I don’t like a cluttered desktop or Program List. Most of the time, I won’t let an application add icons to Quickstart (the >> between the taskbar and the icons on the left) or desktop, unless it’s a program I’ll access frequently. The most frequently applications get to live in Quickstart.

According to this Seattle Times article, Computer makers cut down on desktop clutter. Who needs to have an icon or program shortcut in multiple places?

Since I like things organized, this is how I set up my desktop, Quickstart and Program shortcuts in Start:

* **Keyboard button shortcuts**: Programs accessed daily (email, main browser, IM, Palm).

* **Quickstart and Start**: Frequently accessed programs not in keyboard shortcut (text editors, other browsers, business apps, Web design-related apps).

* **Desktop**:
– Infrequently accessed applications that I use from time to time (spyware checkers, video editor, Belarc Advisor).

– Applications I’m currently reviewing (I uninstall the application when I’m done).

– Applications I want or need to check out (otherwise I’ll never remember to search for them in the longer All Programs list).

* **All Programs**: Everything else.

Developers like to create their own folders and sometimes, a folder within a folder (this annoys me). So I get rid of sub-folders (usually it’s just one — makes no sense), and move the apps up into the main folder. I take the following:

\> Program Folder > Subfolder – Application – Uninstall

And change it to the following:

\> Program Folder – Application – Uninstall

I also have generic folders like Games, Communications (instant messenger apps), Media (media players and editors), Palm, and PocketPC. I move related apps into their folders and delete as many subfolders as I can. Thanks for indulging me — my apps look much better as I reorganized them while writing this entry.

I try to limit All Programs to three columns. Any more than that starts to spill over too far. At one point, the All Programs list crossed over to my second monitor. That was a sign to clean up.

This problem comes and goes. When it comes, however, the problem happens a few times a day. I can’t find the pattern except maybe Internet Explorer. The programs slow to a crawl and I close each one as soon as the PC lets me. I tried to find the Microsoft Knowledgebase (kb) article that sounded much like the problem I’m having, but can’t relocate it.

I’ve studied the KB articles and the problems don’t apply to my situation. I have Windows XP SP 2, I don’t have the speech app running, and a few other things. There’s not enough information to narrow down the search. Strange situation considering the problem stops for a while and then starts again, and does it repeatedly.

Wish I could narrow down the problem and have more information. This is too broad to find the right information.

If you own the first edition, you won’t experience déjà vu while reading the second edition. The new one has many changes that you won’t recognize it. Whether you’re a power PC user or a casual one, you will benefit from the book. Because of the wide array of topics covered, I can’t imagine many geeks who know all of these tips. Sure, you can find ‘em all someplace on the Internet, but finding time for that kind of searching would prove challenging.

Instead of calling tech support and staying on hold or going to Google, check PC Annoyances for the answers. It’s impossible to have the answers to all the problems you encounter on a PC, but Bass touches on a bit of everything. If you don’t find the answer in the book, you might find enough clues to shorten your search.

GMail joins the book and its tips immediately pay off. Other than the usual Microsoft applications, get stress-busters for fixing annoyances related to music, video, CD, and general email. Mozilla, Firefox, and Thunderbird don’t make the cut this time. However, we know how the publishing industry struggles to keep up with tech changes. The book lists a few Netscape-related tips and what you can do in Netscape usually works in any Mozilla product since they’re based on the same “bones.”

How many times have you come across an interesting URL in a book that was a mile long and took several attempts to get it right? Bass takes care of that by using a URL shortening service making it easier and quicker to get the right URL on the first try. He provides links to software, humorous sites, and resources. After fighting a round with your PC, wouldn’t taking a break by going to a funny resource release a few tense muscles? It does for me.

His software recommendations include free and fee-based products. I recognize many of the programs and own some. Based on my experience, he provides excellent recommendations, so you can trust that he isn’t looking to pump up his stock with any of the companies. Most, if not all, of the programs come with a trial period, so you can play with them and see if they meet your needs. If not, uninstall and no harm done. If so, then thank Mr. Bass.

While writing this review, I am trying to avoid sounding like a replayed record of my first review. Most of the original review applies except the book has more pages. The only complaint I have lies with the warning boxes. They’re dark blue with black text. Not easy to read.

Bass writes likes someone who has battled with the annoyance and shares the solution. It’s conversational, enjoyable, and easy reading. You don’t have to worry about insults from those who think they’re the sultan of computers. Instead, Bass makes you feel better with his “buddy-style” advice. Thanks, Steve.

Title: PC Annoyances: How to Fix the Most Annoying Things about Your Personal Computer, Windows, and More, Second Edition
Author: Steve Bass
Publisher: O’Reilly & Associates
ISBN: 0596008821
Date: May 2005
Format: Paperback
Pages: 252
Price: Cover: USD$19.95 Amazon: $13.77
CDN$: 19.57
UK£: 12.25

Getting a new PC is exciting and a pain. It’s exciting because you get a faster processor, more storage and all the latest stuff even though it’s outdated as soon as it hits your desk. The pain comes with re-installing all of your programs, re-customizing your preferences for programs, applications, and Windows, and transferring data to the new PC.

It can be simplified by using a bootable external drive or something similar and letting it load everything on the new PC. However, if you are like me, you probably had a few problems here and there that couldn’t be found and fixed. So it’s better to start with a clean slate.

I am getting a new PC at the office and my hard drive crashed on my laptop. There’s nothing I can do about the laptop, but I kept it simple since it’s a supporting computer rather than the main PC. I often used a remote application to connect to my desktop from the laptop. Therefore, the laptop had few loaded programs and data. I did try to make a backup of my user profile before the crash, but it was having too many problems and the backup didn’t happen.

As for my work PC, here are the steps I took to prepare for moving to a new computer.

* Ensured all my work was on the network server. I kept backups of important files on the hard drive as a safety measure after my past experience.

* Deleted everything that I put on the hard drive.

* Made backups of data files such as the password manager’s file.

* Took a screen shot of my Windows desktop, so I can rearrange things on the new PC to closely match the way I had things on the old PC.

* Used Belarc Advisor to create a print out of what’s loaded on the machine.

* Changed my password to a temporary one that’s nothing like my original so support could get in when I wasn’t at my desk.

* Copied the properties of specially-made shortcuts like the one I use to lock the computer with one click.

* If you use Outlook, make notes of your preferences and options. Mine didn’t get transferred.

* If you use the Office toolbar (typically on the side or top of the screen), add the programs and folders back in based on the screen shot you took earlier. I could not remember how to change the icons in the toolbar, so here’s how: right-click on the icon you wish to change, select Properties, and Change Icon.

* Print the list of fonts loaded on your computer if you’ve added additional fonts.

I sat on this entry for almost a week to see if I thought of anything else. Add a comment if I missed something.

I’ve done stupid things to my computer, things I would never admit. But I’ve also saved its life and dealt with accidental reformatting (not my fault!). Every PC is different like our fingerprints. We customize options, install applications, remove default settings and do different things to it. So, a solution may not be the same for two PCs experiencing the same problem. This means trying out various workarounds and fixes.

I rarely have trouble addressing the problems I run into with my PC. If I can’t do it, then I go to the other pro in the house whose job relates to tech support. Usually between us, the problem gets solved. On rare occasions, we call the manufacturer. Still, we find found in the book tips that we hadn’t tried. Others in our shoes might find it useful as well and if someone comes to us asking for help, we can loan them the book when we can’t assist.

Throughout the book the authors share horror stories, which are good teaching tools so you can learn the lesson from someone else’s mistake and avoid making your own. Not only are computers covered, but also PDAs, cell phones, digital cameras and scanners. This is a well-rounded book with coverage on theft, backup and recovery, viruses, spam, junkware and fraud.

If you’re not into techie things, but want to keep your computer healthy–the book won’t bore you. Quite the opposite, as the authors write with humor and down-to-earth feel. An example: after attempting to rescue a hard drive which continues to sputter, try the “defibrillator” method. It states to unplug the computer and remove the computer’s cover, and then “yell ‘CLEAR!’” and lightly tap the face of the hard drive. How can you not like a book with stuff like that?

The authors clearly explain networking and wireless networking. Anyone befuddled by such topics will appreciate the book for those chapters alone. Some problems have simple answers such as, “Is the monitor turned on?” Hearing this from tech support might be embarrassing, but the authors don’t talk down to anyone whether or not a solution is super easy or complex.

The sections use a handwriting style font adding to the book’s friendly nature and engaging writing style. It feels like a buddy helping you figure out the problem or having your own personal support person nearby. In addition to hardware and software troubles, the book includes advice for being proactive such as how to avoid spam and junkware and evade fraud and identity theft.

