Is Google a Brain Drain?

Jump on over to my writing blog for a report on The Atlantic's views on Google. Is it taking the nation by storm, or draining our ability to concentrate? Read the full article and let me know what you think.

Mini-mini laptops

Thanks to my ever-sharp friend, RBW, for sending along the June 5, 2008 New York Times article by Eric A. Taub covering the mini-mini laptop computers available now. If you really need a light-weight computer that's wi-fi ready, a second computer for your beach house or for school-aged children, consider these new options.

Seem expensive? Nah, some of these are less than the Nintendo Wii game, and most are half the cost of a new BBQ grill.

They include:

Everex CloudBook 7" screen, price: $499, weight: 2 lb.

HP 2133 Mini-Note 8.9" screen, price: $499-789, weight: 2.6 lb.

Asus Eee PC 900 8.9" screen, price: $299 499, weight 2.2 lb.

Fujitsu LifeBook U810 5.6" screen, price: $999-1399, weight: 1.5 lb.

This summer, Acer will issue a 2.2 lb. "Aspire One," and we can expect more companies to launch mini-computers including Dell and Apple. Where innovation goes, so go the giants

Sign in at NYTimes.com to read the full article:

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/05/technology/personaltech/05basics.html

Since nobody loves Vista, windows ver. 7 will be out soon, and you can touch it!

This from the good people at InfoPackets.com

At this week's All Things Digital conference, Bill Gates and Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer unveiled plans for the new Windows 7, to be released next year. The program will not be a major departure from the previous operating system Vista, but will include some important improvements, as well as some innovative developments.

As many techies and clients will agree, Vista has been the source of some controversy and may be one of Microsoft's bigger botch-ups. Ballmer has emphasized that Windows 7 will improve upon some of Vista's failings, like decreasing the "overzealous security controls" and creating graphics that don't take up so much memory. However, there will be no new core program written for the new system. (Source: msn.com)

Newer features include a touch-screen interface. The technology will allow users to open and close windows, manipulate photos, and even play the piano in an attempt to change the way customers interact with their computers. The hope, according to Gates, is to eventually do away with the mouse all together. (Source: vnunet.com)

Microsoft's new program has some analysts begging the question, 'is multi-touch computing really worth it?' Personally, I would find it annoying and inefficient to use my finger to drag and click. Using a mouse or keyboard is far more effective. I'm sure photographers doing detailed retouching in Adobe probably feel similarly.

Others argue that all these extra novelties take up more space than they are worth -- techie software toys are really only worth the hard drive or RAM space if you are using them daily. The only discernible improvements upon Vista that have been mentioned so far are:

• Fixes in the security features that make them less intrusive
  
• Improvements to the overall aesthetic that make it less of a memory hog.

For all that, you could just stick with XP. And that's what many Microsoft customers seem to have done anyway.

How tech-smart are you? Ten point quiz

For almost a year, I've been disappointed by the lack of oomph in technology, slow progress toward a new generation of tools that would wow us, and something to enhance personal productivity. Instead, things in the tech world are pretty standard, nothing revolutionary.

Here is a quiz for you, as listed in a Chicago Tribune article today, about common terms now used in technology. Do you know at least five of them? Post a comment below to brag about your score.

1. Embed - use code to insert a clip on your web site
2. Web 2.0 - the second generation web sites, interactive like YouTube, Wikipedia, etc. I know you know this one, so give yourself a point.
3. Meme - an ancient word from Greek, now used to refer to a unit of information that spreads quickly through the internet.
4. Flash memory - you got that one right, didn't you? Score another point.
5. Digital SLR - ooooh - your camera!
6. AirCard: lets you get wifi through your cell phone on your laptop.
7. Web widget: a small program on a web page, such as weather, scrolling slide show, polls.
8. Lolcat: Even I didn't know this one. It's a meme with funny captions on cat pictures. Want to see one? Click if you love cats. ICanHasCheezburger.com.
9. Plug-in: Ha - another one you know - a program added on to enhance web browser, like Java or Adobe
10. SMS: Again, something already on your cell phone. SMS is short message service, and that what started text messages.

Score
1 to 4: Congratulations, you're average.
5 to 8: Smarter than the typical consumer.
9 or 10: You're a well-read, highly savvy, tech-expert. Bravo.

Don't fall for email from IRS.gov

There is a very convincing scam arriving in email boxes throughout the country. It's a phishing scam and requires a victim to click a link and submit information to receive a large IRS stimulus payment. You know better than to fall for that don't you? Even with the convincing email address of irs.gov and the official IRS logo - it's still a phishing scam. The real IRS requests:

"If you receive an unsolicited e-mail communication claiming to be from the IRS, please forward the original message to: phishing@irs.gov using the instructions provided below. You may not receive an individual response to your e-mail because of the volume of reports we receive each day.

