Technically Speaking03/31/2005

One of the most frustrating things about computer is misplacing files. A past edition discussed how to find content in files with Google Desktop Search. While it is a fantastic program it is of little use unless the files have some identifying text in them or at least a good filename. Probably the hardest type of file to find are photos and graphics. If you are like me you probably stay with the naming scheme that your digital camera uses so your pictures are called something cryptic like 033105abc.jpg.

One solution is to give every picture a specific and unique name like markandpatsummerinfrontofBigBen05a.jpg but that is very long, and it takes a lot of work. Plus, you know that after the first couple of times you will stop naming them just like I do, the same goes for labeling CDs and Floppy Disks. Even when you find the pictures it takes many steps to open them and edit them, to remove red eye and touching them up.

The software that comes with most digital cameras is normally as stripped down version of a commercial program, and of limited usefulness. It is normally a teaser to buy the full version since some of the best features are not available. In fact many of the programs gray out the 'advanced' option just to tease you more.

Windows is no help either, since the built in photo editor is virtually useless. There are many very good image processing programs on the market, perhaps the best consumer level is Adobe Image Ready, but it carries a hefty $99+ price tag. ImageReady CS is a full featured package that is a great value when compared to the industry standard Adobe Photoshop CS, a $699 professional program that is used by graphic artists and photographers. Both programs have a somewhat steep learning curve and have far too many options for the average user.

To the rescue comes yet another program from the folks at Google, and it is free. Picasa2, http://www.picasa.com/, is a very nice basic graphic cataloging and manipulation tool. Picasa is very easy to use with a well thought out and intuitive interface, you will be using it in no time.

The program runs in the background and when you load new photos onto your computer or create new graphic files it creates a nice visual catalog of all the folders and pictures. It does this automatically and is very fast. When it is first run it will scan your computer and create a catalog of graphic files it finds, even the ones you have lost or never knew you had.

Clicking on the programs Icon brings up a well organized screen with your catalog on the right and folder list on the left. The top and bottom of the widow offers a multitude of helpful options such as Import, Slideshow, Make a gift Cd, Backup, Print, Email, Blogger, Collage and more. Two of the most interesting are the Blogger option and the SlideShow option. If you have a blog set up on Blogger this option allows you to upload your pictures to your blog. Slideshow is very nice with many great functions including the ability to have the slideshow run while a MP3 file is playing.

Once you click on a picture in your Gallery/Catalog you are given a lot of image manipulation tools: Basic Fixes, Tuning, and Effects. These include everything from Basic cropping, red eye reduction to an effect I like called Focal Black and White. There are many other options to play with that allow to to tweak your photos and graphics.

For advanced image manipulation you need a more fully featured program, but as a gallery/catalog program to fix pictures for display or printing Picasa2 can't be beat.

Remember, before you start working on a picture, use Save As and save it as another name just in case you mess up your picture. That way you will still have the original to start over with.

This edition's question is: The record companies are continuing their hunt for illegal music downloaders levying hefty fines and using heavy handed scare tactics. They say it is outright theft and blame it for declining record sales and lost profits. Downloaders say it is not theft and that they buy more music now and that file sharing promotes sales. What do you agree with? Would/Has downloading songs change(d) your buying habits?

As always send your tech questions or comments to mat@muw.edu. They will be answered in a future column or with a personal reply.
Remember when visiting the Spectator website to find clickable links make sure you goto http://www.muw.edu/spectator not http://muw.edu/spectator without the www you will not find it.
Mark Taylor, a senior in communication, was previously an information systems trainer for the US Air Force and a technical support technician for an internet service provider. A game and consumer electronics reporter during the Dot Com boom, he now owns Fanfare Media Services in Columbus.

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Technically Speaking
March 17, 2005


This edition we look at a piece of software to help you make sweet music. Audacity, http://audacity.sourceforge.net/ is a free and easy to use audio recording, mixing, and manipulation tool that is both useful and fun to play with. I have been using Audacity since it first came out and am still impressed by how easy it is to use, and that it is free. Audacity is available for Microsoft Windows, Mac OS X, and GNU/Linux.

