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Castellini on Computers
Free Weekly Email Newsletter
December 19, 2007
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In this week's issue. .
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*** Tip of the Week
*** Geek Speek of the Week - (Simple
definition of common computer terms)
*** Computer News...and
comment
*** Last week's Poll results
*** Adam's Comments - Stuff
from the digital world that is rolling around in Adam's head.
*** Email
of the week
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We are returning to the Grand Junction, Colorado air waves this Wednesday the 19th on KAFM 88.1 FM. KAFM is
our local public radio station and has a fantastic line up of music and
public service programs. We have been give the opportunity to appear
once per month (third Wednesday of every month) from Noon to 12:30pm
Mountain Time.
At this moment, we plan on talking mainly about newsy tech items and
possibly end with a practical computer tip. We will be moderated by
their public affairs host and be talking with him or her. It won't be a
call-in show, just informational.
We hope that with your support in listening to the program, writing
to the station, and calling the station, we can get a weekly one hour
call-in gig.
Anyone can listen to the show by visiting KAFM's web site and tuning into their live stream. You will also find contact information for the station's program director if you wish to call or write.
We look forward to this new opportunity and hope you get a chance to tune in this Wednesday from Noon-12:30pm Mountain time!
Tune
in to our last web show before Christmas tomorrow night. We were a little disappointed in
the turnout for last week's program (we blamed midnight sales at the mall), but we hope that more folks can
join us the week.
Last week we gave away a T-shirt. This week we may give away a Porsche or a fabulous fruit basket but probably not.
Call or email us and tell us about the gadget you are giving or hope to receive for Christmas.
If you don't get Adam Cochran's Picasa tutorial DVD-ROM for Christmas.
Remember you can always order it by clicking on the Buy Now button at
HelpMeRick.com |
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Email your questions to us
and we will answer them live on the air or on our daily website
updates!
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Custom Computer Help from Rick and
Adam
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We have been posting a new how-to video every week since November and
the feedback has been tremendous. Now YOU have the opportunity to get your own
customized video tutorial about a topic that you are having trouble with or just
want to learn.
To learn more, visit: www.HelpMeRick.com/videohelp
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Tip of the Week
Stop a document from printing - Video Tip
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View the Video Here
We all run into a problem sooner or later where something we
printed didn't print correctly or we want to stop it from printing. In
today's tip, I explain how to stop the printer from printing and then
clean the print job from your computer.
- Turn off your printer using its power switch
- Immediately watch for a message by your clock that has anything to do with your printer
- Click the little bubble message (if you see it)
- If you don't see the options in steps 2 & 3, then:
- Click Start --> Control Panel
- Double-click Printers
- Double-click your printer
- When the printer queue dialog box appears, click one time on the document you want to delete
- Click Document from the menus, then Cancel (If you have multiple
documents, click Printer --> Cancel all documents from the menus)
- Once the documents disappear (should be just a few moments), you can close all open windows and turn your printer on again.
I have a few more little tips and you can see this technique in action by watching the video by clicking on the link above.
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Geek Speek
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The
world gets it's news from the Internet. You may get your news from TV,
radio or newspapers, but those sources all get their news from the
Internet.
Who decides what's news and what isn't? One answer is Digg.com. Digg is
a website designed to determine what is news and what isn't.
Here's how it works:
1. You and millions of others setup free accounts by going to Digg.com.
2. When you come across an interesting site you add it to your Digg account.
3. Others on Digg decide whether it is worth "digging" or not.
4. The more people who digg your story, the higher the story or site goes in the list.
In theory, the top sites on Digg should be the most interesting. |
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Digg
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Computer News...and
comment
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FCC relaxes media ownership policies
Perhaps this is a stretch for our newsletter, but it is significant
news worthy of the newsletter. The FCC announced this week that it will
relax policies on media ownership preventing television networks from
owning newspapers and/or radio stations.
Coming soon the Fox Wallstreet Journal and the CNN New York Times.
Google posts Zeitgest 2007
Zeitgeist
is a database of Google search topics. This week Zeitgeist 2007 results
were posted and the most popular search topics have been ranked overall
and by category.
Japan gets 16GB eee PC
Asus announced that they are releasing a new version
of the eee PC in Japan. They will be the first to receive the 16GB
version of the product which may also offer Windows XP as an option. No
word on price yet, but hopefully it will arrive in America soon.
Microsoft to release the beta version of Windows XP SP3
Sometime
last night, Microsoft made the beta version of the next (and possibly
last) large upgrade known as Service Pack 3 to Windows XP. The download
will be over 500 megabytes (cable and fast DSL owners only please). For
some reason, the press release stated that when the service pack is
released via Windows Update sometime next year, it will be closer to 70
megabytes. We are assuming that the SP3 download includes the almost 100 updates that have been released since SP2 in 2004. Apple releases updates
Apple
issued a series of patches (31) on Monday to seal up some loose ends in
both the Apple OS 10.4 and 10.5. 10.5 is their newest operating system
and was released just last month. Some of the patches were for inner
workings of the Mac OS, and others were for potential security risks.
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Poll
Results
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How often do you learn something new on the Internet?
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Next week's poll:
What do you typically do with emails that start with "FWD:" in the subject line?
