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Sunday August 16, 2009

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Tech News

56% of Americans use WiFi

With laptops already passing desktops, netbooks the most popular computers sold this year, the iPhone and other net enabled smart phones, a majority of Americans get their Net on through a wireless connection. And this is only the beginning.

Apple’s Tablet may be called the “iPad”

That’s the current rumored name of the upcoming iPhone on steroids. It’s supposed to be a 10 inch multi touch with virtual keyboard and an announcement is forthcoming next month. That’s the rumor mill anyway. But everyone’s pretty much in agreement this time.

Top ten searches by teens

This is the top ten list of teen searches according to Norton Family.

YouTube, Google, Facebook, Sex, MySpace, Porn, Yahoo, Michael Jackson, Fred Figglehorn?!, and eBay.

Google’s new search engine called CAFFEINE

Google has completely rewritten their search engine, calling it “Caffeine.” Check it out here. It’s supposed to be faster - like in the old days.

Royal Opera House of London to do Twitter Opera

The Royal Opera of London is asking it’s Twitter followers to write an Opera using Twitter! To participate, go to twitter.com/youropera.

Samsung unveils 2LCD digital camera

With a small LCD in the front, Samsung’s TL225 will make it easier for shutterbugs to take pictures and include themselves in them.

Yahoo wants to bring back the postage stamp … for email!

Thinking they can stop the flow of spam, Yahoo wants to charge .01 to e-mailers for each email they send and donate the money to charity. Leo says it’s called “SendMail” and it sure would kill spam, but it would also render email unusable.

The Unwritten Rules of Technology …

The likelihood that Windows will automatically install time-sucking critical updates is directly proportional to your need to get your PC started.

Read more of these fun rules here.

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Hour 1

Q Jackie, Malibu - Laptop doesn’t go into standby

Jackie’s Sony Vaio won’t go into standby. Leo says that getting a new battery could cause this. Try plugging in the laptop to the AC adapter without the battery and see if it goes into standby. Cheap, third lithium ion batteries can cause this issue and may even overheat. A service pack update can cause it as well.

But bit rot can also cause this issue due to the age of the Windows OS. Leo says at this point, you need to rebuild the OS. Backup your data first, then format the hard drive and reinstall Windows.

Also, check your power options in XP. There’s different schemes. Try a different one and see if it works. The power scheme you’re using may be causing the standby to be “confused.”

Q Shell, West Covina - Laptop hard drive failure

Shell’s laptop hard drive has gone belly up. How can she get her data off? Leo says that it could be a hard drive failure. And if it is, it could cost a bundle to get your data off by a data recovery company (talking 1,000s). If software, it will cost maybe a few hundred.

Software failure can often be fixed with software. Make It Work is a great option for this. They can image the drive and then put it on a new drive. You can also try using Spin Rite to recover the data. It’s about $80.

However, if they can’t image the drive and SpinRite can get it, then it’s probably a hardware issue and you’d have to go to a data recovery service like Drive Savers, which could cost a TON of money.

Q Mike - can’t get online

Mike can’t get online. He can using his Linux Live CD. But not by itself. That means that Windows is “screwed up.” Leo says you can try logging onto another account. If you cleaned off a virus, some are now attaching to critical system files and your AVS may have removed an important file. Sounds to Leo like a “damaged” TCP/IP stack and the only real way to fix that is to backup your data and reformat and install Windows. There are some winsock repair utilities you can try (search Winsock repair for some free options) and Microsoft has a technote on how to repair it. But reinstalling Windows will fix it.

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Hour 2

Q Rick, Orange County - Website sales declining

Rick has an ecommerce site and his sales are declining. How can he optimize his search results to improve traffic? It’s called “Search Engine Optimization.” And its all the rage. But you have to be careful, because if Google thinks you’re trying to “game the system,” they could block you - which is the equivalent of deleting you off the Internet. But there are things you can do to improve your searchable presence. Buzzle did an article on these.

Search isn’t keyword based anymore. The most important thing on your page is the first 1500 characters, especially in the title tag. Make sure all your keywords are in the Title Tag. That’s what search engines look for. Also, use Google Analytics, which will tell you what keywords people use when searching for you so you can include them in your title tag. You can also try changing your ad placements around. Use a site map. And create content that other people will link to. The more links you get the more Google thinks your valuable to the Net and increases your ranking.

But watch out for so-called SEO companies who promise to improve your search status. They are selling Snake oil, plain and simple.

