**Issue 34 - February 1st, 2008 **

Contents

In This Issue...

#1 - Newbies Nook - Information for those who are new to computers and computing.

#2 - Problems in Paradise - Answers to reader problems and questions.

#3 - Security Corner - Computer Security by Kenny Harthun.

#4 - Windows Home Server - It's up and running at DCT Central. Find out more!

#5 - Using Multiple Page Layouts - Carol tells us how to do it in Word and OpenOffice Writer.

#6 - My Recommended Software - Need software? Check this list first!

#7 - Useful Freeware - Free programs that you may find useful. Did I mention they're free!

#8 - Useful web sites - Websites I've visited lately that you may find useful.

#9 - The Lighter Side - Some humor to lighten your load!

#10 - Odds and Ends - A little bit of this and a little bit of that!

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Carol is our resident "Office Goddess". If you have Microsoft Office, OpenOffice questions, or suggestions for future Office articles shoot her an email at .

Thank you for taking a few moments to read my newsletter,

#1 - Newbies Nook

By David Hartsock

What would you like to see covered in Newbies Nook? Email me at

Newbies Nook Feedback

In the last two issues (Here and Here) I included videos to help explain the instructions in the Newbies Nook area. Not everyone learns the same way, an often (for me) the best way is two different methods. I didn't hear any complaints about the videos, but I didn't hear any other comments either. If the consensus is for videos I'll try to include them as often as possible to help explain articles in the Newbies Nook area. If not, I'll continue on without them.

Topic Suggestions

With well over 2000 subscribers I can't possibly guess what level each subscriber is at, or what knowledge they possess. If you have a topic you would like to know more about please tell me.

Use the email address above (right under the blue Newbies Nook), or leave a comment below!

Please take a moment and share your thoughts on videos and future topics in the box below!

#2 - Problems in Paradise

By David Hartsock

If you would like to see your question or problem answered here email me at

Registry Cleaners... Oh My!

John wrote the following email last week:

Dave,

I bought the FREE REGISTRY FIX PROGRAM about a year ago. What concerns me is that when I scan with it, receive the problems info and they fix them. Then I run across another registry program within minutes apart from the the one operating on my computer system and it will give me a reading of having 350 errors it has detected. Why is there this discrepancy from one Registry Fix program to another? What concerns me is why didn't my Registry Fix program not pick them up just a few minutes before applying the other. My reason for the comparison is to try to pick the program that is true to its findings.

John's issue is similar to spyware programs. What a program is able to find and fix is the responsibility of the author of that program. Not every programmer will consider the same items as errors. Not every programmer has the knowledge to know what constitutes an error. Not every programmer has the knowledge to correctly fix an error.

I've used dozens of registry cleaners over the years. All promise results, some deliver, and others have left me with a completely unusable computer. If you read the October 1st, 2007 issue I discussed exactly what the registry is and how one mistake could possible bring your computer to it's knees. While the chances of that actually happening are slim, it is possible. I've recovered (through repairs and reinstallations) from more than my fair share of unbootable or unusable computers caused by so called Registry Cleaners.

The important points to look for in a registry cleaner are:

• Ability to identify and fix a large number of registry errors
• Ability to identify and fix a large number of unnecessary registry entries
• Ability to create a backup before making any changes
• A program that will not leave you with an unusable computer

As I said earlier, I've been bitten by quite a few registry cleaning programs. The only program that I have found that consistently finds and fixes true errors and unnecessary entries without leaving me with an unbootable computer is Registry Mechanic by PC Tools. It's a program I use and recommend. Now you know why!

A License is a License is a License

Robert recently wrote:

Dear Dave,

I am about to try the procedure specified, quite legitimately indeed, as i want to upgrade from a Japanese Vista Home Premium, paid for, to Vista Ultimate so that i can add the English language interface. Lots of info on the web tells me that the different editions do NOT span languages, so that I should NOT try to upgrade from Japanese to English Ultimate. There is also contradictory info in circulation. So the process shown in your article looks like the most appropriate way to upgrade simply to be able to add language packs, and avoid being charged twice for the same product. There is almost no info on the web that spans languages. Though MS appears to have done an amazing job of making Vista multilingual, they don't tell you up front that you need Ultimate.

Before I proceed, however, would you confirm that Step 5 on choosing the edition for which you have the license in fact refers to the Upgrade that you have purchased (and therefore have the license). It seems obvious that it does, but I want to be absolutely sure.

