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Computer tip of the week.

Even though IE Doesn't exactly have tabbed browsing, it does have a feature that will allow you to easily go back to a former page other than pushing the back button a million times. When there is a page you want to go back to and directly visit, point your cursor to the back button and right click it. There a drop down list of of the recent pages you visited will be displayed and you can click on the one you want to go to. Hope this helps. Otherwise just use Mozilla or Opera... and they're free!

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I NEED YOUR HELP 11/5/04

I am getting tired of this old blog.... yes I know I have not writen in it for over four months but it is time for a change. Something needs to be done to make my site more attractive, interesting, and fun! Any suggestions you may have on the style or design of my site will be greatly appreciated. I will take all suggestions into consideration! Just email me directly at mysticpain@yahoo.com (not a link). Again I want to emphasise that all suggestions will be considered. I am kind of have an idea of what I want to do but input will help make this a better site and hopefully more helpful to people. Thanks!

MOZILLA! 7/19/04

I have decided to completely go Mozilla Firefox from now on for my web browsing. The interface is so wonderfully customizable! It is faster! It is A LOT more secure! In fact The U.S. government's Computer Emergency Readiness Team (US-CERT) is warning Web surfers to stop using Microsoft's Internet Explorer (IE) browser. US-CERT is a non-profit partnership between the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the public and private sectors. It was established in September 2003 to improve computer security preparedness and response to cyber attacks in the United States. So Until Microsoft is able to figure itself out when it comes to security issues, I would definitely recommend that anyone using IE to quit now until the "supposedly" more secure SP2 is made available.

It's Saved!! 5/22/04

Looks like all the hard effort of the fans paid off! Or maybe that had nothing to do with it... but nonetheless, Enterprise has been renewed for a fourth season. The new UPN line-up was announced late in the week. The show does have a new day and a new timeslot. Next season will air on Friday's at 10pm. I for one am extremely excited about this as I am a huge star trek fan and after all without shows like Enterprise, our imagination's would dull and dark just like the black hole SPAM falls into. (after it's filtered and blah... blah....blah).

Save Enterprise!! 4/16/04

It seems as though one of my favorite shows, Star Trek Enterprise is seriously being considered to be on UPN's chopping block for next season!! Don't let this happen!! If you care at all make your voice heard and head over to the link below!!!!!
www.saveenterprise.com

Network + 3/24/04

I will be taking the Comptia Network+ certification exam next week. I am pretty excited about taking my first certification exam and also a bit nervous. Excited because it will be my first certification I will earn. Nervous because if I fail, I just blew $145 and believe me right now money is not something I have in abundance. Most people would take their A+ certification as a sort of prerequisite to the network+ although it's not mandatory. I imagine I will get around to taking the A+ cert sometime here in the near future. Right now where my studies are in school it makes more sense for me to focus on the networking area. I have several study aids for the test including some practice tests and software I found on the internet and a cram book I purchased. I guess I understand the need for earning industry recognized tests to prove your knowledge of the technology and equipment you will be working on. However, it seems the amount of certifications one could get are numerous, and it seems that those companies which offer them have quit a racket going on.

The classics never get old! 3/11/04

Technology in our world is constantly evolving at an incredibly rapid rate. The consensus in the IT industry is that to stay ahead of the curve is to remain competitive in our field. If you misstep or falter the IT bus leaves you behind with the Pentium III's struggling to play catchup. It leaves you stuck, trying to achieve the unachievable... stuck in a horrifying downward spiral... a desolate void... a classic.
A CLASSIC!! Yes indeed. In the haste to become technologies next big thing so many ideas, products, and applications fall to the wayside. Vanishing as quickly as their inception, only hoping to be remembered as a classic! I have compiled a few links to sites that should lead many of you to the terminus of "the glory days". Including a site where you can download an emulator for what is, in my opinion, the grand daddy of classics, the Apple IIe. Remember the classics! If it were not for them, you would not have the dream to aspire.

Apple IIe Emulator (the greatest) War Games (the movie that inspired hackers world wide) Atari 2600 (who didn't have one?)

Classic Computer Museum (for you vintage nuts)

Microsoft vs GM 3/3/04

I usually abhor forwards because they usually contain some lame joke or pathetic chain letter. Today, however, I actually received one which I found quite amusing. I hope you do to.

For all of us who feel only the deepest love and affection for the way computers have enhanced our lives,
read on ...

At a recent computer expo (COMDEX), Bill Gates reportedly compared the computer industry with the auto industry and stated, "If GM had kept up with technology like the computer industry has, we would all be driving $25.00 cars that got 1,000 miles to the gallon."

