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Note: VanRamblings has been down for much of the past 24 hours due to ongoing technical difficulties being experienced by Telus, VanRamblings’ Internet Service Provider. We’re back now, though, so read on …
Internet meltdown predicted for Thursday
A few news services are reporting that a Russian computer expert, Aleksandr Gostev from Kaspersky Labs, is predicting that a large chunk of the Internet will be shut down August 26 (Thursday) by cyber terrorists.
The executive director of Dr. Web antivirus lab, Mikhail Bychinsky, quoted by Lenta.ru web agency said he had not heard of such an attack. “I do not believe in mass internet attacks because the main servers are defended, and Kaspersky Labs has been foretelling doomsday for a long time.”
Who’s In Charge Here — You or Your Mouse?
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Rafe Needleman, writing for C|Net, wonders why it is that most computer users fail to avail themselves of the myriad keyboard shortcuts that are available to make computer tasks that much more seamless.
Plus, the fewer buttons you press and the less time you spend moving between keyboard and mouse, the less strain you’re putting on your hands and wrists and the less likely you are to get repetitive stress injury.
Mr. Needleman reminds computer users of Alt+Tab to switch between applications, and Windows+D to minimize all windows. In Word, there’s Ctrl+A to select all text, Ctrl+C to copy, and Ctrl+V to paste, not to mention Home and End to move to the beginning and end of a line, and Ctrl+Home and Ctrl+End to move to the beginning and end of a document.
A Canadian Wi-Fi Horror Story
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Greg Gazin, who writes for Canada Online’s Tech News department, suggests that, perhaps, we techie folk in Canada have not yet quite reached that much hoped for Wi-Fi nirvana.
“Yes, Mr. Gazin, our hotel does have Wi-Fi (wireless) High-Speed Internet.” I’m beginning to firmly believe that this statement should rank right up there with: “Your cheque is in the mail.” If your existence depends on getting a decent high-speed connection at some of our finer accommodation providers, you better have a backup Plan B. And if they tell you it’s free I’d be concerned all that much more.
Although Mr. Gazin, like many, has succumbed to wireless addiction (“my laptop, wireless and all, became like Linus and his trusty blanket,” he writes) taking his ‘wireless blanket’ on the road proved to be a whole other story.
From Hogtown to Cowtown and back, Gazin’s Wi-Fi adventures yielded one Seinfeld episode after another. The solution? Tap into Wi-Fi 411, a compendium of Wi-Fi hotspots across the globe, plus listings of Wireless Internet Service Providers (WISP — now there’s a new acronym for you), Wi-Fi HotSpot Service Plans, and more.
Question of the Week
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I am considering a hard drive MP3 player such as the Rio Carbon or iPod. I currently use RealPlayer 10 to listen to music on my computer. Do I need to determine where I will be getting my music from prior to purchasing an MP3 player? Do any of these work with RealPlayer? — Submitted by: Don Cubitt, Langley, British Columbia
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The player you choose will dictate what music services you can use. Generally, the iPod works with iTunes and the iTunes Music Store, though RealNetworks is challenging that with its Harmony technology. For more, on players and music stores, have a look at the compatibility chart posted at the C|Net Music Centre.
