5 Things You'll Love About Firefox 3

Computerworld reports: "New versions of favorite applications are always a little tricky; you want to keep up with the times without fixing what ain't broke. With that in mind, I took a look at the newly released Firefox 3 Beta 2 to see what we can look forward to when the final version ships in 2008.Although the basic look of the browser hasn't changed, there are actually quite a few new

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Roll your own Adobe CS3 for free (Part 2)

CNet Download.com reports: "Okay, so you can get the basic functionalities of Photoshop, Illustrator, Acrobat, and Dreamweaver without the gut-punch to your wallet. What's that you say? How about Flash?"Here are links to the sites that support these products, so that you can download the latest version of the software:Synfig Studio (Flash animation)Audacity (sound editing)Scribus (desktop

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Roll your own Adobe CS3 for free (Part 1)

CNet's Download.com reports: "So, you need to finish up a design project that requires the image-editing capabilities of Photoshop along with the vectorized lines of Illustrator, and it needs to be animated in Flash with documentation in a PDF. However, you blew your budget on bling and a sweet alpaca-skin bongo set."Here are links to the sites that support these products, so that you can

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Hardware: How to Upgrade a Graphics Card

PC Magazine reports: "Windows Vista is the most graphically intensive operating system ever, and DirectX 10, its multimedia and gaming component, has computer users all over the world considering upgrading their PCs. With its 3D-driven Aero graphical user interface (GUI), Vista requires more graphics-card muscle than XP does. And because DirectX 10 isn't backward-compatible, gamers who are

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Windows Vista: Managing Services

Windows Vista comes with several services that can be installed on your system to add additional functionality. A number of these services are very specialize, and will only benefit people in certain types of computer environments (such as those in large organizations like a corporation or government office).Some of these services are installed by default, while others are optional and need to

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Windows Vista Help: Burn a DVD-Video disc

Looking for help on how to burn a DVD using Windows Vista, check out this article from Microsoft. Here is excerpt: "You can create DVDs quickly and easily using Windows DVD Maker. You can add video, pictures, and audio, make slide shows for your DVD, or add your Windows Movie Maker projects. Once you add files, you can burn your DVD with one click, or, if you prefer, you can choose from several

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Windows Vista: Prevent Automatic Rebooting From Windows Update

Its very annoying if you leave your computer on at night with unsaved work on it, and come to it in the morning and find that it was rebooted. When new patches are downloaded and installed on your computer by Windows Update (if you have it enabled) this feature will automatically reboot your system. So if you have any unsaved work, you will lose it.If you want to know how to prevent Windows

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Software: Microsoft Security Tools

Here is a great page, a kind of one stop shop for all of Microsoft's free and fee-based security tools in one location. Some of these tools are more up-to-date then others, you will need to read the tool description page to fully understand what OS and applications are supported.This page will probably be more interesting to those who are I.T. professionals. Although there are still some great

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Software: CloneDrive (Mounting a CD/ISO Image)

An .ISO file contains an exact digital image of a CD or DVD that you can send electronically to somebody else and then they re-created it on blank media. Several OSes (i.e.: Linux boot CDs) and applications are made available on the Internet using this file format.If you don't want to burn these files to a disk, some applications such as CloneDrive allows you to mount the ISO file as a virtual

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Windows Vista's security features: One year later

TechTarget reports: "When Vista was released to manufacturing, Microsoft co-president Jim Allchin told the press that the number one reason for upgrading to Vista is that it's far more secure than previous versions of Windows operating systems. In the year since Microsoft released Windows Vista to corporations, and just under a year since the OS was released to consumers, Vista's new security

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Software: InfraRecorder (Free)

InfraRecorder is a free open source CD/DVD burning software for Windows. It offers a wide range of powerful features; all through an easy to use application interface and Windows Explorer integration. Some of the the software features:Create custom data, audio and mixed-mode projects and record them to physical discs as well as disc images. Supports recording to dual-layer DVDs. Blank (erase)

