GearBits

Review: KanguruMicro Drive+ Expandable USB Flash Drive

In a world where plain-Jane USB flash drives are given out as trade show tchotchkes, the KanguruMicro Drive+ Expandable USB Flash Drive deserves some additional attention. Beyond having a name that is arguably larger than the device itself, the KanguruMicro Drive+ differentiates itself by allowing the owner to use it in two different ways.

First, by virtue of its internal flash RAM, the Drive+ can be used as a stand-alone USB flash drive. The one sent to me held 64 MB, but they are available in capacities up to 512MB.

Second, since the MicroDrive+ has a Secure Digital/Multi-Media Card (SD/MMC) slot, one is able to use it as a flash card reader and expand the available storage almost indefinitely (by using additional cards). The 256 MB SD card I tested with the Drive+ worked just fine.

When inserted into a USB port, the Drive+ shows up as two new items: one fixed volume (the internal flash memory) and one removable disk (the SD card slot). SD/MMC cards can be inserted and removed from the Drive+ while it is inserted in the USB port. There is also a "lock" switch on the side that will render the internal memory unwritable (but still readable).

The unit itself weighs 20g and is reasonably small, but certainly not among the smallest USB flash drives available. The two photos below show the Drive+ as compared to a Treo 600 (top) and to US quarter, British pound, and 1 Euro coins (bottom).

The drive seems sturdily made, as it passed all our normal GearBits tests:

Creak test (a.k.a. the Gadgeteer test): No creakage

Drop test: Survived a 5-foot drop onto hardwood floor with no ill effect.

Bite test: Survived minor gnawing resulting in zero damage (below)

Spray test: Getting spattered with water (not submerged) and then toweled off, the unit still worked flawlessly

In terms of usability, the device gets mixed marks. The Drive+ interfaces well with Windows XP and is dead-simple to operate. However, there are many instances where the unit is simply too big. When plugging into a USB hub where the ports are side-by-side lengthwise, the Drive+ is simply too wide; it ends up taking up 2 or 3 ports just due to its girth. This problem is exacerbated if an SD card is inserted into the Drive+, since the SD card protrudes from the side of the Drive+ by roughly half an inch.

Similarly, the device is too thick to be used in a place where, as is typical on most PCs, the pairs of USB ports are stacked next to each other with only a small space between. The thickness of the Drive+ makes it unable to be plugged in if the other port is already in use (see below).

The Drive+ does come with a 3' USB cable that will remove these obstacles, but I really don't want to have to carry around a cable just for my USB flash drive. A lanyard is also included in the package.

Overall, the concept is really appealing and its Plug-and-Play functionality works quite well. The fact that it is such a space hog when it comes to tightly packed USB slots, and doesn't actually fit in some situations, is a bit irritating. In terms of value, it's a tough call. While a 128 MB Drive+ can be had for under $70 online, it would be very easy to get a similarly sized flash drive and an SD card reader as separate devices for significantly less than $70. Add to that the fact that it is only USB1.1, and not the much faster USB2.0 that many flash drives and card readers are today, and the value for the money becomes fairly questionable.

In the end, I'd give the KanguruMicro Drive+ a 3.5 out of 5. The concept is really good, but the pricing, slowness of USB1.1, and the physical size of the unit leave me somewhat unsatisfied.

A New Day, A New Tsunami of Comment Spam

It's just sad and sickening what some will do to promote their websites and/or businesses. Yesterday, I was hit with a mini-flood of comment spam here on GearBits. However, this was different -- instead of promoting a pr0n site, it was promoting (and this boggles my mind) an Internet security website called Secure Root.

If you visit the SR website (at www dot secureroot dot com) you will notice it seems as if it is actually trying to provide Internet security-related information to some audience. So if it's trying to establish trust in its advice, why the hell would it engage in such a despicable manner as bombarding GearBits with 30 comment spams in a period of 20 minutes? It took me over an hour to clean them all out.

So, while we're still working on the Movable Type upgrade, comments are going to stay off. I'll announce when they're back on. In the meantime, if anyone has any good ideas about how to make Secure Root aware that its blatant asswipe-like behavior is not appropriate, I'm all ears. Send me an email at .

P.S. Why didn't I add a link to the Secure Root website? Well, that would accomplish for the asswipes exactly what they were trying to achieve through their spamming -- added links that improve their Google ranking. Isn't it odd that one of the best tools on the Internet has also fostered an entire range of distasteful practices? I wonder if the net benefit of Google is approaching zero as more and more practices like this get thought up.

Best Slashdot Comment (Ever?)

This /. comment made me laugh so hard I very nearly wet myself:

NEW STARBUCKS OPENS IN RESTROOM OF EXISTING STARBUCKS

CAMBRIDGE, MA -- Starbucks, the nation's largest coffee-shop chain,
continued its rapid expansion Tuesday, opening its newest location
in the men's room of an existing Starbucks.

"Coffee lovers just can't stand being far from their favorite Starbucks
gourmet blends," said Chris Tuttle, Starbucks vice-president of
franchising. "Now, people can enjoy a delicious Frappuccino or espresso
just about any time they please ...."

The new men's-room-based Starbucks, the coffee giant's 1,531st U.S.
location, will be open to both men and women when not "in use." In
addition to offering specialty coffees from around the world, it will
serve freshly baked pastries, Italian pannini sandwiches and soups, as
well as the rest room's usual selection of toilet paper and soap.

According to Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz, the new location represents the
beginning of a long-term expansion plan. "Eventually, Starbucks rest rooms
everywhere will sell coffee," Schultz said. "But that ambitious scheme is
at least five years down the road. In the meantime, we plan to open an
additional location in this Starbucks' ladies' room within months, and are
already drafting plans for a fourth restaurant along the corridor leading
from the main seating area to the rest rooms. At some point a 'Star-bucks
Express' window will eventually open in the walk-in closet of the men's
room Starbucks."

"Drink our coffee," Schultz said. "Drink it."

I hope /. doesn't mind me duplicating it here...

Bartering for Gmail

As you probably know, getting an accout on Gmail (Google's new email service with 1GB of storage) is incredibly hard -- you basically have to be invited by someone who only gets a couple of invites him- or herself.

So, some folks set up gmail swap, a place where you can post your offer in exchange for a gmail account invitation. Some of my favorite offers posted today include "A bag of dry Arizona air..." and "I'll paint your portrait badly" -- classic.

For an entertaining look at gmail swap, check out this Wired article.

Oh, and by the way, gmail swap really works: I got myself hooked up with an account just today.

Pain Is...

...filling a 512 MB MP3 player via USB1.1.

Pain is also tuning the FM dial to 97.7 and hearing tripe like Hoobustank and Linkin Park where I should be hearing my beloved 97X.

Pain is also finding out that my swanky new $100 DVD±RW drive has failed after less than 2 months and has to be RMA'ed back to OptoRite.

Comment Spam Flood Continues

Within 10 minutes of enabling comments, 20-some more spam comments were posted to GearBits. Either we've put someone's panties in a bunch and they've just pointed a script at us or there is someone with a lot of time and desire to promote a rape/pr0n website using any means possible.

Too bad that one or a few jackasses can ruin the fun for everyone. Spam really makes you rethink that whole premise about all life being precious...

Movable Type Goes Money-Grubbing

According to Mashby, Six Apart, makers of the nice blog software Movable Type (which powers this site), has started charging enormous fees for the next version of its software.

These fees are such that, since I make no money from GearBits, I can't justify upgrading to the next version of MT. Without upgrading, the options available to us to limit comment spam (a real scourge to blogging) are few and limited. We'll be weighing our options, but this could be the end of GearBits.

I'm turning comments back on now and we'll see how things go.

A Flood of Comment Spam

Today, GearBits and my moblog have been attacked with over 150 porn-related comment spams. In order to stop the flood, I've had to disable commenting until I can delete all the spam comments and figure out the best preventative measure to this vile practice. Sorry for the disruption folks...some people just have nothing better to do than turn an otherwise decent planet into a dung heap.

World's Smallest Fuel Cell

Casio Computer Co has announced that it has developed the world's smallest fuel cell.

Large-scale polymer electrolyte fuel cells (PEFC) are already in development for use in automobiles. What Casio has succeeded in doing is to miniaturize a PEFC so that it is similar in size to a conventional lithium-ion battery.

However, the PEFC battery has a capacity nearly four times that of a lithium-ion battery. Laptop computers should be able to run on PEFC power for 8-16 hours.

Casio hopes to introduce its fuel cell to the market after regulators are expected to allow PEFCs on the market, around 2007.

Sony Vaio VGN-U70

The Register has a short, but tantalizing, piece on this forthcoming tablet-style PC from Sony.

With an 800x600 screen, integrated 802.11g wireless, and a 1GHz processor, at just 1.2 lbs. this will be one impressive device. It's operated with a stylus, but it will run on plain-Jane Windows XP (not Tablet PC). Sony will have its own software to handle pen input.

This could put a lot of pressure on the Pocket PC (er, Windows Mobile for Pocket PC) market, since nearly all of the functionality in a Pocket PC can be replicated on this device yet it enables scads more that your run-of-the-mill Pocket PC can only dream of doing. Planned accessories include a charging/display dock and a collapsable mobile keyboard.

300-GB Holographic Storage Devices?

Optware Corporation, a Japanese firm specializing in holographic storage media, has demonstrated a practical holographic recording and playback device.

Its system is based on polarized collinear holography, as opposed to conventional holographic recording and playing devices. This system multiplexes the signal and reference beams used for recording and playing of holographic media with just one objective lens.

Conventional technology requires a two-beam axis, a more complex system with precision issues, including positioning the media with each optical axis.

Prototypes shown used a blue-violet semiconductor laser for the signal beam and reference beam, a red semiconductor laser for the servo, and a CMOS image sensor for detection of the playback signals.

Optware says it is on track to introduce a commercial product storing up to 300-GB on a 12 centimeter holographic disc by 2005.

Good Old Fashion Grading: no technology in sight

As you are aware, I'm a college professor, and toward the end of April and the beginning of May, I suffer from a burnout. As students face the end-of-the-semester burnout from preparing for exams and writing their major projects, we the teachers also suffer from another kind of burnout. I call it a grading burnout. I got so many individual and group papers I have to read and grade by the end of the semester, I feel like I need to take a long break after the semester in order to recover from the burnout. For instance, last semester, I had to read almost 2000 pages during the last two weeks of the semester. Given my firm belief in the helpfulness of feedback to students' development, I need to take time to provide meaningful feedback to students. That means I have to read every single page slowly and make comments.

Unfortunately, technology hasn't helped me here at all. Sure I can have my students submit papers via e-mail, but that doesn't save me any time at all. In fact, it takes me more time since I have to locate the e-mail and print out the attachment. There have been some technological innovations as Blackboard (web-based teaching tool), McGraw Hills Einstruction tools. and others, but those only help faculty who uses tests as their main measurement tool for students' learning.

Since I also believe in testing for competence rather than knowledge (it's a long debate in the educational field), I don't have any tests in my classes (where the focus is on leadership and teamwork). So, any of these new technology hasn't helped me or my students.

Surely, technology has helped my students write better papers--at least we hope. MS Word helps students use outlines for organizing ideas, use grammar check and spell check for correcting certain spelling and grammatical mistakes, but it seems the quality of the paper hasn't really improved and thus it takes me more time to provide feedback. That's right poorly written papers require more time for me to read and provide feedback. This is one area I think where technology hasn't really helped my productivity at all. So, is there any relief in sight?

The Weekend at the MiL's

This past weekend was spent at my Mother-in-Law's. She's a great lady, but about half a decade behind on her technology. Her only connection to the Internet is a Pentium III machine running Windows ME [ack!] and AOL [blech!].

I'm not kidding when I say that my Treo 600 makes a better, faster Internet tool than this machine of hers. Moreover, there's no Wi-Fi to be found in her entire condo complex (I checked), so the entire weekend suffered along at dial-up speeds.

Also, I introduced her to the concept of Windows Update. This 4-year-old machine had never once been updated. 6 hours, ~30 MB, and 7 reboots later, it was completely up to spec. I fully expect to perform a smaller version of this ritual each time I visit her.

I'm currently suffering major Internet withdrawal. Hopefully the shakes will end soon.

What Should Be Included in an Operating System?

As Microsoft includes more and more things in its Windows operating systems -- the most recent addition is a whole new set of security functions, like firewalls and pop-up blockers -- my mind keeps returning to the same question that I'm not sure has ever been resolved: what exactly should be included in an operating system?

Before I begin, let me make it perfectly clear that I am not, nor likely ever will be, a computer or software engineer. I don't have the slightest idea about the underlying architecture that governs modern operating systems. So, I am basing these comments on a "common sense" perspective, which may be very technically flawed (I'm sure someone out there will be more than happy to correct me);

It seems that there is a lot of junk in contemporary OS's that just doesn't need to be there, and Microsoft isn't the only culprit. Why should a web browser or a multimedia player or an email client or a word processor be necessary for a computer operating system to function? Just try to remove Internet Explorer or Outlook Express from your Windows machine (I know it can be done, but it's anything but trivial). Can I choose to buy Windows without these components for less money? No, at least not that I'm aware of.

Why are addressbook and calendar programs part of the Palm operating system? Can I buy/license Palm OS without these apps for less money than a normal license? I don't believe it's possible.

Heck, was it ever even possible to buy DOS without the "Edit" program? While a text editor certainly isn't required to function as an operating system, I doubt that you could get a discounted copy of DOS that didn't have this feature.

Now, I realize that an OS is a product, much like a car or a couch or a bicycle. In that sense, the manufacturer wants it to have the most appealing mix of features and price that will compel its customers to buy it. But what the software company wants to sell you is a different issue than what the operating system must include for it to function.

I have a hard time accepting the premise that I am required to pay for an unrelated feature that is bundled with an "operating system" that lies outside the core functionality of operating the system (i.e., managing hardware interfaces and what-not). I don't prefer Windows Media Player -- why do I have to pay for it? I don't prefer Internet Explorer -- why does the price of the OS include some portion allocated to Microsoft recouping the cost of developing it?

An operating system is like a car in some ways. Certain parts of it are highly integrated while others are very modular. In cars, and in many other tangible goods, the modular parts are easily replaced and/or optioned so as to not require being purchased in the first place. For example, if I want custom wheels or a custom stereo on my new car, the dealer will usually credit me for the factory wheels or factory head unit that would have come on the car by default. Microsoft, however, does not credit me for Windows Media Player or Outlook Express if I want something else (or nothing) instead -- I have to buy it as a bundle with no options...take it or leave it.

If that were the extent of the impact, I'd have no problems with it. However, when you combine the unwillingness to give customers options for purchasing non-core components with the monopoly power of the Windows operating system, you create a very unfair and damaging situation.

Imagine we were back in the days of a Ma Bell telephone monopoly. Imagine that if you wanted phone service at your house, you had one choice available to you: "phone service 9000." PS9000 is Ma Bell's only service product, and it includes every conceivable option available, such as voicemail, 3-way calling, caller ID, call forwarding, "wirecare," and a whole bunch of other services that you don't really need. But, you're stuck paying $94 a month for this mega-package even if what you want/need is just basic local phone service.

Society has said this is inappropriate on several occasions. For example, US law mandates that cable companies must offer a bare-bones "basic" cable service at a very low price. These local monopolies are not allowed to have just a single gargantuan cable package that costs $100 a month saying "if you want any part of cable service, you have to buy everything we offer." That's not allowed.

So why is Microsoft, a company already established as a similar type of monopoly, allowed to offer only one or two high-priced "mega-package" products? Both Windows XP Home and Pro are stuffed with nearly every possible add-on feature you can imagine. It'd be like the cable company only offering a $94 "Home" package (without HBO) and a $110 "Professional" package that includes HBO. Why is this OK for Microsoft, but not for the phone company or a cable provider?

My experience with IBM Thinkpad Support--Thumb up or down?

As you have been aware that I have recently upgraded our in-home wireless to 802.11g from 802.11b. Of course, I naturally wanted to upgrade the internal mini-PCI card (Intel Pro 802.11b) in my Thinkpad 41p rather than to add a CardBus wireless card (which I have done with my wife's Thinkpad T30). IBM now sells several variations of the PCI cards for 802.11g, but I got the 802.11a/b/g combination card. I figured I can't go wrong with the dual band, tri-mode card. Those of you who are a bit more budget conscious, IBM now offers 802.11 b/g card for about $40 cheaper.

Anyway, I got the card and installed in my Thinkpad. Unlike the older T series, where the card can be installed from the bottom of the case, the new Thinkpad now requires the removal of the keyboard and the palm rest in order to access the card slot. Anyway, after removing about ten screws and both keyboard and palm rest, I was in business. The whole installation took me about 10 minutes, but I was extremely careful not to make any mistakes. If you have done this before, the whole process should take less than 5 minutes.

Anyway, the problem happened when I was only able to connect to my Belkin g-router at 24Mbps. No matter what I did, I couldn't get anything higher. Even when I was right next to the router, Access Connection (IBM software) was showing 24Mbps or 18Mbps. So, I thought this might be the internal limitation of the card. However, to make sure, I called the IBM tech support to confirm. Well, the adventure began right afterward.

