Diablo Blue
The Newsletter of the Diablo Valley PC Users Group
Cisco/Linksys Network Magic
Presenter: Geoff Baysinger, Cisco Systems
Does the thought of setting up a network stress you out? Relax. Network Magic helps you easily share an internet connection, WiFi, printers and files with point-and-click ease. No technical experience is needed — just do-it-yourself. We'll see a demonstration of this Cisco software package at our March 4 meeting. Geoff Baysinger will demonstrate two versions of the program, Network Magic Essentials ($29.99 list) and Network Magic Pro ($49.99 list).
Network Magic includes featurs that let you share files, printers, protect shared files, see everthing connected to your network on a map, repair network connections, and supports both Linksys and non-Linksys routers. The Pro version adds support for network attached storage devices, control internet access on other computers, and test internet speed.
A free trial of either version is available to download from the Cisco website at www.purenetworks.com. Network Magic can also be purchased online at the same website.
This month's meeting will be especially interesting and informative. We'll see you on March 4, 2010 in room H107 at Diablo Valley College.
NOTE: Diablo Valley College has parking permit dispensers that take dollar bills as well as nickels, dimes, quarters, and dollar coins, and will at some time in the future take credit cards. Note that these parking permit dispensers do not make change.
Where and When We Meet
DVPC monthly meetings are held on the first Thursday of each month at 7 p.m. at Diablo Valley College In Pleasant Hill, California, on the Main Campus located at 321 Golf Club Road. We meet in room H107 in the Humanities Building. See the campus map on the About DVPC page for driving directions, parking information, and how to get to room H107. Remember: there's a $2.00 parking fee, payable at the ticket machines in each lot. These ticket machines take dollar bills and quarters, but do not give change so be sure to bring correct bills and/or quarters to buy your parking ticket. Place the ticket face up on the driver's side of your dashboard.
We have a Networking Table from 6:30 to 7:00; if you have something to sell or trade, need technical help, or just want to exchange views, visit the Networking Table. The regular monthly meeting starts at 7:00 p.m. with Random Access where you can ask questions or report on technical problems, followed by a presentation by our guest speaker. Also, as usual, we'll have SIG news and some of our usual great door prizes.
Driving Directions:
680 Northbound:
Exit at Willow Pass Road
At the end of the exit ramp turn left onto Willow Pass Road
Continue on Willow Pass Road to the second signal and
turn right onto Contra Costa Blvd.
680 Southbound:
Exit at Concord Ave.
At the end of the exit ramp turn left on Contra Costa Blvd.
Direction into the Campus:
Continue on Contra Costa Blvd. to the signal at Golf Club Road and turn into Golf Club Road. At the second entrance into the campus turn left then immediately right to parking lot 7. Turn left into lot 7. Park (but don't use parking spaces that are reserved for faculty and staff only), then purchase a parking permit (see Parking Fees below) and put it on your dashboard. Click on this link (www.dvpc.org/about.html) to see:
> a detailed DVC map showing parking and our meeting room
> a map for driving to DVC
> an aerial view of the DVC campus
Parking fees:
On the Pleasant Hill campus parking permits are $2.00 per day. You can purchase permits at the parking permit machines marked with a red star on the maps on the DVPC website. Parking permit machines take nickels, dimes, quarters, and dollar coins. Note that these parking permit dispensers do not make change. DVC parking permits are required Monday through Friday at all times that classes are in session. That includes the times that DVPC meetings are held! Do not park in metered or faculty/staff spaces.
You need to purchase a parking permit and place it face up on your dashboard so it is clearly visible through the windshield. If you attend classes at DVC and have a campus parking permit, you can use it when you attend DVPC meetings.
Some members park (for free) in the College Park High School lot across Viking Drive from the DVC campus. Do so at your own risk!
Parking violations:
Be sure to purchase a parking permit! Fines range from $35 for parking in a regular space without a permit, to over $275 for illegally parking in a space reserved for the handicapped.
Parking alternatives:
Some members carpool and share the parking fee; they park at Sun Valley Mall, have dinner at one of the many restaurants in the mall, then take one car to the meeting. Some members park in the lots in front of College Park High School, which is across Viking Drive from DVC. Remember: if you decide to use any of these parking alternatives, you do so at your own risk!
