Tech

I love spoken-word audio. I’ve been listening to seminars, lectures, and books on tape for years.

I love downloadable audio. Missed that teleseminar you signed up for? Just download the MP3 (or Real Media, or Windows Media, or QuickTime) file and it’s almost as good as being there–maybe better.

But I really dislike streaming audio of the kind you can’t download, and I find the new trend to use Macromedia Flash to provide audio clips online particularly irritating.

Why? Because I don’t want to have to sit in front of my computer screen to listen to something. The only time I might want to do that would be if I were taking notes, or if the recording were a set of instructions on how to do something with a computer program. When I’m at my computer, I’m usually busy doing something that requires concentration (like writing).

I want to do my listening when I’m away from my computer and doing something that occupies my hands but not my full attention. In my case, that’s primarily when I’m driving and when I’m cooking. And while I could theoretically prop my laptop on the passenger seat while I drive, I can’t (yet, anyway) get a connection to the Internet while going 65 miles an hour. Besides, the car stereo has much better speakers than the laptop does.

Having two operating systems is not as difficult as many of us consider. It just requires little hard work and some good equipment. By equipments I mean good hard disk space and good RAM sometimes, depending upon which operating systems you are going to install.

So your first step is to choose which operating systems you are going to install on your computer. I would recommend you to choose them wisely because it could have some negative effects on the performance of your systems. If you have good processor, Pentium 4, and good RAM, at least 256MB, then you do not need to worry about the selection process. There are still millions of people who are using P II and P III processors. When I had Pentium III, I was used to choose windows XP with Windows ME and that was very nice pair of operating systems.

Now let’s turn to their installation procedure. This step is considered as a very critical step. Many people, with less knowledge, corrupt their data or operating system file by using wrong method to install both operating systems.

So you need to check your IP address, for whatever reason. Maybe you’re playing an online game with a friend, or you need to access your PC remotely. Whatever the reason, there are a number of different ways you can check your IP address.

One of the easiest ways is to run an “ipconfig” command in dos prompt. You can access a DOS prompt from windows by hitting start, then run, and typing cmd in the run box. A MS-DOS dialog box will appear. Try typing “ipconfig” in this window.

This will come back with the IP of your computer. However, if you are running a home network or an office network, this will only give you your local IP. This is the IP that has been assigned to you by your router or hub. If you want to check your external IP (which is the one used to connect to your computer or local network) then you need to access your router settings, usually accessed by typing 192.168.1.1 into your browser (or whatever local IP your router has been assigned. Usually, 192.168.1.1 or 192.168.1.0 will be your default gateway IP. “Default gateway IP” meaning your router, as your router is used as your gateway for accessing the Internet).

Phone and voice mail systems can be pretty costly, even for companies with a low number phones. Before investing in any type of phone system or voice mail system, you need to estimate how much your company is likely to expand over the next few years and if possible how many phones you may require. Failure to do this could cost you or your company a lot of money in upgrade and restructuring costs further down the road. It is better and cheaper to plan and allow for expansion at an early stage, than wait until it is too late.

Your Bible At Your Fingertips

It is fairly easy to find a pda Bible free download online. Your pocket pc can become your own private spriritual asset for daily scripture readings and further Bible study. A variety of Bible software free downloads are available on a variety of sites, for free and as shareware, which costs a nominal amount.

Many people feel that their life is not complete without a copy of the Bible at their fingertips, and a pda makes it a reality. A free download of Bible software to your palm pilot is easy, and the bible software downloads are simple to operate and very user-friendly.

There are many versions of free Bible downloads, so that you can have the version that you like best or that best suits your needs. While the standard edition is the easiest to find for free online, other version can be located. For instance, you can get a free download of Bible software in any of these versions, Modern King James version, Old English King James version, revised version, BBE or Bible in Basic English version, and the NIV version, which is tailored to both lay and ordained ministers.

