k-Byte, September/October 1999
v. 16, n. 9/10
Contents
 1 State of the Group - Rick Mattingly
2 About k-Byte
3 August/September Meeting Reports - Mike Meyer
4 Digital Cameras Arrive In The Mainstream - Steve Morgan
6 Drive Image V 2.0 - Edmund F Grefrath
8 GoldMine 4.0
9 Mo' Bumper Snickers - humor
11 Y2K - Playing It Safe
12 eBoard.com - Rick Mattingly
13 Windows Insider - Valerie Ryan
13 Speedier Logons - Rick Mattingly
14 Calendar of Events
16 October/November Calendars
18 Membership Application
19 The Wacky Net - humor
20 DLL Conflict Troubleshooting Tutorial - Rod Ream
23 The Ultimate Metric Conversion Chart - humor
25 Top Ten Words
26 Bob Click's October 1999 Deals Column - Bob Click
28 Free Internet Discussion Group
29 Convert - Rick Mattingly
31 FRPCUG Contacts

Computers in the future may weigh no more than 1.5 tons.
Popular Mechanics, forecasting the relentless march of science, 1949

State of the Group From The President
by Rick Mattingly

As I look back over the relatively short history of the personal computer, I am truly amazed at the incredible number of new technologies and products we are deluged with today. Just when you think you've seen everything there is something new.

Back in the dark ages we were all using the CP/M operating system with our portables and the same bundled software packages. Life was simpler - and harder - then. Things that we take for granted now were subjects of great collective discussion then as we tried to come up with creative ways to accomplish them. The software and hardware tools which I am using to put this newsletter issue together were beyond comprehension.

Wow, have things changed. And, as the continuing avalanche of technologies picks up even more speed daily, “we ain't seen nothing yet.” Stay tuned to this channel.

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About k-Byte

Published bi-monthly, k-Byte is the official newsletter of the Front Range Personal Computer Users Group (FRPCUG): our mailing address is PMB 152, 305 W. Magnolia, Fort Collins, Colorado 80521.
Opinions expressed in k-Byte are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect those of the group or its members. Publication of information in k-Byte constitutes no guarantee of accuracy. Use of any information found in this publication is at the sole risk of the user. Neither k-Byte, nor its officers, nor k-Byte, nor its editors or contributors assume any liability for damages resulting from use of information in this publication.

Submissions

Articles, letters and short items of interest on computer-related topics are welcome and encouraged. All items submitted for publication are subject to editing. Send your contribution to the editor via the FRPCUG electronic bulletin board system (BBS) or submit on disk. The deadline for articles is listed in the Calendar of Upcoming Events in each issue of k-Byte. If you have questions about a submission, please contact the editor for information.

Copyright

k-Byte is copyrighted 1996 by the Front Range Personal Computer Users Group. Unless otherwise noted, other nonprofit users groups may reprint or quote from any articles appearing in k-Byte without prior permission, provided that proper author and publication credits are given and that a copy of the publication in which the article appears is sent at no cost to k-Byte at the above mailing address. User groups wishing to exchange newsletters with FRPCUG are invited to send a copy of their newsletter together with an exchange request.
IBM PC, OS/2, Compaq, MS-DOS, UNIX, Windows and other trademarks occasionally mentioned in k-Byte are registered trademarks of International Business Machines, Inc., Compaq Corporation, Microsoft, Digital Research, AT&T or their owners respectively. Neither FRPCUG nor its newsletter k-Byte are connected in any way with any manufacturer or seller. We, however, gratefully acknowledge sponsorship of our group by Data Service Center, Jim Becker, owner.

Advertising

Classified advertising is free to members for non-business ads. See “Trading Post” for pricing for camera-ready display ads. Charges for ad makeup from sketches, etc., are available on request. Deadline for camera-ready and classified ads is listed in the Calendar of Upcoming Events. Deadline for ad-makeup is the same as for articles.

About FRPCUG

FRPCUG is an independent nonprofit computer society, open to anyone interested in MS-DOS, OS/2, or UNIX microcomputers. Its purpose is to provide an educational and scientific forum of mutual benefit for members of the micro-computer community. FRPCUG holds a monthly meeting and conducts various special interest groups (SIGS) and seminars. Members have voting privileges, free use of the FRPCUG and PC-SIG software libraries, subscription to k-Byte newsletter, SIGs and selected seminars and privileged access to the FRPCUG BBS. Annual dues are $25 for individual/family membership and $50 for corporate/group membership.

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Scribe's Corner

August Meeting Report
By Mike Meyer

Nothing to report this month as our meeting space at the Fort Collins Senior Center was closed for annual maintenance.

September Meeting Report
By Mike Meyer

33 people attended the September meeting. During the Announcements Period, President Rick Mattingly listed some of the upcoming fall meeting programs and requested help from the membership with teaching some computer courses for the Senior Center. FRPCUG benefits by getting free use of the meeting room for our monthly meetings. Rick then mentioned the Post Office may soon be changing the rules for personal mail boxes, which will be called PMB's to distinguish them from regular post office boxes. Some additional discussion then ensued over the likelihood of that ever occurring, due to a lot of public opposition. At this point, it looks like the changes won't be implemented until next spring, at the earliest. Rick credited Don Anderson for his efforts in arranging for the use of Woodward-Governor's projector for our monthly meeting presentations, which helped the club to avoid having to purchase one for now. Rick also discussed the availability of the new Windows '98 updates, including the new Special Edition version (SE II) costing about $20 (incl. S&H). A no cost "bug-fix" up-date of WIN'98 is also available. Both versions can be down-loaded from the Microsoft web-site. Jack Linder stated another advantage of WIN'98 (SE II) was the ability to use several computers on the Internet, all sharing one modem.

Discussion of problems during the Open Forum period included irregular operation of a computer monitor (faulty chip or loose connection?), (Rick Mattingly mentioned that a majority of our problems probably can be traced back to the video systems), a modem problem (need for cleaning of card contacts and/or proper seating in the motherboard?), installation procedures for older model HP scanners, and FAT 32 setup of two hard drives in WIN'98 for use with the LINUX operating system.

Glen York was the Main Program speaker and gave a helpful and informative presentation on searching for information on the Internet. He began with defining some of the many acronyms (e.g., HTML, HTTP, URL, etc.) we are always encountering, which we then promptly forget. Glen very properly cautioned us about the need to validate the available information, not to accept everything at face value. He discussed the wide variety of sources for this information, as well as the pros and cons of using a filter for controlling access to the information. He also discussed Portals for facilitating access to information sources used on a regular basis and the pros and cons of some of the more popular search engines (e.g., Alta Vista, Infoseek, Lycos). Glen provided everyone with a handout listing these search engines, portals, etc. and fielded specific questions from the audience about them. He wound up his presentation with a discussion of some other important search enhancement factors, such as the use of Boolean Operators (AND, OR, NOT), Parentheses, Quotes, etc. One of our club members, Dave Trump, and Glen then discussed the use of the NEAR operator, which functions similarly to the regular Boolean Operators.

