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Issue 359 - August 31, 2005

ISSN 1488-3163; PC Improvements © 2005
==== 2051 Subscribers in 59 Countries ====

Welcome to the 359th 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 finally did get some feedback on Chris' Digital Photography Tip of the Week. Thank you! Remember to email Chris your thoughts/comments/questions, and he'll do what he can to answer them.

So, did you get your free copy of Opera yesterday? As of the time I'm writing this, you can still get it by visiting http://my.opera.com/community/party/reg.dml and putting in your email address. It's good until midnight Wednesday (tonight) CET (GMT +1).

Graham editor@pcin.net and Chris chris@pcin.net

The NEWS

Missed Church? Download It to Your IPod

Kyle Lewis, 25, missed going to church one Sunday last month. But he did not miss the sermon.
Mr. Lewis, who regularly attends services of the National Community Church in Alexandria, Va., listened to the sermon while he was at the gym, through a recording he had downloaded to his iPod. Instead of listening to the rock music his gym usually plays, he heard his pastor's voice.
" Having an iPod is a guaranteed way to get the sermon if you're going to be out of town," Mr. Lewis said, adding that he listens to the pastor's podcast at least once more during the week, usually while driving to work, even during weeks he makes it to services.
Mr. Lewis's pastor, the Rev. Mark Batterson, started podcasting, or "godcasting" as he prefers to call it, last month to spread the word about his congregation. The hourlong recordings of his weekly service, available on theaterchurch.com, have already brought new parishioners to his church, he said.

For more info:
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/08/29/technology/29godcast.html
?ex=1282968000&en=6159245ef5e36f61&ei=5090&partner=rssuserland&emc=rss

Leave a comment:
http://www.pcin.net/update/index.php/2005/08/29/missed_church_download_it_to_your_ipod

Tech titans wish we wouldn't quote them on this baloney

Matthew Szulik, CEO of open-source software company Red Hat, wants to show me his company's new video.
It rolls through evangelical sequences about how the underdog open-source movement is going to prove wrong its doubters. To bolster this point, the video flashes quotes by people through history who had experienced some sort of brain flatulence when assessing a technology newcomer.
Among the quotes is this widely circulated comment attributed to Thomas Watson, builder of IBM, in 1943: "I think there is a world market for maybe five computers."
Except it's doubtful Watson ever said such a thing.

For more info:
http://www.usatoday.com/tech/columnist/kevinmaney/2005-07-05-famous-quotes_x.htm
Leave a comment:
http://www.pcin.net/update/index.php/2005/08/25/tech_titans_wish_we_wouldn_t_quote_them_

The Windows Roller Coaster: 10 Years of Highs and Lows

Step aside, Six Flags. Move over, Magic Mountain.
For sheer, gut-wrenching highs and lows, even the world's tallest, fastest, most technologically advanced fly-by-wire roller coaster can't compare with the last 10 years of highs and lows at Microsoft.
Whether you're a shareholder, an employee, a customer or a competitor, you've experienced the thrill of victory and the agony of BSODs.
In the year and a half leading up to the debut of Windows 95, I wrote more than 100,000 words about the upcoming operating system, mostly for the late, lamented PC Computing.
I was at the launch party on Aug. 24, 1995, and I've been covering succeeding versions of Windows (and the controversies surrounding them) continuously since then. It's been quite a ride.

For more info:
http://www.eweek.com/article2/0,1895,1852012,00.asp
Leave a comment:
http://www.pcin.net/update/index.php/2005/08/25/the_windows_roller_coaster_10_years_of_h

GM drives Hummer-branded laptop

General Motors is expected to announce a new laptop next week that's styled after its popular Hummer multi-terrain vehicles.
The carmaker has signed an exclusive three-year licensing agreement with Spokane, Wash.-based Itronix to make a portable computer designed for people who work outdoors: police officers, firefighters, claims adjusters and construction workers, for example, as well as people who own a Hummer and are fascinated by anything related to the oversize vehicles.

For more info:
http://techrepublic.com.com/2100-10877_11-5844920.html
Leave a comment:
http://www.pcin.net/update/index.php/2005/08/31/gm_drives_hummer_branded_laptop

Return to the top Recommend PCIN Poll of the Week

PCIN.net UPDATE

Check out these new or updated pages on the PCIN.net site:

VMware Inc. VMware Workstation 4.5 Software Review
http://PCIN.net/help/software/vmware45.php

