ISSN 1488-3163; PC Improvements © 2001
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Welcome to the 157th issue of the PC Improvement News. PCIN consists mainly of news and tips. There is something for everyone, and if this is your first issue, I'm sure there will be something for you.
You can reach me at editor@pcin.net with any suggestions or comments. If you give me two or three issues, I know that you will come back for more!
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Yesterday I attended the Microsoft Windows XP System Builder Roadshow in Toronto. I don't build systems, but I find that the shows for the builders contain better information than the shows for the end-user. Windows XP truly does look impressive. Probably not impressive enough to make me upgrade to Windows 2000 (I'm a pretty simple computer user), but I can see how many people would benefit from the new features. Microsoft says that there will be over $1 Billion spent on advertising for Windows XP ($300 million from MS, $300 million from Intel, and $400 from major computer vendors).
Of course the Microsoft Product Activation was a hot topic. The presenter was hit with all sorts of questions about it. The presenter was a "preinstallation specialist", and so didn't have all the answers, but people kept asking anyway. If those who spoke up represented the crowd, it certainly doesn't look like people are willing to go along with this. The presenter thought that you were allowed to swap out 7 different classes of hardware before you had to reactivate your copy of Windows. I've had my computer for 2+ years and I've only added a hard drive, swapped out a CD-ROM drive for a DVD-ROM drive and added more memory. According to my understanding, I wouldn't have to reactivate Windows after any of these changes. Chris, a subscriber and co-worker, heard someone say that in the last month, they've swapped out 20 pieces of hardware (are there even 20 separate classes of devices in a computer?). They've either got too much time, or too much money.
I don't really see what the big fuss is about, and you either agree or disagree. I'd like as many of you as possible to email me at editor@pcin.net with your thoughts on Product Activation. Are you for it or against it? Will this stop you from purchasing Microsoft Products? Are you worried about your privacy? Email me and I will have a special section in next week's PCIN with all of the comments.
RIAA Wants to Hack Your PC
"Look out, music pirates: The recording industry wants the right to hack into your computer and delete your stolen MP3s.
It's no joke. Lobbyists for the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) tried to glue this hacking-authorization amendment onto a mammoth anti-terrorism bill that Congress approved last week.
An RIAA-drafted amendment according to a draft obtained by Wired News would immunize all copyright holders -- including the movie and e-book industry -- for any data losses caused by their hacking efforts or other computer intrusions "that are reasonably intended to impede or prevent" electronic piracy."For more info:
http://www.wired.com/news/conflict/0,2100,47552,00.html
Napster trial judge lambasts music biz
"Now here's a thing. Judge Marilyn Hall Patel, who presides over the music industry's attempt to beat Napster into line and who has, in the past, displayed strong anti-Napster zeal, has now turned around and given the music biz a tongue-lashing.
At the centre of the complaint is the apparent attempt by MusicNet, one of the two industry-sponsored digital music distribution companies, to tie Napster into an exclusive deal. This, reckons Patel, smacks of anti-trust behaviour. Her feeling is, she said, that MusicNet has used its control of the distribution of copyright material to limit Napster's access to other content. That, in essence, is a misuse of copyright which, if proven, would eliminate copyright holders' scope to enforce their copyrights."For more info:
http://www.theregister.co.uk/content/6/22176.html
New net domain 'fiasco'
"Up to a quarter of the early registrations for the new .info domain name could be bogus.
A study of 11,000 registrations has shown a failure of the steps taken to stop people winning control of domains they do not have the right to run.
Legal experts have called the whole process a fiasco, and said the company administering the .info domain could face legal challenges from those denied a chance to apply for some generic .info domains."For more info:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/sci/tech/newsid_1593000/1593396.stm
Here are the responses from the last poll:
What category would your Internet usage match?
Just Surfing: 30.68%
Email: 20.45%
Research: 20.45%
Other: 18.18%
Business: 7.95%
Gaming: 2.27%Total Votes: 88
Visit http://pcin.net/polls/ to participate in the new poll this week:
Are you concerned that Microsoft Product Activation infringes on your privacy?
