Tech Toy of the Month: Nikon Coolpix P6000
It is very difficult to recommend digital cameras, as there are many factors involved in matching a digital camera to a particular individual’s picture-taking style or preferences. For the most part, an “average” user will probably never use most of the features in today’s digital cameras, if they even understand what those features accomplish. Honestly, I usually recommend to find some good values, read on-line reviews, and try to take a few pictures with the cameras before making a decision. Today’s digital cameras are almost all good enough for average users to take good-quality family or hobby pictures. So I’m not necessarily recommending this month’s Tech Toy as the camera you should buy, but I am highlighting it because of one very interesting feature.
The Nikon Coolpix P6000 is one of the first digital cameras to integrate a GPS receiver. No, the camera will not help you with directions, but it will encode your pictures with your current GPS location when you take them. This practice is a fairly new but quickly growing phenomenon called “Geotagging“. Basically, with the right software that can recognize geotag data, anyone looking at your pictures will later be able to see exactly where you were on a map when you took the picture. Certainly some people may not think this feature is anything special. But I’m sure there are people who are in the market for a digital camera that would probably buy this camera because of this feature.
Again, I’m not necessarily recommending this camera. Reviewing the specifications it seems to be a fairly good camera and would probably serve most users very well. At $499 MSRP, it might be a little pricey for many users. However, for those that do a lot of traveling I can see that geotagging their photos may be a feature they appreciate. So if you fall into that category or you know someone that does, the Nikon Coolpix P6000 may be worth checking out.
Again, if you need help purchasing your holiday technology gifts, attend our class this Tuesday, November 11th. If you can’t make the class, please contact me with any questions you may have.
Q: Is this iPod for real?
A: In so many words this was an absolutely real question we received from a customer that walked into our store the other day. I’ll explain the situation in a moment, but I am using this question to send a warning out this holiday shopping season to those who are looking to buy iPods over the Internet.
The customer came into our store asking about a new iPod Nano they had just purchased on eBay. She was suspicious that the iPod was not real. At first glance, this certainly seemed like a real iPod. But it quickly became obvious that this was not a real iPod but instead a very realistic looking counterfeit. The iPod and documentation had Apple logos all over them and the packaging looked realistic. However, the iPod did not have the fit and finish that real iPods do and the user interface was definitely not an iPod interface.
This customer was savvy enough to recognize that something was wrong. However, I’m afraid that some other poor souls have purchased counterfeit iPods and not known the difference. Or even worse, perhaps they were purchased as gifts. So please, if you are going to purchase items like iPods over the Internet, please be extremely careful. Make sure you are buying from a reputable vendor. And be very wary of prices that sound too good to be true. Apple products for certain are not allowed to be sold at a discount, so if you see Apple products that are being sold for less than the Apple standard price, you can be certain that the vendor is not an Apple-authorized dealer.
To help with your holiday technology gift buying, make sure to attend our class Tuesday, November 11th. We will go over various topics to help you make the right decisions and get the right gifts this holiday season. If you can’t make the class, feel free to contact me with your questions.
Return of Anti-Virus Update Month
It’s that time of year … the leaves are falling, the days are shorter … and it’s time to update your anti-virus software! Just as I declared last year, November is Anti-Virus Update month. As most anti-virus vendors release their new versions early in the fall, by November enough time has passed for major problems to have been found and corrected. If you own a Windows computer, this year especially is important to make sure you have an updated anti-virus software.
I have observed this summer a fairly profound outbreak of a certain type of malicious software that masquerades itself as anti-virus software. For various technical reasons, these malicious softwares were able to circumvent most anti-virus programs. Things seemed to have gotten better towards the fall, but as anti-virus vendors continue to improve their software, most of the updates to catch new virus variants will be devoted to the newest versions of their software. So as malicious software like this summer’s outbreak continues to find new ways of infecting our computers, it is crucial to keep up-to-date to protect yourself.
As before, we still recommend Trend Micro Internet Security over Norton or McAfee’s products. We still find Trend Micro to be less resource hungry and less intrusive upon the user than the other products. Don’t miss our money saving offer elsewhere in our newsletter to get 50% off the cost of Trend Micro.
Marcel Brown Technology Services and the company’s retail store, The Tech Spot, was recently voted as the #1 Computer Sales and Service company in their area!
October FYI – Now That’s a Spider!
In the course of my work, I occasionally find dead spiders in computers. They seem to love the warmth! Seeing as this is Halloween season, I found this article amusing. I bet none of you have ever found a spider this big in your house … well, except my family in Costa Rica!
