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WFAA’s COMPUTER CORNER Blog |
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December 2009
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Recently in technology CategoryA couple of weeks ago, I told you how I was planning to build a new computer to replace the one I had been using with my TV set. I provided a list of the specifications I was seeking, including a fast processor and lots of memory. My budget was between $300 and $400. Since my last post on this topic, T-Mobile has released some hopeful information for users of the carrier’s popular Sidekick mobile phone. The original issue was that >> Continue reading: Update: Better news for Sidekick users The Internet has a “cloud.” That’s the word tech types use to describe the place where millions of us now store our e-mail, our photos, and other important personal information. Like a real cloud, the Internet “cloud” is (at least to us) rather ill-defined and ever-changing. When you use Gmail or Hotmail or >> Continue reading: Phone users find data is here today, gone tomorrow The wallet has never been a good place to carry your favorite photos around. Sure, it’s a convenient spot; always handy, instantly available — but the content of most wallets is competing for an ever-decreasing space. Cash comes and goes (mostly goes). There is always a driver’s license and insurance document; often a spare key or two; and always credit cards. After a while, you find the keepsake photo of your fav… Steve Jobs is back after nearly a year out of the limelight. Apple’s maestro received a standing ovation when he appeared before an invitation-only audience at the company’s… Richard Nixon was sworn in as president of the United States. A wooden bridge in Chappaquiddick, Mass. was the scene of a fatal accident involving Sen. Edward Kennedy. And man took his first steps on the surface of the moon. But something else happened in the year 1969 that would change just about everything in the years to follow. >> Continue reading: Happy 40th anniversary, Internet While iPhone and BlackBerry models tend to ge… This may be the first time you’ve heard the term “crowdsourcing,” but it won’t likely be the last. There are various technical definitions, but essentially, crowdsourcing means getting reliable information from a “crowd.” Let’s think about how that might work. Perhaps you magically have access to all the text messages that are being sent out from the new Cowboys Stadium during a game. Without being there — and without wat… A big name in mobile phones is getting ready to marry 3G technology with a netbook-size computer. Nokia said today its new >> Continue reading: Nokia to offer featherweight netbook PC Back again with an update on efforts to resurrect my ailing Acer Aspire L100 home computer. I’ve been overwhelmed with helpful suggestions from Computer Corner Blog and Newsletter readers; if I haven’t yet replied personally to your submission, I apologize. I do read all my e-mail! Briefly, the L100, running Windows Vista… When you work with computers for a living, it’s — well, it’s embarrassing when something goes wrong that you just can’t seem to right. Here’s my story.
It was tucked away in a forgotten corner of a little-used guest room at my grandparents’ rural home — and I was drawn to it like a magnet. The Zenith console radio and phonograph was once the centerpiece of a 1940s home entertainment system. Like today’s big-screen TV, the mahogany cabinet was designed to occupy a prominent place in the living room, delivering the sounds of Be… Thanks for all your comments about digital TV reception problems. We can’t recommend specific antennas other than to say you need a model designed to receive both VHF and UHF channels in the area where you live. A good resource for that is AntennaWeb, which generates a fairly conservative list of what TV stations you should be able to receive at your address with the right ant… For People of a Certain Age, the name “Bing” conjures up the image of a crooner who presided over a golf tournament. For others, the word is the second half of a catchphrase (“bada bing!”) made popular by “The Sopranos.” >> Continue reading: Bing bids for your search requests We’re now down to fewer than 30 days until TV stations around the nation pull the plug on analog transmissions. I’m sure that you’re as weary as we television people are to see the incessant reminders about the digital switch. If you’re reading this on a computer, chances are you are technically savvy enough to be already squared away with either a digital-capable TV set, a satellite or cable connection or a digital converter box (or s… The U.S. Postal Service today raised the p…
Could this be the savior of newspapers and magazines? Amazon today unveiled a new model of its popular Kindle electronic reading device with a screen that’… You can download a lot of free things from all the nooks and crannies of the World Wide Web — some legal, some not so much. But here’s a free downloa… Dear Electronic Gadget Manufacturer: I am a frustrated electronic gadget user. Don’t get me wrong: I salivate over cool new cell phones, MP3 players and digital cameras. But what’s up with the battery thing? Let me explain. Once upon a time, just about every battery-operated product that I purchased used one or more of these types of cells: AA, AAA, C or D. That was it. It was easy to set aside a drawer with a collectio… Let’s give credit where it’s due: The pocket-size digital camcorder craze started a couple of years ago with The Flip, a video recorder about the size of an ice cream bar (minus the stick). It wasn’t made by a Sony or a Samsung; it was from a small Silicon Valley firm, Pure Digital Technologies, that stumbled upon just th… We had an item on the Computer Corner Blog last week about recycling your old electronics gear. That’s a great environmental option, of course, but it doesn’t necessarily put any money back in your pocket. You can always try to unload your old cell phone, laptop or MP3 player on eBay or … Let’s face it: We’ve all got at least one hunk of electronic junk collecting dust on a shelf, in a closet or piled up in the garage. It could be an obsolete co… |
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