Personal Computer World articles from February 2009

Personal Computer World archives from February 2009

Master panoramic pictures.
February 19, 2009... Byline: Ken McMahon Master panoramic pictures How to combine multiple shots into one impressive scene Situations where I take one photo of a scene are becoming increasingly rare. Regular readers will know I'm a keen panographer...

Whati?1/2s up, DOC?
February 19, 2009... Byline: Tim Nott What's up, DOC? How to deal with the knotty problem of when documents fail to open Double-click on a Word .doc file in Explorer and it will launch Microsoft Word and load the document. Except, of course, when it...

Heavenly hosts.(Windows 7)
February 19, 2009... Byline: Tim Nott Heavenly hosts How to use the Hosts file to resolve IP issues; and a look at some Windows 7 features ADomain Name System (DNS) server translates domain names, that you and I can understand, such as www.google.com,...

Fedora 10 put to the test.
February 19, 2009... Byline: Barry Shilliday Fedora 10 put to the test The new version of this Linux distro is polished and ready to take on Ubuntu A after a short and unexpected delay, Fedora 10 was released at the end of November last year. This...

Complex tasks made easy with Gnome Do.
February 19, 2009... Byline: Barry Shilliday Complex tasks made easy with Gnome Do A small utility that is starting to get lots of popular attention is Gnome Do. This oddly named piece of software lets you perform sometimes complex tasks with just a couple...

BBC iPlayer downloads available for Linux users.
February 19, 2009... Byline: Barry Shilliday BBC iPlayer downloads available for Linux users The BBC is now supporting iPlayer downloads for Linux, which is great news. Previously this was available only to Windows users. The new player runs with Air,...

Views and update queries.(Relational Database Management System)
February 19, 2009... Byline: Mark Whitehorn Views and update queries Take a look at views and stored procedures; and solve a problem using update queries One characteristic of a RDBMS (Relational Database Management System) is that it will allow us to...

Home email servers.
February 19, 2009... Byline: Alan Stevens Home email servers Take a closer look at two powerful email servers, one of which is free Back in the January 2009 issue I looked at the free version of the popular MDaemon email server with a view to using it...

Designing sites for mobile users.
February 19, 2009... Byline: Nigel Whitfield Designing sites for mobile users Decisions made when designing a website can cause a lot of work later on Judging by the emails I receive, quite a few readers of this column are clearly interested in mobile...

To mobi or not to mobi?(phone browsers)(Brief article)
February 19, 2009... Byline: Nigel Whitfield To mobi or not to mobi? PCW reader, Tim Boddington, writes: "In 2006 .mobi was introduced as a TLD (Top Level Domain) for mobile devices. This seemed like a good idea and I produced a very simple site with data...

Air or light?(Adobe Flash Player)(Brief article)
February 19, 2009... Byline: Nigel Whitfield Air or light? For a long time now, if you wanted to deliver applications on the internet the most sensible choice has been Adobe's Flash. While it may have begun life as a tool to create animations you skipped...

Quiet quandaries.(cooling fans)
February 19, 2009... Byline: Gordon Laing Quiet quandaries Your definition of quiet may differ from that of cooler manufacturers Quiet cooling continues to be a popular subject in the Hands On mailbox, but a recent message noted that some 'quiet'...

Sounds better.
February 19, 2009... Byline: Gordon Laing Sounds better If you're after superior sound, here are some great tips for audiophiles The Hardware mailbag has been buzzing with comments following our recent columns on getting serious quality audio from...

Remembering the members.
February 19, 2009... Byline: Stephen Wells Remembering the members How to manipulate Autocomplete, Autofill and more The entry for the oldest member of the Puddlestone Bowls Club still reads Bertram Smythe Esq, though his contemporaries call him Bertie...

How to tag your video clips.
February 19, 2009... Byline: Various How to tag your video clips Digital imaging Q In the dim and distant past (maybe two years ago or so!), PCW reviewed Adobe Premiere Elements and praised its ability to organise digital images, and especially the...

Sort Access queries by date.(Microsoft Access)(Brief article)
February 19, 2009... Byline: Various Sort Access queries by date Databases Q I'm fairly new to Access and have been writing queries to find stuff. My question is: do queries always have to show you all the answers? My queries are almost always sorted...

Grappling with gadgets.
February 19, 2009... Byline: Tim Anderson Grappling with gadgets Discover how to create a Windows gadget and some new uses for C++ on the web Windows Vista supports gadgets; mini-applications you can display on the sidebar or drag to the desktop....

