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Rumors About Windows 9

There's nothing official, but Windows 9 may cure the Windows 8 blues.

Magazine Summary

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Digital Dave

by Digital Dave

Digital Dave answers your tech questions.

Windows 7 Machines Are Coming!; Make Windows Easier with "Send To".

Windows 9 Rumors

by Jack Dunning

Windows 8.1 Update Will Be Here Soon, But Windows 9 May Be Just Around the Corner

Microsoft is scrambling to recover from the Windows 8 confusion. Even while a new release of Windows 8.1 is in the works, the rumor is that Windows 9 is on its way to the rescue.

Easy Beginner AutoHotkey Tricks You Should Use with Windows

by Jack Dunning

If You Do Nothing Else, Use AutoHotkey to Put Your Signature in Every Document, Blog, and E-mail

Add your formated signature (with e-mail and Web site) to any document, Web page response, or e-mail with easy one-line AutoHotkey scripts. Plus, instantly enter your e-mail address anywhere (no matter how long it is).

Wally Wang's Apple Farm

by Wally Wang

Avoiding Reality

Avoiding Reality; Holiday Season Dips; 7 Technologies Made Possible by the Macintosh; Buying Your Competitor's Technology; Solar-Powered iPhones; Watch the Unveiling of the Macintosh From 1984; Rebooting Your Computer.

Worldwide News & Product Reviews

by Charles Carr

The latest in tech news and hot product reviews.

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Digital Dave

“Digital Dave answers your tech questions.”
by Digital Dave

Windows 7 Machines Are Coming!; Make Windows Easier with "Send To".

Windows 7 Machines Are Coming!

Dear Digital Dave,

A Staples manager told me this week that new Windows 7 computers will be coming out soon. Have you heard any news?

My "problem" is I want a desktop model with Windows 7 Pro 64-bit. Does it really matter if 64 or 32? I have old programs on my XP that I want to transfer.

Jean

Dear Jean,

The only difference between a Windows 7 computer and a Windows 8 computer is the operating system installed. Staples may have some new computer hardware systems arriving, but they could just as easily be Windows 7 or Windows 8. With the exception of the built-in touch support in Windows 8 the hardware makes very little difference to which system you run. Anyone who sells computers has Windows 7 computers available by merely installing Windows 7 rather than Windows 8.

My guess is that more retailers are stocking systems with Windows 7. There has been a resurgence in the sales of Windows 7 computers as many people balk at Windows 8. Right now just under half of the new Windows systems are Windows 7 with over half Windows 8 (including Windows 8.1). It only makes sense for retailers to offer both. Many people don't want to mess with the Modern Start screen in Windows 8.

A computer with a 64-bit processor gives more direct access memory to higher levels of memory over four gigs. Most of the compatibility problems for current software were worked out a while ago. In the vast majority of cases there will be no advantage to a 32-bit machine. The only time it would make sense to buy 32-bit would be when you have a critical applications that has not been updated for 64-bit. This is pretty rare although it could apply to some legacy games.

Windows 7 has a number of compatibility options for running older software, but they do not work in all situations. Make sure you get the Pro version Windows 7 which allows you to download Windows XP Mode for running legacy programs in Microsoft's Virtual PC running Windows XP. That's just in case some of your older programs won't run in Windows 7. Most should do fine.

Digital Dave

Make Windows Easier with "Send To"

If You Don't Use "Send To" in Windows, You Might Want to Give it a Try

There is a feature in the right-click menu of Windows Explorer (File Explorer in Windows 8, +E to open) called Send To which can make many operations easier. Many people use Send To to attach documents or photos to new e-mails or to compress files into a ZIP folder. But, did you know that you can quickly add programs and folder shortcuts to your Send To menu to make it quicker to load and/or move files? Even old hands at Windows who are familiar with this trick may have forgotten how useful it can be.

This technique works in all versions of Windows including Windows 8.

The first step is to open the SendTo folder which is buried down a number of layers. By far the easiest way to access this special folder is to open Run (+R), enter shell:sendto (see Figure 1), then click OK. The SendTo folder will open in Windows Explorer.

Figure 1. Open the SendTo folder by entering "shell:sendto" into Run.

You will see standard Send To shortcuts such as Compressed (Zipped) folder, Desktop (create shortcut), Fax recipient, and Mail recipient (see Figure 2). These are some of the options available when you right-click on a file in Windows Explorer and hover over Send To.

Figure 2. The SendTo folder holds the shortcuts which appear on the Windows Explorer right-click => Send To menu.

Placing a shortcut pointed at a program or folder will add the option to the Send To menu. If a program shortcut is added, then the right-clicked file will open in the target program when Send To => (program shortcut) is selected. If it is a folder shortcut, then a copy of the right-clicked file will be sent the target folder. This is a handy technique for copying files to a central location such as the shared ComputorEdge Dropbox folder shown in Figure 2.

In the example shown in Figure 2, an IrfanView program shortcut has been added to the SendTo folder. Once the IrfanView shortcut is added, it shows up as an option when hovering over Send To in the right-click menu (see Figure 3).

Figure 3. Once a shortcut is added to the SendTo folder, it appears in the right-click Send To menu.

There are a number of ways to create a shortcut. The first is right-click in the file pane of the SendTo folder and select New => Shortcut from the menu. The shortcut Wizard will open. Browse to select the target program or folder, Continue to name the shortcut, then Finish.

The second approach to creating a shortcut is browse to the location of the program or folder in Windows Explorer and right-click on the name. Select Send To => Desktop (create shortcut). Next drag the newly created shortcut from the Desktop to the SendTo folder opened in Windows Explorer.

A third approach is to open two instances of Windows Explorer, one for the SendTo folder and the other for the target program or folder. Drag the program or folder to an empty area of the SendTo folder while holding down the ALT key. This will place a shortcut pointed at the program or folder in the new location.

It is important to only add shortcuts since actually placing the original program or folder in the SendTo folder can cause confusion with the original. For example, if you add a folder (rather than a shortcut to the folder) to the SendTo folder, then anything you Send To it will be placed in that new folder buried in the SendTo folder rather than the more useful originally intended location.

This same trick is included in Jack's book Windows 7 Explorer Secrets which I noticed is now part of a four-book Windows 7 bundle of e-books available at ComputorEdgeBooks in EPUB and Kindle format.

Digital Dave

Windows 9 Rumors

“Windows 8.1 Update Will Be Here Soon, But Windows 9 May Be Just Around the Corner”
by Jack Dunning

Microsoft is scrambling to recover from the Windows 8 confusion. Even while a new release of Windows 8.1 is in the works, the rumor is that Windows 9 is on its way to the rescue.

With the sluggish reception of Windows 8, the rumors (nothing official yet) are flying about Windows 9. (I suggested a few weeks ago that Microsoft needs to be working on Windows 9 now—although I felt that it should be a super Windows 7.) It appears that Microsoft has gotten part of the message from the consumers with the release of Windows 8.1, a planned Windows 8.1 update, and work on Windows 9—codename "Threshold."

