The Computer Next Door

When Do You Buy A New Computer?

I already know I sound like a complete Mac fanatic.  After using Apple products for over 20 years, what can I say? 

It might surprise you to know that I don't own a single Intel Chip machine. That's right, Ms. Machead has an iMac PowerPC G5 and an a Powerbook PowerPC G4.  For those of you who have no idea what that means, let me phrase it more simply.  I'm running an iMac that's more than 2 years old and a laptop that's closer to 4.

Here's the question.  When is it time to buy a new machine?  Some people change their cars every 3 years.  While one friend of mine has over 300,000 miles on his Plymouth.  What kind of transportation are you looking for?

In late April, Apple upgraded the specifications of its iMac line.  Apple is still configuring its entry-level 20"  iMac with 1G of memory, although it's now a speedier 2.4GHz.  The 24" machine starts with a 2.8 GHZ processor and 2 Gigs of improved memory. 

Readers may recall from our March post that Meryl experienced an unbacked up disaster with her underpowered G4. Lately, My G5's been very slow.  I considered doubling the memory and installing a new hard drive to pep up performance.  It's certainly a cost effective improvement.

That's the path I would've taken until this past week.  Now that Apple's upped the speed again I'm taking the plunge and moving forward.  Why?

Logically, I should  be replacing my PowerBook and not my iMac.  My PowerBook is no longer covered by AppleCare, (Apple's service contract which extends warranty from an initial period of one year to three years of coverage).   Which means should a problem arise, I could face a costly repair.  Plus the PowerBook has less than a Gigabyte of memory and  a slow processor.  So why am I hanging onto it?

Apple doesn't make a 12" computer anymore.  The PowerBook is encased in robust metal and it's probably my favorite all time laptop. It's a kind of collector's item in the Mac universe. Yes, it's maddeningly slow from time to time, but this is a second machine for me.

I think Apple will unveil something along the lines of the MacBook Air in the next few months at a lower price point.  The MacBook Air is a glorious looking machine, touted as the world's thinnest notebook. At a starting price of $1799, it's not only got high style, it has a high price with too little bang for the buck.

For the same price I'll be getting a 24" machine with more memory, processor speed, etc. I happen to prefer working at my desk with a desktop machine.  Currently my iMac sports a 20" screen,my previous one was 17" and the one before that 15", I think.  24" is huge.  Positively luxurious.

The  iMac I own  still has 6 months of AppleCare on it.  Therefore, I can sell this machine to someone and they get the benefit of warranty repair.  If I wait until the AppleCare runs out, my machine will have less resale appeal.

Someone else who totes their computer from location to location might prefer the stylish and ultra light Macbook Air.  This is a case where basic transportation comes in a fancy (and costly) package.

So when do you buy a new computer? 

1) Always consider an upgrade path.  Increasing your memory and hard drive can make an appreciable improvement.  In many instances you can be adding years of life to your machine.

2) Do you still have a warranty?  Just like with a car, the older the machine, the more chance of costly repair.

3)  How important is the new and nifty?  Don't jump on the bandwagon every time a new machine comes along.  Evaluate what you have, what you need and what you'll get.

Before closing,  I'd like to add a couple of points to Backing Up Is Hard To Do (March 25th).

One of the key advantages of Leopard, its built-in backup system, Time Machine, is further enhanced with Time Capsule.  Time Capsule is a wireless device which seamlessly backs up onto its hard drive all of your computers using Time Machine.  I've just ordered a 500G version which will be enough to back up both my new 320G iMac and my current 160G PowerBook.  After the transition, I'll report on the results.

My current external drive will be employed as a repository for those items that don't need to be stored in the primary drive, but that I don't want to trash.  Back-up, don't crack up!

The Magazine's Future is in Our Hands

I've been hearing the death knell of traditional magazine publishing for some time now.  Subscriptions and revenues are down.  Anxiety amongst management, reporters, and staff is high.  Many younger readers are getting their news and commentary almost exclusively online.  Is traditional magazine publishing going the way of the buggy whip?

