Tame Your Technology - Computer Repair Zone

Well, tech-freaks, today I bring you news of an exciting new competition that has the potential to fill your pockets with free gadgets.

Here’s what is currently on offer:

• Flip Mino Video Camera
• Nintendo DS Lite (along with Cartoon Network Racing and The Grinch Stole Christmas)
• $50 Prepaid Amex Card
• 2GB USB Pen
• USB Missile Launcher

In other words that’s a whole lotta goodies - total value over over $350!

These prizes have been sponsored by the excellent Affiliate Confession blog (also great for advice on the Build A Niche Store software), Market Leverage and Vat19. The result will be pulled on June 25th so if you want to get involved, just head over to Affiliate Confession and apply.

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I’m slowly trying to move everything I can online at the moment because now that I am travelling quite a bit I don’t want to be tied down to any particular computer or geographic location.

This means things like swapping to web mail rather than a stand-alone mail client and using del.icio.us rather than Forefox standard favorites.

So I’ve been experimenting with Google Calendar to help keep life organised.

What I want to be able to do is access Google Calendar on my PC while I’m working (easy) but then when I’m away from my computer I want to be able to still access it. And this is the problem I have had in the past - one calendar on my cell phone, and another paper version at home. And keeping the 2 in sync can be a real pain.

What I *can* do is log into Google Calendar using the browser on my cell phone, but even running 3G the connection is so slow it’s painful - and I want to be able to make quick decisions. Worse - the data network isn’t as reliable as voice so sometimes I find I *can’t* access the net on my phone.

But now I think I’ve got the solution and it’ll be interesting to see how it works out.

As before, I enter dates and appointments on Google Calander when at my PC. But I have also found and installed a little application on my Windows Mobile-powered Palm Treo that syncs the Windows Mobile calendar function with Google Calendar.

So if I’m heading out for a meeting all day, I just turn on my Treo before I go, power up the synchronization software and - POW! - within moments everything is on my Palm.

This synchronization happens via my phones internet connection so I don’t need to be plugged into my PC in order to carry this process out.

Even better - the synchronization works both ways so if I add some dates at the meeting, I just resync at the end of the day, and my Google Calendar account is updated.

Perfect! Google Calendar will even send me SMS messages ot remind me of upcoming events!

The application I’m using is called OggSync - I’m using the freeware version at the moment but there is a paid version - though to me it wasn’t very clear from their website what the differences were so I thought - why pay the extra?!

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There are dozens of pieces of free RSS reader software available but I personally like Google Reader (http://www.google.com/reader/) so in this article we’re going to have a look at how to use it.

Once you’ve signed for for a free account we can start to add RSS feeds to our feed reader account.

Many websites these days will either feature as RSS link or an orange RSS button like this one:

Clcik the link or button and you will either be taken straight to an RSS feed, or just as likely you will be taken to a page where you are provided with the RSS feed.

The feed address will look similar to a standard website address.

As an example, our RSS feed here at Tame Your Technology can be found at: http://www.tameyourtechnology.com/feed/

Once you have copied and pasted this address, you simply select the “Add Subscription” link in Google Feed Reader, enter in the feed address and click “Add”.

You will see the articles in the feed filling up the main window and you’ll see the feed name showing on the left hand side of the page.

Any site with some content you haven’t read will show in bold. Anything in normal text is stuff you’ve read. Every time you log into your Google Reader account it will check all the feeds to see what is new, and you can read it all there at that one central location without having to go and visit each site inidividually.

Simple!

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It seems many people are still uncertain of exactly what RSS is, so I thought I’d do my best to try and explain it.

RSS stands for Really Simple Syndication. It is a technology that allows content to be syndicated - that is to legally appear elsewhere on the Internet.

Let’s look at an example.

This blog has an RSS feed, which is linked to in the navigation menu.

Another website or blog can take this RSS feed and add it to their web page.

In doing this, the articles from this blog would appear on their website.

As an example this can be useful for grabbing related news stories from the BBC or CNN websites and putting them on your website. A dog website can thus have the latest news stories related to dogs showing. A useful service for their visitors.