Since there has been no official Windows 9 announcement, people are dependent upon leaks. However, there is no shortage of speculation. Here is a look at some of the guesses about Windows 9, but first a look at the Windows 8.1 update which is due out soon.

Windows 8.1, Update 1

Microsoft isn't giving up on Windows 8. Having just released Windows 8.1, it's planning a major update for either March or April release. (I guess it will then be time for me to come out with a ninth edition of Misunderstanding Windows 8.) This time the concentration is on making the operating system and its Modern apps more mouse and keyboard friendly for PCs.

In particular, it looks like it will be possible to pin Modern apps to the Desktop Taskbar (see Figure 1). This is consider a step toward Windows 9 where the speculation is that it will finally be possible to run the Modern apps in a window on the Desktop thereby eliminating the need for the annoying full screen views.

These images are from WZor, a Russian leaker of early Windows builds considered reliable by many and thought to have contacts inside Microsoft.

Figure 1. This leaked image of Window 8.1 Update 1 shows a Modern app pinned to the Windows Taskbar.

For those of us who habitually click the right mouse button when exploring, a right-click menu is being added to the Modern interface. See Figure 2. This is an important step toward making Windows 8 Windows-like again.

Figure 2. This leaked image of Window 8.1 Update 1 shows the right-click menu in the Modern interface.

Other changes include easier access to search and shutdown of Modern apps with an X in the upper right-hand corner of the apps. These are interim steps toward Windows 9 which may represent a move toward a little more separation between the Desktop and Modern interface for the different Windows platforms: smartphones, tablets, Xbox, and the PC.

Windows 9 Rumors

Microsoft is not abandoning the combined tablet/PC model nor touch technology, but it may be tailoring Windows 9 more for each type of operating systems. All versions will continue with the same underlying Windows NT core. This produces compatibility between the different products making it possible to produce apps which will run o\in all Windows systems. The Windows store will continue to be a prominent part of the systems for delivering new apps.

It looks like there may be three versions of Windows 9, one for Windows phones and devices, another for Xbox, and the last for computers.

Give Me Back My Start Menu!

Probably the most hoped for change in Windows 9 might be a greater de-emphasis of the Modern interface with the return of a functional Start Menu. While Windows 8.1 has added a Start button to the Desktop Taskbar, it is far from a true Start Menu. Now people who are heavily dependent upon the Start Menu and replacing it with utilities such as Stardock's tools won't need to add a third-party Start Menu to the Windows 8 Desktop. (I personally don't use an add-on Start Menu, because I've found it more convenient to use my QuickLinks AutoHotkey app tailored for my personal use. I use it on all of my various Windows computers. But that's just me.) If Microsoft brings back the Start Menu in Windows 9, then the business market may be convinced to give it a try.

Right now it is businesses, even more so than individual users, who are resisting Windows 8. What may seem like a minor adjustment to many computer users is a major obstacle for a business looking to upgrade a multitude of machines. The learning curve that comes with the Modern interface may seem enormous to any enterprise which would need to retrain virtually everyone—especially when you consider that many corporations have no use for the Modern apps. Those apps only represent an annoyance. If businesses upgrade at all, they are likely to stick with Windows 7 which will run their old reliable Windows software without distractions caused by the Windows 8 the Modern interface. If Microsoft produces a Windows 9 which eliminates the bulk of the current Windows 8 learning curve, then they will likely have a winner with businesses.

Modern Apps Running in a Window on the Desktop

The other major change leaked which could provide more separation between Windows 8 and the PC version of Windows 9 is running Modern apps in windows which can float on the Desktop. This could completely eliminate the need for (or at least the forced use of) the current Modern interface which is the major source of irritation for Windows users. Suddenly, there would be a newly branded version of Windows which sheds the difficulties of Windows 8 while including its improvements. Learning to work with the Modern interface would become an option in Windows 9, rather than mandatory as it is currently in Windows 8.

Windows 9 April 2015

The word is that Windows 9 will be released to the general public in April of 2015 (although there are reports that it could be as early as October of this year). There is no word on whether there will be pre-release versions such as those for Windows 8 and Windows 8.1, but I suspect that Microsoft may want the mass beta testing. A preview of Windows 9 is expected in April of this year at Microsoft's developer's conference.

Who Wants New Coke?

This Windows 8 scenario reminds me of the fiasco caused by the introduction of New Coke in 1985. The top brass at Coca Cola who felt that the brand was stagnating encouraged both innovation and risk taking within the organization. One project was to reinvent the Coke formula based upon taste tests of hundreds of thousands of people. After the tests were completed New Coke was introduced as a replacement.

The uproar was unbelievable. People rushed to the store clearing the shelves of the old Coke. Coca Cola was inundated with complaints. People cried, "If I wanted something that tastes like Pepsi, I would buy Pepsi." The corporate staff received numerous letters which included many comments about their personal lack of intelligence. Eventually, the old Coke was brought back as Coca Cola Classic. Today, New Coke is nowhere to be found.

Ironically, the whole ordeal turned out to be a marketing coup for Coca Cola. The excitement and media attention pushed the Coke image and business to a new level which never would have occurred through an advertising campaign. When asked if that was actually the plan along, the CEO responded with "We're not that smart." or something to that effect.

Although they are also not that smart, ironically Microsoft may benefit in similar fashion to Coca Cola. Whether people like it or not, Windows 8 is an innovation in the operating system market. But people want their old Windows back. My guess is that's exactly what Microsoft will deliver in Windows 9, only with many of the good things (performance) which have come from Windows 8. Windows 8 may be another throwaway operating system (although it's not all that bad) which will pave the way for the best of all worlds in Windows 9—an operating systems that works like "real" Windows, plus access to a library of optional tablet-like apps.

What Should I Do?

The answer to the question, "What should I do?" depends a lot on your situation. If you own a business with a number of computers which need upgrading, then I would seriously consider installing Windows 7 on those machines. While there are some speed and performance advantages to Windows 8, the problem of teaching everyone in the company how to use Windows 8 will be more daunting than migrating the users to Windows 7 from an earlier version. While some people take to Windows 8 and love it, there are others who just won't comprehend the change. Of course you can set up a Windows 8.1 computer to boot directly to the Desktop and use tools such as AutoHotkey (which works in all versions of Windows including Windows 8) to make the working environment for your business easy, but changing to Windows 7 from Windows XP or Vista is much smoother than jumping to Windows 8 and the Modern Start screen.

If you're getting a computer for yourself, then the decisions depends upon how you see yourself. If you're a quick learner and like a little adventure, then I would probably recommend Windows 8. (That's what I would do for myself.) It is a good operating system—just different. However, if it took you a good while to get to your current level of computer literacy while learning your current version of Windows—and you like it—then you might be better off sticking with Windows 7.

