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Larger removable storage media are fast becoming affordable with the appearance of DVD (Digital Versatile Disc) writers at around the £400 mark. Offerings from both HP (DVD100i) and Ricoh (MP5120A-DP) allow up to 4.7GB of re-recordable space on DVD+RW discs - about 7 times the capacity of current CDs.
Teleadapt has announced a new mobile phone charger that runs off any computer's USB port.
Laptop-toting travellers can now do away with the extra power adapter for their phone and use the TeleCharger instead, which supports dozens of phone models from Nokia, Motorola, Panasonic, Siemens and Ericsson and requires no extra software.
Teleadapt is also the manufacturer of the 'world's first' folding plug and of laptop power adapters for use on planes .
Shopping with the wireless? No, this isn't about in-store muzak, but portable tills which help you jump the queues in the sales. Several stores including Boots and Sainsbury's are levering sales assistants out from behind their tills and arming them with wireless bar code scanners hooked up to credit card swipers. The idea is to target long queues of beleaguered shoppers waiting to pay and relieve them of their cash and foot sores in one go.
A jerky end to the year for Microsoft. Two months after the Windows XP launch came the news that it had all along had a vulnerability in the Universal Plug and Play (UPnP) sub-system. Microsoft had held off announcing until it had released a patch (a week before Christmas), but within days of this, the National Infrastructure Protection Center (NIPC), an arm of the FBI, was advising users to disable the UPnP service anyway. Microsoft also found their "Passport" technology had security weaknesses when used with IE5.5 and IE6.0 browsers and issued a 'critical-rated' bulletin.
Microsoft Exchange 2000 Service Pack 2 is now available for download and includes many fixes and diagnostic tools
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The Liberty Alliance Project's bid to "provide a universal open standard for single sign-on with decentralized authentication" has been dealt a blow (an underhand one, some might say) by Microsoft's cash offer to sign up to it's own Passport system (see last month's IB). Microsoft's promotional offer intends to persuade you to authenticate personal details with them, such as account details and delivery address, by 'rewarding' you with a minimum of a US$20 cheque if you spend at least US$100 through your first online purchase - but not if you're a user in the UK. Liberty Alliance (projectliberty.org) has more than 2,000 organisations involved in drafting its open standard, including large companies like Sun, Sony and Nokia.
Ending 2001 with a nasty surprise, the 'Goner-A' virus became the second most prolific virus after 'Lovebug', arriving on 1 in 30 emails as an attachment disguised as a tempting screensaver. Additional 'Goner-A' armoury includes knocking out virus protection software and installing a backdoor program for other viruses, before forwarding itself to everyone in your address book. Emails are characterised by the subject header "Hi!", a message body of: "How are you? When I saw this screensaver, I immediately thought of you. I am in a harry, I promise you will love it!" and an attachment of "Gone.scr".
Roam as you surf: Actiontec's Wireless-Ready Home Gateway system, gives you the freedom to wander around while connecting to the Internet for £129. The system shares a broadband DSL connection for up to 35 devices up to 30 metres away, (90 metres away outdoors), includes a NAT (Network Address Translation) firewall and supports Virtual Private Network clients and DHCP, as well as providing parental/employers' blocks access to presettable Web sites. Sony aren't reputed to be launching a rival 'WalkSurf' any time soon.
New Technology put out to grass: Microsoft's Windows NT Server 4.0 operating system is being retired in phases after five years on the market. NT4 will stop being offered through resellers from 1-Jul-2002 and finally no longer be sold through any channels after 1-July-2003. Support will be phased out over 3 years, with 'hot fixes on request' ceasing after 1-January -2003 until support is no longer be available at 1-January-2005, though this latter date may slip.
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1. Instant Messaging: winged messenger or electronic albatross ?
Deep in the uncharted backwaters of the Western spiral arm of this galaxy, even the small blue-green planet finally succumbed?? to the spread of IM technology ...
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... so even being on another planet won't excuse you for not having heard about Instant Messaging.