In response to Bill's comments, General Motors issued a press release stating:

"If GM had developed technology like Microsoft, we would all be driving cars with the following characteristics":

1. For no reason whatsoever, your car would crash twice a day.

2. Every time they repainted the lines in the road, you would have to buy a new car.

3. Occasionally your car would die on the freeway for no reason. You would pull over to the side of the road, close all of the windows, shut off the car, restart it, and reopen the windows before you could continue. For some reason, you would simply accept this as normal.

4. Occasionally, executing a maneuver (such as a left turn) would cause your car to shut down and refuse to restart, in which case you would have to reinstall the engine.

5. Macintosh would make a car that was powered by the sun, was reliable, five times as fast and twice as easy to drive - but would run on only five percent of the roads.

6. The oil, water temperature, and alternator warning lights would all be replaced by a single "This Car Has Performed An Illegal Operation" warning light.

7. The airbag system would ask "Are you sure?" before deploying.

8. Occasionally - for no reason whatsoever - your car would lock you out and refuse to let you in until you simultaneously lifted the door handle, turned the key, and grabbed hold of the radio antenna.

9. Every time a new car was introduced, car buyers would have to learn how to drive all over again because none of the controls would operate in the same manner as the old car.

10. You'd have to press the "Start" button to turn the engine off."
Please share this with your friends who love (but sometimes hate) their computers ....

This and that 2/22/04

Well I finally have Red Hat working on my VMWARE virtual PC. I would definitely recommend this software as it is much faster and uses less memory than Microsoft Virtual PC 2K4. It is so much easier to switch between OS's with the click of a button versus rebooting. I believe it is a great way to learn Linux.

On a different note, I have finally convinced my parents to purchase a new PC. The one they use now is an ancient Pentium 100mhz Micron PC with a meager 72MB of RAM and a 1GB HD. They are running Window's 98 second addition and primarily use it for email and my dad also does minor record keeping and game play on it as well. The legacy machine is on it's final legs. I am able to keep repairing it as to barely keep it running (all the while struggling to disguise my extreme frustration) to check email, but she is in her final days. My quest is to find the cheapest and newest PC I can as they don't require anything other than a bare bones system. I am actually considering an eMmachines T2642 budget PC as they are cheap and it's all they will ever need and it has a warranty.

Lastly, I am sure many of you know about the promotion iTunes is doing with Pepsi to give away 100 million free music downloads but do you know the cheat? Just grab the bottle and turn it at a 45 degree angle and look under the cap, if you see "again" you know it's not a winner. If you see "free" or some random numbers buy that one as it is a winner!

Linux Continued 2/16/04

My journey down the Linux highway continues. Over the course of my journey I have learned more useful features of Linux and also more frustration as well. I was configuring DNS in Red Hat 9 server the other day and at first it was confusing to say the least. First you must configure the zone files. Jumping into the Linux command language without much experience or knowledge is a bit daunting. I did have a basic "cheat sheet" of commands which made the process a bit easier. So essentially I started configuring the zone files on a whim and typing away at the files not really sure of what exactly I was configuring. Once the forward and reverse lookup zone files were configured however, the Linux world started to show its charm. Next was configuring DNS in Linux, which is a whole technical process I wont get into here. When you get the hang of what Linux wants and what Linux can do, the process becomes very intriguing and borderline exciting. It offers many opportunities that are easily adjusted to fit your individual needs and desires for your network. Instead of being at the mercy of structured server software with predetermined options that seem somewhat limited such as with Server 2000, with Linux if you don't have a certain file accessible, you build it. And you build it to your exact specifications for exactly what you want it for. The appeal of being able to control every aspect of your OS is what is so enticing about Linux. It does take time to learn as I have mentioned in the past, and I am still a newbie in every sense of the word. I am, however, becoming fascinated with the potential of what Linux has to offer. Here is a list of some great links you can go to for information and ISO files for Linux.

          Everything and anything Knoppix

          For learning the Linux terminal

          Linux questions.org

          Linux ISO images

          OSUNIX.COM


These are just a few places that I have found very helpful places to start. I will keep updating more about Linux as I learn more. I certainly have no intention of turning this into a Linux blog, but who knows, Linux is kind of like The Borg.


