Google Arsenal

Talking about my Google arsenal; let's see now!

I use frequently (generally daily):

1. Search
2. Blogger
3. Analytics
4. Calendar
5. News
6. Personalized Home Page
7. Gmail
8. Reader
9. Talk
10.Earth
11.Picasa

And they are all free!!

And here's Googles full list and then some more.

My Top 10 Feeds

Okay, heres more.

My top 10 RSS Feeds. (by the way my feed reader is GreatNews). I'll leave out the Mozilla stuff because I don't want to look like I'm advertising.

1. Life Hacker
Without doubt this is my principle source of new technology.

2. FactoryCity by Chris Messina
A lot of his stuff is, for me, garble, but you pick some stuff up. A talented, over involved dude.

3. Dilbert
Get your daily fix. What can I say about Dilbert? He's a dude and his boss sucks.

4. Digg.
A necessary evil. Lots of crap but if you are patient then you will get good stuff here.

5. Nasa's Image Of The Day
You get some spectacular stuff.

6. Nasa's Earth Observatory
Again, you'll get some spectacular stuff.

7. Reuters News
They have a variety of feeds that keep you up to date on world info. I subscribe to 3 feeds.

8. Secunia Security Advisory
Be the first to know what problems exist out there, nasties and viruses.

9. Tumut
If you have a feed reader that supports a search then set it up to see what's going down in your home town.

10. Whatever You Want
There are so many sites out there that support and provide RSS feeds it is ridiculous. Take the time, get yourself a reader and enjoy.

Free Gmail Invitations

I've been using gmail now for over 9 months and I reckon it is great for a few reasons:

1. Huge storage. 2.6GB and counting. It looks like Gmails (Googles) aim on storage is to add a GB per year; the first year they had 1GB then to celebrate their 1st birthday it was increased to 2GB's and since then it is counting up every day and will reach 3GB's by its 2nd birthday and I guess it won't stop there.

2. It's Free!!!! Need I say any more to this point? I guess not...

3. It is not linked to your ISP. What happens when you change your ISP when you can get a better deal at another? Well, the first thing that happens is that you lose your e-mail address provided by your old ISP. Then you need to tell everyone your new address, etc.....

4. Web based but Pop accessable. You can get your mail with all the popular e-mail clients such as Outlook Express and Thunderbird AND leave a copy archived on the Gmail servers. When you travel you can just log on anywhere and, "wola", there's all your mail. Furthermore, if you have a PC crash or the such and happen to loose all your mail then when you are set up again just download the lot that is archived on the Gmail servers; that's cool!!

5. No spam!!!!!!!!!! So far the only spam I've received is the spam that I have been resopnsible for. By that I mean sites that I left my address.

6. I could go on but you get the idea!!

But it is different in that it does not use folders as per other web based services. You do need to do a bit of "labelling" and house keeping though, directly on the web based application or it will get out of hand. 5 minutes a week is more than enough for a 20-30 emails per day user. I use 4 accounts for various reasons and it is a breeze once you work it out.

So, if anyone wants an invite then find my email address on this blog and send me a mail. In return I'll send an invite.

Tchau for now..............

P.S. Don't take my word for it, go and check it out for yourself.........

Opera 8.5 Cleaned Up!!

Well; looks like the penny has finally dropped!!

I can only guess that Opera have realised that to grab market share they need to be "Ad" free as well as free of charge.

Here it is; Opera 8.5; free of a banner advertisement. It's certainly worth a test drive.

It is only logical that those that are aware there are alternatives to Internet Explorer are not interested in paying USD40 to remove a banner ad when there are free alternatives like Firefox with nothing.

Anyway, I've played with Opera since the 8.0 launch and it is a good, fast browser with a built-in e-mail client and RSS reader. The main reason that I have only played with it on and off is because the banner bugs me.

I'll continue to play with Opera but I still like the browsing control that the Firefox extensions give me.

Bottom line is that Opera will now certainly increase their market share at the main expense of Firefox and somewhat of IE.

But!!!!

How will they pay the bills?

PC Tweaks, Twiddles, Security, Software Part 4.

