Computers | What A Slacker!

Posts filed under 'Computers'

Excel File Hell

Add comment June 20th, 2008

What the hell is wrong with Microsoft? Why in the world would they change the default file type of one of the world’s most used office programs?

Microsoft Excel 2007 (as well as Word and Power Point) now have an XML based file format. The new Excel file extension is .xlsx, which of course cannot be opened with any of the older versions of the program.

Thank god I remembered we had one computer in our office that was new enough to have the latest version of the software on it. (I forgot because I never use the Microsoft Offfice 2007 products because I simply don’t like them.) At first I wasn’t sure that it would even be able to save it as the old version as the company that sent me the file could not figure it out and told me that was the only available file format.

I really hate the new tabbed browsing with in the new office programs and where the heck did they go with the good old fashion text menus?!? They hid them is what they did. I finally figured out how to find their help file (tiny little question mark was eluding me). The text menu where you have the option to choose SAVE AS is now hidden behind the little office logo at the top of the screen on the left-hand side. Who would have thought to look there? Not me. Can you make it any harder folks?

For those of us that do not have access to a brand spanking new version of Excel Microsoft has kindly [insert sarcasm here] created a tool (not sure if this is available for Word or Power Point) for us backward people who cannot upgrade every time they release a new, improved [insert said sarcasm again] version.

You can download this lovely little Excel 2007 to 97-2003 conversion tool at Microsoft.com. Even though it is free it does come with a cost. You will have to install all the updates for your version of windows before installing the converter. Which can take you a few hours, if like me, you are a little behind on your XP updates (who know they were up to XP Service Pack 3, not me).

For those of us with little time there is also an online converter, but this might not be an option if you too have a confidential file you need to convert like I did. However, unlike the Microsoft compatibility pack you do not need to have Microsoft Office installed on your PC to convert the file.

I am pretty sure that if I am going to have to continue to use the newer versions I am going to have to pick up a copy of the book Office 2007 All-in-One Desk Reference For Dummies.

I Want It Wednesday: Solar Charger for Personal Electronics

Add comment June 11th, 2008

How cool is this? A solar charger for the iPod and other small electronic devices. This little gadget could be a life saver when out on the beach and your tunes stop pumping or your cell phone is dying and you are no where near and outlet.

Now mind you it isn’t going to work at night or in a deep dark forest, but it certainly could come in handy when at the beach or the park. Added bonus of making you all the cooler because you are helping to save the environment by not using up all the precious oil to power your gadgets with household electricity. Everybody needs a Soldius 1 solar charger from ThinkGeek.com!

Nutty Squirrels Stealing My Internet

Add comment June 10th, 2008

Remember I said Comcast came out and looked everything over and that my outside lines were chewed by squirrels. Well those nice guys sent me the pictures they took while hanging out on top of the pole with those nutty squirrels.

Take a look at what those rodents did to the lines. No wonder I lost my internet and tv!

Get Off Your Butt And Do Something

Add comment June 5th, 2008

It is summertime, well not officially yet. That means it is time to get away from the TV, computer, xbox or wii and get out into the great outdoors and enjoy yourself. You don’t have to do anything too strenuous. There is plenty to do without breaking the bank you’re a sweat. You could go bird watching. All you need is a book, a pair of binoculars, good walking shoes and some time.

On the warm evenings you could check out the night sky with those very same binoculars or step it up a notch with a telescope and see that UFO zooming by. (For the techno-geek that has to have his PC along you can still bring it and use the night sky software or bird guide of your choice on your computer or PDA.) If your out at night you might want to pick up a night vision scope to see what is out in the woods with you. Any good bigfoot hunter worth his weight would not be caught without one.

Wii Let the Downloading Begin

Add comment June 4th, 2008

Wii lets you download old school video games by buying points and using those points towards those downloads. Technically you are not buying the games you are licensing the games so I am not sure what will happen should Nintendo ever pull that license. I guess your Wii would just stop playing the games. Which really kind of sucks. Also you cannot play your games on other Wii systems. Again this sucks. I “bought” it I should be able to play it where ever, when ever. So what good is saving the games to an SD card if they can’t travel? Okay, so I’ll still download as it is easier than digging out the old NES to play Zelda.