Recently I traded in some airline miles for some magazines.  I hadn't been flying anywhere, and the airline (US Air) was quite insistent that I do something with the miles (I'm sure they benefited somehow, but oh, well).  And so, I obediently ticked off one magazine after another that I would have been unlikely to have ordered otherwise: titles like Dog Fancy, Budget Travel, and Martha Stewart Living.  10 in all. I sent in my little postcard and waited.

One by one, they started to arrive.  A mini-deluge of glossy reading to multi-task with while watching TV. Then, within the hour, destined for the recycling bin.

I have other magazines I care more for (The New Yorker, some art magazines), but for the most part, I find a magazine a quick "rifle" at best.  Something to take to the hairdresser.  Only occasionally to take to the bedside table. I am as much a magazine reader as the next person, but I'd have to say, they seem to have lost their sheen recently.

My question is, is magazine readership down because there are better (digital) versions or alternatives, because of the growth of other forms of news and entertainment, because of concern about the environment, or because magazines don't seem to give much bang for the buck?  (Some seem to be mostly ads).

I went online in search of answers.  I was wondering what I would do if I gave up traditional magazines permanently. Here's what I found:

1) The online version of a magazine is not necessarily better. I enjoy leafing through The New Yorker, for example, because I know I will discover a few cartoons to laugh at, find a review of interest, and possibly read a thought-provoking article. Everything is always in a certain order, so it's easy to page through.

The New Yorker's Website has no such appeal. Its long, scrolling Home Page seems to be mimicking that of the New York times, but the lack of color or imagination is at odds with the very nature of The New Yorker with its long tradition of artistic cover art. They seem to be trying to get on the bandwagon, but aren't sure how to go about it.

New Yorker online - just not the same

What's worse, I couldn't get my bearings on the site.  Some of their groupings of content seemed logical, but it simply isn't how I like to read the magazine - which is sequentially.  I like going from cover to cover.  It is reassuring in a way that newyorker.com is not.

2) Digital Editions are not the answer. These days, you can get "Digital Editions" of just about any magazine. For proof, check out Zinio.com, a virtual magazine store where you can buy access to digital versions of many magazines.  This would certainly solve the recycling issue, but is a digital edition interesting enough to consumers?

I have yet to see a fellow passenger reading a digital edition on his/her laptop on the train. Not to say it won't happen one day, but this just isn't a trend.

Zinio sets up a library where you can keep your magazines (not unlike the virtual library shelves Google allows on Google Books - see my previous blog entries on digital and virtual libraries).  Zinio.com is currently offering free complimentary issues so you can try the service out.  The digital editions load in Zinio's Online Reader.  It took a while for my March edition of Women's Health to obtain a clear focus (it was a bit blurry initially), but then it looked just like - well, the print edition. They are in fact identical - ads and all.

Zinio's Online Reader - too much work for a lot of ads

And that of course is the problem.  I didn't feel it was terribly much fun to page through the Web-based Online Reader of Women's Health.  It's certainly more work than the print version.  I had to keep squinting to make out the type, which varied in size.  On a regular Website, the type for articles tends to be all one size -and in print, the resolution is better so you can actually read it (Web resolution is far worse than print).

The digital edition of a magazine is the worse of both worlds: all the hard work of using computer software, with all the ads of the magazine. And none of the tactile experience.  Geez, I even missed the smelly perfume inserts, that's how nostalgic I was for traditional magazines after this experience.

3) There are many free substitutes for the kind of content magazines offer. This is probably what magazines are fearing.  Think about it.  There are so many ways to get your current news and information, no matter what the topic, including:

• The classic Web-only eZines (such as Salon)
• Website offered by TV stations (such as CNN.com), which have plenty of "magazine-style" reporting
• Blogs of every stripe and specialty (more specialist than magazines, often)
• Blog aggregators (such as Bloglines)
• Customized Home pages that aggregate news from global sources (such as iGoogle)

The list goes on.  Everybody has their favorite way of getting information, commentary, and entertainment, whether  specialized or general  Does anybody turn to printed magazines for the first word on anything anymore?

But after my foray online, I re-examined my pile of glossy printed matter.  What's the answer?  I will probably keep reading the magazines a little while longer.  At least until the Green Police come after me for contributing more than my share to the local landfill.

Backing Up is Hard to Do (or is it?)

