USB Gadgets for your PC

Computer Care: USB port options run the gamut

By Arthur Glazer
arthur@glazerthepctech.com

UPDATED Dec. 18, 2009 10:09 p.m.

I am a gadget freak. This should be no surprise to you since you know that I fix and write about computers. Some of the coolest gadgets for computers come in the form of USB-powered devices. So let’s depart today from the usual "how to fix your computer" and find some practical and unusual gadgets for it instead.

A quick primer: USB is Universal Serial Bus, a device-type and port on computers, invented in 1996. It's the flat, rectangular-shaped plug. We are currently at version 2.0, which is 40 times faster than its predecessor, version 1.1. The latest incarnation, USB 3.0, is already here, but we won’t see the devices for it for a few months. They will be faster yet.

When you hear USB, you probably think of flash drives, maybe a mouse, keyboard, webcam or laptop cooler pad. But there is more than that - much more. I have portable storage devices, laptop lamps, Bluetooth chargers and hubs in my collection, and that doesn’t even scratch the surface.

The pocket flash drives that started with a mere 16 megabytes, now store upward of 128 gigabytes (from Kingston). FYI: 1,024 MB = 1 GB. You can get an 8 GB stick now for $20.

Today’s USB flash drives not only store your data, but can encrypt it, password-protect it and tell you how much space you have left on the device. There are also those with biometric fingerprint scanners or facial recognition for real security. These are a far throw from the old vanilla 2 MB drives of the last decade.

If you’re using Vista or Windows 7, alternatively you can use today’s flash drives to boost your system’s memory instead of using it for storage. This is especially helpful if you don’t have much memory to begin with. Windows will ask you what you want to do with the device when you plug it in.

It’s worth noting that not all USB flash drives are the boring black plastic type they started out as years ago. You can now get them decorated with jewels, carved from hardwood or a chunk of steel. They can be for the keychain or pocket, neck or wrist or double as a pen. You can of course, still get black plastic.

Desktop USB units are able to store terabytes of data now. (A terabyte is 1,024 gigabytes.) But more common are the 300-500 GB desktop devices and the 100-300 GB portables.

If you want fancy, there are more than storage devices built for USB. On the practical side, you might consider getting someone a laptop lamp for late night computing or USB personal fan; a multiport hub (I’ve seen from 2 to 16 ports in all shapes and sizes), a keyboard vacuum, beverage warmer, mini-water cooler or mini-fridge as a gift this holiday season. How about a smoke-sucking ashtray or an aroma therapy dispenser? All are great gifts for the desk. There are also shavers and neck, leg and foot warmers. These all plug into a USB port.

Everyone needs a digital card reader. Most have multiple slots one will most certainly accommodate your cameras card. Some even read your phone’s SIM card.

For fun, you can get a mini-aquarium, a missile launcher, TV tuner, microscope or a lava lamp, all USB-powered. Did I mention lava lamps? How about a Mr. Spock USB Pez dispenser?

The nice thing about USB as compared to other type devices is that you can hot swap them. By that, I mean you can plug or unplug them at will. With other port types (video, PS2, serial), you need to power down the system to do that. If you plug in a PS2 mouse, for example (the small round plug), without turning your computer off first, it won’t work. With a USB mouse, it doesn’t matter if you do or not.

Speaking of mice, there are always wired and wireless USB mice (and keyboards) to consider. For the wireless, you plug one part into the USB port and it talks to the device, sans cord.

So where can you find these things? Mostly online, I would guess. Look on Web sites like thinkgeek.com, cyberguys.com, coolest-gadgets.com and usbgadgets.org. The last two, especially, have an extensive listing of unique and affordable USB gadgets. In the neighborhood, check out Frys, as they always have a good selection.

USB gadgets have come a long way from just being small storage devices and printers. Swiss Army knives now have an option of a USB flash drive folded into them. You can play your old vinyl LPs on a USB-powered turntable or slip on a pair of computer-heated slippers.

I not only look forward to the upcoming USB technology, but I’d like to see what they think of putting it in next.

Keep this information in mind while shopping this week. Have a happy computing season and to all a good byte.

Arthur Glazer is a freelance writer and computer technician in Gainesville. His column appears biweekly. Arthur welcomes your computer questions and ideas for future columns.

Computer Trash

Computer Care: Take out the trash on your computer

By Arthur Glazer
arthur@glazerthepctech.com

POSTED Dec. 5, 2009 1:30 a.m.

Everyone uses their computers with little regard as to maintenance. I’m not talking about running virus checkers or scanning for malware. That was another column and we’ve already covered it. What I’m referring to is the regular task of taking out the trash.

It involves more than just right-clicking on the recycle bin. There are hosts of other places where garbage accumulates in the computer. Utilities exist to assist in this task that you may or may not have, but it can be done manually as well.

Junks files to consider deleting on a regular basis include temporary Internet files, temporary system files, the history cache from your browsers, old e-mails and their attachments, downloaded programs, music, photos and videos.

Now I’m not calling your music or video collection junk, but once you have them, it’s best to move them off of your hard drive to a safer location. It will keep your drive clean and protect your files should the computer crash.

Copy your collection of files you don’t want to throw out to an external hard drive, flash drive or burn them to CDs or DVDs as size warrants.

The more clutter you have on your system, the slower it can be. It decreases overall performance and slows down boot time.

Personally, I am a sucker for downloading free programs. I like to try new things out and among other sites, subscribe to downloadoftheday.com. It’s a great site, and every once in a while, I find a program that I can use and need to keep. It’s the others I need to be careful with. Programs can accumulate and before you know it, the desktop is full of icons and suddenly it takes five minutes to boot again.

So I’ve learned (the hard way) it’s best to immediately delete what I download and find I won’t be using. I tend to forget about them otherwise. It’s easy to tell yourself you’ll delete them later or that you might use them one day. You won’t.

A good place to look for unused programs and their installers are on the desktop, in the Download folder and in Program Files, under the Windows or Users folder, depending on which version of Windows you have.

Remember to delete both the installer package you’ve downloaded as well as uninstalling the program itself.

Think of programs you may have downloaded like Adobe Reader, Firefox, an Internet Explorer upgrade or a Windows update. Each leaves an installer icon behind after its installation. Even if you keep the program, you don’t need that installer.

If you do want to get rid of the program, use the uninstaller that comes with windows or a third-party application that uninstalls programs. You should also check the program in doubt. Occasionally they uninstall themselves. Look in the Start menu for that option. Deleting the desktop icon only does just that.

A good, free tool is Decrapifier that you can find on the Internet. It will help you delete a plethora of unwanted applications from your system.

After you’ve deleted some, it’s a good idea to run a registry tool to tidy up any remnants left behind from the programs you just got rid of. Those tidbits of data can contribute to affecting the performance of your computer.

E-mails tend accumulate on everyone’s system. It’s not just the letters themselves, but as I mentioned earlier, the attachments that come with them. The video that you downloaded and thought was initially so amusing will most likely never be watched again. Get rid of it.

