KC News 2001

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SITES FOR SORE EYES
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WTC NY 9-11
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The events of September 11, 2001 have changed the world and affected us all. All the people on this planet adversely affected by September 11th and it's consequences are on our minds. We have dedicated ourselves to helping people understand and cope with the tragic events. Please visit our tribute website:

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Keyboard Shortcut Du Jour
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SPACEBAR
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Here are some keyboard shortcuts using the SPACEBAR!

ALT+ SPACEBAR
Opens the control menu. This is just like clicking on the symbol in the top left corner of a window, from which you select (perhaps using mouse,
perhaps using arrow keys and enter) among restore, minimize, maximize, close, etc.

SPACEBAR
Hitting it will finalize the SELECTION of an item in a list or an icon on the screen that's only half- selected, i.e., there's a box around the name but full highlighting is not there. It also puts a checkmark or big dot in a little box or circle for you to check one of several options.

SPACEBAR
In NETSCAPE it will take you exactly one page down. Great for navigating long web pages.

KC TECHSHOP
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* MONEY-SAVING RANKINGS
    Best sites for comparison shopping and reviews.
* "SWEET SPOT" SHOPPING LISTS
    DESKTOPs and LAPTOPs. Best price-to-quality!
* GREEN PC Section
    Helps you save energy.

NOVEMBER DEAL$:
SPEAKERS: Creative Labs PCWorks - compact 3 piece incl. subwoofer ONLY: $40
(if all you have are cheap little speakers get these and turn your PC into a stereo - highly recommended!)
PRINTER: Epson Stylus Color 777 Inkjet 2880x720 dpi ONLY: $53
SCANNER: Pacific Image Magic Keys 1236C 600x1200 dpi ONLY: $30
MONITOR: AOC 7ELR 17" Flat Tube 1280x1024 0.27 dp ONLY: $160

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HOUSEHOLD ITEM
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DIGICAM
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The time has come. Digital cameras or "DigiCams" have gotten so good and their prices have dropped so much that you may NEVER need to buy another conventional camera in your life! This is why the DIGICAM is our HOUSEHOLD ITEM of the month. For under $300 you can get amazing 2 Megapixel digicams. We like cameras from Kodak, Fuji, Olympus and Nikon.

There are a few areas where digicams can still use improvement. For example: battery life, memory capacity, and user friendly software

1) Digicams suck battery juice. Buy Nickel-Metal Halide or Lithium Ion batteries and charger if they don't come with your camera. Buy at least 2 sets of batteries. ALWAYS carry a spare set of batteries with you.

2) Get a memory chip that can hold AT LEAST 64 MB, preferably 128 MB. If necessary get additional memory chips (there are different types, so make sure you get the right one) and carry them with you.

3) Investigate the type of SOFTWARE that comes with the camera. It is EQUALLY important to have USER FRIENDLY photo software as it is to be comfortable with the actual camera controls. Try the software immediately after you buy your camera. Go get another camera if the software won't let you download all your photos in on.

TALK IS CHEAP
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WE at KAHL CONSULTANTS recommend products that we personally use.
We found an amazing prepaid long distance service - and we know that you'll love this virtual calling card deal!

* Works worldwide (via web enabled CALLBACK)!
* No Monthly Fees! No Hidden Fees!

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WORD OF THE MONTH
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FIREWIRE
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Apple Computers received an Emmy award for creating FireWire. Never heard of it? This high-speed connection technology has become key in the TV industry for moving video on and off computers - hence the Emmy.

Apple developed the FireWire standard - also known as IEEE 1394 - as a simpler and faster way for Macs to connect to peripherals.

But Apple must be even more pleased that the high-speed connection is becoming standard on the majority of PCs.

FireWire has competed with USB (universal serial bus) and now USB 2.0 to become the dominant standard for connecting computers to peripherals such as digital cameras, external hard drives and CD-burners. Buying a new PC? Make sure it has FireWire!

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KC TIPS
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WIRELESS MP3 SOUNDS
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MP3s addicts listen up!

Take your MP3s on the road with Link It. Using Wireless technology, LINK-IT links your MP3 player to your car stereo without wires.

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WinTips
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CLEANING UP AFTER YOURSELF PART 2
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You want to clean up after yourself?
Paranoid about others knowing what you did on your computer?
Running out of hard drive space?
Want to protect your privacy?
Want to improve your performance?

If you said YES to any of these questions, then follow these BASIC, INTERMEDIATE, AND ADVANCED steps:

I. BASIC STEPS
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BASIC Steps were featured in the last KC NEWS.
Read them online at: http://www.kahl.net/news

II. INTERMEDIATE STEPS
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These require you to have a little more knowledge about your computer and/or install additional software.

follow the instructions to install Tweak UI. Run Tweak UI (click START - SETTINGS - CONTROL PANEL - TWEAK UI). Click the PARANOID tab. Select all items and click "CLEAR SELECTED ITEMS NOW". Then unselect them and close Tweak UI.

2.) DELETE TEMPORARY BROWSER FILES
Your web browser writes files to your hard disk. Over time they accumulate to thousands of unnecessary files. While the purpose of these files is to save you time should you revisit a web site, these files tend to clog up your hard disk. Microsoft Internet Explorer and Netscape Navigator browsers have built-in procedures to delete these files.

a.) Clear the CACHE and HISTORY File.
Internet Explorer 4.0: select View - Internet Options from the menu bar. On the General tab click (a) the Delete Files button under Temporary Internet Files and (b) the Clear History button under History.
Internet Explorer 5.0: select TOOLS - INTERNET OPTIONS from the pull down menu bar. On the General tab click (a) the Delete Files button under Temporary Internet Files and (b) the Clear History button under History
Netscape 4.x: Select EDIT - PREFERENCES - ADVANCED - CACHE and click CLEAR MEMORY CACHE and CLEAR DISK CACHE.
Netscape 4.x: select EDIT - PREFERENCES - NAVIGATOR. Click CLEAR HISTORY.

b.) Clear the Location Window.
Netscape 4.x: select EDIT - PREFERENCES - NAVIGATOR. Click CLEAR LOCATION BAR to clear the Netscape Location Window.

c.) Delete the Mail Folder files. In Netscape go into Messenger, select Emails to delete and press delete. Then go into the TRASH folder and delete the contents.

3.) MSCONFIG COMMAND
MSCONFIG is a very powerful command and it can really speed up your computer system. Click START - RUN and type in MSCONFIG. Select the STARTUP TAB. These are the commands that windows starts up EACH TIME your computer turns on! When you see icons in your taskbar down in the lower right corner of the screen, they are generally started from this area. To make them not automatically start up, you can unselect them here. This is a temporarily way to speed up your computer. BE CAREFUL! Do not select things that you don't know or you'll cause some hardware or software to not function properly.

III. ADVANCED STEPS
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ADVANCED Steps will be featured in the next KC NEWS.

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AOTM (Acronym of the Month)
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SSSCA
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Stop the SSSCA! If you don't oppose this bill and it passes, you risk jail time for burning music CDs or playing MP3 files. Your computer will not be yours to do with as you wish.

The proposed "Security Systems Standards and Certification Act" (SSSCA) law would force all new PCs and digital home entertainment devices in the USA to have government-approved "policeware" built-in.

The idea of forcing government policeware into our homes and businesses, and jailing those who tamper with or refuse to run this policeware on their own private computers, is contrary to both the letter and spirit of our Constitution and Bill of Rights.

Handy Acronym Links (or HAL):
BABEL : A Glossary of Computer Oriented Abbreviations and Acronyms
http://online.dossnet.com/babel.htm

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!!Hoax & Virus Alert!!
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WHAT'S REAL, WHAT'S FAKE
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REAL:
You receive a mail with the subject "Fwd: Peace BeTweeN AmeriCa and IsLaM!" It contains an attachment named WTC.exe.

WARNING: this a real virus. Do NOT launch the attachment in order to avoid infecting your PC.

In case you received this mail or any other mail with attachments you find suspicious, DELETE immediately!

Remember the basic rules:
*   Be suspicious when receiving e-mails from unknown senders.
*   Do not immediatly open just any e-mails you receive.
*   Take notice of the advices regarding passwords and their usage.
*   Protect your PC against any misuse

FAKE:
You receive a mail with a subject like "Taliban" or "Human Rights"! It contains a petition sarabande-@-brandeis.edu for women's rights in Afghanistan. Don't sign this pointless petition. The email address is no longer valid.

