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The USB port provides 5v at .25amps that can be used for various things like charging a battery. A battery charger that works with the USB port came onto the market with a virus. The link above is to an article that describes how viruses can be transmitted thru the USB port.

You can now buy computer monitors that can handle cable TV & have an HDMI interface. Paul said he saw a refurbished Samsung Blue Ray DVD Netflix unit with a HDMI interface for $110. It can be used directly with a monitor, bypassing the computer.
Increasingly, such devices are internet enabled, including TVs. All of them have the HDMI interface, which is like DVI but also has a sound channel. Everyone seems to be settling on HDMI as a common interface.

Paul said, next time you have a disk with something other than DVD material on it, try putting it into your DVD player — the player may be able to present other material like photo slideshows or music.

Glenn came across video files with a .3gp filetype, which contain 3gpp movies. Paul said that format has been around for a while and are usually found on cell phones. He said, the best player for these is VLC, which is VideoLan.
If you use Download Helper that comes with Firefox to grab Google videos <from Youtube, I guess> in the raw FLV format, they won't easily play back. But the VideoLan player knows how to do it.

On a PC you can open a file in a program other than the default, right-click on the file and choose "Open With" and you'll be presented with the choice of other programs that can open that filetype.

VLC is an open source program and that is different than free programs like AVG or Spybot in that the source code is available.

An earlier email from a listener asked for free photo management software. The above link compares about 20 free programs, some of which are open source.
Paul said he likes Picasa. It's meant to be more of a viewer than an editor.
Glenn also mentioned GIMP, which is a free Photoshop type of a program that can edit pictures.
The Mac has iPhoto. The latest versions of iPhoto and Picasa do face recognition — just knows it's a face but does not identify the person.

There are upgrades for FireFox & Thunderbird. If you've been using FireFox from its early versions and have been doing updates, you may have unused portions on your hard drive. So, it's ok to completely uninstall it before installing the newest version. That should delete orphaned files.
– Go to the Control Panel -> Add and Remove Programs and uninstall FireFox.
– Then go to C:\Program Files\ and remove the Mozilla Firefox folder.
– Then install the new version.
– Do the same with Thunderbird.
<It's not strictly necessary to uninstall. Only if you want to remove old unneeded files.>
– The data for these programs — the email messages, profile files, etc — are stored in a different place. They aren't deleted if you follow the above steps.
– Readers are reminded to do regular backups.
– The disclaimer: The views expressed on the show are those of the speakers only.

James called wondering about the Google 1Gig project (mentioned on the last show) and said that Google "bailed out" of San Francisco because the population was "too diverse". For Nevada City's effort to attract Google, visit 95959google.com.

James also said he gets a poor connection using EDGE on his iPhone.
– Try Smarter Broadband for terrestrial Wi-Fi.
– There's also http://www.DigitalPath .Net

Paul continued talking about Thunderbird. Why upgrade?
– There's noticeable cosmetic change.
– Earlier version weren't especially good at searching the body of messages.
– He, again, recommends uninstalling the older version, but only if it's earlier than version 3.x.
– Glenn mentioned Revo Uninstaller. Paul said that should wipe out all trace of a program but it would ask for permission before doing so. <He never said if it wipes out the data area too. Just use the Control Panel method if you want to be cautious>
– When you install the new version, give it time to index your messages.
– If you want to revert to the earlier version, you'll be able to do that — the data files are compatible.
– Again, be sure you do your backups.

Glenn asked Paul how to make Outlook 2007 stop being the default email program.
– Go to the Control Panel -> Network and Internet Connections -> Internet Options, then click on "Programs" and change the program you want to use.

After you've installed Thunderbird, the first time you click on an email link in a web page, Thunderbird will give you the option to use a web interface like Gmail and Yahoo Mail, or use Thunderbird itself.

There is a free alternative to the Notepad program that comes with Windows. It's called Notepad ++.
– You can assign multiple filetypes for use with Notepad ++ (e.g. .txt .bat etc.).
– It highlights elements in .bat and html files and matches opening/closing braces.

Source Forge is a great resource for free open source software. Get there by going to sourceforge.net or sf.net.

The web site www.skepdic.com was mentioned and clip from an interview of Michael Shermer by Colbert was played. See the above link.

Jay wrote in to ask for a good anti-virus for his new laptop.
– Try the free version of AVG.

Jay also asked about the web browser called Chrome.
– Glenn said he uses it sometimes but doesn't like its bookmarking features and its lack of a toolbar. He also has trouble customizing it.
– Paul doesn't regularly use it but likes its speed and the fact that a crash in one tab doesn't affect other tabs.

