Geeks to Go

Geeks to Go - Free computer help & tech support - AMD New Support Forums: "Thank you for visiting our Support Forums. This site is here to provide a place where AMD customers and enthusiasts from around the world can gather and share their knowledge and experiences with AMD products. Whether you just want to talk about technology or have specific questions about AMD products, you can do that here."

Geeks to Go - Free computer help & tech support - Vivendi's 'Half Life II' code stolen: "Firm delays video game's release after hacker breaks into e-mail, steals a third of source code.

The theft of part of its source code has delayed until April 2004 the launch of 'Half Life II,' the hotly anticipated alien-hunting game of Vivendi Universal Games, a company official said.

'A third of the source code was stolen,' VU Games president of international operations Christophe Ramboz told daily Les Echos in its Tuesday edition. 'It's serious because it forces us to delay the launch of the game by at least four months, that is to April 2004. Just the time to rewrite parts of the game.'"

Geeks to Go - Free computer help & tech support - We Want Our Windows Update CD!: "In a recent column, I suggested that Microsoft issue CDs periodically to update Windows systems. And I was overwhelmed by the response. This topic struck a chord with people on dial-up and broadband connections alike.

To recount the idea, Microsoft has made the update process very easy and automatic for broadband users, but the sheer size of the updates involved makes the use of Windows Update on a dial-up connection unbearable. As a result, large numbers of dial-up users make do with out-of-date versions, and their unpatched systems undoubtedly are attacked without mercy.

Microsoft called me to say that Windows Update and Automatic Updates do what they can to make things easier for dial-up users. For example, Automatic Updates, when set to automatically download available updates, will use only unused bandwidth; in other words, if any other process needs to use the Internet connection, Automatic Updates gets out of the way. Furthermore, if you are in the middle of one of these automatic update downloads and are disconnected for whatever reason, upon reconnection, it will continue the downloading from the disconnected point. It doesn't have to start over again from the beginning."

Geeks to Go - Free computer help & tech support - Everything you need to know about MP3s: "Digital music wants to be your friend. Really. Everything you need to know about how we listen now.

MP3 ISN'T EVERYTHING, BUT IT'S CLOSE: MP3 isn't the only compressed audio file format in town. Microsoft promotes its WMA format, Apple uses AAC for iTunes Music Store downloads, RealNetworks has RealAudio files. All three claim their format is best, and each one contains Digital Rights Management technology that can limit where, when or how you might use the files. Both MP3 and the open-source favorite Ogg Vorbis are unrestricted, meaning you can copy, play, and manipulate the files any way you choose. When in doubt go with MP3 -- it's supported by just about any playback device you'll own now or in the future."

Geeks to Go - Free computer help & tech support - VeriSign shuts down Website finder: "Web address provider VeriSign Inc. said on Friday it would suspend a controversial new service that steers mistaken Web searches to its own page after the organization that oversees Internet policies demanded it do so.

Earlier on Friday, the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers issued a statement insisting that VeriSign halt its SiteFinder service and restore the '.com' and '.net' Web domains to the way they were before Sept. 15, when VeriSign began the service.

ICANN gave VeriSign until 6 p.m. PDT to comply with the request or face sanctions for violating its contract with ICANN.

'We will accede to the request while we explore all of our options,' VeriSign spokesman Tom Galvin told Reuters."

Geeks to Go - Free computer help & tech support - Organised crime targets ALL IT staff: "Employees persuaded to infiltrate IT systems, warns High Tech Crime Unit.

Organised syndicates are targeting IT staff to carry out online crimes, according to the National High Tech Crime Unit (NHTCU). While companies have been aware of the need to protect key management staff such as board members and IT directors, there has been less progress in protecting and monitoring IT and administrative staff. And now these lower level staff are increasingly vulnerable to being subverted.

And now these lower level staff are increasingly vulnerable to being subverted.

'Business has become host to organised crime parasites,' said Detective Chief Superintendent Len Hynds, head of the NHTCU. 'There is infiltration. We haven't found a single case of this being through intimidation or other means; it's about making money.'