I was going to continue with some more tweaks and stuff that I have tried out but now I won't. If anyone has got a query then leave a comment or send me a mail.

albyxx@gmail.com

I think I'll just summarize instead.

Take security and maintenance of your computer seriously. If you don't then you will pay the price. Simple as that!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Albyxx.

PC Tweaks, Twiddles, Security, Software Part 3.

Part 3. Well I think I'll just stick with Firefox this time around. If you've stuck with me this far then you are more than likely using FF and "good on ya!!"

I love to be in control of my situation and with Firefox and its about:config, extensions, user.js, etc, etc it gives me the warm, fuzzy feeling that I.E. (Internet Explorer) does not have.

Here are some of my favorite bits but bear in mind that this is a pin prick in the ocean; the options and tweaks are mind boggling:

Firstly there are some **Must Have** exensions. Extensions are small, add-on "programs" that enhance how Firefox presents the web sites you surf and what you see within your browser.

To install an extension then check this out

Here's my list:

* Tweak Network 1.1
* FlashGot 0.5.9.6
* Adblock 0.5.2.039
* Tabbrowser Preferences 1.2.7.1
* Forecastfox 0.7.9.2
* PDF Download 0.4.1.3
* IE View 1.2.4
* Download Manager Tweak 0.6.6
* Tab Clicking Options 0.5.2
* Super DragAndGo 0.2.4d1
* ScrapBook 0.15.5
* Flashblock 1.2.9
* TargetAlert 0.8.7.1
* Greasemonkey 0.3.3
* Platypus 0.4
* InfoLister 0.7.5
* MR Tech About:About 1.1.0
* MR Tech Local Install 2.5.0
* CustomizeGoogle 0.19.5
* NoScript 1.0.9
* Edit Config Files 1.3
* BlogThis 0.3
* miniT (drag+indicator) 0.5

Time to post.

Part 4. to come!

Albyxx

PC Tweaks, Twiddles, Security, Software Part 2.

I managed to blog some info about "Software Must Have's and Must Do's:" in Part 1 so check it out before this one.

Here are some more:

8. A light Micro$oft Outlook alternative. Another great product from Mozilla Organization is Calendar. I recommend that you install it as an extension of Thunderbird rather than a stand alone application.

9. Did you know there is a free alternative to Miro$oft Office. Open Office has pretty well all the same features and in some areas more. Another Open Source Software project so *way to go*.

Keep your eye out for Open Source Software!!! It is the future!!!

Time for some configuration settings (remember that I'm writing about XP only):

1. The Task Bar. There are 2 things I don't like. The first is that, by default, the bar is only one icon high. The second, also by default, is the auto hide function of inactive icons or, more simply, to not show you what is running.

To change the task bar to 2 lines of height then right click on the task bar and uncheck the "lock taskbar". Now simply drag the top of the task bar higher to as many lines you like, let it go and *wola*. Now lock the task bar by checking it again.

To remove the auto hide of inactive icons then right click on the task bar and select properties, then uncheck "hide inactive icons". Remember I'm translating this from a Portuguese operating system so forgive me if the text is not right.

2. Automatic updates. While automatic updates downloaded "automatically" are fine I believe that it is much better to be notified when something is available and YOU make the choice when to download. If you have everything set to "auto" then when it doesn't work you may not know. So, make sure you have your antivirus, antispyware, windows and firewall programs set to notify YOU before they download. Then, when they don't notify you every week, month or so you know that something is wrong!!!

3. Be aware of your running tasks or programs once you have booted up. If you press Ctrl, Alt, Del then task manager will appear and you can check out the "processes" tab to see what is going on. If there is something that you don't know or recognize that is running then search for it using Google. 9 times out of 10 you will get info on the item. If you are not sure then NEVER delete or remove anything but find an expert in an online forum somewhere or ask your local nerd.

