Hi Folks,

Here are a couple of good tips form Lockergnome.

DU Meter is a powerful and user-friendly tool that enables you to use your Internet connection more efficiently.

DU Meter shows you how much of your full bandwidth potential is actually utilized at any given point, either by displaying a real-time graph, numerical display, or both. It works with dial-up, ISDN, DSL, cable modems, and ethernet cards. DU Meter fits neatly on your browser toolbar, preserving valuable desktop realestate, and uses minimal Windows resources and memory. DU Meter is a standalone utility which involves no changes to your Windows system files.

The current version includes full logging capabilities with export to many different file formats, including Excel and HTML. It also has an auto hide feature, monitoring of online hours with alerts, a fully customizable interface, and a great stopwatch which helps you to accurately time your downloads. DU Meter is fully compatible with Windows 95/98 and NT 4.0/2000/XP.

Broken links in this article – see http://www.dumeter.com/

08.25.2006 @ 12:45 PM PT | Ken Colburn | Comment | Send to Friends | Discuss

Kristin asks:

When buying a new computer, how do I know how much RAM I should buy?

This very important question has been at the foundation of the computer buying process since the introduction of the personal computer.

The fact that computers are now truly personal means that who you are and what you use your computer for will be the ultimate determining factor on answering this question.

When I got started in the business, deciding between 512K and 640K was the big question. It then evolved to deciding between 640K and 1024K as operating systems and programs were more able to make use of “extended memory.“

As of this writing, the decision points are 512 MB, 1 GB or 2 GB of RAM - we’ve come a long way, baby!

Before I go into further detail, let me pull out my classic “computer kitchen“ analogy to help non-techies understand the major components that determine performance in a computer.

In the “computer kitchen,“ the processor (Intel or AMD) is like the chef. It does all of the real work and decision-making.

RAM is like a mixing bowl; it is a workspace that allows the chef to prepare the meals.

The hard drive is like a refrigerator; it is designed to store things both before and after they have been prepared.

Just about everything that you will be looking at will come with at least 512 MB of RAM (mixing bowl), so let’s consider this the entry level.

If you will be performing simple tasks (such as writing letters, surfing the Net or sending e-mails) and the only games that might be played on the system are Solitaire and Tetris, then 512 MB of RAM is adequate.

If you plan on doing these tasks simultaneously (often referred to as multi-tasking - working on multiple courses in the computer kitchen at the same time), then bumping the RAM (mixing bowl) up to 1 GB is likely to be the most cost effective thing that you can do to improve the performance of the system.

In fact, before I would recommend spending more money to slightly improve the processor speed, I would strongly suggest you upgrade the RAM to 1 GB.

A slightly faster chef is of no use if his mixing bowl is too small for the meals he wants to prepare. Conversely, a slightly slower chef with a larger mixing bowl can output more food in a shorter period of time because of the additional workspace.

As a normal course, Windows will use an open section of the hard drive (open workspace in the refrigerator) when it runs out of RAM (mixing bowl space) which significantly reduces the overall speed in which a task can be accomplished, so when in doubt add more RAM (reduce the trips back and forth to the refrigerator as much as possible!).

If you are a real power user, such as a hard-core gamer or those dealing in professional graphics or video, stepping up to 2 GB of RAM is in your best interest, since you will be routinely preparing 7-course French meals in your computer kitchen!

[Continued]

09.01.2006 @ 12:45 PM PT | Ken Colburn | Comment | Send to Friends | Discuss

Fred writes:

I have heard you say on your radio show that you don’t like CDs as a backup system. Why is that?

CDs have had a dramatic impact on the computer world because of their enormous storage capabilities at a relatively low cost. The problem with this great technology is that too many folks think it’s an infallible technology that can be abused and last a lifetime.

While CDs are certainly more durable than traditional streaming tape, they are quite sensitive to many factors that can ultimately determine whether you will actually be able to read the data in the event that you need it.

I don’t have a problem with folks that use CDs as a part of their data backup strategy; I just don’t like it as the only ‘safety net’ for critical data.

We routinely see folks in our data recovery lab with a pile of CDs that they thought had their critical data stored, but for some reason they can’t access the data on them.

There are two distinct processes we need to cover; the first is a single burn ‘archive’ (CD-R) that is intended to be a long-term storage device (photos, videos, old financial records, etc.) and the second is the repeated use of the same disk (CD-RW) for regular data backups.

For single burn archives, it is critical that you use top quality name brand media that actually incorporates some solid technology to manufacture the disks (if you haven’t heard of the company, don’t buy it!). Elements such as cheap dyes, shoddy adhesives, or little to no protective coatings over the recording layer can have a dramatic impact on whether you will be able to read the disk in future years.

If it’s critical data, always make two copies. Claims of 50 to 100 year life spans have been made, but there are a whole host of things that can reduce the actual life of the disks. Unlike stamped commercial disks, computer burned disks are much more sensitive to light, heat, and humidity.

Keep them out of direct sunlight, avoid wide temperature fluctuations and high humidity, and remember to protect the label side of the CD. The back side of the label is where the data is stored, so if the label gets scratched off, your data is gone!

Bending disks to remove them from their jewel cases can create tiny cracks in the protective layer which over time allows oxidation of the reflective material to occur (resulting in lost data).

If you store your disks horizontally over a long period of time, warping can occur depending upon what else is on top or below the disks, so always store them vertically in their jewel cases.

If you place an adhesive label on the disk that has corrosive glue, it can eat through the various layers, so make sure to use soft tip markers to label the disks.

When it comes to re-writeable media (CD-RW), the quality of the disks is even more important and cycling the media is critical. Always use multiple disks and rotate them so you have some level of redundancy. After six months of weekly use, replace with new media because re-writeable disks can suffer from media fatigue if overused.

Using CDs in combination with an external hard drive system backup or an off-site Internet-based backup system is a much better strategy, so that you are not betting on a single backup. (A free 30-day trial of the Internet backup system we talked about on the radio is available at DataDoctors.com.)

By using multiple backup procedures, you can dramatically reduce the likelihood of ever needing expensive data recovery services. If you want to see where the holes in your backup procedures are, review your disaster recovery plan in the event of media failure, fire, flood, theft, and employee sabotage.

[Continued]

09.20.2006 @ 12:48 PM PT | Mitch Keeler | Comment | Send to Friends | Discuss

As time passes, it seems like the public is becoming more and more unsure about how good Windows Vista will be. If it does not live up to the hype, how about we just rip some of the good things out of it and bring them to Windows XP? I think that was the thought behind Visual Task Tips.

Visual Task Tips is a lightweight shell enhancement utility. It provides thumbnail preview image for each task in the Windows Taskbar, as seen in the upcoming Microsoft Windows Vista.

At first, I didn’t think this would be that useful of a freeware program. I was wrong. With just adding something as simple as thumbnail previews to my taskbar I noticed I had become a little more productive. While I am working here, I usually have several programs going at once. Visual Task Tips allowed me to get a better handle on which one was which.

Visual Task Tips is totally free, pretty to look at, and makes you more productive. The only thing more this program could do is print money! Since I doubt that last feature will be built in to any freeware program anytime soon, you’ll just have to live with the other excellent features.

[90K] [WinXP] [FREE]

[Continued]

From the Sunday ads:

Office Depot is having a 10-20% sale on all HPO printers.  They have several good deals, noticably an all-in-one with FAX for $80.

Have a good weekend folks.

More Next Sunday,
Chuckstr
----My Web Site----

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