Virtual Madness                                                                                                          2/4/04

I know there hasn't been a post on this site for quite a while and for good reason. I have been experimenting with some very cool programs. Yes some of it has been inux applications and distros, but not all. I have come across a really cool program that everyone who is interested in trying different types of OS's should check out. It is called Microsoft Virtual PC 2004. It is mainly marketed for personal and business users that need to run different or legacy OS's without the hassle of creating a dual boot system (and believe me having a dual boot system can be a complete pain in the ass). It will also run Linux as well, however of course it isn't supported. So far I have gotten Knoppix to work from both CD and an ISO image--yep it will boot from an ISO image-- it runs fairly well, however I am trying to tweak the GUI so it looks better and runs smoother. I also installed Red Hat 9 and the CLI works fine however GNOME and X Windows won't work at all. I will try a re-install in the next few days and see if I can't get Linux to recognize the VPC video card.... I will certainly post that information when it is known. Another great benefit of MVPC 2K4 is the ability to run server 2000 or 2003. You will want a lot of memory for optimal performance. I have 512MB installed on a IBM Thinkpad with a 2.4 GHZ processor and it struggles during installs but once installed it gets the jobs done. I highly recommend this application and hey why not try it? There is a 45 day free trial by clicking the link above.

Linux experiments 1/22/04

Well, I have been spending the last week inside the Linux universe. I certainly have learned many things about the world of Linux. My experience first began by looking for which distribution of Linux that I wanted to try. I looked at various distro's of Mandrake, SuSe, Knoppix, and Red Hat. All would require me partitioning my hard drive and creating a separate partition for the Linux OS and running a dual boot system. All except for Knoppix which a Linux that runs off a CD on your CD-ROM drive. This option doesn't seem like too bad of an idea if you want to learn Linux, however, I believe you aren't able to save your progress. Well, because I am currently taking a web server administration class based on Red Hat Linux, I went with what I had. I created an 8GB partition and began installing Red Hat 8.

My first attempt was a failure. When I was installing the third CD my system completely froze up and I was unable to complete the installation. You can either install Linux using a command line interface or a GUI. I went the GUI route as I am more familiar with that type of interface. I was told by my instructor that sometimes Linux GUI installations can be a bit unstable in Red Hat 8. Undaunted I decided to upgrade and get Red Hat version 9. Against the advice of a Linux veteran, I stubbornly went ahead and used the GUI interface to attempt installation of RH 9. This time it installed without a hitch. It was loaded up and I was ready to begin my Linux journey. Or was I? Well, apparently Linux has difficulty recognizing certain hardware on certain computers. It did recognize my ethernet card, however it did not recognize my modem or wireless card.

Finding the right drivers for your hardware can be quite frustrating. However, the online Linux community is incredibly resourceful. I have been fortunate to have several Linux geeks in my corner during this quest into the unknown. And I have also been able to find very informative websites and forums for Linux. There is definitely no shortage of opinions out there about Linux distro's and applications. But, each person I have been getting advice from certainly knows what they are talking about even though opinions differ. The main thing I have learned is that you can get advice and opinions but the actual learning of Linux is going to take place in your implementation of said instructions.

If you are a Windows user and have never dabbled in any other type of OS, don't think you going to go into it and start pointing and clicking you way through the learning of Linux. Although it does take a considerable amount of time to learn and the frustration will surely test your patience, if you are up for the challenge of mastering what seems to be the next generation of operating system, then Linux is right there in the "open" waiting for you.

Windows 98 support is back 1/14/04

Microsoft announced today that it will continue support for it's aging 98, 98 SE, and ME operating systems. Users will still be able to access paid support for the systems until June 30th 2006. "Microsoft made this decision to accommodate customers worldwide that are still dependent upon these operating systems and to provide Microsoft more time to communicate its product lifecycle support guidelines in a handful of markets -- particularly smaller and emerging markets," a company spokesperson told internetnews.com.

This is in response to users all over the world that still use these aging OS's. Although Windows does want everyone to upgrade to XP, they realize that many are still using the outdated version. Apparently Microsoft is concerned about customers for once. According to Juniper Research, more than half of the households in the U.S. do have XP, but many people do have an older computer as well that runs 98 or 98 SE. It seems to be a good call by Microsoft if you look at the security issue. If they stopped releasing security patches for 98, those who still have it installed on their legacy machines could potentially cause problems for the rest of us.

Linux huh? 1/12/04

Well, I am about to journey into the world of, what seems to be the flavor of the month lately, Linux OS. I am taking a web server administration course this semester and it is based on Red Hat. I am not very familiar with Linux and all it has to offer, but I am surely excited to learn about it! I imagine I will learn, manipulate it, sing the praises about how much better than Windows it is and complain about its shortcomings. But that seems to be what we all do with any new application we learn about and get a chance to play around with. Since I am learning information about this OS I feel inclined to write about it and share the knowledge with all.

Unix was introduced in 1969 and continues to evolve today. Many variations of the UNIX operating system have been introduced. Although UNIX was the first open source OS, the UNIX trademark remained an AT&T trademark for many years. It was eventually purchased y networking companies like Novell, Santa Cruz Operations, and is now owned by The Open Group.

