Web Crawler

 This is a complete working code of a simple webb spider and as of this posting it can find all links in a web page

<?php
$urlContent = file_get_contents('http://www.techiecream.blogspot.com');
$dom = new DOMDocument();
@$dom->loadHTML($urlContent);
$xpath = new DOMXPath($dom);
$hrefs = $xpath->evaluate("/html/body//a");

for($i = 0; $i < $hrefs->length; $i++){
    $href = $hrefs->item($i);
    $url = $href->getAttribute('href');
    $url = filter_var($url, FILTER_SANITIZE_URL);
    // validate url
    if(!filter_var($url, FILTER_VALIDATE_URL) === false){
        echo '<a href="'.$url.'">'.$url.'</a><br />';
    }
}
?>

How to save data while using VPN

A VPN (Virtual Private Network) is now an essential tool that can not only protect your personal data but also your privacy.  Thus you can use it for accessing and streaming videos, access websites that have been blocked and best of all, browse the internet more securely while using public Wi-Fi.

While looking for a VPN to use, avoid free VPN's since Security and Privacy with a free VPN don't mix because your personal data is always the price, and it gets worse than that in fact 18% of popular VPNs don't encrypt users’ data meaning users data is always exposed thus leaving users vulnerable though only 2% users have issues with that it should mean its okay not to have a problem with that.

Using a free VPN means that your data will be routed through a peer-to-peer network, implying that you are in theory routing other people’s data, which gets worse when someone is doing wrong as it becomes hard to explain to the police that it wasn't you doing it since it's you who is using the services.

Some VPNs may claim that they can access the internet below you internet quota though it is possible most these loopholes have been closed and more so your ISP  notices that but deliberately ignore them since all your traffic is known to them, implying that bypassing your quota is most illegal and definitely breaching your ISP Terms of Service.

It must be mentioned here that a VPN may get around the data cap. It is still controlled by your ISP. Even though they cannot read your data, they can see the amount of data you are using. Therefore, a VPN with a strong encryption will always use more data and have a slower speed.

All these facts give a strong case for and against using a VPN. While it may be okay and comfy to use VPN on WiFi it may not be the case on mobile data.

To save data while using VPN simply just turn it off when not in use and and best of all only use it as may ultimate be necessary, and we recommend that you have a minimum of 100 Mbs, though we can't give you a metric on the minimum number of hours you can spend online to maximize your data we can simple suggest you avoid following the crowd.

In fact from our test we noticed that one would pay 15% more data while using a VPN, this was a small price for internet security but not for basic internet access or bypassing restrictions, since we could do entire away with the restricted content or simply replacing it entirely, for example in in cases where WhatsApp, Facebook, and Twitter were blocked users simply resorted to Telegram, IMO, and the now deprecated Google Plus and Hangout.

Should you pay Tax for free Services?

We previously wrote about How to save data while using VPN however as we noted earlier these methods are prone to impact in ways that the use may stand to be the loser. for example when you look at the Websites Affected by OTT you will notice most of them have safe fail features which ensure that your account is safe, for example from the day you  created your facebook account you have never accessed it from France so facebook will lock your account and the only option will be to use OTT to unlock it of course that the best scenario but worst scenario would be you have to use a national identity card to verify that the account is your and who know you may never get access to updating you profile again.

Since the best things in life are meant to be free, Techiecream stands in support of Ugandans paying OTT and for a good reason, not because the corruption will be bearable but because the secure of your knowledge is more important than, as a social responsibility we shall pay OTT for a week for all Ugandans who register on our  website

The process is simple as:

1. Visit Techiecream.com and register
2. Activate your Account
3. Log in and update your account with the phone number for OTT

And just like that you have OTT for a week every month.

Please ensure that you always login, since most of the updates are found on your profile page

Smart Powerful Websites and Software you must try

Every day we come across new websites and computer software, some are great program while others are just good old damn things. We list some of the websites and computer programs we think will enhance your life while adding value to your overall experience in life.

