Question: A listener asks, "I have cable Internet service, and now I have another computer I want to connect. What do I need to do that?"
Answer: Good question. This is the time of year that kids come back home from college, and they bring their laptops with them. Now you have two computers and can't both get on the Internet at the same time. To fix this issue, you'll need two things. One is a wireless router. You can pick one up at Wal-Mart or just about anywhere, I personally recommend the Linksys WRT160, but just about any of them will do. If your cable modem is hooked to your computer with a network wire (it looks like a really heavy-duty telephone cord), just open the router box, pop in the disc, and do what it tells you. The instructions are illustrated with animated pictures that show you just what to do. That gets your router hooked into the network. If you have kids with laptops, you only have to give them the password so they can connect. If the computer in question is a desktop system, then you'll need to pick up a USB wireless adapter while you're at Wal-Mart getting the router. It's best to get a router and adapter that match brands, but that's not nearly so important now than it was in the past.
Cool Site: Disney Jr: This week, our cool site is Disney Junior. This is one of those Zak-approved sites, and it's done up in typical Disney fashion. Your kids can watch videos and episodes online at the site, sure. But that's just the beginning. The site has games and activities themed around each of the shows. There are prize certificates to be won and pages to print out and color. You can send e-cards to family and friends and learn to read along with stories about their favorite characters. This morning there was a recipe for a snack that looks like daisies, but is made of green beans, wheat tortilla, cheddar cheese, meatless pepperoni, and black olives. They also have recipes for birthday party food that is also themed around the various shows. In the "For Grown-Ups" section, you can find crafts and other fun ideas for stuff to do with your kids. So if you and your kids enjoy the Disney Channel's Disney Jr. line-up, check this site out.
Cool Gadget: Bike Handle Lock: From Geeek.com this week is a prototype from a student at the Savannah College of Art and Design named Jaryn Miller. He says that people who ride bicycles don't like to carry locks around with them, so sometimes their bikes get stolen. He's designed handlebars that transform into a lock. That solves the problem of forgetting to bring the lock, which is convenient for the rider, and it deters theft because the would-be thief would have to break the handlebars to steal the bike. It's a simple invention, but very often the simplest designs are the best. After all, look at the wheel itself - pretty simple contraption. By the way, this lock system also has a ring that will grab the back wheel, so when you combine that with having to break the handlebars to steal the bike, a potential thief will probably just grab the bike next to yours.
It's All "Geek" To Me: GIF: This week, we'll look at the term gif. Yes, JIF is the "correct" pronunciation. GIF is a picture format developed by CompuServe in 1987, before the Internet, back when 1200 baud dial-up was considered fast. It is therefore very compact but you can only have a palette of 256 colors. By contrast most photos need a palette in the millions of colors to depict everything well, so while this format is good for web graphics, it's not great for photos. However, unlike regular photos, a gif can include multiple frames, like videos and film, and therefore can be animated. If you're one of those folks who pronounce it GIF, that's OK because pronunciation of words is largely a matter of agreement, anyway. I mean, if you're understood, that's what’s most important.
