|
Issue 191 - June 12, 2002
ISSN 1488-3163; PC Improvements © 2002
==== 2319 Subscribers in 57 Countries ====
Welcome to the 191st 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.shtml
CONTENTS
OPENING THOUGHTS
As I mentioned last week, my web site hosting company, Cedant, was going to
be moving my web site from one server to another. Well, they did it very suddenly
last Thursday, and it wasn't done very well. There was 24-36 hours where you
couldn't really do or see a whole lot on the site. Everything has been working
fine for the last several days though. One big change though is that the mailing
list server has changed. I'm sending this out hoping that it will work properly.
We'll see.
I don't think I lost any email in the switch over, but if you've emailed me
and I haven't responded, please try again. Also, please remember that if you
have a problem that you need help with, please do not email me directly. Post
your question on the PCIN.net FreeHelp Forum and http://PCIN.net/help/forum/
since there are almost 300 other people who can post answers.
Graham editor@pcin.net
and Chris chris@pcin.net
Return to the top
The NEWS
Can PCs Get Any Cheaper?
"While price battles between chipmakers Intel and AMD have many consumers
hoping that PC prices will drop even lower than their current bargain levels,
analysts say that other factors, such as the high cost of memory, make deep
price cuts like last year's unlikely.
But PC makers are still in the throes of a demand slump for desktop and mobile
computers, and some experts say there may be room for cuts -- and other good
deals -- during the coming holiday season."
For more info:
http://www.newsfactor.com/perl/story/18158.html
Old code in Windows is security threat
"Microsoft will more quickly retire old code in its Windows operating
system and other software as a result of the company's four-month-old "trustworthy
computing" initiative, the company's lead bug basher said in an interview.
The revelation follows last week's warning that a serious vulnerability in
Microsoft's Internet Explorer occurred in the software supporting a decade-old
protocol that has rarely been used since the World Wide Web became popular."
For more info:
http://news.com.com/2100-1001-934363.html
Not the real Slim Shady
"Are the fake MP3s popping up on file-sharing networks part of the recording
industry's war on piracy, or just the latest in music marketing?
As any user of file-sharing services can attest, downloading music online
is often more labor than love, thanks to files that are mistakenly labeled,
cut off in midsong or of poor quality. But the altered Eminem tracks currently
littering the file-sharing landscape are no accident."
For more info:
http://www.salon.com/tech/feature/2002/06/10/eminem_mp3/index.html
The Scourge Of Software Piracy
"Software piracy is on the rise around the world, costing U.S. software
developers $11 billion in lost revenue last year, according to a study released
this week.
'Things are not good,' says Bob Kruger, vice president of enforcement for
the Business Software Alliance (BSA), a non-profit corporation representing
business software publishers in 65 countries. 'Two out of every five software
programs are pirated. The loss figure understates the economic impact of this
problem because it doesn't include the tens of thousands of jobs that were
lost or not created. It doesn't include the billions of dollars in taxable
wages that would have been generated. It impacts software developers but it
also impacts the broader economy.'"
For more info:
http://itmanagement.earthweb.com/entdev/article/0,,11979_1364231,00.html
POLL of the WEEK
Here are the responses from the last poll:
How many viruses do you encounter each day?
None 73.08 % (57)
1 - 5 19.23 % (15)
6 - 10 2.56 % (2)
10 - 15 0.00 % (0)
15 - 20 1.28 % (1)
> 20 3.85 % (3)
Total votes: 78
Visit http://pcin.net/polls/ to participate
in the new poll this week:
What antivirus software do you use?
FREEHELP FORUM
Visit the new and improved PCIN FreeHelp Forum at http://www.pcin.net/help/forum/index.php
to post your questions or answer others.
Question
I have windows xp and I was wondering if there was a way to schedule an automatic
shutdown, like after the computer has been idle for say, 2 hours.....? Also
is it bad that the computer stays on 24/7?
Response
There is no problem with leaving your computer on.
If you want to shut it down automatically, visit http://www.robvanderwoude.com/shutdown.html
and try some of the suggestions there.
To post a response, visit the How-To... forum at http://www.pcin.net/help/forum/index.php?board=6
and click on the "Automatic shutdown???" subject.
Visit http://www.pcin.net/help/forum/index.php
to post a question of your own.
PCIN.net UPDATE
Check out these new or updated pages on the PCIN.net site:
Updated PCIN.net FreeHelp Forum
http://PCIN.net/help/forum/
Updated Registry Tips (now 131)
http://PCIN.net/help/articles/registry_tips.shtml
New and Improved PCIN.net Links section
http://PCIN.net/links/
pdf995 Software Review
http://PCIN.net/help/software/pdf995.php
THE TIPS and OTHER STUFF
7 Steps to Personal Computing Security
Visit the security section of the Microsoft web site at http://www.microsoft.com/security/articles/steps_default.asp
and find out about the "7 Steps to Personal Computing Security."
Quick Notes
There are lots of utilities that act like "sticky" notes on your
computer desktop. You can quickly type some notes and have them saved automatically.
Outlook also has a Notes feature.
I've found that the easiest thing to do is to right-click on the desktop,
choose New and then pick almost anything from that list. The "new"
item will be on the desktop waiting for you to type in a file name. Remember
that from Windows 95 and later, filenames can be 255 characters long and can
have some symbols in them. You may find that making your note the file name
will be fine for you.
"Magic" Fixes
Well-known PC columnist Fred Langa recently wrote a column for InformationWeek
that went over some "magic" fixes for some computer problems. By
magic he meant things that you wouldn't think of doing because they don't
make sense, but when you do them, it fixes the problem. You can read Fred's
column at http://www.informationweek.com/story/IWK20020530S0002
to see a couple of the things that have helped him over time. After reading
the article, be sure to check out their forum to see what some of the readers
submitted.
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.
- You can only win one contest every 30 days.
- To subscribe another address or unsubscribe, please visit http://www.pcin.net/
and follow the appropriate links.
- Recommend PCIN to others at http://www.pcin.net/recommend.php
and be entered in a monthly draw.
- There are only 2 ways to get on the subscriber list. You have either been
subscribed by filling out a subscription form on any of the pages on my
site, or you have requested FreeHelp from me in the past.
- If you have a web site or run your own newsletter, please email me at
editor@pcin.net and I will add it to
the subscriber web pages that I have on my site.
- Support PCIN by visiting http://www.pcin.net/donate.shtml
Return to the top
Graham Wing can be reached at editor@pcin.net
Chris Empey can be reached at chris@pcin.net
Copyright 1998-2002, 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://www.pcin.net/donate.shtml
PC Improvement News
Home Page
PC Improvement
News Archive
|
