Facebook Changes You Should Know About

If you are a Facebook user, be sure and read the two included articles as they should be of interest to you. One is good, one is…well…perhaps not so good. But, in any case you need to be aware of them.

And, check out the free software from Ashampoo.  Some good software here for free (I used their DVD/CD burning software. Excellent)…but hurry. The offer won’t last much longer. In fact, it will expire any day now. - JRC

Facebook to let advertisers use your posts in Sponsored Stories

Can't stop gushing about your favorite new gadget or your latest album purchase? If you're posting about it on Facebook, there's a chance your words could wind up used by advertisers without your knowledge. Facebook has begun allowing companies to re-post endorsements from users as "Sponsored Stories," and there's no way for you to opt out at the moment.

Facebook offers HTTPS browsing, but not yet by default

Facing a wave of criticism for not offering a secured browsing option, Facebook has finally added a new feature to browse the popular social network on a secure connection (https). However, the https:// browsing is not turned on by default and must be manually activated from an “Account Settings” page on Facebook.

The State of Windows 8

Only Microsoft knows how the next version of its Windows operating system will look and what it will be called, but big changes could be ahead for the OS that observers refer to as "Windows 8." At this year's Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, Microsoft announced that Windows 8 will support system-on-a-chip architectures using ARM processors. In other words, Windows won't be just for laptops and desktops anymore.

138,000 Holocaust-related photos now online, powered by Google

Because the collection seems to be based on Picasa galleries, all of the usual social functionality is built-in. You can comment on photos, and you're encouraged to share stories if you find the photo of someone you know.

Get $130 Of Ashampoo Apps For Free

If you're a fan of Ashampoo's apps for Windows, the company's Christmas giveaway is still running. This brings up up to 5 of their apps for free, including Burning Studio, Home Designer, Snap (screen capture), WinOptimizer and Photo Commander.

Hate Web Ads? We Might Have Some Answers For You

If you are like me, you hate to have your Web browsing interrupted by stupid advertisements. Well some possible answers to that conundrum may just be at hand.  Check out the two stories below.

Also, advance study on the Stuxnet Worm reveals that both Israel and the U.S. collaborated on this attack of the Iranian nuclear program.  Is this the start of a new kind of warfare?  Stay tuned…JRC

Stuxnet: Cyber attack on Iran 'was carried out by Western powers and Israel'

The Stuxnet computer virus, created to sabotage Iran's nuclear program, was the result of collaboration between at least one Western power and the Israeli secret service, a British cyber security expert has found. Tom Parker, a US-based security researcher who specializes in tracing cyber attacks, has spent months analyzing the Stuxnet code and has found evidence that the virus was created by two separate organizations.

Windows 7 and SSDs: just how fast are they?

Does a solid-state drive make a difference in the performance of Windows 7? In a word: Yes. Conventional hard disks are typically the biggest bottleneck in any computing environment. If you can speed up disk activity, especially reads, the effects on system startup and application launch times can be breathtaking.

Top 10 inkjet multifunction printers

These printers start at around $100 and combine a printer, scanner, copier and (sometimes) a fax machine.

Mozilla offers do-not-track tool to thwart ads

Mozilla, acting on a U.S. Federal Trade Commission proposal, has offered a detailed mechanism by which Firefox and other Web browsers could prevent Web pages from tracking people's online behavior for advertising

Google's Chrome browser gets do-not-track feature

Google just released a new extension for its Chrome browser that will make it easier to avoid ads on the Web.

Windows 7 SP1 Around the Corner

Microsoft releasing Windows 7 SP1 soon

If you’ve been holding off upgrading to Windows 7 until Service Pack 1 arrives then your wait may finally be coming to an end. That’s right folks, Windows 7 SP1 is on its way, likely within days.

Mozilla blocks Skype's Firefox-crashing add-on

Mozilla has barred a Skype extension for Firefox, accusing it of causing 40,000 browser crashes a week and of dramatically slowing page-load times.

Wireless Providers Target Final Frontier: Seniors

A slew of cell phones and wireless options are cropping up geared to the last untapped wireless horizon: senior citizens. Though senior-friendly phones aren't new, their lower prices and variety are. A recent price skirmish among wireless companies means that seniors can get an easy-to-use cell phone along with cheap service to go with it.

For tablets, does size matter?

Are 10 inches better than 7? Or are they just too much to handle? Conversely, are 7 inches too few to do the job well? The debate rages on as the world prepares for an onslaught of Android tablets and the RIM PlayBook tablet this spring, a year after the iPad shipped and created a whole new category of computing.

Free Calorie Counter, Diet & Exercise Journal

This is a free web service and application called My Fitness Pal to help with your weight-loss goals. Don't let the lame name fool you; this is a really great tool. If you tend to be a little obsessive-compulsive like me, you'll love being able to keep all the details about your food intake and exercise program organized and at your fingertips. You can create an account and join up for free.

Intel’s and AMD’s Newest Chips Compared

Intel's Sandy Bridge vs. AMD's Fusion: A Comparison

The two biggest processor manufacturers released their next-generation designs last week, and for once the news is more about how they're alike than how they're different. Both Intel's second-generation Core (aka, Sandy Bridge) CPUs and AMD's Fusion Accelerated Processing Units (APUs) combine formerly disparate systems within the same processing die, promising capabilities and communication beyond what we've seen before. So you might be wondering how the two compare.

What Would Apple Be Like If It Loses Steve Jobs?

The latest medical leave for Apple CEO Steve Jobs has observers wondering if he will return. And if Jobs doesn't return, could COO Tim Cook fill his influential shoes? The stock market isn't sure, and an analyst said Jobs "wouldn't leave if it wasn't serious." Without Jobs to strike fear in Apple employees, some will want to do things differently.

Netflix downgrades app experience by dumping DVD option

A small change to the Netflix service over the weekend generated some negative feedback from customers - something that shouldn’t come as a surprise, given how consumers tend to resist any change to products or services that they already like. But this time around, the company deserves the criticism, mostly because the change downgrades the user experience instead of making it better.

Confessions of a Windows 7 pirate

In the interest of research, I've been digging into message boards and forums run by unabashed Windows enthusiasts who are intent on breaking Microsoft's activation technology. I've had these forums bookmarked for years and stop in every once in a while just to see what's new. This time I decided to drop by and actually try some of tools and utilities to see if I could become a pirate, too. Unfortunately, I succeeded.

Send to Kindle Pushes Web Articles from Chrome to Your Kindle

Chrome: If you prefer spending more time reading on your Kindle than in your browser, you can quickly push content from your browser to your Kindle with Chrome extension Send to Kindle. Instead of relying on Instapaper as the middle-man to sync articles, Send to Kindle syncs the article of your choice immediately.

More Good Info on Smartphones

I keep hearing how the focus of today’s technology has moved from the desktop to the portable world…i.e. Cell phones, iPads, tablets, laptops, and netbooks. While I still believe most of us do our work on desktop computers (or portable computers), I will cover this new world in this blog, perhaps a bit more than I have in the past.

Cell phones have turned into portable computers. That is good for many of us. Frankly, I have a smartphone (a Blackberry), but don’t use the Internet portion of it very much. Of course, I am retired and don’t feel the need to be on the Internet 24-7. But many of you make more use of the smartphones than me.  So, I will keep that in mind when I put together this blog. - JRC

How AT&T and T-Mobile conjured 4G networks out of thin air

What AT&T and T-Mobile did was to re-brand their enhanced 3G networks (sometimes called 3.5G) by simply renaming them “4G” networks. Voila! In other words, this is mostly a marketing ploy.

Five Reasons Not to Buy a Verizon iPhone 4

For those suffering with an iPhone tied to an AT&T contract, switching to Verizon on February 10th seems like a no-brainer, but here's why you should look before you leap.

Mozilla Firefox 4 Expected by Late February

The faster, leaner, HTML 5-ready Firefox 4 web browser is inching closer to release. Mozilla official say they're just down to bug fixes. Learn more about what you'll see in February in this report.