Were I to use the internal OEM activation as described in issue #23 (I think) for a clean install of an English Home Premium I believe there might be a license conflict.

I have been able to obtain the drivers to add once Vista is up and activated, though info on installation procedures is almost zero. The screen on my machine is a very small 7" so I'm a little concerned about being able to read and enter the dialogue boxes running on Vista's generic driver.

Then an English upgrade can be made effective when it cannot be installed over another language Vista.

Robert really has two issues going here: one - Upgrade activation & two - language specific license issues.

Microsoft sells copies of it's software in various languages. Licenses are language specific, to the best of my knowledge, so he would not be able to install an English version with his Japanese license. Licenses are also version specific. A Vista Home Premium license will not activate a Vista Ultimate installation. Because of this Robert can not use the OEM activation method described in issue #23.

A nifty feature of Vista Ultimate is Language Packs. If you have Vista Ultimate, and you are multilingual, Microsoft allows you to download Language Packs under the Ultimate Extras banner. Current offerings include: Chinese, Danish, Dutch, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Russian, Spanish, and 26 others.

Based on the license restrictions between languages and versions I recommended that Robert Upgrade to the Japanese version of Vista Ultimate (saving money) and install an English language pack. This would give him the option of running the OS with either English or Japanese.

Please take a moment and comment on this article in the box below!

#3 - Security Focus

by Ken Harthun

Unguessable Passwords

We're going to take a short detour away from the security maxims for the next couple of issues and explore passwords in more detail. It's an important subject. In the last newsletter, I gave you security maxim #4: Use an unguessable or difficult-to-guess password, always. In that article, I gave some examples of easily-guessable passwords--what not to do. In this article, I'll give you an example of one thing you can do to create strong, unguessable or difficult-to-guess passwords.

By far, the most unguessable password would be a string of random characters like ‘Qt6W’{/b?@mn,QL”Q% and the longer, the better. Sure, a computer could eventually discover such a password using a brute force attack, but it gets more difficult the longer you make your password. For example, to crack the above password, assuming a supercomputer that can guess a billion passwords per second, it would take 10,533,833,066,248,927,000 (10 quintillion, 533 quadrillion, 833 trillion, 66 billion, 248 million, 927 thousand) years to look at all the possible combinations. Shorten that password to 9 characters, and it would only take 26 months.

There are plenty of password generator programs available. GRC’s Ultra High Security Password Generator page is a good example. The problem with such passwords is that they’re impossible to remember; you have to store them somewhere or print them out. It's far better to have a password that looks random (to a computer, at least), but means something to you so you can remember it without having to write it down. That's easy to do: Simply come up with a meaningful phrase and then convert it to a string of characters. Here’s one: I drive 33 miles round-trip each day. (Notice I included numbers and a dash.) That could become id33mr-ted. Make some of the characters uppercase: iD3#mR-TeD (I made every other character uppercase — easy to remember).

You can, and should, come up with your own pattern or algorithm for creating unguessable but easy to remember passwords. In the next issue, I'll give you some tips on how to do that. I'll even show you how to write down your password in such a way that you can post it anywhere and still be secure.

Ken Harthun is the Security Editor for Daves Computer Tips. He also writes about security issues for IT Knowledge Exchange and blogs on general Geek things at Ask the Geek. You can read more about Ken here.

Please take a moment and comment on this Security Focus article in the box below!

#4 - Windows Home Server

by Dave Hartsock

A Little Background

You may have heard the term "server" before. Servers are computers that serve content, files, web pages, email, and other things to multiple users. Even as a home user you interact with servers daily. As a matter of fact you are interacting with the server that the Daves Computer Tips site is on right now!

As a home user you may have never seen a server, and that is to be expected, as they most often reside in a business environment. This is slowly changing as servers offer many benefits that shouldn't be limited to businesses. Another issue that is affecting this is the growth of media on the internet and in the home. The more technically savvy readers may have computers in their homes acting a servers, or even a dedicated server.

Microsoft has many versions of server software to fill business needs. This software is complicated and usually administered by someone who specializes in working with a particular server version. Microsoft has read the writing on the wall and more robust server software versions and rebuilt it to focus on the needs, expectations, and abilities of the home user. Enter Windows Home Server!

