Monday, February 8th, 3:00 to 4:00pm - Really Basic Computing SIG
Come in and discuss any Basic Computing matters on your mind with Pete. CLICK HERE to review some of Pete's Basic Tips.
Tuesday, February 9th at 4pm - Windows 7 SIG
Led by Jolyn Bowler
With the release of Microsoft's Windows 7, there are many questions. . . Should I upgrade? Can I upgrade my system? Which version? Is it worth it? and more. Join Jolyn for a discussion and, hopefully, some answers to your questions regarding the new operating system from Microsoft. We will also continue to discuss Vista issues, questions and answers. Let Jolyn know of any specific questions you might have ahead of time. . . resource.center@hhicc.org
2010 TAX UPDATE VARIETY SIG
By LANCE JOHNSON
At a Variety SIG held on Friday, February 5 at the S.H.A.R.E. Senior Center, Lance Johnson covered the complex major updates for 2010 and provided an insight as to how they affect our community. He also provided a couple of tips to help you save and minimize your tax. If you missed the timely and informative program, you can find a copy of Lance's presentation is posted on the HHICC Bulletin Board and may be seen by CLICKING HERE
The iPad in the World Around You
submitted by Norm Kronenberg
by Christopher Breen, - Posted on January 29, 2010, Macworld.com
The living room: Assuming that you have a coffee table, that’s a perfect place for an iPad. Pick it up for casual reading, display pictures of your daughter’s medical school graduation when you next have the ladies over for tea, or fire up Safari for some couch surfing. If you have a taller block of furniture in the room (I prefer a grand piano but any waist-high table will do), place an iPad dock on it, place your iPad in it to charge, and play slideshows of your latest vacation. Attach a couple of small speakers to the dock and you’ve easily wired your living room for sound.
The kitchen: Do you watch TV while cooking? Me neither, but my mother does, and she might enjoy catching up on one of her favorite shows available from the iTunes Store. Again, a dock with external speakers is a must (I anticipate you’re going to see a lot of third-party iPad-compatible speaker-equipped docks in the coming months). And if she’s too distracted with the bernaise sauce to watch video, perhaps she can be convinced to download an Internet radio app.
While in the kitchen, the iPad will be a great resource for looking up recipes on the Web. I routinely use an old laptop or my iPhone for this chore. The laptop is slow and the iPhone’s screen too cramped. I like the idea of a device that’s fast, has a screen larger than an iPhone’s, and is highly portable.
The family room: Like all good TV families from the 1960s, my clan watches TV in the family room. Given that I already have a full complement of gear in this room, the iPad would seem redundant. And in many cases it is. However, it could (and should) be a useful remote control. A variety of companies are creating IR dongles for the iPhone and iPod touch (and now, presumably, for the iPad). Having your media center’s controls available from a large touch-screen is very appealing to me. I also have a Mac mini attached to my AV gear and the Wi-Fi remote apps I currently use on my iPhone will be all the more useful on a larger screen. Additionally it would be terrific if Apple completely opened-up video output on the iPad—allowing you to display not just movies, videos, and Keynote presentations, but video from other apps as well. And yes, I’m thinking about games. The iPad’s screen is roomy, but not nearly as roomy as my 42-inch plasma display.
The bathroom: How to put this delicately…. My guess is that a large percentage of the iPhones and iPod touches returned to Apple with water damage suffered their fate in the bathroom. Let’s just say that you’d have to be remarkably clumsy to similarly dunk an iPad. You’re aware that this thing displays e-books, right? Enough said.
The bedroom: If you’re the kind of person who has a television shoved in the corner of the bedroom or take an iPhone or iPod to bed for some pre-sleep viewing, the iPad is a good fit. First, you can watch what you want on the device rather than leaving it up to chance and late-night TV, and you can share the experience. Unlike an iPhone or iPod, two can comfortably watch an iPad because it’s off-angle viewing is acceptable. I’ll mention a couple of caveats, however. I haven’t heard the speakers in the iPad (and I bet you haven’t either), but my guess is that they’re nothing special. It does bear a single 3.5-mm stereo headphone jack, which, with the aid of a headphone splitter, you could share with your bedmate. Optionally, I expect there will be wireless audio transmitters such as Audioengine’s W2 that will let you broadcast the iPad’s audio to a pair of remote speakers. Additionally, the iPad’s 1024-by-768 display produces large black bars when showing widescreen video. So while the video will certainly be larger than what you’d get from an iPhone or iPod, there’s this compromise.
