CompuNotes - We now have forums on the website! See below! Notes from The Cutting Edge of Personal Computing ISSN: 1525-4534 November 24, 2001 Issue 169 +=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+= To subscribe, send an e-mail to listserv@peach.ease.lsoft.com SUBSCRIBE COMPUNOTES-L FirstName LastName To unsubscribe, send an e-mail to listserv@peach.ease.lsoft.com SIGNOFF COMPUNOTES-L For Contact and Other Information See Bottom of Publication! +=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+= CONTENTS 1=> CompuNotes Notes, Comdex Wrap-Ups and New Forums, mailto:pgrote@compunotes.com 2=> This Issue's Winner! Links: 3=> Clickable Links, mailto:pgrote@compunotes.com Reviews: 4=> Product: Poor Richard's Building Online Communities Reviewed By: Paul Schneider, mailto:paul@studio5D.com 5=> Product: Handspring Visor Prism Reviewed By: Howard Carson, mailto:agitater@compunotes.com 6=> Product: Director 8.5 Shockwave Studio Reviewed By: Dave Bell, mailto:david.bell5@sympatico.ca --- Why not suggest CompuNotes to a friend, family member or co-worker? You can win $10,000 and they have a chance to win each week with great information! Please click: http://www.recommend-it.com/l.z.e?s=864865 --- 1=> CompuNotes Notes, Comdex Wrap-Ups, mailto:pgrote@compunotes.com We're back from Comdex and it was better than ever. We made all our reports web based as they would make huge emails if we sent them. Here is our overview: 2001 saw a smaller, more secure Comdex. We've been to Comdex when there are 250,000 people scurrying around. This year the official total was 150,000, but I truly believe it was lower. My estimate is based purely on observations such as: * No taxi lines. You almost always have to wait for taxis at Comdex, but not this time. According to one cabbie we ran with there were so many cabs on the road that by Wednesday they cut the extra cabbies off. * No extra venues. Typically you'll find Comdex exhibits in multiple locations. The anchor is always the Las Vegas Convention Center, but there are always satellite locations such as the Sands hotel. This year everything was at the Las Vegas Convention Center or the next door Hilton. * More sitting space. It used to be very hard to find some place to relax and recharge on the exhibit floor in the past. This year there were tons of places to sit down and enjoy a water or soda as the space between exhibits was sometimes expansive. One might think that the smaller show would have disappointed, but this year's show was the most enjoyable we have ever attended. The lack of massive crowds allowed us to work through the floor show spending time talking to companies and industry folks without being trampled. We were also able to attend many of the exhibit presentations that would have been unavailable with the usual crushing crowds. In a two words, impressive and accessible. The focus of this year's show was Windows XP and wireless. Microsoft had a huge booth, really a pavilion, where they and their partners showed off XP related products. Wireless was a component of almost all the big announcements. Everything from Handspring's Treo to the TDK blowout of Bluetooth products. Our daily reports are below. The links will open a new browser window for you, so you won't lose this guide. Keep in mind that our method of covering Comdex is just like yours ... we hit the floor running making notes and taking pictures of things that interest us. If you have any comments of feedback on our trip to Comdex, stop by the CompuNotes Forums and let us know. Comdex Pre Trip Notes http://www.compunotes.com/ArticleSection/Comdex2001/com2001pre.htm Comdex Day One http://www.compunotes.com/ArticleSection/Comdex2001/comdex2001dayone.htm Comdex Day Two http://www.compunotes.com/ArticleSection/Comdex2001/comdex2001daytwo.htm Comdex Day Three http://www.compunotes.com/ArticleSection/Comdex2001/comdex2001daythree.htm Comdex Day Four http://www.compunotes.com/ArticleSection/Comdex2001/comdex2001dayfour.htm Why not stop by the CompuNotes Forums and let us know what you think? http://www.compunotes.com/phpBB/index.php 2=> Winner! This week's winner: Chris Oakes! Congrats to Chris Oakes our second $20.00 Amazon Gift Certificate. It's not too late to subscribe to CompuNotes for a chance to win a $20.00 gift certificate. Last week's winner, Billie Speed said, "I plan on going to Amazon.com and more than likely buying a book. I love to read and they have a good selection. If I don't find one that I want I will use it to buy a toy for my little nephew for Christmas. Wow! Thanks again." You could win next week ... all you have to do is subscribe! +=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+= Uncover The Truth About Anyone! Amazing downloadable Spy Software that lets you find out the TRUTH about your friends, neighbors, even your Boss! Click Here: http://directleads.com/ad.html?o=12319&a=CD7771 +=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+= 3=> Clickable Links, mailto:pgrote@compunotes.com Clickables are designed to show you the best of the internet! We scour the web for each issue's clickables! These may be links to the cool, the time saving, the free or just plain useful. You'll never be disappointed in the selection each issue brings! These are not ads ... just great sites. WHAT DOES THAT MEAN? Webster is a great plug-in for your browser. It allows you to right click on any word and define it instantly using Merriam Webster's online dictionary. VERY COOL! 11/25/01 - Issue 169 http://www.bayden.com/webster/index.htm BACKING UP NT FILES Most of use some sort of backup program or at least we should. :-) If you're interested in using the built-in utilities in Windows NT or Windows 2000 check out this page. It includes all the command line switches for NT Backup. 