Diablo Blue Password Access
by Ron Ogg, DVPC
You will need the monthly password to access the current issue of the newsletter. If you are a paid-up member of DVPC you'll receive an email message, usually on the Weekend prior to the meeting, with the password.
As each month's issue is uploaded, it's placed in a password protected folder on dvpc.org. When you click on the link to go to the newsletter, a dialog box will be displayed asking for the password from the email message. The password is case-sensitive; either copy it from the email message or make sure you type it correctly.
As we add the current month's newsletter, the password on the prior month's newsletter will be removed so anyone coming to the DVPC website can access older issues of Diablo Blue.
If you have any problems accessing a password protected newsletter, please email webbie@dvpc.org.
Watch for Updates!
by Ron Ogg, DVPC
With our new method of producing and publishing the monthly Diablo Blue newsletter, we can easily add updates to each month's issue. If an article is updated,the word Updated will be added in red
When we add a new article "mid-month" the entire entry will be shown in red in the Table of Contents.
Links to Interesting Online Articles
by Ron Ogg, DVPC
Here are links to some interesting articles I've found online. Check them out!
Computerworld — Proposed battery restrictions could crimp e-commerce, air travel
Buying your next laptop computer or smartphone online could suddenly get a lot more expensive if a little-known U.S. Department of Transportation proposal to tighten rules around the shipment of small, battery-powered devices by air goes through...
Read more
Computerworld Security — Adobe apologizes for 16-month-old Flash bug
Adobe Systems Inc. apologized over the weekend for letting a 16-month-old bug in Flash Player languish without a patch, even though it updated the popular plug-in four times since the flaw was reported...
Read more
cnet news — FBI wants records kept of Web sites visited
The FBI is pressing Internet service providers to record which Web sites customers visit and retain those logs for two years, a requirement that law enforcement believes could help it in investigations of child pornography and other serious crimes...
Read more
cnet news — Microsoft aims for smooth streaming in Vancouver
Vancouver Olympics--which starts February 12--will offer a range of new options, including TiVo-like features like pausing, rewinding, and replaying during a live broadcast...
Read more
Windows Tips and Tricks Update — Is there any difference between compatibility mode and XP Mode in Windows 7?
There are two (potentially three) very different compatibility modes in Windows 7...
Read more
InfoWorld Mobilize — The iPad questions Apple won't answer
What exactly does Apple have to hide about the iPad? Ten days after CEO Steve Jobs introduced the iPad with words like "magical" and "revolutionary," any questions regarding key capabilities remain unanswered...
Read more
EFFector — Know Before You Go: Tickets May Come at a Higher Price Than You Realize
Here's a frightening trend that might control how you can use photographs that you take...
Read more
AARPBulletinToday — Save a Buck: Free Manuals Online
The missing user’s manual: ...Sometimes that valuable piece of information is missing from the box even when the product is new...
Read more
cnet news — Google's social side hopes to catch some Buzz
Google is determined not to be left behind by the social-media revolution. The company wants to take what it does best — organizing Web content by relevancy — and apply it to social media...
Read more
Computerworld —Windows patch cripples XP with blue screen, users claim
Tuesday's security updates from Microsoft have crippled Windows XP PCs with the notorious Blue Screen of Death (BSOD), users have reported on the company's support forum... Several users tentatively identified the MS10-015 update as the one which triggered the BSOD, and claimed that uninstalling that security fix — which was labeled as KB977165 — returned their PC to working condition...
Read more
Computerworld — Microsoft's new 'phone home' anti-piracy practice unacceptable, says critic
The Internet advocate who blasted Microsoft in 2006 over the daily "phone home" habits of its anti-piracy software took the company to task again today for a new practice that will examine consumers' Windows 7 PCs every 90 days to make sure they're running legitimate copies of the OS...
Read more
cnet news — Plugging into the Vancouver Games (images)
A look at some of the 5,000 kilometers of wiring needed to power the Winter Olympics, along with the people making it happen...
Read more
Backing Up and Restoring Files
by Ron Hirsch, Boca Raton Computer Society, Florida
If I had to pick a single area where most computer users are extremely lacking, it's in the area of backing up and preserving the documents and other items that they generate during the course of their computer activities. Most people just dismiss the subject with “Oh I don't really have anything of importance, and even if I do, I can always redo it easily.” These people may only use their computer for the Internet and e-mail. But, redoing your address book and bookmark listing can be a task in itself.
And, if you use a program such as Quicken or Money, you have lots of financial info that would be a real job to rebuild if all your files were lost. I reminded a friend about backing up his Quicken stuff, and he said that he really didn't have to, as Quicken always backs things up automatically, which it does. But it backs things up onto the same hard drive, into a different folder. So, about 6 months later when his hard drive failed, his backup was worthless, and he was a very unhappy person.
WHAT DOES BACKUP REALLY MEAN?
Backup is the generation of duplicate files, often onto a removable medium, for all the things that you have generated on your machine. Generally, these are files that you have produced, not the program files which came on the CD. These duplicate files must be stored on something which can be separated from your machine, and definitely separated from your internal system hard drive.
Since most people have only one hard drive, it does not make good sense to backup onto that same drive. And, if you have your main drive partitioned into say a C and D drive, you will still lose your backup if the drive fails. If however, you have a second hard drive on your computer, you are much safer storing your backups there.
There are online services which offer “online backup” at a small cost, or no cost. This can offer access from another computer, when you might need that data. But I personally don't want my private data et al on an online computer, where it is possibly subject to being hacked or having that operation go out of business.
NOTE: This article is only discussing backup of your personal files and data – it is not addressing a complete backup of your system drive, including your operating system (probably Windows). That is a separate topic which will be covered in another article.
The backup media should be stored in a place where they it will not become lost, stolen, or damaged. When I was in business (many years ago), we backed up all our files every day, with a rotating system of seven tapes. Copies were stored in a fireproof safe, and periodically, we placed a current copy in our safety deposit box at the bank. Just putting copies on the shelf doesn't protect against their loss in case of a fire. Obviously, most users don't have to go to such extremes. But, for important information, it's a good idea to periodically put a backup copy into a secure and fireproof place, such as a home safe, or your safety deposit box.
In order to be able to follow and use the material in this article, you must be conversant with using Windows Explorer, or a similar file manager. Earlier this year, I presented several articles on this activity, with several exercises on the subject. If you are not familiar with using a file manager to copy files and add new folders and subfolders, I would suggest that you bone up on this subject first, and then get back to this article.
WHAT DO I HAVE TO DO FIRST
First of all, the typical user who has programs in which files are saved, generally has no idea where they are. So, the first thing to learn is just that. When you are in a program such as Quicken, your files are generally saved in the same folder as the Quicken program. Other programs may use the My Documents folder, My Files folder, the Documents and Settings folder, or a special folder that the program has set up to store things.
I personally set my own folders for storing things. And, fortunately, most programs allow the user to specify where things are stored. In WordPerfect, I have a master folder set up, name WPWIN. Under that I have about 56 subfolders for all the categories that I have defined. There is a folder named “BocaBits”, which holds all the articles I've written for this publication. One of the main advantages of having your personal files organized in a master folder is that they are easier to copy to a backup medium. Just copy the main folder, specify to include the subfolders (if that is needed), and everything underneath will be copied. This is far easier than having to locate many different folders, and copy from each one individually.
Remember, using subfolders is a must. Some years back, one of my friends stored all his files for all his programs in the same folder, with no subfolders. Finding a file to use was almost like looking for a needle in a haystack. And, name your files using descriptive long filenames which all operating systems since Windows 95 can use. Which is easier to find “Letter to Jack re the new building.doc” or “let2jreb.doc”?
Here are some steps that I would suggest users consider - change the names to suite your desires.
- Add a new folder on your C: drive, and call it “All My Stuff” (without the quotes).
- Add as many subfolders under it as you need. For example, (assuming you have these programs) add one for Word, Quicken, Money, Excel, etc.. Then, add as many subfolders under each of the main subfolders you've added. For example, the “Word” folder can have subfolders named “Letters”, “Faxes”, “IRS correspondence”, etc.. (Don't use the quote marks - they are used here for clarity.)
- Then in each of those programs go into “preferences” or “settings”, or wherever is appropriate, and set your new path and folder name there as the place to keep stuff. In something like Quicken, it wants its files where it specifies, but when you call for a backup in Quicken, you can specify the path/folder. So this folder you set up will always have duplicates of Quicken's files, ready to be copied out to the removable media you choose.
