How To: The Essential Skills to Becoming a Master Hacker
Many of my aspiring hackers have written to me asking the same thing. "What skills do I need to be a good hacker?"
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How To: Use Traffic Analysis to Defeat TOR
As was mentioned by the great OTW last week, TOR, aka The Onion Router, has had its integrity attacked by the NSA. In an attempt to reduce the anonymity granted by the service, the NSA has opened a great many nodes of their own. The purpose is presumably to trace the origin of a communication by compromising some entrance and exit nodes. Once both are compromised, it is much easier to correlate traffic with a particular individual.
How To: Use GPG4Win in Windows to Encrypt Files & Emails
I love cryptography. It is like a great gigantic puzzle for me to solve. However, it is more important than that. It is also how we keep secrets safe. Not just sorta safe either, but really safe.
How To: Recover Deleted Photos from Your iPhone
In one of Apple's newer ads, the company claims that "more photos are taken with the iPhone than any other camera." If this is in fact true, then it might also be appropriate to say that more photos are accidentally deleted on iPhones than any other camera.
How To: Split the Screen on Your iPhone for Side-by-Side Browsing & Faster Multitasking
The iPhone has come a long way in its ten-year lifespan, but one thing still missing from the core user experience is native split-screen support. Sure, the displays on iPhones aren't nearly as large as an iPad's screen — which does offer "Split View" mode out of the box — but the iPhone 6 Plus, 6s Plus, and 7 Plus are definitely big enough to use two apps at the same time.
News: The 28 Most Popular Steampunk Materials at Your Local Hardware Store
We see Steampunk props all the time and wonder where the maker found all their pieces. In fact, for some people it's almost like a game to examine each prop and see if they can name all of the original parts.
How To: Hey, America—You're Drinking Your Tea Wrong!
Tea has been around for thousands of years, and as a result, tons of customs and ceremonies have sprung up around its consumption. Some cultures take their tea plain, while others put things in it. Sometimes there are special tea-holding vessels, other times not. Maybe there will even be special foods meant to be eaten with tea. However, in America, our appreciation of tea has waned. For many, iced tea is their biggest source of tea consumption, and it's imbibed with no ceremony whatsoever in...
How To: The 10 Best Free Games in the Windows 8 App Store Right Now
As people continue to upgrade their PCs to Microsoft Windows 8, more and more developers are adding content to the Windows Store. While the offerings are not as vast as Google Play or the iTunes App Store, it does have some solid apps for both productive users and those looking to just while away the time.
How To: Building a Steampunk Hand Cannon, Part 1: How to Make a Wooden Gun Stock
One of the hardest, most intimidating parts of making your own Steampunk guns from scratch is the wooden stock of the gun. To be fair, it's probably the hardest part. It requires the most artistry, and is the easiest to mess up.
Steamdown: How I Made My Liquid-Cooled Steampunk Rifle Prop
I know, "Steamdown" conjures images of a hoedown, but "Steampunk prop breakdown" is a bit of a mouthful, I thought.
How To: Getting a New iPhone 5? Check Out These 11 Cool and Practical Uses for Your Old iPhone
The new iPhone 5 was just revealed yesterday, and it's 18 percent thinner and just 1/5 the weight of its 4S predecessor. It's also taller with a larger screen, which gives you a fifth row for apps now. As far as speed is concerned, it has a speedy A6 chip and can tap into wireless 4G LTE networks for fast Internet. Both the iSight and front-facing FaceTime cameras were improved, too. The only downside seems to be the tinier "Lightning" connector, which replaces the standard 30-pin connector w...
How To: The Novice Guide to Teaching Yourself How to Program (Learning Resources Included)
Today's post is a small go-to guide for beginner programmers in Null Byte. With many of our community members picking up programming from our Community Bytes, it only makes sense to lay out a one-stop guide for your reference. Hopefully this guide will help you make an educated and thoughtful choice on what programming languages you want to learn, and how you want to learn said languages.
How To: Play basic drum beat variations
How to play some great variations on standard drum beats; get expert tips and advice on music theory and drumming in this free instructional video series.
How To: 21 iPhone 16 Pro Features You Won't Find on Apple's iPhone 16 or 16 Plus
The new iPhone 16, 16 Plus, 16 Pro, and 16 Pro Max are worth upgrading to, but if you want more advanced features, especially for the camera, you may want to take a closer look at the iPhone 16 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro Max.
