C C C C N E W S L E T T E R
CENTRAL COAST COMPUTER CLUB
Santa Maria, California
VOLUME XX: NUMBER 7 JULY, 2005
Meetings are held on the third Tuesday of every month at the Knollwood
Village Clubhouse 4012 S. Bradley Dr., Santa Maria.
General meeting at 7:00 PM. Special Interest Groups sessions are at
5:45pm and 6:00pm. Guests are welcome.
Check out our web site: http//member.apcug.org/fourseas for the latest
program schedule information.
Membership is $15 for twelve months for individuals, $20 for families.
For this you receive: Monthly newsletters, EXTRA4C E-mail Messages,
Access to the clubs software library, Disk of the month (usually for $1),
Help-line support, Monthly presentations, Valuable door prizes, Question
and answer sessions.
NEXT MEETING: July 19, 2005 KNOLLWOOD VILLAGE 4012 S. BRADLEY
PRESENTATION: The July presentation will be Amy Malicki on
"How To Use Your Scanner"
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| CONTENTS |
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(1) OFFICERS, HELPLINES, S.I.G.S
(2) PRESIDENT'S CORNER Spence Stimler
(3) EDITOR'S COMMENTS Dick Trissel
(4) WEB WANDERINGS
(5) SYSTEMS S.I.G. Dick Trissel
(6) USING YOUR PICTURES IN SCREEN SAVERS Kim Komando
(7) WINDOWS' ACCESSIBILITY OPTIONS
(8) TRANSFERRING FROM TAPES TO CDS Kim Komando
(9) ANOTHER ATTACK ON OUR COMPUTERS Ira Wilsker
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OFFICERS HELPLINES
President Juno
Spence Stimler 938-0217 Dick Trissel 937-7572
SPENCE923@msn.com rtrissel@juno.com
Vice President Windows 95/98/ME/XP & VoiceControl
Bill Corning 934-0775 Amy Malicki 925-5780
foster95@juno.com savvyforseniors@juno.com
Acting Secretary Hardware and Windows XP
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
gandamiller@verizon.net
Disk Librarian Visual Basic and Genealogy
Sharon Allen 928-2209 Gerald Miller 934-1396
sallen4060@aol.com gandamiller@verizon.net
Publicity Help With Any Problem
Bill Corning 934-0775 Fred Adams 934-1128
foster95@juno.com fredeadams@verizon.net
Newsletter Editor
Dick Trissel 937-7572
rtrissel@juno.com
SPECIAL INTEREST GROUPS (S.I.G.s)
Systems (5:45pm) Word & Windows (6:00pm)
Dick Trissel Amy Malicki
rtrissel@juno.com savvyforseniors@juno.com
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CCCC Page 2 July 2005
PRESIDENT'S CORNER by Spence Stimler
Our attendance for June was about 55. For those of you who didn't attend or
left early, you missed one of our better presentations. Lee Otsuba, the
Digital Photo Guy, gave us a very informative session, and he began it by
giving a CD to the member whose birthday was closest to the meeting date.
Ben Middleton was the winner. His humorous and instructive interjections
kept the members wanting more.
Having trouble with your scanner? Want to know how to use it? Is OCR a
problem for you? The answers to these and other scanning problems will be
made simple for you at our July meeting. Amy Malicki will provide a hands-
on presentation for our July program.
50/50 winners for the June meeting were:
1st Vic McLaughlin$9.00
2nd John McCurdy$8.00
3rd Joey Sturdivant$8.00
Door prize winners were:
1. Wm. Barnett: MYST
2. Paul Highfill: Physicians Home Assistant
3. Gerald Miller: FURY
4. Joe Magusson: Essential Typing
5. Ted Tucker: Acronis Disk Director Suite 9.0
6. John McCurdy: No Silver Spoon by Spence Stimler
It appears that attending our meetings pays off as witness John McCurdy, a
double winner.
We still have a need for a secretary. My call for a volunteer was met with
the same silence as one would expect when entering a funeral home. One of
our members complained about the lack of attention for some of our speakers.
