Apple took a risk when it introduced AirPort Extreme in January of 2003because the IEEE 802.11g specification that AirPort Extreme relies onhadn't yet been approved. 802.11g improves on 802.11b, which Applecalled AirPort, by increasing the raw speed to 54 Mbps while maintainingbackward compatibility with 802.11b devices (see "AirPort Extreme: Inthe Key of G" in TidBITS-663_). Apple's gamble paid off 12-Jun-03 withthe ratification of 802.11g by the IEEE, the engineering standards groupthat developed both 802.11g and 802.11g.

http://www.apple.com/airport/
http://www.ieee.org/hpnews_802.11g
http://db.tidbits.com/getbits.acgi?tbart=07047

Greg "Joz" Joswiak, Apple's vice president of hardware productmarketing, said, "There have been no significant changes to thespecification," since January. However, Apple has had to make tweaksalong the way and Joz said there would be an update before the end ofJune that brings AirPort Extreme into full compliance and compatibilitywith the final 802.11g spec.

Last month, reports circulated that the IEEE had reduced 802.11g's speedfrom 54 Mbps to less than 25 Mbps, panicking some users who had alreadyinvested in 802.11g hardware. Fortunately, the IEEE didn't change thespeed: they were merely clarifying the throughput of an 802.11g-basednetwork in real world situations (similarly, 802.11b never achieves 11Mbps; roughly half that is more common in real world situations).Networks always have overhead for processing packets and managingtraffic, and 802.11g's overhead is quite large compared to conventionalEthernet.

http://www.computerworld.com/mobiletopics/mobile/story/0,10801,81450,00.html?nas=PM-81450

Interestingly, Apple's AirPort Extreme chipset supplier Broadcom andthree other major wireless chipset developers - Agere, Intersil andTexas Instruments - are all working on solving the throughput problem.Broadcom said that its Xpress technology will increase the speed on802.11g-only networks that use its technology by 27 percent and on mixed802.11b/g networks by nearly 75 percent simply by more intelligentlypackaging packets. Even if only one device transmitting on the networkuses Xpress, you can still see speed improvements. Their "packetbursting" technology works fine with older devices, and Broadcom is partof an effort in the industry to roll out a compatible version of thisnotion soon. (Technically, Xpress uses a subset of a draft version ofIEEE 802.11e, a specification that should be finished in the next yearfor improving throughput and streaming media capabilities.) Broadcomalso said this capability is already latent in the chips they'vedelivered to equipment makers like Apple, and it's up to each equipmentmaker to decide whether or not to turn the feature on. Given the timingon Broadcom's announcement, it's possible that Apple will throw in thisXpress feature later this month with the AirPort Extreme firmwareupgrade.

http://www.80211-planet.com/news/article.php/2222031

The next step for 802.11g is inclusion in the Wi-Fi certificationstandard that currently ensures that all 802.11b (and 802.11a) devicesare compatible with one another, no matter what company has developedthe underlying chipset. The Wi-Fi Alliance, a trade group that managesthe Wi-Fi certification process and allows compatible products todisplay the Wi-Fi seal, has said it plans to start testing andcertifying products this month.

ToC

The Humor Section:

First aid tips for your computer

(AP) --Personal computers are part of a vast, no-wing conspiracy dedicatedto embarrassing users.

It all began when they cleverly changed their status from hobby toappliance and became ubiquitous. That increased their chances to fakeserious problems that would force owners to haul them to computer repairfacilities to the vast amusement of the technicians.

So before you call tech support (remember when that used to be free?), orhaul the machine to the retailer, here are some first-aid tips.

SYMPTOM: Machine fails to start.

PROBABLE CAUSE: It takes electricity. Most of us plug our computers andperipherals into power strips with a little rocker switch that seemsdesigned to be stepped on and turned off by you, the dog or a stray booktossed on a desktop. Or, your machine might be on a shared circuit intowhich your daughter has plugged two 1,800-watt hairdryers because she'slate for class. If both computer and monitor are lifeless, the electricityis the probable culprit.

SYMPTOM: Programs that were working yesterday aren't working today.

PROBABLE CAUSES: Windows updates that not infrequently fix one problemwhile introducing another. It happened again to a few hundred thousandfolks in the last week of May. If your version of Windows allows it, useSystem Restore to go back to an earlier time when things worked. If youhave a Windows version that doesn't permit that, try, in order,reinstalling the errant applications, and then reinstalling Windows itself.

SYMPTOM: Hard drive disappears. System will boot from a floppy or CD, butthe hard drive went to Tijuana.

PROBABLE CAUSE: If you had the case open for any reason, check that theribbon cable, the wide flat one that connects the hard drive to themotherboard is attached to the drive securely. Most PC cases are crowded,and it's easy to dislodge the cable while installing something else. Italso occasionally happens if you move the machine and carry it at an oddangle.

SYMPTOM: No keyboard response or no mouse response.

PROBABLE CAUSE: In both cases, check the connections at the back of the PC,particularly if the CPU (central processing unit) is on a desk backedagainst a wall. A slight shove of the CPU is enough to dislodge one orboth. If either keyboard or mouse is cordless, check batteries or rechargestatus.

SYMPTOM: Machine works fine for a short time, then becomes erratic.

PROBABLE CAUSE: Heat. If you are a messy-desk person, clear the junk awayfrom the CPU, which is probably interfering with the air circulation. Or,listen for a fan. They do die, and if you don't hear one, your machine willfollow. Finally, some CPUs have heat sink, or fans installed on top of theprocessor. If you've moved the machine lately, they sometimes fall off. Check.

ToC

Common Ground:

Microsoft to license SCO Unix code

Microsoft will license the rights to Unix technology from SCO Group, a movethat could impact the battle between Windows and Linux in the market forcomputer operating systems.

According to a statement from Microsoft, the company will license SCO'sUnix patents and the source code. That code is at the heart of a $1 billionlawsuit between SCO and IBM, which is aggressively pushing Linux as analternative to Windows in corporate back shops.