The photos your mom sent you of the dog are great, but don’t need to reside on the hard drive. Move them to another permanent location.

Your e-mail client (Outlook, Outlook Express, Mail) will archive your old e-mails for you. Even if you use Web mail (AOL, Yahoo, Gmail) there should also be a choice to be able to archive your old incoming.

Your browser has a setting to automatically dump its cache when you close it. It’s a setting worth changing.

I know I’ve mentioned this before, but it’s worth saying again: There are almost always programs in your start-up group that don’t need to be there. By getting rid of them, you won’t necessarily cut down on system clutter, but your computer will start faster.

From the start button, click Run, type msconfig and go to the startup tab. All of those items with check boxes start when Windows does. Uncheck what doesn’t need to start each time the computer boots up.

These programs are running in the background all of the time. So it’s not just a slower boot time, but a degraded overall system performance allowing all of those items to run.

After you uncheck the one you don’t want (keep the antivirus and anti-malware ones), click Apply, then OK and reboot. When it reboots you’ll see a message advising you a change was made, Just click OK and continue.

So if you remember to empty the trash at regular intervals and run a few utilities or do a little extra work, your system will thank you for it. It will be healthier and will run faster.

Arthur Glazer is a freelance writer and computer technician in Gainesville. His column appears biweekly.

Computing and the Internet

Computer Care: Even with its ails, Internet has changed our lives forever

By Arthur Glazer
arthur@glazerthepctech.com

UPDATED Nov. 21, 2009 12:18 a.m.

Some say the Internet is our downfall. Others insist it is the greatest thing since sliced bread. Although I’m not a huge Facebook fan, haven’t really used eBay in years and don’t download music, I think the Internet has changed the way we communicate and do business. I’m an e-advocate for certain.

Sure, it has its evils. It is a community and just like any town, it has its seedy parts. There are those waiting to steal our data and identities. There are pedophiles stalking its dark streets and the Internet makes it easy for them. But also thanks to the Internet, we can find out which, if any of them live in our neighborhood.

Some computer/Internet users sit in front of their monitors for hours on end, never seeing the light of day. This, of course is the extreme. You’ve got to know when to shut down and walk the dog.

I’ve made a living from the Internet for many years now. Many of you read this online. I fix your computers that allow you to access the Internet. I can also remotely repair your computer via the Internet without leaving my house.

I have traversed the Information Super Highway since it was a dirt road. It’s been good to me. I buy things online, from clothes to prescriptions. I do banking, pay my bills and have video chats online with my daughter who lives two states away. I even met my wife and found my last dog online.

Before I had a GPS, I printed maps from the Web. I’ve planned vacations, made hotel reservations, bought airfare and rented cars from my computer. I’ve visited virtual places that I couldn’t drive or fly to. Some cities have webcams in real time. You can see the Eiffel Tower from your laptop as it is right now.

Some of us will remember when we had to rely on multivolume encyclopedias with annual updates to do any kind of research at all. Now we can find virtually anything online and it is updated daily in most cases.

Classified ads, too, have evolved. Not only are there auction sites like eBay, but we have sites like Criagslist, that make finding things to buy (or free) easier than before. There are job sites like Monster and Career Builder for those in need of employment.

Whether looking for a job, across town or across country; or seeking a part for your ’70 Camaro, what used to take hours or days now takes seconds or minutes.

I often read the news online, look up phone numbers, facts, words, the weather and even do research for this column when needs be. I use the Internet for research, from recipes to finding computer parts or for keeping up with the latest technology.

To aid us with these searches, we have engines like Google, Bing and Yahoo. Even a novice can find what they need in minutes with their help.

And there is fun to be had as well. I’ve reconnected with friends I hadn’t seen in 30 years in the little time I’ve spent on Facebook.

Gamers play each other online, often across town or even the country.

We can also watch TV online now thanks to sites like Hulu and Fancast. We can also download music, books, magazines and newspapers to listen or read on our computers or portable devices.

The Internet has manifested itself in mobility products as laptops, netbooks, cell phones and portable computing devices like the Blackberry and Iphone.

E-mail is probably the single most used part of the Internet. When was the last time any of you actually penned a letter to anyone? Why bother; we have e-mail. We can attach photos, videos and music and audio to our correspondences. It’s easy, fun and it is quicker than snail mail.

Thanks to e-mail, I have stayed in contact with friends and relatives I might never have written to otherwise. Call it impersonal if you must, but it keeps us connected.

Yes, I get viruses, adware, spam and letters from the Nigerian Treasury Minister as we all do. But I think the good far outweighs the bad.

Although admittedly, I would rather hold a magazine, book or newspaper in my hands, I still read my fair share online.

The computer and the Internet are a couple of incredible tools that have changed our ways of life, like it or not. They have opened doors that were not visible or even there a mere 20 years ago. They have broadened our horizons, opened our eyes and enriched our lives.

Things will never go back the way they were. The Internet will continue to grow and emerge. I wouldn’t want go back to how it was before we had cell phones and I certainly wouldn’t want to do without my computer and the Internet.

Arthur Glazer is a freelance writer and computer technician in Gainesville. His column appears biweekly. Arthur welcomes your computer questions and ideas for future columns.

64-bit Computing v 32-bit

Computer Care: PCs speeding up, bit by bit

By Arthur Glazer
arthur@glazerthepctech.com

POSTED Nov. 6, 2009 10:55 p.m.

Here we are, leaving the era of 32-bit computing and entering that of 64-bit. It is more powerful, uses system resources more efficiently and doesn’t cost much more. One drawback is that hardly anyone knows what it is.

Although 64-bit technology has been around for years, only Linux users or those running servers really use it. Even today, there are not that many applications written to take advantage of all that 64-bit computing has to offer.

Enter Vista and now Windows 7. The operating systems are shipped with two discs, one 32-bit and one 64. Until recently mostly everyone, myself included, used the 32-bit option. That’s what our computers were. We had a 32-bit operating system with 32-bit processors, running 32-bit apps.

Now it’s all about to change. Not only has the core doubled, but the processing power as well. With a true 64-bit system you should be able to process things twice as fast as before.

So which do you have? If you go to the My Computer icon and right-click on it, then go down to Properties, you’ll see somewhere in all that technical jargon where it says which of the two systems you are running.

OK, but what does it all mean? A bit is a binary digit of either 0 or 1, which is the smallest unit of data in a computer. There are eight bits to a byte and in most systems, four bytes, or octets, that form a 32-bit word which is the instructions in a computation. Until now that is, when 64-bit computing enters the picture.

Most computers process data in bunches of 32 bits and could handle only four gigabytes of system memory, or RAM. Not only can they now handle 64 bits of data at a time, but these computers can handle – ready for this – 192 GB under Windows 7, theoretically much more. That’s 48 times what we are currently used to. Remember when we thought 256 megabytes of RAM was considered a lot? It was only a few short years ago.

