ISSN 1488-3163; PC Improvements © 2003
==== 2167 Subscribers in 61 Countries ====
Welcome to the 234th 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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Is that an echo I hear? No, it's an Echo! A Toyota Echo! Yep, Lisa and I became a 2-car family this week. We purchased a 2000 Toyota Echo. We've been thinking about this for quite a while, but this opportunity just came along and we couldn't pass it up. Now Lisa and Andrew can get out of the house. But many of my co-workers are sad they won't get to see them that much anymore :-(
Speaking of :-( we've had some terrible weather here. We're a couple of weeks into Spring, and we still have several inches of snow. It is supposed to warm up, but that is what we thought a couple of weeks ago. Hopefully Spring weather is actually on the way.
Graham editor@pcin.net and Chris chris@pcin.net
Amazon signs search deal with Google
"Google plans to provide search services and sponsored links to Amazon.com under a multiyear deal the companies announced Thursday.
Financial details of the deal were not released. Sponsored links from Google are available now on a selection of Amazon pages. More links, and Google's Web search service, will be made available in the next few months, the companies said.
Google, which dominates the search arena, has been beefing up its sponsorship deals as it expands its ad network and seeks new revenue. The Mountain View, Calif.-based company recently launched a program that identifies the meaning of a Web page and then automatically places relevant ads."For more info:
http://news.com.com/2100-1019-995280.html
Pakistan Tries to Block Porn Web Sites
"Pakistani authorities said Sunday they've blocked 1,800 Web sites in a crackdown on Internet pornography in this deeply conservative Muslim country.
But it's not proving to be easy.
'Curbing porn sites is as difficult as blocking the wind,' said Web engineer Farhan Parpia, of the state-owned telecommunications company. 'You block one, and dozens more come up like mushrooms.'"For more info:
http://abcnews.go.com/wire/World/ap20030407_612.html
AOL Dial-Up Accounts Expected To Dwindle
"America Online Inc. is projecting for the first time that its base of dial-up subscribers will decline on an annual basis, a drop that Wall Street analysts predict will be in the range of 500,000 to 1 million customers.
AOL reported 26.5 million domestic subscribers Dec. 31, a decline of about 200,000 during the fourth quarter of last year. In a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission, Dulles-based AOL projected a further drop in dial-up subscribers in 2003."For more info:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A14792-2003Apr2.html
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Visit the PCIN.net FreeHelp Forum at http://PCIN.net/help/forum/ to post your questions or answer others.
Question
I've been advised that where there is a yellow circle with a ! in Device Manager, there is an issue. We have
3 yellow dots w/ !'s. 1 is by PCI Multimedia Audio Device,
1 is by PCI Serial Controller, and the last is PS/2 Compatible Mouse Port. The apparent issue is that "the drivers for these devices are not installed (Code 28)".
Response
PCI Multimedia Audio Device has something to do with your sound card.
PCI Serial Controller is most likely a modem.
PS/2 Compatible Mouse Port could be a mouse that doesn't exist anymore. Are you using a USB mouse?
In the first 2 situations, finding the latest drivers and reinstalling them should fix it. I would delete the PS/2 Compatible Mouse Port and then reboot and see if it reappears.
To post a response, visit the Software How-To forum at http://PCIN.net/help/forum/index.php?board=4 and click on the "PCI issues" topic.
Visit http://PCIN.net/help/forum/ to post a question of your own.
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Check out these new or updated pages on the PCIN.net site:
Logitech Cordless Freedom Optical Hardware Review
http://PCIN.net/help/hardware/lcfo.phpSome Useful Registry Tips - Now 171 Tips!
http://PCIN.net/help/articles/registry_tips.phpParagon Hard Disk Manager 5.5 Software Review
http://PCIN.net/help/software/paragonhdm55.phpObject Desktop Software Review
http://PCIN.net/help/software/objectdesktop.php
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Excel Help
You can solve almost any advanced Excel question you have by visiting http://www.mvps.org/dmcritchie/excel/excel.htm
Patches/Updates for Windows NT/2000/XP
The company that helped Microsoft develop some of their security tools is Shavlik. They have a tool of their own that is much better, but it is for a large corporation and is quite expensive. They also have a Lite version of the product. The web site describes it this way:
"Real functionality from a free product? Try it and see for yourself. Completely manage 50 machines for free.
HFNetChkLT is the fully functional free version of HFNetChkPro - the industry standard patch management solution. HFNetChkLT offers unlimited scanning, a complete GUI, and Shavlik's exclusive PatchPush - capabilities. No timeouts so you can use this useful tool all you like."
I've tried it and it is quite impressive. You can check it out yourself at http://www.shavlik.com/pHFNetChkLT.aspx
F-Lock Key on Microsoft Keyboards
Many of you know that I recently reviewed a Microsoft Office Keyboard. It was very nice, but my biggest complaint was about the F-Lock key. By default, when the computer starts up, the Function keys are disabled in favour of some Microsoft presets. There did not seem to be any way to force it one way or another. A visitor to the web site sent me this:
" I noticed your article @ http://www.pcin.net/help/hardware/msok.php regarding the F Lock Key. I found a site that has 2 reg files on it that remaps the F button so you can permenantly disable the F Lock Key located @ http://mvps.org/jtsang/flock.html
It basically flips the mapping around in W2K and WXP so that by default it acts as if the F Key has been pressed when u logon to Windows.. Very useful cos myself I hate not using the old way of doing things.. I press F5 a lot.. and I use a IRC Script that has F keys shortcuts so it makes it a pain in the butt ..
Hope this information helps..
Cheers.. goofydave"
Thanks goofydave! Indeed it does help!
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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.
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Graham Wing can be reached at editor@pcin.net
Chris Empey can be reached at chris@pcin.netCopyright 1998-2003, Graham Wing. All rights reserved.
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