If you're currently using Windows 7 (or even Windows XP) and feel no compelling reason to upgrade right now, stand pat and wait to see how Windows 9 turns out. Since Microsoft generally gets every other Windows version right, Windows 9 should be next up in the queue.

Jack is the publisher of ComputorEdge Magazine. He's been with the magazine since first issue on May 16, 1983. Back then, it was called The Byte Buyer. His Web site is www.computoredge.com. He can be reached at ceeditor@computoredge.com. Jack is now in the process of updating and compiling his hundreds of articles and columns into e-books. Currently available:

Hidden Windows Tools for Protecting, Problem Solving and Troubleshooting Windows 8, Windows 7, Windows Vista, and Windows XP Computers.

Jack's A Beginner's Guide to AutoHotkey, Absolutely the Best Free Windows Utility Software Ever!: Create Power Tools for Windows XP, Windows Vista, Windows 7 and Windows 8 and Digging Deeper Into AutoHotkey.

Our second compilation of stupid ComputorEdge cartoons from 2011 and 2012 is now available at Amazon! That Does Not Compute, Too! ComputorEdge Cartoons, Volume II: "Do You Like Windows 8 or Would You Prefer an Apple?"

Special Free Offer at ComputorEdge E-Books! Jack's Favorite Free Windows Programs: What They Are, What They Do, and How to Get Started!.

Misunderstanding Windows 8: An Introduction, Orientation, and How-to for Windows 8 (Seventh Edition)!

Windows 7 Secrets Four-in-One E-Book Bundle,

Getting Started with Windows 7: An Introduction, Orientation, and How-to for Using Windows 7,

Sticking with Windows XP—or Not? Why You Should or Why You Should Not Upgrade to Windows 7,

and That Does Not Compute!, brilliantly drawn cartoons by Jim Whiting for really stupid gags by Jack about computers and the people who use them.

Easy Beginner AutoHotkey Tricks You Should Use with Windows

“If You Do Nothing Else, Use AutoHotkey to Put Your Signature in Every Document, Blog, and E-mail”
by Jack Dunning

Add your formated signature (with e-mail and Web site) to any document, Web page response, or e-mail with easy one-line AutoHotkey scripts. Plus, instantly enter your e-mail address anywhere (no matter how long it is).

There are simple beginning AutoHotkey tricks that anyone with a Windows computer can do. If you need to regularly add your signature to documents, e-mails, or Web comments, then you're going to like this one. See Figure 1.

Figure 1. The signature (including company, title and Web addresses) is added to this e-mail by merely typing "jsig" followed by enter, space, or other punctuation. It also works in other Windows documents, program editing fields, and Web pages.

The AutoHotkey tips discussed in this column are based upon one of the basics of the free utility software—auto-replacement of text. They are simple to do and will save you a great deal of typing while personalizing all of your documents and correspondence in any form. These techniques work in any version of Windows including Windows 8. Yes, they even work in the editing fields of the Windows 8 Modern apps.

Adding Your Signature to Anything

The two basics of AutoHotkey (before entering the more complex uses of AutoHotkey pop-up windows) are hotkeys and hotstring replacement. Hotkey are used to assign computer keyboard combinations (all keys pressed simultaneously) to certain operations. Hotstring replacement is primarily the substitution of strings of text entered from the keyboard with alternative text—usually to expand short abbreviations into longer input. For example, expanding "lol" into "laugh out loud." Here we use hotstring replacement to enter my signature after typing only a few characters. It can be done with one line of code in an AutoHotkey script::

::jsig::Jack Dunning{return}Publisher{Return}ComputorEdge Magazine

{Return}http://www.computoredge.com{return}http://www.computeredgebooks.com

(Although this line appears as two for Web display purposes here, it should be all one line in the script.)

This one line added to an AutoHotkey script does the job. If you can use Notepad and have the free AutoHotkey installed on your computer, you're ready to go. Anytime I type "jsig" into an e-mail, document, Web blog or other text editing field, it's replaced with the following:

Jack Dunning

Publisher

ComputorEdge Magazine

http://www.computoredge.com

http://www.computeredgebooks.com

This technique is even more useful if you have multiple signatures. For example, I can add two more alternative signatures with:

::dsig::Paternalistically,{enter 2}{tab}-Dad

::gsig::Entirely yours,{enter 2}{tab}-GrandDad{enter}{tab}{space}"Too Cool for School"{!}

which, when "dsig" is typed, it is replaced with:

Paternalistically,

-Dad

and, when "gsig" is typed, it is replaced with:

Entirely yours,

-GrandDad

"Too Cool for School!"

However, you may not want to use {tab} since in Web pages it will move the cursor to the next object which could cause you to jump out of the edit field. A better option is to use {space 5}:

::dsig::Paternalistically,{return 2}{space 5}-Dad{return}

::gsig::Entirely yours,{enter 2}{space 5}-GrandDad{enter}{space 6}"Too Cool for School{!}"

The number inside {space 5} indicates how many times to repeat the character.

How It Works

The hotstring replacement or substitution command has two parts: the characters which, when typed, trigger the replacement and the text that replaces the trigger text. The replacement command line always starts with two colons (::). (There can be options between the two colons, but in its most basic form the string replacement command needs no options.) The triggering string follows the first set of two colons and is then followed by an additional set of two colons. The replacement string of text follows the second set of colons. When the trigger text is typed followed by a space, return (or enter), or other common punctuation character, that text is replaced with the substitution string. For example, the hotstring command:

::lol::laugh out loud

replaces the text "lol" with "laugh out loud" whenever "lol" is typed and followed by a terminating space, return, or most other punctuation.

Special keys such as the space bar, enter (or return) key, and tab are added by enclosing keywords in curly brackets ({space}, {enter} or {return}, and {tab} respectively). See the online documentation for other special keys and characters. Special characters such as the exclamation point (! for the ALT) also need to be enclosed in curly brackets when not acting as a hotkey modifier. Note the {alt} in the gsig hotstring above is replaced with the exclamation point (!). See the documentation for the Send command for a list of these characters.

Adding Blocks of Text

If you're adding a long block of text it's unreasonable to attempt to put it all on one line. If fact in many cases it much easier to use this alternate method for adding signatures:

::jsig2::

(

Jack Dunning

Publisher

ComputorEdge Magazine

http://www.computoredge.com

http://www.computeredgebooks.com

)

By enclosing the entire formatted text in parentheses, the raw text is substituted for the trigger string and will appear as it does in the snippet of code. Notice that none of the special characters need to be enclosed in curly brackets. This example yields the same results as the first one-line example jsig.

For gsig signature, the block replacement command would look like this:

::gsig::

(

Entirely yours,

-GrandDad

"Too Cool for School!"

)

Caution: if you embed the TAB character in the text, even though you can't see it, it will continue to cause the cursor to jump to the next field in a Web page.