But there really is no need to jump on this consumer treadmill. If you’ve got something that works, stick with it. The chances of most of us needing that kind of processing is slim, unless you do video editing, work extensively with Photoshop, use Computer Aided Design software, or you absolutely must have the fastest computer on the block. Then in those cases, 64-bit is for you.

To take full advantage of this technology, you will need a 64-bit processor running a 64-bit operating system with matching drivers and 64-bit apps to go with them, the last of which is difficult to come by. You can though, run things backward compatible. A 32-bit application (most of them) can run in a faster environment, but not vice versa. You can’t run a 64-bit program in a 32-bit environment.

There are differences here between Windows and a Mac. The latter 64-bit is actually a hybrid, having both 32 and 64-bit components to it. For that reason, it will run any type of program. Windows 64-bit is only that and is the reason it will occasionally have problems running 32-bit apps.

If you are a home user with a computer that has 4 GB of RAM under a 32-bit architecture, there is really no need to upgrade your hardware.

If you have a 64-bit system, 4 GB of RAM will prove inadequate, as it needs more memory to process. Not only will it take more RAM, it will demand it. The biggest drawback is that there are few 64-bit applications written.

I don’t think the 32-bit system will be taken off the market just yet. The new stuff is there if you want it, but until there are lots of apps to run under it, 32-bit computing probably won’t be going away anytime soon.

Even if you get a new 64-bit computer, you can install the 32-bit version of Windows 7 if you like, with most of your old software. There is a caveat. Your antivirus and drivers will be ineffective and you may not be able to find what you need. Many 64-bit drivers are as hard to come by as the programs. It would be like driving a Ferrari with regular gas and bad spark plugs. It will run, but not well. It defeats the point of upgrading.

One thing I would do though is upgrade your memory. I have seen more systems that don’t even have a gig of RAM installed. It’s cheap, it’s easy and it will make an incredible improvement on how your computer operates.

Get a gigabyte or two if you are running a 32-bit system. With a 64-bit system, get as much as you can afford if you think your programs warrant it.

Until 64-bit computers become mainstream, developers won’t be writing many programs for them. Unless you really need it, I’d be content with a fast 4 gig, 32-bit system.

Arthur Glazer is a freelance writer and computer technician in Gainesville. His column appears biweekly.

Reinstalling your Operating System

Computer Care: Best to reinstall your OS when problems mount

By Arthur Glazer
arthur@glazerthepctech.com

POSTED Oct. 25, 2009 12:08 a.m.

On occasion, I find myself attempting a tuneup on a computer that is beyond tuning. If your registry is corrupt, you have unnecessary programs run at start-up and check disk initiates every time you boot up, you have a problem.

If there are too many pop-ups to navigate the desktop — and even when you can, nothing happens when you click an icon — then a tuneup is not the answer. Sure, it could probably be fixed, but it would take longer than another option and you might miss something anyway.

When there are that many problems in a system and it is that unstable, it would take less time to reformat your hard drive and reinstall Windows than it would to attempt a repair. It also makes better sense. With the latter, you would not even be certain you fixed everything.

With a reinstall, you would not fix what ails the system, you would be erasing it. It will get rid of any malware and possible viruses, toss the trojans, the temps, clean the cache and give you a fresh version of the registry.

It may seem a bit intimidating to take on such a task, but it is really the more sensible choice. It is even more so now, with the release of Windows 7. It is a good time to upgrade from XP or Vista, a must if you still have the Millennium Edition.

The upgrade from Vista to Win 7 won’t hurt at all. You’ll even get to carry over your settings. With XP though, you’ll need to wipe everything. If you’re just replacing XP with itself, depending upon your choices, your data may also be saved. As much as I liked working with XP, this new operating system is a pleasure and I don’t have the regrets I had with Vista.

You will hear from the naysayers that Windows 7 is nothing but Vista with a fresh coat of paint. I say it is more. They gave it a better engine with more horsepower. It now runs like a race car instead of a jalopy.

Should you decide to go with a reinstallation, you first need to make sure to save what you don’t want to lose. I’ve had clients ask me where their address book was or that their Favorites or Bookmarks were gone after I wiped their hard drive. Sure they were. If you don’t save it, it won’t be there.

All it takes is an external hard drive or a couple of DVDs, depending on how much data you want to back up. You might just copy the entire My Docs folder. Alternatively, look for My Pictures, My Videos or My Music. Give the desktop a once over just in case there is a stray file or two out there.

You could use a wild-card search to be sure. For example, in the search box, type *.*jpg if you want to see all the jpegs in the system. Use *.*doc to find Word documents.

If you have a dedicated backup utility, now is the time to use it. Vista has a program to help you with the task. Pick and choose carefully what you decide to keep.

Tools like Norton Ghost or Acronis True Image will create an image or a snapshot of your hard drive, operating system and all.

But this, too, warrants caution. If you are reformatting because of problems with your system, you will be transferring the problems with an image, defeating the purpose of the reinstallation. You’d be better off just copying what you need manually, unless you created an image back before you had issues.

If you plan to upgrade to Win 7, then the image won’t do you any good. Just back up your files.

If you want a clean fix with the same operating system, it usually works one of two ways. PC manufacturers either ship a system restoration disk with the computer or include a rescue partition on the hard drive. If you didn’t get a disk, look for a D drive under My Computer. It should say either Recovery or Rescue.

Before you initiate a reformat, make sure you have something to put back on the hard drive in the form of an operating system; otherwise, you’re just creating a doorstop.

Start to finish should take two to three hours, again depending on how much you have to save.

It is important to note that you will have to reinstall any programs you had. You can’t copy a program.

Once you get going, Windows does most of the work. You’ll get the occasional question about time zone, computer and network name, but for the most part it is on auto pilot.

You might check out a web site or two to gain some confidence before you begin. Just Google, “Windows reinstallation” and choose.

There is no down side to this. Your system will be cleaner and faster than it has been in a long time. You can live with a corrupt computer, replace it or just reinstall Windows. Have a plan, back up what needs backing, take a deep breath and get to work.

Arthur Glazer is a freelance writer and computer technician in Gainesville.
His column appears biweekly. Arthur welcomes your computer questions and ideas for future columns.

Windows 7 is Coming

Computer Care: Windows 7 is a big step up from Vista

By Arthur Glazer
arthur@glazerthepctech.com

POSTED Oct. 9, 2009 9:19 p.m.

Windows 7 will be out in a couple of weeks and unlike its predecessor, it is something to look forward to.

Although its release isn’t officially until Oct. 22, I have a prerelease version installed on my computer and I like it. I took advantage of Microsoft’s offer back in June to try it free for a year. It’s installed on my laptop alongside Vista; I can’t remember the last time I booted into Vista.

It’s not a totally new interface like the difference between Win 98 and XP, but it beats Vista by leaps and bounds.

Win 7 seems to have added what XP left out and repaired what Vista messed up. Some things are new, others polished. Gone are the constant nags of permission to access something on your own computer. They called it security; I called it a nuisance.