How to Use Excel More Effectively: 10 Great Excel Tips & Tricks

I'm not a numbers guy, but I use Microsoft Excel all the time. I use it for story calendars, budgets, analysis and more. It's a great app, even for people who, like me, don't enjoy working in spreadsheets. One of the ways I make Excel work for me is by using as many shortcuts as possible. That's why I love these tips. By the way, they're not designed for experts. Instead they're built for people just like you and me. Enjoy.

Two great security tools get free updates

Two outstanding security apps, Microsoft Security Essentials 2.0 and Secunia Personal Software Inspector 2.0, are now available. The original versions of these programs were great, but the new versions are even better; they're must-have software — and they're still free!

The iPhones Finally Arrives at Verizon

Verizon's iPhone news: Is it a dealbreaker without 4G?

The iPhone is finally coming to Verizon Wireless - and just days after Verizon Wireless made a huge splash at CES over the wonders of a blazing fast LTE 4G network, it appears that the world’s most popular smartphone won’t be running on it.

FAQ: What you need to know about the Verizon iPhone 4

The Apple smartphone has some variations for its new U.S. network compared to what's available for AT&T

Microsoft to fix Windows holes, but not ones in IE

Microsoft said today that it will release two security bulletins next week fixing three holes in Windows, but it is still investigating or working on fixing holes in Internet Explorer that have been reportedly exploited in attack.

Office 2010: a deeper dive

In every sense of the word, Microsoft Office is huge. Hundreds of millions of people use at least one of the programs in the Office family every day—in enterprises, small and medium-size businesses, homes, and schools. When Microsoft released Office 2010 to manufacturing on April 15, it kicked off an upgrade cycle that will last for several years.

Desert Moon is an impressive tower defense Time Waster

One genre I almost never cover is tower defense games. I guess I normally don't enjoy them all that much – it's purely subjective. But this is one thing that makes Desert Moon all the more remarkable: It's a tower defense game, but I actually had fun playing it.

Consumer Electronic Show Recap

The annual Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas wrapped up yesterday…and thank God it did as I am going to Las Vegas in a couple of days. Regardless of that, it was an interesting show, perhaps more so than usual. So, I present to you the best articles I could find to help you sort through all the happened.

I’ve also included an article on the tragedy that occurred here in Tucson on Saturday and the part that social media played it it. Very interesting reading. I will have more to say about it in my “Postcard” blog, later today. - JRC

Best of CES Awards

Here are the products that won the best products awards at this year's Consumer Electronics Show

CES 2011: Five Essential Trends

What a difference a year makes. Last year's CES was remarkable mostly for its complete lack of remarkableness. I have trouble remembering a single product I saw and everyone seemed depressed. The mood at CES 2011 was akin to the vibe in a locker room on game day or backstage at a big performance: Excited, energized and maybe a bit edgy.

CES 2011: The biggest winners and losers

The Consumer Electronics Show is the Super Bowl of the technology industry. As much as industry analysts and the tech press whine about CES being too big and being a relic of a bygone era, there's no better place for tech companies to make a big splash that will be remembered throughout the year, and in some cases for years to come.

The Giffords Tragedy and Social Media

Most everyone in the wake of the Giffords shooting wants to “do the right thing” in their online behavior. But in this instance, social media and tragedy reveal monstrous behavior.

Google Picasa 3.8 Review & Rating

There are lots of apps that help you edit and organize you photos, but nothing matches the features and functionality of Picasa. When you want to serious photo management or just want a place to dump photos when you take them off your camera, Picasa delivers. And best of all, it is 100% free. Read our full review for more info.

CES Rolls On Plus Angry Birds

The latest and greatest at CES

Here is a very long list of new products now being shown at CES in Las Vegas. Click on a product that sounds interesting to you and read more about it.. You may notice that it's raining tablets at CES. Fans of the slate-style computer have much to drink in from the likes of Dell, Samsung, Sharp, and many others. This Web page is continually updated so check in frequently.

The key mobile trends emerging from CES 2011

At this year's Consumer Electronics Show, it's all about mobile -- and mostly about Android. Srictly speaking, that's not true; there were also plenty of HDTVs, stereo speakers, and other home entertainment wares on display, but the main events have all been about mobile.

Hackers find new way to cheat on Wall Street -- to everyone's peril

'Side-channel' attack on high-frequency trading networks could net a hacker millions of dollars in just seconds -- and leave everyone else that much poorer

Four free programs to help control Windows 7

Windows 7, like all powerful operating systems, can seem a bit overwhelming and give you the feeling you've lost control. Fortunately, there are some great utilities for taming Windows 7.

Download Angry Birds For Windows XP / 7

I'm not sure how a game that involves using a slingshot to launch birds at pigs became the hit of the year, but it seems everyone I know who has an iPad is addicted to Angry Birds. Millions of copies have been sold through Apple's App Store, and Rovio Mobile, the Finnish company that developed it, also released Android and Symbian versions last year and started the new year with a version for the Playstation 3. Now you can play it on your Intel-powered Windows XP or Windows 7 netbook, too - if you're willing to spend five bucks.

CES Opens Tomorrow–What to Expect

The annual Consumer Electronics Show open tomorrow for a 4-day run in Las Vegas. It is now the biggest electronics show of the year, featuring computers, TV’s, smartphones, tablets, e-readers, and much, much more. This is where the majority of all new products are introduced for the first time. I will do my best to keep you informed of all the great products coming out of this 2011 show. Stay tuned….JRC

CES 2011: What to Expect

CES 2011 begins tomorrow. Tablets, smart appliances, 3D, robots, candy tech and more will mark 2011's massive Consumer Electronics show in Las Vegas.

Demand Net neutrality as a basic right

All free speech is converging on the Internet. Can speech still be called 'free' if access to it is controlled by a profiteering few?

Consumer Reports — AT&T Is The Worst Wireless Carrier In United States… By Far

Consumer Reports has released findings from a member survey which, as we’ve been saying for years, ranks AT&T as the worst wireless provider in the country when it comes to voice, value, and data performance. AT&T scored the lowest possible score in 8 of 9 total categories, only scoring the second to the worst score in texting.

10 great 'Do these first' tweaks for Windows 7

It's that time of year when many PC users are buying new machines and — ready or not — making the leap to Windows 7. Get off on the right foot: save time, trouble, and frustration by performing these 10 simple Win7 tweaks.

WinMP3Packer Decreases the Size of Your Music Library with No Quality Loss

If your music's starting to take up an uncomfortable amount of space on your hard drive (or small MP3 player), you can decrease the size of it by converting all your songs to Variable Bit Rate with WinMp3Packer (free).

Net Neutrality and Intel’s New Chips in the News

Happy new year to all of you. After the Christmas/New Year’s holidays, I am back bringing you all the computer news that’s fit to print, or something like that.

Maybe with the start of the new year, I should re-explain my goals for this newsletter. I write this blog/newsletter mainly for computer non-nerds…in other words, most of us that just want to get the most out of our computers without going into all the heavy-duty tech stuff. We just want it to work! But sometimes having a little background on what is happening now in technology keeps your computing knowledge current enough to make informed decisions about the computers you buy and the best software to use to be productive.

I recommend interesting Web sites, and software (usually free) that you may find handy. And, I also report important stories that affect all of us, like the Net Neutrality stories today. Again, I hope you find this blog/newsletter to be interesting and of some use.

So, without further ado, here is this year’s first blog: - JRC    

What Do the FCC's Net Neutrality Rules Mean for You?

Net neutrality is in the headlines again, but what does it mean for you? Is this just some wonky, inside-the-Beltway chatter that won't have an impact on our daily lives or an issue that will affect how we access the Web in the future? The short answer is: both.

Most don't want the FCC to regulate the Internet

Among the 1,000 "likely U.S. voters" questioned, only 21 percent said they'd be in favor of the Federal Communication Commission regulating the Internet. A majority 54 percent said they're opposed to government control of the Net, while 25 percent were left undecided.

Intel Officially Introduces Sandy Bridge Microarchitecture

Intel’s latest design in chips is released for sale today. In Sandy Bridge, the memory controller, the PCI Express (PCIe) controller, and video functions are all located within the processor die and can share data and power much more easily than before. And the microarchitecture has been designed in such a way that it will scale all the way from the smallest netbooks to the biggest servers.

