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1029usr078198
Forum Admin
USA
333 Posts |
 Posted - December 23 2008 : 07:27:37
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Listen now. or Download the archive.
Question: I still have old DOS programs. What kind of problems might I run into if I get a new computer?
Answer: The first thing I’d strongly suggest is to upgrade to the Windows version of that program, or investigate switching to another program. I say that for two reasons. One: Support for DOS within Windows is waning. For instance, Windows Vista doesn’t support DOS applications that are full-screen, such as many of the old DOS games. Two: Parallel printers, long the standard for outputting paper stuff, are also becoming harder and harder to find. DOS can’t natively deal with USB anything. If you have a network, you can print on someone else’s printer from DOS no matter how that printer connects to the other computer. That being said, the biggest problem you’ll run into there is printer codes. Since Windows and Macs have become so pervasive in the industry, manufacturers don’t widely release their control codes. Since the manufacturer generally writes the driver for it, they don’t necessarily have a reason to maintain the same codes from printer model to printer model. Finally with regard to printers, computers themselves are less often equipped with parallel printer ports, so those are the main things you can expect when trying to run old DOS programs on newer computers.
Cool Site: Remember The Milk: I heard about this one on The Mike Tech Show. As its name suggests, remember the milk is an online to-do list. You can get this for your iPhone or Blackberry, Google Calendar and Twitter. So what? I can make to-do lists on paper, why is this better? Because remember the milk can send reminders via email, SMS, and several instant messenger applications like AOL IM, Gadu-Gadu, Google Talk, ICQ, Jabber, MSN, Skype and Yahoo! are all supported. You can track your to-do locations on a map so that you can optimize your stops. You can share tasks and lists, or add a task as easily as sending an email, even on your cell phone and more. You can set up an account for free and use the service, or sign up for the pro service for $25/year and they’ll throw in synchronization for your Blackberry, iPhone, or Windows Mobile smart phone, priority email support, and a warm fuzzy feeling.
Cool Gadget: Gyroscopic Golf Club: From DVICE comes the latest golfer’s gadget. Now, I’m like Mark Twain who said, “Golf is a good walk spoiled”, but for some reason, many pastors like to play golf. Well, for a couple of hundred bucks, you can get a club that will gently teach you to swing correctly. The Gyro Swing has a 20,000rpm gyroscope embedded in the driver’s head. A gyroscope tends to resist twisting motions, so this club will generate resistance if you try to swing it any way but straight. It’s made by SKLZ and takes 6 AA batteries to spin the gyro.
It's All “Geek” To Me: Big & Little Endian: Remember a few weeks back we talked about bits and bytes and how a nybble was half a byte? Well we geeks are not above being cutesy to give a name to something. Here’s one you can use at a Christmas or New Year’s Eve party. Ask if they know what Big Endian and Little Endian means. We’re not talking about baseball players in Cleveland, or High School Football players. This kind of Indian is spelled E-N-D-I-A-N. It describes which end is first, the big end or the little end. Here’s an example, say you want to write the number one hundred twenty three. In Big Endian, you’d write it as 1-2-3, in Little Endian, you’d write it as 3-2-1. So, impress your friends with your knowledge of Endians.
Links
Remember the Milk:
http://www.rememberthemilk.com
Gyroscopic Golf Club
http://dvice.com/archives/2008/12/the_high-tech_g.php
Gyroswing at GizmoWatch
http://www.gizmowatch.com/entry/gyroswing-golf-club-correct-swing-on-the-right-plane/
Remember the Milk
http://www.rememberthemilk.com
Big Endian on Wikipedia:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Big_endian |
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12/19/2008-DOS,RememberTheMilk,GolfClub,Endianness