We don't know about you, but we love a surprise.  However, Meryl ended up with a nasty one on the eve of her birthday no less.  Late that evening a mouse she was using suddenly started acting erratic.  She watched in horror as the cursor started "moving" files from folder to folder, as if the entire computer (she runs a PowerBook G4) was going crazy.  She shut down her computer, and when she started it up again, tried to restore some of the "moved" files.  The next morning, many of her basic preferences had been inadvertently lost.

Luckily, Meryl has the help of her partner, a brilliant technologist (Frederic Rudman), who, with the aid of Apple Technical Support (and many, many hours of time) were able to restore the computer to working condition, and reconstitute her applications, documents, preferences, and other settings.

But here's the rub: it was TREMENDOUSLY TIME CONSUMING.  Overall, not recommended for the faint-of-heart.  "Fred alone spent an entire day of his life," Meryl comments.  "Then, I had to spend another two days at least re-installing serial numbers or product keys on applications, testing things out, etcetera.

She ended up with an entire new way of doing backups, and has now upgraded her Mac OS to Leopard, which has built-in backup capabilities known as Time Machine.

There are 2 morals to this story:

1) For God's Sake, back up everything.

2) For God's sake, don't operate without a hell of a lot of disk space.

That, as it turned out, was the cause of the "crazy mouse" antics.  Because Meryl's computer had been operating with under 2 GB of memory, things were very vulnerable indeed on her PowerBook G4. In her defense, who knew?  Certainly this was NOT in the manual, and can only be considered an insider secret.

AS FAR AS BACKING UP GOES

You need to know your own work habits, and needs. Some people keep 3 copies of everything.  Some folks back up  to services like Apple's iDisk.

(Linda  always backs up to an external drive automatically, and so has been saved from the perils of what happened to Meryl).

Whatever works for you, do something.  NEVER have files in only one location (unless you don't care about them).  Back up on hard drives, back up to a Web service, or back up to DVDs.  But back up.

AS FAR AS DISK SPACE GOES

Well, there are a lot of options for getting things OFF your computer and ONTO something else. What Meryl is now examining is what can come off her computer (documents, pictures, videos, and applications she doesn't use), to be stored elsewhere.  She is now happily operating with closer to 25 GB of space on her hard drive, and hopes to double or triple that amount of space in the near future.

All's well that ends well.

No Instant Movies for the Mac-Netflix User

I can't see these Netflix instant movies on my Mac

If the Home Entertainment-Digital-Revolution is going to happen, in my opnion, it has to a) work well, b) be easy to use, and c) be convenient.  I am oftentimes a holdout on adopting new technologies for one of the reasons just mentioned.

Now, I like my Netflix, I must admit.  They have managed to come up with the right subscription levels for a wide range of movie-watchers, of which I am one.  I have the 2nd from the bottom (i.e., not-quite-the-cheapest) Netflix subscription level, which qualifies me to be able to stream movies for free from the ones available on Netflix.  Or so I thought...

Sitting at my computer late one afternoon, I thought, what the hey why not?  Let's stream a movie online.  So I went to Netflix, clicked on "Browse Instant" to see what was available.  Alas, I got a message immediately telling me that:

"Your operating system is not compatible with this feature. Try again from a computer with Windows XP Service Pack 2 or Windows Vista." Following the "Learn More" link, I did indeed get an earful on why this was so.  According to Netflix, the issue is Digital Rights Management (DRM), and the fact that Apple "does not license their DRM solution to third parties" (read Netflix)...so it may take a while if (and when) I can watch streaming movies (for Free, mind you) on my Mac.

This is a darn shame, because Netflix has a wonderful library - and I'd like to tap into it on my LARGE SCREEN monitor on my Mac. Videos and movies look great on it.

So, my venture into Home Entertainment at the Office came to a screeching halt. Not convenient (at all) to borrow somebody else's Windows computer...So, I await the next chapter to come in the great Home Entertainment-Digital-Revolution (or whatever it is).