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Daily 54%
A couple of times per week 34%
A couple of times per month 8%
Very seldom 4%
Never 0%
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Adam's
Comments
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Before I begin, I want to thank everyone who has sent me emails about how much my Picasa Tutorial DVD-ROM has changed their life. So many people can't believe that you can learn so much from a $20 DVD-ROM.
Next week I will present my annual tech predictions for 2008. This week
I want to take a look back at my predictions for 2007 and see what I
got right and what I got wrong.
2007 PREDICTION #1 - I predict that 52-inch flat screens will be
available for under $900 as a standard price by next Christmas.
- I was barely wrong on this one. Pricegrabber lists two 50" screens for under $1000. Next year will be the year for 52" screens.
2007 PREDICTION #2 - Apple will release a product mid to
end year that will cause everyone with an iPod to begin the switch to
Apple - if they haven't already.
It will likely be a budget priced computer that will work like a
regular computer, but it will interface with video and music in a way
that will allow it to replace most people's entertainment centers.
- I was barely wrong on
this one again. My prediction is what the iPhone and iPod touch wanted
to be. I was also right about the massive move by millions from PC to
Apple, but that was Microsoft's fault for releasing Vista.
2007 PREDICTION #3 - Vista will get released but the quick buzz will get
around and no one will be willing to make the upgrade. The few
bleeding-edgers who do
"upgrade" will regret it secretly, but many of them will still try to
get their friends and family to upgrade just so they aren't alone in
the world. Expect Macs to be much more popular by the end of 2007 as
the failure of Vista will cause Mac to make a strategic pricing move.
- No, I'm not a prophet, I just have a knack for stating the obvious. Too bad Microsoft couldn't see it coming too.
2007 PREDICTION #4 - One gigabyte flash drives will cost under $20 at regular price.
- What I should have said is that 2 and 4 GB drives would also cost under $20.
2007 PREDICTION #5 - Canon will release a digital camera to compete
with the Nikon D50, it will be 8 megapixels and priced under $600 with
a lens.
- Rather that releasing a
new model, Canon lowered the price of the Rebel XT. A great move since
the camera has already proven itself. Nikon still struggles to outsell
it with the D50.
2007 PREDICTION #6 - There will be a trend away from large 15.4"
screens on laptops and more people will start looking for smaller
12-14" manufacturers will
respond favorably.
- While 15'4" is still the
standard laptop screen size. There were only about five models made in
2006 with screen sizes smaller than 14". Now most companies have at
least one model of 12.1" or 13.3" screen.
2007 PREDICTION #7 - Prices of computers overall will be higher than
they were in the past year. Expect the average cost to go up to around
$1000 for a basic system.
- This is a tough one to
call. It is very easy to find a sub-$1000 desktop or laptop, however,
Vista's heavy requirements mean that those sub-$1000 systems often cost
more than $1000 once you add the proper amount of RAM and a substantial
video card to run Vista.
2007 PREDICTION #8 - There will be a trend of new TV news shows
that do little more than show the various videos that are currently
popular on the Internet.
- CNN Headline News airs a
weekly show called News To Me that is nothing but videos found online.
Others are in the works, but there will likely be many more shows like
this if the writers strike continues through the Summer season of 2008.
2007 PREDICTION #9 - A 22" wide screen monitor will not be unusual as
the prices for flat panel screens fall below $100 for 17" screens.
- 22" screens are everywhere, but 17" screens still cost around $129. Slightly lower than last year's $159.
2007 PREDICTION #10 - I predict that in mid-2007 the polar caps
will melt but they will re-freeze instantly and no one will notice that
we reached the climax
of global warming. Expect about 30 years of global cooling from that day forward.
- It happened, no one noticed.
2007 PREDICTION #11 - I predict that Castellini on Computers will begin
devoting 17 minutes of every third show to fishing and/or kite flying.
- We tried this, but it got us kicked off the network and now we have an Internet-only show.
2007 PREDICTION #12 - Lastly, someone famous will get into big trouble
and it will make national news. Yes, believe it or not, it will happen
again this year.
- You thought Criss Angel had freaky powers. If only Brittany and Michael Vic had read my column last year
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Email of the
week
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Hi Rick and Adam,
I'd
like to buy a new desktop computer after Christmas. Data Doctors
provided a price for a custom computer w/a 3 yr. warranty. I've been
pricing online for an HP/Dell, etc. By the time I "click on" all the
extras I want beyond the basic model, the price for a customized
computer is only minimally more expensive.
What's your opinion on custom v. "mainline manufacturer"?
Thanks!
Dawn
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Hello Dawn,
I'm
not nearly as brand conscious as I once was. For new computer shopping
today, I compare price versus features and then factor in the warranty
and support. Almost all major brands of computers have just one year
warranties included and their tech support is from over-seas. If
you can find a local computer maker or another smaller computer
manufacturer that can provide similar specs, a better warranty and
competitive price, I say go for it. You can read reviews for most
manufacturers by visiting www.epinions.com or www.pricegrabber.com. Happy Holidays and thanks for writing! Rick
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Merry Christmas and Happy New Year
to all our great listeners and newsletter readers.
Since the next two newsletter days fall on the holidays,
we will be taking a two week hiatus from the
newsletter and show. Look for great new
shows and newsletters starting in January! Castellini on Computers &
HelpMeRick.com ©2007
Rick Castellini and Adam Cochran
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