Columbia College launched it’s new brand today, and with it, the new website look.

As a proud member of Columbia College’s Web Team, I greatly enjoyed being able to participate in this new look and feel to Columbia College!

The email asked me the same thing it always does: “What have you done with today?”

For the first time in 770 days, I can say, “All I wanted to.”

I just read yet another article about riding out the economic storm, and hoping for consumer spending to rise in the near future, etc…

The reasons we are currently in a recession are vast and varied, but one common trait is unanimously prevalent:

American’s Spend Beyond Their Means and Don’t Save!

• Credit card debt is out of control
• People purchase houses they can’t afford
• The cheapest new car you can purchase is $10,000 or higher
  (that’s more than my grandparents paid for their house)
• The entitlement mentality is rampant!

Japan Can’t Get their people to Spend Money

Japan is having the opposite problem we are. Japanese people have a habit of saving far more money than they spend, thus their economy is sub-par according the article I was reading.

Spending below ones means is far better than spending beyond it!

I Pray the Economy NEVER goes back to the “Old Normal”

Unemployment must drop, people need jobs and money to feed and clothe themselves.

But people do not need the level of decadence America has basked in since the 1950′s.

The Old is gone, thank goodness, we need to start thinking like our 1920′s Ancestors who went through the Great Depression and knew what it was like to do without.

If people and businesses alike get used to this New Normal and America does see an economic boom again, we should just keep operating under the New Normal and see any up-tick as a temporary fortune. Take that time to pad the savings account.

Accept the New Normal and Thrive

If we get used to living much sparser than we have in the past, then we will be closer to an acceptable and sustainable way of life. STUFF cannot compensate for the peace of mind that comes with living debt free or with easily sustainable payments.

Stop hoping for the economy to rebound. Settle in and enjoy the simpler things.

Two of my favorite principles: that you should share all your ideas and that you should stay curious forever!

• Why I Enjoy Being Uncomfortable (Indexed)
• You’re More Alive when you’re Scared(Indexed)
• A Picture of the Unending Cycle of Life (Indexed)

Limitless or Limited Resources

Rotting and Rolling

Sign up for the Free WindowsSecrets newsletter for more great information like this, or just keep reading here!

As always, if any readers have any questions, don’t hesitate to Contact Me: eb at ellisbenus.com

Your next PC: thinking beyond the desktop

By Woody Leonhard

With Black Friday a fading memory and Cyber Monday deals still fresh on the Web, visions of a new PC may be dancing in your head.

But before you go out hunting for that shiny new Win7 machine, take a deep breath, sit back, and consider these tips on buying a PC.

The first and most important tip? Ask yourself whether you need another Windows-based desktop — there are some excellent alternatives. In fact, for home computing, Windows is becoming less and less relevant. More of the services and applications we use are on the Web than in our PCs. And there are now many ways to work on the Web that are cheaper, easier, or just more fun than sitting at a desk and staring into a PC screen.

Think mobility for future personal computing

If you are replacing a desktop with another desktop, you should seriously think about going portable. Laptops are more expensive, feature for feature, but any additional cost is more than made up for with convenience. Many businesses, including Windows Secrets, are migrating to notebooks on the desk. The only PC users who still need a desktop are those who regularly upgrade their systems with new components.

One component you might ditch with your next computer is the keyboard. Take, for example, Apple’s iPad — or if you’re a dyed-in-the-wool Windows user, one of the iPad-like tablets that are starting to appear. No, the iPad won’t replace a desktop PC if you’re typically pounding away on a keyboard, but some would find that its greatest redeeming value. For surfing the Web, watching videos, and updating photos and Facebook, the $500 to $829 for an iPad is relatively cheap. And it might keep you happy with that aging desktop for another year or so.

If you’ve decided that upgrading your current desktop PC is no longer cost-effective, think again. To dredge up a well-worn mantra, “Reduce, Re-use, Recycle.” You’ll save money and the environment. Over the years, I’ve upgraded dozens of PCs, always wiping the hard drive in the process and starting with fresh software installs — and in every case, I’ve ended up with a downright decent machine. The trick is to bump the main memory up to at least 2GB and install a fast video card with at least 512MB of on-board video memory. You can do both for about $100.

Check your peripherals for a good Win7 match

Before you put that old machine out to pasture — destined for the kids or donated to your favorite charity, no doubt — check to see whether all your peripherals will work with a new Win7 system. Most older printers and external drives play nicely with Microsoft’s newest OS, but many scanners don’t. Other types of peripherals such as older audio cards can be problematic, too.

To ensure that your old peripherals will plug-and-play with Win7, download the Windows 7 Upgrade Advisor (site) and install it on your current PC. Turn on all your peripherals, run Advisor, and then read the report it generates of potential Win7 upgrade problems.

With an all-clear from Upgrade Advisor, you can assume your peripherals will work smoothly with your new machine. But if Advisor gets cranky about a particular piece of hardware, you have two choices: plan on replacing the peripheral or keep the old PC around to run that problematic peripheral. Sometimes that’s the easiest and cheapest solution.

Don’t overspend for computing performance

So you know that you want a Windows 7 PC, and you’re not constrained by your current array of peripherals. Good news. Time to start looking around.

No doubt you’re expecting me to give you a bit of blazing insight about dual-core vs. quad-core CPUs, i3 vs. i7 processors, system bus speeds, L2 cache sizes, hard-drive rotation rates, or USB 2 vs. 3. But you’re out of luck. Here’s a fact: unless you’re a hard-core gamer or you routinely edit huge media files, none of that horsepower stuff makes much difference — especially as we move more of our computing to the Web.

When I want to consider real-world performance, I check out the Windows Experience Index (see Figure 1). I wrote about WEI in my March 5, 2009, Woody’s Windows column, and WEI hasn’t changed much since that article was published. But in one respect, Microsoft did clean up its act: it changed the bogus method used to calculate hard-disk subscores.

