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Gizmo's Daily Tech Treats

2010-04-06T20:13:00.001-04:00

Gizmo's Daily Tech Treats

The Complete Guide to YouTube: Tips, Tricks, Hacks and Resources

Posted: 06 Apr 2010 03:12 PM PDT

What Vendors Give, Vendors Can Take Away

2010-04-06T00:38:00.000-04:00

	FORUMS \| BLOG \| RSS \| MY PROFILE \| PRIVACY

Vol. 10, #14 - Apr 6, 2010 - Issue #424
	What Vendors Give, Vendors Can Take Away

Editor's Corner
- What Vendors Give, Vendors Can Take Away
- Imagine you had an 'Internet Butler'.
- Follow-up: Cutting your phone bills
- Quotes of the Week
Cool Tools
- Tools We Think You Shouldn't Be Without
News, Hints, Tips and Tricks
- Windows Live Wave 4 expected not to support XP
- Make your XP (or Vista or Windows 7) computer look like Windows Phone 7
- A better idea than saving XP?
- No Office for iPad
How To: Using XP Features
- How to do a diagnostic for DirectX problems
XP Security News
- Watch out for malicious PDF files
XP Question Corner
- How can I do a search and replace on File names?
XP Configuration and Troubleshooting
- XP shuts down because UPS service is started
- "Bad Command Structure" error message
Fav Links
- This Week's Links We Like. Tips, Hints And Fun Stuff
Product of the Week
- Driver Genius Professional 9.0: Are your Outdated Drivers Slowing Down your PC?

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Cutting-edge Proactive Protection
Full email protection: Outlook and Windows Mail
Ideal for Netbooks that need malware protection
No automatic credit card charge each year!

Try VIPRE Antivirus Premium now for 30-days FREE!
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Editor's Corner

What Vendors Give, Vendors Can Take Away

Last week, our reader Matt V. wrote to me about a Sony firmware update for the PlayStation 3, released on April 1, that seemed like a cruel April Fool's prank to some customers. What does it do? It removes the option to "install other OS" that was on the console's menu and previously made it possible for users to load Linux and use the PS3 - which, after all, is a computer - for other computing tasks besides playing games.
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100406-PS3-Removes-OS-Capability

Now it's one thing when you buy a device, knowing that it can only be used as a game console. It's quite another when you make that purchase based on the belief that you can use it for more than that, with the vendor's blessing, and then have that functionality taken away. Some PS3 owners are very unhappy campers. They feel it's a lot like buying a new car that comes with leather seats, and then having the auto maker come to their homes in the dead of night to rip out those nice seats and replace them with cheap cloth.

Sony says the update is completely optional. Oh, but there's a catch. If you opt not to install it, you won't have network functionality, which means you can't use PlayStation Network, chat or browse the PlayStation Store. And what's the point of removing the option, anyway? Some speculate it's because people were using the other OS to watch pirated movies, but many folks say they used it so they could use a better web browser, as they didn't like the Sony one. In any event, such a drastic removal of functionality to prevent piracy that might or might not happen seems a little like taking our cars away from all of us just in case we might break the speeding laws with them, or banning tire irons because after all, it's possible to use one to commit assault.

Of course, Sony isn't the only company that has ever removed functionality from one of its devices. In 2007, an Apple software update famously "bricked" an unknown number of iPhones that had been "unlocked" by their owners so they could be used with a cellular carrier other than AT&T - taking away all functionality.
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100406-Unlocked-iPhones-Bricked

Apple also reportedly forced the developers of Stanza, an ebook reader app for the iPhone, to issue an update that would remove the app's ability to transfer ebooks to their mobile devices with a USB cable. Interestingly, Lexcycle, the maker of Stanza, fielded questions by staying they were "forbidden from discussing the specifics of our conversations with Apple on this matter," although they did confirm that the feature was removed in accordance with Apple's demands.
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100406-USB-Sharing

And last December, Microsoft issued an update for Office 2007 that removed the ability to read Custom XML elements contained within .docx, .docm or .xml files - but it wasn't exactly a voluntary action. The company was ordered by U.S. Federal Court of Appeals, which found in favor of Canadian developer i4i when it claimed the feature infringed on its patent, to remove the XML editing technology.
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100406-Custom-XML-Yanked

Is it legal, then, for hardware and software vendors to change your devices and programs after you buy them? Unfortunately, if you read all the fine print in the End User License Agreement (EULA), you'll probably discover that you agreed to that very thing when you clicked the "Accept" button during the installation or setup process. The Sony PS3 EULA, in section 3 ("Services and Updates"), says: "Without limitation, services may include the provision of the latest update or download of new release that may include security patches, new technology or revised settings and features which may prevent access to unauthorized or pirated content, or use of unauthorized hardware or software in connection with the PS3(tm) system." and "Some services may change your current settings, cause a loss of data or content, or cause some loss of functionality."
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100406-Agreement

You can bet the vendors made sure their attorneys had covered their behinds before they issued these updates. Don't remember ever clicking to accept the agreement? It doesn't matter, because section 9 ("General Legal") says: "By using or accessing the System Software, you agree to be bound by all current terms of this Agreement." and what's more: "SCE, at its sole discretion, may modify the terms of this Agreement at any time, including any terms in the PS3(tm) system documentation or manual."

It does make you wonder just how far that clause could be taken. Can the vendor come back and say, "Oh, we've decided that instead of granting you an infinite license to use this software, we're changing the terms of this agreement so you only get to use it for six months. If you want to use it longer, you have to pay for it again"? Apparently they could.

Interestingly, I did not find such an overt clause permitting the terms of the agreement to be changed in the Windows 7 EULA. However, section 23 ("Entire Agreement") says: "This agreement (including the warranty below), additional terms (including any printed-paper license terms that accompany the software and may modify or replace some or all of these terms), and the terms for supplements, updates, Internet-based services and support services that you use, are the entire agreement for the software and support services." If you parse that language carefully, you'll see that they're saying they can modify or replace the terms of the agreement by issuing "additional terms," which can be but wouldn't have to be printed-paper terms accompanying the software.

Want to know what's in the EULA of any other Microsoft products? At least they've made that information easy to find all in one place:
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100406-End-User-License

Of course, we've talked about heinous EULA terms before, but the clauses that give them the right to change any and everything (including those terms themselves) has to be the worst. In essence, that one clause negates any and all rights that might seem to be granted to you by the agreement, since the vendor has the sole discretion to change any part of it at any time.

Tell us what you think. Should vendors be allowed to remove important functionalities from their devices or software after you paid for that same functionality? Should they only be allowed to do it when under a court order, as Microsoft was with the XML editing issue? Should they have to refund part or all of your money if they make significant changes that cause you to no longer want the device or program? Or should they be able to make any changes they want, since after all, you agreed to it? Should, at the very least, changing the terms of the agreement be prohibited? Have you ever had features you wanted removed by an update? We invite you to discuss this topic in our forum at
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100406-Forum-Discussion

Imagine you had an 'Internet Butler'.

Imagine you had an 'Internet Butler' in your PC. Tell us what that things that 'butler' would do for you automatically, instead of you having to do it yourself?
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100406-Survey

Follow-up: Cutting your phone bills

Last week, I wrote about the evolution of our phone service, from landline to Lingo VoIP for six years and now, given recent problems with Lingo, to my "pilot program" with Skype. Readers had lots of comments and suggestions, and what quickly emerged from the discussion (both on the forum and in email) was that the same solutions are not going to be right for everybody.

One reader noted that cell service is unreliable where he lives and "Relying solely on a cell phone means no service 1/2 the time." It made me very grateful that in my area, I've never failed to get a cell signal in the last five years with Verizon, indoors or out. On the other hand, I have a friend who lives in the next suburb over, who is unable to get any service at all inside his home with his AT&T iPhone.

Another reader suggested, "Why not just keep your DSL line, which you can use as a regular phone line, and use your cell for everything else. Usually your DISH or DIRECTV system requires a line for them to access your reception boxes, so the DSL line can be used for that also." For those who have DSL and DISH or DirecTV, that sounds like good advice. It's not at all applicable to our situation. We have FiOS Internet service, which is far faster than DSL, but even if we wanted it, we're too far from the CO to get DSL. And we don't have DISH or DirecTV, so there's no need for a landline for that.

Other readers use other solutions. Some use their cable company's phone service. Others mentioned MagicJack and Ooma. These two are super low-cost alternatives: MagicJack costs $20/year (after a $40 initial hardware cost), and Ooma costs $250 for the hardware and then there are no monthly charges for basic service. There is a "premier" service that costs $99/year and gives you a second outgoing line, three-way calling, and forwarding of calls to your cell or other backup number, as well as call screening and voicemail-to-email, blacklisting and anonymous call rejection, custom ring patterns and other services beyond what you get with the basic service. Both have been around for a while, but I haven't personally tried either of them. I'll be checking into them further in the future, after the enthusiastic recommendations they both got. Other suggestions included ACN VoIP, Toktumi, voipo.com, and Google Voice.

That last one confused me a little, as it seemed at least one reader was suggesting it as an alternative to other phone services. Unless it's changed, it is actually an addition to other services, as you have to have an established phone number to activate it. If you can get inbound calls with Google Voice only, I'm not aware of it.

To answer kurtneus's question: "MagicJack is cheap but it requires that you leave your computer on all the time. That can cost $15/mo. for electricity (at 7¢/kwh & 300w power supply)! How is this cost effective?" If you don't already have a computer that's always on, that's a valid consideration. If you run servers, as we do, that remain on 24/7 anyway, you just plug the device into one of them and there's no extra power cost.

Based on the number of responses, this is a topic that resonates with many people, and it was interesting to see how many of you have also dropped your landlines, either in favor of some iteration of VoIP or cellular only - although there are a few who vowed to hang onto their landlines forever. And Scott W. brought up the subject of adding up your total cost for various types of connectivity: phones, Internet, TV, cell phones, satellite radio, On-Star, home alarm system, movie rental, etc. I don't use all of those (I've never been interested in satellite radio and I dropped On-Star after two years and am seriously considering dropping the alarm monitoring service) but even so, the total number is pretty scary.

I enjoyed reading about your experiences trying different phone solutions and it was also eye-opening to find out how much prices can vary for landline service in different parts of the country. As always, thanks to all of you who participated in the discussion.

'Til next week,
Deb Shinder, Editor
feedback@win7news.net

PS: Did you know this newsletter has a sister publication called Win7News? You can subscribe here, and tell your friends:
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100406-Win7News

And for IT pros, there's our "big sister," WServer News, at
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100406-WserverNews

Look up the WXPnews Fan Page and join us on Facebook!

Quotes of the Week

"The telephone is a 100-year-old technology. It's time for a change. Charging for phone calls is something you did last century." - Niklas Zennstrom

"I stay away from the telephone if at all possible." - Lee Trevino

"The Internet is a telephone system that's gotten uppity." - Clifford Stoll

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Cool Tools

Tools We Think You Shouldn't Be Without

ADVERTISEMENT

MediaWidget is the quickest and easiest way to transfer all of your music, videos, photos, podcasts, and more from your iPod to PC. Check out the cool Youtube demo and download the trial here:
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100406-MediaWidget

Do you have programs you just can't seem to get rid of? Uninstaller! 2010 "ALL New" Version Just Released:
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100406-Your-Uninstaller

Shop online much? Billing address autofill, Secure password storage, all automatic and safe. Not a little toobar utility. Huge time-saver!
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100406-RoboForm

Moving to Windows 7 is Easy! PCMover moves programs, files, and settings from your old PC to your new PC
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100406-PCmover

Search for a driver and you get a ton of Driver Software offers instead. But how do you know which one is good? Try Driver Genius 9.0. Free scan.
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100406-Driver-Genius

Why back up when you can sync? Simply replicate every piece of data to another drive in real-time. Set it and forget it.
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100406-GoodSync

Spellchecker is NOT ENOUGH! Improve your English writing skills with WhiteSmoke a smarter solution for high quality writing. Try it:
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100406-WhiteSmoke

News, Hints, Tips and Tricks

Windows Live Wave 4 expected not to support XP

We already know that Internet Explorer 9, the next version of Microsoft's web browser, isn't going to support Windows XP. Now comes the news, from Mary Jo Foley, that there is a high probability that Live Wave 4 - the next generation of its Live Mail, Live Writer, Messenger, Photo Gallery and other free applications - won't support XP either. We won't find out for sure until the public beta comes out (reportedly in June) and of course, even then there will still be time for changes before the final release (reportedly scheduled for August). If true, this is apt to make some XP users very unhappy.
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100406-LiveWave4

Make your XP (or Vista or Windows 7) computer look like Windows Phone 7

You can't yet buy a phone running the new Windows Phone 7 operating system ("Series" has been dropped from the name, thank goodness), but the user interface has been demonstrated and has the tech world buzzing. And if you just can't wait, there is an application that you can install to make your XP (or other Windows) desktop look like the phone UI. It's called Omnimo and you can read more about it, and find a link to download it, here:
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100406-Omnimo-UI

A better idea than saving XP?

Warning - this article is a bit, shall we say, tongue in cheek. Check the date it was published before you take it too seriously. But it's still a fun read, and I would be willing to bet there are at least a few folks out there who really feel this way:
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100406-Save-Windows-XP

No Office for iPad

If you're one of the many who celebrated April Fools Day by rushing to the Apple Store to buy an iPad, don't make plans to run Microsoft Office on it anytime soon. According to Stephen Elop, president of Microsoft's Business Division, the company has no current plans to make a version of their popular productivity suite for the new Apple device. Is this the right decision? Or is it, as many tech commentators seem to think, a big mistake? Only time will tell, but let us know what you think, and whether you're at all interested in the "giant iPhone sans phone" that went on sale last week.
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100406-Office-on-iPad

How To: Using XP Features

How to do a diagnostic for DirectX problems

If you have performance problems with video games or other 3D applications, you might want to run the DirectX diagnostic tool in XP to track down the source of the problems. Here's how:

Click Start | Run
In the Open box, type dxdiag
Check the System tab to find out what version of DirectX is installed and get other general system information.
Check the DirectX Files tab, which will show you in the Notes section at the bottom if any of your important DirectX files are missing. If you have missing files, you may need to reinstall DirectX.
Check the Display tab to run DirectDraw and Direct3D tests, which will tell you whether DirectX is running properly and allow you to disable acceleration if needed.

These tests will go a long way toward helping you find the root of your DirectX problems (or confirm that DirectX isn't the problem). Just follow the instructions in the dialog boxes.

XP Security News

Watch out for malicious PDF files

Most computer users consider PDF files to be pretty safe, unlike executables or even Word documents that can contain macros. After all, it's just a way to present a two-dimensional document, right? Well, maybe not. Recently a security researcher discovered a way to embed code in a PDF and launch it using Adobe Reader or Foxit, just by opening the file. The good news is that, at the moment, it's still in the "proof of concept" stage (meaning nobody has actually released such an attack in the wild) and the makers of the PDF readers have been notified. The bad news is that it's not exploiting a vulnerability in the software, which makes it harder to come up with a "fix" for it. Read more here:
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100406-Malicious-PDF

XP Question Corner

How can I do a search and replace on File names?

QUESTION:
I have a directory that has many files (hundreds) with file names that start with the same word (Smith) and then additional descriptions, like this: Smith birthday photo.jpg, Smith vacation1.jpg, and so on. What I want to do is replace "Smith" with something else, my first name instead of my last, so that they're named Lisa birthday photo.jpg and so forth. Is there a way to do this in one big operation (like how you can search and replace in Word) to replace "Smith" wherever it appears with "Lisa?" Hope this makes sense. Thanks. - Lisa S.

