Personal Tech
By Rob Pegoraro, Washington Post Personal Technology Columnist
The Washington Post’s was online at to discuss recent reviews and answer your personal tech questions.
Read Rob’s latest tech tips in his new blog, Faster Forward.
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Good afternoon, and thanks for showing up. So far, we’ve got questions about digital TV, DVD recorders, wireless networking and Windows Vista. I’ll get to all those and as many other questions as I can over the next hour or so.
Let’s get started…
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Rob, How do you think the 802.11n specification and hardware will affect municipal wireless? The increased range of 802.11n should decrease the hardware costs by reducing the number of transmitters needed to cover a given area, or by increasing the coverage area for a given number of transmitters Will 802.11n speed up the deployment of municipal wireless?
The wireless networks that EarthLink is planning to build in Alexandria and Arlington won’t use this higher-powered protocol–they’ll be based on the older 802.11b and 802.11g protocols instead.
I don’t know that 802.11n would necessarily make much of a difference in practice. The special receiver you’ll probably need will supposedly connect to transmitters as far as 1,000 feet away, which far exceeds the range of 802.11n in normal use. (That’s not to say that a comparably souped-up 802.11n receiver might work over even greater distances, but it might also cost a lot more.)
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Do you have any insight as to where one might find one of the digital DVD recorders that you reviewed in your column last week? Or any digital DVD recorder? I’m not having much luck online (Amazon just has one) and the chain electronic stores don’t seem to have anything either. Viewing the snowy shows that my VCR is taping with my OTA HDTV is getting very tiresome.
The DVD Player, Fully Mature
Both the LG and the Panasonic models I reviewed were listed on Circuit City’s Web site when I checked earlier this week. Other models in their lineup haven’t made it to retail yet.
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Now that dealers are (finally!!!) stocking digital-compatible TVs in the 19-21 inch range, I wanted to ask whether you think it’s worthwhile to upgrade to a fancier LCD and/or HDTV model. My initial thought is that, since the TV is relatively small and I don’t use it that much, the marginal difference in picture quality isn’t worth the much higher price, but if you have any insights on tube-vs-LCD I’m all ears.
And for what it’s worth, I don’t have cable and am strictly an over-the-air user — would I even be able to get HDTV using just an antenna?
Here’s a related issue. I wouldn’t get an HDTV at that size if a standard-definition model cost less–but if you get an LCD, you may not have that option. (A 20-inch CRT, however, almost certainly will be standard-definition.)
If you’re happy with your analog-TV reception today, you will probably be thrilled with how digital TV looks.
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Some scenes invite being remembered in B/W. Are there any 5+ MP cameras available that take B/W and Color snaps?
They all do–you turn a color shot into black and white either by selecting that mode before taking the picture, or by editing it in photo-album software afterwards.
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Do you think Microsoft should, to some degree, be held responsible for the damage their poorly designed software has done to the Internet? Shouldn’t they be able to release a virus into the wild that would shut down any unprotected Windows machine thus reducing the number of zombie machines available for botnets?
Sounds tempting, but… no. Let’s think this through: First you want to hold Microsoft accountable (which I presume means civil liability) for bugs in its software, then you want the company to start remotely disabling machines that it thinks are unprotected (which would almost instantly launch a flood of lawsuits from people saying their PCs were, in fact, protected).
Somehow, I don’t see Microsoft going for this.
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I am one of the few technologically backward people who still has dial-up internet access since I don’t use the internet often at home. However, I must confess, the slow speed is becoming very trying. I hope FiOS will be arriving soon in my neighborhood (Arlington), but the installation schedule seems to be a State secret. Is it worth waiting for? How does its speed compare with DSL and cable?
Fios is very fast, but it’s not worth waiting for–who knows how long you’ll have to wait?
Get DSL instead. Even the slowest speeds available will feel like lightning after dial-up.
About a year from now, BTW, you should also be able to choose the new wireless network that EarthLink proposes to build throughout the county. (The County Board hasn’t voted on this yet, but everybody expects this to sail through at Saturday’s meeting.)
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Hi, Rob! My question concerns scanners . . .Many years ago I paid $900 for an Epson Expression 636 scanner with a SCSI interface – I’ve been through a couple of PCs and now have it connected to a six year old Dell running Win2K. I bought the scanner primarily because, at the time, it was one of the few that would copy photo negatives at a reasonably high resolution. But the world has changed and I’m thinking about replacing everything. Is there a scanner that will do photos and negatives really well? It seems that everyone carries the all-in-one printers now but I’m not convinced they can do the job (not to mention that most are the inkjets that I despise – I virtually never print in color except for photos and am about to toss my third one in 4 years.) Any advice?