Vista initially had issues with many peripherals that XP handled with ease. Win 7 is ready. Vista couldn’t run on the new tiny netbooks where XP could. So could Win 7.

I think Vista must have been a huge a huge disappointment, if not an embarrassment to Microsoft. It ended up being nothing like its older brother, XP. Whether it was released prematurely or what, we’ll never know. It was kind of like Win ME, the Millennium Edition. The turn of the century is here and we’d better have something to sell, ready or not. I used mine as a coaster on my desk.

A nice addition to Win 7 is not so many additions. Instead of cramming a bunch of add-on programs and utilities to the operating system, some that may never be used, Microsoft decided this time around to offer them as optional, free downloads on its Web site. Many add-ons are in Windows Live Essentials. That’s where you’ll find Window’s Mail and Messenger now as well as the new Writer and some others. Go to http://down load.live.com to see what’s there.

I added Photo Gallery to my installation. Aside from being a nice photo viewer and sufficient editor, it has a panoramic feature. If you’re on the beach or mountain top and want to remember the expansive panoramic view, now you can, and Photo Gallery does it effortlessly.

You can also make slideshows or movies in Photo Gallery, and when done, you can upload your finished products directly to You Tube, Flickr or Facebook for publication. A new addition to image-viewing is the slider in each folder that lets you adjust the size of the thumbnails.

The taskbar is perhaps the most noticeable change to the operating system’s interface. The start button is still there; it just doesn’t tell you what it is. Instead of pinning programs to the start menu or the Quicklaunch bar, you can now pin them to the taskbar.

All you do is hover the mouse over a taskbar item and it reveals a readable thumbnail. Then you click on either the item or the thumbnail to open it. The thumbnail offers a list of what each app recently had open. Word for example, will show a list of documents, and Firefox, a list of sites.

If you have multiple windows opened and want to view them in equal sizes, simply right-click on the taskbar. You will have a choice to cascade them, view them side by side or stacked. Personally, I like the side-by option. It’s like having my research book adjacent to the paper I’m writing. I can Google something and keep writing.

If you double-click anywhere on a window’s title bar, it will show in full screen. Alternatively, you can just drag it to the top of the screen and goes to full size automatically, with the new snap feature.

I have deleted the recycle bin more than once instead of emptying it. That option to delete is thankfully no longer there.

Having never been a fan of Internet Explorer, the new version has not changed that. My advice is to go to mozilla.com and download the latest version of Firefox. It is far more versatile and customizable than IE ever was.

What is versatile in the new OS is the redesigned Media Center that handles not just photos and music, but videos and TV. It asks what you want to configure and takes it from there.

Windows 7 installed on my laptop in an hour and booted in less than a minute. I found a huge collection of themes to download from Microsoft as well as add-ons as mentioned. It goes to sleep in seconds and wakes up almost as fast.

I found this OS more helpful than its predecessors. It connects to wireless much easier, finding local connections quickly.

Whenever you run into a problem, a troubleshooter is there in the form of a wizard to assist you. It asks just enough proper questions to help get you going again.

Libraries are something new. They are like what My Pictures was to My Documents in XP — on steroids. They are lists accessible across the OS. Using tags or keywords with libraries, files are easier to index and find from anywhere.

If you bought a new computer recently, chances are it came with a coupon or a link to get a free upgrade to Windows 7. I’d say go for it.

Even if you don’t have a coupon, the pricing is affordable. According to Microsoft’s Web site, the upgrade version for the Home Premium edition is $119.99, and $219.99 for the Ultimate Upgrade.

It may be just the operating system you’ve been looking for. Worst case scenario: it’s better than the one you’ve been itching to get away from.

Arthur Glazer is a freelance writer and computer technician in Gainesville. His column appears biweekly. Arthur welcomes your computer questions and ideas for future columns.

Pitfalls of Self-Repair

Computer Care: Beware the pitfalls of home PC repair

By Arthur Glazer
arthur@glazerthepctech.com

POSTED Sept. 26, 2009 6:18 p.m.

There are circumstances when a computer can be fixed at home without the aid of a technician. There are also times when self-repair should never be attempted. Consider some of these situations next time something goes wrong with your PC.

Short of replacing the motherboard or processor, you might contemplate fixing your own computer if it seems routine enough. It all depends on how adept you are with your hands, working in tight places and your knowledge of computers and electricity.

No matter what you attempt, the first thing to do is unplug it. Don’t be a tough guy. It’s crowded in there and you never know what you might inadvertently touch.

Then make sure you are grounded. Electrostatic discharge can toast a system in seconds without you even knowing it. The easiest way to ground yourself is to touch a metal part of the box before you unplug it. Don’t work on a carpet or in stocking feet.

Even the simplest of tasks can prove disastrous if you’re not careful. Cleaning accumulated dust from a system shouldn’t prove difficult. It collects around the fans, in the power supply and on the motherboard. Too much dust eventually will force a computer to shut down.

Using a can of compressed air will do the job, but realize it is compressed gas, not air. It is dangerous to breathe, so take it outside. You’ll also make more of a mess than you think, another reason not to do it indoors.

If you hold the can any way other than upright, some propellant will escape. Not only is it cold, it is liquid and could short out the computer if you are not careful.

I caution you against the use of a vacuum to clean dust from your PC. It’s better to blow the dust off than suck it in. You never know — the vacuum may eat a small, loose part that you need.

On laptops, the keys pop off easily. If you vacuum bagel crumbs from a Satellite or Inspiron keyboard, you may lose a letter or two.

Replacing RAM, a hard drive or interface cards should be routine enough. But if you drop a screw, knock a cable or fail to seat a card properly, your system will not boot up. I always count screws as I take them out so I know how many should go back in when I’m done.

And speaking of cables, it’s a good idea to label them as you unplug them from the rear of the box. Both the mouse and keyboard use PS2 connectors, unless they are USB (then it doesn’t matter). The Ethernet cable looks like a phone cord but won’t fit in the wrong port. It’s also easy to confuse the speaker port with the mic port; both use pin plugs.

If you try to reinstall the video cable backward, you will most likely bend some pins, rendering the cable and in some cases, the monitor useless. On CRT monitors, the cable does not unscrew from it. Most LCDs, though, have connectors at both ends.

Be careful cleaning the monitor surface. It’s always better to spray your paper towel or cloth rather than the device itself. If you spray the screen, the liquid may puddle and drip inside, possibly shorting it out. Also, the less harsh the solvent you use, the better. Some may fog the surface of the monitor.

RAM goes in easy enough, but again, if you try to install it backward, you will not only damage the memory module, but its receptacle on the motherboard. Laptop memory has a spring latch holding it in place and usually goes in on an angle. It’s just something else to pay attention to.

While you’re inside your desktop, it’s not a bad idea to replace the battery — yes the battery. It controls your clock, among other things. They should last four to five years, and cost only about $3. So as long as you have the cover off, you might as well change it. They are easy to spot: flat, shiny and about the size of a quarter. Be careful popping it out. I suggest using pencil to release the spring. Pay attention to the polarity. The positive side (with the plus sign) should face up.