- For programs such as Outlook Express or AOL, it's a good idea to save your address book, and your bookmarks. Finding the names of these files, and where they are located will be a good exercise for you in using Windows Explorer, and learning more about your browser.
- NOTE: It is not absolutely necessary to do all of these previous steps if you're willing to do your backup work with all your files where they are now. These steps are just offered to make your job of backing up easier. If this is the case, you can skip to the section entitled “WHAT MEDIUM SHOULD I USE TO BACK THINGS UP.”
- HOW DO I GET MY EXISTING FILES INTO THESE NEW FOLDERS
- If you don't know or can't find where the program stores the files you create, go into the program, generate a new document, and do a save on it. When the “save” window comes up, it may well show you the path/folder that the program uses. So you can now go to that folder, and find all the stuff you have done previously. While you're in the “save” window, you can now specify your new repository for your files in this program, assuming it will cooperate.
- If this does not happen, do a search in Windows (START>SEARCH) to find that file, and the location path will be available there.
- Rather than move the existing files, I'd copy them into the new folder you set up. That way, if there are any “goofs” (perish forbid), nothing has really been lost. In the case of a program like Quicken, just open Quicken, and press CTRL+B. This should open the backup window, and you can type in the path/folder you've just made.
- Later on, when you know that everything has been safely copied into your new folder tree, you can safely delete the files in their original locations if you want to do so.
- When you've done this for all your important stuff, you will now have a new “filing cabinet” with “drawers” for all your important files.
- WHAT MEDIUM SHOULD I USE TO BACK THINGS UP?
- In the “olden days”, the choices were fairly limited. Floppy disks and tapes were about it. These days, those two media are not the ones of choice. Floppies have limited storage space, and most people don't have a tape drive, nor should they bother to get one these days.
- The two choices that I would recommend are external USB drives, which many people have or flash drives which many people also may have. If you're not familiar with these devices, you should become familiar - they are very inexpensive now and are the perfect media for backing up purposes, transporting, and archiving files.. Or you can use a ZIP disk, if you have a ZIP drive, or use a CD rewritable disk.
- To “burn” a CD, you must be familiar with this process. If you have a recordable or rewriteable drive on your machine, there should be a software utility to handle copying files. Usually this utility is on the CD that came with your hardware. But, it's possible that the utility wasn't loaded on at the factory. Check through the manual or help files to learn more about this.
- Remember, once you get into the habit of backing things up, you can feel more comfortable about not losing lots of time and effort trying to reconstruct things. And, when you get a new computer, your new machine can take the backup medium you used, and copy it all (as desired) onto the hard drive of the new machine.
- ONE FURTHER RECOMMENDATION TO SAVE YOUR “STUFF”
- One area that most users don't bother to consider, is the use of an uninterruptible power supply (UPS). These units plug into your wall outlet, and then the computer and monitor plug into it. Many don't feel that this is of any value to them, but I'll bet that they've had a crash during a power blink. The primary use of such a device is to keep your computer and monitor running when there is a power failure, either an extended one, or momentary power blink. The purpose of a UPS is not to allow you to keep working for an extended period when the power goes off, but to allow you to save your work, and shut down in an orderly fashion. Or, when the power “blinks”, your system doesn't crash, and you lose the work that you have on screen. Even a one tenth of a second blink can wipe out what you're working on. And, if you haven't just saved it, you've lost it.
- Furthermore, all computers should be connected via a high end surge protector to protect against line fluctuations and power surges. A UPS is also just about the best protection that you can use here. And, these days, UPS units are available for not much more than the cost of a good surge protector. Check Costo for some good values here. A capacity of 300-500 VA is a reasonable range for most home computers. Remember, as a minimum, you need to have your computer and monitor connected via the UPS. Without a monitor, your computer isn't good for much.
- So, HAPPY backing up - try it. The day will definitely come when you'll be glad you did. And once you get to be an expert at it, you can impress your friends by teaching them.
- If you find this material useful, you may want to download this article in PDF format, from our web site www.brcs.org. This allows readers to keep the material either as a PDF file, and/or print it out, and place it in a looseleaf notebook for future reference.
