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Open Source Router Firmware - turbocharge your cheap router

March 20, 2008

Wired How-To Wiki shows you how to basically turn a $50 router into a $300 professional grade router using open source firmware.

High-end commercial routers offer features that just don’t come with your basic home package cheaper routers. We’re talking features like quality of service (QoS) management, adjustable transmission power, and support for IPv6.  Not everybody needs these features, but if you are somebody who does then you can get those features on the cheap using open source firmware.

What You’ll Need

  • A compatible wireless router
  • An Ethernet cable

Customize Your Router

This process involves replacing the manufacturer’s firmware that comes installed on the machine. There are quite a few open-source projects developing alternative firmwares for home routers. Each offers a variety of features and advantages.

DD-WRT is one of the most mature such projects, based on a Linux kernel and offering a wealth of options. Tomato is another firmware choice. Though not quite as feature-rich as DD-WRT, it is significantly easier to work with.

Find a Compatible Router

Linksys’s WRT54GL, shown above, is a good choice. It runs about $40- $60. Older models in the WRT54G series, without the L suffix, work: the WRT54G and WRT54GS versions 1 through 4 work without modification, and the version 5-6 work with ‘micro’ firmwares like DD-WRT micro thanks to the hack that can be found here. Look at the serial number on the underside of the router to check its version. Other routers that use Broadcom chipsets, made by Buffalo, Asus, and others, work as well.

There are numerous firmwares available for this platform. OpenWrt [1] provides a base for most of these firmwares, which extend it through a web based management console. Popular projects include X-Wrt [2], DD-WRT [3], and Tomato [4].

DD-WRT is compatible with a somewhat wider range of routers than Tomato is. Consult Wikipedia or the DD-WRT site for a complete reference.

Get the Firmware

Download the latest firmware, whether it be OpenWrt, X-Wrt, DD-WRT, or Tomato.

For some reason, Tomato is packaged as a 7z archive, one of the less-common file formats. You’ll need to unzip it with a tool such as 7-Zip for Windows, 7zx for Macs, or p7zip for Linux.

Unpack the downloaded firmware into a directory on your computer. It includes several different .bin files for different routers.

Install the Firmware

Follow these steps:

1. Plug your router into a power socket. Do not connect it to the Internet.

2. Use an Ethernet cable to connect your computer to one of the router’s LAN ports. Do not use a wireless connection for this, since if the connection dies while you’re installing the firmware, your router may become unusable.

3. Go to the administration page of your router. In a default setup, this is probably accessible at http://192.168.1.1/ . You’ll need to log in. The default Linksys username and password is admin/admin.

Changing the Linksys router's firmware

magnify-clip Open Source Router Firmware - turbocharge your cheap router

Changing the Linksys router’s firmware

4. Go to the Administration tab, and choose Firmware Upgrade. (This is standard for a Linksys router; other routers may offer this option in a different place.) It offers a slot to choose a firmware file from your computer, which will be installed on the router. Browse to the Tomato directory you created and choose the appropriate .bin file for your router. For a Linksys WRT54GL, for instance, choose WRT54G_WRT54GL.bin. Click the Upgrade button and do not interrupt the connection until the process completes! When it’s done, your router will reboot itself. When it returns, it’ll be running Tomato.

Use the Firmware

Monitoring network traffic in real time is just one of the tricks Tomato's open firmware can do

magnify-clip Open Source Router Firmware - turbocharge your cheap router

Monitoring network traffic in real time is just one of the tricks Tomato’s open firmware can do

First, change the administrator password to something that’s not the default, so random internet people can’t log in and change your settings. Tomato’s options are all laid out in a sidebar: click Administration and then Admin Access to get to the password page.

Now connect the router to the Internet and play around.

  • One popular thing to do is to boost the transmission power: you can crank it all the way up to 251 mW. But this is unneighborly. It interferes with other signals in the area. It’s also somewhat useless — laptops will be able to find the router’s signal from farther away, but they won’t be powerful enough to transmit back to it at that distance, so the connection won’t work. Be smart and bump it up to 70mW.
  • Set up some QoS rules. That way, you can make sure that your high-priority tasks (web browsing, gaming or VoIP) get all the throughput they need, while lower-priority tasks like BitTorrent downloads don’t eat up the bulk of your bandwidth.
  • If you have kids (or leeching housemates of another sort), you can gain finer control over their access to the internet. Block P2P file transfers or ActiveX traffic at the router. You can also turn off wireless access during certain times of the day.
  • Use your new firmware to run Dynamic DNS, which is essential if you want to set up a mail server, run a BBS or share your music collection through a web interface.

See the Tomato website for more about these (and far geekier) options. video poquer lineaonline slotmaschineslotmaschinen online spielenslotmachine online spielenonline casino spielparty casino bonuscasinospiele mit echtem geldechtes casinocasino on net deroulette gratis downloadkasino comamerikanisches rouletteonline casino softwareslots spieleninternet kasinoglucks spiellotto am samstagonline casino pokerbest casino onlineblack jack online spielegratis casino spielenonline casino deutschwww rouletteblack jackhoyle casino games 2006play video poker online,video poker,online video poker spielenkasino roulettecasino im internetcasino online softwarebicycle casino gamesslots gamesonline roulette wiesbadenrealistisches online kasinoblackjack spieleblack jack online spielenjack black online spieleneigenes online casinorealistische online spielbankonline spiel kasinoslot machines spielencasino online gameswww casino netcasino club roulettekasino spielenroulette gewinneslotmachine spielenonline video poker spielencasino comglucksspiel onlineinternet casino,internet casino poker,internet casino niedersachsen

