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Issue 374 - December 14, 2005

ISSN 1488-3163; PC Improvements © 2005
==== 2074 Subscribers in 59 Countries ====

Welcome to the 374th 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.

Recommend PCIN at http://PCIN.net/recommend.php

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

CONTENTS

Opening Thoughts

I finished the review of Battery Pack Pro 2.1 this week. If you have a Pocket PC device, then you'll definitely want to give it a try. Read the Tips and Other Stuff section to learn more. Chris will have a review of Microsoft Digital Image 2006 Suite done this week.

As I mentioned a while ago, I've been using a new way to track what links people are interested in. So far it seems like you are interested in hackers, digital fingerprints, and Unlocker. And I guess no one is interested in bad capacitors.

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

The NEWS

Would You Like Some Fries With That Download?

If the Walt Disney Company has its way, McDonald's Happy Meal toys could be replaced with portable media players that hold Disney movies, music, games or photos, according to a pending patent application. Users could add files to the devices by earning points with food purchases.

Read the New York Times article...
Leave a comment...

Survey: Most home PC users lack security

A survey of home PC users found 81 percent lacked at least one of three critical types of security, but the number of consumers using firewalls and updated antivirus software is improving, according to a report released Wednesday.
The vast majority of consumers surveyed were found to lack at least one of three types of critical security--a firewall, updated antivirus software or anti-spyware protection, according to a report by America Online and the National Cyber Security Alliance.

Read the TechRepublic article...
Leave a comment...

Intel: Poor Want 'Real' Computers

Potential computer users in the developing world will not want a basic $100 hand-cranked laptop due to be rolled out to millions, according to Craig Barrett, ECO of Intel.
Schoolchildren in Brazil, Thailand, Egypt and Nigeria will begin receiving the first few million textbook style computers from the MIT Media Lab run by Nicholas Negroponte from early 2006...
" It turns out what people are looking for is something is something that has the full functionality of a PC," he said. "Reprogrammable to run all the applications of a grown up PC ... not dependent on servers in the sky to deliver content and capability to them, not dependent for hand cranks for power."

Read the Wired News article...
Leave a comment...

Firefox Gradually Gaining Against IE

All of the noise and attention surrounding the release last month of Firefox 1.5 appears to have helped the alternative Web browser's market share, even if those gains are still only in fractions of percentage points.
"November 2005 browser numbers indicate that Firefox continues to gain market share, reaching 8.84 percent," says the latest monthly traffic report released Wednesday by Web metrics tool vendor Net Applications. Numbers for Internet Explorer slipped by nearly half a point during the month to 86.08 percent, the company says.

Read the Redmond Magazine article...
Leave a comment...

Return to the top Recommend PCIN Poll of the Week

PCIN.net UPDATE

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

Omega One Software Battery Pack Pro 2.1 Software Review
http://PCIN.net/help/software/bpp2.php

Makayama Interactive DVD to Pocket PC 3.0 Software Review
http://PCIN.net/help/software/dvd2ppc3.php

Adobe Photoshop Elements 4.0 Software Review
http://PCIN.net/help/software/elements40.php

Norris Family Industry ActiveEarth 2.0 Software Review
http://PCIN.net/help/software/activeearth2.php

Paragon Partition Manager 7 Software Review
http://PCIN.net/help/software/ppm7.php

Return to the top Recommend PCIN Poll of the Week

Digital Photography Tip of the Week

Aspect Ratios in Prints

I talked about white balance and how you can use it to achieve proper colours in your images, as well as how you can take advantage of it to produce better photographs. This week I will discuss changing the aspect ratio of your final image.

Aspect ratio refers to relationship between length of the two sides of a photo. Typical consumer digital camera produce either a 4:3 ratio or a 3:2 ratio image (which also produces a 4x6 print). I briefly mentioned this in a previous tip when discussing framing for printing. 4:3 aspect ratio is typically what a computer monitor or a traditional television display while 3:2 is the typical ratio for an SLR or 35 mm film camera. Other typical print ratios are 5:4 (8x10, 16x20 prints) and 7:5 (5x7 and very close to 11x14). But those are not the only ways to print your images.

If you use a wide format for your image you can help create an illusion of length. In the following image of a caterpillar, the short, wide format helps to lengthen the caterpillar while eliminating unnecessary pieces of the photo above and below the caterpillar. It is a good choice for this image which contained no further necessary elements in the image.

Caterpillar

Similarly, a tall format will help create an illusion of height or provide an exaggerated view of height as with this image of the Skylon Tower in Niagara Falls.

Skylon Tower

Another format you may want to experiment with is a square format. I have used a square format with this image of a Skipperling, and often use it for portraits. I think square is one of the most pleasing shapes for a portrait, but like so many things in photography, it is purely subjective.

Skipperling

When using these odd formats, you will most likely have to have your print made in a regular print size then trim to fit on your own, or ask your printer to do so for you.

Next week I will summarize my review of Microsoft Digital Imaging Suite.

Comment on this week's Digital Photography Tip of the Week at http://www.pcin.net/update/index.php/2005/12/14/aspect_ratios_in_prints_digital_photogra

The digital photography tip of the week is written by the PCIN Assistant Editor, Chris Empey. Chris is a long time photographer and is currently the vice-president of the Niagara Falls Camera Club. You can see more of his photography at his Photo of the Day website.
If you have a tip to send Chris, or a question about digital photography he can address in the newsletter, send it to chris@pcin.net.

Return to the top Recommend PCIN Poll of the Week

THE TIPS and OTHER STUFF

Create your own logo

PCIN.net Sherk logo
In a comment to my Google Logo Maker post, Dany links to http://searchdon.com. It allows you to make a logo based on a number of styles to create your own search page. You can choose from Google, Yahoo, Sherk (their way of having a Shrek logo), Star War, Harry Potter, etc.

Leave a comment...

Battery Pack Pro 2.1 Software Review

Battery Pack Pro logo
I just finished reviewing Battery Pack Pro 2.1 by Omega Software:

Microsoft gets in a lot of trouble because it bundles too much with Windows. Well, the opposite is true when it comes to Windows Mobile. There is very little extra included with the basic operating system, and so a user must search for the best, most useful utilities. Omega One Software has one of these truly useful utilities in Battery Pack Pro. I used Battery Pack Pro v1.1.1 for several months, and recently had a chance to review the most recent offering, Battery Pack Pro v2.1...
Battery Pack Pro is great. I would highly recommend it to anyone. It fills in the gaps where the built-in utilities don't go far enough. You have a lot of flexibility in what you install, and when you actually run what you installed. It is definitely worth trying!

Read the full review...

Leave a comment...

More Gmail Tips

I recently mentioned GMail Tips & Tricks by Bibear. Well, here are some more Gmail Tips courtesy of JimsTips.com.

Leave a comment...

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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:

Return to the top Recommend PCIN Poll of the Week

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.net

Copyright 1998-2005, Graham Wing. All rights reserved.

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