PDFMate offers free PDF Merger and Converter tools

Adobe Acrobat, the de facto PDF software, is an expensive utility when you only occasionally need to alter PDF documents. But when you need to, it is nice to have something readily available that works and works well. Even with Office 2013 gaining the ability to edit PDFs, there is still a place for the utilities that make manipulating PDFs easy. PDFMate Free PDF Merger is one of those free tools that can help you alter a PDF to be what you need. In addition, PDFMate PDF Converter allows you to convert PDF to various formats.

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Free security software tools from HBGary

HBGary was a technology security company that made more of a name for itself in its demise than its successes. The company was founded by Greg Hoglund, a security researcher and author of books on rootkits, exploiting online games, and exploiting software, each of which I have previously read and reviewed. HBGary Federal was a subsidiary spun off to work with the government where security clearance might be needed with Aaron Barr as CEO. Barr’s tangle with Anonymous, which I recently read more details regarding in This Machine Kills Secrets, ultimately led to the company’s demise. HBGary was bought by ManTech International at the end of February, 2012 and HBGary Federal was reportedly closed.

Despite the company’s storied history, it was a technology security company first and foremost with many advanced security software tools. It provides a number of those tools for free to benefit other security researchers and students.

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Catincan – a crowdfunding site for open source projects

Kickstarter and IndieGoGo have standardized crowdfunding for a variety of projects. One type of projects, open-source software, has been around for far longer but has often faced gaps between interest in projects and funding. One website aims to fix that problem as a crowdfunding site specializing in open source projects.

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Book Review: This Machine Kills Secrets by Andy Greenberg

This Machine Kills Secrets – How WikiLeakers, Cypherpunks, and Hacktivists Aim to Free the World’s Information is written by Forbes journalist Andy Greenberg and provides a historical recount of the use of the cryptography revolution. This takes the story from the Pentagon Papers of 1971 to the WikiLeaks of 2010 and beyond with several organizations’ attempts to build the next generation Leak software.

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Bill Gates 2.0 on 60 Minutes

Bill Gates appeared on 60 Minutes yesterday. He was able to show off some of the technology that his foundation is pushing to be developed. Some of the work is working to wipe out diseases, improve vaccine delivery, and improve clean water to developing nations. With interests as varied as reinventing the toilet to improving nuclear fusion, Bill Gates seems hardly satisfied with how much impact he has already had on the world.

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Diamonds as a luxury in technology

Whenever someone hears the word diamond, images of luxurious precious stones and extremely hard substances may arise in the mind. Diamonds have built their legacy and reputation as being known for being one of the most expensive m hardest substances in the planet. Diamonds have been used as pieces of luxurious jewelry for millennia. These beautiful stones are capable of enhancing looks by giving them the appearance of high status. Thanks to the increasing popularity of diamonds, there are now lots of companies and professionals interested in buying and selling these precious stones. For more information, click here for diamonds buyers.

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Could Google Fiber become the only ISP?

The answer, based on this infographic, is no.

Where I live, I have access to faster speeds for broadband but the cost gets prohibitive. Google Fiber is very fast and cheap but only available in a few select places, mostly Kansas City at the moment. This infographic dives into comparing Google Fiber to other ISPs and pondering (for some reason), if Google Fiber could take over the world.

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Electronic Signatures [infographic]

It has been almost a year since my previous article on electronic signatures and almost 13 years since the ESIGN Act was signed into place. This infographic on electronic signatures explain some of the numbers behind them, their benefits by industry, common uses, and more.

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