1. IFTTT is a great natty, nitty tools that helps you do a lot with just a few clicks, we use it on a daily basis, highly recommended before you loss access to your account that has 2 factor authentication.
2. EverNote is a great note taking program that's available on computer and Smartphone and free.  Though we prefer Google Keep because we think it looks a lot more beautiful, is quicker and easier to navigate.
3. VidtoMP3 converts Youtube Videos to audio files (MP3), just copy link and paste it into the textbox and wait till it finalises the converting then hit the download button.
4. F.lux blue light affects your sleeping patterns and f.lux simple helps you get a great bedtime by changing the light intensity from your screen.
5. RescueTime helps you track your time and sends you reports on a weekly basis detailing your computer usage. 
6. ePub Reader just another great online browser based ebook reader, very handy in situation when your can't find PDF version of your favourite ebook.
7. google drive, this is one of the best ways of storing and retrieving all your files, if you have a chromebook you can get an additional 100GB for free and you will be glad that you did that.

These are some of the programs and websites that we recommend and we find them very useful.

You could tell us which websites or programs you use and why you recommend them.

Don't forget to hit the share button and while at it you could check out our website www.techiecream.com and don't forget to hit the subscribe button.

How to Remove Hyperlinks From an Excel Document

Recently a friend of ours approached us with a large document that for some reason he needed to work on, the unfortunately part of it was that he has simply copied the contents of the official website and dumped it in his excel workbook.

So you can imagine how many hyperlinks he had to deal with in the data cleaning process(over 300 rows). There are many ways of skinning a cat so they say and we had the our favorite methods, we had three options, method one was the most popular and tiresome(right click select remove hyperlink), method two was the inglorious copy and multiply by one, however our favorite method was the scary macro.

Method 1

1. Select all the cells containing hyperlinks you want to remove.
2. Right click the cells and then click on Remove Hyperlinks option, all the hyperlinks in the selected cells will be deleted. 

As stated the first option is tiresome though its very popular, it works well with a limited number of data that is if you are not manipulating many worksheets or rows of data.

this method may not work or office 2007  and you have to repeat the process for every worksheet that has hyperlinks.

Method 2

1. Type 1 in any empty and then press Ctrl + C
2. Select the cells that have hyperlinks you want to remove
3. Right click any selected cells, click "Paste Special" then click the "Multiply" radio button
4. Click OK to have all the hyperlinks are removed from the worksheet

Just like method 1, method 2 requires a lot of selecting and works very well with a limited amount of data, and surprisingly it works well with all versions of excel

Method 3

1. Click Macros and then click create
2. Copy and paste this in the console press F5

           Sub RemoveAllHyperlinks()

                 ActiveSheet.Hyperlinks.Delete 

          End Sub

All hyperlinks will disappear from  the current worksheet


These are the methods we use, what about you, which methods would you pick?

Newbies Guide to Linux

Given the popularity of the Linux operating systems it comes as no surprise when  new users is overwhelmed by the tasks of software installation to be installed after booting the operating system successfully.

 The following tasks are the main first must do items.

1.      Update Your System just like the windows operating system your linux system must be updated as often as you desire, though its not the ultimate task to keep your system running smoothly. open a terminal/shell by pressing Ctrl+Alt+t  and execute these commands

sudo apt-get update

sudo apt-get upgrade

2.      Install Proprietary stuffs (Plugins/Codecs/Libraries) such as adobe and mp3 codes so you can play music and stream videos to do that execute the following to install the proprietary stuffs

sudo apt-get install ubuntu-restricted-extras

3.      Install Synaptic Package Manager this is like the only library that holds all your software that you will need

sudo apt-get install synaptic

4.      Install VLC Media Player to play all your videos and music files

sudo apt-get install vlc

5.      Install Pidgin the best instant messenger

sudo apt-get install pidgin

6.      Install GIMP Image Editor the competitor to photoshop

To install GIMP

sudo apt-get install gimp

7.      Install Google Chrome or Chromium

sudo apt-get install chromium-browser

Guides and Other Resources

We always encourage people to read new books and to explore new ideas, for in life you shall only regret those things that you didn't do rather than those things that you did, we are always
Discovering and promoting new creative and innovative technologies, we have written a mini guide that we call watchlist  which is basically a summarized version of the information you may need to know over the course of three month of course you could register and won't miss a thing since we will be sending out the latest editions as and when its produced. We once had people asking us how to fill in a U.R.A TIN Application we wrote a guide which can be downloaded here.

