Lockergnome Windows Fanatics ~ April 26, 2004

GNOMEREPORT: 17th Century Boy DOWNLOAD: Powerpong v1.10 FAVORITE: Pathways To Technology GNEWBIE GNOOK: Cookies Can't Always Block Crapware... TIPS: Faster than CTRL+ALT+DEL SPOTLIGHT: The New Advanced System Optimizer V2 PC WORLD PICKS: Improve Performance, Clean Your PC's Clock MOBILE: PDA Friendly Web Sites SYSTEM: Removing Recent Documents TCB: LCD Projector Rental FAMILY FIRST: Kid's Castle NEWS: As Reported By ActiveWin.com COUPONS AND SAVINGS: Monday Deals RSS  |  Permalink  |  Feedback  |  Archives

GNOMEREPORT: 17th Century Boy

Saturday... in the park... I wish it was the Fourth of July. No, actually - I don't. Instead of enjoying the sunshine like everybody else in California, this weekend I finally began the rather-simple process of moving all of my financial obligations online (wherever possible). Why haven't I done this before? You could say it was out of laziness - which, admitting now, is completely ironic on so many levels. First, it's more of a challenge to park a car than it is to tell a company that you want them to take care of your billing statements completely via the Internet. Second, I'm "supposed" to be someone who eats, sleeps, breathes, and *bleeps* technology. It just made sense this time around. I saw a stack of paperwork, and it was calling out: "Chriiiis, paaaay meeee..." Normally, I'm not taken aback by talking pulp, but when the circulars started whistling Dixie - I knew it was time for me to take a stand. It took (perhaps) an entire afternoon out of my life to save many future afternoons from being impending cheque-sessions of doom. This way, I'm getting things done, always on time, and I've got an electronic record of every single last penny. Well, almost - some businesses haven't made the leap out of the 17th century and still expect me to use... what are those things called again? Oh, yeah - stamps.

There's a time and a place for different types of technology. On the road, passengers are now becoming accustomed to enjoying the comforts of a DVD player. So long as the material isn't going to cause other drivers to swerve into oncoming traffic, off the road, or into you - I have no argument. Does this mean I'm suggesting that the driver's console should be replaced by a progressive-scan matrix? Nope - wrong place. I can hear the arguments now (and would you PLEASE stop yelling at your computer screen): "I'm afraid someone's going to run off with all of my information!" Is it a possibility? Sure - just as there's a possibility that a meteor might strike your house tonight. But the belief that your private data is and will (indeed) remain private has its foundations in fallacy. I'm not saying that hackers in Nigeria aren't trying to break into your PC right now to steal your passwords and hijack your accounts, but unless you're living in a log cabin with no communications - whatsoever - with the outside world, it's not realistic to believe that you're fully protected just because you don't use credit cards, checking accounts, or anything of the sort (online or offline). Hey, I'm just beginning to appreciate the one-click, digital, ORGANIZED access to most of my services - but at least I'm smart enough to know that there's going to be no better time to start doing it.

Digitally yours,
Chris Pirillo

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DOWNLOAD: Powerpong v1.10 [48K] Win98/2k/XP FREE

http://1-abc.net/0004/

{Game} The game developers of today really pull out all the stops when they craft the latest games, but sometimes it is fun to revisit the 'olden days' of gaming. A good example of this would be the classic Pong, which has been nicely reworked using Windows XP styling in the form of Powerpong from 1-abc.net software It features a savable high score list. Now what you have to ask yourself is: is that really old time arcade like, or what? Just bear in mind that what may seem to be a simplistic game to modern gamers actually takes downright fast reflexes to master. So go old school; get out your flat rectangular racket and have a hand at Powerpong! [Scott]

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FAVORITE: Pathways To Technology

http://www.pathwaystotechnology.org

You don't have to be stuck in that dead end job any longer. Pathways to Technology contains information on community college programs that can help you to breathe new life into your deflated career. Start off by examining what type of technology fields and jobs are available to you. If you would like further information you can watch the online videos or read the FAQ. Resources such as these will prepare you for what can be expected. Be sure to also read the success stories to get a sense of the impact that these programs have had on peoples lives. If this all sounds worthwhile to you, go ahead and look through their database of community colleges to see where you can get an edumacation in your area. Oh well... back to my job as a professional dog waste picker upper. The pay is not that great, but the stock options and 401k are exceptional. [Brandon]

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GNEWBIE GNOOK: Cookies Can't Always Block Crapware...

Ken Colburn of Data Doctors answers Mike, who wonders:

Q: Someone told me that in Internet Explorer if you 'Override automatic cookie handling,' you can effectively block adware and spyware. Is this true?

A: Although adware and spyware can make use of cookies, they are not necessarily related.

Cookies are simple text files that store a unique identifier, much like the barcode on the back of your grocery store's value card. The card or cookie in and of itself is completely benign, because you would have to have access to the database that contains all of the information associated with the unique identifier in order to get to any real information.

Adware and spyware do not make their way into your computer via cookies; they can just do more with the use of cookies once they have made it in.

Adware (software designed to deliver ads, pop-ups, etc.) and spyware (software designed to monitor your Internet usage and report back to a central computer without your knowledge) generally make their way into your computer inside of other programs.

Many of the smaller software authors that want to generate a little revenue will make a deal with an adware or spyware company to silently install their software during the installation of the primary program.

For instance, if you install a cute program that constantly tells you what the weather is (for those that are too lazy to actually look out the window!) not only does it constantly steal valuable resources from your system which slows it down, it also installs a program that allows it to send you ads.

The EULA (End User License Agreement) that no one reads covers what is going to happen when you install the program, but most users simply click on the 'I agree' button and go on with life.

Another common trick to getting users to install malware (malicious software) is to use a pop-up that looks like a error message. Once you click on the ad that is posing as an error message, it gives you instructions on how to 'fix the problem' which is actually a ploy to get you to install an unneeded program.

The most disturbing new method of installing adware and spyware is via a 'drive-by download.' Because of the various vulnerabilities that exist in many of today's operating systems, computers with lax security settings are extremely vulnerable to having a program installed just by visiting a Web site.

Anyone that puts up a Web site can 'tickle' the visitor's computer to see if it is vulnerable and if so, silently place a program on the unsuspecting visitor's hard drive.

Fringe Web sites that deal in illegal music downloads, adult content, gambling, hacking, cracking, or any grey area content are notorious for drive-by downloads.

These types of programs have become so insidious that they are causing major performance issues for the vast majority of Internet connected users.

Make sure that you are up-to-date with the known vulnerabilities in Windows by going to windowsupdate.microsoft.com at least once a month.

Apple users can go to apple.com/support for the latest MacOS updates.

No matter what you do from a security standpoint, your system will likely pick up various adware and spyware programs on a regular basis, so it's critical to have a good program that can track down and remove these malicious installations.

The two that I favor are both free and relatively effective. For the novice user, I recommend using Ad-Aware from LavaSoft and SpyBot Search and Destroy for more advanced users.

You can get direct links to download both of these programs from the 'Recommended Software - Seal of Approval' section at datadoctors.com.

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TIPS: Faster than CTRL+ALT+DEL

By Diana Huggins

For me, life is all about simplicity and finding ways to do things more efficiently and more quickly. Well, this also seems to apply to my computing life. I'm always looking for easier ways to do things. Once you start working with new software, you soon discover little hidden tips and tricks that can be used to perform your tasks. The same can be said of Windows XP; as you start maneuvering around the operating system, you are bound to come across new and interesting things you did not know existed. So with that, here is yet another way to perform a common task even quicker.

It's now become personal habit for me to lock my workstation. Before I get up and walk away from my computer, my fingers automatically hit CTRL+ALT+DEL and then press Enter (call me a creature of habit). Now keeping in mind that I'm all about simplicity, I can perform this simple task even quicker by creating a shortcut to lock my computer right on my desktop. Instead of four keystrokes, I can now do it in a single click and here is how:

1. Right click an empty area on your desktop. From the Context menu, point to New and click Shortcut.
2. In the Create Shortcut dialog as shown in the following figure, type the following:
   drive:\ Windows\System32\ rundll32.exe user32.dll, LockWorkStation. Click Next.
3. Type in a name for the shortcut. Click Finish.

You'll now have a shortcut on your desktop that you can use to quickly lock your workstation.

Creating a shortcut on the desktop to lock your workstation.

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PC WORLD PICKS: Improve Performance, Clean Your PC's Clock

RegRepair tops our list, but System Mechanic and SystemWorks are still solid choices.

• RegRepair v4.4.03
  Fix your PC and avoid reformatting your hard drive with this utility.
• System Mechanic v4.0
  Fix your PC's problems and help prevent them from recurring with these 15 system maintenance tools.
• Norton SystemWorks 2004
  Optimize your PC with Symantec's suite of system utilities.
• MvPCinfo v1.7
  Find out what's really running on your computer.
• Registry First Aid v3.3.1
  Improve system performance by eliminating Registry references to files that don't exist.

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SPOTLIGHT: The New Advanced System Optimizer V2

Fresh from the Lockergnome Spotlight Review Service

The new Advanced System Optimizer V2 is an all in one system performance and optimizer suite. It Includes 30+ tools to supercharge your PC performance. It comes along with Windows and Memory Optimizers, Icon Manager, Tools to beautify Windows, and many other utilities. Optimization tools help you to get the best output from your PC. These include tools like Memory Optimizer, Windows Optimizer, Advanced Direct Email, Registry Defragger & Optimizer. PC Fix-Up & Information Tools help to improve system settings & optimize your system performance. These include tools like Repair & Fix Zip files, Split & Join Files, System analyser, Safe uninstaller, Logon Settings and Files & Folder information. System Cleanup Tools remove unnecessary & junk data and files from your PC. These help in keeping your machine error free. These tools include System & disk cleaner, registry cleaner & fixer, Find Duplicate files and Start-up cleaner & Auto run manager. Maintenance tools include smart utilities like Backup files & folders, Email Notifier, Appointment planner, System files back up and restore and Media files organizer that not only enhance your system's performance but make work much simpler for you.

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MOBILE: PDA Friendly Web Sites

By William Hungerford

If you surf the Web on your PDA, you know how tedious it can be sometimes. Did you know some friendly Web designers are looking out for us? There are lots of sites now that are formatted especially for our PDA screens. Here is a list of some of my favorite sites that I want to share. This isn't even close to a complete list; think of it more as a starting point. To find more PDA friendly sites, be sure to follow the links on the Portal sites listed below.

Portals
pdaPortal.com
With over 651 PDA friendly Web site listings, this is one of the best resources on the 'net.

PDA Support
This is a small but helpful list of some good PDA friendly Web sites.

Yahoo!
Check your Yahoo! e-mail, sports , news, and more from this Yahoo! start page. A must for Yahoo! users.

MSN
Don't worry, MSN users! MSN has a site for you to check your mail and news, too.

News
MSNBC
Only a few headlines per category, but a great place to scan the national news

USAToday
Decent site for news. The headlines are pretty timely.

BBC
Even living in the U.S., I've always preferred BBC news. A great site with lots of news.

Sports
ESPN
No PDA would be complete without this site bookmarked. Lots of news categorized by sport.

CBS Sportline
Another excellent site for sports news.

The Sporting News
This is one of my favorite print publications and they do a great job with their PDA friendly site.

PDA Specific
PDAGeek
This is the PDA version of Geek.com, focusing on PDA news.

TreoCentral
A great site for Treo owners and lovers.

PalmInfoCenter
Not a lot of headlines, but still some great articles to read while you're on the go.

Palm Loyal
An excellent site for Palm news and reviews. Be sure to check it out.

SlashDot
Okay, not exactly PDA specific, but you gotta have Slashdot bookmarked.

E-mail
Mail2WebPDA
This is the mini version of Mail2Web. Works great to check your email from wherever you are.

Search
Google
This is my PDA start page. You can't go wrong with Google in mini-form. Works just as well as the full version, but there's also a choice to jump to full Google if you need to.

Weather
AccuWeather
This has to be one of the best PDA friendly weather sites. Besides 5 day forecasts, you even get satellite and radar.

WeatherMatrix
Another great site that has tons of information for weather junkies.

Like I said, there are a lot of great sites out there and I know I missed tons of them. The main idea of this article is to get you non-PDA surfers to check out these sites and see that if the Web site is done right, it can be a pleasure to surf the internet on your PDA. Happy Geeking!

What's your favorite PDA friendly Web site? Drop us a line here. Maybe we'll even post your favorites in a follow-up article.

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SYSTEM: Removing Recent Documents

By Diana Huggins

The Windows XP Professional Start Menu contains a folder called My Recent Documents. It's a great idea and as the name indicates, it lets you quickly access a document that you recently opened. When you point to the My Recent Documents folder, a submenu appears listing the last 15 documents that you recently opened. I personally like this feature and use it quite often instead of having to locate the document on my computer somewhere.

You can manipulate this feature in two different ways. First of all, you can clear the contents of the folder. You can do so using the following steps:

1. Right click the Start button and click Properties.
2. From the Start Menu tab, click the Customize button.
3. Select the Advanced tab and click the Clear List button shown in the following figure.

You can clear the contents of the My Recent Documents folder.

Once you perform these steps, the list will appear empty when you click the My Recent Documents folder on the Start Menu (rest assured though, this does not delete the documents from your hard drive). Conversely, you can also remove this folder from the Start Menu altogether. Simple remove the check beside the List my most recently opened documents option (shown in the figure). Once the check is removed, you should notice that the folder no longer appears on the Start Menu.

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TCB: LCD Projector Rental

By Daniel Gray

LCD projector rental is a lifesaver for road warriors and internal presenters alike. Whether you need an LCD projector in a far flung locale or just someplace local, renting the projector can be your ticket to presentation success. But you need to be careful about the contracts you sign... all LCD projector rental contracts are not created equal.

Price is perhaps the biggest and most obvious difference in LCD projector rental contracts. It's up to you to read the contract carefully to watch for low-ball offers that end up costing you more in the long run. While the price should be primarily dependent upon the type of LCD projector you rent, you need to know exactly what you are renting... there are wide variations in projector capabilities and construction. You need to pick the right unit for your needs... [LCD Projector Rental, cont.]

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FAMILY FIRST: Kid's Castle

From Family First

Looking for a site that is both fun and educational? Looking for a site that is great for the whole family - kids as well as parents? Then today's site is one that you will want to bookmark and visit often.

Called Kid's Castle, this is an online publication of the Smithsonian Magazine. There is so much to do here it is hard to cover it all in a few lines. But you can learn about air and space (including the return to space of John Glen, the first American to orbit the earth, after an absence of 36 years), the arts, the history of our nation (currently looking at the Underground Railroad), as well science, animals, and famous personalities. [more]

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NEWS: As Reported By ActiveWin.com

• New! Outlook 2003 Add-In: NewsLook
• Log Parser Tool 2.2
• May 2004 MSDN Universal Shipment
• Microsoft Office XP to Microsoft Office 2003 Migration Issues
• Highlights of the WinFS Data Access API
• Lockergnome: Daily Newsletter Excerpt
• Microsoft adds games, MSN Toolbar in Messenger update
• Microsoft feels pressure of anti-virus issue
• Future MSDN Improvements
• ActiveWin.com: Staff Photos

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COUPONS AND SAVINGS: Monday Deals

COMPUTER

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Expires on 04.30.2004

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Expires on 05.07.2004

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Dell Outlet - Save $100 off $850 Purchase
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Expires on 04.30.2004

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Save $75 off of your purchase of a refurbished Dimension computer priced at $500-$849 at Dell Outlet with coupon code 132S09D9PPH31V.
Expires on 04.30.2004
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ELECTRONICS

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GPlay - FREE Video Game Rentals for Two Weeks
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Expires on 04.26.2004
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BOOKS

Amazon.com - 32% off The Complete Far Side
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Expires on 05.31.2004

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Expires on 05.09.2004

JumboAuctions.com - THOUSANDS of products up for bid
JumboAuctions.com features thousands of products now available for auction online. Shop for art, beauty supplies, collectibles, automobiles, music, dvds, video games, electronics, computers, software and more.
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EXPIRING

Personal Creations - Save 20% off Purchase
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AllPosters.com - Save 25% off Purchase
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Expires on 04.26.2004
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