• The IRS does not initiate taxpayer communications through e-mail. In addition, the IRS does not request detailed personal information through e-mail or ask taxpayers for the PIN numbers, passwords or similar secret access information for their credit card, bank or other financial accounts.
• Do not open any attachments to questionable e-mails, which may contain malicious code that will infect your computer. Please be advised that the IRS does not initiate contact with taxpayers via e-mails."

IRS Stimulus: Here's when you'll get your check

Now that gas prices are creeping up to $4.00, here's how to see when the IRS will send your check. Note the direct deposits are happening now, but paper checks are taking longer:

Here's the link:
http://www.irs.gov/irs/article/0,,id=180250,00.html

Yahoo vs. Google - I always choose the underdog...

If you're a Google geek, you may have noticed they now include notice of potential security risks with some search results.

Yahoo is doing the same, and often has better search results because Google's are like an over-congested highway.

One of the things Google does is highlight those sites that might be a dangerous security breech for your computer. In Google, a risky link takes you to a warning page saying "This site may be harmful to your computer."

But Yahoo automatically removes those threats from the search results. It lets through those that may have a link to downloads which may be spyware tricks. You'll stay safer in Yahoo if you look for the red warning triangle before opening such sites through a web search.

The other nice thing Yahoo has figured out, is how to let you know if a searched site has a nasty habit of using people's email address for spam. Now that's letting technology do something wonderful for us.

I feel safer already. Let me know if you Yahoo !!

IfUknRead

The above photo is the Library of Congress building dome. If you haven't seen it in person, you're missing a classic American experience! (loc.gov)

James Billington, Librarian of Congress, recently stated that young Americans' electronic communications may be damaging "the basic unit of human thought - the sentence."

The full report, released on April 24, 2008 by Pew Internet & American Life Project is available here, in an 83 page PDF http://pewinternet.org/pdfs/PIP_Writing_Report_FINAL3.pdf.

In full sentences(!), the report covers the influence of instant messages and text messaging on teens but also looks at the quantity and quality of writing generated by teens.

The Pew report shows that most teens surveyed do not believe their messaging and emails are considered "writing," perhaps proving the point that most of what they write, and therefore, read, is not of merit.

While most teens write something every day, the average writing assignment is only one paragraph.

At least teen blogs are more prolific writers, with the Pew report citing that 47 percent of teen bloggers write for personal reasons several times a week..

This Saturday: Electronics Recycling event

Dog bites man: Vista breaks computer

If you're still fighting with Vista, and haven't switched back to the future with Windows XP, beware of the updates Microsoft is issuing for Vista. Besides fixing what's broken, it seems they are now breaking things that used to work - like your keyboard !!

This from the good folks at infopackets.com today:

"It's bad enough when consumers opt for your last operating system over the new one. Worse still when an update to that new and not-so-hot OS (operating system) is bricking (breaking) USB devices.

Microsoft recently admitted to the media that reports that a Windows Vista security update is disrupting USB devices are indeed accurate. Released last week, the Windows Defender update was intended to patch a critical hole in its spyware blocking program. While that may have been successful, Vista owners haven't been so pleased to find their mice and keyboards no longer function.

In a statement, Microsoft admitted, "we are aware of concerns that a recent Microsoft update may be causing problems with USB devices. We are investigating the matter, and at this time, do not have any information to share."

Font-tastic

If you have Microsoft Office 2007, you may have noticed they finally abandoned Times New Roman as the default font. The new default is a fresh-faced design called Calibri -- I know it sounds like a new Chevy model, but it's a nice looking font, much easier to read on screens than the old sad face of Times New Roman.

Calibri is a sans serif with soft rounded corners. It has a warm, friendly personality that isn't found in fonts like Arial and Helvetica. It is also the one typeface in the collection that is appropriate for use both in text sizes and larger headline sizes.

If you're fascinated by fonts, read more at Poynter Online "The Next Big Thing in Online Type"

Say Goodbye to Vista?

Looks like Microsoft is making a grand sweeping gesture toward a new version of Windows for next year. Here'a report from MSN.com.

By Michael Christie

updated 1:26 p.m. CT, Fri., April. 4, 2008

MIAMI - Microsoft Corp. co-founder Bill Gates said on Friday he expected the new version of Windows operating software, code-named Windows 7, to be released "sometime in the next year or so."

The software giant has been aiming to issue more regular updates of the operating system software that powers the majority of the world's personal computers. Nevertheless, Gates' comments suggested that a successor to the Vista program might be released sooner than was generally expected.

Getting Things Done takes on Multi-tasking

For fans of David Allen's book "Getting Things Done," he recently shared this news about two Belgian researchers, Francis Heylighen and Clément Vidal, who recently published a significant report on the scientific and psychological bases for the effectiveness of the GTD method:

Productivity Principle no. 81

A single focus is infinitely more productive than a split one.