People around him continued talking while a speaker was trying to make a
point. He found it irritating and suggested that we do something about it.
I didn't have a solution for solving people's rudeness until now. In the
future, I'm going to suggest that the speaker ask for a volunteer for some
task. I'm sure he/she too will be met with utter quiet. Problem solved.
Many of the above-mentioned door prizes were donated by Ray Shafer. All
were in original sealed packages and labeled for Windows 95 and some even
for 3.1. I'm not sure if they will work on XP. There will be five more for
the July meeting. In addition there will be a special door prize which is
Photoshop 7.0 in CD form.
Hope to see you all at the July 19th meeting.
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CCCC Page 3 July 2005
EDITOR'S COMMENTS by Dick Trissel
If you want to get some Shockwave Flash (.swf) files (some of the fun stuff
we play at the meetings), go to Google and search for "*.swf" (use the
quotes). Open the references that have the word [flash] on the first line.
Each one will probably take a few minutes to load.
You will need the free ShockWaveFlash player from Macromedia. Sometimes
just going to a Web site that has SWF files will cue you to download the
player--do it. Otherwise, go to Google and type macromedia to find their
Web site and download the free player from there.
After you have looked at all the SWF files you want, leave the Internet and
use Windows Explorer to look in the Temporary Internet Files (TIF). If you
don't know where the Temporary Internet Files are located, use
Start / Search.
In the Temporary Internet Files folder, click on the Type column header to
put the files in type groups. The group type that is shockwave (.swf) are
the files you played.
Usually, you can just copy the files to another folder and they will play.
There are some SWF files in the TIF folder that can't be captured that way--
they don't play for some reason. There are programs available off the
Internet that will let you capture SWF files, but they are not free--at
least I didn't find any free ones.
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CCCC Page 4 July 2005
WEB WANDERINGS
E-MAIL SOLUTION
Back in the day, most people only had one e-mail account. Today, you could
have many e-mail addresses. You might have one for work, one with your ISP,
a Yahoo or Hotmail account and one "dummy" e-mail address you use for
signing up for giveaways and contests.
Mail2Web allows you to check all e-mail accounts without having to surf to
different pages. Just enter your e-mail address and password. You can pick
up your mail from any Internet connection--desktop, laptop, PDA or cell
phone. Oh, and it's free, too!
http://www.mail2web.com
SCRABBLE MEETS GUNSMOKE
If board games leave you just plain bored, try this site. Wild Wild Words is
a game that teases your mind ass it tests your trigger. Spell words on the
fly as blocks of letters fall around you. Not too hard, not too easy, this
site is educational as well as fun for all ages.
To get shooting, click the "Play Online" bar.
http://www.shockwave.com/sw/content/wildwildwords
IS IT "MISSPELL" OR "MISPELL"?
I'm not sure what I did before spell checker. I am sure I wouldn't want to
get along without it.
If you don't always have an available spell checker, or just want a speedier
one, bookmark SpellCheck. I pull out SpellCheck whenever I need to fire off
a quick e-mail or unravel a quirky word.
Another big bonus of SpellCheck is the handy array of math and language
links. Use KitchenMath to convert pints to cups or try Babel Fish to
translate Spanish to English.
Trabaja grande!
http://spellcheck.net/
MAYO CLINIC FIRST-AID
When it comes to medical education and research, the Mayo Clinic is one of
the best. So why not consult the best with your first-aid questions?
Mayo's First-Aid Guide lists over 50 medical topics in alphabetical order
for quick retrieval. Once a topic is clicked, a brief summary of signs and
symptoms is displayed, as well as suggested first-aid steps.
Bookmark the First-Aid Guide so you'll have it when you need it most.
http://www.mayoclinic.com/findinformation/firstaidandselfcare/index.cfm
PURSUE TRIVIA
The world is full of fascinating facts. And some of the best stuff around is
known as trivia.
The Cool Quiz! Trivia Web page hits the mother lode when it comes to quirky
information. The home page alone is plastered with tidbits.
Start digging in the "Trivia Directory' of over 25,000 trivia facts.