Google and Adobe breathe new life into C and C++ on the web.
February 19, 2009... Byline: Tim Anderson Google and Adobe breathe new life into C and C++ on the web Both Google and Adobe have research projects that give new life to C and C++ code on the web. These languages compile to native code, which is normally...

IPv6 to the rescue.
February 19, 2009... Byline: Will Stapley IPv6 to the rescue According to experts, we will run out of IPv4 web addresses next year. Thankfully, IPv6, which uses 128-bit binary numbers as opposed to IPv4's 32-bit, is here to save the day. In Windows this...

HO Question time.
February 19, 2009... Hardware Q I recently installed Cyberlink Power DVD in order to watch Blu-ray discs, but I now no longer hear the sound from DVDs or TV shows within Media Center, even though the former play fine with sound from within Power DVD itself....

Navevo Pronav PNN-200.
February 19, 2009... Byline: Alan Stevens Navevo Pronav PNN-200 Keep on trucking with this professional sat-nav device Mobile satellite navigation devices are all very similar, with what you buy mostly down to price and personal taste. The Pronav...

Clickfree Transformer.(Product/service evaluation)
February 19, 2009... Byline: Tom Royal Clickfree Transformer Turn any USB drive into an easy backup device The Transformer is a USB dongle that enables you to use the Clickfree backup software with any external hard disk. This system has one...

Cowon S9 Curve.
February 19, 2009... Byline: Matthew Moore Cowon S9 Curve A well-designed personal media player that compares well to the iPod touch The Cowon S9 Curve is a mid-capacity personal media player (PMP) and serious competitor to the Apple iPod touch and...

Mesh Matrix II 920.(Product/service evaluation)
February 19, 2009... Byline: Simon Crisp Mesh Matrix II 920 The first AMD Dragon system roars -- but quietly The first system we have seen that uses the latest AMD 'Dragon' platform is from Mesh, in the form of its Matrix II 920. Any system using the...

Paragon Drive Copy & One-Click Backup 2009.(Product/service evaluation)
February 19, 2009... Byline: Matthew Moore Paragon Drive Copy & One-Click Backup 2009 Ease of use and powerful storage management in one package Drive Copy and One-Click Backup is a complete package for those who want graphical control over storage and...

Toshiba Porti?1/2gi?1/2 A600.
February 19, 2009... Byline: Simon Crisp Toshiba Portege A600 A lightweight laptop with a five-hour battery life Toshiba's latest addition to its popular Portege notebook range is the A600 ultraportable that comes in two models, the 120 and our review...

Update your Help file.
February 19, 2009... Update your Help file You can obtain a file called office2007-kb957242-fullfile-x86-glb.exe from the Microsoft Office Download website at www.tinyurl.com/5ssyk9 that will install a new improved version of the Excel 2007 Help file. It will...

D-Link DGS-1248T.
February 19, 2009... Byline: Alan Stevens D-Link DGS-1248T A business switch able to reduce power consumption by almost 50 per cent D-Link has been banging on about its energy saving 'Green Ethernet' technology for quite some time, but it has taken a...

Lenovo Thinkserver TS100.
February 19, 2009... Byline: Alan Stevens Lenovo Thinkserver TS100 This rebadged IBM server is more than sufficient for small businesses The Thinkserver is Lenovo's first foray into the small-business server market, albeit with more than a small...

Vuzix iWear AV310 Widescreen.
February 19, 2009... Byline: Anthony Dhanendran Vuzix iWear AV310 Widescreen Make yourself look silly while watching video Have you always harboured a desire to look like a character from the 1990s incarnation of Star Trek? If so, the iWear AV310 is...

Acebit Winsurvey 3.
February 19, 2009... Byline: Alan Stevens Acebit Winsurvey 3 Reach 9 out of 10 cats with this online survey tool Winsurvey 3 is a specialised application that lets you create and run online surveys and doesn't require any programming skills. The...

Taking your office online.(Brief article)
February 19, 2009... Byline: Tim Nott Taking your office online Can online office applications really take the place of desktop office suites? Tim Nott puts seven of them to the test For those who need to use the standard trio of word processor,...

Your own online office.
February 19, 2009... Byline: Tim Nott Your own online office What we've looked at here is squarely aimed at the rugged individual, but there are obvious attractions for corporate users. The idea of 'go anywhere' applications for business people on the...