I’ve gotta through this one out to your collective wisdom–I haven’t seen a slide in years, much less tried to scan one in.
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I want to make home movies and burn DVDs off my PC to play on my DVD player (connected to the TV). I have a Canon digital camera (not a movie camera/camcorder, but a point-and-shoot camera) that takes short movies.
My question is– can I use the files from this camera to burn onto a DVDR and play on my DVD player? Or is there something different about these files that won’t allow them to be recognized by the DVD player? Will I have to buy a camcorder? Thanks!
You’ll need to use a movie-editing program to convert your camera’s files into DVD format. Check to see what came with the camcorder–most include some sort of editing software, even if it’s nothing too fancy. But if nothing’s in the box, you’ll need to go shopping; the Windows Movie Maker program that comes with XP can’t burn movies to DVD. (The one in Vista Home Premium can, but you didn’t use the V-word in your post so I’m assuming you’re still on XP.)
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Rob, a few questions for you:
1. I ordered a 2GB flash drive with the plan to devote 1GB to Vista’s ReadyBoost feature. My laptop currently has 1GB of RAM. Will I notice a significant benefit?
2. My laptop shut down due to overheating. How can I best avoid that? Might I want to replace the battery?
3. Can you (or others) recommend a pair of good earbuds in the $40-50 range? Thanks.
1) I’d think so.
2) I think you need to have the manufacturer take a look at the laptop. You could have a serious risk here.
3) No advice myself; I’m still trucking along with the earphones that came with my iPod. Any suggestions for Seattle?
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I’m looking for a new mp3 player, but I’m apparently one of the few who dislikes iTunes and the Apple aesthetic. Are there any good players out there with large hard drives (20-30GB or more) that aren’t iPods?
Of all the non-iPod hard drive-based models that I’ve tried, the one I’ve liked best is–don’t laugh–the Zune. It is bigger and heavier than an iPod, but it gets decent battery life, the wireless music-sharing feature could be useful (granted, I’ve yet to see anybody in Metro with a Zune on my daily commute) and the interface has the same kind of simplicity and elegance that I like in the iPod. You also get an FM tuner in the bargain.
But: The Zune Marketplace is terrible, and the Zune software is XP/Vista-only. If you’re *not* going to buy or rent WMAs off the Zune store and you do run XP or Vista, you can be happy with the Zune.
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Thanks for answering my question last chat about static and dynamic IP addresses-very helpful, but I have a followup. If I am at a public library using their dynamic address, can my company’s computer still tell it’s me when I use their site? (Their site is a public address-doesn’t need a password-but I want to be able to verify to my boss that I’m working even though I’m not home.)
No, your company would only know that Somebody at the library was connecting to their site. There would be nothing unique to you unless you signed in at some point.
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I have the Cannon 4400F. It says it does negatives and even has a special sleeve for holding them for scanning. I haven’t scanned a negative (haven’t seen one in years) but it is specially designed for it. I got mine mail order (www.newegg.com) for less than $100 with S/H. I use it for scanning documents and my daughter’s art (she’s 4) and I love it (the scanner – and yes, my daughter’s art too)
Thanks!
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My desktop computer is noisy. Is there anything I can put around it to reduce the amount of noise I hear from it?
Not really. At worst, you might block the cooling vents, causing it to overheat and shut down.
If you’re the tinkering type, you’d have better luck replacing the noisy components–usually, the cooling fans. A tower-case desktop PC can have more than three fans (two to cool the processor, one in the internal power brick), and a lot of companies buy the absolute cheapest components available.
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“They all do–you turn a color shot into black and white either by selecting that mode before taking the picture, or by editing it in photo-album software afterwards.”
Not really Mr. Pegoraro. While you can flip a switch on a camera or click the mouse on your computer to “de-colorize” your picture, it is not the same as taking a picture in black and white. Nikon has been working hard to come up with a CCD that can switch between film-quality greyscale to color without much success. Almost every color CCD will not give you an accurate and crisp greyscale picture. If the poster does not have experience in black and white film photography, they probably won’t know the difference, but if they’re a serious B and W photographer, there has yet to be an affordably priced camera that can reproduce the level of detail in greyscale that B and W film creates. I could only imagine what an Ansel Adams photograph would look like taken on a color digital camera and “de-colorized.”
Well, yeah. But this poster didn’t say he was looking for Ansel Adams’ digital camera.
