NOVEMBER RESTART

The club's computer will restart in the first week of November.

The clubhouse wi-fi signal is available all year round.

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IMPORTANT NOTICE

Data Doctors explains avoiding fake AntiVirus traps HERE

April 1 8PM
It appears that the worldwide preparations against CONFICKER.C virus have worked quite well. The virus is inside millions of hi-speed corporate machines and these were the danger. These were set to pour out more copies and flood the Internet with spam. The publicity encouraged the programmers to get their updates and they seem to have responded. Microsoft has a $250 K reward posted for the culprit. Thanks for updating your security. Not one Village computer is infected.

On April 1 2009 (yes, April Fools Day) a lurking virus is set to trigger worldwide. It is in millons of computers and is set to burst all over the Internet on this date.
Best explanation and advice is available HERE

This is NOT a prank alert.

..

Ken Sirois's flight to Sedona video HERE

Minutes for 26 March 2009

Members present were: Jim Albach, Sue Boyle, Bill Brown, Myrna Dirk, Jim Erickson, Arlene Frolick, Marian Grider, Bill Joynt, Bill Kautt, Clare Manz, Peter, Claire Morris, Jan Patton, Dorothy Pickering, Jack Prasloski, Pat Prasloski, Stanton Rickey, and Joyce Wahlquist.

Our treasurer, Marian Grider announced that our treasury contained $1471 and all outstanding bills have been paid.

Peter said we probably will be buying a new computer in November to replace the existing club desktop, which runs the obsolete ME operating system. We can keep the same monitor.
Peter announced that arrangements have been made to continue the free Wi-Fi hotspot in the clubhouse during the summer months.

Stanton Rickey thanked Peter on behalf of club members for all of his good works.
Both Peter and Stanton received Thank you cards signed by all present. The cards were especially prepared by Marian Grider.

The meeting was concluded with champagne and cup cakes, and some of Pat Prasloski’s scrumptious homemade cookies.

This was the FINAL MEETING of this winter season. PARTY TIME! Have a safe trip home .
See you in November,
STANTON RICKEY, Club President

Minutes for 19 March

Members present were: Bill Joynt, Bill Kautt, Peter, Jack PrasloskI, Pat Prasloski, Stanton Rickey, Joyce Wahlquist and Rex Weinreich
The Toga Party video is HERE

Our treasurer, Marian Grider, was absent, but Stanton Rickey announced that we currently have $1521.72 in the treasury non-profit account at Wells Fargo Bank. He stated that due to a $2.00 price rise we are now paying $46.95 monthly for Cox broadband internet service in the clubhouse. Instead of the lower Standby rate during the summer months, we will continue to pay the full amount and service for both the clubhouse Wi-Fi connection and the HOA office will remain in effect. The HOA has agreed to reimburse our treasury for 6 months of payments. Stanton said our Cox account will continue in his name, otherwise we would be billed at a much higher commercial rate.

Warning about April Fools Day virus attack and prevention HERE

Peter opined that we should seriously consider replacing the Club Computer next November. The present E-machine desktop has an obsolete ME operating system, which is no longer supported by Microsoft and cannot handle more modern programs like PDF or FLASH files. Often this locks up the machine.

Peter recommended that we rebuff messages to install or renew Norton or MacAfee online. Any popup Antivirus Scanner offers are also troublesome. Your credit card is automatically charged and it is extremely difficult to get a refund or avoid payment. Best procedure is to download AVG FREE VERSION. AVG 8.0 has a conflict with the AD-AWARE program, but their later 8.5 version corrects this problem. AVG8.5 LINK HERE


Recommend you pull the powercord from the wall during thunderstorm activity. Two motherboards blew up in the Village last week. The folks at SOS were able to salvage data from their hard drive and transfer to new computers. Total cost was over $600 each.

Ralph “Jiggs” Maynard did not come to AZ from Toronto this season, but he is still maintaining the Village Online Newsletter. Newsworthy items should be sent to him at: jiggsee@aol.com The Toga Party video is on the Village site.
The Village website is HERE. Save to Favorites

Many computers ran slower last week due to Microsoft and Adobe security updates. If asked to download, check for valdity and bear with it.

When your CD/DVD drive fails it costs $120 to replace it. When Peter experienced this problem, he solved it by cleaning the equipment with compressed air. This is a last resort fix. Definitely NOT RECOMMENDED AS A PREVENTIVE MEASURE.

Peter demonstrated use of SKYPE to send and receive both voice and images between computers worldwide. Go to: http://www.skype.com/ TO DOWNLOAD AND INSTALL. Install your webcam FIRST and then install Skype for fewer problems.

A microphone and Web-Cam device are needed. New portables generally have both built in. The other party must also be similarly equipped. The program lists user names of people you call. Onscreen displays indicate that over 10 million persons are involved at any one time. Click green button to CALL and red button to HANGUP. Web-Cam should be positioned to light your face or whatever. If you do not wish to take a call click QUIT or NOT AVAILABLE on right click pulldown menu.

Peter showed the TV Channel 3 “Good Morning Arizona” segment that featured the B-25 flight of Stanton and his German visitors. To view same CLICK HERE
The full flight video is HERE

Next Thursday, 26 March at 1:30 PM at our Village Clubhouse will be the FINAL MEETING of this winter season. PARTY TIME! Come prepared for fun and frolic!
See you there,
STANTON RICKEY, Club President
___________________________________________________________

Minutes for March 5 2009

We will NOT be meeting next Thursday 12 Mar 2009; but will meet again the following Thursday, 19 March at 1:30 PM at our Village Clubhouse. Our subject will be “Communication via SKYPE, using Webcam and microphones”. Bring your own laptop to participate.

Members present were: Jim Albach, Marianne Benttine, Jim Broschat, Nancy Curtis, Jim Erickson, Arlene Frolick, Bill Joynt, Bill Kautt, Sharlene Langdale, Peter, Clare Manz, Claire Morris, Stanton Rickey, Rich Russo, and Chic Wray.

SAVE $130 ! Peter reiterated his warnings about bogus messages with seemingly authentic titles that warn about a virus infection. Recipients are invited to CLICK HERE TO REMOVE VIRUS. If you do so, this action actually installs a virus. These bogus messages carry names like Antivirus 360, Antivirus2009,etc. If you mistakenly click, try to negate the scam and get out ASAP by holding down your power button for 10 seconds to turn OFF your machine.

SAVE $400 We recommend that we ignore even bonafide messages to install or renew Norton or Mc Afee online. Your credit card is automatically charged and it is extremely difficult to get a refund or avoid payment. Best procedure is to download AVG FREE VERSION. Go to:

www.mesasos.com for a link to start this process, however be careful to only get the FREE VERSION and avoid any ancillary promotional features.

2 Village computers fried their motherboards recently. Watch for thunderstorms and voltage surges. Shut off the power bar for surge protection. Unplug during storms.

Peter demonstrated use of a SCANNER. Actually it is a superb high quality camera. He placed a photo in the scanner and transferred it to the Adobe Photo Deluxe program by clicking on GET PHOTO. Any photo handling program you have already installed has a scanner access feature. Once acquired the photo can be manipulated for contrast clarity, cropped, sized, printed out, and/or E-mailed as an attachment.