Microsoft's Windows has a monopoly in the market for desktop operatingsystems, with a market share greater than 90 percent. Linux, which has beendeveloped by thousands of contributors and can be freely obtained, hascaught on as a worthy competitor in the market for corporate servers. Inthe past two years, Microsoft has repeatedly labeled Linux as a threat tothe Redmond, Wash.-based computing giant, partly because of its low cost.

Late Sunday, Microsoft general counsel Brad Smith said acquiring thelicense from SCO "is representative of Microsoft's ongoing commitment torespecting intellectual property and the IT community's healthy exchange ofIP through licensing. This helps to ensure IP compliance across Microsoftsolutions and supports our efforts around existing products like servicesfor Unix that further Unix interoperability."

Unix was invented more than 30 years ago by AT&T's Unix SystemsLaboratories. In many ways Linux works similarly to Unix, making itrelatively easy to translate Unix software to Linux.

AT&T sold the Unix intellectual property to Novell Networks, which in turnsold it to the Santa Cruz Operation. Caldera International, a seller ofLinux, then acquired from SCO the Unix rights and two SCO products,OpenServer and UnixWare. Then last year, Caldera changed its name to SCOGroup to reflect the fact that most of its revenue came from its SCObusiness and not from the Linux products.

But SCO has recently alleged that parts of the Unix source code havebeen copied into Linux, and it is seeking fees from Linux users. InMarch, SCO sued IBM for $1 billion, alleging that Big Blue had usedSCO's Unix code in Linux. IBM, along with Hewlett-Packard, has been amajor backer of Linux. Last week, SCO escalated the battle by sendinghundreds of letters to large corporations warning them that their use ofLinux could infringe on SCO's intellectual property.

SCO's letter stated, in part, "We believe that Linux infringes on our Unixintellectual property and other rights. We intend to aggressively protectand enforce these rights. Legal liability that may arise from the Linuxdevelopment process may also rest with the end user."

Some analysts said the move was an attempt by SCO to be acquired by anothercompany--possibly Microsoft, IBM or another firm with a stake in thematter. "I guess suing IBM wasn't enough to get them acquired, so (theletters are) the next stage," Illuminata analyst Gordon Haff said.

Microsoft's public disdain of Linux stretches back more than two years.

In March 2001, Microsoft Senior Vice President Craig Mundie said releasingsource code into the public domain is "unhealthy," causes security risksand "as history has shown, while this type of model may have a place, itisn't successful in building a mass market and making powerful, easy-to-usesoftware broadly accessible to consumers."

A few months later, in an interview with CNET News.com, Microsoft ChairmanBill Gates sought to warn corporate users about the GNU General PublicLicense, which Linux is distributed under. "Some of our source codes areout there and very available, like Windows CE," Gates said. "Some generallyrequire a license, like Windows itself. We have no objection to freesoftware, which has been around forever. But we do think there are problemsfor commercial users relative to the GPL, and we are just making surepeople understand the GPL.

"Unfortunately, that has been misconstrued in many ways. It's a topic thatyou can leap on and say, 'Microsoft doesn't make free software.' Hey, wehave free software; the world will always have free software. I mean, ifyou characterize it that way, that's not right. But if you say to people,'Do you understand the GPL?' And they'll say, 'Huh?' And they're prettystunned when the Pac-Man-like nature of it is described to them."

The next stage in the fight between SCO and IBM could occur next month--SCOhas threatened to revoke IBM's Unix license on June 13.

News.com's Michael Kanellos contributed to this report.

ToC

Ballmer memo targets Linux

Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer identified Linux and open-source software as keycompetitive challenges to the company in a memo sent to all employeesWednesday.

"In this environment of lean (information technology) budgets and concernsabout Microsoft's attention to customers, noncommercial software such asLinux and OpenOffice is seen as an interesting, 'good enough' or 'free'alternative," Ballmer wrote in his annual letter to employees summarizingMicrosoft's market position and its goals for the coming year.

"Noncommercial software products in general, and Linux in particular,present a competitive challenge for us and for our entire industry, and theyrequire our concentrated focus and attention," Ballmer wrote.

"IBM's endorsement of Linux has added credibility and an illusion of supportand accountability," Ballmer continued, "although the reality is there is no'center of gravity,' or central body, investing in the health and growth ofnoncommercial software or innovating in critical areas like engineering,manageability, compatibility and security."

Microsoft has become an increasingly harsh critic of open-source softwareover the past few years. Last month, the company signed a deal with SCOGroup to license source code and a patent related to the Unix operatingsystem. Many software industry analysts saw the deal as lending credence toSCO's charges that large parts of Unix source code have been copied intoLinux.

Ballmer sent the memo to Microsoft's employees following an annual retreathe'd spent with other top managers. A refocused mission statement, involvinga shift from just software to software and related services, evolved fromlast year's retreat. A top priority of this year's memo was to come up withfurther steps toward putting the mission statement into action, Ballmerwrote.

Wednesday's memo clearly identified Linux and open source as a growingthreat to the company. Last year's missive barely mentioned Linux and opensource as a challenge.

Ballmer expressed confidence that Microsoft can fend off Linux by promotingsometimes overlooked advantages of the Windows operating system and relatedsoftware. He cited recent independent studies that conclude businessesspend less overall to use Windows than free open-source software, due tolower support and maintenance costs.

"There is always enthusiasm in our business for new concepts," he wrote."So-called 'free software' is the latest new thing. We will rise to thischallenge, and we will compete in a fair and responsible manner that putsour customers first. We will show that our approach offers better value,better security and better opportunity."

"While the noncommercial model may lead to many flavors of software, gettingbroad, consistent innovation requires coordination across many technologycomponents. In the event of needed enhancements or fixes, the Linuxdevelopment community, no matter how well intentioned, simply cannot advanceLinux the way we can--and must--innovate in Windows," Ballmer wrote.

