Technology

Last month, I switched my network gateway from a cast-off PC running Linux to a Linksys WRT54G router—also running Linux. Yes, these devices actually run Linux. I'm using the OpenWRT package.

One concern is that I need to access my network remotely. That's a little tricky, because my network gateway is assigned a dynamic host address by my broadband provider.

DNS names, such as www.unicom.com, typically are fixed, always resolving to the same Internet address. Dynamic DNS allows you to create names for addresses that change, such as that on my network gateway. The nsupdate utility, part of the BIND nameserver suite, issues DNS update requests to a nameserver.

I've been thinking of getting a recordable DVD drive for my workstation. This can be a confusing topic for a couple of reasons.

Unlike CD recorders, there are a variety of competing formats (+ versus -), and then a number of recording methods (single versus double sided, single versus double layer). Although most (new) drives will support all the options, some are bettter at one than another.

Also, it sounds like media is once again an issue. In the past, you had to be concerned about burning "coasters" on bad CD media. These days, CD media is pretty reliable. What I read about DVD media suggests it's like that all over again.

Taken all together, things get real complicated—and I'm only considering data recording right now. If you want to do video ripping and burning it gets even worse.

Here are some sites I found with helpful information on the topic:

• VideoHelp.com
• DigitalFaq.com
• CDR-Info.com

Have you ever walked down the aisles of Fry's, scanning over the myriad of USB memory devices, confusedly wondering which to choose? Ars Technica has just published a very thorough review. It's a great resource to demystify the choices.

Early this year, I wrote about my admiration for the Firefox web browser. That's an increasingly popular position. There is a growing number of Firefox supporters these days, ranging from the New York Times to my little sister.

An article in today's New York Times finds a lot of nice things to say about Firefox, and not much nice to say about Microsoft's Internet Explorer. The article notes that IE's market share is dropping for the first time in its product life. "Internet Explorer's share dropped to less than 89 percent, 5 percentage points less than in May. Firefox now has almost 5 percent of the market, and it is growing."

Some people are surprised to learn that wiener, my trusty old Inspiron 7000 laptop, runs on electricity, not coal. Amazing, but true.

Even more amazing, until recently, it was running on its original battery. Over the past six months, I've watched it go from over three hours of battery lifetime down to minutes and eventually nothing. A new replacement battery would cost about $150, which probably is more than the laptop is worth. While browsing through Discount Electronics one afternoon I found the battery I needed, new and still sealed, for fifty bucks. Huzzah, wiener would live!

This created a new problem: what to do with the dead battery. See, laptop batteries contain heavy metals that are highly toxic. You don't want to just toss them in the trash. Dell has been getting a lot of recognition for their new computer recycling program. Indeed, it looks like they have a great program if you are doing something like upgrading to a new computer system and want to discard your old one. It makes less sense if you just want to discard an old part, say a laptop battery.

I did some research on the battery disposal issue. I was pleased to find that the Rechargeable Battery Recycling Corporation, a non-profit public service organization, offers a searchable registry of local battery recycling organizations. A search found 80 locations in the Austin area. One location, a Batteries Plus store, was within walking distance of my house.

So I brought the dead battery to the store and told the clerk I had a laptop battery to dispose. He said, "I'll take it."

"Any charge?" I asked.

"Nope," he said.

So, wiener lives on, the waste products of its batteryectomy safely disposed. A shout-out to RBRC and Batteries Plus for their help.

Here are my answers to the Windows Desktop and Controls quiz.

Here is the second set of review questions for my Introduction to Computers students. The test is open book: you can use your notes. (You have been taking notes, haven't you?)

Here are my answers to the Keyboard and Mouse quiz.

Here are some review questions for my students in the Introduction to Computers class I am teaching.

Over the next few weeks I'll be teaching an Introduction to Computers class at the Conley-Guerrero Senior Activity Center. We'll cover Internet skills and basic office applications. But first things first: the students will have to get comfortable with the keyboard and mouse.

I've been reviewing resources on the net and found a few I like. Here are some of the links I've collected.