ISSN 1488-3163; PC Improvements © 2004
==== 2185 Subscribers in 62 Countries ====
Welcome to the 275th issue of the PC Improvement News. PCIN consists mainly of news and tips. There is something for everyone, and if this is your first issue, I'm sure there will be something for you. If you give me two or three issues, I know that you will come back for more!
You can reach me at editor@pcin.net with any suggestions or comments.
Recommend PCIN at http://PCIN.net/recommend.php
Support PCIN at http://PCIN.net/donate.php
Today marks the end of the PCIN.net FreeHelp Forum. It never really grew the
way I had hoped it would. It has been up for 2+ years and only has 572 members.
There were some who asked questions and quickly got answers, but there were
many more who waited far too long to get answers. There just hasn't been enough
activity on the forum to keep it going. If you are looking for a helpful message
board, then try one of these:
http://forums.scotsnewsletter.com/ -
Scot's Newsletter Forums
http://help.lockergnome.com/ -
Lockergnome Forums
http://groups.google.com/ -
Google Groups
http://www.computing.net/forums/ -
Computing.net Support Forums
A big thanks goes out to everyone who helped contribute to the PCIN.net FreeHelp
Forum. In particular, I'd like to thank xe77 who helped hundreds of people
through the forum. He posted almost twice as many answers as I did!
Do not take this as any sort of sign that PCIN.net is winding down. We're just
trying to focus on the things that are most important to our visitors/subscribers.
We've got lots of reviews coming, and other improvements are on the way.
Graham editor@pcin.net and Chris chris@pcin.net
Getting patently offensive
"Entrepreneurs often emerge from humble beginnings, like basements, where they work tirelessly to create new hardware or software applications that will push technology forward.
Some make it to the big time. Others are not so lucky. Although their technology may remain in the basement, many of these entrepreneurs have at least managed to protect their invention with a patent.
That patent could make all the difference. Close examination of recent legal activity points to one overriding conclusion: As the perceived probability of receiving a large damages award increases, patent-holding small businesses--already looking for opportunities--will, upon discovering infringing activity, find more value in filing suit against their larger competitors. With patent infringement litigation on the rise, these companies might just become household names."For more info:
http://news.com.com/2010-1014_3-5143922.html
Cuba tightens its control over Internet
"At a downtown Havana post office, Cubans line up for hours for their turn in the 'surfing room.'
When users get to one of the four computers, they can send and receive e-mail and surf an Intranet of Cuban Web sites, but access to the global Internet is barred.
Getting online is not easy in communist-run Cuba, where the state strictly controls all Web servers and recently announced plans to crack down on illegal Internet access."For more info:
http://edition.cnn.com/2004/TECH/internet/01/21/cuba.internet.reut/index.html
Television Commercials Come to the Web
"Television commercials, in all their big, loud glory, are coming to the Web.
Beginning tomorrow, more than a dozen Web sites, including MSN, ESPN, Lycos and iVillage, will run full-motion video commercials from Pepsi, AT&T, Honda, Vonage and Warner Brothers, in a six-week test that some analysts and online executives say could herald the start of a new era of Internet advertising."For more info:
http://www.nytimes.com/2004/01/19/technology/19ecom.html?ex=1075093200&en=11f5852006ee4f60&ei=5062&partner=GOOGLE
Return to the top | Recommend PCIN News |
Do you play games online?
Yes, action and roll playing games 12.61 % (15) Yes, trivia games 2.52 % (3) Yes, other types of games 20.17 % (24) No, I don't play computer games 31.09 % (37) No, the computer games are played offline 33.61 % (40) Total votes: 119
This Week's Poll
You can also vote online at http://PCIN.net/polls/
Return to the top | Recommend PCIN Poll of the Week |
Check out these new or updated pages on the PCIN.net site:
Updated PCIN.net Search
http://PCIN.net/search/Moon Software Password Agent Software Review
http://PCIN.net/help/software/passwordagent.phpNewsGator Technologies NewsGator Software Review
http://PCIN.net/help/software/newsgator.phpSunbelt Software iHateSpam Software Review
http://PCIN.net/help/software/ihatespam.php
Return to the top | Recommend PCIN.net Update |
New Google.com Features
Google has received quite a bit of press lately as a result of some new search features they have added:
UPS, FedEx, and USPS Package Tracking - link to tracking pages on their respective sites
patent (patent 5123123) - link to patent information
airplane (n199ua) - link to flight tracking
FCC equipment ID/tracking numbers(fcc B4Z-34009-PIR) - link to original FCC information
Area Codes - 416 brings up map of Toronto
UPC codes - bring up some information about the product.
Vehicle ID (VIN) numbers - link to a CARFAX report on what kind of car and its status.
Check it out at http://www.google.ca/help/features.html
FWA Sites Of The Year 2003 Winners Announced
"19,300+ nominated sites, 12 short-listed, 12 international judges,1 Site Of The Year winner"
Check it out at http://www.favouritewebsiteawards.com/
Magnetic Poetry
"It all started with a song and a sneeze. Dave Kapell, founder of Magnetic Poetry, was suffering from writer's block while trying to compose song lyrics. To overcome this problem, he wrote down interesting words on pieces of paper and rearranged them, looking for inspiration. What he hadn't figured into this experiment was his allergies. One good sneeze and any progress was sent flying across the room. Dave decided to glue the words to pieces of magnets and stick them to a pizza tin. Then he got hungry and the now magnetized words made their way to the refrigerator door. Before too long, Dave wasn't the only one rearranging his would-be song lyrics. When friends came over, Dave noticed they started to move the magnets around, amusing themselves by writing the first magnetic poems."
Check it out at http://www.magneticpoetry.com/magnet/
Return to the top | Recommend PCIN Tips and Other Stuff |
Both of us have other sites other than PCIN.net. These are all sites that we are actively involved in (they aren't client sites). Don't forget to check them out from time to time for updates:
Return to the top | Recommend PCIN Tips and Other Stuff |
PCIN is brought to you by Graham Wing. The opinions expressed are those of the Editor, Graham Wing and the Assistant Editor, Chris Empey. Graham Wing and Chris Empey accept no responsibility for the results obtained from trying the tips in this newsletter.
Graham Wing can be reached at editor@pcin.net
Chris Empey can be reached at chris@pcin.net
Copyright 1998-2004, Graham Wing. All rights reserved.
This publication may be reproduced in whole, or in part, as long as the author is notified and the newsletter is presented as is.
Support PCIN by visiting http://PCIN.net/donate.php