This article has been obtained from APCUG with the author’s permission for publication by APCUG member groups; all other uses require the permission of the author (Ronhirsch1439 (at) comcast.net).
Controlling System Restore
by Vinny La Bash, Sarasota Personal Computer Users Group, Inc., Florida
Did a shareware application you were enamored of turn out to be an unmitigated disaster? Perhaps a device driver installation, system update or modification to a registry key went bad, and your system wandered into an alternate universe. Windows has a utility called System Restore that takes a picture, called a Restore Point, of your system before certain types of operations are started. System Restore is a very handy feature that allows you to go back in time to erase actions you have come to regret. If a problem occurs you can revert back to the way things were, and all is well again.
System Restore, for all its utility and convenience, has its drawbacks. Some argue that if there is not enough free disk space, System Restore will fail to create a restore point, so an unsuspecting person may discover that there is no restore point available when trying to put things back to normal. There is also no way to make a permanent restore point that will not get deleted after a time when automatic restore points need the disk space. This could be a predicament if a problem is intermittent.
It is possible that System Restore may be responsible for your disk drive running out of room. While today’s super-sized drives make that less likely than a few years ago running out of disk space could still happen, especially if you load up your system with videos. You can reduce that likelihood even further by configuring System Restore properly.
The snapshots we talked about in the first paragraph are taken by a built-in program called the Volume Snapshot Service (VSS). There is no way to access this utility in the standard Windows Graphical Utility Interface (GUI). This means you can’t get to it with a menu option. You need to open a Command Prompt window with elevated administrator privileges.
Click on the Start orb located down at the bottom left corner of your screen, select All Programs, and open the Accessories folder. Right click on the Command Prompt icon, and then select Run as Administrator from the menu. That will open up a Command Prompt window with enough authority to configure System Restore.
Before doing any configuration, let’s take some time to understand how System Restore works. You can do this with the vssadmin tool. At the Command Prompt type vssadmin /? (Press Enter after typing a command.)
You see a list of all the commands supported by the utility.
(Note: Shadow copy = Restore Point)
Enter the command vssadmin list shadows
This displays a list of all the restore points currently on the system.
The list shadowstorage command displays the amount of disk drive space currently being used to store restore points, how much space is set aside to accommodate restore points, and the maximum permitted size for restore points.
To see what’s available on your own system, at the Command Prompt type:
Vssadmin list shadowstorage
Take a few minutes to understand the way the information is displayed. If there is enough free disk space you can store up to 64 restore points before Windows automatically starts deleting old restore points to accommodate new ones.
Making backups is an essential task, but there is no reason why Windows should be allowed to consume every available byte of storage with System Restore points. The default settings allow Windows to run amok but you can reset the maximum value with the resize shadowstorage command.
Here is an example:
Vssadmin resize shadowstorage /for=c: /on=c: /maxsize = 12GB
The /for= switch specifies the disk drive where the storage space is to be resized.
The /on= switch tells Windows where to save the Restore Point.
The /maxsize= switch tells Windows how much space it can use for Restore Points.
If you don’t specify a maximum size you are giving Windows permission to do anything it wants. The minimum size is 1GB. I have seen references stating that the minimum size can be as low as 300MB, but I could not verify that information.
After entering the resize command the system needs to be restarted to take effect. Configuring System Restore points won’t solve every problem you may have with Windows, but it will give you more control of how Windows allocates resources.
This article has been obtained from APCUG with the author’s permission for publication by APCUG member groups; all other uses require the permission of the author (vlabash (at) comcast.net).
“Disk Failure” Scare
by Phil Sorrentino, President, Sarasota PCUG, Florida
This morning, it happened again. I started the computer in the morning, as I do every morning, and staring me in the face was the dreaded "system disk failure" message. A chill went down my spine. It seemed like this happened only about a year or two ago. When I thought further, it was 2005 when it happened – almost 5 years ago – so maybe that's not too bad.
As I ate breakfast, I rapidly thought about the hardware in that computer. I currently have 3 desktops that I am using for various activities in the home, but this was my main computer, the one other family members use. Panic started to set-in. Were the disk drives 160GB, or 250GB? When were they installed? Were they Seagate or Western Digital? Is ID or SATA interface used in that computer? Are they formatted in NTFS or FAT32?