Joshua called to say the mail program in his Mac freezes the machine and he's not happy using an alternate called Mobile Mac.
– Paul thinks it's the data (the messages) that are screwed up.
– Try deleting the mail folder. Paul thinks it might be under your profile -> library -> application data -> mail data (or something like that).
– Paul has heard that even the latest version of Apple Email has problems and it's not recommended one use the IMAP protocol.
– Use Thunderbird instead. It's available for the Mac.

John called asking about the region code of DVDs.
– For copyright reasons DVDs from one region of the world will not play in a player in another region.
– Choose the USA region to play DVDs made there.

John also wondered if the "magnetic" bar code sticker on the DVDs he gets at the library could damage his player.
– No, they're not actually magnetic but use radio frequencies.

Paul asked if anyone knows what Klaatu barada nikto! (at the top of this page) means. <Answer at the bottom>

Paul suggested, when installing AVG, to do the custom install and turn off the Link Scanner and the feature below it. And turn off scheduled scanning. When you do the custom install, you're given the chance to opt out of installing plugins that check for phishing sites, current browsers do a pretty good job of doing that already. The automatic install doesn't give you the opt out choice.

Richard called to ask if the firewall in XP is adequate.
– Yes, it came with service pack 2.

A caller said the quote is from The Day The Earth Stood Still and means the spaceman is not dead.

Last Updated 11:35 PM 9/29/2010 

Additional Notes

Editor's comments delimited by < >

<When I update a Zentech page, I post a tweet at twitter.com/ddhart.
You don't have to join Twitter to read it.
You can also search for the tag #Zentech at twitter>

The guest today is John Paul of Spiral Internet, an internet provider in the Nevada City area.

On Feb 10 Google announced it intends to test a 1gig/sec broadband in a few communities and John is trying to get them to do it in the Nevada City area. This speed will allow the downloading of a HD movie in about 5min. This is different than the Rural Broadband Initiative. For more info go to 95959google.com.

There are 3 parts to this. The first is the application, a request for infomation, which John is filling out. Second, Google wants a creative video to show the community's support. The video will result from a community meeting on Mar 14 at 1pm. The planning meeting for the event will be tomorrow (2-23-10) at 5pm at the Nevada City City Hall.

A gesture-based operating system, like in the Minority Report movie, goes back 10 or 15yrs but there wasn't the horsepower to implement it. Now the computers can handle it but it requires a fast broadband connection.

The Google project will bring fiber optic cable to each house. And, according the Google press release, it will be at a competitive price.

John said, based on information from Google, they will allow multiple carriers to provide service on the network, in keeping with the concept of open network.

Glenn said he's called from various phones to see if AT&T's U-verse service is available at each of those locations, and found it's not. Not even in places where AT&T runs ads for it. He thinks that may be because it requires a fiber optic connection.

Paul said that the Highway 80 corridor has fiber and that may be how Google will connect to adjacent communities near Nevada City.

John said he's read news articles that suggest Google itself will be a provider, but it's still speculation.

Glenn, wondered how Google will make money on such a project — advertising?

Paul said Google gets a lot of info about us thru our Google searches, cloud applications like Google Docs and social networks. We may be unknowingly giving out information about ourselves that we wouldn't let the government have.

John thinks Google aims to disrupt the connectivity market because the major providers like AT&T & Verizon don't really give you much for your money.

John said Google intends to serve from 50k to 500k households, as a total, for its test. Go to 95995google.com to fill out a form telling Google how you would use this high bandwidth.

As part of Obama's stimulus package to promote high speed internet, Spiral Internet is providing wireless connections to more remote areas — by way of the Nevada County Economic Resource Council. Find out more at nevadacountyconnected.com.

AT&T is required by law to share its copper wire with other DSL providers but are under no obligation to share its fiber optic cables.

The 1gig/sec fiber optic cable will be limited by the rest of the internet that has a slower infrastructure (the weakest link effect). John thinks that Google will be mostly interested in how just those in a fiber optic community will be using the service between themselves.

Christine called wondering what the cost would be. And, do you need anything special in your computer to handle the higher speed.
– The newer computer the better.
– There will be a modem like device to interface with your computer.
– The processor speed should not be the big issue.
– Typical Ethernet hardware in today's computers goes up to 100mbit/sec so you'll need an upgrade to take full advantage of the 1gig/sec from Google.
– If you're going to do any graphics with the data coming in, you may need a faster graphics card.
– Google said they would like to deploy in the first community within 1yr.

