Best FREE Laptop Battery Monitoring Utilities out there !

Ever wanted to know how long your laptop battery has left until it runs out?

There are some pretty nifty applications out there that can do this for you which just sit in your bottom right hand corner of your taskbar.

I've only really come accross two major free applications; both open source as we all love having free stuff on the internet!

I have listed these in order of what I prefer but feel free to try both of these and see for yourself which one you prefer:

First Up - BatteryCare

http://batterycare.bkspot.com/


Alternate - BattStat

http://users.rcn.com/tmtalpey/BattStat/


Feel free to comment about which you prefer and why :)

What is the best Codec Pack to use?

A question many friends have asked me! I personally tend to use K Lite Codec Pack (the Mega Version).

Though really it doesn't really matter. Majority of them do tend to have most codecs that you ever need.

Along side K Lite Mega Codec Pack I know that some people tend to use the VideoLAN Player which has some extra features allowing you to play just about anything.

Download Links:

K Lite Codec Packs

VideoLAN (web site so you can learn more for yourself)

The easy way to avoid Windows OS Update after a complete re-install :)

Warning: ALWAYS KEEP YOUR OS UP-TO-DATE !

In a situation whereby you need to reinstall your OS, but afterwards you don't want to bother waiting ages for the Windows Update to download and install all those updates?

Well here is a post which will aid you for the next time, of which will save you considerable time!

When I reinstall my OS (currently XP), before I do so, I make sure I have all the major Service Packs downloaded, the most Recent Internet Explorer (even though I use FireFox), the most recent MS Office Service Pack and of course the latest Windows Media Player etc.

Once finished reinstalling I get the media (I tend to keep them on DVD or Internal / External Hard Disk Drive), install the service packs and drivers etc which saves hours of downloading them from the web! Then once connected to the web I allow the OS to download the smaller updates which takes not so long on a Broadband connection. Only after Windows is completely up-to-date do I install any other software or applications, games etc.

So, where do you get these "Stand alone" service packs and other installations?

Simple, the Microsoft web site of course :D

They tend to name the Windows Service Packs '[Windows OS Version] Service Pack # Five Language Standalone' or '[Windows OS Version] Service Pack # Network Installation Package for IT Professionals and Developers'; or similar.

Listed below are a few direct links to save you time searching their Download Centre section. All links on my blog posts always open in a new window or tab depending on your browsers setup.

However in time you may want to use this page: http://support.microsoft.com/sp. When using that link though, once you have selected the product make sure to look for the heading 'Download ...' so you can download the latest Service Pack rather than having to do it via Windows Update.

If you need to search for some other product or application update to download the installer, use the Download Center Home Page Search Feature.

Windows XP Service Packs (32 bit and 64 bit)

SP2 (Includes SP1) / SP3 (These are for 32 bit ONLY)


SP2 (Includes SP1) /  SP3 NOT AVAILABLE FOR XP 64 bit (These are for 64 bit ONLY)

Windows Vista Service Packs (32 bit and 64 bit)

SP1 / SP2 (These are for 32 bit ONLY)

SP1 / SP2 (These are for 64 bit ONLY)

Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2 SP1

Service Pack 1 (both 32 bit and 64 bit ---> x86 is 32 bit and x64 is 64 bit)
 

Stand Alone Installations (All Window Versions)

Windows Media Player (latest version) / Internet Explorer (latest version)

MS Office Service Pack

MS Office 2003 SP3 (includes SP1 and SP2 also) / MS Office 2007 SP1 Suite

MS Office 2010 SP1 (32 bit) / (64 bit) 

How can I keep my child Safe online?

This is one area I feel very strongly about, even though I am currently not a father, nor an uncle; I feel it is important for other parents to know how they can keep their child(ren) safe when they're online.

Recommended Reading (FREE Programs which can aid you as a parent):

http://www.microsoft.com/protect/parents/childsafety/steps.aspx


Please note that I haven't used these so cannot be sure which is best so please visit each site and learn more for yourself.

http://www.safefamilies.org/

http://www1.k9webprotection.com/getk9/download-software.php

http://support.it-mate.co.uk/?mode=Products&p=bgone


Forum Post - See What Other Parents Preferred:

http://www.donationcoder.com/Forums/bb/index.php?topic=9948


Why not ask the professionals? Make a post on the following forum (you may want to search it first):

http://www.techsupportforum.com/

Operating System Crashed? Lost Everything? Easy way round ...

Have you ever been in a situation whereby you have had a virus infection, or some hardware has caused a system crash? Then as a consequence you have lost all your personal data?

Well there is an easy answer to this and it is one that I have personally used for a long time.

When setting up your PC (doesn't really work on laptops), install two internal hard disk drives; not just one!

Why?

Simple, install the operating system, along with software and possibly games on to the first hard disk drive.

Then any personal files I would recommend saving to the second disk drive.

In the future if your operating system fails or crashes and you have to do a complete reinstall, all your personal data files are still stored on the second disk drive ... AND because you're installing the OS on the first disk drive, you won't over-write your personal data files, hence why they will still be there once the operating system has been re-installed.

