Segment 1
YoCo did a movie night on Wednesday in Struthers. And Joe D bought a popcorn machine. You can hire us for backyard parties. Send in your stories to win a free party.
Be sure to subscribe now to the YoCo newsletter. See http://youngstowncomputer.com for details.
Caller 1
Q: When you click on a email link, Outlook express opens up, but I don't use it.
A: You can tell IE of Firefox you can tell us which program to use for email. However, if you use webmail, you might have to look at the address in the link, or Ian suggests to set up your local email program to use the outbound mail server.
Caller 2
Q: when the screensaver goes on in vista I have to log in, is this normal?
A: Yes, just go into the screensaver properties to turn this off
Q: firefox 3 crashing, is that normal?
A: it is probably an add-on
Joe D and Nick will be "put in jail" for charity. See http://youngstowncomputer.com for details.
Some upcoming classes: July 7 + 9 - starter computer classes
July 14 + 16 - Internet and email
July 23 + 25 - using computers for marketing and selling
Segment 2
Caller during the break: tell us about Netbooks. They are low-cost laptops, small, light, not as powerful as most laptops, just to get you on the internet. Netbooks normally don't have optical drives, that means no CD-ROM or DVD player. They also have small screens, usuall 10" or less. Even the keyboards are not full size. But you can get on the internet and check mail fine. Joe D says they are getting more popular. How can you justfy a $200 OS like Win 7 or Vista on a computer that only costs $300? Ian brings up that you get the OS with the netbooks. Joe D says if it comes with XP, will you go and buy Win 7? Ian says no. (or course, if you order now you can get Win 7 for $49). The costs of repairing are also the same as the whole unit.
Joe D got a blue screen this morning. Probably due to an update to a sprint wireless card.
Caller 3
Q: windows gets all the way to the desktop then it goes to a blue screen
A: you will have to go into safe mode and try installing recent programs. this requires some troubleshooting, perhaps bring the computer in
Ian adds about blue screens, some of the fake AV programs can put up a fake blue screen. Joe D says that some computers will restart automatically on a blue screen. You might want to turn this off in system properties so you can see the error to troublshoot it. Adam asks should you reboot before the memory gets dumped? No, let it finish.
Segment 3
Joe D talks about Bing.com. Ian hates the name. Google seems afraid of Bing. Ian was impressed by the live.com searches. Adam likes the commercials.
Caller 4
Q: is it possible to have two AV programs fight each other?
A: yes, try to only use AV from one vendor instead load up multiple ones. Norton 2009 seems to be good. AV software only helps so much, you must control what you do on the Internet, be careful what you click on
Adam asks about new iMac keyboards that have no numeric keypad.
Caller 5
Q: when I start up IE it comes with a small window.
A: it depends on the program, but you should just have to resize the window, and close out the window so it can remember the window size. Joe D says there have been cases where the user profile is messed up so bad so that the window size might not be able to be saved (could also be caused by some over-protective AV software that is locking out your settings, like having IE save its settings and size)
Segment 4
Grand opening party on July 11.
Caller 6
Q: got put on hold due to audio problems, something about mail attachments not working
Caller 7
Q: problems with a mac G4 with OS 10.3. Internet access is timing out. Programs get shut down after downloading after about 2MB of data
A: we will have to troubleshoot this offline, try to create a new user account and try the same thing
Caller 8
Q: when I first connect to wireless, it get good speed, then the speed drops off
A: there might be some interference with wireless phones and wireless speakers, try another channel, otherwise you might need a rage expander
Adam got a new larger hard drive.
Saturday, June 27, 2009
Saturday, June 13, 2009
Youngstown Computer Show Notes for June 13 2009
Segment 1
The computer show will be at this year's air show at the Youngstown Air base.
Apple dev show was this week. the 3.0 iPhone software will be out next week, new iPhone 3GS in July.
Price drop on some Macs. Snow Leopard will be $29.