GT_OfficeSuites_EdsChoice.
February 19, 2009... Byline: Tim Nott There's a distinct split between the straightforward storage-and-apps model, and the more ambitious desktop-in-a-browser paradigm. Of the latter we felt that Ajax Windows was frankly unusable. Edesk and Glide did somewhat...

Ajax Windows.(Product/service evaluation)
February 19, 2009... Byline: Tim Nott Ajax Windows Price Free Contact www.ajaxwindows.com Ajax has been the programming power behind various online word processing ventures, but the latest incarnation is Ajax Windows. In common with Edesk Online it...

Edesk Online.(Product/service evaluation)
February 19, 2009... Byline: Tim Nott Edesk Online Price Free Contact www.edeskonline.com Edesk lets you try a fully functional demo before you sign up, but the latter just involves choosing a username and providing an existing email address. As...

Glide.(Product/service evaluation)
February 19, 2009... Byline: Tim Nott Glide Price Free Contact www.glideos.com Sign up to Glide, and you get a generous 10GB of free storage for up to five users. If you want more, you can pay, and there's an optional free email account, Glide is not...

Google Docs.(Product/service evaluation)
February 19, 2009... Byline: Tim Nott Google Docs Price Free Contact http://docs.google.com In 2005 a four-person start-up with the engaging name of Upstartle created Writely, a web-based online word processor. Six months later the company was...

Peepel.(Product/service evaluation)
February 19, 2009... Byline: Tim Nott Peepel Price Free Contact www.peepel.com Peepel, from Australia, takes a more original approach to the online desktop. A large logo top left acts as a start button, and active tasks are shown as buttons on the...

Thinkfree.(Product/service evaluation)
February 19, 2009... Byline: Tim Nott Thinkfree Price Free Contact www.thinkfree.com Thinkfree started life as a budget office suite, but when we group-tested it back in 2004 it had a unique twist. Its Cyberdrive gave you 20MB of online storage for...

Zoho Personal.(Product/service evaluation)
February 19, 2009... Byline: Tim Nott Zoho Personal Price Free Contact www.zoho.com Signing up at Zoho gets you a mailbox (with unlimited storage) and 200MB of storage for online files. As well as Writer, Sheet and Show taking charge of the word...

Web wars.
February 19, 2009... Byline: Robin Nixon Web wars Not since the heady days of the late 1990s has there been such fierce competition between web browsers. Robin Nixon reviews their history and dissects the current offerings As far as browser innovation...

Browsers boost security features.
February 19, 2009... Byline: Robin Nixon Browsers boost security features With the phenomenal growth of ecommerce and online banking, browser security is now a bigger issue than ever, and phenomena such as phishing and malware are now becoming commonplace....

Browsing on the move.
February 19, 2009... Byline: Robin Nixon Browsing on the move The smartphone market is dominated by the Symbian operating system with about 40 per cent of users, swiftly followed by the iPhone with 33 per cent, RIM and Windows on 10 per cent each, and all...

Mac OSX and Linux.
February 19, 2009... Byline: Robin Nixon Mac OSX and Linux Over the years Macintosh computers have favoured three main browsers. Originally there was Netscape Navigator, then in 1997 that was replaced by Microsoft Internet Explorer, and finally Apple...

How to get Vista SP2.
February 19, 2009... Byline: Paul Monckton How to get Vista SP2 Microsoft has made the Service Pack 2 Beta available for all to try via its Customer Preview Program (CPP). As with all beta software, we would advise against installing the service pack on...

Useful links.
February 19, 2009... Byline: Paul Monckton Useful links Windows Vista Service Pack 2 Release Notes http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/dd335042.aspx Microsoft Technet article on the Service Pack 2 Customer Preview Program ...

Vistai?1/2s second coming.
February 19, 2009... Byline: Paul Monckton Vista's second coming Vista's second service pack has quietly sneaked into beta testing, but does it fix much? Paul Monckton digs deeper With all the fuss about Windows 7, it's easy to forget that...

Mindjet Mindmanager 8.(Product/service evaluation)
February 19, 2009... Byline: Alan Stevens Mindjet Mindmanager 8 Two minds are better than one with new map sharing feature Mindmanager lets you visualise complex tasks and projects in the form of tree diagrams with branches leading from a central topic...

Remote control.
February 19, 2009... Byline: Scott Colvey Remote control Helping people sort out PC problems remotely -- or getting help yourself -- isn't difficult, and best of all Windows comes with all the free tools you need, as Scott Colvey explains As a PCW...

