Why do you need to use a VPN?

Here are three words for you: Virtual Private Network (more commonly referred to as VPN). If you've never heard of the term, or aren't sure about its exact nature in our info tech world, then chances are you've never utilized one. A VPN is facilitated for several reasons, by individuals and the business sector alike. Anyone who initiates one for their time on the internet will have a variety of reasons. They can vary according to the individual’s needs and wants;  scaling from minimal personal usage to access international television programs not available in their region, to encryption and security during time spent in cyberspace. In essence, a VPN is used to secure and encrypt communications when using an untrusted network which is in the public domain.

The latter is the more common theme. In this day and age where big brother seems to lurk in every corner of our internet browser, more and more people, and companies, are resorting to the use of a VPN provider. In fact, as people are educating themselves on the realms of the digital jungle that is fast becoming a second home, the VPN is becoming a common household name. And why not? With hackers at the ready to steal your sensitive information, and government regimes watching and monitoring your every move, the VPN is now an essential addition to add to our daily internet rituals. In essence, public networks are cesspits, and if we dwell in them too long, without the correct protective elements, then we tend to ‘pick up’ those bugs which dwell in them.

When you use a VPN, the usual presentation is to launch a VPN client on your personal computer. You log in; your computer then “exchanges trusted keys with a server,” and once both systems have been authentically verified, your communication on the internet is secure.

However, not all VPNs are created equally. When searching for the right VPN for your own use, it is important to know what it is you are signing up for, and who with. You need to take into consideration connectivity protocols, features and server locations. The best VPNs will offer a good selection on these criteria. Most importantly, the VPN Provider should have a so called ‘no-logging policy’ which ensures that no user activity will be logged.

You need to be aware of other considerations such as trusting your provider with your data. In other words, what do they log? Everything outside of your VPN server is secure from eavesdropping, but those sharing the same provider may have access to your data. Some VPN providers keep logs in case a government requests them, so decide what is acceptable to you when it comes to logging. 

Apple’s first crack on the release!

Let’s start with some general observations that apply to both the iPhone 6 and the iPhone 6 Plus. The iPhone 5 and 5S both had flat fronts, sides, and backs with well-defined edges, but those are gone in the iPhone 6. The glass on the front now curves down slightly all the way around the edge to meet the newly-curved sides and back of the phone. It sort of recalls the iPhone 3G or 3GS, which had similar curves but used plastic all the way around instead of aluminum and glass. 

The back of the phones are made out of aluminum with some clearly visible cutouts made to allow wireless signals in and out. The design as a whole is more reminiscent of the 2012 iPod Touch than current iPhones, an observation that extends to the slightly protruding camera lens. You won’t notice this bulge if you keep your phone in a case or sit it on a soft surface, but if you set the phone on a hard table it definitely will wobble a bit in place. Both phones feel lighter than you’d expect them to—4.55 ounces for the 6 and 6.07 ounces for the 6 Plus, compared to 5.64 ounces for the 5-inch HTC One M8 or 5.08 ounces for the new Moto X—but they still feel as sturdy as you’d expect from an Apple product.

The new screen is the star of the show here—the iPhone 6 has a 1334×750 display that retains the 326 PPI density of older Retina iPhones, it just fits more on the screen at once than the iPhone 5 or 5S can. All apps that have been optimized for the larger display can show more stuff at once than they could before, which is obvious if you open Safari or even the Settings app. Icons and buttons remain the same size they were before, in accordance with Apple’s best practices for app design—the Home screen can fit one additional horizontal row of icons than the iPhone 5 can, but you can still only fit in four icons per row.

To make one-handed usage easier on both phones, Apple has introduced a feature called “Reachability.” Double tap the TouchID button and the contents of the screen will shift downward, letting you reach the top half of your app’s contents even if you can only reach the bottom half of the phone’s actual screen. Once you’ve entered Reachability mode, you can also pull down from the top of the “window” to bring up the Notification Center.

We suspect that many iPhone 6 users (especially iPhone 6 Plus users) will simply adjust to using two hands more often with their iPhones, possibly without even realizing it. But Reachability feels like something best used only when you don’t have that option, rather than a great, easy way to handle all your navigation.