ANSWER:
XP has built-in functionality for renaming a group of files with sequentially numbered file names; for example, you could select the group, choose rename and type "Lisa," and your files would be named Lisa(1).jpg, Lisa(2).jpg, etc. but that's not very descriptive and I don't think that's what you want. However, you can do a search and replace within file names if you use a third party utility like FileMonkey. It will run on XP, and they have a tutorial on their web site that shows you how to search and replace in file names. The downside is that there is no "undo" so once you've renamed the files, you can't go back to the original names easily (unless you've backed them up first with the original names, which I highly recommend just in case it doesn't turn out like you expected).

Check it out here:
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100406-Filemonkey

XP Configuration and Troubleshooting

XP shuts down because UPS service is started

If you start the Uninterruptible Power Supply service on your Windows XP computer, and you don't have a UPS attached to your computer via a COM port (or if you, but it's not working), Windows will shut down either before or after you log on. That's a problem, because you can't get into Windows to turn off the UPS service. The solution is to start in Safe Mode and then follow the instructions in KB article 818197 at
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100406-Uninterruptible-Power-Supply

"Bad Command Structure" error message

If you try to extract files from a compressed folder, you might get an error message that says "Compressed (zipped) folders was unable to create the specified directory. Ensure that the directory does not already exist, and that the path entered is valid." This happens because you didn't type the entire explicit path for the folder name. The solution is simple: type in the complete path name. See KB article 291779 for more information:
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100406-Bad-Command-Structure

Fav Links

This Week's Links We Like. Tips, Hints And Fun Stuff

Disclaimer: WXPNews does not assume and cannot be responsible for any liability related to you clicking any of these linked Web sites.

Startling word riddle
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100406-Word-Riddle
15 Worst Fast Food Fails
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100406-Fast-Food
The need for speed (long, but fascinating)
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100406-Speed
Kings of logistics
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100406-Logistics
Easter identity theft
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100406-Bunnies
Great animal photos
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100406-Animals
The world's mightiest remote-controlled plane has a wingspan of 30 feet, runs off four 160 cc engines, weighs 463 pounds and takes 2 pilots to fly it:
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100406-RC-Plane
Amazing close-up magic by Taiwanese magician Liu Qian, who has earned superstar status for his unbelievable performances. Get ready to be totally amazed. You ain't gonna believe your eyes:
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100406-Magic-Show
Cute fave of the week. A dog and a deer having fun playing soccer:
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100406-Soccer

Product of the Week

Driver Genius Professional 9.0: Are your Outdated Drivers Slowing Down your PC?

Keeping your Drivers up to date is an essential step to keep your PC running smoothly. When drivers get out of date, your PC can become unstable and you may experience frequent crashes, frozen applications and slow boot up times. Driver Genius Professional takes the hassle out of managing your drivers and will automatically backup, update and restore all your PC drivers. Over 80,000 devices supported. Start Your Free Driver Scan now and find out if you have outdated drivers that may be causing you problems with your computer! WXPNews news discount coupon is on the product information page.
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100406-POTW-Driver-Genius

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Gizmo's Daily Tech Treats

2010-04-05T21:01:00.001-04:00

Gizmo's Daily Tech Treats

Weekend Roundup February 5, 2010
Color Theory for Anyone, plus 50 Free Tools to Create Perfect Color Combinations
Best Of History Web Sites
Universities with the Best Free Online Courses
The Windows Registry Explained

Weekend Roundup February 5, 2010

Posted: 05 Apr 2010 01:22 AM PDT

Color Theory for Anyone, plus 50 Free Tools to Create Perfect Color Combinations

Posted: 05 Apr 2010 12:48 AM PDT

Best Of History Web Sites

Posted: 05 Apr 2010 12:47 AM PDT

Universities with the Best Free Online Courses

Posted: 05 Apr 2010 12:35 AM PDT

The Windows Registry Explained

Posted: 04 Apr 2010 06:03 PM PDT

Gizmo's Daily Tech Treats

2010-04-04T20:19:00.001-04:00

Gizmo's Daily Tech Treats

Mac Attack: Browsers for OSX

Posted: 04 Apr 2010 12:35 PM PDT

Gizmo's Daily Tech Treats

2010-04-03T20:33:00.001-04:00

Gizmo's Daily Tech Treats

Captivated By Words? You'll Love Wordnik

Posted: 16 Mar 2010 07:09 PM PDT

Gizmo's Daily Tech Treats

2010-04-02T20:49:00.001-04:00

Gizmo's Daily Tech Treats

Weekend Roundup April 2, 2010

Posted: 02 Apr 2010 01:10 PM PDT

Firefox Updates to 3.6.3, Patches Security Flaw

Posted: 02 Apr 2010 10:41 AM PDT

Gizmo's Daily Tech Treats

2010-04-01T21:10:00.001-04:00

Gizmo's Daily Tech Treats

Front Pages From Around the World, Every Day

Posted: 01 Apr 2010 05:49 PM PDT

Windows 7 Security: What's the Real Story?

2010-03-31T21:32:00.000-04:00

Published by Sunbelt Software	FORUMS \| RSS \| MY PROFILE \| PRIVACY

	Vol. 2, # 13 - Apr 1, 2010 - Issue # 29

Windows 7 Security: What's the Real Story?

Editor's Corner
- Windows 7 Security: What's the Real Story?
- Follow-up: Storage technology
- Quotes of the Week
Cool Tools
News, Hints, Tips and Tricks
- Windows 7 taskbar tips
- Forrester study says Windows 7 users are very satisfied with the OS
- Top Ten Riskiest Cities for Cybercrime
- HTC HD2 runs Windows Phone 7
How to: Using the New Windows 7 Features
- How to change the duration of Windows 7 notifications
Windows 7 and Vista Security
- Microsoft issues emergency out-of-band update
Question Corner
- How can I see my XP computers in the network map?
Windows 7 Configuration and Troubleshooting
- Windows 7 won't sleep
- Windows 7 mobile PC doesn't wake up
Fav Links
- This Week's Links We Like. Tips, Hints And Fun Stuff
Product of the Week
- CyberScrub Privacy Suite: Completely Erase Evidence of All Internet/Computer Activity & Encrypt Data

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Does not slow down your PC
New antivirus + antispyware engine with firewall
Advanced anti-rootkit technology
Cutting-edge Proactive Protection
Full email protection: Outlook and Windows Mail
Ideal for Netbooks that need malware protection
No automatic credit card charge each year!

Try VIPRE Antivirus Premium now for 30-days FREE!
http://www.win7news.net/O52HI2/100401-VIPRE-Premium

Editor's Corner

Windows 7 Security: What's the Real Story?

The tech press, like the mainstream news media, loves a story that makes somebody or something (in this case, Windows 7) look bad. Thus it's not surprising that after last week's Pwn2Own hacking contest, which was part of the CanSecWest security conference in Vancouver, Canada last week, headlines like this one popped up: "Hackers Exploit Windows 7 in 2 Minutes."
http://www.win7news.net/O52HI2/100401-Windows-7-Exploit

They did this by disabling DEP and ASLR via the web browser. Data Execution Prevention is designed to prevent applications from executing code from a non-executable region of memory and thwart buffer overflow exploits. Address Space Layout Randomization makes it harder for attackers to predict target memory addresses. These security mechanisms are enabled by default in Windows 7 IE8.

So does this mean Windows 7 and IE 8 are putting you in danger and you should switch to a different operating system and/or browser? Microsoft's competitors would love for you to believe that, but the Firefox and Safari browsers were exploited in the contest, too. Chrome proved to be the "last man standing."

As for the Windows 7 OS, a new study by BeyondTrust security researchers found that most Windows 7 security problems are caused not by insecurity of the operating system but by inexperienced or sloppy systems administrators who don't configure administrative rights properly. In fact, according their report 90% of Windows 7 vulnerabilities could not have been exploited if users were not given administrative rights. They say this would have protected against 100% of IE 8 vulnerabilities. You can read the report in PDF format here:
http://www.win7news.net/O52HI2/100401-Vulnerability-Analysis

Microsoft representatives felt it necessary, in the wake of all the publicity, to clarify that the defensive measures built into Windows 7 aren't meant to "prevent every attack forever." Anyone who expects that they would is, in my opinion, being a big unrealistic about the nature of security, as I wrote in this blog post:
http://www.win7news.net/O52HI2/100401-Not-Fool-Proof

While the Windows 7 attack made headlines on many sites, less attention was given by many writers to the hack of a fully patched OS X Macbook by security researcher Charlie Miller at the same conference.
http://www.win7news.net/O52HI2/100401-Hacker-Disappointed-w-Apple

In the past, Microsoft has been criticized for the number of patches they issued, with detractors claiming that lots of patches equal lots of security flaws that shouldn't have been there in the first place. Interestingly, Apple recently released a security update for Leopard and Snow Leopard that contained 92 patches, with a third of the vulnerabilities addressed rated as critical.
http://www.win7news.net/O52HI2/100401-Monster-Security-Update

Perhaps the most significant fact to come out of the Pwn2Own story is that web browsers are the weak spot in the security of most systems. The Windows 7 hack used IE 8 and the OS X hack exploited a vulnerability in Safari. The details of that vulnerability are a closely guarded secret until Apple releases a fix. The iPhone 3G was also successfully hacked in the contest, and once again, Safari was the mechanism used to do it.

The German government takes browser security so seriously that their CERT office issued a warning to their citizens in March, advising them to stop using Firefox because of a critical vulnerability.
http://www.win7news.net/O52HI2/100401-Firefox-Warning

And early in the month, security researchers were "sounding the alarm" over an unpatched remote code execution vulnerability in Opera.
http://www.win7news.net/O52HI2/100401-Opera-Flaw

Even Google Chrome, the browser that "won" the contest, had been patched for eleven vulnerabilities a few days before Pwn2Own, with an update rated by Secunia as "highly critical."
http://www.win7news.net/O52HI2/100401-Chrome-Patches

If we could remove all web browsers, our operating systems would be significantly more secure. Unfortunately, they would also be significantly less functional, since we would be unable to get information from web sites, pay bills or shop online, or even send email if we have web-based accounts. The web browser is not only the application that's most often used to connect to the Internet; it's also one of the most frequently used applications of all on most systems.

In the early days of the Internet, web browsers displayed text and picture files and that's about it. Web pages were written in simple HTML. Today's web sites use much more sophisticated technologies to provide us with video and interactive elements. ActiveX, VBScript, JavaScript, Java and various plug-ins such as Flash and Silverlight enable a much richer web experience, but they also come with security issues. You can disable some or all of these features to make your browser more secure (but you may be unable to access some web sites or view some content on some sites).

One thing is certain: newer versions of web browsers are generally more secure than older versions, and it's important to keep your browser (and your operating system) updated with the latest security patches.

If you want to increase the security of your Windows 7 machines, especially in a business environment, you may have looked for the Windows 7 Security Guide and concluded that there's not one. When you search the web or search Microsoft.com, you'll find the XP Security Guide and the Vista Security Guide, but it's a little more difficult to ferret out the Windows 7 Security Guide. That's because it's part of the Windows 7 Security Compliance Management Toolkit. That's a 16.6 MB download that you can find here:
http://www.win7news.net/O52HI2/100401-Security-Toolkit

The download includes toolkits for each of the following operating systems: Windows XP, Vista, Windows 7, Server 2003, Server 2008. It also includes toolkits for IE 8 and Office 2007. When you finally drill down to the Security Guide itself, you'll find it's a .docx document that contains 83 pages and covers most aspects of Windows 7 security, including how to implement a security baseline and relevant policy settings, protecting against malware, protecting sensitive data with BitLocker, EFS and RMS, controlling device installation and usage, and application compatibility.

Bottom line: Windows 7 is a secure OS when configured and used properly - but no operating system provides perfect security. It's up to you to use best security practices, have anti-virus and anti-malware software installed and running, have a firewall turned on and properly configured and otherwise practice defensive computing. In many cases, it's not the operating system but the applications installed on it that can be exploited. Web browsers are the number one culprits, so it's vital that you keep your browser updated and stay away from questionable web sites.

If you do need to visit risky sites, such as for research purposes, it's a good idea to use "sandboxing" of some kind to isolate the web browser you use to visit those sites from your primary operating system. You can do that by running a browser in a virtual machine (for example, if you have Windows 7 Pro or above, you can download and install Windows Virtual PC and XP Mode, install IE 8 or another browser of your choice in the XP VM, and use that for risky browsing. You can also use VMware for the same purpose, or a program such as Sandboxie. Or you can use the Chrome browser, which has built in sandbox technology.

Tell us what you think about Windows 7 security. Do you feel more secure using Windows 7 than you did with XP or Vista? Do you buy into the Apple ads that claim Mac is more secure than Windows 7? Do you think Linux is better for security? What web browser do you consider the safest? Do you use it exclusively, or do you have criteria other than security by which you choose your browser? Do you disable some or all of the scripting and other potentially dangerous features in your web browser, or do you take the risk in order to get a better web experience? We invite you to discuss these questions in our forum at
http://www.win7news.net/O52HI2/100401-Forum-Discussion

Follow-up: Storage technology

In last week's editorial, I talked about trends in storage technology and how this particular computer component has evolved since the olden days when we stored data on for our personal computers on cassette tape. Several readers weighed in on the subject.

Jaze asked about the WEI disk subscore for a Windows 7 computer with an SSD drive. As a matter of fact, my Sony VAIO X has an SSD drive and although its overall WEI score is low - thanks to the gaming graphics score, which I would never use on this laptop - the subscore for the disk is a pretty good 6.9, which is certainly better than the disk score on my otherwise powerful Nehalem desktop.

My son built a Nehalem-based machine for analyzing chess games and planning chess strategy. Since it runs Windows Server 2008 R2, there is no WEI score, but he says performance is substantially better with the Intel SSD than with a traditional hard disk. I wrote about his system here:
http://www.win7news.net/O52HI2/100401-Chess-Strategy

In the forums, Schiang pointed out that you can offset the expense of the SSDs somewhat by buying slower processors, because SSDs make more difference in perceived performance for most users than upgrading from dual to quad core, even at 50% faster CPU speed. David W. disagrees; he thinks the best option is a set of conventional SATA II or III in RAID 0 configuration. As Tim G. notes, though, that's more hardware and configuring than some people want to bother with. Different strokes for different folks.

Tim D. noted that he upgraded from 32 bit to 64 bit Windows 7 on a Core i7 system with 6 GB of RAM, but saw no discernable difference. I would expect to see increased performance from the ability to utilize the full 6 GB of RAM. Tim also mentioned that he was unable to get a WEI rating due to an error message that says the system doesn't have the necessary multi-media support to run the requested assessment. This problem has been reported to have been caused by the video card drivers, or by various anti-virus programs. Finally, WEI - for some strange reason - is dependent on components in Windows Media Player (WMP) so if you have removed WMP (or if you have the "N" European version of Windows 7 that comes without WMP, you won't be able to run WEI.

As always, thanks to everyone who participated in the discussion.

'Til next week,
Deb Shinder, Editor
feedback@win7news.net

PS: Did you know this newsletter has a sister publication for XP users called WXPnews? You can subscribe here, and tell your friends:
http://www.win7news.net/O52HI2/100401-WXPNews

And for IT pros, there's our "big sister," WServer News, at
http://www.win7news.net/O52HI2/100401-WserverNews

Look for the Win7News fan page on Facebook!