For most printing purposes select 600 Dots Per Inch (DPI); 1200 DPI for archival purposes; 75 DPI and .JPG format is okay for most E-Mail attachments.
We will NOT be meeting next Thursday 12 Mar 2009; but will meet again the following Thursday, 19 March at 1:30 PM at our Village Clubhouse. Our subject will be “Communication via SKYPE, using Webcam and microphones”. Bring your own laptop to participate.
See you there,
STANTON RICKEY, Club President
__________________________________________________

Minutes for 19 FEB 2009

To print these minutes, DO NOT just hit the PRINT command or you will get all the minutes on several pages.Hi-lite this new set of minutes.Then hit FILE-PRINT and select PRINT SELECTION.

We will NOT be meeting next Thursday 26 Feb 2009; but will meet again the following Thursday, 5 March at 1:30 PM at our Village Clubhouse. The topic is: scanning so bring your own laptop and scanner to participate.

Members present were:

Marianne Benttine, Bob Bolter, Sue Boyle, Jim Broschat, Nancy Curtis, Myrna Dirk, Jim Erickson, Darlene Femrite, Arlene Frolick, Marian Grider, Bill Kautt, Sharlene Langdale, Peter, Clare Manz, Claire Morris, Dorothy Pickering, Jack Prasloski, Pat Prasloski, Stanton Rickey, Rich Russo, and Chic Wray.
Peter opened the meeting by announcing commercial services to transfer VHS tapes, 8mm film, photos and slides to DVD are are now available locally at reduced prices. The work is done by SOLTEC STUDIOS at 2860 E. McKellips Rd, Ste 1, Mesa, AZ 85213. Tel: 480-985-2733. go to: http://www.soltecstudios.com/ for details.

SKYPE offers transmissions anywhere in the world via computer, provided the other party also has SKYPE. By using a MICROPHONE and WEBCAM BOTH VOICE AND VISUAL can be sent. Newer computers may have these devices built in. Transmission is one-way, so both should learn not to talk at the same time. Sharlene Langdale mentioned that she often talks to her daughter and grandson in Australia with SKYPE. Go to

www.skype.com to install.

A serious VIRUS MISHAP occurred in the Village recently. The seemingly authentic Microsoft and Google logos appeared with a warning about a virus infection. The message said CLICK HERE for a SYSTEM SCAN. That CLICK actually installed the virus, and it is extremely difficult to remove. The victim took the computer to SOSmesa. They lifted off her data and wiped the machine clean. Reinstalled Win XP. Returned the sanitized data. Updated the security programs. Charge: $130 There are various versions of this devious ploy. This was Antivirus 360, but others are similarly named to resemble real protection programs.. Accept no free scans.

Another mishap occured with an Acer brand laptop. It went black when the motherboard burned out. A repair was estimated at $600 so a new HP was purchased. SOSmesa transferred the old data and set up the new computer.

THUNDERSTORM SEASON IS HERE. Disconnect all wires from the wall sockets when you hear the first boom.

We will NOT be meeting next Thursday 26 Feb 2009; but will meet again the following Thursday, 5 March at 1:30 PM at our Village Clubhouse.See you there,
STANTON RICKEY, Club President

Some interesting links to explore:

IRS guides and more http://www.irs.gov/

Great master list http://www.hotsheet.com/

Find missing people http://www.zabasearch.com/

People search http://www.birthdatabase.com/

Find phone numbers free http://www.411.com/

Phone numbers in Canada http://www.canada411,com/

Reverse phone book http://www.reversephonedirectory.com/

Zip Code demographics http://zipskinny.com/index.php

Safe online shopping
http://www.pricegrabber.com/

http://www.buy.com/ http://www.newegg.com/

http://www.amazon.com/

PHONE- DO NOT CALL List https://www.donotcall.gov/default.aspx

Medicare Drug benefits http://www.medicare.gov/

Maricopa property values http://www.maricopa.gov/

General prop. values http://www.zillow.com/

National house values http://www.housevalues.com/

Google Earth for XP http://earth.google.com/download-earth.html

NASA Earth & Moon http://worldwind.arc.nasa.gov/

Microsoft Updates http://update.microsoft.com/windowsupdate/v6/default.aspx?ln=en-us

Language translations http://www.mezzofanti.org/translation/

Free website builder http://geocities.yahoo.com/

Easy paid websites http://www.catalog.com/

Charity check http://www.charitynavigator.org/

Charity check 2 http://www.charitywatch.org/

Free legal forms http://www.legaldocs.com/index.htm

Sex offenders list http://www.prevent-abuse-now.com/register.htm

Sheriff Arpaio http://www.mcso.org/

Upload digital pix online for economical enlargements.
http://www.adoramapix.com/Default.aspx?sid=1136156131649932

Flight tracker http://www.usatoday.com/travel/flights/delays/tracker-index.htm

Falcon Airport Tower live http://www.squawkvfr.net/

Cheap flights
http://www.skyeurope.com/ .....http://www.airberlin.com/

http://www.ryanair.com/site/EN/....http://www.allegiantair.com/aaRouteMap.php

To donate your old computer to a needy public school, drop it off at

Red Mountain High School front office. 7301 E. Brown Road, Mesa.
More info here http://www.azstrut.org/ or call (602) 222-4066 for
more information about how you can participate.

A FREE DATA ERASER program can be found at http://www.heidi.ie/.

• Graphics themes



• Animated graphics



• Video Professor



• Cartogra - photo album site



• The FreeSite - source of endless graphics



• Mesa Skies - star gazing



• FlowGo - Flash cartoons & cards



• Rock103 - raunchy pix & videos



• Funny TV commercials



• Mesa Local map



• Mesa Tribune Newspaper



• Upcoming Events in Apache Wells



• Local Links list for Mesa



• The VILLAGE website

______________________________________________________________

Minutes for FEB 12 2009

To print these minutes, DO NOT just hit the PRINT command or you will get all the minutes on several pages.
Hi-lite this new set of minutes.
Then hit FILE-PRINT and select PRINT SELECTION.

Members present were:

Myrna Dirk, Jim Erickson, Darlene Femrite, Arlene Frolick, Marian Grider, Ed Heimiller, Bill Kautt, Sharlene Langdale, Peter, Claire Morris, Dorothy Pickering, Jack Prasloski, Pat Prasloski, Stanton Rickey, Joyce Wahlquist, Rex Weinreich, and Chic Wray.

ADOBE PHOTODELUXE Home Edition version 3 or 4 has the key attributes that are most helpful when enhancing photos. They are LIGHT, HUE, LEVEL HORIZON, FLYSPECK REMOVAL and CLONING TOOL. Peter provided an installation CD for those present.
All were previously invited to bring their digital cameras and laptops to this session. Those that did not gathered around tables to observe.
Peter demonstrated how bad pictures can easily be made workable using this ADOBE PHOTO DELUXE program. It is an early version with simple procedures that avoids the complexities of more advanced programs that are also relatively expensive.

Peter rotated between tables to provide hands on assistance as individuals operated their own equipment. We were taught the necessary steps to:
Get photo, Open file, Open photo.
Click on Rotate, Trim and Size to crop a photo. Seize a corner to reduce size. Then click OK to accept the change – or UNDO to go back one step and try again.

Quality can be adjusted Automatically or manually by use of sliders to change Brightness, Contrast, Color balance (Hue), and Color Levels.