Audacity allows you to:
- Record live audio from either a microphone or line in on your soundcard
- Convert tapes and records into digital recordings or CDs
- Edit MP3 and WAV sound files
- Cut, copy, splice, and mix sounds together
- Apply a multitude of effects to your recording
- Eliminate background noise and filter pops and hiss from converted records or tapes
- Change the speed or pitch of a recording
- Allows for multiple tracks for multi-track composing and editing
- And more

This is another one of those programs that while also useful will have you playing with effects on your favorite music as well as your voice. It is great for making long mix MP3s and recording voice. You could for example use your microphone to record a talking email to friends and family, just record save as MP3 and send as an attachment in your email. Another great use is to take recorded lectures and import and convert them to MP3’s so you can listen to them on the computer or transfer them to an MP3 player or CD.

Audacity is easy to use with a very detailed help function; the buttons are large and intuitive. Two things are not the easiest to figure out however:

First, in order to apply an effect and that includes noise reduction, you have to select all of the song in the editing window, until you do this the effects options are grayed out. There is a ‘Select All’ option in the ‘EDIT’ menu. Applying effects to small sections is as easy as selecting just that section with the mouse and the left mouse button.

Second, converting to MP3s requires and additional download with slightly confusing installation directions. When you go to the Audacity download page there is a link for Optional Downloads, in addition to Audacity also get ‘LAME MP3 encoder’ enable Audacity to make MP3 files. Read the directions on how to ‘install’ it and it will work fine. Some of the other optional downloads are great also with additional effects and other helpful plug-ins.

Sometimes finding a paper, image, or file on a computer is a hit and miss exercise in futility. This edition we look at a way to find almost anything on your computer, Google Desktop Search http://desktop.google.com. Google Desktop Search is a fast install on your computer that will fully index all your files and allow you to search you computer with an interface much like the Google search page. This program indexes even inside of files, so that you can search by word in a Word document, PDF, visited webpage, Excel, PowerPoint, Emails and more. It will even index music, images, videos and AOL Instant Messenger chats. The list of features are too many to list, you will just have to try it.

This edition’s question is what service do you use for your legal, paid for, music MP3 downloads? The new Napster, Apple iTunes, Wal-Mart (yes Wal-Mart), or another site. Send your answers to mat@muw.edu.

Taking up far too much of my time are two amazing games World of Warcraft (PC) a MMORPG (massively multiplayer online role playing game) and Gran Turismo 4 (PS2) more a driving simulator than a game.

Five adjectives for each:

World of Warcraft (PC): Amusing, Immersive, Socializing, Inspiring, and Life-Stealing
Gran Turismo 4 (PS2): Exhilarating, Amazing, Stunning, Visceral, and Exciting

As always send your tech questions or comments to mat@muw.edu. They will be answered in a future column or with a personal reply.

When visiting the Spectator website to find clickable links make sure you go to http://www.muw.edu/spectator not http://muw.edu/spectator without the www you will not find it.
Mark Taylor, a senior in communication, was previously an information systems trainer for the US Air Force and a technical support technician for an internet service provider. A game and consumer electronics reporter during the Dot Com boom, he now owns Fanfare Media Services in Columbus

You guys know how much I like FARK.com, it is irreverent and crazy, choose the stories and comments to read carefully. YOU have been warned!

Time for a sample of some past FARK.com headlines:


* Shocked and a little aroused: Pot-smoking, topless dominatrix runs for office
* Photoshop this Mr. T lookalike and his pet rock
* Pretty brunette with pleasant posterior (not safe for work)
* Utah man wins $500K+ on Jeopardy
* Internet-enabled surfboards. Your Big Kahuna wants email
* City dump manager has decorated his whole house in "Early Trashpile"
* Would you care for some Moose Cheese to go with your Cristal and Caviar?
* Classic video games make a comeback
* "No one steals from God." Priest puts robber in half-nelson to keep...
* Undercover police sting discovers mass orgy of 100, yes, 100 people on cruise ship
* Genetic mutation turns tot into superboy, strangely susceptible to kryptonite
* Scrubbed NASA program has potential to beam solar power to earth
* New molecules discovered in Milky Way, universe Snickers
* Playgirl Magazine, showing that it has a sense of humor, asks its readers if Andy Rooney is sexy
* Naturally decaffinated coffee plant discovered. Cure for cancer delayed while scientists try to wake up in the morning

Technically Speaking
March 10, 2005

I am continually amazed at how fast technology is advancing. Things that used to be only for use by big business are now common place items for the regular populace. The past couple of years have seen yet another use for your internet connection; you can use it as a telephone with Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP).

