Tech Thoughts Daily Net News – May 7, 2012

Panda Cloud Antivirus-Free Edition – If you think setting up antivirus software should be as simple as possible, Panda Cloud Antivirus 1.5 is for you. Panda stops malware well, and its extremely easy-to-use interface is great for those people who don’t want to tweak all sorts of settings.

Top 15 Cloud Storage Tips and Tasks – We pinpoint the cloud storage services with the best attributes for accomplishing specific tasks, and offer advice on how to use the cloud most effectively.

How to map a drive letter to Google Drive in Windows – Google Drive’s shortcut is easy enough to use, but if you prefer using drive letters, there’s a simple way to set one for your Google Drive account.

How To Ignore Your Email Without Losing Your Job – Save time and be more productive by using these simple tips and tricks to check e-mail less often without losing your job.

Safely Remove USB Drives Just by Unplugging Them – Most Windows users have become conditioned over time to never unplug a USB flash drive or hard drive without first clicking Safely Remove Hardware in the System Tray. As it turns out, however, you can safely sidestep Safely Remove Hardware with little to no loss of performance. In fact, this option may already be enabled on your system, and you just didn’t know it. Yep, you may have been wasting extra clicks all this time.

Nine Windows 7 keyboard shortcuts everyone should know – There’s nothing wrong with a mouse cursor, but for many tasks keyboard shortcuts are far more efficient than picking your hands up off the keyboard and pointing then clicking. Most users can name at least a few combinations off the top of their heads, and almost everyone knows the infamous Ctrl+Alt+Delete, but many of the best shortcuts are tragically overlooked.

Maybe tech needs less ch-ch-ch-change? – In the never-ending rush for something new, something better, something improved, perhaps what we really need is an operational pause.

Windows applications on iOS – GraphOn announced its GO-Global iOS client. Available immediately as a free downloadable app from the App Store, the new client is used in conjunction with GraphOn’s GO-Global Windows Host solution to deliver Windows applications to Apple iPad, iPhone, and iPod Touch users.

A Website Editor Worth its Weight – Looking for a fantastic website editor that doesn’t break the bank? Then Microsoft’s Expression Studio 4 Web Professional is for you. It offers a clear, efficient interface and most of the features of Dreamweaver at less than half the price.

What Country Does Attack Traffic Come From? – For the fourth quarter of 2011, China topped Akamai’s list of the top originating countries for attack traffic. China was responsible for 13 percent of total attack traffic overall, an increase from 8.6 percent in the previous quarter. China takes over from Indonesia, which previously held the top spot at 14 percent, but fell to 7.6 percent in the fourth quarter.

Company News:

How Qualcomm’s Plans to Become a Household Name – If you are a geek, you know Qualcomm well. Not only does it power a ton of mobile devices, but the company pioneered–and still gets paid for–its innovations in CDMA technology. That said, it isn’t exactly a household name but Qualcomm is trying to change that.

$99 Subsidized Xbox 360 Would Widen Battle for Living Room – Microsoft’s rumored deal is expected to be offered at the company’s retail stores as early as next week.

HP Regains PC Market Share Crown from Apple – Let’s not talk profitability and let’s definitely not get into the “is the iPad a PC?” discussion, but if you take those issues off the table, it looks like HP is the world’s leading PC vendor again. Granted, this is a business that the company tried to walk away from–or at least spin off–just last year. Even so, it is a good news for the troubled company at a time when Apple seems to have cornered the market on good news.

Lenovo Adds Intel Small Business Advantage to ThinkPad Edge – The Intel software is designed to automate laptop security and maintenance chores, making life easier for small businesses.

Webopedia Daily:

Wi-Fi – Wi-Fi works with no physical wired connection between sender and receiver by using radio frequency (RF) technology, a frequency within the electromagnetic spectrum associated with radio wave propagation. When an RF current is supplied to an antenna, an electromagnetic field is created that then is able to propagate through space. The cornerstone of any wireless network is an access point (AP). The primary job of an access point is to broadcast a wireless signal that computers can detect and “tune” into. In order to connect to an access point and join a wireless network, computers and devices must be equipped with wireless network adapters

Off Topic (Sort of):

iPad Mini? Yes Please, Say Most Consumers – If Apple goes forward with its rumored plans to launch a smaller version of the iPad this year, the scaled-down tablet would likely be a hit with consumers, a new survey suggests.

Motion Simulation offers 180-degree display gaming cockpit for $18,000 – If you’re serious about PC gaming or productivity, chances are you have multiple displays hooked up to your rig. It works great, but for gaming in particular the break between the end of one display and the start of the next can be a bit jarring to the overall experience.

Facebook Users Share and ‘Like’ Too Much, Report Says – Consumer Reports projected its findings after questioning Facebook, security experts, privacy lawyers, app developers, and victims of security and privacy abuse as well as surveying 2,002 online households, including 1,340 that use Facebook.

Ink-onomics: Can You Save Money By Spending More on Your Printer? – Should you buy a lower-priced printer whose inks cost more per page, or a higher-priced printer that uses more-economical supplies? Our printer comparison calculator will help you decide.

Today’s Quote:

“I’ve gone into hundreds of [fortune-teller’s parlors], and have been told thousands of things, but nobody ever told me I was a policewoman getting ready to arrest her.”

–     New York City detective

Today’s Free Downloads:

Face Off Max – Transplant your face to any body you want and let your friends share your fun! Comes packed with large and larger numbers of templates, Face Off Max aims at helping you to create funny photos by transplanting any face to any body and share the fun with your friends.

Rainmeter 2.3.0 Rev 1364 Beta – Rainmeter is a desktop customization platform. Through Rainmeter, you can enhance your Windows computer at home or work with skins: handy, compact applets which float freely on your desktop, much like Windows Sidebar gadgets, or dashboard widgets for the Mac.