Cloning (or Repair) tool can be applied by clicking on a target area to pick up a background color or object. That image can then be transferred to another location by using circles of varying size. Demonstrated examples enabled undesirable objects to be removed from the photo. Facial abnormalities or torn photos can be easily corrected by this process. If you make a mistake, just click on EDIT, UNDO to go back one step and start over.

In this program, don’t use SAVE, click on EXPORT when finished. EXPORT to the desktop in .JPG format. Then give it a NAME for further movement to an album, E-mail, etc.

To see what can be done with genealogy video posting, click HERE and see Stanton's interview.

We will be meeting next Thursday 19 Feb 2009; 1:30 PM at our Village Clubhouse.
See you there,
STANTON RICKEY, Club President

___________________________________________________________________

MINUTES FOR 5 FEB 2009

We will meet on Feb 12. Please bring your camera and laptop.

To print these notes, remember to HI-LITE the section desired. Then hit FILE - PRINT and choose SELECTION. Otherwise you will get 48 pages of old minutes.

Members present were: Jim Albach, Marianne Benttine, Bob Bolter, Jim Broschat, Sharon Conroy, Nancy Curtis, Myrna Dirk, Jim Erickson, Darlene Femrite, Arlene Frolick, Jim Girardin, Marian Grider, Ed Heimiller, Bill Kautt, Sharlene Langdale, Clare Manz, Peter, Dorothy Pickering, Stanton Rickey, Rich Russo, and Chic Wray.

Nancy Curtis showed a slideshow of photos taken at the Botanical Gardens, which featured displays of renowned glass sculpture DALE Chihuly amongst the cacti.

Marian Grider reported that our treasury contains $1545.00.

Peter stated that the FREE anti-virus program AVAST is another alternative to AVG. Avg has slowed some computers – the clubhouse computer is much faster on Avast than on AVG. Available at : http://www.avast.com/eng/home-registration.php It requires a free registration code. This is sent by email. The code must be entered again next year, so WRITE IT DOWN !

Passwords can be easily lost or forgotten. If "Cookies" or "History" are deleted during cleanup, email access and banks may demand passwords be re-entered. Don’t depend on automatic passwords. Write them down and tape to your computer.

E-Mail ADDRESS LISTS usually are stored on your (ISP) Internet Provider’s serve - not on your computer. Except for AOL, address lists can be exported from one ISP to another by creating a text list in a (CSV) Comma Separated Value file. Peter demonstrated by moving a list from Outlook Express to Hotmail.
Open your email page. Go to FILE , pull down and click on EXPORT. Click on Create CSV and give it a name. Save this on your desktop - and someplace else for backup. Then similarly IMPORT in new ISP's email page. Do you know your passwords ? Write them down.

FAVORITES can also be transferred. Recommend backing up to a CD for backup.
Go to START - SEARCH and enter "Favorites". Multiple hits will be found. Look for the 2 folders with yellow stars. RIGHT button drag to the desktop. Select COPY HERE. Now save to CD-R or thumbdrive for security. One Village laptop died this weekend with all the passwords and business data lost. (Not a Club member)

SKYPE enables verbal conversation between two computers, provided both have SKYPE installed. Tele-conference with a webcam and microphone.

FREE phone calls over the internet can be made through your computer. Go to: www.freecall.com to try it free and give a report next week. Many international destinations are available without charge.

ADOBE PHOTODELUXE 3 has the key attributes that are most helpful when enhancing photos. They are LIGHT, HUE, LEVEL HORIZON, REPAIR FLAWS, CROP and CLONING TOOL. See Peter for a download CD. [May or may not work with Vista.]

GOOGLE EARTH 5 UPDATE continues to improve the quality of their SEARCH process by adding new overhead photography. They recently added underwater mapping coverage at key locations and a historical timeline feature.. Peter demonstrated another feature where individuals have posted photos. When on a particular site, click on the small squares. To get started go to: GOOGLE and click on MORE then pull down and click on EVEN MORE. This brings up a menu. Select and click on GOOGLE EARTH then download and install.

Peter recommends you stay away from PICASA ,also on above GOOGLE Menu. It will take over all of your photos. www.flickr.com is preferred over PICASA when posting photos on the internet. It can be password protected and you control who gets the password. The slideshow format is pure eye-candy.

We WILL be meeting next Thursday 12 Feb 2009; 1:30 PM at our Village clubhouse. Bring your camera and laptop.
See you there,
STANTON RICKEY, Club President

Dick Conroy's recent sky-diving flight is here:

_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________

29 JAN 2009 Minutes

Members present were:
Bob Bolter, Sharon Conroy, Nancy Curtis, Myrna Dirk, Darlene Femrite, Arlene Frolick, Marian Grider, Ed Heimiller, Bill Kautt, Mel Kramer, Sharlene Langdale, Clare Manz, Peter, Hal Miller, Char Miller, Claire Morris, Jack Prasloski, Pat Prasloski, Stanton Rickey, Rich Russo, Tamara Ryan, Chic Wray and Trix Wray.

Peter opened the meeting by announcing commercial services to transfer VHS tapes, 8mm film, photos and slides to DVD are available locally. The work is done by SOLTEC STUDIOS at 2860 E. McKellips Rd, Ste 1, Mesa, AZ 85213. Tel: 480-985-2733. go to: http://www.soltecstudios.com/ for details. Not cheap.

This opened a technical discussion of the shelf life of CD and DVD disks. Manufacturers’ disks are of a much higher quality and longer lasting than disks we create on our home computers. All are urged to BACKUP and SAVE data and photos on CD or DVD, however be aware that they deteriorate over time. Best you redo onto new disks every 3 years, and added protection can be achieved by making multiple copies.

Peter displayed website at: www.godaddy.com This firm provides domain registry for a nominal fee. You can setup your own personal E-mail and website names by subscribing to their exclusive service. About 4 years ago this startup company was launched when they spent $2 Million (nearly their entire capital) on a SuperBowl commercial. Its risqué production of an over-endowed female caused a media sensation and they benefited from much more free publicity.
This year they posted two separate commercials starring NASCAR racer Danica Patrick on their website, and asked viewers to vote on which one would be broadcast during the 2009 Superbowl. At the last minute they actually bought airtime for both.

Your new digital camera comes with a software disk. Do NOT install the PICASA program for processing your photos. It is too proprietary and seizes control of your system.
Peter demonstrated the various SHOOTING MODE settings on digital cameras:

AUTOMATIC averages everything for light and dark settings.

PORTRAIT is preferable for snapshots because it emphasizes the near view subject.

LANDSCAPE is for postcard type subjects.

MOVIE (or VIDEO) is usually the last setting. ONE PUSH of SHUTTER BUTTON starts both movie and microphone recording. SECOND PUSH stops movie.

To FOCUS press SHUTTER BUTTON halfway to measure distance and wait for a beep. Press SHUTTER BUTTON all the way to shoot.

MODE SWITCH has two positions. Slide UP to SHOOT and DOWN to PLAYBACK images on screen. Latter uses lots of battery.

MEMORY CARD is best left in camera to prevent injury to card and/or computer. Use CABLE to transfer images to computer. Alternatively you can put MEMORY CARD in a CONVERTER READER and attach it to the computer. For photo printing, take the card to CVS Drugs.