Microsoft envisioned Windows Home Server (WHS) as a "headless" product built and delivered to users by companies such as HP, which they have done with their HP Mediasmart Server EX470and HP Mediasmart Server Ex475. Both are very nice products, and I wish I had one of my own! The term "headless" means without a monitor and keyboard. A nice small box that functions and can be hidden in a closet or stored on a shelf without the usual space required for a monitor and keyboard. Before launch in August of 2007 Microsoft decided to release the software as Microsoft Windows Home Server, thus allowing users to install the software on computers of their choice.

What Can Windows Home Server Do For You?

1. Backup and Restore
• WHS performs automatic daily backups of every PC connected to your home network (up to 10). The storage space required for backups is reduced because WHS uses an intelligent backup method. A file is only backed up once. If you have 3 computers with the exact same file WHS will only store one copy. WHS maintains a record of which computers use each file. The result - smaller and quicker backups!
• WHS allows both complete (Operating System, all files, updates, programs, etc) and individual file restore.
2. Shared Storage
• Files can be stored on the server and shared between every computer on your home network. This means every computer in your home can have access to those vacation pictures you took last year.
3. Easy to add and remove storage
• Add another hard drive inside the computer, or use any number of external hard drives and WHS adds it to the server storage pool. Need to remove an external hard drive? Tell WHS and it will move any files off the drive and allow you to remove it.
4. Folder Duplication
• If you are really concerned about the safety of files, such as pictures and music, you can have WHS duplicate folders of your choosing. By doing so WHS will store a copy on two different physical drives, preventing file loss in the event of a hard drive failure
5. Remote Access
• During installation you setup a domain xxxxx.homeserver.com (where xxxxx is a name of your choice. You can have https://iloveyou.homeserver.com or any other name available.
• Using your domain you can access computers on your network, files stored in WHS shared storage, or the WHS console from anywhere. No need to carry USB thumb drivers or files!
• This is also a great way to share photos and files with friends and family! Create a user account for them and let them sign into your shared folders where they can view your pictures, upload their own, etc.
6. Add Ins
• Add-ins allow new functionality to be added to WHS very simply. Add-ins are similar to extensions in Firefox. They allow WHS to function as a bit torrent client, media streaming server, automatically upload your pictures to Flickr, and more.
• The number of add-ins in currently almost 40. I think this number, and the associated features they add, will grow very quickly!

So How Does It Work?

Microsoft was kind enough to send me a copy of Windows Home Server, which I installed on a desktop PC I had lying around. It's not a speed demon, and it doesn't have to be. The minimum requirements for WHS are very respectable:

• 1GHz Pentium III processor or better
• 512MB of RAM or better
• 80GB Hard Drive (you'll want at least 2 and definitely larger than 80GB)
• DVD ROM Drive - WHS comes on a DVD
• 10Mb network card

Of course installing any OS on a computer with the minimum is not going to provide the utmost in performance. I installed on a 2.8GHz P4 processor and I think anything above 1.6GHz should be fine. I would stay away from wireless and use at least a 10/100Mb network card. Other than that, you're only need is storage. The more the merrier!

As mentioned above, WHS is meant to be used without a monitor and keyboard. If you purchase an OEM product, such as the HP MediaSmart servers above, the OS is already installed. These ship without a monitor, keyboard, or mouse. If you plan to buy the software you will need all three to complete the installation, but can remove them after you have everything set up! This "headless" operation makes finding an out of the way place to put your server very easy.

Installation is very straight forward. It's just like installing any version of Windows. After installation you are presented with a desktop.

(click image for a larger view)

You will notice the WHS desktop looks similar to every Windows desktop, but don't dwell on it, because this may be the last time you see it! Since WHS is meant to be headless you will interact with it through the Windows Home Server Console. I will point out, in the picture above, that you will see a C and D drive. There are 2 hard drives in my server, but you are only looking at the first drive. The second partition (D: above) and any other hard drives you add are become part of a storage "pool", which you can monitor through the console, so don't be alarmed if drives don't show in My Computer!

Part of a WHS installation is installing the connector software on each computer on your network. The connector will allow each computer to communicate with the server through the console, enable the back up feature, put a shortcut to the shared folders on the desktop, and add a tray icon which indicates the health of your network.