The program ended with our monthly prize drawings for several neat prizes under the able direction of Will Horton.
Internet Chamber of Commerce - Northern Colorado Chapter
Contact Matt Tracer at 970.484.8102 or http://www.ulltra.com/icc

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Digital Cameras Arrive In The Mainstream
By Steve Morgan

I purchased my first digital camera 12 years ago. It was a closeout model that I paid $90.00 for on an online auction. The highest resolution it was capable of was 320 pixels by 240 pixels, thus creating a 76,800-bit picture. The camera came with a .5-megabit memory, so I am able to take about 8 pictures before the memory is full. There is no flash available. The size of the pictures when I print them is about 1 1/2 inch by 1 inch, and they actually look pretty good, until I try to enlarge them, then they look pretty bad. The camera is excellent for sending pictures via email since their small size makes them fast to send and receive. There is no way to display the picture I have taken, without sending them to a computer first, so I always have to wait to see how they look. I have never had to replace the batteries that came with the camera.

Today's cutting edge consumer digital cameras cost $700-$1000, and take picture resolutions of 1800 by 1200 bits, creating a picture with almost 2 megabytes of pixels. They come with flash memory cards that have between 4 and 32-megabyte capacities and have software that compresses the images so that you can take between 6 and 80 pictures before having to download the pictures to a computer. If no computer is available, just snap in a new memory card just like you would put in a new roll of film. For the ultimate in capacity, some cameras are now starting to support the new IBM 170 and 340 MB Microdrives, and Sony cameras will soon support a 200 MB floppy Disk that will allow for an almost unlimited number of pictures. Most new cameras come with a 1 to 2 inch LCD panel on the back so that you can preview the picture to see if you wish to keep it, that's a real money saver over film cameras. Many of these cameras have glass lenses and come with optical zooms that magnify up to 12 times. Flashes are standard and rechargeable batteries are required to keep you from going broke! Printing pictures from these camera's results in 8 by 10 inch glossy pictures that are indistinguishable from those created by 35 mm prints!

As you can imagine, in-between my camera and the cutting edge cameras, there are a great many other digital cameras that are priced between $200 and $700. However, while there are many good cameras, there are some that will disappoint. Let me tell you what to look for when buying a digital camera.

1. The best quality cameras come with a glass lens. While several good cameras come with plastic lenses, they will be prone to deteriorate much more quickly than ones made with glass.
2. Look for a camera with an optical zoom lens. Most people take pictures of the great outdoors, and it is difficult to get close enough to get good detail in your pictures without an optical zoom. Many cameras advertise a digital zoom lens, just remember that a digital zoom just crops the current view and uses software to make the remaining image larger. Many cameras come with both kinds of zoom, for example a 3X optical zoom with a 2X digital to make it seem like a 6X zoom.
3. Examine how the camera downloads the pictures to the computer. The amount of time can vary dramatically depending on the method used. The slowest way is to have a serial port connection; a better way is via a USB connection and even faster is using the new Firewire connection that is starting to appear on computers. Another fast option is to use a floppy disk, or a memory card reader that can be plugged in to the floppy disk drive.
4. Check and see how visible the LCD panel is in sunlight. A washed out screen will make it harder to see what you are shooting. The LCD also takes up battery power, and does not update very quickly. A regular see-through optical viewfinder is always nice to have in your digital camera.
5. Cameras that accept other lenses give you more flexibility. There are several cameras out there that allow you to screw on a wide angle or telephoto lenses. Putting in a filter also helps with special effects.
6. Always look for a camera that will output to a TV. This will not only allow you to see a much bigger picture to share with others, but by using a VCR you could make a tape of your favorite photos or an easily viewed slideshow of a trip or vacation.
7. Nice optional features include Picture delay, audio imprint, burst mode, thumbnail images and panoramic mode.

Digital cameras are definitely the wave of the future. But if you are not quite ready for the cost of a good camera yet, remember that you can always ask for your regular photos to be put on a CD. Kodak does this for a nominal fee, and each disk includes the software the will let you view the photos right from the CD.

Lastly, always do your research when buying a major item of this nature. My favorite research sites for digital cameras are www.zdnet.com and http:/photo.askey.net. Both sites let you see reviews and comments about many of the cameras that are available for purchase. If you are looking for a bargain, be sure to check out www.onsale.com or www.ubid.com and look for digital cameras that are being auctioned under the computer category.

This article is furnished as a benefit of our membership in the Association of Personal Computer User Groups (APCUG), an international organization to which this user group belongs. The author, Steve Morgan, is a member of the APCUG Board of Advisors. He represents Region 5, which covers AK, ID, MT, OR, WY, ND, SD and WA. Steve is also a member of the Editorial Committee. He's one busy guy!

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Drive Image V 2.0
The complete solution for imaging hard drives
Software Review by Edmund F Grefrath

Vendor: PowerQuest Corporation, P.O. Box 1911 Orem, UT 84059-1911, Telephone: +1.801.437.8900, Sales: 1.800.379.2566, Fax: +1.801.226.8941, mail: driveimage@powerquest.com Internet: http://www.powerquest.com
Function: Provides a complete solution for system backups and recovery.
Intended user: Any PC system with a hard drive.
Price: Approx $100.
Contents: CD-ROM and manual (129 pages).
Requires: Intel 486 or above; 32 MB; 3.5-inch diskette drive; any speed CD-ROM drive; free 5 MB hd space; win3.x, 95, NT, DOS 5.0; SVGA Monitor; mouse. (Above are recommended hardware/software requirements.)

I have to admit that I approached this analysis with genuine fear because this software represents an example of the speed of advancing technology surpassing my ability to grasp and comprehend current computer concepts. But, what the heck, here goes.

What is Drive Image?

Drive Image is for PC users who want a fast, complete solution for system backups and recovery. (OK, that sounds straightforward.) With Drive Image you can easily create and store a compressible image file of an entire hard drive or individual partitions on a Jazz, Zip, secondary hard drive, or other removable media device. (Here's where my problems started. More about that below.) The image file can then be restored from the source and used for complete operating system, application and data recovery. (There should be a simpler way to say this, don't you think?)

Loading the program was simple. Just load the CD and use the install wizard. Holy smokes, now what do I do? The wizard shows these icons, (1) install drive image, (2) install magic mover [sounds like fun], (3) create bootable diskettes, and (4) display technical support helps.

I decided to do the easy things first so I created the bootable diskettes. It took two 1.44 diskettes to do the job. The boot failed when I tried to test them on my 486 because I don't have a zip drive connected to that system. I rechecked the system requirements, it didn't say anything about requiring a Zip drive but I suppose that is taken for granted because one needs to copy the system to some device.

The next step, (in order of difficulty I thought), was to image my drive. This time I moved to my Pentium II which has an internal Zip drive. I must say right here that I have not partitioned my 6.0 GB drive. Some would say that is stupid but suffice to say that I've had problems with partitions. After running scandisk on my system I plunged right in to create an image for my system. Well, the steps to do this were clear enough and before long I was well on my way. Before very long I was again in trouble. Any guesses? Remember, I said I had an internal Zip drive and even though I selected the compression option to create the image it still took a lot of Zip diskettes. In fact I only had nine diskettes to use on this test and when I got to number five I decided to terminate it. Even though I was only attempting to create an image for 1.7 GB, it became all to clear that the Zip drive was not the way to go. Jazz may be an alternative. However I question whether it is practical to tie up expensive medium to image a drive. I can't justify making this kind of investment since I have my source programs and because I choose to keep my "computed data" in off-line diskettes.