4. My Documents. Have a goooood think about how and where you want to save your data whether it be your e-mail, music, text documents, videos, photos, whatever. Most applications do a default to My Documents but not all. Micro$ofts Outlook Express stores your mail in an absurd path something like this (sorry for the PT language): C:\Documents and Settings\Pessoal\Configurações locais\Dados de aplicativos\Identities\{8F9E0089-E442-4816-8B09-B3373C0F106A}\Microsoft\Outlook Express. You can store it where you want but you need to specify it. Why the hell is it not default in My Documents? So; how do you do a backup of your email? It is actually very easy to change the path to My Documents but you need to know how. That goes for many, many applications. Think about it and find the OE parameters, search the web or send me a mail for an answer. By the way, the Mozilla products that I love don't store their profiles in My Documents, you need to specify something different if you want it to be.

Enough for Part 2.

Albyxx.

PC Tweaks, Twiddles, Security, Software Part 1.

There are almost an infinite amount of configurations you can assign to your PC so there are almost an infinite amout of problems that can occur. There are also an increasing number of security problems that leaves our PC's open to atttack every day. Mix that with those of us that struggle to keep up with the technology or are yet to have developed PC skills then there is a recipe for disaster.

I have now been bumbling along since 1993 and am on my 6th notebook. Through the years I have had my share of heartaches, don't you worry about that. So I've got a bit from the school of experience.

What follows here are some things that you may find useful.

Software Must Have's and Must Do's:

1. If you are running Windows then keep it up-to-date. Micro$oft has what it calls Patch Tuesday that occurs every 2nd Tuesday (obviously) of the month. Run an update every month.

2. An alternate browser to Internet Explorer and and alternate E-mail client to Outlook Express. I run Firefox and Thunderbird from Mozilla Organization because I believe they are the safest and the best. I also believe in Open Source Software. Mozilla are serious about security, so should you.

3. A Firewall. I use Zone Alarm Pro from Zonelabs and it has been good to me over the last 5 years. They have a good free version. There are also many others out there but do the research before you chose. When you do then make sure that you do not create a conflict by running more than one Firewall at once. Windows XP also has one. I reckon you are better off using a 3rd party and disabling the XP one.

4. Antispyware. It is absolutely not enough to run one single antispyware program. I use Ad-Aware, Spybot Search & Destroy, Micro$soft Antispyware, CWShredder, Spyware Blaster and Trojan Defence Suite. Then I have HijackThis installed so I can see what the hell is going on. Before you use these programs do an update before scanning your PC.

5. Sick of how awkward Windows Explorer is? Do yourself a favour and get Total Commander. It is simply a great utility for managing your drives, folders and files. Launch an application by just double clicking directly on the particular file. This program has been around for years.

6. Want more than Task Manager (loads by Ctrl, Alt, Del)? Then Process Explorer is for you. Detailed memory statistics, etc, on your running applications.

7. An Antivirus program. This probably should have been the first item to mention but, anyway, here it is. I don't thing I need to say more; you MUST have one. I run Norton Antivirus but you can get a pretty good freebie called AVG Anti-Virus from Grisoft

Look, that's about it for now but note that everything that I have mentioned above has a free version of software that is generally adequate.

The wife is giving me a hard time so it's tchau for now. Part 2 will come soon.

Albyxx

PC Regular Maintenance

It never ceases to amaze me how many people have PC problems and don't know what to do about it. I reckon 70% of personal PC's out there in the average home are in some way or another a mess.

You should really aim at doing a monthly routine to keep your computer free of nasties and also up-to-date on those ever so frequent Windows patches. As these patches occur on the 2nd Tuesday of every month I think it is a good idea to do this maintenance a week or so later. So, aim for the 3rd Tuesday of each month or there abouts. That way if there has been any patches that went wrong then Micro$oft has had a week to fix them.

I think the following steps should go a long way towards maintaining a leaner, cleaner, meaner computer without over doing it.

I use Firefox and Thunderbird from Mozilla Organization as my browser and e-mail clients respectively. I use them because they are high on features and security. So, I am assuming that you use the same. If you don’t then you should. If you don't believe me then do some research out there on the "net" for yourself. I am also considering that you are using Windows XP SP2 (Service Pack 2).

One thing to ALWAYS rememeber when you are working with a PC; be logical and use common sense and quite often you will not create a problem in the first place.

