The UI got a big upgrade. First of all, they finally got away from that awful Human theme (it was consistent, but very ugly) and began to use the Ambiance theme.

Instead of using a drab brownish gray for the task bars, you now have a darker Steel-Gray that compliments the startup background.

The window decorations are also much different from the Human theme. They have abandoned the Windows-style window decorations to much cleaner Mac-style window decorations.

I think one of the biggest changes is with the addition of the Ubuntu One Music Store within RhythmBox. They have a very respectable selection, and from what I can tell, the prices are pretty good. There were many artists whose songs were 77 cents. It looks like they aren’t going with a one-price-fits-all scheme such as some of the other services.

The second part of this, was the native ability to sync your iPod or iPhone through USB as long as you have the 3.1 firmware installed on your iPhone. Before, all you could see were the images on your iPod or iPhone. Now you can even play music directly from your device without jailbreaking the player.

Some other changes:
By default Canonical removed Gimp from the default installation to save room. That’s fine, because it just takes a second to install it through synaptic, terminal, or the Ubuntu Software Center.
They are continuing to use Empathy instead of Pidgin as the text messenger. I think this is a very good idea.
From what I can tell, Power Management has also been improved. I am getting anywhere from 30 to 45 minutes extra battery life just since the new installation.

Both Google and Bing are now offering tools to help you accomplish this.

Google is offering Image Swirl as an easy way to find images. What you do, when you get to the Image Swirl main page, is type the description of the image for which you are searching. It then links your description to different stacks of images. You narrow down your results by selecting the groups that are most like the image you are seeking.

Bing Images is slightly different, but basically works the same way. You enter your search terms, and you are returned a list of images. When you find an image that is like the one for which you are searching, you can hover over the image and select the “Show Similar Images” link.

The primary difference between the two is that Bing is more of an information directory. For results that have been sponsored by partner companies, you will be able to access information on many of the images in the Bing image search, while Google just searches for the images themselves, and links to the website from where the image came.

Results for each are very limited right now as they are still each being tested.

From what I have seen, neither are particularly better. It will all come down to a matter or preference. Personally, I prefer the direction that Google is taking with their image search.

The backgrounds on their phones now show the face of a young Rick Astley.

This is bad news for anyone with an iPhone, America’s most prominent phone, because this illustrates that the iPhone is not impenetrable like Apple likes to claim about their OSX. This is also encouragement for others to start developing malware for the iPhone. If other malware developers get their hands on the Rickrolling worm but add a more dangerous payload, there’s no telling what types of things they could end up doing (record texts, phone calls, etc).

If you are a person who hates the ridiculous restrictions that Apple places on their phones, but still want the iPhone, you’re probably going to jailbreak it. If you jailbreak the phone, you’ll probably install the SSH Client. If you do this, make sure you also download MobileTerminal and change that password!

To change the SSH password:
open Terminal
type “passwd” (without the quotes)
It will ask you for your old password. Use “alpine”
Now it will ask you for your new password. The same rules apply to this password as bank passwords. Consider this, you check your bank account with your iPhone? What abour email? Do you ever give out credit card numbers over the phone? That’s why you’ll want a strong password.

Voila, you now have a more secure iPhone.

Read More

On Site installation packages for eligible computers start at $50.00.

Are you Tired of running Windows Vista on your home or business computer, and ready for something new, but are unfortunately ineligible for a free Windows 7 Upgrade?

Windows 7 License and On Site installations start at $150.00 depending on the version of Windows 7 you are upgrading to.

Do you have Windows XP but are ready to move to the next new thing. We can get you cleaned up, backed up, and running on Windows 7 in just a few hours. contact us for a quote.

Benefits to upgrading to Windows 7:
Easy control over your network
Quickly and easily locate your important files
A more natural User Interface
Faster file access and response times
Reduced power consumption (major benefit for laptops)

Check this chart to determine which installation method your system would require:

Upon installing Windows 7 on my laptop, it seems like everything is working except for the video. After checking Windows Update, I see that it automatically recognised my video card, and has a driver update ready for me.

Hopefully, Microsoft fixed the driver issues that seemed to have plagued Windows XP and Vista.

More to come

A Cal-State student was arrested earlier this week for “modding” video game consoles to play unlicensed games. For those of you who may not know what “modding” is, it consists of adding software or hardware to video game consoles such as the X-Box, Nintendo Wii, and the Play Station 2/3 to allow it to do things it originally wasn’t intended for.

Now, I’m not 100% sure of what Matthew Lloyd Crippen was charged with, but if it anything like what this article says, then this is highly unjust. According to this article, Matthew Lloyd Crippen just “modded” console systems, and when he was arrested, he had many “modded” systems on site. Legally, there shouldn’t be any problems with this, since, traditionally speaking, you own a console once you purchase it, and you make no agreements upon purchase to refrain from modifying said console. In our world, you do with it what you please.

