PC User Clinic » Steve

Move Your iTunes Library to an External Hard Drive

Steve — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 13:46:18 +0000

If you made a resolution to get more organized for the new year, and made specific plans to get your ever-growing music collection under control, you probably will be getting a larger hard drive or maybe an external drive for your music. The process can take a couple of hours, depending on the size of your collection.

For Windows PC (Apple Support):

Step by Step

For Mac and Windows (from cnet):

No related posts.

Has Microsoft Changed it’s Update Policies?

Steve — Mon, 14 Dec 2009 14:07:30 +0000

Microsoft Sign

In a break from tradition, a recent Microsoft updated removed, or deprecated, code in older Windows platforms that had to do with the Indeo Video Codec. Microsoft chose to disable the utilization of this codec instead of patching it to fix some recently discovered security vulnerabilities.

Last year, Microsoft took a similar measure regarding a flaw that was discovered in its Windows 2000 Server’s implementation of TCP/IP, but in that case, Microsoft simply chose to do nothing, which leaves these systems vulnerable.

These actions are siginificant in that Microsoft has always tried to patch the holes that were found in its software and make everything work together. They have always chosen to make their products backwards compatible with older versions of software, but these actions may signal that the software company may be softening this policy.

No related posts.

PC Sales Increase in 2009

Steve — Wed, 25 Nov 2009 13:47:42 +0000

The Gartner research group reported that worldwide sales of PCs have increased this year. Most analysts had been projecting PC sales to trend downward due to the recession, but buoyed by strong sales in the 3rd quarter, the PC market will show a 2.8% increase over 2008. This trend is expected to continue into 2010 shich should show a 12.6% increase.

However, even with the stronger than expected showing in unit sales, overall market value fell based on unprecedented decline in average PC selling price. Even though the report doesn’t quite say it, this decline in market value is due to the strong showing of the new netbooks or “mini-notebooks”. Since the sales of desktop PCs fell 9% from last year, the laptop segment, augmented by the popularity of the netbooks, has driven the sales increases.

NetbookBoards.com has more details about how the new segment is driving sales

Laptop, Notebook or Netbook

The Year of the E-Reader

Steve — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 18:08:03 +0000

E-Book Reader

The first commercially successful E-book reader (E-Reader) was launched in 2007. The Amazon Kindle sold out in just over 5 hours and had only limited availability for the next 5 months. The market continues to be strong, and this holiday season looks to be very successful for these devices.

Other than for testing, I have yet to use a dedicated reader, but my iPod Touch works amazingly well. I read a couple of books a month and I do most of my reading in bed after the lights are out, but you won’t hear any page turning, and the amount of light that the iPod gives off doesn’t seem to bother my wife. I initially thought that the small format and page size would make it difficult to use, but I don’t notice those things at all while reading.

I would recommend that if you are considering buying a E-Reader, that you test out many different models since the features and overall feel can be very different.

Here’s a rundown on some of the current devices as well as a couple that are in the works:

Kindle – 6″ diag display, available through Amazon for $259
Kindle DX – 9.7″ diag display, available through Amazon for $489
Nook – 6″ diag display with 3.5″ touch screen color control display, will be available through Barnes and Noble for $259 in November
Kindle for iPhone and iPod Touch – Free application available through the Apple App store that turns your iPhone or iPod Touch into E-Readers
Plastic Logic Que – overall size 8.5″x11″ and just 1/3″ thick. Price not announced for a projected January availability
Spring Design Alex – Dual screen, based on the new Google Android operating system, but no other specs are available.
iRex DR800SG – 8″ diag display, available in November for $399
Sony Reader Daily – 7″ diag display, available in December for $399
Sony Reader Touch – 6″ diag display, available for $299
Sony Reader Pocket – 5″ diag display, available for $199

Computer makers MSI and ASUS also have E-Readers in the works.

Technologizer.com has a very good breakdown on E-Readers and this article provides links to additional information.