Alternatives to Remote Assistance.(UltraVNC)
February 19, 2009... Byline: Scott Colvey Alternatives to Remote Assistance Although the Windows Remote Assistance feature is quite powerful, an even more flexible option exists in the form of UltraVNC. UltraVNC is commonly used as a support tool to take...

How to take control of a remote computer.(Brief article)
February 19, 2009... Byline: Scott Colvey How to take control of a remote computer 1After a request for Remote Assistance has been sent, the person asking for help must confirm the connection once the invitation has been accepted. Initially, the...

Movie freedom.
February 19, 2009... Byline: Joe Cassels Movie freedom Microsoft's free Movie Maker needn't be the 'noddy' option for your video-editing tasks. Joe Cassels demonstrates how to get advanced results from it If you want to make a good-quality video,...

Fading effects.(Microsoft Movie Maker)(Brief article)
February 19, 2009... Byline: Joe Cassels Fading effects Audio clips that start abruptly can give you a bit of a jolt, which anyone who has started their car up unaware that the radio was still turned on will testify. Any sudden move from relative silence...

Using Avidemux for better editing.(Brief article)
February 19, 2009... Byline: Joe Cassels Using Avidemux for better editing Blaine's Resize Effects is limited to cropping some of the image and stretching it to preset shapes. If you want more control over cropping and resizing, you're better off using...

Filemaker Pro 10.
February 19, 2009... Byline: Cliff Joseph Filemaker Pro 10 A streamlined interface makes this Mac and PC database easier to use There's no Mac version of Microsoft's Access database, so Filemaker Pro has always had the Mac database market pretty much...

Roxio Toast 10 Titanium.
February 19, 2009... Byline: Cliff Joseph Roxio Toast 10 Titanium A versatile -- but slightly buggy -- upgrade to this veteran Mac program Toast started out as a straightforward program for burning CDs and DVDs, but each upgrade sees it spreading its...

Prince of Persia.(Product/service evaluation)
February 19, 2009... Byline: Emil Larsen Prince of Persia The original Prince of Persia is remade, but can it live up to the Sands of Time trilogy? The Prince of Persia games have come full circle from the devilishly difficult 2D platformer to the...

Security on a budget.
February 19, 2009... Byline: Alan Stevens Security on a budget If you're concerned about security but have a limited budget, Alan Stevens shows how you can get the maximum bang for your buck At times like these small businesses look to trim their IT...

Upgrade your router for better security.
February 19, 2009... Byline: Alan Stevens Upgrade your router for better security There may be times when the firewall in the router supplied by your ISP isn't sufficient. For example, you may want to host your own public email or web servers and route...

Do you need a desktop firewall?
February 19, 2009... Byline: Alan Stevens Do you need a desktop firewall? A common question is whether or not desktop firewalls are really needed if you've already got a firewall protecting the network. The answer is that desktop firewalls can't hurt and...

Free anti-virus will replace Onecare.
February 19, 2009... Byline: Alan Stevens Free anti-virus will replace Onecare Although you get firewall and anti-spyware tools as part of Windows, Microsoft has always been reluctant to give Windows users free anti-virus software. Indeed, for the past...

Cut your security costs.
February 19, 2009... Byline: Alan Stevens Cut your security costs Good news for companies looking to trim their IT budgets in these tough times -- network security can be complicated and expensive, but it doesn't have to be that way. In this month's...

Diagnosis checklist.(Digital subscriber line)(Brief article)
February 19, 2009... Byline: Nigel Whitfield & Emil Larsen Diagnosis checklist This advice mainly concerns ADSL users -- cable users should call Virgin Media customer support to verify any problems. Don't try repairing cable TV wiring yourself. 1 If...

Prepare to complain.(Brief article)
February 19, 2009... Byline: Nigel Whitfield & Emil Larsen Prepare to complain If you suspect you're not getting the performance you're paying for, you need to gather evidence carefully and make sure it's accurate -- it's much harder to reject a complaint...

Use your router to check your linei?1/2s capabilities.
February 19, 2009... Byline: Nigel Whitfield & Emil Larsen Use your router to check your line's capabilities 1Head to www.kitz.co.uk/adsl/frogstats.htm and select your router from the dropdown menu at the top of the page. This will explain how to obtain...