The following is an idea for a once per month maintenance program that you can do yourself. I recommend that you also stay with the order as listed below:

1. Delete all cookies. But remember that cookies often store password and user information so make sure that you keep a separate record of such data. To do this open Firefox and go to Tools → Options → Privacy and then click on the Clear button beside the Cookies title.

2. Delete internet cache. To do this open Firefox and go to Tools → Options → Privacy and then click on the Clear button beside the Cache title.

3. Delete all Temporary Internet Files (Internet Explorer files if you’ve used it) and Recycle Bin. You can do that by clicking on Start → All Programs → Accessories → System Tools → Disck Cleanup . It will then take some time to calculate the capacity of the cleanup. Once it is complete make sure that only Temporary Internet Files and Recycle Bin are checked. Then click OK, confirm the action and the cleaning process will begin.

4. Delete all Prefetch files. Go to My Computer and double click on Local Disk (C:), then double click on the Windows folder and then double click on the Prefetch folder. Left click on the first file and then hold down the "Shift" key and then hit the "End" key. All files in that folder should now be highlighted. Now hit the "Del" key and confirm the deletion.

5. Now it is time to reboot before we go on.

6. Run all spywares and clean out the crap but remember to do an update on each beforehand. I use Ad-Aware, Spybot Search & Destroy, Micro$oft Antispyware, CWShredder, Spyware Blaster and Trojan Defence Suite installed AND up-to-date.

7. Reboot.

8. Run HijackThis, review its log file and action where necessary. This is optional but it will capture critical data about your PC and what it is doing. If you are not sure then you can go to a forum site such as CastleCops and look for similar configurations.

9. Check out your Firewall program and remove any entries that look odd. If you are not sure what it is then generally you can remove it because the next time the program tries to access the Internet then your Firewall will ask you what you want to do with it.

10. Reboot.

11. Windows Update.

12. Reboot if there was something new.

13. Antivirus update and a complete virus scan of your hard drive

14. Reboot and enjoy.

Every 1-3 months, depending on your usage, I recommend that you do a defragementation of your hard drive. You can do that by clicking on Start → All Programs → Accessories → System Tools → and then Disk Defragmentation.

I hope that helps.

Albyxx

P.S. My Notebook PC and the majority of my software is in Brazilian Portuguese so I appologise for any discrepency in the translation of texts used above.

PC's And You

We are back in Australia at the moment and since arriving here I've had a cry for help from a couple of mates.

Some of us take for granted how to troubleshoot a PC problem whilst the majority of us sit and sweat for days, weeks and months and grow ever so more frustrated and, quite often, end up deeper in it.

So, in light of the majority, I'm going to do a few posts that may help folk out there configure their computers for a faster and more user friendly operation with less problems. Hopefully they will learn some stuff along the way.

Please wait and see the upcoming posts.

Top 10 Microsoft Flaw Update Comments

I received these comments from a subscription news letter and thought I'd share them with you. You may guess that I'm not a real MS fan!!

• Number 10: For the first time in digital history, Microsoft has issued a patch which actually patches flaws in Windows without the need of a patch to fix the flaws created by the patch after the installation of this patch which is supposed to fix flaws in Windows which was supposed to have been corrected by the previoius patch. which created other flaws in Windows...
  
  
• Number 9: In a press conference Steve Balmer said, "We've needed to resort to the patch because we can't figure out how to get the software to chew gum."
  
  
• Number 8: Is Windows Flaws the next release then, and will it come in 64 bits?
  
  
• Number 7: Didn't the P, in XP, stand for PATCH?
  
  
• Number 6: ... with the help of hackers, virus writers and even some student coders...
  
  
• Number 5: "MS Glazes Overs Pains in Windows"
  
  
• Number 4: "Security experts today announced the discovery of a gaping operating system in the Windows patch."
  
  
• Number 3: While not revealing the size or scope of this patch, un-named officials did say that MS is thinking of offering special financing on the shipping costs.
  
  
• Number 2: Which one?
  
  
• and the Number 1 Wisecrack: Is it a patch or a tourniquet?