Hulu adds playlists and streamlines navigation

If you're a fan of streaming TV and movie site Hulu, you just got a little holiday present: a playlist feature and a new navigation bar. The plus symbol near each video brings up the option to add that video to your queue or add it to a playlist, and the playlist option will prompt you to create a new list or pick an existing one. At long last, watching episodes or movies back-to-back on Hulu is a relatively frictionless experience.

Disk Investigator 1.5 (Windows)

Disk Investigator helps you to discover all that is hidden on your computer hard disk. It can also help you to recover lost data. Display the true drive contents by bypassing the operating system and directly reading the raw drive sectors.

Tips and Toys for Your Computing Christmas

I wish you all a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. My gift to you, as is tradition, is a list of free programs and tips for making your computing experience even better this coming year. So, enjoy…JRC

Why You Should Buy Refurbished Computers

If you're afraid of buying used technology, when it comes to a factory refurb, read this before you buy…

20+ essential programs for your new Windows computer

Our regular readers can probably rattle off a list of their 20 favorite apps without breaking a sweat -- as the comments on this post will no doubt prove. But for our less in-the-know friends, family, and co-workers, it can be challenging to figure out where to download high quality programs that actually do what they need them to do. We've put together an assortment that will help you hit the ground running with your new Windows PC.

Top 15 free tools for every Windows desktop

There is almost no end to the number of tools offered for Windows desktops. To help guide you on your quest to find the best free tools available for Windows, I poured through reviews, sifted through hundreds of websites, and canvassed Windows-savvy customers and colleagues to see which products actually help Windows users work faster and free up time for more important things in their day.

Best Free Windows Explorer Add-ons

This Article reviews Windows Explorer extensions and add-ons, like QTTabBar, that provide some of the desirable features found in commercial File Managers (Explorer replacements), like dual-panes, tabs, favorite folder access, etc., while retaining speed and familiarity of Windows.

Free games for your new Windows computer

To get you started with an assortment a free goodies, first install Valve's Steam client software and create an account (assuming you don't have one already). There are several great games you can download at no charge, and there's something for everyone!

Outlook plug-ins, add-ins for Microsoft Outlook 2007, 2010, 2003, XP, 2000

Our time-saving Outlook plug-ins add new functionalities to Microsoft Outlook, automate some routine operations and make your work with Outlook easy and pleasant.

New Net Neutrality Rules–Critically Important to Us All

FCC makes Net neutrality rules official

The new Net neutrality rules adopted Tuesday essentially create two classes of service subject to different rules: one that applies to fixed broadband networks and one for wireless networks. The FCC says this is necessary because wireless networks are technologically different from fixed broadband networks. The first rule requires both wireless and wireline providers to be transparent in how they manage and operate their networks. The second Net neutrality rule prohibits the blocking of traffic on the Internet. The rule applies to both fixed wireline broadband network operators as well as to wireless providers. But the stipulations for each type of network are slightly different.

FCC's Open Internet Order bodes ill for Net neutrality

I'm sounding the alarm now, louder and clearer. If the worst happens, I hope that someone will unearth this column from the ashes of the era of information freedom and say, "If only we had paid more attention to what was happening under our noses, it all could have been different." The game's afoot, and we stand to lose everything.

RIP, AltaVista and Google Wave; we hardly knew ye

A bunch of Yahoo, Google, and Microsoft sites are now dead. Many more also expired in 2010. Who will be next?

Windows Live Plug-ins site Launches

Microsoft have launched a plug-ins website for their popular Live Essentials Suite.  The website, which you can find at plugins.live.com contains not only Microsoft plug-ins but those from third-parties as well.

EssentialPIM - Get Your Personal Information Managed!

The latest version of EssentialPIM is a personal information manager that allows you to keep all your information in electronic form. All your appointments, tasks, notes, contacts, password entries and email messages are stored in a graphical and easily accessible form. Free and paid versions.

MS Security Essentials 2 Now Available

Microsoft Releases Security Essentials 2

Microsoft this week quietly released a second major version of its free security solution for individuals and very small businesses, Microsoft Security Essentials (MSE) 2.0. This version of the product looks and works much like its predecessor, but unlike the original version, which appeared in September 2009, the new version offers deeper integration with other Windows-based security technologies, including Windows Firewall and the web-based attacks protection in Internet Explorer. Like its predecessor, MSE 2 is free and works with Windows XP, Vista, and 7.

Besides Job Cuts, Yahoo Will Shut Down Web Sites

The cost-cutting at struggling Yahoo has extended beyond 600 job cuts to close Yahoo Buzz and other services. One of the sites Yahoo may close is Delicious, and an analyst said that will upset the most users. Over two years, Yahoo has been shrinking even as CEO Carol Bartz said Yahoo was hiring. MyBlogLog and Alta Vista may also be closed.

How to Buy Your Next Processor

There's a lot you need to consider when you're choosing the proper "brain" for your computer, and there are a lot of CPU choices on the market. This guide will arm you with the basic information you need to make an informed choice.

Get the Most from Your Point-and-Shoot Camera

Just because you've got a relatively inexpensive point-and-shoot camera and not a $1500+ DSLR rig doesn't mean you can't take awesome photos. Here's a look at how you can elevate your regular old point-and-shoot shots to greatness.

Google's Ngram Viewer: A time machine for wordplay

The word "spiderman" appeared in books in the 1920s, long before the famed Marvel superhero debuted in the early '60s. And the term "smartphone" was in use during the first decade of the 20th century, a century before anyone picked up their first iPhone. How do I know all this? By using a new tool from Google called the Ngram Viewer. Launched by the search giant yesterday, this tool lets you trace the usage of a word or phrase during the past five centuries--five centuries!--by seeing how often it's appeared in books over that time span.

Best Free Genealogy Software and Best Batteries

Since most gadgets you buy today have that wonderful tagline, “Batteries not included,” I thought I would included some test results that tell you which batteries you should buy. As a bonus,I’ve also included some test results on rechargeable batteries. Plus, for those of you interesting in your family history, I’ve included a new article on the best of the of free genealogy programs.

I am delighted to see that Dropbox has gone out of beta and is now a finished product. I use this program to keep all my computers in sync with my most important data…but even if you have only one computer, you can use Dropbox as a place to store your most important data in the cloud and offsite. Everyone should be doing this.

As for the rest, there are some interesting articles included here and I encourage you to read them all. You may be surprised at what you find. - JRC

 

Is Your E-Book Reading Up On You?

Most e-readers, like Amazon's Kindle, have an antenna that lets users instantly download new books. But the technology also makes it possible for the device to transmit information back to the manufacturer. And it's not just what pages you read; it may also monitor where you read them. Kindles, iPads and other e-readers have geo-location abilities; using GPS or data from Wi-Fi and cell phone towers, it wouldn't be difficult for the devices to track their own locations in the physical world.

Record Labels Blame Google For Piracy, Hint At Censorship

The British Phonographic Industry (BPI), the UK’s main recording industry trade body, came out with guns blazing against Google today. BPI says that search engines like Google are as popular as P2P applications as a source for illegal downloads. The music industry is pressing Google and others to censor their search results in favor of ‘legal’ music services.

CNET tests alkaline battery performance

Even in the days of nickel cadmium and lithium ion batteries being used in most laptops, phones, and MP3 players, some of us still need traditional alkaline batteries. Recently, I was asked if I could conduct some battery performance tests on a few regular, everyday, over-the-counter batteries.  I chose what I thought were two of the most popular batteries on the market, and one not so popular battery. The goal being to determine which battery would last longer under controlled conditions.

AA rechargeable battery roundup 2010

On this test, we pit the Apple rechargeable batteries against Duracell and Energizer. Interesting results.

Dropbox Hits Version 1.0, Leaves Its Beta Days Behind

Our favorite file-syncing tool, and yours, just hit version 1.0. Hooray for Dropbox! What does this mean, aside from Dropbox being officially out of beta? The Dropbox team ensures it's capable of both heavier lifting and speedier speed. It also comes with a new, redesigned setup wizard and support for plenty of rare file syncing situations.