Well, if it was the C: drive then it must be NTFS. I'll have to open the chassis and look at the drives. Fortunately, this story has a very happy ending.
After breakfast, as I knelt down to look at the desktop chassis, to see what would be the best approach to remove the cables and other things around the chassis, I spied a floppy disk in the floppy disk drive. Eureka! XP was trying to boot from the floppy, an impossible task, so it reported a disk failure. Obviously!
Most desktop computers today don't have a floppy disk drive, so this will probably not happen to most people. However, it got me thinking that the answers to all of the questions I thought of during breakfast, should be in one place, probably along with a lot of other information that defines the current computer hardware setup. So it's probably not a bad idea to gather all of this information, while the computer is operating, and put a hard copy printout in a safe place.
The disk drive information is probably the most important for this kind of failure, but it is a good idea to have all the basic hardware information in one easily accessed place. Here is a list of the things that you might want to have. You may not need all of these, so use only those that are pertinent to your hardware setup. (If there’s anything that I’ve forgotten, just add it to the list, and let me know by e-mail.)
I'll start with the disk drive information because that is what you'll need if the drive goes down, or you may need if you have to re-install the entire system. You can accomplish all of this by using a free program, Belarc Advisor (www.belarc.com/free_download.html). Belarc Advisor produces a listing of almost all of the following pieces of information and additional information in the computer security area.
Disk Drive 1
Manufacturer Typically Seagate, Western Digital, …
Part Number e.g. ST3160023A (Seagate part no.)
Date Installed May be the date of computer purchase
Size (GB) e.g 330GB
Rotating Speed e.g. 7200 RPM (or possibly 5400 RPM)
Interface Type IDE (Parallel ATA) or SATA
Formatted NTFS or FAT32
C: drive size Typically 25GB (for XP) or 50GB (Vista)
D: drive size (if used) Various
Disk Drive 2
Same as Drive 1
CPU
Type e.g Intel Pentium 4, or AMD Athelon
Speed e.g. 3.2 GHz
Processors
2; Only used for multi-core processors (e.g. Intel Core Duo)
Memory
Amount e.g. 1GB
Type/Speed e.g. PC133 or DDR2, etc.
Display Adapter (Note if it's on the Motherboard)
Manufacturer e.g. nVidia
Part Number e.g. GeForce GTX295
Other Information if needed.
Networking
Computer Name e.g. "Mary's Computer"
Wired MAC address (if connected to wired Ethernet port)
e.g. 00-34-5A-BC-DF-3F
Wireless MAC address (if used on wireless network)
e.g. 00-34-5A-BC-DF-3F
Router IP address e.g. 192.168.1.0
USB Devices
External Drive (for Backup)
--Manufacturer e.g. Seagate, Western Digital, LaCie
--Part Number Free Agent (Seagate part no.)
--Date Installed May be the date of computer purchase
--Size (GB) e.g. 1 TB (1,000 GB)
--Rotating Speed Typically 7200 RPM
--Formatted NTFS or FAT32
MP3Player e.g. Apple iPod
--Part Number e.g.
--Size e.g. 4GB
--Other Pertinent Information
Mouse and/or Keyboard (if connected to USB)
Digital Camera
--Manufacturer e.g. Cannon
--Part Number e.g. Powershot SX110IS
--MegaPixel size e.g. 10MPixels
--Other Pertinent Information
Other USB Devices
Here’s a partial Belarc Advisor listing:
This article has been obtained from APCUG with the author’s permission for publication by APCUG member groups; all other uses require the permission of the author (president (at) spcug.org).
Neat Things You can do with a Flash Drive
by Vinny La Bash, Sarasota Personal Computer Users Group, Inc., Florida
By now you’re probably tired of reading about how much better Windows 7 is than Vista. me too, so let’s spend some time examining some of the things you can do with a flash drive other than mere data storage. A USB flash drive consists of a flash memory data storage device integrated with a USB (Universal Serial Bus) interface. USB flash drives are easily removable, and much smaller than a floppy disk. They are rewritable, and usually weigh less than an ounce. There is a wide range of storage capacities with the most common being from 2 GB to 32 GB. Higher capacities up to 256 GB tend to be pricey.