As a general rule, I don’t write or chat for the hard-core enthusiast–the price-is-no-object crowd that treats technology as a hobby. I’m more concerned with finding what’s a good value and works well enough. (Which is why, for example, I’m a lot more excited about cheap but relatively slow wireless Internet access than superfast cable-modem services that cost 3 or 4 times as much.)
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I adore my Sennheiser PX100s. Not super bass heavy, obviously, but easily clean enough for iPod files. They fold up into a relatively compact configuration, and I find their supra-aural design very comfortable. For the record, I loathe earbuds.
Thanks. (“Supra-aural” means, I think, that they fit over your ear, not in it. [Right?])
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I recently turned on WPA security on my D-Link DI-524 router. Now, the router seems to go down regularly. I know this since I have an Apple Airport on the system and the light often goes from green (connected) to blinking yellow (no network) and many times the laptop doesn’t connect up right away. When the laptop does connect, it says “connect but out of range” and then tries to reconnect.
I’ve re-updated the router firmware (which was already at the latest version but I figured a refresh couldn’t hurt). So now I’m thinking about a new router.
I link Dlink but would be wiling to try another brand. It must allow MAC address spoofing (so my cable modem thinks it connected to my old desktop and let’s me get online). My laptop is a Dell Latitude D510 (built 12/2005) with an Intel Pro 2915 802.11a / b / g MiniPCI card. Any thoughts on a new router?
Wait a sec–your cable modem won’t work unless it thinks it’s connected to your original desktop? What kind of brain-dead system is that? What would your cable operator have you do if you ever replace that machine?
(Suggestions for new wireless routers are welcome, too.)
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Rob, More a rant then a question. With the new TV standard coming up, it is virtually impossible to find a small LCD TV (20-inch or smaller) with a digital tuner. After shopping on line and all local stores, for a month, I was able to find a 19 inch HD LCD TV, but what a challenge. It does not make sense to me to buy a TV with a standard tuner, at this time, and the big box stores don’t make it easy to find a small TV with a digital tuner.
Not much I can say here but “I agree, this stinks.” (See my old blog post on this: A Digital Deadline Dawns – Faster Forward.) Where’d you finally find your LCD, and how has it been working for you at home?
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Hey Rob, Regarding your discussion last week about the Treo and getting wrong information. I thought about getting one last year to incorporate my phone and PDA but I didn’t want to pay for the extra internet access. I was told by the Verizon rep that the phone will always be searching for a signal even if I didn’t have internet access. So I bought a Palm TX instead to get wifi. Is that true about the Treo or is there a way to turn off any default settings that make it look for internet access? In any case I love the big screen of the TX and the wifi access that’s not available any any phone models so far. Thanks for all your great information.
Well, the Treo’s a phone, so like any other phone it will look for a signal when the phone part is turned on. (You can turn that part off and use the Treo just like a regular handheld.) But that doesn’t mean it’s always trying to connect; it will only do that if you run a program–the Web browser, the e-mail client, Internet-connected apps like FlightStatus or Google Maps–that itself needs Internet access.
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The best way to digitize (or scan) a slide or film negative is to purchase a digital SLR with a slide adaptor or a scanner compatible with a light box.
If you already own a digital SLR, a slide adaptors cost around $50 and screws onto lenses like a filter (just make sure you purchase the correct diameter). All you need is a good source of even white light (fluorescent works best), and snap away.
With a scanner, you need to make sure there is a compatible light box the typically replaces the bed cover. I tend to prefer the camera slide adaptors because the resolution of a digital SLR is WAY beyond that of affordable flatbed scanners.
Much appreciated, Bethesda.
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I cannot seem to get Adobe Flash Player to download onto my computer. I have made repeated attempts, including going through an uninstall procedure, but I always wind up on the screen “Adobe Flash Player” with a note saying “When you see the installation completion movie above…” but I never see anything beyond that page. I have attempted to troubleshoot the problem using several sites I got through Google but nothing seems to work. I have checked the security page of internet options and set the ActiveX buttons to settings suggested in the troubleshooting messages and no luck. I have even used the “Low” security level and no luck. I would appreciate any suggestions you might have. Thanks.
First, please promise me that you’ll never again try to debug a Web issue by setting IE’s security to “low.” That’s all but begging for a browser hijacking.
Second: Try the workaround I suggested last week–downloading the installer program that runs outside of your browser. You could also try installing Flash in the Firefox browser (which, as you may have heard me mention once or twice, is better than IE anyway).