Trying Out Microsoft Office 2008 for Mac (Slowly)

I have been trying out Microsoft Office 2008 for Mac for the last week or so, and have a few comments, for those considering the move to the new office suite:

FIRST, THE POSITIVES

• The built-in template documents are professional looking, I must admit.
• I also like the new cover pages that are a click away in Word. Cover pages are just one of those things I don't want to have to design by myself, and it is nice that there are some good design defaults for this.
• I like the new approach to the floating formatting palettes, which are much more like Adobe's applications now. Even though it feels derivative (gee, what a surprise - Microsoft being derivative!) it is nice to have a consistent experience between the Office applications.

I liked the new formatting palettes - which are a lot like Adobe's

NOW, THE NOT-SO POSITIVES

• It feels slow to me.  Mighty slow, sometimes.  Compared to the original Office (I never had Office 2004, just the original version), some operations feel twice or three times as slow, even simple things such as highlighting or drag and drop.
• It crashes far too frequently.  The first few days of using Office 2008, I find myself having to re-open applications that shouldn't be crashing (such as Excel, which rarely crashed before) with alarming frequency.
• It took up a ridiculous amount of space on my hard drive when I installed it.  After loading it, I had to go delete gigabytes of other data just in order to run any of my programs.
• Sometimes even simple things don't feel, well...intuitive.  I find myself scratching my head (or chin) at times, wondering...now, I wonder where I go to do that?  An upgrade shouldn't feel this way.

I suppose if I/when I upgrade my Mac (I am running a PowerBook G4), some of the speed issues may go away, but I must say I am overall disappointed at the performance and usability of this new suite of Office tools.

Eat, Drink, and Give the Gift of Merry

Don't get me wrong - I love consumer goods as much as the next red-blooded American.  After all, going to the mall (if you can avoid getting gunned down by some nut) helps keep the economy afloat.

But eventually, you can only accumulate so much "stuff," and start to see the wisdom in buying consumables - things to eat, drink, enjoy, and then be done with.  It's the experience, after all.

Here are a few sites I'm shopping at this holiday season that offer edible (or drinkable) gifts for the gourmet or gourmand on your list.

GIFTS OF TEA

Tea is so good for you.  It's good for the soul, good for the mind, and good for the body.

If you want to buy tea as gifts, try some of these sites:

Numi Teas

I really like Numi teas.  They're fragrant, beautiful, and definitely  unusual.  All good attributes for a holiday gift.

I have a little glass Numi teapot of my own (individual size), into which I put a flowering bud and hot water.  The bud blossoms into a wonderful flower that at the same times gives you - guess what, a flower tea.

The Numi website includes groupings of inexpensive teas and herbal "teasans", bamboo-packaged gift selections, loose tea, tea ware, and flowering teas.  Anything would be a treat for a tea lover, but I definitely recommend (unless they already have one) that interesting little glass teapot with which they can see their tea bloom.

For a broader selection of different kinds of teas, try:
Adagio

For the benefits of green tea, try:
Rishi Tea

CHOCOLATE GIFTS

Godiva is the gold standard in chocolate gifts, and they make the online ordering process for gifts quite easy. Every year they come out with something new in the gift area, although their truffles are always an exquisite classic. Be careful at Godiva, though - if you spend enough on gifts, they'll give you a box of the stuff for your own use.

If you want to branch out and try some other brands, you might also try:

Artisan Confection, with Joseph Schmidt, Scharffen Berger, and the organic Dagoba Chocolates

Candinas Chocolatier - Swiss made and preservative free

SPICES AND EVERYTHING NICES

A friend turned me on to Penzey's Spices a couple of years ago, and I've been buying their spices by mail ever since.  They have considerable depth and breadth to their offerings (this is more apparent if you actually order their catalog or go to one of their retail stores) and they have some really interesting spice samplers for anyone you know who loves to cook. Their Website is slightly retro, and takes some thought to find what you're looking for, but the quality of the spices is really worth it.

Oh, and the other great thing about buying things to eat and drink as gifts - you can be pretty sure they won't be returned!  Ho ho ho.

Fun with the iPhone

It’s been over 3 months since I started using my iPhone and I thought it was time to report on it.  For the record, I’ve been using Apple computers for over 20 years and a more loyal supporter you won’t find.  I think when it comes to industrial design the folks in  Cupertino wrote the book.