11/25/01 - Issue 169 http://support.microsoft.com/directory/article.asp?ID=KB;EN-US;q300439 FASTEST COMPUTERS ON EARTH Did you ever wonder where the fastest computers on earth were located? This list is updated regularly and shows you where the fastest computers are located and what they are doing. 11/25/01 - Issue 169 http://www.top500.org/list/2001/11/ FREE STORAGE SPACE ON THE WEB Remember the good old days when web companies were throwing free storage space at you? Well, they are still around, but harder to find. This site lists all the places you can get free storage online now. 11/25/01 - Issue 169 http://www.webwizards.net/useful/wbfs.htm 50 BEST GAMES OF ALL TIME We all play computer games ... which ones would you put in your top 50 of all time? GameSpy put together your list and it's a fascinating trip down memory lane. 11/25/01 - Issue 169 http://www.gamespy.com/articles/july01/top50index/ 4=> Product: Poor Richard's Building Online Communities, Authored by Margaret Levine Young and John Levine Reviewed By: Paul Schneider, mailto:paul@studio5D.com Published By: Top Floor Publishing Retail: $29.95 ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ Buy Poor Richard's Building Online Communities at Amazon.Com Now and Support CompuNotes! Amazon.Com - about $20.00 -- Click Here: http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0966103297/compunotes++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ Authors Margaret Levine Young and John Levine, well known for several excellent and informative computer instruction books, have gotten together to produce one of the latest in the Poor Richard's series. Online communities, currently a hot topic in the online world, are the subjects of this latest offering. The book covers the tried and true methods of building an online community as well as offering a smidgen of advice and personal experiences. Overall the book lays down a good foundation. Where it falls short is in covering the current innovations and the glitzier aspects of the online world. We'll delve into this topic later, but first an overview of what PR's Building Online Communities does cover. Poor Richard's Building Online Communities follows the same effective format of the other Poor Richard's books providing you with easy to understand explanations and affordable solutions. This book's focus is on helping you to build a community of the grass roots variety. The topics covered are fairly broad, but in each instance the focus is on what is the tool, how is it used, and how can you apply it towards the task of developing an online community. The technologies focused on are Mailing Lists, Usenet Newsgroups, Internet Relay Chat, and Web-Based Communities. Like the other books in this series they assume you have very little knowledge of these technologies and their use. Given this premise, it provides an effective introduction to each tool and its application. In addition, each explanation is peppered with the necessary amount of technical information needed to accomplish the job. After covering the technologies the book focuses on growing and managing your online community and true-life experiences. The first topic is well covered, providing all the essential etiquette and rational advice needed to handle most online situations. The second area provides some brief summaries of real life situations. These narratives provide an effective teaching tool on how the knowledge presented can be put into play. This book is no slouch, but there are a few areas that I would have liked to seen beefed up. The first is in the area of real life stories. This topic was sparsely covered in 30 pages. Communities are more than a set of tools and a greater number of experiences with more detail would have been a welcome addition. The second area is in the tools covered. The ones chosen are the primary tools used, but a section on upcoming technologies such as voice chats, video, 3D, buddy lists, etc., would have been a welcome addition. Last, if you are a Poor Richard's aficionado and have read their mailing lists and online marketing and promotion guides you should be forewarned that many of the topics covered in this book are quite similar to ones covered in previous books. To be fair that is simply the nature of the topics, but never the less it is an important factor to consider. Overall Poor Richard's Online Communities provides a friendly and commonsensical approach to online communities. All the major tools used for building an online community are covered. The book takes the time to discuss what a community is (and is not) and then presents each tool, how to use it, and how it applies to building a community. The most important part, growing and managing your community and true-life stories is saved to the end. If you apply the tools presented and pay heed to the last two sections, your chances for developing a successful online community will improve considerably. Product Home Page: http://www.topfloor.com/pr/communities/index.htm (See beginning of review to purchase at Amazon) +=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+= Make a full time living on eBay! Find out how! Click Here: http://directleads.com/ad.html?o=12575&a=CD7771 +=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+= 5=> Product: Handspring Visor Prism Reviewed By: Howard Carson, mailto:agitater@compunotes.com Requires: Windows 95, 98, 98SE, Me, NT4.x, 2000, XP Retail: US$299 ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ Buy a Handspring Visor Prism at Amazon.Com Now and Support CompuNotes! Amazon.Com - about $299.00 -- Click Here: http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B00004Y7TD/compunotes ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ What do you get when you cross a Personal Information Manager (PIM) with a 33MHz Motorola Dragonball VZ processor, 16-bit color, thousands of programs, fast and slick handwriting recognition, and portability? The current crop of Personal Digital Assistants (PDAs) of course! The Handspring Visor Prism is in the vanguard of the color PDA models, the latest answer to changing work loads and environments. It has led the way with good usability, a handy set of bundled and pre-installed software, USB connection for fast data transfer and program installation, and good integration with Windows and Mac desktops. 3Com/Palm built a company around the PDA. Handspring, Sony and HandEra have licensed the Palm operating system (PalmOS) and developed highly competitive models of their own. HP, Casio and Compaq went another route, using more computing power in their PDA models but embedding the Windows CE operating system instead of PalmOS. They're all nice and useful. The Handspring PDAs were unique in that the design incorporates a slot for add-on modules. The Springboard slot can be filled with modules from dozens of third-party vendors: MP3 players, telephones, additional memory, voice recorders, TV remote controls, backup devices, digital cameras and much, much more. We tested the Handspring in the field and at home to determine whether or not the effectiveness and usability was really a replacement for traditional day timers and schedulers, notepads, appointment books, to-do lists on paper forms and even PC-based managers such as Outlook. This review is heavily biased in favor of the Prism, mainly because I've been using a PalmOS-based PDA for more than two years and the Prism for the past 5 months. Purchase one of these things, take it home and you can be up and running in about 15 minutes (including installation of the PC or Mac desktop synchronization software). PDAs don't have floppy disk or CD-ROM drives. Programs and other data are loaded onto a PC, then automatically transferred to the PDA when you do something called HotSynching. Start a HotSynch session (which lasts an average of about 30 seconds) and all the data on your PDA is backed up to corresponding utilities in the desktop software, and any new programs you've set up for the PDA are also transferred and installed automatically. Easy. While some old paper habits can be hard to break, the latest PDAs function well as day timer /scheduler replacements. Between to-do lists with alarms, appointments with alarms (which can be set to go off days, hours or minutes in advance), fully controllable prioritization settings, much more memory (8MB in the Prism - additional 8MB and 16MB Springboard modules are available), and a well-integrated set of pre-installed utilities for device configuration and time management which synch properly with Outlook, the Prism seems to cover most bases. If you have to take notes at meetings, issue memos to staff, make appointments outside your office, need an address book for reference in order to make phone calls while travelling, are only in your office 2 or 3 days out of the week and everything (Outlook mainly) has to be synchronized so that people in the office who book some appointments for you don't create conflicts, a Handspring Visor Prism is worth considering. A paper day timer /scheduler doesn't do all of this easily. Cons: Some programs will not run if their data files or databases are stored in a Springboard memory module. The problem is partly due to PalmOS limitations and partly to sloppy programming of some software. Fix this please! We're long past the stage when extra memory should baffle anyone! You're stuck with PalmOS v3.5 (which is a very good version actually). A ROM or software OS upgrade path is needed for future versions of the Prism. Handspring has to give the Prism a higher screen resolution or it will quickly become a poor relation to the Sony Clie and HandEra color, PalmOS-based PDAs. Paper day timer/ schedulers provide a larger visual context - lots of details about many days all at once - which a PDA just can't provide. If my DayTimer accidentally falls 10' or 15' off a precarious perch I just dust it off. A PDA which drops some distance to a concrete floor is likely to be a total write-off. Pros: The Handspring Visor Prism is faster than some of the competition. Color depth is excellent. The screen is bright and comparatively easy to read in all lighting conditions. The color-to (built-in rechargeable battery) weight trade-off is worthwhile. Enormous amount of software available. Excellent construction, excellent usability, good quality stylus. The Graffiti printing recognition language is extremely easy to learn - no more than an hour of practice to learn all the basics - and there's also a built-in keyboard so you can tap what you need with the stylus. Recharges in the HotSynch cradle. I'm getting several days of extensive use out of a full charge. Handspring just dropped the MSRP by $100. Highly recommended. Product Home Page: http://www.handspring.com/products/visorprism/index.jhtml?sub_nav_section=Overview&prod_cat_name=Prism (See beginning of review to purchase at Amazon) +=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+= Try PC Gamer Risk-Free -- Get a $100 Electronics Boutique gift certificate Free! Click Here: http://directleads.com/ad.html?o=12544&a=CD7771 +=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+= 6=> Product: Director 8.5 Shockwave Studio Reviewed By: Dave Bell, mailto:david.bell5@sympatico.ca Requires: Intel PII processor, Windows 95,98,2000,NT4 or ME, Mac G3 or higher, 64MB RAM, 100MB of available disk space, MS DirectX 5.2 or higher and a 3D accelerator Retail: US$1199 (Editor's note: This is the first of a 2-part review. Dave will follow up with a complete overview in the next issue) Macromedia Director 8.5 Shockwave Studio is designed for professional Web developers and 3D content developers to combine graphics, sound, animation, text and video to create streaming, interactive, 3-dimensional, multiuser content that is easy to deploy on CD-ROM or DVD-ROM, in kiosks, and on corporate intranets or the Web. Director 8.5 Shockwave Studio can now also use Real Networks RealVideo and RealAudio formats directly within Shockwave content. The Shockwave Studio 8.5 package includes Fireworks 4, Shockwave Multiuser Server 3 and sound editors. It is a large, all-inclusive program and definitely not for the faint of heart or bargain basement Web site designer. However, for the professional web developer and multimedia designer this program has the potential to generate enormously creative output for marketing and 3D animated game productions. I was pleasantly surprised on opening the package to find included with the program a Lingo Dictionary that permitted unlimited control over modeling by using object-oriented scripting language. With many authoring programs 'what you see is what you get', however Lingo provides developers who have a basic understanding of Java script or Visual Basic with the option to customize the application using Lingo's syntax. The program software loaded smoothly and I began working my way through the first couple of tutorials to get a feel for the program and an understanding of how the pop-up menus work. As I worked through the manual I began to develop a bit of over-confidence and had to backtrack several times. It was sort of like stepping out of a four cylinder Chevette into a Maserati and I started to lose control on the curves. Not a fault of the program, but rather of enthusiasm and impatience on my part to see what it could do. Web developers experienced with previous versions of Shockwave will be able to 'give it a little more gas'. Being new to the Shockwave experience I had to travel with a little more caution. There are several very interesting features in this program such as bones animation and motion blending, which provide unusual creative control. Bones animation allows developers to use data points along a fixed path (e.g.: a stick figure inside a character animation) to create movement, instead of data points for the entire model. Motion blending is used to realistically transact the animation from one complex motion to another, e.g.: walking to running. The Shockwave Multiuser Server 3 component of the studio helps developers create multiuser Web destinations with features such as real-time messaging, chat rooms, white board discussions, auctions and multiplayer games. This platform can handle up to 2000 multiusers at one time. I would be remiss in not including a brief word or two on Fireworks 4, included in the package. I have had previous experience with several other graphics programs and find that for versatility and user-friendly operation Fireworks is always my first choice. Fireworks 4 is no exception. Initially, I have found Director 8.5 Shockwave Studio very user friendly and easy to implement. The versatility of this program is limited only by the Web developer and 3D content developer's imagination and ability. Two thumbs up to Macromedia on this one! Product Home Page: http://www.macromedia.com/software/director/ +=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+= Don't miss out on this treasure trove of 100% absolutely FREE goodies via e-mail... or your chance to get a FREE 50 minute phone card AND be entered in the $100,000 Sweepstakes! Click Here: http://directleads.com/ad.html?o=10710&a=CD7771 +=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+= +=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+= Publisher / Senior Editor: Patrick Grote, mailto:pgrote@compunotes.com Senior Editor: Howard Carson, mailto:agitater@compunotes.com Managing Editor: Don Hughes, mailto:don.hughes@compunotes.com Archives: ftp://ftp.compunotes.com/archives Website: e-mail: mailto:feedback@compunotes.com Want to Write for Us?: mailto:agitater@compunotes.com fax: (314) 909-1662 voice: (314) 909-1662 +=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+= CompuNotes is: Available weekly via e-mail and on-line. We cover the PC computing world with comprehensive reviews, news, hot web sites, great columns and interviews. We also give away one software package a week to a lucky winner for just reading our fine publication! Never dull, sometimes tardy, we are here to bring you the computing world the way it is! Please tell every on-line friend about us! CompuNotes B440 1114 West Essex Ave. St. Louis, MO 63122 feedback@compunotes.com (C)2001 Patrick Grote ISSN: 1525-4534 __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Yahoo! GeoCities - quick and easy web site hosting, just $8.95/month. http://geocities.yahoo.com/ps/info1 *********************************************** The COMPUNOTES-L mailing list is powered by L-Soft's renowned LISTSERV(R) list management software together with L-Soft's LSMTP(R) mailer for lightning fast mail delivery. For more information, go to: http://www.lsoft.com/LISTSERV-powered.html