The Almighty NoFollow Tag

Add comment May 28th, 2008

As bloggers we all become relatively aware of the nofollow tag. We might not know what it means or why we use it but we know about it. For most of us the nofollow attribute is automatically added to the links people post in our comments. This is to help us stop comment spamming. (I know you know what that is. What blogger hasn’t opened their admin to see a ton of nonsense and links to gambling, insurance or porn sites.)

Well, the rel=”nofollow” added to the html of a standard link tells a search engine not to follow that link. By not following the link they will not count that link towards that sites link popularity. Has this knowledge stopped the spammers? No. Does it hurt you or your blog? No. It does, however, hurt the people you would like to be linking to. Therefore I do not recommend using the nofollow tag in your posts if you wish to give that person some internet props and help out their link popularity and ultimately their page ranks.

It seems all the major search engines (Google, Yahoo and MSN) have agreed to honor this new tag. Although it appears that is not the case and it is largely ignored.

My advice to you is to make sure all your hard work in getting reciprocal links is not destroyed by those two little words. Be sure you request a link back to you that is does not contain that particular little snippet of coding. Why anyone seeking links or articles to drive traffic or exposure would choose to use that tag is beyond me.

Check out the Search Engine Journal’s article 13 Reasons Why NoFollow Tags Suck for a better explanation why you don’t want or need this tag clogging up your html code. But as a blogger the best defense against comment spamming is to moderate your comments carefully to keep that junk from even hitting your site. Your readers will appreciate being able to actually read the comments instead of all the ping backs and scrolling nonsense text.

Protect Yourself and The Ones You Love

Add comment May 8th, 2008

Being online all the time I am quite concerned about identity theft. Then I watch TV shows like Dateline and my fear level rises even further. Did you see that episode where they showed how quickly and easily thieves can get a hold of not just your credit card numbers, but your social security numbers, driver’s license numbers, bank accounts and more. I was terrified after watching that. I honestly have no idea what I would do if I found my ID was stolen.

Of course I would have to cancel all my credit cards, contact my bank, put out fraud alerts on all the credit bureaus, but what am I forgetting and how do I know I got everything?

Thank goodness there is a service like LifeLock. They’ll do it for you and they guarantee it. You insure your house, your car, your life why not insure you identity? For only ten bucks a month you can feel secure in all your transactions not just those online.

Your security and this post are brought to you by lifelock.

Let SocialSpark Spark Your Imagination

Add comment May 6th, 2008

I signed up for this new service called SocialSpark about a week ago. To some degree it is a cross between MySpace and PayPerPost. You get to meet up with merchants and other bloggers on a more personal level. Signing up is easy and free.

Just know you either have to be using FireFox or MSIE 7 (I hate internet explorer 7) or you won’t be able to access the site at all, which is a big draw back since about 50-60 percent of the folks coming to my sites are still using MSIE 6. I assume you folks are like me and don’t like the way the new internet explorer handles webpages and how Microsoft appears to be pushing us all into redeveloping our previously working websites. Enough about them, back to SocialSpark.

Head on over and sign up. You’ll be able to find opportunities to make money with your posts (like PPP and other services), make new blogging buddies, find ideas and topics for you to write about and one of the best features get and request blog backs. That last one is so important in improving your page ranks that it alone is worth signing up. But I am sure you will find other reasons to stick with them.

While your there stop by whataslacker’s SocialSpark profile and give me some props, request to be my friend or just let me know you posted a blog about my site and I’ll be sure to do the same. I am always looking to increase those links back to my blog.

You can thank SocialSpark for this post.

Roxiticus Best Blogs: A Blog About Blogs

Add comment May 4th, 2008

In the vast blogosphere it is easy to get lost. Sometimes you just need a helpful friend to point you in the right direction. Or at the very least help suggest some good places to start.

A really good jumping off place is Roxiticus Best Blogs. This is pretty much a blog about blogs and sometimes blogging too. RBB has some helpful tips on how to increase your blog traffic in the mix of reviews. Head on over there to see what I mean.

More Star Trek Handheld Games

Add comment March 26th, 2008

After coming across the Coleco Star Trek game on the Handheld Games Museum I decided to poke around and see what other Star Trek games they had listed and which ones I did not know about. Here is what I found…