Storms will happen, and your electricity will go out. To protect when the power flickers, get some power conditioning. And maybe a battery backup.
Consider unplugging all electronic devices when you go on vacation.
Caller 1
Q: get a message about wanting to download a p.exe file when I start firefox.
A: could be an addon for amazon, or perhaps try resetting your user profile, make a new user and log on and use firefox to see if it still works
You can reset your profile in firefox in the tools menu, you will use all your favorites, so make sure you backup what you want.
Segment 2
Caller 2
Q: I seem to have a lot of hard disk crashes, I just got a new drive, and it crashed. Why?
A: try to keep the disk away from heat
Q: how hard is it to replace drives?
A: just make sure you unscrew it, get the data and power cables connected.
Q: how to reload the data on the disk?
A: it is easiest to use a restore CD rom and boot fromo that. otherwise, you will need to find an install disk and use the key on the computer to reactivate it
question from the chat room: using CA anti-virus, it is not rated well, should I get something else?
A: Joe Danyi does not like CA anti-virus, it slows down the system
Joe Danyi talks about backing up to memory sticks, or external drive. Every version of windows has the "breifcase" folder. Does not explain how to use the briefcase however.
When reinstalling the operating system, you will probably need to either use a driver disk that came with your computer, or go to the web to download. sometimes you don't know exactly what components you got. For Dells, you can go to the web, put in your service tag, and it will tell you the drivers for your specific computer (as it shipped).
NIC = Network Interface Card
Segment 3
Talking about Domain names and domain squatters. Joe reads a list of the most expensive domain names.
Adam talks about installing the Vista SP2 upgrade. He noticed that the sound driver got changed. His settings for default audio in and out got changed. There is always a chance that a service pack install might mess up your settings.
Caller 3
Q: ati2eva2 gives me a blue screen
A: ATI has some buggy drivers. The best bet is to go to the laptop manufacturer's site to get their latest version customized for your laptop.
question from the chatroot: what is the best encryption for his wireless?
A: just use WPA, with a personal shared key. However, it depends on what devices you have, like the Nintendo DS only supports the WEP
Joe Danyi talks about SAAS (software as a service). Each install of software used to be per machine. Now they are thinking about licencing per user instead. Panda anti-virus brings this up with its new cloud anti-virus. Joe does not seem to like this type of licensing.
Segment 4
No computer show next show.
Adam talks about the NHL finals. He is now a fan.
The Niles store is open. The door to go in is the middle door in the suite.
Caller 4
Q: do you teach computers for old people?
A: there are weekly classes. They are all in our office. Contact Nick to get on the mailing list to get a list of the classes.
The computer show will be at this year's air show at the Youngstown Air base.
Apple dev show was this week. the 3.0 iPhone software will be out next week, new iPhone 3GS in July.
Price drop on some Macs. Snow Leopard will be $29.
Storms will happen, and your electricity will go out. To protect when the power flickers, get some power conditioning. And maybe a battery backup.
Consider unplugging all electronic devices when you go on vacation.
Caller 1
Q: get a message about wanting to download a p.exe file when I start firefox.
A: could be an addon for amazon, or perhaps try resetting your user profile, make a new user and log on and use firefox to see if it still works
You can reset your profile in firefox in the tools menu, you will use all your favorites, so make sure you backup what you want.
Segment 2
Caller 2
Q: I seem to have a lot of hard disk crashes, I just got a new drive, and it crashed. Why?
A: try to keep the disk away from heat
Q: how hard is it to replace drives?
A: just make sure you unscrew it, get the data and power cables connected.
Q: how to reload the data on the disk?
A: it is easiest to use a restore CD rom and boot fromo that. otherwise, you will need to find an install disk and use the key on the computer to reactivate it
question from the chat room: using CA anti-virus, it is not rated well, should I get something else?