Er, just add water then ?
OK - welcome back to our galaxy, let's start at the beginning.
Whatever you say about Instant Messaging, you can't argue with the fact that, unlike many communication concepts, it's description is infallibly accurate and concise - you exchange messages with people and it's instant. In the same bold and rather menacing stance of those ads for domestic weatherproofing products - "it does what it says on the tin".
Instant Messaging (IM) is the latest way of communicating, and it has taken the IT world by storm! Whilst Instant Messaging has been a cult phenomenon among teenagers and IT geeks for several years, its popularity is now fast spreading- IM at work grew by 110% in the US last year.
So how is this different from email ?
Email is a 'store and forward' technology, hence your messages are queued at several places (ISP, university mailserver, etc) until you read them, where they are stored in your mailbox. Unlike IM. email also has to conform to some basic global standards (RFCs) in order to work.
IM is more akin to the phone in that the messaging is live and is not stored, unless you choose to save the text 'conversation' at some point.
What do I need for the basics ?
You need a PC, a messaging client (free), a line and service with Internet access and of course someone else to chat with - unless you want to plunge in and talk to strangers (believe me, some are!).
There are many versions of messaging software available, including ICQ, Microsoft, Yahoo! and AOL. All versions have their pros and cons, but in terms of accessibility, Microsoft's Instant Messenger is bundled with Windows while AOL's AIM is bundled with Netscape Navigator. The ICQ and Yahoo clients are available as a small download from their respective sites.
So I can talk to anybody right ?
Not all IM systems will work together; AIM users can't message Yahoo! or MSN messenger users. Claiming to make the only product that can plug in to all the different IM networks are
FaceTime Communications http://www.facetime.com/, but this is a commercial service as opposed to a free client.
What does it do ?
Once configured and fired up, you will get a window showing your chat or conversation. The prompts show who is speaking/typing - a bit like a film script. Other windows display groups of regular contacts you may have (a 'buddy list' in AOL-speak) which can be used like an address book.
As an example, Microsoft's Instant Messenger is a small free download available from the Microsoft website. In a nutshell, it allows you to communicate with friends and colleagues in real time. If you have the necessary hardware/software, you can also make free phone calls through it, exchange files through it, share a whiteboard, and use it to remote control a persons PC in order to fix a problem for them. You can also video conference through it, and share applications through it. It even tells you when you have new email! A very powerful application indeed! All these bells and whistles aside, it is most often used between colleagues and friends to talk to each other, perhaps in a situation where using the phone just isn't convenient.
Will it get me 'the cool shoeshine'?
Er, - oh yea - definitely ;-)
Especially when you use emoticons.
Isn't IM just for geeks who share music illegally on each other's machines ?
You may also have heard of peer to peer file sharing, and Instant Messaging shouldn't be confused with this. Peer-to-Peer (P2P - an alternative networking technique) basically allows another person to access a particular area of your hard drive (called a 'share'), often for the purposes of sharing MP3 music files. Once you have set the permissions up, you have no control over who accesses that area until you disable the 'share'. With IM, other individuals can only access your PC, such as for the purposes of remote desktop, if you specifically allow them, and at all times you are in control of the access, and can terminate it at any time.
Can anyone use it ?
Instant Messaging can be used in any organisation, but is less suitable for dial-on-demand (DoD) connections, like a modem. IM would work fine in this situation, but would result in higher phone bills if running on a pay-as-you-go service, as it keeps the connection open. However, for permanent lines such as ADSL or leased lines, (eg BT's "Openworld" and "kilostream" respectively) which are connected all the time, IM will make no difference to the phone bill whatsoever because you pay a flat fee irrespective of usage.
Is it secure ?
So IM is clearly an uncompromisingly Good Thing all round then?
Not if you talk to security experts ...
If you're a systems administrator, you want to know if IM will compromise the network.