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Gadgets, Linux, Tech, Web Life
Tags
DD-WRT, ipv6, linksys, open source, OpenWrt, professional grade, qos management, quality of service, router, router firmware, router hack, service qos, Tomato, transmission power, X-Wrt
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Portable antivirus, defeat net access blocks, surf anonymously - even from an iPod

March 17, 2008

The DemocraKey was created in May of 2006. Within two days, over 60,000 people had read about the DemocraKey and built their own. It was featured on MSN, Digg, Lifehacker, and hundreds of other pages. Now, it’s entering version 2.0, where it becomes a complete, portable privacy suite. DemocraKey helps scan and surf securely from computer to computer. You can install it on a portable thumbdrive and now even on an iPod. Visit a friends house, surf from a kiosk, or just need some privacy? Pop it in and off you go. DemocraKey has built in TOR support in the browser, which can hide your internet activity. Sounds sweet, portable too!

Features

  • Protect your computer from viruses with a security enhanced version of Firefox
  • Visit sites that are blocked by your school/employer/government
  • Hide your internet actions with Tor
  • Encrypt personal emails with GPG
  • Scan your computer with portable built in Antivirus software
  • Runs from any portable media - iPod, USB key, Digital Camera…
  • It’s FREE and Open Source!

Get DemocraKey!

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Categories
Privacy, Tech, Web Life
Tags
antivirus, democrakey, digital camera, firefox, internet actions, kiosk, lifehacker, open source, personal emails, portable, Privacy, privacy suite, thumbdrive, tor, viruses
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25+ Tools & Tutorials For JavaScript

October 5, 2007

Found this over at mashable, I’ve used several of these sites for many years…. it’s a great list.

JavaScript is one of the most often used languages on the web, and it seems to be gaining in popularity each day. We’ve gathered 25+ tools and tutorials which will be useful to any JavaScript programmer - novice or pro.

    ActiveWidgets.com

ActiveWidgets.com - A component library that gives you AJAX-style fuctions with common visual elements.

    Agile Partners

Agile Partners Photo Resizing Tutorial - A tutorial on how to use the Prototype and script.aculo.us libraries to build an interactive photo resizer.

    ByteFX

ByteFX - A low-level framework for simple JavaScript effects.

    DevGuru.com

DevGuru - Defines all the terms of JavaScript and gives you code samples of what they do.

    Dojo Toolkit

DojoToolkit.org - An open source DHTML toolkit built in JavaScript and based on several other tools.

    Drag & Drop Sortable Lists

Drag & Drop Sortable Lists - Tutorial for creating sortable lists with drag & drop functions.

    DynamicDrive.com

DynamicDrive.com - A large collection of DHTML and JavaScripts for your use.

    Firebug

Firebug - An extension for the Firefox browser that allows you to do web development from directly inside the browser, including JavaScript.

    javascript-reference.info

JavaScript-reference.info - A reference site that teaches you both how to read and write JavaScript.

    javascriptkit.com

JavaScriptKit.com - A list of JavaScript objects, properties, and methods that include examples.

    jQuery.com

jQuery.com - A JavaScript library with a small footprint and concise coding for as few lines as possible.

    Learn JavaScript in 10 Minutes

Learn JavaScript in 10 Minutes - As the name implies, learn the basics of JavaScript in 10 minutes from this very straightforward tutorial.

    lightbox2 25+ Tools & Tutorials For JavaScript

Lightbox2 - A JavaScript for overlaying photos on the current page with a semi-transparent background.

    LightWindow

LightWindow - Another overlay window system that allows you to do it with multiple media file types and even other websites.

    MochiKit.com

MochiKit.com - A set of JavaScript libraries that takes ideas from Python and Objective-C, and uses them in JavaScript.

    moo.fx

Moo.fx - JavaScript effects library that works with the Prototype.js and Mootools frameworks.

    Mootools.net

Mootools.net - An object-oriented JavaScript framework for intermediate to advance users.

    Prototype Window Class

Prototype Windows Class - Allows you to add an overlay window to your HTML.

    Prototypejs.org

Prototypejs.org - A JavaScript framework that is built with Web 2.0 in mind, includes Ajax integration.

    QuirksMode.org

QuirksMode.org - The personal site of a professional web developer who offers over a 120 tricks for defeating browser incompatibility issues of CS and JavaScript.

    reflection.js

Reflection.js - A small JavaScript to add reflections to your image.

    script.aculo.us

script.aculo.us - A JavaScript library that integrates easily with numerous frameworks.

    ThickBox

ThickBox - Works with jQuery to provide an AJAX hybrid for image overlays.

    TinyMCE

TinyMCE JavaScript Content Editor - A content editor written completely in JavaScript and converts HTML text areas in to editor instances.

    W3Schools JavaScript Tutorials

W3Schools JavaScript Tutorials - 100 Examples to learn JavaScript by.

    WebTeacher

WebTeacher.com - Takes the point of view of teaching JavaScript to a programming novice.

    Walter Zorn Drag & Drop

Walter Zorn Drag & Drop - A cross-browser JavaScript DHTML library that allows you to turn any image in to a layer that can be dragged and dropped where the user chooses.

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Code, Gadgets, Tech, Web Life
Tags
ajax, code samples, component library, drag and drop, interactive photo, javascript effects, javascript programmer, languages, libraries, mashable, novice, open source, photo resizer, photo resizing, popularity, prototype, visual elements
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