Issue 320 - December 01, 2004
ISSN 1488-3163; PC Improvements © 2004
==== 2022Subscribers in 58 Countries ====
Welcome to the 320th 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
CONTENTS
Opening Thoughts
We're slowing getting all the delivery problems straightened out. SOme of
you may be receive 2 copies of the newsletter. Don't worry about it. Just delete
one. We'll have everything fixed soon. The reason why it is taking so long
is that I only send the newsletter out once a week. So as I fix a problem,
I have to wait until the next mailing to see what else there is to fix. We
appreciate your patience.
I can't believe December is here already! Christmas is
only 24 days away.
I've added some more pictures to the Wing Family web site. You can see some
new pictures of Matthew and Andrew.
Graham editor@pcin.net and
Chris chris@pcin.net
The NEWS
Canadian Inventor Lets Everyone Be an Armchair Spy
"New Internet-based technology could soon turn regular computer users
into armchair spies, a Canadian inventor said on Monday.
Vincent Tao, an engineer at Toronto's York University said he has invented
a mapping and surveillance tool called SAME (see anywhere, map anywhere),
that produces images so sharp that geographic co-ordinates typed into a Web
site can reveal the make of a car parked on the street."
For more info:
http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=technologyNews&storyID=6946893
Sony takes on iPod with new hard-disk Walkman
"Sony unveiled its first MP3-compatible, hard-disk Walkman music player
on Tuesday in an attempt to recover ground lost to Apple Computer's iPod.
The world's biggest consumer electronics maker aims to reclaim the market
for portable and personal music devices, which it helped to launch 25 years
ago with its first Walkman."
For more info:
http://news.com.com/2100-1041_3-5470462.html
Blazing a new data speed record
"A group of researchers have found a way to quickly transfer huge amounts
of data over computer networks, paving the way for greater global scientific
cooperation and future commercial uses.
By shuttling data at a sustained rate of 101 gigabits--the equivalent of
three DVD movies--per second between Pittsburgh and Los Angeles, the so-called
High Energy Physics team shattered a record for data transfer and won the
Supercomputing Bandwidth Challenge, a contest geared toward improving network
connection speed for grid computing."
For more info:
http://news.zdnet.com/2100-1035_22-5471325.html
China's Google Block Sparks Media Group's Protest
"The Chinese government is blocking one of Google's (Quote, Chart)
more popular sites, the company confirmed Tuesday.
Debbie Frost, a Google spokesperson, told internetnews.com that the company
has been fielding reports of outages of the main Google News site from the
region for a couple of days.
The search engine also said its Google News China, Spain and other national
versions of the site have been inaccessible from China. In a statement, Google
said it's aware of the problem and working to 'understand and resolve the
issue.'"
For more info:
http://www.internetnews.com/ent-news/article.php/3441781
POLL of the WEEK
Last Week's Poll
How frequently have you had problems when doing computer hardware upgrades?
Never |
|
26 % (43) |
10% of the time |
|
41 % (67) |
25% of the time |
|
17 % (27) |
Half the time |
|
7 % (12) |
Almost always |
|
8 % (13) |
Every time |
|
1 % (1) |
Total votes: 163 |
This Week's Poll
You can also vote online at http://PCIN.net/polls/
PCIN.net UPDATE
Check out these new or updated pages on the PCIN.net site:
Sunbelt Software iHateSpam 4.0 Software Review
http://PCIN.net/help/software/ihatespam4.php
Micro Solutions RoadStor Hardware Review
http://PCIN.net/help/hardware/roadstor.php
Album Creator by FirmTools Software Review
http://PCIN.net/help/software/albumcreator.php
Microsoft® Windows® 2000 Administrator's Pocket Consultant, Second
Edition Book Review
http://PCIN.net/help/books/w2kapcse.php
Remote Task Manager by SmartLine Inc. Software Review
http://PCIN.net/help/software/remotetaskmanager.php
THE TIPS and OTHER
STUFF
MSN Messenger Web Version
http://webmessenger.msn.com/
I don't really use Messenger that much, but it is useful to talk with some
of the younger people at Church, so I usually have it running. Within the
last week or so MSN has launched a web only version.
Search and enjoy: 7 search toolbars reviewed
"If you're still going to the Google or Yahoo home page to do Web
searches, you're missing half the fun--and you're unnecessarily exerting
your fingers. Toolbar plug-ins for Microsoft Internet Explorer--and now Firefox--make
it easy and fast to look up Web references without having to type in another
URL."
Check out this review by CNet at http://reviews.cnet.com/4520-3514_7-5577625-1.html
Moving Office Toolbar Buttons
The Microsoft Office Toolbars found in Microsoft Office Products are fully
customizable. You can add and remove buttons or menu items and consolidate
toolbars. To do this, right click on the toolbar and choose customize. Alternatively,
you can also hold the ALT key down and move or delete buttons from you toolbars.
There are many features in the toolbars that I never use, so I remove those
buttons, then consolidate two or more toolbars across a single row to conserve
screen real estate.
PCIN.net AFFILIATED
SITES
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:
DISCLAIMER
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.
- If any of the links are too long to fit on one line, you may have to cut
and paste.
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follow the appropriate links.
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be entered in a monthly draw.
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out the subscription form or asked me directly.
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I will add it to the subscriber web pages that I have on my site.
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by clicking on the PayPal link below:
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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
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