Great isn't it!

Build or Buy a new PC? (plus recommended brands)

Build or Buy?

Watch: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q0tBvm7UbSg

My Recommended Brands for each component (if buying or upgrading):

Case = Antec, Corsair
PSU = Antec
Motherboard: Asus, Gigabyte, MSI
CPU = Either Intel or AMD
RAM = Crucial, Kingston, Corsair
Extra Cooling = Artic Cooling
Sound Card (optional non on-board) = Sound Blaster by Creative
Graphics Cards = Asus, Gigabyte, MSI, EVGA, Sapphire

Best places online to buy: www.ebuyer.com and www.overclockers.co.uk


How to build a new PC Guides:

Watch: Newegg TV Tutorials / Top Tips

Text guides: See Google Results.

Things you need to know before upgrading your Graphics Card(s)!

Before upgrading your graphics card you must check the following:

1) Your PSU Wattage (power supply unit)

- To find out the wattage of your PSU is simple:

WARNING: Children must not do this, please get an adult to do this for you!

a. Turn off your PC. Leave the plug in the wall but switch the power off!
b. Open your case and look on the power supply unit and find a number with the letter W next to it.
c. Note this down. It will more likely be some along the lines of ... 250W, 300W, 350W, 400W, 480W etc ... you may find it to be lower or higher or in-between!

2) The space in your case i.e. Will it fit?
3) Does the new card require certain power cords?
- does it require extra molex cables (power cables)?
- does it require a 12v line cable directly from your PSU?

They are easy to install and I highly recommend watching the following video if you are unsure:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5ILrq7lMe-0

nVidia or ATI?

This is one of those questions isn't it!

I personally prefer nVidia as I have always found them to be the ones that are ahead in terms of research compared with ATI.

One question you should ask yourself is who bought out duel graphics out first?

nVidia bought out SLi before Crossfire. Yet it wasn't "invented" exactly by nVidia.

"Scaleable Link Technology or SLI isn't a new technology. The idea of using two graphics cards to improve performance was first developed by a company called 3DFX way back in 1998. 3DFX Interactive specialised in cutting edge 3D graphics cards and dominated the industry through the 1990's until it went bankrupt in 2000. The Voodoo2 graphics card was the first example of connecting two graphics cards together with each card drawing half the scanlines of the screen. For the price of a second card, enthusiasts could double the 3D gaming performance and bump resolutions up to an exciting 1024 x 768. After the company went into liquidation, the technology disappeared for awhile until 2004 when NVIDIA introduced a new technology called SLI (Scalable Link Interface). It didn't take long for ATI came up with their own such solution, which it called CrossFire.", Maxit Mag (entire article).

Even today, you can hook up four graphics cards; however these tend to be only found within massive 3D Computer Aided Design (CAD) systems. Those systems certainly require the power generated by the four cards connected to each other, but operating as one.

Two Articles of interest:

1) Nvidia Quadro FX vs. ATI FirePro

2) DirectX 10 Shootout: Nvidia vs. ATI

Out of ATI (AMD) and nVidia I must say I prefer the latter because I have personally found I got more power for money with them compared with AMD. In today's market it is a case of once you upgrade you will soon not have the most powerful or best for your money as technology is evolving so fast.

Reviews are easy to find on the internet. I would recommend always searching for them. www.tomshardware.co.uk is one site I have always used.

However on YouTube these days you can find some good reviews and benchmarks (tests carried out to see which is best to buy).

I'm no genius when it comes to Graphics cards and I recommend you read my post on Graphic Card manufactures (2013).

http://www.youtube.com/user/TigerDirectBlog is one place I look at before updating my graphics card to see what's new and best for buying. Search their profile for "graphics" and you will get results back ... make sure to search with date added though so you get the most recent reviews.

Then I tend to check www.ebuyer.com and www.overclockers.co.uk for any good deals.

Recommend you view my next post about upgrading hardware though before you make a final decision as you certainly need to know if your system can allow you to upgrade, and what your limits are!

Conclusions ...

Go with what you can afford and what is recommended!

Personally I prefer nVidia cards and have always gone with them as I find they have excellent driver support which can AND DOES improve the performance of them.

Is there another way to safely remove hardware if the icon has disappeared from the taskbar?

Is there another way to safely remove hardware if the icon has disappeared from the task bar?

YES!

However, it depends on the hardware.

For USB Memory Sticks or Externally connected Hard Drives then the best way to safely remove them is:

1) From your start menu, find and execute Run (i.e. run "RUN").
2) Type in the following (or copy and paste) including the spaces:

"RunDll32.exe shell32.dll,Control_RunDLL hotplug.dll"

3) Click 'OK'.
4) A new window will appear. In the bottom left hand side tick the box "Display Device Components".
5) Select the device you wish to safely remove (so it's highlighted), and click on "Stop".
6) Windows should then remove the device safely.

Do I have to keep doing this all the time?

