Apple's MacBook Pro - A Quick Review by Matthew Payne
Apple has released the newest product in the Apple family -- the MacBook Pro. Since there are so many features to list, I'll just bullet them before my review: 15-inch: * 15.4 inch display * 5.6 pounds * 4x SuperDrive * 2GHZ or a 2.16GHz Core Due * One Firewire 400 Port * Two USB Ports... iSight There is a built in iSight camera, so that you may video conference around the world use the iChat software. ... Overall The Mac Book Pro was a great machine. ... I've been using it for a while now and I absolutely love it.

Cisco Certification: A Survival Guide To The Cisco Cable Jungle by Chris Bryant
One of the most confusing parts of beginning your Cisco studies is keeping all the cable types separate in your mind, and then remembering what they’re used for. This often occurs when a CCNA or CCNP candidate starts putting together their own home practice lab, and they suddenly realize that... In a home lab, a straight-through cable is often used to connect a switch port to an Ethernet port on a router, with a transceiver attached to the Ethernet port. ... The “rollover cable” allows you to connect directly to a Cisco console port with your laptop or PC.

Cisco CCNA / CCNP Home Lab Tutorial: The 2503 Router by Chris Bryant
I know from experience that part of the excitement and anxiety of putting together your own CCNA / CCNP home lab is deciding what to buy! While you can make a workable home lab out of almost any combination of Cisco routers and switches, some routers are better suited for home lab work than... If you don't have a frame relay switch, you can connect a 2503 directly to two other routers via the serial interfaces. ... They come with two serial interfaces, allowing you to connect one interface directly to another router (you'll need a DTE/DCE cable for that, too) while connecting another to a...

Cisco CCNA / CCNP Home Lab Tutorial: Cabling Your Access Server by Chris Bryant
A Cisco home lab is an invaluable study tool when you're preparing for CCNA and CCNP exam success. Once you've gotten a couple of routers and switches, you'll quickly get tired of moving that blue console cable every time you want to configure a different device. ... The cable will connect to a port on the AS that will have "async 1-8" directly above the physical port. ... Connect the cable to the AS as described above, and then you will connect one of the RJ-45 connectors to the console port of each one of your routers and switches.

Cisco CCNA Certification Tutorial: Segmenting Your Network by Chris Bryant
When you're getting started on your CCNA studies on your way to earning this certification, you're swamped with network device types that you're familiar with, but not quite sure how to use. Let's look at these networking devices and their main purposes. ... If 12 PCs are connected to a Cisco switch, you have 12 separate collision domains. ... Operating at Layer 2, a switch creates multiple collision domains by default each switch port is considered its own little collision domain. ... The first such device we encounter as we move up the OSI model is the switch.

Penetration Testing on a Switched LAN by Brian Wilson
In this is article we will explore the presence of known vulnerabilities in switched LAN’s. I hope to open your eyes on some of the techniques & tools that can be freely downloaded and used to test your network. Let’s start out with some of the basics we see in most small to medium networks. ... To solve this problem you will have to sniff on a trunk port, mirror port, or spoof the network traffic to pass though your port. ... Next step to test port 25 might be to telnet to the port and see if the reply is a banner.

Passing The CCNA and CCNP: Home Lab Shopping On Ebay by Chris Bryant
Whether you're just getting ideas for your Cisco home lab or adding to your existing lab, ebay is a great place to get ideas for your lab as well as pick up some great bargains. Of course, the internet being what it is, there are always going to be a few people looking to take your money while... If you're on a tight budget, having a 1900 switch is better than no switch at all. ... If buying from an individual as opposed to a reseller, find out what conditions the router or switch has been kept in, and make sure to define the terms under which they will accept returns.

Tips On Buying A Cisco CCNA / CCNP Home Lab Kit by Chris Bryant
Buying a CCNA / CCNP home lab is the best way to be totally prepared for your Cisco exams. Most home labs are put together one router or switch at a time, but many CCNA / CCNP candidates prefer to buy kits where you get multiple routers and switches, along with all the cables and other... (I sure didn't!) Keep in mind that you only need one transceiver per AUI port on a Cisco router, so if you're getting routers with two AUI ports in all, you don't need five transceivers in the kit. ... Unless you've got access to IOS upgrades, you'll be working with the IOS version that's on the routers...

HDMI Switch: Insider's Guide by Jeff Su
Background: The High Definition TV “experience” continues to drive manufacturers to offer truly digital devices. The days of analog video interfaces are limited. In previous articles, we touched on HDMI connections. It is clear that HD sources such as DVD players, Cable settop boxes,... Why do I need a HDMI switch: Anyone who has a HD monitor with less than the desired number of HDMI inputs can use an external HDMI switch to expand the system. ... Users should select a HDMI switch rather than a DVI-D switch since HDMI is backward compatible with DVI-D.

Cisco CCNA / CCNP Home Lab Tutorial: The 2501 Router by Chris Bryant
To be truly prepared for your CCNA and CCNP exams, you need real hands-on experience with real Cisco routers and switches. However, a production network is a really bad place to practice your configurations, but an excellent way to get fired and/or sued. ... You also have an AUI port, which requires a transceiver to operate as your Ethernet interface. ... They come with two serial interfaces, allowing you to connect one interface directly to another router (you'll need a DTE/DCE cable for that, too) while connecting another to a frame relay switch if you like.