Figure 1. The Windows Experience Index isn’t a definitive measure of PC performance, but it’s good enough.

WEI scores five performance categories — Processor, Memory (RAM), Graphics, Gaming graphics, and Primary hard disk — using an index ranging from 1.0 to about 8.0. (As PCs get faster, the top number will rise.) WEI then takes the lowest number produced by these categories to display a single, overall Base score. (For more on WEI, see the Microsoft Help & How-to article, “What is the Windows Experience Index?”)

As I explain in my March 5 article, the scores are jiggered in strange ways but the net effect is a reasonably accurate, overall assessment of a PC’s speed. In my experience (I’m not a gamer), the processor and graphics scores correlate pretty well with my impression of a system’s performance. I don’t think the gaming graphics and hard-disk scores mean much, and memory isn’t a concern if you have 2GB or more installed.

You can see the WEI on any Windows 7 PC by clicking Control Panel and System and Security; then, under the System heading, click Check the Windows Experience Index. To evaluate a system you can’t get your hands on, look up WEIs for many system components on the Minpaso site.

Here’s a truth about WEI scores. With rare exceptions, machines whose WEI scores differ by one point or fewer will have no discernible speed difference — none at all. In my experience, a two-point difference canbe felt in daily computing use.

Bottom line: Using WEI to gauge speed, you can avoid buying a PC costing hundreds of bucks more for little gain in performance.

Making the important Windows 7 decisions

Although system speed should be part of your purchasing calculations, it’s not the most important part. Usability is key.

Choosing the appropriate version of Windows 7 is easy. If you’re going to connect to your company’s big network, you need Win7 Pro. In all other cases, Windows 7 Home Premium has everything you need. (For more on this, see my July 16, 2009, Top Story.)

Confused about 32-bit vs. 64-bit Win7? That’s easily answered, too. When you run the Windows 7 Upgrade Advisor, it will tell you whether you have peripherals that won’t work with 64-bit Windows 7. If so, stick with the 32-bit version. Otherwise, I recommend installing 64-bit Win7. Why? The price of memory is falling fast. You may want 4GB of memory some day, and that requires 64 bits.

You should also consider what applications you will run on your new PC. Do you really need Office? And so, what about Outlook? You can save considerable money by purchasing Office 2010 Home & Student, which does not include Outlook.

Many new PCs still come packed with free trial versions of antivirus software and dozens of other products. Ask the PC vendor whether you can pay a little extra to have your system shipped without that garbage — it’ll save you the time and effort of removing it.

But the most important decision for a new PC is choosing the right components outside the box — the monitor, keyboard, and mouse. Make sure you bang on the keyboard (especially if you’re buying a laptop) because the feel and placement of the keys vary widely. And the same manufacturer may ship a dozen different keyboards.

If possible, view new monitors under all sorts of lighting conditions and for as long as you can. Your best alternative is to check side-by-side monitor reviews online. Your eyes will thank you.

One final bit of advice: If you don’t have a fast Internet connection, forget the new computer and invest in more bandwidth. That may mean switching Internet service providers or paying more for an enhanced account. The joy of a fast computer fades. But having a fast Internet connection will serve you well — now and far into the future.

Indexed is awesome again.

Indexed is awesome again.

Now that I have an awesome Android smartphone,

I am very excited for the capability to edit Google Documents while on the go.

I finally got my HTC Evo!

I’ve been talking about it for a while:

• Carrierless Phone
• No Data Plan for Me
• Pay as you go 4G hot spot

However, the second day after I got it,  I messed up the Zagg Invisible Shield screen protector I purchased for $15.

Thinking I had to buy a new one, I freaked out.

BUT, Zagg is an awesome company, and they have a LIFETIME replacement warranty. Just pay $3 shipping and you get a new Invisible Shield completely free!

I just wanted to take a minute to brag on such an awesome company. It’s really refreshing to see a company stand behind its products for once.

Check out how durable these screen protectors are!

I’m very happy for two friends who got married last Friday night.

While marriages are joyous occasions, true joy comes from getting an aweseome Tomahawk for a groomsman gift!

Amazon had a fantastic description of the item!

“The Trench Hawk may well be the perfect antidote to the raw terror of eyeball to eyeball combat in the confined spaces of a trench, bunker, alley or narrow hallway. All it takes is one stroke from either the vicious cutting edge or its brutal wedge shaped spike to end the fight, and if the party starts at longer range the Trench Hawk’s twin -Inchbusiness ends-Inch make an accurate throw a breeze, since there’s double the chance of a lethal hit. When used defensively, the Trench Hawk’s cutting edge and spike also provide a big advantage, as either can be used for hooking or trapping and, like our Spike Hawk, their combined length can be used to parry or block an incoming blow. Drop forged from 5150 carbon steel and differentially hardened, the head of the Trench Hawk will withstand tremendous blows and the awful stress of continued throwing.“

Lookout possible home invaders! I cannot guarantee I will reach for a firearm instead of this awesome tomahawk!

This video is dead on for Linux aficionados (danger: stereotype’s in effect).

Linux would sure gain a lot more traction if the main users and promoters weren’t such elitist-tuxedo-t-shirt-wearing-jerks.

Ubuntu has done a great job making Linux much more user friendly and easy to work with.

Until the Linux user base is NICER
to people wanting to convert to their platform,
Tux is never going to grab the Flag
or smash the Apple.

I’ve never seen a user base that attacks people who say they want to convert to their platform of choice?!

This would be like Christians mocking and calling stupid people that said they wanted to convert just because said person didn’t already know everything about Christianity’s history and beliefs. Seriously?! Ridiculous.