Best Free Genealogy / Family Tree Software

PEOPLEGenealogy software provides a method for recording the subjects of our research, e.g. their names, relationships, and events of their lives. Also evidence must be recorded which supports the conclusions reached. They also print the reports and charts to show off the results of our labor. I looked at several free genealogy programs which will do a reasonable job for the novice or advanced genealogist.

Feds Forbidden to Read Your E-Mail Without a Warrant

Appeals court: warrant required before Feds can read e-mail

The government must obtain a valid search warrant before infiltrating your e-mail in a criminal investigation, the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled. The appeals court ruled Tuesday on US v. Warshak, noting that email "requires strong protection under the Fourth Amendment," and that law enforcement can't demand for an ISP to give up e-mail with just a court order.

Walgreen, McDonald's Say E-Mail Databases Breached

In a bad day for security breaches, Walgreen, McDonald's and Twitter reported incidents. McDonald's says a subcontractor improperly handled customer data, while Twitter said hackers broke into user accounts and sent spam promoting acai berry drinks. Walgreen said hackers sent spam directing customers to enter personal data into outside sites.

WikiLeaks' Assange granted bail in London

In a media-mobbed hearing today, a U.K. judge decided to release Assange on bail of 200,000 pounds, or about $317,000, on the condition that he surrender his passport, wear an electronic tracker, provide a U.K. address, and report to police daily. Article includes more updates on the entire Wikileaks situation.

Microsoft Word - Create email holiday cards in Word

Maybe you've decided to send your cards by email this year--whether for financial or environmental reasons. (Think trips to get stamps, to get cards, to mail cards--when you'd rather spend the time writing the cards, connecting with friends and far-away family members.)

Get iCare Data Recovery software free

From now until December 25, iCare Data Recovery 4.0 is available absolutely free. Regular price: $69.95. To get it, follow the "Steps to get registered iCare for free" instructions, making sure to run the program as an administrator and then pasting in the provided code. (FYI, you must activate it before the 25th.)

Costco Says Bye-Bye to Apple

You do it Apple’s way or you don’t do it at all. So Costco said adios and thanks for the memories. I commend Costco for telling them where they can stick their overpriced products.

But more seriously, I have included an update on multi-leveled attacks against Wikileaks. This is not about espionage…it is more about Freedom of Speech. It’s the US government trying force its will against us knowing what goes on behind the scenes. It harkens back to the days of Richard Nixon and his plumbers, using the IRS and other dirty tricks to attack his enemies. If these modern tricks were in use back then, we would have never known about Watergate.

The government wants to use the 1917 “Espionage Act” (created during time of war) to go after Wikileaks, saying Julian Assange is not a journalist, but a spy. He is currently is imprisoned in Britain for supposed sexual molestation charges in Sweden. But his supporters are fighting back with questionable modern technology by attacking Web sites of Wikileaks enemies. Make no mistake about it…this is an all-out war and we, the people of the United States, may turn out to be the losers. Watch this story carefully and judge for yourself. – JRC 

Update:The Winds of WikiLeaks' War

WikiLeaks' Cablegate release has instigated a Web battle. On one side, high-profile organizations like credit card companies have refused to do business with the site; on the other, WikiLeaks supporters have carried out a series of reprisal DDoS attacks.

Costco confirms it will stop selling Apple products

The Seattle Times says the split is mutual and notes that, unlike some of the deals made with other large-scale Apple resellers, Costco was never allowed to sell Apple's products through its own online store. The post also highlights that Costco's sales of Apple products did not venture further than offering slightly discounted iPods and packs of iTunes gift cards.

Three Trillion Pigs Down, Angry Birds Keeps Thriving

A silly diversion where birds do ceaseless battle with pigs has become a pop-culture phenomenon. The Angry Birds smartphone app has been downloaded some 12 million times, with another 30 million downloads of its free app, which makes money through ads. The one-year anniversary of the game's debut has been dubbed "Angry Birds Day."

Most Popular Photography Tips, Tricks, and Hacks of 2010

Whether it's before, during, or after you shoot, we've posted some awesome photography tips, tricks, and hacks this year. Here are the most popular for 2010.

AOL You've Got News app offers a slick reading experience in Google Chrome

Harkening back to days of yore, it's You've Got News. Unlike the New York Times app Seb showed you, You've Got News is a locally installed app -- not a link to a remotely hosted Web site. The app actually feels a bit like reading the newspaper: use your left and right arrow keys to flip through the main sections and your up and down keys to peruse a section's individual pages. You can also click on background pages in the margins to bring them into focus.

Looking Ahead to 2011

The Tipping Point: 2011 Technology Preview

PC Users are on the brink of a massive shift in technology and performance. We identify the most game-changing technologies and life-changing products for the coming year

December 2010 Patch Tuesday will come with most bulletins ever

According to the Microsoft Security Response Center, Microsoft will issue 17 Security Bulletins addressing 40 vulnerabilities on Tuesday, December 14. It will also host a webcast to address customer questions the following day.

Internet Explorer 9 to get tracking protection

Microsoft this morning detailed changes to Internet Explorer 9's security features that will better enable users to keep sites from tracking their activity across browsing sessions. The feature, which is set to arrive in the first release candidate of IE9 early next year, uses a list to tell the browser which third-party page elements sites can and cannot be blocked from tracking. This includes elements ranging from advertisements to more mundane things like embedded widgets from particular providers.

Is now the wrong time to buy an iPad?

Here's how I see it. For starters, I don't believe Apple's actually releasing a new iPad 2 in February. You could argue that despite Steve Jobs insisting that the company has no plans to ship a smaller iPad, it might put one out. You know, the so-called iPad Mini. We're talking something with a 7-inch screen. Fat chance that'll happen but it's just as unlikely Apple will put out a new version of its current 9.7-inch model.

Todo.ly is a to-do list manager for Chrome and the Web

To-do lists are pretty important for getting things done; and much like text editors, every person has their own favorite flavor, and it seems like every developer has a slightly different idea of what an ideal to-do manager would look like. Todo.ly is one take on the do-do list manager. It also comes as a Chrome Web app, so if you use multiple synchronized Chrome browsers (or Chrome OS) and install the Web app, you instantly get the same to-do list manager across all of your machines. Just that may be reason enough to set it up.

Bad China and Good Info

Leaked Cable: China Ordered Hacking on Google

A cable released by WikiLeaks quotes a contact as saying that high-ranking political and military officials oversaw the hacking of Google last year. A separate cable released by WikiLeaks says that another high-ranking Chinese official demanded action against Google after looking for his own name on the search engine and finding criticism of him.

Top smartphones of 2010 

In the market for a new cell phone? Here are some of the best ones that might help you with your decision. Hint - pick your carrier first then the phone.

iTunes alternatives: how do Amazon and other digital music services compare? 

Is iTunes still the most expensive digital music service? Which iTunes alternative offers the best deal for music lovers? Are digital albums a better deal than CDs? And just how much are you overpaying if you buy by the track instead of by the album?

Google eBooks: The good, the bad, and the ugly

Google launched its e-books site this morning. No longer called Google Editions, the site is now called Google eBooks. Can the Kindle and Nook can survive in the face of Google’s entry into the market (I think the answer is yes), I’d suggest that Google will most likely just make platform-agnostic eBooks more mainstream than Amazon has with its Kindle apps for various platforms.

Add 'do not track' to Firefox, IE, Google Chrome

With just a little effort, you can set Mozilla Firefox, Microsoft Internet Explorer, and Google Chrome to clear out and block the cookies most online ad networks and other Web trackers rely on to build their valuable user profiles.

Tips for Purchasing Your Next PC

Your next PC: thinking beyond the desktop

With Black Friday a fading memory and Cyber Monday deals still fresh on the Web, visions of a new PC may be dancing in your head. But before you go out hunting for that shiny new Win7 machine, take a deep breath, sit back, and consider these tips on buying a PC.

FTC calls for "Do Not Track" list, new policies to protect online privacy 

The Federal Trade Commission is proposing new policies around online privacy, including the creation of a “Do Not Track” mechanism as a means of easing the burden on consumers trying to keep tabs on who’s keeping tabs on them.

Facebook rolls out facelift for profile pages 

Facebook unveiled a redesign for members' profile pages today that puts a greater emphasis on photos and sharing personal information at the top of users' pages.

Top 10 Ways to Spot an Internet Hoax

Here are John C. Dvorak’s 10 tips for spotting the fraud, hoax, and scam e-mails that pile up in your inbox, so you can avoid them or get payback.

Windows 7 Christmas Themes description, Screen Savers & Themes Downloads

Are you feeling a little blue this holiday season? I was, until I installed Windows 7 Themes.net's delightful Christmas themes. This free download has it all--several wallpapers, holiday-themed icons, and Christmassy sounds, plus a soothing screen saver. The desktop themes (one red themed, one green) manage to be festive, stylish, and inspirational all at the same time.

Is the U.S. Becoming a Nation of Censorship?

I am becoming alarmed at the role our government is taking in censoring Internet content. Bills are pending in Congress that will allow the government to shut down Web sites that they deem to violate copyright laws, or are deemed a “security risk.”. Of course, this is being pushed on them by their masters in the entertainment business.  

Homeland Security’s ICE division (Immigration and Customs Enforcement) is already confiscating domain names from Web sites that have the slightest hint of file sharing…without due process! By taking the domain name, the effectively remove the sites from the Web, even though they are still there. Many of these sites are located in other countries, which extends this censorship beyond US borders.

What is ironic, as pointed out in our third story, is that some Web sites are moving to China, the king of all Internet censorship! What does that say about our right of free speech? That right and others are slowly being eroded in the name of security. I fear for us and where we are headed.

JRC

The Rise of Web Censorship 

I have no problem with law-enforcement agencies having the power to stop crimes. What I do have a problem with is them being given carte blanche to decide on their own, whenever they want, anywhere in the world, when a Web site should be shut down. That is a power that should never belong to the police alone of any country.

Booted from US-based domain, WikiLeaks site finds refuge with Swiss Pirate Party

The website WikiLeaks.org is no longer functioning, after its US-based domain host, Amazon, terminated service for the controversial site, under pressure from the government. The expulsion forced WikiLeaks to relocate its domain name with a Switzerland-based domain name host, and the website is now found at WikiLeaks.ch.

Avoiding US Censorship, Torrent Sites May Flee To China

China is often criticized for its Internet censorship practices. Although this is certainly valid with regard to political issues, the United States is rapidly becoming one of the most progressive countries when it comes to commercial censorship. Safeguarding commercial interests is increasingly preferred above the rights of the general public. Ironically, BitTorrent sites may have to flee to China to keep their ‘freedom’.

Google patches Chrome security holes, adds PDF viewer in sandbox

Google has shipped a new version of its Chrome web browser to fix at least 14 security vulnerabilities that expose users to malicious hacker attacks. The Chrome 8.0.552.215 update also include a new built-in PDF viewer that is secured in Chrome’s sandbox...

Chopin Script Freeware Font Strikes an Elegant Note

If we were matchmakers unstuck in time, we would introduce Chopin the composer to Chopin Script font. Nineteenth-century Monsieur Chopin is known for major innovation to the Polonaise, a low dance of Polish origin, while Twenty-first century Chopin Script (free) is a digital descendent of the script face Polonaise created in 1970 by the late Phil Martin of Alphabet Innovations.

WikiLeaks–The New Journalism?

WikiLeaks has U.S. scrambling to plug holes

The apparent revelations originating from the latest WikiLeaks are both embarrassing and rapid-fire: Afghanistan's vice president was found to be transporting $52 million in cash; Saudi Arabia's king called for the U.S. to attack Iran; a British duke mocked Americans' understanding of geography.

Facebook infested with new worm; More proof site is insecure? 

Facebook is littered with a worm, seemingly the same one under different names, created by randomly generated developers, which is spreading links all over the site.

Google Earth 6.0 Offers a Full Walking Tour Experience

A virtual walking tour with a mouse scroll wheel is one of the new features in Google Earth 6.0. The streets available to tour on Google Earth are in selected city locations and highlighted in blue. Google Earth 6.0 also makes it significantly easier to access historical images. Backgrounds in Google Earth are now filled with 3-D constructs.

Google's E-Book Store Will Offer 'Read Anywhere' Storage

he delayed Google Editions e-book store is getting ready to launch with a new twist of storing e-books in the cloud for "read anywhere" access. Analysts expect 200 independent booksellers could join Google Editions, and Google could capture a fifth of a growing market. While Google is not offering an e-book reader, that could come later.

WinUtilities Free Edition

WinUtilities Free Edition, a suite of tools designed to free up disk space and improve system performance. We were quite pleased with the program's results.

Winner’s and Losers for 2010

Hope you all survived Thanksgiving and had a good time while doing it. Tech news and views inevitably slow down during the holiday season. But, I do manage to find some interesting news and usually lots of free software you might find useful…so stay tuned.

If you like games, light-weight or serious, be sure and look at the “Best Free PC Games” article. There are a ton of games in their, including some solitaire games. Enjoy.

JRC

Tech's Biggest Winners and Losers: 2010

The year's winding down, which means it's time to take stock of the companies, technologies and product categories that had big years, and those that did not.

Avoid the security risk of shortened URLs

The compact URLs produced by services such as TinyURL, bit.ly, is.gd, and many others are convenient and save space, but they can also be used to hide the identity of malicious sites. Fortunately, there are several ways to peek behind a shortened URL to see exactly where the link will take you — before you click it!

Google launches Microsoft Office connector: Keep your legacy Office, use our cloud

The plug-in, dubbed Google Cloud Connect for Microsoft Office, gives the user a direct link to sync and share documents—Microsoft Word, Excel and PowerPoint—with Google Docs. The documents aren’t reformatted in Google Docs, which is used as a go-between from your legacy Office suite to Google.

Best Free PC Games

Whether you've searched everywhere trying to find the best free game in existence, or just happened to stumble here looking for something to keep your kids occupied, you've come to the right place. This is the showcase for some of the most top-notch, high quality, freeware games out there in each respective category. They really are quite a bang for the lack of a buck.

HTTPS Everywhere | Electronic Frontier Foundation

HTTPS Everywhere is a Firefox extension produced as a collaboration between The Tor Project and the Electronic Frontier Foundation. It encrypts your communications with a number of major websites. This extension was designed to help protect you against FireSheep incursions at public Wi_Fi locations.

Netflix Makes Some Big Changes

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!!

JRC

Netflix offers $8 streaming-only option

The video rental company will now offer customers a plan that includes the ability to view movies through its streaming service for $7.99 per month. It was quick to point out that its cheapest plan includes no DVD rentals.

Cybersecurity bill gives DHS power to punish tech firms

Democratic politicians are proposing a novel approach to cybersecurity: fine technology companies $100,000 a day unless they comply with directives imposed by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. I think this is way over the top!

Best Products of 2010

Just in time for your holiday shopping, here are the 80 top products our analysts picked from hundreds of reviews done this year that rise above the rest.

Microsoft TechNet for the rest of us

Microsoft's TechNet site, dubbed "Resources for IT Professionals," is a rich repository of high-level geek talk plus tips for enterprise-class IT personnel. But don't let that reputation put you off — TechNet is also a gold mine of excellent tips and tricks for individual Windows users as well.

This Has To Be The Easiest Photo-Sharing Site Ever

Assuming you have a supported browser (Chrome, Firefox, Safari, or IE9), just fire up the site, drag some photos onto the empty page, and you're done. Yes, really. It takes just seconds, there's no need to sign up, and the results are superb. Some very clever Javascript code takes care of the uploading, and if you resize your browser then all the images get dynamically resized in real time too.

Tips for Holiday Shopping On-Line

I am back from my 5 day photo safari to the Moab, UT area. Got some great photos at both the Arches National Park and nearby Canyonlands National Park which will start showing up in my “Postcards” blog starting later today.