No! You can create a shortcut on the desktop easily:

1) Right click on the desktop, select "New", select "Shortcut"
2) In the location field type in the following and then click on 'Next' (do not click the browse button):

"RunDll32.exe shell32.dll,Control_RunDLL hotplug.dll"

3) Name it 'Safely Remove Hardware', then click on 'Finish'.
4) The shortcut will be on your desktop and you can use this if the icon disappears again in the future.

Is your wireless secure enough?

Increase Your Wireless Security Today!

I have come across so many people using WEP encryption and yet when they do upgrade to WPA, they still don't realise that it isn't safe.

WPA and WEP (at the time of typing this) are hackable regardless of what reviews tell you.

Consult your routers manufactures Manual or Web Site for aid. If you are struggling try a forum such as http://www.techsupportforum.com/

I highly recommend either LinkSys, NetGear or Belkin for home networks. LinkSys is strongly recommended through my own personal experience.


What can you do to increase your wireless security?

Easy question and it takes little effort to do so.

1) Firstly, get your router configured to only allow your devices to connect to it!

-- i.e. MAC Address Filtering

2) Secondly, don't advertise your network unless you need to!

-- i.e. Disable SSID Broadcasting if you can!

3) Lower the amount of connections allowed to the value of what you know connects (include all devices - Printers, Laptops and Desktops)!

4) ALWAYS have a strong password. I highly recommend using the following:

http://www.goodpassword.com/

-- Both your Router Configuration Access and Network Key


OPTIONAL:

5) Change the default Subnet Mask and Default Router IP Address for extra security!

How to setup a Home Network (detailed including extra security)

Have more than one PC or laptop in your home? Why not network them together?

Networking - Brief Intro

Please note that this is long because I went into considerable amount of detail, as it is best to understand what you are doing rather than telling you what to do and you not understanding anything. I have also gone into great detail on how to improve your network security considerably. For wireless security I will do an extra post as that is a bit more complex as there is more needed to be done in order to secure your wireless further than putting a simplistic password on the network. Regardless of what it states in reviews it is (currently at the time of typing this out) possible to hack not just WEP encryption but also WAP.

If you prefer there are plenty of videos on YouTube which talk you through how to do this; however I must warn you that most are very basic and do not go into as much detail as I have below in this post. The criteria used in the search results above (YouTube link) can have the OS added to the end to get more focused results for your specific OS.

One of the technological advancements Microsoft got right in their history was the introduction of Windows NT. It revolutionised the way computers interacted and how businesses of all types setup their internal and external processes. All of the Windows editions for home users onwards from Windows NT distinctively included improved networking capabilities. One of the most successful to this date is no doubt Windows XP. I realise Vista (a mistake in many IT Professionals opinions) and now even Windows 7 have been released; but I would not be surprised if you have Windows XP on your work machine (depending on your nature of work and of course organisation). However I don't wish to go on much more about the history, as the above is a very simplistic description. That and it wasn't just Microsoft who "invented" networking, that goes back all the way to 1960's and even before then!

You can benefit loads from setting up a home network and you'd be surprised how easy it is if you have a Windows operating system onwards from XP. Windows XP made home networking much easier than before.

With a home network setup you can transfer files without having to use disks, you can listen to music on one node (a device on a network, normally a PC or a Laptop or other device). You can even watch a DVD on a network if you so wish and even share a printer or a scanner so that you don't have to keep unplugging it again and again! One other feature which I love is the ability to control one computer (or laptop) from the other through this network (using a built-in application called 'Connection Remote Desktop'.

You don't even need the internet to have your own network. The internet is a WAN (wide area network), but your own local network is just that! A LAN (local area network). Don't confuse the two though because you can have a LAN which is spread out between two buildings (depending on its structure).


So what do you need?

Well you need both software and hardware. Windows XP onwards has home networking capabilities built into them already so that's software sorted out! If you have a MAC it is still possible to do this, just a little less easier for me to explain as I haven't used a MAC yet so I will guide you with a guide I came across from my own research.

What about hardware? Well you will probably have most of it already. The first hardware to check you have is an Ethernet port (present on most modern laptops and desktop PCs). You can use wireless but make sure you have extra security on your LAN before sharing files (see my next post after this one). You need a gateway for sure (router) which is best unless you are only connecting two nodes together in which case if they are close together you might consider just using a CAT5 (Ethernet) cable between the two.

However as most of you will be using a gateway I'll take you through setting it up. Before moving on though let me suggest what to buy and where! If you own a router already (e.g. BT HomeHub) you may want skip to the next section.

I personally use LinkSys routers as I have had excellent customer service and find that their routers are very much top of the class. I'd expect so as it is a sub-division of Cisco Systems, who are considered to be the worlds Networking experts. As you have guessed I would recommend using them.

Where to buy is easy but before you go away and buy the wrong one, you need to identify what type of connection you have!