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Rob — I have a small family network, wired/wireless. I created it using the MS ‘wizards.’ At first it was unsecure, then I discovered a neighbor was tapping in. I now use WPA, and I think my neighbor is no longer tapping in. The one thing that I want to do in re-securing the network that I haven’t done is to rename the network. I foolishly created it using an obvious name. And here’s the problem — renaming a network doesn’t seem to be possible! It’s not just that the wizards don’t support removal, it’s that creating a new network name doesn’t seem to function, even using the wizards to do it.
So what’s the secret here? As long as I use the same old name, I can access storage on the wired network, print, etc. — it’s a very useful system. But how about that last step? — Thanks RJ, Olympia
If you have the network properly encrypted, you don’t need to give it a non-obvious name to keep it secure. The only risk would be, I suppose, if you named the network something like “new plasma TV in living room, back door never locked.” You didn’t do that, right?
If you really want to change the name, it might be simplest to redo the entire setup process. These Windows “wizards”–awful name, they’re typically quite stupid in action–can be useless if you’re trying to do anything that’s not in their usual routine.
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“Wait a sec–your cable modem won’t work unless it thinks it’s connected to your original desktop? What kind of brain-dead system is that? What would your cable operator have you do if you ever replace that machine?”
Yup, Comcast set the cable modem to only work with the MAC address of the computer I had when I get it installed. I figure if I didn’t know what I was doing and I got a new computer, I would call them and they would change it. I sort-of know what I’m doing but I choose not to mess with the modem to see if I can change that.
Even better, my in-laws got FIOS in Boston a while ago. Verizon gave them a wired router (they only have one computer). When I came up, I tried to connect to the router but it wouldn’t work. Finally “hacked” into the router (password was changed to “password”) and found MAC address filtering activated – on a wired router. We assume they would charge more to have more than one computer on the “network”.
So let’s see here–Comcast went out of their way to make perfectly good hardware less useful, vastly increasing the odds of their tech-support line getting tied down with calls from confused users. This is *almost* as dumb as the story we heard two weeks ago from the guy in Rockville, who was told by a Comcast rep that Time Warner was now his cable company. (I followed up with my PR contact there, who had this reply: “Unfortuntely the customer account executive confused the information.” Well, yes, but why?)
If this is a Comcast-supplied modem, I’d return it and buy one in a store–you’ll quickly save money that way. And if Comcast did this to your property, you should ask to get the next month or two of service for free–that’s simple vandalism.
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Rob – is there any way to find out what your options are for internet providers in your area? I live in Baltimore and am trying to find out which DSL providers offer services to my neighborhood. I’ve gone to the websites of Verizon and AT&T but no luck with them. Any thoughts – Comcast cable internet is a little pricey for me. Thanks.
Try broadbandreports.com – use the “Find Service” link on the home page there.
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Network Magic is a great piece of software for setting up and managing a network. It only works with some routers (they have a list before you buy) and I believe you can download and try before buying (unlocking to get all benefits). www.networkmagic.com. And no, I don’t work for them nor have any stake in them.
Thanks!
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I bought the earphones at Brookstone. There is a small part and fits inside the ear with “hooks” that hook around the ear. They were about $30. MUCH, MUCH better than the earbuds that came with the iPod!
Gracias…
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Ah’ight, I know this is more of an FAQ, but refresh the memory: what is ActiveX? Presumably it’s not a Marvel Comics character, but I am sometimes asked if I want to “allow” it. Should I? What settings should be on my computer?
ActiveX is a bad idea from Microsoft. The company wanted to compete with Sun Microsystem’s Java software, which lets Web browsers run programs right off a Web site. But instead of creating a generally secure, cross-platform solution like Java, Microsoft cooked up a totally insecure, Windows-only solution. It’s failed at unseating Java, but it’s been quite successful at helping browser hijackers to execute their mischief.
I never run ActiveX controls unless I’m browsing Microsoft’s site in IE under two conditions: I’m using its software-update sites (Windows Update, Microsoft Update, Office Update) or I have to validate my copy of Windows before getting a download.
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Any thought on who is winning the HD/Blue Rae war?
It’s all a numbers game. The Blu-Ray backers can say that Sony’s sold a ton and a half of PlayStation 3s–but how many of them are being used to watch movies? The HD DVD backers can point to better sales of dedicated players (i.e., discounting PS3 sales entirely) and cheaper hardware prices.
