Sarah81

ROTFL! Oh, man ... I wish that I'd kept some of my old IRC chats - they were so, so funny sometimes.Too bad the school's network won't let me have IRC *sniff, sniff* Anyone have any ideas about creative ways to get around it? *grins*

If you're just starting out with Web page design, you'll probably want to know at least basic HTML coding. It's easy to do, really. All that you need is Notepad and a basic knowledge of how Web pages work. At the same time, there are plenty of advanced programming options that you can pick up and use if you want extra effects or more specific commands at your control. JavaScript, for example. Or maybe you want forms so that you can collect feedback from your visitors in one standardized format. Or maybe you just want to know how to get tables into your pages. There's a great site filled with free tutorials that will explain - and demonstrate - just about everything that you need to know. HTMLGoodies.com is how I picked up a lot of the HTML and other things that I know today. (Okay - I don't know much compared to many of you, but I know what I want and need to use for my site). It's free, easy to use, and a great way to get started. It's also well organized and searchable so you can find exactly what you want when you want it. There are newsletters (optional) in case you're really, REALLY into it. This site is also great for people who just can't remember some basic HTML thing that they learned years ago. One that still slips right out of my head is "How do I set up frames again?"

I can't say that I've named my computer. Not this one, I mean. I remember an IBM (not clone - actual IBM) 486 that I had several years ago. She was "Bad Betty" which was also a BMX company's product-line logo. Their tag for their product was "Bad Betty: Built for Speed." Since I got this 486 about the same time that PII was really getting hot, MY naming of it for that spokes-cartoon was, uh, sarcastic, to say the least *smirks*Anyway ... this one has no name (yet). All that I've really done so far is to set up all the anti-invasion software to keep the system as safe and free of problems as possible ... uhh ... make sure that the section of my desk beneath this laptop is dust- and cookie-crumb free ... and ... that's about it.I'm really not into "pampering" it ... but maintaining it and treating it like something that I want to work well for as long as possible is definitely part of the routine.Which reminds me - I still have a system maintenance scheduler to configure.P.S. Stickers. This laptop needs stickers.

Oh, how I love it when I hear about new ways to deal with spammers and their insipid little bots!I hate spam. Yahoo! does a pretty good job of keeping it out of my inbox, but I still resent the fact that the spam even exists - and I DOUBLY resent the fact that it's such a huge, massive deal now. (Some people get THOUSANDS of junk mails every DAY.)One of the best things that I've found to do is 1. don't fall for that stupid "click here to remove from mailing list" link ... and 2. cheer loudly when national news headlines are made because a bunch of idiots at UT-Austin were caught participating in one heck of a huge spamming organizations.

Sometimes companies who put out *really* good software mess it up when they release the new version. There are bugs in it. The interface is totally different, but not in a good, wow-aren't-we-making-technology-work-for-the-better sort of way. Or maybe it's just not as effective as the older version. You want to downgrade to the older version (the one that you actually like), but you don't have the installation file. Believe me: it happens. Computer crashes, trashed CD-Rs, and other such disasters will definitely get rid of your installation files. But you can still get the old versions. If you go to OldVersion.com you can download just about any popular program. They archive several (or more) of the old versions, all of which are available. The site itself doesn't charge anything, but any registration fees that you would pay for the software (i.e. upgrade from trial to full version) still apply. And it's not just for antivirus or antispyware programs. You can find IRC clients, IM programs, zipping utilities, etc. Interesting side note: they even have mIRC 2.1 - a *seriously* old version. (Oh, the sweet nostalgia!)

*laughs until I almost fall out of my chair* Okay, so not *all* MySpace users are bright. Okay, so most of us aren't. And should probably not be allowed to breed.

I'm running Norton Internet Security '05 right now because I got 60 free days of it when I bought this computer.However: I hate it. I hate it so much, in fact, that I'll probably spend part of my free time tomorrow trying to find something to replace it.1. This thing sucks down memory like non-Norton users wouldn't believe. 2. The firewall stinks. It comes up with all these stupid prompts that are essentially pointless (even when I try to configure it NOT to bother me when I do something like, oh, try to open MSN Messenger). Its learning curve also reeks, because it should know by now that I really *do* want to send outgoing files through AIM, and it should therefore stop bugging me about it.3. Its spyware protection is pathetic at best. AdAware (which is free I should add - I love you, LavaSoft) caught 11 problems. Norton didn't catch anything. And this program is allegedly keeping my system protected automatically every second that I'm online.4. Nuts to it. It's a pile of junk and I'm tired of dealing with it - even if I *DO* have someting like 2.5 more months of free service. Ugh.