Sounds technical doesn’t it well all it involves is the transmission of telephone calls over a data network like the Internet. In other words, VoIP can send voice, fax and other information over the Internet, rather than through the (PSTN) or regular telephone network. Once the realm of big business, the technology is now refined and affordable enough for home and small business users. VoIP offers potentially significant cost savings over tradition carriers. Several companies offer VoIP service, the most visible is Vonage http://www.Vonage.com.

I use Vonage at home since I gave up my home phone line and went exclusively cell phone a few years ago. The person on the other end of your call does not need to have a computer, the service calls their home phone or cell. For $14.99 a month you can get 500 minutes of calls to anywhere in the US and Canada, and for $24.95 you can move up to the unlimited plan. Vonage also offers great rates for overseas calls with the UK being only 5 cents a minute. In the package from Vonage you receive a small box that you add to your broadband internet connection and you then plug a regular phone into the back of the box. There is a second phone-in port in the back that can be used for additional lines or a fax machine for an additional monthly charge. After a painless and quick set-up you have a fully functioning telephone that even has a dial tone.

Vonage includes voicemail, call forwarding and more. One nice function is the ability to record different answering machine messages for different times of the day and it will play them based on the schedule you program them to. The phone number is assigned to the ‘Vonage box’ not the location, so where the box is so is your number. To test this I took my ‘Vonage box’ home over Christmas and plugged it into my parents’ broadband connection and was able to make and receive my calls at their house.

For a better understanding of how the technology works, and how it can be a great benefit to you visit the company at http://www.vonage.com. The service is great and very flexible; the only problem is the long wait times for ‘real-person’ technical support and somewhat confusing automated support.

If you are looking for a free way to talk to your friends, Skype http://www.skype.com is for you. This free spyware and adware program allows you to ‘call’ and talk to friends all over the world, as long as they have a computer and an internet connection. Skype even works with dial-up. All you and your friends need are speakers and a microphone, I recommend a headset for the best quality.

MSN and other messaging programs offer a voice chat option but they pale in comparison to the quality and versatility of Skype. The interface is easy to understand and the clarity is amazing. Skype also allows for text chat while talking, will include cell phone text messaging support, and other cool features.

Skype also has a VoIP called SkypeOut that can call traditional phones worldwide, and while not as fancy as Vonage, it is a great choice to try out the technology. Rates to withing the US and to Europe are 1.7 Euro Cents (0.017) a minute or about 2.23 cents at the current exchange rate. The rates to other areas are slightly higher. Again the quality is great, and well worth a try. Skype works with Windows, Mac OS X, Linux, and Pocket PC operating systems.

If you want to check out currency exchange rates check out X-Rates http://www.x-rates.com/calculator.html that is how I figured out what 1,7 eurocents (0.017) are in US cents. The site may make you think twice about a trip to Europe right now with the Euro so high.

The cool link for this edition is another somewhat hidden Google goodie; Google Zeitgeist http://www.google.com/press/zeitgeist.html. Zeitgiest, as defined by Dictionary.com, http://www.dictionary.com, is “The spirit of the time; the taste and outlook characteristic of a period or generation” which sounds like an appropriate name for the site. From the Google Zeitgiest site:

“Google Zeitgeist: Search patterns, trends, and surprises according to Google. For both breaking news and obscure information alike, people around the world search Google. This flurry of searches often exposes interesting trends, patterns, and surprises. The Google Zeitgeist page is regularly updated to reflect tidbits of information related to the search behavior of Google users.”

With listings of most popular searches, declining searches, news, names and more the site is a great slice of what the world wants to know. There are also yearly archives going all the way back to 2001. Well worth a look and a bookmark, like Google Video http://video.google.com it is another semi-hidden Google link.

In other news: Apple has realigned their iPod line of portable music playerswith the introduction of new capacity iPod Photo and new iPod Mini. iPod photois now available in 30GB and 60GB sizes, the standard iPod is now only in 20GB,and the iPod Mini is available in 4GB and 6GB size, the iPod Shuffle isavailable in 512MB and 1GB. Prices for the iPod line are from $99 for the 512MBMini to $449 for the 60GB Photo.

The question of the week for this edition is: Do you find these articles interesting and have you used any of the programs, or visited any of the links mentioned in them? and Do you have any interesting links or programs you would like to share with the campus?

