Here's your Geekly Update for this week, presented in small bytes. Get the scoop on gadgets & hardware, online happenings, computer security, social networking, web tech and search engines. Read on...

How can you tell if your hard drive is damaged before it completely crashes? It's important to detect hard drive damage before it grows into a catastrophic failure. Here's how to check "under the hood" of your hard drive for signs of damage...

How does the Blackberry smartphone operating system by Research In Motion (RIM) stack up against Apple's iPhone and Google's Android? A smartphone's OS is the foundation of an entire ecosystem of vendors, phones, accessories, and apps. Let's compare the three leading smartphone operating systems in the U.S. and see what sorts of users benefit most from each...

"I'm getting rid of an old computer, and I want to make sure the data on the hard drive can be be accessed. What's the best way to destroy a hard drive and all the data on it?"

When you need to send a file to someone, attaching it to an email is the simplest and most intuitive method for sender and receiver. But there are limits on the size of file attachments. If you want to send a really big file via email you need an intermediary. Here's how...

Free voicemail services were commonplace during the 1990s, when the Web was new and service providers had something to prove to voicemail users. But today there are very few truly free voicemail services now that the technology has demonstrated its reliability and quality. Here's a rundown on where to go for free voicemail, and what features are offered...

"I have a home network, but I'm nervous about hackers getting into my computers. What can I do to monitor my network for suspicious activity and breakins?"

Most hard drive crashes give some early warning signs, providing you time to backup your data and, in some cases, correct the problem(s) before the hard drive fails completely. Pay attention to your hard drive's behavior and avoid the calamity of a hard drive crash. Here's what to watch for...

There may be no more effortless way to make money than online commodities trading. Buy low, sell high with just a few keystrokes and mouse-clicks. Commodity trading online is as fast and furious as any real-time multiplayer shoot-em-up game; the adrenalin rush itself is fun. But trading commodities online is also fraught with perils for novices who do not understand the game...

Online free storage is one of the greatest innovations to arise from the Internet. There's no need to buy a bigger hard drive or burn stacks of CDs; just upload your photos, videos, documents, and other files to someone else's storage space for free! Here's the scoop on free online storage...

"My friend has some cool apps on his iPhone that he got by 'jailbreaking' his phone. I'm a little nervous about doing that because I heard it's not legal. What's the truth?"

So your garage band is ready to release its first album; congratulations! Or perhaps you've filmed a documentary, or developed some software that is to be distributed on CD. Either way, you need to duplicate CDs in mass quantities; say, 500 copies at a time. There are several ways to duplicate CDs or DVDs...

Here's your Geekly Update for this week, presented in small bytes. Get the scoop on gadgets & hardware, online happenings, computer security, social networking, web tech and search engines. Read on...

"I have a problem with my USB flash drive. When I plug it in, Windows says 'USB device not recognized' and I can't see my files. Is there any way the data can be recovered? The system does not recognize the flash drive at all."

"Sometimes my laptop's battery power meter shows that I have 10-20% remaining power, but it shuts down unexpectedly. Can I calibrate the battery so that the power meter shows an accurate measure?"