The text is easy to scan for quickly finding things, the contents are well-organized with topics covering almost everything we deal with when it comes to gadgets. When we hit a roadblock, it’s painful and frustrating. You can rely on the book to get you through any situation without the attitude that we sometimes face when we ask for help.

Title: Surviving PC Disasters, Mishaps, and Blunders
Author: Jesse Torres and Peter Sideris
Publisher: Paraglyph Press
ISBN: 1932111980
Date: January 2005
Format: Paperback
Pages: 416
Cover Price: USD: $19.79
CDN$: 30.79
UK£: 15.61

As a result of the Back up, back up, back up! entry, several have asked what and how to back up stuff on a personal computer since the article focused on business computers.

Backup on business computers is typically not the user’s concern unless it’s a small business. A business should have a policy in place for managing backups especially due to Sarbanes – Oxyley.

Four options for backing up:

* External hard drive

* CD-RW (CD rewriteable) drive

* Tape

* Network server

Two options for what to back up:

* Everything

* Data files (.doc, .xls, .db, .ppt, .txt, etc.)

Personally, I use an external hard drive (this is a 120 gig hard drive, they also have 20 gig, 40 gig, 60 gig, and 80 gig available. I suggest getting one that is 20 gigs bigger than your hard drive.). It saved me when my computer had to be reformatted a few months ago. Typically, the hard drive is supposed to be rebootable and load everything back exactly as it was before the crash.

Obviously, that didn’t happen. It worked out for the best because some of my system files were bad. The hard drive still had my data files and programs. First, I referred to my latest copy from Belarc Advisor. This is a free program that lists all the applications on your computer. Since I don’t have a CD of every program I use, this was handy.

Using this list, I reloaded all applications first starting with the most important working down to the least important. It takes time to load everything, so you won’t want to reload everything in one sitting.

As soon as an application was reloaded, I copied all of its data files from the external hard drive back on the computer. I try to keep all of my data files in as minimal folders as possible. That is where My Documents, My Music, and My Photos comes in handy, but I hate those names. For the most part, I have /docs, /media (with subfolders for music and photos), /sites (for Web-related docs).

Keeping data files in as few folders as possible makes it easier to keep them organized and to find them when you need to restore data.

Programs like Norton’s Ghost, AlohaBob, and NTI Backup Now are useful for creating and managing back ups.

Using a RW-CD and tape back up are also viable solutions. I prefer the external hard drive since I don’t have to use an external media like a tape or CD. No sitting around and waiting for the CD or tape to fill up and inserting the next one.

Thumb drives (portable hard drives) are helpful, but typically can’t hold enough if you have as much data as I do. It’s great for critical data and data that you need at all times.

When buying a USB drive, make sure you have USB 2.0 not 1.1 as most the drives require 2.0.

At a minimium, back up your data files – the products of your work. Have a copy of these file somewhere other than your hard drive. Ideally, I’d like to back up my data on a network server because:

* if my house were on fire (ptpthpthpth), the files are safe on a server located somewhere else.

* if the computer goes crazy and ruins everything in its path including the back up hardware, the files are safe on a server.

However, storage is not cheap enough for personal use just yet. I am sure it’s one of the future options we can expect to become a regular part of safe computing.

Next question?

This is not your typical lost data story. I was a good girl and I kept my files on the network drive just like the company recommended. The only thing I put on my hard drive was junk files – things that wouldn’t bother me if the hard drive crashed. But not on the network drive. The drives are backed up and even my PC has a local back up program. Can you see where this is going?

On Wednesday, August 25, I accessed my work from the network drive as always. I kept copies of my time report and my daily activities there. Since I was going to be out on August 26 for surgery, I saved everything and did the usual end of day sign out routine.

I returned to work on Wednesday, September 1 and accessed the drive through my ‘Favorites’ and got an error message. Thought nothing of it — figured the network was down or something. Eventually, I went into File Explorer and accessed my private network drive from there. Ah ha! They moved me to a new server. Fine, fine. Whatever.

Not fine! On that drive were two folders: /windows and /log. That’s it. Nothing else. I opened a ticket. Turned out the data wasn’t migrated from the old to the new server. Thankfully, they kept archived data for 30 days, so the ticket should take care of that.

