Internet

Fascinating Numbers

       "If you've been sitting and waiting to read about Internet statistics for 2011, well, wait no more," declares Jim Hamm.  He's found a bunch!  He sends this link and goes on to say, "I have no idea as to the veracity of these numbers (how do it know?), but it makes for interesting reading — well, for me anyway. Some observations: 18 million people follow Lady Gaga's 'tweetings' on Twitter; Google Chrome web browser has grown significantly — and fast — and is now right behind Internet Explorer in usage; 71% of email traffic is spam (sheesh!); there are over 2 billion people using the Internet! It's amazing how the servers on the worldwide web are able to keep up with all this traffic.  Lots of other trivia about the Internet that undoubtedly you'll enjoy knowing....(grin)."
          If you're eyes are not glazed over scroll to the end of the site's page to go to statistics of annual summaries for 2008, 2009, and 2010.

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Where Is It? Now, We Know

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Wonder no longer.  David Passell shares this interesting info:  "Many others --  and I -- have always speculated on what would happen if a sunspot storm, high-altitude nuclear blast, or other event might cut off internet service.  I always thought that internet was carried via satellites.  Well, I was wrong.  It is underwater.  Here's a short, informative video from Kim Komando that will explain it to you."  Like David, we're relieved to hear this!

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Making Your Computer Run Faster

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        Responding to a question about a "slow" computer, John Carter gives ideas on what to check and what to do.
        "A faster computer doesn’t actually improve computer performance that you would notice.
        "Most people who say their computer is too slow are really suffering from a slow Internet access and not a slow computer. To confirm this, do a speed test. If your Internet download speed is around 1 MB/s, you need to increase your Internet speed, and I recommend nothing less than 5 MB/s if browsing the Internet is a priority for you.
        "Another way to test your computer performance is to determine how long it takes just to launch an application that does NOT access the Internet. Every Mac comes with Pages. It takes about 12 seconds for Pages to come up on my brand new laptop (2.8 GHz, 8MB memory). Some people would say that is slow. Once you have launched an application and then exit, the next time you launch that same application during that same login session, it will come up in about 2 seconds. The thing to know is that it is always slow to launch any application the first time during a session on any computer.
        "If you want to do something to improve your computer performance, then you need to do some maintenance on your computer. There are several applications that can do this. Just do a Google search on 'mac maintenance' and take your pick. Some are free. One of the things to read is “Five Mac maintenance myths.”
        "If you have a large hard drive (say, 250GB) and it is almost full (say, less than 50GB free space), that can also slow your computer down. It’s important to clean out the old logs, the temporary files, and other stuff. Any one of the maintenance applications mentioned about will do that.
        "Another way to really boost the performance of your computer is to replace the internal hard drive with a SSD (Solid State Drive). It’s about $500 for a 240GB drive (prices are expected to drop soon). What this does is boot up almost instantly, launch all your applications almost instantly, and make all your applications run super fast, but it won’t access the Internet any faster (except for those web pages that are cached locally). If you have a lot of personal data files (movies, photos), then you’ll also need to turn your old internal hard drive into an external hard drive so all your personal files can be moved there, instead of taking up room in the internal hard drive.
        Here John closes with a personal opinion, "And to be honest with you, I thought my new laptop would be really fast. Compared to my three year-old iMac, it’s only a tiny bit faster. So, unless you think you really need to be able to upgrade beyond your current OS of 10.5, you can stay with your current computer for at least another four years. After that, you should really consider getting the latest model."
        Tagging on to John's recommendations take a look at finding out what files are taking up all that space; see this Macworld article.

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New IPv6 Info is Here

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Boring?  Sort of.  But we do have a need to know.  Jim Hamm keeps us on our toes with info about IPv6.  Maybe a brush-up look at Wikipedia can get our brains going with the history, features, timeline, and references of the Internet Protocol.  A chart lists Application Layer, Transport Layer, Internet Layer, and Link Layer.  Scrolling down to the end notes it was last modified April 15, 2011.  So far, so good.Now, we're ready to plunge into Jim's info. "This isn't something we need to sit up nights and worry about, but the availability of IPv4 addresses is coming to an end. Asia has recently run out. "Out of curiosity, I checked my internet connection with Cox Communications here in Scottsdale and it is only IPv4 at this time. I'll soon be back up in Prescott and will take this test with Cableone. I'd guess it is only IPv4 also, at this time. "What I wonder is, when ISPs start converting to IPv6 addresses, do the old IPv4 addresses have to be converted, or can a dual address system be operating?"