But, I'm not ready to cast this program to the nether regions because it also includes a "magic mover" feature which I think is pretty nifty. I moved a program from my hard disk to a floppy. As part of the process I printed out for my records just exactly what "magic mover" did in making the move. Here is a summary:

1. Created the folder/directory on my diskette.
2. Scanned INI File "C:\WINDOWS\SYSTEM.INI" changing c\:... to a\:...
3. Scanned INI File "C:\AUTO.EXEC.BAT" changing c\:... to a\:...
4. Scanned INI File "C:\CONFIG.SYS" changing c:\... to a:\...
5. Scanned INI File "C:\WINDOWS\WIN.INI" changing c:\... to a:\...
6. Scanned INI Files in Windows Folder changing c:\... to a:\...
7. Scanned the registry changing c:\... to a:\...
8. Moved the File ...DLL from c:\ to a:\
9. Moved the File ...DLL from c:\ to a:\
10. Moved the File ...EXE from c:\ to a:\
11. Modified the Link c:\... to a:\...
12. Deleted the Folder on C:\

In conclusion I must give this program extra points for excellent documentation, both in the manual and on screen help. Overall I don't believe the drive image is very useful for my level of computer skill. The "magic mover" feature is very useful. It keeps your computer clean and makes the moved program ready to use.

I give this program *** Capable: a worthwhile buy.

October 1998 Issue of The PCoCk
Copyright © 1998 PC Users Group of Colorado

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GoldMine 4.0
A Software Review

GoldMine is unique as a contact manager, because of its is design for information sharing within workgroups. It also serves the information management needs of stand alone and mobile users. Such versatility makes GoldMine a highly desirable sales-opportunity-management tool. This team approach to scheduling meetings and monitoring performance within sales groups allows users to share tasks, schedule meetings and monitor performance with other sales group members.

As with all contact managers (PIM's), GoldMine keeps track of information on customers (names, mailing addresses, phone numbers, E-mail addresses, etc.). It also includes features for mail merging, managing appointments, messages, company documents, and prioritized to do lists. Within individual contact records, it is possible to build organization trees and attach references to documents in other software programs. There are industry specific templates for such fields as real estate and insurance. The type and amount of information that can be added to each record is practically limitless. By viewing the schedules of multiple users, free time can be located to set up appointments, schedule phone calls and perform various tasks. Data synchronization between users is also possible over a network or from the field by modem. Database changes are transferred using data field level synchronization so as to avoid sending full updates to remote users.

GoldMine is distributed on a CD which installs easily with Windows 95 auto detect activated. Contact records from a previous GoldMine version are found and converted quickly to the latest version. As in previous versions, basic identity information for each contact is displayed in the upper half of the screen. Beneath each contact are assorted tabs that display additional information such as appointments, notes and referrals. The screen is well organized and easy to use.

The basic contact record serves as the building block from which all other information is generated. Scheduled activities for a future date become part of GoldMine's calendar file, much like a traditional appointment calendar. Once activities, such as appointments are kept, they are removed from the calendar file and stored as completed activity records in the history file. These completed activity files resemble a chronological log. Each activity, whether pending or completed is directly linked to an individual GoldMine user and a specific contact record.

A new feature in Version 4.0 is called Opportunity Manager, which allows users to track the process of selling a product from the initial contact to the conclusion of the sale. Contacts (called Influencers) involved in a sale are linked along with the expected amount of sales to each target. Additional fields indicate what advertising or promotion program attracted a prospect's interest. Report tools allow for analyzing booked and closed sales, including the activities leading to each step of the sale. There is also a Territory Realignment Wizard that allows sales managers to monitor the client load of each sales person and adjust territories accordingly.

Visitors to a company's web site who fill our forms can be turned into contacts automatically with the latest networked version. A new E-mail Center with a strong resemblance to Microsoft Outlook, makes a good in-box for GoldMine. It allows for easy Intranet and Internet e-mail send and retrieve capabilities, that are tracked as part of the contact record.

The basic contact management portion of GoldMine is straight forward and easy to use. The feature rich enhancements come with a learning curve. These numerous value-added features though are what puts GoldMine a step ahead of its competitors.

Support:

The software is packaged with a User's Guide and a Reference Manual, but no tutorial. Four sources for free support include GoldMine's Web Site, the GoldMine forum on CompuServe, BBS and FactsBack Document Service. Free phone calls to GoldMine for technical support are limited in number in accordance with the user package purchased. The single user version for example includes three free technical incidents. Subsequent pay-per-incident support runs from $35 to $95 per incident, depending upon complexity. Numerous training tools and classes are available for users through third parties authorized by GoldMine Software.

System Requirements:

25 MB hard drive space, Windows 95 or Windows NT 4.0 or later.

Price depends on the number of users and the database engine used to store the records. A dBase version for five users costs $849, whereas a five-version user for Microsoft's SQL 6.5 is priced at $2,295. Street price for the stand alone version is $170.

GoldMine Software Corp. 17383 Sunset Blvd., Suite 301 Pacific Palisades, CA 90272

800 654-3526 310 454-6800 Fax: 310 454-4848 BBS: 310 459-3443 CompuServe: GO GOLDMINE

FAXBACK Document Service: 310 459-1222 (www.goldminesw.com)

Northern Neck Computer User Group

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Mo' Bumper Snickers

JESUS IS COMING, EVERYONE LOOK BUSY

A BARTENDER IS JUST A PHARMACIST WITH A LIMITED INVENTORY

HORN BROKEN, WATCH FOR FINGER

MY KID HAD SEX WITH YOUR HONOR STUDENT

IF AT FIRST YOU DO SUCCEED, TRY NOT TO LOOK ASTONISHED

HELP WANTED - TELEPATH: YOU KNOW WHERE TO APPLY

I.R.S.: WE'VE GOT WHAT IT TAKES TO TAKE WHAT YOU GOT

JESUS LOVES YOU....EVERYONE ELSE THINKS YOU'RE AN ASSHOLE

I'M DRIVING THIS WAY TO PISS YOU OFF

REALITY IS A CRUTCH FOR PEOPLE WHO CAN'T HANDLE DRUGS

KEEP HONKING, I'M RELOADING

HANG UP AND DRIVE

LORD SAVE ME FROM YOUR FOLLOWERS

GUNS DON'T KILL PEOPLE, POSTAL WORKERS DO

I SAID "NO" TO DRUGS, BUT THEY WOULDN'T LISTEN

FRIENDS DON'T LET FRIENDS DRIVE NAKED

IF WE WEREN'T SUPPOSED TO EAT ANIMALS, WHY ARE THEY MADE OF MEAT?

