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.