Issue 263 - October 29, 2003

ISSN 1488-3163; PC Improvements © 2003
==== 2131 Subscribers in 61 Countries ====

Welcome to the 263rd 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. If you give me two or three issues, I know that you will come back for more!

You can reach me at editor@pcin.net with any suggestions or comments.

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Support PCIN at http://PCIN.net/donate.php

CONTENTS

Opening Thoughts

Not much to report on this week. I'm on vacation next week. Lisa and I don't have any big plans, but it will be nice to have a break. One exciting thing is that Lisa is going to put on a craft sale. She is very good at making Country Crafts, and is having what she hopes is her First Annual Craft sale. We're working on a web site at CountryCraftDreams.com and you can check it out to see the types of things she can do. Between that and chasing Andrew around, she's been busy!

Graham editor@pcin.net and Chris chris@pcin.net

The NEWS

Hackers Get Novel Defense; the Computer Did It

"Prosecutors looking to throw the book at accused computer hackers have come across a legal defense expected to become even more widespread in an era of hijacked PCs and laptops that threatens to blur the lines of personal responsibility: the computer did it.
In one case that was being watched as a bellwether by computer security experts, Aaron Caffrey, 19, was acquitted earlier this month in the United Kingdom on charges of hacking into the computer system of the Houston Pilots, an independent contractor for the Port of Houston, in September 2001.
Caffrey had been charged with breaking into the system and crippling the server that provides scheduling information for all ships entering the world's sixth-largest port.
Although authorities traced the hack back to Caffrey's computer, he said that someone must have remotely planted a program, called a "trojan," onto his computer that did the hacking and that could have been programmed to self destruct."

For more info:
http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=technologyNews&storyID=3699875

Don't bet on it!

"Conspiracy theories run rampant in the high-technology industry, and for good reason. The unexpected often occurs.
Ten years ago, after all, few predicted that a pork-rind-eating grad student at the University of Illinois would revolutionize world commerce. Finland to emerge as a leader in wireless communications and operating systems? The decade of Belgium seemed more likely.
Still, there is a collection of commonly heard predictions that will likely never come true. Videoconferencing, micro-payments and electronic books were expected to be big at one time. Had the general public not found them irritating, they might have been.
Nothing is impossible. In early 2001, Webb McKinney of Hewlett-Packard said PC mergers don't generally work, while Compaq Computer's Mike Winkler and others said Compaq would endure. Five months later, HP bought Compaq. Nonetheless, here's a crop of things that may never come to pass."

For more info:
http://news.com.com/2010-7343_3-5096015.html

Google could go public in online auction

"Internet search leader Google Inc. could go public early next year and is considering holding a huge online auction of its shares, according to a report published Thursday.
The Financial Times (FT) said in its online edition that Google executives met with a number of investment bankers last week to gauge their interest in an initial public offering (IPO). A decision by the 5-year-old search giant to go public is expected to create enormous excitement among investors, the FT said, and the company could be valued at between $15 billion and $25 billion."

For more info:
http://www.infoworld.com/article/03/10/24/HNgooglepublic_1.html

The Stealth Computer

Mike Chin's eureka moment came in an Ikea store, on a spring day in 2002.
Mr. Chin, a technology writer in Vancouver, British Columbia, had just gotten a tiny motherboard from a Taiwanese chip maker, and he had been growling that he could not find a similarly small case so that he could build the computer he had promised to a friend's daughter.
Then his eyes fell on a blue plastic Ikea breadbox - the "perfect marriage of cheap modern art, chintziness and utility," he said.
The fully functional breadbox PC that he then built and described on the Web was among the first to spring from an idea that has become a raging obsession in a far-flung community of electronic do-it-yourselfers: the stealth computer.

For more info:
http://www.nytimes.com/2003/10/23/technology/circuits/23tiny.html?ex=1382241600&en=03017f1dbd9f4108&ei=5007&partner=USERLAND

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POLL of the WEEK

Last Week's Poll

Will you switch to Microsoft Office 2003 in the next 6 months

Yes, I always upgrade 5.15 % (7)
Yes, I will be switching from a competing product 0.74 % (1)
No, I don't use Office at all 33.09 % (45)
No, I am fine with my current version of Office 55.15 % (75)
No, I will upgrade in more than 6 months 5.88 % (8)
Total votes: 136

This Week's Poll

Have you used a legitimate online store to purchase songs electronically?