By using parentheses to enclose blocks of text substantial portions of commonly used boilerplate can be condensed to short hotstrings. This may be your preferred method for adding signatures to all of your Windows documents, since it is substantially less complicated than putting all the text on one line and using curly brackets for special keys and characters as shown in the first examples.

If you have any reason to add signatures to any of your Windows correspondence, blogs, and documents, then this is one AutoHotkey technique you should be using.

Next time, how to instantly add e-mail addresses, user names, and possibly passwords to data fields.

*                    *                    *

The new second edition with more chapters and an index to the AutoHotkey commands found in the book is available in e-book format from Amazon (and other formats—EPUB and PDF— at the ComputorEdgeBooks Web site linked below). Jack's A Beginner's Guide to AutoHotkey, Absolutely the Best Free Windows Utility Software Ever!: Create Power Tools for Windows XP, Windows Vista, Windows 7 and Windows 8 offers a gentle approach to learning AutoHotkey.

Building Power Tools for Windows XP, Windows Vista, Windows 7 and Windows 8, AutoHotkey is the most powerful, flexible, free Windows utility software available. Anyone can instantly add more of the functions that they want in all of their Windows programs, whether installed on their computer or while working on the Web. AutoHotkey has a universality not found in any other Windows utility—free or paid.

Based upon the series of articles in ComputorEdge, Jack takes you through his learning experience as he explores writing simple AutoHotkey scripts for adding repetitive text in any program or on the Web, running programs with special hotkeys or gadgets, manipulating the size and screen location of windows, making any window always-on-top, copying and moving files, and much more. Each chapter builds on the previous chapters.

For an EPUB (iPad, NOOK, etc.) version of A Beginner's Guide to AutoHotkey click here!

For a PDF version for printing on letter size paper for inclusion in a standard notebook of A Beginner's Guide to AutoHotkey click here!

*                    *                    *

Jack's latest AutoHotkey book which is comprised of updated, reorganized and indexed columns from ComputorEdge is now available at Amazon for Kindle hardware (or free software) users. Since the columns were not all written in a linear fashion, the book has been reorganized and broken up into parts by topic. The book is not for the complete beginner since it builds on the information in A Beginner's Guide to AutoHotkey. However, if a person is reasonably computer literate, they could go directly to this book for ideas and techniques without the first book.

For an EPUB (iPad, NOOK, etc.) version of Digging Deeper into AutoHotkey click here!

For a PDF version for printing on letter size paper for inclusion in a standard notebook of Digging Deeper into AutoHotkey click here!

Jack is the publisher of ComputorEdge Magazine. He's been with the magazine since first issue on May 16, 1983. Back then, it was called The Byte Buyer. His Web site is www.computoredge.com. He can be reached at ceeditor@computoredge.com. Jack is now in the process of updating and compiling his hundreds of articles and columns into e-books. Currently available:

Hidden Windows Tools for Protecting, Problem Solving and Troubleshooting Windows 8, Windows 7, Windows Vista, and Windows XP Computers.

Jack's A Beginner's Guide to AutoHotkey, Absolutely the Best Free Windows Utility Software Ever!: Create Power Tools for Windows XP, Windows Vista, Windows 7 and Windows 8 and Digging Deeper Into AutoHotkey.

Our second compilation of stupid ComputorEdge cartoons from 2011 and 2012 is now available at Amazon! That Does Not Compute, Too! ComputorEdge Cartoons, Volume II: "Do You Like Windows 8 or Would You Prefer an Apple?"

Special Free Offer at ComputorEdge E-Books! Jack's Favorite Free Windows Programs: What They Are, What They Do, and How to Get Started!.

Misunderstanding Windows 8: An Introduction, Orientation, and How-to for Windows 8 (Seventh Edition)!

Windows 7 Secrets Four-in-One E-Book Bundle,

Getting Started with Windows 7: An Introduction, Orientation, and How-to for Using Windows 7,

Sticking with Windows XP—or Not? Why You Should or Why You Should Not Upgrade to Windows 7,

and That Does Not Compute!, brilliantly drawn cartoons by Jim Whiting for really stupid gags by Jack about computers and the people who use them.

Wally Wang's Apple Farm

“Avoiding Reality”
by Wally Wang

Avoiding Reality; Holiday Season Dips; 7 Technologies Made Possible by the Macintosh; Buying Your Competitor's Technology; Solar-Powered iPhones; Watch the Unveiling of the Macintosh From 1984; Rebooting Your Computer.

Many homeless people stand on the sidewalk and scream obscenities at the empty air around them. They're not mad at something upsetting them right now. They're angry at something from their past. Unfortunately, screaming at someone who isn't there to deal with a problem that happened years ago doesn't help your current situation one bit.

That's what happens when you avoid reality and focus on fantasy instead. At one time, I knew a standup comedian who almost always bombed and got no laughs. Yet every time he got off stage, he raved at how well he did, how crucial he was to making the show great, and how much the audience loved his act.

Finally, a bunch of us convinced him to take a tape recorder on the stage so he could hear himself bombing. He did it, went on stage, told his horrible jokes, and got no laughter whatsoever. When he got off stage, we all asked to hear the recording. Sure enough, you could clearly hear him telling his jokes and getting absolutely no response whatsoever from the crowd. After this went on for about five minutes, we asked him how come nobody was laughing and his response was, "Oh, the tape recorder didn't pick up the audience."

Here was clear evidence that nobody was laughing at his jokes, yet rather than deal with reality, he preferred to fool himself and cling to his own delusional fantasy. When you focus on fantasies, everything supports your beliefs. When you open your eyes and look at reality, you can often see an entirely different picture.

In the world of computers, people keep making creative excuses for why PC sales keep going down. Yet sales of the Macintosh have started to creep back up again, defying the overall downward trend of PC sales.

Why are sales of PCs declining consistently while sales of Macintosh computers bounce up and down? Sometimes Macintosh sales dip, usually right before Apple introduces newer models. Yet if people were truly giving up PCs, they wouldn't be buying Macintosh computers at all.

Logically, sales of PCs should keep going up since people who have a Windows PC are more likely to just buy another Windows PC rather than switch to a Macintosh. Of course, that ignores books like Switching to the Mac: The Missing Manual or Switching to the Mac For Dummies that help people move from a Windows PC to a Macintosh. Clearly there's a large enough market for such books to exist, which suggests that many people are buying Macintosh computers instead of another Windows PC.

On January 24, the Macintosh turned 30 years old from its original introduction in 1984. At the time of the Macintosh's introduction, Bill Gates said, "To create a new standard takes something that's not just a little bit different. It takes something that's really new; and captures people's imagination. Macintosh meets that standard."

