PuterGeek.Com
News
Issue # 64
ISSN: 1533-1938
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The PuterGeek.Com News (PGCN)
date 04/29/2001
Issue # 64
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A casual newsletter that goes out 1-5 times per month.
It contains excerpts and articles from all the newsletters I
read condensed down to a manageable size. Plus info about
PuterGeek.Com, as well as various tips and tricks I've learned.
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Contents:
1) WEBSITE NEWS
2) A GREAT SITE AND NEWSLETTER
3) FROM THE FUNNIES
4) FROM SUPPORT ALERT
5) FROM PCIN
6) TIPS AND TRICKS!!7) FROM THE LANGALIST
8) FROM LOCKERGNOME
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Hello Everyone!
I'd like to welcome all the new subscribers! PGCN now has over 1400 subscribers. I don't really know how many countries the newsletter
goes to...Australia, England, China, New Zealand to name a few. I'm curious here...if you have time and live and receive the PGCN newsletter in
another country, how about a quick email to
webmaster@putergeek.com to let me know? I'm sure the
list would like to hear how many countries this is going to. (BTW, a post card from your country would be really neat too...hint, hint...you
can get my address at
http://www.putergeek.com/thanks/ )
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1) WEBSITE NEWS
Not too much going on. I've been taking a much needed break to recharge my batteries (as well as to play EverQuest). We have two new
Sponsors at the Sponsors page
http://www.putergeek.com/sponsor/
I have a number of new pages floating in my head at the moment. Now that my new Dell laptop is all set up, I should be able to focus more
on the website.
Voting for the new link button is now closed. I'll be announcing the winning button in the next issue. This button will become
the new and only graphical link for PuterGeek.Com. I truly want to thank all of you that have taken the time to vote and especially want
to thank those of you that submitted buttons!
Our new newsletter, "Life On The Road" (LOTR) is doing well. In a recent issue Amy explained how it felt to momentarily lose her
headlights while coming out of a construction area :-) Of course, those weren't quite the same words she used! Check it out at
http://www.putergeek.com/trucking/
It explains some of the customs and rules on the net regarding email. Quite a few people have never heard terms like "CC", "BCC",
"attachment" and so on, well now you can learn all about them and more.
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2) A GREAT SITE AND NEWSLETTER!
Is this an ad? Sort of, but not really. Since I get to write it, and since I really like it, I tend to think of the following as a
recommendation, not an ad.
First, I want all of you to click on this link:
http://www.pcin.net/ Then, I'd like you to take a look
around this excellent website created and maintained by Graham Wing.
This is another great site for novice 'puter users! Graham has a weekly newsletter called "The PC Improvement News (PCIN), which is free
to everyone. I use his fine newsletters as one of my "staples" in this newsletter. Why should you subscribe to his newsletter then?
Well, for one thing, I don't have the space to put everything Graham writes into this newsletter.
Plus, he has a section I think you'll all find interesting that I never talk about...it's called "I NEED HELP". This is where subscribers
send in questions, he puts them in the newsletter, 1700+ people see them, they send him answers, he then puts the answers as well as new questions in
the next issue. A very nice idea Graham!
Is MR. Wing a competitor to me? NOPE! We both approach helping people in a slightly different way. Plus I feel you can never
get too much info when you need help. That's why you should check out both his site and newsletter. I find his writing style to be
personal and very comfortable, both of which is very important to me for easy reading.
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NOW FOR THE GOOD STUFF!
Three women were sitting around talking about their husbands' performance as a lover.
The first woman says "My Husband works as a marriage counselor. He always buys me flowers and candy before we make love. I like
that."
The second woman says, "My husband is a motorcycle mechanic. He likes to play rough and slaps me around sometimes. I kinda like
that."
The third woman just shakes her head and says, "My husband works for Microsoft. He just sits on the edge of the bed and tells me how great
it's going to be when I get it."
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Spouse [noun];
A person who will stand by you through all of the trouble that you wouldn't have had if you had stayed single.
A Father is a man with pictures in his wallet, where he used to keep his money when he was single.
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* Understanding TCP/IP
* How to Dual Boot Windows 2000
* Understanding the OSI 7 Layer Model
* The Windows Registry Explained
* How to Create Bootable CDs
* JavaScript Tutorial
* IPv6 Tutorial
Plus dozens more.
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New Acrobat Reader
Adobe is now shipping Acrobat v5, and the free PDF file reader has also been updated. If you need to view PDF files, get the update now to
avoid problems with PDF files that are incompatible with v4 of the reader.
http://www.adobe.com/products/acrobat
Beware This Site
One of the industry's biggest players in the Spam market is now upsetting Web surfers, according to a recent report on Bugnet. If your
users receive an email from a friend or colleague urging them to check out passthison.com, you should advise them to do no such thing. The site
leads to dozens of unwanted pop-up pages which attempt to elicit personal information. This is best avoided, and you may wish to configure your
firewall accordingly.
http://www.bugnet.com
No NT4 SP7
Microsoft will be issuing no more service packs for Windows NT v4.0. SP6 was the last, and SP7 has been cancelled.
In a move that has angered major NT users, Microsoft confirmed last week that it wants to move companies to Windows 2000 and XP rather than have them
remain on the NT platform.
http://www.microsoft.com/ntserver/sp7.asp
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Microsoft picks FireWire over USB
----------------------------------------------------------------
"Microsoft will not support a budding peripheral-connection standard in its forthcoming Windows XP operating system, instead favouring a
technology developed by Apple Computer.
The software maker said it will not include support for USB 2.0, the latest iteration of the universal serial bus connection technology, in Windows
XP, its next-generation operating system expected later this year. Microsoft will instead throw its support behind IEEE 1394, also known as
FireWire, which was developed by Apple."
SIX BEST PRACTICES FOR CONFIGURING YOUR FIREWALL You've just installed a new firewall--now what? Find out how to set your policy file to
specify what services to let through and which ones to keep out.
http://cgi.zdnet.com/slink?94910:8039905
Access System Properties in an instant. Just push the Windows key and then push the pause break key. Let them go together. Tah
Dah!!
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Quick IE Tip
Reader Brendan O'Carrol suggests a tip that illustrates how many ways there are to accomplish the same task:
Hi Fred, Great newsletter. Here is a tip I use in IE5 (You probably already know it): Hold the SHIFT button down when you click on a
link. The new page will open in a new window. When you close this page you will be instantly back at the first page (no waiting for the
page to reload)
One of Microsoft software's greatest strengths AND weaknesses is that there are usually about nine different ways to accomplish any given
task. <g> I personally *like* having many ways to do things, because I can usually find at least one that more or less suits my workstyle
(rather than having to adopt my workstyle to fit the software). The downside is that unless you're at least generally familiar with all the
different methods, instructions given in one particular style may seem alien and weird to you.
For example, I tend to be a mouser, for no particular reason other than that I'm not a great typist. As such, I usually opt for
mouse-oriented navigation. To open a link in a new window, I right-click on the link and simply select "open in new window" from the context
menu.
Other people--- especially touch-typists--- are inveterate keyboarders who know every odd key combination and chord that lets them do most
things without ever removing their hands from the keys. For example, they can use the Tab key to navigate to a particular link on a page, and
then press Shift-Enter to open that link in a new Window--- all without ever touching the mouse.
Brendan's tip is a hybrid: a key-AND-click method to force IE to open a link in a new window. You may find it a time-saver, especially if
your style is to keep your left hand on the keys while you mouse with your right (or vice versa).
All the ways work, and no one is the "correct" or "best way." Just use whatever feels right for you--- and be aware that there are many other
ways to do things!
Thanks, Brendan!
(NOTE: I've been saying this for years! This is both a curse and a blessing for newbies! They get confused about what is the right
way to do something, not realizing that there are many ways to do anything in windows! - Peter)
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IE6 Beta Woes Continue
Although many readers are getting good results from the beta of IE6, I'm getting more and more complaints from those who are having trouble such
as poor Cookie-handling, munged email settings, and--- well, listen to what reader Renate Bates says:
Just read your warnings about installing IE 6.00. Well, NOW you tell me... :-) [See
http://www.langalist.com/newsletters/2001/2001-04-09.htm#1 ] After I installed IE
6.00, I began receiving BLANK e-mail - lots of it, and some of those displayed the words "IE 6.00 - Message US-ASCII". After repairing Outlook
and reinstalling Outlook several times, I reinstalled IE 5.5 (especially so since I also was unable to use McAfee's online virus scan - kept getting
the message that I needed a newer version of my browser!)). I still kept getting receiving blank e-mail....
So, I checked the newsgroups and found the remedy mslang.dll is the culprit and needs to be replaced with the previous one that came with
Windows. I have an old installation of Win98 on a different drive, so I just copied that file to a floppy. I then rebooted to the command
prompt and copied mslang.dll to the windows\system directory. Tried to copy it while running windows, but kept getting the message that the
"file was in use". I see that, on top of the e-mail window, it still reads IE 6.00 - Message (HTML) - even though IE 6.000 is no longer there -
but I'm no longer getting blank e-mail.
So, you may want to warn the other readers that, if they would like "mystery" e-mail, well, then IE 6.00 is just right! I enjoy reading
your newsletter and thank you for all the great information it contains!
Thanks, Renate.
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Free XXcopy
I've previously mentioned the DOS command, Xcopy--- and the freeware DOS extension XXcopy (see
http://www.langa.com/newsletters/2000/2000-06-
15.htm#5 ) Basically, Xcopy is a more powerful "copy" command that can move entire directory trees in your hard drive all at once. XXcopy is
even more powerful, with more built-in features.
If you're a power user, the free XXcopy can be a very handy tool. The current version is 2.44.4; if you're using an older version or are
new to this powerful utility, check out:
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Remote Tray v1.10 [48k] W9x/NT/2k FREE
{Move windows to the system tray} Woo hoo! Woo... sorry. Here's an awesome app that allows you move a running program window from the taskbar to
the system tray. The windows you need will be ready and waiting over there. It's a great way to unclutter your taskbar -- especially if you're like
me and tend to have about thirty windows open at one time. Of course, it's good to keep your system tray uncluttered, too. You'll have to find a
happy medium... or an overzealous fortune teller. Start using Windows -- stop having windows use you.
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Win2K Power Users Mailing List
"A once-a-week newsletter devoted to hints, tips, tricks, news and goodies for Windows NT, Windows 2000 and (future) Windows XP users. Moderated
and edited by Serdar Yegulalp, former Senior Technology Editor of WINMAG.COM, with over seven years of Windows experience under his belt. Come on
board for a once-a-week helping of Windows information!" And this is one newsletter I look forward to receiving every weekend. It's straightforward
and easy for anyone to read; if you plan on upgrading to Windows XP, walk into battle with Serdar.
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Neotrace Express v3.0 [816k] W9x/NT/2k FREE
Unearthed by Kevin Fox
{Trace your Internet route} Neotrace is free! Okay, it's not free, but they are offering a freeware version. So... it's free! For those of you who
don't know what this software does, let me fill ya in. It's a graphical Internet trace route utility. Just enter the URL you wish to trace and watch
a red line travel from one geographical location to another. This software can even check multiple hops at the same time. You can also integrate it
with Internet Explorer, too. You'll feel just like a super agent. Or maybe that's just me.
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Preggers Conception Planner v1.0 [410k] W9x/NT/2k FREE
{Help for getting pregnant} Gretchen and I have been married for a couple of years now; there are currently no plans to have children. We're
incredibly content with beings that bark for the moment, even though my parents have been pushing us to become parents ourselves. My dad's trying to
relive his fatherhood through me... or something like that. Well, I tell ya -- if and when we start to walk down that road, I'll be sure to give
Gretchen this proggie. No, it's definitely not for the general public -- but I bet you know of someone who could use the planner.
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That's all for now!
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Last Revised: 04/29/2001
