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A Primer On Body Language2
Joe M posted in Musing, free stuff on January 30th, 2010

I love free stuff.

And… I like reading books that are written on the subject of learning more about the environment around me.

I stumbled across a book on Body Language.

I cannot vouch for the accuracy, but it is a good read.

For the most part, much of the content should be valid.

Keep in mind, some people have certain mannerisms and idiosyncrasies that might not necessarily apply.

Take into account, some cultural differences may apply.

Remember, in some circles, a kiss may mean anything from love, a greeting or a salute.

Looking away from someone might imply a lack or confidence, or a lack of respect.

I would suggest reading the book in entirety, before attempting to apply any of its content or concepts.

The book is free, and online.

The iPad is here0
Joe M posted in products on January 28th, 2010

Why We Don’t Have User Support0
Joe M posted in Home Support on January 27th, 2010

User Support is a broad term.

Mostly it refers to anything that is not covered in the manual, that comes with your computer.

Sometimes, it may even encompass the stuff that is in the manual.

If your mouse doesn’t work… or you get an error… or a virus…

Or need to perform a certain task, and you don’t know how.

Those tasks are all considered User Support.

A few years back, it was a standard to get a year, or a few months, of User Support when you purchased a new PC.

In those days, you might spend a couple thousand dollars on a PC.

The cost of the PC paid for the operational costs of hiring the User Support personnel, along with any other operational costs.

These days… you can buy a PC for next to nothing.

The difference, now, is that the retail costs have been trimmed and optimized.

Most manufacturers no longer have User Support.

In order to sell consumers a desktop or a laptop at today’s prices…

The tradeoff is that manufacturers have cut their own costs.

For the most part, that means they are no longer paying a person to answer the phone and your questions.

What does that mean, for us, in the long run?

We spend a great deal more time, these days, researching and learning.

We find more computer-related books… tutorials… websites, etc.

Like it or not, this has become an era of self-support.

Believe it or not… there are still companies and consultants that have User Support offerings.

The difference is… they no longer come packaged with purchases… and are more expensive than ever before.

Having done my fair share of User Support… I can tell you…

Those that still work in the field have learned… it is definitely work.

And… the scope of what is provided, and to what extent is defined more clearly, than ever before.

Not too long ago… I got a call from someone that told me…

“I got someone to re-install everything.  That was a month ago… I think they must have done something wrong, because I have a virus, again!”

I am curious, to see what happens in the User Support space, over the next year.

Teaching More Than You Think0
Joe M posted in opinion on January 26th, 2010

An article at Ars Technica seems to indicate that anxiety toward math in female students might actually be ‘absorbed’ or learned behavior.

If you think about it, it only makes sense.

It seems that by some nature or legacy, females (of ‘the norm’) don’t seem to be mathematically inclined.

Since many math teachers are female, is it possible that they are not only teaching procedures and principles, but more?

I think this article scrapes the surface of a much larger picture.

Looking back, at my experiences, and those of my classmates and acquaintenances, I can draw more than just this one theory.

Let me preface, saying, teachers are human beings.

I had some wonderful teachers in elementary, middle, high school and college.

There are some really positive influences that I have had, that I attribute to those wonderful human beings.

They stimulated my curiosity, my intellect and much more.

Now, the other side… the dark side.

Not all teachers are quite so positive.

Many are overcome by ego, by bias (which is not necessarily equivalent to racism), by pre-disposition…

Just to name a few dark and not-so-desirable qualities.

I can remember more than one occasion, in which someone I knew had a negative experience in school.

One person I knew had a male coach for a math teacher.

I am not sure what sort of personal issues the teacher had… but he made a habit out of calling the person out in math class.

I am not sure how the person fairs with math, these days… but from what I observed… the treatment completely turned the person off, on the subject of math.

My point is this:

Teachers take on a great responsibility, when they choose teaching as a profession.

They are agreeing to help shape minds and individuals, and help prepare them for complete function in the real world.