Ballmer also disputed suggestions that software and other aspects ofinformation technology are reaching commodity status. "There is aninteresting debate emerging in the industry today about the value ofinformation technology," he wrote. "Some pundits are suggesting that IT nolonger matters; that what was once a transforming technology has reached theend of the road in terms of innovation, that it ceases to be a source ofbusiness advantage once everyone has it, and that customers should justoptimize for costs and outsource IT for efficiencies.

"Information is the lifeblood of business," Ballmer countered, "and softwareis what gives people and businesses the ability to harness it. Software iswhat enables us to collect, manipulate, access, store, share, analyze andact on information. It enables companies to constantly hone theircompetitive edge. So, contrary to the idea that we're entering a'post-technological era,' I believe that taking software to the next levelwill be one of the biggest sources of value creation for customers, and thatMicrosoft is well-positioned to enable this and to benefit from it."

Ballmer preached the value of integration, ensuring that Microsoft productsas seemingly disparate as server applications and mobile phone software worktogether.

"Some other vendors sell against integration," he wrote. "We see and deliverunique customer value because of integration."

Ballmer said Microsoft needs to focus on "strengthening the customer valuein our end-to-end technology platform--client and server operating systems,client and server applications, and programming tools--which all integrateseamlessly and scale from the enterprise to the desktop to wireless mobiledevices. These systems are better for users, developers and IT peoplebecause of the common architecture for development tools, management,application schema, interoperability, identity, data, etc."

Ballmer also touted Longhorn, the much-anticipated successor to Windows XPthat will dramatically change file management and other basic aspects of PCoperation.

"Longhorn is our big bet on galvanizing the next big breakthrough--evenbigger, perhaps, than the first generation Windows release," he wrote."Virtually everything we're doing from a product standpoint will accrue tothe Longhorn wave. In addition to the Longhorn client, there will be aLonghorn version of Office, Longhorn server enhancements, Longhorndevelopment tools, and a Longhorn version of MSN."

Microsoft has not yet announced a definite schedule for delivering Longhorn,and Ballmer vowed that "we will do the work and take the time required toget it right, because it truly is the next quantum leap in computing, whichwill put us years ahead of any other product on the market."

Ballmer also acknowledged several recent Microsoft stumbles, includingclumsy implementation of a controversial new licensing plan for businesscustomers. He said the licensing flap shows Microsoft needs to improve itscommunication with customers.

"We also must improve business consistency," he said "Customers lovepredictability, and rightly so. Licensing 6.0 was our hard-learned lessonabout this."

Recent hacker attacks show Microsoft also has plenty of work left to do insecurity, Ballmer wrote. "Our Trustworthy Computing initiative is hittingits stride, and we have formed a group focused on adding core securitytechnologies to all our products," he wrote. "Our customers are still hitwith security vulnerabilities, and we have spent a lot of time learning fromSlammer what we need to do better. We are improving our approach to fixes,and our new integrated software update and distribution services willprovide more businesses with the tools they need to deploy updates easily."

Ballmer also hinted at a more open approach to the way Microsoft deals withprerelease software. "We should look at communicating about new productdesign to customers earlier through online design discussion," he wrote."For some products it makes sense to publish regular builds of new productsonline, for community feedback."

In an interview on Wednesday, Ballmer acknowledged that Microsoft may beborrowing some ideas from the open-source community on how to disseminateinformation to developers.

"We will learn good ideas from wherever they come," he said. "And if that(publishing of software for community feedback) sounds a little more likethe way the noncommercial software community works, if we see good ideasthere that we think we can adapt and still deliver the kind of value to ourcustomers that we believe commercial software companies should deliver, thenwe will use good ideas."

News.com's Mike Ricciuti contributed to this report.

ToC

Munich votes to oust Windows for Linux

The city of Munich said on Wednesday it would switch 14,000 computersfrom Microsoft's Windows operating system to rival Linux in a dealestimated to be worth tens of millions of dollars.

The decision is a blow to U.S. giant Microsoft, whose chief executive SteveBallmer had personally campaigned for Microsoft's counteroffer to the city,based on Windows XP.

Microsoft has created two funds to discount its products against theemerging Linux software, which is eating into its most profitable business.

"This strategic decision makes Munich less dependent on one IT (informationtechnology) supplier and sets a trend toward more competition," Munichmayor Christian Ude said in a statement.

Analysts said Munich's decision to choose open-source software, in thiscase Linux, was a breakthrough.

"It is one of the largest desktop migrations to Linux ever seen," saidGartner Dataquest analyst Nikos Drakos in London.

Linux suppliers welcomed the move by of one of Germany's largest cities,where many of the country's biggest corporations have their headquarters.

"You can compare this to the fall of the Berlin Wall," said Richard Seibt,Chief Executive of Linux software provider SuSE. SuSE, together with IBM,is bidding for the Linux contract.

Linux is considered by many to be the only big rival to Microsoft's Windowsoperating system. It can already be found on 15 percent of all computerssold in Western Europe.

A Microsoft spokesman in Munich said the company was still at hand if thecity found that certain units could not switch over to Linux. "Someapplications do not run on Linux," he said.

Linux grows in Germany

The Munich decision comes as the German government is installing Linux inoffices throughout certain ministries and public institutions.

In the northern state of Lower Saxony, 11,000 police computers will beswitched from Microsoft Windows to Linux from next year, according to theinterior ministry.

Companies and governments are increasingly opting for Linux, which iscontrolled by Linus Torvalds and developed with the help of thousands ofvolunteer programmers, because it is a stable software and not controlledby just one company.

Hundreds of companies distribute Linux, charging little or nothing for thecore software, but taking fees on modifications, services and maintenance.

IBM and SuSE declined to give the value of the bids for their Linuxofferings.

Media have reported that Microsoft's offer of about 27.3 million euros($32.3 million) had been almost three million euros () below that of theLinux competitor, but the city had still chosen Linux for strategicreasons.

Microsoft confirmed it had offered discounts for the total project, butdeclined to give details.

