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Issue 450 - May 30, 2007

ISSN 1488-3163; PC Improvements © 2007
==== 1489 Subscribers in 49 Countries ====

Welcome to the 450th issue of the PC Improvement News. PCIN consists mainly of news highlights 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

Contents

News Highlights

More Bandwidth Than You Can Use?

From the moment the first phone-line modems squawked to life, connecting consumers to early Internet service providers two decades ago, there has been a nearly universal quest for more plentiful and speedier data pipes into the home.
Yet even now that those pipes are arriving, the race to provide even bigger ones is intensifying among telecom and cable TV companies, as well as wireless network operators.
In Millis, Mass., freelance writer Michael Fitzgerald recently boosted the speed with which he can reach the Internet by subscribing to Verizon's (VZ) new FiOS broadband service. FiOS delivers a super-fast connection by replacing the old copper phone line to each home with a fiber-optic cable, offering Internet downloads as fast as 30 megabits per second, vs. the 1Mbps to 6Mbps of the typical cable or DSL broadband line. "I was intrigued by the service when I first heard about it," says Fitzgerald. While he may not fully exploit his new firepower with any regularity, Fitzgerald is one of about 864,000 FiOS broadband subscribers. "Over the long term, I think there will be benefits that I can't even begin to imagine yet."

Read the BusinessWeek article...
Leave a comment...

Kids Don't Tell Parents The Truth About Online Activities

Do you know what your kids are doing online? A new study shows you probably don't.
According to research by Webroot Software, what parents think their kids are doing online and what kids say they're doing online are often two different things.
"Without proper parental guidance, children can put themselves at risk, compromise valuable family information, or be the sources of bad behavior like illegally downloading videos or music or bullying," said Mike Irwin, COO of Webroot Software, in a statement.

Read the InformationWeek article...
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Dell, Direct-Sales Leader, Will Offer PCs at Wal-Mart

Dell Inc. said it will sell personal computers at Wal-Mart Stores Inc., in the biggest step away from its direct-sales strategy since the company was dethroned by Hewlett-Packard Co. as the industry leader.
The decision is the first move in a plan to sell through retailers worldwide, Dell spokesman Bob Pearson said today. The second-largest PC maker will have two Dimension desktop models in more than 3,000 Wal-Mart stores in the U.S., Canada and Puerto Rico on June 10.

Read the Bloomberg News article...
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Digital Photography Tip of the Week

More Sorting in Adobe Photoshop Lightrooom - Digital Photography Tip of the Week

Last week I talked about rating images in Adobe Photoshop Lightroom, and in the past also talked about using keywords. Both features can be used together to help find images within your collection.

Lightroom still has more though. Two other methods for sorting your images are use of color labels and of flags. With color labels, you have five colors you can assign to an image, red, yellow, blue green and purple. Just as with ratings, you can color images and find images that have been labeled with a color. Why use color labels when you can use labels? You can pick any combination of color labels while ratings are used in consecutive order, either up or down. And of course, everyone has their own way of doing things. If you make a lot of photographs, sorting them 1-5 just may not be sufficient for your workflow.

Finally, Adobe Photoshop Lightroom also has a feature called flags. Flags have three states: picked, rejected and unflagged. Again, different people have different ways of using software. For me, this is a great tools when I need to reduce the number if images I have shot in a given project such as a wedding. In Library, I view all of my images and select only the best one. I apply a flag of picked to these images. Now, when I sort by flag, I only see the images I will be working on, none of the rejects or unflagged images.

That is four different methods of categorizing and finding images with Adobe Photoshop Lightroom and there are still others. You can create collections of images, find based on your equipment such as all images shot with a certain lens or a certain camera. There is also a free form text find for searching metadata and keywords. It is up to you to decide with how much granularity you want to organize your images.

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.

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PCIN.net Site Update

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.php

ExpoDisc White Balance Filter Review
http://PCIN.net/help/hardware/expodisc.php

Paragon Software Group Partition Manager 8.0 Professional Software Review
http://PCIN.net/help/software/ppm8.php

Update 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

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Tips and Other Stuff

How to Survive the Worst PC Disasters

From PC World:

When it comes to computers, sometimes things go south...and sometimes they go to Antarctica. If your computer won't boot or your data's gone astray, panic is soon to follow, and you might find yourself making things worse in your haste to solve the problem.

To prepare for that inevitable day, save this article: The next time some piece of hardware or software decides to take an unexpected vacation, pull out and consult our handy guide to see how to deal with some of computing's most devastating debacles.

I originally read about this on Download Squad...

Leave a comment...

59 Ways to Supercharge Windows

From PC Magazine:

Yes, Windows Vista is finally here. And, yes, it's packed with all sorts of brand-new applets that would seem to spell doom for countless third-party software utilities, including ZIP tools, photo managers, desktop search engines-and the list goes on. But that doesn't mean Vista will end up squashing the entire utility market. As time has shown, no matter how many utilities Microsoft bundles with Windows-Oops! Did we say bundles?-there's always room for more. With this in mind, we give you our 15th Annual Utility Guide, a look at 59 Windows tools nimble enough to boost even the newest Vista machines. This sprawling collection of software gadgets includes everything from browser toolbars and standalone media gadgets to the newest and coolest breed of desktop utility: widgets! Whatever version of Windows you're running-from Vista all the way down to Windows 2000-you'll find countless ways to improve your life. And most are completely free.

Leave a comment...

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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:

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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 1998-2007, Graham Wing. All rights reserved.

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