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Decisions Due on Domain Names

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        The article begins, "Decisions made this week in the meeting rooms of a San Francisco hotel could dramatically change how the world experiences the internet."  The writer advances the idea that more top-level domain names means more openings for cybercrime. Not a pretty story, but a topic to follow in the news.  Thanks to Jim Hamm for alerting us to this issue.
        Not one to procrastinate, we've already heard from John Carter this morning who offers a blow-by-blow rebuttal. His comments have already been posted on globalpublicsquare, (same link as above). After opening that site do Command + F and enter "John" in the Search box to quickly find John Carter's comments.
         Here's John's assessment:
        "A quote from the article:   Right now, there are 21 top-level domains. If ICANN’s new policy is implemented, we will see top-level domains such as .car, .newyorkcity, .hotels and hundreds more. Internet real estate will grow exponentially, creating a more complex experience for every user.
        "That part about this being a more complex experience for every user is really unnecessary. It sounds like negative press, and for what purpose? I don’t get it. This would be like saying, “If 5,000 new words were added to the English dictionary, people will have a more difficult time trying to communicate.”
        "The addition of the new top-level domains actually simplifies a user’s experience because it aids in identifying the nature of the connection. Just because we are all familiar with and got used to .com and .org doesn’t mean we can’t change and expand our horizons. I think a Republican wrote that article.
        "The author goes on to give a more negative meaning to the decision by inferring that only certain people stand to gain financially from the decision (emphasis mine):   Those in the business of making money by selling domain names agree, and, unfortunately, they have inserted themselves into ICANN’s policy-making process. For example, the Generic Names Supporting Organization (GNSO) in ICANN's multistakeholder operational model is responsible for introducing and developing the top-level domain policy at hand. The GNSO, however, is largely composed of the same registries and registrars that stand to gain financially by the proposed massive introduction of new top-level domains.
        "So what? Is the author complaining that the financial gain isn’t being spread around to everyone? Now I think the author is a Democrat!
        "Oops! Wait a minute! Here’s more doom and gloom:   This new policy will have great social, economic and security costs. If these new top-level domains are introduced, opportunities for cybercrime and fraud would be increased substantially.
        "His question:   How would you determine which are fraudulent sites actively misinforming the public?
        "The answer simply is: call the supposed owner of the site and get confirmation. What’s so difficult about that? People get scammed every day simply because they don’t bother to verify the source of the so-called official email or URL. The courts have a saying for this: Caveat emptor.
        "The author goes on.   A massive introduction of top-level domains will overwhelm the existing framework for combating cybercrime, putting millions of internet users at unnecessary risk.
        "No more than what is already happening. Just because the 400 new top-level domains introduces more opportunities for scamming doesn’t mean that scamming will increase anymore than it is already. It doesn’t even mean that it will add to the workload of authorities trying to pin down and stop scammers. It only means what you and I and the author want it to mean. If the public gets swayed by this article to join some movement to stop this decision, it would be like asking Webster to stop adding new words to the dictionary.
        "More:  In addition, consumers will be forced to take extensive measures to protect themselves from fraud and other malicious activities on the internet.
        "Extensive measures? What? Name them! Yes, I can make up a lot of scenarios wherein the Internet Public has to protect themselves from nefarious activities. That list won’t increase one iota by adding 400 new top-level domains. The number of directions from where one can get scammed doesn’t change how one avoids being scammed. Where is there any sanity in this author’s comments? Doom and Gloom seems to be his favorite perspective. Who taught this guy to see things objectively? That lesson obviously failed.
        "The final blow:   ICANN’s original mission – as a domain name regulator with a policy-making process inclusive of all internet users – was well-intentioned, but it has been polluted by constituents primarily concerned with financial gain, leaving the rest of us bearing the cost.
        "What cost? Where’s the facts behind this statement? Is it the potential cost of being scammed? I can’t see that there is any out-of-pocket cost to the Internet Public for adding new top-level domains!
        "The variety of comments on this article seems to indicate that there are about as many people who agree with the author as disagree with him. Some people are clearly confused by saying they don’t like the idea of a small group of people making decisions like this. To get a Democratic version of this decision would require a majority of the world’s population to know as much about the Internet as that small group of people - good luck on that one!"
        And so concludes John's comments.  Anyone else want to jump in?

Save Money if You're On AOL

        Say "save money" and we listen!  Jim Hamm tracked down the following information from Macs R We, a Mac consulting/repair service in Morristown. Read on and we'll tell you more about that company.      
        First, here's what Mr. C. D. Tavares says on saving money if you're on AOL, "I was reminded recently by a trade article that numerous users -- especially seniors -- needlessly continue to pay AOL $20 or $25 each month after having moved from AOL's dialup service to high-speed internet.  If you are not using AOL's dialup modems, AOL IS FREE.
        "This includes continued use of an AOL mailbox, an AOL screen name (for iChat or AIM), AOL's online content, and even the AOL client application.
         "(I routinely point this out to AOL-using clients during housecalls and broadband installations, but since I'm not always in the loop when a client moves from dialup to broadband, I continue to encounter clients who are still paying AOL hundreds of dollars every year for no reason.)
        "If you currently get your internet service from a broadband provider such as Qwest, Cox, Verizon, Sprint, or even Grand Avenue Broadband -- or even a dialup provider OTHER than AOL, such as Interwrx or Localnet -- you should not be paying AOL anything. You can opt out of these payments permanently by following this link.
        "Be careful NOT to check the checkbox at the end (it's a trap), or your request will be ignored."
Find out more about Macs R We here.  They're in the Wickenburg and far Northwest Valley Areas, and Mr. Tavares has an impressive list of employment and experience as a computer engineer.  He's an Apple-certified Macintosh Technician.