Good teachers realize they are teaching, even when they aren’t aware of it.

It’s sad to say, but not all teachers are necessarily aware of that fact.

Teachers pass on much more that what is in a book or written on a chalkboard.

Defraggler for Windows0
Joe M posted in free stuff on January 25th, 2010

Having recently been tasked with a couple of re-installs of Windows XP, I have been reminded of several things.

For the most part…

A standard user can usually survive on free software offerings.

That includes some defragment utilities.

There are several paid packages that have extensive features.

For a regular user, one of the free offerings should suffice.

Defraggler is a great little utility.

It offers some good features.

Touch-up defragging, selective files and folders, scheduling…

For NTFS and FAT32 file systems, Defraggler is a great, power-packed utility.

You can check it out, and download it here.

DVRs And Overheating0
Joe M posted in Howto, homelife on January 21st, 2010

Over the past couple of weeks, I noticed some strange behavior with my DVR.

It’s a Scientfic Atlanta 8300HD.

The problem I have had is… It began skipping segments in the recorded programs, showing pixelated artifacts and downright freezing.

I also noticed blank grey spots during the grecorded shows… even shows that did not record at all, just a grey screen, but the show still displayed as a recording in the menu.

I tried rebooting it, and shutting it off completely.

I even tried leavign it off, for several hours.

Nothing seemed to help.

After Googling the unit and model… I found that these units have some history of overheating.

They are not designed to have anything sitting on top of them, obstructing the airflow.

I rearranged my TV stand, and set the unit in a clear space, by itself.

I still noticed some heat from the unit.

Another Google search rendered a post from a guy who put a fan on his unit, to alleviate the problem.

I searched for a fan.  Surely, I had something around?

Scratching my head… I had a brainstorm.

A couple months ago, I bought an extra laptop cooler, the USB kind, at Big Lots… $13.

I thought it was a bargain, at the time, and figured I would come up with some use for it.

The 8300HD has a USB port, right on the front.

I flipped the laptop cooler upside down… with the cooler aimed at the top of the 8300HD.

I plugged the USB power cable into the front USB port.

I flipped it on, and left it.

Over the past couple of days… I have noticed that my freezing, blanking and artifact issues have disappeared.

A Guitar With No Strings1
Joe M posted in homelife on January 19th, 2010

Challenges and Work-Arounds With Windows XP0
Joe M posted in Home Support on January 18th, 2010

Even though I try to avoid it…

I have a couple of friends that inevitably hose their machines, about every 4 or 5 months.

Seems like there is always something.

I finish one machine, then get asked to fix another.

I usually keep my mouth shut… but somehow, I wind up with a stack of machines.

I found myself, this time, working on a laptop.

Somehow, the wife of my friend had managed to knock it off the coffee table.

When I got it… I tried to boot it up.

The hard drive was completely dead.

Taking a look around, I planned on ordering one, and getting it delivered by mail.

Going out to Walmart, over the weekend, I found a small Seagate 250 GB external drive ($50).

On a whim, I bought the drive and got it home.

I took it out of the package, and found that I could easily remove it from the plastic casing.

To my assurance, there was a 2.5 inch laptop drive, SATA, hidden inside.

I replaced the drive in the laptop with it, and put it all back together.

Everything was smooth.

I stuck in my Windows XP CD, to re-install the OS.

The original XP OS was on the orignal drive, which was now dead.

Booting from the CD, I was reminded, that XP does not come with SATA drivers natively.

I had to download the SATA drivers, from the manufacturer website.

The next challenge?

I found that the laptop did not have a floppy.

I copied the drivers to a floppy, and plugged in my USB floppy drive.

During the initial load of the XP install, I pressed F6 and had to manually load the SATA drivers.

The crazy thing is… the only way to load the drivers is from a floppy.

The XP install won’t allow you to pull the drivers from anywhere, but a floppy drive!