When transferring images to computer, select the SCANNER & CAMERA WIZARD option. Select images you want to transfer and give a meaningful name to the group, replacing the camera assigned numbers.

WIZARD offers 3 storage options: INTERNET, PRINT, NOTHING. Choose NOTHING. Use the camera's menu to delete the pix later.

FLASH is only good for about 10 feet. MOVIE (or VIDEO) works better in dim light conditions.

When asked to FORMAT CARD NOW. The answer is always NO.
We WILL be meeting next Thursday 5 Feb 2009; 1:30 PM at our Village clubhouse.
See you there,

STANTON RICKEY, Club President


_______________________________________________________________________________

Minutes 19 JAN 2009

NEXT MEETING ON THURSDAY JAN 29
Bring your camera, cable and perhaps your laptop.

Minutes for 19 JAN 2009
Members present were: Bob Asplund, Sue Boyle, Myrna Dirk, Darlene Femrite, Arlene Frolick, Marian Grider, Peter, Stanton Rickey, and RaeJean Warren.

This was a joint meeting on Monday night, across the street hosted by the Apache Wells Computer Club. The subject was advertised as Understanding Wi-Fi Connections, presented by the following representatives from Serving On-line Seniors (S0S): Pat Davis, Rich Davis and grandson Cory.

Unfortunately very little time was devoted to the advertised subject, however other valuable info was made available.

Rich refuted the common belief that simultaneous computers on the same Wi-Fi network would slow down individual performance. He said 15 or 20 computers could share the same signal with little noticeable degradation, however 100 might be bad.

He also stated that the fear of unauthorized hackers accessing data on a network was overblown hype. It takes hours of effort and special equipment to steal data from users.

The most common problem in setting up a Wi-Fi connection is failure to find the on/off Wireless hardware switch on laptops. It usually is a tiny slider and can be located on the front or either side of various machines. Often it is rather obscure and may lack a signal light. Ask Jim Albach if you doubt this.

After switch is on, identify the small icon on the lower right portion of the screen. If unfamiliar, find it by hovering your cursor over the several icons available to get a readout of their function. If there is a red X on the icon, right click to activate and see any Wi-fi transmissions within range.
Their signal strength is indicated by vertical bars. A padlock symbol indicates a secured network with password required to receive the signal.
Be advised that you are now connected by radio transmission to a router, not to the actual internet.
Once connected, then open your browser and you are surfing happily.

Speakers discussed 64 bit processors versus 32 bit. 64 bit requires a minimum of 4 Gigabytes of RAM memory, and are now appearing on high end computers. If purchasing a computer today you might consider that 64 bit will be the standard several years hence. Be advised that this contradicts the advice given by professionals in our previous minutes.

Some key features of the MS VISTA Home Premium Operating system were explained. Speakers extolled the virtues of VISTA, stating that it was much easier to operate than XP. VISTA can open stored programs by typing a KEYWORD in the lower left SEARCH PANEL.

The HELP feature is much improved. A SNIPPING TOOL was demonstrated. It is a SCISSORS icon. When activated you can capture portions of an image or text and SAVE, ANNOTATE, or SHARE by E-mail.

Pat Davis described the computer repair services available at SOS. Their Service and Training Center is located at 7435 E Main St, Mesa, AZ 85207. Tel: 480-218-4960. Over several years they have built an excellent reputation for honest dealings, integrity and reasonable rates.

Their website contains helpful info and links to download desirable FREE programs like SPYBOT and AVG anti-virus. Go to: http://www.mesasos.com/
We WILL be meeting next Thursday 29 Jan 2009; 1:30 PM at our Village clubhouse.
Peter will demonstrate and discuss getting optimum performance from our digital cameras. Be sure to bring your camera, manual and camera cable. Consider bringing your laptop as well.
See you there,
STANTON RICKEY, Club President
__________________________________________________

Village Computer Club Meeting 15 JAN 2009

We will NOT be meeting next Thursday. Our next meeting will be another Joint Meeting across the street with the Apache Wells Resort Computer Club on Monday, 19 Jan 2009 at 7 PM.

Members present were:
Bob Bolter, Sue Boyle, Nancy Curtis, Myrna Dirk, Jim Erickson, Darlene Femrite, Arlene Frolick, Maggie Green, Marian Grider, Ed Heimiller, Bill Kautt, Clare Manz, Peter, Claire Morris, Jan Patton, Dorothy Pickering, Jack Prasloski, Pat Prasloski, Stanton Rickey, Rich Russo, Joyce Wahlquist, Rex Weinreich, Chic Wray and Trix Wray.

Stanton Rickey reminded that 1 FREE subscription to Smart Computing magazine will be awarded to the Club for every 5 paid subscriptions or renewals. Please include Village Code 12113 with your order to receive this credit.

Peter warned against VIRUS SCAMS offering FREE downloads to protect against viruses. If you click either the YES or NO button, they INSTALL A VIRUS and you have to pay them to get rid of it. In some cases, even clicking on the X to close installs the virus. To be positively safe, disconnect your telephone or cable connection by pulling the appropriate connecting wire quickly. These pests usually pop up despite popup blockers.

Beware of official looking E-mails from the IRS. They usually offer a rebate and contain a form to fill out. Despite realistic logos, these are always bogus and are classic identity theft scams. The IRS warns that they will never contact you in this manner by E-mail. Be wary of similar scams that pretend to come from banks.

If you experience sporadic outages in your Cox Cable internet connection, register a complaint. They are usually caused by local sub-loop cable connections which can be remedied by a technician.

Participation in FACEBOOK or MYSPACE is unwise. Young people may regret revealing info posted for the world to see. Employers now check these websites as part of their vetting new applicants. Warn your grandchildren.

Installing cordless phones adjacent to your computer oftentimes provides interference with internet reception and/or Wi-Fi.

Data Doctor article advises against upgrading to the 64 bit Windows operating system. When purchasing a new high end computer it may be included. 64 bit processors are meant for sophisticated business computers, not for home users. They will not run software designed for the normal 32 bit standard due to compatibility issues. Save money and stick with the 32 bit version.

When purchasing a computer, a SYSTEM RESTORE DISK is included or can be created on the computer itself. If you have bothersome operating problems, it is possible to wipe your hard drive clean and use such a disk to restore the computer to the same status as the date of purchase. This means you now have the laborious task of resurrecting data and programs installed over the years, assuming you have saved desired data to another source. The best solution is to take the computer and restoration disk to MesaSOS professionals, who will backup and save prior to doing a clean wipe and restore your data. However, SOS will not reinstall programs due to copyright restrictions.

Automatic Microsoft Updates provide usually weekly fixes (mostly security). If you notice considerable slowness in your computer, go back and remove the latest MS update for possible relief.
Go to CONTROL PANEL then ADD/REMOVE PROGRAMS. Put a tick mark in box marked SHOW UPDATES and locate one with latest date and remove it.
It is possible to TURN OFF these MS automatic updates, but NOT RECOMMENDED.

AVG version 8.0 will not allow installation of another anti-virus program like NORTON or AVAST. AVG does a good job by itself. Unless changed the latest 8.0 will automatically do a FULL SYSTEM SCAN daily and tie up your machine for over an hour.
Go to AVG in the PROGRAMS listing. Open the AV control window.Click on EDIT SCAN SCHEDULE. A pull down menu allows you to select one specific day for a weekly full scan.