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Cut-Rate Laptops

PC Magazine reports: "Chances are, you've seen one. You've picked up the Sunday paper, and somewhere between the front page and the funnies, there's a flyer advertising a $499 laptop. Nowadays, it's not usual to see ads touting laptops for as little as $399—or even less. But every time I see one, I can't help but wonder whether these cut-rate notebooks are actually worth buying. Do they include

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Software Flight Simulator X Trial Version

To be honest, I try never to post trial versions of software. I would prefer to point you to something that is free. Although, there are times that I will break my own unwritten rules.I have used Microsoft Flight Simulator since v1.0 back in the day on an Apple II computer. So if you're a flight simulator fan, you can Download a free trial version of the software and take it for a test

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Why your registry doesn’t need cleaning

TechRepublic.com: "A long time ago, in a land forgotten by time (before Microsoft Windows 95), Windows computers and their programs had .ini (configuration) files that stored information. These files determined how a program ran, its environment, and a host of other things. Then the Windows Registry came onto the scene, with each key in the registry being similar to a bracketed heading in the

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Software: De-junking your New PC (tip 1)

If you buy a new computer from Dell, HP, eMachines, etc., its probably going to come full of useless trial programs that try to entice you to spend money to get the full version of it. These demo programs have become lovingly nicknamed 'crapware'. I hate the nickname of the software, but I think its appropriate.I recently bought a new consumer PC, and I could not believe all useless software

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Software: e-Sword (Free Bible Study Program)

Are you looking for a bible program for your computer? Check out e-Sword, it's a great way to study the Bible, you can download several different translations of the bible including several different languages.The program is free (but donations are requested), and most of the bible translations are free. Although some translation and research text do cost money, generally because they're still

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Software: Mozilla Firefox 3 Beta 1 Released

Firefox 3 Beta 1 has been released as a developer preview. This is Mozilla's next generation Firefox browser and is being made available for testing purposes only. Some of the new features are:Supports the new Gecko 1.9 Web rendering engineSeveral new/updated security features including: SSL, malware and phishing protection.Several new/updated usability features including: password and file

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What is the big deal about 802.11n?

TechRepublic.com reports: "802.11n is being touted as the networking standard that will unwire the network world. Most people are not convinced, yet curious to see how one defends such a claim. The 802.11n standard has two top-level mandates (unwiring the world not being one of them): Achieve higher data rates and retain backward compatibility with legacy 802.11a/b/g devices. The significance of

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DIY Project: Caffeine Boost Your WIFI

Caffeine Boost Your WIFI - The most amazing bloopers are hereThis seems like a good idea, but I have to admit I have not tried it. It doesn't seem like it could hurt your equipment if you want to try it. Although, watch out for any sharp edges that you might create cutting the can.Watch the video to learn more.For more information, here is a article that I wrote a while back on Wi-Fi Antenna

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Software: Pidgin (Multiservice Chat Client)

Are you tired of all those proprietary chat instant message clients, like Yahoo, AOL, ICQ, etc. Check out a program called Pidgin (formerly known as GAIM), its a free open source multi-platform multiservice instant message chat client. It allows you to communicate across all the major chat networks to stay in contact with all your friends and family.One of the cool feature of Pidgin is that you

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Windows Vista: Improving Wireless Connectivity

Are you having problems connecting to a wireless network with your Windows Vista computer? This may be caused by the fact that your Wireless Access Point (WAP) doesn't supports Vista's wireless auto-tuning feature. To fix the problem you have two options:If you own the WAP, you can try to upgrade its firmware to the latest version. You can generally find these updates on the device manufacture

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Microsoft's OneCare 2.0 Adds Security, Convenience

PC Magazine reports: "Microsoft on Thursday released version 2.0 of their Windows Live OneCare security and PC performance suite, enhancing a number of current features and adding a few brand-new twists. Current OneCare subscribers will receive the update effortlessly through the product's normal automatic updates feature, Microsoft said. Microsoft's OneCare is priced at $49.95/year for three