Once installed you have access to the console. The console is broken down into tabs, which are the top row of icons. As each tab is chosen the options, directly below, change to reflect the available options for that tab.

(click image for a larger view)

Above is the Computers & Backup tab. Here you will see all computers you have installed the connector software on. This is also where you can force a manual backup, view recent backups, and restore files. I still make disk images and store them on external drives, but this is a great idea for the average home user. I may be a little asinine, but you can never have enough backups!

The next tab is User Accounts. The User Account tab allows you to add users, set passwords, and set which folders they can have access to. This is the tab you would use if you wanted to allow a friend or relative access to your shared photos or files over the web.

(click image for a larger view)

The third tab is the Shared Folders tab. Shared Folders are the folders that computer users have access to over your network and you or friends can access over the web. The important columns here are Size, Duplication, and Status. Size and Status are self explanatory, but folders with Duplication enabled have the full contents stored on two separate hard drives (assuming you have more than one in the server). This ensures the safety of your important files should you have a hard drive failure.

(click image for a larger view)

The forth tab is Server Storage. This tab shows you how may physical hard drives are in the server, their capacity and status, and a detailed view of your storage. This is the tab used to add/remove drives to the storage pool and attempt to repair a corrupt drive.

(click image for a larger view)

The fifth tab is actually an add-in called Advanced Admin Console. This will satisfy the techies in the bunch by allowing access to virtually every setting on the server.

(click image for a larger view)

The final tab is another add-in named WHS Disk Management, which is intended to those who install the software on their own computer. This add-in shows similar information as the Server Storage tab, but allows you to see what drive is where in your server. This could be important if your server reports you have a bad drive!

(click image for a larger view)

If you look at the first several screen shots compared to the last you will notice there is an icon named Network. I purposely stopped a backup so I could show you the difference. If there are any issues with the server or errors with operations it is supposed to perform it will show an error in the console and every computer on the network! Very Reassuring!

(click image for a larger view)

Remote Access

Files you store on the server are available to you any where you have internet access and a browser. Access is controlled completely by you. The problem with remote access is most home users is their ISP doesn't provide them with a static IP address. Because of this you would have to remember a string of numbers such as 192.168.100.105 to access your server and these numbers would change without notice! Microsoft thought of this and allows you to set up a domain of your choice at https://XXXXX.homeserver.com. During setup, or at a later time through the console, you can choose your own domain. You could have https://thesmithfamily.homeserver.com or https://ourhomeserver.homeserver.com, which makes connecting to your home server as easy as any other website on the internet!

Once connected you are presented with a logon screen, because you control access to your server.

After you successfully log into your server you are presented with a page showing your shared storage.

From here you can download files from your server and upload files to your server!

What Is My Impression Of Windows Home Server?

Microsoft hit this one out of the ballpark! As the World becomes more media focused (digital cameras, video downloads, television dvrs, etc) there is truly a need for such a product. They really took the needs and ability of the average home user into consideration with WHS. The ease of setup, administration, and use definitely makes it a solution suitable for any home! I have access to all my files from everywhere, which really lightens my load!

The only issue I've experienced is when trying to stream video from WHS to an xBox360, and it isn't the fault of WHS. The xBox only supports streaming from Media Center and WHS. When streaming from a Media Center PC the computer does a kind of transcoding to the video. Almost any format which will play on the PC will stream to the xBox. Since WHS isn't running Media Center the number of formats available are limited. I've spent the better part of 3 weeks trying to come up with a simple solution to convert video to a format the xBox likes and still retain 5.1 audio without a much success. I've been able to do it, but the process isn't as straight forward as I would like!

Other than that small caveat my experience with WHS has been very pleasurable and useful. Aside from the already mentioned uses I'm trying to make WHS my central storage location for music, DVDs, and photos. Other than web access and sharing I'm also using WHS to play my music collection and photos through the xBox to my home theater. Integrating my digital life, so to speak.

If you have several computers, a lot of important files, a need to access your files when away from home, or the need to share files and photos you should really take the time to learn more about Windows Home Server. I predict this type of device will become very common in the very near future!

Please take a moment and comment on Windows Home Server in the box below!

#5 - Using Multiple Page Layouts

by Carol A. Bratt

We are now in that icky period between the festivity of the holidays and the wait which seems interminable, for Spring time! It is a beautiful day where I live today and is a welcome respite from the prior day of a very icy morning and then rain all day and evening. I hope your wait for Spring time goes quickly for you! Hang in there, it can't stay this way forever. Can it?

On with the article!

Using Multiple Page Layouts in MS Word

I heard from a premium subscriber of mine recently asking me how they could have one MS Word Document with different layouts, such as having the first page layout Portrait and the second page Landscape and then back to Portrait on the third page. It seems the subscriber was preparing a report and wanted most of the report layout to be Portrait, but she also had a portion of the report that was in a table and looked much better in Landscape layout. Well, it can be done and a lot easier than one might think!

Follow the steps below to learn how:

1. Launch MS Word if it is not already open.
2. Open the document in which you would like multiple layouts.
3. Move your cursor the place where you would like to begin a different layout.
4. Click on Insert | Break | Next Page.

A Next page break will appear in your document.

When you are at the top of the page that where you want to switch to Landscape layout:

1. Click on File | Page Setup.

2. Click on Landscape.
3. In the Apply to area, select This section.

It really is pretty simple, don't you think?

More in OpenOffice

To define the page layout in Oo, you create page styles. I will cover the basics here today.

1. Launch Oo Writer if it is not already open.
2. Create or load the page styles that you would like to use in your document.
3. Click on Format | Styles and Formatting. Or use the shortcut F11.

4. Click the Page Styles icon.

5. Find and select the page style that best suits your purposes and double-click it.
6. The style will then be applied to your entire document.
7. Now, scroll to where you want the next page style to applied in your document, usually at the top of the new page.
8. Click on Insert | Manual Break.

The Manual Break dialog box will appear.

9. In the Style area, use the drop-down arrow to choose the style you would like to use.
10. Click OK.

It really is not all that different from the process in MS Office. And did I mention that OpenOffice is FREE?

Please let me know if you are interested in articles discussing OpenOffice Calculator, etc. You never know when you might want to use them!

Until next time, take care of you.

Carol Bratt is the Office Applications Editor at Daves Computer Tips. She has authored several informative Microsoft Office books and writes the monthly Word Bytes Newsletter with more tips and tricks in each issue. Visit Carol's website for more great Microsoft Office tips and tricks! Click here to see her latest books! You can read more about Carol here.

Please take a moment and comment on Carol's article in the box below!

#6- My Recommended Software

Anti-spyware and Anti-malware Software

Webroot SpySweeper - Daves Computer Tips Seal of Approval Winner! See the test results HERE. Spysweeper provides the best protection of the seven anti-spyware programs tested! Great detection and removal rates with a small real-time protection memory footprint. This is the one you want! SpySweeper includes the ASK toolbar. Be sure to uncheck this option during installation. Free 14 day trial.

CounterSpy - Runner-up in my Anti-Spyware test. Not only does CounterSpy scan and remove spyware, it also uses real time protection. Real-time protection prevents spyware infection. Free 15 day trial. Winner of Computer Shopper Magazine's Best Buy Award!

Antivirus and Firewall Software

ESET Smart Security - New from the maker's of NOD32. Antivirus, Antispyware, Antispam, and Firewall all wrapped into one effective, swift, and low resource package. It is what I use to protect each of my computers!

Kaspersky Antivirus - Kaspersky is my second choice for antivirus software. A good program that is very close in performance to NOD32. Free trial.

Online Armor Firewall - You shouldn't be on the internet without a software firewall that offers inbound and outbound protection. Online Armor is the Best of the Best. Online Armor uses an interface that is easier to navigate than most other firewalls and the protection level can't be beat! Online Armor is available in both a free and reasonably priced paid version, which offers even more protection!

Audio and Video Software

Acoustica Audio Converter Pro - This program converts audio formats and bitrates. Perfect for those with portable audio players or large music collections. 30 day trial.

Adobe Premier Elements 7 - Elements is the home version of Adobe Premiere, the best professional video editing suite today. Premier Elements costs 1/6th the price of the professional version, but is very capable of making videos that will impress everyone.

DVDFab is my favorite DVD software. I tried over 30 different programs before settling on DVDFab. It offers every function of the other programs and more! Copy, burn, shrink, convert for mobile devices, or convert for streaming. Almost all of the other programs I've tried did not function as advertised, were extremely slow, or did not have features that worked as advertised. DVDFab works, and works as advertised! It's easy to use, has a pleasant user interface, and it updated often.