Staff are typically targeted over a period of months in a social rather than work setting. Once recruited, IT staff are selling corporate secrets or allowing access to corporate systems for illegal use. "

Geeks to Go - Free computer help & tech support - Frequent Search Engine Users, Google Is Watching and Counting: "Think of it as an odometer for a search engine.

The Web search service Google has quietly started placing a counter on its home page for a small number of its most frequent users.

Most Google users do not have it, but a select few now have a no-frills counter that with each search clicks higher, noting 'You have done 479 searches,' or whatever the actual number.

For the curious, an explanatory page linked to the counter reveals that this is a test, or limited-sample experiment of a new search counting feature."

Geeks to Go - Free computer help & tech support - Hacker spoils game for software firm: "A Bellevue, Wash., company that spent five years developing the sequel to its acclaimed computer game 'Half Life' was victimized this week by an enemy more fearsome than the alien thugs that populate its make-believe world -- a hacker who apparently penetrated its computer network, stole the game's source code and posted it on the Internet.

'EVER HAVE ONE of those weeks?' Valve Software founder Gabe Newell wrote on a gaming Web site Thursday announcing the theft of the 'Half Life 2' source code and asking the gaming community for help in tracking down the villain. '... This sucks.'"

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If you came here looking for free tech support please visit our Tech Support Forums. Our Forums are an area where novices to seasoned experts can collaborate and share knowledge, information and assistance.

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Geeks to Go! Forum - free, friendly computer help and technical support: "Welcome! To the Geeks to Go Tech Support Forums:
Here you'll find help and support for your computing problems, provided by other members. As a registered member you'll have access to post in the Tech Support Forums any computing questions or problems you have. Alternatively, if you would like to share your computing knowledge by helping fellow members, then you're more than welcome. Best of all - Registration is FREE !! If you're new here, please read the Forum Guidelines and Terms of Use
Once you've completed registration, simply click the appropriate category below, click on the 'new topic' button, and post your question!"

Geeks to Go - Free computer help & tech support - Florida Dorms Lock Out P2P Users: "The University of Florida has developed a tool to help extricate the school from the morass of peer-to-peer file trading, and early results show that it's succeeding.

Integrated Computer Application for Recognizing User Services, commonly called Icarus, debuted over the summer on the network that links all the residence halls on the UF campus.

The open-source program was developed by campus programmers to cut off the file sharing going on among students. Housing officials say the application educates students as it restricts them from peer-to-peer services.

Last spring, the university received about 40 notices of copyright violations per month. At peak file-trading periods, 90 percent of the traffic on the housing network was peer-to-peer. In an average 24-hour period, 3,500 of the 7,500 students in the residence halls would use P2P services like Kazaa.

'We needed something to stem the flow. We were spending too much time tracking people down,' said Robert Bird, supervisor of network services for the UF department of housing. 'There were too many of them and too few of us.'

Enter Icarus. 'Icarus has detected about 300 people using P2P this fall,' Bird said. 'That's an over 90 percent drop in people using P2P. That's a dramatic reduction in user behavior.' "

Geeks to Go - Free computer help & tech support - Comcast Ups Broadband Speeds: "Customers in these areas will have access to a new 3 Mbps service at no additional cost. Previously, downstream speeds were close to 1.5 Mbps. Upstream speeds will remain at 256 Kbps. The upgrade debuts today in: Atlanta; Detroit, Dallas, Ga., Hattiesburg, Miss., Independence, Mo., Knoxville, Tenn., Lake County, Fla., Meridian, Miss., Mobile, Ala., Muncie, Ind., Panama City, Fla., Pittsburgh, Savannah, Ga., and Tuscaloosa, Ala.

Comcast will deploy faster downstream speeds in the majority of its other markets by the end of the year. No downloads software or upgraded connections are necessary. Comcast's faster speeds are part of the battle between cable modem and DSL providers trying to offer customers both service upgrades and cheaper prices.

Comcast's faster speed rollout comes as there is evidence it is trailing several of its cable rivals in delivering high-speed service to customers.

BroadbandReports.com recently compiled test results of the major broadband cable providers and found that Comcast lagged Cablevision Systems , Cox Communications and Time Warner Cable (among others) in data rates. The survey put Comcast in 48th place, clocking speeds of just 1.5 Mbps downstream and 222 Kbps upstream."