ToC

Apple in court dispute over Unix

As legal battles heat up over who owns the rights to the Unix operatingsystem, another dispute has been quietly simmering over the rights to theUnix name itself.

Apple Computer is being sued by The Open Group, the San Francisco companythat claims ownership of the Unix trademark, for using the term Unix inconjunction with its Mac OS X operating system without a license. Apple hascountersued, asking a judge to declare that the trademark is invalid,because the term Unix has become generic.

Though initiated nearly 18 months ago, the case has not yet gone to trial.According to a motion filed with the court Tuesday, both companies want tohave an exchange of factual documents completed by August, with a trialsought for February.

This legal battle, though separate from SCO's recent claim that Linux usescopyrighted Unix source code, adds further fire to the debate over thecustody of Unix--the 30 plus-year old OS originally developed by AT&T.

Despite SCO's acquisition, from Novell, of much of the intellectualproperty associated with Unix, the Unix name itself was transferred to TheOpen Group, which established a licensing program for the use of the namethat includes software testing as well as a licensing fee, among otherthings. SCO and Novell are sparring over the extent of SCO's ownership ofUnix, while SCO and IBM are embroiled in a trade-secrets lawsuit.

The Open Group, also known as X/Open, sued Apple in December 2001 alleging,among other things, that Apple had infringed on its trademark. The case,filed in U.S. District Court in San Jose, Calif., has been winding its waythrough the courts, with the parties still in the discovery process. Monthsof mediation meetings ended without a settlement, according to The OpenGroup.

Since introducing Mac OS X in March 2001, Apple has consistently touted theUnix underpinnings as part of its marketing of the operating system.Apple's Web site, for example, has a page devoted to the Unix base of theOS, including a logolike GIF that shows a metal plate bearing the words"Unix Based."

"That's kind of the one that we are least fond of," said Open Group ChiefOperating Officer Steve Nunn, who notes that the group has had a similarUnix license logo of its own for some time.

The Open Group wants Apple to have Mac OS X undergo testing to certify thatit complies with its standards for software bearing the Unix name; it alsowants Apple to pay a fee. The Open Group says the costs to license the nameare reasonable, based on the size of the company and the rough number ofcopies of the software Apple sells. In any case, no company is required topay more than $110,000, said Graham Bird, vice president of marketing forThe Open Group.

"Apple would be at the top of that range because they ship a lot of units,"Bird said. "It's not like we are talking about bankrupting the company."

Apple argues it should be free to use the term as it sees fit, noting thatthere are many flavors of Unix, including FreeBSD, and that one should nothave to submit to The Open Group's testing to use the term.

"Apple does not use the term Unix as a trademark in connection with Apple'sproduct," the company said in court papers seen by CNET News.com. "Appleaccurately uses the generic term Unix merely to identify or describe anaspect or feature of Apple's Mac OS X operating system. This is consistentwith past and current industry standards."

ToC

FCC adopts media ownership rules

NEW YORK (CNN/Money) - The Federal Communications Commission narrowlyapproved new media ownership rules Monday, allowing television broadcastersto expand their reach, despite fears the move may reduce the variety ofviewpoints available to consumers.

The Republican-led government agency voted 3-2 to allow the broadcastnetworks to own television stations that reach a combined 45 percent of thenational audience, up from 35 percent.

Citing a need to update the decades-old rules to reflect new sources ofentertainment, information and news, the FCC also voted to lift a ban thatprevents a company from owning both a newspaper and a television or radiostation -- except in the smallest markets.

Companies could own two television stations in most markets as long as theyare not both in the top four, based on ratings. Additionally, a companycould own three stations in markets where there are at least 18 stations,like Los Angeles.

"I have heard the concerns expressed by the public about excessiveconsolidation," FCC Chairman Michael Powell said ahead of the vote. "Theyhave introduced a note of caution in the choices we have made."

"Keeping the rules exactly as they are, as some so stridently suggest, wasnot a viable option," Powell added. "Without today's surgery, the ruleswill assuredly meet a swift death."

But the two Democrats on the FCC opposed easing the regulations, arguingthat the changes would concentrate ownership in the hands of a few, reducethe diversity of viewpoints and stifle reporting of local news.

"Today the Federal Communications Commission empowers America's new mediaelite with unacceptable levels of influence over the ideas and informationupon which our society and our democracy depend," said Commissioner MichaelCopps.

Critics of the changes argued that it will stifle different voices frombeing heard on American airwaves. They point to the consolidation ofownership of radio stations after rules on ownership in that sector weremodified as an example of what will happen under the new rules.

Supporters of the plan said the current rules are out-of-date relics of anera when most people had access to only three major networks and a handfulof independent or public television stations. Today, about 89 millionhouseholds have access to dozens of channels with cable or satellitetelevision service, or about 83 percent of households with televisions.

The major broadcast networks argue their network business is onlymarginally profitable at best and to compete with cable networks they needto own more of the profitable affiliates that carry their programming.

Owners of the major networks include Viacom (VIA.B: Research, Estimates),which owns CBS and UPN, News Corp. (NWS: Research, Estimates), which owns amajority of Fox (FOX: Research, Estimates), Walt Disney Co. (DIS: Research,Estimates), which owns ABC, General Electric Co. (GE: Research, Estimates),which owns NBC, and AOL Time Warner Inc. (AOL: Research, Estimates), theparent company of CNN/Money, which owns the WB network.

The new rules would allow the nation's networks to own stations reachingabout 45 percent of the nation, rather than the 35 percent allowed undercurrent caps. It also would open more markets to allow the same company owntwo television stations. And it also would open the door for jointownership of a newspaper and a television station in more markets thanallowed under current rules.

ToC

The PC Section:

Ultr@VNC for Windows Review

Do you run a home network? Do you wish you could sometimes access the PC in your computer room from the kitchen? Or maybe check your e-mail from the PC in the bedroom?