RSS is also free, so they wouldn’t pay to put those news stories on their website, and the BBC wouldn’t pay to have them featured on the dog site.

But there’s something else here. RSS is dynamic. When CNN updates their news with a new dog news story, the websites displaying that RSS feed would also automatically update with the latest news.

Now of course these days we can have RSS feed readers on our own computers or cell phones. You find a website or blog that you like that has an RSS feed, and type that RSS feed address into your RSS reader software.

Now whenever that website or blog adds new content, it will appear in your RSS software without you actually having to go to the website regularly to see if they’ve updated it.

It makes it easy to stay up to date with all your favorite sites and all the latest topics, news and information that matters to you personally, from one place.

That’s right - using your own RSS feed reader is like having your own personalised newspaper or magazine delivered to your computer every day. Nice, eh?

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Using encrypted wifi isn’t the main concern here - it’s using unsecured, unencryted wifi that can land you in trouble.

It has been said several times in the past that accessing the web via an unencrypted wifi hotspot will leave all your personal details floating around for anyone to access. Worse, it also means your computer can be accessed and then infected with viruses etc.

This short guide then will details 4 steps to staying as safe as possible while using unsecured wifi.

1) Use A Firewall

A firewall is a piece of software that builds a virtual wall around your computer and helps to control what moves past it in both ways, thus reducung the chances of a hacker gaining access to your computer and uploading malicious software to it.

2) Use Antivirus and AntiSpyware

Yes, I use both and recommend you do to. A combination will help cover all eventualities incase something *does* slip through your firewall.

3) Password Protect Your Laptop

You’re carrying your laptop around so add some basic password protection (such as setting it up in Windows User Accounts settings) so if someone manages to steal your laptop, your details are still safely locked away inside.

4) Use A VPN

A VPN creates a secure network for you to communicate on and provides the encryption that the wifi hotpsot doesn’t. Whilst such technology used to cost the earth, you can now find VPN accounts for $10 a month or less that will help protect your privacy online.

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I thought it might be useful to actually *see* the differences between Forefox and Internet Explorer, plus how to delete those cookies.

So I put a video together for you.

Enjoy!

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For those of us addicted to the Internet a world full of cyber cafes can be a dream come true. On vacation in Costa Rica recently I was able to stay in contact with family and friends easily and cheaply.

But the question is, how do you stay safe when using an internet cafe? After all, you’re using someone else’s computer that could harbour all sorts of viruses and keyloggers. From a combination of my own experiences and research here are 6 tips to keep your personal information safe when using a cyber cafe.

1) Use A Reputable Internet Cafe

Is the cafe full of people? Is it welcoming? Consider asking for recommendations at your hotel. Do they seem to have anti-virus on their computers such as Norton or AVG? Windows will now flash up warnings if it’s own security systems sense a problem though just because Windows *isn’t* complaining doesn’t mean there isn’t a problem. Are the computers “closed systems” or are people downloading pictures from digital cameras, uploading videos and mp3s etc. The more interaction between the computers and other technology, the greater the chance to pass on viruses.

Having considered these factors, if at first glance all seems positive, then let’s look at the next factor to consider…

2) Choose Firefox Over Internet Explorer

For now, far fewer viruses attack Forefox as it is such a new piece of software. Likely this will change with tie but most experts agree that the Forefox browser is safer to use than Internet Explorer. Take a look at GetFirefox.com so you can see what it looks like so if you encounter it in an Internet cafe, it’sa good sign. Just because they use Explorer isn’t a reason not to use them, but given the choice, go for Firefox.

3) Run A Spyware Sweep

If in any doubt at all, use an online spysweeper tool to check the computer you’re using for viruses and any other programs that may cause you problems. One example of such a piece of software is HouseCall but there are plenty to choose from.

4) Don’t Autosave Any Of Your Details

I’m still shocked in most Internet cafes how many people stupidly leave their login details on the computer. If you use a username and password to log into a site - such as your emails or banking details - make sure you don’t select the option to save your details. Simply by visiting Hotmail, Gmail and so on I have gone straightinto someone else’s emails because either they didn’t log out, or they saved their details on the computer.