The twist comes in with what “modding” a console allows you to do. A “modded” system allows you to play counterfeited games. This is why they are saying that “modding” the system is illegal. The funny thing is, that it also allows you to play free games that may not have made it into the console manufacturer’s app store. For instance, there are many small software development shops all across the US, and the world. There are even more independent programmers who do little games for fun. If they decide that they want to program a game for a child’s birthday, but don’t necessarily want to push it through all the red tape associated with the app store until it has been tried and tested, then they have to have a “modded” system to play it. If they don’t have a system that can play unlicensed material, then it cannot be played, and it was programmed for nothing.

Now, having said all that, the media has a way of spinning stories to make the big companies like Microsoft, Sony, and Nintendo sound like the devil incarnate. I bet the boy is actually getting charged with the distribution of copyrighted material. Many times, when a person “mods” a unit, they will also give, for no extra charge, a bundle of software that includes many licensed copyrighted titles.

IF, and only if, the boy was only “modding” the systems to play unlicensed material, then this is tragically unjust, as modifying your own property is not illegal. If he is, in fact, distributing copyrighted material, then he is doing something very illegal, in which our government is spending billions of dollars every year to crack down on.

You decide for yourself.

Read more here:
http://www.nbcdfw.com/news/tech/Cal-State-Student-Faces-10-Year-Prison-Term-for-Playing-with-Video-Games-52386872.html
http://www.fox8.com/business/sns-ap-us-socal-video-game-arrest,0,6682770.story

What this worm does isn’t entirely clear.  Some speculate that it will be used to create a botnet which will link millions of computers with malicious software to send SPAM, steal credit information, or collect other data. This can be very scary if you have private data on your computer, but don’t worry.  There are some easy solutions to fixing this problem.

If you have a Mac, then this isn’t something that you need to worry about.  This particular virus only targets computers running Windows. If you are running Windows, then there are some things you should check to see if you infected with Conficker:

• Check to see if Automatic Update has been disabled
  • Go to your Control Panel ( should be on the right side of your start menu when you click the Start button).
  • Select Security Center
  • Select Automatic Updates
  • Make sure that Automatic Update has been selected.  If it hasn’t, then try to select it.  If you are able to select Automatic Update successfully, then you may not be infected
• Make sure your Antivirus scanner is up to date, and run an Antivirus scan.  Most of the Antivirus scanners on the market should be able to remove Conficker.  If you do not have an Antivirus scanner on your computer, then you should definitely consider getting one.  There are many scanners on the market.  I recommend Norton Antivirus, McAfee Antivirus, or AVG Free Edition (for personal computers only).
• Try going to a security website such as www.symantec.com (the creators of Norton Anti-Virus)
  • If you cannot access www.symantec.com, then you may be infected, if not, then you are probably safe.

If you try these, and you feel that you have reason to believe that you may be infected, then you should try to download the Symantec Conficker Removal Utility which will automatically remove the Conficker-C worm from your computer.  Keep in mind, that if you have multiple computers running Windows on your network, and you have found one infected computer, then all the computers running Windows are at risk for being infected, and you will need to complete these steps on each PC.

If you are having problems downloading from the link provided, please let me know, and I will send you either an email containing the utility, or offer an alternate link for the file.

If you are not comfortable performing these actions, then please contact me, and we can set up an appointment for Virus Removal.

More info at www.symantec.com

The computer can’t seem to catch up. When you push a button and the little hourglass appears and seems to stay on the screen forever, it’s a good sign that applications are demanding more processing power and memory than the computer can supply.

the computer crashes a lot. It may make more sense to buy a new machine rather than fix an older computer.

The PC has no room for new software. Rather than purchasing a new hard drive and paying for installation, go for a new PC with loads of storage space.

The operating system doesn’t compute. If installation of a new application is attempted, and the computer reports that it cannot run on the current operating system, that’s a good sign the computer is at the end of its life cycle.

The fan is whirring. When the computer fan starts making loud noises, it could soon fail and take the computer down with it.”

I’m not going to say which manufacturer sent me this email, but I was slightly disheartened by this email. I understand that times are rough, so they are trying to convince people to get new computers, but I prefer the “Don’t go out and blow your money” approach. When I go to set people’s new computers up, sometimes I find that they are replacing an “old computer.” I will always ask what they are doing with it, and many times, the answer is just to throw it out. I offer to recycle the computer for them, and if they accept, then I take it back to my office, clean the drive and donate it to a needy family. In all of this though, I usually find that the computer is in perfect working condition. The programs will boot just as fast as they did when it was originally purchased. The problem most of the time is that people have too much stuff running at the same time, and it just needs to be cleaned.