What IS This "Net Neutrality"?

        Jim Hamm jumps in on the latest political controversy.  He starts off with, "If you've read or heard about the term 'net neutrality,' as I have, and wondered exactly what that meant, as I have, here is an article from the Lifehacker newsletter that gives a good summary of the term. There are arguments to be made both for and against net neutrality, and the FCC has proposed some rules of its own.
        "Here's one example of an issue on internet usage that comes to mind: if, say, you're on cable for your internet connection and in your neighborhood there are several people that like to download movies. They may well soak up much of the available bandwidth and your internet connection slows to a crawl. Should they pay more because they're using an 'excessive' (whatever that means?) amount of bandwidth? Or should the cable company spend more to upgrade its network to support the additional load? Or both?
        Jim concludes, "Will be interesting—and perhaps disconcerting— to see how all this shakes out."
        When you go to this site scroll down quite a ways to find the headline, "Closed Internet Ahead Proceed With Caution."  On the way you'll find such helpful articles as, "How to Make Mittens Out of Old Sweaters" and "Top 10 End-of-the-Year Upgrades (You Can Probably Write Off)."

Short URLs

        Just what we need to know about URL shorteners.  Jim Hamm sends us this info, "TinyURL, bit.ly, and others, are convenient to use when passing on a long URL to someone. What, though, if you get a shortened URL from someone you don't know? There is a way to check out where the link actually goes before you click it. Copy the shortened URL and paste it into the address bar. For tinyUrl insert 'preview' right after the //.
         "For example: here is a 'shortened' link: http://tinyurl.com/26o68g5. Where does it go? Paste it into the address bar as follows: http://preview.tinyurl.com/26o68g5. If you click it, it will tell you it is taking you to the PMUG website. I know, I know: the 'shortened' URL link in my example is actually longer than the actual PMUG URL, but you get the idea.
        "If you're using bit.ly, just add a + sign at the end of the URL after you paste in into the address bar.
         "Just a tip to help you find out where those shortened URLs might be taking you."

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Increasing Your Speed

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        This morning's news headline, "Valley Chosen to Test Fast Wireless Network" was an attention-getter.  Check it out here.  Compare prices, services, etc. with a link to SpeedTest.  The numbers are interesting.  Anyone trying out Google Chrome to see if it's faster and better?  Slow is out, and fast is in.  Keep us posted.
        Now we hear from David Passell,  "The aritcle does not appear to apply for up here. However, Commspeed says they have ordered towers, etc. for WiMax (3 - 6 mbs.) No idea if they will charge more. For more details go to commspeed.net.
        "Cableone at present says that 10Mbps can be had for $53.00 a month, and that is not an 'introductory offer.'
        "Qwest is somewhat difficult to pin down (DSL) because of their weasel-worded advertisements. On closer inquiry I found that no matter what I could spend, I would be limited to around 1.5 Mbps because fiber optic service is not yet available where I live. They always like to present best case in the ads 'your results may differ.'
       " I installed Chrome, and I couldn't see any difference. I also found it so much different from the other three browsers I use (Firefox, Opera, and Safari (which also claims to be a much faster browser than the other two) that I didn't want to mess with another learning curve. Perhaps that speed advantage would only show up if my ISP were in the higher Mb range. Commspeed wireless currently pokes along at around 1 - 1.5Mbps. I principally use Opera or Firefox because of their multi-line bookmark and tab lines.
        David's conclusion, "I personally wish that the concept of 'information belongs to the people' would be applied in this country as it is in Finland. There the government has the concept that every citizen has a right to high speed internet access, and is taking the steps to make it so. That is something like the former communications philosophy 'the airwaves belong to the people' where anyone could listen to a broadcast. We didn't have active but unseen agencies (and the government) trying to manipulate systems so everyone would have to pay somebody something for the 'privilege' of receiving content; and no fair skipping commercials:(."

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Access Your Documents

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This site is recommended to us by Jim Hamm.  He writes, "Now you can access items in your Dropbox account from an iPhone, iPod and iPad, as well as your Mac. This could be very handy if, say, you're out and about and not near your computer. Just use your mobile device to log into your account on Dropbox (you'll need to create one with a password), then you can access that document you want to look at."

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What Happens on WiFi & the Internet

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        "Interesting to read what can -- and seemingly does -- happen on WiFi and the Internet these days," Jim Hamm comments.  "Two thoughts on the following article: first, people using unencrypted WiFi are just putting themselves at risk. Not too smart. Second, I find it hard to believe Google -- or any other enterprise, for that matter -- would put a program out on the street and not test, or know, what it was doing or capturing.
        "Google said: 'Google's intention was only to record the identity and position of Wi-Fi hotspots in order to power a location service it operates, the company said. However, the software it used to record that information went much further, intercepting and storing data packets, too.'
        "Now, I ask you, why didn't Google know that beforehand?" ... Jim