The car: The iPhone/iPod-While-Driving rule applies: Drivers devoting their attention to an iPad while operating a vehicle will die. But the iPad can serve purposes that won’t endanger you and those around you. The 3G model includes assisted GPS, which means navigation on a screen far larger than an iPhone. Look for car-mounting accessories and iPad-compatible GPS applications coming soon. While browsing those auto accessories, be sure to check out one of the many back-seat mounting kits that will allow your kids to watch the iPad while you drive. (Yes, these kits should also include a transmitter to pipe the iPad’s audio through the car’s stereo.)
The plane: Exactly how much fun is it when you’re travelling in coach, settling into a movie on your MacBook, and the joker in the seat in front of you cranks his chair all the way down, forcing you to close the laptop’s lid three-quarters of the way to prevent it from being crushed? An iPad’s smaller footprint should mean you never have to suffer this indignity again.
The hotel: I admit that I’m not the target user for the MacBook Air. While I admire its design and lightness of being, it seems silly to carry a full-sized laptop that’s hobbled. However, I don’t mind nearly so much a device that is lighter still but has limitations that I clearly comprehend. Given that on most business trips I use my laptop for e-mail, Web browsing, and writing, I could easily live with the iPad (though I’d be tempted to sneak along a Bluetooth keyboard).
The classroom: If you’re a parent of college students (or a college student yourself) you know how obscenely expensive some text books are. Remove the paper, printing, and shipping costs and these texts should become more affordable. Better yet, they can be updated electronically—thus saving yet more paper, printing, and shipping costs while, at the same time, offering more current content.
Walking around: A sure sign that the iPad has caught on will be the appearance (and widespread use) of safari jackets with enormous pockets. Or, well, men carrying purses. The iPad is a perfectly fine device to carry around the house, put in a car, or carry on an airplane, but for just walking around use you need some kind of accessory. Bag and case makers are already jumping in with both feet. You’re sure to find a lot of choices other than Apple’s $39 iPad Case when the iPad is eventually released. CLICK HEREfor source article
Apple iPad vs. Amazon Kindle Chart
submitted by Ed Cliff
by Nicole Lee - January 27, 2010, CNet News
Google 411
submitted by Tom Taylor
Just leave it up to Google to come up with something like this!!! Here's a number worth putting in your cell phone, or your home phone speed dial: 1-800-goog411. This is an awesome service from Google, and it's free -- great when you are on the road. Don't waste your money on information calls and don't waste your time manually dialing the number. I am driving along in my car and I need to call the golf course and I don't know the number.
I hit the speed dial for information that I have programmed. The voice at the other end says, "City & State." I say, "Garland, Texas."
He says, "Business Name or Type of Service." I say, "Firewheel Golf Course." He says, "Connecting" and Firewheel answers the phone. How great is that?
This is nationwide and it is absolutely free! CLICK HERE for video from Google.
Microsoft's Bing 411 Offers Phone Numbers, Directions over the Phone
by Brad Linder - June 1, 2009, Downloadsquad.com
You probably heard that Microsoft launched a new search engine called Bing today. What you might have missed is the fact that the company also launched Bing 411, a free service which is a direct competitor to Google's GOOG 411. Here's how it works. You dial 1-800-Bing 411 (1-800-246-4411) from any phone and tell the friendly computer voice what city and state you're looking for information in. Then give it a name and Bing 411 will attempt to locate an address and phone number. You can have the service connect you, give you the phone number, or give you directions over the phone or via text message.
The service works pretty well. I was able to get driving directions from my home in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania to Microsoft's corporate campus in Redmond, Washington. Surprisingly, it only takes 28 steps, but Bing 411 helpfully told me it would take two days to drive all 2700 miles. You can also use Bing 411 to get traffic reports, find movie showtimes, or listen to weather forecasts. Weather, traffic, and directions are only available in the US.
I did somehow manage to cause a glitch in the Bing at one point. The digital voice went into a little feedback loop and said the same words three or four times before correcting itself. But for a product that just launched today, I was pretty impressed with Bing 411. CLICK HERE for source.
Publisher Wins Fight With Amazon Over E-Books
submitted by Ed Cliff
By Motoko Rich and Brad Stone - January 31, 2010, New York Times
Amazon shocked the publishing world late last week by removing direct access to the Kindle editions as well as printed books from Macmillan, one of the country’s six largest publishers, which had said it planned to begin setting higher consumer prices for e-books. Until now, Amazon has set e-book prices itself, with $9.99 as the default for new releases and best sellers. But in a statement Sunday afternoon, Amazon said it would accept Macmillan’s decision.
