I’ve become increasingly aware of the knowledge gap many people have when they work on their PCs and the little things that I might do/have that make a big difference for me for my home computing experience. So, I thought it might be a nice idea to relay a few of the bare essentials that I think are important and I wouldn’t do without… all suggestions will cost not a single penny, and just a little bit of your bandwidth/time. Here goes…
1) Web Browser [time taken: 5~10 minutes]
Just get the latest iteration of the Firefox web browser (v3.5 at the time of writing). If you have never downloaded an alternative browser for your PC, you’re probably using IE v6.0, (or v7.0 if you’re on Windows Vista). You need to do yourself a huge favour and install a top quality, fast, and highly customizable platform upon which to interact with the internet.
The installer is very simple, just hit ‘Next’ a few times and you’re done. When it launches the browser itself, make sure and select to import all your settings from Internet Explorer. There are some things you will want to do almost immediately to Firefox to make your experience as smooth as possible.
- Download and install Flash Player: Get it here
- Download and install JAVA: Get it here
- Install the dictionary for your language as Firefox provides in-line spell checking: Get it here
That’s the basics sorted. There are thousands of add-ons for Firefox to do all manner of things and you can search and browse what’s available on the official add-ons portal.
2) VoIP: Skype [time taken: 5~10minutes]
Skype is a VoIP service that through software installed on your PC you can make and receive free voice calls with other users of the service, or make phone calls to standard landlines/mobiles at low cost.
Version 4.0 of Skype was released recently with lots of improvements, and most significant for me was the ability to store multiple phone numbers per contact, and also your contact list is now stored server-side.
There are some other services provided as well as the basic voice calls and chatting, so it’s worth looking around the site to see if some of them are applicable to you.
3) Multimedia Player: VLC [time taken: 3~5minutes]
There’s nothing worse on Windows XP than not being able to just throw in a DVD movie and expect it to play, but experience nothing but problems. I’ve gone through all this before and it was painful. That was until I found the VideoLAN (VLC) multimedia player. This little piece of kit plays everything! You never need to worry any longer about DVD regions and whether your DVD drive supports the particular region of the disk – VLC ignores all that nonsense.
VLC performs a whole host of other functions besides playing just your video files, but I’ll leave that to you to figure out if you’re interested.
4) PC remote access from anywhere: LogMeIn [time taken: 10~15 minutes]
This one really depends on whether you keep your PC turned on our not. Either way having it installed gives you the option to access your PC remotely now and again as you need it. It installs a small piece of software that stays connected to the service provider so that when you need to access your PC for whatever reason, you simply log into the website and launch a portal to your home PC’s desktop. It’s very quick, secure, and easy to use.
There is a Pro version of the LogMeIn software, but unless you need to transfer files, share files, or even stream music from your PC, there’s no need to pay for this.
5) Security: AntiVirus & Firewall [time taken: ~20 minutes]
If you’re currently paying for your antivirus software, then you’re spending money you don’t need to. I’ve always used, and never had a problem with, AVG AntiVirus Free Edition. It’s mature, light on resources, and fast .
Windows XP SP2 now comes with basic firewall protection so if you have this on, you’re in a much better position than having nothing. However, I do recommend installing some dedicated software for this purpose and ZoneAlarm Basic does this job, and does it well. After installation, as each program you launch starts up and initiates an internet connection, it will pop-up prompts for you to determine whether or not you would like that particular program to access the internet, or not. If you trust it, just check the box to not ask you any longer and click ‘Allow’. It will automatically create your firewall rules for you while you work based on your preferences.
The next step
The 5 suggestions above are just some of the very basic essentials I have on any personal desktop computer and installation time all-in is well under an hour (including download time depending on your connection speed)… it typically takes longer to download the installation packages than it does to set-up and configure the software.
Tags: computing essentials, Firefox, How-To, productivity, Skype
In Muhammad Yunus’ book, Banker to the Poor, the journey he takes from starting up his own crediting agency to institutionalising a new bank in Bangladesh is an inspiring one. There are a heap of things that could be said about this whole story, but I just want to focus in this article about the micro-credit system and how and why it works.
Tags: banker to the poor, banking, credit, Grameen, microcredit, poverty, poverty line, what is
If you are remotely socially conscious you need to watch this film. It’s 90 minutes long and worth every second of your time. Please watch the video on the link below and send it on. It will take you on a journey from the beginning to where we are at now and what’s in store as we continue to plunder.
The movie link: Home
Don’t think about it, click, watch and send it on 
Tags: Home movie
Ever since coming back from my detox-fasting program in Thailand in May, I have resolved to undertake a weekly 1-day fast to maintain my health or at least aim to keep it up to the levels I experienced when I left Thailand following the detox. I haven’t managed to put this into effect until now and this experience forms the basis for this particular article.
