I do not like to write columns that relate to only a small segment of my readers but sometimes it is necessary.  Because of email requests these things pop up from time to time.  I have received several requests about this over the last couple of months.  So today I will explain an online application that will relate to people who use two products and wish to combine them.  Wouldn’t it be clever to combine calendars in Gmail and Microsoft Outlook?  For the past few years we have been able to do just that with this product.

For instance, I use Outlook for my main email application and have for many years.  For the majority of my personal email I use Gmail.com.  There is a lot to recommend Gmail.  Although I have written about Microsoft Live, my personal preference is Gmail.  That could be due more to familiarity with it and not that it is significantly better.  But if you care, try both and form your own opinion.  It is mostly personal preference.  And yes, before I get a bunch of emails from you other geeks, I know that I can read Gmail and all other email in Outlook.  That is what I do. 

OK, now back to the calendars.  I use Outlook’s calendar for all of my appointments and scheduling both for work and home.  Whether it is a meeting at work or a doctor’s appointment I post it there so that I will be notified at a time of my choosing.  I also use a BlackBerry which will sync to my Outlook calendar.  If you have a smart phone you need to check with your cell provider or phone manufacturer to find out how to do it( if you don’t already know.)

However, when I am online on a computer without Outlook on it or surfing the net and don’t want to start up Outlook it would be good to be able to use my calendar while online.  In steps a free application, Google Calendar Sync (bit.ly/google-cal-sync).  Once installed it will allow your two separate calendars to communicate with each other.

It is fairly easy to set up.  Follow the instructions on the site and you will be up and running in no time.  There are basically three settings you need to apply.  First, your Gmail account name and password (to access your online calendar) need to be entered.  Next, you will need to enter how you want to sync the two calendars (see the next paragraph) and how often you wish to sync them during the day.

The Sync Options have three choices.  First, would you like to sync the calendars both ways so that if you make a change on one it is updated on the other?  The next way syncs changes on your Gmail calendar up to your Outlook calendar.  The final way is to sync all of your Outlook appointments to your Gmail calendar but not to Outlook.

I run this application on several computers and they are all tied in to my main calendar in Outlook.  If you use Outlook 2010 there is an extra step that you will need to Google for a "how to" – isn’t that appropriate?

Tags: calendar, cloud, google, outlook, sync

Items discussed on today’s show:

From LifeHacker

• Five Best Places to Buy Cheap Textbooks

What’s Wrong with this Children’s Book?

Disk Erasers for when you sell or donate your PC

• Heidi Eraser (free)
• Active Kill Disk (not free, but much faster)

Tags: erase, erasing, hard drive, textbooks

I receive many emails with questions regarding RSS feeds, so it must be time to revisit them.

RSS means (pick one) “RDF Site Summary”, “Rich Site Summary”, or more commonly “Really Simple Syndication”.  There may be others out there.  I have no idea what the problem is with picking one name for this feature.   “Really Simple Syndication” seems to be the most popular.

How would you like to get regular revisions on sites you often visit without having to go there each time you want to check for new updates or “news feeds”?  That is RSS.  You can receive the site’s latest information whether text, audio, video or just about any other form of media in RSS feeds.

There are basically two steps for using RSS.

First you need a RSS Reader which allows you to read the news feeds.  Be aware…there are millions!  Try Google’s Reader and see what you get.  If you have a BlackBerry, as I do, you can use Viigo.com.  A good basic freebie is Bloglines.  You can also use Mozilla’s Firefox or Thunderbird.  The possibilities are endless.  The last one I will mention is “FeedReader” which is an old favorite of mine.  Just pick one out, and try it. If you like it, keep using it. If not, toss it since they are all free.

FeedReader is a good choice for a new person just starting out with RSS.  This is because it has several categories where “Feeds” are already set up.  You can play with them and see how they work before adding your own.  Also FeedReader looks a lot like a regular email program so you don’t have to get used to a new GUI (Graphical Use Interface).  Again, there are a multitude of readers out there — try them and find one you like.

All readers work very similarly, some just have more “buttons and bells”.  Usually you click on the category that you want to read, say “Sports, Baseball” and a list of recent news items will be made available.  Click on the item/feed you wish to read (there will be a sentence or two describing it) and enjoy.

Next, a site must be configured for a RSS “feed”.  You don’t have anything to do with that, it is done by the web site.

