SPAUG Newsletter March 2005
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Notes from the Prez
by Jim Dinkey
Which book do you grab when you need help?
This month I'll recommend some books by ISBN that you might call essentials if you are having operating system troubles.
Windows XP Annoyances (0-596-00416-8) is right on the top of my list because it allows me to correct or modify XP to meet my needs. For example:
- How to make your XP log itself in without asking for a password - but still have a password.
- Or how to use Powertoys including TweakUI - and why.
- Computer slow - how to optimize cache and Virtual Memory.
- User Accounts and Administration so the grandkids can play but not ruin.
Microsoft Windows XP Inside Out Deluxe Edition with SP2 (0-7356-2043-1) answers questions like:
- How do I control and stop malware?
- How do I control what programs start at boot? How can I have my kid remotely log onto my computer to fix it?
- If I can't get onto the Internet, what do I do to assure success?
C|Net's Guide to Using Windows XP (no ISBN) Don't pay more than $10 for it. Short on fine detail but an good overview of just what we are talking about concerning networking, tuning, file transfer, starting, booting, driver problems, etc.
Windows XP Pro (The book that should have been in the box) (0-596-00348-x) - How to run your Pro version referencing networking, startup, remote operation, controlling programs and documents, how to use everything in the Control Panel, how to maintain the operating system, etc.
How to get these books? The usual way or try www.alibris.com so that many book stores will bid for your business.
Happy computing.
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General Meeting Notes
by Stan Hutchings
Linux Demonstration - John Sleeman
John Sleeman gave a simplified introduction to Suse 9.2 Linux, which he says is now ready for general users. The interface has been simplified and made graphical, so no more command line entries are necessary. It looks much like Windows.
Operating from the root (equivalent to running as admin in Windows) is not advised; it is for administration. You can do it, but the bombs in the background are warning you that the root is a risky place to work from. [N.B.—it is very risky to run as admin in Windows; for a cautionary tale, read this] On the desktop you can mouse-over the icons to see what they do. For example - browser, office, printer, introduction, trash.
Don't expect Windows applications to work under Linux without an emulator. Instead, get the equivalent Linux application. There are many, and most are free.
There is a bar with buttons similar to Windows Taskbar, which includes logout, run, utilities, command line, help, etc.
The office application, OpenOffice.org, has programs similar to Outlook, Browser, Excel, Word, PowerPoint, etc. The spreadsheet is very similar to Excel. The math functions are pretty much the same as Excel's. Writer is similar to Word, you can write, format and edit documents. You can Save as… with the Microsoft extension types, and the files created are then readable by the corresponding Microsoft application.
Administrivia
- Don Baird, former president of SPAUG was introduced.
- Please sign the attendance record for the Elks Lodge.
CrossTalk/Random Access
- The recent Microsoft Update showed that the only update was for the Microsoft AntiSpyware 1.0 beta. Has anyone installed this program? Is it any good:
Yes, it works, and you can load it. It will sometimes find some malware others don't. That will be free for individuals when the final product ships. You can still run SpyBot S&D and AdAware. Don't run more than one at a time.
- A user reported that watching CPU usage showed several programs taking a lot of CPU time (right-click the task bar, click Task Manager..., click the Processes tab). The amount varied, but was considerable.
This indicates possible malware operation. First run SpyBot S&D and AdAware, and the Microsoft AntiSpyware, if you have it. Run Trend Micro's Housecall; if it gets stuck, you most likely have a problem. Bring Housecall down to your hard drive and then run it under Mozilla. Then use HiJackThis, which will allow you to take a snapshot of the computer programs that are running; submit the resultant report to Help2Go, which will tell you what to clean off your computer. Look at the January newsletter, how to set up your computer and how to keep it running well. Note: Use of HijackThis should only be done by those who have a advanced understanding of how a Wndows operating system works, or are willing to ask others for help. Please make sure you know what you are doing when you fix entries reported by HijackThis. Incorrect usage can cause problems on your computer. If these steps don't solve the problem, make a reservation for the Saturday Clinic.
More alternate detailed instructions: run HijackThis (a program which gathers information on all the running tasks; if you don't have the club CD, there is information about downloading and running HiJackThis here). Then paste the log file generated (Edit - Select all, Copy, and then Paste it) into the window on the page you get at IamNotaGeek's analyzer. Click Parse. This then parses the log and classifies each of the lines. For most of them, you can follow a link to see details about the program and decide if that is something you want running all the time or not. If you want to be very thorough, you will have to some some additional searching for more information those that are unknown or you may not be sure if you want them or not.
- This week's Saturday Clinic will work on three computers, one has a "shoe" to swap out one of three hard disks. This allows quick change of operating systems. This replaces triple boot.
- The Numlock key gets set/reset in some applications but not in others.
- New SATA drives are successors of the IDE drives of the recent past, which were in turn successors of the older ISA format. They increase data transfer rate. You do need a motherboard that can handle the SATA drive, so be careful when buying a new hard drive. Expect more SATA in the future, so plan ahead.
Presentation
Joe Kraus, co-founder and CEO of Jotspot, discussed the history and intrigue of wikis* as well as how Jotspot's innovative application wiki is changing the category. A technology that today has largely been in the hands of the very technical, JotSpot strives to bring wikis to the technical mainstream and corporate America. We heard whether this hot technology is destined to stay small or whether it has market potential to get really big, and we looked at recent software development trends that might point to answers.