Not a lot happened in the tech world while I was gone, but here are some interesting stories. I recommend you read the article on Christmas shopping, if you plan to do any shopping on-line like me. Enjoy. 

JRC

U.S.: Beijing backs hacking on 'massive scale'

"Recent high-profile, China-based computer exploitations continue to suggest some level of state support. Indicators include the massive scale of these exploitations and the extensive intelligence and reconnaissance components," noted the report from the U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission's (USCC).

Windows at 25

Today marks the 25th anniversary of Microsoft Windows, since the first version of the product was launched on this day in 1985. Like most people, I never used Windows 1.0, which was by all accounts nothing more than a slightly graphical shell that sat on top of MS-DOS. In fact, the original code-name for Windows--Interface Manager--says everything you need to know about Microsoft's early intentions for the product.

Smart Spending: When To Grab the Best Holiday Deals

Many stores, both online and brick-and-mortar, are are discounting holiday goods earlier than last year because shoppers remain cautious. Generally, retailers are going out with their best prices of the season around the Thanksgiving week on such items as flat-panel TVs, computers and laptops, and the season's hottest toys and clothing.

Computer Trouble Isn't Always What You Think It Is

When things go terribly wrong with technology, you may have to go that extra mile to find the right answers.

AeroWeather Shifts Aero's Color Scheme to Match the Weather

Windows: If you're a fan of passive information delivery, AeroWeather is a clever weather tool that gives you subtle feedback about the weather conditions via Aero's color scheme.

The Dying Days of Window XP

Are the days of XP coming to a close? Yes, if the recent programming trends by Microsoft are any indication. For instance, the latest incarnation of the Windows Live Essentials do not work in XP. Many of the Office Live features are not XP compatible. And, of course, you cannot get it anymore on new computers. I would say its days are numbered. But all is not lost for XP users, as indicated by our first article.

PS: I will not be publishing any editions for a week as I am headed up into the wilds of Southern Utah on a photo safari. But, I will be back!!  JRC

Windows XP: Looking back, looking forward

On October 22, Microsoft pulled the plug on sales of Windows XP, ending the operating system's spectacular nine-year run. With no new copies being sold, support for XP will start to decline. Fortunately, XP's long run has produced a ton of collected wisdom: everything you need to keep your copy going strong and — when ready — to help you move on.

AT&T prepares for the end to iPhone exclusivity

The end of 2010 is close and it looks like AT&T is beefing up its device portfolio and app offerings for a day when it isn't the only U.S. operator offering the Apple iPhone. U.S. Press reports indicate that Verizon Wireless will likely get a version of the iPhone as soon as the first quarter of 2011.

Firefox 4 gets much, much faster

One of the major components essential for the future of Firefox just landed in the beta build of the browser, and it gives the open-source browser the page-rendering speed boost that it had been lacking.

Why You'll Give Up Gmail for Facebook Mail

According to Techcrunch's sources, a full webmail client integrated with The One and Only Social Network will debut next Monday. This is why it may become your favorite webmail service. If I were Google, Yahoo or Hotmail, I'd be very nervous. Facebook Mail could be a killer not only because of its potential instant size, but because of its natural advantage at making mail more useful.

Windows Live Mail 2011 Gets Lassoed By The Ribbon

If you're looking for an excellent, free mail client, you'll do well to install Windows Live Mail 2011. This newest version of Microsoft's free e-mail client has been significantly upgraded over the previous version, and now includes a host of new features, including a calendar pane and Microsoft Office's Ribbon interface. It doesn't include all the bells and whistles of Microsoft Outlook, such as tasks and a full-blown calendar, but given that it's free, Windows Live Mail is well worth the download.

Dallas Cowboys Screw Up On and Off the Field

It’s a slow tech new day, but still managed to find some interesting stories.  Could not resist the story about the Dallas Cowboys forgetting to renew their domain. That whole organization has problems. Anyway, I hope you can find something to interest you in today’s top stories.

JRC

Cowboys fire coach, forget to renew Web domain

According to the Dallas Morning News, the team had forgotten to renew the domain. Which meant that DallasCowboys.com was adorned with a picture of two little boys playing soccer and a suggestion that it was for sale.

Patch Tuesday Leaves Some Vulnerabilities Unpatched

IT administrators got a lighter load from this month's Patch Tuesday, but Microsoft left some vulnerabilities unpatched, including an Internet Explorer zero-day exploit. Office was a key target of this month's Patch Tuesday, with the only critical patch in three security bulletins. Fewer bulletins may let IT administrators catch up from last month.

Business Discounts Added To Facebook Places

A new Deals service expands Facebook Places to let smartphone users find business discounts wherever they are. By tapping the Facebook Places Check In button, users will see nearby places, with yellow icons denoting available deals. An analyst said Deals on Facebook Places is just the beginning of a dynamic mobile commerce opportunity.

Firefox 4 release slips to 2011

Mozilla has pushed back the planned Firefox 4 release to 2011, a delay that's no surprise given the difficulties in releasing the first full-featured beta of the open-source browser--but that also gives breathing room for several competitors.

25 handy Google search tips and tricks

The good thing about Google is that generally, you don't have to be too precise or bend over backwards to find things. When you want something specific, though, or just can't find it the old-fashioned way, these tips will bring it right to your fingertips.

One of My Favorite Add-On’s Will Not Die Afterall

Firefox extension detects FireSheep snoop software

Dubbed BlackSheep, the Firefox extension alerts users when computers on a local area network are using FireSheep to steal unencrypted cookies the websites use to grant users access to their account pages. When BlackSheep detects the snoop software in a hotspot or other open Wi-Fi network, it displays a message that reads “Somebody is using FireSheep on this network.” It then displays the LAN IP address of the offending party.

Cable Subscribers Flee, But Is Internet To Blame?

If "cord-cutting" in favor of Internet video is taking hold, there are wide-ranging implications. Consumers who use the web to get movies and TV bypass not just cable firms, but the networks that produce the content. This could have the same disruptive effect on the TV and movie industries as digital downloads have already had on music.

Xmarks Lives On, Finds Buyer

In September one of my favorite productivity tools, XMarks, was taken off the market when the company that made it closed up shop. XMarks syncs your passwords and bookmarks across browsers, so you can share one set of bookmarks. Since I spend my time shuffling among multiple PCs, at work and at home, the free software has been a godsend. This week the CEO announced that Xmarks would live on thanks to a new buyer.

The lie about so-called 4G gets worse

T-Mobile is now claiming that its 3G network is a 4G one. It's a bald-faced lie -- whatever happened to truth in advertising?

Windows 7 Taskbar Items Pinner Freeware

Although Windows7 already provides a `Pin to Taskbar` option, it only works with .EXE files and certain other shortcuts. The Windows 7 Taskbar Items Pinner allows you to tweak your taskbar by adding shortcuts to common system folders as well as any other folder or file.

More on the Dangers Open Wi-Fi and FireSheep

In our last edition, we talked about how programs like FireSheep open you up to hijacking and snooping when using public un-encrypted Wi-Fi. If you have not read it, please do. It is critical! Currently, over 1/2 million people have downloaded FireSheep. That spells danger for all of us who use public Wi-Fi. 

Also we have talked about CCleaner software here on a few occasions. It has a new, serious upgrade that you should probably download. Have a terrific weekend.

Jim

Cloak your connection to foil Firesheep snoopers

If you're serious about protecting your surfing from prying eyes while on an unencrypted public Wi-Fi connection, the onus is on you to lock down your connections. Using virtual private networking (VPN) is one of the best ways I know to do that. Firesheep has raised the awareness — and hackles — of Wi-Fi users all over the world. It exploits an old, well-known problem called sidejacking. Eric Butler, the author of Firesheep, describes the situation succinctly in his Firesheep post:

Patch Tuesday heads-up: Critical MS Office security holes

After last month’s record-breaking security patch release, Microsoft is offering a November respite. The November Patch Tuesday will feature just three bulletins with fixes for a total of 11 documented vulnerabilities. One of the bulletins will be rated “critical,” Microsoft’s highest severity rating.