SEX ON TELEVISION CAN'T HURT YOU... UNLESS YOU FALL OFF

Thanks to Brad Kell

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Y2K - Playing It Safe

I found this article in the latest Colorado Genealogical Society newsletter. I don't know if it's "for reals" but I'm forwarding it to you all, for whatever it's worth. It can't hurt, at any rate.

"You may think your PC is 'Y2K' compliant, and some tests may have actually affirmed that your hardware is compliant, and you may even have a little company sticker affixed to your system saying 'Y2K' Compliant'...but you'll be surprised that Windows may still crash unless you do the simple procedure described below. Easy fix, but something Microsoft seems to have missed in certifying their software as Y2K compliant. This is simple to do, but VERY important.

Click on 'START'.
Click on 'SETTINGS'.
Click on 'CONTROL PANEL'.
Double click on 'Regional Settings' icon (look for the little world globe).
Click on the 'Date' tab at the top of the page (last tab on the right).
Where it says, 'Short Date Sample', look to see if it shows a 'two digit' year format ('YY'). Unless you've previously changed it (and you probably haven''t), it will be set with just the two Y's …. it needs to be four! That's because Microsoft made the two-digit setting the default setting for Windows 95, Windows 98 and NT. The date format selected is the date that Windows feeds *ALL* application software and will not roll over to the year 2000. It will roll over to the year 00.
Click on the scroll button across from 'Short Date Style'' and select the option that shows 'mm/dd/yyyy' or 'm/d/yyyy'. (Be sure your selection has four Y's showing, not just "mm/dd/yy'.)
Click on 'APPLY'.
Click on 'OK' at the bottom.

Easy enough to fix. However, every 'as distributed' installation of Windows worldwide is defaulted to fail Y2K rollover. Pass this along to your PC buddies. No matter how much of a guru they think they are, this might be a welcome bit of information!"

Marion

Editor - I received this information via e-mail. Although it does appear to be reasonable, who knows if Microsoft has actually addressed this simple issue. But, as the article states, “it can't hurt.”

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eBoard.com
by Rick Mattingly

A new Internet web service, eBoard.com, is now open for business. This site provides free access to place your own basic web information online without the need of HTML programming!

eBoard.com allows you to open your own "eBoard" (or account), giving it an account name of eight or less characters and interactively edit your site using a clean, pleasing "virtual corkboard" screen format. Simply enter your information into the individual "pin-up notes" and -- voila -- your web site is online. Access your site by logging in to the eBoard home page and typing in your account name at the prompt.

Add photos and edit your site whenever you wish. Add interactive chat notes to allow other people to enter text to your chat site. You may provide unlimited access your site or require a password. eBoard.com is currently working to add even more features such as calendar functions, multi-colored notes and file attachment capability. Each free eBoard.com account provides 1 megabyte of storage. In the near future you will be able to purchase additional storage if desired for a small monthly fee. You may also open more than one free account if you wish.

OK, so what's the catch? Simple -- eBoard pays the bills by adding a very small, unobtrusive advertisement link to the bottom of each of your corkboard notes. No blinking lights or sparklers here! Advertisement links are guaranteed to be "clean" and suitable for any audience.

eBoard.com is a neat service which may provide all the tools you need to put yourself or your organization online. Check it out for yourself at
www.eboard.com.

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WINDOWS INSIDER
by Valerie Ryan

FEEL FREE TO DIAL '90#'
In my last tip, I pointed you to a site that identifies a number of currently circulating urban legends (e-mail scams or hoaxes):
http://209.176.31.25/snopes/

Well, it must be my lucky week, because I just received my second one in two days! It goes something like this:

"Recently, I received a telephone call from an individual identifying himself as an AT&T Service Technician that was running a test on our telephone lines. He stated that to complete the test we should touch nine (9), zero (0), pound sign (#) and hang up. Luckily, we were suspicious and refused. Upon contacting the telephone company, we were informed that by pushing 90# you end up giving the individual who called you access to your telephone line, allowing them to place a long distance telephone call with the charge appearing on your telephone bill... I called GTE Security this morning and verified that this is definitely possible, so DO NOT press 90# for ANYONE. It will give them access to your phone line to make long distances calls ANYWHERE!"

Don't fall for it.

http://www.scambusters.org/Scambusters22.html#90pound

And by the way, there's a great list of currently circulating legends at the bottom of this page:

http://www.scambusters.org/legends.html

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Speedier Log-ons
by Rick Mattingly

Ever get the feeling that your modem is dialing through mollassas? You click to log-on and twiddle your thumbs as the modem slowwwlly dials the number and then wait for the final connection to be made.

Well, you don't have to put up with that. Tell your modem to dial through faster by opening My Computer>Dial-up Networking. Next, right click on the connection you want to speed up. Now, choose Propeties>Configure> Advanced. Click in the Extra Setting box and type S11=40. Click OK several times to back your way back out of this maze and try your new speed dialing by logging in to your Internet ISP.

Depending upon the quality of your telephone connection, you may need to slow your speed dialing down a tad. If the S11=40 setting is too rapid for your line conditions and your connection fails, go back in and change the setting to S11=45. Try it again. The higher the register setting number, the slower the dial sequence. Find the fastest setting for your line conditions which will allow your modem to reliably dial out and log-on.

Now you won't have any time for thumb twiddling.

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Calendar of Events
- IMPORTANT NOTICE -
FRPCUG meetings are held at the Fort Collins Senior Center. Check below for directions to the Senior Center.

October General Forum Meeting

We will meet at the Fort Collins Senior Center on Tuesday, October 6 at 7:00 pm.

Meeting Agenda
7:00 - 7:15 Announcements
7:15 - 7:30 Election of Officers
7:30 - 7:45 Open Forum
7:45 - 8:00 Break
8:00 - 9:30 Batteries Plus - Warren Ptacek will give a presentation on battery technology and answer your battery questions. Mark McKenzie, Hewlett-Packard Y2K specialist, will speak on this controversial issue.

November General Forum Meeting

We will meet at the Fort Collins Senior Center on Tuesday, November 3 at 7:00 pm.

Meeting Agenda
7:00 - 7:15 Announcements
7:15 - 7:45 Open Forum
7:45 - 8:00 Break
8:00 - 9:30 Microsoft Windows 2000 - Microsoft representative Margaret O'Brien Croll will give a presentation on the latest release of the Windows operating system.

See you at the meetings!

Directions
The Fort Collins Senior Center is located at 1200 Raintree Drive. This site is situated at the northwest corner of the Shields and West Drake intersection, on the north side of the Raintree Shopping Center and just one-half mile east of our normal meeting location. Check the marquee at the main entrance for directions to the specific meeting room.

Up-Coming SIG's, Seminars and Meetings

Board Meeting
FRPCUG's executive board meets on the Thursday immediately following the General Forum Meeting at 7:00 p.m. All members are welcome and are encouraged to attend. These meetings are held in the Poudre Fire Authority administrative meeting room which is located in the parking garage building, at the corner of Remington and Mountain in Fort Collins.