Quotes of the Week

"Only those who attempt the absurd will achieve the impossible. I think it's in my basement ... let me go upstairs and check." - M.C. Escher

"Action is the fundamental key to all success." - Pablo Picasso

"Have no fear of perfection - you'll never reach it." - Salvador Dali

"Great things are done by a series of small things brought together." - Vincent Van Gogh

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Cool Tools

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News, Hints, Tips and Tricks

Windows 7 taskbar tips

The Windows 7 taskbar is good - but there are ways to make it better. We've told you before how to add back the Quick Launch bar, but that's not the only "hack" you might be interested in. For instance, you can add information about volume, battery life and memory use, put the recycle bin on the taskbar, or more easily control the behavior, with the tips in this article:
http://www.win7news.net/O52HI2/100401-Taskbar-Hacks

Forrester study says Windows 7 users are very satisfied with the OS

A new report out from Forrester Research finds that the majority of early adopters of Windows 7 described themselves as "very satisfied." It also contained the somewhat surprisingly news that more than 40% of the consumers who have moved to Windows 7 did so by upgrading an existing computer, rather than getting it pre-installed on a new PC. Either way, it's good news for Microsoft, especially after the beating Vista's reputation took among users. Read more here:
http://www.win7news.net/O52HI2/100401-Win7-Early-Adopters

Top Ten Riskiest Cities for Cybercrime

Security experts at Norton have compiled a list of the cities that have the most reported cybercrime and Seattle is right at the top. Other cities on the list (San Francisco, Denver, Boston, Austin) tend to be places where the tech industry thrives, as well. That's really not surprising - the more people you have online in a given area, the more likely online criminals will target them. The rankings also take into account the tendency of people in a particular area to engage in risky online behavior, such as using wi-fi and conducting financial transactions over the Internet. Find out whether your city made the top ten list:
http://www.win7news.net/O52HI2/100401-Riskiest-Online-Cities

HTC HD2 runs Windows Phone 7

It's been widely reported that existing Windows Mobile 6.5 phones won't be able to run the new Windows Phone 7 Series operating system that's expected to come out before the end of the year - but a hacker has ported the new OS to the HTC HD2, which is one of the most attractive WinMo smart phones on the market now. Here's a video showing this phone running the next generation Windows phone software:
http://www.win7news.net/O52HI2/100401-HTC-HD2

How to: Using the New Windows 7 Features

How to change the duration of Windows 7 notifications

By default, notification dialog boxes in Windows 7 stay open for 5 seconds. Maybe that's not long enough for you to deal with them. You can change the time duration easily, without having to edit the registry. Here's how:

Click Start | Control Panel.
Click Ease of Access Center.
Click "Make it easier to focus on tasks"
Scroll down to the "Adjust time limits and flashing visuals" section and under "How long should Windows notification dialog boxes stay open," click the down arrow at the right side of the drop-down box.
Select a duration from 5 seconds to 5 minutes.
Click OK.

Windows 7 and Vista Security

Microsoft issues emergency out-of-band update

It was Tuesday, but it wasn't Patch Tuesday. Nonetheless, Microsoft released a security update this week for ten vulnerabilities in Internet Explorer. This emergency "out of band" release was the result of a zero day vulnerability that was made public earlier in the month and the growing number of attacks that attempt to exploit it. This is the iepeers.dll vulnerability. The good news is that this vulnerability doesn't apply to IE 8 in Windows 7. However, three of the other vulnerabilities that are addressed in this patch do. Read more here:
http://www.win7news.net/O52HI2/100401-Web-Browser-Vulnerabilities

Question Corner

How can I see my XP computers in the network map?

QUESTION:
I have one new Windows 7 computer, one Vista computer and an old XP laptop on my home network. I like the network map in Network and Sharing Center but the XP computer doesn't show up there, just the Windows 7 and Vista. Is there any way to make the XP system show up on the map? Thanks! - Mark L.

ANSWER:
Windows 7 and Vista use the Link Layer Topology Discovery (LLTD) protocol to detect the systems on the network and create the network map. The problem is that XP doesn't support LLTD by default, so your XP systems will show up at the bottom of the page and not on the map.

You can add LLTD support to XP if you have Service Pack 3 installed. You'll need to install a hotfix, which you can download from the link on this page (where you will also find more information about this issue):
http://www.win7news.net/O52HI2/100401-Network-Map

Windows 7 Configuration and Troubleshooting

Windows 7 won't sleep

Every parent can relate to this: those nights when your child just won't go to sleep. But what if it's your Windows 7 computer that has insomnia? If you try to put the computer to sleep and it wakes back up immediately or doesn't go to sleep at all, there are several things you can try to fix the problem (depending on what's causing it). To get the details, check out KB article 976877 at
http://www.win7news.net/O52HI2/100401-Win7-Wont-Sleep

Windows 7 mobile PC doesn't wake up

Okay, here's a problem that's just the opposite of the one above. In this case, your mobile Windows 7 computer won't wake up to run a scheduled task, even though you configured it with the "wake the computer to run this task" option. You probably won't have the same problem with your desktop system. That's because, by default, the ability to wake from sleep for a timed event is disabled on mobile computers (to save battery power). However, you can change the power settings to fix this. Find out how in KB article 973454 at
http://www.win7news.net/O52HI2/100401-Win7-Mobile-PC

Fav Links

This Week's Links We Like. Tips, Hints And Fun Stuff

Disclaimer: VistaNews does not assume and cannot be responsible for any liability related to you clicking any of these linked Web sites.

Happy Easter
http://www.win7news.net/O52HI2/100401-Easter-Bunnies
Top Ten animal power moves
http://www.win7news.net/O52HI2/100401-Power-Moves
Smart or Stoopid? Take the test.
http://www.win7news.net/O52HI2/100401-Test
I love these ancient public service films:
http://www.win7news.net/O52HI2/100401-Public-Service-Announcement
500 worst passwords
http://www.win7news.net/O52HI2/100401-Passwords
Trololo cat
http://www.win7news.net/O52HI2/100401-Trololo-Cat
A palindrome reads the same backwards as forward. This video however, reads the exact opposite backwards as forward. Not only does it read the opposite, the meaning is the exact opposite. It got spontaneous applause wherever shown:
http://www.win7news.net/O52HI2/100401-Lost-Generation
Imagine traveling 40 miles without using a single drop of gasoline. The Chevy Volt offers innovative green engineering. Fuel Economy: 230 mpg, Price: 30-40k
http://www.win7news.net/O52HI2/100401-Volt
Unbelievable: A dog and a deer having fun playing soccer:
http://www.win7news.net/O52HI2/100401-Soccer

Product of the Week

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Gizmo's Daily Tech Treats

2010-03-31T21:27:00.001-04:00

Gizmo's Daily Tech Treats

Add Tabs To Word, Excel and Powerpoint (Windows only)

Posted: 30 Mar 2010 07:06 PM PDT

Can a Computer App Help Cut Your Phone Bills?

2010-03-30T01:45:00.000-04:00

	FORUMS \| BLOG \| RSS \| MY PROFILE \| PRIVACY

Vol. 10, #13 - Mar 29, 2010 - Issue #423
	Can a Computer App Help Cut Your Phone Bills?

Editor's Corner
- Can a Computer App Help Cut Your Phone Bills?
- Follow-up: Controlling the Technology
- Quotes of the Week
Cool Tools
- Tools We Think You Shouldn't Be Without
News, Hints, Tips and Tricks
- WMWifiRouter is a lifesaver
- Windows XP gets DirectX 11 goodness
- Big boys battle it out on the mapping front
How To: Using XP Features
- How to take timed snapshots with your webcam
XP Security News
- All platforms and browsers are vulnerable to attack
XP Question Corner
- Disk Cleanup hangs
XP Configuration and Troubleshooting
- Can't open Help and Support Center in XP
Fav Links
- This Week's Links We Like. Tips, Hints And Fun Stuff
Product of the Week
- CyberScrub Privacy Suite: Completely Erase Evidence of All Internet/Computer Activity & Encrypt Data

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Editor's Corner

Can a Computer App Help Cut Your Phone Bills?

We live in a world where technology makes it possible to be in touch with almost anybody in the world at almost any time - but sometimes we pay a big price for that ability. If Alexander Graham Bell knew how much some of us are shelling out for telephone service, he would be rolling over in his grave.

I have a friend who has two traditional land lines, at around $70 for basic lines, no bells and whistles like voicemail, long distance charges and fees/taxes not included. She and her husband also have iPhones, and their cell phone bill is over $100 before you tack on all the taxes and fees. And of course, when we're talking about phone service, we aren't talking about just a 5-10% sales tax as with most products and services you buy. The taxes and fees can add up to 30% to your cell phone bill. So they end up paying over $200 per month, or $2400 per year, for phone service. More if they make any significant long distance calls on the landlines.

Many people don't even know how much they're paying. To quote one person on a web board in answer to the question of how much you pay for cell service, "Umm .. I don't know. They just help themselves to my checking account every month. Thankfully, I currently do not live paycheck-to-paycheck as I have in the past, so I don't pay attention." This is the big danger of autopay plans - too many folks "just don't pay attention." But that's a different rant for a different day.

Back in 2004, we decided to reduce our phone bills by dumping the landlines and going with a VoIP plan. For the last six years, we've been paying $21.95 (plus taxes, federal universal service fee, emergency service fee, and administrative and compliance fee, for a total of around $30) for unlimited calling to over 35 countries with Lingo. We had it hooked up to our FiOS high speed Internet connection and reversed the house wiring so we could plug it into the wall and use any of the jacks throughout the house for the Lingo service. We also plugged in a cordless base station with high quality wireless phones so we could get calls wherever we wanted, including outside on the patio.

We were always very happy with the service - up until a few months ago. We started getting screeching noises in the background on the line. I tried all the troubleshooting methods I could think of: rebooting the ATA box, plugging a different phone in, plugging the phone directly into the box instead of going through the wall wiring, etc. but the noise was the same. I called Lingo's customer service where I went through the same procedures again for the service tech (whom I could barely understand due to the combination of the background screech, his accent and my own hearing problems). After a tiring half hour or more of that, and his promise to "do something" on his end, there was no change.

My theory is that the ATA hardware has gotten old and is failing. But the tech said he's "not authorized" to send me a new box. I wouldn't even mind paying a reasonable fee for a replacement, but I was never able to find out how to do that. So I've been investigating alternatives and right now I'm trying out Skype to see if it will work as our primary phone service. I had, of course, tested it in the past but saw it as more of a novelty than a viable option to replace the Lingo line. However, they have made quite a few improvements and I'm impressed with the call quality I'm getting with Skype now. Of course, it may be that I also have better sound equipment (sound card, microphone and speakers) than I did years ago when I first gave it a try, too.

I signed up for a Skype unlimited subscription, which costs an amazing $2.95 per month, or less if you pay quarterly or annually. You can call any phone, including mobiles, in the U.S. and Canada for that price. There's another plan for those who need to make international calls; it's $12.95. Of course, this only allows you to make outgoing calls. Now, I rather like the idea of having total control and not being bothered by incoming calls, but of course it's not always practical. So you can buy an additional plan (SkypeIn) with a phone number where others can call you. That costs $60 per year, which comes out to $5 per month. That means that for $8 per month or a little less, you can have complete outgoing and incoming phone service.
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100330-Skype

Okay, so what's the catch? The voice quality is good, but reliability may not be quite as rock solid as a POTS (Plain Old Telephone Service) line or an ATA-based VoIP service like Lingo or Vonage. On the other hand, I have a cell phone that can serve as a backup.

You might ask why I don't just use the cell phone exclusively, as more and more people are doing (and as both of my kids have done). The problem is that it's significantly more expensive to do that. We have the minimum number of family plan minutes and plans with more minutes cost quite a bit more. We use the cell phones basically as emergency devices and for accessing email and web wherever we go. I don't want to have to worry about how long I'm talking when I'm on my phone at home. And if I need to make an international call, I certainly don't want to pay the outrageous rates the cell phone companies charge.

What about the Skype "experience?" One reason I shied away from it in the past was that I didn't want to have to be tethered to my computer to make a phone call. Now they make wireless Skype phones that you can carry around the house with you, so you don't have to be sitting in front of a computer screen when you have a conversation. I also tested it on my ultra-ultra compact Sony VAIO X laptop and it works great with the built-in microphone, although I did find the speakers a little weak. Sound quality was splendid when I plugged in my Shure earphones.

Of course, one big advantage of Skype is that "you can take it with you." Your Skype account will work with any computer on which you install the Skype client software, no matter where you are. That means your Skype number is portable, just like your cell phone number. You can do the same with any VoIP service, of course, but with Skype, you don't have to lug an ATA box around with you when you travel.

You can even install Skype on your mobile phone - if you have the right kind. Unfortunately Skype Mobile no longer supports Windows Mobile, although if you installed it in the past, you can still use it. You can get the full Skype Mobile for Blackberry and Android on Verizon. There is a Skype-to-Skype app for the iPhone but it only works over wi-fi, not 3G. There is also a Skype application for some Symbian phones that does work over 3G. I'm hoping Skype will make a version for Windows Phone 7 Series when it's released.
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100330-Skype-Mobile

If you do have an iPhone and want to circumvent AT&T's voice charges, David Pogue just wrote about an app called Line2 that gives you a second phone number for $15 per month and doesn't use your AT&T minutes. And it can apparently place calls over the 3G network as well as wi-fi. You can read about it here:
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100330-IPhone-App

There are a few things to be aware of if you're considering dropping your landline to move to VoIP or switching from a traditional VoIP line to a software-based service like Skype. Perhaps most important is to understand that unlike regular POTS lines, these services are dependent on your home's power lines. If you have a power outage, your phone service will be out, too - unless you have a UPS (which will provide power for a limited time) or generator to power the network hardware.

Further, these services are dependent on your Internet service so if you have an unreliable ISP, you might want to think twice before trusting your phone service to them. Additionally, 9-1-1 locator service may or may not work. VoIP services like Lingo and Vonage require you to provide them with an address to be provided to authorities if you dial 9-1-1, but it's not automatically detected as with POTS lines, so it's up to you to keep that information up to date. Skype doesn't work with 9-1-1 emergency services.

If you have a home security system that's monitored, it may be dependent on a landline. However, you can get systems that use their own dedicated cellular service. We switched over to this for our security system back when we dropped our landlines. Finally, call quality may vary (as it does with regular phones). Some of these drawbacks and caveats may be less important if you also maintain a cell phone that you can use as a backup.

Tell us what you think about all this. Do you still have one or more landlines, or have you "cut the cord?" Do you use a more traditional ATA-based VoIP service or a software-based VoIP service like Skype? Or do you use a cell phone as your only phone service? If you still pay for landlines, what's your reason? Is it because you want to be ensured of the most reliable service, the 9-1-1 service, voice quality, or some other reason? Have you tried alternatives? Is the cost savings worth it? What would make you switch? We invite you to discuss all of these questions on our forum at
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100330-Forum-Discussion

Follow-up: Controlling the Technology

In last week's editorial, I discussed how dependent we've become on those who control the technology that controls our lives, whether that's something as minor as CATV service or as major as the vehicles we use to get around.

Cballinger brought up an issue that I didn't go into explicitly in the article, but one that has troubled me: the push to "put all your eggs in one basket" by getting your phone, CATV and Internet service from the same provider in a "bundled" package. As he pointed out, when you do that, it only takes one traffic accident or misconfiguration by a technician to cut you off from every connection you have to the outside world. That's one of the reasons I still use the cable company for TV, FiOS for Internet, and have a cell phone that's not dependent on those networks.

Tim G. made an interesting statement: "Many homes these days do not have dictionaries and encyclopedias in book form." That's something that never occurred to me, given my rooms full of books of all kinds - but when I think about it, I know it's almost certainly true. I love the convenience of being able to look things up online, but I would hate to know that I didn't have those books to back me up. Maybe it goes back to my days as a cop, but I am really big into always having a backup.

