Internet Censorship Adieu, Hello Hola

Markit

For all those wanting to get around unwanted internet censorship or just wanting to watch shows that are only shown in particular countries I have found a great new piece of software. You will need to use the Google Chrome webbrowser and download the FREE attachment Hola Better Internet. Once its on your Chrome browser just click on the Hola Better Internet icon (upper right hand of the screen) to activate the vpn (virtual private network) and choose which country you wish to view your webpage from. For instance if you wish to watch BBC programs choose the United Kingdom and then go to the BBC Iplayer and get stuck in. Happy trails- oh and your viewing is masked from the Indonesian servers also. Anyone that wishes to keep their Facebook activities clear of the local authorities can also hide their FB pages from Indonesia too. Markit

DenpasarHouse

Thanks Markit, I'll check it out. Be careful though, best to keep an eye on your quota. See here: Hola (VPN) - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This also means that other users might access the internet through one's own computer, and that part of one's upload bandwidth might be used for serving cached data to other users

Markit

Thanks DPH that was something I wasn't aware of but an easy work around would be to only use it in a browser you don't normally use. I.e. if your normal surfing is with Mozilla Firefox then just open the Chrome browser when you want to go with Hola or if you normally use Chrome then download the Firefox patch and use that browser in times of need.

DenpasarHouse

Yeah, I think that's a good idea if you want to protect your privacy, as I think these types of programs will copy your browsing history to sell to whomever wants it. However, that's not what I'm talking about in the post above. According to Wikipedia these programs, or at least Hola, will actually use your computer as part of their network, similar to the method in which torrenting works. They're storing data/content on your computer, and getting your computer do the heavy work of sending it to other Hola users so that they don't have to store/send the data themselves. So while your happily downloading it'll actually be silently uploading content to other users of Hola without your knowledge. It probably won't be a problem, but it's just something to think of if your quota is inexplicably running out.

Markit

Did some research and this is what Hola says to the question of data usage: [h=4]Will I consume more mobile data on my Android device because of Hola?[/h][COLOR=#333333][FONT=PT Sans]No. Hola actually reduces your mobile data usage through better, smarter data caching. Expect to save between 20-30% of data usage after a few weeks Also, your phone only acts as a Peer on the Hola Network when plugged in to a power supply and when connected to the Internet over a Wi-Fi network. From this I take it that if you disable Hola or close the browser that's running it you will no longer be a peer in that network and hence no longer be transmitting data amongst the nodes. There is also the possibility of checking usage stats (up/downloads) to make sure. Whether it will give the promised 20-30% increase in speeds is questionable but hey - use it or don't. What do I know? [/FONT][/COLOR]