Yes
No

You can also vote online at http://PCIN.net/polls/

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PCIN.net FREEHELP FORUM

Visit the PCIN.net FreeHelp Forum at http://PCIN.net/help/forum/ to post your questions or answer others.

Question

I'm hoping someone can help me with an emailing problem. The thing is, I am unable to send any messages to AOL. They always get returned to me with a typical message such as "aol have received a high number of complaints about this server and is not presently accepting emails from them."
Also, I have received over 500 returned emails from AOL to persons I have NOT emailed! Is it possible that someone has somehow managed to use my email address to send spam? I don't know if this is possible, but someone told me it is (the spammer puts a link in the email for people to contact him, so I do not receive replies; only undeliverable emails).
Is this possible? It would explain why I can no longer send to AOL addresses as well as the 500+ emails I've received as undeliverable which I never sent! Has anyone else had experience of this? How should I deal with it, if that is what's happened? If it isn't, what other explanation can there be? I am NOT a spammer.

Response

No responses yet.

To post a response, visit the General Discussion forum at http://PCIN.net/help/forum/index.php?board=2 and click on the "Emailing problem" topic.

Visit http://PCIN.net/help/forum/ to post a question of your own.

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PCIN.net UPDATE

Check out these new or updated pages on the PCIN.net site:

Sunbelt Software iHateSpam Software Review
http://PCIN.net/help/software/ihatespam.php

Logitech Cordless Elite Duo Hardware Review
http://PCIN.net/help/hardware/lced.php

XemiComputers Ltd. DeskLook 3.0 Software Review
http://PCIN.net/help/software/desklook3.php

Symantec Norton Ghost 2003 Software Review
http://PCIN.net/help/software/ghost2003.php

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THE TIPS and OTHER STUFF

Renaming Special Folders

There are many folders that are considered to be System folders. Windows handles them differently than most other folders and often won't let you move them or rename them. Some of the folders are:
My Documents
Recycle Bin
Fonts
Search Results
Scheduled Tasks
Internet Explorer
Printers and Faxes
Network and Dial-up Connections
My Network Places
My Computer

If you would like to rename any of these folders, visit http://www.winnetmag.com/windows/article/articleid/38503/38503.html for instructions.

What's In A (Search Engine's) Name?

"What's a Google? Should you be wary of Inktomi? Here's a look at the origins and meanings of the major search engines' names.
Search engine names fall broadly into three categories. Some, like AlltheWeb and the former Infoseek, are functional names. Others, like Teoma, use words from non-English languages. In the third category are the services with colorful or goofy names."
Visit http://searchenginewatch.com/searchday/article.php/3084451 for some history of where the Search Engines got their names.

Start-up Applications - Do you really need all of them?

"The intention of these pages is to provide a central resource for PC users and Tech Support staff alike who are concerned about the poor performance of their PCs due to the number of programs that run at system start-up. The following information is provided:
Background to the problem
Techniques that can be used to identify and disable start-up programs from running
A comprehensive list of programs that are loaded at start-up
A request for additional programs or updated information"
Check it out at http://www.pacs-portal.co.uk/startup_index.htm

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PCIN.net AFFILIATED SITES

Both of us have other sites other than PCIN.net. These are all sites that we are actively involved in (they aren't client sites). Don't forget to check them out from time to time for updates:

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DISCLAIMER and OTHER STUFF

PCIN is brought to you by Graham Wing. The opinions expressed are those of the Editor, Graham Wing and the Assistant Editor, Chris Empey. Graham Wing and Chris Empey accept no responsibility for the results obtained from trying the tips in this newsletter.

  1. If any of the links are too long to fit on one line, you may have to cut and paste.
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  3. To subscribe another address or unsubscribe, please visit http://PCIN.net/ and follow the appropriate links.
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  5. There are only 3 ways to get on the subscriber list. You have either been subscribed by filling out a subscription form on any of the pages on my site, you have requested FreeHelp from me in the past, or you have registered with the FreeHelp Forum.
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Graham Wing can be reached at editor@pcin.net
Chris Empey can be reached at chris@pcin.net

Copyright 1998-2003, Graham Wing. All rights reserved.

This publication may be reproduced in whole, or in part, as long as the author is notified and the newsletter is presented as is.

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