I filed an on-line service call at the IBM support site (this is something new), and the updates showed that they had called me twice, but my caller ID had no record of their calls. So, I called the tech support to speak to a real-live person.

The first person I talked to said he couldn't tell for sure because there are so many variables that come into play. I said, with the different adapter (Belkin CardBus card), I was getting 54Mbps in my Thinkpad, but not with this card. He said he couldn't help me at all since the card seems to be working. So, after a few hours, I called in again and talked to the second person. This person wasn't much help either. She didn't really know much of the wireless configuration (In fact, I had to explain a few things to her), and she said that the wireless expert was not in that day, and she would call me back when she had a chance to talk with that person. Well, that was a week ago, and I am still waiting for the phone call from her.

Anyway, when I didn't hear back from her in two days, I called again. This time the person couldn't understand why it was happening. At least he offered to send me a replacement card after talking to me for an 1/2 hour. Another funny thing is that IBM seems to have two different part number for the identical item (one is used by sales/marketing for new parts, and the other by service for replacement parts). So, it took us more than 10 minutes to track down the right part as well.

To make a long story short, the replacement part arrived the next day (I have to commend IBM for expeditious service--this is the second replacement parts I have received in the past few years, and both came the next day). I debated whether to go through the hassle and install the new card, but I decided I had nothing to lose. Well, lo and behold, after spending 5 minutes installing the card, I turned back on the system (crossing my fingers). The connection speed was 54Mbps. Hooray! Looks like the earlier card was defective after all.

It has been a few days since I replaced the part, and I have been consistently getting 48 to 54Mbps connection. So, I'm a happy camper, but I wish and I hope I never have to deal with the tech support again with any company in the future. So, thumb up or down? It's neither. The problem was solved, but the experience wasn't all too stellar in my book.

Ultr@VNC (a.k.a. UltraVNC)

I've discussed the wonder that is VNC (Virtual Network Computing) before, but I thought I'd post a follow-up. While I've traditionally used TightVNC, Greg, a friend of mine, mentioned that he really likes Ultr@VNC for a few reasons.

Not only does Ultr@VNC support bi-directional file transfer (a very handy feature), but the scaling implementation on the server app works really well with the PalmVNC client. Scaling is a god-send when your handheld client is a 320x320 or 320x480 screen and your server is running 1600x1200. Otherwise, it's scroll, scroll, scroll...that gets old pretty fast.

So, check out Ultr@VNC -- it may be just what you've been looking for.

Shuttle SK43G Redux

A few folks emailed me and asked if I could post some additional photos of the SK43G that I recently set up and wrote about. Well, here you go, my friends.

The photo below is of the system in mid-setup. It's shown without the drive cage installed (which houses the optical drive, floppy drive, and hard drive) and no cover (obviously). Actually, it looks like I took this before I installed the RAM, too. Notice the nice IDE cable routing for the optical drive (upper rail in foreground). I think this photo makes it look bigger than it actually is.

The second photo (below) shows the completed system sitting next to a 17" monitor, keyboard and mouse (for size comparison). Yep, it's actually pretty teeny.

About the only thing I can think of wanting to someday do that I can't on this dude because of the form-factor is direct CD/DVD copying (no room for two 5-1/4" drives). Other than that, it looks like it should offer plenty of upgrade potential, meaning I should be able to use this mini for several years to come.

Wanted: Small, Cheap LCD Screen

I'm looking for an LCD screen suitable for using as a low-res PC display in the 5" to 8" range. Something like this 7" Quixun panel would be ideal, but it doesn't have to be new or dedicated for this purpose. Maybe even a screen from a portable DVD player might work. It'd be great if it was also a touch-screen, but that's not a hard requirement.

Anybody have any leads for this or ideas where to search? Thanks in advance!

Shuttle's XPC Small-Form-Factor PCs

Well, I took the plunge. After the (admittedly cheap) motherboard in my (admittedly cheap) downstairs PC failed last month, I've been wanting a receptacle for all the working bits inside it (hard drive, optical drive, etc.). I'd also been wanting an excuse to upgrade its CPU and memory to something much faster. So, after looking around a bit, I took the plunge and purchased the Shuttle XPC SK43G small-form-factor system (pictured).

I won't bore you with the specs (those can be found at the link above), but it's an AMD-based system in a box roughly the size of a toaster (and not one of those industrial toasters, just your normal 2-slice model). With Athlon systems, heat management is always an issue. Shuttle's "ICE Heat-Pipe" solution is both interesting and effective -- the hard drive is the loudest part of the system.

Assembly was pretty easy. I was most impressed with the quality of the physical components and the thoughtfulness of the layout and design. Cables and cable routing were high quality and placed very carefully. Total time required to install everything (not including the OS) was about an hour. Of course, doing it a again now would take me much less time (as learning curve theory attests).

All in all, I'm really happy. The system looks good, is really small and reasonably quiet, and runs quite well. Even the on-board graphics are pretty good (when was the last time you even considered using on-board video?). If you're needing a new system (motherboard and case) for either Intel or AMD, go check out Shuttle's XPC line.

How Low Can You Go: Underclocking the Mobile Athlon XP

There's an excellent article over at Sudhian.com (lots of tables and data) providing the results of running a Mobile Athlon XP at such low voltages, bus speeds, and multipliers that it can operate at even 600 MHz with only passive cooling. However, the same chip can be overclocked significantly as well (but you pay the piper in terms of much more active cooling).

Now, you're going to ask "Why would anyone underclock their CPU?" Noise, my friend -- the less heat you develop, the less fans you need and the less noise you generate. Sometimes, the quietest PC is the best PC. Sitting here next to an Athlon machine with no less than 4 fans running inside is a constant reminder of that fact.

Mozilla 1.7 in Beta

In case you missed the memo, Mozilla 1.7 is available as a public beta. Now go on and grab a copy!

Pentium 4 to Athlon 64 Adapter

Those wacky Japanese are at it again. According to hayuki, some guys have devised an adapter that converts a Socket 478 for Pentium 4 processors (below left) to a Socket 754 for Athlon 64 (below right, adapter installed). While it adds some thickness to the seating of the CPU, it doesn't look like it adds enough to be problematic for heatsink clearance (unless the inside of your case is really tight).

Although I don't think "Socket II" is a very catchy name for the adapter, my hunch is they'll sell quite a few -- it's good knowing you can upgrade to a 64-bit processor without having to abandon the rest of your system. The big question now becomes, when will Athlon 64 prices come down out of the stratosphere?

Reformatting FAT32 Drive with NTFS Leads to Problems

I decided to redeploy an aging 20 GB HDD into a new computer. It had been used for a few years as the boot drive for various installs of Windows, all under FAT32.

Wanting to use the "latest greatest," I decided to just reformat the whole drive as an NTFS partition and go with that. Bad move. The install of Windows XP Pro was incredibly unstable, often locking up and/or rebooting for no obvious reason. Even the initial install of XP didn't go very smoothly...that should have been my first clue.

After unsuccessfully trying three times to install XP SP1, each time leading to a lock-up at some point, I decided enough was enough. I reformatted the entire drive as FAT32 and haven't had a single problem since. If anyone has a clue why this might have happened, I'd be interested in hearing about it.

Update: Lock-ups have started to occur under FAT32, so it might be the hard drive. D'oh! Will update if I isolate a cause.

Update #2: Upon much further investigation, it appears that the motherboard is going bad...at least the on-board IDE controller seems to be having semi-regular conniptions. Given its age, it's not worth getting an IDE controller card for it, so now I'm looking at alternatives. Sorry for the false alarm...just call me Chicken Little.

3D Graphics Shootout

ExtremeTech has a really excellent 3D graphics processor shootout article wherein they compare not just performance, but [gasp] the price-to-performance ratio. What a concept!

ExtremeTech's verdict is that the best bang-for-the-buck right now is the ATI Radeon 9700 Pro, which came in at $4.80 per FPS. Boards with this processor can be found for around $185 (mid-range) and it offered very respectable performance in every test. The GeForce FX 5700 Ultra came in a close second.

DVD±RW < $100

Saturday, I was on a mission to replace my CD-RW drive that had been demolished from within by an exploding CD. I came home with much more...a new OptoRite DDO401 internal 8X DVD±RW drive for less than a Ben Franklin.

Granted, it's not a brand name (unless you consider OptoRite a brand name), but when it comes to most computer parts, I'm much less concerned about that. A few things, however, convinced me this was a pretty decent piece of hardware for a heck of a nice price.

First, the instructions were clearly written and provided (hardcopy) in 10 languages. Second, the drive worked exactly as expected with no extra effort. Windows XP recognized it by name immediately...always a good sign. Third, and this is the clincher, OptoRite included in the box an extra black face-plate for those fashion-conscious users who might have black cases -- a really nice touch, I thought.

What I thought was worth mentioning was the economics. A plain CD-RW was around $40. A combo DVD-ROM/CD-RW was around $70. For only $30 more than that, you get the extra capability of burning to DVD. It's amazing how quickly we've come down from the not-too-distant days of $400 DVD-R drives.

Bytecc HDD Enclosure

Having spare computer parts, especially usable parts, just sitting around (or in a closet or drawer) not doing anything bugs me. Having a perfectly good 80 GB hard drive unassigned to a PC really bugs me. I wanted to be able to put it to use on my main PC (which doesn't have any open IDE positions) and be able to easily relocate the drive -- an external USB2.0 enclosure seemed like the perfect idea.

While at the Dayton Computerfest today (which, sadly, has become pretty lame since its hey-day in the early 90's), I found a decent deal -- the Bytecc ME-350 Aluminum 3.5" USB2.0 HDD enclosure (pictured).

The case is made from a single piece of extruded aluminum channel (quite strong) with matching endcaps and side trim pieces. Overall, it's a really solid-feeling enclosure (based on the $36 price, I was skeptical).

Setup literally took under 2 minutes and I only had to use a screwdriver -- if you've never put one of these together, there is absolutely no reason to be intimidated by the prospect of doing so. I plugged the unit into the power, let it spin up (there's a power switch on the back of the drive as well), plugged in the USB cable to my PC, and Windows XP immediately recognized it as another hard drive. No muss, no fuss -- just the way I like it.

There's a decent review of the ME-350 over at TechTastic.ca.

Acronis True Image

Backups have always been a necessary evil and I have messed with just about everything throughout the years. The most reliable way so far has been drive imaging, but I never did groove on having to boot to DOS to do an image. The other day I was perusing the Home Theater Computers section of the AVS Forums and learned about Acronis True Image. It sounded like the perfect solution to capture the pristine state of my new HTPC.

Some really cool features of True Image are:

* Works inside the Windows environment
* Allows you to mount drive images and retrieve individual files
* Can set up a "secure zone" on your hard disk to store an image in case you really hose things up.
* Can easily clone an entire drive for moving to a bigger or faster disk.

True to its claims, inside ten minutes I had a rescue CD burned, a 10GB secure zone created on my hard disk and a perfect image of the drive spirited away on the disk. I was very impressed.

How small can it get--Toshiba's stamp-sized HD

Yes, that's right. How small can it get? Toshiba just announced that its newest .85 inch hard disk (stamp-sized) broke the Guiness World Records for the smallest hard disk in the world. This new hard disk has the storage capacity of 4 gigabytes, and it is expected to be used widely in digital camcorders and cell phones.

Now I have to wonder what would be next? Stealth or virtual hard disk comes to my mind. Anyway, pretty soon we might see a PDA with both memory and hard disk instead of external flash memory (such as SD cards).

Teacube Personal Computer

Japanese computer company Personal Media, has started producing the Teacube computer, a computer the size of a 2" cube.

The Teacube was launched in December 2003 at the TRON show, and will be available for sale later this month, through the company’s website.

The actual size of the Teacube is 52x52x45mm. The CPU is based on an NEC Electronics MIPS core processor, VR5701. It has 64MB of RAM built-in together with 16MB of flash memory.

Built-in ports include USBx2, RS-232Cx2, CF Card Slot, 100Bse-TX Port, CRT Connector, eTRON card slot, Mic jack, and a headphone jack. The Teacube supports a display of up to 1280x1024 with 65,536 colors. The operating system is based on the T-Engine core, and comes with PMC T-Kernel.

The Teacube boasts several built-in applications, including a browser, word processor, mapping application, and some systems components enabling networking, system and user utilities.

T-Flash: Unwelcome New Flash Memory Format

OK, enough already. Nobody wants yet another flash memory module, no matter how small. Jeez...just work on getting the prices down, and the volumes up, on the existing formats, OK?!

Mine is Bigger than Yours

Well I guess it had to happen. You can now have a cool terabyte of data in a single disk. The $1199 LaCie Bigger Disk is an unassuming beige box packing one TRILLION bytes of data accessible via USB 2.0, Firewire 400 or Firewire 800. Must...have...this...now!!!!!!!!

A perfect road warrior combo: Thinkpad, Sony Ericsson T610, and T-mobile GPRS

Well, I'm back. It's been so hectic last few weeks that my submission to this site has almost been nonexistent. Anyway, during the last few weeks, I have been been house hunting here at Cincinnati and been to Las Vegas and Grand Canyon for about a week . Well, we finally came back from LV, and the seller accepted our offer while we were on our trip. So, things have been settling here somewhat.

Anyway, I want to report on my experience using the above combination in my latest trip. The hotel we were staying didn't have the broadband connection, and I was using my Tungsten T3 and SE T610. Then it dawned on me that my latest Thinkpad also has the Bluetooth connection. So, I should be able to connect to the T-mobile's GPRS network using my Thinkpad. To my surprise, the setup was a breeze (just turn on your Bluetooth and create a dial-up networking connection using the T610), and I was able to get 115.2kbps connection speed--it wasn't broadband fast, but still acceptable for browsing most websites and downloading my e-mails. I got connection almost every time I tried during my trip. The unlimited GPRS plan I have really got a workout this past week (sometimes I would be on for several hours straight without any interruption), and I'm so glad that I have that service.

So, if you are traveling, check out this combo for your wireless solution.

MiniPC Returns as FlipStart

Like raccoons who enjoy your garbage, the miniature PCs keep coming back to annoy and tantalize. The latest with news is the FlipStart from Vulcan (pictured).

The FlipStart, formerly called the MiniPC, runs Windows XP and has hardware specs similar to many full-sized laptops (such as 1024x600 display, 30 GB HDD, and 802.11g wireless). However, it's only 6" x 4" x 1" thick and weighs just 1 pound.

While the Flipstart isn't currently available, the website suggests that pricing and availability details will be offered later this year. Haven't we heard that before?

Final Reboot

David Bradley, 55, is retiring from IBM today, after 28-1/2 years.

Bradley, a cultural icon among computer history aficionados, will be continuing to teach at North Carolina State University after retirement.

Back in 1980, Bradley was part of the 12-man team working on the IBM PC. Among other tasks, the team needed to figure out a way to restart the computer should something go wrong and it stop responding to other commands. Bradley took on the task and in five minutes programmed the well-known key combination that is his claim to fame: Ctrl-Alt-Delete.

Bradley claims to have every cartoon that features his famous key combination, and he was once a clue on the final round of Jeopardy. On these acheivements, Bradley says, "If I can be a clue in The New York Times' Sunday crossword puzzle, I will have met all my life's goals."

Spimming Out of Control

When it hits Time magazine, you know it's gone mainstream.

Spim, that is, the not-too-recently-coined, is-it-on-its-way-out word for spam sent through instant messaging (IM) channels.

These are snappy IMs, usually with embedded weblinks that lead unwary users to websites working hard to sell you speed-reading courses, Viagra, appendage extenders, webcam subscriptions, or other such essentials of life.

Nearly 600 billion IMs were sent worldwide in 2003, and Yahoo estimates that 2% of its own messages are spim. That's 12 billion messages of spim a year.

Efforts to control spam in e-mails is starting to help the problem there, but the spim problem is spinning out of control. And spim is more annoying, because it can pop out at any time, demanding your attention.

While IM programs let you set up blacklists and whitelists of users, only ICQ offers filtering of web links or by selected words. While effective for the moment, the extent of the spam wars show that this war is just beginning.

Ultra Media Dashboard

If you own an older PC or a "beige box" generic machine, you may not have a system that benefits from some of the conveniences of newer cases, such as front-mounted USB ports and audio jacks. If that's the case, you may want to look into one of the many accessories that move various ports to the front of the case by using an empty 5.25" or 3.5" drive bay.

The one I selected is the Ultra Media Bay 3.5" (shown above), which I bought from Tiger Direct for $9.99 (beige price; black units available for $10 more). The unit is basically a box with front-mounted ports and a bunch of cables coming out the rear (see below). It looks somewhat like a Borg-inspired jellyfish.

Installation was painless and took less than 5 minutes. I first popped off the side panels of my case and removed an empty slot cover from the back. The unit then slid into the empty 3.5" bay below my floppy drive (doing this made me wonder why I still have the floppy drive installed). I installed the new slot cover in the back -- this one has a hole through which the cables get routed to the ports on the back of the PC. I then ran the USB2.0, headphone, and mic cords throught the slot and plugged into the appropriate ports in the back of the case. Side covers get put back on and I'm done. Below is what it looks like installed.