VNC stands for Virtual Network Computing and was developed by AT&T Laboratories Cambridge. It's a simple, two-part program (one program runs on the "host" and another runs on the client) that allows you to view and operate remote computers as if you were sitting in front of a computer in the next room or on another continent. It works remarkably well considering what exactly is going on in the program. Versions have been written for virtually all popular operating systems, so you could, for example, operate your Mac from a PC or operate a Linux machine using even a handheld computer.

VNC works best over a LAN (wired or wireless). It can be used successfully over the Internet if you have a broadband connection, but it's somewhat slow. I have heard of people using it over dial-up but I cannot for the life of me imagine how bad that would be. Obviously the major weakness of VNC is that it does require some bandwidth to use satisfactorily.

VNC is a free program (my favorite kind!) and has been ported by many programmers. One such port that I recently ran across is called Ultr@VNC (home page: http://ultravnc.sourceforge.net/ ). Ultr@VNC is a version of the original AT&T VNC which has been rewritten for speed and is compatible with Windows 9x/Me/NT4/2000/XP. It uses some new tricks to compress the data flowing between the client and host machines which really speeds up the performance. Ultr@VNC also adds some additional tweaks to the client viewer program to squeeze faster screen updates out of the original.

The most significant speed upgrade offered by Ultr@VNC is reserved for Windows XP and Windows 2000 users. A new set of video display drivers is offered as a separate download which, when installed on the host machine, appears to more than double the speed of the display. When I installed this set of drivers and the Ultr@VNC host and client programs, my jaw dropped at how smooth, fast and glitch-free the display performed. It was almost real time and felt like I was right in front of the host's monitor operating it. Even without the special drivers, Ultr@VNC is still much faster than the original VNC or hybrids like TightVNC.

In addition to the speed improvements, Ultr@VNC offers many new and helpful features like GUI file transfer, specialized tool bar, MS logon/NT security support, various view modes, a chat client and more.

If you have more than one PC on your home network that you'd like to access remotely, you really should try Ultr@VNC.

ToC

WinInfo Short Takes: Week of June 16

Microsoft Snags AV Maker: Why?

PC Notebooks Pass 3 GHz Mark

FTC Seeks Spam-Fighting Powers

Adobe Tests the Product Activation Waters

Microsoft: Windows 2003 SP1 Beta Imminent

Standards Board Approves Final 802.11g Spec

MSN Messenger 6 Hits 6 Million Downloads. No, It's Not Publicly Available.

ToC

Microsoft Announces Radically Improved FrontPage

"We've completely reinvented and revamped FrontPage with this release," RobMauceri, a lead FrontPage program manager, told me this week. "It's come along way and is a much more powerful product than before." FrontPage 2003is the first commercially available Extensible Style LanguageTransformations (XSLT) editor, Mauceri said, and the product can now workwith live back-end data from XML files, OLE DB connections, databases, Webservices, and other sources, presenting live data in its WYSIWYG design anddevelopment environment. FrontPage 2003 can also elegantly handleconditional formatting and repeating data, for the first time making ittruly easy to create data-driven Web sites.

In addition, Microsoft worked to ensure that FrontPage's oft-criticizedsource code editor won't damage code the way earlier versions have done.FrontPage 2003 now includes a Visual Studio (VS)-like editor, complete withprofessional developer features such as IntelliSense, which creates cleansource code and doesn't change source code that the developer writesmanually. "We've really worked hard to ensure that we generate clean,industry-standard code," Mauceri said. "It's completely transparent, withno more Web boots and no code hiding. We use the Visual Studio codingengine, so if you're familiar with Visual Studio, you can take advantage ofsome of the same tools."

FrontPage 2003 Beta 2 is available publicly as part of the Office SystemBeta 2 Kit, and Microsoft will provide a free downloadable update to thatcode through the Office System Beta 2 Refresh, due any day now. FrontPage2003 will ship as a standalone product in late summer, the company says,and pricing will be available at that time.

ToC

The Macintosh Section:

iTunes Music Store Tips

The iTunes Music Store has already caused me to buy more music, andspending all the extra time in iTunes has helped me develop a number oftips for improving the listening and purchasing experience. For moreinformation on the iTunes Music Store, see "iTunes Music Store Takes theStage" and "Apple Changes the Face of Digital Music" in the last two issuesof TidBITS.

http://db.tidbits.com/getbits.acgi?tbart=07163
http://db.tidbits.com/getbits.acgi?tbart=07175

Not So Obvious Navigation

Although iTunes doesn't hide its navigation shortcuts while you're in theMusic Store, you may not have noticed them. Next to each artist name andalbum name in the search results is an arrow in a circle; click it to seeall albums by that artist or on that album. Plus, many of the pieces oftext - album, song, and artist names - throughout the iTunes Music Storeare actually links, as in a Web browser, though they're underlined onlywhen you move your mouse cursor over them. And of course, just like in aWeb browser, you can navigate using the back and forward arrows, with thehome button, and by clicking the intermediate steps in the "breadcrumb"trail made for genre, artist, and album.

Avoid Duplicate Purchases

If you're like me, you might not remember every song you already own whilesearching the iTunes Music Store. You can't open either the Music Storeplaylist or your main Library playlist in a separate window to compare thetwo, but there's a workaround thanks to iTunes's Smart Playlists. ChooseNew Smart Playlist from the File menu, choose Time from the first pop-upmenu, choose "is greater than" from the second pop-up menu, leave "0:00" inthe text field, and make sure "Live updating" is checked. That tells iTunesto add every song whose time is longer than zero seconds to the playlistand to keep it up to date with new music that's added. Then, when you wantto compare what you already own against a search in the iTunes Music Store,double-click your new Smart Playlist to open it in a separate window andmove it so you can switch back and forth between it and the iTunes MusicStore in the main iTunes window easily. One final hint: If you name your"All Music" playlist with an Option-Space character at the start, it sortsabove all other Smart Playlists.

