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Issue 252 - August 13, 2003
ISSN 1488-3163; PC Improvements © 2003
==== 2316 Subscribers in 62 Countries ====
Welcome to the 252nd 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
I had to leave work early today because I had a migraine headache. I haven't
had one for 4 years, and if I have one again in another 4 years, it will be
too soon for me. I regularly have headaches, but have only had migraines 6
times in my almost 28 years of existence. I had 4 in 2 years when I was a missionary
in Taiwan (the first time I ever had one), and then 2 in the last 7 years.
I certainly feel for those who suffer from migraines regularly. It must be
terrible.
On a happier note, Lisa and I are heading up to a cottage for a long weekend
tomorrow. Every summer my parents rent a cottage for 2 weeks in Buckhorn in
Central Ontario. It is about 30 minutes north of Peterborough and is beautiful!
I'll take lots of pictures so that you can all see more of the beauty of Ontario.
Until then, visit http://www.buckhorncanada.org/ to
learn more about Buckhorn.
Graham editor@pcin.net and
Chris chris@pcin.net
The NEWS
Searching for the personal touch
"A stealth start-up out of Stanford University is hoping to raise the
heat on one of the toughest problems in Web search--and possibly out-Google
Google in the process.
Kaltix was formed in recent months by three members of Stanford's PageRank
team--a research group created to advance the mathematical algorithm developed
by Google co-founder and Stanford alum Larry Page that cemented Google's
fame.
PageRank has helped steer people to Web sites like no other search technology
before it, harnessing the link structure of the Web to determine the most
popular pages. Now, Kaltix hopes to improve upon PageRank, with an attempt
to speed up the underlying PageRank computations."
For more info:
http://zdnet.com.com/2100-1104_2-5061873.html
Are you a Web addict?
"To determine whether someone is spending an unhealthy amount of time
with their computers, two University of Florida psychiatrists say doctors
need to only remember the acronym MOUSE.
Web surfing, e-mailing, instant messaging, gaming, shopping, downloading
music and visiting chat rooms become troublesome when they interfere with
someone's job or social life, said Dr. Nathan Shapira of UF's Evelyn F. and
William L. McKnight Brain Institute.
The challenge for health care professionals is to determine when high Internet
use is dysfunctional, and whether unhealthy Internet use is a lone disorder
or a byproduct of other disorders, such as manic depression."
For more info:
http://www.cnn.com/2003/TECH/internet/08/07/web.addict.ap/index.html
Merrill Lynch bans AOL, Yahoo, MSN...
"Merrill Lynch on Friday will ban access to outside e-mail services
from popular sites such as America Online, Yahoo and MSN, in response to
regulatory requirements and to protect its network from viruses, according
to a company memo.
The policy shift will affect the 48,000 Merrill Lynch employees worldwide
who use the company's Internet network. A Merrill Lynch representative said
the policy is an extension of existing bans in departments such as the trading
desk. Other investment banks, such as Goldman Sachs, have similar companywide
policies."
For more info:
http://zdnet.com.com/2100-1105_2-5061310.html
POLL of the WEEK
Last Week's Poll
How much total hard drive space do you have on your home computer?
| Less 2 GB |
 |
1.33 % (2) |
| Between 2 GB and 10 GB |
|
7.33 % (11) |
| Between 11 GB and 20 GB |
|
6.00 % (9) |
| Between 21 GB and 50 GB |
|
25.33 % (38) |
| More than 51 GB |
|
58.00 % (87) |
| I don't know |
|
1.33 % (2) |
| I don't have a home computer |
|
0.67 % (1) |
| Total votes: 150 |
This Week's Poll
You can also vote online at http://PCIN.net/polls/
PCIN.net FREEHELP
FORUM
Visit the PCIN.net FreeHelp Forum at http://PCIN.net/help/forum/ to
post your questions or answer others.