It's important to realize that this unit doesn't increase the number of ports you have -- it merely relocates existing (unused) ports to the front of the case. That's the case (bad pun) with most of these drive bay accessories. But, if you are tired of reaching back behind your PC to mess with cables, one of these might be just the ticket. TigerDirect.com and CyberGuys.com have many different units to choose from, some including media adapters (for flash cards), case fan and cooling controls, and other various interfaces.

Happy Twentieth Birthday!

Believe or not, it was twenty years ago (1/24/1984) that Apple introduced the very first Mac. Obviously a lot has changed over the years, but there are a few things that still remain the same. Steve Jobs are once again leading the charge, and Apple has been innovating on multimedia fronts (iPod, iTunes, etc.).

I do remember my first experience with a Mac in 1984. One of my friends purchased the Mac right after it came out, and I had a chance to play with it. The key word here is "play." Even though it was grossly underpowered in today's standard (I think it only had 128K or 512K--I don't remember which but I do remember my friend upgrading his memory to 1MB sometime later). Regardless, it was so much fun using the Mac that I didn't want to part with it. I'm visually oriented, and the Mac was something I could simply figure out intuitively. Unfortunately, my career changed soon after that and I got stuck with using the "ugly" and "unsophiticated" IBM PC. Now I'm so locked into the PC platform, even if I want to change the platform, I can't really afford to do it.

However, I think I can still wish you a Happy Birthday, and I sincerely hope that you will be around for a long time to come . . .

Thinkpad X40

I was doing a driver update for my Thinkpad T41p and discovered that IBM is updating drivers for the new Thinkpad X40. Well I did a search on Google, and it turns out IBM is already marketing this laptop in Japan. It looks like the new Thinkpad will be smaller and lighter than the previous X31 (2.8 lbs vs 3.6lbs) and will come with a SD slot instead of a CF slot (interesting transition I might add--personally I prefer the CF slot since my digital SLR uses the CF card). It looks like IBM is outsourcing its production to Winstron, a company that also manufactures another Thinkpad series.

One thing that's puzzling is the performance specs. It looks like the CPU in the machine is Intel Pentium M 1.0 GHz and the maximum memory capacity is 1.25G (256M preinstalled + 1G add-on). In comparison, the X31 comes with the CPU up to 1.6 GHz and has the maximum memory of 2G. However, the new chip in the X40 is the new Intel ultra-low voltage chip (1.0 volt instead of 1.48 for regular M chips), which should boost the battery life. The laptop should last about 3.5 hours with the small four-cell Li-Ion battery pack that ships with the system. The laptop still uses the 12.1" XGA screen as does the X31. Unfortunately, the unit seems to be using the slowest (4200 rpm) hard disk as well.

All in all, I'm not sure this is a great upgrade in my book. It looks like you are trading off one thing for another, and I think IBM can do a better job than this. Perhaps road warriors should wait for the Thinkpad X41 in the future.

BMW of Laptops

If you have been wondering why I have been so quiet lately, the reason is that I've been busy setting up my new laptop. Until several years ago, I had kept upgrading both my desktop and laptops, and the cost of replacements were getting too prohibitive. So, I decided not to buy both, and given my travel needs, I went with the exclusive laptop strategy. It has worked OK for awhile, but I have always been frustrated by the wide performance gaps between laptops and desktops. Also, given the short battery life (about 2 hours), it left something to be desired even in terms of mobile computing.

Well, last week, I took the plunge and got the latest Thinkpad T41p from IBM. This laptop has a certain number of features that bridge the gaps. The laptop features a new Intel Centrino 1.7 GHz CPU that extends the battery life, and with the 9-cell battery that came with the laptop, I'm able to get close to 7 hours away from AC. Furthermore, with L2 cache of 1 MB, the 1.7GHz machine feels more like a 2.4GHz machine. The laptop came with 512 MB 333 MHz DDR SDRAM, but I added additional 512 MB to make it 1G.

The laptop comes with a new Hitachi 60GB 7200rpm ATA hard drive. Typical laptops use 4200 rpm or 5400 rpm disks to conserve battery life, but that makes the system too slow for me. The new hard disk is both fast and silent. The screen is a gorgeous 14.1" SXGA+ (1400x1050), and now I can view and edit documents directly on my laptop (with XP's Cleartype, documents look print quality). The laptop also comes with built-in Bluetooth, Wi-Fi (802.11b), 2 USB 2.0 ports, and the Intel PRO/1000 Gigabit Ethernet connector. I know 802.11g is the wave of the future, but I'm not ready to upgrade to it yet. Besides, if I want to, I can get the mini-PCI a/b/g card from IBM and simply replace the current 802.11b card. I'm glad that IBM made this user replaceable. So, if another Wi-Fi standard comes out in the next year or two, I'll be ready to upgrade.

The T41p also comes with the 128MB ATI Mobility FIREGL T2 graphics card (you heard me right, 128MB). I usually don't play games and do 3D design work, but I'm ready if I want to do more heavy graphics or multimedia work in the future. The ATI Mobility FIREGL graphics card features a high-speed DDR memory with 128-bit memory interface.

Finally, the laptop comes with the IBM 16X/10X/24X/8X Max CD-RW/DVD-ROM Combo Ultrabay Slim Drive. So, now I can watch DVD or burn CD's while on the road or at home.

All in all, it's quite an impressive machine and can definitely be classified a desktop replacement. The best news of it all is that it only weighs 5.4 lbs (typical desktop replacement laptops weigh somewhere between 7 to 9 lbs and to me that's too heavy to travel with). Two thumbs and toes up for me.

Mars on your Desktop

The NASA Mars Exploration Rovers (MER) project has produced some stunning images. Grab one and use it as your desktop wallpaper so you, too, can feel like you're exploring the Red Planet.

SASEM OnAir USB HDTV

SASEM is coming out with an external USB-based HDTV tuner for PCs and laptops (shown).

It supposedly supports both ATSC (digital cable) HD signals and NTSC (analog TV) with time-shifting (a la TiVo). It will sport both S-Video and composite inputs and both Dolby and SPDIF digital sound.

USB2.0 connections will permit the full range of HD formats (both 720p and 1080i), while USB1.1 connections will allow the OnAir USB HDTV module to deliver content in EDTV (480p/i).

Looks like an interesting product and might just fit into many a home theater setup. The USBHDTV.com website has more additional info.

Quicktime Does CDMA, GSM

With the latest release of QuickTime, Apple is claiming that it has developed the first mainstream media format for rich multimedia content across CDMA 2000 and GSM wireless networks.

QuickTime 6.5 enhances the popular software - already a leading platform for high-quality audio and video over IP, wireless and broadband networks, with over 175 million downloads for the 6.0 version - and enables users to share high-quality multimedia across the two predominant wireless networking technologies worldwide.

The new release supports 3GPP and 3GPP2 standards, including Advanced Audio Coding (AAC), Adaptive Multi-Rate (AMR) and Qualcomm Code Excited Linear Predictive (QCELP) audio codecs, MPEG-4 and H.263 video codecs, 3G Timed Text, native .3gp and .3g2 file formats, Movie Fragments, cross-platform Unicode text support, and enhanced DV playback.

Gamer Sues, Wins Over Virtual Property

In a landmark case on virtual property rights, a court has ordered a web-based game company to return virtual property to a player whose online cache of virtual currency and weapons was stolen.

Li Hongchen, 24, spent the equivalent of $1,210 over two years on his virtual cache for the Chinese game Red Moon, only to find in February that his account had been cyber-burgled via the game's central servers by a hacker.

Hongchen took the game's creators, Arctic Ice Technology Development, to court when they wouldn't help him identify the hacker.

In court, the company stated that Hongchen's property had no real world value, but this December, a District People's Court in Beijing ruled that the company was liable for the player's virtual property because access weaknesses in its servers had allowed the looting to take place.

The result is one of the first legal rulings on virtual property rights, and another example of the blurring line between virtual and real worlds. Some Everquest gamers, for example, already trade game characters and articles for real money through eBay and similar sites.

Remove your Writer's Block with Writer's Blocks

Have you ever suffered from writer's block? Whether you are a fiction, non-fiction, or scientific writer, we all had our momemnts in the dungeon. There are many tools out there that try to help you get out of your predicament, but I found a program that is dandy for doing just that. It's called Writer's Blocks. This program uses the index card approach to writing--that is you enter your information into a series of blocks and then you can sort and arrange blocks afterward. So, you don't have to worry about logical flow, organizational structure, and coherence up front. You just write whatever comes to your mind into a block, and if you thought pattern changes, you enter it into another block. This free-flowing approach frees your mind from constraints (writer's block), and it allows you to just write. You can organize the blocks into columns to give more structure up front if you want to as well. The new version now has a great built-in word processor so that you can convert your blocks into a manuscript all in the same program (version 2 lacked this capability). So, this program can help you start your writing and finish it in one program. You can also link the blocks to indicate relationships (a.k.a. mind-mapping) to create a mindmap.

Now, we've been always taught in the past that we should always start our writing with a good outline, but my experience taught me that it doesn't work for me at all. That approach has always constrained my writing, and I have often given up writing while I'm still on my outline stage. Several writing books I have been reading of late touts the effectiveness of free-writing (Writing with Power by Peter Elbow, Writing for Social Scientists by Becker), and I gave this new approach a try. So far, it has done wonders for me in terms of my scholarly and personal writing, and this computer program brings that approach to the electronic medium. So, if you have always wanted to write more, but couldn't for some reason, try out this new approach with Writer's Blocks.

Microsoft: Now at Its Most Vulnerable?

It seems that Microsoft, that behemoth juggernaut of the tech world, may currently be at its most vulnerable in quite some time. While vulnerability is a relative term -- Microsoft still has more in cash than some countries' entire GDP -- some strategic and market threats have combined to possibly create real concern for Microsoft's top management.

• Real Networks' Lawsuit threatens to reinvigorate the antitrust and antimonopoly landslide against the Redmond company here in the US.

• A host of other lawsuits, most related to anticompetitive behavior over the years, have forced the firm to burn up valuable cash and have damaged its reputation, especially in Europe.

• Additionally, some recent judgments, such as the win for Sun regarding Java, have forced Microsoft to abandon support for older products. This may force some enterprise and personal users of Windows 98 and 95 (which account for 39% of corporate users) to look at alternative products rather than simply update to the latest version of Windows.

• Alternatives to Microsoft's monopoly products, Windows OS and its Office suite, continue to gain credibility and technical robustness. Recent adoptions of OpenOffice.org, a competitor to Microsoft Office, Sun's Linux-based Java Desktop System (also just written up in Wired), and Munich, Germany's decision to dump Windows for Linux are all examples that Microsoft's strangle-hold on world IT may be beginning to wane...at least a bit.

• As spam, viruses, and other net-based security threats mount, Microsoft's record as having a rather relaxed attitude towards security in its products makes it potentially vulnerable to competing products.

• Finally, while the world is still very much PC-based, the trend is distinctly away from beige boxes. The growth of specialized computers and converged devices make it harder and harder for a single company to be all things to all people. Dedicated competitors are then able to nip away at the fringe of Microsoft's customer base as those customers' needs change more quickly than Microsoft can adapt its products.

Do I think that "market forces" are correcting what the antitrust lawsuits couldn't (or didn't)? Not really...at least not soon. While I certainly don't want Microsoft to go away entirely, I would like greater diversity and balance in the industries in which it competes. What do you think...is Microsoft more vulnerable right now than it has been in years, or is it just business at usual for Redmond?

Windows XP Directory Sorting: Bug or Feature?

I went slightly insane last night while trying to figure out why Windows was sorting some directories in a particular way. To illustrate, try this mental model:

Imagine two directories. One is named '09_temp' and '010_temp' is the name of the other. If the list of these two directories is sorted ascending by "name" (e.g., 'cat' would come before 'dog'), which directory would be listed first, 09_temp or 010_temp?

Well, I would have guessed 010_temp. Why? Well, the first character ('0') is the same for both dirs. The second character, however, is a '1' for one dir and a '9' for the other dir. When I was taught how to alphabetize things as a youth, I was told that '1' comes before '9'.

However, in the world of Windows, this ain't so. It seems that Windows has a bug (or a feature, depending on your point-of-view) that makes it treat directories and files that begin with numbers in a special way.

In the above examples, the dir named '09_temp' is viewed as beginning with the value 9 -- yes, 9, as in 1 greater than 8. Similarly, the other dir, 010_temp, is treated as if it begins with the value ten (yes, 10). So, in the above case, a value of 9 is less than a value of 10, so 09_temp would be listed above 010_temp when sorted alphanumerially ascending.

OK, is this documented somewhere..anywhere? Or, more to the point, what idiot at Microsoft thought that deviating from standard sorting precedence was a good idea? Jeez.

Follow-up: It seems that this practice is new for Windows XP (Windows 2000 uses common logic), and is documented in this MS Knowledge Base article. At least it's easy to change it...all I need to do is create a few registry keys, modify half a dozen settings, and reboot. Wow...how much more convenient could it be? </sarcasm>

Eye of the Beholder

Speaking of virtual people, the website for the first ever virtual beauty pageant - Miss Digital World - is now open, and accepting entries.

Franz Cerami, creator of the pageant, said "Miss Digital World is the search for a contemporary ideal of beauty, seen through virtual reality."

The outpouring of interest after the first announcements meant that the pageant - aimed at digital artists, advertising agencies, movie production companies and videogame developers - has pushed back several entry deadlines to December 20.

Prospective contestants should note that models "should not have taken part - not even as extras or cameos - in pornographic films, shows or plays nor have made statements...in any way out of tune with the moral spirit of the competition." (Too bad... it would have been nice to see Lara Croft on that catwalk...)

Contestants will be programmed to parade along a virtual catwalk, surrounded by virtual guests, with a virtual emcee presiding over the event. The winner - determined by votes over the Internet - will be crowned at a real world celebration in November 2004.

A Riddle...

What has roughly 5,000 legs and is over 6 city blocks long?

Give up? The answer is the opening day line to get into the Ginza, Tokyo Apple store, the first in Japan.

Don't believe me that there were, like, 2,500 people in line on November 30th just to get into a retail store? Then watch the video.

But I warn you -- even after you watch it, you still won't believe it. I'm still in shock.

Microsoft Strikes Again

According to the latest article in the Register, Microsoft is planning to charge for its FAT file system. The FAT file system is widely used in most digital cameras, video camcorders, and PDA's. So, the memory card manufacturers need to license the FAT file system in order to produce their cards. So, mostly likely they will pass the additional cost to, guess who, us the consumers, and we have to pay MS our hard-earned cash. I understand that patent holders need to be compensated for their innovation, but why do I feel queasy in my stomach? Perhpas that's because it's another Microsoft's attempt to dominate the computing industry or simply to pad their chest? You tell me.

If you want to read more about this, check out the Microsoft web page on the FAT file system license, and here is the pricing structure they propose:

Microsoft offers a commercially reasonable, nonexclusive license so that other companies can use the FAT file system in their own products. Currently, Microsoft offers two specific types of licenses:

A license for removable solid state media manufacturers to preformat the media, such as compact flash memory cards, to the Microsoft FAT file system format, and to preload data onto such preformatted media using the Microsoft FAT file system format. Pricing for this license is US$0.25 per unit with a cap on total royalties of $250,000 per manufacturer.
A license for manufacturers of certain consumer electronics devices. Pricing for this license is US$0.25 per unit for each of the following types of devices that use removable solid state media to store data: portable digital still cameras; portable digital video cameras; portable digital still/video cameras; portable digital audio players; portable digital video players; portable digital audio/video players; multifunction printers; electronic photo frames; electronic musical instruments; and standard televisions. Pricing for this license is US$0.25 per unit with a cap on total royalties of $250,000 per licensee. Pricing for other device types can be negotiated with Microsoft.

Building a New Home-Theater PC - Part I

About two years ago, I decided to build a proof-of-concept MP3 server (I've documented that project in this blog entry, so I won't repeat the details here). However, the current machine, a lowly AMD Duron 750 MHz w/ 128 MB of RAM, is well beyond its useful life in that capacity. For example, starting up Real One Player with our 10,000+ song MP3 database takes nearly two minutes. So, it's time to start thinking about what will, and should, replace that starter system.

I'd like the new machine to be more of a home-theater PC -- something that can perform as an MP3 server (at the very least) as well as possibly handle TV recording and other multimedia functions. Ideally, it could record HDTV signals, but I'll admit that I haven't looked hard enough yet to see if any home media software permits that functionality. I'd also like the new machine to come up out of the basement and live in the family room nearer the rest of the home a/v setup.

Now, it seems I have two primary form factors to consider. The first is the attractive option of the small-form-factor (SFF) case, like the AMS eCube bare-bones system I discussed last month. The second option would be the full-sized HTPC case that looks like a stereo component, such as is pictured above.