What do you mean what type of connection do I have? Well this confuses me all the time and so no doubt it will confuse you too. There are two major types:

1) Through a telephone line cable - Normally ISDN, ADSL or SDSL (both types of DSL)
2) Through optical fibre cable - Ethernet connection (Known as Cable, but really classed as T1-T3-OC3)

-- I recommend double checking with your ISP though as DLS can be confusing.

Visit here for in depth details of the types of connections.

The best places to buy them are online as you can get them very cheap, but I would recommend going to a local PC store (PC World is not recommended). Online, these are the best sites I would recommend browsing: Ebuyer and Overclockers.


Step 1 - Decide on the Network Type !

Do you want it to be wired, wireless or both? Personally I have both. I use the wireless for my laptop and then my PC is hard wired.

Security is strong on my wireless because I filter out MAC addresses so that only those devices I choose can connect to my wireless but that is explained in more detail on the next post.

If you are worried about security though as even the strongest of wireless networks can still be hacked if given time and by someone who has the knowledge; then your best bet is to keep your network completely wired! This means having wires absolutely everywhere but it is very unlikely that your network will get hacked unless the person not only knows you have a network, but also physically plugs themselves into your gateway as well with a cable running outside. I think that you would notice a cable or some stranger in your house fiddling around with wires so wired is for those who want top security.


Step 2 - Decide on a Network Layout (known as Topology)

OK, so you've decided on the network type. Now it's time to identify the type of network topology. The what? Topologies are the layout of a network. There are several types and it's relatively easy to understand (with the aid of diagrams). The main topologies are categorised by:

• bus (a backbone whereby each node connects to)
  
• ring (nodes are connected to each other in a circular layout - see diagram for details)
• star (nodes connect to a centre hub - typical for home networks and are very common)
• tree (integration of multiple star topologies together onto a bus topology)
  
• mesh (Difficult to explain; a concept of many routes)

My network is based on the more common of home user networks, a star topology. For in depth descriptions and diagrams I highly recommend using the following web site for aid on how to chose your topology: http://compnetworking.about.com/od/networkdesign/a/topologies.htm


Step 3 - Setup the hardware ready! (Understanding Protocols and IP Addresses)

Once you have decided on the network parameters, set it up. Use the manuals provided. i.e. Put all the physical parts in place and wire them up. Note: even wireless routers still have to be wired to the incoming connection if allowing all nodes on your network to access the internet. If you do not have the internet and just want a LAN setup via wireless then there is no need for an incoming wire connection.

When you get it up and running, the first time it is more than likely that you will have a DHCP protocol in place with basic configuration on the network.

What's DHCP? More importantly you should be asking what is a protocol? Computers wouldn't be able to "talk" with each other unless they had protocols. Protocols are a set of rules which a node (all devices including PCs and Laptops) follows in order to communicate on a network.

The one you will probably familiar with is TCP and IP. These are the basic principles to joining any network. "IP by itself is something like the postal system. It allows you to address a package and drop it in the system, but there's no direct link between you and the recipient. TCP/IP, on the other hand, establishes a connection between two hosts so that they can send messages back and forth for a period of time."(Webopdia).

DHCP is one protocol I personally do and do not like. It stands for Dynamic Host configuration Protocol and is mainly used to make our lives easier, both as users and administrators (those who manage networks and systems). It is beneficial because it helps assign IP addresses out to all nodes on a network and if you have loads, it saves you the time in assigning each node on the network it's own unique IP address.

Remember a network can never have two of the same IP addresses otherwise a node may think it is talking to it's friend node when it is actually talking to a new node who just came on the network with the same IP address. The end result is that the gateway or server gets confused, so the IP protocol is in place to stop such instances from occurring. ... Continued in next section ...

Highly recommend watching (needs to be downloaded) the following movie as it explains the basics absolutely brilliantly: http://www.warriorsofthe.net/movie.html


Step 4 - Decide if you want a Dynamic IP or Static IP on your nodes that you connect!

However there are circumstances where this can be a pain! With today's home users, you find that you use the internet for many activities other than surfing and checking emails. e.g. Online Gaming, but the problem you have here is that games need certain ports open. What are Ports? You just need to understand that they are like a filter system. Only certain data packets can enter one port (e.g. port 80 is used mainly for surfing the web i.e. HTTP, ports 20/21 are used for FTP transfer i.e. downloading files; whilst ports 25 and 110 tend to be used by POP3 email clients such as Outlook and Thunderbird).

In terms of having a network whereby the router (or hub as this is what a router essentially is) assigns IP addresses dynamically and you have one node which uses certain ports, but then another node uses completely different ports. Well it gets a bit fiddly. For security reasons it is best to only open ports on your nodes that you need to.

So if you have one node that only needs the common ports open but another node requires the common ports and a bit extra, what happens then if you have a Dynamic IP on both nodes?