Thirty years later, the Macintosh still meets that standard, despite constant criticism for that whole time period. Back in 1984, people were still using MS-DOS along with WordStar, dBASE, and Lotus 1-2-3, Hayes modems, and dot-matrix or daisy wheel printers. While those once dominant products have long since faded from influence, the Macintosh still continues influencing today's computers. The Mac Pro is one of the fastest and most cost-efficient personal computers available today while the MacBook Air helped define the ultra light laptop category to the point where even Hewlett-Packard's Envy laptops closely reassemble a MacBook Air.

Figure 1. The HP Envy looks like a MacBook Air.

Figure 2. The MacBook Air.

If you open your eyes to reality, you'll see that the Macintosh is a well-designed product. Now whether that product is right for you is another story altogether, but it's hard to deny that Apple takes time to design their products while other companies seem to slap spare parts together without regard for aesthetics or efficiency.

Of course, you can continue ignoring this evidence just like the comedian ignoring the lack of laughter on a tape recording of his show. For many people, simply denying and avoiding the existence of facts is their sole strategy for clinging to their beliefs because their beliefs are more important than reality. Just like a homeless guy screaming at nothing at all and then wondering why his life isn't getting any better.

Holiday Season Dips

Traditionally, companies see sales increase during the holiday season since more people are shopping than any other time of the year. Of course, that holiday shopping season didn't help Samsung, which reported that sales of their smartphones actually declined during the holiday buying season. Nokia also reported a steep decline in their smartphone sales as well, which consisted mostly of Windows Phone devices.

If sales drop during the holiday season, how will they fare during the rest of the year when fewer people are shopping? On the other hand, sales of iPhones increased to 51 million, sales of iPads increased to 26 million, and sales of Macintosh computers increased to 4.8 million during the holiday season.

If sales of both Macintosh computers and iPhones increased during the holiday season while sales of Windows PCs, Samsung smartphones, and Nokia Windows Phone 8 phones fell during that same time frame, what does this indicate for the future of Windows 8 PCs, Android smartphones, and Windows Phone 8 smartphones?

7 Technologies Made Possible by the Macintosh

Even if you don't use a Macintosh, chances are good you use technologies that the Macintosh helped introduce to the market. First is the graphical user interface, which Xerox pioneered. After Apple and other companies studied the graphical user interface, Apple helped make it popular.

Second are fonts. Before graphical user interfaces, underlining or bolding text required odd cryptic commands like ^Bboldface^B. With graphical user interfaces, programs could display different fonts so you could actually see how your text would look before printing it.

Third is the mouse. When Apple introduced the mouse, John Dvorak famously said, "The Macintosh uses an experimental pointing device called a 'mouse'. There is no evidence that people want to use these things." Combined with a graphical user interface and fonts, the mouse represented the three main features to making computers easier to use.

Fourth is local networking. Although local networking existed long before Apple introduced AppleTalk, Apple made local networking far easier to set up and use.

Fifth is the CD-ROM drive, which Apple introduced in 1990 as a built-in feature.

Sixth is iTunes, which Apple developed from a program they acquired called Sound Jam. Together with the CD-ROM drive, iTunes helped define how people would listen to music on their computers.

Seventh is Bluetooth for short-range wireless communication. Although all of these technologies existed in one form or another, Apple helped bring these technologies to the public in a way that people could actually use without being engineers or computer scientists.

Perhaps thirty years from now we'll look back and marvel at the technologies that the iPhone and iPad introduced that we'll still be using in the future. Then we can look back at all the strange and pointless criticism of Apple products over the years and wonder how people could hate an American company that innovates so often and provides technology that makes everyone's life so much better.

Buying Your Competitor's Technology

At one time, a company called Bungie focused on exclusively making games for the Macintosh. Later they started offering Windows and Macintosh versions of their games where one of their first big successes was a game called Halo. Seeing the popularity of Halo, Microsoft bought up Bungie, killed the Macintosh version of Halo, and made Halo exclusively for the Xbox. By initially limiting Halo to the Xbox, Microsoft helped promote the Xbox while also dampening interest in the Macintosh.

When Microsoft developed their motion sensing Kinect for the Xbox, they helped kill Nintendo's Wii. Why bother holding on to a motion sensing device when you can simply move in front of a Kinect? If you wanted to play games with the Kinect, you had to get an Xbox.

Microsoft developed the Kinect by licensing technology from a company called PrimeSense. Now Apple has acquired PrimeSense with likely plans to use motion-sensing technology to create products similar to the Kinect.

Figure 3. A patent by Apple using PrimeSense technology.

Why Microsoft didn't just buy PrimeSense to keep their motion-sensing technology away from competitors is a mystery. Most likely Microsoft felt that paying a bunch of top executives multi-million dollar bonuses was a more productive use of their money than keeping technology away from their rivals.

Microsoft has had several years head start with their Kinect, yet failed to do much with it to make Windows PCs easier to use. Microsoft even provides information about using a Kinect with Windows, but rather than develop their own products to take advantage of it, they seem content to let people tinker around with Kinect on Windows without any direction or long-term strategy whatsoever.

Ideally, Microsoft should have developed their own productivity software using Kinect to make their Surface tablets something special. Imagine getting rid of the physical keyboard altogether and having a Kinect embedded in a Surface tablet, letting you control your computer without touching the screen, which is what another Apple patent allows you to do.

Figure 4. Using PrimeSense technology, Apple has patented a way to control a computer with hand gestures.

By letting PrimeSense technology go to Apple, Microsoft has blown a golden opportunity to exploit their Kinect and stomp on their competitors with innovative technology that rivals could never hope to match. Instead, Microsoft seems content to throw great technology out on the market, hope someone will do something useful with it, while paying their executives millions of dollars for doing nothing but watch the money roll in from sales of Windows and Office.

Microsoft can innovate and has great technology. They just have lousy executives who lack the vision to recognize what they have. When the only imagination executives have is to copy the leaders in other markets (The Microsoft Network chasing CompuServe, Kin phones chasing the iPhone, Zune chasing the iPod, Silverlight chasing Adobe Flash, Surface tablets chasing the iPad, Windows 8 chasing iOS, etc.), it's no wonder that Microsoft has missed every major computing event from mobile computing to social networks. They'll likely continue being a follower instead of a leader as long as they insist that their top executives are more valuable than the people actually creating great technology that Microsoft ignores.

Solar-Powered iPhones

One of the biggest problems with any mobile phone is the limited life of batteries. Although most mobile phones can go a whole day without recharging, why bother recharging at all if you can help it?

Apple's latest rumors hint at embedding solar panels in the screens of iPhones. Now you can recharge your iPhone every time you take it out and use it. With efficient solar panels, you could literally use your iPhone for days, weeks, or even months without recharging it with a traditional electrical cord.

Solar-powered iPhones are likely still in the distant future, but you can see that's where recharging technology should be heading. When we can have solar-powered iPhones and iPads, and possibly even solar-powered cars, we can truly be free from the electrical grid. Apple can see where the future will be tomorrow. The big question is how many other companies can see the obvious right in front of them and ignore it until it's too late?