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10 Things You Should Know About Quad-Core Processors

eWeek reports: "In November 2006, Intel introduced the first quad-core microprocessors for the volume x86 market. The quad-core chips were designed to offer better performance compared with the previous generation of single- and dual-core processors. A little less than a year later, Advanced Micro Devices brought its quad-core Opteron to the market, showing that all four cores could be placed on

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Security: Microsoft Patch Tuesday (November)

The second Tuesday of the month has passed again, which means that Microsoft just published a new round of security fixes for Windows and it's applications. This date is meant to be a predictable date so that individuals or companies only have to patch their desktop computers and servers once a month.This month there are two new patches altogether. One marked as critical (for the OS), one marked

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Software: Miro goes 1.0

Miro (formerly called 'Democracy Player') is a free application that turns your computer into an internet video player. The player is available for Windows, Mac, or Linux.Miro lets you subscribe and download audio and video podcasts that are available on the net. It also supports full-screen mode, plays several popular video formats, and downloads files via BitTorrent.The Windows system

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Article: Narrow Vista’s Search results with the grouping, filtering, and stacking features

Windows Vista contains three special features that can help you to quickly narrow down your Search results to find what your looking for. In this article from Windows Vista Report, the author Greg Shultz shows you how to use Vista's grouping, filtering, and stacking features when searching for files.

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Software: Microsoft Unleashes Windows Live Software

PC Magazine reports: "Microsoft has unleashed a bundled download of its installed desktop Live software: Mail, Photo Gallery, Writer, and OneCare Family Safety. Also included is a slightly redesigned version 8.5 of Messenger, which intimately ties in with the rest of the suite; for example, starting up when you run Mail. ... The new software all requires at least Windows XP SP2, and you'll need a

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Windows Vista: Disaabling Sidebar

The Windows Vista Sidebar is set to startup automatically by default. Personally I think that most people like this feature, but I also know people who don't like it. So for those of you who want to disable it, follow the instructions below to turn it off.Right-click the Windows Sidebar icon in the Notification Area (in the lower right corner), then select PropertiesUncheck the 'Start Sidebar

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Windows Vista: New Daylight Saving Time Standard

As you probably know the move from Daylight Saving Time (DST) back to Standard Time generally happens on the last Sunday in October. Although, from now on it will be the first Sunday in November. Your computer and older electronics that are designed to automatically handle DST using the older standard might have already set themselves back and an hour last Sunday morning. This means you will

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Windows Vista: Create a Custom Toolbar

Did you know that you can create a custom toolbar from a folder that contains files in Windows Vista? If you have a folder of related documents, application shortcuts, Internet links, etc. Then you can turn it into a toolbar very easily.Right-click an empty area on your computer's desktop, then select New>Folder.Name the folder whatever you want to call the toolbar (i.e. 'Audio Tools').Place

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Windows Vista: How to use CHKDSK Command

Anyone who has used Windows for a long time, should have heard of the CHKDSK utility. I think this utility dates back to the Windows 95 days (but I could be wrong).If you have never heard of the CHKDSK let me give you a brief explanation of what it does. This is a command-line tool that checks the drives attached to your computer for problems and attempts to repair any issues that it finds.

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Windows Vista: File Path Shortcuts (DOS Prompt)

If you like using the command line, you may or may not know the following shortcuts that can help you to be more efficient.Instead of manually typing a file or directory name you can use the Tab key to complete the name of a file or path. For example, if there are three files in a directory name FileA, FileB, and FileC. If you typed "Fi" and press the Tab key, the file name 'FileA' will

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Software: Stellarium (a Virtual Planetarium)

Want to turn your PC into a virtual Planetarium? Then try Stellarium, a free open source virtual planetarium for your computer. It shows a realistic sky in 3D.This program can also go beyond the standard set of constellation, stars and planets, it can also give you a unique dome shaped look at the heavens above.