A: Joe Danyi does not like CA anti-virus, it slows down the system
Joe Danyi talks about backing up to memory sticks, or external drive. Every version of windows has the "breifcase" folder. Does not explain how to use the briefcase however.
When reinstalling the operating system, you will probably need to either use a driver disk that came with your computer, or go to the web to download. sometimes you don't know exactly what components you got. For Dells, you can go to the web, put in your service tag, and it will tell you the drivers for your specific computer (as it shipped).
NIC = Network Interface Card
Segment 3
Talking about Domain names and domain squatters. Joe reads a list of the most expensive domain names.
Adam talks about installing the Vista SP2 upgrade. He noticed that the sound driver got changed. His settings for default audio in and out got changed. There is always a chance that a service pack install might mess up your settings.
Caller 3
Q: ati2eva2 gives me a blue screen
A: ATI has some buggy drivers. The best bet is to go to the laptop manufacturer's site to get their latest version customized for your laptop.
question from the chatroot: what is the best encryption for his wireless?
A: just use WPA, with a personal shared key. However, it depends on what devices you have, like the Nintendo DS only supports the WEP
Joe Danyi talks about SAAS (software as a service). Each install of software used to be per machine. Now they are thinking about licencing per user instead. Panda anti-virus brings this up with its new cloud anti-virus. Joe does not seem to like this type of licensing.
Segment 4
No computer show next show.
Adam talks about the NHL finals. He is now a fan.
The Niles store is open. The door to go in is the middle door in the suite.
Caller 4
Q: do you teach computers for old people?
A: there are weekly classes. They are all in our office. Contact Nick to get on the mailing list to get a list of the classes.
Saturday, June 06, 2009
Youngstown Computer Show Notes for June 6, 2009
Segment 1
Had a movie night on Friday, went good until it started raining. Call in to convince us to come to your house to have a movie night.
On Monday, there will be an announcement about the iPhone. Talking about the Palm Pre, Joe is not impressed. Rumors about the iPhone: a 4GB one for $99 in July.
Calller 1
Q: when watching TV shows online, all the voices sound high-pitched, faster
A: look for a orange icon for your sound card, look for a setting for pitch correction. You might have to uninstall and reinstall the sound card driver.
Caller 2
Q: missing the "My Documents" in vista
A: it is there, there is just "Documents" now. all the other folders that used to be in there are now in the folder underneath, this is the folder that has your user name
Talk about parental controls, Joe likes some new products from McAfee and Symmantec. http://Onlinefamily.norton.com
Segment 2
Online question: should I go for Vista?
Joe has been warming up to Vista. Ian says that windows 7 is so close, wait for it. Adam points out that there will be free update coupons for Windows 7.
Joe starts talking about http://onlinefamily.norton.com. It is free for trying out now. McAffe is also coming out with a similar program.
Caller 3
Q: are there problems with consistently using hibernating or sleep mode all the time?
A: sleep is good for short periods of inactivity, hibernate is for long periods.
Q: should you shut down multiple times during an evening?
A: just leave it on, then just turn it off at the end of the day
Q: what is the difference between having the laptop running all the time?
A: there are power meters you can put on the plug, you can measure the power used there
Adam asks about the shutdown menu on vista, is it still there? Yes, it is small little menu next to the shutdown button.
Segment 3
Talking about Kraftwek music.
Signs are going up for the Niles store, right across from the McKinley Memorial.
Caller 4
Q: getting a "SMART" message from the hard drive when starting up. does that mean it is going to die?
A: yes, that is telling you that your hard drive is about to die. Make sure you got a good backup and bring it into the shop.
Joe talks about how they backup and recover data. If you don't have a backup, they will do it for $25.
Talking about the little parts inside the hard disk. Listen for strange noises from the hard disk, and if disk accesses get very slow.
Caller 5
Q: get a popup that says that virtual memory is low, and it seems that norton is the cause.
A: it could be a damaged program, reinstall the program. in general, you'll have to check to see you have enough ram, and also turn off any unnecessary processes.