PCIN.net Update Blog
http://PCIN.net/update/

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

Return to the top Recommend PCIN Poll of the Week

Digital Photography Tip of the Week

Organizing Your Images

So now that you are shooting, and making backup copies of your photos for safe storage, how can you find that shot you took last year of Aunt Bettie at the farm.  Some people simply rename the image to reflect it's content, (Aunt Bettie at the farm.jpg).  This approach is both time consuming (having to rename every file) and will make finding the file more difficult (What did I name that file?). Other people like to put each individual subject in it's own folder. They may have a folder for Pics from the Farm and another folder for Aunt Bettie.  But which folder should the picture I mentioned earlier go.  The best way to get around this is to leverage today's software features. There are many pieces of software out there that have database and search capabilities. With them, you can assign  multiple tags, or keywords to an image, allowing the image to become part of several collections.  So, this image can now be tagged with both Aunt Bettie, and Pics from the Farm.  If you do a search in the software for Aunt Bettie, you can now find all images that share that tag. That same image will also show up in a search for Pics from the Farm.  This is also the premise that Flickr uses to display similiar shots from multiple people.

That takes care of how to find the image, how do you organize them.  The way that I do it is to organize my files by date. I use the date the photo was taken and place them in a folder for that date.  Is this the best way? It's the best way for me because I can then add tags to my photos to further identify them. I also find it makes backing them up easier as I don't have to search multiple folders for new files, I just backup those that I have created since my last backup. I know other people who have different systems that work well for them, so you will have to find what works best for you. You can also try a search for How I organize my digital photos and read what other people do.

Some products that offer tagging abilities along with a multitude of other features : Picasa (free), Adobe Photoshop Elements 3 or Adobe Album 2 (there is a free starter edition that will work fine for cataloguing your photos), ACDsee, ThumbsPlus, iPhoto.  For most of the products, you simply select one (or multiple images) and then assign the tags. Each product will be a little bit different, so check the help file.

Next week, where to print your photos.

The digital photography tip of the week is a new feature of PCIN news and is written by our Assistant Editor, Chris Empey. Chris is a long time photographer and member of the Niagara Falls Camera Club. You can see more of his photography at his Photo of the Day website.
If you have a tip to send us, or a question about digital photography we can address in the newsletter, send it to chris@pcin.net.

Return to the top Recommend PCIN Poll of the Week

THE TIPS and OTHER STUFF

Good Deals & Coupons web sites

I just recently heard about a couple of great sites that keep track of deals or coupons. I know there are a lot of sites out there, but they usually are so cluttered with ads its hard to find what you are looking for.

RedFlagDeals.com
http://www.redflagdeals.com/

Created to focus specifically on the Canadian shopper, RedFlagDeals is looking to chase down the hottest deals on the Internet and in stores and relay them to you, the reader. There certainly are hot deals to be found and once we find them you'll be the first to know. If you find a hot deal, please let us know.

The site has the following sections: Deals, Coupons, Freebies, Articles, Ratings, and Forums.

SlickDeals.net
http://www.slickdeals.net/

The most frequently updated and complete deal site on the web! We provide you with the day's hottest deals every day. We also have over 800 coupons for all your favorite online stores. Browse around and you're bound to save more than a few bucks!

The site lists a few deals each day, and they have a web feed that you can subscribe to.

Feel free to leave a comment with links to your favourite coupon/deal site at http://www.pcin.net/update/index.php/2005/08/25/good_deals_aamp_coupons_web_sites

DNS Glossary

The standard Internet user will open up their browser, type in a domain name, and visit a site. Almost always this works perfectly, and they don't realize the incredibly complex system that keeps this going. DNS (domain name system) is what matches up a domain name with an IP address. A problem with DNS can cause sites to be down. If an ISP has a DNS problem, it is possible that all of their customers will be unable to visit any site.
Most people don't need to learn about DNS, but if you are interested, a good place to start is the Men & Mice's DNS Glossary. There are 91 terms defined. Each entry links to other entries where appropriate, and also provides a See also... section for related topics.

Leave a comment at http://www.pcin.net/update/index.php/2005/08/19/dns_glossary

Box.net Virtual Storage

I've posted twice before about how to get files to people over the web when you can't use email.
Well, Box.net is a site that offers online storage. But you can also share folders, as well as offer some folders/files as an RSS feed. I haven't tried it myself, but it sounds interesting.

Box.net is a virtual storage space for your computer files. For only $2.99 per month, you are provided with 1 Gigabyte (1,000 Megabytes) of storage space. This is large enough to hold thousands of Documents, Photos, Music Files, and Video Clips. Need even more? Box.net now offers up to 5GB of storage for only $8.99 as well.

Check it out at http://box.net/

Leave a comment at http://www.pcin.net/update/index.php/2005/08/31/box_net_virtual_storage

Return to the top Recommend PCIN Poll of the Week

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:

Return to the top Recommend PCIN Poll of the Week

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.

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Graham Wing can be reached at editor@pcin.net
Chris Empey can be reached at chris@pcin.net

Copyright 1998-2005, Graham Wing. All rights reserved.

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