Tech Toy of the Month: MagicJack
One of the most innovative uses of the Internet has been in the field of voice communications. By converting audio into digital data, users can carry on voice conversations with another person anywhere in the world through their computer. As well, companies have implemented the “Voice over IP” or “VoIP” technology to create long distance telephone services that use the Internet as their infrastructure. So in todays’ market, you basically have two main options when it comes to using the Internet for long distance communication. Free services that require both parties to talk through their computers, such as Skype, and paid services that replace the phone service in your home, such as Vonage. Now, a relatively new product and service called MagicJack is actually a hybrid of these two concepts. In the process the MagicJack seems to deliver the convenience of using standard phone equipment with the extremely low cost of computer-based communication.
As I mentioned above, MagicJack is a combination of product and service. The product is a USB device that you connect to a computer. On the other end, the device has an RJ-11 port, which is the standard phone port that you normally see in the walls of homes and businesses. So you would connect the MagicJack device into your computer, and then plug a standard phone into the MagicJack. The service part of MagicJack allows you to make a phone call using the phone you just plugged into your computer to anyone in the US or Canada for no per-minute charges. International calls require the purchase of pre-paid minutes. The most notable feature of the MagicJack is the price. To purchase a MagicJack device is about $40, which includes the first year of service. This means that if you only make calls to the US or Canada, your total phone bill for the first year would be about $40, no matter how long you are on the phone. After the first year, the service is only $20 per year, again no matter how many calls you make to the US or Canada.
Of course, the cost matters little if the quality of the service is poor. So far, the company’s web site boasts several positive reviews from well-known sources. They claim the quality of their service is better than most free services because you are using a real phone instead of a computer microphone. The question will be if the service quality remains good as they ramp up the number of subscribers. As with any VoIP service, the quality of the underlying Internet connection completely determines the quality of your phone calls, so your particular quality may vary. As well, if your computer is having problems, it could affect your ability to make calls. And finally, we have no idea what their customer service is like.
Another great feature of MagicJack is the ability to use it while traveling. This includes using it while out of the country to call back into the US or Canada for free. This could be really great for users who do travel out of the country a lot and would like to stay in touch back home without racking up huge phone bills. Or for those users who have cell phones that don’t work in other countries, the MagicJack could help them stay in touch.
Overall, I think MagicJack has the potential to shake up the long distance industry. Don’t be surprised to be hearing more about the MagicJack in the months and years to come.
Contact Marcel for any questions you may have regarding the latest technology gadgets!
Q: What is the difference between memory and hard drive?
– Submitted by many
A: This is one of the most common points of confusion for computer users. The problem is that the term “memory” can technically be used correctly when referring to several different technologies. So many users do not know exactly what the term memory refers to. And other users think that hard drive capacity is the same thing as memory. Therefore, to help users avoid confusion, I will try to clarify what the different technologies refer to.
First, the most common use of the term memory refers to RAM (random access memory). RAM, technically “main RAM”, is your computer’s working space. The amount of RAM in your computer determines how efficiently your computer runs, especially when opening many programs or large files at one. Imagine working at a very small desk. All the things you need may not fit on the desk. You would need to take some things off the desk to put other things on it. This is much less efficient than if you had a larger desk with everything you needed easily within reach. Similarly, a computer without enough RAM has to go through a process of data swapping, which slows it down significantly.
Hard drive capacity, also referred to as hard drive “space” or storage, is not the same thing as RAM, therefore in common usage it is not correct to refer to hard drive capacity as “memory”. Your computer’s hard drive capacity determines how much data you can keep on your computer. Data stored on your hard drive is considered “non-volatile” since you can turn off your computer and the data stays on your hard drive. But of course, a hard drive problem can result in data loss, so as usual, please have a good backup plan.
So to sum up to this point, memory = RAM, storage, capacity, space = hard drive. However, there is a new point of potential confusion. In the last few years a technology called “flash memory” has become very commonplace. The confusing part is that flash memory is generally used for storage, not RAM. Therefore users hear the term “flash memory” and may get it confused with RAM (and unfortunately, the industry also sometimes refers to it as “flash RAM”). To make it even more confusing, the popularity of USB flash drives throws another technology into the mix. Many users think that sticking a USB flash drive into their computer gives them more “memory”. As explained above, this does not give them more main RAM, which is what they may really need. So I suggest that we stick to the practice of calling USB flash drives as “drives”, not memory, since they are used primarily for storage.
The bottom line is to double-check with a competent technology professional if you believe you need more “memory”. Oftentimes, users think they need more “memory” because a friend told them or because they are considering the purchase of software that requires a certain amount of RAM or hard drive space. While you can buy RAM or hard drives at office supply stores, I would not recommend using those places to get advice, as you can never be sure of the expertise of the sales people working the floor at any particular time. I have had many clients purchase the wrong technology because they weren’t sure what they really needed and the sales person didn’t have any real technology expertise to help them make the right decision. Consult your technology professional first and save time and money.
As usual, please submit any technology questions you may have and your decedents will forever praise your name!
Accidentally Delete a File? Stop, Drop, and Roll!
Before I begin this tip, let me just reiterate the importance of having a good, tested backup. With a good backup you will be able to recover from almost any data disaster. Of course everybody reading this has a good, tested backup, right?. So this tip won’t really mean much to you, right, right? But please read on in case you run into a friend who doesn’t have a good backup.
If you ever accidentally delete an important file, the most important thing you can do is to immediately stop using your computer and get it to a qualified technical professional. The sooner you stop using your computer, the more likely it will be that your data can be recovered. This is because in most circumstances, when a computer deletes a file, it doesn’t actually delete (or wipe) the data off the hard drive. It simply removes the reference to where the file was stored on the hard drive. In essence, the computer is freeing up the spot on the hard drive were your file was stored to be used again later.
If you continue to use your computer, the odds increase that the computer will overwrite the spot on the hard drive where your deleted data was stored. Once this spot is overwritten with new data, the odds of recovery virtually drop to zero. Only highly specialized and expensive (thousands of dollars expensive) data recovery facilities with highly specialized and expensive equipment have any chance of recovering overwritten data and even then the odds aren’t great. But if you stop using the computer immediately, there is a good chance that your data is still in perfect condition on your hard drive. Most competent technology professionals will be able to recover deleted but not-yet-overwritten data without too much difficulty. Yes, you may still spend $200 to $300 for this service, but it’s better than a few thousand dollars, or worse, losing priceless data. But I can’t reiterate enough that if you have a backup of your file, then you could recover your own file very quickly and save yourself the aggravation.
So to remember this tip, just think stop, drop, and roll. If you accidentally delete an important file, stop what you are doing, drop the computer in your car, and roll it over to your technology professional! Yes, it’s a bit cheesy, but you’ll probably remember it now, right?
Contact Marcel if you have any technology questions.
September FYI – See Less of Your IT Guy? Why!?
Recently, Reader’s Digest published an article titled “13 Things your Computer Person Won’t Tell you“. (A word of warning – I don’t agree with every item on this list!). Number 10 on that list is “If you want to see less of me, get a Mac”. The “computer person” quoted in that list says “Macs are actually a little bad for my business.” I certainly agree with the core idea of this item, namely that Macs are more reliable and easier to use than Windows machines. But I have little pity for the guy who claims he is losing business because his clients are switching to Macs. He, like so many other “computer guys”, are only helping to propagate the myth that IT professionals are only needed to fix computer problems. Rather, instead of only responding to problems, Macs allow IT professionals to spend more time helping our clients do productive things. Those of us who concentrate on helping our clients do more with their technology will be the IT professionals that are truly respected. As our society becomes more tech-savvy, people are becoming less and less tolerant of bad technology and look to those who recommend technology that “just works”. So … are you ready for your Mac now?
Tech Toy of the Month: The New Jawbone
A couple of years ago I started noticing a few people wearing an interesting Bluetooth headset with an equally interesting name – The Jawbone. Reading up a bit about it, I found that the Jawbone received fairly high praise as a very good quality headset. However, I really wasn’t interested in it myself because I thought the device was a bit too large and bulky for my taste. Yes, I am a Bluetooth snob. Primarily because I have mostly used Treo phones, which have been notorious for only working well with certain types of Bluetooth headsets. Fast forward to this year and I started reading about a new Jawbone. “The New Jawbone”, which some people have dubbed “Jawbone 2”, is thinner and included improved noise reduction. In reading about it on the manufacturer’s web site, what really struck me were the demos showing unbelievably clear phone calls in incredibly noisy environments. Being a technology professional, it is rare that I am truly impressed by a technology demo. But the new Jawbone demos literally had me saying “wow”. So after a couple of months of thinking about it, I finally bit and bought one myself. Does the new Jawbone live up to its promises? Read on to find out.