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Windows Vista: Disabling the Recent Items Menu

Yesterday, I talked about how to clear the 'Recent Items' sub-menu under the Start menu. Today, I am going to show you how to shut off this feature altogether (or how to enable it if it was already turned off).Right-click the Start menu, select Properties.In the 'Start Menu' tab, uncheck 'Store and display a list of recently opened files' check box.To enable this feature check it, instead of

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Windows Vista: Clearing Recent Items Menu

Under the Start Menu there is a sub-menu called 'Recent Items' that contains a list of documents that you recently opened. This is a useful feature to quickly access documents that you may often use.Although some people view this feature as a privacy risk, because they may not want others to know about documents that they may be working on. To clear the 'Recent Items' menu on your computer,

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Web Site: System Requirements Lab

Modern video games are system resource hogs (they can max out your CPU, RAM, hard drive, etc.) because they have to render realistic environments. It seems that the faster and more powerful newer computers become, the more resource hungry video games are.Do you want to find out if your current computer is capable of running game before you buy it? System Requirements Lab has a browser based

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Windows Vista: Finding Your MAC Address

Every Ethernet network adapter has a unique MAC address associated with it. The MAC address is a long series of numbers (i.e.: XX-XX-XX-XX-XX-XX) that is used to identify your adapter on a network. The first half of the MAC address identifies the hardware vendor that created it the adapter, the second part is a unique address.Sometimes you might need to know what the MAC address of your network

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Games: Orange Box

Very, very rarely do I see a video game that inspires me to want to play it, but I recently came across the Orange Box from Valve. If you enjoy video games you want to check out this box set. It contains five games in one package for $39.00 (if you buy it from Amazon plus you get free shipping), normally it retails for $49.00.Here excerpt of the description from Amazon: "The Orange Box delivers

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Software: JConvert (Unit Converter)

JConvert is a free open-source program written in Java that converts various units of measurements from one type to another. This program doesn't require that you install it to get it to work. All you have to do is download and execute it. To uninstall it, just delete the file.

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Security: Microsoft Patch Tuesday (October)

The second Tuesday of the month has passed again, which means that Microsoft just published a new round of security fixes for Windows and it's applications. This date is meant to be a predictable date so that individuals or companies only have to patch their desktop computers and servers once a month.This month there are six new patches altogether. Four are marked as critical (for the OS, Office,

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Windows Vista: Change Your Computers Name

When you setup your computer you need to give it a name (such as: deathstar, homecomputer, etc.). If at a later time you want to change the name of your computer, follow the instructions below:Log in to Vista with an account that has administrator privileges. From the Start menu and right-click Computer and select Properties. Under 'Computer Name, Domain, and Workgroup' section, click the '

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Windows Vista: Disabling ClearType

ClearType is a Windows technology that is designed to improve the image quality of the fonts by smoothing them out, which improves readability on LCD monitors. Windows Vista has this feature enabled by default.In Windows XP, ClearType was disabled by default, so if you wanted to use it you had to turn it on. Some people might not like how this technology make their fonts look on their screen,

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Windows Vista: Change Windows Sidebar Behavior

Want to change the behavior of the Windows Sidebar? You can do things like, preventing it from starting automatically when you log into Windows, or even turn it off entirely. Follow the instructions below:Right-click an empty area Windows Sidebar and select Properties.To prevent the sidebar from starting automatically, uncheck the 'Start Sidebar when Windows starts' box.To force the sidebar to

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Windows Vista: Installing a New Font

Windows Vista comes with several different types fonts installed by default. Some of these fonts you may like, and others you may hate.Sometimes when you install programs like Microsoft Office, they can install even more new fonts into your system. If you can't find a font that you like, there are numerous sites on Web that provide several different types of fonts (from fancy to regular, to just

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Window Vista: Microsoft Releases DreamScene (Ultimate Extra)

Note: This tip will only work on Windows Vista Ultimate edition.Last Tuesday Microsoft officially released DreamScene, the first of two remaining Windows Ultimate extras. DreamScene allows you to display videos as an animated desktop background on your computer.To install the Extras, open 'Windows Update' located under the 'Start menu' > 'All Programs'. You will see it listed under 'Widows