We intend to keep adding more resources to this particular post as and when its available. 

Fix "Bootmgr is missing Press Ctrl+Alt+Del to restart" error when you start Windows

Whenever you shutdown your computer wrongly or you install a new program on your pc, you put yourself at the exposure of having that error, which simply means that the boot sector is damaged or missing, fixing it requires that you have a windows installation CD.

This can happen on any version of windows from windows 10, Windows 8.1, Windows 8, Windows 7 or Windows Vista installation disc. The best procedure is to rebuild the boot configuration data.

1. Start by inserting the CD that has the Windows Operating system into its drive and reboot your PC.

2. Press any key to boot from the CD when you see the Press any key to boot from CD or DVD appears.

NB:

Ensure that your computer is set to boot from the CD. (The process differs from one PC model to another)

3. Once the PC has restarted normally, it will take some time for it to finalise the scans, just be patient. Once it has finished the scans Select the language, time, currency, and keyboard or input method, and select Next.

4. Then Select the Repair your computer option and then Select your operating system after which select Next.

5. From the System Recovery Options dialog box, select Command Prompt.

6. Type Bootrec /RebuildBcd, and then press ENTER.

10 Tips for ‎Linux System Administrator.

Linux is one of the most popular operating systems that are used by many organizations and many system administrators could find these tips very handy.

1. When in doubt check your logs- As everything gets logged within Linux, the first thing you must take care of when dealing with a nagging issue is to check your logs. In many systems, this can be located in /var/log/. /var/log/syslog. This logs all the system messages and this is where you will be faced with most common error messages.
2. Using the Tail command - You can use this command to see the last ten lines of a file. By using the f flag, or tail -f /var/log/syslog you can view the most recent lines append to the log file. It is a great tool to make use of while looking out for error messages.
3. Monitoring server resources- Based on your disk and partition size, there are times you may run out of space or your log files may consume most of your root partition. By using the df command, you can monitor the size of the partitions. Two things to keep in mind at the time of starting are the -h and -m flag. The -h flag puts information in human readable form like 5g. The -m flag puts information in megabyte form and displays only in megabytes.
4. Don’t Ever Use Root To Login- Many common hacks are performed by port scanners and random password generators who try to break into your system using root as their username. You must disable root login on your system. You can do this by going into /etc/ssh and edit sshd_config. You need to amend this line PermitRootLogin yes to PermitRootLogin no. Once you have done this you must restart ssh /etc/init.d/ssh restart.
5. Becoming aware of chown and chmod – In case of hosting websites, permissions security and file ownership are quite crucial. A wrong permission can lead your being open to exploitation or hacking.
6. Using SFTP in place of FTP - SFTP encrypts passwords via the tunnel whereas port 21 ftp permits password information to be transmitted via clear text. Hackers can listen to and grab your passwords while using port 21.
7. ls -al – LS lists the directory contents. The -a flag informs the ls command to list all files, along with those beginning with a . (dot). The -l flag informs LS to list the contents and displays the date files were modified.
8. Top – This command displays your highest use processes on your system. In the event of your processor running high, it will assist you in locating the process and fixing the problem.
9. Using grep for searching files for a specific word/expression- Grep is vast and that’s the reason it is among the best tools for searching files. For eg, grep -r pinehead.tv /etc/* will search the /etc/ directory and all the directors under it that have the word pinehead.tv.
10. Redirecting the results of a grep search into a new file- This can be easily done. You can obtain the search results from the command above and write them to a file instead of reading them in the shell. Just type grep -r pinehead.tv /etc/* > test.test.

Facebook Hacked! Full Report

We previously wrote about the Summary of the facts about Facebook Hacking and though technically it wasn't a hack but an issue with access, in other words Facebook was not hacked as everyone wants you to believe rather it was just, people were able to view your profile simply because you logged into Instagram.

So far this is all we know though it may be very early to know how sophisticated the attackers were and if they were connected to a nation state, more so they could also be spammers or criminals, as Fifty million random Facebook accounts are not interesting for any intelligence agency.

It is not clear when the attack happened, but it appears to have occurred after the video-uploading program was introduced, since Facebook forced more than 90 million users to log out early Friday, a common safety measure taken when accounts have been compromised and worse of all users who posted breaking stories about the breach were prompted with a notice that their posts had been taken down since many people were posting the stories and it seemed like spam to the Facebook systems that block abuse of its network.