While on my fast I wrote an article to discuss the benefits, as I understood them, that come from fasting. Since then, my understanding of health and healthy living has increased dramatically and much of my pre-conditioning has fallen away the more I have been exposed to alternative discussions on health practices and medicine. Like what for example?
Take antibiotics… we pop them like smarties, or at least we used to. GPs and doctors have prescribed them quite freely ever since they were discovered and became the miracle cure in the early 20th Century. What harm can they do? They’re wonderful! They get rid of our illnesses and make us better. Or do they? Is that all they do? We have grown up with them and have never questioned the mainstream logic in this area. If the doctors and the powers that be say they’re okay, then they must be. Right?
Tags: 24 hour fast, detox, fasting, fruit smoothie, health, Personal Growth
While at university a decade ago I met some really fantastic people, some of which I’m still in regular contact with today, most of which however I’m not. It was at this time I had a friendship that was both wonderful and tragic all at once that taught me many things both about myself and about friendships in general. The most overriding lesson I learned about friendships, which has stuck with me even until now, is the principle of need that underwrites any relationship we ever have in our lives.
Even now, I have yet to be persuaded by either myself or others that this principles isn’t sound. Sometimes it’s not very clear to pick it out, other times it’s obvious what is at work either during or afterwards, but nevertheless, it is there.
Tags: 6 human needs, friendship, need, Personal Development, Personal Growth
This is a bit of a random post, somewhat outside of the normal theme of my writings of late. They’re usually a bit more structured and based on sky high principles of living a better life, but today, I feel like writing about a topic we all have to deal with: infatuation
Tags: acceptance, analysis paralysis, attraction, infatuation, love, Personal Development, Personal Growth
This is a follow up to my previous article on the benefits of undergoing a fast for the purposes of detoxification for your body. Probably best to give that a read if you haven’t already done so, and then coming back here again to see the aftermath.
Tags: colonic irrigation, detox, diet, ego, fasting, health, meditation, mindfulness, presence
I’d like to introduce you to the term ‘understatement’:
We are in very uncertain economic times.
So what’s new? What is new, is how you should handle your finances/money/wealth. Anyone who hasn’t been an adult during a depression will hopefully have realised by now that anything they have experienced up until this point will not have prepared them for what has happened, or what is going to happen. Once you accept that, you will then hopefully see that we are each of us all in the same boat. And that includes your “financial advisors”.
To wade through the mists here, I’m going to pose some important questions for you to consider. Hopefully by the end of those and a little discussion, you’ll have a idea of just what state you’re in and what you can do about it. Here goes…
Tags: banking, debt, depression, economy, gold, hyperinflation, inflation, investment, Manage your Money, money, recession, wealth preservation
At the time of writing, I am on day 6 of a 7-day fasting program. I came to the resort specifically for this purpose as I wanted to explore the idea and the benefits of such an undertaking on my body and mind. Wikipedia defines fasting as:
Fasting is primarily the act of willingly abstaining from some or all food, drink, or both, for a period of time. A fast may be total or partial concerning that from which one fasts, and may be prolonged or intermittent as to the period of fasting.
So this covers a whole range of fasts. It can be anything from a complete removal of all food and drinks (except water) to the removal of a certain food or food type for a defined period of time. Common fasting includes:
- ‘fruit juice’
- ‘raw food’ (only veggies and fruits)
- water (no food or drink of any kind)
The question I’ve been exploring is whether there are in-fact any benefits to taking this course of action. Much of my reading around the subject makes a lot of sense and indicates highly significant positives in undergoing a fast. The material also points to how this process forms a major part of religions, and has has been used in ‘ancient’ times and cultures regularly as a body cleansing technique and both a preemptive strike against, and a cure for, many body ailments.
Tags: colonic irrigation, detox, fasting, health
This isn’t a new term by any means, but it’s one that we all know but never really, really pay any close attention to. Are you living to work? Are you living practically hand-to-mouth? When you watch mainstream news programs on TV, or read in the newspapers about all the terrible things going on, and about poverty in particular, do you silently murmur your gratitude that it’s not you – that you have been blessed by being spared such a terrible fate? You’re not ‘poor’ afterall – you have a decent job, a nice house and maybe even a car or two…
…you have a decent job? Does this mean that you get up at the crack of dawn, throw some crappy cereal or toast down your gullet, rush out the door, only to spend the next 8~9hrs of your life at your office? Every day? What is decent about that?
Perhaps you love your work and maybe you really find true fulfillment from it, as it deeply resonates with who you are; it taps into your passions and allows you to express yourself creatively. If this is the case, then you are one of the lucky few and you probably will find no value from what I’m about to write. Alternatively…
Tags: acceptance, identity, life purpose, living to work, Personal Development, Personal Growth, planning, travel, vagabonding, working to live