Computer Hardware

Crucial Memory - Memory (RAM) is the upgrade that gives any computer the best bang for the buck. If you want to speed things up with more memory, why not purchase it from the leading source of quality RAM memory. Great selection, good prices, excellent support, and a lifetime warranty! A real winner!

CyberGuys - The place to get those hard to find cables and accessories for your computer!

HP Computers - My current pick for new laptops and desktops. In the current market I don't think you can beat HP's combination of price and performance. Their laptop line is very cost effective and the design is absolutely beautiful!

Newegg - Newegg.com is known for great service and awesome pricing on computers, upgrades, and electronics. If you're looking for computers, computer parts, or electronics you owe it to yourself to start here! Great Products. Great Prices. Great Customer Service!

Computer Maintenance Software

Diskeeper 2008 - My current favorite defrag program. As files are written and erased from the hard drive they begin to leave "spaces" behind. When the drive is written to again files are broken up to fill in these spaces. This causes the drive to go to several different locations to read an entire file, which slows performance greatly. Diskeeper has several advanced features such as; automatic defrag, scheduled defrag, and the ability to defrag the MFT (Master File Table) and paging file. 30 day trial.

Registry Mechanic - A very thorough and efficient registry cleaner and defragmenter. A definite must to maintain peak performance and stabile operation. 30 day trial.

Computer Utility Software

Acronis True Image 2010 - Do you value the data on your computer? Do you value your time? How much time will you spend recovering data and returning your computer to its original state after a hardware failure or software glitch? True Image is my #1 choice in backup tools. Whether you choose file or image based backups (you should use both!) True Image will perform better than any other application I've used. Disk images created with True Image are generally 10-20% smaller than those from comparable programs. If your time and files are as important to you as mine are to me this is a must have.

Acronis Disk Director - My favorite tool to partition, format, and resize hard drives.

Roboform - This program is the next best thing since sliced bread in my book! This program integrates into Internet Explorer and firefox. It generates very secure passwords at the click of a button. How do I remember these complex passwords? Roboform allows you to save passwords and personal data in an encrypted format. A master password (yes only one password to remember!) allows access. Roboform in IE and FireFox works like a super powered bookmark. You click the site you want to go to and Roboform opens the site, enters your username and password for the site (if required) and as if by magic clicks the submit button. If you shop online Roboform can enter your personal information and credit card information, which is also stored in a secure encrypted file, in one click. A real time saver with great security thrown in to boot! 30 day trial.

WinRar - What is commonly called a zip utility, similar to the more widely known WinZip. WinRar is faster and works with more formats for about 1/2 the price of WinZip. 30 day trial.

Desktop Utility Software

Bootskin Vista - Change the boot screen (the one with the moving bar) in Vista. It's free!

LogonStudio - Change the screen that appears when you log into Windows (where you enter your password). Hundreds of skins available online. It's free.

CursorFX Plus - Change the cursors on your computer, add interesting effects. Hundreds of cursor packs are available online for free.

IconPackager 4 - Icon Packager puts you in control to change every icon with the click of a button. Tired of the plain icons built into Windows? There are hundreds of Icon Packs available online for free, which will add a truly personal feel to your computer.

WindowBlinds 6 - WindowBlinds changes the look and feel of Windows. By changing the appearance of the task bar, start menu, and any other window or program you open. It adds transparency, shadows, alpha blending, and animations. Hundreds of themes are available online for free.

Internet and Email

1&1 hosting - If you want to start your own website, blog, photo gallery, or have a personalized email address then 1&1 is for you. 1&1 can not be beat for reliability, features, support, and price. 90 day guarantee.

Google Gmail - The best internet based email (webmail) available. Each mailbox has a 6.5GB limit. The interface is superb, and the spam filter is top notch. You will never need to delete an email again! It has a great search function and a feature called thread view, which makes finding emails easy. A webmail account offers several advantages including not being required to change your email address if you change service providers. Gmail requires an invitation from a current member. If you are interested shoot me an email and I'll send you an invite.

Microsoft Outlook 2007 - Outlook is the current email client of choice for corporate America. I get well over 200 emails a day. Outlook has a few features I really need such as a plug in for automatic backups, office sounds which offers me some audible feedback, and the ability to change headers. I've used Mozilla Thunderbird and liked it a lot. With the amount of mail I go through I really need the features of Outlook. If you aren't a heavy user, or don't need the features I do then Thunderbird is a great alternative.