Jan Patton asked about eliminating spam in everyday E-mail. Peter said that each service was slightly different, but Yahoo, Hotmail, AOL, etc all had methods of filtering incoming messages and relegating them to a JUNK or SPAM folder.
Such mail is usually kept on host sites. You must go to the specific website to restrict access. Stanton opined that he quickly scans the SPAM messages to ascertain validity. He has a large correspondence and finds an average of one bona fide E-mail for every 40 or 50 SPAMS. This usually occurs when an individual changes their E-mail address and fails to advise him.

We will NOT be meeting next Thursday. Our next meeting will be another Joint Meeting across the street with the Apache Wells Resort Computer Club on Monday, 19 Jan 2009 at 7 PM. Please wear your nametags and plan to arrive about 6:45 so we can be seated together. The guest speaker that night will be from SOS (Serving On-line Seniors). Their subject will be "Overcoming annoying difficulties of WI-FI connections especially while traveling".

See you there,
STANTON RICKEY, Club President
_______________________________________________________________

MINUTES of 5 JAN. 2009

NOTE: IMPORTANT SCHEDULE CHANGES BELOW

This was a joint meeting hosted by the Computer Club of Apache Wells (across the street).
Village members present were: Sue Boyle, Jim Broschat, Doris Broschat,Dick Conroy, Sharon Conroy, Darlene Femrite, Marian Grider, Ed Heimiller, Bill Kautt, Clare Manz, Hal Miller, Char Miller, Stanton Rickey, and Rae Warren.

In addition to the host membership, several members from The Wells User Group were also present.
Our guest speaker was a young woman representing the marketing division of SMART COMPUTING magazine, 131 W Grand Ave, Lincoln, NE 68521; TEL: 1-800 733-3809

ON-LINE: http://www.smartcomputing.com/groups

Her lively power point presentation emphasized the fact that SMART COMPUTING was focused on us, the amateur home users, and was written IN PLAIN ENGLISH rather than TECHIE JARGON. Likewise advertising pages were typically held to about 11% of content.
All attendees received a copy of their January 2009 issue, together with a promo pen and an extremely useful mouse pad with a 2009 calendar imprint. The speaker said that last year’s mouse pad might be helpful as a jar opener.

She then walked us through the features of the magazine. The featured cover articles for January were: “Did You Really Backup—Preventing Data Disasters”. Six articles were devoted to all aspects of BACKUP.
The Table of Contents revealed current articles like candid reviews of new software and hardware, web tips, where to get device drivers, how to install home networks, and announcement of Microsoft’s new operating system: WINDOWS 7, intended to replace VISTA and tentatively scheduled for roll-out in late.2009 or early 2010. This is now in beta testing and Smart Computing engineers are involved.
Subscribers receive a monthly preview of each issue by E-delivery. Two weeks prior to snail mail receipt, the entire upcoming issue can be viewed on-line. All issues since 1992 are archived and 30,000 prior articles can be found at: www.smartcomputing.com home page. Click on SEARCH NOW Browse All Issues. Poke around on the home page for other various specialized links.
Selective problems can be researched on-line FREE TO SUBSCRIBERS, who receive a User Name and Password, with limited access to non-subscribers. Enter a problem IN PLAIN ENGLISH to access past relevant articles. They can be printed out and/or E-Mailed to friends. In addition you can save and store selected articles in your PERSONAL LIBRARY space, which is cached on their server in Nebraska rather than taking up space on your hard drive.

A major feature of SMART COMPUTING is their FREE TECH SUPPORT. Each issue has articles on troubleshooting, a Q & A column, and a phone number to call for HELP IN PLAIN ENGLISH (1-800-368-8304) or.E-MAIL them on a form found at: www.smartcomputing.com/smartpeople Jim Erickson used this service when unable to find answers locally and was very pleased with the results.

Door prizes were handed out to some attendees, and our own Ed Heimiller received a FREE ONE YEAR SUBSCRIPTION.
SUBSCRIPTION PRICES are $29 for 12 monthly issues or $48 for 24 issues. Canadian subscribers pay $37 and $64, however the speaker stated that Canadian snowbirds can get a pro-rated price based on mail deliveries to their Arizona address. Further, there is a special WEB-ONLY (electronic delivery) subscription for $17 annually.

Our Village at Apache Wells Computer Club will be credited with 1 FREE subscription for every 5 PAID subscribers. In order to receive this freebie, subscribers MUST IDENTIFY THEMSELVES as Village members and include our CODE NUMBER 12113. Stanton will have order forms available at our meetings.

If you attended the Organ Stop Pizza event on Sunday, more fun can be found here:

http://www.organstoppizza.com/welcome.htm

http://www.wurlitzermanor.com/ (Go to MUSIC LINK)

There has been a schedule change from that previously announced. The joint meeting (across the street) has been changed from Monday night, 12 Jan to 19 Jan 2009 at 7 PM. The guest speaker that night will be from SOS (Serving On-line Seniors). Their subject will be “Overcoming annoying difficulties of WI-FI connections while traveling”

Our next meeting will be at our Village Clubhouse on Thursday, 15 Jan 2009 at 1:30 PM.
See you there,
STANTON RICKEY, Club President

________________________________________________________________

NEW PRODUCT INTRO

Apple Introduces Revolutionary New Laptop With No Keyboard

Meeting Minutes Dec.18 2008

For last season’s minutes go to: www.geocities.com/vccvcc2000/minutes.html

Note the LINKS list at the far right -->> . . . . . . . . . ..

To print these minutes, DO NOT just hit the PRINT command or you will get all the minutes on several pages. Hi-lite this new set of minutes. Then hit FILE-PRINT and select PRINT SELECTION. If unable to print a highlighted SELECTION like our Club Minutes, then click on THE YELLOW BAR ABOVE and select TEMPORARILY ALLOW POPUPS.

On January 5 at 7 PM we are invited to visit the Comp Club at AW across the street. There will be a presentation by SMART COMPUTING Magazine. On January 12 at 7 PM we are invited to visit the Comp Club at AW across the street. The presenters will be the Davises from SOS-Mesa. The topic is: Wireless Networking.

WE WILL NOT BE MEETING AGAIN UNTIL MONDAY, 5 JAN 2009, WHEN WE WILL HAVE A JOINT MEETING WITH APACHE WELLS RESORT CLUB ACROSS THE STREET in Apache Wells Bldg A at 7 PM.

Minutes of 18 Dec 2008 follow:
Convened by Stanton Rickey
Village members present were: Jim Broschat, Bill Brown, Dick Conroy, Nancy Curtis, Myrna Dirk, Jim Erickson Arlene Frolick, Marilyn Girardin, Marian Grider, Bill Kautt, Peter, Hal Miller, Char Miller, Jack Prasloski, Pat Prasloski, and Rex Weinreich.

Peter introduced us to www.hulu.com This website was launched last March by collaboration of News Corp (Fox TV) and NBC. Hulu hosts more than 1000 TV shows like Saturday Night Live, Heroes, etc. Now there are more than 130 content providers, including Sony, MGM, Paramount, Lionsgate and PBS. In addition to TV shows you can view full-length movies at this site. Click on FULL SCREEN for improved viewing.

