Howto reset network device after swapping disks from one PC to another

I had a problem with a very old Compaq PC not detecting the keyboard anymore. I used the PC as a local server, not a real problem, except that the BIOS didn't allow the PC to boot when the keyboard was not plugged in. One solution there might have been to use some USB keyboard (I didn't get a chance to try that - didn't have any USB keyboard lying around). Luckily enough, I happened to have a clone of this computer, so I just swapped the disks from one PC to the other, and booted.

Many Open Tools for Windows

This article was first written in January 2004 for 
the BeezNest technical website (http://glasnost.beeznest.org/articles/101)
There's about time relatives of mine don't want to change their operating system to Linux because they fear to be lost, but commonly use a lot of softwares under "test periods" to assist them in Windows because there's a natural lack of some of these functionalities that you would want your computer to have. Here is a list that will become longer with time of tools from the Open Source Community that run under Win32 OSes like a road-runner would run just in

UNIX and ports < 1024

This article was first written in May 2005 for the BeezNest technical
website (http://glasnost.beeznest.org/articles/262).
On UNIX, the ports < 1024 are accessible to user root only. That has many implications, as then most standard networked servers have to start as root anyway, because they use well-known ports (like HTTP, SMTP, POP, IMAP, FTP, …). To reduce the risk, most of them then start as root, open the port(s) they need and then change to another user.