Thursday, I went home early. My surgery wore me out after half a day. Friday, September 3, I had to go to the ER and ended up not returning to work until October 5. I checked the drive and nothing changed. I checked the ticket and it was closed! According to the ticket, the problem was resolved. My foot! I immediately contacted support and explained the ticket wasn’t resolved.

He asked for permission to remote control my PC. By all means. I watched him do all the things I had attempted. He passed the ticket to a specific group. I kept checking on the ticket and emailing the contact. I heard stuff like it’s past 30 days so it may not be archived. Well, hey, I reported the problem within five days of the last time it worked! Why wasn’t it properly resolved while I was out?

If you work for support or have worked for them – don’t get me wrong, I am married to a guy who has worked in it and managed it. I’ve lost serious data here.

Lesson learned? I should’ve backed up the data onto my hard drive. If I had, then all would be cool. What are the chances of losing the network data AND hard drive data? Wait, don’t answer that.

Back up early and back up often. Oh, and vote, too!

For a long time, we couldn’t get Paul’s laptop and my desktop to see each other. Or rather, his laptop could not see my PC, but I could see his. The desktop has been difficult about sharing and obviously didn’t learn one of the first rules in school: share with others. It took a hard drive reformatting to finally get it working. Before the reformatting, we tried all the solutions and gave up. So I shared files with my laptop by emailing them or using the thumb drive. Not too convenient.

The solution depends on each set up as there a lot of variables at play. One work around might work for Group A, but not for Group B. Here are a few things to try to force the computers to share and play nice.

Microsoft KB Article 308007 covers troubleshooting a home network including file and printer sharing. We love the printer sharing as we no longer have to hook a laptop to a printer. Now, if Paul would hook the color printer to the network so we can also do color printing.

HomeNetHelp has a tutorial with screen shots for those who are having trouble finding other computers. It covers the ‘search computer’ (Microsoft KB article) command and ‘manually adding a network place’ (Microsoft KB article).

If the firewall is on, it’s possible the necessary ports are not open. Microsoft’s instructions for manually opening ports.

If one computer can see others, but the others can’t see the computer… make sure the workgroup names are the same. If you’re using a router and DSL or cable with DHCP, try turning off the power to the router and modem… wait a few seconds and turn it back on. Still not working? Turn off the firewall, if it’s running (By default, Windows’ firewall blocks the ports necessary for file sharing.). You can also try uninstalling and reinstalling TCP/IP.

Cyber Tech Help and Annoyances.org have many messages related to networking covering a variety of problems and solutions.

You could have everything set correctly and still have problems. The issue could be a matter of changing the network card. If PC A has 123 network card and PC B has 456 network card, try buying a 123 network card and replacing PC B’s network card with 123. Some network cards play better with their own kind. Shameful.

Microsoft TechNet explains the changes to Windows after installing SP2. The link takes you to the network protection section.

This message popped up a lot when we were trying to network the computers: “Workgroup Name is not accessible. You may not have permission to use this network resource.” It was almost as bad as ?reener (error message) from my first computer, an Apple II+.
If you can’t access shared files and folders or browse computers in a network group, check out Microsoft KB 318030.

If you had another problem and resolved it that’s not listed here, post it in the comments so others may have the resource. Thanks for helping.

Shopping for a laptop is overwhelming because of the numerous choices. No one can tell you what you need or don’t need, except maybe your spouse, parent, kid, local geek, or know-it-all who knows you. But it’s still good to know a few things about buying a laptop. An educated customer is a happy customer, right?

Most important question when starting this research: do you need a laptop? If you need a combo desktop / laptop, you can get a laptop with a docking station.

A common question is whether or not to get one with wireless. The question to you — are you going to use it? Will you have places to wirelessly connect with? Remember, when you have a wireless laptop, it has to connect to a hub or Wi-Fi (like Starbucks or a cell phone). Some hotels are starting to set up wireless and others requiring plugging in. If you buy a laptop without wireless and change your mind, you can add it later with a card. Only difference is it won’t be built-in. Not a big deal. Mine is not built-in.

FYI: Most laptops come with a 10/100 Ethernet NIC built-in.

For me, I have a cheap dial-up account with a national service. Good thing because I used it in the hospital. Not every place has wireless or free wireless (Starbucks isn’t free, or at least, not all locations from what I understand). So before I travel, I look up the service’s local numbers of where I am going so I’ll have them.