Visit the PCIN FreeHelp Forum to post your questions or answer others. Each week I highlight a question, and where to go to get the answer.
Question
Where in Win 98 System can I check for amount of Ram I have left? When I go to System Display it only tells me % of resources left which of course changes all the time, with downloads and cleanups.
Answer
No answers yet.
Do you know the answer or have a suggestion? Visit http://www.pcin.net/cgi-bin/forum/index.cgi and check out the Software Forum. Post your answer or post a question of your own.
Check out these new or updated pages on the PCIN.net site:
Creating Cascading Start Menu Items
http://PCIN.net/help/articles/cascadingmenus.shtmlPCIN Poll of the week
http://PCIN.net/polls/Support PCIN
http://PCIN.net/donate.shtml
Windows 9x Setup Problems
Have you ever tried to install Windows from scratch and received and error that starts with SU and then has some number after it? I have... many times. I've never been able to understand the problem. I just try reinstalling again, and it works. I know some people, however, who have had a very hard time getting past this error.
If you are having these errors, visit the Microsoft support document entitled: "SU" Error Message List for Windows 95, Windows 98, and Windows Me Setup which you can find at http://support.microsoft.com/support/kb/articles/q129/9/71.ASP
Free Microsoft Office Alternatives
I've written in PCIN several times about the free Microsoft Office alternative, Software602's 602Pro PC Suite. It is an excellent product that is free to download, or $9.95 to download. There is a new version out as of the end of September. I haven't tried it yet, but am hoping to soon. They also have an add-in that costs $29.95 that adds a lot of other features, but the basic suite is still free. You can find out more at http://www.software602.com/products/pcs/
Sun also has released the latest version of their product, StarOffice. Version 6 is still in beta (not completed yet), but a lot of people are trying it out. I haven't, so I don't have any particular opinions on it, but you can find out more yourself at http://www.sun.com/staroffice/6.0beta/
Both of these products are comparable to Microsoft Office Standard. The contain word processing and spreadsheet software, but no database software.
PC Magazine Top 100 sites
Check out the Fall version of the PC Magazine Top 100 sites at http://www.pcmag.com/top100websites
A Positive Customer Service Experience
We often hear about terrible support experiences. Subscriber Thomas Patrick Brennan emailed me this, and I thought it would be good to share:
"I'm not sure if you're interested in this kind of information, but I've had a rather pleasant outcome from a usually disappointing process.
I owned an Uninterruptible Power Supply unit, CyberPower model 320SL, good for about 6-9 minutes of power, during a power interruption. I bought this UPS, almost a year and a half ago. There were several power interruptions over the period mentioned and the unit performed as advertised; however, the unit died on me during a power failure on Sept 25, 2001. I followed all troubleshooting instructions to no avail. I sent an E-mail explaining my troubles to CyberPower, requesting help, on Sept 26, 2001 at 1 AM.
I received on Sept 26,2001 at 9:43 AM an answer, to return my unit using their RMA document.
Their address is in the States...I live in Canada.... The UPS weighs several pounds. I never checked, but my mind says big bucks to ship and a delay in delivery times.
I found my sales slip, called Future Shop in Canada, where I purchased the unit originally. Because I had a RMA document, (Return Authorization) from CyberPower, and my sales slip, (over a year and three months old) the manager of the Future Shop store made a straight exchange, old for brand new. He even honoured the original purchase price; the unit was on sale for half price when I bought it and that's what enticed me to purchase in the first place.
I don't know if this interests you but I am not used to such fast efficient customer service, and I had to tell someone. (To me this is like a man biting a dog... Real "NEWS"...Different isn't it?)"
PCIN is brought to you by PC Improvements. The opinions expressed are those of the editor, Graham Wing. PC Improvements and Graham Wing accept no responsibility for the results obtained from trying the tips in this newsletter.
Graham Wing can be reached at editor@pcin.net
Copyright 1998-2001, PC Improvements and Graham Wing. All rights reserved.
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