The SFF has basically just one advantage -- its size. I could fit it into our entertainment armoire fairly easily. Because it's small, it can also be easily schlepped from one place to another. I'm not sure how often I'd want to do that with an HTPC, but you never know. The disadvantages of the SFF are several: they have limited expandability (usually one PCI slot and one AGP slot), they often run hot, and they're often loud (because they don't have much, if any, sound baffling). Plus, most don't blend well with an all-black home A/V setup.

The component case has a few advantages. It looks good, it's heavily baffled (so it's really quiet), and it has plenty of space for expansion since it's a full-sized horizontal case. The main disadvantage is size -- I'm just not sure I can fit another full component into our entertainment center without displacing something we already have (I'm thinking the cassette deck could go -- I don't remember the last time we used it -- but the wife would not easily see the wisdom in that).

Cost is pretty much a wash. A new SFF would run close to $300, which is about the same for a good component case plus motherboard. All the rest of the innards would be the same for both systems.

So, right now, I'm not sure what I'm going to do -- do you have any advice or recommendations? I'm all ears at this point. Oh, and of course, I'll be posting my progress as time goes on here on GearBits.

Largest Prime Number (Yet) Found

New Scientist is reporting that the largest prime number yet was just found using a distributed computing system consisting of over 200,000 computers.

The new prime is 6,320,430 digits long (yes, so I won't be publishing it here). The result is a victory for the Great Internet Mersenne Prime Search (GIMPS) project.

Math news is usually pretty rare, but late 2003 has had a couple neat stories. Beyond the new prime story above, we also were tantalized by the partial solving of Hilbert's 16th problem by Swedish PhD student Elin Oxenhielm.

TikiWiki Groupware

I was browsing through various open source groupware solutions and came across TikiWiki 1.8. TikiWiki describes itself as the following:

Tiki CMS/Groupware (aka TikiWiki) is a powerful open-source Content Management System (CMS) and Groupware that can be used to create all sorts of Web applications, Sites, Portals, Intranets and Extranets. TikiWiki also works great as a Web-based collaboration tool. TikiWiki is a multi-purpose package with a lot of native options and sections that you can enable/disable as you need them. It is designed to be international, clean and extensible. TikiWiki incorporates all the features present in several excellent wiki systems available today plus a lot of new features and options, allowing your wiki application to be whatever you want it to be--from a simple wiki to a complex site for a whole user community with many intermediate steps.

While I haven't tested it out extensively, TikiWiki looks like it could be a terrific solution for small, distributed groups needing a flexible and open platform to facilitate networked communication and teamwork. Another impressive aspect is the skinnability of TikiWiki, as several customized installations demonstrate.

So, have any of you tried TikiWiki out recently? If so, what's the verdict? Are you using it still, or was it scrapped and/or replaced with something else?

iTunes Hacked

Apple's digital rights management (DRM) system on the iTunes Music Store has been challenged by Jon Johansen, well-known as the author of the DeCSS program for bypassing DVD copy protection.

The new program, QTFairUse, does not actually crack the DRM. Instead, it intercepts the music file while it is in the process of being streamed and before the DRM is applied.

While this implies that - similar to DeCSS - the program works only on content legitimately purchased from iTunes, a number of observers suggest that the program can be mis-used because it allows users to compile their own database of unprotected - and potentially distributable - content.

In its current release, QTFairUse does require some programming knowledge to implement, but more user-friendly versions are likely to appear in time. The current version is available only for Windows-based PCs.

The Robot Hall of Fame: First Inductees

Carnegie Mellon University's Robot Hall of Fame recognizes excellence in robotics technology, honoring real-world robots and fictional robots that have inspired scientific accomplishments.

Recently, CMU announced the first inductees into the Hall of Fame, chosen by a jury from 32 nominees.

The honorees: Sojourner, NASA's Mars Pathfinder Microrover Flight Experiment (MFEX) robot; Unimate, the first industrial robot; R2-D2, the droid from the Star Wars movie trilogy; and HAL, the ship-board computer from 2001: A Space Odyssey.

Jacob R. Matijevic of NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory accepted for the Sojourner rover. Joseph F. Engelberger, whose company Unimation installed the first robots on a General Motors assembly line in 1961, accepted for Unimate. Kathleen Holliday of Lucasfilm, accepted for R2-D2. Arthur C. Clarke sent a special message from Sri Lanka, on behalf of HAL.

Also on hand for the celebration were David Prowse (Darth Vader) and Kenny Baker (R2-D2) from the first Star Wars episode.

The public is invited to nominate robots for the next induction ceremony, to be held in October 2004, celebrating the 25th anniversary of Carnegie Mellon's Robotics Institute.

Man x Machine = Draw

The chess matchup between world No. 1-ranked player Garry Kasparov and his machine opponent X3D Fritz ended today in a tie, when today's fourth and final game was drawn after 90 minutes and 27 moves.

In February, Kasparov tied a six game match with Israeli-built world chess computer Deep Junior. Last year, German-built Fritz tied an eight-game match with world champion Vladimir Kramnik. Kasparov lost his world title to Kramnik in 2000 but is still rated No. 1 in the world.

Kasparov noted that current computer programs were stronger than Deep Blue, the IBM supercomputer he took on in 1996 and 1997. "Machines are getting better," said Kasparov. "But we humans are also learning."

The World's Most Powerful Supercomputers

Twice a year, the TOP500 project releases a list of the sites operating the 500 most powerful computer systems in the world. The latest edition of the high-performance computing compilation has just been released.

Retaining its number one position is the Earth Simulator Center, built by NEC in Yokohama, Japan, with a Linpack benchmark performance of 35.86 teraflops per second. In second place is the ASCI Q machine at Los Alamos, at 13.88 TFlop/s.

The Earth Simulator System is used to model the atmosphere, ocean and solid earth, producing data useful for the prediction and analysis of natural disasters and environmental trends. When it was completed in early 2002, the Japanese machine was so powerful that it equalled the combined processing power of the 20 fastest American computers at the time.

IBM leads the list in terms of total installed performance, accounting for over 35% of the installed base of 528 TFlop/s, followed by HP at 22.7 % and NEC at 8.7%.

Intel processors power 38% of the listed systems, up from 11% only a year ago.

Kasparov Reloaded

Legendary chess grandmaster Garry Kasparov scored an important victory against his opponent X3D Fritz in the third game of the latest matchup of man-versus-machine.

In this real-world analogue of the Matrix battles, Kasparov forced a winning position after 16 moves, going into automatic until four hours later, when the machine's programmers resigned on the 45th move.

The chess match is played on a virtual board, with Kasparov donning special glasses for three-dimensional viewing. Human moves are called out and interpreted by a voice recognition system.

Kasparov needed the win to stay in contention in the four-game match. The first game of the series was drawn; but in a breathtaking second game, the machine champion blasted its human foe after a blunder by Kasparov.

The fourth and final game is scheduled for this Tuesday.

AMS eCube EG65 Mini Barebones

I was perusing the "do-it-yourself" aisle at my local computer shop over the weekend and came across a really sweet-looking mini barebones system, the eCube EG65 (pictured) from AMS.

The eCube is an Intel 865 chipset-based system, so it supports Pentium 4 CPU's with hyper-threading and up to an 800 MHz front-side bus. It has a host of expansion features (something a lot of mini systems don't), including 2 DDR slots for up to 2 GB of RAM, two 3.5" and one 5.25" internal drive bays (one of each externally accessible), one PCI and one AGP 8X expansion slot, dual HDD controllers (both IDE ATA-100 and SATA!), plus all the usual connectivity stuff (USB2.0, IEE1394, 10/100 LAN, etc.). For the junior high crowd, the box even comes with blue internal lighting already built in (thankfully, you can switch that off).

A good review of the eCube can be found at SFF Tech, which recommended the unit.

"The EG65 combines the latest and greatest in modern case design married to the Intel Springdale P4 chipset producing a fast, portable, and great looking PC. I’ve been pretty impressed with this box over the past few days. It’s easily one of the finest looking SFF’s currently on the market, and one of the best choices if you’re looking for a Socket 478-based box. The Intel chipset goes a long way in vouching for this machine’s reliability and stability. So does the AMS eCube EG65 get my recommendation? Absolutely."

DevHardware.com has another review of the EG65, and they seemed to like it as well:

"The point I suppose is that all in all the e-cube delivered overall much more than I expected. I can honestly say that if I needed to I could run the e-cube as my main system and quite frankly would be none the worse for it. It's an attractive case that with it's compact nature, even if you aren't a LAN gamer, offers you flexibility that we're just not used to in a PC. The performance delivered by being matched up with the solid Intel 865G chipset was downright mind boggling from a SFF computer."

At well under $400, this mini looks like it could support just about any kind of system you want to build, from game box to home theater PC. However, it's not very baffled for an HTPC, so it might be louder than ideal. It seems like small form-factor PCs are definitely here to stay, and the offerings are becoming less of a trade-off and more as the obvious decision for a lot of applications.

Computer Wins One vs Kasparov

"I just blundered," said Garry Kasparov, the world's No. 1-ranked human chess player.

Challenger X3D Fritz - said to have grandmaster-level capability - took advantage of the blunder on Kasparov's 32nd move to win the second game of their four-game match in New York in under four hours.

The first game of the match ended in a draw. X3D Fritz now leads Kasparov by 1-1/2 points to 1/2.

The third game is scheduled for Sunday, with the final game on Tuesday. The winner stands to collect $250,000.

The match is played using virtual pieces enhanced by 3D glasses worn by Kasparov, who calls out his moves to a voice-recognition system which moves the pieces.

Microsoft Offers $500,000 Bounty on Virus Writers

Flash: Microsoft Corp. is offering a $500,000 reward for information leading to the arrest of the authors of two computer virus programs.

Microsoft is offering $250,000 apiece for the writers of SoBig and MSBlast (aka Blaster or LovSan), which affected millions of computers through August and September.

Law enforcement officials are supporting the move, which would be unprecedented in cyber-crime. These rewards appear to be the first from a fund of $5M that Microsoft has put aside for this purpose.

Converting From Microsoft Reader .LIT Files

Most folks familiar with e-books (electronic books) have heard of Microsoft's proprietary format, which it calls Microsoft Reader. Reader files have the .LIT filename extension, so they're sometimes referred to as LIT files.

Reader files have an interesting problem, one that Microsoft doesn't tell you about. When you buy an e-book in Reader format, that's it -- you cannot legally convert it to another format or use it on a device not authorized by Microsoft (at least not here in the US). Microsoft's Reader format is proprietary, closed, and one-way -- any electronic text converted to Reader format cannot be legally converted back into a plain text (or HTML or XML) document like the original.

So, if you want to read that Crichton novel you purchased in Reader format on, say, a Palm OS device or a Macintosh, you're screwed. Or, if you lose authentication on your Reader application, meaning that the e-book can't verify that you are you, you're also screwed. Or, if you want to loan the e-book to a friend, you can't. And the list of problems goes on and on.

Well, luckily, someone has produced Open Convert-.LIT, a utility to unconvert Microsoft Reader .LIT files from the packed form back into their original XML/HTML format. This means you can then pack them up into a different format and/or read them (in a browser) on just about any device you want.

Now, since using this tool may mean that one is in violation of the US Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA), I haven't tried it myself. However, if you reside outside the US, feel free to download and try out the app (it's hosted in the UK).

While I don't think this even begins to address the problems associated with poorly designed DRM solutions like Microsoft Reader and most other proprietary formats, it does solve one major problem -- losing the ability to enjoy content you've paid for when moving outside the realm of monopoly-approved computing. In the future, however, just don't bother buying ebooks in Reader .LIT formats -- use plain text, HTML, XML, Palm DOC, or some other open format and you'll likely sidestep most of these annoyances from the outset.

More Halloween Horror? Microsoft Eyes Google Takeover

According to the New York Times, while search company Google prepares for an IPO, it is also entertaining the possibility of a partnership - and even a merger - with Microsoft.

Google has noted that its preference is to take the IPO route, but it has been in talks with Microsoft over the last two months regarding possible alliances, including the possibility of a full acquisition.

Google is considering selling a 10-15% percent stake to the public, expected to raise more than $2 billion.

According to some sources, even if Google completes its IPO, Microsoft may still be interested in pursuing Google at a later date.

Halloween Horror for Symantec, Customers

According to CNet some of the 1.2 million customers who recently installed a security package from Symantec can't use the software because of new antipiracy measures.

The Norton bundle - which includes Antivirus 2004, Internet Security 2004, Antispam 2004 and SystemWorks 2004 - asks for a product activation code each time the customer reboots the PC. In time, the software informs the customer that he has reached the activation limit, and simply stops functioning.

Del Smith, Symantec senior product manager, noted, "As of last night, our engineers were able to reproduce the problem on one type of machine. This really has been a top priority for our product activation development team."

Symantec estimates that nearly 4 million pirated copies of its programs are sold annually, and so installed technology in its newer products to combat this.

The company hopes to have a solution soon, but in the meantime has recommended that customers who encounter the problem contact them, and not restart their computers.

Trick or treat!

ASPCR: The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Robots

A reference at Gizmodo to a TCS article piqued my interest in finding out more about the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Robots (ASPCR).

The ASPCR's mission is to ensure the rights of all artificially created sentient beings (robots). They contend that, though no true artificial sentient beings yet exist, recent technological advances make their reality a matter of time rather than possibility.

The ASPCR has been upholding robotic rights since 1999 - key among them the right to Existence, Independence, and the Pursuit of Greater Cognition.

The ASPCR notes, "Remember that the ASPCA (The American Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Animals), when founded in the 1890's, was ridiculed and lampooned mercilessly for daring to assert that "dumb" animals had certain rights. Yet now, just a century later, the ASPCA has spawned chapters across the world, an extremely active lobby in Washington, a yearly budget in the tens of millions, and a massive physical infrastructure to ensure that animal cruelty does not go unpunished."

I guess you should be careful how you treat your Aibo.

When you want a Mac, but when you can't have one--at least you can enjoy the interface on your PC

I've been a fan of the MacIntosh ever since it was first released. In fact, I've been a big fan of Apple since the Apple II days. My first PC (that I have actually purchased with my hard-earned cash) was the Apple IIc. However, when I went to get my MBA degree, everyone used the IBM PC and its software Lotus 123 and Wordperfect, and even though the Mac had a better graphical interface, I couldn't use it.

Both Mac and PC have evolved since then, but I have always found Mac's interface superior (at least in terms of aesthetics and functionality), but most of my essential programs only run in Windows, and I have resigned to using the Windows interface. Windows XP is much, much better, but I still prefer Mac's interface and now its security protection (just look at how many patches Microsoft is releasing these days to block its security holes).

Those of us who are in the similar situation as I am, now there is a solution to make our Windows at least look like Mac OS. StyleXP allows to substitute Windows visual style with your own. StyleXP uses Microsoft's built-in visual style engine and can import, select, rotate, and manage themes, visual styles, wallpapers, and logons. Best yet, it doesn't really slow down your system and take up resources like other skinning programs.

So, change your desktop or appearance to your liking and don't get stuck with what Microsoft gives you.

Amazon.com Launches Full Text Searching of Books

A letter from Jeff Bezos, Founder and CEO, on his Amazon.com site today, states:

"Starting today, you can find books at Amazon.com based on every word inside them, not just on matches to author or title keywords. Search Inside the Book - the name of this new feature - searches the complete inside text of more than 120,000 books - all 33 million pages of them."

Click here, for example, to find all the books that mention MemoWare, Craig's main online endeavor before GearBits.

After finding books that mention your search terms, you can also see a scan of that page. An Amazon.com press release gives more details of the service. The service inaugurates a capability unmatched by any other major online or bricks-and-mortar book retailer - although publisher O'Reilly's subscription-based Safari service has previously allowed IT professionals to search through the text of 1,000 selected technical reference books.

This appears to be the first results of Amazon.com's foray into search, under its wholly-owned A9 subsidiary. A9 was founded earlier this year, and operates independently of Amazon.com under Udi Manber, a former executive at search giant Yahoo.

A Human Ethernet

Technology Review notes that researchers in Japan have demonstrated a 10-Mbps network using human bodies as Ethernet cables.

ElectAura-Net is a wireless technology that uses a combination of the electric field emanating from humans and a similar field emanating from special floor tiles.

A floor tile carrying a transceiver transmits data by first creating oscillations in its surrounding electric field. These oscillations are transmitted through the electric field of a person entering the effective field area, and into the electric field of another tile-transceiver, which receives the data.

NTT Docomo researchers are now using the principles demonstrated to develop portable human electric field oscillators to serve as the basis for personal area networks (PANs). The system is faster than 1-Mbps Bluetooth wireless or 4-Mbps IrDA infrared communication systems now used for PANs, and could be the basis for the next-generation communications medium between personal digital assistants (PDAs).

AOpen XCube Mini-PC

The invasion of the cube PCs hasn't even begun to abate, it seems...not that I'm complaining. Ya gotta love a whole lotta computing power packed into a block about the size of your old Scooby-Doo lunchbox.