Facebook was 'hacked' through three software flaws in Facebook’s systems that allowed hackers to break into user accounts, including Mark Zuckerberg and Sheryl Sandberg and once in, the attackers could have gained access to apps like Spotify, Instagram and hundreds of others that give users a way to log into their systems through Facebook, more so the attackers would have had the ability to view private messages or post on someone’s account, but there’s no sign that they did.

Facebook was 'hacked' through three vulnerabilities, two of which were introduced by an online tool meant to improve the privacy of users while the third was through  another a tool meant to easily upload birthday videos.

The first two vulnerabilities were found in the site’s “View As” feature, which allows users to check on which information other people could see about them, it was a feature that was built to give more control to users over their privacy. The other vulnerability which was found video-uploading program for birthday celebrations, a software feature that was introduced in July 2017, all these allowed attackers to steal access tokens which are more like digital keys that allow access to an account thus the possession of those tokens would allow attackers to control those accounts. 

In practice these vulnerabilities affected how the ‘View As’ feature interacted with Facebook’s video uploading feature for posting ‘happy birthday’ messages, that was detected mid-September when Facebook noticed an uptick in unusual activity and its only until this week that Facebook learned of the attack, as attackers used that vulnerability to steal access tokens from the accounts of people whose profiles came up in searches using the ‘View As’ feature and then moved along from one user’s Facebook friend to another.

The attackers tried to harvest people’s private information, including name, sex and hometown, from Facebook’s systems, though Facebook could not determine the extent of the attackers’ access to third-party accounts, 

Though Facebook said it had fixed the vulnerabilities and notified law enforcement officials as required,it was hard for them to identify the origin and identity of the attackers as such they could not fully assessed the scope of the attack or if particular users were targeted.

Still, the recently discovered breach was a reminder that it is exceptionally difficult to entirely secure a system that has many users and still allows other third party service to use the same service.

You can read about securing your facebook account however if you think your account has been compromised then its high time you consider Securing your account we recommend you use our proof of concept Password Manager

Facebook Hacked! Debrief

Could your Facebook account have been hacked?

Facebook has just confirmed that it has been hacked and that the data of about 50 Million of the 2 billion users was compromised and other 40 Million were vulnerable to the attack according to  https://www.stuff.co.nz/technology/digital-living/107475683/facebook-says-50-million-users-affected-by-security-breach, users of Tinder, AirBnB and Spotify may have been greatly compromised.

In part this hack was successful do to the users setting there logins as permanently logged into their Facebook account and using Facebook logins via other apps thus people who keep logging in and out of Facebook may not be affected.

On the bright side though users may not need to change their passwords as simply logging out of Facebook may suffice to terminate the hackers access since the hackers are using Facebook built in access tokens which expire after every log out.

Technically speaking access tokens enable someone to use the account as if they were the account-holder themselves. In practice whenever you login Facebook, Facebook asks you whether you want to keep logged in implying no need for a password next time you login, thus once you clicked yes Facebook generated access tokens which act more or less like password for every login.

In fact Facebook just has to just reset the access tokens to terminate your access without requiring you to change the password.

Simplest Way for filling URA TIN Application Form

Socially paying taxes is everyone's obligation and in Uganda nearly every one pays taxes in one form or another and we, at Techiecream, pride in Discovering and promoting new creative and innovative technologies thus we decided to write a simple way of applying for a TIN in Uganda

In Uganda its a must for every business to have a TIN (Tax Identification Number) and for every government employee or individual who have businesses in Uganda to have a TIN. The process is very simple but the biggest challenge one may face is filling in the form that is only available from the URA website (www.ura.go.ug), usually when approached by anyone in need of a TIN, we ask them to fill in Form Y which is the TIN application form. Once filled in we then download the U.R.A Individual form from the link below or from the web using the excel application of your choice but office 2010 is recommended it doesn't hurt using office 2007.

You need to enable macros on you office application and for office 2007 click the office button, excel option trust center, trust center setting,macro settings, click enable all macros, close the file and re open it to start using the information in FORM Y.