One of the founders of the highly successful Internet company, Excite, Inc., Joe Kraus has been involved with early-stage technology development and starting companies for more than thirteen years. In 2000, after traveling to many different countries, he went on to found Digitalconsumer.org, a non-profit grassroots consumer organization with more than 50,000 members dedicated to protecting consumer's fair-use rights to digital media. After using wikis for a few minutes, he founded JotSpot, the first application-wiki company, to great early success, in 2004.
Wikis overcome the "read-only" character of the web. Blogging was the first step towards an interactive web, giving more power to the people to publish information (as well as a lot of fluff). A wiki can greatly facilitate the updating of websites, especially in a company. Currently there is no way a user can update a website - that is the Webmaster's job. The wiki will allow the "involved" or "interested" user to quickly update online information.
* What is a Wiki? A wiki is a website designed for collaboration. Unlike a traditional website where pages can only be read, in a wiki everyone can edit, update and append pages with new information and without knowing HTML.
John Sleeman gave a presentation featuring the Linux operating system, why you should be using it, and what you can do with it.
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16 March Planning Meeting Notes
by Stan Hutchings
- The meeting was held at Bev Altman's house; attendees: Jim Dinkey, John Sleeman, Bev Altman, John Buck, Nat Landes, Robert White, Richard Sweet and Stan Hutchings. The attendees enjoyed the refreshments served.
- Review of finances: Bev gave Nat $210; Jim will send some checks he's received.
- Cleanup support: Jim needs more help after the meeting to clean up and put away.
- Wireless capability: we have it, and it is a real value for presenters who need access to the Internet. Case in point, the Wiki presentation was much more effective when the web sites could be accessed in real time.
- Future speakers & pre-meeting dinner location -
13 Apr - Smart Computing magazine, pre-meeting dinner at Marie Callenders, 4710 El Camino Real, Los Altos
11 May - Gary Sasaki will report on the recent Consumer Electronics Show (CES), pre-meeting dinner at Armadillo Willy's, 1031 N. San Antonio Road, Los Altos
8 Jun - Nancy Blachman/Google, pre-meeting dinner at Celia's Mexican Restaurant, 3740 El Camino Real, Palo Alto
13 Jul - Def Iuupa of Caboodle, pre-meeting dinner at Cibo Bar and Grill, 3398 El Camino Real, Palo Alto
10 Aug - Jan Altman will make a presentation on Excel, pre-meeting dinner at Crowne Plaza Cabaña, 4290 El Camino Real.
14 Sep - Hank Skawinski, pre-meeting dinner at (tbd)
12 Oct - tbd, pre-meeting dinner at (tbd)
9 Nov - tbd, pre-meeting dinner at (tbd)
Possibilities - Acronis, Dan Gillmor, Mike Langberg, Electronic Freedom Foundation, a presentation on genealogy
- Clinic activities and changes: we're actually in pretty good shape. We have several volunteers who'll act as a team. More volunteers would be good. There are several computers in the clinic that will be worked on
- Newsletter comparisons: the SVCS user magazine was shown. They have a different philosophy, sending out a PDF file that is mainly a large collection of magazine articles. They do not publish a "hard copy" version, but members can print the file if they want.
- Linux demonstration criteria. Linux interest - Dick Delp and Robert White will be giving presentations. Examples: Real Player, Firewall, GIMP, and utilities similar to those on the club CD. Perhaps the Linux group can put together a Linux CD for sale to the group? Perhaps a self-booting version with the programs demonstrated at the meetings?
- Membership: Bev reports we're holding at about 115 members
- WebSIG activities and schedules - WebSIG next Tuesday 7:30 at Stan's; email if you're coming.
- Publicity effectiveness - Richard Sweet: the San Jose Mercury announcements are the biggest draw. Richard is also trying to get announcements in the Sunnyvale, Santa Clara, Palo Alto and Los Altos papers. Other suggested postings are local libraries, the Computer History Museum, Micro Center and Fry's.
- DISIG and SVCS involvement: Jim will send our newsletter in PDF format. If SVCS provides their Journal online, we will link to it. Maury Green is leading DISIG now.
- Status of SPAUG CD - burn more, or wait and take orders? We have 6 left, just enough for the next 6 presenters. Probably best to take orders, and burn on demand. It is about time to start a mid 2005; what should it be like? should we start a new committee, like Linux? or draft others? We'd like to have one ready in the July timeframe.
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SPAUG Clinic to continue helping members
by Jim Dinkey
As always, the Clinic will be available by appointment. The SPAUG Clinic will continue with the aid of five volunteers who will collectively cover the Clinic on Saturdays. Please thank them when you see them. They are:
- Bob DeGrasse
- Dick Delp
- Larry Templeton
- Bob Lewis
- Tom Schmidt
Saturday 5 March we will have both Bob DeGrasse and Tom Schmidt ready to work on your computer. Other pairs will be on duty other Saturdays.
At this moment, there is no one scheduled for Saturday 5 March, so if things are getting a bit messy with your computer, now is the time to make an appointment. Normally we will have both morning and afternoon appointments, but for a while, we will be having appointments that begin in the morning and that will permit us to carry over to the afternoon for any computers that are really in trouble.
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