The latest cube PC to hit the store shelves is the XCube from AOpen (pictured). It supports both Pentium 4 and Athlon XP processors (depending on the model). While the Athlon model is cheaper, you will give up some performance since the Pentium 4 model has a much newer chipset and faster FSB in it.

The guys over at ExtremeTech reviewed the XCube with generally favorable comments:

Pro: Good-looking, affordable, quiet; performs well

Con: Flip-down optical drive door can be problematic, cramped interior

Summary: One of the better small form factor PCs we've seen

While you might expect to find more information at the AOpen website, I couldn't find any mention of the XCube. So, I guess for now, the review at ExtremeTech is the definitive source.

Also, if you're considering putting together one of these mini-cube form-factor PCs, check out our entry on the Shuttle XPC Mini Barebones systems (with review links to several places).

No Future for Microsoft's Mobile Devices?

There seems to be growing concern about the future (if not the present) for mobile devices using Microsoft operating system, Windows Mobile. Two recent blog entries offer some interesting insights into this issue.

Mike Rohde recently blogged some thoughts about stagnation in the Pocket PC space, especially as he compares it to the innovation going on in the Palm OS camp, and offers some links to other stories to support his ideas:

"I don't think Pocket PC is going away, but rather that Microsoft may be looking to greener pastures like their new Smartphone platform or Tablet PC platform."

However, per Gizmodo, Steve Sande over at PDAntic has some rather significant concerns over Microsoft's strategy, or lack thereof, and doubts the longterm commitment that Microsoft is making to any of its mobile products, including Tablet PC:

"I just don't feel like Microsoft is doing much to generate any excitement in the mobile computing world lately. Last week's introduction of three new PalmOS devices from PalmOne is one of several "symptoms" that indicate to me that things might not be going all that well in the Windows Mobile world."

So, what's up with mobiles in Redmond? Given that both JVC and Gateway have recently abandoned their stated intentions of developing Windows Mobile products, is Windows Mobile in trouble? Is it being ignored by Microsoft in order to shore up other, more reliable (and traditional) products, or does Microsoft just simply not get mobility (like it didn't get the Internet for a while)?

Making (and Keeping) Web Publishing a Simple Task

The same trend seems to happen again and again: something useful starts out very simply. It becomes widely adopted, feature-creep begins to set in, and suddenly it is no longer nearly as simple. It may still be as useful, but it's no longer nearly as usable to the general public.

I'm scared that this is happening in web publishing. In the early years of HTML, using it was fairly simple. You had a handful of tags that you used to literally mark up your text. You could embed images and make rudimentary tables, but really fancy stuff was just out of reach.

Here we are now 10 years later (well, 10 years after I first started using HTML) and I've noticed two things. First, making a webpage is more confusing and complicated than ever before, and the trend is increasingly moving towards even greater complexity. While the old physical layout tags (e.g., <b> for bold) are still supported, there are those who would have them permanently deprecated and eliminated from use (i.e., no longer supported as renderable tags by browsers). What would be left in its stead would be a set of style sheets (CSS) and other techniques that are magnitudes more complex.

A second trend is that more and more people are wanting to web-ify their content. However, even the simple task of making something a hyperlink escapes a lot of adults I know (perhaps even most adults). This means that whenever something is to be created, they turn to the tool(s) with which they are most familiar, such as Microsoft Office applications (i.e., Word, Excel, etc). When Word and Excel "save as" HTML, they produce highly garbage-ified pages, full of stuff that doesn't render well in any browser except Interner Explorer. Obviously, this isn't an ideal situation when we want to advocate the use of the Internet and web content whenever appropriate.

So, what needs to be done? One thing we need to do is to ensure that simple markup continues to be acceptable by all browser and related technologies. When I use <b> in something, it should make the text bold...period. I really don't care how distasteful that rule is to the design/layout purists. The simple fact is that most people won't ever know more than a handful of HTML codes, so making those most important ones as simple as possible is important.

Another thing we need to do is to try to make our content production and handling applications more directly tied into the Internet paradigm. For example, if someone wants to type up a series of Q&A, a really useful macro in the word processing program would be to FAQ-ize it -- turn it into the standard FAQ format (one webpage with questions at the top, each hyperlinked to the corresponding answer at the bottom). The output should contain as little HTML and other markup/code as is barely needed to make it compliant with the web content standard. Alternately, if the current web content standard has grown beyond a reasonably manageable level of simplicity, then forget that and just put use the fewest tags possible.

An alternative to both these is to do away with markup altogether and devise a system that doesn't rely on altering content to be specially configured for use on the Internet. I haven't seen a good example of this type of approach yet, and frankly I'm not sure it could exist.

I apologize if I sound grumpy. It's just that I would hate to see this trend towards increased complexity shut out the majority of the workforce from being able to produce useful and efficient web content. We could start relying on other tools to produce our HTML for us (e.g., Microsoft Word), but I fear that the companies behind those tools would start pushing their own agendas by producing modified HTML that creates incompatibilities (some have been doing that for a while now). Alternately, we could start a movement back to bare-bones HTML for those who aren't concerned with being on the cutting edge and put significant effort into getting everyone familiar with the handful of tags they need to produce useful, efficient content. Or, is there another option that I'm leaving out?

The Ugly Secret of Windows Media Center

Some Q&A from the Frequently Asked Questions About Windows XP Media Center Edition 2004 page:

Q. What file format does Media Center record in?

A. Media Center uses a new file format called DVR-MS. DVR-MS is an MPEG-2 file that includes metadata about the recorded program to be stored.

Q. Can the file format used by Media Center be changed? Can I edit recorded TV files?

A. No, Media Center supports only the DVR-MS file format for recording TV. It's not currently possible to edit DVR-MS files (the format used for recorded TV files). However, some third-party software manufacturers have applications that support the conversion of DVR-MS files into other formats.

Q. Can the files generated by Media Center be converted to another video format?

A. At this time, there is no way to convert DVR-MS files to another format. Microsoft is currently working with third-party software manufacturers to add support for DVR-MS files to their products.

Q. Can I edit recorded TV files?

A. It isn't possible at this time to edit DVR-MS files (the format used for recorded TV files). Microsoft is currently working with third-party software manufacturers to add support for DVR-MS files to their products.

Q. Does Windows Movie Maker support the Media Center file format?

A. Windows Movie Maker does not support DVR-MS files at this time.

So, not only can you not pick the recording format, you are stuck using a proprietary format that nobody's products, including Microsoft, even handles for editing purposes. I got one word for Media Center 2004: fuhgettaboutit.

New Palms Launched (Before Official Launch)

C&A Electronics has begun listing two new Tungsten models from Palm (aka palmOne) - apparently ahead of the official October 1 launch date.

According the the catalog listings, the Palm Tungsten E sports 32MB of RAM, Palm OS 5.2.1, and SD expansion slot, and comes in at £169.99 (~$280).

Similarly, the Palm Tungsten T3 sports 64MB of RAM, a 400 MHz XScale Intel processor, Palm OS 5.2.1, and SD expansion slot, built-in Bluetooth, all at £339.99 (~$560).

As of this writing, the "Buy" buttons on the C&A Electronics site are functional, but orders are only being taken for the UK and the European Union. If you're in the right geographic area, order away - and send us a review!

Next Technology Wave

CNN reports today that scientists at Phillips Research in Eruope was successful in displaying high-definition video on a paper-thin screen. Furthermore the light-weight screen only needs low voltage to power itself. Sounds like a sure bet for our next generation PDA's.

On the other side of the Atlantic, AMD introduced a new 64-bit processor the AMD Athlon™ for PC desktops and notebooks. Since the 64-bit processor can process information 64 bits at a time and supports bigger internal memory, it sure promises definite speed gains from PC's running 32-bit chips. Microsoft also announced Windows XP beta that supports the new chip at the same time. However, the best news might be that AMD's intense competition with Intel is going to keep the chip price down, and that will be good for speed and game enthusiasts.

Tatung's New TabletPC

Gizmodo has a snippet on a forthcoming TabletPC from Tatung, the TTAB-B12D. The specs sound really exciting:

"It's just 2.3 centimeters thick, weighs only 2.2 pounds, and has a 10.4-inch display, a 900MHz Centrino processor, built-in WiFi, a 30GB hard drive, 256MB of RAM, and a docking station with a keyboard and an optional touchpad."

I'm a bit confused, however, as the Tatung website lists the TTAB-B12D as a 12.1" TabletPC, and the Tatung Canada website lists the TTAB-B12D-2 (which seems to be a North American version of the same unit) at 1.6 kg (3.5 lbs) without the keyboard attachment. Hopefully some more definite specs will come out soon.

Are we better off today than yesterday?

Americans and everyone around the world are spending $$$ to purchase/upgrade their technology in the past ten years. Of course, the reason for doing that should be obvious: improvement in productivity. Of course in education, the benefits are supposedly increased learning.

However, the latest productivity study shows America (supposedly the technological leader in the world) falling behind a number of our European counterparts, and I haven't really seen any study that shows that technology has really improved our productivity.

In fact, the prolific writer Stephen Jay Gould, a paleontologist and geologist, who recently passed away had been known to use his old Smith Corona typewriter to write and never used his e-mails for correspondence.

Also, the latest CNN article reports that schools are now facing an increasing problem of students using their PDA's and cell phones for cheating, playing games, surfing the web, and gossiping. When I was young, we used to pass notes in class, now students are wirelessly passing notes through their cell phones and PDA's. Worse yet, students can now cheat on their exams by passing answers and notes using these gadgets. One of my colleagues recently caught a student here on campus who was communicating with his roommate via SMS (Short Message Service) to get the answer to his engineering exam questions. I bet PDA and cell phone designers never contemplated these uses when they were first designing these devices.

So, my question to you this early Monday morning is "is technology helping us to become more productive, or are we learning more as a result?"

The Right Medium for the Job

Recently, I became aware of something that really surprised me: a lot of people read the contents of Yahoo! Groups mailing lists on the web instead of receiving emails and reading the posts in an email client.

Yahoo! Groups' web interface royally stinks. It's slow to load, overly encumbered with ads, and doesn't provide a lot of functionality that you really should have when dealing with high-volume forums (e.g., threading). However, if you have all the posts routed to your email inbox and you use a local client (e.g., Eudora, The Bat, Netscape Mail, Outlook, etc.) then a lot of these weaknesses are mitigated.

I asked one person why he used the web interface instead of subscribing to the emails (or even the daily digest), and his response was, "I already get too much email." Huh?! That makes zero sense -- he's wasting loads more time by using the web interface. Besides, if he had a decent email client, he could filter all the mailing lists posts into a separate folder and read at his leisure.

However, I suspect his logic, as fallible as it may be, isn't that uncommon. My suspicion is that 90% of all email users aren't sophisticated enough to efficiently manage large amounts of email, so they try to minimize the amount they get. They don't realize that email can be one of the most efficient means of communicating in one-to-one and one-to-many scenarios that don't require real-time interaction.

Perhaps spam is to blame for the bad rep that email seems to have gotten with the uninformed and inexperienced...I don't know for sure. Whatever it is, I hope that two things happen. First, I hope that more folks get familiar and comfortable with a decent email client (and no, I don't include Outlook Express in that set) so that they can become more efficient users. Second, I hope that Yahoo! redesigns its Groups interface to make it more useful, usable, and user-friendly. If either of those things happen, I'll be happier. If both things happen, my head will probably explode.

My Ancient Calculator and Why I Haven't Upgraded

I'm still using two graphing calculators -- the Casio FX-7000 (pictured) and FX-8000G -- that I got in high school. If you don't know me personally, that was nearly 20 years ago. Given my obsession with the latest and greatest technology, why do I hang on to these relics? I've been wondering that myself and I've come up with two possible explanations.

First, since I used these calculators in high school and all through college (all 11 years of it), I learned a lot of the advanced math I know using these things. Therefore, I am intimately familiar with every shift-function and special calculation mode that they offer. I would hate to have to re-initiate that learning curve by trading these things in for a newer model, especially one that likely doesn't do all that much more than these do. So, my first hypothesis is that I'd like to stick with what's comfortable.

My second hypothesis is that calculators haven't really advanced all that far in the past 20 years. Sure, they have more memory and higher density displays than they used to (my two calculators have a combined total of 2 KB of RAM). But, given that 80% of my calculations these days involve the four basic operands (+ - x ÷), these tiny enhancements don't really help me that much.

Looking at these two possible reasons, I think the answer to why I don't upgrade is both, actually. What I have is good enough for my use and what is available doesn't provide compelling enhancements. So, what's different between the calculator industry and the consumer computer industry?

Well, I do believe that most of the computer gear I have is good enough -- there are relatively few problems or uses that I face on a regular basis that can't be solved with technology I already have. However, the PC industry is really good at coming up with technology that reflects compelling advances and interesting new capabilities. While the calculator industry is at the mercy of mathematicians to devise new functions (unlikely), the PC industry has basically an unbounded space in which to explore and expand their products' functionality. I think this is what causes me to be constantly intrigued by the latest and greatest consumer tech -- this sense of exploration and creativity that is associated with constant innovation.

And Now for the Weather...

Watching the weatherman on the 9 o'clock news, I sometimes say to myself, "Hey, I could do that."

Now, I can - and you can too. This weekend saw the launch of the world’s largest climate prediction experiment - one similar to SETI@home, which used Internet-connected personal computers to sift through reams of radiotelescope data in a search for signs of extraterrestrial life.

ClimatePrediction.net plans to use the combined power of participants’ computers - an application of grid computing - to establish what could be the most comprehensive probability-based forecast of climate for the 21st century.

During idle time, connected computers will run climate models from the U.K. Meteorological Office and its partners, simulating decades of the earth's climate. After each run, the simulations are sent back, with the results validating different versions of the model (or not). After the most realistic models have been identified, these will be used to make predictions about earth's future climate.

The organizers hope that the ClimatePrediction.net will have a strong appeal to educational institutions. Participants will be able to "fly" around their simulated planet earth to see the changing weather patterns, and compare their predictions with those of other participants.

HP Officejet 6110 Not Bad

Despite my issues with my HP G85, I decided to try out a new HP Officejet 6110 multi-function printer/fax/scanner/copier (pictured).

To my delight, the device has even a tad more scanning functionality than the G85 has. All the different scanning options I was used to have been retained, and a few new ones have been added, in the included HP Director management utility.

One thing that is a bit puzzling is why HP decided to remove the direct PC faxing capabilities that the G85 has (i.e., you can select the G85's fax function as a printer, bypassing a hardcopy). On second thought, it is pretty obvious. First, HP would like you to use as much ink as possible, so bypassing a hardcopy doesn't support that objective. Second, if the 6110 had PC faxing capabilities, I'm not sure why anyone would pony up the extra $100 for the Officejet 7110, which prints a tad faster with no other major advantages over the 6110 (other than PC faxing).

Overall, it's a nice unit. It's a fair bit smaller than my G85, yet does most everything it does faster and better. While HP's printer cartridges aren't the most economical, I'm glad to still be printing with HP.

Death of E-books (Premature Prognostication?)

I got an e-mail from BN.com (Barnes and Nobles) yesterday stating that they would no longer sell e-books in their site starting 9/9/2003, and I need to download all the MS e-books I have purchased in the past in the next 90 days.

Several months ago, I got a similar e-mail from Gemstar, maker of Gemstar e-book readers that they are stop selling their devices and e-books as well. Since Gemstar purchased both NuvoMedia (formerly, maker of Rocket e-book reader) and SoftBook Press, Inc., formerly, maker of the SoftBook Reader, it looks like the whole e-book industry is floundering.

The e-book concept is intriguing. You don't have to carry tons of books with you when you travel (go on a vacation) because one small device can let you store many books. You can electronically bookmark the pages, and also search the pages for the quotes or passages you are looking for. Sounds like everyone should and wants one. Well, apparently not.

I own a NuvoMedia's Rocket e-book reader, and I still find the device useful, but the problem has not been the device, but the lack of content (i.e., books). Is there a conspiracy going on here? Perhaps, but as long as book publishers do not make their books available in e-book formats, I don't think the market going to take off. Judging from copyright issues (piracy and illegal copying/sharing) the recording (CD) and the movie (DVD) industries have been experiencing lately, I doubt book publishers are in any hurry to migrate over to the electronic medium right now.

So, technology is here, but it is vastly underutilized. I'm still optimistic, but I'm not going to invest in any more stand-alone e-book devices or software.

What's been your experience, or what do you think?

Micropayments Anyone?

An effective system for handling micropayments, or the ability to electronically pay someone really small sums (often in the pennies or fractions of a cent), has so far eluded designers. This has lead to a lot of really bad online revenue models being dreamed up to compensate for, or accommodate, this gap.

MIT Technology Review has a nice article on micropayments, "Selling Online Content—25 Cents at a Time". The piece reviews some new ideas, including a system offered by a company called Bitpass, that might eventually break down this barrier and let the easy flow of tiny sums of money finally happen as fluidly and efficiently as it should...and needs to.

Granted, when a robust micropayment system finally gets developed, you can probably kiss free content on the Internet good-bye. While it will take a while to get widely accepted, paying a 30th of a cent to read an article will likely become second nature and generally assumed. Heck, free content may even become the exception rather than the rule (wow...just like the real world) and advertising-based revenue models might start to seem charmingly anachronistic.