Commentary

Much like decreasing the diameter of a pipe will increase the strength of the water flowing out of it, the ability to think and do is optimized when focus is concentrated. Trying to focus on two things at once will diminish the results by much more than half. "Multitasking" only works when all but one of the "tasks" is on automatic, such as driving home and wondering when you got there who actually drove! Rapid refocusing (which is what really happens in knowledge-work environments – from email to phone to interruptions, etc.) does not hinder productivity, as long as there is a clean break from one task to the next, and you are not retracing steps. Work is diminished when the focus is split, or when refocusing requires having to repeat the reframing of context and content for the next task (as in rereading sentences you've already read to find your place again).

So, keep that in mind when you jump from task to task.

Electronics Recycling Event in Northbrook

The Electronic Equipment and Durable Medical Equipment Recycling Drive is April 19, 2008, from 9 a.m. to noon.

Location: Maple School, 2370 Shermer Road, Northbrook.

Acceptable items: durable medical equipment and electronics, such as computers, monitors, printers, cell phones, fax machines, keyboards, mice, software and printer/power cords.

All items will be refurbished and distributed to children with disabilities throughout Illinois

For more info: Call 847-400-8900 or United Cerebral Palsy of Greater Chicago at 708-444-8460, ext. 231.

Email Overload: top three survival strategies

Coping with email overload is tough, between the worry of missing something important, and the fatigue that comes from scanning the same messages over and over. Try these tips to conquer the bulging Inbox:

1. Think of email like regular paper mail: reply / file / or toss, the same day it arrives.

2. Adopt the Lifehacker.com strategy: Use three folders below the Inbox:

1. Follow-up (or Current)
   
2. Archive
3. Hold

3. File more. Instead of rereading messages and thinking "I should do something about this. I'll get back to it later." try filing the message in an appropriate folder. Either make a folder below your Inbox, or save the message in a project folder. Just click File / Save As and drill over to the project. Then your email correspondence is filed in the same place as documents, budgets, and spreadsheets.

Work, Home, You article

When you're searching for interesting reading online, click your way to this online mag: WHY Magazine.

In the March/April issue, I've got an article in the Tech Talk column on effective searching, beyond Google.

Vista's new feature: endless rebooting ??

If you're a Microsoft Vista user, you might want to hold off on their upgrade to Service Pack 1, intended to fix known problems. In preparation for the upgrade, InfoPackets writer John Lister advises: "The problem came with an automatic update sent out on 12 February. It included two files which helped get computers ready for Service Pack 1. Unfortunately, some users found the installation process froze up and, if they rebooted their machines, went into a loop of constant reboots."

Microsoft quickly withdrew the update and promises a fix before the upgrade is released next month. Oh, and they are announcing a new list of other programs that will no longer work once the upgrade is installed. They include security programs such as Trend Micro Internet Security 2008 and the digital reader feature for the New York Times. Read the full report at InfoPackets, a source I trust. You can receive their free weekly newsletters too, if you want to stay informed.

If you haven't already done so, please sign the petition to keep Windows XP alive. We should not be subjected to the painful learning curve of Microsoft's Vista attempts to gain profits on a new, non-functioning, operating system.
Sign the petition to keep Windows XP at InfoWorld magazine.

New Ebook explains Web 2.0 social networking

The Mysterious World of Web 2.0 is now available in an exclusive ebook format. Download, read this colorful 43 page book with Adobe Acrobat Reader, and get a grip on the newest wave of the internet: Web 2.0. Written in slide-show format, the ebook makes it easy to understand what Web 2.0 is, and why you should care, especially if you have school-age children.

Priced at just $9.95 for instant download, with special pricing for qualified academic faculty members.
Download the ebook from Lulu at http://www.lulu.com/content/2045895 or click here for more details.

Registered purchasers will receive updates as this fast-paced social networking world evolves.

Helen Gallagher

Seaching ... for a good cause !

Have you heard of Good Search? It is powered by Yahoo search that donates money to a charity or non-profit you designate, every time you use it.

Its a new easy way to raise money for your favorite cause. Just start using GoodSearch.com as your search engine and online shopping directory. Every time you search the Internet or make an online purchase at one of their partner merchants, GoodSearch makes a donation to your favorite nonprofit or school and it's powered by Yahoo! so you get great search results!Here in Glenview, Wesley Child Care Center is one of the designated beneficiaries. Why not be an angel, and send a few cents each time you search, to benefit local children?

According to GoodSearch FAQ, if 100 people search on behalf of a designated non-profit, and do just two searches a year, the donation would be $73o/year.

We're searching anyway -- why not do something good.

Google refines spin on local news

While Google's web crawlers always scan thousands of sources throughout the world, they are now parsing the stories, not just by city or zip code. "We're not simply looking at the byline or the source, but instead we analyze every word in every story to understand what location the news is about and where the source is located," says a Google news release this morning.

So, give it a try next time you're searching a local news story. Be an informed consumer and check your usual sources such as Yahoo news, CNN, WGN or the Chicago newspapers, but then do the same search at Google and see if you get different results. Visit Google News and scroll down to the put your zip code in the Local News box.