Geeks to Go - Free computer help & tech support - Habla Espanol, AOL?: "America Online division is courting Latino Americans with the release of AOL Latino, a new Spanish language version of its online service. For a company trying to boost its lagging subscriber numbers, going after the country's largest minority group with a targeted approach is a good idea.

AOL Latino isn't just a Spanish translation of the usual America Online account and service. It will offer lots of specific content for Latino Americans from providers like Univision, La Opinion, BBC Mundo, and El Diario-La Prensa. America Online Latin America, AOL's joint venture to provide Internet service in South and Latin America, will also provide some original content for the service. In addition, users will have access to all of AOL's English content."

Geeks to Go - Free computer help & tech support - OpenOffice update finalized: "OpenOffice.org announced that the final release of version 1.1 of the software is available for free download--with versions for the Windows, Linux and Solaris operating systems.

OpenOffice is a collection of applications, such as a word processor and a spreadsheet program, based on Sun Microsystems' StarOffice. The software has been downloaded more than 20 million times since it was released early last year and has become a common companion to the open-source Linux operating system in packaged software and pre-installed on budget PCs.

The 1.1 update includes a number of improvements to address some of the most common complaints from early adopters, said Sam Hiser, co-leader of the marketing project for OpenOffice.org. Structural changes mean that documents load significantly faster than in the original version, and tweaks to the user interface make it easier to find the right tools."

Geeks to Go - Free computer help & tech support - ATI introduces RADEON 9800 XT and RADEON 9600 XT: "ATI Technologies Inc. today introduced the RADEON 9800 XT and the RADEON 9600 XT, delivering killer DirectX 9 performance in leading games like Half-Life 2, which will be bundled with the graphics cards. The RADEON 9800 XT, the most powerful visual processor available, takes the award-winning RADEON 9800 architecture, the first and only to feature eight full pixel pipes, and makes it even faster. Shipping immediately, the graphics cards will feature 256MB of graphics memory and a wide, 256-bit memory interface. In addition to the brute-force capabilities of the visual processor, the architecture is efficiently designed to process instructions in parallel, maximizing performance. The RADEON 9800 XT will be available in stores and online in October from ATI and its board partners. ATI's retail product will have a suggested retail price of $499.

The RADEON 9600 XT, the world's first visual processor developed using a low k dielectric process, features four pixel pipes and 128MB of graphics memory and delivers unbeatable performance for under $200. Recent reviews have shown the RADEON 9600 XT to outperform cards twice its price in today's shader-intensive DirectX 9 games. Gamers will enjoy the stunning visual quality that the RADEON 9600 XT delivers, which renders in full precision at all times. The card will also be available in stores and online in October from ATI and its board partners."

Geeks to Go - Free computer help & tech support - Lawsuits Damp Down P2P Audience: "Lawsuits launched against individuals for illegal file-sharing appear to have tempered activity on the more popular peer-to-peer networks, new U.S. research released this week shows.

Nielsen//NetRatings, which tracks Internet usage, said on Tuesday it found a 41 percent drop over the last three months in the audience for Kazaa, the leading music file-sharing service.

On September 8, the Recording Industry Association of America, a group representing big labels like AOL Time Warner's Warner Music and Vivendi Universal's Universal Music Group, sued 261 people for illegal file-sharing.

'The RIAA is clearly sending a strong message to American Web users and the message appears to be working,' said Greg Bloom, an analyst with Nielsen//NetRatings"

Geeks to Go - Free computer help & tech support - Microsoft moves beyond patches: "Conceding that its strategy of patching Windows holes as they emerge has not worked, Microsoft plans next week to outline a new security effort focused on what the company calls 'securing the perimeter,' a company executive told CNET News.com.

Although Microsoft will continue to devise ways to improve the means by which Windows users apply upgrades, or patches, to their software, the company had realized that too many customers don't upgrade quickly enough to thwart hackers.

'From our side, (it) has been a little naive to think that all of those customers are going to do patches,' said Orlando Ayala, Microsoft's former sales chief, who now heads its sales push to small and midsize businesses. 'It's just hard.' "

Geeks to Go - Free computer help & tech support - Not the Public's Domain: "Perhaps you've noticed something a little different lately if you accidentally typed in an incorrect '.com' or '.net' Web address.