Jim called and said he can't even get a decent DSL service.
– It's John's understanding that Google will wire the entire area right up to individual houses.

Glenn wondered if households would be charged for being wired with Google's high-speed cable even if they won't use it.

Glenn recommends that Jim get service from Digital Path. It's $250 for the installation and $45/mo.

Bill called to say he would like to see the fiber connection interfaced to other media like DSL or wi-fi in those places the fiber doesn't quite reach.
– Paul says he's heard that there is something called a DSLAM that allows DSL to be interfaced to third party infrastructure. John said that sonic.net in Santa Rosa does just that.
– Paul said that DSL doesn't have to come with a dialtone <phone service>, many people are not aware of that. You can eliminate the phone service and use something like Skype to replace it.
– Wireless can reach up to 20 miles under ideal conditions and special hardware.
– Unlicensed wireless frequencies can be problematic due to interference.

John called to say Google is an investor in the O3B satellite network. These satellites are only 8000km high, so there is little signal delay (unlike geosynchronous satellites). He speculates that this would be a way for Google to connect their 1gig/sec project without having to lay extensive fiber optic cable.

Brian called to ask if Digital Path will work with Magic Jack.
– Yes, it should work fine.
– The only place where you may have problems is over a satellite (the geosynchronous type), because of the time lag.
– Calls between 2 Magic Jack users are free <no additional charge>.
– US users of Magic Jack can call the US from anywhere in the world for free.

Paul said he still intends to post the audio from last week's show in the archive.

Glenn says there's no reason for users of Internet Explorer 6 not to upgrade to IE7 or IE8. Support for IE6 will eventually be dropped. Google has already stopped accommodating IE6.

Glenn also likes SynchBack for backing up your data.

Paul mentioned that there are now UVC web cameras that don't require drivers and are easier to install on both a Mac (10.4.11 or newer) & Windows (service pack 2 or newer), but not Win98. They don't tell you to reboot after installing such a camera, but you'll have to.

To talk to John about Google's 1gig/sec project, you can call him at Spiral Internet at 530-478-9822.

Mikail's link to the Apple factory in China is near the top of this page.
The iPad is being made there and it should be available in March.
The iPad has more in common with the iPhone than a Mac. It will not run Mac or PC software, at least not yet.
The article at the above link has something to say about how Apple keeps its secrets.

Last Updated: 9:46 PM 2/22/2010 

Additional notes

Editor's comments delimited by < >

<When I update a Zentech page, I post a tweet at twitter.com/ddhart
You don't have to join Twitter to read it
You can also search for the tag #Zentech at twitter>

Paul said he'll post the audio for this show within about 24hr

Coryon Redd is the guest today. He'll be talking about free & nearly free tools to market & manage your business on the web.

Previous shows with Coryon Redd are here.

Coryon Redd runs Batteries4less.com selling discount cell phone batteries and accessories.
He teaches class on internet marketing for non-profit & for-profit businesses.

Google's Keyword Tool is a good first step to marketing your business.
You can find the tool if you google: "keyword tool".
You should find the appropriate link at adwords.google.com/select/keywordtoolexternal.
The tool helps you see which words people search for and which are the most popular.

Coryon is teaching class at the Nevada County One Stop
More info at sedcorp.biz or call 530-823-4703.

Paul asked what a business with local customers would do differently from a mail-order business.
– Look for keywords relevant to such a business in general and assume the same keywords would apply to local businesses.
– Think of the words you would or would not search for, let that help guide you.

Google Trends lets you see how what's searched for has changed over time and which geographical areas tend to use which words.

A similar tool is Google Insights.
Also, Wonderwheel shows relationships between search terms. It's under the 'options' section of the Google search results page (after you do a search).

Coryon invited email questions about today's show at coryon@batteries4less.com

To use Google's tools you can get a gmail account or register your current email address as your user name.

Useful tools for anyone are found at Google Docs that allow you to share a word-processing or spreadsheet documents. The documents are compatible with Microsoft Word <Office>. It allows employees to share information, in a collaborative way, which can help promote the business. A recently added feature is the ability to share folders of documents. In a folder you can share any document type, even those that Google Docs can't recognize.

Paul mentioned Google Gears which is an addon to Firefox that allows you to use Google while you're offline. Do a google search for google gears and you'll find an addon for both Internet Explorer and Firefox. It also allows the synchronizing of a document when more than one person works on it.