Wikipedia has a good list of pros and cons about E-Readers, and I’ve summarized the major points here:

Advantages:

An e-book can be purchased, downloaded and used immediately.
More than 2 million free books available for download as of August 2009.
Educational text books (e-textbooks) can be distributed at a lower cost than print versions per student.
Second generation e-books (and color e-readers) have motion capability.
E-Books can be printed for less than the price of traditional new books using new on demand book printers.
Text can be searched automatically and cross-referenced using hyperlinks.
A single E-Reader containing several books is easier to carry around (less weight and volume) than the same books (or sometimes even a single book) in printed form. Even hundreds or thousands of books may be stored on the same device. Using removable media even more can be carried around easily.
E-books can allow non-permanent highlighting and annotation.
Font size and font face can be adjusted.
E-books may allow animated images or multimedia clips to be embedded.
E-books allow for greater fidelity in color reproduction compared to CMYK color printing (although most e-book readers have only monochrome displays).
Depending on the device an e-book may be readable in low light or even total darkness. For devices for which this applies, energy consumption for reading without daylight is less than that of a lamp needed for reading a printed book.
An e-book can automatically open at the last read page.
While an e-book reader costs much more than one book, the electronic texts are generally cheaper. Moreover, a great share of books are available free of charge. For example, all fiction from before the year 1900 is in the public domain.
Text-to-speech software can be used to read the text. However, the voice will be auto-generated, thus the quality worse than audiobooks.
An e-book can be offered indefinitely, without ever going “out of print”.
Depending on possible digital rights management, it may be easy and cheap to produce a back-up for the case that the e-book is lost or damaged, and/or it may be possible to get a free new copy if that happens.
It is easier for authors to self-publish e-books.
The production of e-books does not consume paper, ink, etc. Printed books use 3 times more raw materials and 78 times more water to produce.

Disadvantages

Reading e-books requires an electronic device and software. Even in the case of reading it on a personal computer one already has, it may require additional software.
A small paperback is easier to carry around than a typical e-book reader.
E-book readers require electrical power; in the case of mobile use, the battery can get exhausted.
E-book readers are more susceptible to drop damage.
E-book readers can malfunction and e-books can be damaged due to faults in hardware or software.
E-book readers are more likely to be stolen than paper books.
Depending on the device an e-book may be difficult to read in bright sunlight.
Most publishers don’t produce the e-book equivalent of their printed books. In other cases the product quality is lower or it is released later.
E-books can be easily hacked through the use of hardware or software modifications and widely disseminated on the Internet and/or other e-book readers, without approval from the author or publisher. This ease of piracy is a significant drawback for publishers.
If an e-book device is stolen, lost, or broken beyond repair, all e-books stored on the device may be lost (Although this may be avoided by backups either on another device or by the e-book provider).
There is a loss of tactility and aesthetics of book-bindings. Also lost is the ability to very quickly riffle through the pages to search for a particular section or to get a sense of the book merely by sight.
Screen resolution of reading devices is currently lower than actual paper.
Due to the digital rights management, customers cannot resell or loan their e-books to other readers.
Some books available as e-book cannot be read on some e-book readers because they are not supplied in a format those readers allow.
While printed books remain readable for ages, changing technologies and less durable electronic storage media require e-books to be copied to a new carrier after some years.
E-book readers require various substances to produce, and are an environmental hazard as they’re non-biodegradable.
Physical discomfort for some users, including eye strain.
More expensive, compared to used books.
One will never read thousands of books really well or over a short period of time, so the high amount held on an ebook reader becomes irrelevant (Though it might be useful if the ebook is used as a reference library).
A book is safe from electromagnetic pulses and overloads.

More Thoughts About Passwords

Steve — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 13:52:42 +0000

I really should have knocked on wood when I wrote about passwords last week. I was practicing what I preached and knew that I was safe. But sure enough, my old Yahoo email account was just hijacked.

I stopped using this account after I signed up for Gmail, and it had some really old contacts in it. At one point a while back, and after not logging in for over a year, Yahoo sent me an email saying that the account was going to be deactivated. So I logged back in, deleted old messages, contacts, etc, and moved on.

But apparently, those old contacts were not actually deleted. They must have remained somehow linked to the old account, and available to anyone that would be able to hijack it. When whoever or whatever hijacked the account, they were able to send an email to all the contacts linked to the account and make it appear that it was sent by me. The email contained a hyperlink to a program that could be harmful to your PC.

I’m still trying to contact the folks that may have received the malicious email and make sure they are OK, and so far it doesn’t look like anyone was hurt.

Here is a summary of what this episode teaches us. I think it applies to everyone.

Just as in the real world, you are never 100% safe. You always need to be on guard.
Old accounts that you no longer use may still contain data that could be useful to hackers.
Make sure that the passwords you choose for ALL online email accounts are the strongest possible. They should contain at least 8 characters, have no dictionary words or other recognizable patterns and be a mix of alpha, numeric and symbol characters.
Make sure your anti-virus and anti-spyware programs are working and contain the most recent updates.