Or get the story behind such famous names as James Bond under "The Name's
Familiar." The "That Explains It!" feature comes in handy if you've got a
super curious kid like my Ian.
Be the go-to person when it comes to knowing "the real deal."
http://www.coolquiz.com/trivia/
INSIDE A JET ENGINE
You probably know Rolls-Royce makes incomparable automobiles. But did you
also know it builds jet engines?
Rolls' Web site, Journey Through A Jet Engine, is a real kick. A split
screen depicts the inside workings of an engine on the left and a cockpit on
the right. Watch the gauges soar as the turbine kicks in.
You learn that each turbine blade has the power of a race car. And that the
heat of combustion is nearly twice the melting point of some components--
that's why cooling is so crucial.
Eyeing the gauges and listening to the whining turbine, you almost feel you
are flying the jet yourself!
http://www.rolls-royce.com/education/schools/journey/flash.html
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CCCC Page 5 July 2005
SYSTEMS S.I.G. by Dick Trissel
I guess not too many members are basketball enthusiasts, as we had 30
attendees at the June Systems S.I.G. on the night of the sixth game of the
championship playoffs. I have to admit, I do watch the playoffs when I can
without too much interference from other activities.
Anyway, we started with one member stating a desire to leave his expensive
ISP and go to free (or nearly free) Juno--$10 per year for direct-dial e-
mail, Web and POP3 e-mail, and Web access with some advertising. This is
for Juno versions 4 or 5, NOT versions 6 or later, as they don't have
direct-dial e-mail. I recommended he also get free Netzero--the Web access
has a fixed ad banner as opposed to the Juno floating ad banner. I can
furnish CDs for versions 4 (recommended), 7, and 8. Version 7 CD can be
picked up free at BestBuy. Version 8 can be downloaded at the Netzero Web
site.
Some Juno users have noticed their user account folder (C:\Program Files
\Juno\user0000) contains files with names with extensions *.fr2. These can
be safely deleted using Windows Explorer. They are residue from Juno's e-
mail management.
Speaking of Windows Explorer, next month I hope to have time to demonstrate
the basics of Windows Explorer--the backbone of file management on a Windows
operating system.
For those who already know how to use Windows Explorer, here's a handy
suggestion to cause WE to start in a particular folder. Let's say you want
the WE desktop shortcut icon to start in the root directory (C:) instead of
Documents or whatever. Right click the shortcut. Click on Properties. In
the Target window, add the characters /e,C:\ where is a space
character. You can go even further and put C:\abcd, where abcd is a sub-
folder. Any legitimate path can be put after the /e, characters. And a
different path can be put in the target for a Quick Launch icon in the
taskbar.
I've always stressed doing system backups of your hard drives. Not only do
you need a storage medium (CDs or DVDs), you need a good backup program.
Since all my systems (Windows 98SE and XP Pro) are on the FAT32 (File
Allocation Table) file system, older backup programs work fine. However, if
you are using XP on an NTSF (New Technology File System) file system, the
older backup software probably won't work successfully. And if your
computer came with XP installed, you probably have NTFS. Make sure any
backup software you buy supports NTFS.
Along that line, know that XP can convert FAT32 to NTFS, but CANNOT convert
NTFS to FAT32. The old Partition Magic 7 program will convert NTFS to
FAT32. There probably are other programs that will, also.
Many tech writers have been recommending using the free Firefox browser
instead of Internet Explorer because the bad guys don't mess with Firefox.
Well, a recent news release warns that there are 28 vulnerability holes in
the Firefox browser. The irony is, they are portals to the holes in
Internet Explorer that can be used to cause trouble. And, IE cannot be
removed from the system. And, some Web sites require IE in order to display
correctly. So, even if you use Firefox, you must keep IE patched.
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CCCC Page 6 July 2005
USING YOUR PICTURES IN SCREEN SAVERS
from Komando newsletter
Q. I want to make a screen saver out of my wedding photos. Do I have to get
software for this, and where can I find it?