On Friday, Amazon removed “buy” buttons from thousands of titles published by Macmillan, including recent best sellers like “Wolf Hall” by Hilary Mantel and “The Gathering Storm,” by Robert Jordan and Brandon Sanderson. Customers who wanted to buy print editions could do so only from third-party sellers. Digital editions made for Amazon’s Kindle device disappeared.
In a strongly worded message on its Web site on Sunday, Amazon said that while it disagreed with Macmillan’s stance, it would bow to the publisher’s plan.
“We have expressed our strong disagreement and the seriousness of our disagreement by temporarily ceasing the sale of all Macmillan titles,” Amazon said. “We want you to know that ultimately, however, we will have to capitulate and accept Macmillan’s terms because Macmillan has a monopoly over their own titles, and we will want to offer them to you even at prices we believe are needlessly high for e-books.”
The face-off had set the already anxious publishing industry on edge. “I think everyone thought they were witnessing a knife fight,” said Sloan Harris, co-director of the literary department at International Creative Management. “And it looks like we’ve gone to the nukes.” As of Sunday evening, the “buy” buttons had not yet been restored to Macmillan titles on Amazon. In a statement to Publishers Marketplace, an online industry newsletter, John Sargent, chief executive of Macmillan, said: “We are in discussions with Amazon on how best to resolve our differences. They are now, have been, and I suspect always will be one of our most valued customers.”
Under Macmillan’s new terms, which take effect at the beginning of March, the publisher will set the consumer price of each book and the online retailer will serve as an agent and take a 30 percent commission. E-book editions of most newly released adult general fiction and nonfiction will cost $12.99 to $14.99. Those terms mirror conditions that five of the six largest publishers — Hachette Book Group, HarperCollins Publishers, Macmillan, Penguin Group and Simon & Schuster — agreed to with Apple last week for e-books sold via the iBookstore for the iPad. CLICK HERE to read remainder of this article.
Firefox 3.6 Is Here!
Post by Andrew - Worldstart.com
Yeah, I know; about as exciting as another iTunes update, right? Hear me out, though, because the new version of Mozilla's browsing beauty has some pretty neat customization and security features this time around. Apart from being faster (which is the whole point of an update in my opinion), Firefox now offers protection from out-of-date plug-ins which can leave your computer vulnerable to attack. Don't worry; when an update to the problematic plug-in is released Firefox will let you know.
There's also the matter of Personas, which give your browser a whole new look! Just by going to getpersonas.com you can browse a library and apply any of over 30,000 designs turning your interface from boring old this:
To super awesome this:
Oh, and there's no complicated install procedure – just mouse-over on a design and decide whether you like it or not. If you do, click “Wear it!”. Should you want to uninstall a persona, go to Tools>Options, and under the General tab, click “Manage Add-ons...” From here, click Themes and select “Default” to go back to the way things were. You can also uninstall other previously downloaded personas from this window.
Have fun getting personalized, and head over to Mozilla.com for more information on Version 3.6 of Firefox! CLICK HERE for source post.
Two Little Laptops With a Lot to Offer Their Core Users
by Walt Mossburg - February 4, 2010, WSJ, Digital Network
One of these products is from Dell's Alienware group, which specializes in potent computers for hard-core gamers. The device is called the M11x, and it came out this week at a base price of $799. It's an attempt to pack much of the power gamers typically tote around inside thicker, heavier laptops into a much more portable chassis. The M11x weighs about 4.4 pounds, which in the gaming world is svelte, and is about 1.3 inches thick.
The other machine I've been testing was released by Sony over the holiday shopping season with relatively little mass-market fanfare. It's called the Vaio X, starts at $1,299 and is easily the lightest laptop I've ever reviewed. In fact, it's so light, at just 1.6 pounds, that at first I thought it must be a mock-up made of cardboard. The Vaio X is also just a tad over a half an inch thick. Its processor and graphics system are like a netbook's, so it can't come close to matching the Dell in performance. But it isn't meant for the performance market. It's meant for highly mobile users who do typical computing, want to show off something sleek and can tolerate a high price and weak battery life in the standard configuration.
The M11x is a chunky box that, despite its size, is immediately recognizable as an Alienware product. The power button looks like a space alien's face, and, along with the keyboard and some other features on the front edge, it can be made to light up and pulse in a variety of bright colors. Inside, it sports dual graphics systems—one powerful discrete graphics card for heavy-duty gaming, and one lesser integrated card for other tasks or when you want to save battery life. You can switch between them quickly, without rebooting. I am not a serious gamer, but I briefly tested the M11x on some included 3D games, and they ran smoothly and well. The machine also did great on high-definition video and on common tasks like Web browsing, email and word processing. It's also packed with ports, including an HDMI connector, the new standard for easy hookup to a TV. On my tough battery test, the Alienware did pretty well, clocking in at just under four hours with the more potent graphics in use, and just under five hours with the lesser graphics turned on. In normal usage patterns, you could stretch these figures.