LINUX SIG
This SIG, supporting the LINUX implementation of the UNIX operating system, meets at 7:00 p.m. on the fourth Thursday of each month. Participants have adopted the LINUX manual titled "RUNNING LINUX" by Matt Welsh and Lar Kaufman as their learning tool and will be reviewing a section of the manual at each meeting. Meetings are held in the basement meeting room of the Friends Church, 601 S. Whitcomb Street in Fort Collins. Coordinators: Glenn York (224-5266) and Chuck McJilton (493-2987) or e-mail at linuxsig@jymis.com.

Northern Front Range Netware Users Group
NFRNUG meets at 5:30 pm on the second Wednesday of each month at the U.S. Fish & Wildlife building, 2101 Oakridge Drive in Fort Collins. NFRNUG meetings are open to any users that are involved with Novell networking products and integration of other networking products into the Novell environment (Unix, NT, Mac, etc.). Contact Jim Stephens at 303-541-3376 or jcsteph@concentric.net or contact Chuck Kluko at 970-663-4770 or c.kluko@ix.netcom.com for further membership information. Yearly dues are $000.00 (yes, FREE) with pizza and pop served at 5:00 pm prior to meeting. Saturday labs and training sessions open to NRFNUG members only, space is limited.

Rocky Mountain Internet Users Group
Meets on the second Tuesday of 'odd' months at NCAR in Boulder. Meetings start at 7:00 pm, but members are encouraged to arrive at 6:30 pm for informal networking and refreshments. NCAR is located in Boulder at 1850 Table Mesa Drive. Contact Chuck McJilton for information (493-2987) or e-mail rmiug@rmiug.org.

Telecommuncation SIG
Telecommunication SIG meetings are held on the third Thursday of each month at 7:30 p.m. Topics usually discussed include modem hardware, communication software, internet resources, and solutions to any communication problems and questions brought up at the meeting. Please contact coordinator Chuck McJilton (493-2987) for confirmation of the meeting place or e-mail Telecomsig@jymis.com.

Web Design SIG
If you're an HTML author/WEB page designer, or would like to learn, contact SIG coordinator Doug Boicourt at 495-6949 or e-mail db@jymis.com for the date and location of the next SIG meeting.

RIBUG Meeting
The Regional Internet Business Users Group (RIBUG) deals with issues of business utilization of the Internet. This group meets the last Wednesday of each month. Contact Will Horton in Fort Collins at 223-0330 or e-mail whorton@jymis.com for details.

Internet Safari
Free Internet discussion group meets first Monday at Stone Lion Book Store in Fort Collins. Meetings start at 7:00 pm. Sponsored by Stone Lion and JYM Information Systems. Coordinators: Glenn York (224-5266) and Chuck McJilton (493-2987).

Upcoming FRPCUG Meetings
Along with presentations of new hardware and software, we will certainly continue to present tips, hints, solutions, as well as what is new with Public Domain and Shareware offerings. If you have ideas for presentations which you would like to see at future General Forum meetings or seminars, please let us know. We would appreciate the input and opportunity to improve your meetings.

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October/November Calendars

October 1999

5 FRPCUG General Forum Meeting 7:00PM
11 HTML SIG Meeting 7:00PM
13 FRPCUG Board Meeting 7:00PM
NRFNUG Meeting 5:00PM
21 Telcomm SIG 7:00PM
27 RIBUG Meeting 7:00PM
28 LINUX SIG 7:00PM
31 Halloween
Daylight Savings Time Ends

November 1999

2 FRPCUG General Forum Meeting 7:00PM
8 HTML SIG Meeting 7:00PM
10 FRPCUG Board Meeting 7:00PM
NRFNUG Meeting 5:00PM
11 Veterans Day
18 Telcomm SIG 7:00PM
24 RIBUG Meeting 7:00PM
25 Thanksgiving
LINUX SIG will be scheduled for another date

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The Wacky Net

Q. What, exactly, is the Internet?
A. The Internet is a worldwide network of university, government, business, and private computer systems.

Q. Who runs it?
A. A 13-year-old named Jason.

Q. How can I get on the Internet?
A. The easiest way is to sign up with one of the popular commercial online services, such as Prodigy, CompuServe, or America Online, which will give you their program disks for free. Or, if you just leave your house unlocked, they'll sneak in some night and install their programs on your computer when you're sleeping.

Q. What are the benefits of these services?
A. The major benefit is that they all have simple, user-friendly interfaces that enable you - even if you have no previous computer experience - to provide them with the information they need to automatically put monthly charges on your credit card bill forever.

Q. Can't I cancel my account?
A. Of course! You can cancel your account at any time.

Q. How?
A. Nobody has ever been able to find out. Some of us have been trying for years to cancel our online accounts, but no matter what we do, the charges keep appearing on our bills. We're thinking of entering the Federal Witness Protection Program.

Q. Aside from running up charges, what else can I do once I'm connected to an online service?
A. Millions of things! An incredible array of things! No end of things! For example, you can chat.

Q. I can already chat with my friends.
A. Yes, but on the Internet, which connects millions of people all over the entire globe, you can chat with total strangers, many of whom are boring and stupid!

Q. Sounds great! How does it work?
A. Well, first you decide which type of area you wish to chat in. Some areas are just for general chatting, and some are for specific interest groups, such as Teens, Poets, Cat Lovers, Religious PeopIe, Teens Who Read Religious Poetry to Cats, and of course Guys Having Pointless Arguments About Sports. At any given moment, an area can contain anywhere from two to dozens of people, who use clever fake names such as “ByteMe2” so nobody will know their real identities.

Q. What are their real identities?
A. They represent an incredible range of people of all ages - from scientists to singers, from writers to wranglers, from actors to athletes.

Q. Really?
A. No. You're almost always talking to losers and hormone-crazed 13-year-old boys. But they pretend to be writers, wranglers, scientists, singers, etc.

Q. W hat are typical chat room topics?
A. Most discussions revolve around the fascinating topic of who is entering and leaving the chat area. A secondary, but equally fascinating, topic is where everybody lives. Also, for a change of pace, every now and then the discussion is interrupted by a hormone-crazed 13-year-old boy wishing to talk dirty to women.

- As seen on the Internet, source unknown.

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DLL Conflict Troubleshooting Tutorial
By Rod Ream

Stop! Don't wipe that hard drive, there's a better way!

What's a DLL?
Dynamic Link Library

What does a DLL do?
DLLs are best thought of as programmer's toolkits. They contain programming code that is often re-used from one application to another. Some DLLs have one or two routines, while others may have a hundred or more. Rather then re-invent the wheel, a programmer will use a DLL containing optimized code for the task at hand. Dialing your modem, selecting fonts and colors or quickly sorting lists of information are examples of the types of work they perform.

Why do they cause problems?
There are two types of DLL's:

Shared or common - Used by many programs.

Proprietary - Used by one program or by one software publisher

With the earliest versions of Windows, Microsoft established the \WINDOWS\SYSTEM folder as the designated storage place for DLLs that are common. The proprietary DLLs were supposed to be installed in the program's own folder. As new and improved versions of DLLs were released it was intended that the updated version would replace the earlier version and that the DLL would be backward compatible. In a perfect world you'd have just one copy of a shared DLL on your system and it would be available to any application that needed it.

The Windows operating system (any flavor) allows only one copy of a DLL to be in memory at any one time. The DLL will remain in memory until it's no longer needed.

Let's start by looking at the following common scenario:

1. A program is launched from your Startup group or folder when you boot your system. That program was distributed with an early version DLL, which is stored in the program's local directory. The DLL has 20 internal functions and is loaded into memory.
2. A few minutes later you load a recently released program. That program needs the same DLL (by name), but is supposed to utilize the newer version that has 80 internal functions.
3. Since the early version DLL is already in memory everything may seem to be OK, when the program is first launched.
4. However, As soon as the more recent program asks for one of the 60 missing functions you're in trouble. You may get a complete crash, a lockup or a message blaming something that's completely unrelated.

The most common DLL's are those that are part of a programming language such as C++, Visual Basic, etc. These DLL's provide the same “run time” environment as the developer's own system, but don't allow you to edit the program. Software publishers must include these critical DLLs with their programs because they can't assume you already have the right one on your system.

Software publishers often seem to be careless or unable to follow the rules. In some cases, they just don't know better. Both small and large publishers are guilty of not keeping their programming utilities up to date, this results in distributing DLLs that are several years old. Distributing a new program with old DLL's has the same effect as loading an old program on your system.

Microsoft has incorporated several features into the Windows 98 operating system that help to resolve the problem of an old DLL being installed into a shared directory; however it doesn't always work. The worst offenders are installation routines that don't do any version checking and simply unzip files directly into the shared directory, overwriting whatever is there. In many cases W98's System File Checker can recover the correct version. Having a current backup is still the best protection.

One of the most common mistakes made by a program's installation routine is to place a common DLL in the program's own folder, rather then put it in the system folder where it belongs. That's the easiest thing to fix, if you're careful and follow some simple guidelines. Programs bearing the MS Windows 9x logo on the box generally don't cause problems as they have to meet some very strict and recently revised compliance standards. I'm guessing that the right to wear the logo doesn't come cheaply either.

Searching the system
The following process is intended to let a user check their own system for DLL version conflicts. Before doing so, I strongly recommend that any patches and updates available from MS be installed. Installing these updates will put the newest versions of the most problematic DLLs on your system and give you a valid reference point for what's really old on your system. The most critical DLL's are available in 3 updates:
“Windows Library Update”
“Windows 95 Service Pack 1“
“OLE 32 Update to Service Pack 1”

If you are running Windows 95, you'll find these updates at
www.microsoft.com.windows95/downloads
If you are running Windows 98, click on the Windows Update in the Start menu and you'll be taken to MS's semi-automated update site. If you're not sure whether the update is installed on your system or not, install it anyway! It doesn't hurt to be sure.

Step-by-step
1. Open “My Computer” by Right clicking on the icon and selecting “Explore”. Change your view to “Details”
2. Open the \WINDOWS\SYSTEM folder and check that you can see files with a DLL extension. If not, you have to turn on the “view all files” option in Explorer.
3. Tap your F3 key to bring up the search window
4. In the “Named” field enter *.DLL
5. In the “Look in:” field open the drop down and select “My Computer” or “Local Hard Drives” if you are on a network.
6. Make sure the “Include subfolders” box is checked.
7. Click the “Find Now” button.
8. Be patient, this may take a few minutes on a large or slower system.
9. When the search is completed, click on the “Name” button (at the top of the “Name “ column) to sort the entire list, alphabetically, by name.

Don't be surprised by the number of DLLs on your system. In a new system, with little more then Windows98 installed you'll probably have three or four hundred of them, but on a large system like mine, there's nearly five thousand!

Taking control
Look through the list for duplicates. The ones that cause software conflicts are those with copies in the \WINDOWS\SYSTEM folder and one or more copies somewhere else on your system. The most critical DLLs have a backup copy in \WINDOWS\SYSBCKUP - that's a new safety feature introduced with Widows9x and these files are usually the same version. Check the search listing for files beginning with:
BWCC CO CTL
MFC MSV OLE

Caution!!
The following is intended for experienced users only . Some people may wish to contact a consultant or system specialist who is experienced in dealing with software conflicts.

Don't get carried away in the following process. We are only concerned with duplicates that meet the following criteria:
A copy in \windows\system
A possible copy in \windows\sysbckup
A copy that is anywhere else

Example: (using mfc42.dll)
C:\SOMEPROGRAM\MFC42.DLL v4.25 old version (rename)
C:\WINDOWS\SYSTEM v6.00.8267.0 Higher version, shared directory
C:\WINDOWS\SYSBCKUP v6.00.8267.0 Safety copy, don't touch

1. Right click on each of the duplicate files, beginning with the copy in the system folder, and select “Properties”. In most systems you can speed this up by holding down the ALT key while you double click.
2. Click on the Version tab and make a note of the version number, it will be highlighted.
3. Repeat this for each of the duplicate files having the same name. Double check your work, some file name s are very similar.
4. You only need to keep the DLL having the highest version number and that copy should be the one in the shared \WINDOWS\SYSTEM folder.
5. Do not delete any files!!
6. If any of the duplicates is in a program's own local folder and has an equal or lower version number then the copy in the \windows\system folder, change the file extension from DLL to D_L. This will stop the older version from loading and force it to look in the \windows\system folder for the file.
7. If you are a neat freak, you can consider deleting the renamed duplicate file when you are sure that everything is working properly. Because of the close similarity to some of the file names it's very easy to tag the wrong file!
8. Do only a few files at a time, until you are comfortable with the process. Reboot your system and run the programs where you may have disabled a DLL in a program's own local folder. If you are sure that everything is working, you can then delete the renamed DLL.
9. Some files that are currently active, in memory, may not permit renaming. In most cases, you can temporarily disable programs that in are in your Startup folder to complete the operation. In other cases you may have to reboot and perform the rename after starting the system at the DOS command prompt.

Author's note:
This troubleshooting process is not intended to solve all conflict situations. It does however, eliminate the most common problems. Duplicate DLL's, where no copy is in the common \windows\system directory, are a completely different situation and beyond the scope of this article. For those situations a thorough understanding of the operating system and a backup plan are required. I strongly advise the reader to leave these files as-is. In most cases they will not cause system problems, unless both programs are being run at the same time.

This article is furnished as a benefit of our membership in the Association of Personal Computer User Groups (APCUG), an international organization to which this user group belongs. The author, Rod Ream is a full time, independent, PC Consultant and is also the Director of Technical Services for the Pasadena IBM Users Group (PIBMUG). His base is in Alhambra CA and he can be reached at rodream@techie.com.

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The Ultimate Metric Conversion Chart

10e12 Microphones = 1 Megaphone
10e6 bicycles = 2 megacycles
500 millinaries = 1 seminary
2000 mockingbirds = two kilomockingbirds
10 cards = 1 decacard
1/2 lavoratory = 1 demijohn
10e-6 fish = 1 microfiche
453.6 graham crackers = 1 pound cake
10e12 pins = 1 terrapin
10e21 picolos = 1 gigolo
10 rations = 1 C-ration
10 millipedes = 1 centipede
3 1/3 tridents = 1 decadent
5 holocausts = 1 Pentacost
10 monologs = 5 dialogues
5 dialogues = 1 decalogue
2 monograms = 1 diagram
8 nickels = 2 paradigms
2 snake eyes = 1 paradise
2 wharves = 1 paradox

Thanks to Brad Kell

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TOP TEN WORDS

THAT DON'T EXIST IN THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE BUT SHOULD

AQUADEXTROUS (ak wa deks' trus) adj. Possessing the ability to turn the bathtub faucet on and off with your toes.

CARPERPETUATION (kar' pur pet u a shun) n.The act, when vacuuming, of running over a string or a piece of lint at least a dozen times, reaching over and picking it up, examining it, then putting it back down to give the vacuum one more chance.

DISCONFECT (dis kon fekt') v. To sterilize the piece of candy you dropped on the floor by blowing on it, assuming this will somehow remove all the germs.

ELBONICS (el bon' iks) n. The actions of two people maneuvering for one armrest in a movie theater.

FRUST (frust) n. The small line of debris that refuses to be swept onto the dust pan and keeps backing a person across the room until he finally decides to give up and sweep it under the rug.

LACTOMANGULATION (lak' to man gyu lay' shun) n. Manhandling the "open here" spout on a milk container so badly that one has to resort to the 'illegal' side.

PEPPIER (pehp ee ay') n. The waiter at a fancy restaurant who's sole purpose seems to be walking around asking diners if they want ground pepper.

PHONESIA (fo nee' zhuh) n. The affliction of dialing phone number and forgetting whom you were calling just as they answer.

PUPKUS (pup' kus) n. The moist residue left on a window after a dog presses its nose to it.

TELECRASTINATION (tel e kras tin ay' shun) n. The act of always letting the phone ring as least twice before you pick it up, even when you're only six inches away.

Thanks to Brad Kell
Microsoft Knowledgebase

Microsoft maintains a free tech support site on the Internet known as Knowledgebase -- http://support.microsoft.com/support. Knowledgebase is a searchable database which provides solutions, fixes and tips in the form of technical documents covering every product which Microsoft makes. Choose the product you have a question about, plug in a relative search word or text string relative to your problem and Knowledgebase will serve up a list of pertinent documents. In the vast majority of cases a detailed solution to your problem will be found here.

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Bob Click's October 1999 Deals Column
From the Deals Guy, Bob Click, Greater Orlando Computer User Group

Not surprisingly, your response for comments about a spring APCUG/show event has been slim. Without your comments, ideas and opinions, planning such an event is next to impossible. I'm not involved in that project, but they need your input. It's not too late to send opinions. Dan Hanson has e-mailed all clubs asking for opinions. I liked some of his suggestions, especially the Caribbean Cruise one. Please sound off to him.

I read that a couple of motherboard producers are working to incorporate a USB hub on the motherboard. A price increase is undesirable, but that would be cheaper and more convenient than buying an external hub. I don't know the introductory date, but look for it soon. If you're in the market for a new computer or motherboard, check that out if you're into USB peripherals. It may be only two USB plugs at first, but that will do for a start.

I read about a study concerning the high cost of projection bulbs. I'm sure those who have replaced a "metal halide" bulb will concur after paying BIG bucks for a replacement. They concluded that in the future, higher production should bring the costs down. Duh, no kidding, we never would have guessed and can hardly wait. How much did that study cost? They said improvements in performance, and the costs of small arc lamp technologies, coupled with the commercialization of electrodeless radio frequency lamps, should support the extension of light-valve projection technology into low-priced market segments. Good, I'll take brighter, cheaper, projection any day.

I saw a deceptive ad for a 400-MB Iomega Zip drive the other day. Being unaware of any such model, I looked closer. Very small print described it to be a 100-MB Zip drive with four 100-MB disks. They could have included more disks and made it a one gig zip drive, couldn't they! In fact, it could have been unlimited capacity (for more money). Read the small print in those ads and know what you're getting. Above all, do your homework, or ask about these things at your UG meeting. There are no stupid questions.

Let's Get Started - Print Anything On Your Screen! "Print Screen Works" or
allows users to capture and print, e-mail or fax, anything on their computer screen simply by pushing the print screen button. In the existing Windows 95/98/NT, to print what you see on your screen is a very tedious process: push the print screen key, open a word processor, and finally, paste an image in the word processor. In addition, capturing and re-sizing just a portion of an image requires a variety of tools from other sources. "Print Screen Works" makes it possible to both 'print what you see' and 'see what you print.' It enables a user to capture full, or a portion of, any image on the computer screen. PSW is generally not visible during operation (resides in the system tray). It converts the print screen button into a hot key that triggers the capture process. Once captured, the image may be printed or saved as a bit map (.bmp) or jpeg (.jpg). Easily capture, re-size, and re-shape images before saving or sending.

PSW is loaded with features. It can capture images that fill the whole screen, an active window, or just a portion of it. There's more information about working with the images on the Web site, so take a look. I've used the original "Print Screen" and it did what it promised with no problems. A free trial version of Print Screen Works is available on their Web site. On the other hand, if this sounds like its for you, the regular price is $29.95, but the Dealsguy column price is just $19.95 + S&H. To get this special price, call 1-973-259-9300 and ask for "Dante." S&H is FREE in both US and Canada. Print Screen Works is for Windows 95/98/NT, 32-bit only.

When I Say Delete, I Mean “Disappear -- Really Disappear"
Normal deletion is not secure. When you delete a file, the operating system doesn't destroy the contents from the disk. It only deletes references to the file from system tables. As a result, sensitive information (available corporate trade secrets, business plans, personal files, or even confidential letters to a lover) may be lying unprotected on your disk and can easily fall into the wrong hands (the secretary you dated the other night). "Eraser" introduces a new meaning for the verb "To Erase." Erasing a file now means wiping its contents beyond recovery, scrambling its name and dates, and finally, removing it from disk. Eraser is fully integrated with the Windows shell so you can drag files and folders from Explorer and drop them into Eraser. Erase them directly from "Explorer" or "My Computer" with a single mouse click. The extensive erasing capabilities of Eraser make sure that not even a trace remains after erasing data. You can even define your own "wipe" methods (and I'm not talkin' toilet paper). There's more so visit their Web site for more information, such as how Eraser even checks the Recycle Bin to make sure deleted files are destroyed.

There are three editions of East-Tec Eraser: a Basic Edition ($19.95), a Standard Edition ($29.95) and a Professional Edition ($39.95). For Dealsguy readers, Basic Edition is $14.95, Standard Edition $24.95 and Professional Edition will be $32.00. Prices are in US funds and S&H is the same all over the world. Software is for Windows 95/98/NT only. These prices are by download. If you desire a CD, it is $10.00 extra. S&H worldwide 1st class is free. Second day priority (US) $4.00. Next day USA is $10.00. To order East-Tec Eraser, please visit the URL , a secure ordering site. Voice Orders: 8:00am - 7:00pm EST - 1-800-414-4268 (USA & Canada only) or 1-910-791-7052. Please inform the operator you want to use the East-Tec Eraser Special Purchase Offer and specify the edition you want to purchase (Basic, Standard or Professional). Very important -- these numbers can be used FOR ORDERS ONLY.

Adobe And Peachpit Press Specials For User Group Members. Did you know you could buy Adobe Press Books at a discount through Peachpit Press? Neither did I until I read the update in the latest Adobe mailing. Adobe Press is the publisher of the "Training-in-a-box" series of hands-on training workbooks, and other titles. Peachpit Press, publisher of graphics, Web design and introductory computer texts for the novice and professionals, distributes them.

The user group discount is 20% off any Adobe Press or Peachpit Press books. Call 1-800-283-9444 to order, or for info. A group order of 11 or more books shipped to one address will be entitled to 40% discount. Visit or .

I wasn't aware of the GoLive update special until recently but Louise Miller (Adobe user group coordinator) sent this information when I asked: "Adobe GoLive 4.0 for Macintosh and Windows is expected to sell at an estimated street price of $299 (U.S.). Version 4.0 for Macintosh will be available in March; the Windows version will be available in the second quarter of 1999."

"In the U.S. and Canada, all registered users of CyberStudio Professional 3.x and below can upgrade to Adobe GoLive 4.0 for $99.00 (U.S.). Customers in the U.S. and Canada, who purchased GoLive CyberStudio Professional 3.x after January 1, 1999, are eligible to receive a free upgrade to Adobe GoLive 4.0 with proof of purchase. For information, customers can call Adobe at 1-800-685-3612. For a limited time, registered users of Adobe PageMill and CyberStudio Personal Edition could upgrade to Version 4.0 for a promotional price of $99.00. After Sept. 1, 1999, that upgrade price will be $199.00 (U.S.). My request to extend the Sept. 1 deadline was turned down. Personally, I think they should have extended it to entice more people. So far, the reviews I've read for GoLive start glowingly, but end up mediocre. I bought it, but found you needed Windows 98 and a 200 MHz machine to run it. Tech support said I would probably have trouble using it under Windows 95 so my copy is now shelfware.

Get It For Just the S&H
I seldom print Web items because they are so numerous, and sometimes questionable, but Quirt Alrich of Central Florida Computer Society sent me this URL and I actually ordered two popular items (limited supply) just for the shipping. Not the latest versions, and there are no manuals, but for that price, who cares? He gets a message from time to time, but I didn't subscribe as they suggested because I worry about being spammed. Visit (perhaps try leaving off the last part) once in a while and see what they have. They sent the CD via snail mail, so at the $9.95 S&H I'm sure they made a profit, and I was satisfied.

That's it for my October column. Meet me here again next month to discuss deals. No luck with return calls or e-mail from six deals I'm working on. Maybe they're on vacation. One small vendor with music conversion to MIDI is still thinking it over. This column is written to make user group members aware of special pricing and my comments should not be construed to encourage, or discourage, the purchase of products.

Bob (The Cheapskate) Click. .

(A)bort,
(R)etry,
(T)ake down entire network?

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Free Internet Discussion Group

JYM Information Systems and the Stone Lion Book Store are sponsoring a monthly "Internet Safari" discussion group. This group meets at 7 PM in the Stone Lion the first Monday of each month. This is an open discussion and we examine current issues involving the Internet, how to use the Internet and subjects raised by those present. This group is open to the public without cost or obligation. This is a good chance learn how others are using the Internet.

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Convert
By Rick Mattingly

Recently, FRPCUG Vice President Don Anderson, e-mailed me a copy of a utility called "Convert." Great, I thought. Yet another conversion utility. Well, I was a bit hasty because Convert is not just another conversion utility. Every once in a great while a utility comes along that is unique in it's design, usefullness or implimentation. Convert is such a utility.

Convert is a relatively small utility at 568kb which involves only one file, the executable itself. Installation is simplicity itself in that you only need copy the program to your hard drive at the location of your choice. Use Explorer to create a shortcut on your Desktop. That's it. Convert is ready to go.

At the top of the Convert screen, choose the category of unit you wish to convert. In the Input column choose the specific unit and in the Output column choose the unit you wish to convert to. In the Input window at the bottom type the number of units you are converting. The result is then displayed in the Output window.

You may quickly copy the result to the Clipboard for insertion into another application by highlighting the number, right-clicking and choosing Copy from the resulting menu.

What makes Convert unique is its simplicity, speed and the fact that it features a Custom category. The Custom category allows the user to enter their own custom conversion factors. In addition the user may also choose to turn categories on or off and to reorder the categories into an order most convenient to the user.

Now, for the best part. Convert is Freeware by author Josh Madison. Download your own copy of Convert from the following Internet address:

http://www.joshmadison.com/software/convert/

All Josh asks is that you register your copy online for him and let him know how you utilize this handy little utility. Ah, life is good. Thanks for a great little utility Josh.
Who's General Failure & why's he reading my disk?

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FRPCUG CONTACTS
Telephone Area Code 970

          FRPCUG Officers         Name            Work        Home      e-Mail 
          President               Rick Mattingly              223-6618  rmatt(at)jymis.com 
          Vice President          Don Anderson    498-3534    482-0943  dona(at)jymis.com
          Treasurer               Dennis Nimetz               686-2212  nimetz(at)ibm.net
          Secretary	          Mike Meyer      482-5600    223-0919  mm(at)jymis.com


          k-Byte Staff
          Editor-in-Chief         Open - We need a volunteer!  Contact Rick Mattingly in interim.
          Features Editor         Open - We need a volunteer! 
          Calendar Editor         Rick Mattingly	      223-6618  rmatt(at)jymis.com
          Review Editor
          Advertising Coordinator Will Horton     223-0330    223-2154  whorton(at)will-design.com
          Team Member OS/2 Column Brad Kell	              495-1184  bkell(at)holly.ColoState.EDU
          Nuts & Bolts Column     Chuck McJilton  416-9286    493-2987  cdmcj(at)jymis.com
          On the Web Column       R. Glenn York   493-1895    224-5266  rgyork(at)jymis.com


          Other Contacts
          Membership Coordinator  Jack Linder                 663-2151  jelinder(at)aol.com
          Telecommunication SIG	
             and RMIUG	          Chuck McJilton  416-9286    493-2987  cdmcj(at)jymis.com  
          NRFNUG		  Chuck Kluko     663-4770 x224         c.kluko(at)ix.netcom.com
          Door Prize Coordinator  Will Horton     223-0330    223-2154  whorton(at)will-design.com
          HTML SIG		  Doug Boicourt   495-6949    495-6949  db(at)wwwdata.com
          Programmers SIG	    
          FRPCUG Fax Line	                  493-1408
          FRPCUG Home Page w/E-Mail               http://www.frpcug.org
          FRPCUG Officer E-Mail		          frpcug-offer(at)frpcug.org


          k-Byte
          Front Range PC Users Group
          PMB 152
          305 W. Magnolia
          Fort Collins, CO  80521
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