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Software: Spybot-Search & Destroy v1.5

Spybot-Search & Destroy (SB-S&D) was once one of the best main free spyware tools available, but in recent years has fallen behind its commercial competition like WebRoot's Spy Sweeper, and others. For the last year or more SB-S&D v1.4 was the latest revision of the product.Well, I am glad to announce they have finally released v1.5. Some of the new features of the software include:Improved

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Review: Security Suite Smackdown 2008

PC Magazine reports: "You can tell it's autumn. The leaves are turning colors, the sun is lower in the sky, there's a chill in the air…and the brand new security suites are out. Every year brings a flood of new versions looking to occupy those new Christmas PCs. And since they're all on a yearly subscription model, every year they have a chance to convince you to jump ship from your current suite

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IBM Lotus Symphony Beta (Reviewed)

PC Magazine reports: "If you've been considering OpenOffice.org as a free alternative to Microsoft Office, consider IBM Lotus Symphony instead. Lotus Symphony, downloadable in a free beta version, consists of the OpenOffice.org engines for word processing, spreadsheets, and presentations, but comes dressed in a sleek, professional interface that looks far better than the ugly and amateurish one

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Windows Vista: More then 3GB of RAM

If you have 3GB of RAM or less installed on your computer and you're running the x86 (i.e. 32-bit) version of Windows Vista or XP, then you will be able to utilize all of your computer's memory. Although if your system has 4GB or more of RAM, then you might only be able to access the first 3.2-3.5 GB of your computer's memory.This is primarily due to a limitation of the x86 32-bit architecture.

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Ezine 130 Windows Vista SP1 Beta Detailed account

Computer Performance reports: "If you fast-forward to 2015, and then look-back; I bet that Vista's SP1 will be hailed as a classic example of waiting until the first service pack before deploying an operating system. Thus if you have not deployed Vista, then wait until next spring and expect a smooth migration from XP."This is probably the best article that I have read about Windows Vista SP1.

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The True Cost of Printer Ink

PC Magazine reports: "The price tag on any given printer really tells only half the story. Many times the cheapest printer for sale isn't necessarily the cheapest printer to own. And what's the most affordable printer for you in particular? Depending on how many pages you print and how much it costs to print each page, a high-priced printer with expensive cartridges could be a lot cheaper to own

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Internet: Google Presentations gets the green light

CNET News.com reports: "Google announced the launch on Monday night of its long-awaited, Web-based competitor to PowerPoint. Google Presentations, which is free, is part of the company's online office suite, Google Docs."Presentations has some similar but limited functionality when compared to Microsoft's PowerPoint to create basic presentations. Although it lacks more sophisticated features

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KDE 4: The Shiny New Linux (and Windows) Desktop

ExtremeTech reports: "Linux users are as evangelical about desktop environments, the all-encompassing graphical user interface software responsible for providing everything from taskbars to office suites, as they are about operating systems. It shouldn't come as any surprise, then, that the first major release in over five years of the most popular desktop environment available is causing quite a

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Software: Extras for Windows Media Player

Want to enhance the look, feel and functionality of Windows Media Player. Check out this site from Microsoft that allows you to download skins (customizes the look), visualizations (visual effects), and plug-ins (adds new features) for this program.

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Why Pirate? Microsoft Offers $60 Office to Students

PC Magazine reports: "Microsoft on Wednesday unveiled a $60 Web-based version of its new Microsoft Office Ultimate suite of applications that will be exclusively available to college students. ... Students with a valid e-mail address from their university will be able to download Microsoft Office Ultimate 2007 for $60 via the Web. The offering includes Word, Excel, Power Point, Outlook, Access,

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Software: Google Earth (Hidden Flight Simulator)

Did you know that the latest version of Google Earth (free satellite mapping software) has a built-in flight simulator. Here is a short tutorial on how to use this new feature.To use the new flight simulator, follow the instructions below:Download the latest version of Google EarthLaunch the program and press CTRL+ALT+AIn the option dialog box select your plane (F16 or SR22) and the airport.