Let me explain, some people have a trial version of one antivirus software that runs in the background, but because they didn’t want to resubscribe, they purchased a second antivirus program, which will also run in the background. Then they add some bloated spyware program. Then they have tray icons of ten or more other applications that they probably don’t use anymore. All of this causing a 80 processes to boot on Windows XP Home edition (boots around 29 with a fresh boot) causing all kinds of memory lags, giving the user the perception that their computer is slow and outdated. Rather than cleaning up the computer, or having someone else do it for them, they are told that the computer is likely to break and it’s time to replace it. Because many people know little to nothing about computers, they accept this advice and buy a new computer.

In times of prosperity, I can understand doing this. Many people would rather just pay a little more to not have to worry about it, but when times get harder, finding someone to repair a still good computer rather than get a new computer can mean that you get to keep hundreds of dollars.

I’m going to take a moment here to go through these “Reasons to Buy a New Computer,” and let you know if they are good reasons to buy, or just a company’s way to try to profit on the ignorance of their users.

1. The computer can’t seem to catch up. When you push a button and the little hourglass appears and seems to stay on the screen forever, it’s a good sign that applications are demanding more processing power and memory than the computer can supply.

Sometimes, adding more memory, or reducing the amount of processes running can solve this problem. In fact, if you have a computer that has been purchased within the last five years, it is probably capable of running most basic programs. It probably won’t run high end games very well, but for daily use, it should be sufficient. In a situation like this, check which computers you have running on startup (you may have to go into your task manager for this). Also, check how much memory you have. When Windows XP first came out, many systems shipped with 128 or 256mb of memory. By upgrading this amount to 512mb or 1gb, you can usually speed the system up dramatically.

2. The computer crashes a lot. It may make more sense to buy a new machine rather than fix an older computer.

Crashes usually mean that you are trying to pull too much from the computer or that there is something wrong with the operating system. This can usually be solved by backing up your documents, and restoring the system to the default. Yes, you will have to reinstall all the programs you have added since you bought the computer, but sometimes spending a few hours reinstalling software is better than spending $400+ for a completely new system that you would have to do the same thing to anyway.

3. The PC has no room for new software. Rather than purchasing a new hard drive and paying for installation, go for a new PC with loads of storage space.

Hard drives are cheap now. If you go online, you can find deals for 500gb drives for less than $100. If your computer is capable of doing everything you want it to, and does a good job, then maybe you just need to switch your drive out, or add a secondary drive for your files.

4. The operating system doesn’t compute. If installation of a new application is attempted, and the computer reports that it cannot run on the current operating system, that’s a good sign the computer is at the end of its life cycle.

This is one of the few that I would argue that it is time to get a new computer. If you are still running Windows 98, then there are few, if any, new applications that will work with your system. Couple that with the rising need for computer resources, and your system may even be unable to run Windows XP. If this is the case, then it may be time to get something a little newer. On the other hand, if you are not adverse to change, there are many distributions of Linux that are designed to run on older systems. Sometimes you can just shift over to one of these systems to get modern functionality without spending the extra bucks to buy a completely new system.

5. The fan is whirring. When the computer fan starts making loud noises, it could soon fail and take the computer down with it.

There is usually more than one fan in a computer. Some can be replaced with parts that cost less than $10. Spending $400+ for a new computer when it does everything you need it to do makes little sense when you could replace your fans for less than $50 including labor.

So if you are experiencing any of these problems, and are considering getting a new computer, maybe you should have someone check it out first to let you know if you actually need a new computer or not.

People do not like change. Both Windows and Apple have profited from this fact. Let’s take a look at Windows throughout the years.

Does this look familiar? It should. This is the Windows 95 desktop. This was the first time that Microsoft offered the Modern Windows theme with the start bar on the bottom of the screen. Since then, not much has changed. Sure, the briefcase has been changed to “My Documents,” everything looks shinier, and you get a nice background picture now, but take a look at the Windows Vista screen:

For the most part, everything is the same. The start button (while it doesn’t say start anymore) is still in the same place, and you still have icons on the desktop. There have been a few things added, but it’s basically the same. Most people want that familiarity.Does Linux do this? Well, just do a quick Google search for Linux desktop, click on the images button and find out, or since I’m a nice guy, I’ll supply the link to that:

Google Images Search of “Linux desktop”

You can’t find one similar desktop on the first page. Some look like Windows, and some look like OSX. Some have a dock, some have a start menu, some have both, and some have stuff that isn’t on either.

The point is, that Linux attracts a completely different crowd than does Windows or OSX. If you look at the users of Linux, they are mostly people that value ultimate customization. This is the reason that there are so many different “flavors” or distributions of Linux. This is also the reason that many hardware manufacturers use Linux to run their proprietary systems. Under Linux, your skills and imagination are your only limits to what you can do with the system.

So, in reality, every year for the past five years or so has been the “Year of Linux,” not because it has taken over market share in the desktop market, but because it is now being used in printers and routers, on web servers and super computers. Many of the markets that Linux is prominent in are those for which Windows never made applications. Others are markets where administrators require a great deal of customization. Will we see increased uses for Linux in 2009? Absolutely, but I doubt it’s going to take over the world.