Segment 4
Talking about how to speed up your computer. 1. more RAM, 2. cut down on the startup programs. Joe Danyi recommends from http://download.com Startup Inspector. It will highlight which ones are manditory, which are optional, and which are unknown.
Adam asks about the startup items for java and itunes. They are just for updates.
Adam asks about what happens when I run out of space on my disk? Either uninstall some big programs (World of Warcraft) or get a new disk and then you can copy stuff over to it.
Talking about Microsoft's Bing search/decision site. Joe Danyi will check it out this week.
Had a movie night on Friday, went good until it started raining. Call in to convince us to come to your house to have a movie night.
On Monday, there will be an announcement about the iPhone. Talking about the Palm Pre, Joe is not impressed. Rumors about the iPhone: a 4GB one for $99 in July.
Calller 1
Q: when watching TV shows online, all the voices sound high-pitched, faster
A: look for a orange icon for your sound card, look for a setting for pitch correction. You might have to uninstall and reinstall the sound card driver.
Caller 2
Q: missing the "My Documents" in vista
A: it is there, there is just "Documents" now. all the other folders that used to be in there are now in the folder underneath, this is the folder that has your user name
Talk about parental controls, Joe likes some new products from McAfee and Symmantec. http://Onlinefamily.norton.com
Segment 2
Online question: should I go for Vista?
Joe has been warming up to Vista. Ian says that windows 7 is so close, wait for it. Adam points out that there will be free update coupons for Windows 7.
Joe starts talking about http://onlinefamily.norton.com. It is free for trying out now. McAffe is also coming out with a similar program.
Caller 3
Q: are there problems with consistently using hibernating or sleep mode all the time?
A: sleep is good for short periods of inactivity, hibernate is for long periods.
Q: should you shut down multiple times during an evening?
A: just leave it on, then just turn it off at the end of the day
Q: what is the difference between having the laptop running all the time?
A: there are power meters you can put on the plug, you can measure the power used there
Adam asks about the shutdown menu on vista, is it still there? Yes, it is small little menu next to the shutdown button.
Segment 3
Talking about Kraftwek music.
Signs are going up for the Niles store, right across from the McKinley Memorial.
Caller 4
Q: getting a "SMART" message from the hard drive when starting up. does that mean it is going to die?
A: yes, that is telling you that your hard drive is about to die. Make sure you got a good backup and bring it into the shop.
Joe talks about how they backup and recover data. If you don't have a backup, they will do it for $25.
Talking about the little parts inside the hard disk. Listen for strange noises from the hard disk, and if disk accesses get very slow.
Caller 5
Q: get a popup that says that virtual memory is low, and it seems that norton is the cause.
A: it could be a damaged program, reinstall the program. in general, you'll have to check to see you have enough ram, and also turn off any unnecessary processes.
Segment 4
Talking about how to speed up your computer. 1. more RAM, 2. cut down on the startup programs. Joe Danyi recommends from http://download.com Startup Inspector. It will highlight which ones are manditory, which are optional, and which are unknown.
Adam asks about the startup items for java and itunes. They are just for updates.
Adam asks about what happens when I run out of space on my disk? Either uninstall some big programs (World of Warcraft) or get a new disk and then you can copy stuff over to it.
Talking about Microsoft's Bing search/decision site. Joe Danyi will check it out this week.
Tuesday, June 02, 2009
The Best Ways to Share Your Digital Photos
There is no doubt that you get the most joy from your photos when you share them. Here is an article that gives a good overview of the different photo sharing services that are avilable.
The Best Ways to Share Your Digital Photos
The Best Ways to Share Your Digital Photos
12 Free Security Tools from PC Magazine
Here is a nice article that starts with an overview of some free anti-virus, anti-spyware, anti-spam, firewall, and password manager software and then follows up with reviews of each.
link to article
link to article
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