Video Cam Corders are new devices that store data on a tiny DVD or Photo Memory Card. Latter are now increasingly cheap. i.e. 4 Gig for less than $10 and 8 Gig for under $20.
Transferring old 8mm film to DVD is possible by taking pictures with digital camera of what is being projected onto a screen. Set the camera to movie mode with background music running on your stereo set. It is a miserable process. If you must, use a commercial service.

SMART COMPUTING magazine is probably the best publication for average users. Little advertising and lots of good advice in plain English. They have a FREE TECH SUPPORT feature that answers questions online HERE. Or Phone them at 1-800-733-3809 Jim Erickson stated that he previously used this service and they were extremely efficient and helpful.

DATA DOCTORS says paid extended warranty programs beyond the normal manufacturers warranty are usually not necessary for desktop computers or for laptops that only travel infrequently. A laptop in use by “road warriors” or students probably would benefit from this extra outlay because of hard usage. In any event read the fine print. Don’t just trust the salesman’s pitch - read the fine print. Oftentimes claims are rejected because of “abuse”, which is difficult to disprove.

NEVER BUY a used laptop on E-Bay or from other anonymous sources. Who knows what damage has been inflicted by the prior owner.
Hal Miller shared that laptop overheating and resultant shutdown could be prevented by using a turkey rack or other wire mesh product underneath the machine. This increases the normally inadequate builtin air circulation.

Peter cautioned against FWD FWD FWD type messages received from well wishers this time of year may have viruses. Also unknown E-mail ATTACHMENTS or LINKS can result in SCAMS. Rick Russo just removed 150+ spyware infections with SpyBot – all received in the last 10 days.

MICROSOFT Automatic Security updates can be turned ON or OFF by going to CONTROL PANEL then double click on SECURITY CENTER. Recommend you go with ON for FIREWALL, VIRUS PROTECTION and AUTOMATIC UPDATES. If Service Pack 3 causes problems, it can be UNinstalled through the usual Program Uninstall process.

The INTERNET EXPLORER Browser Icon has a yellow slash across the E if you are running version 7 (mandatory with VISTA). If no slash, it is version 6. Latter is probably best for XP users. At some point the Automatic UpDate feature will push you into version 7 regardless.

Computer Club Minutes are being produced by using BLOGGER by GOOGLE. You must sign up for a FREE GOOGLE E-Mail account to create a Blog. Text created in MS Word or WORDPAD and/or photos can be easily copy/pasted onto your Blog.
An easier available Blog program can be found at http://multiply.com/ Signup is FREE. When creating a Blog it is unwise to use your own name. That may attract unwanted attention. Use a cryptic address and notify selected recipients. Peter used Paris&Beyond for his blog title.

Try going to GOOGLE and searching for your own name to see what turns up. You will probably find there is no place to hide. Best if your own name is uncommon. We searched Peter's name and found many infamous characters unrelated to our own Peter!

WE WILL NOT BE MEETING AGAIN UNTIL MONDAY, 5 JAN 2009, WHEN WE WILL HAVE A JOINT MEETING WITH APACHE WELLS RESORT CLUB ACROSS THE STREET in Apache Wells Bldg A at 7 PM. Representatives of SMART COMPUTING Magazine will make a special presentation. Usually they impart much helpful and interesting knowledge and award door prizes.
See You there,
Stanton Rickey, Club President

______________________________________________________________

11 Dec 2008 Minutes

Village at Apache Wells Computer Club Meeting 11 Dec 2008
Village at Apache Wells Computer Club Meeting 11 Dec 2008

For last season’s minutes go to: www.geocities.com/vccvcc2000/minutes.html

Note the LINKS list at the far right -->> . . . . . . . . . ..


Minutes of 11 Dec 2008 follow:
Convened by Stanton Rickey
Village members present were: Jim Albach, Sharon Conroy, Nancy Curtis, Jim Erickson, Arlene Frolick, Marian Grider, Dorothy Pickering, Peter, Jack Prasloski, Pat Prasloski, Stanton Rickey, and Rex Weinreich

Marian Grider reported that the Club Treasury amounted to over $1500.00. So far 19 members have paid $10 dues for this season.

Peter reiterated BEWARE OF E-Mail ATTACHMENTS . Your best procedure is SAVE ATTACHMENTS to DESKTOP, then right click and Scan with AVG or AVAST before opening. Viruses and spyware multiply at Xmas.

Peter recommends installation of both AVG Free (or AVAST), and SPYBOT to achieve maximum effectiveness. The older 1.4 version of SPYBOT works best because the new version contains an extra firewall that slows down your computer. AD-AWARE is superfluous and should be uninstalled. AVAST and AVG are set to automatically update daily.
SPYBOT should be run at least weekly.

When installing AVAST it is imperative that AVG first be uninstalled. To perform this action go to: CONTROL PANEL, then click on ADD/REMOVE PROGRAMS and highlight AVG, then click OK.

SOS (Serving On-Line Seniors ), 7435 E Main St, Mesa; Tel: 480-218-4960 provides high quality, reasonably priced computer maintenance. They also make house calls and offer training classes or individual tutoring.
Go to their website at: www.mesasos.com for helpful links, downloading programs, and FAQ (Answers to Frequently Asked Questions).

Stanton Rickey stated that SOS transferred all data from his old XP desktop to his new VISTA laptop for $45. This after he spent several tortuous hours installing SETUP on his new machine. SOS suggests that when purchasing a new machine, bring it to them without opening the box. They will do both setup and data transfer for about $85. Your programs must be reinstalled from the original disks, so keep them on file.

Multi-language translators can be found at http://www.mezzofanti.org/translation/ but computers produce pretty crude results.

The Mesa Tribune features weekly columns by both Kim Komando and Data Doctors. They offer worthwhile advice, and can also be reached at their websites. Data Doctors storefront services are pricey but they offer excellent free advice here http://www.datadoctors.com/media/radio/

Best results can be obtained by always using the same USB port for Printer connections. Changing USB ports causes confusion.

During Thunderstorms, disconnect at the wall BOTH the computer and the cable connections to avoid frying your machine.

If a suspicious popup or Internet page appears, paranoia is justified. You can mouse down to your taskbar. Give one right-click on the culprits and select to CLOSE it from there. This eliminates the danger of using the culprits own doubtful buttons to cancel.

BEWARE of WI-FI at airports. Malicious hackers may be loitering nearby. This is only a concern if you have BlueTooth on your portable. Look in Control Panel and be sure it is disabled. For plain wi-fi your Windows firewall keeps hackers out.

Arlene Frolick cautioned that laptop locking devices should be checked for compatibility with your machine before purchase. One type does not fit all.

For an eye-opening look at declared political financing, go to www.opensecrets.org Click on your state to see who paid whom.

For some fast online photo fixing, go to www.piknik.com It offers quick photo editing faster than any other installed program.

Various long-distance phone plans were discussed. Worth checking are www.onesuite.com and http://1010969.ca/ but there are more as well.

