I think that Lee Harvey Oswald was frozen cryogenically by the Feds until the controversy died down. Ten years ago, he was thawed and released.
During this time the Goverment kept close tabs on him until they could use him as a scapegoat for yet another crime – the murder of JonBenet Ramsey.
Roger called and wondered about a more powerful way to use the Windows Clipboard. A great utility called ClipMate has been around a long time and should work great.
"My computer is running slow." This complaint tops the list as the number one computer owner complaint over the past few years. Once an infliction for older computers only, slow computer syndrome (SCS) can affect even the newest and most powerful of computers. With Windows XP, there is one quick barometer that you can use to test the health of your computer; the Processes list. Too many processes running automatically at startup can indicate either a poorly configured machine or sign of a serious computer problem related to viruses, spyware or both.
In the Windows world, a process is a program (or part of a program) that is currently running. Microsoft Windows itself starts at least fifteen to twenty processes when we turn our computers on for the day. Over the years, I have developed a mental chart that allows me to quickly assess a computer health just by looking at the processes running upon a fresh boot (start) of a computer:
The numbers are purely anecdotal based on my experience with thousands of computers. However, they also offer a good way to quickly get a handle on where to start with a computer.
To view which processes are running on your computer (Windows XP or 2000 only), push Ctrl+Alt+Delete on your keyboard OR RIGHT Click on a blank part of your taskbar then click Task Manager. After the Task Manager appears, Click the Processes tab. In the lower left corner of the Processes tab window, the total number of processes will be shown.
Use my chart to gauge the health of your machine right at startup before you open any programs. If your system has more than 45 processes running at startup, you should search our site for two different terms: Spyware and MSCONFIG . You can use the tips listed under these topics to reduce the number of processes that start automatically with your system. In some cases, you may need to employ the help of an experienced computer professional to help safely reduce the number of processes (thus increasing the health and speed) of your computer.
For those that like to tinker with their computer and want to know what some of the cryptic names you will find in the Process list are, use the following sites to sleuth out the Processes listed in your Task Manager:
As of the close of market today, that is. How did I arrive at that figure? I have heard it many times before, but this week I heard it from three different customers, "You are worth your weight in gold." Today, gold closed $611.90 and I'll let you do the rest of the math.
When I hear that phrase, or "thanks a million" (which I also use), I think, "Ah, if only…" Heck, I will settle for 50% of market value!!
On a serious note, I also get the question regarding whether I get bored doing what I do, and I truly do not. Helping people out of a pickle, teaching computer users how to shave a few seconds from a computer task, or seeing someone marvel at what is available when they log onto the Internet for the first time is awesome. Even if I'm not literally worth my weight in gold, I enjoy each and every day that I head out for new computer and tech adventures.
I am at a concert this evening to see Nickel Creek. I forgot to post a shotgun article today. So, here it is directly from the front row of the concert.
That’s right! when they start smashing bluegrass instruments I will be right up front to catch the flying pieces!
Ah, the age old question about our computers. Since computers came into the home, users have asked; 'should I turn it off or leave it on?' I'm going to try and not muddy the waters any more than they already are in this short article. I will share some facts and some opinions in this article that will help you make the decision for yourself.
First, let me say that there is no definitive answer on this subject and if you ask twenty computer people whether to leave your computer on over night, you will probably get 50% on one side of the fence and 50% on the other side.
That being said, let me present the facts about computer energy consumption:
I ran across this cool website tonight. It lets you browse the web in a window that looks like Microsoft word. That means if the boss looks over your shoulder at work, he/she is less likely to notice that you aren't really working.
In a typical week, I put about 350 miles on my truck traveling between customers. As gasoline has crept up this past couple of years and peaked at over $3 per gallon this summer, I have noticed a difference in the vehicles on the road. I see many more Toyota Priuses and other hybrids on the road. High oil prices or not, I personally think that hybrid vehicles should be a standard in the 21st century with all of our technologies.
As a technology expert and fan, I find it not only absurd, but also disgusting that since 1980, American vehicles have increased average miles per gallon by only 0.5 MPG.
Sometimes the best solutions for our digital problems can be found in the analog world. Today I had a client who used a great method to remember all of her passwords.
She used a little address book – the kind you keep next to your phone or in your car to keep track of important contact information.
For example, you can put your Visa.com user name and password under the V section. Best of all, it doesn't look like a password list so bad guys aren't likely to find it interesting enough to snoop through.
I was reading a review of smart phones the other day and had to comment on a topic that comes up frequently in technology…old technology. You all know that my philosophy is 'if it ain't broke, don't fix it'. Too often, I think companies roll out upgrades simply for the sake of upgrading when their original product functioned perfectly. Think about products like Norton AntiVirus, Microsoft Word, McAfee, Acrobat Reader, and others that hit a peak of performance and features about six or seven years ago and did their jobs well. After that, the company's programmers (maybe pushed by managers) continued to roll out product after product with very little extra functionality, but an awful lot of extra junk that was not needed nor is it used. All leading to products that slowed down computers and didn't increase efficiency in any way.
I still think that we are in the infancy of the technology age and many products and technologies need to be continually pushed and improved, but sometimes products perform all the needed functions and need not be over laden with the extra weight of unnecessary code. Microsoft Word worked great in the 1997 version and no