PC & IT 02 (Nov 08 - Mar 10)

[winston]

One-Click Market Research By Bob Bly

I (and my clients) get “great” ideas for information products to sell online all the time. But I don’t invest one cent or one minute in developing an idea until I’ve checked to make sure there is an actual market for it.

My first step is to see if the topic is generating keyword searches on engines like Google and Yahoo!

There are a couple of keyword research tools out there, but I use spacky.com. It tells me how many times per month keywords related to the topic are being searched. If Spacky shows fewer than 10,000 searches per month on Yahoo!, the market may not be large enough to justify producing the product.

[winston]

It's Good to Know: Clear Fonts Get Things Done

Do you send out e-mails to co-workers in "cool" fonts? When you write marketing copy, is it similarly attired?

If so, you could be sabotaging your efforts. University of Michigan researchers have determined that when people are given instructions written in an easily readable font - like Arial - they are more likely to complete the task... and do it well.

Participants in the study were divided into two groups. One group was given instructions in Arial on (1) how to do an exercise and (2) how to "build" a sushi roll. The other group received the same instructions in a "handwritten-style" font.

The results? You guessed it. The Arial group made better sushi rolls and were happier about exercising.

So don't use Bauhaus to ask a colleague to run some numbers for you. And make sure when you're writing, whether it's an article, advertising copy, or to-do list, that you stay well clear of Viviendi.

(Source: Lifehacker)

[winston]

It's Good to Know: 5 Things You Might Not Know You Can Do on Google

1. Enter "define" in the Google search box, then a colon, then a space, and then the word or expression you want defined.

2. Find out what Google thinks about just about anything or anyone (including you) at www.googlism.com.

3. Enter an airplane's tail number in the Google search box to find out the plane's service history.

4. Yankees or Red Sox? Heaven or hell? Pen or sword? Which one gets more Google hits? Find out this and much more at www.googlefight.com.

5. Enter a few key ingredients to get many recipes.

(Source: David Hochman in The New York Times)

[blid2def]

Cool stuff for the nerds:

JS/UIX...

http://www.masswerk.at/jsuix/

[winston]

It's Good to Know: Online Life After Death

Online gaming, message boards, Twitter, blogging... For better or worse, many people live much of their lives on the Internet.

If you're active enough online that you think your presence would be missed by your online friends and followers when you die, do this:

Put together - on a CD, flash drive, or even on paper - a list of log-in information and passwords for the various sites, blogs, games, etc. where you are active. Include instructions, or even a specially tailored message, for each site. It could be a farewell blog post, e-mail, etc. Give this information to a loved one or trusted friend and ask them to "close out" your online accounts in the event of your demise.

(Source: Associated Press)

[LenaHuat]

Any1 who has experience with netbooks kindly drop me, this otiose IT-illiterate swan a few comments please :-
http://www.iht.com/articles/2009/03/26/technology/26pogue.php

[iam802]

Hi Lena,

I think the article highlights a very good point which you might want to take note

On Page 2 (towards the end)


Netbooks don't make good primary computers; that's not their purpose. They're intended to be second machines: travel machines, countertop laptops, TV-couch computers. They really are irresistible for quick Web or e-mail checks, airplane reading and even PowerPoint projections.

It really depends on what you intend to use it for or what your concerns are.

Best is just go to the shops and give it a try. Eg. If you use spreadsheet frequently, open a spreadsheet and see if it is comfortable enough.

Personally, I find them too small.

[LenaHuat]

Hi iam802

Thanks a million for your response. Oh too small .
I hve an eyesight problem and so I suppose I should give this a miss. But gonna see it for myself at the stores.

[mojo_]

Lena, interesting u should ask - i just got this last weekend:



http://eeepc.asus.com/global/products101-spec.html

My experience:
- light enough to easily carry around at 1kg
- decent keybd and trackpad
- 10 inch display 1024x600 produces small fonts but within applications can increase font size for readability
- fully solid state Flash memory (16GB internal + 16GB SD card) so not susceptible to shocks like with HDD memory
- built-in WiFi 802.11n allows very high speeds at hot spots
- top of the range 4900mAh Li Polymer battery gives 4+ hours of usage

There is a wireless broadband price war going on, so you can easily subscribe to a 3G plan for $10+ per mth that will give 1-2Mbps wireless access anywhere on the island with plug n play usb 3G modem..... sup organic coffee at Cedele with your kakis and execute some stock mkt transactions on the internet at the same time ... and also post the latest gossips on huatopedia

[winston]

Vexing computer worm to evolve on April Fool's Day

SAN FRANCISCO (AFP) - - A tenacious computer worm which has wriggled its way onto machines worldwide is set to evolve on April Fool's Day, becoming harder to exterminate but not expected to wreak havoc.

A task force assembled by Microsoft has been working to stamp out the worm, referred to as Conficker or DownAdUP, and the US software colossus has placed a bounty of 250,000 dollars on the heads of those responsible for the threat.

The worm is programmed to modify itself on Wednesday to become harder to stop, according to Trend Micro threat researcher Paul Ferguson, who is part of the Conficker task force.

"There is no evidence of it going into attack mode or dropping any particular payload on April 1st," Ferguson said in an interview.

"What people controlling the botnet are doing is building in survivability because of efforts by the good guys to lessen the harm of this thing."

The worm, a self-replicating program, takes advantage of networks or computers that haven't kept up to date with security patches for Windows RPC Server Service.

It can infect machines from the Internet or by hiding on USB memory sticks carrying data from one computer to another. Once in a computer it digs deep, setting up defenses that make it hard to extract.

Malware could be triggered to steal data or turn control of infected computers over to hackers amassing "zombie" machines into "botnet" armies.

A troubling aspect of Conficker is that it harnesses computing power of a botnet to crack passwords.

Microsoft has modified its free Malicious Software Removal Tool to detect and get rid of Conficker.

"As this threat continues to evolve, Microsoft and other collaborative companies will continue to identify new ways to disrupt the Conficker threat to give customers more time to update their systems," said Christopher Budd, security response communication lead for Microsoft.

Computer users are advised to stay current on anti-virus tools and Windows updates, and to protect computers and files with strong passwords.

Conficker is programmed to reach out to 250 websites daily to download commands from its masters.

On Wednesday, the worm will begin connecting with 50,000 websites daily to better hide where orders originate, according to Mikko Hypponen of F-Secure computer security firm.

"They basically upped the ante; trying to make our lives more difficult," Ferguson said. "They realized the good guys were starting to intercept their communications."

The infection rate has slowed from a fierce pace earlier this year, but computers that are not updated with a software patch released by Microsoft remain vulnerable, according to security specialists.

Hypponen wrote in a message at F-Secure's website that Conficker is in one to two million computers and that most of those machines are believed to have an early version of the malicious software lacking the April 1 trigger.

Conficker was first detected in November 2008.

Among the ways one can tell if their machine is infected is that the worm will block efforts to connect with websites of security firms such as Trend Micro or Symantec where there are online tools for removing the virus.

"Once a machine is infected, it becomes very hard to clean up," Ferguson said. "There is no indication anywhere of (Conficker) doing anything but just sitting there. We don't know whether another shoe is going to drop, or if there is another shoe at all."

Hackers have taken advantage of Conficker hype by using promises of information or cures to lure Internet users to websites booby trapped with malicious software, according to security specialists.

"It seems that every other day you see some story about the Internet being hobbled together with bubble gum and paper clips," Ferguson said. "Conficker could be the biggest non-story of the year; at least that's what I hope it is."