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APCUG Editorial Committee Articles
Click to see our Authors
January 2008
Bot-Nets by Brian K. Lewis, Ph.D., Sarastoa PCUG, FL
www.spcug.org (Approx. 1,548 words) Keeping your computer safe while
connected to the Internet is becoming more and more difficult. The
"attackers" are becoming more sophisticated and are sharing more
ways to get their software into your computer. It is estimated that 7% of
the computers connected to the Internet have been infected with a Botnet
program. So what is a "Botnet"?
Check Alternative Travel Site
for Deals by Ira Wilsker, APCUG Director; Columnist, The Examiner, Beaumont TX;
Radio & TV show host (Approx. 1,343 words). We have all seen the TV
commercials with the gnome fretting over travel problems, and have seen the
black clad inspectors prancing all over a hotel snooping in every nook and
cranny. One thing the internet is
not short of is travel websites that offer airline tickets, hotel rooms,
cruises, rental cars, and package deals combining all of the above. One
advantage to the direct sale proprietary travel sites is that they
generally do not add a service fee for online bookings, unlike the fees
charged by the independent commercial travel websites.
Evaluating Your Anti-Spyware
Program by Vinny La Bash, Member of the Sarasota Personal Computer Users Group, Inc.,
Sarasota PCUG, FL www.spcug.org (Approx. 904 words). For many years the
most acute danger to your computer was some kind of destructive virus.
Today the danger has shifted from software that is programmed to destroy
files, corrupt programs, and disable systems to something more insidious,
and perhaps even more treacherous. This threat comes in two broad
categories known as Spyware and Trojan Horses.
Let’s Clean
“Start-Up” by Bob Elgines, Editor, Colorado River Computer Club, AZ, www.crccaz.com/ (Approx. 458 words). Does
your computer boot-up or run slow? Maybe there are too many programs
running in the back ground. Checking out Bob’s check list might help.
Look Ma No Hands by Bruce
Jacobs,
Editor, Phoenix PCUG, AZ
www.phoenixpcug.org (Approx. 803
words). This article was not typed it was dictated using the speech recognition feature in
Windows Vista Ultimate. Bruce has been using this feature on and off for
certain applications for a while. It has its good points and its bad
points.
Microsoft Office 2007 Review by
Lynn Page,
Editor, Crystal River User Group, Florida
www.crug.org (Approx, 3,011 words). Microsoft’s Office 2007 is the
perfect suite of applications and is suited to all types of users. Office
will aid you in being more productive and allow your documents,
spreadsheets and presentations to be professional and attractive. Different
versions of Office 2007 include different applications, from the Basic
version with Word, Excel, and Outlook, to an Enterprise version including everything.
This variety of suites may seem overkill but it provides an Office suite in
complexity and price range for anyone.
Microsoft patches still another
patch by Bob de Violini, a member of the Channel Islands PCUG, CA www.cipcug.org (Approx.
1,030 words). From the once is not enough department, Microsoft has, again,
patched a patch. This time, it involves patch number MS07-069, which is a
cumulative security update for Internet Explorer 6 installed on Windows XP
Service Pack 2 only. Apparently the initial patch released on December’s
patch Tuesday caused computers to experience an unexpected crash or hang
upon launching Internet Explorer.
Microsoft Streets and Trips
2007 with GPS a review by Joseph Kluepfel, Director, Broward Personal Computer
Association, Inc., FL www.bpca.com (Approx.
535 words). Install this on your laptop and you have the luxury of setting
up your trip at home and then use it in the car. A laptop screen is four
times bigger than a navigator installed in a car or fifteen to twenty times
bigger than a portable GPS.
Moving on to Vista – Part
3 by Neil Stahfest,
Shareware Librarian, Tacoma Area PC User Group, WA www.tapcug.org (Approx.
634 words). Your PC's desktop is the largest, most user defined area on
your PC's screen. It contains all your own shortcuts, folder icons and your
personal desktop picture. The desktop is really just a personal file folder
on drive C. That means that any work you do on the desktop is saved for you
on Drive C and not lost when you turn the computer off. Of course any
documents, pictures, etc. that are “saved” on your desktop can
be moved or copied to other folders on your hard drive.
New Gadgets for 2008 by Sandy
Berger,
CompuKISS.com www.compukiss.com (About 828 words). Every year my husband
and I attend the Consumer Electronic (CES) in Las Vegas to see the latest and greatest
high tech gadgets. This year didn't disappoint.
Painter X Product Review by Tom
Ekvall,
newsletter editor and “Creative Imaging” Columnist, Northeast
Wisconsin PCUG http://webpages.charter.net/newpcug/ (Approx. 1,919 words).
Painter X is everything a photo artist, like myself, could ever want in the
way of a digital imaging program—or should I say a digital natural
media painting program.
Recording Audio by Bart Koslow, Software Review Coordinator,
Thousand Oaks Personal Computer Club, CA http://topcc.org/ (Approx. 746
words). Nowadays it is no problem to record video from a TV broadcast, VCR
or other source using a Digital Video Recorder. When Bart began to look
into recording music broadcasts off the air, he found that there were
external Audio recorders, but they were expensive, beginning in the $250
range and up. This is twice as much as a similar Video Recorder. Since he
wanted to create CDs from the broadcast music and had DVD/CD burners on his
computer he decided that using his computer was a better and cheaper
alternative.
So You Have a New Digital
Camera by Robert M. Mayo, Cajun Clickers Computer Club, LA www.clickers.org (Approx. 476
words). If you were lucky enough to get a new camera for Christmas,
congratulations! However, along with this jewel, I'm sure you also got a
complicated user's manual. I hate 'em! But cheer up; all the mystery will
soon go out of that book.
2007 Chaos, What/Who Wins in
2008? by Andy Marken, Marken Communicaitons www.markencom.com (Approx. 1,397 words)
The fun of analyzing the past 12 months is…it’s easy! But
forecasting 2008 requires separating dreams from reality…early
adopters from mass market.
The Cartridge Family by Grant
Fuller, a
member of Big Blue & Cousins, Canada www.bbc.org (Approx. 571
words). We're beat. I hate to admit it. I come from more innocent times
when fairness was something to strive for. Family values were not measured
by the Sopranos but by families with more law-abiding objectives. "I
hate to give up without a fight but I do not hold much hope for us. If you
have a printer that functions well by refilling cartridges, keep it. Repair
it when it becomes necessary and show it your unconditional love."
The New, The Best, and The
Worst, January 2008, Collected by Pim Borman, Webmaster, SW Indiana PC Users
Group, Inc. http://swipcug.apcug.org (Approx. 898 words). Needles,
Haystacks and Processing featuring SETI (Search for Extra-Terrestrial
Intelligence) and Foxit Reader for PDF Files.
What’s a Good Computer to
Buy? Some Tips by Doug Fairchild, Director, Exton PC Council, PA
www.extonpccouncil.org (Approx. 1,298 words). As a person who is active
with a computer user’s group and who has had formal training in
Windows 2000 and Windows XP, I’m often asked “what computer
should I get?” This is an age old question in terms of computer
technology time. Almost any professional that provides unbiased advise will
tell you that it is not an easy answer. The first question that comes to
mind is, what do you intend to do with it?
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Brian Lewis
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Ira Wilsker
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Bob Rice
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Wes Taylor
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Sue Crane
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John Brewer
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Dave Gerber
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Gabe Goldberg
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Berry Phillips
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Gene Barlow
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Richard Johnson
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Vinny LaBash
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Pim Borman
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Hilton Kaufman
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Michael Moore
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