After all those gyrations… the machine is humming along.

The Eyewriter0
Joe M posted in products on January 16th, 2010

The Eyewriter from Evan Roth on Vimeo.

Facebook and Mcafee Partner To Help Users Practice Safe Social0
Joe M posted in security on January 14th, 2010

Facebook and Mcafee announced a partnership today.

For six months, Mcafee will offer free protection to Facebook users.

After that time, FB users will be able to purchase protection from Mcafee at a discount.

This is a good move for Facebook, considering security has not really been one of the site’s strengths.

Even though this is a good offer, users should keep in mind that a good virus scanner is only a good start.

Every day, new viruses and malware is being created.

Users will still have to keep it updated, and run scans on a regular basis.

Both of these tasks can be automated, but even setting them to auto will not completely ensure protection.

I saw one guy who set his updates and virus scanner to run at midnight.

Absentminded, he turned off his machine at 10 pm, every night.

He could not figure out how he contracted an infection.

Also… you have to remember that sites that have a large volume of users are prime targets for exploits and vulnerabilities.

When you start to think about virus protection, I leave you with one question:

How many people do you know, that have virus protection…

That have had to get their machine fixed, due to virus problems?

Google Offering Even More In The Cloud0
Joe M posted in products on January 13th, 2010

Google announced today, it will be adding to its service offerings, once again.

Adding more cloud capability, the new online storage service will be available in the coming weeks.

Until now, users have been able to store files online, in one of the GoogleDocs format.

There will be a 250 MB limit on filesize, for the files you upload.

The free offering will be capped at 1 GB.

Additional storage will be offered at $0.25 per GB.

That’s for the personal storage option.

Business clients will pay a little more… reportedly, $17 per 5 GB, per year.

The offering will also feature organization for files and folders.

It does not sound like a bad deal, for anyone that has certain documents for which they want access, anywhere.

There are also offerings with access into the Google API, for the storage.

That means that a programmer could provide code inside of a program to access the online storage.

Several third parties have been working in conjunction with Google on the new offering.

These include offerings to sync files between the cloud and the user desktop.

Google has been quoted as saying they will be monitoring for abuse, and will shut it down.

(What they consider abuse, or how the shut down will occur, I am not sure.)

The Hemingway Hack1
Joe M posted in homelife, opinion on January 12th, 2010

I am a fan of mind and creativity hacks.

I have always considered myself open-minded, and I am constantly looking for ways to improve my processes.

I came across this hack for writing.

It’s built around a quote from Ernest Hemingway.

The idea is…

To stop writing when you are going good.

Put the item away, for the day.

While you are concentrating on something else, your subconscious will work on the item for you.

The next time you sit down to write, you will find that you have fewer problems getting stuck, or writer’s block.

The things I would add…

During the brainstorming session, write simple words and phrases.  Leave room for thought about how to build the sentences around them.

Make it a point to do your composition in two or three sessions.  Allow your ideas to have ‘time to cook.’

Bounce your ideas off of someone else, or ask for an opinion about a topic of interest.

You may find that you need to clarify or explain your idea… or you may discover that there is a flaw in your reasoning.

And…

As much as I preach it… it never hurts to Google ideas and phrases… to get additional food for thought.

I have seen suggestions that everyone should write something every day.

It helps to keep your writer’s mind in practice.

Using Your New Camera1
Joe M posted in free stuff, homelife on January 11th, 2010

Several people received cameras as holiday gifts.

I have a couple of friends who received some of the ‘pro-sumer’ grade of digital cameras.

There are plenty of people walking around with some great cameras, still shooting in auto or green mode.

While there is no shortage of junk on the internet and the major video sites, there are some good places to learn.

A quick search on Youtube yields some good results, for the basic concepts.

There are also loads of books available at any bookstore.

Although it’s not a goal of mine to have a night job in photography, I am still fascinated by it.

The number of hacks and posts I see on the topic, themselves, are inspiring.