Business Discounts Added To Facebook Places

A new Deals service expands Facebook Places to let smartphone users find business discounts wherever they are. By tapping the Facebook Places Check In button, users will see nearby places, with yellow icons denoting available deals. An analyst said Deals on Facebook Places is just the beginning of a dynamic mobile commerce opportunity.

CCleaner 3 delivers nuanced drive wiper

CCleaner hasn't seen many major revisions since Piriform launched it in 2004, but debuting today, CCleaner 3 includes some extremely useful new features that make it worth the upgrade.

Best Free Photo Editing Software

Overexposure, underexposure, random blemishes, red-eye problems, white balance issues, and other visual mishaps will occur, so it's incredibly handy to have a good photo editing application on your PC to make corrections. Fortunately, there are plenty of photo editing applications that can get the job done—for free!

Special Edition–If You Use Public Wi-Fi, You May Be in Serious Trouble

Some new information has come out of a recent hacker’s convention that may change the way we use the public Wi-Fi spots forever. There is a new Firefox Extension now available called “FireSheep” that, when installed on anyone’s computer, will allow you to see who is logged into a public Wi-Fi network, what sites they are logged into, and with a simple click of the mouse, take over their identity on the Net.

Yes you read that correctly. With FireSheep, anyone can see what you are doing on-line and easily steal your on-line identity. They can make changes to your Facebook account, change your e-mail password, and much much worse. Are there ways to prevent this? Yes there is. And I will get to that.

Currently, almost 1/2 million people have downloaded FireSheep into their Firefox browsers. Some folks only want to see if and how it works. Others may have less than honorable intentions. You need to protect yourself and perhaps suggest to your favorite coffee shop or other Wi-Fi connected businesses that they do a simple change to their Wi-Fi routers to protect their customers.

The creators of FireSheep did this to show the world how easy it is to steal your identity and to force a change in the way public Wi-Fi is used. And it is so easy to change!

The easiest fix this is for the Wi-Fi provider to turn on WPA or WPA2 encryption on their routers. Then, just hang a sign on the wall for the password to access the router. For instance, Starbucks could easily put up a large sign saying the password in “Starbucks.” Then no one on line could see anyone else.  Each computer would encrypted differently, even with the same password. I think all public Wi-Fi providers should do this now!!

The second solution would be for you, the user, to use VPN encryption to scramble all your signals to and from your laptop. This is what I have been doing for some time now.  There are both free and paid VPN programs.

For more information on these topics, here are some sources for further reading. Also check out the links in the article for more information:

 

Firesheep Simplifies Stealing Logins

Well, thanks to a new Firefox extension called Firesheep, anyone can easily view other people on their network and, with a click of a button, assume another person's identity and login credentials from any non-secure site that the unwitting person is logged into.

The unvarnished truth about unsecured Wi-Fi

Many of you may have heard this before, but many still seem to not be doing anything about it. You should. Here's why. With a $50 wireless antenna and the right software a criminal hacker located outside your building as far as a mile away can capture passwords, e-mail messages, and any other data being transmitted over your network.

How to Stay Safe on Public Wi-Fi Networks

Just because most wireless routers have a firewall to protect you from the internet doesn't mean you're protected from others connected to the same network. Lots of wireless hotspots these days are completely unencrypted, usually so they're easier to connect to (baristas don't need to be giving out the internet password to everyone that walks in). However, this leaves you unprotected against malicious users in the same coffee shop, so there are a few settings you should always make sure to tweak when you're connected to a public network.

proXPN - Create a FREE VPN Account

This free program will allow you to use a private VPN network in public Wi-Fi locations so that no one can see what you are doing, even with FireSheep.

Yahoo Mail Steps Up and Other Reviews

Yahoo speeds up Mail, adds more Twitter

The company on Wednesday is releasing an overhauled version of its Yahoo Mail Beta client that it says is twice as fast as the previous version, while managing to tack on new features like an integrated Twitter client, rich media previews, and a more full-featured IM client.

Logitech Revue (Google TV) Review

The Logitech Revue with Google TV is loaded with potentially game-changing functionality, but its high price, numerous caveats, and current assortment of bugs make it best-suited to early adopters--at least until promised firmware fixes become available.

Evernote's Windows overhaul adds speed, finesse

Evernote is set to release a new version of its note-taking and Web-clipping Windows software this morning that improves speed, looks, and functionality. In short, it leapfrogs the old version, and then some.

Windows Phone 7 will be a serious game-changer

Love it or hate it, the new Windows Phone 7 mobile OS has success written all over it

Dropbox: File synching and sharing made easy

There's no shortage of services offering file sharing, synching, and collaboration through the Internet. But one service stands out from the rest. Dropbox is one of those simple applications that, once installed, quickly become an indispensable part of your computing process. (Editor's note: This is an in-depth review of Dropbox, which I think is a must-have for everyone).

Browser and Office 2011 Updates

Major security bug fixed in Firefox

Mozilla is advising fans of Firefox to update the stable version of the browser after it released a patch for a security bug marked "critical" today. Available for Windows, Mac, and Linux, Firefox 3.6.12 patches a heap buffer overflow that could allow for remote code execution.

Google Chrome 7 Review

Google Chrome 7 is not only stable to use, but comes with a full range of competitive features. It lacks some of the fine-tuning customizations in Firefox, but overall users browsing with Chrome will find it a pleasant, fast, and standards-compliant experience.

Office 2011 for Mac goes on sale

On October 26, Microsoft began selling Office 2011, the new Office release for Mac OS X users at retail. Microsoft released to manufacturing Office 2011 on September 10. There are three SKUs, or versions: Office for Mac Home & Student 2011, Office for Mac Home & Business 2011 and Office for Mac Academic 2011.

Barnes & Noble unveils Nook Color e-Reader

A lot of people wondered whether this would be classified as an Android tablet, and while the device does run on Android 2.1 (it will be upgradeable to Android 2.2 next year) and offers additional functionality such as Web browsing, audio and video playback, and some basic games, Barnes & Noble is spinning it as a "reader's tablet." It uses a backlit LED screen rather than e-ink and only has 8 hours of battery life.

Best Free Online Backup Sites

Endless hours of processing backup disks can now be replaced with online backups and file synching services. The necessity of a good backup is more important than ever, with online backups you can safely and simply backup your data into the cloud. An online backup provides 24/7 access to your files from any internet connected computer, smartphone, or tablet style device. Data storage in the cloud is one of the quickest means to data archiving and recovery.

Windows 7: Past, Present and Future

Windows 7, one year later: How's Microsoft doing? And what's next?

This week, Windows 7 celebrates its first birthday. In my original review, I called Windows 7 “as close to an essential upgrade as I have ever seen,” and I predicted that it would improve with age. A year later, I can already see many of those improvements.

Microsoft says Windows 8 roughly two years away

In its most concrete comments yet about the next version of Windows, Microsoft said in a blog post on its Dutch Web site that Windows 8 is about two years from hitting the market.

Facebook Privacy Failure: Latest in Long Line of Blunders

In the latest episode of the gang that couldn't get privacy straight, it was revealed by the Wall Street Journal that many of Facebook's popular applications were unintentionally transmitting the names of the social network's members and, in some cases, their friends' names to dozens of advertising and Internet tracking companies.

The Greatest Tech Battles of All Time

We've broken down some of our favorites from over the years to see how Jobs vs. Google/RIM stacks up. Let's just say that nothing puts a verbal tiff into perspective quite like watching some grainy footage of a circus elephant getting electrocuted on Coney Island.

Productivity Software: Best of 2010

Put more productivity into your day with superb software such as the Google Chrome browser, and protect your PCs with Microsoft Security Essentials or Norton Antivirus 2011, among other top choices.

What I Use–Part 4

This is a continuation of the article I started several weeks ago (and interrupted by my Chicago vacation) on the hardware and software I personally use. In this edition, I will focus on productivity software.