One of the most useful things you can do with a flash drive is to run portable applications. Open Office, for example, is a free suite of programs that includes a word processor, spreadsheet, data manager, presentation tool, and drawing package. You can store the suite as a portable application, and run it on any computer that supports Windows. Firefox and Thunderbird are also available as mobile applications.
Having office applications, email, and an internet browser all pooled in a portable drive you can carry on a key chain is a powerful combination. If you want more go to www.portableapps.com for an open source platform that works with iPods and portable hard drives in addition to flash drives. The platform is not only free, but it’s a full function site. You are not limited to a trial period or a limited function subset. There is no sign in requirement, and no necessity to provide even an email address. Go for it.
Everyone wants a faster system. With either Windows Vista or Windows 7, the built-in ReadyBoost feature can speed up your computer with a USB flash drive. ReadyBoost takes the storage space on a USB flash drive and converts it into an additional memory cache that supplements the main memory cache on your primary disk drive. It can do this because flash memory is faster than regular disk drives. It’s faster because it has no moving parts, and you can get a noticeable improvement in response time. Implementing ReadyBoost is simplicity itself. Insert the USB flash drive into the USB slot on your computer and follow the configuration prompts.
If you work or live in an environment where other folks have physical access to your computer you can use your flash drive to lock everyone else out of your PC. There is no built-in utility like ReadyBoost for this, but you can download a free tool called Predator from www.brothersoft.com that provides this function. Predator uses a standard USB flash drive as an access control device. After performing a short installation and configuration process, your flash disk becomes a key that will lock and unlock your PC. When you leave your PC remove the USB flash drive. This causes the screen to go blank while disabling the mouse and keyboard. When you ready to resume, put the flash drive back, and everything returns to normal. Move over, Mr. Bond, Predator is here.
All the preceding capabilities are very convenient, but how would you like to carry around a portable operating system? If you are willing to expend a little time and energy you can configure a USB flash drive to be a bootable Windows 7 drive. You will need a flash drive with a capacity of al least 8 gigabytes, and of course a Windows 7 installation disk. Start out by inserting your flash drive into its USB socket and inserting the Windows 7 installation disk in the optical drive. Please make a note of the drive letters. This is essential for successful installation.
Preparing the flash drive is the next step. Click on the Start orb and type: Diskpart
Pressing Enter opens a command window. (After typing a command at the command prompt always press Enter to execute the command.) At the prompt type: List Disk
You will see a list of all your hard drives, partitions, optical drives, card reader drives, and flash drives. Identify the optical drive that contains the Windows 7 installation disk and the flash drive you’re working with. For this example we’ll assume the flash drive is disk #4, also designated as G and the optical drive is disk #2, also designated as D.
At the command prompt type: Select Disk 4
Run the following commands:
Clean
Create
Primary
Partition Select Partition 1
Active Format FS=FAT32
Assign
Exit
This series of commands erased extraneous material from the flash drive, created an active primary partition, and formatted it with the FAT32 file system. The next step is to copy the Windows 7 installation files to the flash drive.
At the command prompt type: Xcopy D:*.* /S/E/F G
In this example D is the drive housing the Windows 7 installation disk and G is the USB flash drive. The command copies the installation files to the flash drive, and when it finishes you have a bootable Windows 7 flash drive. The last thing you need to do to make this work is go into the BIOS and make the first bootable device the flash drive.
Carrying a flash drive around is obviously far more convenient than carrying a DVD, and has the additional advantage of being faster than a DVD. This procedure also works for Windows Vista, but why bother when Windows 7 is here?
This article has been obtained from APCUG with the author’s permission for publication by APCUG member groups; all other uses require the permission of the author (vlabash (at) comcast.net).
Electronic Waste — Where to Dispose of It
by Peggy Johnson, DVPC
Here's a list of ewaste donation sites in Central Contra County County. We've included sites where you can recycle single-use and rechargeable batteries, and to dispose of unneeded pharmaceuticals and over-the-counter medications. Be sure to check the websites to determine what they will accept. If you know or learn of others, please let me know with the location, hours, and website URL.