I never really understood how status tray icons could be so fascinating. Sure, they're cool when they're for programs that you actually want to access every time you boot up (like the status check for my wireless Internet - that's a good thing to be able to check on periodically seeing as the signal here in my apt. is fairly weak), but I really, really don't need most of them down there. Tip: when you install new software, the program's installation file often gives you the option prompt of NOT allowing said program to create a status tray icon. If you uncheck that option, you won't have to kill the icon every time your computer starts up. Well, if you're a Windows user I mean. I really don't know what you Mac people would do about it *grins*

For the problem of having to change everything from your current e-mail addy to gmail: There are free email forwarding services out there so that you don't have to go to any trouble beyond typing in old and new e-mail addresses. The link I just gave is one of about eight gajillion - just in case you ever decide that you want to give gmail or any other service a try. In most cases, you can undo the forward (or reverse it even) if you decide that the new email host stinks.

I'll pass this URL on to one of my brothers. I'm not really into gaming (I'm still a huge Tetris fanatic ... and old-school Marios Bros...and other such mind-numbingly-simple games) ... but he would love it. And now I have just one more thing to lord over him as his big sister. "Dude. I so found you all that free stuff. Loan me your truck." Mwahaha.

Eminem50 CentLudacrisAnd the last two spots on my list change almost daily depending on my moods. I'd usually say 2Pac and Dre. Or Bizarre (you never quite know what he's going to say next, so if NOTHING else he's insanely entertaining).

Wow. Microsoft is definitely following their usual pattern of releasing a new OS even before they get all of the kinks and bugs worked out of the previous one. (Not that I dislike XP. So far it's the best Win OS ... it's actually - gasp - stable. But still ... I *just* got this OS and I am NOT upgrading! Then again, I said the same thing back when '98 was out ... riiight.)

Well hi there, Specter. Nice to have you around. (I'm new too, incidentally.)

I would also think that it would be preferable - talking about viruses - to know *before* the programming finds its way onto the computer system. (In other words: I'd rather cough up some money for an antivirus that will catch it during the download process. It's just easier.)

I personally like the laptop because I'm in college. I need to take it to some of my classes. When I go home for weekends or breaks, I can take it with me easily so that I can have it around *and* not worry about something happening to it. If it were a desktop, I'd usually leave it in my apartment, which wouldn't be cool if I did, say, the five-week Christmas break at home. But I don't think that I'd go with a desktop again even if I *do* ever graduate (hehe). I'm also a writer, so sometimes I like to go off by myself and write. And because I prefer typing to actual writing by hand, it's easier to have this laptop that I can pack up and take off with. However: if portability isn't an issue, the desktop is probably a better investment. It's cheaper (of course) and a little easier to work on if you need to upgrade/replace internal components (way more room to work in a desktop's case than inside a laptop).

There are a lot of things that can slow down computers that were once really fast (like yours). Let's see ... remove spyware ... check your "Startup" folder to see what all junk has added itself to it. (Sometimes when you install things like AIM software they automatically add themselves to the startup thing, which can slow it down a bit). You should also defrag your hard drive. But really: two minutes isn't all that bad if you're running XP. I've had it take a little less time than that, but I've also had it take longer (before I dumped a bunch of junk that I didn't really want or need, I mean). Hope that helps.

Oh, man - I JUST downloaded and installed AIM last night so a friend could send me some of her files. Blah. I hate it. I'm actually uninstalling it as I type this, oddly enough. I prefer Yahoo just because I use some of their other services anyway, as do most of the people I actually care to keep in touch with. But does anyone remember using ICQ when it was first released (i.e. before it really started to suck)? Man, that used to be a good IM prog.

Let's see...I JUST got this computer, so I only have about a dozen MP3s/WMAs. I would have more, but finding free codes for legal downloads (usually through iTunes) is sort of a pain in the butt lately. I have some Green Day (older stuff) ... Tori Amos (the reworked stuff from what amounts to her greatest hits album) ... some Celtic praise tracks (very cool stuff there) .... and other, rather eclectic tracks. My iTunes downloads are automatically categorized for me, but the stuff through some of the other free download sites isn't. Those are just in the "My Music" folder until I can figure out a way to convert them so that I can dump them into iTunes as well. And yes, I like the iTunes player. Free. NO learning curve. And it was preinstalled on my computer, so laziness encouraged me to give it a try.