For more information on good password selection, Thoughtpick.com has a very good article on creating strong passwords.

/Steve

Passwords – How Safe is Your Online Information?

Steve — Tue, 20 Oct 2009 13:04:47 +0000

Your online security is only as good as your password. You probably make regular visits to dozens of sites that require passwords, so keeping track of them can be a chore. Dealing with so many passwords causes people to do some very unwise things. They might write them down, or store them on a computer file, or even use the same password for everything. All of these defeat the purpose of passwords and can result in compromising your important data.

Recently, an anonymous user posted 10,000 usernames and passwords that had been lifted from Windows Live Hotmail accounts. An online internet security company analyzed these passwords and found some very distressing trends.

The most common password was ’123456′
The second most common password was ’123456789′
Many passwords were people’s names
Only 6% used strong passwords which contain a combination of alpha, numeric and other characters

With the requirement for so many passwords, how do you keep track of them?

Security experts say that passwords should use a combination of letters, numbers and other characters and shouldn’t include names, dates or dictionary words. They also say that you should change your password frequently. It’s no wonder that people feel they have to write them down.

Here are some simple rules and tips to help you with coming up with secure passwords and then remembering them when you do:

Make Passwords Hard to Guess but Easy to Remember
When establishing passwords, think of a short phrase that only you would remember and make an acronym. For example, “I Love The Rain” would yield ‘iltr’. Now, capitalize one or more of the characters and you have ‘iLtr’. Using this method, you will come up with virtually unguessable passwords.
Develop Several ‘Core’ Passwords
The previous tip will result is a ‘core’ password. Adding at least two numbers and a special character will result in a very strong password. The numbers you use can be from a phone number, address or date. Varying where you put the numbers and special characters will make the password even more secure.
Never Compromise Your Password
Make it hard for hackers and never write your password down. If you sign up for a service that sends you an email confirmation with your password printed in plain text, change it immediately. Never give your password away. If your password is out of your control, so is your personal information.
For Low Security Sites, Use the Same Password
Sites that don’t store any personal information don’t pose much of a security risk. If you find that you may need to enter personal information later, change your password to make it more secure.
Use Extra Security for Financial Passwords
Each financial site should ALWAYS have its own password. These sites can result in the most risk if your account is compromised. Select the most secure password you can and change it monthly.

/Steve

Laptop, Notebook or Netbook

Steve — Mon, 19 Oct 2009 03:49:26 +0000

In 2008, more notebook style PCs were sold than desktop PCs, and with the introduction of netbook PCs, this should be the case for 2009. Currently, netbooks account for almost 6% of the total PC market and some analysts project that sales will remain strong throughout the holiday season. However, after that is anyone’s guess. The netbook’s small, inconvenient size and lack of capabilities may be a limiting factor to continued sales growth.

But what’s the difference between a laptop PC and a notebook PC? And what is a netbook? There doesn’t appear to be any official descriptions, so I’ve come up with my own:

Laptop – A portable PC with all the capabilities and power of a desktop, but small enough to use while on your lap, weight doesn’t seem to be an issue.

Notebook – Similar to a Laptop PC, but thinner and lighter, generally less than 6 lbs.

Netbook – Smaller and less capable than a Notebook PC, optimized for Internet usage (hence the “Net” in Netbook). Netbooks usually do not have an optical drive and weigh in at 2-3 lbs.

Count me as a netbook fan. I’ve got some great uses:

they’re just the right size for taking into the kitchen for menu reference
the exceptional battery life makes them perfect for travel when you might not be near AC power
for connecting wirelessly to your desktop PC and acting as a remote desktop

GigaOM talks about Notebooks vs Netbooks

/Steve

PC Sales Increase in 2009

Wi-Fi Direct Takes on Bluetooth

Steve — Wed, 14 Oct 2009 22:40:11 +0000

The Wi-Fi Alliance formally announced a new Wi-Fi protocol called “Wi-Fi Direct.” This new protocol will allow devices to communicate directly with each other without the need for a dedicated Access Point.

Typically, Wi-Fi works in what is known as Infrastructure mode, where each device communicates through an access point to other devices. Bluetooth technology eliminates the need for this intermediary device and allows devices to communicate directly with each other.

Bluetooth may have one advantage in that it has very low power requirements, but the speed and range of Wi-Fi Direct will make for some interesting applications. I’m looking forward to using wireless stereo headphones all the way out into the garage.

/Steve

No related posts.

