C C C C N E W S L E T T E R
CENTRAL COAST COMPUTER CLUB
Santa Maria, California
VOLUME XVIII: NUMBER 4 APRIL, 2003
NEXT MEETING: April 15, 2003 6:00PM KNOLLWOOD VILLAGE 4012 S. BRADLEY
PRESENTATION: GEORGE MAGENTA PRESENTS:
"EVERYTHING YOU WANT TO KNOW ABOUT BUYING A DIGITAL CAMERA"
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| CONTENTS |
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(1) Officers, Helplines, S.I.G.s
(2) President's Corner Charles Barney
(3) S.I.G. for Novices Amy Malicki
(4) WindowsXP Pro: The Missing Manual Charles Barney
(5) Web Wanderings Gil Smith
(6) Systems S.I.G. Dick Trissel
(7) CD Burning Part 3 Dick Trissel
(8) CCCC DOM CD Content Sharon Allen
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OFFICERS HELPLINES
President Juno
Charles Barney 937-1240 Gilbert Smith 925-3743
cbarney@lightspeed.net Gs5081@aol.com
Vice President Windows 95/98/ME/XP & VoiceControl
Richard Holmes 938-0622 Amy Malicki 925-5780
holmesr1@juno.com amymal@juno.com
Secretary and Book Librarian Hardware & DOS
Barbara Godwin 934-9885 Ray Isenson 937-6938
yung.bag@verizon.net risenson@juno.com
Treasurer AOL
Gerry Miller 934-1396 Frank Maciel 922-2318
2741 Banyan Way frm8198@aol.com
Santa Maria CA 93455
Gmiller@pronet.net
Disk Librarian
Sharon Allen 928-2209
sallen4060@aol.com
Publicity Help With Any Problem
Bill Corning 934-0775 Fred Adams 934-1128
foster95@juno.com wd64acj@netzero.net
Newsletter Editor Visual Basic
Dick Trissel 937-7572 Gerald Miller 934-1396
rtrissel@juno.com Gmiller@pronet.net
SPECIAL INTEREST GROUPS (S.I.G.s)
Novice (6:00pm) Systems (5:45pm)
Amy Malicki Dick Trissel
amymal@juno.com rtrissel@juno.com
CCCC Membership is $15 for twelve months ($20 family). For this you
receive:
Monthly newsletter
EXTRA4C E-mail Messages
Access to the clubs software library
Disk of the month (usually for $1)
Helpline support
Monthly presentation
Valuable door prizes
Question and answer sessions
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CCCC Page 2 April 2003
PRESIDENT'S CORNER
by Charles Barney
Attendance is growing at the 4Cs! Since I've been with the group, the
membership has shown to follow a fairly predictable cycle of highs and lows
with numbers peaking in the Spring. Nonetheless, I was very pleased to see
a good 70 folks turn out for the March 21st meeting. It says to me that we
are successful in our efforts to provide something of value to local
computer users and they are interested enough to come back.
A hearty 4Cs welcome goes out to new member Bill Jones! We are glad you
decided to take a chance and check us out Bill. We hope that you will feel
right at home here and have fun along with gaining some useful knowledge.
Special thanks to Carol Rich who did an excellent job filling-in as
Secretary for Barbara Godwin who had a prior commitment to attend.
Our guest presenter for the evening was Linda Falcon, representing the
local Santa Maria Sewing & Vacuum Center store. Linda brought along and
demonstrated a sewing/embroidery system that was truly amazing. Why a
sewing machine at a computer club meeting? The Bernina artista 200 is a
unique hybrid, combining a traditional household device with the latest in
computer technology.
The machine sports a colorful LCD touch screen and has Microsoft Windows CE
operating system built-in. A USB port provides "plug and play" connectivity
to peripherals such as the included CD-ROM drive and even an auxiliary
personal computer. A PCMCIA slot will accept an accessory modem to go
online and access content on the myartista portal site.
Linda used the artista Designer software on her laptop to load a butterfly
graphic from disk and manipulate it in ways you'd expect from powerful
digital imaging programs. Then the data for the design was uploaded to the
embroidery machine and we watched as it methodically sewed out the
beautiful image onto fabric with remarkable detail and flawless precision.
Almost made me want to take up embroidery!
Those who were called for door prizes and present ran about 50-50 with
those absent.