One reason I held off buying the new Jawbone was that I didn’t think I would find it very comfortable. I generally prefer headsets where the bulk of the weight rests behind or on top of the ear as opposed to outside the ear. Looking at the new Jawbone, it seems fairly obvious that most of the weight would be located outside the ear. However, when actually wearing the new Jawbone, I think it feels almost weightless. Additionally, the way the new Jawbone sits on my face it feels like it is hugging my cheek, providing a sense of stability where I don’t feel like the device is going to fly off my face even during quick head movements. I forget I am wearing the new Jawbone much more often than I did with previous headsets. Certainly, the smaller size of the new Jawbone has a lot to do with its comfort, but the smaller size also makes this a much more discreet headset, making it less likely that you will be confused with a Borg.
In looking at the new Jawbone, it appears to not have any buttons. But in reality, the whole middle area of the Jawbone acts primarily as the answer/call end button, while the rear acts primarily as the volume button. At first, I wasn’t sure what to think of this control set. However, once using the new Jawbone, I found the controls of the Jawbone feel extremely intuitive. Answering and ending calls is very easy because I only need to aim for the center of the headset instead of the relatively small buttons I’ve used on other headsets. Similarly, I can adjust the volume a lot easier than on other headsets.
So far, it seems my Jawbone has worked very well with my Treo 755p. This is no small feat considering the propensity of the Treo line of phones to give their users fits when working with Bluetooth headsets. In a couple of weeks of use, I can only think of a few instances where the Jawbone didn’t connect quickly with the phone when answering or making calls. This has been a big problem for me in the past. Additionally, the times that this did happen I believe it may have been due to the Jawbone running low on battery. Now I’ve read postings on the Internet where not all Treo users have had great luck with the new Jawbone, so your milage may vary.
Speaking of battery life, the advertised talk time is over 4 hours with standby time of over 8 days. To me it appears that the new Jawbone will last me about 2 full days before needing a recharge. After 2 days, it seems that is when I start to have connection issues with my phone and headset. I use my phone probably a little more than average, so I find this to be acceptable. Plus I’m in the habit of charging my headsets and phone every night, so this isn’t such a big deal to me. I also think this is more of a problem with my phone than the Jawbone. Other reviews I’ve read state they are getting longer times between recharges than I am. I honestly can’t say the Jawbone has gotten to a low battery condition, only that I noticed the flaky interaction between it and my Treo seems to resolve after a recharge.
The new Jawbone’s charging system is well-designed. The charging cable has a USB connection on one end that can plug into a wall charger (included) or computer, with the other end using a magnetic clip system to ensure a snug fit to the headset without the strain of an actual plug. The magnetic clip is similar to what Apple’s Magsafe power adapters on their recent laptop models. The use of a USB connection allows Jawbone users flexibility in charging their headsets, as many more devices are using this approach. A Jawbone user in need of a charge can tap into the multitude of USB-based charging devices on the market or the nearest friendly computer or USB hub. The New Jawbone boasts very quick recharges, claiming an 85% charge in 35 minutes, fully charging in less than an hour. I can say that I have noticed the Jawbone does charge extremely quickly.
Now if you’ve viewed the new Jawbone demos, you’re probably wondering if the devices actually work as well as they show. While I’ve not tested the device in an actual construction zone or from the inside of a derby car, I did run a few experiments so that I could test the quality of the new Jawbone’s noise reduction capability. Basically, while driving I called my home answering machine so that I could record myself talking with my Jawbone and listen to the recording later. I tried talking with my car windows down, with traffic driving by, and my radio up (and all three simultaneously at times). What I found was that the Jawbone did in fact deliver on its promise to reduce almost all background noise. I was amazed at the difference on my recordings when I disabled the noise reduction to when it was active. I could not hear on my recordings the very distracting wind noise that I was experiencing in my car. At the times when I did turn off the noise reduction, the wind noise was very audible on the recording. On my recordings I would note when loud trucks were driving by me while I was in the car, but yet I could not hear them or they were barely audible on the recording.
The New Jawbone’s NoiseAssassin technology seems to be nearly perfect in eliminating “ambient” noises such as wind noise, cars, or crowd noise, but not perfect at eliminating louder, “distinct” background sounds. I’ve noticed there are a few situations where some background noise does come through enough to be distracting (do note again that I’m a Bluetooth snob, so I’m being quite nit-picky here). The first is music or talking from a radio. It appears the Jawbone is not perfect at differentiating voices or music on a radio from the voice of the user wearing the headset. I noticed on my recordings that when I had the radio up to normal listening volume, I could hear enough of the radio to be somewhat distracting. What I could hear seemed to be the singer’s voice and the beat of the music. The other situations where background noise comes through is other people’s loud talking, kids yelling, and sudden loud noises. Again, it seems that the Jawbone can’t quite differentiate these types of sounds well enough from the user’s voice to be completely effective in reducing these noises. However, don’t get me wrong, the new Jawbone does well enough in reducing even these types of noises to hold an intelligible conversation. It’s just that the other person on the line may be able to hear these types of noises, while they may be completely unaware that you are driving in a car or walking down a street.