The customer isn’t winning, that’s for sure. I think HD DVD has some serious advantages that, if fully used, would make it an easy choice, but movie studios aren’t doing obvious things like releasing only hybrid titles (HD DVD on one side, DVD on the other). And nobody’s doing anything to get us closer to recordable Blu-Ray or HD DVD. So, really… if both formats went up in smoke, I would not be too brokenhearted.
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“Well, yeah. But this poster didn’t say he was looking for Ansel Adams’ digital camera.”
I would agree, but a lot of people I have run into (non-photographers) are not typically pleased with the results of flipping the B/W switch on the camera, or the hours spent trying to get the contrast right with photo-editing software. This is really prominent in wedding photography where couples don’t want to pay the extra money for another camera and expect the “decolorized” pictures to look like b/w film.
What typically ends up happening is that the editor ends up turning the picture into sepia tone through the software and slowly turns down the yellow until the client is satisfied, but they’re NEVER truly happy with the result. Just a warning to those who are looking to take b/w digital photos. The contrast using these methods is never right, no matter how long you fiddle with it, and most detail-oriented people will spot a “decolorized” shot at first glance.
Interesting. There’s demanding photographers, and then there’s Bridezilla :)
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“If this is a Comcast-supplied modem, I’d return it and buy one in a store–you’ll quickly save money that way. And if Comcast did this to your property, you should ask to get the next month or two of service for free–that’s simple vandalism. “
Comcast-supplied. Any advice on which one to buy or are they pretty much the same?
They’re all the same now. The cable industry did one really smart thing years ago–they settled on one standard that would let any cable modem work with any service.
The obvious follow-on question–”why haven’t these guys done the same thing for cable boxes, so I’m not stuck with the big ugly box my cable company shoved under my TV?”–is left as an exercise for the reader.
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I decided on getting a new Vista laptop with a 15.4 screen. I am trying to decide if I should get a Sony, HP or Toshiba. Also I am trying to decide if I should buy direct from the above companies or from retailers such as bestbuy or circuit city. Shall I get warranty? Any other helpful ideas? Thanks
Sony tends to be the worst about throwing in unrelated, non-useful software, but HP’s not much better. Then again, neither is Toshiba. I suppose I would give the nod to HP–its recent laptops have showed a little more polish, in terms of design, than Toshiba’s–but barely. In a word: meh.
Sorry, I’m not in love with any of these companies’ products. Have you considered a Lenovo ThinkPad instead? They cost a little more, but I’ve been a lot more impressed with the results.
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I’m one of the few people on the planet with a cable card-enabled TV. I probably don’t have to tell you that when I had the cable card installed last year, it was a royal pain. Had to explain to the cable company over the phone what it was I wanted and had to insist that, yes, they could help me. THEN I had to walk the installer through the process, as he had never installed a cable card before and wasn’t real enthusiastic about learning how.
Now, 6 months later, my cable card blinked out, and I had to go through the whole process again. Comcast had made no effort to further educate their employees about cable cards since my initial installation.
MY QUESTION IS THIS: Is is entirely possible that the cable providers (through continued passive-aggressive behavior as detailed above) will be successful in killing the cable card to the point they no longer have to provide even minimal support for it? Am I going to have to get a cable box for my cable card TV? Sheesh. I hate cable boxes.
It is, indeed, entirely possible that the CableCard will go the way of the dodo–in terms of vanishing from new TVs. I think it’s well on the way to that fate.
But I think cable companies do have a regulatory requirement to support this standard; it’s not something that they can ignore completely. You may, however, have to remind them of this obligation.
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I understand that consumers will have available a $40 coupon to use for a converter box starting next year. How much will a standard converter cost? Could the coupon be used toward one of those DVD Player/Recorder/VCR/Converter you described in your last article? Thanks Rob!
A digital-TV converter may cost more like $100 when they first become available–maybe by the end of this year, but certainly by early 2008–but that price should drop to $50 relatively quickly. Or so everybody in the industry says… these devices so far exist mainly as vaporware, with no actual products shipping so far.
The $40 coupons the government will hand out will be good only for the purchase of these converters, not DVD recorders or any other kind of TV device. There’s more on my blog: Rules For The Digital-TV Transition
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Hi Rob, This is a minor-nuisance-type question. My cordless Logitech mouse is overly sensitive. For example, when I left click on something, it most often acts as if I’d done two clicks. Which is real pain sometimes. I use Windows XP Home. I’ve been through several Logitech technicians, besides making mouse adjustments in the control panel. Nothing works. Got any ideas? Thanks! John
If you installed Logitech’s software, you might want to try removing it. Windows will still recognize all the basic mouse buttons–left, right, scroll wheel–without any extra software loaded.