In attendance to claim a prize were Ray Isenson - Logitech Mouseman Dual
Optical Sensor Mouse, Barbara Lohman - Body Glove 32 CD Wallet, Bob Chikar
- iConcepts Monitor Clip-on Copy Holder, Donald Calhoun - Omar Sharif
Bridge Game, Fred Adams - Perfect Video & Photo Editor Platinum, and Carter
Jones - Embroidered Butterfly that was sewn during the presentation. No-
shows included Barbara Godwin (whoops!), Seymour Schwartz, Russ Connors,
Stanley Voris, and Allen Alderson.
The topic of our April 15th presentation will be of interest to many of you
I'm sure. Professional photographer and teacher George Magenta will be at
the clubhouse to discuss "Everything You Want to Know About Buying a
Digital Camera." Don't miss out on this one! I'll see you there. -Charles
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CCCC Page 3 April 2003
SPECIAL INTEREST GROUP (S.I.G.) FOR NOVICES
By Amy L. Malicki
This six o'clock session meets in one of the other clubrooms. It is
intended to provide answers to new user questions.
We covered Mouse and Keystroke Commands, Windows Elements, and Agitated
Mouse Clickers who think clicking the mouse speeds up the computer process.
Every Left Click sends a command to the computer and adds to the process.
In some cases a repeated command can lock up the mouse or the program,
create a list of 20 letters to be printed, or send several e-mails instead
of just one.
This month we will talk about Saving files in different directories
(including the floppy drive), and we will Find/Search for files and maybe
explore Microsoft Explorer, if there is time. Since we try to help solve
individual problems, we don't always complete the Agenda. Watch your
EXTRA4C e-mails for the next month's agenda.
There will not be an overhead projector. However, you can bring a notebook
or use the Agenda to make notes about the subjects being discussed. A
Glossary of basic computer terms will be available.
Future sessions will cover Start Menu. Different ways of Accessing files,
and how to Write and Edit a letter.
Bring your questions, even if you are not a novice, and I will try to
answer them.
_______________________________________________________________________
APRIL COOKIES
Thanks in advance to the April "Cookies" volunteer:
Barbara Lohman.
_______________________________________________________________________
***** NOTICE *****
I still don't have all the club member's e-mail addresses. If you want to
receive the free EXTRA4C bulletins, please e-mail me (rtrissel@juno.com)
your subscription request.
_______________________________________________________________________
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CCCC Page 4 April 2003
Windows XP Pro: The Missing Manual
A review by Charles Barney
If you've been around personal computers for as long as I have, then you
can probably remember the days when you plunked down a hefty chunk of cash
for the latest and greatest software, it also came with a hefty user manual
- the real paper kind!
Today, of course, most software companies just provide enough printed
documentation to guide you through the install process and perhaps give an
overview of the program's features. The rest of the information is "on the
disk" somewhere and, if you are lucky, you might find what you are looking
for.
Microsoft, the largest of all software publishing companies, is certainly
no exception. In fact, they probably are leading the charge into this
paperless trend. The newest operating system from our friends in Redmond,
Windows XP (Professional and Home Edition), expects its users to learn
about the program and be able to solve their problems by reading from among
the countless help-screens, many of which exist online and require an
Internet connection to access.
Admittedly, the online help in XP is extensive and thorough - probably the
best job of it that I have yet seen from Microsoft. But call me "old-
fashioned" if you want, I'm one who likes to relax in a comfortable chair
(away from the computer) and crack open a real book to read, dog-ear,
highlight and generally be able to handle as I wish.
Author David Pogue, writer of many titles in the "Missing Manual" series,
steps in to admirably fill the void. His new book for Windows XP Pro is
both comprehensive and up-to-date, covering through Service Release 1. Mr.
Pogue seems to have a knack for cutting to the chase and providing you with
meaty information without having to wade through a lot of the filler which
is so typical in many computer books. He explains the subject matter
clearly in a jargon-free, humorous style. His target readers here are in
the advanced-beginner to intermediate PC user range.
