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The
mind, once expanded to the dimensions of larger ideas, never returns to
its original size.
~Oliver Wendell Holmes
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Kerrville
Texas
830-895-5016 |
Welcome to
another issue of our weekly newsletter!
Something
for everyone.
 No
one can dispute that the human brain is the greatest computer of all
time! But sometimes it requires a little nudge to grow new
cells. I also happen to
believe that hardware computers are very useful tools
which can
help to provide that nudge. That's why this
newsletter is not just full of computer-related information, but also
includes entertainment and educational items to tickle the brain cells.
There's something of interest for everyone in here so feel free to
share this issue and pass it along to your
friends and family...
What's In Here?
Lots of cool,
fun, and
informative stuff every week!
I'm dubbing this
week's issue
the Benjamin Harrison Edition. On
this day, August 20, in 1833, future President Benjamin Harrison is born in North Bend, Ohio. Our
Ctrl-Alt-Backspace
section includes special click-links to
transport you
to educational and informational websites
about Benjamin Harrison.
Click any of
these links to go
directly to your favorite section...
Missed an
issue?
Check
out
past issues here...
 Hear
Ye! Hear Ye!
Sometimes
we have
special sales, important notices about virus outbreaks or
other technical
bulletins. Call 830-895-5016 if you're
interested in any sale items we might list here. But please click here to read our disclaimer before
visiting or downloading software from any third-party websites.
Department of Defense study urges open source adoption
"The Open
Technology Development road map, a recently authored government report,
advises deputy undersecretary of Defense Sue Payton to integrate a
comprehensive open source strategy into defense department procurement
and development policies. Written by consultants for Advanced Systems
& Concepts in collaboration with major technology companies and the
Open Source Software Institute, the 79-page report advocates adoption
of open technologies, support for and adherence to open standards, and
discusses topics like licensing and software project governance." Click to read entire article...
http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20060820-7545.html
Powerline Router Testing Completed
Recently I purchased a Trendnet Powerline Router along with a Trendnet
Powerline Ethernet Bridge because I didn't want to string ethernet
cabling from one end of the house to the other. I also did not want to
go completely wireless considering that it has a tendency to be
somewhat unreliable at times.
Trendnet's Powerline Router promises to turn your home's electrical
outlets into a carrier for computer networking. I followed the
instructions to attach their powerline router to my ADSL modem and plug
the powerline router's power cord directly into the wall socket. After
working through the configuration settings and installing their
powerline ethernet bridge in another office and running the software
setup, it was up and running in no time.
Now I can add as many powerline ethernet bridges into as many other
rooms as I see fit and connect more PCs to the network and share the
internet connection. This saves a lot of money and effort
over stringing ethernet cabling throughout the house and it also
saves time, money and effort over trying to install and configure
wireless networking cards in each PC.
I think the best part of Trendnet's Powerline Router is that it
serves a triple purpose. It turns your home's power outlets into an
active ethernet cable, it comes with 4 ethernet ports in case you want
to use traditional ethernet cabling for multiple computers
located in its vicinity, and it also comes with wireless
networking capability.
All in all, it functions as promised while
providing three flexible ways to network your computers. You can check
out more details at the following website pages...
Latest Virus
Threats
W32.Randex.GEL
W32.Randex.GEL
is a network-aware worm that opens an IRC back door on the compromised
computer. It spreads by exploiting the Microsoft Windows Server Service
Remote Buffer Overflow Vulnerability (as described in Microsoft
Security Bulletin MS06-040).
http://www.symantec.com/security_response/writeup.jsp?docid=2006-081910-4849-99
W32.Stration.A@mm
W32.Stration.A@mm is a mass-mailing worm that gathers email addresses from the compromised computer.
http://www.symantec.com/security_response/writeup.jsp?docid=2006-081816-4557-99
 Fun
& Educational Stuff
Each
week we stumble across interesting, educational and fun sites on the
internet.
We hope you enjoy this section of our
newsletter as much as we do! But please click here to read our disclaimer before
visiting or downloading software from any third-party
websites.
The LyreBird
A Lyrebird is a ground-dwelling Australian bird known for its
extraordinary ability to mimic natural and artificial sounds from their
environment. Very interesting video at this site. Be sure to turn on
your speakers...
http://www.devilducky.com/media/46386/
Burn Rubber, Not Gas
Here is an awesome all-electric sports car that can accelerate from 0
to 60 in about 4 seconds while achieving an electric to gasoline
equivalent of 135 miles per gallon. Put this on my wish list...
http://www.teslamotors.com/
Worst Case Scenarios
"You're sunning yourself on your
apartment building roof, when suddenly, a crazed insurance salesman
bursts through the roof access door and lunges toward you. Uh-oh! Your
only escape is to jump to an adjoining rooftop and scramble to safety.