5) Delete Cookies And Internet History

At the end of your session, to leave less of a trace, if you’re using Internet Explorer, clear your cookies (small text files saved on the computer that can identify you and what you did) plus the internet histiry which lists the sites you visited.

By doing this, the next user won’t be able to see where you went so there is less chance of prying eyes working out what website you use for your email and so on.

To do this, select Tools, then Internet Options, then click the Delete Cookies and Clear History buttons before OK. It may well “idle” for a few minutes as it is deleting these files (there may be hundreds) so make sure you do this several minutes before you run out of time on your internet session.

6) Delete Any Saved Information

Even if you elect not to let Windows save your information, it may still try to save a few bits. To ensure you’re safe, again select Tools, then Internet Options but this time click the Content tab at the top. Then click the “Autocomplete” option and in this additional menu click both the Clear Forms and Clear Passwords buttons before clicking OK to finish.

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Stylish Web Design is a design blog that has just got my attention as a related blog on topics such as web design, computer programming and related topics.

The first thing I noticed on arriving at the site (besides the weird logo that I personally found hard to read) is that the general design - the Wordpress theme - is beautiful. I mean stunning. One of the nicest, most crisp designs going.

But it’s not just attractive - I also found it easy to navigate thanks to having links at the top of the page to all the various categories of posts.

Whilst the mix of posts is pretty broad, several of the more “technical” posts gave me quite a bot of food for thought.

For example here is a very interesting (from a security point of view) article on the subject of effectively managing user accounts in Windows and thus reducing the chances if malware installations and the subsequent threats to your personal data.

Another computer security article that warrants your attention (but is only a quick read) discusses how much information to send to Microsoft on spyware interacting with your computer. Author Gombos Atila gives a very clear description of the spyware community and how it works.

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In recent discussions a number of otherwise highly computer-literate people have mentioned how they haven’t got a clue how to find good-quality blogs on topics of interest to them.

This is a real shame because I am a keen blogger and also a keen visitor of other blogs. I enjoy visiting them on a regular basis, I enjoy getting to know the characters who write them and I find I can learn a lot from them to boot.

Finding blogs actually isn’t too hard.

They do, of course, appear in normal search engines like Google, Yahoo or MSN though they appear alongside normal web sites, PDF files and so on.

If you’re looking specifically for blogs, we need to use some slightly different tools.

Firstly we can include words in our standard search engines such as “blog” so we search for “gardening blog” rather than just gardening which will likely turn up a few.

But there are numerous search engines designed specifically (and only) for blogs.

Generally the blogs they list have been manually verified at some point in the past so are reasonable quality.

My own two favorite blog search engines of all though are Technorati and Google’s Blog Search.

In my experience both of these bring uo the highest quality results.

Note that Technorati will allow you to search for either individual posts *or* whole blogs. It’s up to you which option you choose. I personally tend to search for blogs if I’m searching for a general word or phrase (”computers”, “cell phones”, “cookery”) and blog posts when I’m doing a more indept search (”best places to stay in Morocco”, “is Windows Vista any good?”).

Lastly, don’t forget that thanks to bloggers, linking is alive and well.

A good number of the dozen or so blogs I visit on a regular basis were found because another blog linked them. Many blogs now have a links section or what is commonly known as a “blogroll” (simply a list of related blogs the blogger themselves like to visit) so follow some links and get exploring

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Can’t get your PC to do what you want it to? Wouldn’t it be nice to have an IT helpdesk like at work that you can just call up and they’ll solve your problem for you in a couple of minutes?

Well surprisingly this is now possible thanks to the digital age - and for a cost that might surprise you.

There are a number of companies now who specialize in IT support and will deal with general members of the public meaning even at home you can have the level of suppot you’d expect working for a large company.

Costs and tariffs vary from either a monthly subscription charge to a per-case basis with it costing as little as $20 to resolve a serious problem you’re having.

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