Remember kids, play it safe on the net. Don't trust internet fairy tales. Scan for virii and verify all incoming messages here:
http://www.kahl.net/hoax

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NetTips
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INTERNET ARCHIVE
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The Internet Archive is building a digital library of Internet sites and other cultural artifacts in digital form. Like a paper library, it provides free access to researchers, historians, scholars, and the general public.

The Internet Archive Wayback Machine puts the history of the World Wide Web at your fingertips. The Archive contains over 100 terabytes and 10 billion web pages archived from 1996 to the present. They even have www.kahl.net going back to 1998.

Use the Wayback Machine to surf the web as it was. Explore the past here:
http://web.archive.org/

KAHL CONSULTANTS
==================
Technology. Use it appropriately. Put it in our hands.
Visit our website: http://www.kahl.net

Our latest clients include:
Trashopia - Art from Trash & Materials Exchange
http://www.trashopia.com/

THE PUNCH LINE
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WINDOWS, WINDOWS EVERYWHERE
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[Thanks RC!]
I'm sending you this e-mail from 2021--40 years after IBM released its first personal computer--in a last attempt to prevent the mistakes in computer development that put civilization in jeopardy.

For instance, Apple Computer continues to do well, but not for its stockholders. The company gained tax-exempt status as a religion in 2015. Authorities were convinced the designation was appropriate after many users took to flagellating themselves in public when Steve Jobs failed to make any significant new-product announcements at Macworld in Boston. Apple evangelists have become common in shopping malls and airports. The cult tends to attract very nice people, and they've managed to integrate into society quite well. The rest of us simply avoid talking about technology around them lest we get flooded with irate e-mail.

Bill Gates has been barricaded for the last two years in a vast subterranean bunker, along with a core group of true believers from the old Microsoft Corp.
Gates and his minions literally went underground in 2019 after the Supreme Court ruled against the company for the 1,249th time in the antitrust case that began in 1997.

Authorities gave up trying to extract them after concluding that cracking open the bunker might hurt the people inside, who technically weren't criminals because they'd never actually been charged.

Various philanthropic groups tried to "deprogram" followers of the man who once headed Microsoft and entice them out of the bunker. But the would-be rescuers were usually met with derisive laughter. The Microserfs said they'd only emerge from their shelter if the humanitarians correctly answered three riddles.

One group, having craftily recruited a team of Linux programmers, was able to pass the test. But those inside insisted that the Linux folks must have cheated and thereafter refused to respond to any more entreaties from the outside.

The only reason we know they're still alive down there is the frequent issuing of news releases, such as the one yesterday declaring that Microsoft takes security very seriously. In recent weeks, the releases have sometimes taken on a more plaintive tone, offering bug fixes for Windows Uber Grande users in exchange for a case of Malomars.

Some years ago, the company stopped selling software outright and instead set up a subscription-based system. Users paid a fee, just like the cable bill and got to use a Microsoft operating system or Microsoft software, like the Office suite.

As a result, when Microsoft decided to issue an upgrade, we all upgraded pretty much simultaneously because the company eventually would cut off access to the older software. It wasn't too long before everybody, everywhere, was running exactly the same thing.

This had some great advantages. Computers got a lot simpler and more reliable because they didn't have to be quite as flexible. Things such as technical support and interoperability issues largely disappeared. All our appliances pretty much run on a stripped-down version of the Microsoft operating system, everything from the microwave oven to the thermostat.

The problem is, because everything runs the same operating system--even my electric shaver--once somebody discovers a security flaw, it can bring down our computers. All the computers. All over the world.

In some places, the power is on for only a couple of hours a day now. It's not safe to drive because the traffic lights can't be trusted. Torch-bearing mobs occasionally break into the homes of known technologists and . . . well, let's just say we're starting to run low on people who can fix things.

We're on the brink of disaster, akin to the great corn blight of 2012. Then, all commercially planted corn had been made genetically identical, which produced spectacular yields. But when a new disease infected a crop in a small field in Iowa, it ripped through all the corn around the world because none of the plants had any resistance to the blight. God, what I wouldn't give to taste Frosted Flakes again.
[Source: Dave Wilson, LA Times]

Kahl Consultants
P.O.Box 4284
San Rafael, CA 94903-4284
USA
Tel: +1-415-499 0838
Fax: +1-415-499 0833
www.kahl.net
Contact us

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Technology
Use it appropriately
Put it in our hands

KC News

KC News FALL 2001 SPECIAL | Vol.3, No.8 - 11