Q Richard, Mission Viejo, CA - HDTV LCD recommendation

Richard is looking for a new LCD HDTV and fell in love with the Samsung LED LCD HDTV. But it’s awfully expensive. Indeed. But it’s practically paper thin thanks to the LED backlighting, and is significantly better in brightness and color. Megahurtz? Leo says it’s a matter of taste. Scott Wilkinson says that the 120hz and 240hz are better for action and sports because they use more and better interpolation (inserting missing frames). But Leo doesn’t like them. He thinks the 120hz screens look fairly phoney. The action is smoother, sure, but it’s important to remember that even the content is 30 and 60 fps, so the 60 hz. is fine. An you can’t go wrong with Samsung.

Q Steve, Agoura Hills - Twitter projects

Along the same lines of the Royal Opera Twitter project, Steve is doing a completely novel written by people on Twitter. They submit 140 character snippets and then Steve and company select the best ones for the ongoing story.

If you’re interested in submitting, head over to TheWorldWritesABook.com

Leo and friends did something similar and you can check it out at twitter.com/140novel

Q Jesus, Stockton, CA - Old computer

Jesus is 12, and has an old computer. Should he reinstall Windows sometimes to keep it running fast? Leo says Jesus is smart, and that’s a good idea. But should he get a new computer? Leo says you could, but why not put Linux on it? At the age of Jesus’ computer, Linux would run far better and faster. And learning Linux at Jesus’ age would not only be a great learning experience, but give him a job for the rest of his life! Debian and Ubuntu are great flavors of Linux.

But getting a new computer is a great idea too, mom and dad!

Q Bill Gilroy, CA - Wireless encryption

Bill keeps getting knocked off his own wireless connection. Leo says that someone may be “borrowing a cup of WiFi.” So you can encrypt your wireless signal with WPA (not WEP as that was cracked in about 30 seconds).

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Hour 3

Q Jim, Oakland, CA - doesn’t use anti-virus

Jim has a system that enabled him to not use an anti-virus. Leo says many of the most experienced web gurus don’t. They just watch their behavior. Jim uses an imaging utility called DICE, which creates a virtual image of what you’re using and then reboots to a known good setup. Leo says Microsoft has one called “Steady State.” But there are some risks. If your data gets infected and you open a file on a computer that isn’t using Dice, then that computer gets infected.

Virtual PC will do that same thing as it runs Windows virtually.

Q Dave, Alhambra, CA - Apple Quad Core for gaming?

Dave plays a lot of games on STEAM and wants to know if Apple has a Quad Core. Apple actually has an 8 core. But Steam isn’t on Apple, only Windows.

Dave also wants to know what VPN to use. Leo suggests the VPN Hotspot 1 if you’re just casually traveling. Using a hotspot VPN will keep you secure when at a strange and public wifi hotspot. Leo also says that a portable router would also be wise.

Q Tim, Simi Valley, CA - Strange error messages

Tim gets the same message popping up (WUAUCLT.EXE) after it crashes. Leo says it should be Windows Update. It may be spyware. Sometimes, spyware authors will name their files the same thing or change the update clients for spyware. But Leo says it’s probably just a bad Windows update client. Open Task Manager. It’ll be in the list of tasks. You can kill it, but Leo would prefer you check to see if it isn’t spyware. Check out the System File Checker (SFC). It’ll check to see if any System files have been modified or corrected. Start - Run - CMD return. SFC \scannow. It’ll not only scan your files, but will prompt you for your Windows disk to repair it.

Q Brian, Missouri - upgrading Cell Phones

Brian is looking at the Instinct, the Palm Pre and the Curve. Leo doesn’t like the Instinct at all. The Pre is brand new and Leo likes it a lot. But you can’t beat the Blackberry. The Bold, Tour, 8890 are all updated Curves. Leo really likes the Pre and thinks that Brian won’t be disappointed with it.

Brian also wants to know what Leo thinks of gadgets which allow you to watch TV on your computer. Leo thinks they’re great, especially for truck drivers like Brian. And they work best with broadcast channels as opposed to interfacing with a cable box.Leo recommends the ElGato.

Q Hennoak, Santa Barbara, CA - Getting started in programming

Hennoak is 14 and wants to learn programming. Leo says study math as there’s a lot of math, algebra in programming. Hennoak wants to make games. Leo says that Alice.Org is a great, free introduction to programming and it’s really fun to play with. Also, there’s Squeak. But you really need to read this book - How to Design Programs by MIT Press. And it’s free! It’ll teach you to program using Scheme and LISP.

Q Becky, Clayton, CA - HP freezes online

When she gets online, her HP crashes. Try downloading and installing Firefox. It’s far better, faster, and won’t crash as much. More secure, too. You may also need to backup your data and reinstall Windows. It’s like spring cleaning and will make it run like new again.

Q Caroline, CA - Bad windows update

Caroline’s computer won’t complete Windows update. It shuts down. Leo says that like Becky, it’s time to reinstall Windows. But Windows update does get stuck. Here’s a Microsoft Technote which can help unstick it.

Have a great geek week and DON’T FORGET TO BACKUP TODAY!

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