Not just for spies: The PC on a memory stick that doesn't leave a trace of your browsing history or documents



The very personal computer: A generic memory stick - the new floppy - can become your own PC

If you are either super important, super paranoid, or a super spy, there are times when you need to be able to use a computer and not leave a trace.

Now, a clever piece of software lets you carry your own personal PC which you can carry inside your pocket - and once you have finished using it, no-one will ever know.

Technically, what you are carrying is not a whole computer - instead it is a simple USB memory stick.

But within it is a full operating system (like Windows), and when you plug it into a PC, that computer will restart into your own personal set-up, called Tails.

When you have finished, shut down the computer, put the USB stick back in your pocket, and the PC will never know it has been used.

As everything the user does is contained within Tails' - the software on a stick - not a single trace is left on the original PC.

That means no cookies of websites browsed, no chance of documents being left in a Recycle Bin.

The Tails software, which uses an operating system called Linux, can even be skinned to look like Windows XP

Tails uses Linux, an alternative and open-source operating system with Tux the penguin as a mascot

There are a few steps in order to install the set-up, but the main skills needed include an ability to download files off the web, and the ability to burn a DVD disc, which is the simpler method, or for advanced users, the files can be placed onto a 'bootable' USB stick.

If you can handle those steps, MSN provides a step-by-step guide to the process.

As with any technology, there are both good and bad sides to the idea.

Critics will say this may allow people to carry out illegal activities in secrecy - indeed, even technically on other PCs, whereas privacy advocates will laud the idea of being able to work in complete secrecy.

Naturally, using anything on the web will leave a trace somewhere. If you use Google to search for something, Google will have a record on their end.

But with Tails, at least on your end of the connection, you can feel secure that no-one will be able to check your documents or follow your movements when your PC is either turned on in front of you, or squirreled away in your pocket.