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Hi, Rob, I’ve been shopping around for a new DSL plan and hope you can help me figure out if it’s worth paying lots more for a super-fast speed, or if “basic” DSL is fast enough. We want to watch TV and movies on-line without getting the jerky movements or freeze-ups we sometimes get now, and to listen to radio without losing the signal. The thing is, one show will run smoothly, another will freeze and refuse to continue, a third will be jerky, or a song will stop part-way, all at the same stated speed, so is the speed even the problem? Other than watching movies and tv, we just surf the web and use e-mail. Thanks.
The interruptions you’re seeing may not be the fault of your connection at all, but of the servers involved. Here’s the basic math:
* Most Web radio needs no more than 128 kbps of bandwidth, and the number is often less.
* Most streaming video needs no more than 300 kbps. (Not that you can’t find more bandwidth-intensive sites if you really want to.)
Even the slowest DSL you can get, 768 kbps, is more than twice as fast as the peak usage outlined above.
First thing you should do is make sure that you’re getting the speed you’re paying for now. Go to that broadbandreports.com site I mentioned earlier, click the Tools heading and you’ll a variety of speed tests that you can run.
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About 10 years ago all of the home shows were touting the concept of the “wired” home. Well 10 years have passed, and I still can’t turn on my coffee maker from my office, and I certainly cannot tell my VCR (or TIVO or DVR) to record my favorite program while I’m sitting in traffic using my cell phone or pda.
What gives here? I thought we were supposed to have supercomputers in our basement controlling everything in our house by now. My friends bought a brand new house just last year, and they don’t have anything beyond what I’ve got (aside from some extra cable outlets and phone jacks) in my 25 year old house. We’ve got all of these fancy gizmos, but none of them seem to work well together to make life easier.
Mistakes Were Made.
To be a little more specific… all of these automated-home scenarios we’ve read about assume that everything can talk to everything else via some settled, standard protocols. But if you spend much time looking at the history of the consumer-electronics business, you’ll see that settling on standard protocols is one of the hardest thing for these companies to do. (See VHS vs. Beta, MiniDisc vs. Digital Compact Cassette, SACD vs. DVD-Audio, Blu-Ray vs. HD DVD.) If your TV’s remote can’t control the stereo that’s right underneath the set, how can your phone hope to control your DVR?
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Hi Rob – I’ve got a new flat-panel that I want to hook up to my PC via HDMI. I have a digital cable DVR. Is there a way I can record shows to my PC? I want the shows on DVDs so I can watch them on a portable DVD player when I travel.
Not over HDMI–the PC won’t pass the “handshake” test that HDMI devices go through before accepting a connection. You’d need to put an analog-to-digital converter box on the computer, connect that to the DVR’s analog output jacks, then make your recordings in real time.
Short answer: It’s kind of a pain.
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Have you, or have people on this chat, found some noise-canceling headphones that they like? I’m not too excited about forking over $300 for the Bose, but the cheap Sony noise-canceling headphones I bought did not work very well.
We’ve had good suggestions so far about slide scanners, so let’s try this topic too. Are there any non-$300 noise-cancelling headphones that we like?
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My Compaq Presario is giving me problems. I have Microsoft Word 2002 and it will not run. It keeps asking for the installation disk and when I put in the CD, it says it is the wrong CD. As far as I know, it is the correct CD. What gives? I can’t remove it and reinstall it either.
This is an old one–I answered in Help File years ago, I think, so let me see if I can find that answer and, if so, I’ll post it later on in the chat.
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Hey, Rob, quick HD question for you. Can component cables carry an HD signal or does it only get as high as 480p? The question really boils down to: I want an Xbox 360, but it normally only has component or VGA support, whereas to get HDMI support you have to spend an extra 80 bucks (and you get a bigger harddrive). Is it worth it, you think?
Component cables support HDTV resolution, not just 480p.
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I want a laptop word processor. I know I have no alternative but to get a laptop computer, but word processing is all I need and want it to do. I’d like a decent keyboard and not to have to wait a long time to go from page 349 to page 3, if I want to do that. Any ideas? I really hate having to pay for a bunch of stuff I don’t want.
The cheapest, fastest word processor that I can think of is free–AbiWord, a Word-compatible open-source program (www.abisource.com). Its Word compatibility only goes so far; you may have problems opening complex Word documents with it. But for basic writing, you might find it’s all you need.
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Any reactions to the Sony MYLO?