CAT5 Explained

Steve — Mon, 12 Oct 2009 13:06:14 +0000

CAT5 (Category 5) is an ethernet network cable standard that describes the physical characteristics of the wiring used to carry data along digital networks. CAT5 cable is made up of 4 twisted pairs of unshielded wires encased in a polyethylene sheath. A completed cable will have a RJ-45 plug at each end.

The outer sheath of CAT5 cable is generally blue, but can be any color, “CAT5″ will be printed on the outer sheathing to indicate its certification. Each separate wire inside is also sheathed in plastic with a standard color scheme.

The technology behind this standard is referred to as “unshielded twisted pair” in that a pair of unshielded wires are twisted together to cancel out electromagnetic interference.

There are 4 different color pairs and in order to minimise crosstalk interference, the interval between the twists of each color pair is slightly different.

CAT5 Table

The cable is terminated in either the T568A scheme or the T568B scheme. Canada uses the T568A standard and the United States commonly uses T568B scheme. It really doesn’t make any difference which is used as long as you use only one of the standards so all connections are the same at your location to avoid confusion and potential problems. Mixed cable types should not be connected in series as the impedance per pair differs slightly and may cause signal degradation.

How-to install connectors on CAT5 cable

History

Work began on developing a telecommunications cabling standard in 1985. In 1987, equipment was being manufactured that could use twisted pair telephone cable for data communication, and in 1991, the first standard was published for CAT3 cabling, which is what is still used for most voice (telephone) communications today. The standards for CAT4 and CAT5 were released later in 1991. It wasn’t until 2001 that the standard for CAT5e was released.

Cat 1: Currently not recognized by TIA/EIA. Previously used for POTS (plain old telephone system) telephone communications, ISDN and doorbell wiring.
Cat 2: Currently not recognized by TIA/EIA. Previously was frequently used on 4 Mbit/s token ring networks.
Cat 3: Currently defined in TIA/EIA-568-B, used for data networks using frequencies up to 16 MHz. Historically popular for 10 Mbit/s Ethernet networks.
Cat 4: Currently not recognized by TIA/EIA but originally defined in TIA/EIA-568-A. Defined up to 20 MHz, and was frequently used on 16 Mbit/s token ring networks.
Cat 5: Currently not recognized by TIA/EIA but originally defined in TIA/EIA-568-A. Defined up to 100 MHz, and was frequently used on 100 Mbit/s Ethernet networks. May be unsuitable for 1000BASE-T gigabit ethernet.
Cat 5e: Currently defined in TIA/EIA-568-B. Defined up to 100 MHz, and is frequently used for both 100 Mbit/s and 1000BASE-T Gigabit Ethernet networks.
Cat 6: Currently defined in TIA/EIA-568-B. Defined of up to 250 MHz, more than double category 5 and 5e.
Cat 6a: Currently defined in ANSI/TIA/EIA-568-B.2-10. Provides performance of up to 500 MHz, double that of category 6. Suitable for 10GBase-T.
Cat 7: An informal name applied to ISO/IEC 11801 Class F cabling. This standard specifies four individually-shielded pairs (STP) inside an overall shield. Defined up to 600 MHz.
Cat 7a: An informal name applied to Amendment 1 of ISO/IEC 11801 Class F cabling. Defined up to 1000 MHz.

Final Word

For your home network where the cables are not being installed in the walls, CAT5e is the way to go unless all of your network components are rated for Gigabit speeds. If they are, you may see the benefit of using CAT6 cables. If you are completely wiring or re-wiring your home, you should go with CAT6 cable to make sure that it will meet your future performance needs.

/steve

Router Basics

Router Basics

Steve — Sun, 11 Oct 2009 13:48:30 +0000

A Router is a networking device that directs the flow of data along networks. Routers are connected to at least two separate networks, commonly two LANs (Local Area Network) or WANs (Wide Area Network) or, as in your home network, your LAN and the Internet. Routers are also known as gateways, located where two or more networks connect, and are the critical device that keeps data flowing between the networks.

The routers we use in our home networks are sometimes referred to as “residential gateways” and are frequently used to connect to a broadband service over cable or DSL. These routers may also include an internal cable or DSL modem. Residential gateways typically provide firewall functionality through network address translation (NAT) and port address translation. Instead of directly presenting the IP addresses of local computers to the remote network, such a residential gateway makes multiple local computers appear to be a single computer. In terms of home network security, your router is the mask you wear, effectively hiding your real identity from the internet.

This article provides a very simplistic definition of a router. The router performs an amazing amount of work behind the scenes, and is the device that is most responsible for allowing the Internet to work at all.