While workers are taking to IM eagerly, company sys-admins are concerned that IM clients - which started as a toy, rather than a tool - are being connected to insecure and/or unpoliced systems across the internet - and without their knowledge or permission. Even existing IM providers advise against users sending any sensitive material using IM clients. Meanwhile, to a background of increasing network security in the email and browsing arena, hackers are turning their attention to new weak spots, and IM has wandered into their headlights. In fact, anti-virus experts are predicting a bumper year for hackers using IM as a popular way to spread computer viruses.
Typical attacks include persuading a gullible user to open malicious files disguised as pictures, installing Trojans on the user's PC for further attacks and Denial of Service (DoS) flood attacks. AIM recently had a vulnerability whereby attackers could send a string of characters and crash the other persons messaging client or even the machine. Such 'bombing' programs are common.
Authentication is still weakness - you can't really tell that the 'name' you're having a conversation with isn't a potential intruder looking for company passwords on your network.
The configuration tools that come with IM clients are very good at finding a 2-way port in and out of the company network to allow them to communicate. Then suddenly you have a security hole being advertised to the world by the (probably unwitting) IM user!
More professional products have attempted to address these issues, for instance, Command Code has a PGP encryption plug-in for MSN messenger and Jabber offers a platform aimed at enterprises.
Benefits
Good way to exchange a lot of dialogue quickly and without a phone
Save a conversation into a 'transcript'
Can swap files
Useful for problem solving of machines by remote control within an organisation
You can tell when friends and colleagues are online
Drawbacks
Watch line costs, really needs permanent flat fee service
Incompatibility: clients can't talk to each other
Security issues abound
May be a drain on your organisation's efficiency - a lot of messages are non-work related and constitute a constant interruption
How to make it happen
You need a client program, a small free download to install from any of AOL, ICQ, MSN or Yahoo!.
http://www.aol.co.uk/aim/
http://www.icq.com/download/
http://messenger.msn.co.uk/
http://messenger.yahoo.com/
Definitions
mes·sen·ger (msn-jr)
n. messenger (Heb. mal'ak, Gr. angelos):
An angel, a messenger who runs on foot, the bearer of despatches
al·ba·tross (lb-trôs) :
n. pl. albatross or al·ba·tross·es
A constant, worrisome burden.
An obstacle to success.
-IB-
[Paul Craig, Leanne Weekes.
Acknowledgements: Rob Gallagher, Chris Lee]
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2. Browser tips
Internet connections may be slow, but you can speed things up at your end by brushing up your skills and making your interaction faster ...
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Key
In this list of tips,
"Ctrl+D" means: hold down the "Ctrl" key and the press the "D" key
"IE" means: works in Internet Explorer.
"Netscape" means: works in Netscape Navigator.
How to make it happen
- Bookmark Web pages quickly by pressing Ctrl+D keys. (IE, Netscape)
You don't get any feedback that the bookmarking has actually happened, but it's faster than pulling down menus and doesn't disturb your browser screen.
- Close the current window by pressing Ctrl+W. (IE, Netscape)
Conversely, this shortcut does the opposite of Ctrl+N.
- In Internet Explorer :
pull down Tools | Internet Options | Advanced tab, untick "Show pictures" and untick "Play sounds".
- In Netscape:
pull down Edit | Preferences | Advanced menu, untick "Automatically load images"
- To open a new Internet Explorer window, press Ctrl+N. (IE, Netscape)
Opening a second browser (or a 3rd, 4th, etc) effectively gains you a second shared browsing channel. This means you can have a search engine finding results in one while you read the news headlines in another - much more efficient! If all your browser channels are actively downloading data, then the bandwidth (the size of your connection to the Internet, eg your 56K modem) is roughly shared out between them - it's doesn't mean you can receive data more quickly overall!
You may seen some Web pages launch extra browser windows automatically - it's a good trick for keeping visitors at their site (if you're of the cynical point of view) but is also a useful technique for keeping hold of a reference page, eg when your search engine results come up, launch a second browser so you can keep those results while 'drilling down' to explore the contents in the first window.