The discussion certainly veered off into some interesting directions, and while I try to resist expressing any strong political views here (I know there are occasions when I don't succeed), I enjoyed reading all of our readers' rants and as always, I thank all of you who participated, both in the forum and via email.

'Til next week,
Deb Shinder, Editor
feedback@win7news.net

PS: Did you know this newsletter has a sister publication called Win7News? You can subscribe here, and tell your friends:
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100330-Win7News

And for IT pros, there's our "big sister," WServer News, at
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100330-WserverNews

Look up the WXPnews Fan Page and join us on Facebook!

Quotes of the Week

"For disappearing acts, it's hard to beat what happens to the eight hours supposedly left after eight hours of sleep and eight of work". - Doug Larson

"Censorship reflects a society's lack of confidence in itself. It is the landmark of an authoritarian regime". - Supreme Court Justice Potter Stewart

"No generalization is wholly true, not even this one". - Oliver Wendell Holmes

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Cool Tools

Tools We Think You Shouldn't Be Without

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Moving to Windows 7 is Easy! PCMover moves programs, files, and settings from your old PC to your new PC
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Search for a driver and you get a ton of Driver Software offers instead. But how do you know which one is good? Try Driver Genius 9.0. Free scan.
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News, Hints, Tips and Tricks

WMWifiRouter is a lifesaver

Here's why I don't trust the cloud: today was Tom's birthday and we went out to lunch to celebrate. We came home to discover a not-so-great birthday present: our FiOS Internet connection was dead. It's been rock solid reliable for four years, but the "Fail" light on the outside box was burning brightly and tech support confirmed that it was a network failure and estimated it would be back up "by tomorrow." But I had plenty of work to get done today, like finishing this newsletter. And that requires an Internet connection to find the links in these sections. Ouch.

Here's what saved my behind: I have an unlimited data plan on my Verizon Windows Mobile 6.5 smart phone (Omnia II). I downloaded and installed WMWifiRouter on it, which allowed me to set up the phone as a wireless access point. Then I was able to connect my laptop to the phone's Internet connection. What a lifesaver. I downloaded the free trial but I'll be sending them my twenty bucks pronto. I'll also be writing about it in more detail in the future. Meanwhile, if you ever find yourself in a similar situation, check it out here:
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100330-WiFi-Router

Windows XP gets DirectX 11 goodness

Want all the goodness of DirectX 11 but don't want to upgrade your operating system from Windows XP? Now you don't have to. ATI has released a new OpenGL driver that supports Vista and XP, so that you can get graphics close to the quality of DirectX 11 on your Windows XP computer. Read more here:
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100330-ATI-Complexity-to-XP

Big boys battle it out on the mapping front

I remember when Mapquest was the place to go if you wanted to find a map on the Internet, but I also remember how it led me astray more than once. Today Microsoft and Google are battling it out for the top dog spot when it comes to maps and the latest news is that Microsoft is teaming up with Foursquare, a location-awareness service that will be integrated into Bing maps as part of their spring update. Find out more here:
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100330-Bing-Maps

How To: Using XP Features

How to take timed snapshots with your webcam

If you have a webcam set up on your Windows XP computer and you'd like for it to automatically take photos at timed intervals (for example, so you can see what's going in your office while you're gone), you can do it with a free PowerToy from Microsoft.

Go to http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/downloads/powertoys/xppowertoys.mspx
In the right column that lists the various PowerToys, scroll all the way to the bottom and click the link for Timershot.exe
Click the Save button to save the file to your hard drive and pick a location where you want to save it.
After the file has downloaded, double click it to run the setup program.
Configure the Timershot settings to use your webcam device.
Under "Picture Options," set the interval at which you want photos to be taken (for example, every 1 minutes).
You can have the pictures automatically resized if you want, and specify a file name and location where you want the pictures to be saved.
Click Apply Settings.

XP Security News

All platforms and browsers are vulnerable to attack

Have you been thinking you should upgrade to Windows 7 because that will protect you from attacks? Have you heard that Macs can't be hacked or don't get viruses? Has someone told you that IE is insecure and you'll be safe if you just use Firefox? The recent Pwn2Own hacking contest in Vancouver taught us all a big lesson: all operating systems and all web browsers are vulnerable to attack. Security researchers quickly exploited an updated iPhone, a Macbook, a 64 bit Windows 7 system, and all of the popular web browsers. Read more about it here:
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100330-PowerToys

XP Question Corner

Disk Cleanup hangs

QUESTION:
I was trying to use the Disk Cleanup utility in XP to remove some of the clutter from my hard drive and get more space, but when it was compressing old files, it hung up and just stopped responding forever. I've tried this a couple of times (after a reboot) and it does the same thing. Do you know how to fix it or do I have to just stop trying to use this? - Elliot C.

ANSWER:
This is actually a known problem and it happens when you have an incorrect entry in the registry that's used by Disk Cleanup to find compressed files. You can edit the registry yourself to fix this, or Microsoft has a "Fix it wizard" that you can run if you aren't comfortable manually editing the registry. You'll find it here, along with the step by step instructions for the manual edit:
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100330-Disk-Cleanup

XP Configuration and Troubleshooting

Can't open Help and Support Center in XP

If you try to open the Help and Support Center in Windows XP and you get an error message that says Windows cannot find HELPCTR.EXE, you might have a corrupted or missing registry key. What to do? You'll need to edit the registry to fix the problem. You can find the step-by-step instructions for doing so in KB article 888018 at
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100330-Support-Center

Fav Links

This Week's Links We Like. Tips, Hints And Fun Stuff

Disclaimer: WXPNews does not assume and cannot be responsible for any liability related to you clicking any of these linked Web sites.

April Fool's Day office prank
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100330-April-Fools
Most unusual Google Earth photos
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100330-Google-Earth
1932 propeller driven car - I want one of these
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100330-Helicron
Speaking of cool cars: Street legal bumper cars
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100330-Bumper-Cars
Driving Mt. Shasta (fasten your seat belt)
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100330-Scenic-Driving
Play Captain Forever
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100330-Captain-Forever
This will blow you away. A sneak preview of the "Content-Aware Fill" feature in the upcoming version of Photoshop. WOW:
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100330-Photoshop
A baby and a kitty are wrestling in a battle of cuteness:
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100330-Cat-vs-Baby
The Top 10 Low-Pass Jet Flyby's. Number three must have been the result of a bet. This guy's got guts! Must see:
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100330-Flyby

Product of the Week

CyberScrub Privacy Suite: Completely Erase Evidence of All Internet/Computer Activity & Encrypt Data

CyberScrub Privacy Suite removes all evidence of your online activity, erases data beyond recovery, secures your files with strong encryption and enhances overall system performance. This award winning app sports over 50 new features and enhancements. Did you realize every picture or video viewed is written to your hard drive? Simply opening an email can put you in a compromising situation. Privacy Suite eliminates all web tracks (pictures, video, history, websites visited, cache and temp files, IM, chat, email, etc.), automatically removes newsgroup pictures and binaries, eliminates traces from popular Peer2Peer applications, Real and Windows Media Player, Photoshop and more. You can even create your own customized areas to clean. Remember- "Delete" does not mean "Erase". Deleted files can be retrieved using simple recovery tools. 100% Windows 7 compatible Privacy Suite software supports Internet Explorer 8 and Firefox 3.x. Click below for other exciting New Features. Download the free trial and buy with a 20% discount to WXPNews subscribers.
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100330-CyberScrub

About WXPnews

Gizmo's Daily Tech Treats

2010-03-28T20:33:00.001-04:00

Gizmo's Daily Tech Treats

Everything You Ever Wanted To Know About GPS

Posted: 27 Mar 2010 07:50 PM PDT

Gizmo's Daily Tech Treats

2010-03-27T21:00:00.001-04:00

Gizmo's Daily Tech Treats

Weekend Roundup March 26, 2010

Posted: 26 Mar 2010 08:07 PM PDT

Explore the Different Editions of Microsoft Office 2010

Posted: 26 Mar 2010 07:35 PM PDT

Storage Technology: Past, Present and Future

2010-03-24T21:51:00.000-04:00

Published by Sunbelt Software	FORUMS \| RSS \| MY PROFILE \| PRIVACY

	Vol. 2, # 12 - Mar 25, 2010 - Issue # 28

Storage Technology: Past, Present and Future

Editor's Corner
- Storage Technology: Past, Present and Future
- Follow-up: Win7 Starter for Netbooks
- Quotes of the Week
Cool Tools
News, Hints, Tips and Tricks
- The Death of the Desktop? Not So Much.
- Service Pack 1: Not Much to See Here
- No Firefox for Windows Mobile
- Oversized dynamic VHD can cause Windows 7 to crash
How to: Using the New Windows 7 Features
- How to add color coding to Windows 7 Media Center Program Guide
Windows 7 and Vista Security
- Fake antivirus targets Windows 7 users
Question Corner
- Why does quad core take longer to boot than dual core?
Windows 7 Configuration and Troubleshooting
- 20 Keyboard Shortcuts You Need to Know
- Windows 7 upgrade fails and you can't boot into Vista
Fav Links
- This Week's Links We Like. Tips, Hints And Fun Stuff
Product of the Week
- Create a Great Web Site in 3 Easy Steps with Web Easy.

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Editor's Corner

Storage Technology: Past, Present and Future

Modern computers have many components; the two most basic are processors to carry out the instruction set of computer programs and volatile random-access memory (RAM) for short term storage of data. You also need input/output devices (keyboard, pointing device, monitor) to be able to interact with the computer. And you need a way to store data long-term, after the computer is turned off.

For most of us, that last requirement is satisfied by a hard disk drive, which was so named to distinguish it from "floppy" disks that were used for storing data in the early days of personal computing. I still remember my first IBM PC, which had no hard drive at all - just two floppy drives. You could load the operating system and programs from one and store your data on the other. These were 5 1/4 inch floppies that held only 160KB of information. I remember how impressed I was when I upgraded to an IBM PC XT, which had a "fixed disk" (hard drive) capable of storing a whopping 10 MB of data. At the time, it seemed like unlimited storage - and light years more advanced than the cassette tapes on which my VIC-20 had stored its data.

Although hard drives didn't become common on consumer and small business computers until the mid to late 80s, the first ones were sold by IBM in 1956. It was about double the size of a refrigerator and consisted of a stack of fifty 24 inch discs. IBM leased it for $35,000 per year. You can see what it looked like here:
http://www.win7news.net/O52HI2/100325-Media-Technology

Fast forward to today: Hard drive capacity has exploded and you can buy a terabyte drive for much less than you had to pay for the 10MB drive for the PC XT. Amazingly, many of those ancient IBM PC XTs are still in use over a quarter of a century later. They might not be running their original hard drives; in fact, hard disk failure is still one of the most common hardware problems that bring computers down.

This makes sense when you consider how the traditional hard drive works. "Under the hood," the data is stored on platters that rotate rapidly (the platters comprise the "disk" and the motorized mechanism that rotates them make up the "drive"). The read and write heads are very precisely positioned just nanometers above the surface. The heads are mounted on a moving actuator arm. For more information about the construction and mechanics of hard disk drives, see:
http://www.win7news.net/O52HI2/100325-Hard-Disks

Given all that, it's pretty amazing that hard drives are as durable as they are. Those early hard drives were much more fragile. In fact, you had to manually "park" the drives before you moved the computer, to prevent damage. Today's drives automatically park the heads when power to the drive is cut off. Laptops have built-in protection technology that senses if the computer is dropped while it's running and triggers a software applet that parks the drive heads.

But while there have been some significant improvements to hard drive durability and capacity over the years, performance has lagged behind. That's not to say today's hard drives aren't faster than those of a decade ago; they are. The typical hard drive today rotates at 5400 or 7200 rpm, and high-end drives can reach 15,000 rpm. But hey, the 10 MB Seagate ST-412 that was created in 1981 spun at 3600 rpm. Of course, rotations per minutes is not the only measure of a hard disk's speed. That old drive had a data rate of 5 Mbps and a seek time of 85 ms.
http://www.win7news.net/O52HI2/100325-Golden-Oldies

Today, Seagate's Cheetah SAS drive boasts 15,000 rpm, a 6 Gbps interface and 2 ms average latency. However, it costs more than a dollar per gigabyte of storage ($329 for a 300 GB drive at NewEgg), in comparison with slower drives, like the Seagate Barracuda SATA drive, that give you almost seven times as much storage space for less than half the price ($149 for a 2TB drive).

Even considering the high-end drives, the hard drive is often the bottleneck that slows down the rest of the system. If you check your Windows 7 Windows Experience Index (WEI) rating, it's likely that the lowest subscore will be for either your hard drive or your video card. I know that on my main desktop, my processor and memory both score a nice 7.5 - but my hard disk lags at 5.9.

Another consideration that has gotten a lot of attention recently is energy consumption. Smaller 2.5 inch drives are becoming more popular because they generally get better performance per watt. Most hard drive manufacturers have come out with "green" models, such as Western Digital's Caviar GP (which stands for "Green Power"). The company says it draws a little over half the power of its previous generation drives.
http://www.win7news.net/O52HI2/100325-WD-Caviar-Green

Once upon a time, we thought the hard drive's days were numbered. Holographic storage was believed to be just around the corner. The potential capacity is large: several tens of terabytes per cubic centimeter, and it also has the potential to be very fast because millions of bits can be recorded and read in parallel. In the early 2000s, there was a lot of work being done on developing the technology, but it seems to have fallen by the wayside, or at least gone underground. InPhase Technologies was one of the major players, but its assets were seized last month by the Colorado Department of Revenue:
http://www.win7news.net/O52HI2/100325-Holographic-Storage

As the article above notes, there are quite a few "science project" storage methods out there, but we don't hear that much about them. Maybe we're just not ready for Star Trek technology yet. The biggest obstacle seems to be the cost; the 300 GB holographic drive that InPhase made had a high price tag: more than $10,000. Er, I think I'll pass.

But there is an alternative to the traditional hard drive that's here, now, and although still a bit expensive, it won't set you back thousands of dollars for a few gigs of storage space. Of course I'm talking about the solid state drive (SSD). They started appearing in netbooks because their small physical size (as small as 1.8 inch) makes it easy to reduce the size of the computer itself. They're also lighter in weight than a traditional hard drive of the same capacity.

Most SSDs use flash memory and don't need batteries. DRAM-based SSDs are faster, but need a battery or AC adapter and backup storage because their memory is volatile, so otherwise data will be lost if the electrical power is lost. Flash-based SSDs do use DRAM for a cache. Unlike traditional hard drives, SSDs have no moving parts. That makes them quieter and also more durable and less prone to failure. They are also less vulnerable to damage from vibration, shock or extreme temperatures, and they don't have to be defragmented. They are fast for read operations, but SATA-based SSDs are slow on write operations. PCIe SSDs provide faster write speeds.

Not all SSDs are created equal, though. The fastest SSDs come at a higher price. And price is a sticking point for SSDs - they still cost considerably more than their platter-based counterparts, and capacities are generally correspondingly lower. Most on the market now are in the 128 GB and under capacity range. You can buy a 1 TB SSD, but it costs almost $4000. For 512 GB, you'll pay around $1500 or more. Contrast that with the price of a 500 GB traditional hard drive, which can be had for as little as $55 (all prices are from NewEgg.com).