If so, you're witness not just to what some are calling the Great Internet Hijacking of 2003 but also to a raging battle over how cyberspace should be governed.

Used to be, you probably got an error page if the address you typed in didn't belong to someone else. Now, you might get sent to www.sitefinder.com, a Web page full of links to vendors who have paid to be placed there to attract your attention and your business.

This page is brought to you by VeriSign Inc., the Silicon Valley company that has exclusive rights to manage the Internet code that routes your personal computer's Web browser to .com and .net addresses. "

Geeks to Go - Free computer help & tech support - Illegal e-cards to spy on your lover: "A company calling itself Lover Spy has begun offering a way for jealous lovers -- and anyone else -- to spy on the computer activity of their mates by sending an electronic greeting, the equivalent of a thinking-of-you card, that doubles as a bugging device.

Computer security experts said the Lover Spy service and software appeared to violate U.S. law, but also said the surveillance program pointed to an increasingly common way for hackers to seize control of computers.

Marketed as a way to 'catch a cheating lover,' the Lover Spy company offers to send an e-mail greeting card to lure the victim to a Web site that will download onto the victim's computer a trojan program to be used for spying. "

Geeks to Go - Free computer help & tech support - How To Build A UV PC: "Let's face it, not all readers are as mechanically talented as others when it comes to modifying their computer cases. Every day we receive e-mails from readers asking for tips on creating a unique looking PC case without going through the difficultly involved with custom painting and cutting that is required for many case modifications. These readers are seeking a cool, customized and elegant looking case and system design that they will be proud to display at their next LAN party; but in many cases they have limited funds and not a lot of time to devote to their case mod solution.

There is hope for those readers who want to create a cool looking PC without a large investment of time and money. Many of the products and techniques that were developed by the most gifted of case modders are now available to the general public."

Geeks to Go - Free computer help & tech support - Memory Bandwidth And Timings: "One of the most often asked questions in the OCA Forums is about memory timings, and the bandwidth associated with that. In today's tutorial, we here at OCAddiction are hoping to answer most of them. Memory is one of the most talked about parts of a current PC's performance. A lot of news has been made about 'dual channel', 'low latency', and other buzzwords. Many people out there don't quite understand what they mean, or how they affect performance. This won't be an article meant to confuse electrical engineers, but it is a pretty hard topic to bring down to a high school level. In order to do that I'm skipping on some of the really technical jargon, and I'll try to use common anecdotes as much as possible. About time to get this show on the road I say!"

Geeks to Go - Free computer help & tech support - Record Numbers of Kids Surf Web for Homework, Music: "Surfing the Web for homework tips and music tracks has drawn millions of Europe's children online in the past year, making it the fastest-growing segment of the Internet population, a new study said on Tuesday.

Some 13 million children under the age of 18 in eight countries surveyed surf the web for school work, games and music, a rise of some 27 percent over last year. Four million were under age 12, market researchers at Nielsen/Netratings said. "

Geeks to Go - Free computer help & tech support - AOL introduces new spam filters: "America Online Inc. on Tuesday introduced new spam filters for members using AOL 8.0 Plus and which will be delivered in the coming months to members using AOL 8.0, AOL 7.0, AOL 6.0 and AOL for Mac OS X. The automatic delivery of these spam filters will be 'seamless to members using earlier versions of the AOL software for Windows or AOL for Mac OS X and they will quickly see a noticeable difference in the number of spam e-mails they receive,' said David Gang, executive vice president of AOL Products"

Geeks to Go - Free computer help & tech support - Microsoft buffs up its Media Center: "After years of being relegated to the office, the PC is making a new case for why it should be allowed to stay in the living room.

A key proponent in recent months has been Microsoft, whose Media Center edition of Windows XP turns a PC into a device that can play music or movies, record TV shows and display photos, with commands being issued from a remote control. On Tuesday, Microsoft will try to bolster its position, offering an updated version of the software and new services, accompanied by a broader array of desktops and laptops that use the operating system.

As previously reported, Microsoft is making the debut of the new software and announcing the new partners at events in San Francisco, New York, Los Angeles and Redmond, Wash. Dell and Sony are expected to announce their first Media Center models, with Hewlett-Packard and Gateway among those announcing new editions of Media Center products.

With the software upgrade, code-named Harmony, Microsoft has tried to address some of the critiques from its earliest customers and improve the overall stability of the operating system. Also, the software, which had been confined to North America and Korea, is expanding into Europe and further into Asia"

Geeks to Go - Free computer help & tech support - Grid Computing: The Scoop On How It Works: "Hewitt Associates recently started using a grid of Intel-based servers to do pension-benefit calculations. Grid computing is relatively new; what is it and how does it work?
A grid is something like a roster in a team sport like football. It's a list of computing resources that a coach can send into the game. The players are servers, workstations, PCs, and, often, scientific instruments. Their plays are the software and networking equipment that connect them, and the field is the public Internet or a VPN.

The coach is a grid-management program--most commonly based on the Globus toolkit standards, though Hewitt uses a similar commercial software product from DataSynapse Inc.--which looks at all the computers on the roster and decides which can handle which tasks or whether two should team up on a task.

The football analogy isn't perfect. One big difference: There's no limit on the number of players that can be added to the grid. In a grid, if a quarterback can't throw the ball far enough, the coach can keep adding muscle until he can. "

Geeks to Go - Free computer help & tech support - LAN Party Guides: How to make a network cable: "Today we're going to make some network cables. Making Cat5 cables can be time consuming, but if you do it right the first time, you wont need to do it again. I'm not going to go into pricing or how to find pre-made cables cheaper/etc, just how to make and test them. However, you will not want to spend more per foot on making the cables and taking the time to make them than you can purchase them for."

Geeks to Go - Free computer help & tech support - Want a PC this Xmas? Then print it: "Turning images on your PC into real-life computer chips with your home printer sounds like science fiction, yet the first prototype is already in operation.

Dubbed Santa Claus machines, these three dimensional printers 'print' real objects instead of messages -- but never before have electronics been included in a product.

Soon fully assembled electric and electronic gadgets could be constructed in one go without having to add the components at great cost afterwards. "

Geeks to Go - Free computer help & tech support - Software identifies individual computer users: "Researchers at the Technion-Israel Institute of Technology have developed software that is able to identify computer users by their individual, distinct typing styles. This 'behaviometric' technology may one-day be part of security systems to prevent unauthorised users from gaining access to computers and sensitive data."

Geeks to Go - Free computer help & tech support - Radeon 9800 XT Review: "The ATI Radeon 9800XT is everything we know and love about the 9800Pro, only the XT has a bit more punch. The core and memory speeds have been clocked higher thanks to better PCB design and a newer more aggressive thermal solution. Hardware monitoring has been added that is bringing forth a new feature that will allow dynamic overclocking. Anti-Aliasing and Anisotropic filtering image quality are still the best in the market while delivering the best performance currently. The same DX9 feature set compliance of the 9800Pro with its even now faster shader engine is present as well."

Geeks to Go - Free computer help & tech support - Amazon.com Invades Google's Turf: "Online retailing giant Amazon.com Inc. is betting it can muscle into one of e-commerce's most profitable niches - search engines.

Seattle-based Amazon.com has set up a new Silicon Valley startup called 'A9' that will develop a commercial search engine and potentially put the company on a collision course with another Internet icon, Google.

Based in Palo Alto, Calif., offices just a few miles from Google's Mountain View headquarters, A9 hopes to launch in October with 30 employees and grow much larger as it develops a search engine that will be licensed to other Web sites, said spokeswoman Alison Diboll.

'This is part of Amazon's ongoing evolution from an online bookstore to a technology services company,' Diboll said.

Unlike Google, A9 isn't trying to develop an all-purpose search engine that indexes billions of Web pages. The startup instead is zeroing in on one of search engines' sweet spots - e-commerce."

Geeks to Go - Free computer help & tech support - Dell opens its doors to home electronics: "In another sign that Dell is growing beyond its PC roots, the computer maker announced details concerning its home entertainment products.

On Wednesday, Dell CEO Michael Dell spoke in general terms about his vision of the PC becoming the nerve center of home entertainment, but he was vague about how the company would realize that vision.