Computers and Electronics
Hauling Pros Recycling Center
www.dumpmytv.com
73A South Buchanan Circle
(on the left behind S&S Roofing)
Pacheco, CA 94553
925-682-8987
Monday through Friday 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Saturday 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Rapid Recycle
www.rapidrecycle.net
110 Second Ave., South B-1
Pacheco, CA 94553
925-671-8008
Monday through Friday 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Saturday 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Recycle for Breast Cancer
www.recycleforbreastcancer.org/dropoffanytime.htm
31 Beta Court, Suite C
San Ramon, CA 94583
800-315-9580
7 days a week excluding holidays 9:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
A completed donation form is requested at the time of donation; this form can be downloaded from their website
e-Recycle OnUs
www.erecycleonus.com
1271 Boulevard Way
(at back left corner past East Bay Art and CTA)
Walnut Creek, CA 94595
925-934-1515
Monday through Friday 8 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Saturday 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Sunday 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Electronic Waste Management
www.noewaste.com
E-Waste recycling events at Diablo Valley College
321 Golf Club Road
(in DVC overflow parking lot across from north side of main campus)
Pleasant Hill, CA
866-335-3373
First Saturday of every month (except holidays)
9 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Where to recycle Batteries
Single-Use Household Batteries
CVS/Longs Drugs
www.longs.com
Alamo, Blackhawk, Danville, Lafayette,
Moraga, Orinda, Walnut Creek, San Ramon
Right Aid Drugstores
www.rightaid.com
Orinda, Walnut Creek
Radio Shack
www.radioshack.com
Danville, Walnut Creek
Check websites for store hours
Rechargeable Batteries
Right Aid Drugstores
www.rightaid.com
Check website for store hours
Specialty Batteries
Call(2)Recycle
www.call2recycle.org/drop-off-your-old-batteries.php?c=1&d=213&e=85&f=142&w=9100&r=Y
Where to Dispose of Unneeded Pharmaceutical and Over-the-Counter Medications
Walnut Creek City Hall
www.walnut-creek.org
1666 North Main Street, Walnut Creek
Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Look for the green Pharmaceutical Disposal bin
Please don't flush your drugs!
How and Where to Recycle or Dispose of Other Household Waste Items
Central Contra Costa Sanitary District
The CCCSD has a two-page Disposal Guide for Central Contra Costa County brochure that can be viewed online or printed. This handy guide tells how to dispose of common household waste in safe, simple, and environmentally healthy ways. Click on the link below to access the brochure.
www.centralsan.org/documents/Brochure_Disposal_Guide.pdf
This brochure requires Adobe Acrobat Reader; you can download and install the latest version of Acrobat Reader by clicking this icon.
Photoshop Elements SIG Meeting Program
by Peggy Johnson, DVPC
The Adobe Photoshop Elements SIG meeting will be held on Thursday, March 25, 2010 at 7 p.m. at the home of Peggy Johnson in Concord, CA.
We cover and discuss the Adobe Photoshop Elements and Premiere Elements software programs, along with other photo and video manipulation programs. As usual, check out the Elements SIG pages at www.bkbrown.net for all the latest news, information and tutorials.
The Photoshop Elements SIG usually meets on the fourth Thursday of each month; be sure to check Peggy's email notice for the topic and meeting date!
Please email Peggy for further information and/or directions.
Windows SIG Meeting Program
by Walt Parsons, DVPC
Because of the about to or just happened birth of a new grandson (Walt) and travel to the to-be rain-soaked Grover Beach area, there will be no March Windows SIG meeting.
The next Windows SIG meeting will be held on Monday, April 5, 2010 at 6:30 p.m. Watch for Walt's email with the announcement of what will be discussed and demonstrated at the April meeting. If you're not receiving the monthly announcement, email Walt and ask to be added to the list.
The Windows SIG meetings are held in the Community Room at the Concord Police Station. See the detailed directions on the DVPC SIG News page.
The Daily Dilbert Cartoon
by Scott Adams
- Where We Meet
- Diablo Blue Password Access
- Watch for Updates added to the TOC in red.
- President's Message
- Board Meeting Minutes
- Links to Interesting Online Articles
- Backing Up and Restoring Files
- Controlling System Restore
- “Disk Failure” Scare
- Neat Things You can do with a Flash Drive
- Electronic Waste — Where to Dispose of It
- Photoshop Elements SIG Meeting Program
- Windows SIG Meeting Program
- The Daily Dilbert Cartoon