Overall, The New Jawbone is the best Bluetooth headset I’ve ever owned both from a comfort and quality standpoint. Certainly, this headset may not be perfect for every individual, as some reviews have cited poor fit, which reduces the noise reduction quality of this device. But I would encourage anyone who is looking for a comfortable and high quality headset to check out The New Jawbone. Just make sure to purchase from a retailer that has a good return policy. This headset is not exactly cheap – but I feel you are getting what you pay for – and if it just doesn’t work out for you, then you should be able to return it.
Contact Marcel for any questions you may have regarding the latest technology gadgets!
Q: I hear there is some sort of memory limitation with Vista. Can you explain that?
– Submitted by many
A: Without getting too technical, 32-bit versions of Windows Vista have a hard limit of 4 GB of RAM, but due to technical reasons may only be able to use 2.5 to 3.5 GB of RAM. This means that even if you fill your computer with 4 GB of RAM or more, you will only be able to use between 2.5 and 3.5 depending on your computer. 64-bit versions of Vista can fully address from 8 GB to 128 GB of RAM, so in practice 64-bit Vista does not suffer from “the Vista memory limitation”. It would then seem that users should simply make sure they are purchasing a 64-bit versions of Vista to avoid memory limitations. However, it may not always be that simple.
A little background first on the Vista memory limitation. The 4 GB limitation is not unique to Vista. Windows XP and other 32-bit operating systems also have a 4 GB limit (FYI – there is a 64-bit version of Windows XP as well, but its use is very limited). This limit was never really an issue for most users as 4 GB was an extraordinary amount of RAM up until recently. Even today, 4 GB of RAM is a large amount of RAM, but it is no longer an unusual amount. The large memory demands of Vista can make 4 GB of RAM or more a realistic requirement for many power-users. So with the advent of Vista, the 2.5 to 3.5 GB memory limitation has suddenly became a problem for many more users than before. And while today it may only be a problem for power-users, history has shown that memory requirements for Windows operating systems grow steadily year to year. So it will likely become a much larger issue over the next couple of years.
So why can’t users simply purchase the 64-bit version of Vista and be done with the memory limitation? For many users 64-bit Vista may be a feasible solution. However, most computer purchasers have no idea that there is a memory limitation, much less the difference between 32 and 64-bit versions. Certainly, most big-box retail stores do not offer choices between 32 and 64-bit, nor would the sales associates necessarily even understand the technical differences. So many users are purchasing Vista computers without knowledge of this limitation and will not likely become aware of it until maybe a year or two down the road when their computers may require more RAM. At that point, the memory limitations of 32-bit Vista may become a problem.
Additionally, a similar problem looms over purchasers of many Vista laptops and some desktops. Many recent models and some models being sold today can only physically support 2 GB of RAM. I foresee that many Vista users will need new laptops after only a couple years of use as they begin to require more RAM than their computers will support.
Finally, even if a user can make the decision to purchase a 64-bit version of Vista, they must be careful to ensure that their existing software and peripherals will run under 64-bit Vista. Even if they are planning on purchasing all new software and peripherals, they will still need to ensure compatibility as not everything is 64-bit compatible yet. And going forward, they will need to be diligent that they are purchasing and installing 64-bit versions of new software to get the most out of their 64-bit computer. Again, many people have no idea what the difference between 32 and 64-bit software is, so we may begin to see performance problems with 64-bit computers running mostly 32-bit software in the not-too-distant future.
Already, Vista has 6 different versions (Starter, Home Basic, Home Premium, Business, Enterprise, Ultimate). Add to that the 64-bit versions of each – except Starter which only comes in 32-bit – and you have 11 different Vista versions to choose from! Confused yet? I know I may sound like I repeat myself sometimes in my articles, but perhaps the answer is to simply buy a Mac. Technology should make your life easier, not harder. When you purchase a Mac, you get one operating system that is fully 64-bit, does not suffer from memory limitations, or makes you deal with confusing 32/64-bit compatibility issues.
As usual, please submit any technology questions you may have and your question may be featured in this newsletter!