Paul mentioned the file size limits at Google:
1gig for the docs
1gig for a Picassa album
Over 7gig for the email
He also mentioned, from memory, that Google charges $5/yr for 20gig of extra storage.

Another tool is Google Alerts. Use the "News" link at the top of the Google search page. It will send you an email when a certain word, of your choice, shows up in news articles, blogs, periodicals, newspapers and etc. You can choose words that are related to your business or, of course, for non-business use.

Coryon said he has a blog about the "cell culture" at cellplaza.org.

Eli called to say he has a web site at Google Site as was wondering how to get a "shopping cart" or a "buy now" button incorporated into it so he can sell products.
– Coryon thinks it should have the ability to integrate with Google Checkout, so check into that first.
– There are many free & low cost shopping cart services. Make a list of what features you'd like and find one that fits.
– Zencart and Xcart are a couple of examples.
– Paypal is a great first option to receive payment. The various shopping cart services will have other ways to receive money.
– You can also create an eBay storefront.

Tim called and said he got a domain name in Sept at Go Daddy and wants to know an easy way to create a web site.
– You can use WordPress to integrate with Go Daddy.
– Catharine Schultz at catswebweave.com is consultant who can help with WordPress.
 – Joomla and Druple can provide site management but are complex and not particularly recommended.
– Though WordPress can be used on the WordPress site, it can also be installed on other domains. Catswebweave.com has more info.

Another tool is Google Analytics for those on a budget. It informs you about what works to draw people to make a purchase. It gives statistics about the usage of your webpages, which pages are viewed most, where the people visiting the pages come from, at what point do they end their visit and much more.

Gmail itself allows you to group your mail to better manage mail regarding your business.

Paul talked about 'blue screen of death' trouble shooting.
To find what triggered the crash in Windows, use Whocrashed. See the above link.

USB 3 is coming out. See the above link.

Mac users get complacent because they keep hearing that Macs are more secure than the PCs but may be more vulnerable to phishing scams. See the above link.

Disclaimer:
Views and opinions are those of the show's hosts only.

Last updated 12:04 PM 2/9/2010 

Editor's comments delimited by < >

<When I update a Zentech page, I post a tweet at twitter.com/ddhart
You don't have to join Twitter to read it
You can also search for the tag #Zentech at twitter>

<This show was a pledge drive and contained little related to technology. But there was an IMPORTANT WARNING about a virus. Though Paul said it was for Internet Explorer version 8, I think this is the one first involving IE6 and Windows XP. So don't assume it's just for IE8>

As with previous pledge drives, there was an offer, for 4 pledges at the $120 level, to do a computer cleanup to make your computer run faster. This is for people in the general area around Nevada City.
You can pledge at kvmr.org (check out the thank you gifts) or call…
Locally: (530)-265-9555
or 800-355-5865 (800-355-KVMR)

There is a warning about a rootkit attack.
Microsoft has issued an "out of band" update (one that doesn't follow their regular schedule) to IE8 for a "non-intervention" exploit. That's an infection that occurs just by visiting a malicious web site. Paul said he's seen it bypass both AVG & Symantec Anti-Virus Corporate Edition. The symptom is your searches go where you don't expect them. Ultimately, your keystrokes may be monitored and passwords and other information can be stolen. Though the search results, at Google for instance, may seem normal and the links may be indicated as safe, when you click on one of these links, you may be taken to a malicious site because the virus on your computer directs the browser.
– If you're using FireFox, make sure it's the current version (3.6). Though that by itself won't help if you already have the virus.
– If you have the virus, first update to FireFox 3.6 then manually update Windows.
– This virus can also attack by pretending to be an update to an anti-virus program you've never seen before. Become familiar with how your anti-virus program looks and works so a bogus update won't fool you.

<There's more about rootkits from a previous show here.>

Last updated 7:18 PM 1/25/2010 

Additional notes

 Editor's comments delimited by < >

<When I update a Zentech page, I post a tweet at twitter.com/ddhart.
You don't have to join Twitter to read itl
You can also search for the tag #Zentech at twitter.>

Director Denise Zmekhol, who also did the film "Children Of The Amazon", now has a film called "Trading Bows And Arrows For Laptops". It's about how some tribes in the Amazon are embracing the internet.
Will be shown at the Wild And Scenic Film Festival.
You can find clips at green21.org as well as at childrenoftheamazon.com.

Glenn talked about Windows 7. He had a chance to work with it a bit. He said it boots up fast and, unlike Vista, it shuts down without annoying questions to confirm your intention. He said it's a culture shock for XP users who'll have to adjust to it.

Mikail talked about the new open source Google Nexus One cell phone.
Though it's not an iPhone killer, it has been hacked, can do tethering and already has some apps.
Google does tech support for the Nexus One but only by email, it appears.
Support at T-Mobile & HTC, the manufacturer, refer people to Google.
A version is expected to be available on the Verizon network by mid-year.
Rumor also has it that Apple has chosen a Qualcomm chip to allow the iPhone to be used on the Verizon network and should eventually be available on that network.
Apple has called for a press conference on Jan 26 to possibly announce their tablet computer.

Glenn expressed concern that tablet computers don't have a keyboard.
Mikail mentioned that he has an app for his jailbroken iPhone that allows him to use his wireless Apple keyboard, via Bluetooth, on his iPhone. It's found on Cydia and soon on RockApp. We'll have to wait and see if the Apple tablet will have an option for a keyboard.

Though the Nexus One uses T-Mobile, you can use it with AT&T <I heard you can use the 2G but not 3G network on AT&T, so check this out before you buy>.
To get it to work with AT&T, take the back off, take out the battery and put in the SIM card for an AT&T account.

Glenn asked Mikail to ponder why you can only use your finger to input into an iPhone, why can't you use a stylus? <They didn't come back to this question>

Myra called. She's looking for a new cell phone to use in the Bay Area. She's a Mac user and she's thinking of going to Sprint because she also has a Palm. She's also concerned with AT&T coverage.
– Glenn thought the Palm Pre is available for the AT&T network, so you're not limited to Sprint.
– Mikail said Sprint coverage is poor in the Nevada City area and that he's had good coverage with AT&T. He later said that he's never had AT&T coverage problems in the Bay Area though others have complained.
– Glenn said he's heard from people in the Bay Area that AT&T coverage is spotty.
– Most companies allow you a trial period to make sure their phone will work for you.

Mikail gave a list of costs for the various phones & plans:
– Nexus One with T-Mobile: $529 with no contract, $179 with 2yr a contract ($80/mo for 450min).
– Droid with Verizon: $559.99 unlocked with no contract, $199.99 with 2yr a contract ($100/mo for 450min).
– iPhone $599.99 with no contract, $200 with contract ($89.99/mo). You can get a refurb 16gig iPhone 3GS for about $50 from AT&T, if they still have them.
– Palm Pre with Sprint: $549.99 with no contract, $150 with 2yr contract ($69.99/mo for 450min, unlimited text messages and 5gig of data).

While Mikail was taking, Glenn checked with AT&T and said it doesn't look like they carry the Palm any more.
Glenn also said that the iPhone will not interface with her Palm desktop software. He's had issues synching his iPhone with Outlook on his latest laptop — not everything would come thru.
Mikail said both Verizon & AT&T will be carrying the Palm Pre Plus and the Palm Pixie, but not until the end of Jan (the 25th), Expect it on Verizon first.

Myra went on to say she's been using iSynch to do her synchronizing, but Mikail says he's been using iTunes (which then calls on iSynch to do the job).

While Glenn was on the AT&T web site, he noticed that an Android smartphone is coming soon.

Mark called to say he's also had good coverage with his iPhone.
He also got a Mac Book Pro and was wondering about doing backups to a service on the internet using TimeMachine (a program that comes with the Mac). He wants to be able to backup and restore the entire Mac <presumably the OS too>
– TimeMachine will work with MobileMe, but it's limited to 20gig
– Get an external hard drive. There are some that are fireproof and waterproof.
– As an aside, Mikail said there is an iPhone app that lets him synch his messages to Google's Gmail. It's called reMail.

Ellen called to say she has Palm Centro. When her Palm Pilot died, she couldn't get to her backedup data on her Mac without getting another Palm unit.
Mikail explained to Ellen that the Palm company kept trying to develop a way to synch music with the

iTunes store but Apple kept defeating them by issuing new updates. Eventually, Apple won in court.
Apple & Nokia are also battling in court.

Ellen then asked if it will ever be possible to transfer the Palm data to an iPhone.
– The calendar & contacts can be migrated, even now. On a Mac you'd first bring it into the address book & iCal. Try googling "iCal Palm Centro synch".

Ellen went on to say that she once broke the display on her Palm and recommended that people check to see how fragile the display is before buying a PDA/phone.
  – Mikail says the iPhone is very robust in that respect and he's heard that the Droid is too.
– There are screen protectors available.

Ken called to say that Consumer Reports Jan 2010 is has an article about the best & worst cell phone deals.

Last updated 8:35 PM 1/11/2010