What should you do?" Click to read entire article
http://www.popularmechanics.com/science/worst_case_scenario/
The Irish Potato Famine
What was it like during the Irish Potato Famine? Check out this interactive site to see for yourself...
http://www.irishpotatofamine.org/flash.html
Solar Impulse
Around the world in a solar powered airplane...
http://www.solar-impulse.com/
Scamerica
"Scamerica.org is an informational
site dedicated to helping fight the rise in online fraud and Phishing,
marketing scams, Spyware and identity theft. This is a user contributed
site, where you, the user, can post information about new
scams/threats, participate in discussions, and help others avoid the
pitfalls perpetuated by ruthless crime syndicates worldwide." Click for more information...
http://scamerica.org/
World's Smallest Revolver
"This firearm is a scaled-down model
of the much acclaimed and mystical Colt Python with all the same
features as are found on the real size gun." Click to read entire article...
http://www.swissminigun.com/home.html
Mandelbrot Images
You might enjoy this if you're into fantastic mandelbrot imaging. Click to view...
http://tinyurl.com/qhlle
Top Ten Uses for Duct Tape
http://www.octanecreative.com/ducttape/topten/index.html
 Web
Hosting
Tips
Do
you
have a domain website hosting account with
us? If so, you'll want to check this section for handy tips
to
help make your website standout from the crowd. Sometimes
we'll
give tips about working with your Plesk Control Panel. But please click here to read our disclaimer before
visiting or downloading software from any third-party websites.
How To Create a Mail Redirect
 Linspire
Linux Tips
Linspire
Linux is a great operating system designed to be the easiest of all
desktop linux distributions.
If
you haven't tried it for yourself yet, ask for a free demo CD the next
time we service your computer. But please click here to read our disclaimer before
visiting or downloading software from any third-party websites.
VNCServer
"VNC stands for Virtual Network
Computing. It is, in essence, a remote display system which allows you
to view a computing `desktop' environment not only on the machine where
it is running, but from anywhere on the Internet and from a wide
variety of machine architectures." Click for more information...
http://www.linspire.com/lindows_products_details.php?product_id=7652
(click image)
|
The
modern, full-featured Linspire
Five-0
operating system combines the stability, security and affordability of
Linux with a familiar, easy-to-use desktop environment. You'll get all
the features of other operating systems - but not the high costs and
viruses. Save money and protect your computer today with Linspire
Five-0!
$59.95
HINT:
Enjoy the best of both world's! Let us install a second hard drive in
your PC, install Linspire 5.0 so you can safely surf the
internet
and receive email using Linspire Linux and still get to use your
Windows XP for all
your regular Windows applications. |
Linspire Linux Tip of
The Week
Don't
forget to check the archive link at that page for previous tips...
http://www.linspire.com/tooltips.php
Latest
Linspire Letter....
http://www.linspire.com/linspire_letter.php
Michael's Latest Minute...
http://www.michaelrobertson.com/
 Microsoft
Windows
Tips
Microsoft Windows is
still the operating system that most people are familiar with.
Many businesses have based their requirements around
this
commercial operating system and so it remains the cornerstone of our
onsite support service. But please click here to read our disclaimer before
visiting or downloading software from any third-party websites.
The Holy Grail of Speeding Up Windows XP
Remember how fast your Windows XP computer used to run when it was
brand new? But now it seems to run as slow as molasses even though
you've only installed a few new programs.
There are a number of things that can cause your PC to run slow such as
spyware applications or even trojan virus infections. But if you
regularly scan your PC for spyware and your anti-virus software is
always kept up-to-date and your PC still seems to operate much slower
than in its more youthful days, then maybe defragmenting its virtual
memory's swap file and hard disk drive will restore some of its
performance. Click to view entire article...
http://www.bictx.com/tip12-04-05.shtml
Free Notable
Software Download...
DrawPlus 4
"The award-winning DrawPlus 4 is the user-friendly
drawing program that opens up a whole
new creative world. With its amazing combination of powerful functionality,
simplicity and professional
quality output, this free drawing software
will give you the results you want – fast!" Click for more information...
http://www.freeserifsoftware.com/software/DrawPlus/default.asp
 (click
the image)
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I
hope you've enjoyed this edition of our weekly newsletter. I try to
make each week's edition different and special by including meaningful
computer tips and links to fun, educational, and scientific websites.
If
you have any items of interest you might like to see addressed in the
future, or you have any Fun Stuff links of your own that you might like
to share, drop me an email and we'll see if we can include them for you.
Visit
the following website if you want
to subscribe or (gasp!) unsubscribe...
http://lists.bictx.com/mailman/listinfo/brightideas
Meanwhile,
don't forget to keep your computer's anti-virus current and your
critical and security patches up-to-date for the most reliable
computing experiences on the internet.
Happy Trails~
Tomas
Bright Ideas ComputingTM
Kerrville,
Texas
http://www.bictx.com
830-895-5016
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Please
make sure that you possess the fundamental and required skill sets
before you implement any advice or attempt to perform any
troubleshooting steps we, or other websites, might recommend. You
should also be advised that we have no control over how you perform any
troubleshooting steps nor do we have any control over the content of
other third-party websites you might visit that are listed in our
weekly newsletter. We also do not know if you have patched your
computer with the latest security updates nor do we know if your
anti-virus definition files are fully up-to-date.
Therefore,
in
no event shall Bright Ideas ComputingTM or any
of its third-party product
or service providers be liable to any person for any special,
incidental, indirect, consequential, or punitive damages of any kind,
including, without limitation, those resulting from loss of use, loss
of data, or lost profits, in connection with any advice provided by
Bright Ideas ComputingTM, damages resulting from
visiting or downloading software from third-party
websites or damages resulting from implementing any advice from those
third-party websites, whether or not you are advised of the possibility
of such damages.
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