It's likely that SSD prices will fall in the next year, though. And the good news is that Windows 7 (along with Server 2008 R2) is optimized to work with SSD drives. Unlike previous versions of Windows, it supports the TRIM command, which maintains the speed of the SSD throughout its lifespan and eliminates a problem suffered by SSDs in the past, wherein they slowed down as they got older and all their cells had been written to. You can read more about TRIM and other Windows 7 SSD optimizations here:
http://www.win7news.net/O52HI2/100325-SSD-Performance

Tell us what you think about the whole subject of data storage. We've hardly scratched the surface here; there are still many other ways of storing digital information: on optical discs (CD, DVD, Blu-ray), on portable flash ("thumb") drives and cards, local network storage options such as SAN and NAS, and, of course, "in the cloud." Are you still using traditional hard disks on your computers or have you upgraded to SSD? If not, is it because of cost or capacity (or both)? What would the price point have to be for a 500 GB drive before you would buy an SSD? What do you think the next big thing in storage will be - holographic or something entirely new and different? Will we see traditional hard drives become obsolete in the next ten years, or will they keep hanging in there? We invite you to discuss these questions and more on our forum at
http://www.win7news.net/O52HI2/100325-Forum-Discussion

Follow-up: Win7 Starter for Netbooks

In last week's editorial, I talked about the somewhat stripped down Starter edition of Windows 7 that comes on many of the low cost netbooks that are on the market today. Quite a few of our readers who bought netbooks loaded with Starter edition said they quickly upgraded to Windows 7 Home Premium, Pro or Ultimate. However, a few folks are using Starter and find that it fills their needs. It's all a matter of what you want the system to do and how much you want to pay. Overall, though, upgrading was the most popular choice.

As always, a big "thank you" to all of you who participated in the discussion.

'Til next week,
Deb Shinder, Editor
feedback@win7news.net

PS: Did you know this newsletter has a sister publication for XP users called WXPnews? You can subscribe here, and tell your friends:
http://www.win7news.net/O52HI2/100325-WXPNews

And for IT pros, there's our "big sister," WServer News, at
http://www.win7news.net/O52HI2/100325-WserverNews

Look for the Win7News fan page on Facebook!

Quotes of the Week

"Don't go around saying the world owes you a living". The world owes you nothing. It was here first. - Mark Twain

"He who has a why to live can bear almost any how". - Friedrich Nietzsche

"I arise in the morning torn between a desire to improve the world and a desire to enjoy the world. This makes it hard to plan the day". - E. B. White

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Cutting-edge Proactive Protection
Full email protection: Outlook and Windows Mail
Ideal for Netbooks that need malware protection
No automatic credit card charge each year!

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Cool Tools

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Moving to Windows 7 is Easy! PCMover moves programs, files, and settings from your old PC to your new PC.
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Billing address autofill, Secure password storage, all automatic and safe. Not a little toolbar utility. Huge time saver!
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Get your speed back! Advanced Vista Optimizer will tweak Vista for Max performance. Easy to use:
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Spellchecker is NOT ENOUGH! Improve your English writing skills with WhiteSmoke a smarter solution for high quality writing. Try it:
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Ultra Edit New Version 15.2 - Replacing Notepad or Looking for The Most Powerful Text Editor?
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News, Hints, Tips and Tricks

The Death of the Desktop? Not So Much.

I posited in an editorial some time back that the rumors of the desktop computer's death had been greatly exaggerated. Now it seems that recent sales figures are proving me right. After a long period of portables leading the pack, there has been a resurgence of sales on the desktop side, with Windows 7 and its Media Center capabilities getting a lot of the credit. It's no surprise to me; I love my laptop but I would hate to have to use it for all of my computing tasks. I guess I'm not the only one.
http://www.win7news.net/O52HI2/100325-Desktop-Sales

Service Pack 1: Not Much to See Here

There has been plenty of speculation about what will be included in Windows 7 SP1, but according to Microsoft's recent announcement, don't get your hopes up for anything very exciting. Instead, it looks as if it will be just a collection of minor fixes and updates, many of which have already been released via Windows Update. Will this news encourage the overly cautious who usually wait for the first service pack to go ahead and upgrade now - or will it cause them to dig in and wait for SP2? Only time will tell.
http://www.win7news.net/O52HI2/100325-Windows7-SP1

No Firefox for Windows Mobile

Mozilla has been working on development of mobile version of the Firefox web browser for Windows Mobile 6.5, but apparently they've decided to abandon those efforts. That comes in the wake of the announcements that Windows Phone 7 Series won't run previous WinMo apps and that Windows Phone 7 Series applications will be "closed" like iPhone apps, available only through Microsoft's app store. Some speculate that this will discourage some developers from creating apps for Windows Phone 7 Series. You can read more here:
http://www.win7news.net/O52HI2/100325-Windows-Mobile

Oversized dynamic VHD can cause Windows 7 to crash

One of the new features in Windows 7 Pro, Enterprise and Ultimate is the ability to boot from a virtual hard disk (VHD). But you may find that if the VHD is too large, it will crash the computer with an error message that says "A problem has been detected and Windows has been shut down to prevent damage to your computer. An initialization failure occurred while attempting to boot from a VHD. The volume that hosts the VHD does not have enough free space to expand the VHD." This only happens when the VHD is configured to dynamically expand. You can read more about it here:
http://www.win7news.net/O52HI2/100325-Stop-x00000136-Error

How to: Using the New Windows 7 Features

How to add color coding to Windows 7 Media Center Program Guide

If you use the Windows Media Center in Windows 7 to record your favorite TV programs, you know that it can sometimes be difficult to find the shows you want in the Guide. What if you could easily identify programs by categories in the Guide? You probably know that you can sort by category, but did you know that you can also use color coding to make programs of a specific type (such as movies or sports or children's programming) stand out in the full Guide listing? Here's how:

In Windows Media Center, scroll to Tasks and click the Settings option.
In the Settings list, click TV.
Click Guide.
Click Guide Page Options.
Check the box that says "Apply colored backgrounds to shows, based on their category."
Click Save.

Now your programs will be color coded as follows: Movies will be purple, sports will be dark blue, children's shows will be light blue, specials will be orange/brown and news shows will be green.

Windows 7 and Vista Security

Fake antivirus targets Windows 7 users

It's not a new ploy; in fact, it has a name: scareware. It's malicious software that pretends to be an antivirus program, telling you that your computer is infested with all manner of nasty viruses. Now there's a new one out there that's targeting Windows 7 computers. If you fall for its rouse and click to "remove all threats," it will download more malware that tries to get you to enter your credit card information to pay for the "disinfecting." Don't do it! You can read more about it here:
http://www.win7news.net/O52HI2/100325-Fake-Antivirus-Software

Question Corner

Why does quad core take longer to boot than dual core?

QUESTION:
Does anyone know why booting up a quad-core Win 7 system (about 3 minutes) takes 1.5 times as long as a dual-core system (about 2 minutes)? One thing I noticed on the quad-core systems is that shortly after the welcoming message appears, the screen goes black for about 70 seconds. On the dual-core system the screen may go black for a second or not at all. What is happening while the screen is black? Shutdown on the quad systems takes about 11 seconds while shutdown on the dual-core system takes about 22 seconds. I would expect shutdown on the quad-core systems to be twice as fast as the dual-core systems. But why is startup on the quad-core systems so slow and why isn't it twice as fast as on the dual-core system? - John S.

ANSWER:
The only way to get an accurate comparison is to have two systems that are identical except for the processors. There are many variables that can affect the boot time, including the programs that load at start-up, your hardware peripherals (because the drivers have to load), and various configuration settings. It may be that your quad-core system has additional or different hardware devices such as number of hard drives, different video cards and/or sound cards, extra cards such as TV tuners, USB devices, Bluetooth devices, and so forth. Driver issues are a common cause of slow bootup.

There is a somewhat controversial fix. Windows is supposed to use all your processors during the boot process by default. However, quite a few people report that they've been able to speed things up by changing the settings in msconfig.exe. Go to the boot tab and click Advanced Options. It will probably "number of processors" as 1. You can change this by checking the box and selecting from the drop-down list. Again, this is not supposed to have any effect, but so many folks have said it made a difference for them that you might as well give it a try.

You might also check the system log in Event Viewer, to see if it shows any problems being encountered during boot-up.

Windows 7 Configuration and Troubleshooting

20 Keyboard Shortcuts You Need to Know

Keyboard lovers, rejoice! Windows 7 has support for more keyboard shortcuts than ever before. I'm not saying you'll never need to touch your mouse again, but you can definitely keep your fingers on the keys more, and get your work done faster, with these handy key combos.
http://www.win7news.net/O52HI2/100325-PC-Shortcuts

Windows 7 upgrade fails and you can't boot into Vista

On those rare occasions when the Windows upgrade installation fails, you get the message "This version of Windows could not be installed, your previous version of Windows has been restored and you can continued to use it." The problem is that sometimes, when you reboot, the Windows 7 setup starts again, with the same message. Ouch - how do you fix that? You'll have to restore the BCD database. Luckily, it's not hard to do, as long as you have the Vista installation disc. Find the instructions in KB article 974078 at
http://www.win7news.net/O52HI2/100325-Upgrade-Loop

Fav Links

This Week's Links We Like. Tips, Hints And Fun Stuff

Disclaimer: VistaNews does not assume and cannot be responsible for any liability related to you clicking any of these linked Web sites.

Celebrities who look like dogs (literally)
http://www.win7news.net/O52HI2/100325-Woof
TV theme song medley
http://www.win7news.net/O52HI2/100325-TV-Theme-Songs
Ten creative ways dogs get around
http://www.win7news.net/O52HI2/100325-Dogs-Get-Around
It's only a problem when the snake hugs back
http://www.win7news.net/O52HI2/100325-Snake-Hug
Tree house? Or house tree?
http://www.win7news.net/O52HI2/100325-Tree
Young Me/Now Me
http://www.win7news.net/O52HI2/100325-YoungMeNowMe
Amazing 3-D color computer simulation of a low-level flight over surface of Mars. Best viewed in 720p (HD) and Full Screen:
http://www.win7news.net/O52HI2/100325-Mars
Glider plane pilot Bo Lorentzen races along the ridge of Mt. Palomar. His only energy source is the wind and the sun: Wow - it's looooow:
http://www.win7news.net/O52HI2/100325-Glider
Everyone needs an expensive toy in their life, why not a Ferrari 250 GTO. Wait till the end:
http://www.win7news.net/O52HI2/100325-Ferrari

Product of the Week

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http://www.win7news.net/O52HI2/100325-Web-Easy

About Win7News

What Our Lawyers Make Us Say
These documents are provided for informational purposes only. The information contained in this document represents the current view of Sunbelt Software on the issues discussed as of the date of publication. Because Sunbelt must respond to changes in market conditions, it should not be interpreted to be a commitment on the part of Sunbelt and Sunbelt cannot guarantee the accuracy of any information presented after the date of publication.

INFORMATION PROVIDED IN THIS DOCUMENT IS PROVIDED "AS IS" WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND, EITHER EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO THE IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE AND FREEDOM FROM INFRINGEMENT.

This newsletter and website and may contain links to other websites with whom we have a business relationship. Sunbelt Software does not review or screen these sites, and we are not responsible or liable for their privacy or data security practices, or the content of these sites. Additionally, if you register with any of these sites, any information that you provide in the process of registration, such as your email address, credit card number or other personally identifiable information, will be transferred to these sites. For these reasons, you should be careful to review any privacy and data security policies posted on any of these sites before providing information to them.

The user assumes the entire risk as to the accuracy and the use of this document. This document may be copied and distributed subject to the following conditions: 1) All text must be copied without modification and all pages must be included; 2) All copies must contain Sunbelt's copyright notice and any other notices provided therein; and 3) This document may not be distributed for profit. All trademarks acknowledged. Copyright Sunbelt Software, Inc. 1996-2010.

Win7News Archives
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Gizmo's Daily Tech Treats

2010-03-24T21:17:00.001-04:00

Gizmo's Daily Tech Treats

Firefox Update 3.6.2 Released Ahead of Schedule - Grab It Now

Posted: 23 Mar 2010 05:37 PM PDT

Gizmo's Daily Tech Treats

2010-03-23T20:27:00.001-04:00

Gizmo's Daily Tech Treats

How-To: Import Pictures Into Windows 7 From a Camera or Mobile Device

Posted: 23 Mar 2010 05:10 PM PDT

Who Controls the Technology that Controls Your Life?

2010-03-23T18:34:00.000-04:00

	FORUMS \| BLOG \| RSS \| MY PROFILE \| PRIVACY

Vol. 10, #12 - Mar 23, 2010 - Issue #422
	Who Controls the Technology that Controls Your Life?

Editor's Corner
- Who Controls the Technology that Controls Your Life?
- Follow-up: Buzzing about privacy
- Quotes of the Week
Cool Tools
- Tools We Think You Shouldn't Be Without
News, Hints, Tips and Tricks
- No IE9 for XP
- Windows 7 XP Mode will no longer require hardware virtualization support
- Can't run Windows Virtual PC on XP
- USB storage support coming to Xbox?
How To: Using XP Features
- How to disable Fast User Switching
XP Security News
- Web browser security news
XP Question Corner
- Is there a way to put multiple clocks in the system tray in XP?
XP Configuration and Troubleshooting
- Can't open HTML Help files from Internet Explorer
- File in network folder opens as read-only or returns error message
Fav Links
- This Week's Links We Like. Tips, Hints And Fun Stuff
Product of the Week
- PC Speed Maximizer: Keep your PC Running like New

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No automatic credit card charge each year!

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http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100323-VIPRE-Antivirus-Premium

Editor's Corner

Who Controls the Technology that Controls Your Life?

As we've discussed here before, we're all becoming more and more dependent on technology, whether we want to or not, and there isn't much we can do about it. Most of the time, it all works and we reap wondrous benefits from the gadgets and technological infrastructure that have become such an important part of our lives. Other times, something goes wrong and we experience the frustration of dealing with people and entities that can't function efficiently - or sometimes at all - without the help of the machines.

A very minor case in point: when the weather gets cold, our CATV goes bad. The digital cable channels become a mass of pixilation, ranging from the occasional annoyance of a briefly broken picture when the temperature drops a little to a completely unviewable picture with no sound when it drops a lot. We call the cable company, someone comes out and "fixes" it by adjusting the signal strength, and it works for a while - usually until the next cold snap. My contention is that we shouldn't have to pay for cable service on those days when wehave no service. Somehow the cable company doesn't agree.

In the "olden days," we weren't dependent on a cable company (or satellite company, or phone company) for our TV programming. We stuck an antenna on the roof or a pair of "rabbit ears" on top of the set and tuned in over the air. Now the analog OTA channels are all gone, at least in the U.S., and good luck getting a good HD signal with an indoor antenna. In many areas, you might not be able to get a good digital OTA signal even with a traditional 30 ft. outdoor antenna. And of course, you won't be able to get all those non-broadcast network channels that you may have become addicted to.

But TV, while nice to have, isn't a necessity. I can live without TV (and in fact did, for almost ten years). I'd have a harder time living with Internet connectivity, because my livelihood depends on it. Almost all of the work by which I make a living is done over the Internet, from blogging to submitting articles and white papers to communicating with clients and potential clients via email, IM and VoIP. I had a very strange thing happen recently. A software company that wants me to write for them asked for an in-person meeting. That's strange because I've been doing tech writing for over twelve years and this is the first time I will ever have met, face-to-face, the people I would be working with prior to starting the job. But that doesn't negate my statement about the Internet, since they still made first contact and the arrangements for the meeting via email.

But even those of us who depend on the Internet don't really consider it completely dependable. We're all aware that connectivity could be lost at any time; most of us have had that experience more than once. A power outage, a hardware failure, a server overload - we all understand that those things happen. But what about when our technology is deliberately disabled, when someone makes a conscious decision to cause the machines on which we depend to stop working?