Hmm ... Compaq.com (just went there because that's who made my laptop/notebook/whatever) refers to these portable computers as "notebooks." I like your explanation too, except any time that you reference a Mac you should definitely include as many "$$$" symbols as possible. Ex: "I have a Macinto$h. It wa$ very expen$ive." *snickers*

No kidding on catching what other progs don't. I had forgotten all about AdAware when I set this notebook up so I went with PCDr - which didn't catch anything. Then I ran AdAware like 10 minutes later and it caught 11 problems. Hmm. Yep - AdAware wins again.

If I'm reading your post correctly, it sounds as if your parents were the ones who coughed up the money for your computer. And unless they fished it out of a Dumpster, dusted it off and told you to have fun with it, I would say that they were trying to do something nice. But not *overly* nice, because then you'd be a spoiled brat who expected Mom and Dad to fork over whatever your little heart desired *smirk*

(Snip)... Record labels have really started to get into online purchases for songs. It's great because CD singles just haven't been very popular in the last few years or so (that section of the record store is getting smaller and smaller, it seems). If online downloads can replace said singles, then the industry won't have any problem capitalizing on this technology.

Okay - confession time. When I was in my teens (I'm 23 now) I swiped TONS of music through KaZaa and WinMX. Now, do I have that music anymore? Nope. Because ... once I started college, my English professor really started encouraging me to keep writing. I'm really into fiction, incidentally, but I also do Web content etc.Which was the first time that I actually started seriously contemplating a career as a writer. Unless majoring in journalism counted, which I didn't think should have counted because it was mostly school newspaper work. But that's a different story.My point is just that I started thinking about trying to make a living creating something that nobody else can create quite like I can ... then I started thinking about how much it would suck if someone bought one copy of it then started passing it around to a bunch of other people on the Internet and not giving me any money for it. Would I be able to keep writing if that happened? Sure, but it wouldn't be a full-time profession like I want it to be.I know, I know - making music isn't the same as writing. I know that bands and musicians have endorsements, merchandise, concerts and other "sideline" things to make money, and that they don't often make a whole lot from the actual album sales. Writers basically profit from sales of the actual work. We don't get tee shirts often. But ripping someone off is ripping someone off; once I realized this, I started finding legal, fair ways to enjoy music. I'm still a big fan of things like free iTunes codes, but at least I know that *someone* is paying royalties per code that I get, whether I buy a Slurpee or whatever else.Just because a user refuses to upload songs doesn't mean that he isn't contributing to copyright theft. SOMEONE has to make the download available so that said user can get it on his hard drive in the first place. And the user isn't paying for it. Granted, many people will buy the CD or at least the single if they really like it ... but there are plenty of services that let us buy the song outright whenever we want it (iTunes, Napster are a couple of examples).I know that different countries treat the issue in their own ways, but I still think that we should all find some way to help support the things that we enjoy. Even if it's just something small like buying a ten-dollar tee shirt from a local band that we like hearing.

Yep - I'm up for friendly discussion/debate. I'm a Christian too. However: that doesn't mean that I rule out science. In fact, I believe that God gave us science. He made us curious, so He gave us stuff to explore and a means of checking it out. It's cool like that.I'm not a scientist and I'm certainly no expert on evolution. I'm no expert on creation either, seeing as I wasn't there when it happened. Yes. I believe in creation. I believe that God created us.But did He create us *exactly* as we are today?I doubt that. It seems to me that early, primitive man was, if nothing else, a lot hairier. (He'd have to be - they didn't have central heating and all the other protections against the elements that we have today.) That, in my opinion, is just one small evolution. Actually, wouldn't that be more of an adaptation than an evolution? I don't know what the proper term is for it, but it's what I believe. For whatever it's worth. (TOLD y'all I don't know a whole lot about this stuff - hehe.)

Lost data is a heartbreaker. Just thinking about some of the work I've lost makes me want to cry all over again. (I'm a writer - not very adept with graphics, but I think that the essence of the loss is still basically the same.)So ... because I am admittedly paranoid, I now have a nice little backup-the-backups system ... because I can't recreate this stuff.A. Hard drive. Naturally, this is where I save stuff.B. Hard copy. Which goes into a fireproof lockbox just in case something really, really bad happens.C. Flash drive. Like I said: I'm mildly paranoid, but if it keeps me from curling up in the fetal position and sucking my thumb for two weeks after a disaster, it's worth it ... well, for me at least.And YES - take the HD to data recovery pros. Some of those guys (and girls of course) are insanely good at what they do. It's worth whatever you have to pay for it if they can recover some of your stuff.