CD ROMS - If you’re adding or removing an internal cd-rom, dvd-rom, or just about any internal ROM that has an opening CD door, read on. Almost all IDE devices such as CD-ROM, DVD-ROM, etc. including burners and dvd burners are all installed or removed in the same fashion. If you’re removing your rom, first remove the scrues from both sides of the rom. Make sure both sides are removed or you won’t be able to get the device out. Once the scrues are off, unplug the drive; both the IDE ribbon cable that goes to your mainboard and your power cable. You may also have another wire running from your cd-rom to your sound card. This wire enables sound to play from your rom drive to your sound card, so when you play a cd on your drive you can hear it. Yank all cables running to the drive, then remove it. Simple.

VoIP allows users to make phone calls using their high-speed Internet connection. This translates into free, or very low cost long-distance calling. Because VoIP uses the power of the Internet, traditional phone companies are left completely out of the loop. Of course, now that the idea of VoIP is catching on more and more, traditional phone companies are developing and offering their own VoIP options so as not to be left out. From the consumer’s point of view, this competition is keeping options open and pricing low. For businesses, this is particularly good news, since many VoIP providers will want the business of business–this is a huge market, which providers are aware, of, so the savvy businessperson will take advantage of this, conduct thorough research, and seek out the best possible option to meet the company’s needs.

What are the Pros to Using VoIP?

Cost is a number one factor. If your business does a high volume of long distance calling, this can be an extremely affordable way to go. Another positive is that the future of long distance calling is VoIP. As time passes, more and more options will be available and the market will become even more competitive. It is also easy to use, although a business set-up will be more complicated than a home set-up.

Backup on business computers is typically not the user’s concern unless it’s a small business. A business should have a policy in place for managing backups especially due to Sarbanes - Oxyley.

Four options for backing up:

• External hard drive
• CD-RW (CD rewriteable) drive
• Tape
• Network server

Two options for what to back up:

• Everything
• Data files (.doc, .xls, .db, .ppt, .txt, etc.)

Personally, I use an external hard drive (this is a 120 gig hard drive, they also have 20 gig, 40 gig, 60 gig, and 80 gig available. I suggest getting one that is 20 gigs bigger than your hard drive.). It saved me when my computer had to be reformatted a few months ago. Typically, the hard drive is supposed to be rebootable and load everything back exactly as it was before the crash.

Obviously, that didn’t happen. It worked out for the best because some of my system files were bad. The hard drive still had my data files and programs. First, I referred to my latest copy from Belarc Advisor. This is a free program that lists all the applications on your computer. Since I don’t have a CD of every program I use, this was handy.

Once considered a teenage fad, text messaging popularity in the United States is rising dramatically. According to The Wall Street Journal, 4.7 billion text messages were sent in the USA in December, 2004 compared to 2.1 billion in December, 2003.

In fact, text messaging is entering all aspects of our society, even relationships. The San Francisco Chronicle reports that nine percent of singles have even admitted to breaking up with their significant others via text message. Thirty percent of text users said that they’ve continued an argument by text message; probably part of the same group that ultimately contributed to the break ups.

The applications for text messaging promotions are also increasing just as quickly. Major League Baseball offers a text message service that enables its fans to catch up on the latest news and results of their favorite team. There are also custom cell phone wallpapers of team logos and unique actual game recorded play-by-play ringtones in the professional baseball offering. Live 8, which sponsored the single biggest text messaging promotion in history, garnered 26 million texts last month supporting increased government aid to poor African countries. The opportunities for promoters appear to only be limited by one’s imagination.

In my humble opinion nothing makes a long trip easier (especially if you have kids). A portable DVD player is the ideal solution for those long plane rides or endless drives in a car to keep everyone entertained, especially when you have new hit DVD to play.

So what are some of things to keep in mind when selecting a Portable DVD Player?

(Here are some items to consider in no particular order.)

Screen Size:

Depending on where and when you plan on using your DVD player the most, size may really be a big factor in your decision. If you have a family that’s going to be watching movies in the minivan, you can bet you want to find a portable DVD unit with a larger screen so everyone gets a chance to view the movie. On the other hand, if you travel mostly by yourself or with a significant other, smaller may be the perfect thing for you, easy to haul and manage anywhere.

Disc Formats Supported by the Portable DVD Player: