered the story. Certain reports, backed up by some reasonable findings, have noted that the cholesterol-lowering ability of coconut oil helps to treat thyroid problems. However,without vivid explanation, the issue remains as a favorite subject of debate up to these days.

What about Coconut Oil and Weight Loss?

Once blindly labeled as "bad", the coconut oil is now considered as very potent and the safest dietary oil for weight loss. It is even deemed as the weight loss secret of the tropics.

The idea behind the claim that coconut oil plays a large role in weight loss basically stemmed from the fact that coconut oil is composed of healthy medium-chain fatty acids (MCT). Although a highly saturated fat, these fatty acids of the coconut oil do not circulate in the bloodstream like what most fats do, instead they are sent directly to the liver where they are immediately converted into a form of energy. So rather than being stored as body fat, the fatty acids of coconut oil is used to produce energy.

There are numerous researches conducted to support such claim. One of those is the study conducted in Yucatan where coconut oil is a staple. In the study, it was found out that the metabolic rates (the major keys to healthy weight management) of people living in the Yucatan area were 25 percent higher than in comparable test subjects living in the United States. The result then accounts for the leanness of people living in the tropics where the oil is consumed on a daily basis.

Another study conducted on animals showed the role that the coconut oil has been playing in weight loss. In this study, farmers who tried to dish up coconut oil to fatten their animals found out that it made them lean and more active instead. In addition, those who consume oil consistently for several weeks often report an increase in energy, better sleep patterns, an enhanced sense of well-being, and of course weight loss.

What about Coconut Oil and Cooking?

Coconut oil is commonly used in cooking. Many people have claimed that coconut oil is best for cooking as it plays a very unique role in the diet as an important physiologically functional food. As what numerous studies have found out, the use of coconut oil in cooking may boost metabolism and prevent the onset of degenerative diseases that have manifested in our bodies through the highly refined diet of the modern age.

There is one particular reason for using coconut oil in cooking, that is, the coconut oil is stable enough to resist heat-induced damage and so healthy that it helps you to lose weight, prevent heart disease, and lower cholesterol. And, unlike the olive oil, which has been portrayed by media as the healthiest oil, the coconut oil has its lauric acid that can be used by the body to make the same disease-fighting fatty acid derivative monolaurin that babies make from the lauric acid they obtain from their mother's milk. It even contains no trans fats which are highly found in vegetable oils, margarine, olive oils, shortening, and more.

Conclusion

As far as evidences have revealed, coconut oil holds many benefits that are obtainable from no other source. It plays a large role in weight loss, and even in thyroid health. It contributes to greater oxidation and free radicals in the body or supports the overall immune functions, making it a very potential warrior for fighting the symptoms of digestive and degenerative disorders.

Having said and known all these, it is now easy for us to say that coconut oil deserves holding the title of being the healthiest and the safest dietary oil in the world. It is now available in many stores worldwide and it has been the favorite of most dieters, athletes and body builders.

Tuesday, October 04, 2005

The South Beach Diet Plan

Weight loss is what most of the dieters dreamed of today, and the search for the best diet program still continues as the number of people who are concerned about it grows. Of course, there are so many diets to select from in today's society. There are the low-fat diets, low-carbohydrates diets, reduced-calorie diets, and low protein diets, to mention but a few. And, now here comes the fresh competitor within this arena - the South Beach Diet Plan.

The south beach diet plan has amazingly taken the whole continent of America by storm, and now, the south beach diet is set to do the same impact worldwide. But what actually is the south beach diet plan?

The south beach diet plan is highly constrasted from any other forms of diet plans. Why? It is mainly for the fact that the south beach diet plan does not rely on the low carbohydrates or low fat. Instead, the main purpose of such diet plan is to discipline the people, especially the dieters to rely on the right carboydrates and fat. Aside from that, the south beach diet plan is designed to teach the people on how to avoid the "worst" ones.

In such sense, the south beach diet plan is further contrasted from one of the hottest diet plans that also swept the continent of America and worldwide - the Atkins Diet. Unlike this diet, the south beach diet plan does not entail removing a particular food group. Whereas the Atkins Diet relies primarily on the no carbs and limitless proteins and fats, this diet plan seems to be rooted around a balanced and healthy eating regime.

The good carbohydrates such as whole grains, fruits, and vegetables are also highly recommended in the south beach diet as are unsaturated fats. Although most of the people are still concerned on the proper form of exercise and healthy eating plans, in the south beach diet plan it is not a necessity, even though such is proven to help speed up the weight loss.

Finally, it is also interesting to know that the south beach diet plan works on the principle which holds that weight gain is primarily caused by sugars and starches being taken into the bloodstream too quickly. This new trend to the diet arena is not only intended for those who wanted to loss weight. Numerous studies have shown that the south beach diet plan can aid to reduce cholesterol as well as to minimize the risk of cardiovascular problems. And, satisfying the hunger is a big part of the south beach diet plan, as it requires both determination and willpower.

Snoring: Not Funny, It's Serious

I am 100% sure that everybody is familiar with snoring. You probably know at least one person who snores. It could be your siblings, your parents, grandparents, a friend, or it could be you. Well, some people laugh and make jokes about it, but to tell you frankly, snoring is not funny.

Snoring is a noise produced when a person breathes during sleep. Some concerned people who pay attention to this natural, yet obstructed breathing have found out that it is primarily produced when breathing in. The noisy sounds of snoring generally occur when there is an obstruction to the free flow of air through the passages at the nose and at the back of the mouth. It is this area which is the collapsible portion of the airway where the tongue and upper throat meet the soft palate and uvula, being that tube-like thing that hangs down in the back of the throat, which in turn vibrate during breathing.

The Consequences of Snoring

Snoring is a serious sleep disorder. Socially, snoring can be the cause of ridicule as it places the snorer into that embarassing mode. It can also be the cause of sleepless nights and resentfulness. Several researches have found out that about 80 percent of couples end up sleeping separate rooms just because the partner snores loudly every night. Much worse, snoring can lead to depression and continued deterioration of the marital relationship. No doubt folks that snoring can lead to divorce.

Medically, snoring disturbs sleeping patterns, depriving the snorer of appropriate rest. It's basically a serious matter as when snoring becomes severe, it gives way to the development of long term, serious health problems, including obstuctive sleep apnea.

The obstructive sleep apnea is in the first place a sleep disorder that is potentially life threatening. Most of the individuals who suffer from this disorder are often diagnosed as depressed, when really they are just exhausted and cannot able to function on a normal way. Several studies have revealed that apnea elevated the blood pressure, and in turn reduces the flow of the oxygen, which is vital to the body and to the brain. At its worst, the obstructive sleep apnea can lead to stroke, heart attack, and eventually, death. To put it simply, the osbtructive sleep apnea is not something you can ignore.

Some evidences further show that snoring is not only a symptom of apnea, but it can eventually cause it to develop. The main reason for this lies in the fact that any snoring is a sign that your breathing is disrupted for if it is not, you wouldn't make that noise. As many experts say, your body has to work harder than it should to breathe. And, as you continue going through life and put on weight and lose muscle tone, your snoring has the potential to bring you to the point of not breathing at night. Yes, it's true!

And, finally, recent studies have indicated that snoring may lead to diabetes. The theory basically explains that snoring lessens your intake of oxygen, as mentioned earlier, which in turn triggers your body to produce a great amount of catecholamines. It is this thing that has the capacity to develop insulin resistance, which in the end a known precursor of diabetes.

Wednesday, September 28, 2005

DNA Testing