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Issue 480 - December 27, 2007
ISSN 1488-3163; PC Improvements © 2007
==== 1419 Subscribers in 46 Countries ====
Welcome to the 480th 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
Opening Thoughts
Sorry for not getting this out on time yesterday. We had a big get-together
Christmas Eve, and over the next 24-48 hours 6 of us got pretty sick. We're
not sure exactly what it was, but I was pretty much out of commission yesterday.
I hope you all had a Merry Christmas. If you got any new "toys",
drop us a line. We'd love to hear about it!
As I mentioned last week, this is a shorter version of the newsletter. I have
a few news stories, and Chris has his Digitial Photography Tip of the Week.
The remaining regular features will return next week.
Graham editor@pcin.net and
Chris chris@pcin.net
News Highlights
Are you a 'cyberchondriac'?
First-year medical students are some of the biggest hypochondriacs around.
Bombarded with information about every disease under the sun, they start
to imagine they have them all. In their minds, every mole is skin cancer.
A nosebleed is surely a sign of a tumor. Headache? Must be skyrocketing blood
pressure.
"People get terribly anxious," says Dr. Arthur Barsky, professor of
psychiatry at Harvard Medical School. "One woman who came to see me was
convinced she had melanoma. She brought in 20 pages of color photos of various
skin lesions, trying to figure out which one looked most like hers."
And now, because of the Internet, we can all be first-year medical students.
Read the CNN article...
Leave a comment...
Study: Wii gaming no substitute for exercise
Younger gamers looking to con a Wii out of parents this year by selling
them on the physical benefits of "active" gaming, it's time to
dream up a new strategy. A UK study entitled "Energy expenditure in
adolescents playing new generation computer games" reveals that a round
of Wii Sports doesn't work the body nearly as hard as proper exercise. While
it expends more energy than "idle" gaming with a controller, the
difference is negligible.
Read the ars technica article...
Leave a comment...
YouTubin' the Queen
Britain's 81-year-old Queen Elizabeth II, considered an icon of traditionalism,
launched her own special Royal Channel on YouTube Sunday.
The Queen will use the popular video-sharing Web site to send out her 50th
annual televised Christmas message, which she first delivered live to the
nation and its colonies on Dec. 25, 1957.
Buckingham Palace also began posting archive and recent footage of the Queen
and other royals on the channel Sunday, with plans to add new clips regularly.
Read the Globe and Mail
article...
Leave a comment...
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Digital Photography
Tip of the Week
2008 Calendars
For the past few years, I have created a small wall calendar for friends an
family. I have used 13 images, one for each month and one for the cover. I
created the calendar pages in Photoshop including such customizations as birthdays
and anniversaries, printed them first 6x4 (6x8 calendar) and later 7x5 (7x10
calendar), then had them bound by a local copy store. I realize I have a certain
amount of bias but I do feel they have been a nice gift.
This year I have created a small, full year, calendar, 4x6, with a single
photo and all 12 months of the calendar year. I downloaded a calendar template
from the web, then customized the calendar with my name and web site address
then laminated the calendar to a magnet. I am sending these calendars to new
clients as a small thank you and a year long reminder of my services. For my
existing clients, I have customized their calendar with a photo from one of
their sessions over the previous year.
Use of your photos does not have stop with a picture in a frame. Local labs
and online printing services offer a very expansive range of products to use
with your photographs, though you do not always have pay a lot for them. A
little bit of time on your own and you can have a few nice products to pass
around to your friends and family.
This is my last tip for 2007. I wish everyone a happy Christmas and holiday
season. If you happen to receive any new photo goodies over the next little
while, remember to read the manual... there is a wealth of information included
in that little book.
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:
Paragon Software Group Hard Disk Manager 2008
http://PCIN.net/help/software/paragonhdm2008.php
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/
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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.
- If any of the links are too long to fit on one line, you may have to cut
and paste.
- To subscribe another address or unsubscribe, please visit http://PCIN.net/ and
follow the appropriate links.
- The only way to become a subscriber is by asking. You have either filled
out the subscription form or asked me directly.
- 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 or
by clicking on the PayPal link below:
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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.
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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