I came across this post on MakeUseOf.

There is also this post on Lifehacker from the Best of 2009.

You may not learn enough to teach others about the topic, as a professor… but the information that you get will be enough to peak your interest and motivate you to learn more.

Photographers have usually had a pretty good reputation for being inventive and  innovative.

The Easy Approach To Audio and Video Conversion0
Joe M posted in free stuff on January 10th, 2010

I was messing around with collecting some flash video.

I wanted to convert them to a format to watch on a standard DVD, and in a standard DVD player.

After a little searching, I found that Ubuntu has an app called WinFF, that does the job nicely.

It converts between a wide range of formats for video and audio.

It’s actually a front end GUI for FFMPEG.

One of the great things about it…

It’s available for Windows and Linux.

You can find it here.

Boxee Releases The Beta0
Joe M posted in homelife, opinion on January 8th, 2010

Boxee released the much anticipated (for me, anyway) Beta version.

It was unveiled about a month ago, at a press conference.

At that time, they offered a sign-up list for those users that wanted to participate in the beta test.

I signed up, but evidently, I did not ‘rate.’

I am thrilled to download and install it, now, though.

I have not gotten a chance to play with it much…

But I can tell you, from my initial reactions…

The eye candy alone is pretty pleasing.

The Beta version is now available on the Boxee website.

You will have to set up a user account, if you haven’t already.

In my opinion, if you want to see a step in the next evolution of web content delivery…

Boxee is the one application you should try.

It’s available for Windows, Mac, AppleTv, and Ubuntu Linux.

(The Beta now supports 64-bit Ubuntu.  That’s something for which Ubuntu enthusiasts have been waiting.)

Unbelievable Short Sci-Fi Film0
Joe M posted in opinion on January 7th, 2010

“Ataque de Pánico!”

I don’t have many details about this.

The fascinating thing is that in some reports I saw, the producer made the film for $300 US.

In another report, they said he shot the live action sequence for $300.

Not sure how accurate either of those statements is, but either way around… it is a great production.

Shows some real talent on someone’s behalf.

Absolute Nuts0
Joe M posted in music on January 6th, 2010

Nuts Optical Illusion – Watch more Funny Videos

How I did: My predictions for 20090
Joe M posted in Musing, opinion on January 4th, 2010

The following are predictions I made for 2009, at the end of 2008.

You can read the original post here.

1. Security – With the economy in a decline and people losing their jobs, the hard truth is… we can expect more malware, more viruses, more phishing and more exploits; even some new ones.  As economies suffer, the crime rate goes up.  The difference is, now the crimes can be perpetrated from a remote location. This will be one area in IT (in the business sector) that will grow in 2009.  Companies will be more security conscious than ever before, and will make room in their budget for IT security professionals. Wide Area, anti-virus, anti-malware, Routing and Encryption will all be areas to watch.

Accuracy:  A+

I think I hit this one, dead on.  The more complex technology gets, there is a time delay… and soon everyone is figuring out how to use old techniques in deception to harvest valuable data.  The under-handed practices may change, as in the technology steps used… but it still boils down to the same thing.

People are always going to figure out how to steal.  The description of the act may change.  The technology may sound overwhelming.  But when the smoke clears… it’s still stealing.

The business sector took these threats seriously in 2009.  Security was strengthened in both physical and data.  Policies were revised, even to mention acceptable and unacceptable practices.

2. Windows Re-acceptance – Don’t expect the business world to begin upgrades in 2009, but if Windows 7 pans out, you can expect the business world to make plans to upgrade in 2010.  How will Windows 7 sell in the private sector?  That will depend on the pricing structure that Microsoft sets up.  I don’t expect many people beyond Hardcore Windows Geeks and new machine buyers to be running W7, unless Microsoft makes it a real bargain.

Accuracy:  A-

Microsoft surprised us with the family pack this year.  It allowed families to install Windows 7 on up to three machines in the household, for $150.  They also offered pre-ordering for OS upgrades.