RSS feeds are usually very easy to spot.  Go to almost any news site and look for the standard RSS logo.  It is usually an orange square with rounded edges. There is a dot in the lower left corner with two arches pointing to the NE corner.  Give RSS feeds a try and you can stay up-to-date with many of your favorite sites.  I don’t use the RSS logo on my page.  It simply says, “Entries RSS“.

Click the orange link. When the page opens choose the area you like and copy the URL into your reader’s new feed area.  Experiment because you can add and delete feeds at will.

There are “feeds” for everything. Just find the orange emblem and try it.  Try one of my favorites at the Weather Channel.

Tags: Double Click, feed, Firefox, Gmail, google, microsoft, mozilla, news, rss

Someone sent me a site with an interestingly appropriate name, but you probably will not believe it.  Once you hear about it you may say, "That is really a very intelligent site."  Of course, you may also respond, "Ron is really weird!"  But either is OK with me…just read on.

First, I need to give you a little history on the "why" of this site.  I, along with many of my readers judging by the emails I receive, like going to movies on occasion.  Since my kids have grown up and left the nest, my wife and I have more time (and very slightly more money) to see movies at the Regal 14.  I won’t give you any more information than you need; however, occasionally when we go to a movie I may need to get up to, ah, you know, go get a popcorn and drink refill.  I never want to run out of the movie because I might miss something important.  Therefore, I wait…

Now enter, Run Pee (runpee.com).  Just as the name suggests, it lets you know when it is safe to run and well, you guessed it; go get a drink and popcorn refill.  Run Pee has a classy mission statement, "- to help you enjoy your movie going experience and relieve your bladder at the same time".  I told you…classy!

Let’s say for instance, you want to go see "The Expendables."  If you go to RunPee.com and look in the listing to the left you can see movie lists by date of release or the movie titles.  All you do is click the link for "The Expendables" and you get a page that loads saying the movie is 1 hour, 43 minutes long.   After that movie’s information loads you will see a timeline at the top of that section.  The timeline shows good times to leave the movie at 26, 48, 65 minutes into the movie.  

It also shares information on each "good time" to leave the movie.  At the 26 minute point it says to leave when, "Barney and Christmas are in the plane heading to scout the island."  It goes on to tell you that you have approximately 4 minutes to get back so you will not miss anything.

Run Pee gives you the option of clicking, "Click to view synopsis" for that time-marker; however, it may give away important details about that part of the movie – so proceed at your own risk.

If you try it out let me know what you think.

Tags: break, exit, leave, movie, movies, popcorn, Run Pee, stallone

Thanks for the emails I received regarding the last column about “Secure P@55w0rdz“.  Most of you commented on the spelling I used in that word.  That is somewhat standard usage by geeks.  I’m glad you enjoyed it.  Apparently it caused a few of you to increase your passwords’ difficultly level which is a good thing.  Several of you asked how to rate the strength of your password. Here is a site at Microsoft where you can check yours out, http://bit.ly/cG2pw0.

On to today… I received many questions about programs to read and send email.  Today we will look at some of the most popular free ones.  Don’t forget, “Ron likes free best!”, so that is all I will discuss today.

My old favorite was Microsoft Outlook Express; however, since companies always like to change things – they did.  With the dawn of Windows 7, OE was done away with and replaced by Windows Live Mail, explore.live.com/windows-live-mail.  This is a good email program but MS has something I like even better.  If you do not want to add another program to your computer, MS has an online version which includes even more.  There you will find email which does not require a download called Windows Live.  You can get to it the old way at hotmail.com or the new way at mail.live.com.  They go to the same site.

Next on my list is Thunderbird which is located at Mozilla.com.  If that address looks familiar to you it is because they are also the company which created Firefox (a great browser you could try while there).  Thunderbird has all the bells and whistles too, but make sure you only use IMAP in the setup if you know what it is.  I personally don’t care for IMAP but that’s just me.  To find out more about IMAP go to bit.ly/bYXOtk.

In my opinion those are the best for Windows users.  I would also like to mention that if you use Google’s Gmail account, they made a big change just this week.  Now Gmail is a little off topic since it is online only (although it can be added to the other two programs).  However, if you have multiple Gmail accounts you should use this new feature.