Watch the Unveiling of the Macintosh From 1984

Steve Jobs demonstrated the original Macintosh by showing how its unique features were far different than any other computer available at that time. If you watch the second demonstration Steve Jobs did for the Boston Computer Society, you can see how he emphasized how technology could make people's lives easier and more enjoyable. Watch today's Apple events and you'll see that the company still emphasizes what technology can do for people, not what technology is inside their products.

Watch product demonstrations of other products and you'll see a distinct lack of what you can use that product for and how it lets you do something useful and fun that you couldn't do before. When you see the original Macintosh display fonts on the screen and let you draw pictures using MacPaint, you can immediately understand how that could be fun and useful in your own life. When you see a company boasting about megahertz speed, processor cores, and NFC technology, you have to wonder what it's good for.

Most companies still cater to the tech-savvy crowd by bombarding them with specifications and hoping people will get excited over that. For most people, technical specifications mean nothing if those specifications can't do anything useful for them that they can see and touch.

When you look at how little kids get excited using an iPad, you can see the appeal of technology. When you put a little kid in front of a Windows 8 PC, do kids have the same positive reaction? Probably not. If products can't appeal to the little kid in all of us, it's probably not refined enough to be useful to the average person regardless of the technical specifications inside.

As Apple has shown time and time again, technology is meant to give people power they didn't have before, not to increase complexity in people's lives. When other companies understand this simple principle, perhaps they can start selling products that appeal to the vast majority of non-tech-savvy people too.

*                    *                    *

When problems occur with almost any computer, the simplest solution to try is to reboot your entire computer. With a Macintosh, you can just hold down the power button until the screen goes blank. Then press the power button once more to turn it back on again. With an iPad or iPhone, you can hold down the Home button and the power button at the same time until the screen goes blank. Then press the power button to turn it back on again.

If you're trying to sync your iOS device with your Macintosh and get a strange "sync session failed to start" message, try the soft reboot method for your iOS device. Soft reboots are like kicking your computer in the butt to make it start working right again.

In the early days, before Wally became an Internationally renowned comedian, computer book writer, and generally cool guy, Wally Wang used to hang around The Byte Buyer dangling participles with Jack Dunning and go to the gym to pump iron with Dan Gookin.

Wally is responsible for the following books:

Microsoft Office 2013 For Dummies

Beginning Programming for Dummies

Beginning Programming All-in-One Reference for Dummies

Breaking Into Acting for Dummies with Larry Garrison

Strategic Entrepreneurism with Jon and Gerald Fisher

How to Live with a Cat (When You Really Don't Want To)

The Secrets of the Wall Street Stock Traders

Mac Programming For Absolute Beginners

Republican Fairy Tales (Children's Stories the 1% Tell About the Rest of Us)

The Zen of Effortless Selling with Moe Abdou

The 15-Minute Movie Method

Erotophobia (A novel)

Math for the Zombie Apocalypse

In his spare time, Wally likes blogging about movies and writing screenplays at his site "The 15 Minute Movie Method," finding interesting news stories about cats at his site "Cat Daily News," giving advice to authors who want to self-publish e-books at his site "The Electronic Author," and providing the type of advice he wishes someone would have told him when he was much younger at his personal Web site. Wally can be reached at wally@computoredge.com or you can follow him on Twitter @wallacewang_com.

Worldwide News & Product Reviews

“The latest in tech news and hot product reviews.”
by Charles Carr

New Data Compression Method Aims to Reduce "Big-Data" Bottlenecks; Top 10 DDoS Attack Trends for 2013; This Product is Just Your Type; Motorola Droid Ultra Smartphone (Verizon).

New Data Compression Method Aims to Reduce "Big-Data" Bottlenecks

Science World Report has a fascinating article detailing how UCLA researchers have developed a way to compress data using something they've termed "warping":

In creating an entirely new way to compress data, a team of researchers from the UCLA Henry Samueli School of Engineering and Applied Science has drawn inspiration from physics and the arts. The result is a new data compression method that outperforms existing techniques, such as JPEG for images, and that could eventually be adopted for medical, scientific and video streaming applications.

In data communication, scientific research and medicine, an increasing number of today's applications require the capture and analysis of massive amounts of data in real time.

But "big data," as it's known, can present big problems, particularly in specialized fields in which the events being studied occur at rates that are too fast to be sampled and converted into digital data in real time. For example, in order to detect rare cancer cells in blood, researchers must screen millions of cells in a high-speed flow stream.

To help improve the process, the UCLA group, led by Bahram Jalali, holder of the Northrop Grumman Opto-Electronic Chair in Electrical Engineering, and including postdoctoral researcher Mohammad Asghari, created an entirely new method of data compression. The technique reshapes the signal carrying the data in a fashion that resembles the graphic art technique known as anamorphism, which has been used since the 1500s to create optical illusions in art and, later, film.

UCLA researchers compressed data using "warping," resembling the graphic art technique of anamorphism.

The Jalali group discovered that it is possible to achieve data compression by stretching and warping the data in a specific fashion prescribed by a newly developed mathematical function. The technology, dubbed "anamorphic stretch transform," or AST, operates both in analog and digital domains. In analog applications, AST makes it possible to not only capture and digitize signals that are faster than the speed of the sensor and the digitizer, but also to minimize the volume of data generated in the process.

AST can also compress digital records—for example, medical data so it can be transmitted over the Internet for a tele-consultation. The transformation causes the signal to be reshaped is such a way that "sharp" features—its most defining characteristics—are stretched more than data's "coarse" features.

AST can also be used for image compression, as a standalone algorithm or combined with existing digital compression techniques to enhance speed or quality or to improve the amount images can be compressed. Results have shown that AST can outperform standard JPEG image compression format, with dramatic improvement in terms of image quality and compression factor.

Jalali said the discovery is rooted in—and inspired by—both physics and the arts. "Reshaping the data by stretching and wrapping it in the prescribed manner compresses it without losing pertinent information," he said. "It emulates what happens to waves as they travel through physical media with specific properties. It also brings to mind aspects of surrealism and the optical effects of anamorphism."

Read the entire piece at www.scienceworldreport.com.

Top 10 DDoS Attack Trends for 2013

Prolexic Technologies, a leader in Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) protection services, sent us its top 10 attack trends for 2013:

Throughout the year, metrics were collected from all DDoS attacks launched against the company's global client base by the Prolexic Security Engineering & Response Team (PLXsert) using proprietary techniques and equipment. Through digital forensics and post-attack analysis, PLXsert is able to build a global view of the evolving DDoS threat.

"It was a dynamic 12 months for DDoS attacks," said Stuart Scholly, president of Prolexic. "The tools used by malicious actors in 2013 and the tactics they adopted changed considerably, reflecting the on-going evolution of the DDoS threat."

Top 10 DDoS attack trends for 2013:

• DDoS attack volume continued to rise with Prolexic mitigating 32.43 percent more attacks in 2013 than it did in 2012.

