UGN Info Manager UGN Info Manager
This article that ran in the San Jose Mercury News, talks about the new Apex Digital gaming machine that also includes a hard disk and will allow you to record video. The product sells for $499. That is slightly more pricy, than a separate PVR and a Playstation 2. It talks about the fact that the game will probably take up all the processing time so the machine will not be able to record and play a game at the same time. Read more...
A Mac OS X client that supports the Kazaa founders' free IP telephony service is currently in development with a beta version expected shortly. The product called Skype uses peer-to-peer technology to provide free voice calls over the Internet. [Editor: Skype story skype.com] ... and www.pcpro.co.uk
Best Buy Canada, I assume that means Future Shops as well, is going to launch a music service called Bonfire to sell songs and albums to Canadians. They are even going to have the same prices as AppleŐs iTunes. $.99 for song and full albums for $9.99, which actually translates to about $.72 and $7.30 in US dollars
In an article in the hard copy of Information Today, there is a discussion of where Project Gutenberg is today. Last year, they added the 10,000th book to their site. Now the goal is to hit a MILLION books by 2015. They certainly know how to set goals. The article, (which isnŐt available on line), said that the new site is projectgutenburg.info, the link didnŐt work for me. It may be available shortly. The old site can bring you up-to-date at... gutenberg.net
GyazMail is an all-new email client for Mac OS X. Built from the group up in the Cocoa framework. Some of its features:
* Multiple accounts
* Stores individual messages as single files (DonŐt have to worry about corruption of a large file)
* Message threading
* HTML message display
* Junk (Spam) Mail Filter (SpamSieve) support
* Ability to search messages across multiple folders and with multiple criteria
* Rules and Filters for incoming messages
Full details at... GyazMail
Apparently some of the people here at work have known about this site for sometime and didnŐt clue me in. They particularly like the e-mail part of the site where the main character answers e-mail (You are welcome to submit questions yourself.) See it at... Home Star Runner
Remember when we told you that the notorious junk e-mailer Harold Carmack had been nabbed? Well, now we can celebrate! New York has finally clinched the 'Buffalo Spammer' with long arm of the law. Eliot Spitzer, spokesman for New York's Attorney General has announced that Carmack has been slammed with the maximum sentence for 14 counts of identity theft and forgery -- he'll spend at least three-and-a-half years and as many as seven behind bars. I hope he gets a lot worse than that once he's in the clink for sending out 825 million spams using stolen identities and forged addresses. Full story... computerworld.com
Packing up and heading out for vacation this summer? Take your digital camera and take some great photos with Fred's Digital Photo Tips. His articles in this month's DTG revolve around 'vacation' photography with: Travel Photo Tips, and
The Gentle Art of Feathering" using Photoshop or Photoshop Elements to give your graduation and wedding photos those nice fogged edges... of Feathering
Once again the Tour Bus was turned over to a substitute driver and this time it was to a professional photographer who recommends web site for those of us trying to learn. I plan on keeping this one until I get my own camera. The first site mentioned was The Kodak "Tips for Great Pictures" site. But there are several others and I can't do them justice here. Also, subscribe, Bob Rankin does a great job of finding interesting sites. Go read the full newsletter at tourbus.com
Then, 60-Second Window this month asks if you think it's getting more difficult to recognize reality in photographic journalism these days... #168 Ethics in Digital Photography
Here is news about some new software/shareware items in our mail bag last week including: RapidWeaver web design; FileXaminer v2.2; KeyCue; and Listen Later... UGN Shareware Dept.
Reading the Usenet gets you the news as it's happening. News readers and RSS aggregators have become very popular. MaxNews is a very flexible and effective Mac OS 9.x / Mac OS X based Usenet newsreader supporting reading and composing both news articles and e-mail messages... MaxNews
Apple Mail users frustrated by the flood of spam can now keep junk mail out of their mailboxes with "Take Control of Spam with Apple Mail," a new ebook written by best-selling author Joe Kissell. You get a discount from UGN/AACUG... Take Control of Spam
PC users have long been spoiled with partitioning utilities such as PartitionMagic that allow them to modify their drive partitions on-the-fly, without destroying their data. Now Mac OS X users can finally see what they have been missing... VolumeWorks
This updated Troi plug-in lets you manipulate your files and folders and use file and folder information directly from your FileMaker Pro databases... Troi File Plug-in
Remember we predicted it was not 'if' but 'when' X's UNIX underpinnings would come under the scrutiny of security attackers? Reuters reported yesterday that while Apple has patched one of the vulnerabilities in its Mac OS X operating system, it did not address what is known as a disk URI vulnerability, which could allows malicious Web sites to silently place code on a user's system. Niels Rasmussen, chief executive of Denmark-based Secunia, says that "Apple MAC OS X Is Still Vulnerable" No comments yet from Apple. Full story... news.yahoo.com
Recent revelations about security under OS X might just be trying to tell you something. Like: "Back it up!" ChronoSync seems to have the right idea with their automated synchronization and backup application. So sync all your computers and external media. It keeps track of every file between multiple sources so only files that have changed get updated. Deleted files can even be saved just in case you made a mistake. You can also synchronize files between Mac and Windows. Get the Picture, see the full story... econtechnologies.com
On Wednesday, Dan Kois, writer for MSN's "Slate" magazine said "You spend a couple hours recording a wicked awesome mix tape for a friend... later, you ask how much she loved it, and when she shrugs, you feel a hot flush of shame. Face it: Your mix tape sucks." Kois takes a humorous look at the celebrity playlists featured on Apple's iTunes Music Store... Slate.com
This has an interesting way to use Google. Gives you a drop down menu to select categories. See it at... findforward.com
You thought Google was your friend, right? Back in February we told you about Google's new 'free' email service - "Gmail" - well, according to Wired, Google had intended to scan your e-mail for key words and concepts then use them to place targeted advertisements in your personal messages. Hats off to the California state Senate who voted in favor of a law designed to protect your privacy. The law will bar Gmail from collecting personal information for third parties. Keep your fingers crossed that the California Assembly will vote it into law. Full Story... wired.com
"A critic is a man who knows the way but can't drive the car."
- Kenneth Tynan
"When you examine the lives of the most influential people who have ever walked among us, you discover one thread that winds through them all. They have been aligned first with their spiritual nature and only then with their physical selves."
- Albert Einstein
Have a great week...
User Group Network Affiliates may reprint articles as long as full credit and a link to this web site: http://www.user-groups.net/info/ provided. Other Non-profit or non-commercial publications should contact us. The UGNN cannot guarantee accuracy or timeliness of articles beyond the date of publication. All URLs, links and email addresses are accurate as of date of publication. Clicking links in articles older than 30 days may result in a broken link. If you encounter a broken link, please let us know.
Return to: the top of this page, or the INDEX for this department
Exit to: The User Group Network front page
Contact: The Editor, Webmaster or Membership Director