- To make Web pages load faster, turn off pictures and/or sound. This is the most dramatic difference you can make to Web page loading times, especially if looking for just text or knowing you have to drill down through picture-laden menus to reach a particular page - when you can pictures back on again if you choose.
- Lazy typing: key a word in the address bar and press the Ctrl+Enter keys to add http://www. and .com on either side of the word. (IE only)
- Find bookmarked pages more quickly - press Ctrl+B. (IE, Netscape)
- See all the recent Internet addresses you typed - press F4. (IE, Netscape)
Or click the small down arrow at the right end of the Address/Location bar.
Benefits
Reduces the time you spend waiting for Web pages to load by having more things 'on the go' on your desktop.
Cut down on mouse-hand RSI by keying in more often from the keyboard.
-IB-
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3. Troubleshoot your printers
You have fixed that printer at least 5 times before, but each problem tends to be slightly different. Speed up the process with a check list ...
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How to make it happen
Here is a printer troubleshooting guide, starting from the printer end and working backwards. Some of this may seem ridiculously basic, but if you already have six impossible things to do at once (let alone before breakfast), a check list can be mighty handy :
- Are there any lights on ?
No, really! If you haven't at least checked the mains cable, the power connection and whether the fuses have melted, anything else is a waste of time.
- Run a printer self test.
This useful diagnostic shows you that the printer engine and paper path is working correctly. You may need the manual to know which button or menu option to select, but on a "one-button" printer, it's usual just to hold it down and wait a few seconds.
- Check that data cables are plugged in.
If data gets to the printer via a network connector (often a grey UTP 'telephone' type connector), it should click it's pushed all the way home. If the printer gets data directly from a PC via a 'parallel to Centronics' cable, the printer connector (36 pins) can be secured to the printer by looping 2 diamond-shaped bits of wire over it to stop the cable being tugged out.
- Check for low toner or ink.
Is the printer screaming "feed me!"? A laser printer will often say so via its screen messages and an ink jet printer displays a virtual icon on your PC showing how much ink is left.
- Check paper jams.
Get the manual out and 'gen up' on how remove the obvious components like trays, drums and toner cartridges (and put them back together without any parts left over!). Most printers have cuddly green handles to indicate which parts can be levered open without fatal consequences - to either of you - a fact worth knowing when all this tinkering can usually achieved without powering the printer down. A helpful side effect of 'working live' like this is that, once back on line, the more intelligent machines will reprint the uncompleted page that caused the jam and then carry on the print job from where they left off.
If none these measures has restored a working printer, the problem may reside on the PC. Substituting another PC is a quick way to find out, especially on a network.
Windows provides a diagnostic test page facility too. From the PC, select :
Start | Settings | Printers
(On some older systems you can sometimes do Start | Run | "PrintMan")
Highlight the printer and pull down
File | Properties | General tab
This tab has a button "Print Test Page". Clicking this button prints a normal test page and then asks "Did it print OK?, but if you click "No" a useful troubleshooting wizard starts. This is also available in
Start | help | Contents tab | Troubleshooting & Maintenance
Beyond this, the problem may only be solved by re-installing the correct drivers for you printer. These will have been supplied in the original box or may be available from the suppliers' site.
Make it all accessible
You may not be the person that has to deal with the next jam or empty toner, so the easier it can be made for other users to fix, the less printing down time there will be. Also they get to learn something new.
Try to site your printer so that it's accessible, ideally on a waist-high surface with a metre of free space all around it. Laser printers usually require this minimum distance to allow the machines and humans to breathe; the machine needs cool ventilation and the people sitting nearby don't want to inhale ozone vapours.
Stuff to keep by the machine :
- Chain the manual to the desk! In less draconian fashion, just attach a note to it "Keep this manual by the printer". Paranoid about losing the original? Photocopy the relevant pages and put those by the printer instead.
So what are "relevant pages"?
Just about the only information you and other users need to have handy are :
- instructions for changing the toner cartridge and/or drum unit
- instructions for clearing paper jams
- error messages table, to work out whether it's a DIY job or an outside service job
- A cleaning kit: lint-free cloths (or some suitable substitute), alcohol, spray-n-wipe cleaner, gloves.
- A warning notice that laser printer toner can be carcinogeous if handled carelessly.
- A printer service phone number. This may be our own details or the original supplier's details.
Well I never expected that .... !
Prepare to be tripped up by something completely unanticipated - or "knifed in the back", as we call it at Co-Op. Systems. Some things are beyond standard troubleshooting predictability, so always have a good look around the printer for chewing gum, table legs standing on cables giving intermittent operation or even a knife in the feed tray - believe us, we've been there!
Contacts
For a detailed listing of HP printer error codes and how to deal with them, see:
http://www.all-laser.com/error.shtml
-IB-
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4. Making screens easier to view
.. for the visually-impaired.
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What is it ?
Every time we buy a new PC these days, it comes with an ever larger monitor with molecular-like pixels that is just great for displaying finer renditions of photographs and graphics, but can simply cause grief for those who are partially-sighted or have sight defects, like severe astigmatism.
So when comes to setting up screen resolution the watchword is - don't assume highest is best.
Current screen resolutions
Screen resolution means the maximum number of pixels (literally 'picture-cells') a monitor displays. The smaller these are (eg 0.25mm), the better the picture looks, but also the smaller the text will look. Pixels are simply defined by the number horizontally across the screen by the number vertically down the screen, eg 640 horizontal by 480 vertical pixels.
Windows desktops allow you to select alternative 'blobbier' resolutions to compensate for poor viewer vision, old graphics applications, etc.
640 x 480: the good old basic "VGA" standard, this is useful to get any monitor working as a basic setup and may be of help for those with poor eyesight, but the limited amount of information presented on the screen makes it almost unusable with most of today's common applications like browsers.
800 x 600: now the minimum resolution for web and basic office work
1024 x 768: once considered a high resolution, this is now set up commonly for new PCs, but may test poor vision to it's limits.
1600 x 1200: approaching photographic quality, this resolution is commonly used for DTP and graphic design applications.
Solutions for those with visual impairments
Some people simply opt to make all the text in their word processor bold in order to read it easily - a simple but limiting solution in that it not only affects the content (so colleagues see it too) but doesn't help with any of the many other common applications.
- Changing Windows font sizes
This action changes all the fonts (text lettering) that the Windows operating system has control over, eg:
- Pull down menus
- Icon titles
- Menu bars
- Buttons text
- Employ the Windows Magnifier utility
This basic utility is bundled with Windows and acts like a magnifying glass to turn the top portion of the screen into a magnified version of whatever is under the mouse cursor. You can make various settings like magnification ratio, high contrast mode and whether to follow the cursor around.
- Make browser fonts larger
These pull down menus are built into browsers and can make the basic text size on web pages appear bigger. The relative sizes of text within the page (like larger titles) maintain their difference. This only works when the pages being viewed have been constructed with "relative font sizing" - which is fairly common now.
How to make it happen
Changing Windows font sizes
Employ the Windows Magnifier utility
Start | Programs | Accessories | Accessibility | Magnifier
Make browser fonts larger
- In Internet Explorer:
Pull down View | Text size (choose from 5 sizes)
- In Netscape Navigator:
Pull down View | Increase font
Contacts
If you have 'normal' vision and are experiencing viewing difficulties, especially if you spend a good deal of time in front of the screen, you should remember to take regular breaks from the computer and also have your eyesight tested at an optician.
The RNIB Low Vision site contains lots of information for people who have problems with their sight, and the professionals who work with them.
http://www.rnib.org/lowvision/
-IB-
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5. Could we borrow your phone?
Maximising our networking efficiency
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Sometimes Co-Operative Systems staff may need to make calls to other clients whilst at your site, even though this doesn't necessarily involve using your phone exchange. Generally we try to do this whilst we are waiting for other things to happen - for example if your server is re-booting - so time lost is minimal.
The reason we do this is to keep overall response "waiting" time for all our clients as a whole, to a minimum. The idea is that the system works on a quid pro quo basis, eg
today we may need to make a call from your site, so that another client doesn't need to wait for an answer,
tomorrow we may make a call to your site from elsewhere, so that you get an answer directly.
We do try to minimise the number of these 'cross-calls', but on the average it does balance out to everyone's benefit.
Philip Anthony
-IB-
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6. A free search engine for your web site
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What is it ?
Co-Operative Systems has embedded a search engine into its pages for some time, both to help search our site and also search the InfoBulletin archive for keywords in previous issues. However, the very useful Netmind free search service expired in mid 2001, to be replaced by their 'Pro' version.
We have since replaced it with Google's free search, an excellent engine that highlights the title and the address (URL) and emboldens the exact keywords you searched for. What more could you ask for as an essential tool to make your Web site searchable by visitors?
Benefits
It's free.
The search engine is very fast.
Easy to set up - just register and add a short piece of supplied HTML text into one of your site's Web pages.
You can embed your own logo into the header of results that visitors see.
Can also offer up a Web search service, not just your site.
Drawbacks
Google reserve the right to serve up adverts into the results of searches, in the hope that searchers will click through to the products or services being advertised. Not an unreasonable demand since Google's free service has to be paid for somehow and if they have their detection algorithms well-tuned, the adverts will be relevant to the results with a higher likelihood of being acted upon.
How to make it happen
From Google's main page Follow link: http://www.google.co.uk/services/ "Add Google to your site" and then http://www.google.co.uk/services/free.html "Free Search"
It's 4 step process, but extremely painless :
- Choose to offer searches of "just your site" or "your site plus the web".
- Choose your number of site domains, and point to your logo plus its colour/size
by locating it from your site. This will normally be a .GIF picture you have created containing your logo and/or organisation name.
- Type in your name, password and email address.
- Confirm the details and receive your HTML code by email.
Contacts
http://www.google.co.uk/services/
-IB-
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7. A change of address service on the Web
Keeping up to date with your clients on the move
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What is it ?
How do you get your audience/members/customers to let you know when they have moved .... automatically.
One answer may be to register with the web site ihavemoved.com.
Although "ihavemoved" aims its home page squarely at the 'movers' ....
"Time saving secure and free
ihavemoved saves you time by informing your utilities, the government and nearly everyone else that you need to tell that you're moving home."
... it also helps companies and service providers who need to know where their customers move to.
This site has a special 'notify charities' page where you could get your organisation listed.
How is it financed ?
The service is offered free to the 'movers' because it is supported through partnerships with companies and service providers who want to know when their customers move. Advertising and promotions on the site also add some revenue.
Benefits
The hassle of tracking mover client details is reduced.
Cost is lower than processing all lots of phone calls and letters.
How to make it happen
Email: businessdevelopment@ihavemoved.com
Tel: 020 7799 8411
http://www.ihavemoved.com
https://businesstoo.ihavemoved.com/
-IB-
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8. Emoticons - do they help you get a life?
Acronyms and emoticons have been created to replace visual and auditory cues we use in normal conversation ...
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how :( is ths ?
If you didn't see our previous article on Three Letter Acronyms for email messaging, you might want to gen up on the background, but it isn't required reading.
As more and more messaging mediums come into play (email, texting, chat), the abbreviations employed cross boundaries and become everyday.
| TY |
Thank you |
| YW |
You're welcome |
| NP |
No problem |
| FUP |
Follow up
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| OTOH |
On The Other Hand
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| K |
OK |
| BRB |
Be right back |
| ROFL |
Rolls On Floor Laughing |
You can find more emoticons and smileys at :
http://www.mirc.co.uk/emote.html
http://www.emoticon.com/original/smiley.html
One of our favourite smileys - inevitably - is Elvis ....
5:-)
-IB-
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