A FEW "I-GRIPES"

Of course I expected my iPhone to be a good phone, which it has been.  But I think the AT&T service isn’t as good as it was on Verizon. At least it seems to me that I’m seeing “No service” far more frequently than ever before.  On the other hand, I’m using my phone far more often.  When the phone is working I have absolutely no complaints about sound quality, etc..

I do hate the headphones that came with the device.  Then again, I’ve never liked Apple’s earphones.  I’m an  “in-ear ” kind of listener.  Currently I’m using Sony (http://www.sony.com)  earphones with a Monster iCableLink Headphone Adapter for the iPhone (www.monstercable.com)  The iPhone earplug port is recessed and doesn’t accept all headphones.

My earphone set-up isn’t ideal.  The Monster adapter is several inches long.  While it’s flexible, the iCableLink adds length where length isn’t needed.  The Sony headset already comes with an extention cord that I never use. But the iCableLink is definitely a good product.  It lets you use any pair of  standard headphones from full-sized headsets to earbuds.  Most importantly the flexibility of the adapter helps to prevent damage to the minijack audio connection.  Manufacturers such as Belkin (www.belkin.com) also make adapters, albeit more rigid.

What’s most frustrating in this set-up is the lack of integrated microphone, which you get with  Apple’s earphones.  With third party earphones when you’re listening to music and the phone rings, you remove your headphones to speak.  With the Apple provided earphones you just hit the  microphone to cut the music and answer  the telephone.

There are iPhone  earphone/microphone combos on the market.  The AT&T store (http://www.wireless.att..com)  carries a  universal stereo Shure model.  Also there’s a V- Moda  Vibe Duo available on the  Apple website (www.Apple.com)

My adapter was a cost effective addition (only $9.99 plus tax) to the existing headphones I was using with my iPod.  I’m still investigating the best new options, before spending $100 or more an integrated model.  A word of caution.  I almost bought the wrong V-Moda headphones at the Apple store.  Make sure you’re getting the headset with the microphone, if you’re buying it for an iPhone.

WHAT I LOVE ABOUT THE iPHONE

Now, on to what I love about the iPhone.  I don’t think a device has captured my imagination like this in years.  This is no phone, this is a computer.  It’s not a smart phone  it’s a genius!

I’ve had an iPod almost since the beginning.  I own four of them  (the original, the mini,  a Nano and a Video) not including the iPhone.  Two of them I’m using as spare hard drives.  One’s permanently docked to a speaker set-up and the Nano’s what I wear in the gym.

With my iPhone I’m suddenly carrying music with me all over town.  For the simple reason I now always have an iPod with me built into my phone.  Now, I don’t tote tons of songs with me.  I feel no need to have my entire library always at my finger tips.   If you do want everything, maybe you should have the much larger iPod Classic for that purpose.

Some of the unexpected pleasures of the iPhone are as follows:

1. The Stopwatch.  I write TV promos, which have to be accurately timed for the announcer to read.  The iPhone’s stopwatch is better than the sweep second hand on my wristwatch, nor do I have to carry around a dedicated stopwatch.

2. Google Maps.  Wherever I go, I can pinpoint the address down to the block.  Comes in very handy on the street, and on the road.

3. The Alarm.  My husband’s trusty alarm clock isn’t reliable anymore.  Now all he needs is my iPhone by the bedside.

4. Instant information.  I can comparison shop in a store by going to Safari and checking out a shopping bot on the spot.  Movie schedules, trivia questions, dictionary definitions, these are all things I’ve checked on my iPhone instead of my laptop or desktop in the last few months. I may not need to know the weather in Paris every day, but it’s an icebreaker at parties.

The Wi Fi’s been pretty reliable for the most part.  I’ve gotten free wireless access in reataurants, stores, hotels and on the street.

Yes, there may be a faster iPhone in a few months.  And who knows, maybe Apple will have another price cut in the near future.  But to me, the future is now.  The iPhone’s a great device here and now.  If you’re thinking about getting one, I highly recommend it. 

When Customer Service goes South

Online shopping is by no means a level playing field. You'd think that the newer online vendors would be savvy about how to handle customer service, but such is not the case.  Some are downright awful, especially in the areas of customer service. so you really have to be careful where you shop online.

I like to experiment and try new vendors, and every now and then this leads to an unhappy customer service experience.

