Living a Digital Lifestyle Newsletter - May 13, 2009

LIVING A DIGITAL LIFESTYLE NEWSLETTER

Volume 1, Issue 65 May 13, 2009

Today's issue will be tips and articles all courtesy of Kim Komando. You can go to her website here. There will be several links that you can click on for yourself, to take you to different articles. I may include those articles in this newsletter, but then again, I may not. If I don't then you can follow the links yourself. If you happen upon a link that is closed to you, then that means you have to be a Kim's Club member to get access to that information. You can become a member very easily and the information is on the site.(By Kim Komando)

Offloading to an external hard drive

Q. I have a 29 gigabyte laptop that is almost full. It runs like molasses. My husband bought me a 500GB external hard drive. I can't move programs from the internal drive to the external one. I've tried dragging, which usually just shows as a shortcut. I've tried moving from Windows Explorer. I have tried downloading programs from your newsletters to it, but it usually doesn't give me the option. Or, if it does, I don't know the path to use since just the drive letter comes up. I can't afford a new PC. Can you help?
-Elaine in Cincinnati, listening on WKRC 550 AM

A. Not only is your hard drive nearly full. It's probably seriously fragmented, which can really slow things. And a drive needs a lot of free space to defragment. So you can't do much about that until you get things off the drive.

In most cases, you're best off moving personal files. For instance, if you have video files, move them. But leave the video program where it is.

When you install programs, you tell Windows where you're putting them. Usually, they go on the C: drive. Windows then knows where to find the program to open files. When you open a Word document, Windows knows where to find Word.

If you start moving programs, things won't work.

That said, you can move programs safely. In fact, there are a couple ways to do that. The easiest is to reinstall the programs.

Moving programs is a chore. But it can be done. Click here.

A better way to use your e-mail

E-mail makes communicating easy. But keeping your messages organized isn't always simple. You shouldn't get lost in your inbox. Working with your e-mail should be easy.

Wouldn't it be nice to search your inbox like you search the Web? Or how about picking through every attachment you've ever received? What if you could integrate your Web services with your e-mail?

Postbox can do all of this and more. This desktop e-mail program has many useful tools. You can search for e-mail in a number of ways. Find all your attachments, images and links in one place. And you can preview attachments before opening them.

This program also connects your e-mail to your favorite Web applications. Share text attachments and links online. Connect to your Facebook, Twitter and Del.icio.us accounts. Streamline your online life!

Cost: Free

Link: www.postbox-inc.com

System: Windows XP and Vista, Mac OS X

Is Blu-ray always better?

Q. I have an HDTV and a Sony PlayStation 3. It has a built-in Blu-ray Disc player. Some Blu-ray discs say that they were shot in standard definition. Am I wasting money buying movies that aren't shot in high definition? Will a regular DVD look just as good once it's upconverted?
Bill in Longview, TX, listening on KTBB 600 AM

A. Unfortunately, this isn't an easy question to answer.

To get the most from Blu-ray discs, movies should be shot in high definition. This isn't a problem for most newer movies.

Studios have been using high definition for about 10 years. So, a Blu-ray disc can be created from a high-definition source.

Of course, many discs will be created from 35mm celluloid film. Fortunately, its resolution surpasses that of Blu-ray.

Studios should get a good transfer from 35mm film to Blu-ray. So, Blu-ray versions should be crisper than their DVD counterparts.

There is a complication, though. Celluloid film degrades over time. Also, studios often make many copies from the same master. Celluloid film can be damaged when copies are made.

With damaged or degraded film, the transfer doesn't go so smoothly. You won't get a very good picture. Of course, this holds true with standard DVDs, too.

This means you will find some really bad Blu-ray transfers. The quality of the transfer will vary from movie to movie.

Fortunately, the major studios will have taken steps to protect their masters. So, the majority of Blu-ray DVDs should be crisp and clear.

Now, you want to know how an upconverted DVD compares to Blu-ray. The Blu-ray copy should be better than an upconverted DVD. That's because a Blu-ray was designed to work with HDTVs.

DVDs use rectangular pixels. In comparison, your HDTV uses square pixels. The picture must be scaled to fit your screen. Through interpolation, pixels are added based on surrounding pixels. This is tantamount to guesswork.