As I said not long ago: meh. $350 for a music player with only a gigabyte of storage that also handles IM? Sorry, but I don’t spend quite that much time on IM.
(I’m also well out of the peak demographic for IM, so maybe the kids really do like this kind of thing.)
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I recently got a new computer (XP-pro) w/2 500 GB hard drives. Should I partition these drives and what should I use top do so?
Don’t bother partitioning them. It’s a lot of effort for little real-world benefit.
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(screaming) HELP!!!!!!!!!! I’m on Windows XP Pro SP2. I’ve been trying to install Adobe Acrobat Pro 8 (over a 7 which hasn’t been working for awhile). After talking w/ Adobe and Dell (wherefrom I’m leasing this beast), and after disabling ZoneAlarm Pro firewall, it would appear that I need to “give permissions” vis-a-vis registry keys. We tried (oh, how we tried), and I was not allowed to do that. I’ve also been using Registry Mechanic to clean up the registry now and then.
The upshot is that I am now facing completely reinstalling Windows (-gag-), which means I have to save everything in sight (I’ve got an external hard drive), get all my CDs and downloading sites in a row and spend the foreseeable future getting (yeah, sure) functional again. Any advice (along with the appropriate amount of sympathy)? -sob-
You could try the free FoxIt PDF reader: Foxit Software
I haven’t been able to get it to work inside of Firefox, but being forced to download Web PDFs before viewing them is a lot less work than reinstalling Windows.
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Hi Rob. I have a daughter going to college in the fall and was wondering what type of laptop to get her. I’ve heard mixed reviews of Vista and was thinking about a Mac. What are your opinions?
Laptop Guide: 6 Ways to Go
The MacBook is a good all-purpose laptop–you should give it a serious look, assuming your daughter’s school supports it–but the MacBook Pro is a little too expensive.
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Rob, I am in the market for a 46-inch LCD. I am looking at the Samsungs and I think I have settled on one. My main requirement is that I want it to be a 1080p. Yes i know nobody broadcasts in that resolution yet, but if I spend $1800 on a TV I am not buying another one for many, many, many years. Now my question. There are 2 TV’s at a local electronics store. They are these 2:
LN-T4665F and LN-T4661F
Both are Samsung 46-inch 1080p tvs. If you compare them they are nearly identical except for the contrast ratio. All the research i have done into the contrast ratio pretty much says it is a made up number that different mfg’s just come up with.
What is contrast ratio? Does it make a big difference ($200 in the case of the 2 above tv’s)? Thanks for the info.
Contrast ratio can be a fuzzy-math number, but when comparing two sets from the same manufacturer it’s a valid measurement of picture quality (specifically, “black levels”). And in this case, there’s a big difference: 10,000:1 for one, 15,000:1 for the other.
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I think the idea behind the cable / computer pairing was to prevent people from adding home networks or other machines without the cable co’s knowledge. I know RCN / Starpower did it occasionally in the District, in addition to what we’re now hearing re Comcast. Stupid idea then, even dumber now, but there it is –
Anyhow, one possible fix is to disconnect the cable modem from the computer and power the modem off overnight. That was enough for the troublesome RCN modem to forget its pairing, and it might work for Comcast too.
Thanks!
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When you write that “The interruptions you’re seeing may not be the fault of your connection at all, but of the servers involved,” by servers, do you mean Verizon, Earthlink, or whatever might not at that moment be giving me the juice I’m paying for? Is that ’cause too many people are using the same service in my area at that moment? Or could it have something to do with how many people are trying to watch the same site (ABC, CBS, etc) at the same time from anywhere in the world? thanks again!
It could be any or all of those things, but usually stuttering video or audio means the server itself is getting hammered by too many visitors at once.
Sometimes, the simplest solution is to let your browser cache the entire video–as indicated by the little progress bar underneath the video window–then press the “play” button.
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Given the current state of anti-piracy over-vigilance, would a recordable hi-def disc do anyone any good? I would assume that the studios and networks would have their programs wrapped up in a ton of DRM to prevent people from making hi-def copies.
That’s my fear as well.
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Hi, Rob, I am worried about the health of my iBook G4 (OSX10.4): Twice in 2 weeks, for no apparent reason, when I clicked to bring it out of sleep mode, the screen remained dark and wouldn’t light back up until I force-quit the computer and turned it on again.
Those two incidents, back in March, are the only problems I’ve had during the year-plus I’ve owned the computer, which I bought second-hand from a techie. But I don’t know if they were trivial hiccups or indications of something worse.