Such was the case when I recently attempted to purchase some replacement china and tableware on the Web. I had made notes about a Website I previously used to purchase tableware, but the site was a little hard to use.  So, I thought I'd try another online vendor.

I tried a vendor who was sending me regular emails - Homeclick.com.  I must have purchased something there before, but I don't remember what it was, or in fact anything about the shopping experience.  But I will not soon forget this recent purchase.

I liked the china, but getting the order sorted out was a nightmare.

The Web transaction was smooth enough, even though I was told to expect my shipment in two packages.  Since most of the shipment was coming in the first package, I chose to pay for "expedited shipping" (via FedEx) for that part of the shipment, running me an extra $12.

The initial confirmation of my purchase was also fine.  But the 2nd email Homeclick sent about what was being shipped showed an incorrect number of items.  They appeared to have left out one of the sets of silverware.

I called customer service, who assured me that nothing was amiss, and that it had simply been back ordered. I requested a refund on that part of the "expedited shipping" and was told I would receive some of the money back.  When I received the first part of my shipment, it made no reference to the correct number of silverware settings, back ordered or not.  It appeared that part of my order had "disappeared" - into the bowels of Homeclick''s order placement system.  By this time, the entire charge had also been made to my credit card.

Irritated, I called HomeClick's customer service department. They seemed to not understand what was going on.  I cancelled the remaining parts of my order, and requested a refund for all items I had not yet received.  The service rep told I would receive a refund for $98. Shortly thereafter, I received an email telling me my refund would be $38.

This went on like this for the next few days.  I would call customer service, they would tell me one thing, then a day or two later, I would get a completely different story via e-mail.  It was bizarre - it was almost as if nobody in customer service was talking to anyone else, and the e-mail department was in its own little world.  I also was wondering if I would ever see my refund - or, in lieu of that, my china and silverware.

The upshot was that I finally received a set of silverware I had asked to be cancelled, and finally did get a credit back to my credit card for two items (totally about $60), but it simply wasn't what I had requested of the customer service department, and I felt misled. But they wore me down through the experience of making multiple calls to customer service, cross-checking their e-mails (which all contradicted each other), and continually checking my credit card's Website to check for a refund.

It could have been worse, I suppose (they could have failed to give me any credit back, or failed to ship the merchandise).  Nevertheless, the whole experience ticked me off.

What went wrong?

I'm guessing that Homeclick's back-office systems are simply not in synch with each other or with their Website transaction processing system. Their customer service process also lacks process (typos in their emails make me think they are hand-written, not automated).

The lesson is, I suppose, to make a note of these lousy customer experiences when you have them, and remember not to order from these sites again.  Also, you can let others know to "buyer beware." You can post opinions about online vendor on many consumer sites, including:

Epinions

RedPearl

Yahoo Shopping

Most require you to have a user ID of some sort.  It's worth a try.  My problem with all this is - it's just more time spent on something that should be very simple. And isn't that why we're online in the first place?

How Green Is Your DVR?

Herein, and on the record,  I want to admit I have a conflict.  No, nothing that'll cost me huge sums with a mental health professional.  But an issue nonetheless.

How do I reconcile my love of technology with an ever broadening awareness of energy abuse?  Technology lovers more and more are finding themselves in this same dilemma. All those terrific gadgets we love use lots and lots of energy.

Personally, it's a puzzlement.  How do I become more environmentally sensitive and still use the toys I love?  Take my computer as the major culprit.  I rarely shut the thing off.  Want to know why?

No, I'm not merely lazy.  There's a school of thought (quite common among television professionals) that turning your device on and off creates a great deal of wear and tear on the device. It's a habit hard to break after more than 20 years.  But, I have to confess I'm beginning to revisit the wisdom of my ways.

Take for example our friendly digital video recorder (DVR).  Would you believe that set-top high-definition DVR of yours can use the same amount of electricity as your typical refrigerator?  Well it does.

That's because DVRs use hard disks.  And hard disk drives like the kind we run in our personal computers are constantly spinning.  And all that spinning makes your DVR one power- hungry machine. The 'standby' mode of a typical DVR doesn't really reduce its power consumption when compared to the normal mode you regularly use.