As far as printers go, if you need more than a cartridge alignment, I’d toss it. You pay for the ink now, not the unit itself.
Before you close up the box, take a last look around. Is everything connected? Check for any loose screws. Turn it upside down if you have to. All it takes is one to short it out.

Plug in the cables, saving the power cord for last and see if it still works.

There are lots of user-serviceable parts in a computer. But if you’re not careful, you’ll find yourself replacing more than a RAM module. Before you take on even routine maintenance, give it careful consideration.

Arthur Glazer is a freelance writer and computer technician in Gainesville. His column appears biweekly.

Dealing with Returns

Computer Care: The art of returning faulty items

By Arthur Glazer
arthur@glazerthepctech.com

POSTED Sept. 12, 2009 12:57 a.m.

When I was a boy, my dad told me to always ask for the head barber. Tony owned the local clip joint where I grew up. He gave me a decent haircut, shaved my young sideburns with hot lather and tossed a steamy towel on me before slapping a cheap, aromatic after-shave on my face.

He made feel like a man. The secret, I discovered at an early age, was dealing with the one in charge.

It took some time for me to realize though, that my dad’s instructions applied not just for barbers, but for everywhere. His lesson has served me well. Wherever I go, especially when I have a problem, I ask for the head barber.

Recently, I went to a large superstore with a client to return a computer that was shipped to him DOA. We were politely shrugged off by all at the store. "Son," I heard my dad’s voice say. "Ask for the head barber."

So I asked to speak to the store manager. I’ll tell you in a moment what happened, but first here’s some tips to consider when dealing with a situation such as this:

• Whether in person or on the phone, get names of those you encounter. Know who you’re speaking with and take notes.

• Keep your cool. Don’t raise your voice and don’t make threats. Nobody responds well to threats.

• Be familiar with the warranty. Know when the store stops covering the product and the manufacturer takes over.

• Save all boxes, manuals, cables, etc., as they will check for them upon a return.

• Be flexible. The agent may be willing to trade your broken product for a similar, if not identical one. Be willing to consider a compromise. Be ready to accept it.

• Stand your ground, if you are certain you are in the right. Don’t be brushed off by, "Sorry, but there’s nothing I can do to help you." Find someone who can.

• Occasionally the manager will not be available. If you get nowhere with his assistant, go home and call the store, the head office or write them a strong, well thought-out letter. A snail-mail letter, especially registered, will have more effect than an e-mail. But you might start with that.

Understand sometimes you take a chance when you buy certain sale items. In those cases, should something go wrong, you may have to eat it. Open-box items, clearance sales, returns and many refurbished products are sold "as is," meaning you get a deep discount but take a chance on product quality. Most often there is nothing wrong with these items, but you never know. It’s a gamble and occasionally you lose.

But when you spend hundreds of dollars on a new item and something goes wrong, you then have a legitimate gripe. Most stores are reluctant to offer you a refund, but will exchange a broken item for one that works.

Be reasonable in your demands though. Don’t expect a trade because you don’t like the color of a product or because it has a small scratch on it.

Now back to my case. The computer arrived late and unable to boot up. This was after six days when my client paid for "expedited" shipping. I explained this to the sales guy, his supervisor and eventually to the store manager and that I was a PC tech who knew a dead computer when I saw one. What made me dig in even more was when he informed me there was nothing he could do, due to the fact that the computer was purchased on the Web site, not at the store.

I advised him that consumers don’t care about such details. The store, the Web site — it’s all the same to us, and that it should be for them as well.

I told him I was guilty of opening the case to see if there was a hard drive installed. He then matter-of-factly informed me that could void the warranty. I told him I broke no foil seal in the process. He told me the screws had special paint to tell if they had been tampered with. I told him I did in fact tamper with them to open the case. Wow!

So we went back and forth for some time. I think he finally realized I wasn’t going anywhere and that we had a legitimate gripe. He said he had to call someone in authority. I told him I could wait. He eventually gave in and allowed us to swap out the bad unit for a good one.

The bottom line here is that you should not be intimidated by a sales clerk. If you spent a lot of money in a store, you deserve a lot of customer service (not an oxymoron). Don’t accept that there is nothing they can do. Sure there is.

If you have trouble dealing with the person at hand, heed my dad’s words: Ask for the head barber.

Arthur Glazer is a freelance writer and computer technician in Gainesville. His column appears biweekly.

The Cost of Free Programs

Computer Care: Beware the costs of free programs

By Arthur Glazer
arthur@glazerthepctech.com

POSTED Aug. 14, 2009 11:30 p.m.

Everyone likes a bargain. There are two-for-one beers, free samples, free parking, free admission, free Wi-Fi and free downloads.

All are great except for the last one. Free downloads are not always free. Well, they may be free, but there is still a price to pay.

Sure, some free downloads make you eventually pay for the program, but that’s not where I’m going. I’ve mentioned this in the past, but it’s worth saying again: A free program is not only free of cost, but free of support as well.

You are on your own when you download a free program from the Internet. Don’t expect help from the site you got it from or from those who wrote the program. Somewhere in all of those OK and Next buttons you initially click is an agreement stating that fact.

You use the program at your own risk. Should something go wrong, it’s on you. You need to know what you are using, how to use it and what it does. This especially holds true with registry tools. In just a couple of wrong mouse clicks, you could turn an $800 laptop into an expensive doorstop.

The first thing to do is make sure your system is healthy. If it’s already on the edge and you push it, there will be consequences.

When you install something on your system — anything — make sure nothing else is running. That means not just closing open windows, but also checking the taskbar. Look over by the clock and close down any programs you don’t need. Everyone has some utilities running there. Right-click and exit them. This is especially true of anti-virus programs.

When you later reboot, they will come back, so don’t worry about restarting them. The less you have running during an installation, the less of a chance you have of something going wrong.

It’s always good practice to create a system restore point prior to installing anything, should something go awry. It will give you a point to return to in case of trouble, kind of like Mr. Peabody’s Way-Back Machine. Some applications will create one for you automatically or at least ask you if you want to create one, but many will not.

From your Start menu in XP, click Accessories, then System Tools and System Restore. Choose to create a restore point. If you prefer to have it always on your start menu, right-click on it and choose: pin to start menu. It will then reside above the line on the left side of the menu.

In Vista, look in Control Panel under Classic view for Backup and Restore Center. In the left column, click on: Create a System Restore Point.

Your anti-virus and anti-malware utilities should have been running when you downloaded those programs you’re about to install. That is when anything malicious would get caught. There are a ton of Trojan horses circulating the Internet and if you are not careful and diligent, one or more will find its way to your computer.

Use reputable Web sites for downloads. Don’t click on every link that flashes "Free" on your screen. If you use online forums to read about others’ experiences with programs, you’ll learn plenty. Sites like download.com allow you to read not only the editor’s comments about programs, but you can see other user’s comments as well. This may help you decide if a program is worthwhile.

