ISSN 1488-3163; PC Improvements © 2006
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Welcome to the 431st 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.
Support PCIN at http://PCIN.net/donate.php
This past Monday Lisa and I spent almost all day with a Vietnamese friend of ours making spring rolls. They are fantastic! The only drawback is that my hands still smell like onions :-(
Next weekend we are having a party for my grandmother (my father's mother) as she is turning 90 at the end of the month. She suffers from serious arthritis, but otherwise is in good health. She and my grandfather had 2 kids, and they had 14 grandchildren and I think are around that number for great-grandchildren (sorry, I don't know the exact number). Not bad!
Graham editor@pcin.net and Chris chris@pcin.net
Imaginary Innovations
More than 2,700 exhibitors descend on Las Vegas Monday, each ready to show off their latest and greatest tricks at the annual Consumer Electronics Show.
But good luck finding many of the gizmos and gadgets on store shelves: Though CES is supposed to give gearheads a peek at the future, it is often better at displaying "vaporware"--would-be innovations that never materialize.
Some of this is par for the course: Much like the auto show that's running concurrently in Detroit, CES is meant to have a fantasy element to it--stuff that ought to be but isn't yet and may never be. The real sin is in showing off what are supposed to be real products to retailers and press, then not delivering.
The End User: Batteries that travel
Moixa Energy's latest innovation is one of those slap- your-forehead, why-didn't- I-think-of-that ideas that simultaneously makes sense and makes us feel good to use: a traditional AA battery that recharges itself while plugged into a personal computer's USB port.
Moixa, a British company, began offering its USBCell in September and, while executives won't disclose how many they have sold, it is clear that the product is a winner, igniting a low-energy hum among the technorati.Read the International Herald Tribute article...
Leave a comment...
How to get Google to notice you
Yaffa Balsam was mystified.
Why did so many other family therapy websites pop to the top of Google (GOOG) search results listings, while her site was nowhere to be found?
It's a question posed by thousands of small-business owners every day as they seek new customers online rather than through traditional Yellow Pages directories. These days, if a company website can't be found on Google, it basically doesn't exist.
"I've had my website up for a year, and as far as I know, I haven't found one new client from the Internet," says Balsam, 50. "I want that to change."
Shoot at Home - Digital Photography Tip of the Week
Even though I still go out to shoot when winter rolls in (as it finally has in my part of the country), finding subjects to photograph is difficult. Add on to that the extra incentive needed to go out into the cold, sometimes wet and often dark environment, and it becomes all too easy to find excuses not to shoot.
It doesn't have to be like this though. Regardless of the season, there are plenty of subjects to shoot in your own backyard. Or front yard. Or even inside your house. All of the photos on this page have been photographed inside my house or in my yard.
Begin to look at your surroundings. Look for shapes, textures and patterns. Look at how colours react with each other. Use window light and create a beautiful still life.
I have written in a previous tip not to let foul weather stop you from shooting, but if you don't want to venture out, there are lot of other possibilities waiting for you in your own home. Use the time to work on creative compositions using ordinary objects. The search for photographs in places where you normally wouldn't look can yield some beautiful images along with helping to hone your creative edge.
Read my previous tips on Photographing Snow and shooting in poor weather.
Until next time, Happy Shooting.
Leave a comment on this week's Digital Photography Tip of the Week
The digital photography tip of the week is written by the PCIN Assistant Editor, Chris Empey. Chris is a long time photographer and is currently the President 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 Chris, or a question about digital photography he can address in the newsletter, send it to chris@pcin.net.
Check out these new or updated pages on the PCIN.net site:
Adobe Photoshop Elements 5.0 and Adobe Premier Elements 3.0 Software Review
http://PCIN.net/help/software/photoshopEL5_Premiere3.phpExpoDisc White Balance Filter Review
http://PCIN.net/help/hardware/expodisc.phpParagon Software Group Partition Manager 8.0 Professional Software Review
http://PCIN.net/help/software/ppm8.phpUpdate PCIN.net home page with "Top 10 Most Popular..." features
http://PCIN.net/Microsoft Digital Image Suite Plus Review
http://PCIN.net/help/software/msdimagesuiteplus.php
Shortcut to Open a Window Maximized
This PC Magazine tip explains how to open a window maximized...
You can tweak the properties for any shortcut to specify the way you want it to open—Normal, Minimized, or Maximized. Right-click the shortcut and choose Properties from the pop-up menu. The drop-down list labeled Run is the one that controls this setting. Change it to Maximized and click OK.
Download and Convert Youtube movies in one step
I recently wanted to download a couple of YouTube videos so I could show them on my Dell Axim. I did a quick search on Google and found this:
Vdownloader is a little freeware program that scans your clipboard for links to youtube, google video, grinvi and dailymotion. Once it detects such a link the movie will be automatically downloaded and converted to the format that you specified in the settings. You may save the video as avi, mpg or psp and change the output size and audio bitrate in the process.
It works great. There is nothing to install. You just download the zip file, extract the program, and run it. Check it out!
AskNerd.net
AskNerd.net has a collection of questions that they answer. It
Welcome to AskNerd.net, the place to find all the answers to your technical questions. From the basic to the complex, chances are you'll find a direct, easy to understand answer right here.
Overall I wasn't that impressed with the site, but depending on your level of experience, there still may be useful information there for you.
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:
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 1998-2006, 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