As for what model — you’ll get different answers from everyone. People love and hate Dells. Love and hate IBMs. What makes Dell different is that you can pick and choose what items you want on your laptop. IBM has a good reputation. Of course, Macs are nice, if you want to go the Apple way. Buying a refurbished laptop is cool. We have two of them in our house and we’re happy with ‘em. Saved a bit of money, too.

Screen. Picking the right screen is based on graphical need. I got a nice wide one, but my laptop be heavy, dude. I don’t travel much, so weight isn’t an issue. When I do travel, the weight of the laptop isn’t a big deal because I benefit from the video memory more than the weight.

The video card is built into the motherboard, just like a lot of desktops. What you have to watch with a laptop is make sure you get the video you want. If you are going to use graphic intensive programs, then go for more video memory. In the past laptops were not geared toward graphic intense applications. Then the DVD came along and changed that.

A screen is not as replaceable to interchangeable like a harddrive, a wireless card, or a DVD drive. I invest more in the screen so it lasts longer since everything else can be upgraded or replaced.

How often do you plan to lug it around? Believe me. No matter how light the laptop feels, it’s a bag of bricks when you’ve walked with it all day at a conference. That’s why I have a backpack case for my laptop. Much easier for long treks with the laptop. So weight didn’t get a priority with me.

A laptop is useless without an operating system and software. Before we get into details. There is a snag. If you are buying from a major reseller (IBM, Dell, HP, Compaq, etc.) It is going to come with an operating system, whether you like it or not. This is due to their licencing agreements with Microsoft. If this is not an issue, here are the considerations.

Do you want it to come with it or do you have licensed software you can load on it? When buying a computer with the operating system and bonus software, remember you don’t get books or separate CDs loaded with the applications. Some companies provide CDs for using when you have to reformat a computer and these programs will load back up. Some people don’t like this and prefer to buy the applications separately.

This is a suggested process for shopping for a laptop:

* Decide what you must have and write those down.
* Search for products that have these things.
* Search for and read reviews on the finalists.
* Narrow down the list as much as possible (one to three items) to the ones you will be happy with buying.
* Comparison shop for the best offer.

The name is exactly what WordToys is, toys for MS Word. As soon as I start playing with it, I am hooked. The program puts colorful and high quality icons around Word for easy identification and accessing. It also enhances some of the existing Word features and you know which ones because the icons have been replaced with a colorful one.

The numbering and bullets icons are two examples of enhanced features. Before WordToys, when clicking on these icons, a window pops up and you modify them to your liking. After a WordToys makeover, clicking on the icon brings a fly-out menu and you can select what you want from there. This means fewer clicks or keyboard shortcuts because there are no windows to open and close. As soon as you select what you want, Word puts it there and the menu closes.

Symbols and special characters are awkward to add. Many don’t use these often enough to remember the shortcuts, but when it comes time to use it, it is wieldy. WordToys has an icon for each. For symbols, a handful of common symbols appears in the menu. If you use a couple of others often, configure the menu to add those symbols. After that, you can click the symbols icon and then your symbol.

The special characters icon is a time saver. When you type words like resumé or cliché, you need the accented é. Lots of work for one letter. Click on the characters icon, select ‘e’, and then select the accented é. All the other e’s are available in the same menu.

For some of the icons, you can add your favorites for quicker accessing. For instance, the default font icon has arial, courier, and Times New Roman. I add verdana and georgia to the list. It’s nice not having to deal with the long list of fonts even though I use the shortcuts to get there. The WordToys font icon is easier to use than shortcuts.

The icons on the left are color-coded and sorted by groups. The first set of icons are blue. These are related to document and file management. Red is formatting (font sizes, type, copy / paste, bullets). Orange is content like thesaurus, bookmarks, and special characters. Green is environment where you can zoom in and out, arrange the windows, and other things beyond the Word application.

No catch. The personal edition is free and has no sneaky things built-in it to make you mad. Romke (the developer) hopes you will like it so much that you’d upgrade to the paid professional edition to get more features. View a comparison of features between personal and professional editions.

The best part about new toys is playing with them and discovering what they can do. So I’ll leave it to you to find its other cool features. Have fun with WordToys.

Free. v1.0.3. 1.6M download.
Works with Word XP and 2003. Word 2000 edition available now (download). WordScripting must be enabled. If you haven’t messed with WordScripting, then you should be fine.