From: newsletter-bounces@thepcgurus.com on behalf of Kevin-PC Gurus
[microdome@seidata.com]
Sent: Thursday, December 20, 2007 9:32 PM
To: jpdurbin@jpdurbin.net
Cc: PC Gurus Newsletter
Subject: GuruNews, Volume 7 Number 48, 12-20-07
Attachments: ATT00100.txt
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Vol. 7, No. 48
12-20-07
1 Christmas Shopping List Part III: Gifts for non-Geeks
2 Happy Holidays!
3 Laptop Nukes, Mac vulnerabilities, more DRM stupidity, Google yourself
4 Media Player replacement
5 New used PCs
You may have people on your list that either aren’t good with computers or, horror of horrors, don’t even own one. Fear not, there are many tech gifts for even the non-geeky.
One of the least obvious may be digital cameras. Everyone likes to have a camera around to snap pictures of family gatherings, unexpected events or pets in silly poses and good film cameras have seemingly all migrated to the high end professionals.
Most people automatically associate cameras with computers, thinking you have to transfer the pictures first and then burn them to CD, print them or share them via email. Today there are many options for photo fans that don’t involve a PC at all and most of them are available to even the most technically challenged photog.
First up, the camera. Prices have dropped enormously and many good quality cameras are available in the $100-150 range. As I’ve said in years past, don’t be overly concerned with features and mega-pixel rating. If those things are a concern then likely you’re dealing with a more advanced photographer and it would be better just to ask them for some suggestions. That takes some of the fun out of it but it’s better to get something that actually meets their needs rather than some trinket that will be returned or lie unused in a closet.
The die-hard point and shoot type is fine with 3-5 mega-pixels, a built in flash, lots of memory and maybe a 3-5x optical zoom. Memory is especially important for those without a computer because they may need to store pictures in the camera for quite some time.
Stick with brand names in this case. Canon, Kodak, HP, Nikon and Olympus all make good entry-level models that work like a charm and most are pretty solid units. Most come with a 256-512 MB memory card so tossing in a spare 1-2 GB card is a good idea.
Most stores that offer photo developing can process and print the pictures straight off the card, just like film but with reusable media. This is the easiest way for shutterbugs that don’t own a computer to make the most of their cameras, but it’s not the only way.
Photo printers have come down in price along with the cameras and many don’t require a PC at all. The best choice for printing pics is probably the dye-sublimation printer. These will only print one size (usually 4X6) and are severely limited in the number of prints per package but you don’t have to use them very often, there’s no ink to dry out and clog the print heads and the results look as good as something that comes from a film lab.
Most of the “docking printers” use this technology. Drop the camera onto the dock, hit a couple of buttons and you have a print. Stand alone units feature card slots for different memory media and a small LCD display screen so you can scroll your pictures and pick the ones you wish to print. Many even sport a limited editing feature for eliminating glitches like red eye.
The media packs include both photo paper and the “ink” cartridge. Pack size varies from 20-150 prints and can cost as much as 33¢ per photo or more. A bit pricey but the convenience may be worth it.
Another option for computer-free use is the digital picture frame. These are basically souped up LCD panels that will accept either memory cards or a USB cable (you’d have to load this one for the giftee) and will display the contents, rotating the photos according to a programmable schedule. These are great for displaying several pics in a standard setting without printing all of them and buying a large number of frames, plus you can rotate through new photo sets with ease.
Regardless of the gifts you give or receive, this is the season for celebration. Be generous to those you know and those you don’t but who may need the help. Make peace with yourself and those around you and enjoy yourself. Be thankful for what you have and enjoy the smiles and laughter of family, friends and small children everywhere.
From all of us at The PC Gurus to all of you, we wish you the merriest Christmas and the happiest New Year. Stay warm, stay safe and we’ll see you in a few weeks :)
Kevin Mefford, Editor
Terry Wise
Tech News of the Week
Thinking about buying a generator in case you suffer a power failure due to ice or thunderstorms? How about a nuclear reactor instead?
http://www.nextenergynews.com/news1/next-energy-news-toshiba-micro-nuclear-12.17b.html?fark
Still think Macs are safer than Windows PCs? Think again:
http://www.digwin.com/view/mac-versus-windows-vulnerability-stats-for-2007
Western Digital’s software DRM last week was bad. A DRM USB standard is worse:
http://blog.wired.com/gadgets/2007/12/content-cartel.html
More people are doing “vanity searches” by performing Google or Yahoo searches for themselves:
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20071216/ap_on_hi_te/personal_internet_searches
Wishing
you a merry Christmas and a happy New Year.
Matthew Dattilo
thepcgurus@gmail.com
www.mattstodayinhistory.com
Download of the Week
Several weeks ago, we offered a program that updated the video codecs in Windows Media Player to allow most all types of video formats to play. It was an adequate fix.
Well, this week we're going to offer a very nice software audio/video player with an extraordinary array of built-in audio and video decoders. The KM player has impressed me and is now my default a/v player. You'll need to install Real player or the free RealMedia Alternative codec to play .rm, .rmvb, etc. files, but it supports nearly everything else natively, including Quicktime formats.
Get it here: http://tinyurl.com/33lfpa.
I'd like to wish you a joyous holiday season and a prosperous New Year.
Art Maley
Email Question of the Week
Q: my daug gave me her newer dell(less than a yr) and i gave mine (5 yrs )to my sis..but she cant get into mine unless she goes in as guest, and she shuts off my newer one everytime she signs off..my nephew burned my infor and put it back on this newer one but i still have most of my daughters stuff and not much of my stuff on this one...what should we have done to start with...i only use it mainly for e-mailing and pogo games
A: It's usually best to format the hard drive and reload Windows fresh on any PC you receive or give away, that way the new owner will have their own account without a bunch of old personal data from the last owner all over the place.
At this point it might be best to go into Control Panel and User Accounts on the one you have, create an account for you with Admin privileges, reboot and copy your information from the backup CD into your new My Documents folder and wherever else it should go, then go back into User Accounts and remove the other accounts.
On the one you gave your sister, she should log in as you then follow the same instructions. That should at least make them usable.
Hope that helps and keep us posted...
Kevin Mefford
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