OK, say you connect onto the network with node 1 and it gets assigned an IP of xxx.xxx.xx.1, then the second node connects and is assigned xxx.xxx.xx.2. You set the router up to forward ports needed for node 2 with that assigned IP of xxx.xxx.xx.2. OK, everything works. No, not if node 2 and node 1 log off, then node 2 only connects to the network. Why? Node 2 gets assigned the dynamic IP of node 1 before as that is what the routers default starting dynamic IP number is set as. So now the router isn't forwarding the ports to the correct IP address. Which is why sometimes your games may not have worked in the past (if you have done this before).

So this is where you assign ports manually. Assigning ports manually is an excellent way of boosting security on your network as you have complete control. When you assign IPs manually, it is called giving the node a static IP (i.e. it will stay the same no matter what order nodes connect to the network). This is great because now your ports will always forward to the correct node (IP address manually assigned by you).

In today's networking world (especially on wireless networks) you have a large group of vendors who have help develop UPnP. This is suppose to make things easy and save you the hassle of configuring your network by opening ports. Does it work? Somewhat but hopefully in the future it will be widely used saving us home users the hassle of configuration. Personally I don't mind it as it is a basic activity for my skills gained through my subject area over the years; but to some people it is a continuous nightmare in figuring out why an application or game does not work online.


Step 5 - Implement it! Wait! How do I setup the Static IP?

Right OK, once you have decided on all of the above and implemented it, and you want to set a static IP then this is what you do. If you just want to use DHCP and allow the router to assign IP addresses to each node connecting to your network then feel free to skip this section.

Ah yes, static IP. For those who want to (which I recommend doing so on a small network with only a few nodes), setting up a static IP on each node is simple.

Now this is one web site which I personally love so we will use it to help you out as it provides excellent instructions on how to achieve this (along with many things):

http://www.portforward.com/networking/staticip.htm

Simply select your OS (operating system) and follow the instructions provided.


Step 6 - Now Your Ready to Setup a Home Network! (About Time!)

Now on Windows it is always best if you use the networking wizard.

It is easier if both nodes (or all nodes) have the same operating system as it does make it considerably easier for them to talk with each other. However, this does not mean than Windows XP cannot talk with a Vista machine; as much as Vista doesn't quite like it, it can do it. Once it behaves itself anyway. As you can tell I don't like Vista too much, it ruined my laptop hard drive when I tried to put the SP1 on it when it first came out.

Anyway before I start blabbering on how bad Vista is compared to XP lets get moving!

IT IS HIGHLY RECOMMENDED YOU USE EITHER A DOMAIN OR A WORKGROUP!

I recommend a workgroup for those who are not so technical otherwise it gets needlessly complicated.

For Windows XP use the tutorial "How to set up your computer for home networking" found on the following page towards the bottom:

http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/using/networking/setup/default.mspx

For Vista users:

http://windows.microsoft.com/en-us/windows-vista/Setting-up-a-home-network#section_4

For Windows 7 users:

http://windows.microsoft.com/en-us/windows7/Share-files-with-someone

For MAC Users Consult this web site:

http://www.mac-connect.com/

Step 7 - Share Your Files or Areas of your Drive you wish to!

It seems only fair to share the files you wish to or sections of your hard disk drive so that others can access it. I would suggest visiting the Microsoft (or MAC) web sites in order to learn how to do this. It is simple to do as you only have to right click the directory, go to properties and then select the sharing tab and then set your sharing options. That's it, well in most Windows OS that's all you have to do.


Step 8 - How do I control one PC or Laptop through another?

This is easy! Do not be fooled into buying software online as this will come with your OS more than likely. With Windows XP (the location will probably differ with Vista and Windows 7 etc) you need to have all Service Packs installed as this is when 'Remote Desktop Connection' is installed.

However before you run it, I would recommend putting passwords on the accounts you wish to be able to access over your network for extra security (not needed on all nodes but it depends on your situation).

E.g. On my network I only have a password set on my desktop as I do my web site design on my laptop (but actually on my desktop via desktop remote). After I have finished I like to shut down the desktop via my laptop without having to go upstairs to turn off the desktop. It saves me climbing two flights of stairs.

Once that is done, all you need to do is type in the IP of the node (laptop or desktop) you wish to control from your current node. Remember that both nodes must be connected to the same network in order for you to be able to control either. You will also need to know the username and password if required to log on remotely.

Step 9 - Set it up but its not working? Troubleshooting (basic)

The first few things you should check are:

1) That each node is using a different IP to the others
2) All nodes are connecting to the correct gateway (router or hub)
3) All nodes are connecting to the correct Work group or Domain (depending on what you setup)

3a) How you ask?

For Windows users the best way normally is to visit the control panel, then within 'System' under the 'Computer Name' tab look at the work group name. Make sure this is spelt EXACTLY the same on every node on the network (including the use of lower and upper case letters).

E.g. If one node is assigned the workgroup 'HOME' and node 2 is assigned 'WORKGROUP' they will not communicate.

It would be the same in the following situation as well:

If node 1 is assigned 'Home', and node 2 is assigned 'HOME' they still will not communicate.

Both node 1 and node 2 must be either 'HOME' or 'WORKGROUP' to work properly.


Recommended Links:

http://www.portforward.com/guides.htm

http://www.warriorsofthe.net/movie.html



For XP users:

http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/using/networking/setup/default.mspx

For Vista users:

http://windows.microsoft.com/en-us/windows-vista/Setting-up-a-home-network#section_4

For Windows 7 users:

http://windows.microsoft.com/en-us/windows7/Share-files-with-someone

For MAC Users Consult this web site:

http://www.mac-connect.com/

Help Spread the Word of my Charity Work today!

Well I'm struggling to get my charity work known, so if you can help out in anyway it would be much appreciated!

How can you do so?

Learn how here: http://peterslater.webs.com/helpspread.htm

Download link for MSN Messenger 2008 Version 8.5.1302.1018?

For those who want it. I had many friends over the last few months asking me about MSN Messenger issues on Windows XP, and even Vista.

I tell them this. Downgrade to the following version as it is much stabler on XP:

http://www.msgstuff.com/downloads/ (Link Updated Dec 2009 - You may need to browse).

If the URL does not work go to the Microsoft download center (google 'Microsoft download center'), then search for 'Windows Live Messenger (Version 2008)' and you will find it.

Trust me on this. This version works perfectly. Ignore all messages to upgrade.

Works with all addons without issues including MSN Plus (I highly recommend this).

Hope this helps others as it has helped many of my friends.


Also Recommend: MSN PLUS

http://www.msgplus.net/

Windows Movie Maker Addons ! A Must Have :)

Now, this will shock you but I have never really needed anything but Windows Movie Maker. I think people need to realise it's potential. I have managed to create some good work on YouTube using this video editing software.

However, I highly recommend using the following addons:

http://www.thefxarchive.com/index.php

Use the sub menu to get the effects you would like to use. You can download them as packs or as single addons. Huge thanks to my friend Gareth Abbott for providing this link to me !

After two years of hard work my charity album gets released :)

After two years of hard work of developing the music. My charity album named 'Reaching for a Cure' which raises money for Cancer Research UK is released. Get it today by visiting my web site. http://peterslater.webs.com

How do I take a print screen of my donation for your album?

Easy to do.

1. Locate on your Keyboard the key (PrtScrn).
2. Press it once (only when you have your browser up with the JustGiving Thank You page).
3. Open up MS Paint (Start MS Paint, or if on XP Start > All Programs > Accessories > Paint
4. Select the 'Edit' menu, choose 'Paste'
   - or press and hold Crtl, then press V at the same time once
   
5. Save the file as 'PeterSlaterAlbumReceipt.jpg'
   - Select 'Save As Type: JPEG ...'
6. Feel free to save it as a bitmap
7. Email this to yourself and keep it.
8. Remember to make a back up of the album as well. Just in case !!!

Have MSN check POP3 accounts ...

MSN Plus can check any POP3 account. It doesn't have to be the same address as your MSN account address.

If like me you find yourself away from your main machine which has your email client installed (Outlook / Thunderbird etc), yet you use the same email address for MSN then you will be interested in this:

1) Download and install MSN Plus as this is what you will use to check your pop3 account

2) Create a html file in notepad using the code below to forward you to where you can login to view your email messages:

-- Save the file as "msn_pop3_donotdelete.html" or something similar

1html2
1head2
1TITLE2VIRGIN MEDIA EMAIL LOGIN1/TITLE2
1META HTTP-EQUIV="Refresh" CONTENT="3; URL=http://www.virginmedia.com/files/ntl/redir.php?to=webmail"2
1/head2
1body2
1div align="left"2If you're browser does not forward in a few seconds, please click 1a href="http://www.virginmedia.com/files/ntl/redir.php?to=webmail"2here1/a2.1/div2
1/body2
1/html2

Change the code as follows:

-- (blue) Title can be what ever you like but I would add your email client as the name
-- (blue) The number 3 to what ever you like ... this is the amount in seconds before the page forwards you to the URL set in the META tag ... best to leave it as default though
-- (blue) Set the URL addresses (they are both the same) to the login url for your email client
-- Lastly, use Find and Replace in notepad to change the following numbers ...

all "1" into "<" and "2" into ">"

Save the file as instructed somewhere such as 'My Documents' or somewhere where you can remember.

3) Login into MSN ... after MSN Plus is installed ... feel free to set it's preferences

Then in the main MSN window go to the 'Plus!' > 'Preferences & Options' section

4) On the general tab (top menu tabs) select the tab on the left 'Email Accounts'

5) Click on the 'Add' button to the right

6) Enter the email address you wish to check (it doesn't have to be the same as your MSN account)

7) Enter your POP3 server (this will something like pop.ntlworld.com) ... you can obtain this information from your ISP (Internet Service Provider).

Enter you account username and password ... keep the port as default 110 ... if your POP server requires an encrypted connection (SSL) tick the box :)

8) For email client browse to the HTML file :)

That's it :)

Test the settings to make sure you can connect to the server. If you can't; then double check the server information and your account username and password as well just in case.

Graphic Problems - An easy Fix to most issues :)

Well then, this post I decided to publish after having several issues over the past 4 years.

Graphic issues can range from getting the dreaded blue screen of death (BSOD), to simply display issues such as games crashing and applications looking odd like.

The one thing you must always do in any graphics issue is up date your driver (or try older drivers) !

Though make sure you do it right because you'll be amazed at how many people do it wrong !

Four simple steps:

1) Download the latest driver from your Graphics Card Manufacturers web site (or chip set site)

Q. I don't know what my Graphics Card is?
A. It's easy to find out, download and install an application called Everest Freeware
-- To date version 2.20 is the most up to date but you can look at these Google results for a more up to date version of the application.
-- Use the summary part, found under the 'Computer' menu (the left toolbar)
-- Your Graphics Card (hardware which is used for graphics displayed on your monitor) will be next to the heading 'Display / Video Adapter'.

Q. I can't tell what the manufacture of my graphics card is, so what driver do I download?
A. If you don't know your manufacture then download the latest Graphics Driver from the chipset manufacture:

- nVidia (GeForce etc ... nVidia has always had better graphics driver support in my personal opinion)
or
- ATI (Radeon etc)

Select the Graphics Card you have, and your OS (Operating System) and then download the driver.


2) Once you have downloaded the latest driver, keep it on your desktop or in your 'My Documents' folder (just somewhere where you can remember where it is)

3) Uninstal your current graphics driver (found in your control panel > add / remove programs) .. those on Vista you will need to go to Program Features within your control panel

-- Do not just install the latest driver on top of your currently installed driver or else you will begin to experience problems !

4) Once uninstalled reboot your PC (or laptop), your OS will install a default VGA driver once it has booted up (which is a basic graphics driver).

Now run the latest graphics driver installer to install the most up to date driver. When asked reboot after it has installed successfully.

-- Note: Even if your PC / Laptop does not ask to reboot, it is recommended you do so just so your OS can register the newly installed hardware properly.

That's it !

System Maintanence (Recommended Tools)

Maintaining your system is just as important as maintaining a car.

I won't write an entire blog on how often or what you should do. I don't see the point in that as there are plenty of guides on the internet already for that.

Here is a few tools I do recommend:

1. Microsoft Windows Users - Visit to learn more about general windows maintenance !
   
   - You may have to navigate around MS in order to find your OS (Operating System)
   
2. CCleaner (Freeware) - Highly Recommended ! "CCleaner is a freeware system optimization, privacy and cleaning tool. It removes unused files from your system - allowing Windows to run faster and freeing up valuable hard disk space. It also cleans traces of your online activities such as your Internet history. Additionally it contains a fully featured registry cleaner. But the best part is that it's fast (normally taking less than a second to run) and contains NO Spyware or Adware! :) ", Thanks to Gareth Abbott for Providing a link !
   
3. Registry Cleaner (Payware) - I personally love this. Not to be run every day, but if you run it every 7 days (it has a reminder feature), then you will find that your system operates well and you will see less error messages. Visit the link to learn more.
   
4. Spybot (Freeware) - "Search & Destroy detects and removes spyware, a relatively new kind of threat not yet covered by common anti-virus applications." ... plus much more ! Visit the link to learn more.
   
   IMPORTANT NOTE: When installing Spybot I do not recommend the use of both SDHelper and TeaTimer. So make sure to untick the boxes otherwise you'll find your system becomes very slow!

Recommended Open Source Software (Open Source)

Listed by type of software (alphabetically)

AUDIO Software (Editing and Audio Converters)
Converter(s)

There are just too many out there. The best I have come across has to be SUPER. It is very easy to use. Visit the web site to learn more.

MediaCoder is certainly worth a look at as well !

Feel free to browse these Google results though.
Editing (including recorders)

For editing audio tracks (what ever their format) I highly recommend using this software:

Audacity - This is just fantastic and very easy to use !


ART Software (including Animation)

GIMP - One program that I really am impressed with. During university I used applications such as Photoshop 2 and Paint Shop Pro 9. This open source might not be as good but it has some great features (many which you will find in the payware products); however if your too use to using the payware stuff then you will need to read the manual on how to do simple tasks (let alone the complex ones) first before committing yourself to using this open source application.



Compression Utilities

7-Zip - This is the best compression utility I have ever used. It compresses better than Winzip and competes well with Winrar. It has a security feature which I love, which is extremely secure for when transferring files through the net or other means. I recommend the use of a password generator though.



CD / DVD Burning Software

CDBurnerXP - Never really used this myself as I got Nero along with my DVD drive so here is something that turned up my results and I would recommend it as open source.

ImgBurn  - Have used this and I have found it to be just as good as Nero Express. I recommend looking over this before deciding which you want to use. Again it's 100% free.



Data Recovery

TestDisk - Have personally used this and I have to say it is very good. The only problem is that it runs in a command prompt window (kind of like a dos mode), so it maybe a little hard to understand to the not so computer literate person. Searching for files is a pain but it does the job. I have managed to recovery files with this software relatively easily. Only downside I found is that when recovering the file(s), the file names are not the same as their original; so finding the right file afterwards is a nightmare. Try it for yourself and make up your own mind.