Optimising your router.
February 19, 2009... Byline: Nigel Whitfield & Emil Larsen Optimising your router If you want to get the most out of your router, here are some tips. For wired and Homeplug (powerline) networks, check the network activity icon in the taskbar to see if a PC...

Akasa Omega.(Product/service evaluation)
February 19, 2009... Byline: Simon Crisp Akasa Omega Price [pounds sterling]120.69 Contact Scan Computers 0871 472 4747 www.scan.co.uk Akasa's Omega chassis is a well-built, no-frills midi tower and the evolution of the previous Eclipse case, a...

Coolermaster ATCS 840.(Product/service evaluation)
February 19, 2009... Byline: Simon Crisp Coolermaster ATCS 840 Price [pounds sterling]219.99 Contact Ebuyer www.ebuyer.com When the first aluminium cases appeared, some of the best were from the Active Thermal Convection System (ATCS) range by...

Inside out: The PC case probe.
February 19, 2009... Byline: Simon Crisp Inside out: The PC case probe Eight PC cases are put to the test by Simon Crisp to find out if beauty is more than skin deep These days, a PC case can be anything from a simple, well-designed standard midi...

Lacie d2 Blu-ray.
February 19, 2009... Byline: Paul Monckton Lacie d2 Blu-ray A stylish multiformat Blu-ray writer for both Windows and Mac Lacie's products are known as much for their minimal, contemporary design as for their excellent build quality. With...

Maxell 32GB Solid State External Hard Drive.
February 19, 2009... Byline: Anthony Dhanendran Maxell 32GB Solid State External Hard Drive One of the first eSata/USB devices on the market is speedy and very small We've been regularly seeing PCs with the 'new' eSata ports for some 18 months now but...

Siemens Gigaset S685IP.
February 19, 2009... Byline: Kelvyn Taylor Siemens Gigaset S685IP A multi-talented and stylish cordless Voice over IP phone Offering combined landline and Voice over IP (VoIP) connectivity, the Siemens Gigaset S685IP is a surprisingly powerful, yet...

Abbyy Lingvo x3.(Product/service evaluation)
February 19, 2009... Byline: Emil Larsen Abbyy Lingvo x3 Basic definitions, single-word translations and a bit of tutoring in one package Lingvo started as a Russian endeavour, translating European languages for Russian speakers. The x3 (13th) version...

Norton Internet Security 4 for Mac.
February 19, 2009... Byline: Nigel Whitfield Norton Internet Security 4 for Mac A comprehensive protection package for Mac users Mac users have not needed to worry too much about security in recent years, but a few recent security alerts have convinced...

Logitech Dinovo Notebook.
February 19, 2009... Byline: Paul Lester Logitech Dinovo Notebook Price: [pounds sterling]69.99 www.logitech.com Overall score: HHHHH The Dinovo Notebook is a full-sized keyboard with a numerical keypad, dedicated media keys and dual-function...

HP Scanjet N6310.
February 19, 2009... Byline: Simon Crisp HP Scanjet N6310 A fast and flexible scanner for small businesses All-in-one multifunction devices are so popular you'd be forgiven for thinking the humble standalone scanner has had its day, but that's far...

NovaPDF Lite Desktop 6.(Product/service evaluation)
February 19, 2009... Byline: Mike Williams NovaPDF Lite Desktop 6 Create high-resolution PDF files from almost any Windows program When you need to distribute documents to a wide audience it's important to choose a file format that can be viewed on...

Vodafone tests 21Mbit HSPA+.
February 19, 2009... Byline: Clive Akass Vodafone tests 21Mbit HSPA+ Vodafone is testing high-speed HSPA+ mobile links that could hit speeds of 21Mbits/sec. It has already achieved data download rates of 16Mbits/sec but plans to boost rates using...

subscribe to magix website maker 3.
February 19, 2009... Byline: Mike Williams subscribe to magix website maker 3 Magix Website Maker Deluxe will host your site for 10 months after registration. Do nothing and you can continue to use a free version of the service, but this has fewer...

A smart power supply, at last.(Green Plug)(Brief article)
February 19, 2009... Byline: Clive Akass A smart power supply, at last A US company has launched the makings of a universal power supply similar to one proposed several times in PCW over the past few years. We have repeatedly asked why the...

Going mobile.
February 19, 2009... Byline: Clive Akass Going mobile It's simpler than ever to work on the go and The Ultimate Guide to Going Mobile will show you how. Available from newsagents at [pounds sterling]5.99.