So, how much would you be willing to pay to get a weather forecast? 1 cent? 1/10th of a cent? 1/100th of a cent? Someday, payments like these might be automatically deducted from your "account," although figuring out what that "account" actually looks like will likely take a huge amount of work and coordination across the various financial industries. But, it will happen...sooner or later.

Follow-up to 'HP Printer Software Takes a Step Backward'

In my recent blog entry, I lamented how HP removed some functionality from the software it provides for my G85 multi-function (printer/scanner/copier/fax). While I could scan directly into an Adobe Acrobat PDF using the earlier version of the software on Windows 2000, the software that HP provided for Windows XP did not have this functionality.

Well, I just got off the phone with Joe, a reasonably polite but less-than-clueful tech support staffer, at HP about this issue. It appears that scanning directly into Adobe Acrobat is no longer possible with the software when used on a Windows XP machine. Instead, HP suggests you go buy Adobe Acrobat Pro, a $450 software package.

Yes, HP suggests that I spend $150 more on software than I originally spent on the printer just to regain a feature their software had before I changed operating systems. Something is totally screwed up at HP if they think this is an acceptable "solution." Apparently, for my new printer, I need to go start looking at other multi-function device makers. Any recommendations (other than Canon...thanks, Bob)?

Cloning the Apple I

Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak (who turned 110101 on August 11) has given the thumbs-up to Vince Briel, a computer technician and vintage technology enthusiast, who plans to hand-build replicas of the legendary Apple I.

Wired reports that orders are now being taken via Briel's website Replica I, which expects to ship the first machines on October 11.

Briel had been unable to get permission from Apple to reproduce the machine. He then wrote to Woz, who thought it was a great idea, and noted that the Apple I's schematics and ROM code had been freely distributed in 1975 at the Homebrew Computer Club, long before Woz and Steve Jobs formed Apple.

The Apple I "clone" uses different components from the original, but is functionally identical. Briel noted he spent ages "un-implementing" features offered by modern chips - such as backspacing - which were unavailable on the original 1970s-vintage chips.

HP Printer Software Takes a Step Backward

I recently decided to try updating the software on my HP G85 multi-function (printer/scanner/copier/fax) machine I have at my office. It turns out that was a really stupid thing to do.

The thing I use my G85 for the most is scanning multi-page documents into Adobe Acrobat PDFs so I can distribute the articles and documents to my students without making hardcopies (hardcopies are evil). The version of the software that came with the G85 made this task relatively easy: I start the scan manager, select Adobe Acrobat as the destination for the output, and start scanning (I can crop, straighten, and stuff as I go to each page if I choose).

Well, the newest version of HP's software has completely eliminated this option. Now, using the scan manager, I can only scan into either the HP Photo Editor (if I'm scanning a "photo") or into a word-processing program like Microsoft Word (if I'm scanning a "document"). Scanning directly into Acrobat is impossible from the scan manager -- how ridiculous is that?!

Well, it turns out that I can scan directly into Acrobat, but only if I use the hardware buttons on the G85's front panel. I select "Scan To" and then choose the destination program of my choice (in this case, Acrobat). However, this front-panel scanning eliminates any chance of straightening, cropping or making other image adjustments during the scanning process.

This is yet another example of a company totally screwing up a perfectly good piece of software by trying to make it simpler and easy to use. In this quest for "ease of use," HP has completely overlooked the other primary driver of technology adoption, which is "usefulness" (per Davis' Technology Acceptance Model).

While I can eventually get all this stuff into Adobe Acrobat, the process takes about 4X as long (from ~30 seconds per page to ~2 minutes per page). The funny thing was that I was getting ready to buy a new multifunction for home and I was all set to buy another HP. Unless HP's latest devices have a better interface, I think I might start looking at alternatives. Too bad, too...I've always liked HP printers. It's ironic that bad software might end up screwing up an otherwise great physical product.

Practicing Safe Computing: GRC to the Rescue

Everybody is constantly bombarded by viruses, spyware, adware, trojans, worms, and a host of other cybernasties. You can protect yourself from some of this stuff using the excellent free utilities at Gibson Research Corporation (GRC).

GRC gives out a bunch of stuff for free, and not just junk, but really useful (and sometimes unique) utilities to help you protect yourself and your computer. Plus, there's a ton of good useful information at the site -- very educational!

Another Wi-Fi Webcam

Along the same lines as Mitch's Axis 2100, Gizmodo is reporting that Linksys has begun offering a new wireless (802.11b) webcam, the WVC11B , that permits streaming of 320x240 video using its own internal web server.

One of the nifty features is that it can be wall mounted or it can stand in its cradle, which provides both power and a LAN jack for wired connectivity.

When Linksys gets into a market, you know things are about to become domain of the everyman. For under $200 (the Axis 2100 cost upwards of $500 when it first came out, and it wasn't wireless), the WVC11B may bring a whole new range of customers, and applications, to life.

Perhaps my recent thoughts on privacy, especially those related to webcams, aren't so far-fetched.

Sandisk releases CF and SD cards

SanDisk recently introduced the SanDisk Extreme™ CompactFlash® and SD line of high performance, high durability CF cards designed for use under extreme conditions. The SanDisk Extreme cards deliver a minimum write speed of 9 megabytes per second (MB/sec.) and a minimum read speed of 10MB/sec.

The SanDisk Extreme CF cards are available now in capacities of 256 and 512MB and 1 gigabyte, with suggested retail prices of $109.99, $229.99 and $439.99 respectively.

The 256MB SanDisk Extreme SD card is expected to ship in October with a suggested retail price of $134.99. The 512MB is expected to ship in November with a price of $299.99.

SanDisk has also announced updated versions of its SanDisk Ultra(TM) II line of high-performance CompactFlash and SD cards as well as updated versions of its SanDisk Extreme(TM) line of high-performance CompactFlash and SD cards. The Ultra II cards now deliver a minimum write speed of 9 megabytes per second (MB/sec.) and a minimum read speed of 10MB/sec.

The new SanDisk Ultra II CF card will initially be available in three capacities – 256MB, 512MB and 1 gigabyte (GB). The 256 and 512MB SanDisk Ultra II CF cards started shipping this month while the 1GB cards will be in the next thirty days. SanDisk Ultra II SD cards will be available in 256MB and 512MB capacities in October and November, respectively.

Suggested retail prices for the three SanDisk Ultra II CF cards capacities—256MB, 512MB and 1GB—are $104.99, $209.99, and $429.99.

Suggested retail prices for the SanDisk Ultra II SD cards are $129.99 and $289.99 for the 256 and 512MB cards.

QuickColor: Cool Tool for Web Design

My pal Mike turned me onto a really excellent tool for web designers and graphic artists who deal a lot with computer color codes.

QuickColor, at KOHAISTYLE.COM gives you a slider for RGB (Red, Green, and Blue) inputs, and then provides you with complimentary colors in both hex and RGB. Truly a terrific tool if you find yourself in need of that "perfect color" now and again.

Thanks, Mike!

VNC and Palm VNC

Anyone who has ever had to manage a computer from a remote location has dreamed of being able to do it wirelessly via a handheld computer. The dream of fast, convenient, virtually unbounded remote management is made just a bit more realistic by virtue of Palm VNC.

Palm VNC is an application for Palm OS devices. It enables the user to control any PC (Windows, Unix, etc.) running the freely available VNC Server application, which permits two-way desktop control between the server (the PC running VNC Server that is being controlled) and the client (in this case, the Palm OS handheld running Palm VNC). Basically, the client user "sees" the desktop and controls it just as if he or she were sitting at the console.

As with many highly useful and open application standards, there are several different "flavors" of VNC out there. The original VNC was cooked up by some AT&T engineers in the UK. The latest build can be gotten from the official VNC site at RealVNC.com. Other variants on the VNC protocol, most of which are backward-compatible with VNC, include Tight VNC and UltraVNC.

And, yes, there are even a couple of VNC clients for Palm OS to be had. I have had tremendous success with Palm VNC 2.0. This works tremendously well on my Palm Tungsten C, and I've used it to access my home machine (Tight VNC server on Windows XP) via Wi-Fi on multiple occasions from various locations. Palm VNC 2.0 is a really nice continuation of the work originally done by Vladimir Minenko a few years ago, which has now been taken over by Harakan Software.

So, if you like the idea of being able to control various computers' desktops remotely over wireless from your handheld, give Palm VNC a try...you might be as hopelessly addicted to it as I am.

Worms Make Life Hard on Admins

I work at the University of Cincinnati, where we have just around 70,000 students, faculty, and staff. Managing the IT infrastructure here must be a nightmare -- I can only imagine. The recent spate of Internet worms isn't helping these guys to get any sleep either, as this portion of a recent email sent around to UC netizens suggests:

Two more computer WORMs - Nachi and Sobig.F - have joined LovSan/Blaster in the pack of cyber-prowlers looking to puncture privacy and take control of your computer. The Sobig virus is propagating aggressively around the Internet and within the UC network through the e-mail systems. In the past 36 hours, UC has intercepted and cleaned over 50,000 instances of these infections on the University's e-mail system.

Days like these make me glad I'm not an IT administrator. Of course, days like these don't really make me happy I'm even an email user.

Goodbye CardBus, Hello PCI Express

According to Nikkei Electronics Online, the PCMCIA (Personal Computer Memory Card Interface Association) is nearing the release of specs for what will replace the venerable PC Card (or PCMCIA card) specification.

The new specs will be based on PCI Express instead of CardBus, yielding a 4X speed increase over today's cards. Two different sizes will be allowed in the spec, with the smaller card about half of the volume of current PC Cards.

While no official name has been adopted, the development codename being used is NEWCARD. Devices and laptops with NEWCARD slots should start appearing as early as the end of 2004.

PowerPoint: Art Medium or World Threat?

Wired has two interesting articles on PowerPoint (yes, the presentation slide software from Microsoft).

In this article by David Byrne (yes, the artist and musician formerly with Talking Heads), PowerPoint is described as having the potential for being a new art medium. Byrne shows off some of his PowerPoint art, which I found (surprisingly) compelling and (not so surprisingly) humorous. My favorite image, which I cannot duplicate here due to (c) restrictions, is described as "This is Dan Rather's profile. Expanded to the nth degree. Taken to infinity. Overlayed on the back of Patrick Stewart's head." Now that's art.

In the second article, Edward Tufte denounces PowerPoint as something just slightly less than pure evil. In one of the better written articles I've read recently, Tufte claims "...the PowerPoint style routinely disrupts, dominates, and trivializes content. Thus PowerPoint presentations too often resemble a school play - very loud, very slow, and very simple." Excellent read if you spend more than 10 minutes a week futzing with presentations.

Personally, as a university professor, I've noticed a trend towards instructors relying more and more on PowerPoint for classroom lectures. I can't say I'm in agreement with this approach. I tend to use PowerPoint sparingly, often only for things I can't readily duplicate on the chalkboard or whiteboard. I've gotten some good comments from students who seem to appreciate this "novel" approach to lecturing (my, how quickly our memory fades). The one downside, according to the students, to my not using PowerPoint is that I don't give them harcopies of the lecture notes in advance, forcing them to actually write down what we discuss in class. My, that is a problem now, isn't it. ;-)

Sobig.F Highlights the Growing Tech Gap

This morning, I received the following email (actual sender disguised):

Date: 04:34 AM EDT, 08/20/2003
From: t___.m___@n____.com
To: craig@memoware.com
Subject: Re: Re: My details

Not sure who you are or what the attached file is as I cannot open it

----- Original Message -----
From: craig@memoware.com
To: t___.m___@n____.com
Sent: Tuesday, August 19, 2003 11:15 PM
Subject: Re: Re: My details

> See the attached file for details

Obviously, TM (as I'll call her) received an email generated by someone (not me) infected with the Sobig.F worm that is making the rounds. Apparently, TM attempted to open the virus payload attached to this email and, by so doing, likely added her own computer to the growing list of Sobig.F's victims.

This simple email highlights a huge concern of mine: the world is becoming less and less able to deal with viruses, trojans, and other computer-based attacks like the Sobig.F worm. How long have we had viruses and worms and other problems for which anti-virus software was originally developed? A decade now? Yet more and more people are getting online without a clue as to how to protect themselves, their computers, and their data from these threats.

Moreover, the rate of technological change is constantly increasing. That sentence doesn't just mean that things are always changing, it means that things are changing faster all the time. This compounds the above problem of clueless users because it makes a larger and larger percentage of the online population incapable of keeping up with what is needed to practice safe computing. Computer-based threats are adapting and changing more rapidly than ever before, yet the typical user isn't learning any faster -- it's easy to see the problem this trend creates.

While we can continue to try to educate the masses about anti-virus software and firewalls and WEP and all the other security measures they should adopt, I think this is a losing battle. The "threat" is changing far too quickly for the majority of Internet users to keep themselves well-protected. So, what should we do?

One option would be to enforce a higher degree of centralized computing. Instead of giving consumers full-blown computers, they would be given dumb terminals by their ISPs and all their computing would happen via a centralized computing resource. This would permit a much higher degree of protection and would eliminate a lot of the problems users have with their computers. As many problems as this approach would solve, it can't overcome one big one: the desire of many (including me) to have 100% control over their computers. If you thought that NRA members were fanatical over their guns, think about how rabidly the geeks of the world would fight to protect their computers.

A second option would be to enforce better safeguards and mandate better security at the level of the operating system. Microsoft, which makes the OS that runs a majority of the world's desktop and laptop computers, has come under a great deal of criticism for its lax approach to security in the Windows product line. In response, Microsoft has announced that it is considering making Windows updates automatic rather than a user-enabled option.

While the specifics to this second approach -- beefing up security built into the OS -- are going to be tough to hammer out, it is probably the best solution to the growing range of computer-based threats. Let's hope that Microsoft is up to the challenge. And, if it is not, then let's hope that a more secure operating system can take the place of Windows before we have a catastrophic meltdown of the Internet.

IM Buddies

Marx Toys is selling, or pre-ordering, rather, a line of IM Buddies, dolls fashioned after Disney characters that sit on top of your monitor and speak aloud whatever comes through your instant messaging client.

Daffy Duck and Bugs Bunny are currently mentioned as figures to be made available. These remind me of Mitch's post about Actimates.

Sounds like the IM Buddy would be fun for about, oh, 30 seconds.

TeleRead.org -- E-Book Advocates

TeleRead.org is an interesting website with an interesting mission: to promote "well-stocked national digital libraries." Beyond the various lists and links, the site features a well-done blog related to e-books, the publishing industry, DRM (digital rights management), and other related matters.

As you may know, I'm a big fan of e-books, and I think they deserve a lot more attention than they've been getting, so I'm glad to see a well-organized and active site like this emerge. Check it out!

On the Trail of Some Spammers

After about a million Linkshare spam emails had arrived in my inbox over the past 6 months or so, I decided to try and see how I could get off their list. Surprisingly, their website has a toll-free number to customer support.

Calling that number, I spoke to a woman who informed me that Linkshare does not spam anyone and that I must have signed up. Pretty sure I didn't, she looked up my account and saw that my account was associated with a company called PEPID. I had never heard of PEPID, so I asked to be removed from Linkshare's email list, and that was promptly done. So, kudos to Linkshare -- I hate getting their email, but at least they give a guy a way to get off their list.

Now, back to PEPID. I found out that this company offers "Portable Healthcare Expertise." Granted, as founder of MemoWare, I'm fairly heavily embedded in the handheld computing community. However, as I'm not a physician, I don't know why PEPID would have ever had any reason to sign up my email address to a marketing company like Linkshare. So I called PEPID to see what was up.

I reached a guy manning the PEPID tech support line (also a toll-free number). After entering my name (not my email address) into his terminal, he said he wasn't sure how Linkshare got it because there was nobody with my name in the PEPID user database. Curious. I thanked him and hung up.

So, somebody's not quite being honest. Which company is it? Or, is it somebody else altogether? Who knows. As with all spam, I'll be happy when it stops invading my inbox.

Zip: Moving Ahead or Falling Apart?

CNET News.com has an interesting article about how the stability of Zip as the de facto compression standard for Windows users may be at risk.

Two companies, PKZip and WinZip, both offer Zip maniuplation programs. Each has implemented its own encryption system to add stronger password protection to the Zip format. However, the encryption systems aren't compatible, meaning that a Zip file may no longer be a Zip file even if it uses the same .zip extension that's existed for over a decade.

The article goes on to explain some of the specifics of the situation, which I hope can be reconciled without further fracturing the standard. Although Zip isn't a de jure standard, it is most certainly one of the better de facto standards in the Windows computing community.

Irfanview: Great Free Image Utility

One of the apps I rely on daily is Irfanview, a image viewing utility that also incorporates some basic essential editing capabilities as well. Irfanview describes itself as "a very fast, small, compact and innovative FREEWARE (for non-commercial use) graphic viewer for Windows 9x/ME/NT/2000/XP."