As expected, however, the Round Rock, Texas-based company hosted a conference call Thursday with reporters and provided some details, including the announcement of new products, on how it will realize that vision. Dell introduced a digital music player, an online music service, a multifunction LCD television and computer screen, and a projector, as well as a new handheld.

'We're here to confirm our entry into the consumer electronics category,' Dell said as he kicked off the conference call. 'We're expanding our lineup, even as our PC business is profitable in every segment.' "

Geeks to Go - Free computer help & tech support - AMD unveils the long-awaited Athlon 64 and Athlon FX: "After seemingly interminable delays, AMD has finally unveiled the Athlon 64 CPU. AMD has released two versions of the chip, the mainstream Athlon 64 and the high-end Athlon FX 51 series, which AMD claims is an ideal gaming CPU. The Athlon 64 3200 will sell for US$417, and the Athlon FX 51 series, which will operate at 2.2GHz, will sell for $733. AMD has released a number of benchmarks which reveal that, in certain applications and resolutions, the Athlon FX is 4-38% faster than a 3.2GHz "

Geeks to Go - Free computer help & tech support - 3 years free hosting?: "3 years free hosting? 1&1.com has the following..."

Geeks to Go - Free computer help & tech support - California Takes on PC Waste: "Californians, it's time to clean out the basements, garages and closets: The state will soon provide a safe place to ditch ancient computers and televisions.

Gov. Gray Davis is expected to sign the Electronic Waste Recycling Act of 2003 on Thursday, mandating collection and recycling operations for obsolete electronics. The law will take effect in July 2004.

The law charges retailers and manufacturers a small fee, ranging from $6 to $10 depending on the product, to fund a statewide recycling infrastructure. The money, collected at the point of purchase, will be distributed to local governments and electronic waste recyclers to set up collection points and drop-off sites where consumers can unload their useless machines.

'This bill is going to provide Californians with a free and convenient way to recycle obsolete electronic waste,' said Mark Murray, executive director of Californians Against Waste. 'We're building on a successful model we've used with motor oil and beverage containers.'

Only 10 to 15 percent of CRT (cathode ray tube) devices like televisions and computer monitors are recycled in California on average, Murray said. Consumers usually have to pay a fee of around $30 to get the machine hauled away, and some surreptitiously junk these products or give them to secondhand shops like Goodwill.

CRTs contain lead and are considered hazardous to humans. It's illegal to dump them in landfills in California."

Geeks to Go - Free computer help & tech support - How to Tell If a Microsoft Security-Related Message Is Genuine: "Microsoft regularly sends e-mail to subscribers of our security e-mail notification services when we release a Microsoft Security Bulletin.

Unfortunately, malicious individuals have been known to send bogus bulletins that appear to be coming from Microsoft, a tactic known as spoofing. Some of these messages lure recipients to malicious Web sites to download malicious code, while others include a file attachment containing a virus.

Learn What to Look For
Fortunately, there are ways to spot the imposters. Here's how to verify that a Microsoft security-related message you receive is legitimate:


The message contains no attachments. Authentic Microsoft Security Bulletin notifications never include software updates as attachments. Rather, we refer customers to the complete version of the bulletin on our Web site, which provides a link to the update. Most Microsoft software updates are made through Microsoft® Windows® Update, Microsoft Office Update, or the Microsoft Download Center.

The message is digitally signed. The Microsoft Security Response Center always signs its bulletin notifications before distributing them. You can verify the signature by using the key published on Microsoft TechNet.

The bulletin is listed on Microsoft.com. We never send notices about security updates until after we publish information about them on our Web site. If you are ever in doubt about the authenticity of a Microsoft Security Bulletin notice, check TechNet to see if the bulletin is listed there."

Geeks to Go - Free computer help & tech support - Danger, danger: 5 tips for using a public PC: "There's a guy in New York who may have gotten into your personal business. If he did, he probably looted your online bank account.

Juju Jiang is serving time now after pleading guilty. But for a couple years, he bugged public computers at Kinko's with software that logged keystrokes. He used it to capture usernames and passwords. Some he used to steal money; others he sold on the Web.