Many programs are written by the small guy, as opposed to corporate giants. Often the application written by the guy living in his parents’ basement is the best out there. Should you decide to pay the affordable $24 fee he’ll ask for, you’ll then get all the support you need.

I once had a guy e-mail me from Finland within hours of my query for help. It was well worth the small price I paid for his program.

Keep in mind, I would never recommend a program to you without having first tried it myself. I’ve had readers write, telling me that a program I wrote about was garbage and how could I?

Not every utility will function perfectly on every system. It just doesn’t work that way. Unfortunately we don’t live in a perfect world.

In some cases, as I mentioned, if the computer is already on the edge, all it may take is hitting the Enter key for an error to occur. In others, it may take running a program. But it’s not my fault, whatever the case. So please, don’t kill the messenger.

If you install a lot of programs, remember to delete them if you don’t use them. Why clutter up your hard drive? Then, since you are deleting lots of programs, it’s a good idea to run your defrag utility every now and then. There is always some maintenance involved with computing.

Just keep in mind there are many enticing, free programs on the Internet. Use them wisely and cautiously.

Arthur Glazer is a freelance writer and computer technician in Gainesville. His column appears biweekly. Arthur welcomes your computer questions and ideas for future columns.

Junk Files on your Computer

Computer Care: Clean junk off hard drive for better performance

By Arthur Glazer
arthur@glazerthepctech.com

UPDATED July 31, 2009 11:47 p.m.

Computers are magnets for junk files. There are those that Windows needs temporarily and neglects to discard; there are browser histories; installation files and just plain old junk.

Everyone has old e-mails and programs that we once couldn’t do without, but haven’t used in months. Then there are the space hogs, the music and video files. Keeping your system junk-free will help keep it fast.

Just because you put your unused items in the recycle bin doesn’t get them off of your system. You just put the trash in the can, but haven’t taken it out to the curb yet. You need to empty it. Although keeping files in the bin until you know they are truly not needed is a good precaution, you have the option of deleting your trash immediately. Right-click on the Recycle Bin and choose Properties and check the option to empty it.

Even if you delete of all of the above, a good cleaning utility will still find megabytes of garbage on your computer.

It’s not just a matter of keeping it fast; it is also a matter of security. What remains behind after you are done with it, prying eyes may find. There are browser searches, cookies, run commands, the prefetch folder and forms you filled out, some with sensitive information.

You can clean all that manually by clicking this and that, but you need to know where to look, and junk data is hidden in many places. You’d be better off getting a utility to do it for you.

There are dedicated programs to scrub your system, as well as some suites. As always, many can be downloaded for free.

I like CCleaner, a freebie that attaches to your Recycle Bin. You right-click on it to run and in one fell swoop, it cleans a good bit of your junk files then empties the trash can. It can be customized to keep the cookies you want. Get it from www.ccleaner.com/download.

My new favorite tool is a free multi-purpose program from Comodo. System Cleaner is a thorough, easy-to-use utility, available at http://system-cleaner.comodo.com/download.html.

It has a Power Clean option that doesn’t miss a thing. It also checks your registry. Another one is Advanced System Care, that does the same thing as CCleaner and also checks the registry. Download it at www.iobit.com/advancedwindowscareper.html.

There are lots of others. Just Google, "cleaning utility." Remember, just because it is a free download, doesn’t necessarily mean it is a free program. It may be, but read the fine print.

If you are really cleaning your hard drive to make more room, there are other things to consider. Be careful what you delete; some items you may want to keep or at least burn to CD or DVD or move to an external hard drive. Some of those videos, music files, photos or programs you purchased may be irreplaceable.

If you’re a photographer or an audiophile, you could free up many gigabytes by transferring those files to another medium. Just having one copy of something you cherish is never a good idea anyway. You wouldn’t want to lose that shot of your son hitting a homer or your daughter’s solo on stage would you?

Hard drives fail. It is a fact of computing. Dupe those images and tunes to a second disc while you’re at it.

Aside from what’s mentioned above, another big space hog is fonts. Some systems have dozens of fonts that are never used. Removing some will also speed up your boot time.

If you wonder how full your computer is, hover your mouse over your "C" drive icon and it will tell you. If you want to see a pie chart, right-click on it and go to Properties.

When you’re done cleaning your system of unnecessary files, run whatever defragmenting tool you have. It will help keep your computer running fast. It likes contiguous free disc space and when you delete as much as we’ve just talked about, there will be lots of gaps in the file structure.

If you don’t have a third-party defrag application installed, go to Programs, Accessories, System Tools then to Defragmenter to use the Windows tool.

If you really want to get serious about it and you’ve had your computer for 4-5 years or more, reformat your hard drive and start all over. Really. I do it annually, at least. There’s nothing like a clean installation of Windows.

To give you an idea of how much "stuff" is on your hard drive: XP uses about 6 to 7 gb of space and Vista maybe 10 gb. Most of the rest that shows on that pie chart is stuff you could either delete or copy to another disc. Doing it that way, you wouldn’t have to delete a thing. After you copy what you need (and there are back-up programs too), reformatting will erase everything for you.

So whether you reinstall Windows or just do some heavy housekeeping, your computer will run faster.

Arthur Glazer is a freelance writer and computer technician in Gainesville. His column appears biweekly. Arthur welcomes your computer questions and ideas for future columns.

Network Your Home Computers

Computer Care: Networking your PCs is a snap

By Arthur Glazer
arthur@glazerthepctech.com

UPDATED July 18, 2009 12:33 a.m.

Networking your computers can be an asset to your home environment if you have more than one computer. By combining your desktop with your spouse’s laptop and your child’s PC via a home network, there are obvious benefits. All could share one Internet connection, one printer or all have access to many. You would also be able to share files.

Adding wireless to the network could enhance it even more. You would then have the ability to check your e-mail or update your Facebook account from the kitchen table or backyard lounger using a laptop.

Networking has gotten easier since Windows XP and even more so with Vista. With Win 7 coming this fall, it will be even easier still. Not to oversimplify matters, but Windows practically networks for you. The operating systems each have wizards to follow.

Providing you have the proper equipment, you could be up and running in no time. Really.

Assuming you have a broadband connection, DSL or cable, you already have a modem. Some ISPs provide a combination router/modem. If yours is just a modem, then you’ll need a router. This is where you’ll have to decide if you want wired or wireless. Routers start at about $40 and can be purchased at online retailers or locally just about anywhere.

You should have all the cables you need. The router or modem usually ships with both a USB and an Ethernet cable, the one that looks like a fat phone wire. Forget about the USB and use the Ethernet instead. Many people get into trouble thinking both cables need to be used; they don’t.

Depending upon which type of connection you have, you’ll see either a phone wire or a coaxial cable coming from the wall. That’s what you’ll want to connect to the back of your modem. If you have a separate router, use an Ethernet cable from the modem to the router. The router usually has four ports together and one by itself. The one alone is the input, the rest are outputs for a wired network.