Log into your favorite Gmail account because this will be set to default.  Now, go to Settings / Accounts and Import / Google Account Settings and change “Multiple sign in” to on.  Then add your other Gmail accounts, follow the directions and you will like it.  After that you will be able to switch back and forth between those accounts without having to log off and back on.  Nice feature Gmail…thanks!

Tags: bit.ly, Firefox, Gmail, live mail, microsoft, mozilla, thunderbird

Lucy, You’ve Got Some Explaining to Do

I have this "pet peeve." I don’t have to deal with it very often, thank goodness, but I did this past week.

I needed to contact a company about a software issue.  Yeah, boring, but that’s part of what I do.  I called their 800 number and guess what happened next?   Yes!  You guessed correctly, I was put on HOLD.  I was put on hold for almost 25 minutes!  I hate it when that happens…don’t you?

Later in the week I stumbled, quite by accident, onto an extremely useful program for this exact situation.  You may find it useful if you have ever waited on terminal hold for a representative at a company to answer your call.

The application is called, "LucyPhone", named after the creator’s unborn daughter-at that time.  However, she ended up with a different name.  It is really very easy to use.  Once you go to the site you have three labeled "boxes" numbered 1-3.  First, you enter the number you wish to call (toll free only) or start typing the name of the company you are looking for.  There are many companies listed and you even have the option of adding another if the one you are looking for is not listed.  Once the correct number/company has been entered, you enter your phone number so you can be called back from the company via LucyPhone.  To finish, click Start and "Let Lucy set up the call between you & the company."  

I tried several numbers more than a few times, which I always do on programs I write about.  I like to make sure they do what they are supposed to before I share them with you.

I tried the first one that I had needed to contact earlier in the week.  I watched the LucyPhone website.  It shows your number, the number you are calling, the total call duration and how long you have been holding.  I later moved on to something else and forgot about the call after 10 minutes or so.  About 20 minutes later my phone rang and I was first greeted by, "Hi, it’s Lucy.  Press 1 to connect to your call."  Well that was just cool, especially since I had forgotten about it.  After pressing 1 on my phone I was talking to the rep.  Actually, I said something lame like, "Sorry, I got the wrong department", and then hung up.

I also tried LucyPhone with a toll free number which requires the number tree to be input.  You know the type; press 1 for this, 2 for that and 3 for whatever.  LucyPhone almost immediately called me back with the happy Lucy voice again and advised me to press 1 to make my selections.  It worked flawlessly.

There was only one "advertised" feature that didn’t work for me. This one says if you are put on hold again you can, " press ** to wait and be reconnected" when the person comes back, etc.  I tried that twice on the same number and was disconnected.  I was not called back.  I am not sure if this is Lucy’s fault or the fault of the company I called, but it was the only slight problem I had.

LucyPhone is currently in Beta now so we may see more changes and/or improvements. I spoke with Tom Oristain, the creator of the site and he says that after beta it will remain free; however, there may be some premium features for a small fee.

Tags: hold, lucyphone, on hold, phone, waiting

I received many questions after last week’s column about being hacked regarding passwords.  Some were about how to create good passwords and others like, “How do I remember my 194 accounts’ passwords?”

First, when creating passwords avoid the obvious.  Currently some of the top passwords in use in the US are qwerty, asdfgh, 12345678, your first, middle, or last names, names of pets, kids, parents, or significant other, birth dates, months, year of birth, street name and/or number, your car’s license plate, a difficult word from the dictionary, like ambrosia and the most obvious, “password”.  Are you using any of those?

Always use a combination of letters, numbers, upper-case and lower-case, and make sure the letters don’t spell anything … even backwards.  Something like “rQ7tXc5#T” would be good, but remember — you have to remember it.

Always use at least eight-characters in a password.  The odds of breaking one with eight characters are one chance in 2,821,109,907,456.  Hackers have tools which can hack any six-character password in less than 15 minutes, so always shoot for eight which could take years to unravel.   The first thing that it will do is run through every word in the dictionary, which only takes the first couple of minutes.  These apps also run the words backwards. That is the reasoning behind NOT using any word from a dictionary.