A. A wedding screen saver is a fantastic idea! And don't worry; you don't
need software. Windows Me and Windows XP let you use your photos in screen
savers. It's easy to set up and fun to watch.
To do this, click Start>>Control Panel. Double-click Display. Select the
Screen Saver tab. Select My Pictures Slideshow in XP, or My Pictures Screen
Saver in ME, from the menu box under "Screen saver." Then click the Settings
button next to the menu box.
Under "Use pictures in this folder," click the Browse button. Find and
select the folder that you used for your photos. Click OK and then click the
next OK. You should be back to the Screen Saver tab again.
To test your screen saver, click the Preview button. Your screen saver will
run on the monitor representation until you press a key or move the mouse.
If you're satisfied with your screen saver, click OK. Otherwise, click the
Settings button. There you can adjust the speed of the slide show. You can
also set the size of the slides and add transitions.
You can share your creation with your family. One way is to e-mail photos in
bulk along with the above instructions. But there are some programs that
help simplify things. One such program is Easy ScreenSaver Studio ($50). It
lets you create a slide show with music and flashy transitions. Then you can
e-mail it as a complete screen saver. Other, similar programs include Active
ScreenSaver Builder ($30) and SCR Builder ($20).
If you would like to build a custom slide show, but you don't have photos,
check out WebShots. This site boasts millions of photos. You can get to the
photos with a free membership. WebShots also has tools to turn photos into
slide shows and wallpaper. The extra tools come with a premium membership at
$30 per year.
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CCCC Page 7 July 2005
WINDOWS' ACCESSIBILITY OPTIONS
from a Tech newsletter
Q. My mother is over 80, and she has trouble seeing the monitor. Is there
some way to magnify it?
A. Windows includes a number of accessibility options that can help people
with disabilities. They can accommodate people with impaired or declining
vision, hearing or dexterity.
Your mother will find Windows' Magnifier helpful. It makes a portion of your
screen act as a magnifying glass. The remaining portion continues to show a
normal display. You can move your magnifying glass anywhere on the screen.
And you can resize it to take up to half your screen. It is available in all
versions of Windows.
To open Magnifier, click Start>>All Programs>> Accessories>>Accessibility>>
Magnifier. Once you start Magnifier, you'll be able to customize it. First,
you can choose the magnification level. You can use sizes from double to
nine times normal. You can have your magnifier follow the mouse pointer. Or
you can have it follow the keyboard focus (cursor). The keyboard focus
setting works well for word processing.
Windows includes many more accessibility tools. Here are the other tools you
can find under All Programs (or Programs):
1. Narrator is a helpful tool for people with low vision or blindness. It
uses a computerized voice to describe what's on the screen. It can tell you
which program or window is open. And it can tell you which menus and options
you're selecting.
You can also have Narrator read as you type, letter by letter. That can help
with letter writing or e-mail. It's especially handy if you have limited
typing ability.
A feature like Narrator requires incredible sophistication. Narrator is a
great tool, but it's far from perfect. It works well with ubiquitous
Microsoft products like Office and Internet Explorer. But its support
weakens as you stray from Microsoft programs. It is available in Windows XP
and 2000.
2. On-Screen Keyboard can be useful for those with limited dexterity. It
lets you do your typing with the mouse. The virtual keyboard is complete
with function and navigation keys and the number pad. And you can move it
anywhere on the screen. It is available in Windows XP, 2000 and ME.
3. The Accessibility Wizard lets you open multiple accessibility tools with
one pass. You can pick your settings for sight, hearing and dexterity aids.
The wizard will change settings when you choose them. You can quickly
discover which features you like and dislike. The wizard is available in
Windows XP, 2000, ME and 98.
Other tools are available through Windows' Control Panel. To find them,
click Start>>Control Panel in Windows XP, or Start>>Settings>>Control Panel
in earlier versions of Windows. Then double-click Accessibility Options.
Here are a few I like:
1. StickyKeys helps those who use a wand or mouth stick. It simplifies key
combinations such as Ctrl+Alt+Delete. Instead of pressing them
simultaneously, you can press them in sequence. It's also useful for using
the Shift key.