Our next meeting will be at our Village Clubhouse on Thursday, 18 Dec 2008 at 1:15 PM.
See you there,
STANTON RICKEY, Club President
Stanton’s Xmas letter http://smithsonroundtable.blogspot.com/

________________________________________________________________

Minutes for Dec.4 2008

Minutes of 4 Dec 2008 follow:
Convened by Stanton Rickey
Village members present were: Bob Bolter, Jim Broschat, Jim Erickson, Arlene Frolick, Fran Geisler, Marian Grider, Bill Kautt, Clare Manz, Peter, Claire Morris, Dorothy Pickering, Jack Prasloski, Pat Prasloski, Stanton Rickey,Rich Russo, Joyce Wahlquist, and Rex Weinreich .

The links that we discussed today were:

Santa's Jigsaw
http://www.jacquielawson.com/viewcard.asp?code=ER13610552

Elf Yourself http://www.elfyourself.com/

Political PayOffs http://www.opensecrets.org/states/index.php
Look up your state on the map at bottom.

Digital TV conversion (funny video only streams inside USA)
http://www.hulu.com/watch/36608/talkshow-with-spike-feresten-cable-psa

OnLine easy photo editor http://www.picnik.com/
For a fast edit of a photo.

Take better photos. Kim Komando camera tips
http://www.komando.com/columns/index.aspx?id=5804

OnLine Support from MesaSOS (the Davis shop) with all the security downloads and their installation directions A virtual online toolbox.
http://www.mesasos.com/

TV tech advisor. Hi quality video advice.
Dotto video Wi-Fi How To http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ua-U59op2vs

Dotto video short PC topics http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=dottotech&search_type=

Cleaning your PC screen etc. http://www.extremetech.com/article2/0,2845,2325950,00.asp

Easy Blogsite maker http://multiply.com/

MesaSOS Lessons on PC topics http://www.mesasos.com/#Knowledge%20is%20Power

Xmas Lights House http://www.flixxy.com/best-christmas-lights-display.htm
More Xmas Lights http://www.flixxy.com/christmas-light-show.htm

Internet Help Desk http://www.flixxy.com/internet-helpdesk.htm
________________________________________________________________

November 20 LINKS LIST

Village at Apache Wells Computer Club Meeting 20 Nov 2008

For last season’s minutes go to: www.geocities.com/vccvcc2000/minutes.html
Note the LINKS list at the far right -->>

Minutes of 20 NOV 2008 follow:

Convened by Stanton Rickey
Village members present were: Jim Albach, Bill Brown, Myrna Dirk, Jim Erickson, Arlene Frolick, Fran Geisler, Marian Grider, Clare Manz, Peter, Hal Miller, Char Miller, Jan Patton, Jack Prasloski, Pat Prasloski, Stanton Rickey, and Rich Russo,

The slate of officers for re-election was unopposed and the following were re-elected for the Nov 2008-Apr 2009 Season.
PRESIDENT: STANTON RICKEY
TREASURER: MARIAN GRIDER
PROGRAM DIRECTOR: PETER

Marian Grider reported that the Club Treasury amounted to about $1400.00. Annual Dues are set at $10 for the season.

Stanton Rickey announced that Wireless connections to Cox High Speed is available to ALL anywhere in the clubhouse area 24/7, and will now be available 12 months of the year. Arrangements have been made with the HOA to pay Cox fees for the summer months. Bring your own laptop. The Club Desk Top Computer is available for Paid Up MEMBERS ONLY.

VIRUS SECURITY is extremely important. There are 5 classes of viruses: WORM, VIRUS, SPYWARE, 1ST PAGE CAPTURE which takes over your Internet Home Page, and MALWARE which can erase all or part of your hard drive.
Peter admonished all to BEWARE OF ATTACHMENTS sent by well meaning folks who pass along jokes and other cutesy comments to a wide number of recipients. WORST are those FWD TO FWD TO FWD passing thru several individuals, any of whom may unwittingly spread a virus. Your best procedure is to SAVE ATTACHMENTS to DESKTOP, then right click and Scan with AVG or AVAST before opening.

Peter recommended installation of both AVG Free (or AVAST), and SPYBOT 1.4 to achieve maximum effectiveness.
The older 1.4 version of SPYBOT works best, and is even stronger than SPYWARE DOCTOR or Ad-Aware. AVG is set to automatically update daily. SPYBOT should be run monthly.
Spybot 1.4 is available here--> DOWNLOAD
Most of us are currently running AVG 7.5 as an anti-virus program, however it MAY soon be terminated in favor of version 8.0, which added a firewall. This has bogged down most computers. Many folks have run into problems with the newer version, so the best advice is to stick with version 7.5 and hope that its life will again be extended. If you have AVG 8.0 running without trouble, keep it.
Version 8.0 available here--> DOWNLOAD

Another ANTI-VIRUS alternative is AVAST, which can be
downloaded FREE HERE--> DOWNLOAD
When installing AVAST it is imperative that AVG first be uninstalled. To perform this action go to: CONTROL PANEL, then click on ADD/REMOVE PROGRAMS and highlight AVG, then click OK.

SPYBOT has a complicated procedure. Install the 1.4 version of this program.
-Next find “SEARCH FOR UPDATES”. Run that.
-Put tick marks in ALL the boxes. Click on “DOWNLOAD UPDATES”.
-Now click on “IMMUNIZE”
-Then Click on the green X marked “IMMUNIZE” It will then announce that you are fully protected. That brings the program up-to-date.
-Time to scan your system. Poke through SEARCH and DESTROY to find the button marked “CHECK FOR PROBLEMS” A full scan takes 20 minutes or so. EVERYTHING it finds should be removed.
-Put a tick in every box and click on FIX. That should do it.

Avoid installing WINDOWS SERVICE PACK 3. It’s still buggy. When a popup box appears saying: UPDATES ARE AVAILABLE, best you ignore it.

Beware of any popups offering free SPYWARE SCANS. Often they are scams that do the opposite and install viruses on your computer, which are difficult and costly to remove.
Likewise, SPAM messages often entice you to click on UNSUBSCRIBE to stop them coming. Actually the opposite happens and they verify your computer address. IGNORE THESE SCAMS

ADEONA is a program that protects one from theft by tracing a stolen laptop. When activated by a thief it calls home and reveals its whereabouts. Go to: http://adeona.cs.washington.edu/index.html

Arlene Frolick advised that GOOGLE has a new FREE 411 service that finds and connects you to a local business without having to look it up in the phonebook or paying for a 411 service. Simply dial 1-800-GOOG-411 (or 1-800-466-4411) from any phone and speak the city and state location and business type. You will be directly connected to the business for FREE. Handy for ordering Dominos Pizza from your cell phone at midnight. Not for residential numbers unfortunately.

Peter demonstrated the practical use of a BLOG by showing excerpts from a blog of his summer vacation in Europe. Both photos and text can be inserted and shared by interested viewers. Go to: http://www.parisbeyond.blogspot.com/ for an example of what you can do.