The book is organized into five main sections: Part 1 - The Windows
Desktop, covers all you need to know about navigating the interface; Part 2
- The Components of Windows XP, is on working with applications and details
the various utilities and programs that come included with the OS (Control
Panel, for example); Part 3 - Windows Online, is about the Internet related
features of XP such as email, web browsing, chat and video conferencing;
Part 4 - Plugging Into Windows XP, covers the operating system's
association with equipment that you can plug into your PC, such as
scanners, cameras, printers, and so forth; Part 5 - Life on the Network, is
about (you guessed it!) networks and how you can easily connect up two or
more computers in your home or office using XP's Network Setup Wizard.
At the end of the book you will find two useful appendixes. The first is a
comprehensive guide to installing Windows XP Pro, with all the options and
considerations you should decide on in advance. The second is, in effect, a
menu of all the menus offered by the OS and gives explanations of the
various options and equivalent keyboard commands.
I personally have taken the plunge and installed Windows XP Pro on my home
computers a few months ago and, so far, am glad that I did. I do find
myself reaching for this book time and again for quick answers so I can get
right down to work. Anyone running XP Pro, or seriously thinking about it,
will benefit from having this book in their personal library.
Note: For Home Edition users, look for the companion volume Windows XP Home
Edition: The Missing Manual from the same source.
Ordering Information
Windows XP Pro: The Missing Manual
O'Reilly/Pogue Press
David Pogue, Craig Zacker, and L.J. Zacker
ISBN 0-596-00348-x
658 pages, softcover, $29.95
1-800-998-9938
http://www.orielly.com
4Cs members get 20% off any O'Reilly book they purchase directly from
O'Reilly.
Just use code DSUG when ordering.
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CCCC Page 5 April 2003
WEB WANDERINGS
By Gil Smith
LOTS OF FREEWARE
If you like to try new programs and don't want to spend any money, this is
the place for you.
http://www.freewarearena.org/
freewarebook.html
DID YOU EVER WONDER?
This site uses the term "stuff" to mean just about everything-from the
simplest to the obscure.
http://www.howstuffworks.com
FREE LISTS
For all of you busy making to-do lists, stop right this second! You may be
able to print it out and just check things off. Yup, I've found more free,
printable lists. At List Organizer, you'll find free lists in a variety of
categories: Food (alphabetical lists and category lists); Clean House; Menu
Planner; Money; Paper Files; To-Do; and Travel. These lists can make your
life easier and save you time. Check it out!
http://www.listorganizer.com/lists.htm
CARTHEDRAL
Bet you're wondering what a carthedral is? Let me tell ya all about it.
It is a car that is made up to look as much like a cathedral as it can be.
Carthedral . . . is a gothic cathedral built on a 1971 Cadillac hearse and
modified with '59 Cadillac tail fins, a VW bug and sculpted with fiberglass
over metal armatures.' The pictures of this car are fantastic! I have
never seen anything this neat. I'd love to drive this one. Visit the
gallery, and if you're curious, the Frequently Asked Questions have some
neat questions and answers.
http://www.carthedral.com/
INTERNATIONAL LIBRARY OF PHOTOGRAPHY
Welcome to Picture.com! A site filled with photos, photos, and more
photos. What's it about? Well here's what they say in their "About Us"
section:
The International Library of Photography was founded to provide a vehicle
for amateur photographers to gain exposure through publication of their
photos in our hardbound anthologies and on our Internet site. Our
philosophy has always been that photography is a form of artistic
expression that is shared and enjoyed by many people, and should be
available to everyone. Why am I recommending this site?
A. The photography is fantastic.
B. They have a puzzle contest in which you are entered to win $50.
C. They have a photography contest for those of you amateurs who'd like
to win some money.
D. You can send free e-cards to all your friends.
I enjoyed this photography site. I hope you enjoy it too.
http://www.picture.com/
FREEZE - A NEW DEGREE OF FREE
Welcome to Freeze - a site full of coupons, free stuff, screen savers,
fonts, and more. They have a lot of categories at Freeze. From Business to
Webmaster Tools, you'll enjoy browsing through these freebies. I
especially enjoyed their autumn screen saver. Fill out their survey, input
your e-mail address, and you are on your way. A fun, free site. Enjoy!
http://www.freeze.com
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CCCC Page 6 April 2003
SYSTEMS S.I.G.
by Dick Trissel
The main thrusts of the March Systems S.I.G. were cleaning out a computer
and defragging the hard drive. The two areas we concentrated on for
cleanup were the Temporary Internet Files folder and the Cookies folder.