2. FilterKeys eases the frustration of using the keyboard with limited
dexterity. You can set your keyboard to ignore repeated keystrokes from
shaky hands. You can also shut off or slow the keyboard repeat. That stops
it from repeating a key that's held down too long.
3. MouseKeys lets you use the number pad as a mouse. This is another great
feature for people who use a wand or mouth stick. There are settings to
control the speed of the mouse pointer. The pointer also accelerates as you
hold down the keys. And MouseKeys doesn't interfere with use of the actual
mouse. You don't have to change settings for other users.
Most accessibility tools display an alert with their first activation. And
most of them openly tell you that they're not cutting-edge. So the Microsoft
site (http://www.microsoft.com/enable/) lists more robust tools from
different developers. You can also do a search for your particular needs
(http://www.microsoft.com/enable/at/search.asp).
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CCCC Page 8 July 2005
TRANSFERRING FROM TAPES TO CDS
from Komando newsletter
Q. Kim, I'm an old coot with a bunch of cassette tapes that I want to
convert to CDs. I can't just plug them into my computer and make an MP3. My
combo CD writer drive has pink, green and yellow ports. Is there something I
can use to do this?
A. Yes, you can turn your old tapes into music files or CDs. And you won't
have to buy a bulky, expensive appliance to do it. But it will take a few
tools and some patience.
First, you'll need an ordinary cassette tape player. Then you'll need a
cable to connect it to your computer. You can get audio cables at most
electronics stores. The average cost is $5 for a six-foot cable. You'll most
likely use a male-to-male audio cable. Both ends look like headphone plugs.
These plugs are also known as 1/8-inch or 3.5mm.
Plug one end of the cable into your tape player's line-out jack. If your
player doesn't have this jack, try the headphone jack. Plug the other end
into your computer's line-in or microphone jack. The colored ports on your
computer probably include line-in and microphone. Check your manual.
The line-in and microphone jacks actually belong to your computer's sound
system. Almost all retail computer models include them. Sound systems are
responsible for any music or sound effects you hear.
Now test your connection. First, make sure that your computer's line-in is
not muted. Click Start>>Control Panel. Double-click Sounds and Audio
Devices. Select the Volume tab. Under "Device volume," click the Advanced
button. Under Line In, make sure the Mute box is not checked. Then turn on
your tape player. The player's sound should make its way to your computer's
speakers.
The last part you'll need is a recording program. Audacity is a robust free
program that can handle the recording. You can find it at
audacity.sourceforge.net. Popular software titles Musicmatch and Nero can
also handle line-in recording.
To begin with Audacity, click the drop-down box on the right side. It will
offer options for the recording source. Select Line In. Click the red record
button. Then start your tape player. After each song, click the yellow stop
button. Click on the file menu. You can save the song with one of the Export
As options.
For example, you can choose Export as WAV. From there you can start burning
your music to CDs. Most music programs, such as RealPlayer and Windows Media
Player, will burn CDs that work in regular CD players.
To make an MP3, let's say you're going to use RealPlayer. You can download
it from the Real site at www.real.com. Follow the instructions above to save
a song as a WAV file. Then start RealPlayer. In RealPlayer, Click File>>Add
Files to My Library. Find and highlight your song. Click the Open button.
Click View>>My Library. Select your song from the list (it might be the only
one). Click Tools>>Convert Media Format. Under Format, select MP3. Then
click the OK button. You can use RealPlayer to burn CDs that will play in
regular CD players.
Know that, depending on the size of your cassette collection, this could
take a while.
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CCCC Page 9 July 2005
ANOTHER ATTACK ON OUR COMPUTERS
by Ira Wilsker
At the recent computer security symposium in Corpus Christi, one of the
speakers mentioned something that I was vaguely aware of as a threat. The
threat is considered as a silent attempt to invade our computers for the
purposes of installing viruses, Trojans, worms, or other malware devices.