I looked for explanations on Mac-related sites and found two mentions, one blaming the iBook hinges, the other blaming the motherboard (wouldn’tcha know someone would blame the mother…).
Many thanks for any tips or insight.
I wouldn’t worry about just two incidences if they don’t come back. But if it becomes a chronic problem–you could first try doing an “archive and install” clean install of OS X, which will flush out all the system software but leave your data, settings and programs intact. Don’t forget to run the hardware test disc either (it’s the CD or DVD that you probably forgot came in the box–boot off that and follow the prompts).
Good luck…
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Rob – as someone who always seems to know what is going on in this industry these days, I always turn to your articles and find them very informative. Thank you for continuing to give us the information we need. My question today is about the many ‘opportunities’ that come up on the Internet these days and if they are really ways to make money from them. In particular, I see commercials on TV at night that urge the viewer to go to the website Xmakethemoney (where ‘x’ is a seemingly random number) and you will get a free DVD about the at home business. They also claim you will work with a ‘mentor’ for what ever reason. My question: are these ‘at home business’ really worth looking into for a 2nd income or are they just a scam to get your info or money? I am sure that if it sounds too good to be true than I should avoid it but I gotta’ wonder since they are advertising on TV and not via spam. Thanks for any help you can offer.
Short answer to a long question: No.
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RE: SLIDES, IF NOT TOO LATE. To Kensington et al. If you have a finite number of slides and such, with no plans to add more, you might find a good photo/camera place that will scan them and be done with it. My late father was a slide fool, and after culling the bulk of them (61 pictures of a board meeting; thanks, Pops, must have been a blast), we were left with about 130 good slides. A shop here in town made high-quality scans and put them all on a disc for any future use.
Great idea!
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Hi Rob- Long time reader, first time poster! I have an iPod issue that’s been bugging me -I just purchased an new 60GB iPod to replace my 20GB one. On my old iPod, if I searched by artist it would allow me to play either the album OR the album and the few random songs I may have by the artist. On my new iPod, if I search by artist, it only allows me to play the album, NOT the album and the few random songs. Do you know what’s going on? Thanks!
When you navigate from the top-level Music menu to select an artist, select “All” instead of any of the individual albums listed below that on the screen.
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Might also want to try to blow out the computer if it’s older…less fan use = quieter (I ended up changing my fans and PSU to quiet my desktop).
Yup, vacuuming the inside can help too.
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Hello Rob, We are currently an OTA-HDTV-only family and intend to stay that way. Saving lots of $$$ on cable bills. We don’t have a DVR because the only one that records DTV is $800 (plus monthly fees), and we’ve discovered that almost all of the networks allow us to stream the shows we miss for free on the web, anyway.
My question is: is there a device you can recommend for this streaming, other than our current solution which is to plug the laptop into the S-Video port on the front of the TV?
The Apple TV could be such a thing, but the only way to get it to do that right now is to start hacking it and installing extra software. But there are other companies working to solve this issue–the people behind the Slingbox will supposedly have a gizmo along these lines called the SlingCatcher out later this year, for instance.
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The problem with noise canceling headphones is that the cheaper ones that tout themselves as “noise canceling” are really just “noise reducing” by just adding more padding around the ears to muffle the exterior noise. In order to be “noise canceling,” there must be an active driver built into the headset, powered by a battery, that dampens exterior “noise.” Unfortunately, there are very few companies that have found the right combination of frequencies and amplitude to truly cancel ambient noise without disrupting the music.
Bose headset are really the only ones that I have found that do the job of “canceling” ambient noise. You do get what you pay for, and unfortunately the price is pretty high (I’ve seen some older models as low as $80).
You may do just as well by purchasing a pair of “big” headphones with lots of foam padding that will effectively dampen the ambient noise. The drawback here is the size of the headphones, which aren’t going to fit into a shoebox.
Thanks for the detailed input, Hyattsville.
(But will the cheap ones drown out the noise of a cheap PC?)
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I found a cabinet in my office which is a mausoleum for old computer accessories: old mouses? mice? (We’re going cordless.) Floppy disk storage boxes (for both 3 1/2 and 5 1/4) and probably about 100 yards of random cords and adapters. Even a few markers for old presentation boards. Is there a school or organization that can use a donation of these items?
The Means for Dreams project that Marc Fisher’s written about a few times would be one place to start–it’s now merged with another project and is called Donors Choose: DonorsChoose.org
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And on that note, I’ll sign off. Thanks again… I’ll see you in a couple of weeks.
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