Youtube-Mp3 for fast, quick and efficient conversion

     Long ago, AGZuniverse  informed you about video2mp3, a great online tool for converting youtube videos to mp3 and downloading them on the fly. But many has since experienced problems with that site, probably due to overloaded servers unable to process to many requests. Here comes in another converter tool, which has been around for longer than video2mp3 : www.youtube-mp3.org/

     Why anyone would want to use such a tool requires no description, as nearly every internet user has those moments when he comes across a great song, speech, quote or background track in a video on Youtube, but decides not to grab due to the hassle of having to download the video first, trim it, and then convert it to mp3 using local/online converters. It's a waste of data, considering you have such services available.

     It's fast, with videos being converted and made available in a matter of seconds. The site being impaired due to server load is unlikely, as shown by it's longevity. The only downside is that the maximum quality is 128kbps, which may not be enough for some. But it's surely something to try out!

AdBlock may not always be your friend

     Installing a good quality Ad-Blocker is now one of the first things to do once you're done setting up your new browser. With stores of vast plugins supporting Google Chrome and Mozilla Firefox, the world's two most popular browers, this process is now as easy as it could ever get. 

     But what many don't realize is that Ad Block can block more than those annoying flashy ads that seem to clog up every other website. Sure, these softwares are up there with the most useful and most downloaded in their respective stores for a reason: They are damn useful, and they get their calls right 99% of the time.

     An advertisement or two may slip through every now and then. Hardly a problem. But the real issue is when ad-blockers block components of a website that stop it from functioning properly.

     The good news is, getting rid of this is as easy as turning off your ad-blocker. But first, you have to confirm if it is really the source of your issue.

     So you have ventured into a site that seems to work improperly. Go ahead, right click anywhere on the page and choose 'Inspect Element'. (Or just hit Ctrl+Shift+I). If you are running ad-blocker, chances are you will see errors (Specifically, the error: "ERR_BLOCKED_BY_CLIENT") on nearly every website that has ads blocked. But if you are on a trusted page that you know for a fact does not show ads, (Like a form submission page in most websites or a governmental website) and the errors are still present, turning off adblock will get the site running normally most of the time.

     If you find that adblock is blocking an essential plugin that websites normally use, such as jQuery and BootStrap, it can cause completely abnormal behavior, and turning it off should fix the issue once again.

     You cannot fully capitalize on the services of such technical gizmos unless you know when to and when not to use it. This awareness is imperative for happy and safe networking. Hope you enjoyed!

=)

PicoCTF: Hacking challenge

     All the ones among us who show a keen interest in computers and programming, at some point or the other, is bound to have marveled at hackers navigating green falling matrices in Hollywood films, or wondered how hackers go through the most secure firewalls on the planet after reading news reports of hacker strikes or after finishing Dan Brown's novel 'The Digital Fortress'. 

     While using one's ability to steal sensitive data and turn lives of several innocent users into misery is a highly condemned practice, ethical hacking, or white-hat hacking, is an important skill that must be possessed by anyone looking to get into the field of system securities. Unfortunately, the majority of the present generation, while being well versed and quick to adapt to cutting-edge technological innovations, knows little about the underlying layers of security and their possible exploits.

     Whether you are just a tech junkie trying to learn more, or someone looking for new challenges in cryptography and programming, or someone genuinely interested in learning more about the field of security and encryption, Capture The Flag competitions or CTFs are just the right place to swing by. However, many such competitions are aimed at experts and sets the bar of standard very high, almost too high for newcomers to take up. This is where PicoCTF, a CTF challenge set up primarily for students, becomes just the perfect place for you. While the original PicoCTF 2014 competition is long done, all the challenges is still open for everyone around the world, to try out totally for free.

     While classic Vigenere Ciphers and simple substitution ones to modern-day XOR ciphers serve the main course in cryptography, brilliantly crafted codes in languages ranging from Java to assembly language provide plenty of reverse engineering fun. Add web exploitation and other interesting challenges to the mix, and what you have is an entertaining, non-boring, and educational series of challenges sure to thrill anyone willing to spent some time on it.

     Totally worth taking a look at!