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Microsoft Streets & Trips 2008 ('Connected Services' Version)

Microsoft 'Streets & Trips 2008 with Connected Services' combines a GPS Locator and an MSN Direct Receiver. The MSN Direct Receiver provides updated traffic and gas updates without an Internet connection. The software package also includes a one year subscription to MSN Direct which is required for the traffic updates and gas prices. The retail price for the software/hardware is $180.

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Windows Vista: Hardware Compatibility List

One of the biggest issues that a user can face when upgrading to Windows Vista is finding a driver for an existing piece of hardware (i.e.: printers, NICs, camera, etc.) that they own. When Vista was first released in January, hardware manufactures were slow to make driver updates available. Now that Vista has been around for a while, more and more drivers are becoming available.To find out if

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Buying Guide: Desktops and Laptops

PC Magazine reports: "Every year brings us something new and innovative in the desktop and laptop market, and this year is no different. New components, new technology, and even a new OS from Microsoft have hit the store shelves. But when it comes to choosing a system from such a dazzling array, many people find it daunting, if not overwhelming. That's where we come in. We have sifted through,

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Networking: IP subnetting made easy

If you work on a medium to a large size network, then you need to understand IP subnetting? IP subnetting lets you breakup a large network into smaller sub-networks. Personally I find this subject one of the more difficult parts of networking to understand, mostly because you don't use this knowledge very often.If you want to understand this topic here is an an excerpt from a TechRepublic

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Software: CCleaner

CCleaner is a free system optimization and privacy tool. This utility can remove unneeded files from your system thus freeing up hard disk space. It also can remove the URL history, cookies, and other types of privacy data from the top three main Web browsers (IE, Firefox and Opera).

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Software: Glary Utilities (Free)

Glary Utilities offers several easy-to-use system tools and utilities to help fix, maintain and protect your computer.  When you open the application you will be presented with five basic tabs, each tab represents a category of tools:


Clean Up & Repair
Optimize & Improve
Privacy & Security
Files & Folders
System Tools


The program is free for personal use.

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Software: Google Earth 4.2 (Now You Can Explore the Sky)

Want to explore the known universe from your computer. With Google Earth 4.2, you can explore the earth or skies and see planets, stars, nebulas and galaxies. The new 'Sky' feature in Google Earth 4.2 includes images taken by the Hubble space telescope. Watch the video to learn more.

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Software: Indentifing Your CPU and RAM

CPU-Z is one of the best utilities for finding out what type of CPU and RAM you have installed on your computer. What is even better is this program is freeware, and can be run on your computer without having to install it. Below is a list of the information that this program displays:CPUName and number.Core stepping and process.Package.Core voltage.Internal and external clocks, clock

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The Essential Guide To PC Memory

PC Magazine reports: "How much memory does Vista really need? What about Windows XP? And what the heck does DDR mean? How much money will a memory upgrade cost, and where do you buy it? We'll answer these questions and more, briefing you on the essentials of PC memory technology and saving you a great deal of money and hassle. Whether you're building a new system from scratch or upgrading, you'll

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Internet: Testing Your Bandwidth Speed

Not too long ago, the speed of your Internet connection was determined by the speed of your modem and your ISP's modem, plus quality of the line you're using to connect. With today's new high-speed broadband connections (such as: DSL, Cable, Fiber, etc.), the speed of your bandwidth connection is only limited to your budget and the availability of the service.Although, you may wonder how you can

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Windows Vista: Performance Updates

Microsoft has released two updates for Windows Vista that address performance and reliability issues. These updates include several enhancements and other fixes, below is a brief list of some of the updates:System and memory performance enhancementsFixes for video driversFixes for wake-from-hibernation problemsImproved compatibility with printersBetter HD DVD/Blu-ray playbackImprovements in file

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