Make a cryptic password from a song, slogan, or quote with a date.  Use a slogan like, “Don’t leave home without it”.  Take the first letter from each word and blend in your year of birth.  You come up with something like “D1l9h6w8i!” and you have a fairly easy to remember but “un-interpretable” password.  Notice the use of different cases, numbers and symbols.  Also, notice the title to this column.  Use various symbols for letters.  You can use “@” for “a”, “3″ for “e”, the lower case “L” for the number one, etc.  Be creative, you are the only one who has to understand your secret code!

Don’t give your password to anyone!  If you check with your work IT or HR department you will find that many corporations have an immediate dismissal policy for sharing.

Last, but by no means least, watch out for people who are exceptionally skilled in reading keyboards…upside-down.  I have a coworker who has a doctorate in upside-down keyboard translation.

Now I will explain my amazing ability for remembering many, many usernames and passwords.  KeePass is a handy free program that will hold all of your usernames and passwords and protect them all with one password.  Just make sure if you use KeePass or one of the many other Password Storage apps that you use a super-duper password to secure that application.  I prefer KeePass since I have a Blackberry phone and the program has a Blackberry app that hooks the computer and phone together.  That way I have my usernames and passwords with me all the time.

Tags: password, passwords, safety, security, username, web site

I recently received a distressing email from Barbara, Broadway, VA, about being hacked.  Her email started like this, "Yesterday I got up, turned on my computer, and found that my Gmail had been hacked…"  Once they had her email address it allowed them to gain control of her Facebook account too.

Her passwords were not accepted and her alternate Gmail address had been changed to one that she didn’t own.  (Gmail and other online email apps use an alternate to contact you in case something detrimental happens on their site and they need to get a hold of you.  I have never had the need for one yet.)  The hacker had also gone on to delete her address book and all of her contacts in it. 

Of course, all of her email was deleted…or so she thought.  She found later, after communicating with Gmail that all of her Sent mail had been put into her Junk folder, so at least she still had those.  They had forward all of her incoming emails to another account of theirs.  If your Gmail account is hacked you may want to read this and check a few account settings http://bit.ly/9u1CZi.

Why do we get hacked?  As Barbara later discovered it was not someone local who got into her accounts.  They were hacked by someone or some organization in Nigeria.  The bad guys are usually hoping to get your bank account numbers, charge card info, etc.  They also may want to run scams on your friends, making them think you are excited about something the hacker can make money on.  The reasons are endless.

Barbara has not been the only one in the area to be hacked, so do not think it can’t happen to you.  Please take preventative action online or you may have some headaches.

At this time there isn’t any way to stay absolutely "unhackable" but there are things you can do to help prevent it.  First and foremost, make your passwords hard for others to get.  Make sure they are at least eight characters long.  Use upper case, lower case and symbols in your passwords.  Absolutely do not use the same password on all of your accounts.  If you do, when they get one, they get them all and your info is theirs!  Change your passwords several times a year.  If you don’t use an account, close it down.

I have over 194 different password protected sites I keep up.  Yes, I have a super-human photographic memory.  I remember each and every password for each individual site.  NOT! More about that in the near future.

Tags: Email, facebook, Gmail, hack, hacked, hijacked

Mentioned on the show this morning:

• Cup of Joe for a Joe
  –> Someone from home wants to say thanks and send you a FREE cup of coffee.
  –> Participation in Cup Of Joe For A Joe is restricted to active duty Armed Services Personnel deployed in support of OEF or OIF.
• Mystery Guest, Inc.
  –> Share your thoughts on a dining experience in chosen restaurants in your area.  (Not any in our area…yet.)
• PhotoWipe (main site)
  –> PhotoWipe is a revolutionary imaging tool that magically removes unwanted objects from your photos. Just paint over them in black, and click go! Uncovers hidden details. Sit back and watch as cage bars disappear from the zoo, and your old boyfriend or girlfriend fades away. And best of all, it’s completely free!
  –> Two other freebies are at this site too.  “Shark Ticker” and one with a good name going for it, “Banshee Screamer Alarm“.

Tethering your HTC phone may not always be possible.  It depends on the phone and the service provider.  But here is somewhere to start looking.  Google for your HTC phone and provider and see what will and won’t work.

Apple tells us about antenna attenuation.

What is Steve Jobs’ actual email address and will “he” be the one responding to you?

Hopefully get a quicker talk with the higher ups at a company by asking to, “Please, escalate this call.”

See you next month, Monday, August 16 at 10:00 am.

Ron