• DDoS attack volume also increased month-to-month in 2013, with 10 out of 12 months showing higher attack volume compared to 2012.

• Smaller, stealthy and more sophisticated application layer (Layer 7) attacks increased approximately 42 percent.

• High bandwidth, volumetric infrastructure layer (Layer 3 & 4) attacks increased approximately 30 percent.

• DNS, UDP, and UDP fragmentation floods, as well as CHARGEN, were the attack vectors that showed the most adoption in 2013.

• SYN and ICMP floods were the attack vectors that showed the most decline in use.

Average DDoS attack sizes continued to increase with Prolexic mitigating numerous attacks over 100 Gbps, the largest peaking at 179 Gbps.

• Reflected amplification attacks emerged as a very popular attack method.

• Mobile devices and apps began participating in DDoS campaigns.

• DDoS attacks were more likely to originate from Asian countries.

"It is critical in 2014 that enterprise defenses continue to keep pace with the changing DDoS threat," said Scholly. "In addition to increasing vigilance and knowledge, enterprises should also validate services from any mitigation providers they have retained to ensure the latest threats can be blocked quickly and effectively."

Prolexic has published a new infographic that summarizes the top 10 DDoS attack trends for 2013.

This Product is Just Your Type

Product name: YourType™ Bluetooth® Wireless Keypad

Manufacturer: Belkin

Web site: www.belkin.com

Price: $49.99

This product review is about a numeric keypad. Numeric keypads might seem pedestrian and/or unsexy, but actually they could be an essential efficiency tool for spreadsheet jockeys, data analysts, and many other categories of users. This is especially true now that sales of new desktop computers (equipped with full keyboards that include keypads) are in decline while sales of new notebook computers and mobile devices (not equipped with dedicated physical keypads) are on the rise. And this explains why Belkin's YourType™ Bluetooth® Wireless Keypad might come in pretty handy for owners of Apple products.

YourType Keypad (YK) looks like an Apple product (Figure 1)—its design and use of aluminum are consistent with Apple's wireless (and keypadless) keyboard. If you position YK next to Apple's wireless keyboard, the two will align properly as if they were a single unit thanks to YK's dimensions—~5.25" x 5.25" x ~0.75" at the tall end (battery compartment)—which match those of Apple's keyboard. Before installing the two included AA batteries (or rechargeables that you supply), YK weighs in at 6.1 oz.

Figure 1. YourType keypad looks like an Apple product and is easy to use—just push the power button (red arrow), wait for the LED to illuminate (green circle), establish Bluetooth pairing, and it's good to go.

Belkin packages YK in an eye-catching neon green and white cardboard box. The box's contents include the keypad, two non-rechargeable AA batteries, a printed FCC statement in three languages (English, French, and Spanish) about radio frequency radiation, and a quick installation guide printed on a single folded sheet of high gloss paper (~5" by 7.75") that is neon green with white lettering on the outside and white with black lettering on the inside. The guide also has three illustrations showing how to open YK's battery compartment, install the batteries, and turn power on. Two lines of text, each in the same aforementioned languages, provide instructions on how to implement Bluetooth pairing. A more detailed set of instructions is available at Belkin's Web site.

Setting up this keypad is brainlessly easy. After using a coin or screwdriver to remove the cover from the battery compartment's left side, insert two AA batteries, replace the cover, then press the power button which is located at the battery compartment's opposite end (Figure 1). First time usage requires Bluetooth pairing. Subsequent usage involves powering on and proceeding with typing numbers. A tiny green LED in YK's upper right corner (Figure 1) has three modes of illumination to indicate status—unilluminated to indicate sleep or ready for use; flashing green to indicate that Bluetooth 3.0 pairing is available; or solid green to indicate that power is on and YK is ready for use.

In addition to the 10 numeric keys, YK sports operator keys (addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division; equal; decimal; clear; enter), four configurable special function keys (F13—16), navigation keys (home, end, page up, page down, delete, and find—a total of 28 additional keys. These keys are made of white plastic with grey labels in a san serif typeface that is different from the one Apple uses. Function, home, and end keys are rounded rectangles, 9/16" by 5/16". The enter key is 5/8" by 1 and 3/8", the 0 key's dimensions are the opposite. All other keys are 5/8" rounded squares.

This keypad has numerous positive features. Wirelessness is my favorite feature because the use of Bluetooth enhances YK's mobility, frees up a USB port, and minimizes desktop cable clutter. YK is environmentally friendly and built for longevity thanks to its design that incorporates quality recyclable materials (aluminum and plastic) and replaceable batteries. Touch typists likely will enjoy and appreciate the keys' feel and responsiveness. Two rubbery feet on the battery compartment's underside and two on the keypad's plastic underside keep YK from slip-sliding around the user's desktop. Additionally, the MSRP dropped 16.7% (from $59.99 to $49.99) while this review was in progress.

One more positive—and completely unexpected—feature is that YK works with iDevices. This was unexpected because Belkin's product literature lists only Macintoshes as compatible. During testing, however, YK successfully paired with an iPhone 5s and original iPad (after removing its pairing with my Mac). The keypad's arithmetic operator keys (but not its navigation keys) functioned properly in Apple's Notes app and Numbers spreadsheet app, and in a third-party calculator app (PCalc Lite). Consequently, iDevice owners potentially could use YK to work around fat-finger syndrome and/or the absence of a dedicated keypad in third-party keyboard cases.

My least favorite feature is YK's documentation. It lacks instructions on how to program the function keys, lacks information on YK's sleep mode, has an inconsistency (the package implies compatibility with iMacs and MacBooks, the Web site excludes iMacs), and has an inaccuracy (the keypad has function keys 13-16 while Belkin's Web site says 13-17). An unexplained feature is the label on the key next to the page up key—it is an icon like Spotlight's, which could lead users to think that this key activates Spotlight. Instead, during testing, pressing this key activated the currently active program's Find feature.

A charge-indicator LED and more navigation keys (e.g., left-, right-, up-, and down-arrows) would be welcome and useful additions to the empty space beneath YK's delete and page down keys.

In conclusion, YK is a potentially essential efficiency tool for spreadsheet jockeys, data analysts, and other users who regularly need to work with numbers on Macs and/or iOS devices. This product combines quality materials, appealing design, and useful features at a compelling price point.

Review contributed by Barry Fass-Holmes

Motorola Droid Ultra Smartphone (Verizon)

Product: Droid Ultra

Manufacturer: Motorola

Carrier: Verizon (exclusive)

Web site: www.verizonwireless.com

Price: $99.99 with two-year activation, $449.99 month-to-month

Motorola's Droid Ultra is the phone a lot of people will happily settle on after thinking they were going into the store to buy other phones with technically better specs like the Motorola MAXX. The MAXX has an incredible battery-life, more memory, and is slightly faster, but I found that I actually liked the Ultra's slimmer profile and still-pretty-incredible battery life. Sure, you can get a couple full days of use with the MAXX, but I can easily get a full day of heavy use with the Ultra—and I find it's better to get into the habit of charging the phone up every night anyway—otherwise I'm liable to forget and get caught starting the day with a near-dead battery.