When you think about it, then, whomever controls the Internet has a lot of power over me and others who depend on it for their work. That includes the various ISPs that provide service to me and on the other end, to those with whom I need to communicate. It includes those who maintain the domain name system on which I depend to translate friendly addresses to IP addresses and get those communications through. It also includes the government that increasingly regulates cyberspace. A Senate bill introduced last spring made big headlines when it was revealed that it would give the White House the authority to disconnect private sector computers from the Internet under the auspices of a "cyber emergency."

That type of power is unlikely to be wielded on a whim; the political ramifications would be too great. But there are people and organizations out there with the ability to affect your life by cutting off other services or disabling devices other than your computer. Folks got up in arms over the idea that Apple could "brick" their phones. Now it turns out that some car dealerships can brick your vehicle. That capability is supposed to be used as an alternative to repossession, but recently in Austin, TX, a disgruntled former employee of the company used another employee's password to hack into the system and disable the ignition systems and triggering the horns of all the company's customers.
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100323-Hacker-Disables-Cars

Imagine suddenly finding that your car won't start and its horn won't stop honking, and then discovering that a stranger who was angry about being laid off from his job did it to you deliberately.

Of course, many of today's cars can be disabled remotely. In 2009, General Motors began building that ability into OnStar-equipped vehicles. This can be a life-saving feature; last October it was used to disable the gas pedal on a stolen SUV and thus cutting short a police chase that could have endangered officers, the suspect and innocent bystanders:
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100323-OnStar

The disablement technology was used for a good purpose in this case, but it does give one cause to wonder: if OnStar can do it, can a clever bad guy figure out how to activate those remote commands and leave you stranded and at his mercy on a lonely road? What protections are in place to ensure that doesn't happen?

Then there are those "smart meters" that the electric companies are installing all over the country. It's bad enough that some of them would allow the power company to remotely turn off your air conditioning if you're using "too much" electricity. But could someone else hack in and shut you down, spoil all the food in your refrigerator, do much worse harm if you happen to have electrically powered medical equipment? Unfortunately, the answer is probably "yes." At least year's BlackHat conference in Las Vegas, Mike Davis did a presentation on hacking the smart grid, discussing the exploits and design flaws in the smart meter and Advanced Metering Infrastructure (AMI) technology.
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100323-Smart-Grid-Security

Who is really in control of the technology that controls your life? Not you - that's for sure. Does it make you a little nervous to realize that so many of your essential systems could be turned off just because someone, somewhere, decides to do so? Or do you trust that the technologies allowing disablement of our vehicles, electrical power and Internet connections will be used only when appropriate? Do you worry about the security of those systems, or do you think they're well protected and the incidents that have occurred are isolated anomalies? What other examples can you think of, in which we're losing control of our technology? We invite you to discuss this topic in our forum at
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100323-Forum-Discussion

Follow-up: Buzzing about privacy

In last week's editorial, I meandered a bit, from Google Buzz to online privacy (two different but not unrelated issues) and on into the prospect of mind reading technology, giving readers plenty of fodder for commenting. Minnesota Slim made a great point when he said, "I just don't see how anyone can sign up for any kind of SN site that is FREE first of all, where the idea is to post stuff about yourself, and then automatically expect that your info is private 'out of the box' without adjusting settings."

Social networking in general is, after all, about sharing information about yourself. It really shouldn't come as a surprise if the default is to share it all. It's a little like the celebrities who work so hard to become famous, and then complain when strangers recognize them in public. You can't have it both ways; privacy and sharing are part of a continuum and the more you have of one, the less you're going to have of the other.

In fact, I happen to know that some celebrities use false identities on Facebook. I understand the reasons - I have only a smidgeon of "fame" in narrow circles, and I still get many friend requests from people I don't know. These folks, who are household names, get hundreds of requests per day if they use their real names. Still, apart from the fact that it violates the Terms of Service agreement to do so, it wouldn't feel right to me to use a fake name on an SN site. I've tried writing fiction under a pseudonym before and that felt dishonest. I can't imagine pretending to be someone else in a venue where the whole point is to write about yourself. But to each his/her own.

Speaking of false identities, Tim G. shared a story in the Register about how undercover agents are infiltrating MySpace, Facebook, etc. in an attempt to collect evidence on users suspected of lawbreaking.
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100323-MySpace

When I was in law enforcement, I was an outspoken critic of undercover operations in all but the most serious of cases. I believe when the police stoop to the level of criminals and begin to emulate them, too often the lines get blurred and we become too much like criminals ourselves. Why is it okay for cops to lie, steal, do drugs and perform other criminal acts in the name of catching crooks for lying, stealing, doing drugs and performing criminal acts? Why is it okay for law enforcement officers to lie about their identities on SN sites when other people have been charged with a criminal offense for doing so? Does the end justify the means?

Our world is getting more complex all the time, and that complexity leads to tough questions. We certainly aren't going to answer them all here, but it's thought-provoking and entertaining to consider them and to learn what others think about them. As always, thank you to all who participated in this discussion.

'Til next week,
Deb Shinder, Editor
feedback@win7news.net

PS: Did you know this newsletter has a sister publication called Win7News? You can subscribe here, and tell your friends:
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100323-Win7News

And for IT pros, there's our "big sister," WServer News, at
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100323-WserverNews

Join the WXPnews Fan Page on Facebook!
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100316-WXPNews-on-Facebook

Quotes of the Week

"Government is not reason; it is not eloquent; it is force. Like fire, it is a dangerous servant and a fearful master." - George Washington

"Glory is fleeting, but obscurity is forever." - Napoleon Bonaparte

"Human history becomes more and more a race between education and catastrophe." - H.G. Wells

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Cool Tools

Tools We Think You Shouldn't Be Without

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MediaWidget is the quickest and easiest way to transfer all of your music, videos, photos, podcasts, and more from your iPod to PC. Check out the cool Youtube demo and download the trial here:
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Do you have programs you just can't seem to get rid of? Uninstaller! 2010 "ALL New" Version Just Released:
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Moving to Windows 7 is Easy! PCMover moves programs, files, and settings from your old PC to your new PC
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Search for a driver and you get a ton of Driver Software offers instead. But how do you know which one is good? Try Driver Genious 9.0. Free scan.
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Why back up when you can sync? Simply replicate every piece of data to another drive in real-time. Set it and forget it.
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Spellchecker is NOT ENOUGH! Improve your English writing skills with WhiteSmoke a smarter solution for high quality writing. Try it:
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News, Hints, Tips and Tricks

No IE9 for XP

We always advise XP users who use Internet Explorer to upgrade to the latest version of the browser, for security and compatibility reasons. Unfortunately, you won't be able to do that when the next version of IE comes out. Microsoft has confirmed that IE 9 will not run on XP, or even on Vista unless it has Service Pack 2 applied. No, it's not just an arbitrary decision; the problem is that IE 9 uses Direct2D, which isn't part of XP and pre-SP2 Vista. Read more here:
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100323-IE9-and-Windows-XP

Windows 7 XP Mode will no longer require hardware virtualization support

If you have a new computer that came with Windows 7 but you still need to use your applications that are only supported by XP, it just got easier for you to take advantage of XP Mode in Windows 7 Professional and Ultimate editions. Previously the computer's BIOS had to support hardware virtualization technology such as Intel VT. Microsoft has just announced an update that will remove that requirement. This is good news for many people who bought low cost laptops with processors that don't support VT. Note that you still won't be able to use XP Mode on Windows Home Premium, but you can upgrade to Windows 7 Pro for $89.99 via the Anytime Upgrade program.
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100323-Windows7-XP-Mode

Can't run Windows Virtual PC on XP

The latest version of Microsoft's Virtual PC software has been rebranded as Windows Virtual PC and contrary to popular belief, it will run on any version of Windows 7, including Home Basic and Home Premium. The XP Mode preconfigured VM, however, only runs on Windows 7 Professional, Enterprise and Ultimate editions. The bad news is you can't install it on your XP or Vista computer.
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100323-Windows-Virtual-PC

The good news is that Microsoft Virtual PC 2007 is still available for XP and Vista, if you need to run VM software on those host operating systems. You can download it here:
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100323-Virtual-PC-2007

USB storage support coming to Xbox?

That's the latest rumor, and it appears to be based on a Microsoft engineering document. No confirmation yet, but there are plenty of Xbox users who are hoping it's true. If so, you would be able to plug in a USB hard drive. The catch is that you'll only be able to use 16GB partitions for storing the games and other Xbox content. Read more here:
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100323-Xbox-USB-Storage-Support

How To: Using XP Features

How to disable Fast User Switching

Windows XP supports Fast User Switching, which can be handy if you share the computer with someone else and need to swap back and forth often. But if you're the only one who uses your machine, it's just another service that runs unnecessarily and uses up your system resources. Luckily, disabling it is easy:

Click Start | Control Panel | Administrative Tools
Click Services to open the Services MMC
Navigate to Fast User Switching and double click it
Change the startup type to Disable
If the service is running, click Stop
Click OK

Now the service will not start up automatically when you start the computer, saving some resources for other programs and services that you do use.

XP Security News

Web browser security news

Last week, Mozilla confirmed that there is a zero day security vulnerability in Firefox and expects to patch it at the end of the month, and Google released an updated version of Chrome that addresses nine security flaws. This is just a reminder that, despite the hoopla that you may hear about how you should switch from IE to another browser for security reasons, all web browsers have security issues and no matter which one you use, it's vital that you keep it updated with the latest security patches.
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100323-Firefox-Zero-Day-Fix

XP Question Corner

Is there a way to put multiple clocks in the system tray in XP?

QUESTION:
I have a new Windows 7 laptop but my desktop still runs XP and I plan to keep it for a while. If it's not broke, why fix it? BUT there is something I really like about the Windows 7 computer and I want to find out if there's some way, maybe some program, that will let me do it on my XP computer. In Windows 7 you can put more than one clock in the system tray. I like this because my daughter lives in Europe and I like to be able to know what time it is where she is, without going to a web site. Can you help? - Josie K.

ANSWER:
In this global society, more and more of us need to keep on top of the time in different parts of the world. I work with people on both coasts in the U.S. and in several countries overseas, so it's a big help to have clocks displaying multiple time zones. There are quite a few third party applications that do that for XP. If you specifically want an app that goes into the system tray, though, probably the best is Microsoft Time Zone. It lets you see up to five different time zones by clicking on the tray icon. It's a free download from Microsoft and you can get it here:
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100323-Time-Zone

XP Configuration and Troubleshooting

Can't open HTML Help files from Internet Explorer

Your XP computer with security update 896358 installed may not be able to open help files in the .CHM format when you try to open them from Internet Explorer. That's by design, to reduce the security risks of using HTML help. However, if you do need to view these types of files, there are workarounds that you can use. To find out about them, see KB article 902225 at
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100323-HTML-Help-Files

File in network folder opens as read-only or returns error message

If you try to open a file that's on a folder on the network, using Windows Explorer on your XP computer, you might find that it opens as a read-only document or that you get an error message saying the file type cannot be recognized. This happens because Windows Explorer locks and reads the file to extract the thumbnail information. Installing the latest service pack will fix it, but if there's some reason you don't want to do that, there is also a hotfix available. After installing it, you have to edit a registry key. You'll find the full instructions in KB article 830903 at
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100323-Read-Only-Error

Fav Links

This Week's Links We Like. Tips, Hints And Fun Stuff

Disclaimer: WXPNews does not assume and cannot be responsible for any liability related to you clicking any of these linked Web sites.

National Geographic's best photos of 2009
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100323-Photography
Crayon carving
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100323-Crayons
Dog years
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100323-Dog-Years
Funny picture of the week: "Impossible"
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100323-Funny
Get information on airplane crashes and incidents throughout history
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100323-AirDisaster
For those who hate pharmaceutical ads
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100323-Tequila
Now that is quite a moth!
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100323-Moth
The DF1 helicopter is propelled by jets attached to the tips of its blades. It is easy to fly and - powered by hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) - creates zero pollution. Is this test flight going to run into the truck?:
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100323-Test-Flight
No mission is impossible for a Ninja Cat:
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100323-Ninja-Cat
At 4 years old, this girl has better comedic talent than 95% of stand-up comedians today:
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100323-Mika

Product of the Week

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http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100323-PC-Speed-Maximizer

About WXPnews

Gizmo's Daily Tech Treats

2010-03-20T21:33:00.001-04:00

Gizmo's Daily Tech Treats

How To Deal With Flash Cookies

Posted: 20 Mar 2010 02:53 PM PDT

Weekend Roundup March 19, 2010

Posted: 19 Mar 2010 08:04 PM PDT

Gizmo's Daily Tech Treats

2010-03-19T21:01:00.001-04:00

Gizmo's Daily Tech Treats

Image Hosting On The Cheap: A Look at Three Free Services

Posted: 18 Mar 2010 08:06 PM PDT

Gizmo's Daily Tech Treats

2010-03-18T20:11:00.001-04:00

Gizmo's Daily Tech Treats

Weekend Roundup February 5, 2010

Posted: 05 Feb 2010 02:47 PM PST

Is Windows 7 Starter Edition a Non-Starter - or Just Right for Netbooks?

2010-03-18T05:44:00.000-04:00

Published by Sunbelt Software	FORUMS \| RSS \| MY PROFILE \| PRIVACY

	Vol. 2, # 11 - Mar 18, 2010 - Issue # 27

Is Windows 7 Starter Edition a Non-Starter - or Just Right for Netbooks?

Editor's Corner
- Is Windows 7 Starter Edition a Non-Starter - or Just Right for Netbooks?
- Follow-up
- Quotes of the Week
Cool Tools
News, Hints, Tips and Tricks
- IE 9 public preview
- Set Windows to use a different time server
- Windows 7 SP1 may be out ahead of schedule
- Another Facebook scam to be aware of
- Too much video?
How to: Using the New Windows 7 Features
- How to switch your Windows 7 display to a projector
Windows 7 and Vista Security
- Security vulnerability in Virtual PC
Question Corner
- How can I "fix" Windows 7 N?
Windows 7 Configuration and Troubleshooting
- Changing the settings in Windows DVD Maker
- Transfer handwriting personalization to another Tablet PC
Fav Links
- This Week's Links We Like. Tips, Hints And Fun Stuff
Product of the Week
- Cucusoft iPhone Ringtone Maker: Easily Create iPhone Ringtones from Audio and Video Files

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Editor's Corner

Is Windows 7 Starter Edition a Non-Starter - or Just Right for Netbooks?

Netbooks aren't quite the "selling like hotcakes" phenomenon that they were a year ago; according to some reports, sales are leveling off. After an increase of 137 percent in North America from 2008 to 2009, the sales numbers are expected to remain steady in 2010:
http://www.win7news.net/O52HI2/100317-Netbook

Some believe the iPad and its inevitable competitors in the tablet space will edge out the netbook market, but the little guys with correspondingly small price tags are still very popular - especially among students, frequent travelers and as second or third systems for those who love tech gadgets. And they're getting more functional all the time, thanks in part to the operating system.

The first netbooks ran various incarnations of Linux, usually a somewhat locked down version with a very simplistic GUI. It was fine for kids, but those who were used to working with Windows on their desktops found it pretty limiting. The next wave of netbooks ran Windows XP, and that's when sales really took off. Folks were able to have their same familiar interface and do the same things they did on their more powerful computers - within the limitations of the netbook hardware.

When Windows 7 was released, Microsoft was ready with an edition made just for netbooks: Windows 7 Starter Edition. There were Starter editions of XP and Vista, too, but they were only available in "emerging markets," i.e. not in first world countries. Windows 7 Starter can be sold all over the world, but you can't buy the OS itself at retail; it comes only preinstalled on small notebook PCs (netbooks). This is similar to the way Windows XP Media Center and Tablet editions were sold.