The quality of an interpolated DVD varies from player to player. You could see pixilation, noise and color shifts. That's particularly true if there's fast motion.

Blu-ray is different. It uses square pixels, like your television. Also, the image is sized to match the resolution of an HDTV screen. So, your player won't need to do much work to output the movie to your screen. You should notice a much better picture.

Should you run out and replace your old DVDs with Blu-ray discs? I wouldn't. That can be quite costly.

Rather, I would replace movies as the need arises. Maybe you can't tolerate a DVD once it has been upconverted. In that case, buy a copy of Blu-ray, if you want.

As for buying new movies, go for Blu-ray. Blu-ray discs' list prices are about $10 more than those of DVDs. However, a lot of online stores offer discounts on Blu-ray discs. The discounts narrow the discrepancy in price. You have a Blu-ray player, so you should enjoy it.

FINDING A PHONE FOR THE VISUALLY IMPAIRED

Laura in Independence, IA, catches the show on KXEL 1540 AM. She wrote in to ask about a cell phone for her husband. He's blind, so the phone must be accessible. Her brother heard me talking about an accessible phone on the show. She wants to know the phone's name.

Manufacturers really should make phones more accessible. Just think of the possibilities today's cell phones present. The camera could help convert printed text to speech. Built-in GPS could help with navigation. Think how much your husband could benefit from features like this.

Unfortunately, phone makers don't have the visually impaired in mind. In fact, someone with impaired vision probably has difficulty dialing a number. And, with touch-screen phones, dialing becomes even more difficult. That's why I'm excited about a recent development.

I wasn't talking about a phone on the show, per se. Rather, I was talking about phone software. Developers have built a set of tools for Google's Android phone software. Right now, Android is only available on T-Mobile's G1. Expect to see more phones running Android in the near future.

G1 owners can download Eyes-Free from the Android Marketplace. You can dial numbers simply by sliding your hand over the touch screen. The first place you touch becomes the five button. Other number buttons maintain their relative position. You just slide your finger to select a different number.

The software will also read aloud location information from the phone's GPS. For example, it will tell you the current address or intersection. The software also reads aloud information about the phone, such as battery level. Developers are working on more features.

Eyes-Free isn't the only software to make phones more accessible. Learn about some other options in my must-read tip.

Finally, I answer questions as soon as possible. But, with millions of readers and listeners, I can't address most. And, sometimes, those I really want to answer must wait. So, I recommend that you sign up for Kim's Club. You'll be able to download my shows on demand. That's perfect if you need some information from the show repeated!

I hope my mom isn't reading this week's newsletter. Otherwise, I'm in for a lecture on shameless self-promotion! She probably is reading the newsletter, so I might as well go for broke: Remember that I have a special page for the visually impaired. It makes finding great tips on my site a snap!

SHOULD YOU BUY A NETBOOK WITH WINDOWS XP?

Dale wrote from Bend, OR, where he listens on KBND 1110 AM. He's in the market for a computer. He will use it primarily for e-mail and surfing the Internet. So, he's thinking about buying a netbook. But he has reservations about Windows XP. He heard that Microsoft is no longer supporting it.

Microsoft recently ended mainstream support for XP. It will continue to provide security updates until 2014. But individuals won't get non-security updates and fixes.

What does this mean when you're shopping for a netbook? Very little! Buy that XP netbook and avoid those running Linux. After nearly eight years, XP shouldn't have many bugs left. And you'll still get security updates for another five years.

Windows 7 will run on netbooks. But Windows XP looks like a better choice. Microsoft will use the Windows 7 Starter Edition for netbooks. It will have more limitations than XP. For example, you will only be able to have three windows open. This could change. But I wouldn't hold out for Windows 7. Incidentally, it may add as much as $100 to the price of a netbook.

For more help with netbooks, visit my site:

• Is this netbook deal too good to be true?
• Buying an inexpensive laptop
• Netbooks and kill pills

Copyright 2009 WestStar TalkRadio Network. Reprinted with permission. No further republication or redistribution is permitted without the written consent of WestStar TalkRadio Network. Visit Kim Komando and sign up for her free e-mail newsletters at: www.komando.com

That's all for today's edition, folks.

Until next time -

Digitally yours,

Andrea