Firefox 3 - An amazing, free, web browser. If you aren't using it you should be! Highly customizable through addins called extensions. There are thousands of extensions which can allow FireFox to do just about anything you can imagine. More importantly, Firefox is not subject to ActiveX, which is a large part of Internet Explorer, AOL, and MSN. No ActiveX means much less chance of getting spyware! Firefox also conforms to web standards more closely than Internet Explorer, which means you will see what the authors intended, not Microsoft.

Mozilla Thunderbird - A great free email client, from the same folks that brought us FireFox. Easy to use and highly customizable through extensions.

Photo and Picture Software

Adobe Photoshop Elements 7 - Photoshop Elements is the home version of Adobe Photoshop. If you are serious about digital photos you will find Photoshop Elements a great program to have at your disposal. Elements provides all the functionality most will need at 1/6th the price of the full Photoshop version.

Picasa - A great (FREE) way to organize, edit, and share your digital photos.

Please take a moment and comment on this software in the box below!

#7 - Useful Freeware

If you find a program that hasn't been included in a previous newsletter tell me by emailing me at

RealWorld Cursor Editor - Create or edit your cursors - XP/Vista

Vista4Experts - Adjust hidden Vista settings - Vista

Jarte - A small portable word processor - 98/2000/XP/Vista

LeechBlock - Spending too much time on the internet? Try this Firefox extension

Please take a moment and comment on this software in the box below!

#8 - Useful websites

If you find a website that hasn't been included in a previous newsletter tell me by emailing me at

Vista Help Line - Vista information and links.

CDFreaks - Help for all your CD and DVD burning issues and problems.

YouSendIt - Send files up to 100MB to anyone.

Please take a moment and comment on these websites in the box below!

#9 - The Lighter Side

I spend thousands of hours each week searching the internet for funny or entertaining items to share with my readers. Enjoy!

Dutch Department Store website - You've got to check out their website! Thanks to Gerry and Jim

Wife School - If it were only this easy! (I'm kidding) - adult content

Bill Gates and Steve Jobs - Is this really what they're like when they get together? - adult content

Stay at home server - A flashback to those early grade school books!

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#10 - Odds and Ends

Vista Service Pack 1 is coming... Sort of

Microsoft has announced that SP1 for Vista has reached RTM (Released To Manufacturing). That's the good news.

The bad news? It appears there are issues between certain audio/video drivers and SP1. Because of this reason Microsoft has decided to wait until mid March to release SP1 through Windows Update. Their plan is to verify device drivers through Windows Update. If drivers known to cause an issue are found Windows Update will not offer you SP1, but updated drivers. After updating your drivers you will be able to get SP1. This 30 to 45 delay will allow Microsoft engineers to work through the process so it works and give hardware manufacturers time to produce drivers that are completely compatible.

Microsoft has received a large amount of flak on the web for this decision, but I have to agree with Microsoft on this one. They are really damned if they do and damned if they don't! I think it's in everyone's best interest (including the complainers) if the SP1 update goes smoothly.

I will say this (and probably repeat it several times before the release), back up your computer before installing SP1. Installing a service pack on an operating system is a Big Deal! Hundreds of important files are replaced and updated and one error can leave you without a working computer. It will be a rare happening, but you don't want to be the one it's happening to! A drive image with a program such as True Image is the recommended backup choice, but at the very least you should backup everything you feel is important!

Carol Offers Daves Computer Tips Readers a Special Deal!

Carol (our resident Microsoft Office Guru) recently finished a 4 ebook series on Office 2007. The book has been selling elsewhere for $29.95.

Carol has graciously offered to add a 1 yr membership to the paid version of her monthly newsletter ($18/yr) for only $3.05. Readers get all four ebooks and a 1 year membership on her site for only $33! Of course she set a time limit (there's always a catch) of February 15th, so get yours before then.

If you would like to take advantage of this special offer visit www.carolscorneroffice.com/daves_special.php.

Webroot Spy Sweeper Special Deal

For a limited time Webroot, the maker of Spy Sweeper, is offering a 3 for 1 deal. Get 3 copies of the best antispyware program for the price of 1!

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This site and all content are copyrighted by their respective authors. Copyright © 2008 by David Hartsock. All rights reserved.