This silent threat may be used by terrorists to launch a coordinated attack
on our infrastructure, steal our personal information, or otherwise wreak
havoc. So insidious is this threat that it would sound like the content of
an urban legend, yet it is documented as real. Imagine a threat that would
be undetected by the current antivirus, firewall, and anti-spyware software,
yet be so powerful as to effectively take over our computers, without our
knowledge. This threat, formerly considered solely as an unproven concept,
is now known to be real. This threat is also now implicated in taking over
countless computers. This contemporary threat is known by the innocuous
term "Rootkit".
A rootkit is defined on the Sysinternals website as, "... the mechanisms and
techniques whereby malware, including viruses, spyware, and trojans, attempt
to hide their presence from spyware blockers, antivirus, and system
management utilities. There are several rootkit classifications depending on
whether the malware survives reboot and whether it executes in user mode or
kernel mode." The security software company F-Secure expands the definition
with, "Rootkits for Windows work in a different way and are typically used
to hide malicious software from an antivirus scanner, for example. Rootkits
are typically not malicious by themselves but are used for malicious
purposes by viruses, worms, backdoors and spyware. A virus combined with a
rootkit produces what was known as full stealth viruses in the MS-DOS
environment."
Because rootkits are currently very effective at hiding malware from our
antivirus and anti-spyware scanners, it is quite possible or even probable
that our computers are infected, despite repeated scans with properly
updated software.
Microsoft, and other vendors, have acknowledged the threat and are now
beginning to produce software that can detect and destroy the rootkits on
our computers. The software is still in its infancy, and lacks the ease of
use, automation, and attractive graphical interfaces that we are used to
with our antivirus software. It is inevitable that as word of the rootkit
threat spreads, and more computers are identified as having stealthy
rootkits hiding viruses and other threats, that the small current crop of
rootkit detecting software will improve, and other competitors, probably the
major antivirus vendors, will join the fight. If rootkit technology
continues to spread, the current crop of generally excellent computer
security suites from the likes of Symantec (Norton), McAfee, Panda,
TrendMicro, and others will be forced to add rootkit protection to their
respective suites, or face competitive obsolescence.
Fortunately for us, there are a few rootkit detectors already available,
mostly for free! This first generation of products still needs much
refining to enable the average person to scan for rootkits with ease, but
they are still a very good first step. There are a few rootkit detectors
available which are currently free. One "RootkitRevealer" is from a company
known for its excellent and often free software, Sysinternals. This
software uses a patent-pending technology to detect rootkits, and is
currently available for download at:
www.sysinternals.com/ntw2k/freeware/rootkitreveal.shtml. RootkitRevealer
will run on almost any Microsoft operating system, NT4 and later, which
includes Windows 2000, and XP.
Another rootkit detector is from F-Secure, a well-known computer security
company headquartered in Finland, with offices in the US and elsewhere. F-
Secure's product is "Blacklight", available as a free beta (pre-release)
version until July 1. Blacklight can be downloaded at:
www.f-secure.com/blacklight.
I have recently tried both products, and I personally found Blacklight the
easier to use. It seemed effective at detecting and eliminating rootkits.
Microsoft will shortly be making available its rootkit detector, the
"Strider GhostBuster", details at: research.microsoft.com/rootkit.
Persons unknown who wish to do us harm, either at a personal level such as
stealing our account information and committing the crime of identity theft,
or the impersonal level, such as cyber terrorists intent on shutting down
our critical infrastructure, may use the rootkit technology to bypass our
otherwise necessary defenses.
Until such time as the integrated computer security suites catch up with
this threat, I will now have to add a rootkit detector to my recommended
list of essential computer security utilities, alongside antivirus software,
a good firewall, and a spyware detector. It is also imperative that all
four of these utilities be frequently updated to ensure a reasonable degree
of personal security. We will also have to add rootkits to our vernacular
of cyber threats, along with the now ubiquitous terms "virus", "spyware",
and "hacker".
I shudder to wonder what may be coming down the pike next.
WEBSITES:
http://research.microsoft.com/rootkit
http://www.sysinternals.com/ntw2k/freeware/rootkitreveal.shtml
http://www.f-secure.com/blacklight
http://www.f-secure.com/blacklight/rootkit.shtml
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