He got caught when he manipulated a victim's home computer while she was present. She watched incredulously as he methodically searched her computer. He was using GoToMyPC, which allows travelers to manipulate their computers from afar. The victim had used GoToMyPC previously from a Kinko's machine. Jiang stole her username and password.

This raises an issue which many people haven't considered. Spying software can easily be placed on public computers, such as those not only at Kinko's stores, but in Internet cafes, airports, libraries and other public places.

Here are five things to consider when you sit down in front of a strange computer:

1. Check for spy programs.
2. Erase your tracks.
3. Protect your passwords.
4. Don't rely on encryption.
5. Use some common sense."

Geeks to Go - Free computer help & tech support - IT services at work are pants: "Two in five workers are dissatisfied with IT services at work, according to a survey out yesterday.

According to the study, sponsored by IT services software firm newScale, workers can wait for up to two weeks for a response to routine IT service requests. Other respondents reported that it took several weeks after starting a new job to get the computer equipment they needed to perform their job functions.

Of the 1000 Americans quizzed during the study by Internet market research firm TNS, 43 per cent believe computer and network services caused unnecessary delays and poor quality of services impacted their ability to work effectively.

Ouch. "

Geeks to Go - Free computer help & tech support - Intel Debuts Hyper-Threading Technology* For Portable Notebook PCs: "Intel Corporation today introduced the Mobile Intel® Pentium® 4 processor supporting Hyper-Threading (HT) Technology* for portable notebook PCs, commonly referred to as desktop replacement notebooks. These systems offer consumers such desktop-like features as large screens, full-size keyboards and multiple drives.

The Mobile Intel Pentium 4 processor supporting HT Technology offers frequencies up to 3.20 GHz, and power management features that enable lower thermals than its desktop counterpart. Notebooks based on the Mobile Intel Pentium 4 processor supporting HT Technology* allow users to take better advantage of such multithreaded and processor-intensive multimedia applications as video encoding, digital media and gaming.

HT Technology allows the portable notebook PC's processor to simultaneously work on two separate threads, improving performance when multiple applications are running. For example, a user can play an immersive game while encoding audio or video, compressing images or compositing special effects. HT Technology offers better responsiveness and performance when multitasking with existing applications. Performance also increases significantly with current 'multithreaded' software and performance headroom for the next wave of multithreaded applications."

Geeks to Go - Free computer help & tech support - New E-Paper Could Show Moving Images Too: "Even before the electronic ink has dried on the e-page, a new generation of electronic paper may soon be able to bring a moving image to a foldable screen near you, according to scientists in the Netherlands.

Hot on the heels of the invention of a wafer-thin foldable screen that can display static type and may one day replace newspapers as it can be overwritten each day, scientists at Philips Research in Eindhoven have found a way to display high-definition moving pictures as well."

Geeks to Go - Free computer help & tech support - How Firewalls Work: "If you have been using the Internet for any length of time, and especially if you work at a larger company and browse the Web while you are at work, you have probably heard the term firewall used. For example, you often hear people in companies say things like, 'I can't use that site because they won't let it through the firewall.'

If you have a fast Internet connection into your home (either a DSL connection or a cable modem), you may have found yourself hearing about firewalls for your home network as well. It turns out that a small home network has many of the same security issues that a large corporate network does. You can use a firewall to protect your home network and family from offensive Web sites and potential hackers.

Basically, a firewall is a barrier to keep destructive forces away from your property. In fact, that's why its called a firewall. Its job is similar to a physical firewall that keeps a fire from spreading from one area to the next. As you read through this article, you will learn more about firewalls, how they work and what kinds of threats they can protect you from."

Geeks to Go - Free computer help & tech support - Microsoft goes after Google: "Microsoft, which is trying to drive growth by investing in everything from small business software to video games, has quietly set its sights on a new industry -- searching the Web.

Chairman Bill Gates, Chief Executive Steve Ballmer and a handful of other executives sat down in February to answer a question asked countless times before in the world's largest software maker's 28-year history. Should Microsoft build or buy?

What they decided was to build technology that would eventually surpass Google Inc.'s ability to sift through the Web and return results relevant enough to make it the top Internet search destination.

'The decision to build or buy came down to our ability to innovate,' said Kirk Koenigsbauer, strategy manager at Microsoft's MSN Internet portal. "