The Ultra feels extremely tough to me. A lot of that is because its seamless case is reinforced with DuPont KEVLAR fiber and the screen is protected by scratch-resistant Corning Gorilla Glass.

There are faster phones if you want to shoot a ton of video, but not significantly faster, and I like the tight, solid feel of the Ultra.

The Droid Ultra is very slim—just 7.18mm—and has an amazing 5" HD touchscreen. I love the Ultra's 10 megapixel camera. It's not too complicated but the pics look fantastic. Just shake the phone twice to bring up the camera then tap anywhere on the screen to take a photo or even a selfie. Clear Pixel technology collects more light and snaps pictures up to twice as fast as many similarly-featured phones.

Using Droid Zap, it's easy to upload pics to the cloud or anyone nearby with an Android phone running Jelly Bean 2.2 or greater. I also liked the Droid Command Center, a Homescreen apps that gives you lots of info about battery level, text messages, missed calls, weather, and more.

The Droid Ultra is smarter than most smartphones. For example, the display knows when it's in your pocket or face down so it doesn't waste power displaying info until you're ready to see it.

It's hard to come up with something negative to say about this phone. It's regrettable that so many new phones have so many components that are stuck together—glued, literally—and the Droid Ultra is no exception. But that's a big contributor to smaller sizes and lighter weights. It's a trade-off.

So, all-in-all, Motorola's Droid Ultra is an excellent smartphone. If you want one, you have to get it through the Verizon network, which is by no means a bad thing considering their 4G LTE network covers over 90 percent of the U.S. population (not land area) with average download data rates of 5-12 megabits per second and 2-5 Mbps upload rates.

Review contributed by Ronald Gleeschaum

Spec snapshot (from Verizon)

————————————————————

• 3G/4G LTE connectivity

• Android 4.2.2 (Jelly Bean) operating system

Software-optimized Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 Pro (1.7 GHz Dual-Core Krait CPU, quad-core Adreno 320 GPU)

• 5-inch touchscreen AMOLED display (720 x 1280)

• 10-MP rear camera, 16:9 aspect ratio, full HD 1080p 30 fps video with slow motion

• Front 2-MP camera for video chats

• 16 GB storage + 2 GB of RAM

• Wireless-N Wi-Fi + Bluetooth 4.0 LE+ NFC

• GPS for navigation and location services

• Up to 28 hours of usage time

• Motorola X8 Mobile Computing System

• Natural language processor

• Contextual computing processor

Multiple award-winning author Charles Carr has written more than two thousand newspaper articles, magazine stories, and columns for many publications including the San Diego Union Tribune, The Californian, The North County Times, Parent Magazine, ComputerScene, and ComputorEdge Magazine where he has been an editor for more than two decades. He is also a television producer/director with shows both currently airing and in production on Cox Cable and elsewhere.

In the 1990s, Charles wrote 3DHouse, a complete inside-and-out virtual reality tour of his family's log home in Southern California. One of the first virtual reality programs ever created, 3DHouse enjoyed tens of thousands of shareware downloads on all major portals. He also sold the rights to Radio Shack and Egghead Software. 3DHouse has since been featured in many books and articles about VR.

Carr has also been commissioned to write and/or directed many of his own stage plays. Several years ago, Carr and others looking for ways to help organizations struggling in difficult economic times, founded Art Animates Life (www.artanimateslife.org).

To date, Art Animates Life, a CA incorporated, federal non-profit, has raised tens-of-thousands of dollars for San Diego area disaster relief, an arts non-profit and municipal gallery, a community outreach center, and several struggling community theaters.

Several years ago Carr was commissioned to adapt and direct the beloved Dickens classic, A Christmas Carol. The play, titled "Mr. Scrooge & Mr. Dickens," has sold out So Cal theaters for the past several years. Six shows will take place Dec. 2013 to benefit the San Marcos Historical Society.

Another original play, "All the Time in the World," has been performed many times and garnered broad acclaim from audiences and critics alike. Carr is working on a brand new adaptation of the classic Hitchcock thriller, "The Lady Vanished," to be performed spring 2014.

Carr has won many writing accolades, including San Diego Press Club awards for Best Column Writing, Best Consumer Writing, and Best Arts and Entertainment. He has repeatedly taken top honors in San Diego Songwriter's Guild competitions for his original musical compositions.

Carr is also a noted producer, director, and videographer. Several of his documentaries can currently be seen on So Cal's Cox Cable. Since its inception he has produced the Fallbrook International Film Festival's red carpet event and panel discussions.

Charles receives dozens of requests each year to appear on Southern California television and radio stations to talk about important tech events. He also speaks from time-to-time to high schools and organizations about his eclectic life in the arts.

Learn more at www.charlescarr.com.

Editor's Letters: Tips and Thoughts from Readers

“Computer and Internet tips, plus comments on the articles and columns.”
by ComputorEdge Staff

"Android," "User Rights," "Cable Box USB Charging"

Android

[Regarding Jack Dunning's January 17 article, "A Look at the New Android Desktop Computers":]

1. Why does Android pay Microsoft and Apple? What patents are we talking about? Please elaborate. I can buy computer components and install Ubuntu for free. Why is Android in bed with Microsoft and Apple?

2. Touchscreen means touch. My large desktop monitor is six feet from my face (too far to touch). Living room computers will likely be the same. Touchscreens do not fit all applications!

-Mark Burton, Albuquerque, NM

It's not that Android is in bed with Microsoft or Apple. Both Microsoft and Apple hold a substantial number of patents that affect the use of touchscreen and other technology used by Android. Through lawsuits and the threats of lawsuits, the two companies have worked out license agreements with many of the manufacturers of Android devices. This generates a substantial amount of revenue for those two Android competitors.

-Jack Dunning

User Rights

[Regarding the January 17 Digital Dave column:]

Win7 64-bit. I've had similar "no rights" messages, even though I'm the Administrator and only User. There are times when File/Run as Administrator shows but not always. I'm glad this question has come up.

-Gary Weinstein, California

Regarding the problem that Wayne Eric Whalen is having with permissions, I think that the following pages at Microsoft will help:

How to Reset All User Permissions to Default

and

How do I restore security settings to a known working state?

They describe how to use the 'Subinacl Tool' to fix this type of issue.

-Darrell G, San Diego, CA

Cable Box USB Charging

[Regarding the January 17 Editors Letters: Tips and Thoughts from Readers column:]

Regarding USB Charging:

Do you know that the unused USB connector on the front of the Scientific Atlanta model 8300 cable box is hot all the time (on or off)? Makes a good charging station, but seems to have no other function.

-

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