Unix consists of a Kernel, a file system, and a shell. By isolating the kernel from other applications, so that computer processes or users cannot modify the core code and interrupt services, UNIX provides a stable platform. UNIX uses more than 600 commands so GUI's were developed to simplify its operation. Still many users do a significant amount of their work with the command line. Popular UNIX versions are Sun Solaris, IBM AIX, and the ever popular Linux.

Linux was developed separately from other versions of UNIX. Because of the separate development, technically it is not a true UNIX version. Instead it is an OS that was written to appear and act like UNIX. Linus Torvalds began his work on Linux in 1991, basing it on Mimix, which was included in a textbook on operating systems. Because the source code is freely available, Linux has been enhanced and supported by a number of organizations which include Red Hat, Mandrake, SuSe, and Caldera. Each distribution is based on the core Linux code and distributed under the General Public License. This is just an introduction to Linux what it is and where it came from. I am sure as I get more involved in the world of Linux I will be writting more articles.

Outsourcing Tech Jobs 1/10/04

There has been a lot of debate over what should be done about large tech corporations outsourcing jobs to foreign countries. Ideological solutions to the problem have ranged from lowering farm subsidies to fund more tech education, to congressional action to penalize corporations who do not follow stringent outsourcing criteria. For the benefit of our industry and the county as a whole, it would not be wise to follow the latter.

According to Forrester Research, companies in the United States and Europe will spend 28 percent of their information technology budgets on overseas work in the next two years. This trend seems like harsh actions from greedy and heartless executives whose only motivation is profits. However, outsourcing offers advantages beyond wage differences. Many U.S. corporate executives say they simply can't afford to overlook foreign computer workers, especially in India. India produces roughly 350,000 college engineering graduates annually.

Unfortunately, the bottom line is wheather or not a company is making money and spending their resources wisely. The average computer programmer in India costs $20 per hour in wages and benefits, compared to $65 per hour for an American with a comparable degree and experience, according to the consulting firm Cap Gemini Ernst & Young.

In an industry with such rapid evolution, tech workers need to constantly enhance their education and training. The genius of American technology dominance is it's leaders' knack for envisioning the next big thing. It is in the workers' ability to redefine job roles and retrain themselves in the latest technological applications. Americans pioneering developments in nanotechnology and biotechnology will have far more job security than simple programmers.

If the government is going to do anything, they should do more to develop math and science skills in the population and improve the technological infrastructure. In this investment, more opportunities are available for individuals to further their development and keep the United states competitive in the global market.

Mars Landing 1/8/04

The recent landing of Spirit Rover on Mars is just another technical marvel for the science and technology community to revel over. This is an amazing technological feat to pull off. So many things need to work in perfect synchronous order for such an amazing feat to occur. I watched a provocative documentary on PBS entitled "Mars, Dead or Alive" which covered the science and engineering teams responsible for carrying out the mission. It is an excellent documentary that shows the incredible amount of planning, knowledge, and technology needed to carry out such a mission. It also demonstrates the incredible passion the team had in their desire to have a successful mission and also the drama and emotion involved. The success of this mission was critical to the future of the Mars space program. In riding the heals of the success of this mission, President Bush is going to make another announcement next week about a major future mission for the space program. Bush is expected to outline a sweeping vision of U.S. space leadership. Senior officials say in a speech next week, the president will unveil plans to send U.S. astronauts to build a permanent station on the moon. They say he'll also set the goal of sending Americans to Mars.

This recent series of events is a reason for everyone who is actively involved in science and technology to be very excited and reinforce the desire to push the limits of our field.

You can view a Mars photo slide show here!

RIAA bites the hand which feeds it ~commentary by mysticpain 1/7/04

The issue of sharing music files over the internet has become quit the controversy over the past few years. We are all aware of the tactics the RIAA (Recording Industry Association of America) is using to halt consumers from sharing copy-written material. The supeona's and lawsuits seem to be issued on a daily basis. The industry needs to embrace new technology and incorporate it into their business model instead of using militant tactics to alienate music fans, which are the consumer base they wish to attract back to their product.

Here are some interesting facts about the record industry that shows it is not P2P networks that have led to the downward spiral of record sales, but is another impending factor, which any music fan will tell you, is that the largest labels are putting out sub par products. According to boycott-riaa.com, the industry has lost approximately 250 million dollars in CD sales per year from 1990-1998. 1998 was the year Napster was launched. These are the statistics from the industry's own analysis. According to that data, one can assert that sales are slipping due to other reasons than the advent of P2P networks.