Playing Multiple Previews

The 30-second preview clips that you can play in the iTunes Music Store areessential for verifying that you do indeed remember the song's titleproperly, but they aren't great for deciding whether or not you like a songthat you haven't heard before. In part, this is because they're so annoyingto play - you must double-click each one (or click once and press thespacebar), and iTunes won't let you turn on Repeat All while in the MusicStore. Luckily, iTunes's shortcuts for navigating among songs work whilethe song is playing, so just press the right arrow key to play the nextpreview or the left arrow to play the previous song.

Alternatively, try this sample AppleScript script from Sal Soghoian, whichplays all the clips showing in order. Unfortunately, the script has to useApple's GUI Scripting software because the iTunes Music Store apparentlycan't be scripted in iTunes, and even then it's clumsy. You must run thescript manually, stopping in the middle of playing requires cancelling thescript manually, and it won't work properly when placed in the~/Library/iTunes/Scripts folder and chosen from the scripts menu oniTunes's menu bar. Feel free to improve it.

http://www.tidbits.com/resources/680/iTMS-Clip-Player.sit
http://www.apple.com/applescript/GUI/

Use the Cart

As much as I like the ease of Apple's 1-Click shopping, it makes me alittle nervous, since many artists have multiple versions of the same song,and I want to make sure I'm getting the right one before I buy. Plus, Ilike being able to mark a bunch of songs that I might want to buy and thenpurchase them all at once. In the Store tab of the iTunes Preferencesdialog, you can switch from buying via 1-Click to buying via a shoppingcart, which gives you time to reflect before buying. All the Buy Nowbuttons then change to Add Now, and clicking one adds its associated itemto your shopping cart, which you can view by clicking the Shopping Cartplaylist. When you're ready to buy, click the Buy Now button for the entireshopping cart in the lower right corner of the iTunes window.

Dealing with a Modem

What if you have only a slow modem connection to the Internet? The iTunesMusic Store will work for you, albeit slowly, since each song you buy willbe approximately 3 MB to 5 MB, and that amount of data can take a long timeto download. Even the 30 second previews are slow, though you can makelistening to them easier by checking "Load complete preview before playing"in the Store tab of the iTunes Preferences dialog. Using the shopping cartapproach to buying will also help, since you can queue up a number of songsto download before you go to bed. If you have a laptop with an AirPort cardin it, though, the best approach may be to add songs to your shopping cartand then, when you're in a location with a wireless network and a fastInternet connection (an Apple Store, for instance), switch to the ShoppingCart playlist and click Buy Now to download everything you have ready. Ifyou aren't a laptop user, but you can use a Mac with a fast Internetconnection somewhere else, remember that you can always click the Accountbutton in the upper right of the iTunes window and sign in with your AppleID, purchase music, copy the files to a CD or DVD, and then load them intoyour Mac at home.

Or Don't Use the Cart

As much as I find the shopping cart a welcome option, it hasn't worked forme. Others have also had trouble with it complaining about incomplete orincorrect billing information, even when there's obviously nothing wrong.The workaround is to switch back to 1-Click purchasing, which doesn't seemto share the same problems.

Can't Download Music

If you've tried to purchase and download music unsuccessfully, it's worthrunning Repair Permissions in the First Aid tab of Disk Utility. Afterthat, make sure that the user you're logged in as has write permissions onthe Music folder, or, more specifically, the Music Folder that iTunes usesto store new music (check the Advanced tab in the iTunes Preferencesdialog). You might even try changing that Music Folder to another folderinto which you're sure you can add files. If that doesn't work, rememberthat you can contact iTunes Music Store Customer Service by choosing MusicStore Customer Service from iTunes's Help menu and following theappropriate link.

Quick Pause/Play

For me, one of the main problems with listening to music - either from theiTunes Music Store or my collection - while I'm working is scrambling toshut it off when the phone rings or I need quiet for some other reason.I've used a variety of techniques over the years, including Griffin'sPowerMate and a simple AppleScript script via QuicKeys, but the bestapproach may be Michael Kamprath's Keyboard Maestro macro utility, whichincludes a special iTunes Control action that lets you control iTunes in avariety of ways from the keyboard even when iTunes isn't the frontmostapplication. I simply assign Control-Escape to the Toggle Play/Pauseaction, and from then on it's a quick slap with my left hand on those twokeys to start or stop the music. Anyone can use this in Mac OS X, since thefree Keyboard Maestro Lite, though limited, is more than sufficient forthis task.

http://www.keyboardmaestro.com/

For those who want to try the AppleScript approach and access the scriptvia another utility, the script is extremely simple.

 tell application "iTunes"    if player state is not playing then       play    else       pause    end if end tell

As I noted in last week's article, most of Apple's digital rightsmanagement obstacles are essentially speed bumps - they don't stop you fromdoing anything you want, but they will slow you down. The one time youcould run into trouble is if you were to lose any of the three Macs you hadauthorized to play your purchased music; even if you had offsite backups ofthe original AAC files. The solution is either to restrict your number ofauthorized computers to two at most, so you can always reauthorize anotherone, or to convert your purchased music either to MP3 or to unprotected AACso you can play them on any computer or appropriate audio device. To dothis, just burn an audio CD (giving you a physical backup as well) andimport the contents of that CD into iTunes again, or use one of the toolslike Audio Hijack that can grab the digital sound stream before it'sconverted to analog and sent out to the speakers. I wouldn't be surprisedto see a tool appear that would batch convert these songs for backuppurposes - it could probably even be done with an AppleScript script.

More Tips?

I'm sure there are additional tips for the best ways of working with theiTunes Music Store. If you run across any, send them along to TidBITS Talkat tidbits-talk@tidbits.com.