Don’t stack the devices if you have two. Keep them at least a foot or more apart as they may cause interference. This is also true of wireless phones on the 2.4 GHz frequency. If you have one on your desk, you may want to find another place for it.

Wireless computing has a range of about 300 feet. It can connect through floors, but you may need to adjust the antennas downward. Metals studs and microwaves may also get in the way. You’ll have to experiment with placement to get an optimum signal.

Should you lose your signal, and you will, you’ll need to reset your modem. Whether it be a thunderstorm or an outage for another reason, rather than call your ISP and wait 45 minutes, do this instead: Unplug both router and modem and wait half a minute. Plug in the modem and wait for the lights to stop flashing, about 15-20 seconds. Then plug the router back in and wait for it to settle down. You should then have your connection back.

Setting up the computers: First you need to make sure all computers involved are called something different and are all in the same workgroup. If you use XP, right-click on My Computer and go to Properties. Under the Computer Name tab, give your system a unique name and click Change to rename the workgroup. Click Apply, OK and reboot.

In Vista, right-click on My Computer and click Properties. Then click on Advanced System Settings on the left, then the Computer Name tab as in XP. Give the computer a unique name and click Change to rename the Workgroup. Agree to everything and reboot.

Next, you’ll need to run the Network Setup Wizard. Depending on what you plan to do, from here on there are options, too many to cover in the constraints of this column. You’ll have to make choices and follow the prompts. They are not difficult; they have explanations and troubleshooters.

Look in Control Panel. From either XP or Vista, click the start button and look on the right column for Control Panel. XP will have both Wireless Setup and Network Setup wizards. Vista has a Network and Sharing Center under Network and Internet. There are various subheadings within that group.

Keep a USB flash drive handy. You’ll need it to save and transfer settings from one computer to the next.

In either OS, whatever it is you want to share is easily done with a right-click. If you want to share the Photos folder for example, right-click on it and choose “Share.” A hand will appear beneath the newly shared folder.

There are lots of other things to cover, including security, but as I mentioned, there’s not enough room here for it all. In a nutshell, don’t ignore it. WEP is good; WPA is better. The system will assist you in choosing. An unsecured system invites hackers and leaves you open to threats.

Worst case scenario, you’ll need to call a local technician. I hear there are a few good ones in town.

Arthur Glazer is a freelance writer and computer technician in Gainesville. His column appears biweekly. Arthur welcomes your computer questions and ideas for future columns.

Phishing for data

Computer Care: Don’t take the hook with data phishing games

By Arthur Glazer
arthur@glazerthepctech.com

POSTED July 3, 2009 11:41 p.m.

Phishing is a relatively new term that has roots in its homophone water sport, in that it means one is looking for something that’s not readily available. But as opposed to looking for fish, it is searching online for data: yours.

Those phishing for your information are not phooling around. Unlike its fun counterpart, phishing is not a leisure sport. It’s a full-time business. It employs professional thieves stalking you on the Internet.

The most common phishing trap you could fall for is the e-mail scam. You might get something in your inbox that appears to be from your bank, utility, retailer or credit card company. The ploy is to get you to refresh or confirm your personal information because your account is supposedly being updated or is about to be closed. It preys on your fears and hopes that in your moment of anxiety, you’ll cooperate.

Upon close scrutiny, you can usually tell that these are fraudulent e-mails, but most people are trusting by nature and are tricked into believing they are legitimate. Usually you will not be addressed by your name, but as Client, Patron or Card Holder. The threat may be somewhat vague, yet specific enough to get your attention.

Other e-mails may include a link for you to click on. This will take you to the phisher’s Web site, which may look like those that you do business with, but is not. It will include a blank form with an official-looking header of that company. Any information you type in is then given to the thief, whether it be your account number, password, Social Security number or pin code.

Again, scrutiny will be the tell-all. Look carefully at the web address. It may have your bank’s name in it, but instead of being "www.your-bank.com," it may read something like "www.ag.accounts.your-bank.com."

A good way to tell if a link is legitimate is to hover your mouse over the link. The true destination will appear either in a pop-up or in the browser’s status bar at the bottom of the page.

Alternatively, you may receive an official sounding phone call asking for the same information.

They will be friendly, yet assertive, requesting your personal information. If you didn’t call them, hang up. I guarantee if you ask them for a call-back number, they will hang up on you.

Your bank will tell you that they would never contact you this way. Be aware; be careful; be suspicious. There is a lot at stake: your money or even your identity. If in doubt, call or go to your bank or institution in question.

As always, your best offense is a good defense. Have the proper tools in place and the knowledge of what to do to protect yourself.

Get and use good anti-virus, anti-spam and anti-phishing utilities for your computer and be sure your firewall is in place.

Many companies now have either free downloadable utilities or offer free scans from their Web site. Check out what McAfee has to offer at http://home.mcafee.com/Downloads/FreeScanDownload.aspx?affid=0; McAfee also has a free Site Advisor available that will let you know if the site you are on is legitimate or not.

See what Symantec has at http://security.symantec.com/sscv6/WelcomePage.asp or look at AVG’s LinkScanner at http://linkscanner.avg.com.

Comodo has recently released a new, free utility, Comodo Internet Security, to assist in keeping your system free of malware. It includes a firewall with anti-virus and even comes with a 30 day free trial of LivePCSupport. Download it from their website at http://personalfirewall.comodo.com/download_firewall.html.

Any of these companies also offer full version utilities with more bells and whistles, for a price.

Visit www.staysafeonline.org for some good information including a list of more web sites that will give your system a security scan for free. Here’s a list to help you get started:

Know who you’re dealing with online.

Never click on links in unknown e-mails.

Keep your Web browser and operating system up to date.

Back up important files.

Protect your children online.

Use security software.

Use strong passwords and change them regularly.

Use strong authentication technology.

Don’t use public computers to do your online banking or bill paying.

Learn what to do if something goes wrong.

Other good online resources are www.onguardonline.gov and www.fraud.org.

If you believe you’ve been scammed, file your complaint at www.ftc.gov, and then visit the FTC’s Identity Theft website at www.consumer.gov/idtheft.

Computers are great tools and the Internet is an incredible resource. To think about what the two of them together can accomplish is astounding. But if you’re not careful, you may get caught in someone’s phishing expedition.

Keep your eyes open and be aware of your surroundings as if you were in a bad part of town. These guys don’t phish or cut bait as those in a boat do. They are relentless. Just because the Internet is a virtual place, doesn’t mean you can’t really get ripped off. You can.

It’s virtually the same.

Arthur Glazer is a freelance writer and computer technician in Gainesville. His column appears biweekly. Arthur welcomes your computer questions and ideas for future columns.

To Standby or Hibernate: that is the question

Computer Care: Frequent ‘naps,’ then a long rest, best to power down PC

By Arthur Glazer
arthur@glazerthepctech.com

POSTED June 20, 2009 12:12 a.m.