How To: Apple News Has 7 Big Updates on iOS 17 You Should Know About — Here's Everything That Changed
With iOS 17, Apple News integrates more deeply with Apple Podcasts and Apple Stocks and has become a bit more fun thanks to new crossword puzzles. But that's not all that appears in the updated News app.
How To: The Hidden Meaning Behind Those Mysterious, Nonnumerical Dialer Pad Keys on Your Phone
You might have missed it, but the virtual keypad you use to enter phone numbers in your smartphone's dialer and contacts app isn't all numbers. Take a closer look, and you'll notice a few mysterious buttons you've likely been tuning out unconsciously. But it's time to stop ignoring them because each has a particular purpose that could come in handy one day.
How To: Everything We Know About the iPhone 15 Series Models Coming This Fall
Apple's iPhone lineup has always been at the forefront of technological innovation, captivating the world with each new iteration. As we eagerly anticipate the iPhone 15 series release, rumors, leaks, and speculations about the highly anticipated 2023 models are at full steam.
How To: Apple Books Has 10 New Shortcut Actions on iOS 16.2 That Finally Let You Automate E-Book and Audiobook Tasks
When iOS 16.0 was still in early beta testing, Apple teased us with a slew of new Books actions in the Shortcuts app, but none of them materialized in iOS 16.0 or 16.1. That changes with Apple's latest software update for iPhone.
How To: Use Google Photos' New Collage Styles (And Say Goodbye to Boring White Grids)
Google Photos is not only an exceptional cross-platform app for photo storage but also a handy tool for generating and creating collages, movies, and animations from your photos and videos. When it comes to collages, you can now customize them and dress them up with vibrant templates.
How To: Bypass Annoying CAPTCHAs for Apps and Websites on Your iPhone Automatically for Instant Verification
If you hate matching images, typing letters and numbers, solving math problems, and sliding puzzle pieces for CAPTCHA human verification, you'll love Apple's newest privacy feature for apps and websites.
How To: 12 Things the iPhone 14 and 14 Pro Models Have That Other iPhones Don't
The new iPhone 14, 14 Plus, 14 Pro, and 14 Pro Max all come with great, never-before-seen-on-iPhone features, including the A16 Bionic chip, Bluetooth 5.3, precision dual-frequency GPS, and dual ambient light sensors. But that's only a few new features exclusive to the 2022 lineup.
How To: Use Your iPhone's Mail App to Send and Receive End-to-End Encrypted Emails in Gmail
Gmail uses TLS, or Transport Layer Security, by default for all email communications, so all of your emails will use the standard encryption as long as the recipients also support TLS. But there's a way to add even more security to your Gmail emails, and you can use your iPhone's Mail app to do it.
How To: Take Scrolling Screenshots in Android 12 for Long Captures of Apps, Documents, Webpages, and More
It was a long time coming, but Android finally has built-in scrolling screenshots, and they come courtesy of Android 12.
Market Reality: Olympics AR Content on Instagram & Google, Facebook's Metaverse, & Snapchat's Magic Karaoke
Over the past week, practically every major tech company working on augmented reality has held their quarterly earnings calls with investors, and each addressed or at least mentioned the role of AR during their prepared remarks. However, Facebook's earnings call had some of the spicier commentary on the technology.
AR Snapshots: Fire Off These Snapchat AR Lenses Instead of Fireworks for the Fourth of July
The Fourth of July, the celebration of US independence, as well as the second paid holiday of the summer, has arrived.
How To: Every Hidden Special Character on Your iPhone's Keyboard That You Can Unlock Right Now
Almost 190 secret characters are hiding behind your iPhone's default keyboard, and I'm not talking about what you see after tapping the "123" or "#+=" keys. These special composite characters can include accents, dots, and other diacritics, and you'll even see some strange typographical characters like the section sign, inverted marks, and per mille symbol. Here's how you find them.
How To: If 'Messages' Consumes Too Much iPhone or iCloud Storage, Don't Delete Your Conversations Just Yet
When iOS starts barking at you that you've run out of iCloud or iPhone storage, a quick trip to your settings to see what the culprit is may show that Messages is one of the worst offenders. But if deleting message after message doesn't free up your storage much, it's likely because "Messages" doesn't really mean messages.