      PayBITS: Did you find Adams iTunes Music Store tips useful?
      Toss him a few bucks so he can add to his music collection!
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Review: Synergy

Anyone who uses OS X and iTunes should have this program. It's calledSynergy and it's a preference pane that puts 3 little buttons in themenu bar that let you control iTunes at any time without having to havethe iTunes application window open on your desktop. But wait, there'smore! It gives you access to play lists, recently played files, and thecoolest thing of all is the floater. It's a little information windowthat gives you basically all of the information contained in the songsID tag including Title, Artist, Track Duration, Your iTunes star rating,and the coolest thing of all. If you have an active Internet connection,it will download and display the CD cover art. It can be positionedanywhere on the desktop and you can adjust the opacity and time it staysdisplayed. Synergy also lets you set any combination of Hot Keys tocontrol iTunes from the keyboard. This is probably the coolest littleshareware application I have ever come across and after using the demofor about 20 minutes, I bought a license. It's only $5.00 and thedeveloper takes Pay Pal.

You can find out all about it and download it at

http://synergy.wincent.org/

If you use iTunes, you have to have this program. Once you have it,you'll wonder how you ever lived without it.

Matthew Skaj
Microcomputer Specialist (Macintosh)
Parkland College
mskaj@parkland.edu

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The CUCUG Section:

May General Meeting

5/15/2003 - President Richard Rollins called the meeting to order at abouta quarter after seven. Dispensing with the introduction of club officers,Richard announced what the program for the evening would be ripping andburning. He reported that our Linux SIG chairman, Kris Klingworth, had gonehome since he didn't feel well.

Mac News: Richard ask for any Mac news. Mark Zinzow stated that since Applehad launched their iTunes online music store their stock price had jumpedfrom $13 to $24 a share. They've had over 2 millions tunes downloaded inthe sixteen days they've been operating.

George Krumins talked about the new iPod and file swapping.

Returning to the iTunes store, someone asked about the song selection. EmilCobb had brought the site up on his computer and he said the song choicewas getting better daily. He had looked for things and they were addedlater. Emil was also asked about the sound quality of the files and therequired download time. Emil played an Aretha Franklin song and Prince's1999. THey sounded great. As for file size and download time, Emil said theAAC files are just a little smaller than comparable MP3 files and it didn'ttake that long to download them. Kevin Hopkins asked about the artwork, ifyou were to buy an entire album. The iTunes store does not provide this.

PC News: Rich Hall announced that Dell would soon be closing, as he hadjust bought a new laptop from them, and his purchasing a machine from acompany has always sealed their doom. [It was a joke.]

There was a discussion about the Microsoft Internet porta-potty. [No joke.]

George Krumins said that Microsoft had lost $140 million on the XBox in thelast quarter. He said prices have dropped on the Playstation and the XBox.Both are $177.99 now. Also, the first non-game Microsoft application forthe XBox has been announced .The Xbox Music Mixer will allow owners to transfer digital music and photosfrom their computer to the console's hard drive. It will be released thisfall and cost about $40.

George asked about whether the new P4 processor, mentioned in the lastnewsletter, really made the great an improvement on PC performance. KevinHisel said it helped some. George then asked about whether there was anyRAM that could keep up with it. This spawned a whole discussion about thevarious styles of RAM, their costs, advantages and disadvantages. Among thepoints made was that DDR RAM has dropped in price below that of SDRAM.Richard Rollins noted that RD RAM is still very expensive.

Mark Zinzow asked is there was anything in Windows XP that allows you toset conservative swap file sizes, like you could in older versions ofWindows. Richard suggested using PowerToys.

George Krumins talked about the large amounts of RAM on some video cards,256 MB in one case.

Mark Zinzow mentioned that Sanyo had developed "Burn Proof" and was nowbringing out HD Burn, a process that allows you burn 1.2 GB of informationonto a CD-R. Kevin Hisel noted that with the advent of affordable DVDburners this technology will probably be stillborn. Mark then told a storyabout how he is going to acquire a DVD burner, basically, through slight ofhand.

DVD burners are now available at Best Buy for $250. Mark Zinzow said he sawa NEC drive on pricewatch.com for $158.

George Krumins asked the question of which DVD format was the morecompatible with consumer DVD players, the Plus R or the Minus R. It wassaid that the Minus R is on older DVD machines, but now they are both OK.Kevin Hisel said it was a case of "Less filling. Tastes great." The Plus Rlets you reformat on the fly on DVD-RW media. Minus R requires a reformatfirst before reuse.

There was a question about why there were two different standards and itwas attributed to the fact that different companies were coming up with thetechnology. Richard Rollins said it is basically Sony coming up with theirown proprietary format, like they did with Betamax during the VCR wars. Hesaid every other digital camera uses Smart Media or Compact Flash, yet Sonyuses Memory Sticks and they use them on all of their devices.

Mark Zinzow asked if all external drive racks are interchangeable. Theconsensus was not to trust them to be.

Kevin Hisel reported that InsightBB is offering a service selling a higherupload speed to 384 KB fro $70 per month, as they do in Springfield.

Ben Johnson asked about Insight service in southeast Urbana.

Kevin Hisel held the drawing for Microsoft Works, Microsoft Plus! DigitalMedia Edition, and the book Windows XP Inside and Out. George Krumins wonWorks. Jim Saxon won Plus!. Kevin Hisel won the book, but since he alreadyhad it, he had Ed Hadley draw another name, and Steve Gast was the newwinner of XP Inside and Out.

The Presentation: Ed Hadley and Richard Rollins Rip Sound from Vinyl and Tape

Ed Hadley was first up in the presentation and he attempted to show FinalVinyl, a free program that works with Griffin Technologies' iMic USB deviceto rip sound from vinyl records. He said he had tried this program beforewith mixed results. This evening was no exception. Although he was usingthe new version one of the program, Ed valiantly tried to get it to work.The results could only be characterized as bad to excruciatingly terrible.Ed concluded that if you had a turntable and an amp, "screw Final Vinyl."Even with the introduction we had to the program, we could see it was aprimitive, feature sparse throw away. In short, "Final Vinyl is a bust."

Ed had somewhat better luck with Sound Studio, a $50 program he has usedquite frequently with his mini-disc player and other devices. However, hehad major trouble with low line level signal coming from the turntable.