Question
Bought a new ASUS P4C800-DX i875 SATA Pro8X motherboard. After I installed
it, it gives me 1 long and 2 short beeps. (This mobo does not have onboard
graphics.) I'm using an ASUS V8440 GeForce4 Ti 4400 graphics card. It is
situated properly as far as I can tell. Have tried an old PCI graphics card
with same result. This happens whether any other cards or drives or whatever
else are plugged into the motherboard. Manual mentions no jumpers for video.
Response
You should be able to start the mainboard with a PCI card installed, although
you may need to install it in Slot 1.
If the board won't POST then move the CMOS reset jumper to CLEAR, wait 20
seconds and move it back to Operate.
If the problem persist, you have a defective board.
To post a response, visit the General Hardware Help forum at http://PCIN.net/help/forum/index.php?board=4 and
click on the "new ASUS P4C800-DX motherboard fails to recognize video
card" topic.
Visit http://PCIN.net/help/forum/ to
post a question of your own.
PCIN.net UPDATE
Check out these new or updated pages on the PCIN.net site:
Logitech Cordless Elite Duo Hardware Review
http://PCIN.net/help/hardware/lced.php
XemiComputers Ltd. DeskLook 3.0 Software Review
http://PCIN.net/help/software/desklook3.php
Symantec Norton Ghost 2003 Software Review
http://PCIN.net/help/software/ghost2003.php
Amic Games Email Saver Xe Software Review
http://PCIN.net/help/software/emailsaverxe.php
THE TIPS and OTHER
STUFF
How Scanners Work
"Sometimes I think the history of computer technology is the history
of listening to people who say, 'You'll never make that available to consumers,'
and systematically proving them wrong.
Consider the desktop scanner. Scanners have gone from being some of the rarest
and most exotic bits of hardware in the whole of the computer market to being
a nearly-ubiquitous PC add-on, getting flatter and cheaper and better with
each passing year. The expansion of digital photography and desktop and web
publishing have made scanners more of a standard fixture. People are digitizing
their old photo libraries and archiving images onto CD-R at an increasing
rate.
But the inner workings of scanners are often a bit of a mystery, even for
experienced users. In this article, I will be laying bare the ins and outs
of desktop scanners--where they came from, how they work, how different technologies
figure into their makeup, and where they may be headed."
Read the article at http://www.extremetech.com/print_article/0,3998,a=29391,00.asp
Email Signatures
Subscriber and co-worker Pat Clary received an email from someone asking
him to update his contact information by visiting the Plaxo.com web site.
We looked into it and it looks like a neat service. The site describes it
this way:
"Plaxo Contacts is a free software tool that provides a variety of useful
features for maintaining your contact information.
One of the newest features is personalized e-mail signatures -- within seconds,
you can design your own personalized e-mail signature containing your latest
contact info (name, email, company, etc.) and have it added to all of your
outgoing e-mail messages.
If you are not interested in Plaxo's contact update features, skip those
steps during installation and go directly to the Plaxo toolbar in Outlook
or Outlook Express, and click "E-mail Signatures".
Plaxo seamlessly integrates into Outlook and Outlook Express, and gives you
a variety of features for keeping your contact info up-to-date:
+ Customized e-mail signatures
+ Tiny download and simple install
+ It's free!
+ It's extremely easy to use
+ Quickly updates your address book
+ Lots more!"
Check it out at http://www.plaxo.com/signature/
Absolute WinInfo
"The Best Windows 98 Information. Including Windows 98 news, tips,
reviews, software, resources, web site links, discussion, and more."
Check it out at http://www.barkers.org/windows/main.html
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.
- You can only win one contest every 30 days.
- To subscribe another address or unsubscribe, please visit http://PCIN.net/ and
follow the appropriate links.
- Recommend PCIN to others at http://PCIN.net/recommend.php and
be entered in a monthly draw.
- There are only 3 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,
you have requested FreeHelp from me in the past, or you have registered with
the FreeHelp Forum.
- 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://PCIN.net/donate.php
Return to the top
Graham Wing can be reached at editor@pcin.net
Chris Empey can be reached at chris@pcin.net
Copyright 1998-2003, 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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