There was our bargain.

Windows 7 was a breath of fresh air.

I do not believe that people rushed out to buy the OS at the regular retail list prices, beyond the bargains mentioned above.

Microsoft always reports record sales with their OS releases.

If you take into consideration the package deals that they influence the manufacturers to bundle with new hardware, I am not sure the records they report are quite as impressive as they would have you believe.

3. Hardware Procurement Decline – In the business and private sector, people will be looking for ways to stretch their hardware over 2009.  With that said, I believe that better deals on hardware will be offered late third quarter and last quarter 2009, to stimulate consumer spending.

Accuracy:  B+

Many hardware purchases scheduled for late 2009 were delayed and pushed into the 2010 budget.

Businesses were pushed to identify mission critical components in their infrastructure, distinguishing those from ancillary systems.

Budgets were re-vamped throughout the year, and cuts were made as necessary.

Sales and distributions were competitive in the last two quarters of 2009.  The sales forces were hungry.

4. Free Software Acceptance – More people in the private sector will be looking for corners to cut during 2009.  I expect the use of free Windows software to rise in 2009.  What will be interesting is the profit model for free software, and how it evolves.  Will it be ad-supported?

Accuracy: B

Everyone became more aware of free software in 2009.

From free virus scanners to free optical burning applications, just to name a couple.

Google announced Chrome OS in 2009.  We also got to see glimpses of it.

Microsoft even flirted with Free Software.  Windows 7 Beta was released to the general public, to give us all a taste.

The changes in this area are still taking place.  It’s not over yet.

5. Failure for Linux Support – I expect some strides to be made in Linux support in 2009, but not to the point that Linux will be gaining a major market share.  As in previous years, it will be more profitable for OEMs to produce Windows drivers and software, which help them to realize a profit faster.  Companies will not be taking fewer risks in 2009, so don’t expect daring or bold moves for Linux on the business desktop any time soon.

Accuracy:  B+

Businesses seem to have a tendency to want to buy Open Source and Linux offerings.

I do think that businesses began to consider open source alternatives more in 2009.

I also think that we will see evidence of more development on the Linux platform, coming in 2010.

I do expect the private sector to have a few more Linux-curious, and a few more that will try it in 2009.  Will it replace their Windows desktop?  Probably not.  The people that try it, will try it dual boot; but use Windows as their primary desktop.

I have no statistics to base an opinion on this one.

I can tell you… last year… most semi-geeks had no clue what Ubuntu was, or had any cares to try it.

This year?

Most geeky and semi-geeky types have heard of Mac OS X and Ubuntu.

Those brave enough to try installing Windows by themselves… and brave enough to try installing Ubuntu… found that the experience was pretty painless.

Now, more than ever… you can find support for issues in Linux easier, in some cases, than for issues with Windows.

That’s easier, as in comparison to a year ago.

And…

2009 was both conservative for the Business sector and characterized by frugality by the private sector.

Overall Grade:  A-

Predictions For 20100
Joe M posted in Musing, opinion on January 2nd, 2010

With all of the holidays pretty much out of the way, and the efforts that go into those… I can finally concentrate on 2010.

Here are my thoughts and predictions for 2010.  They are in no particular order.

1.  The maturation of UIs (User Interfaces) within the media distribution and delivery of content will finally become more widely accepted.  With Boxee, XBMC and Hulu users on the rise, the UI for these apps will continue to improve in 2010.  A great GUI for content delivery via a simple remote control, connected to a screen will be the aspiration for ownership for consumers in 2010.  This will be the year that consumers realize that there is an easier way to view content from the internet, as opposed to just connecting a PC to your TV.  The UI will be important in simplifying this delivery.

What I personally would like to see is something that will allow me to throw away the cable box and the cable remote… and pull everything through my media center.  TV and HDTV should just be a menu option within my media center UI.