As always send your tech questions or comments to mat@muw.edu and they will be answered in a future column or with a personal reply.

Mark Taylor, a senior in communication, was previously an information systems
trainer for the US Air Force and a technical support technician for an internet
service provider. A game and consumer electronics reporter during the Dot Com
boom, he now owns Fanfare Media Services in Columbus.

Technically Speaking 03/01/2005

A recall, and update, a new contender, and more, this is Technically Speaking.

Microsoft is recalling power cords for their Xbox console. There has been a very small incidence of problems but in order to avoid any harm (Read: Lawsuits) they are replacing the power cords for free. It seems that there has been some scorching of carpets and a few people have gotten minor burns similar to touching an iron.

From the Xbox site:

“Microsoft is providing new power cords at no charge to replace the cords that originally came with some Xbox consoles. “

For more information on this recall and to see if you qualify for a free replacement power cord visit Xbox.com, there is an “Important Safety Notice” link on the right of the main page.

The new plugs appear not to be as easy to deal with as the straight line cords that came with the system; reports indicate that the new cord has a box at the wall plug end and a reset button. It looks like it will be a plug hog, covering a second socket with its sheer bulk.

This edition’s cool link is Google Video http://video.google.com . It is a service that allows you to search an ever increasing database of television shows for your key word. The technology uses the Closed Captioning in shows to locate the word. Once you run the search a still from the show is displayed with a short description of the show and a link. Clicking on the link takes you to a page that has all the stills from that show that the word is said, the accompanying dialog, and when in the show it occurs.

I am a big fan of the show ‘LOST’ on ABC and I typed in ‘Locke’ a character on the show and got 42 hits, not all of that character, in fact I got a hit for the show ‘Matlock’, a news show, and an Arena football show, amongst others. Google Video pulls from a great many channels, all the majors and many affiliates and some obscure ones. It is very interesting and well worth a look.

Another link from Google is a page that gives hints on how to use the search engine more effectively. The Google Cheat sheet http://www.google.com/help/cheatsheet.html is a great resource on how to use some of the more hidden tools Google has. You can use Google as a calculator, a currency converter and more. The Google local search is also very helpful. Well worth a bookmark to help make your searches more effective.


The Browser Firefox has been updated with approximately 250 bug fixes and beefed up security. You can get the update from http://www.getfirefox.com , there is a link on the top right of the page.

The makers of the Browser Firefox, and the email program Thunderbird have released an early version of their now calendar program. Sunbird is a nice standalone program that can be used to keep track of important appointments and dates in addition to providing alarms and over nice features. This is version 0.2 so it does not have all the planned features yet, but I have been using it and have had no problems. You can get Sunbird at http://www.mozilla.org/projects/calendar/sunbird.html . Sunbird is another nice and totally free program that is very useful, give it a try.

This month Sonly releases the Playstation Portable (PSP) in the United States. The PSP is the first handheld ion many years to challenge Nintendo’s dominance over the handheld gaming platform. Nintendo came out with their new DS last fall and it has been a success so far despite having only a few good launch titles. The PSP has a large number of launch titles, a larger screen, and better graphics than the DS, but also a higher price tag. Who will win the fight? We will have to wait and see. In my opinion it does not really matter, I think there are enough gamers to make both systems successful and those, like me, that will buy both.

This edition’s question is rather simple, what handheld gaming systems do you own or have owned? The original Gameboy, Atari Lynx, Wonder Swan, Game Gear, Gameboy Color, Gameboy SP, Gameboy Advance, or Nintendo DS or perhaps even the early Mattel football games. Send your answer to mat@muw.edu . The answers to all my questions will be published in the last edition of the column this term.

In other news: Apple has realigned their iPod line of portable music players with the introduction of new capacity iPod Photo and new iPod Mini. iPod photo is now available in 30GB and 60GB sizes, the standard iPod is now only in 20GB, and the iPod Mini is available in 4GB and 6GB size, the iPod Shuffle is available in 512MB and 1GB. Prices for the iPod line are from $99 for the 512MB Mini to $449 for the 60GB Photo.

As always send your tech questions or comments to mat@muw.edu
Mark Taylor, a senior in communication, was previously an information systems trainer for the US Air Force and a technical support technician for an internet service provider. A game and consumer electronics reporter during the Dot Com boom, he now owns Fanfare Media Services in Columbus.