As you might guess, my productivity software revolves around Microsoft’s Office 2010. While I have used other similar software, such as the free OpenOffice, I always gravitated back to Office. For several years, I used Office 2003. But this year, I moved forward to Office 2010 (skipping Office 2007). In the words of my favorite Microsoft blogger, Paul Therrott, it was a “no-brainer.” Compared to the 2003, this new version is a major revision and I do like most of its new features.

But, let’s talk briefly about the components of Office that I use the most.

1. Microsoft OneNote: Without a doubt this program is the most often-used software on my computer. To put it as succinctly as possible, OneNote is a collection point for almost everything: thoughts, ideas, information, personal information, plans, projects, captured data from the web and almost everything else you can think of. I use it several times a day to store info about my daily activities, to-do lists, data gathered from the Web and much more. OneNote is a large notebook, divided into sections and subsections that you create…and it looks like a notebook with 3 levels of tabs. It is difficult to describe without seeing it, but I encourage anyone who want to become better organized to take a look at it on the Microsoft Web site.

2. Microsoft Outlook: This is my e-mail software of choice, although it goes way beyond that single use. Of all the components of Office 2010, Outlook has the largest number of improvement and new features, far too numerous to mention here. Besides e-mail, Outlook handles my address book, to-do lists, calendar, scheduling, and notes. My cell phone is a Blackberry and I use their desktop software to sync all my Outlook data to my phone. Believe it or not, I use the Notes section of Outlook to make up my grocery lists, so if you see me wandering around a grocery store with my phone in my hand, you know what I am doing. I also have another list of books I want to buy someday so I am ready whenever I wander into a bookstore.

3. Microsoft Word: It’s the most used word processor in the entire world and for good reason. You are all probably very familiar with it so I won’t go into details about it, but it is better than ever. A quick word here about the Ribbon Interface now used it all Office products: while I am not 100% comfortable with it, I have found a work-around in that I can put my own most often used functions in a toolbar at the top of screen and keep the ribbon closed until I need it. I created my own personal toolbar for each of the Office products.

4. Microsoft Excel: As the most used spreadsheet in all the word, I use it and like it very much and, again, won’t go into details as you probably know more about it than me.

5. Microsoft PowerPoint: As a retired person, I don’t have a need for it anymore. I only mention it as it has so many new improvements in the 2010 version that make it better than ever before. As it does automatically create presentations for the Web, I might play with it someday for my own Web site.

The other productivity software I should mention here is Quicken. I am using version 2009 to handle my personal finances. It is far more powerful than my humble needs, but it is a good program still, after all these years.

More to come…

Browser Updates in the News

Mozilla Firefox Update Squashes Nine Security Bugs

Mozilla repaired a slew of bugs Wednesday in a comprehensive Firefox update totaling nine fixes, five of which are deemed critical. Altogether, the latest version, Firefox 3.6.11, addresses five flaws that enable hackers to launch malicious attacks onto users' systems remotely, as well as two errors that carry the slightly less severe rating of "high" and one that is considered "moderate."

Chrome moves to version 7 on schedule

Google recently adopted an accelerated release cycle for its Chrome browser, pushing out a new stable release every six weeks. Google Chrome 7.0.517.41 for Windows, Mac, and Linux introduces the majority of Chrome users to features that have been available to beta and developer's build users for several months, as well as fixing hundreds of bugs that affected the browser's stability.

Stuxnet: Smarter -- and deadlier -- than the average worm

Now we have Stuxnet, which has deservedly garnered a fair share of media coverage over the past few months. The malware is unlike any threat we've previously seen. If Stuxnet is a sign of things to come, it will be difficult to believe that our biggest malware fears were merely boot viruses, rogue file attachments, and macro viruses.

How Starbucks is trying to change the media

Caffeine behemoth Starbucks on Tuesday finally unveiled its revamped Web hub, a landing page that's only accessible from its in-store Wi-Fi networks in the U.S. Teaming with the likes of Yahoo (the main technology partner), The Wall Street Journal, GOOD, The New York Times, iTunes, LinkedIn, and Foursquare, Starbucks has packed the new site full of news both local and mainstream (including content that would normally be behind paywalls), free music download promos, local information like weather and bike trails, and movie trailers.

Google To Bring Dead Sea Scrolls Online

A joint project between Google and Israel's Antiquities Authority will grant free, global access to the 2,000-year-old Dead Sea Scrolls, one of the greatest archaeological finds of the last century, by uploading high-resolution images that are exact copies of the originals. The scrolls are kept in dark, temp-controlled rooms at the Israel Museum.

Catching You (and Me) Up

I am back from two great weeks in Chicago. In many ways sad to come home, but it’s a good thing I like Tucson.  So, here now are a few things we missed while I was away:

Windows Phone 7 Offers the Best of Apple and Android

Microsoft appears to have taken the best from rivals Apple and Android in its new Windows Phone 7 operating system. Its innovative approach to Windows Phone 7 uses Qualcomm hardware for iPhone reliability and offers Android's development flexibility. The initial Windows Phone 7 launch is limited to the GSM networks of AT&T and T-Mobile.

Facebook Groups: Hands On

Last week, Facebook held a press conference to announce even bigger changes to the site: the ability to download your Facebook data, a new app control panel, and - of the most far reaching importance - a new Groups capability.

Mission interface image - Google Earth tackles the universe

Google announced it is partnering with Slooh, a service popular with astronomy buffs that lets its users view live events through its global network of observatories, and take photographs of what they see. The Internet giant will integrate data from Slooh into its Google Sky service.

Borders launches e-book publishing platform with BookBrewer

Want to write a book and get it published? Well, now it’s getting even easier for aspiring and independent authors to get their work to the masses these days. Borders has now launched an e-book publishing platform of its own.

10 great free desktop productivity tools that aren't OpenOffice.org

These free and open source applications for Windows, Linux, and Mac desktops put power into the hands of users without taking from their wallets

I Forgot to Tell You…

With the publication of today’s Rants and Raves, I will be taking a couple of weeks off and heading for Chicago. I will resume publication of  this blog when I return. If I run into any interesting timely stories, I will publish them here, so stay tuned.

To follow my adventures in Chicago, along with some photos, check out my updates on my Web site’s “Front Burner” page…or on Twitter or Facebook.  See you soon.

Should the Govt. Be Able to Shut Down Web Sites at Will?

Fight for Senate antipiracy bill rages

Killing legislation that would enable the government to shut down Web sites accused of piracy was a top priority for many technology trade groups today. Last week, a Senate committee stunned the tech sector by announcing it would try to fast-track a bill designed to grant the U.S. Department of Justice wide authority to combat illegal file sharing and counterfeiting. Critics say the proposed legislation, known as the Combating Online Infringement and Counterfeits Act, is nothing more than censorship and would heap the copyright-protection problems on companies that shouldn't bear the burden. Giving the government the right to shut down websites would put us on a par with China for censorship.

Windows Live Essentials 2011 released

Microsoft has just released the final version of Windows Live Essentials 2011, an update for the popular Windows Live Essentials suite of downloadable Windows applications. The suite is a free download from Microsoft, compatible with Windows Vista and Windows 7.

Microsoft Security Essentials: Free, so what's the catch?

As I live on the edge without any virus protection, it will only be a matter of time before I pick something up -- which is why I was interested in Microsoft's recent release of the second version of OneCare's successor, Microsoft Security Essentials (MSE). MSE provides real-time protection for home PCs, although Microsoft is promising that enterprise support for small business is on the way.

Windows 7: The Top 10 Hidden Features

There are plenty of hidden features and goodies in the depth of Windows 7. We'll tell you where to find them.

Best Free Notes Organizer

In today's electronic world, it can be quite a challenge to organize all useful information such as web clips, articles, bits of text, images, interesting web links, bookmarks, shopping lists, to-do lists, recipes, tips and many others that are hanging around your PC. It seems to be a common easy task but a difficult one to sort out as the information is so disparate. Some folks have tried to get it organized by using free form databases while others use beefed up text editors or multi-media snippet managers. If you're one of them or just would like to look for a useful tool to organize your random bits of information, you might find that some of these freeware products come in handy and helpful.