2.  For years, everyone has predicted the fall of Microsoft, the fall of Linux or the domination of Mac OS.  2010 will be no different in the amount or range of these predictions.  I personally think that 2010 will be the year that consumers and businesses realize the value of each OS as applicable in particular spaces.  Due to tight budgets, businesses will begin to compare prices and costs of deployments, rather than blindly choosing Microsoft.  That’s not to say that a non-MS OS will always win, but they will receive more consideration than in previous years.

Microsoft will still be around.  And… we will still hear the stories of exploits and vulnerabilities on a regular basis.

3.  As for the economy, we may see some recovery in 2010, but not to the point of living in abundance.  Consumers will continue to flock to solid value in the market place.  The days of consumers paying high dollar for euphemistically named technologies that add no value for the consumer, like DRM, are coming to a decline.  Netbooks and smartphones will continue to thrive… in synchronization with social media.

As consumers, we will continue to be aware of exactly what we are spending our money on.  Unlike 2007, and before, we will no longer just buy items blindly.

4.  Security will continue to be a focus for the business world in 2010.  Security was one of the only areas to grow in jobs in 2009.

We will continue to hear stories of social engineering, and new ways of deception.  With security awareness on the rise, those that make their living in deceptive practices will meet swift and harsh punishment.

5.  More stringent requirements for employee behavior, both in and outside the workplace, will become defined in 2010.  Employers will make know what is acceptable and unacceptable for employee use of social media.  Many employers will develop and adopt a ‘no social media’ approach to the workplace.

We can expect more “What-the-?” individual horror stories in the news, as employers continue to crack down.  Policy handbooks will become harder to understand, and will read more like contracts with scary loopholes.

6.  2010 will become the year of partnership scrutiny.  With the government becoming more involved in the business and consumer relationship, this will foster more caution within marketing and strategy.  Businesses will pay more attention to the behavior of their partners.  Any business that readily hands over secure information to a third party about a consumer, or a consumer’s account, will be putting their ability to earn a profit at risk.

Businesses will be required to learn more about their partners, and their partners’ practices and behaviors, in order to continue to thrive in 2010.

7.  Windows 7 will become more widely accepted, but will be tied to new purchases of computer hardware.  Consumers will still flirt with Linux and Mac OS X, as alternatives, but will keep a version of Windows around.

We’ll see households with more than just Windows around, on a growing basis.  Microsoft will be the most common, but we will see familiarity with Mac and Linux growing.

8.  Businesses will discuss desktop upgrades from Windows XP to Windows 7, but due to budget constraints, the actual upgrades will not begin to take place until later on in the year.  Many will move their plans to upgrade into 2011 and 2012.

The approach to upgrading will be, “If XP is working, why would we change?”  Many businesses have agreements that will allow them to continue to get updates for XP from Microsoft.

9.  As for business models, we can expect banks to respond to new regulations.  To sustain operations and jobs, the banks will find loopholes for creating new charges within the new regulations, or will tighten the account restrictions for cards issued.  Plastic credit in 2010 will come with a higher price, and applications will be harder to get approved.

Many government types have proclaimed that they want consumers to use cash, as opposed to credit.  They have even imposed some regulation to allow discounts for using cash.  Where will consumers get cash, especially when they are used to credit and plastics?

10.  Bargains have defined much of the shape of purchases in 2009.  Consumers began to shop the bargain stores, first, in some scenarios.  That’s prior to checking out the retail or department store.  That trend will continue on through 2010.  Bargain stores and websites will continue to receive a wide range of traffic.

Blogs that offer information about discounts, shortcuts and hacks will continue to thrive.  Finding new uses for household items and hints on stretching value in items will drive content that is sought.

Overall, 2010 will not be “The Year That Turns Everything Around” from any perspective… but, overall, it won’t be the year of doom and gloom either.

(Within the next couple of days, I will be reviewing my predictions for 2009, and grading myself on those.)