There is an ongoing debate concerning powering down computers. Should you leave them on 24/7 or turn them off when you’re done with them?

There are benefits to doing both, so I compromise with my computers. I put them to sleep. Since I use my PCs on and off most of the day, I leave them turned on, but put them in a state of hibernation.

Now let’s first discuss the difference between sleep, or standby, and hibernation. They both turn off the monitor and hard drive.

In standby mode, all that you are working on is first saved to RAM or system memory when you turn your computer off. When you wake it up, usually by moving the mouse or pressing the space bar, your system wakes up to what you were previously working on. This is nice, but if you’re using a laptop, it puts a drain on your power supply — namely the battery, if you’re not plugged in.

In standby mode, the computer is in a reduced power state, but remains on.

The difference between that and hibernation is that when the computer hibernates, the data is saved to the hard drive and then the system powers off. When you wake it up, this time via the power button, it, too, returns to where you left off, without any loss of data or power.

With a laptop, you can set it up so all you need to do is close the lid and your system will go in the sleep mode of your choice.

My experience is that with XP, there are some issues with hibernation. I choose standby mode when working with it. Whenever I use hibernate, it would inevitably fail and make me reboot the system, ultimately losing what I was working on.

To disable hibernate in XP, go to Control Panel and click the Power Option icon. From the Hibernate tab there, you can uncheck and thereby disable that function.

Vista works well with either standby or hibernate.

Again, if you’re on a laptop, remember the power drain and keep the sleep to a nap, unless you have it plugged in.

Using XP, all you need to do is right-click on a blank area of your desktop and choose Properties. From there you’ll see a tab called Screen Saver. Within that area is a button that says, Power. Click it and you will be able to customize how and when your computer turns off.

For example, you can set it up so your display goes blank in 10 minutes (of nonuse), your hard drive shuts down in 20 minutes and the system powers down in 30 minutes. Choose whatever works best for you.

With Vista, click the start button and go to Control Panel. Depending upon which view mode you’re in, either click on Power Options, or if you don’t see it, first click on System and Maintenance, then on Power Options.

From there you’ll be able to customize how and when your computer shuts down. Vista is a bit more sophisticated than XP in that it offers power plans to choose from as well as everything XP offers. You can also adjust your display’s brightness setting from there.

Alternatively, right-click your desktop and choose "Personalize" and go to "Screen Saver." At the bottom of that box click on the link to change power settings.

In both operating systems, you can set up different options for when it is plugged in or when on batter power. But Vista takes it a step further. You can choose on a sliding scale whether you want higher performance or longer battery life.

Under Power Options, choose a plan and then click to change plan settings. You could also click the Change Advanced Power Settings option to access the Advanced tab. By clicking on each plus sign you see, you’ll expand that option and have control over everything power related in your computer. It is highly customizable.

Now I have found that not all versions of Vista have exactly the same menu structure. So if you can’t find something, look around; you’re close.

Well, should you leave you computer on all the time? I don’t think it’s a good idea. It puts wear and tear on the moving parts, not to mention the power it uses. Beside, when you power-down a PC and turn it on again, it refreshes the system memory and the computer will run faster.

Also many times when you have a problem, all you need to do is reboot your computer. By turning it off and on again, many small issues are resolved.

I put mine to sleep during the day and shut them down at night. They follow my habits. We take naps during the day and when finished for the night, pull the plug.

Arthur Glazer is a freelance writer and computer technician in Gainesville. His column appears biweekly. Arthur welcomes your computer questions and ideas for future columns.

Video Chat Online

Computer Care: Webcams a great way to stay close

By Arthur Glazer
arthur@glazerthepctech.com

POSTED June 6, 2009 12:41 a.m.

My daughter Molly moved out of the house recently. She not only moved out of the house, but out of the state. So this relates to computers how? I’ll tell you.

Before she left, I set up her laptop with a webcam and a video conferencing program. Now we’re able to video chat with her and send video e-mails. It’s the next best thing to her being in town, and my wife is easier to live with.

This is by no means an expensive or difficult venture. Webcams practically set themselves up and go for $20-$200. There are lots of good ones in the $30-$50 range. You can shop for them locally at most major retailers.

But the best buys, in my opinion, are online. Check out newegg.com, tigerdirect.com, amazon.com, overstock.com or ebay.com.

An advantage to buying online is that you can read comments from those who already purchased the product you’re looking at. If lots of folks say the sound quality is poor, I’ll assume that it is and move on.

Microsoft has more than a few models to choose from, as does Logitech, a big name in webcams. There’s also some from Creative to consider. The software is free and there is a bunch to choose from.

Some of the cameras come with a disc that includes at least one program. I tested Yahoo Messenger, Skype. ooVoo, Microsoft Messenger and SightSpeed. There is also one called Eyeball Chat.

All of these offer free downloadable programs that are easy to use. You register the program, give yourself an identifiable name, plug in the webcam and you’re good to go.

All will allow you to chat online with any service and some will let you create video e-mails as well. You simply send it as an attachment.

If you use Outlook 2003, you can create a video email from within Outlook. The 2007 version, not surprisingly, doesn’t support it.

There are a few things to know about using webcams. Place your cam at eye level about 18-24 inches in front of you. Lots of new laptops and netbooks have them integrated in the bezel around the monitor.

If not an auto-focus model, be sure your image is crisp and clear. Try to position yourself so you are illuminated. If there’s a window or lamp behind you, it will be light and you will be a shadow.

All programs have some adjustments to fine tune your image. (You get to preview your headshot before you transmit it.) Tweak the brightness and contrast if necessary and test the audio.

If you’re trying to hook up a webcam you found lying around your house and you can’t get it to work, consider the operating system. An older cam may only have a device driver for XP; it may not work with Vista. You could always try to download a current driver from the manufacturer’s web site, but you may need to get a new web cam if you have Vista.

It’s also worth mentioning that some, but not all of the webcams come with an integrated microphone. If yours has one, it’s good in that you won’t need an additional piece of hardware.

But realize that a device that small will not generate the best quality audio. Those built-in mics are nothing more than tiny holes on the side of the cam.

There is the option of using a dedicated microphone or even a headset with a boom mic. It’s your choice. All desktops as well as laptops have inputs for headphones and microphones.

The picture quality has a lot to do with the optics of the lens. As with any camera, the more glass, the better the picture. The old adage, "you get what you pay for," applies to both of these instances. But it may work for you. You’re not creating a family archive to be passed down to the generations. It’s a web chat.

A closing caveat: There also are web-based programs. These are the type that you don’t download. You simply go to their Web sites, camera ready, and chat online using their service.

Such sites are chat platforms largely for the singles set. You can join a chat room or create one of your own. They are great for meeting folks online.

But if you’re just looking for a simple 1:1 video chat with your chosen few, choose one of the other programs.

Arthur Glazer is a freelance writer and computer technician in Gainesville. His column appears biweekly. Arthur welcomes your computer questions and ideas for future columns.