We demonstrated how this operation can easily be done from the Internet
Explorer Screen. Just click on the Tools button (or View in IE4) and click
on Internet Options. In the Temporary Internet Files section click on
Delete Files. In the Delete Files window click OK. Now, in the Temporary
Internet Files section, click on Settings and then View Files. This should
display all the Cookies. Select them and delete them and then close the
windows.
I like to then click on the History icon and delete the History files. You
could clear the History files while in the Internet Options window, but
that also clears the "Auto complete" storage that I like to keep.
This led to the two ways to delete files and folders. After selecting one
(or several), if you press the Delete key, the selected items go into the
Recycle Bin. They are still taking up space on your hard drive. This is
so you can recover them if you want. I prefer to delete by holding the
shift key down and then press Delete. This is a non-recoverable delete,
but recovers the hard drive space.
The discussion on defragging a hard drive led to an interesting debate. It
seems some users get a Scandisk operation with every defrag operation. I
have never had this happen on my Windows98 and 98SE systems. However,
there is an option in the defrag window under Settings to "Check the drive
for errors". If this is checked, there is an error check done which does
take extra time to perform. However, there is no "Scandisk" display on my
computers at that time. Maybe this is what some people are referring to.
I don't normally choose this error check.
I recommend defragging often. The more frequently you defrag, the less
wear on the hard drive. The length of the defrag is a function of how much
is on the drive (not how large the capacity of the drive), and how
fragmented the disk is. Just for fun, defrag your drive, use it for a few
hours, then defrag it again. Turn on the Details each time so you can see
the open spaces. It's amazing how fragmented a disk gets with just a
little usage. Notice how little disk access there is while defragging when
there is very little fragmentation.
Some users reported they couldn't defrag their hard drive. I assume they
meant it starts, goes to 10%, and then starts over. The first 10% is a
setup process for the defrag operation. If there is any activity on the
hard drive, the setup will start over. That activity is from a program
running either directly or in the background. If deliberately stopping all
programs (and using CTRL-ALT-DEL to End Task on everything except Explorer
and Systray) doesn't solve the problem, try restarting in "Safe Mode".
This can be tricky. Do a Shutdown, Restart, and hold down the F5 or F8
key. One person said they couldn't even defrag in the Safe Mode--strange.
The Windows 98 users would benefit greatly by replacing the file
C:\Windows\defrag.exe (248Kb) with the Windows ME defrag.exe file (204Kb).
Let me know you want it and I'll make a floppy for you.
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CCCC Page 7 April 2003
CD BURNING PART 3
by Dick Trissel
I don't get asked very often which CD-RW burner to buy. Probably because
those that are interested either have purchased one or it came with their
new computer. So, let's discuss what to consider if you are planning to
buy a new CD-RW burner.
Nowadays, everybody is speed conscious. CD-RW burners are rated by X
designations where one X equals 150,000 bytes per second. There are three
numbers associated with a CD-RW burner. The first is the CD-R disc burn
speed. The second is the CD-RW disc burn and rewrite speed. The third is
the playback speed-just like a CD-ROM player. So, a
40X/12X/32X speed rating would be:
CD-R burn at 6,000,000 bytes per second, CD-RW burn at 1,800,000 bytes per
second, playback at 4,800,000 bytes per second.
Sounds great, but don't be fooled. Those ratings are maximums and only
apply if all the minimum requirements on the burner box are met, and your
computer is optimized for speed. But that doesn't mean you can't use
slower burn speeds to match your computer capability. That capability is
dependent upon the amount of RAM memory, the speed of the hard drive, the
speed of a CD-ROM player if used to copy, etc. Most burner software
includes test routines to determine what your computer components are
capable of.
Another consideration when buying a CD burner is what burner software is
included or required. Be careful of the wording on the box. Many use the
phrase "Easy CD creating software included". This sometimes is a play on
words to make it sound like it includes Roxio's Easy CD Creator (ECDC)
software. When in reality it maybe NERO, NTI, B-GOLD, or whatever.
This could be a problem if you have already started CD discs using some
other software different than the included software. Unclosed CDs cannot
be written to with a different software than what they were started with.
Also, you usually can't have two different burner programs installed at the
same time.
If you are just starting out, why worry about which software is included?
