A new home for Serenity Computing

We have found a home on a new server. You should see an improvement in speed and reliability now. And we have some new tools to make running the site easier.

Over the next few weeks there will be some changes in the site, and our old e-mail addresses should work as they always did, once I get them set up.

I will send out e-mail to everyone once it is all tested. Thanks for your patience!

Regards, Phil Stephens

Gmail is now Available While Offline!

Google has quietly added (possibly) the most significant upgrade to its Gmail ever. It is now possible to access and read e-mail in Gmail while offline. To install this feature, go to the... OK I am confused. When I first heard about this it was necessary to go to the "Google Labs" tab and activate the feature from the (long) list of items. It was the first item, and easy to find. I activated it on my Eee netbook. Then I booted this computer, a Toshiba Tecra A4 and the item was a simple click on the Gmail top menu. Perhaps Gmail knew my previous choice, or perhaps it has been upgraded from the "Labs" tab.

It takes a while to synchronize (it is still running on the Toshiba) but as it goes you get indications of how many emails have been downloaded and synchronized. Currently It is telling me that if I disconnect now, I will "have access to emails dating back to September 15 2008"

I have no idea how ell it will work, or what the limitations will be. It may be impossible to create and edit new email messages, as it is not possible to create new Google docs. but there are ways around this. I keep a couple of blank Google Docs saved for this situation, perhaps the same will work in Gmail

The news is, Offline Gmail is a power shift of huge proportions. Microsoft owns the client based e-mail arena with Outlook and Outlook Express. An offline version of the excellent Gmail client and exceptional Gmail server system, with it's incomparable SPAM filtering system will be a potential giant killer.

Expect the unexpected!

Regards, Phil S.

Is Windows Really That Bad?

This article is a re-post of information originally posted on my web site. That sit will be shut down shortly, so I am re-posting here.

It has often been said that Bill Gates' only real contribution to the world of computing is the realization that software only needs to be good enough. He and his products are pilloried every day for being slow, bloated, unstable and insecure. Every virus outbreak results in thousands of log entries and messages cursing Micro$oft Windoze and recommending that everyone move to Linux or Macintosh immediately. Are the criticisms well founded? I would like to go on the record as saying that while I curse Windows occasionally, it is, in fact a good functional environment. Why?

Reliability. "Windows is unreliable..." Windows really got traction with 3.1, in 1993 and then came 3.11 in 1993 with networking built in. It worked on a 386 or 486 PC with 4 or 8Mb of RAM. Every video, sound network card or other device required drivers. We spent hour praying over system.ini and config.sys files. It worked, but every program running had the ability to take control of the PC and not let it go. I probably re-booted my 486 PC four or five times a day. Usually a reboot lost whatever I was working on. Windows 95 was better, and each version of Windows has gotten better.

Today, Windows XP can run reliably all day. I use a laptop and can plug and play almost any device. I can burn a CD or DVD, play a movie, plug and unplug a USB HDD, Floppy, or Memory Stick. When I want to move the laptop I close the lid and the PC hibernates. I can lift the lid and the laptop re-starts, realizes the network cable is unplugged and starts the wireless network automatically.

As I write this I am in the lounge room watching a movie and talking to my network via Wi-Fi. I use a cordless mouse and am surfing the net with Firefox, saving this document to the server and watching 80 RSS feeds using Feedreader. I have a Word document open in the background, and a text editor with five documents open. This laptop has not been re-booted for about a week. When I am finished, I save my documents to the server and hibernate the computer. Is it perfect? No. It hung for several minutes when I installed a new RSS reader and asked it to look at my 80 feeds for the first time. Is it reliable? It is for me.

Security Issues. "Windows is full of security holes, even Microsoft admits it.." Yes, Windows has security issues. It is a victim of its own popularity, and a very poor web browser. Every operating system has flaws, but Windows, with the vast majority of desktops running it, has been the target for hackers for years. Before Windows, Unix faced many hacks, and was tightened up over time.

Microsoft has worked to patch Windows as flaws were uncovered. Some took too long, and Microsoft faced much criticism. But what is the situation today? Windows XP with Service Pack 2 is quite secure, but not perfect. The biggest weakness is the browser. Internet explorer was written to provide seamless use of Active-X controls and integration with the operating system. This has left a raft of vulnerabilities that can be worked around. The problem is that disabling the these features makes the browser less useful or seamless. Users do not want to lose the functionality. The solution is to use a better browser. I use Firefox.

A computer running Windows XP SP2 and patched regularly (an automatic process) is secure if the user uses a more secure web browser, and behaves intelligently. the problem is viruses and users.

Viruses and Users. My computer has not had a virus infection since new. I patch it, use the Firefox web browser and anti-virus software. The anti-virus software has never stopped an infection. It has found viruses in e-mails, but I don't open them anyway. Most computer problems are caused by users opening attachments, downloading and running trojan horses or passing private information to phishing sites. If user simply thinks before opening e-mail or downloading free software, they are likely to never have a problem. George Ou is currently suggesting that Anti-virus software is more of a security risk than it is worth and should be removed. I may even try it, I has not done much for me.

Windows is too Slow / Bloated. This usually comes from Linux users. I am not going to start showing benchmarks. The truth is that as users add more and more applications to Windows it slows down. But a computer running the version of Windows designed for it will perform quite well. If it is to slow it probably needs more memory. I assume that the Linux fans call Windows slow in the context of Windows as a server, because in my experience a graphical desktop on Linux is very slow to respond. Opening an application takes a long time, closing them just as long. I notice pauses in operation. They are probably related to the graphics engine, but Windows applications always seem more responsive to me. Is Windows bloated? probably, but modern computers have few limitations on memory and disk space, so is it an issue? Years ago we developed software with one eye on file size. If we could save 5kb of memory by using a different compiler we would. Today, RAM and CPU speeds are such that it is almost irrelevant. The big need is to get applications developed and running quickly.

The Conclusion. Window IS Good enough. It does what I want it to do. I don't need it to run for two years without rebooting. It works reliably, does not lose my work crashing constantly, uses every device I need. It is fast enough. It plays music, movies, and keeps going. I can find software that does everything I need. Linux and the Mac are both options, but the pain of moving to another operating system is huge. Finding drivers, learning new ways of doing things are time consuming, and require someone who is very computer savvy. The average user simply does not need the pain.

Just keep Windows patched, spend a few minutes reading a tutorial on viruses and other hazards, and enjoy yourself. - Phil Stephens

What is the safest place to save data on my PC?

This article is a re-post of information originally posted on my web site. That sit will be shut down shortly, so I am re-posting here.

This question follows on from a conversation about a ZDNet article by George Ou on the same subject

A. The best way in my opinion is to have a separate disk drive in your PC, or a separate partition on your computer's disk drive.

Unfortunately this option has never been made easy by Microsoft. Since the arrival of Windows '95 and long file names, Documents by default have gone in the "My Documents" folder. This folder has been buried in various parts of the same disk that Windows is installed on. The drawback of this approach is that if the operating system system is corrupted or infected by virus or spyware, the only option on many cases is to format the hard drive and re-install Windows. Doing this will destroy any data on that drive, including "My Documents". In some cases the operating system can be re-installed over the previous installation, but often this will not work, and Windows insists on formatting the drive.

On my computers, if I have only one drive (like my Laptop) I always re-partition the drive and install Windows on the first partition (drive C:) and make the second partition drive E:. All my data is saved on Drive E: and is therefore safe if Windows wants to format drive C: during a re-install. If you are using Windows XP you can use the TweakUI powertoy available from Microsoft to set the location of "My Documents" under the 'My Computer > Special Folders' menu item.

If I can afford it, I add a second disk drive. The prices of disk drives are quite low, and this is the preferred option. The second disk should be made drive E: using the control panel 'Administrative Tools > Disk Management > Storage > Disk Management (Local)' right click on the second partition (or drive) and select "Change Drive Letter and Path" and set it to E:.

Why use Drive E: and Not Drive D:?

One day you will want to add an additional disk drive. If you have kept your data on a partition labeled D:, adding a new physical drive will push your data up to drive E: and the new drive will by default become D: This will confuse Windows and any programs installed on drive D: will fail to operate. This can be worked around in most versions of Windows, but it is just easier to keep the D: drive letter free!

Can I partition my Existing Disk Drive Without Losing the Data?

Yes, there are a number of tools that do this. I have used Symantec's Partition Magic successfully a number of times. There are several other tools, some free, but I cannot say I have used them myself. This a risky exercise, so if you use one of these tools, be prepared to have a problem, back up your data first.

Backups and Users.

Users are famous for only caring about backups after they have lost the manuscript of the book they have been working on for a year, or the last five years of their accounts because the disk drive crashed, or the operating system got corrupted or infected by a virus. The poor technician who comes to fix the PC is then blamed for being incompetent or ripping the user off because it will take him 4 hours to copy files from the damaged drive, if it is possible at all! I was once contacted by an accountant who had all his customer's data for the last 5 years stored on his PC, with a tape drive for backups, and only ONE tape that he re-used every week. When the computer crashed, you guessed it, the backup tape was worn out, and the data was useless. The answer is, Back up regularly and keep at least three copies. Sometimes you only find out a file is corrupted a couple of weeks later. If you do not have multiple copies going back a month or so, you can lose important data.

A couple of years ago this meant installing a very expensive tape drive or copying data to a string of floppy disks. Both options are painful, tape because of the cost, floppies because of the speed. I once had to back up a system to 110 floppies. NEVER AGAIN!

Today DVD writers are cheap, and re-writeable DVDs are only a dollar or so each. Set up the windows backup software to do nightly backups, and burn the data to DVD each week. I back up my data in three separate backups, User data, Shared Data and 'Scratch' a directory full of software installs every day except Friday I do incremental backups automatically. Each Friday they are automatically fully backed up in the early hours and then copied to DVD and taken off site. The backups are made to a different physical disk drive on the same PC. I pick Friday because it is the end of the week. If you are in an office environment, the office will probably be unattended over the weekend, so the loss of your PC to theft or fire is more likely on the weekend. Taking backups offsite on Friday means less work to recover your data.

Serenity Web Site - Homeless - For Now

I have had ongoing issues with my hosting company. Up time has been very poor and I have been hosted on Windows Servers.

I have decided to terminate my hosting agreement, so the Serenity Computing web site will go dark at the end of this month. I have created a temporary start page at http://sites.google.com/site/serenitystartpage for those who have been using the "Start Page" as their browser home page.

More information soon!

Regards, Phil S.

Obituary of the late Mr. Common Sense

'Today we mourn the passing of a beloved old friend, Common Sense, who has been with us for many years. No one knows for sure how old he was, since his birth records were long ago lost in bureaucratic red tape. He will be remembered as having cultivated such valuable lessons as:

Knowing when to come in out of the rain; why the early bird gets the worm; Life isn't always fair; and maybe it was my fault.

Common Sense lived by simple, sound financial policies (don't spend more than you can earn) and reliable strategies (adults, not children, are in charge).

His health began to deteriorate rapidly when well-intentioned but overbearing regulations were set in place. Reports of a 6-year-old boy charged with sexual harassment for kissing a classmate; teens suspended from school for using mouthwash after lunch; and a teacher fired for reprimanding an unruly student, only worsened his condition.

Common Sense lost ground when parents attacked teachers for doing the job that they themselves had failed to do in disciplining their unruly children.

It declined even further when schools were required to get parental consent to administer sun lotion or an Aspirin to a student; but could not inform parents when a student became pregnant and wanted to have an abortion.

Common Sense lost the will to live as the churches became businesses; and criminals received better treatment than their victims.
Common Sense took a beating when you couldn't defend yourself from a burglar in your own home and the burglar could sue you for assault.

Common Sense finally gave up the will to live, after a woman failed to realize that a steaming cup of coffee was hot. She spilled a little in her lap, and was promptly awarded a huge settlement.

Common Sense was preceded in death by his parents, Truth and Trust; his wife, Discretion; his daughter, Responsibility; and his son, Reason. He is survived by his 4 stepbrothers; I Know My Rights, I Want It Now, Someone Else Is To Blame, and I'm A Victim.

Not many attended his funeral because so few realized he was gone. If you still remember him, pass this on. If not, join the majority and do nothing.'

This was originally published by The London Times, and has been commented on may times. I cannot find an original link, so I guess it was in print only. - Phil Stephens

Microsoft Windows Update License Change

While writing the previous entry I booted back into Windows, and allowed updates to run. I keep the Windows partition pretty much up to date and was surprised to see a new license agreement pop up for the Windows Malicious Software Removal Tool.
Like most people I don't spend a lot of time reading licenses, I figure I am getting shafted anyway, and move on. I did stop and read this one and was interested to find this...

"12. LIMITATION ON AND EXCLUSION OF REMEDIES AND DAMAGES. You can recover from Microsoft and its suppliers only direct damages up to U.S. $5.00. You cannot recover any other damages, including consequential, lost profits, special, indirect or incidental damages.
This limitation applies to
* anything related to the software, services, content (including code) on third party Internet sites, or third party programs; and
* claims for breach of contract, breach of warranty, guarantee or condition, strict liability, negligence, or other tort to the extent permitted by applicable law.
It also applies even if Microsoft knew or should have known about the possibility of the damages."

I am no lawyer, but I think if I knowingly distributed software that damaged my customer's business by crashing or crippling their computers or causing loss of data they would look for more that $5 restitution from me. It is the reson I offer a No fix - No fee warranty on service work...

I guess being Microsoft is nice work if you can get it.

Enjoy! - Phil Stephens