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April 2002 EduNotes
Welcome to EduCyber's April Edition of EduNotes. In this issue you'll
read about technology advances and whether you need the latest, simple
ways to see where you (or other) have been on the computer, our thoughts
on broadband Internet access, and the latest updates you should have.
Enjoy and as always, send feedback to edunotes@educyber.com.
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Technology Advances
Are you keeping up? It seems like just a short time ago processor speeds
were leaping from Megahertz to Gigahertz. Now you can buy (for a lot of
money) a computer with a 2.2 Gigahertz processor. TWO point two. That's
fast. Really fast. Blazing fast. But what does it mean?
For you and I, there may not be a whole lot of meaning. As processors
went from 486 to Pentium chips running at 100 MHz and up to Pentium II's
and III's in the 500 MHz range, there were noticeable changes as our computers
fired up faster and generally did a lot of it's functions a lot faster.
But unless you use are a power user of graphic programs like Photoshop
or AutoCAD (or are a hardcore gamer), you're not likely to see much of
a difference between a 1 Gigahertz computer or a 2 Gigahertz computer.
The race for ever-faster computers continues through the competition of
chip makers Intel and Advanced Micro Devices but Motorola has only recently
reached 1 Gigahertz on the chips that drive Apple computers. Has Motorola
dropped the ball? Not really. There are many factors that govern the speed
and efficiency of your computer. A 2 GHz computer running on 64 MB of
memory (RAM) for example, would run slow; at least compared to the same
processor with 256 MB of memory. Bus speed, the connection between the
processor and the rest of the computer parts, is also a factor in the
speed at which your computer operates. It has also been increasing as
motherboards designed for newer processors are built.
What it does mean is that until a new application for this fast technology
comes into play, we can continue using our near 1 GHz or better computers
without having to fork up all the extra cash for the top of the line.
But keep a watch out because voice and video are going to play an ever-larger
role in the way we interact with our computers and when that role becomes
large enough, we'll need the speed provided by today's higher end systems.
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Leaving a Trail?
Do you like to snoop? Ever envision yourself as a spy? Let's spy on ourselves
for a bit to see where we've been - and to see how easy it is for others
to spy on us. This spying is for Windows computers but most of the same
information is available on Apple computers.
First, let's see what files you've been working on recently. Click on
the start button and then highlight Documents. You should see there the
last several files you opened or saved. Ah, I see I've been working on
this newsletter and there are some picture files from the last cub scout
meeting. This is definitely low tech spying but the same features that
provide a convenience - allowing you to quickly access recently used files
- also allow others to see what you've been up to recently.
But they still haven't seen where we've been surfing. Now let's open Internet
Explorer (yes Netscape has most of the same features). Click on the History
button and voila, I can instantly see where I've been on the web today,
yesterday, last week, two weeks ago, and even three weeks ago. Convenience
or exposure? Well, I've been to educyber.com, aimhigh.net, buy.com, mapquest.com
and of course coloradoavalanche.com. Still pretty simple stuff here -
simple to find and simple to get rid of.
Let's dig a little deeper. Click on Start and then on Search (or Find)
and then on Files or Folders. In the Search For text box, type Temporary
Internet Files and click on Search Now or Find Now. In the results will
be at least one folder called Temporary Internet Files. Right Click the
folder and choose Explore. Click the plus sign (+) next to the Content
folder under Temporary Internet Files and you'll see one or more folders
with names that have numbers and letters. Click on any of these and you
can see the pictures and web pages that you've visited recently. This
is where Internet Explorer stores or caches files to speed download times
on the Internet. While it does speed downloads, it also gives anyone looking
at your computer a glimpse of where you've been.
These are just a few of the very simple ways computer users can be spied
upon. Protecting your privacy for the spy methods mentioned above is relatively
simple. Windows and IE provide ways to delete the document shortcuts,
history and cached files. But the only way to be very sure that no one
knows what you've been doing on your computer is to destroy the hard disk
(like removing the platters and playing fetch with Fido with them). Of
course this radical solution is counterproductive to actually getting
work done. The best way to protect your privacy on your computer is to
not write things you wouldn't want others to hear or to not visit web
sites that you wouldn't mind others learning about.
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Broadband on the Run?
Do you have broadband Internet Access (DSL, Cable, ISDN) in your home?
Growth in the number of subscribers is actually declining. At twice (or
more) the cost of dialup access, many residential customers are staying
with a modem and telephone line for their Internet access.
We're baffled. When the road forces us to dial up instead of using high
speed access, it seems like the whole world slows down. So what could
be causing people to not want faster access? Let's examine the costs involved
with each.
Say I decide to return to dial up access. First I need an ISP and a dial
up account. The cost for an unlimited usage account will start at $20.
If I choose a provider like AOL, that number goes up to nearly $24. Then
of course I'll need a phone line for my modem to dial. The line will cost
another $23 a month and that doesn't include any installation or activation
fees. So my monthly cost for my dial up access is $43 to $47. Sure I can
use that second line for other things like a fax line or for the kids
but not at the same time.
Now let's take a look at broadband Internet access. We have cable access
through AT&T. The monthly charge is $48.95. We aren't tying up a phone
line so we can actually use the second line for things like faxing or
talking to others - or even get rid of it if we don't need it. It's always
on so we don't have to spend time waiting for the modem to dial, nor do
we have to worry about getting kicked off after a period of inactivity.
All for an extra $1.95 a month. DSL costs are right in the same range
as are ISDN (which also comes with additional phone lines) costs.
So why aren't people switching to broadband? Apparently they want to.
Availability is the biggest factor stopping people from switching. ISDN
is the most widely available broadband option but it is also the slowest
and the equipment can get expensive. DSL and cable are not nearly as widely
available and with the economy slowing (or is picking up?) the brains
at the top have decided to freeze expansion. We've all come to expect
such wise decisions from the monopoly formerly known as US West and now
often referred to as Qworst but I had hoped for more from AT&T Broadband.
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Updates
How often do you check for updates for your computer? Microsoft is trying
to make it easier for essential updates to be applied to their operating
system but even with that you should be making sure that once a month
you download and install these Critical Updates. What about the other
programs that you use?
Here's a quick list of the latest versions of some popular products:
Windows 2000 Service Pack 2
IE 6.0 (need all the security updates available from windowsupdate.microsoft.com)
Adobe Acrobat Reader 5.0.5
Office 2000 Service Pack 2 (and other updates available from office.microsoft.com)
Mac OS 9.2.2 or 8.6 or 10.1.3
Confused? If you're not, you probably ought to be. Sometimes when you
upgrade a product you have to go back and "reapply" security
patches. For example, you are not supposed to reinstall the Mac OS 10.1
upgrade after installing the security update from 10-19-01 but when you
upgrade or make other changes to a Windows PC running Internet Explorer,
you have to go back and reinstall or reapply the security patches.
If you want to ensure that your computer has the latest patches (or learn
how to do it yourself) give us a call. We can check your programs out
and bring them up to speed. How important is it that you apply these patches
and upgrades? Microsoft security holes are widely publicized. This helps
those of us looking for them to know we should be downloading the latest
patch. It also lets all the hackers know they can try out new techniques
on those who haven't updated.
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© 2002 EduCyber, Inc. This newsletter is brought to you by EduCyber,
Inc. Permission is hereby granted to redistribute all or part of this
newsletter as long as this copyright message is included. http://www.educyber.com
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For questions, or to be removed from this monthly newsletter distribution,
email us at edunotes@educyber.com.