How To: Send Star Wars Emoji in Text Messages & Chats
Why are there no official Star Wars emoji in the Unicode Standard? We've got the "Vulcan Salute" from Star Trek, so where's the force choke hand gesture?! While you may never see Star Wars officially invade your emoji keyboard, there are ways to send Star Wars emoji and stickers to your friends in your favorite chat app.
Market Reality: Apple's AR Spaces, Facebook's AR Future, Snap's 3D Acquisition & Campfire AR Headset Launch
There's already some fierce competition between Snap and Facebook in the AR space, but it's about to heat up even more, with Snap snatching up a 3D mapping startup that could add some new AR capabilities to its arsenal.
Market Reality: Google Pushes Web AR, Lil Nas X Goes Immersive, Coinbase & Ray-Ban Snapchat into AR Marketing
This week, Google showed off some wild new and innovative AR experiences that showcase the WebXR protocol for browser-based AR content, while 8th Wall applied its own web-based AR platform in service of Captain Morgan.
How To: Automate Remote SSH Control of Computers with Expect Scripts
If you're getting into automation, Bash scripting is usually the way to go. However, there are a couple of limitations, and one of them is logging into another device like a Raspberry Pi and running a script automatically. To help in those situations, we're going to automate delivering an SSH payload with an "expect" script.
AR Snapshots: Celebrate Black History Month & Get Ready for Valentine's Day with These Snapchat Lenses
February is the shortest month, but it's marked by the celebration of Black history and the celebration of romantic love.
How To: Use This Gmail Trick to See When Apps & Sites Sell Your Data
How do spammers get your email? You give it to them. Not directly, no — you sign up for an app or service and happily hand over your email to verify your new account, then that app or service sells your email address to marketers who now know what kinds of apps and services you like.
How To: Disable or Delete Your Location History in Google Maps for More Privacy
Google Maps tracks everywhere you go with your smartphone, even when you're not using the app. Even if it's as mundane as your weekly grocery trip, Google Maps has it saved for you to see in its Android and iOS apps. And while it's mostly used for recommendations and your reference — you may not want Google Maps to keep such a rich location history.
News: Inside the Future of Smartglasses: Vuzix CEO Paul Travers on What 2021 Holds for AR Wearables
We often discuss the augmented reality efforts coming from the biggest players in Silicon Valley like Google, Facebook, Apple, and others, but one name that keeps coming up when you really begin to dig into the AR space is Vuzix. Since the late '90s, the company has quietly but deliberately worked to build itself into a viable competitor in the enterprise space via its wearable display technology.
How To: Use Upip to Load MicroPython Libraries onto a Microcontroller Over Wi-Fi
MicroPython is an exciting language to use on ESP8266 boards and ESP32-based microcontrollers, but it doesn't always include all of the libraries you'll need for a specific project. This issue is less of a problem, thanks to the upip package manager.
News: Apple Releases iOS 14.3 Beta 2 for Developers & Public Beta Users, Includes Improved Home Screen Shortcuts
Apple pushed out the second beta for iOS 14.3 to developers and public beta testers, which includes a few quick fixes for issues in Apple ProRAW for iPhone 12 Pro and 12 Pro Max and HomeKit. It also gives home screen shortcuts a more seamless transition. It is not yet known if the update addresses missing SMS texts that have been plaguing users across carriers, including us.
How To: 18 MagSafe Accessories for Your iPhone 12 Mini, Including Cases, Mounts, Docks & More
There are plenty of reasons to upgrade to the iPhone 12 mini. Maybe you want to take advantage of the improved camera system, or you're intrigued by the return to a smaller form factor. But one of its coolest features might be MagSafe, a completely different way to charge and accessorize your iPhone.
How To: Use This Trick in iPhone Games So You're Not Redirected to Other Apps When Accidentally Tapping Ads You Try to Close
When you're playing a game on your iPhone, the chances are good that you'll come across an ad you have to watch before you can continue — especially on free games. While it may be annoying to be forced to wait for 10 seconds or even up to a full minute, it can be even more frustrating when you accidentally leave the game to visit the ad's linked app or site when trying to hit the little "x" to continue gaming.
How To: View the Exact Battery Percentage on Your iPhone 12, 12 Mini, 12 Pro, or 12 Pro Max
Whether you have or are getting an iPhone 12, 12 mini, 12 Pro, or 12 Pro Max, the default way to check the current battery life is via the tiny battery icon in the top right of the status bar. But that does not accurately depict how much juice is left, not as a specific percentage indicator would. If you want the exact number, there are some not-so-obvious ways to find it.