Richard Rollins then took the floor and successfully walked us through theprocess of getting sound off of a cassette. He hooked up his Sony deck tothe line ins on his sound card. He used dBpowerAMP, a free program forripping. You can set recording levels, file format to save in and thequality of the rip. You can buy an additional plug-in for $19.95 forauto-recording, tailoring the breaks between songs. Richard said with thebasic program, it senses quiet spots to determine the end of songs. Withsome music, particularly some pop songs and classical, the program can beeasily fooled and you'll wide up with track changes in the middle of songs.The plug-in lets you set a length of time before the program starts lookingfor the breaks. So, if you know a track is 3:45 long, you tell the program,"Don't look until 3:42 have elapsed." for example. However, Richard said,since he does most of his work manually he just performs that task himself.

Media Player 9 in Windows does a pretty good job. Microsoft's media playerplays audio and video files. playing most formats one is apt to come acrossexcept for the proprietary ones like QuickTime and RealPlayer. Kevin Hiselsaid, "It's very stable. I like it for video, but I still use Winamp foraudio."

Richard captured a track from and old cassette and then showed how to editit with Goldwave. Goldwave won't rip from CD and will only do one track ata time.

Richard used Nero 5 to burn his CD.

Kevin Hopkins asked what one used when trying to rip from a damaged CDsource. Mark Zinzow recommended Exact Audio Copyhttp://www.exactaudiocopy.de.

Richard concluded the evening by talking about Monkey Audio, a losslesscompression method for archiving you CDs. Using "ape compression" whichreduces the size of your files by about half, you can archive your CDs to aDVD and have them should the copy you use get damaged or lost.

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May Board Meeting

The May meeting of the CUCUG executive board took place on Tuesday, May 20,2003, at 7PM, at Kevin Hisel's house. (For anyone wishing to attend - whichis encouraged, by the way - the address and phone number are both in thebook). Present at the meeting were: Richard Rollins, Emil Cobb, RichardHall, Kevin Hopkins, and Kevin Hisel.

Emil Cobb: Emil reported that there were 17 members in attendance at thelast meeting. Commenting on the presentation at the meeting, Emil said theMac portion was pretty much a flop. Ed strove valiantly to use the programFinal Vinyl to pull some tracks off of a vinyl LP, but the software waspretty much crap. Both pieces of software shown on the PC by RichardRollins were impression.

Richard Hall: Rich gave a report on the club's net worth. He thenreviewed our cash flow.

Richard said the meeting was interesting. He also stated that the club'swireless router was worth it, as he got to use it with his new laptop.

Kevin Hisel: Kevin reported that the village of Savoy is buying the ITCfacilty. The Zins don't know whether they will be able to rent the meetingroom to us under this new ownership arrangement, so we may lose our meetingplace. Even if we can rent the room, the Internet connection might not beavailable with new owners. The City of Savoy is moving their public worksand police offices there. If we lose the Internet connect, the room becomesunacceptable to us. We may have to start searching for a meeting siteagain.. Next month's meeting (June) is solid. The City closes on June 30.We will have to see from there.

Kevin reported that Forum use is way down.

Kevin Hopkins: Kevin reported that membership stands at 41. Kevin bluntlystated that the Mac demo sucked; the PC software was impressive. Incommenting on PC software in general, Kevin Hisel said that he has a toolchest of all those free programs that do one thing great.

Richard Rollins: Richard said he really enjoyed putting his demo togetherand he enjoyed the interaction with the members. He wants to do importingvideo sometime later this year.

At next month's PC SIG, George Krumins will show off his software.

Richard will be in Balese at the time of next month's meeting. He be takinga Carnival cruise out of Tampa. He has previously taken a Royal Caribbeancruise which he enjoyed very much.

Mac? Linux? Those SIG presentations are yet to be determined.

Emil will be at the ITC before six.

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The Back Page:

Meetings are held the third Thursday of each month at 7:00 p.m. at theIllinois Technology Center. The Center is located at 7101 Tomaras Ave inSavoy. To get to the Illinois Technology Center from Champaign or Urbana,take Neil Street (Rt 45) south. Setting the trip meter in your car to zeroat the McDonalds on the corner of Kirby/Florida and Neil in Champaign, youonly go 2.4 miles south. Windsor will be at the one mile mark. Curtis willbe at the two mile mark. Go past the Paradise Inn/Best Western motel to thenext street, Tomaras Ave. on the west (right) side. Tomaras is at the 2.4mile mark. Turn west (right) on Tomaras Ave. The parking lot entrance isimmediately on the south (left) side of Tomaras Ave. Enter the building bythe front door under the three flags facing Rt 45. A map can be found onthe CUCUG website at http://www.cucug.org/meeting.html. The Illinois Technology Center is also on the web at www.IL-Tech-Ctr.com .

Membership dues for individuals are $20 annually; prorated to $10 at midyear.

Our monthly newsletter, the Status Register, is delivered by email. Allrecent editions are available on our WWW site. To initiate a user groupexchange, just send us your newsletter or contact our editor via email. Asa matter of CUCUG policy, an exchange partner will be dropped after threemonths of no contact.

For further information, please attend the next meeting as our guest, orcontact one of our officers (all at area code 217):

   President/WinSIG:   Richard Rollins          469-2616                 Vice-President:     Emil Cobb                398-0149                 e-cobb@uiuc.edu   Secretary/Editor:   Kevin Hopkins            356-5026                    kh2@uiuc.edu   Treasurer:          Richard Hall             344-8687                rjhall1@uiuc.edu   Corp.Agent/Web.Mr:  Kevin Hisel              352-1002              Mac SIG Chairman:   John Melby               352-3638           jbmelby@johnmelby.com   Linux SIG Chairman: Kris Klindworth          239-0097       kris.klindworth@Carle.com

Visit our web site at http://www.cucug.org/, or join in our online forums at http://www.cucug.org/starship/index.php .