Not all small notebooks come with Starter edition. Higher end ones, such as the Dell Inspiron 11 and the Asus Eee PC Seashell come with Windows 7 Home Premium, but you'll find that most of those $299 netbooks are running Starter edition. That's one of the ways they keep the price down - OEMs pay less for Starter than for Home Premium, of course. So what's the difference? Is it worth it to pay extra for Home Premium, or is Starter all that a netbook needs? Let's take a look at what differentiates Starter from its "big brothers."

First, there's one limitation you might have heard about that is no longer an issue. In beta, Starter was limited to running three applications at a time. There was a huge hue and cry about this from beta testers, although the limitation was not quite as onerous as some people assumed. You were able to open as many windows as you wanted from a single program, so that for example, you could have several Word docs open, or multiple tabs open in IE, and the application still only counts as one. Also, the three-app limit didn't apply to things like Windows Explorer, Task Manager and most Control Panel applets, nor to desktop gadgets and anti-virus programs that run as a service. But it's all a moot point, anyway - because prior to final release, Microsoft listened to customers and lifted the three-app limit. Now Starter will run as many programs as the computer's system resources will handle.

There are, however, still some limitations that you might not like if you're used to the full functionality of Windows 7. For example, Aero Glass is missing. Whereas not having transparent window borders may not be any big deal, this also means you don't get Aero-dependent features such as taskbar thumbnail previews and you can't use Aero Peek to quickly view your desktop.

Something else that's gone is the ability to personalize your desktop. You can't change the wallpaper, window colors or sound schemes. Although it's only an aesthetic issue, many people are very bothered by not being able to customize their working spaces to fit their preferences and reflect their personalities.

Then there are the more serious omissions that actually affect functionality. You can't use fast user switching; you have to log off to switch between different users. You can't play back DVDs, either - of course, netbooks generally don't come with built-in DVD drives anyway, but that's a huge drawback for some folks who might want to plug in an external player and use their netbooks as entertainment devices when they're on the road. Starter also doesn't include multi-monitor support, and it doesn't have Windows Media Center or remote media streaming. Of course, it also doesn't have those Windows 7 Pro and above features that are also missing from Home Premium, such as XP Mode and the ability to join a domain.

Are these limitations you can live with? Remember that we're talking about a computer that probably costs only $300 or so - you can't expect it to do everything your $1000 desktop does. And even if the OS supported some of those features, the low-powered processor and small amount of memory would probably render them unusable or frustrating to use anyway.

But there are ways around some of the limitations. For example, there are third party programs you can use to change the background wallpaper in Starter edition. Stardock My Colors is one option; you can read the instructions for using it with Starter here:
http://www.win7news.net/O52HI2/100317-Win7-Wallpaper

Here is another wallpaper changer called StarterBackgroundChanger that's free, but the instructions are in French (the interface is in English):
http://www.win7news.net/O52HI2/100317-Win7-Background

And at least some of the Eee PCs come with something called Eee Tools that lets you change the wallpaper.

As for the multiple monitor restriction, it's important to note that you can connect an external monitor to your Windows 7 Starter netbook (if the netbook has a video-out port) and display your desktop on it, as a mirror image of the netbook's internal display, so this doesn't prevent you from doing PowerPoint presentations and such. What you can't do is extend the desktop across the two monitors to gain additional desktop real estate.

Finally, I haven't done this but according to reports from others, you can plug in an external DVD player and watch commercial DVDs, but you can't watch them on Windows Media Player. Instead, you'll have to install third party software such as VLC Media Player. It's a free download at http://www.videolan.org/vlc/

If, even with the workarounds, you find that Starter edition is still too limited for you, you can upgrade to Windows Home Premium or even Professional or Ultimate. With Windows Anytime Upgrade, you can go from Starter edition to Home Premium for $79.99 (you can get discounts at retailers like NewEgg, which charges $75.99 for the upgrade). However, you may find that the higher end editions run more slowly on the low-powered hardware than Starter does and the video card still might not run Aero and Media Center may be sluggish. You may be able to pep up your netbook by upgrading the RAM, if it allows for that. The difference between the 1 GB of RAM that comes in most netbooks and 2 GB can be significant. Here's an article that shows you other steps you can take to optimize Ultimate for a netbook:
http://www.win7news.net/O52HI2/100317-Win7-for-Netbooks

Of course, the problem is that after you disable all these services and features, you're back to a stripped-down OS that's a lot like ... Starter edition.

What do you think? Is all the hoopla about Starter edition's limitations overblown? Do you really want or need Home Premium or Ultimate on a netbook? Have you used a system running Starter edition? Which of its restrictions, if any, did you find the most difficult to live with? Was it enough to cause you to upgrade? If you upgraded, did you have to upgrade your RAM, too? Did you find yourself wishing you had paid a little more to just buy a more powerful notebook that came with a different edition of Windows 7 in the first place? We invite you to discuss this topic in our forums at
http://www.win7news.net/O52HI2/100317-Forum-Discussion

Follow-up

In last week's editorial, I talked about the high-end edition of Windows 7: Ultimate - and whether it's worth the extra cost. Readers chimed in with their opinions, which ranged all over the board. A couple of readers did mention an Ultimate feature that I left out: the ability to install language packs in Ultimate so you can easily change the language in which the menus, help files, etc. display.

Another reader brought up a reason for upgrading from Vista to Windows 7 Home Premium: the 3-license "family pack" (which has since been discontinued). That was a great deal for multi-computer homes, as it allowed you to upgrade three systems to Windows 7 Home Premium for just $149. Unfortunately, there was no such program for the Pro and Ultimate editions.

Others pointed out that you don't have as much choice in choosing your edition if you already have Vista installed and don't want to do a clean installation. For example, if you have Vista Ultimate, you can do an in-place upgrade only if you upgrade to Windows 7 Ultimate (although you can still get the upgrade price for a lower edition).

And some of you noted that you can get the remote desktop functionality in the lower editions by using Live Mesh. Good point! And one small correction for Tim: in Windows 7, Professional edition does have Windows Media Center. However, administrators can disable it through Group Policy if they don't want it to be available on company systems.

As always, thanks to all of you who participated in this discussion!

'Til next week,
Deb Shinder, Editor
feedback@win7news.net

PS: Did you know this newsletter has a sister publication for XP users called WXPnews? You can subscribe here, and tell your friends:
http://www.win7news.net/O52HI2/100317-WXPNews

And for IT pros, there's our "big sister," WServer News, at
http://www.win7news.net/O52HI2/100317-WserverNews

Look for the Win7News fan page on Facebook!

Quotes of the Week

"Getting information off the Internet is like taking a drink from a fire hydrant." - Mitchell Kapor

"We've arranged a civilization in which most crucial elements profoundly depend on science and technology." - Carl Sagan

"Why is it drug addicts and computer aficionados are both called users?" - Clifford Stoll

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Cool Tools

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News, Hints, Tips and Tricks

IE 9 public preview

Internet Explorer 8 brought many changes to Microsoft's web browser, and has been hailed for its much better security and usability. Is it going to be a tough act to follow? What can Microsoft add to make it even better? The company provided a sneak peek at the next generation, IE 9, at the MIX10 developer's conference this week. It's still far from finished, but Microsoft has created a "test drive" web site that shows off some of the new features and improvements, including support for things like text size animation, faster rendering of map zooming by using the GPU instead of the CPU, and HTML5 graphics that don't work in IE 8. If you're brave enough, you can install the preview from this page:
http://www.win7news.net/O52HI2/100317-IE9

Set Windows to use a different time server

Many people have noticed that the default time server used by Windows to synchronize its clock doesn't work all that well. But you don't have to use that one; you can set the OS to use a different server - one that's less overloaded. Rick Broida shows you how and suggests a better time server in this article:
http://www.win7news.net/O52HI2/100317-Windows-Clock

Windows 7 SP1 may be out ahead of schedule

The latest rumor this week is that we may be seeing service pack 1 for Windows 7 earlier than we previously expected. Originally, it wasn't expected to be released until 2011, but now some say it will be here by the end of the year. This article speculates about the reasons for that, but I'd guess the most likely reason (if it's true) is to encourage upgrading among all those folks who have a hard and fast rule of never going to a new OS until the first service pack is out.
http://www.win7news.net/O52HI2/100317-SP1

Another Facebook scam to be aware of

If you use Facebook, you may have seen notifications that some of your friends are using an application for finding out who has viewed their profiles, and inviting you to do the same. Unfortunately, the whole thing is a scam. It doesn't show you who's been viewing your profile; it just takes you to another app - which earns the scammer advertising revenue. At least it does appear to put you at risk, other than the risk of being duped. But always remember to exercise caution when allowing the Facebook apps to access your information; they are not created by Facebook itself but by third party developers, some of whom may not have the best of intentions. Read more about this one here:
http://www.win7news.net/O52HI2/100317-Stalk-My-Profile

Too much video?

They say a picture is worth a thousand words, and I guess a moving picture is worth a thousand still ones - but sometimes I would prefer to read text or look at photos instead of watching a video. How about you? Read my blog post about why I think the web is becoming too video-centric at
http://www.win7news.net/O52HI2/100317-Video-Centric-Web

How to: Using the New Windows 7 Features

How to switch your Windows 7 display to a projector

On numerous occasions, I've watched presenters struggle to get their laptops to display with a projector after attaching the cables. Windows 7 makes it easy. Here's how:

After attaching the video-out (VGA) port of your laptop to the projector's cable, press the Windows Logo key + P.
You'll see a pop-up box with four choices. The first is Computer Only, which is not what you want. You also probably don't want to Extend the Desktop. That leaves two choices. You can select to Duplicate the laptop display to the projector, so that you see the same screen on both (my preference) or you can select Projector Only, so that your desktop is displayed only on the projector screen.

This solution is quick, easy and elegant - far better than having to search for the correct key combination (which varied depending on the hardware) with XP and Vista.

Windows 7 and Vista Security

Security vulnerability in Virtual PC

Security researchers reported this week that they have discovered a zero-day vulnerability in the Virtual PC software that powers XP Mode in Windows 7. Attackers could exploit the vulnerability to bypass Windows 7 security features and run malicious code on your machine. This affects not just Windows Virtual PC (the latest version, which comes with the XP Mode download for Windows 7 Pro and above) but also Microsoft Virtual PC 2007. Microsoft's enterprise-level virtualization solution, Hyper-V, is not affected. You can read more here:
http://www.win7news.net/O52HI2/100317-Zero-Day-Flaw

Question Corner

How can I "fix" Windows 7 N?

QUESTION:
I bought a computer in Europe that has the "N" edition of Windows 7 Home Premium installed. I can't find out my Windows Experience Index (WEI) score because apparently that feature doesn't work on the N edition. Is there a way to fix this? Thanks! - Jim L.

ANSWER:
Windows 7 N was created in response to the European Commission's requirement that Microsoft offer a version of Windows that did not come bundled with a media player. There are N versions of all Windows 7 editions. The problem is that WEI uses some of the components of Windows Media Player, thus it's not functional on the N editions. You can add WMP back to any of the Windows 7 N operating systems (which will also fix the problem with WEI) by downloading and installing the Media Feature Pack for Windows 7 N and Windows 7 KN, which you can find at
http://www.win7news.net/O52HI2/100317-Media-Feature-Pack

Windows 7 Configuration and Troubleshooting

Changing the settings in Windows DVD Maker

Windows 7 (all editions except Starter) include the Windows DVD Maker for creating DVDs. You can configure the settings to fit your needs, including how the DVD menu displays, whether to play the video automatically when you insert the disc, the DVD aspect ratio, video format, burner speed, and more. To find out how to configure these settings, see the Microsoft Windows 7 web site at
http://www.win7news.net/O52HI2/100317-DVD-Maker-Settings

Transfer handwriting personalization to another Tablet PC

If you're using a Tablet PC and you buy a new one, you might want to transfer your handwriting personalization information to the new system. Luckily, that information is stored in your user profile and you can transfer it to the new computer by using the Windows Easy Transfer feature in Windows 7. Find out how here:
http://www.win7news.net/O52HI2/100317-Handwriting-Personalization

Fav Links

This Week's Links We Like. Tips, Hints And Fun Stuff

Disclaimer: VistaNews does not assume and cannot be responsible for any liability related to you clicking any of these linked Web sites.

Have your (geeky) cake and eat it too
http://www.win7news.net/O52HI2/100317-Cakes
Find your favorite newspaper on the map
http://www.win7news.net/O52HI2/100317-Newspapers
I want one of these
http://www.win7news.net/O52HI2/100317-Video
I also want one of these
http://www.win7news.net/O52HI2/100317-Window-Phone
Weird wedding locations
http://www.win7news.net/O52HI2/100317-Weddings
Married to a geek?
http://www.win7news.net/O52HI2/100317-Geeks
A one-minute guide to taking better photographs of people and why you can't trust Facebook profile pictures:
http://www.win7news.net/O52HI2/100317-Photographs
What kids can do when they aren't glued to the TV:
http://www.win7news.net/O52HI2/100317-Turtle-Kids
Dogs in Slow Motion at 1000 frames per second:
http://www.win7news.net/O52HI2/100317-Slow-Motion-Dogs

Product of the Week

Cucusoft iPhone Ringtone Maker: Easily Create iPhone Ringtones from Audio and Video Files

Cucusoft iPhone Ringtone Maker is an easy-to-use tool that can help you trim or clip audio from your favorite audio or video files, then convert it to iPhone Ringtone format. With this program, you can make your own iPhone ringtone from any music you love. The supported input source file formats include .mp3, .m4a, wav, .wma, .avi, .flv (YouTube format), .mp4 (iPod video format), .wmv, MPEG, H.264/AVC, AVCHD, .mkv, .rm, .ra, .mov, DivX, XviD, 3GP, etc. Win7News readers can download the free evaluation here.
http://www.win7news.net/O52HI2/100317-Ringtone-Maker

About Win7News

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Gizmo's Daily Tech Treats

2010-03-17T20:44:00.001-04:00

Gizmo's Daily Tech Treats

Captivated By Words? You'll Love Wordnik

Posted: 16 Mar 2010 07:09 PM PDT

The Online World is Buzzing and the War on Privacy Continues

2010-03-16T18:48:00.000-04:00

	FORUMS \| BLOG \| RSS \| MY PROFILE \| PRIVACY

Vol. 10, #11 - Mar 16, 2010 - Issue #421
	The Online World is Buzzing and the War on Privacy Continues

Editor's Corner
- The Online World is Buzzing and the War on Privacy Continues
- Follow-up: Cloudy Days
- Quotes of the Week
Cool Tools
- Tools We Think You Shouldn't Be Without
News, Hints, Tips and Tricks
- XP users may face performance problem with new "advanced format" hard drives
- Don't press F1!
- Xbox is top selling video game console but overall game sales are down
How To: Using XP Features
- Use Windows Live Sync to keep your computers "on the same page"
XP Security News
- XP wi-fi security concern
- Americans are losing more money to online scams
XP Question Corner
- DirectX 10 on XP: Yes or No? Well, Maybe
XP Configuration and Troubleshooting
- Can't view video content even after installing Flash
- Windows Movie Maker quits unexpectedly
Fav Links
- This Week's Links We Like. Tips, Hints And Fun Stuff
Product of the Week
- PowerSuite Professional 2010

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Editor's Corner

The Online World is Buzzing and the War on Privacy Continues

Almost exactly a year ago, I wrote an editorial here in WXPnews titled "Does Anybody Care about Online Privacy Anymore?" Many readers wrote to tell me, rather adamantly, that they do. Over the course of that year, however, it seems that more and more of our privacy has slipped away, and according to a piece by Declan McCullagh published in CNET News last week, the answer to my question is now a resounding "no."
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100316-Privacy

The apparent inspiration for the article was Google's new social networking technology, Google Buzz. It integrates social networking features into Gmail, similarly to the way the Outlook Social Connector integrates social networking into Outlook. I wrote about the OSC in the February 25 issue of our sister newsletter, Win7News:
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100316-Outlook-Social-Networking

Buzz has generated more, well, buzz than OSC, even though Microsoft was actually first to announce its intention to integrate social networking with its email client. In this blog post, Sam Diaz touches on some of the reasons for this:
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100316-Buzz

I think another big advantage that Buzz has over Microsoft is the compatibility factor. You have to be using Outlook (2003, 2007 or 2010) to use OSC, and setting it up requires you to download and install the OSC software. Note that with Outlook 2010 beta, you have to first uninstall a version of OSC that's included, because it isn't compatible with the first plug-in, for LinkedIn - although presumably a functional version of OSC will come built into the final release of Office 2010.