These minutes and all future COMPUTER CLUB MINUTES during 2008-2009 will be posted at: http://www.villagehoa.blogspot.com/ For last season’s minutes go to: www.geocities.com/vccvcc2000/minutes.html

Here are the links we referred to in the Club Meeting on Thursday

Computer Club Minutes NEW 2008-09
http://villagehoa.blogspot.com/

Past years' Club Minutes
http://www.geocities.com/vccvcc2000/minutes.htm

Serving OnLine Seniors for downloads and PC repairs
http://www.sosmesa.com/ Davis PC fixes at 7435 E Main St, Mesa

Laptop security freebie calls home
http://adeona.cs.washington.edu/index.html

Avast free A-V download
http://www.avast.com/eng/download-avast-home.html

Computer Club Minutes 2008-09
http://villagehoa.blogspot.com/

ELF Yourself
http://www.elfyourself.com/

Fake Windows security alert
http://community.ca.com/blogs/securityadvisor/archive/2008/10/14/two-good-looking-windows-security-centers-one-fake-one-real.aspx

Biggest Fake virus
http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20081017-report-fake-antivirus-programs-claim-30million-victims.html

Canada Do Not Call List
https://ioptout.ca/

JibJab Humor
http://www.peteyandpetunia.com/VoteHere/VoteHere.htm

Pachelbel's Canon Rock
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m7Jh1BV1EOc

Arlene's Google Free Phone Number Look Up On your phone dial 1-800-GOOG411 and try it out. Amazing

CLASSIFIED AD: Stanton purchased a new laptop running VISTA. He has an HP Desktop and Monitor running XP, FOR SALE. $100 OBO.

See you there, STANTON RICKEY, Club President
__________________________________________________________________

Village at Apache Wells Computer Club Meeting 28 Feb 2008
Minutes of 28 Feb 2008 follow:
Convened by Stanton Rickey
Village members present were: Jim Albach, Bob Bolter, Sharon Conroy, Myrna Dirk, Arlene Frolick, Ed Heimiller, Bill Joynt, Bill Kautt, Sharlene Langdale, Clare Manz, Peter, Clare Morris, Dorothy Pickering, Jack Prasloski, Pat Prasloski, Stanton Rickey, and Rex Weinreich.

Peter displayed a copy of Consumer Reports, which touted AVAST as a highly recommended virus and spyware program, and suggested that was not the case. He continues to recommend a combination of AVG and SPYBOT as offering superior anti-virus protection. The same magazine also recommended several laptops. Peter’s comment was that some models of several brands were better than others. Any comparison was not valid because efficacy was “model specific”.


Stanton Rickey warned against seemingly realistic looking E-mail messages that offered relief from a virus that had been identified as taking over your computer. DO NOT, REPEAT DO NOT open the attachment or download offered programs. Peter had evidence of someone who did so and got pop-up messages every 10 seconds, disrupting his displays. Peter recommended downloading Microsoft’s FREE program Windows Defender.
LINK-à http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyID=435bfce7-da2b-4a6a-afa4-f7f14e605a0d&DisplayLang=en

MS VISTA has many security features, however the tradeoff is slow response time. If you wish to purchase a new computer running XP, Dell offers that option.

Actual results of Wireless “N” belie the advertised claims of increased range. Apache Wells Computer Club (across the street) has installed a “N” router transmitter, and the results were actually less range than their older “G” model.


http://www.mesaartscenter.com/ displays a schedule of upcoming cultural events at the Mesa Performing Arts Center. You can select seats and buy tickets for performances online. The US Air Force Concert Band of the West will be giving a concert there on 11 March. Tickets are FREE if you enter Promotional code BAND.


http://www.donotcall.gov/ is s website where you can quickly register your telephone number to prevent annoying sales calls. Unfortunately political calls are exempt.


Life expectancy of Laptop Batteries is problematic. Peter demonstrated a system for recalibrating your battery, thus extending battery life. Over time, most drop from an advertised 2 hours to about 15 minutes. No need to replace the laptop battery. Just follow these steps.'> Run the battery down past EMPTY until your machine completely stops, the Recharge overnight (for 14 hours). Repeat this process 4 times in a row to restore additional battery life. A good practice would be to do this monthly, repeating the rundown twice. FULL DETAILS AT THE END OF THESE MINUTES


When donating an old computer you should take care to wipe clean all stored data. Simply deleting is not good enough. Programs like ERASE found at: www.heidi.ie/eraser or KILLDISK at www.killdisk.com/eraser.htm do the trick. If all else fails, remove the hard drive and smash it with a screwdriver and hammer. Go to http://www.komando.com/ for links to download many worthwhile FREE programs to erase or recover data. Kim Komando also has a radio program offering helpful computer tips on Saturday mornings in most areas.

GET BETTER Wi-Fi SIGNAL
How To Make A Wi-Fi Extender


Inkjet Cartridges are increasingly expensive, while printer hardware is relatively cheap. The trend for manufacturers is to gradually reduce the ml capacity, while retaining the original price (eg. From 45 ml size to currently about 17 ml). Refilling cartridges can be done at about half price. In the long run a laser printer produces a superior product without the expense of replacement cartridges.


http://www.charitynavigator.org/ is a website that reveals the percentage of “administrative costs” versus actual funding for charities that solicit donations.

Real Estate Prices and estimated values can be found at several websites: Go to:
http://www.realtor.com/ http://www.realtytrac.com/ http://www.forclosures.com/
http://www.bargainnetwork.com/ http://www.homesales.gov/ http://www.trulia.com/
http://www.zillow.com/


E-Mail printouts, PDF documents, and color photos can be received by new hardware called HP PRINTING MAILBOX, when combined with PRESTO service. Go to: http://www.presto83.com/ for details.

Our next meeting will be held at 1:30 PM on Thursday, 7 Mar 2008 at our Village Clubhouse. Addie Rickey will make a presentation entitled FINDING YOUR FAMILY HISTORY ON THE INTERNET. All are welcome to bring your own laptop to follow along and bookmark appropriate websites.

See you there,
Stanton Rickey, Club President

Calibrating Your Computer’s Battery For Best Performance

The battery has an internal microprocessor that provides an estimate of the amount of energy in the battery as it charges and discharges. The battery needs to be recalibrated from time to time to keep the on-screen battery time and percent display accurate. You should perform this procedure when you first use your battery and then every few months thereafter.


1. To make proper settings for “Power” option: click right key of your mouse in the blank screen
choose “Properties” “ Screen Saver” Power” “Power Schemes Portable”
, and “When computer is running on batteries”, tick “Never” for all options.


Under “Alarms” option , don’t tick “Low battery alarm” or “Critical battery alarm” functions,

Then choose “Apply” and “OK” to save the settings.

2. Disconnect the power adapter and use your battery until laptop shuts down.

3. Plug the power adapter in and fully charge your computer’s battery to 100%. Upon initial use (or after a prolonged storage period) the battery may require three to four charge-discharge cycles before achieving maximum performance. .The charging process should last at least around 14 hours.

You have to first discharge your battery until laptop shuts down before you recharge it to 100% for calibration. After that, you can connect and disconnect the power adapter when the battery is at any charge level.

Tip: When the battery reaches “empty”, the computer is forced into sleep mode .The battery actually keeps back a reserve beyond ”empty” to maintain the computer in sleep for a period of time. Once the battery is truly exhausted, the computer is forced to shut down. At this point, any open files could be lost.

Battery Storage
Batteries may be damaged if stored for prolonged periods with a closed circuit. If the battery will not be in use for a month or longer, it is recommended that it be removed from the device , 60% - 80% charged and stored iii a cool, dry and clean place. A charged battery will eventually lose its charge and be damaged if unused. It may therefore be necessary to recharge the battery after a certain storage period.
Surely it would be great if you can use the battery once in a month to ensure good storage status.