Recently a cable industry publication reported that  set-top boxes in the U.S. use $2 billion worth of electricity annually, which produces 15 million tons of carbon dioxide.  The source of these estimates is the nonprofit advocacy group Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC). Unfortunately,  HDTVs, are special offenders in themselves. You'd never know it by their thin profiles, but HDTVs are gorging themselves. They're  power guzzlers — using as much as four times the energy of  standard-definition sets. 

But before you go back to a CRT (cathode ray tube TV--the old fashioned sets of the 20th century) know that there's hope.  A new set-top software has been developed to cut the DVR's guzzling ways.  In the wee hours of the night the boxes spin down going into a standby mode that uses less than 1 watt.

Across the Pond, in the U.K.  a satellite provider began deploying the spin-down feature to 2 million HD set-tops. The feature monitors whether people are using their box between 11:00 p.m. and 4:00 a.m. If the box hasn't been used for a period of two hours, an “auto standby” warning pops up on screen for 3 minutes; if nobody touches the remote, the box's hard disk stops spinning.

The key to the program: Subscribers don't necessarily even know their DVRs are putting themselves to sleep at night. The software switches the system back on if there's a scheduled recording.

Some DVR makers, including Scientific Atlanta, have also developed auto-shutoff features.  Self-interest is also served here.  Disk drives last longer if they're not churning continuously. The U.S. government's voluntary Energy Star program, which sets energy-efficiency guidelines for household appliances, is now working up new standards for digital set-top boxes and DVRs.

It's a bit early for New Year's resolutions, but with the oncoming holidays it's worth considering less passive pursuits and a bit more exercise.  A good way to save energy, while energizing oneself in the process.

My Favorite Site for Learning Software

One of the leading reasons for the digital divide is that some people learned about computers in school, and some people (maybe you) did not.  If you were never formally taught about computers, the Web, or interactive media and you don't have a "shucks, let's-just-hack-away-at-it" approach to things, you may find it difficult to play catch-up with software these days.

This becomes especially critical if it's a productivity software, is in any way related to the work you do (or long to do), or is a software program that otherwise keeps you in business - whoever you're working for. So if you don't have a deep-pocketed employer picking up the tab on software or computer training, what do you do, and where do you go?

Your choices will most likely boil down to: 1) Enlist a friend or family member to help you, 2) sign up for a class near you, 3) read a book on the subject, or 4) find help online.

In the past I tried options #1 and #3 with limited success - until I discovered online learning. I find the online learning approach to be the most effective approach because of the way I personally like to learn. I like a lot of visual reinforcement on new concepts, and therefore prefer some form of  multimedia presentation.  Multimedia training allows me to see and hear the material, and work along at my own pace.  It's easy to literally "rewind" the multimedia program (which usually takes the form of an online or DVD video) to review something I didn't quite get the first time around.

I have checked out a few of the online trainers, and always come back to Lynda.com.  Lynda.com is a venture started by Web designer Lynda Weinman. Weinman wrote some leading books on Web graphics and Web design many years back which I found helpful (not to mention funny).  Weinman has subsequently expanded her business (greatly) to cover subjects from numerous other trainers (there are currently over 24,000 video tutorials available online on Lynda.com).  It is a great resource.

There's only one hitch:  It isn't free. You can sample a few sections of courses online, but eventually if you want more you will need to subscribe.  Monthly the site subscription runs $25; annually, subscriptions start at $250. What you'll get is unlimited access to the instruction - all you can view. (Check out the free titles available).

If you're trying to be more proficient with a particular computer software program, it's useful to go through the full tutorial on the application - made up of multiple QuickTime movies that allow you to follow along as the instructor uses the program.

Additionally, the site has instruction on general computer-related topics that are not software specific (e.g., using graphics for business presentations, or general concepts about digital photography.) These type of courses tend to be more presentation-like rather than the "over-the-shoulder" tutorials.

I'm a monthly subscriber, and a happy one.  Whenever I have a question about a major software program that can't be easily answered by the manual or the online help, I just go to Lynda.com, and then select one or two of the little sections within the related online course that seem most appropriate.  Usually I find what I'm looking for.  They don't have instruction on absolutely every computer program out there, but they have a lot.

For more information or to try a free lesson (or two, or three), go to: www.lynda.com.