Irfanview replaced ACDSee on all my systems when ACDSee became outrageously expensive some years ago. While Irfanview is indeed freeware, its robustness and feature set rival many shareware and commercialware alternatives.

So what's with the funky name? Like Linux, Irfanview is named after its author, Irfan Skiljan, who hails from Bosnia. And lest you sound like a total noob, it's pronounced "EarfanView." Go grab Irfanview and send Irfan an email thanking him for this wonderful app.

Something Wiki This Way Comes

If you haven't heard of wiki pages, that's probably not surprising. This interesting new (well, relatively new) web-based social computing tool is beginning to catch on and hit the mainstream.

In a nutshell, wiki pages are freely editable webpages. When viewed, they look like any other text-based webpage. However, an "Edit" button allows the user to revise, change, add to, or completely delete the contents of that page. Should some cybervandal come along and completely decimate a wiki page, the admin can restore it, but it seems this is a fairly rare occurrence.

The motivation behind wiki pages is a common one: being able to capture the collective intelligence of a group is easier when multiple people can contribute. Mailing lists and other "serial" archives take too long to wade through when the latest information is based on a series of sequential or parallel edits. The wiki seems like an excellent tool for tasks like groups needing to collaborate on documents or for building community-based FAQs.

For more information on wikis, take a look at the WikiWikiWeb (one of the original wikis) or grab a dead-tree version of The Wiki Way: Collaboration and Sharing on the Internet by Bo Leuf and Ward Cunningham.

Mozilla Firebird a Terrific Browser

I've been using Mozilla Firebird, the open-source browser formerly known as Phoenix, for a while now and it is the best browser I've ever used...period. And at only a 6.8 MB download, it loads and runs fast.

Like you, I'm sure, I spend a lot of my online time inside a browser, so having the best tool for that job is important. So far, Firebird has proven to be at least adequate, if not superb, in every task I've thrown at it. So go give this community-based browser a try and earn some karma points. And did I mention it's fast?

Think of all the things you hate about Gecko-based Netscape versions, and even some of the newer Mozilla-based Netscapes, and Firebird addresses darn near every one of them. Also, if you happen to be an Internet Explorer user, consider this a chance to "walk on the wild side." Be daring...try something new. If you don't like it, no problem...just delete the directory and continue as you have been. But GearBits looks a lot nicer in Firebird than it does in IE. ;-) Note that Firebird is just a browser.

If you want email as well, you may want to give Mozilla's new email client, Thunderbird, a try. Granted, it's only at version 0.1 right now, but given the good stuff coming out of the Mozilla camp these days, it may be a refreshing look at the trusty email app.

4GB CompactFlash Memory--Wow!

Lexar Media, Inc. has just announced the world's first and only 4GB (you heard me right!) CompactFlash memory card. The 4GB card can store about 600 images captured in RAW mode using a 6-megapixel professional camera or about 45,000 JPEG images.

'The 4GB card is rated at 40X (6MB/sec) with Write Acceleration (WA) technology.

This is truly amazing since one of my previous laptops came with a 3GB hard disk (that was in 2000).

Unfortunately, you would have to mortgage your house in order to buy this card. The retail price of the new card is $1,499.

Read more about it here

Trillian Pro 2.0 in Beta

Cerulean Studios has begun distributing beta invitations for Trillian Pro 2.0. In case you haven't heard of Trillian, it is a totally kick-ass universal messaging client that simultaneously supports IRC, ICQ, AOL Instant Messenger, MSN Messenger, and Yahoo! Messenger. Plus, it has loads of plug-ins (I even use it as my RSS newsreader). Very much a Swiss Army knife tool for the desktop -- flexible and indispensible. Check it out!

Another Great Store for Geeks

Recently, I found Kemplar.com, who seem to have the latest and greatest when it comes to one of my favorite subjects: tiny sub-notebooks. They even let you compare them by size! While the prices are not for the faint of heart, if you must have the latest and coolest mini-laptop, phone or tiny camcorder, Kemplar.com may be the place for you. Enjoy...

Dayton, OH ComputerFest Coming

The Fall 2003 Dayton Computerfest® arrives at Dayton's Hara Arena Complex on August 23 & 24, 2003. Besides the ubiquitous vendors haggling over motherboards and RAM, this year's event will include a new feature: Dayton LANfest, which will sponsor over 30 hours of 200-seat LAN gaming. Should be a hoot.

For more information on tickets, exhibits and other stuff, check out the Computerfest website.

Dynamism.com: A Tech Lover's Dream Store

I've found perhaps the coolest online store for North Americans. Dynamism.com features some of the hottest new technology from Japan ready to be purchased by and shipped to us over here on the wrong side of the Pacific. A short list of goodies available from Dynamism today include the Sony U101 ultralight micro-notebook, the Samsung Nexio S160 multi-mode PDA, the new Sharp Zaurus SL-C760, and the Sony Qualia 016 high-end digital camera. You know, it's nice having a single URL I can use for my entire birthday list. ;-)

Shuttle XPC Mini Barebones Systems

Shuttle is continuing its successful stream of miniature bare-bones PCs -- its XPC line of products. These systems come without CPU, memory, or drives of any sort, but most feature audio, video, networking, and a raft of connections on the mainboard. Offering front and rear expandability, they seem to offer a nice compromise between upgradeability and compactness.

Most of these cases are about the size of a 12-pack box of Pop-Tarts, and some even have room for a PCI card and an AGP graphics card. Some nice review of these units can be found at Hot Hardware, Hardware Zone, and (of course) Tom's Hardware. While not everything's perfect, a lot of people seem to find these systems compelling.

Mini-PC Motherboards Particpate in DARPA Robot Car Race

According to CNET News.com, the US DARPA (Defense Advanced Research Project Agency) is sponsoring a race for unmanned, autonomous vehicles to navigate from Los Angeles to Las Vegas. The 250-mile course, which won't be revealed until 2 hours before the race begins next March, must be completed in under 10 hours.

Vehicles cannot be remotely controlled except for stopping and starting in case of emergency. The photo to the right shows one potential contestant: Sandstorm from a team at Carnegie Mellon University. The diversity of designs sounds appealing, as the contestants have relatively few design constraints put on them. Some of the technologies to be possibly used by the vehicles include GPS (obviously), radar, sonar, and robotic vision systems.

Interestingly, VIA Technologies, a Taiwanese firm, is donating some of its Mini-ITX motherboards to the contestants. I blogged about these miniscule mainboards here and here. While it's doubtful that the resulting military equipment would rely on off-the-shelf gear like these boards, it definitely seems smart for PC components makers to try to get in on the ground floor of initiatives like this.

A Final Followup to 'Avoid This Secure Digital Card!'

In this blog entry (as well as this followup), I discussed how I was hoping to get a bad 256 MB Secure Digital card from Smart Modular Technologies replaced.

Last night, the new card arrived, and it's pictured to the right. Unlike the original card eCost.com sent me, this new card actually looks and acts like a real Secure Digital card. Hooray! Now if Smart Modular can just work on getting their labels the right size, they'll be in business.

The card does not seem to be any faster than the 256 MB SanDisk that I was hoping to replace in my Palm OS device. While this Smart Modular works just fine in PCs and my MP3 player, if you're thinking of using it on a Palm OS PDA or smartphone, you might want to consider a slightly more "premium" card make, like Viking or Lexar, as they have improved write speeds on the PDA. Not a big deal, but if you're backing up many MB of data, the difference in wait times can be significant.

Toy Tech

Ever heard of Actimates? Unless you have young children, probably not. In a nutshell, Actimates are little RF-controlled robots that look like popular children's characters, i.e., Barney, Teletubbies, Arthur and D.W. We stumbled upon an Actimates Barney at a local yard sale and figured it was worth the 5 bucks because our daughter loves him. He was part of a "PC Pack" which includes a CD-ROM and an RF sender that hooks to your PC's game port. I popped in some batteries, installed the hardware and software on a Win2K box and when it didn't work I figured it was still a good toy for the money. He could talk and play games and sing. The child was happy.

My wife wanted more. Actimates also works with the "TV Pack" and specially formatted video tapes (of which we have lots) and broadcasts. I found one cheap on eBay and hooked it up to my VCR's video out jack. Not expecting much, I plopped the daughter in front of the tube, pushed in an Actimates tape and sat down to watch.

Amazing stuff! This little toy runs a commentary on the video reminiscent of MST3K. He knows all the characters, sings the songs, and quips about this and that while the whole time gesturing with his arms and head. It's pretty cool and I'm sure it's ultra cool if you're two. It was a rousing success with my little one and she loves watching videos with Barney now. In fact, she usually demands it.

Unfortunately, Microsoft no longer sells Actimates, no new Actimates tapes are being produced and the special broadcasts are no more. I have no clue why the venture failed, but it seems that Microsoft, like Sony, suffers from CADD (Corporate Attention Deficit Disorder). They are on to the next potential profit center. At least they left something in their huge wake that my little girl enjoys.

The Birth of Skynet?

According to this article in Wired News, the Pentagon is spending millions trying to develop intelligent personal assistants to enable senior staff to rely less on human aides. A total of $29 million will be handed to Carnegie Mellon University to develop these learning software-based entities.

I bet this is how Skynet (a la The Terminator) eventually comes into existence and the machines rule us all...just because somebody is tired of reading his own email.

French Say No to E-mail: Nationalism, Prejudice, or Absurdity (you be the judge!)

According to Associated Press, the French government announced the stop of e-mail in all official government publications--that is the use of the word e-mail. According to AP, "the Culture Ministry has announced a ban on the use of "e-mail" in all government ministries, documents, publications or Web sites, the latest step to stem an incursion of English words into the French lexicon." Instead of e-mail, the ministry wants to use the term "Courriel," which is the fusion of two words "courrier electronique" (electronic mail).

Interestingly, most French Internet specialists called this "absurd" or "irrelevant." I know the French have been Anglophobic (now Americanphobic?), but this is getting ridiculous.

If you want to read more, go to USA Today's website.

My Office Companion: The XMPCR

Are you one of the 692,253 subscribers (as of 6/30/2003) to XM Radio? I am and have been giving it a whirl for a couple of months. I was enjoying those 100 channels so much in my car that I just had to have the XMPCR. The XMPCR is a $69 hardware/software combination that brings XM Radio to your computer without eating up bandwidth. The shockingly small box comes with a USB-connected tuner, an antenna and a CD-ROM with all the drivers and software to get things running on a Windows computer. There is aftermarket software available for the Mac OS, Linux, FreeBSD, and there are already Windows alternatives.

So far, my experience with the XMPCR has been painless. It installed without a hitch and has never had a signal outage. I am on the family plan with XM so my two receivers cost me $17 per month. I have the XMPCR on nine hours a day and my Alpine about one hour per day (during the work week). That works out to roughly $0.08 per hour which is well worth it if I can stay away from the spreading menace of Clear Channel Communications.

With a little creativity you can even record your favorite stuff right to MP3 using something like Total Recorder. There is also a little project underway to equip the XMPCR with a digital output for superior sound quality and analog-free recording. The possibilities are endless and the entry fee is small. Great stuff.

Successfully Merging Government and Technology

Ohio is infamous for being a bit overzealous with its enforcement of speed-related traffic laws. Speeding tickets are handed out by the thousands every day from the Ohio state patrol, county sheriffs, city police, village police, township police, constables, detectives, park rangers (yes, really) and who knows who else. It's no wonder the Escort, Passport and the Valentine 1 were all invented here in the Buckeye state.

Ohio has a deadly efficient money harvesting system built around automobile law enforcement and thankfully, this efficiency has translated into something useful instead of harassing for Joe Citizen. Enter oplates.com....

In the bad old days when you wanted a customized plate for your vehicle, you went to the local Bureau of Motor Vehicles (BMV) office (Argh!) and waited in line to ask for an application. You then filled out this application with your top three choices for a plate and mailed it off to Columbus. Weeks and weeks later you would either get your plates or a letter telling you your choices were not available or not approved. Try again.

A slightly better system emerged a few years back. You still had to go the BMV office (Argh!), but perched on their countertop was a rickety, old CRT that allowed you to enter your choices for a plate and get instant feedback. If you found a combination that clicked for you and the state, you stood in line for an application, filled it out and then waited weeks and weeks for your plates.

Oplates.com has done away with all that silliness. With this clean, efficient website you can instantly check availability of your custom plates on a multitude of snazzy plate backgrounds and then see a representation of the finished product. A few clicks later you enter your credit card, get a confirmation and in one week(!) your plates show up in the mail.

Now that's what I'm talking about!

Followup to 'Avoid This Secure Digital Card!'

Things are looking brighter regarding the faulty SD card I received from eCost.com.

Upon calling them, they told me to contact Smart Modular. Not wanting to deal with yet another company, I asked why eCost wasn't willing to handle this return? The rep informed me that only Smart Modular could issue an RMA for this unit, and if I returned it to eCost, she couldn't guarantee I wouldn't be charged a restocking fee. What crap...eCost is definitely slipping down a few notches in my personal list of preferred tech vendors.

So I called Smart Modular at the number eCost gave me. I was referred to Jim Schwarz, the Technical Services Manager for Smart Modular. I left Jim a voicemail and expected to have to call him again tomorrow. To my surprise, 10 minutes later, Jim calls me back.

Jim confirms that this card reflects a "new design" for SD cards. He offers to send me a replacement card (one that works, I presume) in exchange for me sending this card back to them (on their FedEx account, even). Sweet...now that's good service! Once I get the replacement card, I'll post another followup. For the moment, however, I'd still recommend holding off purchasing these cards, at least from eCost.com, until this issue gets sorted out. When/if it does get worked out, Smart Modular may turn out to be a really good source for affordable SD memory!

Avoid This Secure Digital Card!

I recently bought a 256 MB Secure Digital card, manufactured by Smart Modular Technologies (a Solectron company), from eCost.com to use in my MP3 player. The image on the left shows how the card was portrayed at eCost.com when I purchased it on July 9th (and still is as of this blog entry).

However, if you look at the images to the right, you'll see that the card I actually received looks quite different.

Notice the differences between the left and right images:
(A) the color is different (no big deal there),
(B) there is no official "SD" logo anywhere on the card (now I'm starting to get suspicious), and
(C) there is no "Lock" switch on the card (isn't that a necessary component of the Secure Digital card specification??).
It also feels different, as if it were made out of circuit board material (whereas normal SD cards have a thin plastic coating).

Well, thinking that different may not necessarily mean worse, I pop the card into my MP3 player. I immediately get a card reading error, which I can't get out of to format the card. OK, I'll just format the card in my USB flash reader. No sweat. I load a couple of MP3 files on it for good measure. I then pop it back into the MP3 player -- no dice...same error.

OK, thinking it was a file system issue, I attempted to format the card using my Kyocera 7135, a Palm OS device with an SD slot. Upon inserting the card into the 7135, it locks up. I reset the device with the card still in the slot (just to see what would happen), and the dang thing hard resets! I remove the SD card, stick my old SanDisk card back in and restore from backup (thank you Backupman).

Then, just to add insult to injury, I download the rebate form from eCost.com to see how I might go about getting my $25 rebate from Smart (not that I'm actually considering keeping it, mind you). Well, ironically enough, the third (of 3) items that the rebate requires is "the original UPC label." Well, eCost didn't even include one of those in the package -- just the card (in a small clear container) and my invoice. Unbelievable.

So, this card is going back tomorrow, and, given all the ridiculous problems associated with this thing, I'm gonna try to get eCost to pay for return shipping. We'll see how that goes...I'm not holding my breath...

The Dashpc...I want one now!

If you knew me, you would understand why this has effected me so. Not only am I a hopeless car junky, but I was a VERY early adopter of Linux. I used to spend hours (even days) trying to integrate some arcane piece of hardware into my home system. But I won't bore you with that. I will hopefully stimulate you with the Dashpc.

This thing hits my cool scale at about 9.9 as it has all the features I want in my car: wireless internet, near real-time weather and traffic, DVD, MP3 playback, ODBII interface, broadcast TV, and webcam. The only reason I don't do this immediately is my experience with similar things gives me some insight into the hideous cost and time required to get it right. But I still want one!

Easy Crappy as Dell

I hate Dell. Every computer I've ever received from them has had something, or multiple things, fail on it that shouldn't. My laptop is an old Inspiron...one of the first that came out. It would never suspend or hibernate correctly, almost always requiring a reboot. I recently loaded Windows XP on it and that seemed to fix that problem. Of course, the bad fan in it now makes a god-awful noise.

My desktop at work is a Dell Dimension approximately 23 months old. Last week, the video card failed in it. Now, the fan in the power supply is going bad and the whirring and squealing are driving me insane. Can I fix it myself? Nope...not allowed since it's under warranty and it's work property.

So, if I seem a bit crabby, it's because the freaking noise my PC is making is slowly pushing me towards insanity. Think of it as Chinese Water Torture for the Digital Age.

Innovation Killer or Safe Computing

If Microsoft, Intel, and a host of other computing giants, such as IBM, HP, AMD, have their way, we might be entering a brand new world of computing.