The industry has issued over 900 supeona's against those who use P2P networks to download and share music files. Although this appears to reduce the number of people who use P2P networks, it has not had an impact on diminishing record sales. It has been estimated users of Kazaa have dropped approximately 40% since the supeona's were issued. Does this mean 40% of those users have stopped sharing music files? Or have they simply went to different networks such as BearShare, SoulSeek, or Ares Galaxy.

Music fans no longer have to listen to what the industry tells us is good and popular. Music fans now have more resources for finding music than ever before. Likewise, the artists have an incredible medium to reach a broad base of music fans world wide. Michelle Branch is an excellent example of an artist who has made a name for herself by using today's technology to promote her music. By using the internet, she was able to establish a huge fan base for her music. When she was signed by a major label they used her business methods to promote her material.

P2P users got a small victory on December 19th, 2003 when the US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia ruled that of the 3,000 plus supeona's issued to ISP's from the RIAA to turn over names of the users of P2P networks can be ignored. The court found that the argument submitted by the RIAA under Digital Millennium Copyright Act did not apply to private communications on a subscriber's computer and the P2P network used for music file sharing. The RIAA remains defiant and says they can and will continue to file lawsuits against file sharers for copyright infringement.

Two lawmakers are thankfully on the side of music lovers, they include Sen. Norm Coleman from my state of Minnesota, and Rep. Rick Boucher from Virginia and this was their reaction to the decision by the US Court of Appeals.

"The decision by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia reaffirms my belief that the solution to the challenges facing the recording industry will not be solved primarily through litigation," U.S. Sen. Norm Coleman (R-Minnesota).

"Under the decision, subpoenas will not be issued without access to judicial supervision in instances in which the privacy rights of individual Internet users are potentially at risk," Rep. Rick Boucher (D-Virginia).

Technically, sharing copy-written material is illegal weather you use the internet or sneaker net. Is it unethical? That is in the eye of the beholder. If you are a true music fan you are more than likely going to support your favorite band or artist by buying the album anyway. The internet is just another tool for music fans to find new new music. And it is a wonderful tool for artists to put out their material and hope it finds a base. What the industry needs to do is embrace new technologies and incorporate them into their business model instead of making music fans out to be the devil.

Mac Users, a curious bunch ~commentary by mysticpain 1/4/04

I often wonder why some Mac users have such an elitist attitude when it comes to computing. It's as if they think that because they have purchased an Apple computer, it gives them some type of exclusive rights to snob PC users. The mind of a Mac user is certainly curious. Somehow they are able to rationalize that the 95% of the population that uses PC's is delusional and technically inferior. This "mac attitude" if you will, needs to come to an end. If you know a Mac user with such an attitude there are methods to counter attack such elitist thinking.

First of all look at the reality of our technical world. Our computer world runs on PC's and Windows based applications. Software developers are going to base the majority of their products for Window's. Our society has accepted PC's as the main medium for computing and that is just a fact we cannot ignore. There is a reason you don't walk into a Best Buy or Circuit City and find shelves full of Apple computers and software. I know and you know that I am stating the obvious here, but for some reason it is not what Mac loyalist want to accept.

As for the security issue all I have to say is...COME ON! Of course Apple OS's seem more secure and less vulnerable to attack. If you are a hacker then your mindset is damage, destruction, and chaos. As much of it as you can possibly achieve. Well, then why would you want to attack such a relatively small platform? You wouldn't. If the tables were turned, and Apple was the giant, it would be erroneous to think that there would not be as many security holes as there seem to be in Window's operating systems. There is simply no prerogative for the deviants of the hacking world to waste time to hack Apple products.

Now don't get me wrong, Apple makes excellent products and are creating products that are leading edge. I used to own an imac and hope to own another one again soon because I do love the products. The only problem I have is with the attitude that some think they need to have because they exclusively choose Apple products. For example I used to belong to a Yahoo user group for Mac users and all they would do is brag about how great Apple is and how terrible Microsoft is. It is a pretty juvenile approach to take, my computer can beat up your computer type attitude. Technology enthusiasts should embrace both platforms for what they can and can't do. Utilizing the good features of each product and implementing ways to improve the bad. Those with elitist attitudes toward technology do nothing but expose their own ignorance and insecurities.

Keep comming back! I am constantly adding new information!

Keep checking it out! This will be a fun interactive blog for people with interest in computer technology, space, and science subjects. Also ideas and thoughts not often thought. A realm of ideas well outside the box. It may seem a bit crazy even a bit bizarre, but certainly always interesting. If you would like me to link to your blog email me and I will see what I can do. Until then remember knowledge is power!