This should take you about 15 Minutes depending on your typing speed and knowledge working with spreadsheets.

URA INDIVIDUAL TIN APPLICATION FORM:

https://www.ura.go.ug/eServices/howToDownload.jsp?requestPage=download&path=Tin_Individual.xls.reg

FORM Y

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1OIPn6E7bnI--6qGIZTalSGNrklEbh3nP/view?usp=sharing 

Disclaimer:

This form is not for public use and doesn't guarantee that your TIN Application will be automatically approved, or otherwise

Complete guide can be found on our facebook page: www.facebook.com/techiecream

Websites Affected by OTT.

Its been a two months now since the government of Uganda instituted the infamous OTT with some records stating that the government has managed to rake in over 10 billion. How this new found revenue is being used is yet to be understood but for now people are wondering which websites are affected by this infamous tax, though some sites have not been affected such like Telegram, Google plus.

The complete list of sites that are currently affected by OTT as of today is as follows:

Android Messages

BBM-Free

Badoo

Call Free

CallerID

Chatouts

Drupe

Facebook

Facetime

Freevideo-Mail.Ru

Grindr

Hangouts Dialer

Hi5

Hike

Hitwe

IM+

IMO

InMesage

Instagram

Ipair-Meet

KakaoTalk

Kik

LINE

LOVOO

LinkdedIN

LiveTalk

MagicApp

MeetMe

Moments

Mood

New Messenger

Phone+

Plus

SayHi

Signal

Skype

SnapChat

StealthChat

TalkU

TextMe

Textra

Tinder

Truecaller

Tumblr

Twitter

Viber

Voxer Walkie Talkie

WeChat

Whatsapp

WiCall

Yahoo Messenger

Zalo

iMessenger

This list will be updated as and when the ministry does add or remove a site.

Bypassing Internet Restrictions.

Its been three days now since the Ugandan government instituted the Social Media Tax which has got many Ugandans very angry and agitated that the basic right has been taxed and with that Facebook is following suit by filing for patent infringement accusing the Ugandan government of taxing a product that shouldn't be taxed.

Meanwhile other Ugandans have resorted to using VPN services rather than paying the $0.05 tax daily, though the government vowed to shut them down.

Apparently their some Ugandans who don't have any clue on which VPN services they can use and as our core goal, we decided to list all the possible VPN applications they can use.

Android Devices

1. Gecko VPN
2. Droid VPN
3. Proxy Master
4. Super VPN
5. Samsung Max
6. Opera Max

7. Psiphon

PCs

1. Hotspot Shield
2. Opera VPN
3. Hide.Me
4. Windscribe
5. Vpnbook
6. Cyberghost
7. Spotflux
8. Tunnelbear

Some of the applications have both PC version and Android Version and best of all they can all be got both on play store and there respective websites.

As a rule of the thumb we have not included the three VPN applications that have been confirmed to run on zero balance on MTN Uganda, Airtel Uganda and Africell, also not included is the script that runs on localhost servers with zero configs.

As a word of caution those downloading and uploading files , these VPN services and applications consume a lot of internet data for connection services.

#SocialMediaTax #VPN

WhatsApp Tricks.

Let's admit it, WhatsApp is the third best thing to ever happen to social beings after Facebook and Twitter, (although they are heavily censored and tailored to meet specific audiences) of course all of them have their own weaknesses and strength, for example twitter is a journalist greatest companion while Facebook is a great family and friends connection tool. Adding WhatsApp to this mix makes one not just a data (information) consumer but also a highly connected and informed being, so being on all the three social networking sites works to your advantage of course having all other factors constant.

There so many WhatsApp Tricks out there but for today we should look at a few of them.

1. Having two WhatsApp Account on one phone; this is the most searched trick but there is no magic needed for this all you have to do is download any WhatsApp plus mods along with the official WhatsApp app. This trick works great on a many phones but it would not be a surprise if it failed to work on your phone.

2. See who has read your message in the WhatsApp group; simply just long press the message you sent, it will be highlighted, press on the information icon on the name bar(where the details of the group appear)

3. Register for WhatsApp using an email address; this is a nice one especially in emergency case, just download WhatsApp and register with any Mobile number while the registration is taking place switch your phone to flight mode and then key in your email address.