"Trusted computing," as coined by Microsoft will add an encryption layer at the hardware and software (OS) level that will prevent illegal file sharing and thus protect copyright materials such as movies, music, and writing. The system, according to Microsoft, will also protect private contents in your PC as well as protects against identity theft.

Critics and cynics argue that this will effectively kill innovation in PC Computing, and this is another way for Microsoft and others to maintain their market dominance on their software and hardware. Mitch Kapor, the founder of Lotus, thought Microsoft calling such technology "trusted computing" somewhat apocryphal: "I don't think that's a trustworthy statement."

Read all about it in the NY Times article.

ToasterPC

A desire to put a computer in the kitchen motivated one talented guy to cram an entire PC into a 4-slice GE toaster body.

Based on the Mini-ITX mainboard that I wrote about here, this toaster sports such features as a Hauppage TV tuner card, Wi-Fi, a DVD drive, and a wireless keyboard and mouse.

While many Mini-ITX systems are creative or attractive, this may be the only one we can honestly say is better than sliced bread. Thank you, thank you, I'm here all week...

Thanks to BoingBoing.net for the link!

Pretzel PC: Sony Bendable Computer

It seems that when it comes to redesigning the human-computer interface, there is no shortage of creativity. Sony engineers seem to have devised a working prototype of a computer that the user controls by bending it. It seems that Sony believes the future of pocketable computers will incorporate neither buttons nor stylus nor any traditional interface mechanisms. So, obviously, the only way to interact with these tiny devices is by twisting and bending them to manipulate what is displayed.

New Scientist has a nice story on this recent development, and there's even a short movie that demonstrates the prototype. Interesting stuff. While I'm no huge fan of the stylus, I'm not quite sold that this is the future either...

Contest Ended -- No Winners

When I posted the contest notice a week ago, I challenged you to identify all the icons shown in my Windows XP Notification Area.

All but one of the icons were identified. Here is the complete list, with links to lesser-known apps:

1. Netscape QuickLaunch
2. Trillian
3. Zone Alarm
4. HotSync Manager
5. WeSync Desktop
6. WinVNC Server
7. ShoutCast Server
8. Apache Services Monitor
9. Creative Audio HQ
10. Second Copy 2000
11. ActiveSync (not connected)
12. iTouch (Keyboard)
13. Atomic Clock Sync
14. Norton AntiVirus Corp. Ed.
15. Volume (system)
16. Safely Remove Hardware (system)

Contest: What's Running on my PC?

Take a look at the image to the right. That's the Windows XP Notification Area from my main desktop at home.

The contest is to see if anyone can correctly identify all 16 icons -- if you think you can, post a Comment (below) with your answers. First person to correctly identify all 16 icons wins...um...well, something cool.

I'll give you a start: icon 15 is "Volume" (yeah, I know, that's a hard one). Anyway, I'll post the answers in a week, so get to work!

Small Cheap Hard Drives

Just about the time I thought that flash memory had completely taken over the handheld device market, new life has been breathed into magnetic hard drives by startup Cornice. Read the whole story on CNet News here.

It sounds like these new hard drives are perfectly suited to mobiles -- they're small (smaller than an IBM Microdrive), durable (can withstand a 1-meter drop when installed), and seem like they have reasonable power consumption. 1.5 GB for $65? That's a deal, especially when flash storage is still about 4-6X that price on a per-megabyte basis. The primary downside I can see is that these drives are not made to be removable -- they are hard-soldered to the mainboard in the device. But, as an adjunct to removable storage, this would make for a nice base level of memory for mobile devices.

Netscape: Victim of Neglect

Today, it was announced that AOL will license Internet Explorer from Microsoft for several more years in exchange for an out-of-court settlement and $750 million. This upsets me in that it seems quite likely to seal the fate of Netscape, which has been neglected by AOL ever since it was acquired back in 1998.

I've used Netscape since 1994. For nearly 10 years, I've enjoyed knowing that I supported one of the very "founding fathers" of the World Wide Web (back when it was actually referred to as that). Now, I don't want to sound too sentimental, for being a technology addict means you can't get too attached to any one piece of gear or tech in particular -- new things are always coming down the pike. But what irritates me the most is that Microsoft has now won the browser war -- effectively committing "browsercide" -- using the same tactics that it was sued for by the US government, yet it has faced no real consequences (other than an ever-increasing cash balance) for its anticompetitive, illegal actions.

While I have no compunctions against criticizing Microsoft when it needs bashing, I can also praise the Redmond giant when it does something right -- I think Windows XP and Office are two pretty darn good products, and I recommend them regularly. However, the way Microsoft has participated in its industry is shameful and merits corrective action. Moreover, we see the gains from those improper actions (i.e., its enormous cash reserves) being constantly employed to help extend its reach.

The past wrongs have not been corrected, and the fruits of those wrongs help Microsoft to perpetuate its will regardless of the appropriateness of those actions. Now, instead of hard-lining its competitors and partners the way it used to in the 1990's, today it can just spend its way to whatever solution it sees fit (e.g., the huge losses it sustains year over year in several product areas). That is testimony enough to suggest that we need to keep an ever-vigilant eye on the software industry in general, and Microsoft in particular.

MP3 Server on the Cheap

A few posts ago, I mentioned that I maintain a dedicated MP3/music server at home. Here are the details in case you're considering setting something similar up or you want to let me know a better way to do it (I'm sure there are lots). Keep in mind that I wanted to do this for the absolute lowest cost reasonably possible.

First, I started off with a desire to be able to convert our complete CD collection into some easy-to-access, streamable format. Due to the ubiquity of MP3, and the limited options when I started this project, I picked that format and began ripping CDs using CDex. CDex is a great freeware utility that is constantly being updated and supports a variety of formats, including both MP3 and Ogg Vorbis, a wonderful open-source digital music format.

After generating about 15 GB worth of MP3 files (about 40% of our CD collection), I began to seriously look at exactly what hardware and software I was going to need to achieve my desired end state. I determined that I could set up a PC in the basement and feed an audio cable from it up to the family room on the first floor (where our main stereo system is). As I said, there are many ways to get your MP3 to feed into your stereo, but this was the easiest and most cost-effective option for me.

I determined I would need an 80 GB hard drive to provide enough room for our existing collection (about 50 GB) and allow for growth. For backup, I merely copy changes to the contents of one hard drive to a second hard drive in the same machine on a nightly basis using Second Copy 2000, a schedulable back-up application (well worth the measly registration fee). Better backup setups certainly exist, but mine is zero effort, automatic, and relatively safe (unless the entire PC is devastated, at which point I have bigger problems). The PC I use for the server is a rather meager 750MHz AMD Duron machine running Windows XP. While I could have stuck a nice sound card in it, the on-board sound seems adequate for my needs (at this point, at least). For $220, I got the base machine, and the two hard drives added another $200. Now, I needed to connect it to the rest of my LAN, so I dropped $60 for a Wi-Fi adapter card (running CAT5 from the 2nd floor of our 101-year-old house clear to the basement was not an option). So, total cost for the actual server was $480. A spare 17" monitor, keyboard, and mouse completed the basement installation (or so I thought).

So, with the server physically set up, storing the MP3s is no problem. However, now I need a management system -- some way to organize and play the MP3 files. After much searching, I settled on Real One Player, which is free and provides a really nice interface for cataloguing your tracks by artist, genre, etc. While it doesn't do everything I like, and it's a bit clunky in some areas, it's the best no-cost solution.

Now, when I ripped all my CDs, I didn't take the time to employ a rigorous genre categorization scheme. After all, my wife would have to OK all those decisions anyway. ;-) Plus, CDex at the time couldn't write both ID3v1 and ID3v2.3 (or v2.4). Given that I'm pretty anal about how my stuff is catalogued, this would never do (plus, it rendered the genre sorting function in Real One Player totally useless). So, I looked around for a good mass ID3 tag editor that would work across a network. ID3-TagIt fit the bill wonderfully -- I highly recommend this freeware app if you do much ID3 tag editing.

With the MP3s all ripped, categorized, and playable, I was ready to enjoy my MP3 server. Then I realized one glitch -- I either had to operate the server remotely, such as by using VNC, or I had to run down to the basement and operate the server directly. Neither of these options was acceptable, as they both required running stairs to start, stop, or change the music (the nearest VNC-equipped PC was on the 2nd floor).

The best solution turned out to be pretty interesting. I ended up running the video feed (TV out) from the server to the television that was next to our stereo system by fiching a second wire up the same route that the audio cable followed (thank goodness for 20' S-VGA cables). Now I could see the server from the same place I could control the volume, but that was only half the solution -- I still needed to be able to control the server. For doing that, I found a wonderful piece of tech: the Gyration Wireless Mouse and Keyboard ($99). The base receiver plugs into the MP3 server in the basement via USB. I mounted the receiver on the basement ceiling to get it as close to the family room as possible. The keyboard and mouse now live in the entertainment system armoir, taken out whenever I need to surf the web, control Real One Player, or do other music- or net-centric stuff in the family room.

For streaming, I use ShoutCast being fed by WinAmp. This works really well, especially now that I added the plug-in that lets me send WinAmp HTTP instructions to start playing, stop playing, etc. If you want, check out my setup (yes, you can actually hear what's on my MP3 server...just don't tell RIAA). All the streaming software is free for personal use.

So, what's the total cost for this project? Let's add it up: $480 for the server, $99 for the wireless keyboard/mouse kit, and about $30 in miscellaneous cables, adapters, etc. So, the grand total comes out to be $629. Not too bad, IMO, given that I can now use my family entertainment system as a true multi-media PC setup with really good audio (compared to most PC speakers, that is).

How would I change things if I was doing this today? Good question. As good and open as Ogg is, I would probably still stay with MP3, mostly because I have an MP3-friendly CD receiver in my car. I don't seem to need any faster PC for the server, so that's fine. Probably the only thing I'd do differently is get a better TV. Granted, this doesn't fall into the "lowest possible cost" category, but a nice LCD HD television would make for a rockin' monitor for this setup. Instead of running at 640x480 and having to guess at certain small fonts, I could run at 1280 x 768 (40" Samsung LCD) or 1366 x 768 (37" Sharp Aquos) or a mind-boggling 1920 x 1080 (the forthcoming 54" LCD from Samsung). I'm saving my pennies, for sure.

Anyway, let me know if you have questions or suggestions -- both are welcome.

A Day in My Life

Technophiles are generally pretty interesting folks, I've come to realize. We all have particular idiosyncracies and preferences that make it extremely unlikely for two of us to have exactly similar usage patterns, technology choices, etc. Just to illustrate my own pattern of choices, here's a brief recap of the tech I employ in a typical day.

Wake up -- I use a $10 GE clock-radio that I got at a discount department store about 10 years ago. I was so impressed at the radio sensitivity (it can tune stations even my $400 Yamaha receiver can't), I bought a second as back-up. For $10, it's a steal.

Check email -- my first real "tech" interaction of the day is usually with a Pocket PC, a Compaq iPaq 3670 with PC Card sled and D-Link Wi-Fi adapter. I check my various email accounts with this thing (Pocket Inbox is a phenomenal email app), check the weather, etc. before I get out of bed. The charging cradle is a permanent fixture on my nightstand, since I no longer sync this with a PC. This is about the closest thing to a technology "appliance" I've found to be actually useful.

Shower, get dressed, wolf down breakfast (optional) -- no real tech involved here :-( [Note to self: Work on this.]

Pack for work -- stick necessary tech into briefcase for the day at the office. This usually consists of my Kyocera 7135 and my HandEra 330, although the 330 is seeming less and less necessary given the really nice capabilities of the 7135 (and the EOL issued for all HandEra devices).

Drive to work -- I invested in a sweet piece of car stereo equipment, the Alpine CDA-7894 in-dash receiver. This unit plays the full complement of digital discs (except DVD) and decodes MP3. Given that I have over 45 GB of MP3s (all legal, ripped from CDs we own), this is a really nice way to access my music while in my car. Not only does the receiver sound great, it really does a fairly stellar job at handling MP3 data. I still think there's a big opportunity for high-res after-market head units (to display the track name, artist, etc. all simultaneously), but those still seem to be fairly rare. Given that it's an Alpine, the tuner is just excellent, especially good for pulling in WOXY (alternative) and WNKU (alternative/folk + NPR).

At work -- While at my office, I interact with a lot of standard-issue university technology. Fairly banal Dell desktop with CRT monitor, etc. -- a pretty typical arrangement. My pride and joy in my personal office is my HP G85 4-in-1 printer/scanner/fax/copier. It does a really stellar job at all four functions (well, never tried the fax function, but I assume it's stellar). I use the snot out of the sheet-feeder for scanning multi-page documents -- works great...highly recommended. The bane of my existence at work is our office copier...some lame, fickle Xerox piece of crap. This hunk of junk, more than anything else, has inspired me to go as paperless as is reasonably possible. Knowing I'm helping conserve trees also makes me feel good about using bits instead of paper.

Back at home -- home for the evening and I rely on all the tech here in my home. I have a mixed wired/wireless LAN that ties together 2 PCs, 1 laptop, and 2 handhelds (1 Pocket PC and 1 Palm OS device). Internet access is via RoadRunner cable broadband, which is being distributed to all the connected devices. My main computer at home is a custom/self-built desktop, and the other desktop is my MP3 server (I'll talk more about this later). I have our family room TV and stereo system tied into the MP3 server, so I can browse or whatever while listening to our music collection -- a pretty nice setup. My main complaint is the resolution on our television is really poor. It's a 27" Sony Trinitron, so it puts out like 550 lines of resolution. Needless to say, I really want one of the new true 1920x1080 HDTV LCD TVs that should be hitting store shelves later this year (yum!). To control the MP3 server, which is in the basement, while I'm sitting in front of the family room TV, I rely on a Gyration wireless mouse/keyboard setup -- this is some really trick hardware if you want to have a nearly invisible common room computing setup.

In bed -- prior to hitting the hay, I will often do some minor computing in bed. This is done via the laptop (which I'm typing on now) or using one of the handhelds. Generally, I'm just doing a blog entry, checking email/weather, or IM'ing with some friends (or some combo of those). While I generally like the apps better on my PalmOS devices, their lack of multi-tasking in the OS really bites in this case -- I can't keep an IRC/IM connection open while I do something else (check email, calendar, etc.). I really hope OS6 fixes this.

Well, that's about it. I'll talk more about the MP3 server another time, for I'm pretty happy with that particular piece of my home setup. Have comparable usage patterns or something that differs dramatically? Leave me a note!

Honey, I Shrunk the PC

These aren't the smallest PCs out there, for sure, but I'm constantly amused/entertained/amazed at tiny full-functioned PCs. Here are some interesting ones:

• Upont Cappuccino TX3 - This ready-for-purchase PC is pretty darn compact at 6" x 5.75" x 2.25". It's based on older technology, but has more than enough processing and storage power to be the main PC for most families, home/office users, and other non-gamers. Warning: the Upont website serves up ASP in a format that will likely render as plain text in non-IE browsers (like the one I use).

• Mini-ITX - A half-step further away from off-the-shelf commercialization is this line of mini-ITX mainboard projects. The basic idea is an all-in-one mainboard measuring 6.75" x 6.75", including hard-soldered CPU, and the whole thing runs without a fan! See the comparative sizes of this and other mainboards in the graphic to the right. The systemboard is actually from VIA Technologies, but this Mini-ITX website gets both the "Most Creative" and "Most Devoted" awards for its work on promotion and sponsoring innovative implementations. I especially like Humidor64, a PC encased in a cigar box, and The Clock, a full PC encased in a 20's style mantle clock. Too sweet. If you're handy with a Dremel and a soldering iron, and have some creativity, then maybe a Mini-ITX project is for you.

• OQO - Yes, no discussion of tiny PCs is complete without mentioning the OQO. The basic concept is an all-in-one PC running a variant of Windows or *nix with a high-density display for pen input. Basically, you use it like a PDA when away from a desk. Then, upon returning to the desk, you insert it into a docking station to be used as the core of a regular desktop system. At least that's the dream, and long has the dream existed. The OQO concept first came out several years ago, and it's been updated several times since. We thought we'd be seeing the first commercialized OQO-like units this summer, but that seems to be in limbo once again.

So, from most commercialized to least, here are three examples of the great shrinking PC. Long live the desire to make these things smaller...I can't wait till they're utterly invisible in the larger space of a family room or an office.

Apache

I finally set up an Apache web server here at home so I don't have to rely on a web-host to serve up the GB of photos and other crap that I like to be able to access over the net. I gotta say, Apache web server is pretty damn sweet. It took all of 15 minutes to set up and is both rock-solid and brimming over with nice features.

Since my home net connection is through RoadRunner, I have to rely on a dynamic DNS service to facilitate my having my own home website. After relatively little investigation, I ended up using dynup.net -- so far, so good...if you need such a service, give 'em a try.

Oh, I also just reconfigured my Shoutcast setup to allow me to turn my MP3 stream on and off when needed. That's handy so that my poor MP3 server at home isn't needlessly streaming MP3 files across my home WLAN when nobody's listening to my Shoutcast stream. Yeah, it's the little things in life that matter.