The downsides to this machine are that the keyboard is cramped, and the specs on the $799 base model might not satisfy a serious gamer or video creator. It has a relatively small 160-gigabyte hard disk and a low-end Pentium processor. The model I tested, with a 500-gigabyte hard disk, a Core 2 Duo processor and twice the base 2 gigabytes of memory, costs $1,099.
The Sony Vaio X is a world apart, a reminder that the company, which years ago pioneered small, thin, costly laptops, can keep doing so. This little computer can get lost in your briefcase. The Vaio X comes in several colors, but has modest specs for the price. It uses the Intel Atom processor, common in netbooks, and integrated graphics. It only comes with 2 gigabytes of memory, and the base $1,299 model has a very small 64-gigabyte solid-state drive for storage. You can double the storage on the $1,499 model I tested.
The Sony is gorgeous, and its lightness amazed everyone to whom I showed it. It handled all the common tasks I threw at it, including some HD video from YouTube, which played fine. But it also has a cramped keyboard, plus a tiny touch pad. In addition to Wi-Fi, the Sony also includes a 3G cellular modem from Verizon, which I tested and which worked well. If you opt to use it, you have to pay Verizon, with monthly contracts starting at $40 and no-contract usage at $15 a day or $30 a week. All these plans have usage caps.
The Achilles' heel of the Sony is battery life. Its petite built-in battery got a miserable one hour and 48 minutes in my test, which might mean 2.5 hours in normal use. Sony does include an expanded battery with the unit, which got an impressive eight hours and 11 minutes in my test, or perhaps as much as 10 in typical use. But this battery is huge. It covers the entire bottom of the machine and must be affixed with screws. The battery roughly triples the computer's thickness and brings its weight to nearly three pounds.
These two creative designs show that, despite the coming wave of tablets, the laptop is still a platform for innovation.CLICK HERE for source article.
Ravelry
Post by Amanda - Worldstart.com
Do you knit or crochet? Do you have a large assortment of yarn? Are you looking for new and exciting knit or crochet patterns? Do you design patterns? If you answered yes to any of those questions, you want to sign up a free Ravelry membership.
I can’t begin to tell you how much of a fan I am of this site. Since I picked my crochet back up this Christmas to make presents, I’ve been at Ravelry just about every day. You do have to sign up for a membership before you can browse the site, it’s free to join – and the community is great! My favorite feature is the Stash. The Stash allows you to keep track of all the yarn you have in your home. I found a small yarn store in my dining room this winter and I am so happy to have a way to organize it once and then be able to refer to what’s online to know what I have. I won’t have to go dig through my yarn bag, or drawer. I can select projects, and go see what yarn I have, and even where I am storing it. The Stash is also a great way for you to sell yarn that you don’t need or like anymore. People can browse your stash and if they see something they need to finish up a project they can contact you about it. It’s awesome!
My second favorite feature of the site is the pattern search. You can find tons, and I’m not kidding I mean tons, of free patterns. You can even set the search up so that it only finds free patterns. You can also narrow it even further so that it only finds free crochet or free knit patterns. If you design patterns you can sell them or share them free here as well.
My third favorite feature – and really they’re all competing with each other for my love – is the project queue. As you are searching through the patterns on the site you can add them to your queue, so you never run out of anything to do!
Another great feature is that you can add the projects that you are working on and keep track of them via your Project page. Just click add, fill out the form, it will look for the pattern on Ravelry and then you can keep track of your progress. This has really helped me stay on track and involved in my projects.
So are you wondering how you join? To become a member click the Create an Account Now link underneath the sign in box. This will take you to page where you can input a working e-mail address and then click the Send Sign Up Link button. They will send an e-mail to the address you’ve provided, click that and you’ll be well on your way to a Ravelry account. You’ll have to create a username and password at that point. CLICK HERE for Ravelry website and HERE for remainder of this post.
FEBRUARY/MARCH COURSE INFORMATION Members interested in viewing status of current enrollment for February/March computer courses may CLICK HERE Questions should be addressed to Register@hhicc.org.
To view scheduled Workshops and Variety SIGS CLICK HERE and HERE.
The Orangutan and the Hound
for an amazing video.