Because Gmail is a web-based application (or some might say a "cloud" app), users don't have to do anything to update it in order to use Buzz; Gmail has already been updated for you. You just log into your Gmail account and there's a "Buzz" link in the left-side pane under the Inbox link. Click it and you'll see a video about how Buzz works, and you can add people you want to follow on Buzz. You can post a photo, but as far as I can tell there is no way to create albums; you have to post one photo at a time. As with other social networks, people can comment or "like" your post or photo. Unfortunately, not that many people seem to be using Buzz yet (at least, not people I know) which limits its usefulness. If you're interested, you can check it out at http://www.google.com/buzz

But back to the point of the original article: Much of the "buzz" generated by the new service had to do with privacy issues related to its default settings. Many privacy advocates were appalled to find that Buzz made the list of people they followed and those who followed them part of their public profiles, so that anyone who cares to look could find out who your friends are. Google has made some changes to the settings, but not everyone is satisfied that they go far enough:
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100316-Buzz-Privacy-Flaw

Maybe it doesn't matter, if McCullagh is right. He says "Internet users have grown accustomed to informational exhibitionism" and "Norms are changing, with confidentiality giving way to openness." And he seems to think that's a good thing. In fact, he says it's fortunate that courts have not embraced the philosophies of former Supreme Court Justice and privacy advocate Louis Brandeis, and states that less privacy "can lead to a more virtuous society."

Does he have a point? I can't argue with his observation that anonymity encourages (or at least enables) people to say and do things they wouldn't if their identities were known - and often those things represent the worst aspects of their personalities. In fact, one of the drawbacks, in my opinion, of web forums in comparison to email feedback is that although they certainly don't have to, most readers who send me email sign it - even those whose comments are critical. On the forums, most (although not all) participants have screen names that lend no clues to who they are. Luckily, our readers are generally a great group of people and the discussion has always remained civil, but I've seen other web boards where people hid behind screen names to post some pretty nasty comments.

Wishing others would have the courtesy to reveal their names when we're having a conversation, though, is a far cry from believing that we should have no qualms about having more intimate details about us published for the world to see. Some of my recent editorials have touched on specific privacy concerns: location- aware software that broadcasts where you are in real time and how that can make you a target of crime, use of webcams to remotely take a peek at you without your knowledge, having your data out there in "the cloud" where it's under someone else's control.

As almost anyone who's ever been in a romantic relationship of any duration can attest, sharing is good, but sharing everything -- not so much. What kind of world would it be if we could all read one another's minds, if our every passing thought was public, if we had no privacy whatsoever? In January 2009, 60 Minutes reported that researchers at Carnegie-Mellon University had some up with a way to determine what a person is thinking at any given time via an MRI scan.
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100316-Private-Thoughts

Then just last month, a Cambridge/University of Liege study was revealed, whereby researchers were able to read the minds of people who were ostensibly in a vegetative state:
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100316-Brain-Scan-Technology

Then came reports earlier this month from University College London about evidence that scientists can read the patterns of your brain activity to find out what memories you're recalling.
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100316-Reading-Thoughts

There is a great deal of research going on in this area, and why not? The ability to read someone's mind would give you the ultimate power over that person. This has long been a subject of fascination for science fiction writers and fans. Stories like Minority Report by Philip K. Dick, on which the Tom Cruise movie was based, explore the idea of what life would be like if our thoughts were no longer private - and somehow that future never comes out looking like a pleasant one.

We know that hackers are rarely satisfied with just breaking into our computers and looking at our data. The next step is to change it or steal it. Once it's possible to intrude on a person's thoughts, the logical progression is to find ways to control those thoughts, or even to erase memories completely. Researchers have already developed a drug that can be used to erase painful memories. As with most inventions, it was created with the best of intentions, to help victims of post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) let go of memories that disrupt their lives. But since our memories (and our thoughts) define who we are, perhaps it's not such a great idea to get rid of them - even the bad ones:
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100316-Erase-Bad-Memories

As scary as it is to imagine having your memories wiped out, it's even more frightening to think that someone could replace them with other, false memories. It's an accepted idea that false memories can be implanted by systematic brainwashing or even just suggestions made to a psychologically vulnerable person by someone in a position of trust, such as a therapist. There's even a name for it: False Memory Syndrome (FMS). And although the study of FMS has focused on memories of childhood abuse, it's logical that if one type of fake memory can be implanted in a person's mind, so can other types of memories.

Will technology one day advance so far that we'll be able to download all of our memories into a computer, thereby achieving a sort of digital immortality? In the Syfy channel's new series, Caprica, tech billionaire Daniel Graystone does just that with the memories and personality of his daughter, which exist both in an avatar in the virtual world and in a robotic Cylon.
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100316-Caprica

We're still a long way from that, and the separation of our minds from our physical bodies is a bridge some believe will never be crossed, but in the meantime, it seems as if every technological advance strips away a little more of the privacies that we once held so dear. Do we still want to defend them, or is it time to give in to the seemingly inevitable and, in words reminiscent of a much more naïve time, "let it all hang out?" Tell us what you think about Buzz, privacy, and how far our tech will take us in the future. We invite you to discuss these topics in our forum at
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100316-Forum-Discussion

Follow-up: Cloudy Days

In last week's editorial, I addressed comments from Steve Ballmer that Microsoft is betting its future on the "the cloud," and voiced my wish for a little moderation when it comes to the wholesale move toward delivering applications and data to remote Internet servers. After thinking more about this subject over the past week, I had some additional thoughts, which are too lengthy to include in this follow-up, so I put them into a blog post that you can read at:
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100316-Cloud-Cover

Meanwhile, there were quite a few responses from readers in the forum and via email and the majority of those responses were, if not completely anti-cloud, at least what I'd call "cloud wary." They confirmed my suspicion that most people still aren't ready to trust the cloud with their data and don't want to depend on it for their important applications. The biggest concerns seem to be security, reliability and performance.

Some of you likened cloud computing to the old mainframe model. That was more like the current idea of the "private cloud." While it had the same centralized structure, the control still generally stayed within the organization, rather than resting with a third party outside the company. Another reader said AOL was cloud computing and yes, it was - sort of. However, it was a single cloud application that ran alongside other, local apps. People didn't use AOL to compose their documents or store their work products on AOL's servers.

Of course, the vast majority of home computer users use what might be considered a variation of cloud computing for email. Not many run their own email servers at home as we do; instead they rely on their ISPs or a web mail service such as Hotmail or Gmail, or have their email domains hosted by providers. It's businesses that will be making a change by moving email into the cloud. But as DavidW pointed out, it's not exactly the same as the cloud computing model we've been discussing. However, I do think consumers are already much more comfortable with the cloud than most companies are. Many of you probably already store data on Skydrive or ADrive or Xdrive, although many use it just for backups and not as the primary storage repository.

And amongst all the sentiment against the cloud, opinions that Microsoft will not push the cloud to the exclusive of personal computing and speculate that if they do, Linux may finally rise in popularity, there were a few responses like this one from pwilson: "Will cloud computing become analogous to moving from candlelight to electricity? I'm sure early reliability and trust of electricity was suspect. There were early adopters and those that waited. It's not if, it's when." And Ernest said, "I totally agree with Ballmer's strategy -- they've probably read the tea leaves (think Chrome O/S) and realized the cloud is the only option, long-term!"

But as many of you brought up, in the short term there are far more issues than I addressed in my original article. One very good point was geographic location of the servers and thus legal jurisdiction. Alzie also pointed out that copyright issues get more complicated when data is stored in the cloud. And one reader mentioned the possibility of government takeovers in the IT industry as has happened in other industries. And a number of you pointed out that while cloud computing might be an option for those with unlimited Internet access, the trend with ISPs is going in the other direction (and in fact, metered access is the norm in many countries), making cloud computing a much more expensive solution.

We got more responses on the subject than most, and I enjoyed reading all the different opinions. As always, thanks to everyone who participated!

'Til next week,
Deb Shinder, Editor
feedback@win7news.net

PS: Did you know this newsletter has a sister publication called Win7News? You can subscribe here, and tell your friends:
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100316-Win7News

And for IT pros, there's our "big sister," WServer News, at
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100316-WserverNews

Join the WXPnews Fan Page on Facebook!
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100316-WXPNews-on-Facebook

Quotes of the Week

"What you are will show in what you do." - Thomas A. Edison (1847 - 1931)

"We are what we believe we are." - C.S. Lewis (1898 - 1963)

"Supercomputers will achieve one human brain capacity by 2010, and personal computers will do so by about 2020." - Ray Kurzweil (1948 - )

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News, Hints, Tips and Tricks

XP users may face performance problem with new "advanced format" hard drives

A new type of hard drive that uses a new format for storing data are set to hit the shelves next year, and they will use the space more effectively because they store the data in fewer, larger sectors. However, Windows XP doesn't know how to handle the new format and XP users could run into problems if they install the new drives. Emulation software will allow XP to use the drives, but you may find that performance slows when writing to the drives - with up to a 10 percent reduction in performance.
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100316-Advanced-Format

Don't press F1!

There were dozens of articles on the web this week with that headline. What it pertains to is a vulnerability in IE by which an attacker can write code to pop up a message box telling you to press F1 (which invokes winhlp32.exe, the Help file) and then run an .HLP file written by the attacker. Vista and Windows 7 don't use .HLP files, but XP is vulnerable. Despite all the hoopla, though, it's not as dangerous as it seems at first glance. Find out why here:
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100316-XP-F1-Help-Bug

Xbox is top selling video game console but overall game sales are down

In February, Microsoft's Xbox took over the top spot in the video game hardware space from Nintendo's Wii, and Sony's PlayStation 3 is in third place, but not by much. Overall, though, hardware sales have fallen by 20 percent. Did everyone who wants one get one already, or are people playing less? Maybe it bodes well for the economy - if it means more people are back to work, with less time on their hands to play video games. Whatever the reasons, read about it here and find out what the top selling games were last month:
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100316-Xbox-Beats-Wii

How To: Using XP Features

Use Windows Live Sync to keep your computers "on the same page"

If you have multiple computers (a home computer and a work computer, or a desktop and a laptop, for example), it's handy to be able to keep the important files synchronized on both machines so you don't have to keep copying new versions back and forth. There are many different services and programs you can use to do this. One free option is Windows Live Sync. Here's how it works:

Sign up for a free Windows Live account if you don't already have one.
Download and install the Live Sync application on both computers.
Make sure both computers are turned on and connected to the Internet.
Sign into the Live Sync web site.
Click "Create a personal folder."
Find the folder on your hard drive that you want to synchronize with the other computer, or create a new folder for this purpose, and select it.
Click "Sync folder here."
Select the other computer from the list.
Now pick a folder on the second computer where you want to sync the folder you chose on the first computer.
Select whether to use Automatic sync (the folders will be synchronized for you without you doing anything) or on-demand sync (you sync the folders whenever you choose).
Click Finish.

Now when you change anything in the synced folder on one computer, the changes will be propagated to the other computer.

To sign up for a Windows Live account, go to www.live.com

To download the Live Sync software, go to https://sync.live.com/clientdownload.aspx

XP Security News

XP wi-fi security concern

Your wireless-enabled XP laptop could be advertising itself as an ad hoc wireless network without your knowledge, allowing other wireless users in the vicinity to connect to it. Oops! Read more about how this happens and what you can do about it:
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100316-Security-Hole

Americans are losing more money to online scams

When I receive a variation on the old Nigerian scam (and I seem to get at least two or three per week that are disguised well enough to slip through the spam filters), I laugh and wonder how anyone could possibly fall for that. But apparently quite a few people do, as a recent report from the FBI and National White Collar Crime Center says the amount of money lost to such fraudulent schemes has more than doubled since 2008. Last year it totaled over half a billion dollars. There's no doubt that the scams are getting more sophisticated, and a favorite tactic now is to impersonate a government agency. In fact, the number one reported scam was an email that falsely claims to be from the FBI. Forewarned is forearmed, so read more here:
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100316-Cost-of-Internet-Scams

XP Question Corner

DirectX 10 on XP: Yes or No? Well, Maybe

QUESTION:
Got interested when you indicated in "Just Cause 2 won't run on XP" that XP will only support DirectX 9, not DirectX 10. Something clicked in my brain, so I checked the dxdiag utility in my WinXP system32 folder. What's this? My Windows XP Home (SP3) is running DirectX10! - Charles K.

ANSWER:
That could very well be, Charles. Now for "the rest of the story." Officially, Microsoft does not support DirectX 10 on Windows XP. However, there are unofficial ports of DirectX 10 that can be downloaded from third parties and installed on XP. You can find these with a simple web search, but remember that if the software causes problems, you're on your own.

XP Configuration and Troubleshooting

Can't view video content even after installing Flash

If you use your XP computer to try to view video on a web site that is Flash based, you may be unable to do so even though Flash Player is installed. This could be an indication that the Flash Player is corrupted. You may need to remove Flash Player and install the current version or install a standalone version. To find out more about this problem, see KB article 914647 at
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100316-Viewing-Video

Windows Movie Maker quits unexpectedly

If you're using Windows Movie Maker in Windows XP and the program suddenly and unexpectedly closes after you add a title, video transition or video effect to a movie, there are a couple of different possible causes. If you have the Divxaf.ax file installed (DivX Antifreeze filter), you need to rename it. You might also need to adjust your hardware acceleration settings. You can get instructions for doing both of these in KB article 836021 at
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100316-Movie-Maker

Fav Links

This Week's Links We Like. Tips, Hints And Fun Stuff

Disclaimer: WXPNews does not assume and cannot be responsible for any liability related to you clicking any of these linked Web sites.

Man dumps cheating girlfriend on radio show
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100316-Dumped
House of cards
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100316-Cards
Zenyatta Montage
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100316-Zenyatta-Montage
RoboPlow
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100316-Roboplow
Golfing Chihuahua
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100316-Burrito
Letter opener
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100316-Letter-Opener
This awesome "Hoverplane" from the 1960's weighs 540 tons and flies on a cushion of air:
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100316-Ground-Effect
Men In Coats - The most awesome comedy team you'll see today on the web:
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100316-Men-in-Coats
A BMW superbike pulls off a tablecloth on giant dining table with 24 complete place settings. I'm not sure if this is a trick or simple physics. Tell me?
http://www.wxpnews.com/MY5HU3/100316-Tablecloth

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Gizmo's Daily Tech Treats

2010-03-14T21:02:00.001-04:00

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25 Useful and Time Saving Computer Tips

Posted: 13 Mar 2010 06:20 PM PST

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Gizmo's Daily Tech Treats

2010-03-12T20:48:00.001-05:00

Gizmo's Daily Tech Treats

Weekend Roundup March 12, 2010

Posted: 12 Mar 2010 02:27 PM PST

Leave No Trace: How to Completely Erase Your Hard Drives, SSDs and Thumb Drives

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