Email + Internet Browser

For Email Clients I recommend the use of Thunderbird (see my blog post for July 2009); or Windows Outlook Express (Windows Mail in Vista).

I also recommend the use of Mozilla's FireFox internet browser (again see my July 2009 post).



FTP Solutions

FileZilla - Highly recommend this as it is fantastic. I have used this for uploading files and downloading. Very easy to use and has a great interface.



Open Office + PDF Creator

Open Office - Just like MS Office but FREE !

PDF Creator - works well along side MS Office and Open Office. Allows you to convert any document (that prints) into a PDF document (usually making it smaller).



SECURITY (including free anti-virus)

One thing you certainly need on the internet, regardless of what you are using it for. The best FREE anti-virus software out there, which I highly recommend is AVG Free. Many people use it. As with any anti-virus software (including payware) there are still risks that you can get a virus, so make sure you set automatic updates (set by default). I have used this for more than 2 years after using Norton's 360 (has to be their best package), Kaspersky (I really liked this one) and McAfee. They are all good, but I do prefer Kaspersky or AVG Free.

Remember though, if you are not behind a router (or a software firewall) you can still get 'potentially' hacked (unlikely you will be targeted but it can happen). So make sure OS (operating system such as Windows) Firewall is turned on, and that your OS is up to date !

For routers I highly recommend Linksys (sub division of Cisco Systems). They are the best brand you can buy, with Netgear and Belkin below competing for the next top spot.



SECURITY - Encryption Software

TrueCrypt - It's the best out there for data encrypting but you need to read before you use as it is complex for non IT professionals !



VIDEO Software (editing and converters)

Converters

Nothing beats Any Video Converter (Free Version). It is extremely easy to use and does what it says in it's title.

I have used this, with only one negative comment. It is a little hard trying to convert resolutions; otherwise it is a must have !



Editing

Now, this will shock you but I have never really needed anything but Windows Movie Maker. I think people need to realise it's potential. I have managed to create some good work on YouTube using this video editing software.

However, I highly recommend using the following addons:

http://www.thefxarchive.com/index.php

Use the sub menu to get the effects you would like to use. You can download them as packs or as single addons. Huge thanks to my friend Gareth Abbott for providing this link to me !


Software which can record your desktop activity!
What do you mean by record my desktop activity?

CamStudio is able to record all screen and audio activity on your computer and create industry-standard AVI video files and using its built-in SWF Producer can turn those AVIs into lean, mean, bandwidth-friendly Streaming Flash videos (SWFs)

Here are just a few ways you can use this software:

• You can use it to create demonstration videos for any software program
• Or how about creating a set of videos answering your most frequently asked questions?
• You can create video tutorials for school or college class
• You can use it to record a recurring problem with your computer so you can show technical support people
• You can use it to create video-based information products you can sell
• You can even use it to record new tricks and techniques you discover on your favourite software program, before you forget them

How to find Open Source Software? / Where else can you look?

In time I may /may not update this. You can always search the major search engines (I recommend Google) using the criteria "open source [what ever your looking for]" (e.g. open source pdf creator).

Or try using Wikipedia (I don't trust this site myself but feel free to visit the list).

Recommend Using Mozilla's Firefox (internet browser)

Mozilla FireFox (Open Source Web Browser) + Recommended Addons

See this post:

http://charityalbumman.blogspot.co.uk/2011/12/recommended-addons-for-mozill-firefox.html

Thunderbird won't wrap text? Easy Answer here !

Mozilla Thunderbird (Open Source Email Client) + Recommended Addons

Firstly you will need to download the Thunderbird Email Client.

Then I would recommend downloading and installing the following addons:

* Clicking on a link will allow you to learn more about the addon

1. Dictionary


2. Minimise to Tray


3. Dubplicate Contact Manager


4. Update Notifier


5. Copy Plain Text


6. Contacts Sidebar


7. Attachment Sizes


8. Attachment Reminder


9. Smilie Inserter


10. StartupMaster - Excellent for Password Protecting


11. How to backup your emails (requires Mozbackup as explained in the article).

Mozilla Thunderbird (Fixing the Word Wrap Issues)

Just one thing, to make sure your outgoing mail is wrapped, make sure you set the following below. This basically stops the annoyance of recipients having to scroll left and right to read messages that you have sent them.

1. Go to Tools > Options > Composition


2. On the general tab set the default Wrap plain text messages at 72 characters


3. Under HTML set the Font to one you prefer


4. Then click on the button 'Send Options' (towards the bottom right)


5. Select from the
   drop down menu "Send the message in HTML anyway"

Get your recipients to set their clients to do the same so you both don't have to scroll left and right:

• Outlook Express 5 / 6 (comes with Windows, on Vista it is called Windows Mail)


• Outlook (MS Office - All Versions)