Many of you are probably gearing up for the digital TV revolution. This is the playground of High-Def and Digital Over the Air (OTA) signals. We have started a new Forum section to include the latest events and progress along with the toys that make it so.

Calibration is a big part of the High Definition viewing experience. There is a very nice free software to use in conjunction with your colorimeter to setup your display. ColorHCFR has been developed by a French group as the last two letters in the name suggest. The software is available in an English version. I have a translation of the original Colorimetre HCFR : La calibration "pour les Nuls" help manual on our NiceFiles page.

The latest Tech Support Forum upgrade is in place. Please visit with us, by clicking the Forums button to the right.

For those that have been following and those that wish to know, the Michael Savage vs. CAIR lawsuit is moving along and the organization in Texas has been served.

This fight is everything about our rights, and the imposing will of others, anyone interested can stay tuned or contribute at the Savage Lawsuit page.

Vista TIP: (It'll work for XP as well.) I like shortcuts to Windows Explorer. I still do a lot of work there, and actually the new Explorer configuration in Vista caters to us. So, one can drag a copy of an Explorer shortcut to the Quick Launch bar, and have speedy access. The best part of the TIP is to go one better, and have the shortcut NOT open to Documents, which they do by default, but rather, a drive like C:.

To make that happen, right click the Windows Explorer shortcut, and click 'Properties'. In the Target box you'll see a location highlighted in blue. Hmmm... that means it's ready to change. Don't delete the path that is there, click a cursor in there and add a space, then '/e, C:\' without those single quotes. It'll then look like this: %SystemRoot%\explorer.exe /e, C:\ . Apply and OK your way out of there. Happy Exploring

I'm finally shoveling out most of the barn. The logo above has changed along with most of the header graphics on inner pages. This go round I'm using the open source graphics package, The GIMP. It is very impressive, and being open source, FREE.

We've talked about graphics for your desktop, including those provided by Digital Blasphemy. There is a Free Gallery to get a taste of what's offered, along with those that are fee based. Another favorite is Nikko's work on display to his site adni18. Along with 3D wallpapers, there are some XP themes and Vista Gadgets to tweak with.

Back at the turn of the century, most computer tech support revolved around learning how to use and optimize the machines available. As this site launched seven years ago, the scourge of trojans and other bad actors were emerging and much of our time has been devoted to that onslaught. I'm not suggesting that Virtually Transmitted Infections have been conquered, only that with the stronger machines and newer software, we're benefiting from managability.

It's true that the operating system Vista, and most of the protectors, demand a current machine with plenty of get up and go, to perform. Personally the fact that they can perform, is the whole point. It's just a nice backdrop to realize messing around with these things can be so much fun again.

If cranking up your machine, is a slow torture like waiting for AOL to stop loading ads, help is around the corner. Literally. There is Free Tech Support available in our forums, along with discussions on various points of interest.

We also offer a full range of Service including shiny new builds.

While we have been providing tools and resources to help rid users all these years, prevention remains your strongest ally. Learning how to configure your machine, for ease in file management, routine maintenance and safe surfing are the best first steps.

The article with screenshot links to help with your battle against VTI's, was designed in the XP days, but still remains relevant. Have a look at Computer Infection Prevention and Cleaning, if you need to brush up on the maintenance chores.

On our download page NiceFiles the older version of HijackThis is still available. That full release is v 1.99.1. Merijn Bellekom's utility can still be a usefull addition to your toolbox. Remember while most browser hijacker's and other malware start-up locations can be identified, and mischiveous files isolated, normal startups are also listed in the output.

Care must be taken to understand the scan output, before allowing HijackThis to fix output entries. The application is absolutely Free. The good folks at TrendMicro own the rights to the current release edition.

The latest version of StartupList is also on the download page as a standalone application. This is an excellent way to identify all the applications running in the background on your system. The added benefit of executing properly on Windows XP and other NT operating systems, moves Startup List to the front of the class.

The OutLurk page lists notable links and descriptions to offsite locations:

Fractal Explorer  by  Sirotinsky Arthur and Olga Fedorenko

Memtest86

While at the OutLurk page, take a look at Bart's PE. This is the end all app for building effective boot and recovery disks.

For your on-site convenience, we have teamed up with Google to bring you Search results. You'll find the entry boxes at various locations throughout the site.

We operate as partners with many of the software companies mentioned on these pages, to help distribute their software. In some cases, we act as a mirror for their release. In others, we provide direct links to their software, whether it's freeware or a trial version.

Please keep in mind that we only offer products we believe in. In the coming weeks, more products will be added. We encourage you to take advantage of them.

It is our stated mission, to make available to you the user, the information and resources that will make the time spent with your PC a bit easier and more enjoyable.

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