Ask DACS
January 2009

by Jim Scheef

Ask DACS is a question and answer session held at the start of the monthly general meeting. We solicit questions from the floor and by email (AskDACS@dacs.org). Hopefully we find the answers from those present at the meeting.

There were no questions by email this month. You can send questions to askdacs@dacs.org and they will be considered at the next meeting.

Q: I use Firefox 2 and am unable to change the page that displays when I first open Firefox. How can I make the change stick? No matter what I do, the home page reverts when I reboot the system.

A: Several possibilities all boiled down to making the desired page the home page. The reboot behavior may be explained in that Firefox thinks that it did not close properly and the profile is not updated properly. My suggestion is to uninstall Firefox 2, delete the old profile(s) in \Documents and Settings\<username>\Application Data\Mozilla\Firefox and install Firefox 3. This will create a completely new, clean profile when you first run the new installation.

Q: I want to buy a new laptop and can’t decide whether to get the 32-bit version or 64-bit version of Windows Vista. I want to use the machine for video and graphics editing, as well as regular Windows applications. What should I do?

A: There was just too much good information to summarize here but here are some factors relating to the question to consider when selecting a new computer of any type:

• Modern processors from both Intel and AMD can run both 32-bit and 64-bit operating systems, both Windows (XP and Vista) and Linux provided that needed device drivers are available. Check with the system or motherboard manufacturer for what OSes are supported.
• 64-bit Windows will run most current software. Many graphics and video applications come in version for both “bitness”. Compatibility for older applications degrades with each new version of Windows. Your mileage may vary.
• Device drivers for older hardware may not be available for Vista of any kind and 64-bit drivers will be available for only the newest hardware. Again, check with the manufacturer of any peripherals, video cards, network adapters you intend to use or check the Microsoft official Hardware Compatibility List to see if your device is supported for the version of Windows you want to use. It is harder to determine if Linux will support a device because often the Linux device driver will reference a chip rather than a network card manufacturer.
• The big advantage to 64-bit Windows or Linux is the support for more than 4GB of RAM (an unimaginable quantity when the 386 was first introduced). Check with the computer or motherboard manufacturer to see how much and what kind of RAM is supported. Laptops usually have only two SO-DIMM slots so upgrading RAM often means removing the stick that came with the machine. Many laptops have only one RAM slot. These .details are often difficult to find in pre-sales literature. Presently 4G SO-DIMM sticks are rather pricey.
• Applications that work very close to the OS kernel, like anti-virus software, must be the same bitness as the operating system.

Q: Is there a way to open and edit an Excel spreadsheet on an Apple iPod Touch (or iPhone)?

A: From the audience: “Not yet”. Viewers may be available.

Q: I would like to use a digital picture frame as a second monitor to my computer. Is there a way to do that? The picture frame has a USB port.

A: At first I misunderstood the question. Audience members said that if the picture frame supports acting as a USB monitor, then this is possible after installing the appropriate device driver in Vista. No one mentioned other operating systems so this may be a Vista feature. An audience member suggested there is something called “Picture Frame Sideshow” that may help do what you want.

Q: The built-in wireless in my Dell laptop has failed completely. I would like to replace it with a card with a Broadcom chip rather than one like the original with an Intel chip. Is there any reason this would not work?

A: These cards are normally mini-PCI cards, a standard for smaller cards than what go in a desktop or server machine. The consensus was that, provided there is an appropriate device driver for the Intel-based card, it will work. The antenna connection must also be compatible. These are normally a UHF coaxial (I said 2-wire at the meeting) plug with ‘MC’ in the name. These connectors often look the same but have minor differences (MCX, MMCX, RP MCX, etc.), so this is something to check.

Q: How can I copy the contacts in my email program to a DVD without the notes I have entered in the notes field?

A: Export the contacts to a CSV (comma separated values) file, import that into Excel, delete any undesired information (that can be entire columns, if you wish), and export the result from Excel into whatever format you want on the DVD.

Q: I am buying a new computer. What is the best way to move my current applications and settings from my old machine to the new one?

A: One member suggested PCmover from Laplink Software, Inc. as a product that will do the whole job – applications, settings and data. The process can take many hours but is more often successful than not. There is also a feature in Vista that will move data files only.

Questions for the upcoming meeting can be emailed to askdacs@dacs.org.

Disclaimer: Ask DACS questions come from members by email or from the audience attending the general meeting. Answers are suggestions offered by meeting attendees and represent a general consensus of those responding. DACS offers no warrantee as to the correctness of the answers and anyone following these suggestions or answers does so at their own risk. In other words, we could be totally wrong!