Two things-compatibility with other computer users; and most software won't
allow packet writing to CD-R discs. Most of the people I deal with use
Roxio's ECDC. Also, ECDC is capable of packet writing (drag and drop just
like a floppy disk) to CD-R discs. NERO and NTI don't. Click'nBurn does,
but not many people use it.
These conditions also need to be considered if you are upgrading your CD
burner. You probably already have unclosed discs started with your old
software. They would have to closed before you switch software. And then
could not be reopened with the new software.
Aren't you glad the computer world is nice and standardized? Wait until
you try DVD burning. Even the discs aren't standardized. As I understand
it, there are four different, incompatible formats.
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CCCC Page 8 April 2003
CCCC DOM CD CONTENT
by Sharon Allen
32fsu21.exe 976kb limited demo, $40 to buy 2000/NT/XP
File Scavenger V2.1i Windows NT/2000/XP file undelete/recovery tool for
NTSF volumes. Files accidentally deleted from Win Explorer, Recycled Bin,
DOS command line, or a network share can be recovered.
advisor.exe 611kb Belarc Advisor freeware Win95/98/ME/NT4/2000/XP
Automatically installs itself, builds a profile of your hardware and
software, and displays it in your web browser.
audibleplayerPPCARM.exe 417kb Audible Player
Audio content player, audio books, newspapers, mags, and recorded radio
shows. Typical player look.
burnquicksim.exe 664kb shareware ME/98/95
Burn Quick Sim V3 Data and MP3 Audio CD burning software. Easy to use.
Select the files you wish to burn, right-click and select BurnQuick from
the options through windows.
chaos32x.exe 3.13mb Time and Chaos shareware, $45 to buy most versions
Time management tool and info manager w/an address book, appts, do-to
lists.
framxpro.zip 524kb freeware ME/98/95/XP/2000
Free Ram XP Pro V1.3 Utility to defragment and free up your system's ram.
Fast and efficient, many options, resource friendly.
freeram.exe Free Ram
htmlGenPowerToySetup.exe 771kb freeware XP
HTML slide show wizard helps you create an HTML slide show of your digital
pictures, ready to place on your web site.
imageresizerPowerToySetup.exe 521kb freeware XP
Image Resizer enables you to resize one or many image files with a right-
click.
mbsetup.exe 1.93mb Memory Boost Pro V2.5
oskasetup.exe 104kb freeware limited
Oska DeskMate Interactive animated cartoon character who lives on the
desktop. If you buy the product, he will do more....
pcs2001.exe 13mb 602Pro PC Suite
MS-Office look-alike.
pfsetup.exe 5.3mb shareware WinME/98/95/NT/XP/2000
Power File Powerful file manager, ftp client, viewer. Great replacement
for Windows Explorer, don't tell Bill Gates.
photoimpact 43.7mb
Photo Impact 8.0 Photo editor.
photol15.exe 3.69mb shareware WinMe/98/95
Photo Lightning V1.5 Autodetects your camera, downloads photos, has a
large preview area, lightning fast thumbnail browser. Offers red-eye
reduction, backlighting, fixes photos that are out of focus, crops,
sharpens, contrasts.
sb.zip 2.32mb
Spyblocker
slideshowPowerToySetup.exe 548kb freeware XP
Slide Show generator View images burned to a CD as a slide show. Works on
Win9x machines as well.
spychek.zip 285kb freeware ME/Win98/Win95
SpyCheck Type in the questionable software's name in the box provided and
hit "check". Spychecker will query the database and display the results in
your browser.
sysmech.exe 1.49mb
System Mechanic.
tweakuiPowerToySetup.exe 564kb freeware XP
Microsoft set of tools gives to access to system settings that are not
exposed in the default user interface, including mouse settings, explorer
settings, taskbar settings, + more.
webferretsetup.exe 576kb freeware WinME/98/NT/2000/XP
WebFerret Version 5.0 Very flexible multiple search engine. Lots of
options. Lots more tweaks and advanced features.
winmx331.exe 752kb freeware WinMe/98/2000/XP
WnMX Free file-sharing program designed for MP3s. No ads or spyware
involved.
wrapster3full.exe 792kb
Wrapster Wrapper and Unwrapper - compression program.
zasetup_1001.exe 3.6mb freeware
ZoneAlarm for XP Firewall.
zonalm2601.exe 2.78mb freeware
Zone Alarm for earlier systems Firewall.
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